Choking down 1" on short irons makes me hit further

[brg1875]

Hey all,

I went to measure my new irons today to get some data and what really dumb founded me that when I went to choke down 1" on my short irons (50* Gap and 45* PW) they were longer or the same distance (carry). The 9 iron showed what I was looking for and expecting (3-4 yard difference). When I was hitting the balls I didn't look at the numbers of each shot, I took 10 good swings and then looked at the averages when I was done. Let me know your guys' thoughts...not sure if it was just a fluke but I didn't feel like I was trying to swing any differently. I hit about 9-10 balls to get a good average and the ones that I didn't put a good swing on I deleted it from the average itself. The only thing I can think of is I took full swings with the GW,PW and 9i then did 1/2 and 3/4 swings to get those averages with the 3 clubs and then went back and hit the clubs full swing 1" choked down.

 

See the data below:

 

 

Full gap wedge - 115 carry

1" Choked down - 120 carry

 

Full PW - 137 carry

1" down - 137 carry

 

9 iron - 151 carry

1" down - 148 carry

 

 

http://imgur.com/a/wOLkZ

[saevel25]

As long as you improve contact to the point that you consistently get higher ball speeds you can swing slower and average more distance. 

[JonMA1]

Did you have the new irons fitted @brg1875?

[brg1875]

Yeah I did, I went to a local Golf Digest Top 100 fitter. They're Mizuno JPX-900 Forged by the way .

[JonMA1]

Nice on the JPX 900's.

Well, I'm glad you found a way to get a few more yards. I choke down a bit with all my clubs and seem to get better results in the form of better contact - especially the driver. But I've never done any comparison testing as you have.

[Ernest Jones]

Centre face contact (or closer to)...

[brg1875]

This was literally day 1 hitting these new clubs so maybe I shouldn't put too much stock in this until I have a few times at the range. 

[carpediem4300]

in the fitting did they do length/lie or just flex/kickpoint?

My last driver fitting they only did flex/kickpoint and i completely forget to ask them to check the length and ive ended up with a 45.5" driver which is 1.5" too long for me, the driver I had previous to this one was fitted for all 4 variables and using wrist to floor etc etc, i hit my old driver at 44" just as long as my new one but with better dispersion because i can control it better

[brg1875]

Yeah he did flex and kick point. The Mizuno DNA fitting analyser was pretty neat, got us pointed in the right direction and then took it from there trying shafts.

[carpediem4300]

Could just be because they are new, perhaps lookup your height v wrist to floor measurement and see if it suggests any difference to standard length?

[brg1875]

I'm 6'4", he measured for that as well we added 1" on everything. I'm going to head back to the same simulator today and try to hit again at 1" down and 1.5" to see if it makes a difference. 

[Vinny Cap]

I had a similar experience with my new Mizuno's.  I am 6'5 1/2" and usually add 1" to my irons.  I got some MP 67's and they are 1/2" longer and I have been hitting them 1 to 1 1/2 clubs longer through the entire set.  I am comparing the data to my set of Miura MC102's.  3 - 6 are 1 & 1/2 clubs longer and 7 - W are 1 club longer.  I have not changed anything in my swing and the lofts on the Mizuno's are stronger by a couple of degrees.  Not sure how this can happen but I have adjusted to this and just go with the flow.

[newtogolf]

Shorter clubs are easier to make better contact with, as others have said, by choking down you may be making better and more frequent contact with the sweet spot.  I'd try using some impact tape and see if choking down improves consistency of where the ball is hitting the club face.  

It's also possible you're prone to flipping the club and by gripping down a bit more that isn't happening.  

[Buckeyebowman]

15 hours ago, brg1875 said:

I'm 6'4", he measured for that as well we added 1" on everything. I'm going to head back to the same simulator today and try to hit again at 1" down and 1.5" to see if it makes a difference. 

Sorry, but I'm confused. Why would you add 1" on "everything", whatever that means. Does this include your wrist to floor measurement or just the length of clubs you think you should be playing?

Just on the face of it, if you tell me that you hit your clubs better when you grip down on them an inch, my inclination is going to be to tell you that your clubs are an inch too long!

[Keep It Simple]

I spend more time working on setup and placing the ball perfectly in my stance so I catch it in the sweet spot each swing.  That is my first key when I am at the range working on distance.  So if choking down helps you find the sweet spot more often then I say stick with it.  Working on speed is also important but it's a wasted effort if the smash factor isn't there.  

Edited November 18, 2016 by Keep It Simple
typo