Any Golf Players?

[KLHJ2]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

A buddy of mine is giving me some pointers so it's not like I'm just going out there on my own (and my father in law also gave me some pointers) but just don't have time this summer for formal lessons.

thanks for all the tips guys

Can you explain to me what to expect from the different irons? I know in some cases height is better than distance in regards to the irons, correct?

There are 3 types of irons: Short irons, medium irons, and long irons.

The short irons P, 9, 8 provide more loft and less distance because the heads have a greater angle they are also physically shorter on length of shaft. Because of this they require you to place the ball about 1 to 2 inches back from center in your stance.

7, 6, and 5 are mid irons and provide more distance and less loft than the short irons. The heads have slightly less angle and are physically longer than the short irons. Ball placement is usually in the middle of your stance.

4, 3, 2, and 1 (2 and 1 are not in bold because they are not typical) are long irons and provide the greatest distance with the least amount of loft. They have less angle and are longer than the Mid irons. Ball placement is 1 to 2 inches forward from center of your stance.

In general each club is going to yield 10 to 15 yards difference in distance, and increase/decrease loft depending on if you are clubbing up or clubbing down.

Example if you hit a 7 iron 150 yards then you 6 iron should get you 160-165 yards because the head provides less loft. At the same time your 8 iron should get you between 135-140 yards, but with a higher trajectory.

Make sense, or did I miss your question?

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Each iron is meant to achieve a different distance. It depends upon how fast you swing and your form, but for the average beginner golfer a 3 iron might go 180. 4 iron goes 170, 5 iron 160, 6 iron 140, and so on.

Once you get your swing down, try your irons at the driving range to get a feel for how far each flies. It's important to know your distances if you want to hit greens with semi-regularity.

Should the all go relatively the same height though, or are some meant to give a higher lift on the ball?

[SmootSmack]

Originally Posted by Angry

There are 3 types of irons: Short irons, medium irons, and long irons.

The short irons P, 9, 8 provide more loft and less distance because the heads have a greater angle they are also physically shorter on length of shaft. Because of this they require you to place the ball about 1 to 2 inches back from center in your stance.

7, 6, and 5 are mid irons and provide more distance and less loft than the short irons. The heads have slightly less angle and are physically longer than the short irons. Ball placement is usually in the middle of your stance.

4, 3, 2, and 1 (2 and 1 are not in bold because they are not typical) are long irons and provide the greatest distance with the least amount of loft. They have less angle and are longer than the Mid irons. Ball placement is 1 to 2 inches forward from center of your stance.

In general each club is going to yield 10 to 15 yards difference in distance, and increase/decrease loft depending on if you are clubbing up or clubbing down.

Example if you hit a 7 iron 150 yards then you 6 iron should get you 160-165 yards because the head provides less loft. At the same time your 8 iron should get you between 135-140 yards, but with a higher trajectory.

Make sense, or did I miss your question?

Perfect answer. Thanks!

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Bet I can take your money

I bet you can too. What's your HC?

[FRPLG]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

A buddy of mine is giving me some pointers so it's not like I'm just going out there on my own (and my father in law also gave me some pointers) but just don't have time this summer for formal lessons.

thanks for all the tips guys

Can you explain to me what to expect from the different irons? I know in some cases height is better than distance in regards to the irons, correct?

Thats the way I approached it and I don't think my swing is horrible but right now I am just basically waiting for the time and circumstances where I can really rework everything into something more consistent and manageable.

I tend to be very competitive so when I golf I want to be good at it. Playing and struggling to break 100 half the time got old.

Hopefully the long layoff will alow me to forget a lot of my bad habits so I can start clean again some day.

I wish I was good at golf.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by firstdown

I bet you can too. What's your HC?

From what you were saying we're in the same ballpark. I was at about a 6 at the end of last summer but haven't played much this year due to a new baby coming into our lives.

If I went out right now I'd probably shoot right around 80, my touch on the greens would suffer. Always takes a few rounds to get that back.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by SmootSmack

Should the all go relatively the same height though, or are some meant to give a higher lift on the ball?

The peak height that the ball reaches, believe it or not, doesn't vary all that greatly from club to club. There's some variance but not that much. What changes is how fast the ball gets up in the air.

A 9 Iron is a high-loft club, and thus will pop up in the air very quickly. A 3 Iron is a low-loft club and will take longer to reach its peak trajectory. But it also travels further than the 9, taking longer to reach the peak.

So if you're hitting the clubs the right way, the trajectory of the ball as it falls towards the green should be about the same whether you hit a 9 or a 3. What makes holding a green so tough with a 3 Iron and so easy with a 9 has more to do with the spin on the ball than the trajectory.

Sometimes a 9 iron or P wedge is called for when you have a tree 40 yards in front of you and you need to get up over it.

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

From what you were saying we're in the same ballpark. I was at about a 6 at the end of last summer but haven't played much this year due to a new baby coming into our lives.

If I went out right now I'd probably shoot right around 80, my touch on the greens would suffer. Always takes a few rounds to get that back.

We have a 2 1/2 year old and she does cut down on my playing time. My wife also is now a full time mom and she did work in my office so getting out on Friday afternoon for a round is much harder. I actually find that when I play less golf I usually play better and I think part of that is my body forgets the bad habbits I get into when I play more often. Hae you had leasons in the past or are you self taught? Alot of the guys I play with play several times a week and most of then have a hard time getting into the 80's. I just don't understand why someone who loves golf and plays all the time refose to take leasons to get better at the game.

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

The peak height that the ball reaches, believe it or not, doesn't vary all that greatly from club to club. There's some variance but not that much. What changes is how fast the ball gets up in the air.

A 9 Iron is a high-loft club, and thus will pop up in the air very quickly. A 3 Iron is a low-loft club and will take longer to reach its peak trajectory. But it also travels further than the 9, taking longer to reach the peak.

So if you're hitting the clubs the right way, the trajectory of the ball as it falls towards the green should be about the same whether you hit a 9 or a 3. What makes holding a green so tough with a 3 Iron and so easy with a 9 has more to do with the spin on the ball than the trajectory.

Sometimes a 9 iron or P wedge is called for when you have a tree 40 yards in front of you and you need to get up over it.

Have to say I totally disagree with what Schneed has said in this post. If you watch the pros play yeaterday the announcers commented about hitting longer shots into the greens with a lower trajectory and them bouncing through the green. What he said might pertain to his game but I'd say most golfers hit a 9 iron much higher then a 3 iron.

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by firstdown

Have to say I totally disagree with what Schneed has said in this post. If you watch the pros play yeaterday the announcers commented about hitting longer shots into the greens with a lower trajectory and them bouncing through the green. What he said might pertain to his game but I'd say most golfers hit a 9 iron much higher then a 3 iron.

Depends, there are tons of ways a pro can hit a 4 Iron. They can cut it and take it high or draw it and keep it low to bore through the wind.

There's a difference, but if you're hitting your 3 Iron only half as high as you're hitting your 9, then you're not hitting your 3 correctly.

[FRPLG]

Originally Posted by firstdown

Have to say I totally disagree with what Schneed has said in this post. If you watch the pros play yeaterday the announcers commented about hitting longer shots into the greens with a lower trajectory and them bouncing through the green. What he said might pertain to his game but I'd say most golfers hit a 9 iron much higher then a 3 iron.

The difference isn't the height it is the trajectory and ball speed. It will go a similar height but a 3 iron will maintain velocity on a high plane for a longer time while a 9 iron will reach peak height quickly and come down sooner (due to a loss of efficiency in energy transfer because of the greater angle of the face of the club). Throw a ball straight up at x speed and it will reach a certain height and come straight down in the same spot as it was launched. Throw the ball out towards the horizon at a slightly greater speed (accounting for energy loss) and it will reach a similar height but come down much further away of course and take a bit longer to reach the ground. Plain physics. Of course golf shots don't all take place in a vacuum and there are dozens of variables that contribute to the height and speed of a struck ball.

[firstdown]

Originally Posted by Schneed10

Depends, there are tons of ways a pro can hit a 4 Iron. They can cut it and take it high or draw it and keep it low to bore through the wind.

There's a difference, but if you're hitting your 3 Iron only half as high as you're hitting your 9, then you're not hitting your 3 correctly.

Well first off I'm not a pro. I agree I might hit my 5 iron as high as my 9 and maybe my 4 might go as high but my 3 iron I know does not go as high.

[BDBohnzie]

SS - as others have said, work your way from pitching wedge back up to 3 wood. Leave the driver in the bag until you are comfortable hitting the 3 wood consistently. When I first started out, I hit 5 wood off the tee because I was consistently in the fairway with it.

For me, I'm much more comfortable with my odd number clubs so if I go to the driving range, I'll leave them in the bag and hit wedge, 8, 6, 4, 3 instead of wedge, 9, 7, 5, 3 (I always hit wedge and I'm very clumsy with my 3 iron). I might hit my last 10-20 with my driver, but take my time in doing so to unwind a bit.

And if your driving range has it, go hit off the grass. Those turf mats are great for consistent lie, but you won't have that consistency when playing on a course.

And for reference I'm about 175 with my 5 iron and 150 or so with my 7 iron. I remember when I first started being around 150 with my 5 iron...

[Monkeydad]

Had arm surgery and can't play this year, but I usually do.

I'm not very good but it's fun. Although, I'm a very good putter...just getting to the green takes a while.

[skinsfan69]

Originally Posted by saden1

I'm curious if anyone in here plays golf? I just started playing a month ago and I'm having a blast so far. I'll need to buy my own clubs pretty soon, any recommendations?

I've been playing for 12 years. I love it and play to about a 12. My best suggestion is to get with a known local pro who isn't too expensive and take lessons. He'll also show you how to buy clubs and get fitted. DO NOT get caught up in buying expensive clubs at first. Invest in your swing, not your clubs.