Iron Play
Learn how to hit your irons like a pro at golftipsmag.com. Whether it's developing the perfect impact position or rotating efficiently, you'll learn how to hit a golf iron shot the right way. Get iron shot tips now.
Heads Up! If you’ve been told the key to better ballstriking is to keep your head down, odds are you’re a golfer who puts a slice on the ball. Also, you’re a victim of bad advice, since keeping your head down can cause a variety of swing (and back) problems. Keeping your head down on your backswing actually will cause your head to get in the way and restrict your body turn. This means your arms and upper body will lift upward instead of around, and you’ll swing with an upright, outside-in swing path. |
Sweetspot: Luke DonaldGet your irons in check by observing one of the best ballstrikers in golf Since his early days playing for England on two Walker Cup teams and making noise as an NCAA star at Northwestern, Luke Donald has had PGA Tour success in his sights. Having already cracked the top-60 in career earnings with more than $12 million to his credit, you’d have to say he’s right on track. |
Pro ContactLearn how to hit your irons like a pro There’s nothing in golf quite like making pure contact. If you’ve never felt an absolutely pure golf shot, then you must keep reading, because I’ve got a method that will allow you to achieve this magical feeling! If you have experienced this sensation, then chances are it’s the main reason that you’re hooked on this great game. And if you love golf, I’m sure you’d like to learn to make that pure contact more consistently. |
Rotate Efficiently If you want to increase your ballstriking ability, you need to understand how to rotate your hips properly in the golf swing. Most amateur golfers rotate their hips too far during the backswing, which makes it difficult for them to get their hips to open up to the target at impact, a key component of a successful swing. |
Stay In Your K Even good golfers with sound, grooved swings come untracked now and then, especially if they lose the flex in the back leg trying for distance. If you stiffen your back leg during the backswing, your body will likely tilt out of balance, making it tough to re-flex the knee just the right amount in time for impact. If you can play some great golf, but consistency is your problem, it might be that you need a dose of Special K. Here’s how it works. |
Hinge For Power Amateurs have problems hitting crisp iron shots due to two fatal flaws.
First, the takeaway tends to be too low to the ground, which delays the
proper hinging of the wrists until too late in the backswing. Second,
in a misguided effort to create power, the arms tend to swing too far
in the backswing. This causes a breakdown in posture and usually leads
to a reverse pivot. These flaws cause mis-hits and a lack of distance
and control. |
Five Fundamentals Of Iron PlayImprove your scoring by refreshing yourself with the must-know components of the iron swing We admit, blasting a huge drive is a ton of fun. Nothing beats
splitting the fairway with every ounce of swing speed you have,
watching the ball soar for what seems like miles in the air and basking
in the success of the result. But what’s a 300-yard drive if you can’t
hit the green on your second shot? Worthless! |
Red-Letter DaysUse the alphabet to groove a solid, power-rich, accurate swing Good days and not-so-good days on the course are part of golf, creating the personal challenge avid players crave. For most golfers, good rounds are those defined by solid ballstriking with ideal direction, distance and trajectory. It’s these special red-letter days—the days when golf seems effortless—that every golfer wants more often. |
Bermuda Blues If you’re planning a golf vacation this winter, be prepared to face a course element common to most tracks in Hawaii, Arizona and Florida: Bermuda grass. If you’re not accustomed to playing on this type of turf, you may be surprised at how it can affect your game, both on the fairway and the putting surface. |
Swing Extremes: Impact Position All good players have one position in the golf swing that’s similar despite their very different-looking swings. This position is impact. Good players retain their wrist-cock through the hitting area so that their left wrist is bowed and the right wrist is flexed (for right-handed golfers), and both hands are slightly in front of the golf ball at the strike. |
Swing Extremes: Swing Plane Professional and low-handicap golfers consider the swing plane to be one of the most important concepts in golf. Swing plane directly relates to how straight, high and far one can hit the ball. At the same time, swing plane is one of the most intimidating terms for high-handicappers, simply because they’re not sure what a swing plane is, let alone what a good one looks like. |
