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Date Posted: 11:25:07 04/02/10 Fri
Author: Thomas (Skeptical optimist)
Subject: Looking for feedback from low handicap players

I do believe that the standard length/lie concept is very interesting and I am looking for feedback from low handicap players that have tried this. I used to be a 4, now I am a 7 handicap, mostly due to a deteriorated short game. I do struggle from time to time with the long irons and since the 7 or 8 iron is probably my favorite club, I am intrigued with the standard length concept. However, my concern is that I will struggle to adjust with my scoring clubs (PW through LW) due to the increased length of those relative to my current (standard length) clubs. Also, I was looking to possibly switch to blades e.g. Mizuno for their increased feel/ability to work the ball and I am wondering if anyone has any experience with comparing such blades with the 1 Iron Golf irons, particularly the wedges.

Appreciate any feedback that anyone can provide me with.

Regards,
Thomas

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Replies:

[> Re: Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Roy Reed (R2), 22:50:24 04/03/10 Sat

Tom: Just a couple of thoughts. I like blades a lot, and have played both steel and graphite blades, but personally, the 1-Irons are much, much easier to control and far more accurate from 90 yards in than any blade out there, period! I own all four of the wedges and the yardage gap is very, very consistent at 10 yards/wedge. I keep a "reminder" card attached to my bag so once I know the distance, it's a simple matter to pick the correct club to get the job done. I love the fact that all my irons are the same length, therefore same set-up, alignment, swing, ball position, stance and timing sequence. Also, you are correct about adjusting to the new single-length clubs. You do have to get used to them and make minor adjustments. My WTF is 34" and all my 1-Irons are the same length as my old 9-iron (about 36"). It took me a couple of months to "mentally retrain" to start hitting them well. Now I would never, ever consider any other club to play with. Let me throw something else in, too. I switched from a standard putter to a 51", double grip side-saddle putter. Best putter decision I ever made ( I shaved 3-4 strokes per round). It is so much easier to stand tall, face your target and simply putt the ball to the pin than it is to hunker over and try to align thru "side-sighting" the target. Remember, nearly 80% of the game of golf is played within 100 yards of the pin. Every putt you can save and every chip you can make will dramatically lower your score. Good luck and let us know what you do. Hit em straight! R2


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[> [> Re: Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Ray, 20:27:46 02/11/11 Fri

One thing that really helped my game, once I decided which club to hit, was to completely ignore which iron I was hitting and the distance involved. It took a little time to condition my mind to this, but it works. After address and final alignment, I concentrate on the left edge of the ball (the edge away from the club) and am not conscious of seeing the club.

I made my own "single" length irons back in the '90s, after reading about the ones by Tommy Armour, and utilized this method of ignoring the club and the distance. I dropped 9 strokes the first time I played them, because every club swung the same, ball position was the same, alignment was the same, etc., much more consistent ball striking.


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[> Update - Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Thomas, 08:43:23 07/06/10 Tue

So I figured that the only way to know is to actually test the clubs myself. After the first visit to the range after I got my new irons I am definitely positive, although I clearly have "issues". I went to the range with the 3 iron, 7 iron and SW. I like the feel of the club(s) and I hit the 7 iron well, which I typically do so so far so good. However, it is as if my mind "knows" that I am holding the 3 iron or SW (even though the length is the same) and makes adjustments even though I am trying to swing the same with the same ball position. I did hit the 3 iron more solidly than normal but the ball flight is really low, picture half the height of Tiger's stingers. I would have trouble hitting a shot that low on purpose with my traditional clubs. I know that I don't have a lateral move to the right in the backswing (which is the reason I have played a lot better in recent years) but I definitely make a lateral move to the left in the downswing so I will work on trying to reduce/eliminate that. That should help with the low ball flight I hope. I can't at this point imagine that I will ever hit my new irons higher than my traditional irons but if I do it would be great since my ball flight was always on the low side.

Every time I switched to the SW, the club suddenly felt longer than the 7 iron, even though it isn't, which is telling me that I automatically and subconsciously am altering my setup. I have been playing golf with traditional clubs for 25 years so I guess that makes sense. Did anyone else experience this their first time out with the new clubs? I am sure this will go away but it was interesting to experience.

Looking forward to the next range session, hopefully with fewer issues and higher 3 iron trajectories.


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[> Re: Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Michael, 10:44:39 07/06/10 Tue

Thomas,

I love how you describe yourself (skeptical optimist). You should be. Being a low handicap player is not easy to attain or maintain. At your level only things that you totally feel comfortable with should be added to your game (swing theory, clubs, putters, etc.)

We have about the same kind of game. I shot 2 over in my 9 hole league today. I missed two critical putts. It seems the short game is the main thing I need to work on at this point.

My favorite set of clubs up until I started using my 1 Irons was my 1972 Ben Hogan Apex blades. I loved how I could work the ball either way. I loved how they looked. Nothing looks as good as a set of Hogan or Mizuno blades, IMHO.

I eventually came to the conclusion that as much as I loved my blades they were not truly helping my game. At times I would miss a green short if I took an aggressive play into the green (for example, for me a 9 iron at 150 to minimize the chance of going over the back, 8 iron being my normal 150 club). With my 1 Irons I am able to play smart and aggressive golf, and my scores are the better for it.

I personally use the 1 Iron Driver and 3 Wood in addition to 1 Irons from 3 through lob wedge. I too was skeptical of the wedges, but I am happy I made the move.

As a low handicap player, play with what you trust will help your game. Confidence will do more to help your game than anything else. I will tell you the 1 Iron wedges give me a lot more confidence than when I was using my forged Cleveland wedges. For me it is all about consistent set up and ball position. That consistency is a big plus for me.

Hope this helps.

Michael


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[> [> Re: Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Walt, 14:01:49 02/19/11 Sat

Thomas. David Lake gave me a tip that worked like magic. Try this with your irons. Take the iron that you hit the best and the iron that you cannot hit at all to the range. Hit the "Good" iron once then hit the "Bad" iron once and repeat the drill. Try to use the same rhythm, length of backswing and force for each club. I used the PW and 3-iron. Once it "clicked" for me, I could not tell which club I was swinging. The result was the longest 3-iron shots I have ever hit that flew higher than a five Iron from my old set of clubs.
Remember, you cannot try to swing the 3 any harder than you swing the PW. Good luck keeping the stuff between your ears under control.


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[> Re: Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Thomas (More optimistic than skeptical), 16:16:42 07/12/10 Mon

Golfers love to talk about their rounds and if/how/why/why not their game is improving, regardless of whether the other party actually is remotely interested in hearing about it. So in the spirit of that, here is my latest update.

First of all, thanks to R2 and Michael for the feedback. Definitely helpful.

After three more trips to the range, where I hit WAY too many balls during the first two (despite being told not to, go figure), I must say that me and my new 3i are really starting to get along. How well is directly correlated to the height of my 3 iron trajectory. I followed David's advice on only bringing the 3i and really re-focusing between shots, which in retrospect I should have done two sessions ago. I also focused on turning (and turning only) with no deliberate shift in either direction. I have had little to no lateral shift in my backswing for several years due to a prior swing change so that part is "easy". However I still have a tendency to shift my weight forward in the downswing so my main focus is on staying behind the ball. One of the absolute most important "keys" to me hitting a good shot is that I have a deliberate tilt (right shoulder lower than the left for a right handed player) when I address the ball and maintaining that through impact. This is something that is almost never stressed enough in most golf instruction that I have come across in my 25 years of golfing, but is a must in my opinion. I also make sure that my left wrist is flat at address (grip end of shaft slightly in front of the ball) since for me that drastically increases the likelihood of solid, crisp contact with the ball at impact. The really cool (for me at least) feeling I got today was that I felt as comfortable standing over my 3i as I usually feel over my 7i and the dispersion of my shots also resembled what I get with my 7i. The trajectory is still not as high as I want it to be, but it has gotten better (higher) and I hit a few shots today that might even have stayed on the green if it landed on it. It would probably require a large green, wet conditions and a strong headwind but it is still a great improvement over my first session with my new 3i when I only hit line drives that rolled 50+ yards. At this point, I think I have lost most of those who started reading my "interesting" update but for those of you who are still reading, I appreciate your diligence.

Thomas


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[> Update 2: Looking for feedback from low handicap players -- Thomas (Pretty optimistic), 06:08:55 04/10/11 Sun

First, thank you Walt and Ray for your additional comments.

I just got back from a week of golf in Spain and I am now definitely in the category of "no way I am giving these irons back". Before starting this season about two weeks ago, I had not touched my irons for six months. That appears to have worked like magic because when I started hitting my 1irons again, all of the clubs felt the same. The awkward feeling I had last year with the SW feeling very long was completely gone. Also my initial concerns about losing accuracy with the scoring clubs have vanished and I feel I have at least the same precision with my 1iron GW, SW and LW as I had with my old conventional irons.

The last day of the five rounds we played in Spain, I shot 1 under on the first nine with 7 GIR. I have shot similar scores before but never in the first week of play for the year. I am now strongly considering also getting the woods since that is now by far the weakest part of my game.

If anyone who reads this have concerns similar to what I had a year ago (see my initial post in this thread), I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have.

Thomas


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