[Vjwkvkoy]

I've seen many references to "hitting down" on irons, and taking a divot after the ball. The better players that I've played with seem to do this, they get a definite "thump" at impact and seem to have their hands in front of the clubhead. Their ball starts low, climbs, then drops.

I currently hit a ridiculously high ball. I play MX-23s with stock TT Dynalite S300s, and recently picked up MP-52 with PX5.5s. Both sets, hit the ball very high. I've hit MP60s with DG S300s, same thing, very high although my understanding is the DGs are supposedly low launch. In many cases this fall when the greens were a little softer, I would hit a ball that would crater into the green and not pop out of the ballmark because it's falling straight down, anything from a 7iron down. I've never seen anyone else do this on normal (no recent rain) greens and I was doing it 2-3 times a round.

I'm working on my swing, taking the ball more down the line on the backswing versus inside. I still miss easy shots from the fairway more then I'd like. I'm not looking for distance right now, my stock yardages are PW-140, 9i 155, 8i 165, 7i 175, 6i 185, 5i 200. My understanding is that if I were "flipping" my wrists, I'd have distance issues, so I'm not sure if that's the cause of the shot height. The ball doesn't appear to ever balloon (trajectory is somewhat like a rainbow shape versus the "ski jump" type trajectory I associate with ballooning). It just starts off the club high, carries, and seems to drop vertically. I setup with all irons right in the middle of my stance.

I don't take any divot, just a light skim of the grass. The height is nice in some ways because I can shoot directly at the pin in most cases. Standard shot hits with a deep ballmark and spin back maybe 2-3ft. Odd thing is I spin a PW or 9i roughly the same as my 6i, last weekend I hit a normal 6iron that had a bit of draw but spun back 3ft on a relatively flat green, but that's about all the spin I get out of a 9i as well.

So, what I'd like to know is if the "hands ahead" impact position is suggested to help spin the ball more, or does it somehow contribute to better accuracy, or is it intended to "deloft" the club to help with distance? Basically, I'm trying to determine if the ball flight indicates a flaw in my swing, or if I shouldn't worry about it and keep working on other facets of the swing to improve accuracy. Right now, I'm hitting roughly 33% of Fairways, but GIR is still only 30%. I realize video would provide a quick answer, but I don't have a quick way to get one right now.

[Tainlyferfara]

Hitting 9i-155, 5i-200? And you're complaining that your iron trajectory is too high and giving you essentially no roll out on the greens? Sheesh, and I thought I had problems....

Anyway, yes, "hands ahead" delofts the club to help with a bit of distance, as well as demonstrate that you have the proper lag, and in the higher irons, the ball will not skid over the face of the club, rather the grooves will bite more effectively, putting a more consistant spin on the ball. This is what I understand, but I'm sure if you posted this in the "ask the pro" section, amollerud would give you a solid answer.

[Vjwkvkoy]

Hah, guess I see what you're saying. Didn't mean it as a whoa is me tale.

Basically, I feel like the distance is OK, and the height does help stop the ball.

What I don't like is the lack of control compared to better players that have the lower ball flight, and hands forward impact position. For lack of a better description, it looks like they just pound the club down on the ball, it seems to almost get "pinched" by the club and flies out low and scoots out, then rises quickly before it knocks down perfectly on the green. Meanwhile, I'm hitting these towering balls that leak left or push right, and miss the green. It just seems the ball is in the air so long that it has a lot of time to keep leaking to the left/right. A nice high ball flight is one thing, as you said it helps stop the ball, but what I'm getting seems excessive. Folks I play with agree, my ball flight doesn't seem "right".

[gundos]

I have had a similar issue for many years. No matter what clubs I hit or the shafts that are in them, I hit a really high ball. I use DG X-100 shafts and 'players' irons and it doesn't matter. They are supposed to be a low trajectory shaft, but for me they are no different that the S-300. I have hit PX shafts up to a 6.5, and everything produces the same results, a very high ball flight with any iron. I have actually had people that didn't know me ask how I hit a wedge 175 yards. When in reality, I hit a 6-iron, I just hit it higher than most people hit a wedge.

What I have found out from asking many pros and other people really in the know about golf, it isn't a problem at all. Some swings just produce a higher ball flight. There is nothing right or wrong about it, just a little different. Most of the time it is a good problem to have. I rarely wonder if I can hit over a tree, and I never have to worry about a ball rolling off the back of the green, no matter how hard the grass is. Hopefully it is predictable for you so you can adjust for the wind. The biggest problem I have is that I have to adjust for the wind a little more than most.

What I have found out is that as long as your distances don't suffer (which is looks like they don't), their isn't a problem at all. A problem would be if you hit a ball that ballooned in the air and didn't go anywhere. Can you still hit a lower, knock-down shot into the wind, and keep it down if you need to? I can hit a lower shot, but it is not ideal. I hit the ball hard enough that I can usually get a ball to cut through the wind pretty good, even if it isn't as low as I would like.

I guess my final though is to enjoy what you have if it is working. There are plenty of people who would love to be able to hit the ball higher than they do.