Problem Hitting Irons Cleanly

Hello,

Newbie to this site....

Having a problem hitting my irons...
I often hit the ground first at the point of impact on the ball, causing me to hit the ball like a grounder in baseball, or it slices the ball badly.... Does anyone have any suggestions how i can get some lift on the shot?

Im a right hander and thx in advance...

There are a few things that can cause you to hit the ground before the ball, but here are what I see as the most common.

1) The club head is in front of your leading hand before it reaches the ball. I would advise you to try and forget hitting the ball with the club - feel as though you're actually hitting the ball with the back of your hand first. Keep the hand infont of the club right up to the end of the follow through if you can.

2) Ball position. Make sure the ball is not too far back or forward in the stance and not to far away from the toes that you have to really stretch. Many pros hit all their shots off the inside of their left heel. I differ slightly - I use the width of 3 balls. For shots off the tee shots, fairway woods and long irons I hit off the inside of the left heel. For the mid irons I move the ball back in my stance 1 ball with - if 3 balls were on the ground, i.e. progressing towards the target, you would be playing the middle one here. For short irons I move the ball back one more width.

3) Too much body action. This is the most difficult to correct as there are many faults that can occur - bad weight tranference, legs straightening (knees locking) hitting from the top (casting), not keeping body angles. The golf swing is a continous turn and most amatuers, in the eagerness to hit long shots, thrash at the ball, which causes the most mi**** shots. My advice here would be to try and keep the head as still as possible, really force it to stay still in the swing.

Because this last one is a broad category built of many smaller faults I would work on my first two points first. Ideally you should work on them all continually but the point of my reply is to get you moving the ball forward first.

Have fun
Paul

Start here reading in particualr the bottom section with what I call the "Back leg Accordian" in my
General tips

thx for the tips boys...

Hi there, very useful tips as I also suffer similar problems. One other point that was brought to my attention was that I am not using the lie of the iron. I have been told that my irons are "standing" at the toes and since the lie is not proper i do not get distance. Any idea whether I should be looking to get the club fitted properly?

Thanks a lot in advance

Mass manufacturers of clubs often make clubs to a standard size but some such as Ping (in the UK, anyway) will invite you to the factory for the day to get you measured up correctly. If you buy from a retail outlet you might be getting a good deal on the clubs but they rarely adjust them to your needs. Look at it a bit like buying shoes a size too large or a size too small - you may be getting a good deal but they don't do you much good.

Why not ask the pro at your club to take a look at them; if he's worth his salt he'll sort them out for you and charge you a small fee. The other option is to ask if they provide the service at a golf retailer. Personally, I get mine adjusted by really I really trust.

Paul

Tnsekhar, are your clubs cast or forged? If they are cast you have to send them away to a manufacturer to get the lie adjusted, your local pro can't adjust cast clubs (unless his shop is phenomenally well equipped) Also, try dropping your hands slightly at address. You might find your setup is a little off and you are causing the problem yourself. If your hands are too high you will dig the toe of the irons into the ground.

Good Luck,

D.