Iron ball striking

[SaintHacker]

Going up the range tonight to practice with my irons as I'm struggling a bit with them at the moment. I keep hitting the grass behind the ball or catch it a bit thin. However I hit what I think was the perfect strike last weekend. I checked my yardage and pulled out my 9 iron. First thing I noticed was that the ball just kind of clicked off the face, the next thing I noticed was a whacking great divot flying through the air. I'm not normally a divot taker. The last thing I noticed was my ball, sailing 20 yards over the back of the green. I can only assume I somehow hit down on the ball and got a really sweet contact.
Does anyone have any good range drills that I can use to try and make this the norm rather than the exception?

 

[the_coach]

Going up the range tonight to practice with my irons as I'm struggling a bit with them at the moment. I keep hitting the grass behind the ball or catch it a bit thin. However I hit what I think was the perfect strike last weekend. I checked my yardage and pulled out my 9 iron. First thing I noticed was that the ball just kind of clicked off the face, the next thing I noticed was a whacking great divot flying through the air. I'm not normally a divot taker. The last thing I noticed was my ball, sailing 20 yards over the back of the green. I can only assume I somehow hit down on the ball and got a really sweet contact.
Does anyone have any good range drills that I can use to try and make this the norm rather than the exception?

Good iron strikes the low point of the swing arc is some 2" to 3" target side of the ball. To get this at transition you need your weight first on your lead leg as make sure you clear your left hip through impact.

You'd have been leaving too much weight on your right/trail leg so either contacting ground before the ball or in order to avoid hitting the ground first flipping, collapsing you left wrist upwards through impact, so you either get the ball pretty clean the shot having extra height or at worst you could have experienced some thins.

Best way at the driving range, take you ball towel with you & place it on the ground some 3" to 4" behind the ball, then from transition concentrate on feeling your weight on your lead foot first before you start to swing down, just press into ground as if you are pressing a little water out of a sponge, don't jump hard on the left foot. if you do this & clear left hip through impact you won't hit the towel, you'll get ball first & matt second.

 

[SaintHacker]

Great thanks, I'll give it a try.

 

[Papas1982]

Great thanks, I'll give it a try.

My pro had me set myself to hit my irons, then when I'm set move ball a few inches forward. You'll subconsciously reach and hit down more. Once you get hand of that move ball back to normal position. I noticed a difference in minutes. I still do it now on the course when I'm struggling with my woods.

 

[SaintHacker]

Never mad it to the range in the end but I gave it a go this morning. Didn't play particulalry well in general but my irons were definitely sweeter. It felt a bit weird but I guess any swing change is going to. Still caught a couple fat but I'm going to carry on persevering as it obviously works, I actually got a wedge to land and back up a bit!

 

[the_coach]

Never mad it to the range in the end but I gave it a go this morning. Didn't play particulalry well in general but my irons were definitely sweeter. It felt a bit weird but I guess any swing change is going to. Still caught a couple fat but I'm going to carry on persevering as it obviously works, I actually got a wedge to land and back up a bit!

Good to hear you got improvement there some.

It will feel strange as you're now doing something you weren't & your starting to get what all good ball strikers do. Stay with comfortable & you'll get what you've got before, but keep feeling the new sensation to get the bottom of the club's swing arc in front of the ball so then a good ball first solid strike & you'll start to get much better results.

When you get time at the range do the drill with the ball towel above, maybes start with an 8i swing at 70% it'll be a little easier to time the swing sequence. It's important you think in terms of the swing flowing through the strike not hitting at impact & stopping, the swing always has to carry on to a fully balanced finish.

Just remember the takeaway & backswing isn't to generate speed or power it's just to put the club at the top with smooth rhythm. So just smooth takeaway & turn to top, then trust you have 'time' to get to the ball don't rush & try to 'hit' from the top.
From the top feel that smooth weight pressure into the ground in your lead foot before the club starts down, then continue the weight into the lead leg as the lead hip turns & clears. The loft on any club gets the ball up resist the temptation to help the ball up, ball goes up by the strike being 'down & through' trust that motion & the loft on the club.

This weight left & clearing then gives yours arms & club room to swing 'down & through', the weight left + cleared hip allows the arms & hands to lead a forward leaning shaft into & through impact, so you miss the towel then strike back of ball then matt (ground).

You'll not only feel the difference, you'll hear it, a much crisper strike sound followed by the duller matt sound. {Instead of hearing a muffled sound of either matt & ball together, or worse the thud first followed by the click of the leading edge bouncing into the ball}

Once you get consistent missing the towel at 3" back of the ball, move it nearer to 2" once you get consistent with the 8i & you feel more confident you can do the same with all your irons (hybrids too, it's the same swing motion for ball first ground second)

Then once you got the timing of backswing to the top, feeling your upper body almost stay there a fraction before the first weight pressure into lead foot/leg then the hip clearing & you've got that timing down right. You can move the towel to only 1" back of the ball, if you can practice this & get it down your ball striking will really improve.