Taking a divot/scrape with a long iron/hybrid

[One Planer]

As per title. Does anyone on here take a divot/scrape with a long iron or hybrid.

I do

Not the kind of divot you take with a wedge or mid iron, it's not even what I'd call a divot, more a scrape that just literally takes the grass away from the soil.

I played a little twilight golf with a fella last night who passed comment about me getting "Too steep" and I should look to "Pick the ball of the top" with my long irons.

A typical example of the above was the 4 iron I hit into our long par 3, 5th. Clean strike, ball first followed by a puff of grass and a little soil coming out after, finishing at the from of the tee box.

Admittedly I don't (... Currently) with my hybrid, but that may change, results dependant :thup:

How about you guys? Do you take a divot or scrape with your long irons/hybrids?

 

[Scrindle]

I don't usually take a divot with any club - just bruise the grass and pick the ball off. Been trying to work on my weight transfer though and using divot existence as a sign that I have transferred my weight further forward than I usually would.

 

[Spear-Chucker]

Definately. Only a small scrape taken after the ball but to me it's essential to generate sufficient power and spin to make the shot work.

 

[guest100718]

Yep, I take a divot with all clubs.


Except the putter or driver..smartarse

 

[Deleted member 15344]

A little scrape if anything.

 

[Qwerty]

I don't usually take a divot with any club - just bruise the grass and pick the ball off. Been trying to work on my weight transfer though and using divot existence as a sign that I have transferred my weight further forward than I usually would.

Same here. For the last couple of years I've been working on an earlier release in the swing that gives more control at impact, it also gives a shallow angle of attack.
I just scrape the surface at worse, even with short irons.

 

[chrisd]

At last weeks Callaway Kings of Distance, European Tour player Alex Noren gave us a masterclass on hitting hybrids and the main point was that you should always take something of a divot when hitting a hybrid, how much depended on the type of shot and the hybrid

 

[patricks148]

it depends it its a good shot or not

if it is, then a bruise just after the ball, if not and great big chunk pointing left

 

[SaintHacker]

I quite often take a huge divot with my long irons, usually starting about 3 inches in front of the ball

 

[London mike 61]

Just a scrape with me for my hybrids, but as the clubs get shorter then more of a divot especially with a pitching wedge.

 

[the_coach]

Slight feeling of deja-vu on this one, sure this came up some weeks back.

If you think about it logically a downwards AoA with 3 metal, hybrid, long irons is going to give you the best odds of getting a consistent solid strike on the back of a ball, that's sitting on the ground. The majority of the best long club strikers have always been ball first & ground, to some degree or another, second, little ball, big ball.

Always going to be a few exceptions say like Striker, who's more of a 'sweeper', but that relies on immaculate timing & miniscule room for error, with him he doesn't on any shot have much wrist action which is largely why he does it in the first place.

But ball on the ground, club coming downwards & forwards at some speed, to miss the ground entirely in that small area just before the ball so the club moves horizontal to the ground without touching, strikes & moves upwards & left without touching is giving the person doing that hardly any margin for error at all.
Most folks just not capable of that & they may think that's what they are doing but indeed mostly they are touching ground first, before impact & skidding into the ball, so it takes away some club head speed plus can deflect the face angle.

To sweep you have to have almost no forward leaning shaft at impact, hands & club head in line, with virtually a vertical shaft or worse a backwards leaning shaft, these conditions through impact mean presenting the static loft or adding even more loft to the shot, which means those strikes will always both not go as far, & also have a lot higher flight making playing in wind a ways more difficult too.

Downward strike, ball first ground second gives you the best opportunity of a consistent solid strike, optimum distance, optimum trajectory & direction.

You don't want to be digging to Aus, but ball first then still descending to either scrape or take a slight divot is a far better way to play these shots for sure.

 

[cookelad]

Depends what shot I'm hitting, a low punched 2,3 or 4 iron there's going to be a good divot, normal swing there might be the tiniest bit of turf come up!

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I tend to make a small mark after the ball where I've hit down nicely on it. Rarely take too big a divot on anything other than the short irons but as long as I'm compressing nicely and my path and AoA is good I'm not too fussed

 

[garyinderry]

yes, I am trying to take a little less divot to be honest.