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Hooking Irons

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BV16

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GHIN 9.2
Recently, I've been having a terrible time with hooking my irons. Honestly, since the beginning of this year and working on my swing, I've had a hard time with my irons.However, I've been hitting my driver, hybrids, and wedges well.

My driver goes straight 95 percent of the time and the other 5 percent is a mild slice. The same goes for my hybrids. My wedges are accurate. On the other hand, my irons are a hook 95 percent of the time and the other 5 percent they are straight.

My coach told me that my grip was too strong on my irons. I weakened my grip and am still hooking them. I think that my iron game is in my head. I believe that I am swinging too hard and that is causes my head to lift and my club face to close prematurely.

Any thoughts? Thanks!
 
It is neutral with a slight bias towards the heel.
 
Thainer said:
Which part of your divot is the deepest? Heel, toe, or neutral?
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This is the ask the pro section. Please keep it clean until Andy, our professional, has had a chance to respond.
 
You may be correct with the tempo and posture. For now try working with a secondary target. Place a tee in the ground 3-5 inches infront of the ball you are hitting and about 1 inch of the tee showing . The goal here is to hit the ball and then knock the tee out of the ground with the club head. This will slow the release of the hands and keep you in the shot longer. Try this out and let me know how things go for you.
 
amollerud said:
You may be correct with the tempo and posture. For now try working with a secondary target. Place a tee in the ground 3-5 inches infront of the ball you are hitting and about 1 inch of the tee showing . The goal here is to hit the ball and then knock the tee out of the ground with the club head. This will slow the release of the hands and keep you in the shot longer. Try this out and let me know how things go for you.
Click to expand...

Andy, I practiced with the drill today and was very pleased with the results! My iron shots were straight with an occasional slight draw. Thanks a lot!
 
I have been hooking my long irons, and I have been looking for a good drill to make sure I keep my hands moving toward to target. I can't wait to get out and try this one! I read this same drill on another thread where a fellow THPer was hooking his driver and he was getting some positive results. Thanks Andy and BV I hope you keep getting good results from this drill.
 
I went to the range today and tried this drill. With the tee in the ground I was striking the ball great and then hitting the tee out of the ground and the ball would go straight. I did it for a while and eventually took the tee out of the ground and I was hooking them again. ARGH!
 
I found this thread searching for a reason for my sudden inability to hit a hybrid straight. I was thinking (I know, trouble) that because I'm slowing down, the stiff shaft is coming back to point of impact too fast....maybe I need to go the R-flex route. I also think this because last time I was on a monitor, they said my 6i speed was between 77-79mph every swing. So, should the flex on hybrids match your irons or woods? I can still get my driver up to 105+, though. Seems like all my buddies swing S-flex hybrids, so I can't really just borrow one to check it out.
PS I have to open the face like 3-5* and swing smooth for it to go straight. So yeah, I can make it work, but it's a lot of work (hehe) to get it done, I'd rather just step up and swing, ya know?

I'm not a shaft guy, so I could be totally wrong in how it all even works, if so, please edumacate me.
 
I hope this helps clarify shafts and what types of things you have to consider when it comes to getting fit for the right shaft. Clubhead speed IS NOT the only thing you have to look at and measure to determine which shaft or flex of shaft is best for you. Other factors include grip/ hand strength, how the person swings the club (are they a flipper or can the create lag in the downswing), what does the person want for ball flight (higher or lower), and ultimately what is the ball doing regarding launch angles, spin rates, etc... Simply identifying which shaft is correct for you by using only clubhead speed is like a doctor giving a diagnosis and prescription but only taking the time to take your temperature. Make sense?

As for your shafts matching throughout your set...my answer is yes. The goal of most golfers is to be consistent so why not start with your equipment and make it as consistent from club to club as you can? The shafts you have in your clubs should ultimately help you get type of ball flight you want...some players will have one or two different shafts in their woods but other Like Jhonattan Vegas has all the same shafts in their woods. They all will tend to have similar flex characteristics which means that their clubs are x, stiff, or regular flex. For consistent players you will not find them changing flexes in their equipment but for more inconsistent players I have definitely changed it before. Remember that the primary goal of the shaft is to help the player square the clubface. For players who tend to slice and have trouble squaring the face I have put them in more flexible shaft to help the shaft "kick" more and square the face and I have done the opposite for players who might tend to hook the ball too much.

Hope that helps...

GolfTEC
Patrick Nuber
PGA Certified Professional
 
I have been hitting a draw/hook as well. Will try the tee method today and see if that helps.
 
GolfTEC said:
Hope that helps...

GolfTEC
Patrick Nuber
PGA Certified Professional
Click to expand...

Thanks, Patrick. Yes, it all makes sense. I guess I'll have to break down and go to our fitter here in town. (Dana Upshaw, He's amazing from what I hear, and read.)
I went to the range last night and did the tee thing, as well, and it worked fantastically, off of a tee. It would seem I've 'forgotten' how to hit off turf. I was killing Driver and 3W, 60/40 with hybrids, awful with 5i. Shouldn't it be the other way around? LOL I thought it was harder to hit driver than any iron. So goes the frustration of golf.
 
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