3/4 Swing for 150 yds and closer

1,301 Views | 6 Replies | Last: 9 yr ago by agsalaska
93MarineHorn
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I've struggled with 100 yd approach shots for my entire golfing life (35 years). A few months ago I had one of my best days ever driving the ball and was consistently in the 120 to 70 yard yard range on the par 4s. But I kept either missing the damn green or barely getting it on and having a 45 ft. putt. A lot of my yardages were right around 100 yards which is about a 90% SW (56) for me.

I decided to try clubbing down and taking a shorter, more predictable swing, about 3/4 or just past 9 o'clock. I found that I hit my 52 degree exactly 100 yards with a much more repeatable, lower ball flight. My accuracy improved significantly and I also found that the distance "spread" was much better with my 52. My old 100 yd swing with the SW could go anywhere from 90 to 115 yards depending on how well I struck it and trajectory. With the 52 it is more like 95 to 105 yds, and the lower ball flight makes the wind less of a factor.


It didn't take long to realize that this could be applied to all my wedges and shorter irons. This has really been a turning point in my game, and I now relish the opportunity of hitting these approach shots instead of worrying about wasting a good drive. In the last four rounds I've twice hit the pin from 100 yards out which left me tap in birdies. Unfortunately, as with everything in this cruel game, when one part of my game improves another goes to sh/t. Now I can't find the damn fairway off the tee.

Edit - I should've made the heading 75 to 150 yds, not 150 yards and in.

dcrewint
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Dave Pelz is somewhere sitting on his rocker smiling.
agfan2013
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AG
quote:
Dave Pelz is somewhere sitting on his rocker smiling.


Probably hitting golf balls in his backyard on the awesome practice range he has made out of artificial turf.
AgDotCom
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Interesting post...thanks.
Kjodie
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Nice! For years my 100 yd shot was a choked down pitching wedge. 9 oclock all arms swing. Sit's right down, very straight, very repeatable. Also GW goes 90, SW 80, 60 degree 70 yds.

93MarineHorn
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Kjodie - I'm so glad I figured this out after all these years. I played Teravista yesterday, and while struggles with the driver continue, my game inside of 150 yards is so much better and I managed to shoot 79 without a good day driving. That is something that I had never come close to doing in the past. I almost got a hole in one on #7 (159 yd par 3). I hit a 3/4 swing 7 iron because I was directly down wind and lipped out to about 4 ft.

I'm now curious to see if I can extend this out to maybe 170 yards with the 5 iron. But I'm thinking that may produce too low a ball flight to make it useful. I could see it working on par 3s since I'll be able to tee it up. I'll try and get out to the range next weekend and work on it.
Kjodie
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It works on all your clubs. For me, it takes about 40 yds off a full iron shot . Also, with my long irons, I can hook and slice it big time while keeping it low. Really helps when I'm in the woods or trapped behind a tree. Always good to have options.
agsalaska
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AG
I have told this story a few times on this board, but I played in a shamble(take the best drive and everyone plays their own ball in) with Jay Don Blake at the TPC Las Vegas the day after he won the Senior Tour Championship a few years ago. The wind was howling as it can in Vegas making conditions very difficult. I was playing up at the regulars and just striping my driver all day and he was having to hit from the tips so we took most of my drives. We had eight approach shots in the 70-110 range and he made seven birdies. I asked him about halfway thru to show me the club he used on a tricky 70 yard shot with a dead left to right cross wind. He used his PW. Every shot he hit from those ranges was with either his wedge or a nine iron. It was the most impressive display of that kind I have ever witnessed.

A lot of pros do not take full swings very often inside 140 yards.


I have learned, like you, over the years not to do it either. The problem I have had recently is I lay off almost to a fault and it has made taking full aggressive swings more and more difficult. This year I almost had to force myself to get aggressive and swing harder with my irons. But into the wind I still take one extra club than the wind and yardage dictates and I never hit my 54 beyond about 90 yards. I had a couple of sub par rounds this year(and my share of 80+ too)
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