How far should my clubs be going?

[tjwor]

I'm curious as to how far my clubs should be going, I feel like I don't hit the ball near as far as I should. Maybe it is because the friends I play with just have excellent shots and i'm about average, but I do know my swing is very slow.

My Driver on average goes 225-250 (just switched to an R-5 today and it probabbly goes farter, I'll be at a marked driving range tomorrow)

My 2 Iron I can't hit
My 3 Iron goes 175-190 When I hit it solid
My 4 Iron goes 155-175 " "
My 5 Iron goes 140-155 " "
My 6 Iron goes 135-140 " "
My 7 Iron goes 130-135 " "
My 8 Iron goes 125-130 " "
My 9 Iron goes 115-125 " "
My P Wedge goes 105-115 " "
My S Wedge goes 95-105 " "

I don't know if these are typical or if i should be able to hit it further. My real problem comes on the 205-215 Par 3 where I can't hit my driver because it will go over (when I try to lighten up I slice like crazy) And I can't hit a 2 or 3 Iron there, I'm looking to get a 3-Wood or 5-Wood, what would be the suggestion there?

Any help you can give is apprecaited! Thanks a ton!

T.J. Worcester

 

[slicerdude]

hi tjwor, your distances sound pretty fair, but i would buy the nike cpr 26 degree club, thats the club of choice in my bag for several reasons, the shaft is the length of a 6 iron , not a fairway wood, making it real easy to contol, off the tee this club has a good kick and might just give you more distance as it is meant to replace the 3 & 4 iron, then there is the rough, this club is ace at cutting through rough and still getting good distance, i should know, my local club has tons of rough, off the fairway its great too, because you feel like you hitting a mid iron, and with a bit of practice its not bad at chipping, though i`d practice this first.
My course has a 225 yard par three, and like you, i was always between clubs, but this club solved that problem, and i can hit the green in one and set up for a birdie, my son calls it baby nikey and he isn`t fair off the mark, good luck in your quest.

 

[Davebud]

TJ first I am going to start with your last question, 4 wood, I have a Cleveland 4 wood on its way, already have an Adams in the bag. 4 wood is like the best of both all in one.

Distance with the Irons next, I hit mine further when I may good contact, but it is not important. Control of your shots is the most important thing. If you hit them where you want and consistently that is all that matters.

What kind of clubs do you have?

 

[slicerdude]

Davebud, i would disagree with a 4 wood as i also have one, like you say control of your golf ball around the course and having the confidence when you pull your club out the bag, knowing that you can play, control and get fair distance surely makes the nike cpr a club to be thinking about, especially since it plays like an iron.

 

[mont86]

TJ I'm pretty new too the game andfor that last 2 years your yardage is about
what I was getting, but this year with alot of practice and alot of gold
I'm starting to see improvement.
Driver...220
7 wood..180
9 wood..160
7 i........150
8 i........140
9 i........120
wedges>100
I'm not a big hitter, but the courses I play it works for me. And I'm striking
the ball consistantly which is what I wanted too accomplish this year.

 

[warbirdlover]

I think the longest I've thrown a club in disgust is about 40 yards but it's been awhile. Oh, you mean how far does the ball go....

I'm very short but it works out good because I've got an iron for alot of distances. I don't very the distance much on any either. I'm usually plus or minus 3 yards on all my shots. Not long but very consistent. Don't know which is better if you can only have one.

Driver = 250-270 yards (sometimes I get a long one)
3-wood = 200-220 yards
3-iron = 180 yards
4-iron = 170 yards
5-iron = 160 yards
6-iron = 150 yards
7-iron = 140 yards
8-iron = 130 yards
9-iron = 120 yards
pw = 110 yards on in
All irons extremely high trajectory so no backspin needed (much)

 

[MAHALLEDAY]

It;s been a while since I went to the range and figured out my yardages but based on my recent play:

driver: 275-285
3: 210
4: 200
5: 190
6: 180
7: 170
8: 160
9: 150
P: 140
Gap: 125
Sand: 110

Again this is only a best guestemate based on my last few rounds.

 

[SiberianDVM]

Distance is gonna depend on your swing speed, effective loft and contact on the club face.

Best thing to do would be to have a GOOD launch monitor session with high speed video and using impact tape on your clubs. I did this last weekend. We primarily used a 5 iron. My swing speed with this 5 iron was 80 mph. Testing various shafts, we were able to get my distance with this club to go from 150 yards to 175 yards.

 

[MAHALLEDAY]

Sib, is right. And besides it doesnt really matter how far you hit it as long as it straight. Look at Fred Funk.

 

[Davebud]

Davebud, i would disagree with a 4 wood as i also have one, like you say control of your golf ball around the course and having the confidence when you pull your club out the bag, knowing that you can play, control and get fair distance surely makes the nike cpr a club to be thinking about, especially since it plays like an iron.

I am talking off the tee first and foremost, I have a complete set of hybrids. When I get all the clubs I am after in the Cleveland TA5's I will still not have purchased a 3 Iron, for that I will get the Halo. I also carry a 7 wood. I can hit the 4 wood 210-230 yards. My bag is all about middle ground, the 4 wood goes about the same distance as my 3 hybrid, but with more control off the tee. The 7 wood is between the 4 and 5 hybrids but with a higher ball flight and more control off the tee. I do not carry a 56* or 60* wedge instead I have a 58*. As far as my hybrids go they play more like a wood at the longer end (3,4 and 5).

 

[Rockford35]

Sib, is right. And besides it doesnt really matter how far you hit it as long as it straight. Look at Fred Funk.

Or Corey Pavin.

But both those guys make their money on and around the green.

R35

 

[Brocks]

It doesn't matter how far you hit your clubs...It's more about knowing what you can do. At the Open last week all the pro-s were hitting 4-5 irons 220+ yards into the wind. I hit a 5 iron 165 yds. However I knew a bloke who could hit a 5 iron further than my driver (230yds at the the time). I always beat him though as he had no control or touch.

Most people I know get hung up on what their playing partners can hit....Personally, It desn't matter. Play you're own game!!!!

With time the yardages change as you improve/deteriorate (latter in mycase at the moment) For example, At my old club I hit a par 3 150-ish yds with a 5 iron, over a year that changed to a 6 and then a 7 iron.

 

[Davebud]

That is true too Brocks, just 6 months ago I would hit the 7 wood on the 6th hole at my regular course, now I just hit the 6 iron and its well with in reach.

 

[cypressperch]

Lots of decisions about clubs

What clubs to carry when you are limited by the rules to fourteen? I guess we have turned your question around, since you were asking about distances, but the two questions are certainly related.

Each of us has a certain potential as to how far we are capable of hitting a ball with a given club. For the sake of control which comes from consistently solid contact, we need to use less than full power, and 75% or so of our full power is about what we should use. Even though it is true that most of us tend to try to kill or crush shots, especially with the driver, there is a problem at the other extreme which is swinging with not enough force. You have to swing with enough force to derive whatever shots the club in hand is designed to produce. So step one is to make sure that your clubs fit you and your swing.

There is a wide range in the distances you hit each club. When you get the opportunity, you might want to narrow that down a bit. Hit a bunch of seven irons and see how they spread. Take away the ones that are way out ahead of the rest, if that happens and there are not too many of them, and perhaps do the same with the few shorter shots. Average out the distance of the large, middle group. This will be a good yardage to use on the course, but do not forget about lie, wind, time of year, etc.

I have heard that if your average 7 iron is 150 yards or more, that you would be better off with stiff shafts. That is probably about right. But be careful on one point. Some time ago, club manufactureres began putting less loft on clubs so that the one iron of old was closer to the two iron of today. I would hit nine iron when people in our group would be using wedges, and I was hurt until I found out that my 1976 Pro-forged Spalding Topflights had a lot more loft. You folks do realize that once upon on a time the best irons were Spaldings, Wilsons, and MacGregors? I keep on rechroming and regrooving my Spaldings because nothing on today's market has the same feel, and that includes Mizuno, Titleist, Hogan, Ping, and many other brands. I will hit only blades, mind you.

Yes, I am a traditionalist, but if things do get better I can make a change. I have a TaylorMade Rescue 19* to cover the area between the three wood and the three iron. I went with the steel shaft because the shaft length is more like an iron. I would not think of using anything in a wood other than graphite.

I mentioned shafts a while ago. Almost every beginning golfer and most others will be best served using the regular shafts in all of their clubs. Of course, if you can, get custom fitted. Often over-looked is getting the lie angles correct. Seldom will a person get clubs off the shelf that do not have to have the lie angles adjusted. Very important!


Best of luck to you with your game. Sincerely, Cypressperch

 

[goatster]

im probably right around the same as warbird.except i dont carry a 3 wood.i use a 2h and 3h

2h-220
3h-200
sw-50up and 50 long