golfrewind.com

well i've been having some troubles with my irons still, im just not consistent enough...so i was thinking of maybe switching to a 3/4 swing and just taking a club extra with the irons, what do you all think? has anyone tried this, and does it help prevent fat shots, etc? obviously i'll have to work at it, but does it sound like a good idea? im not exactly a long hitter (240 driver) and from 160 i use a 6-iron, so will this make my yardages go down by a huge amoutn, (say 1/4?)...any advice would be appreciated, thanks

ss

3/4 swings could make you more repeatble but if your big problem right now is fat shots, it could be just that your ball position is just too far forward in your stance.

my instructor had me do this to GAIN length! i did hit straighter and taught me to accelerate thru the swing....

so will this make my yardages go down by a huge amoutn, (say 1/4?)

You should hit the ball 1/4 club longer and more solid because you will hit the ball more squarley in the club face, less room for error in a shortened swing.
It wont help hitting the ball fat that is not a swing flaw, but a lack of focus or too much thinking about the result befor the swing. I am a "long hitter" and I have used what I call a 3/4 swing for a year and have cut my handicap by 4 and lost no distance.

ss[/quote]

[/quote]

Please read my reply to today's, question, IRON PLAY. User: WATTO

My answer was for you, but I posted it to him. Sorry! My quote deals with why you are hitting it fat and what to do to correct the problem. It worked with every student of mine 100% of the time and stopped them from hitting the ball fat! It's the quote about the 9 Bad Shots of Golf!

3/4 swings are great ways to ADD yardage, not reduce them! It's like this - the average golfer rarely hits the center of the clubface at maximum clubhead speed. That inconsistency leads to a laundry list of problems - including fat shots. Sure, as others have mentioned, the ball may just be misplaced in your stance and moving it may help. But it also may not help, and going to a 3/4 swing to help find your best swing can't hurt. I have seen it done many times and have done it myself (though I still stink!) to positive results. You begin hitting the sweet spot and the ball responds positively by going farther than you were before. At worse, you will likely not lose any distance and gain control as well as stop the fats, so go with it. You will, however have the challenge of timing. Your body gets used to being in certain places in space and time and it will be an adjustment to alter those.

thanks everybody, im gonna try to go to the range agian this saturday instead of playing a round and work on this...i dont wanna try anything until i've tested it first...thanks again

When I have reduced my swing to 3/4 length in the past, I have found that I do indeed gain distance. Why is this? Well, it's because of what someone has already mentioned - your accuracy of hitting the ball on your club's sweet spot and more squarely at impact because of your increased control of the club will have a lot to do with it.

The problem arises when you start to feel more confident of your swing and gradually, you are then back up to a full swing and the original problems arise all over again!

Give it a try though - it may just work for you, but persist with it until you really do see the same results at impact when swinging the club at full tilt.

Phil
www.golf-teaching-aids-and-tools.com

When you talk about a 3/4 swing...do you mean only going back 3/4 on your backswing and then a full follow thru? Or, keeping your same backswing and only going 3/4 on your follow thru?

Firstly I would say that if you are hitting the ball a bit fat check for two thing:

- Ball Positioning
- Over cocking of wrists (wrists must not cock too much)
- Steadyness (throught e swing your body should be steady)

Secondly, the three quarter swing, is the part in your full swing where power is gained, through acceleration. If you can get your three quarter swing, good then you can transfer back to the full. I would try the three quarter swing for a while and see what happens, make sure you do not lose tempo, by swinging too fast keep to your normal swing speed. Also check that you quarter swings look good, and that your take away is sound.

Hope this is of some help!

the back swing is only 3/4 ( lik 9 o 'clock) up ....but still a full shoulder turn!

Thanks for the clarification!

I don't think taking 3/4 length swings is the answer. You're going to want to be able to hit full swings eventually - like when you're in deep rough. A couple things you should consider...

1. Do you really know how far you are taking the club back? I thought I was taking the club to parallel, but when I saw it on video, the club was starting to point back down. If you're going back this far as well, you should aim for taking the club back 3/4 - and it will probably be a full swing, but it won't feel like it yet.

2. "If you take a fast bad swing and slow it down, all you get is a slow bad swing." -Hank Haney. What this means is you should get your swing looked at and see if there is a better way for you to become more consistent, rather than just jumping up a club, because, well, just wait until you club up and still have a really horrible day. I think you'll understand it better that way.

3. Practice the fundamentals - grip, stance, ball position. If those are inconsistent, then you will need to make small swing changes to compensate everytime. Get a comfortable preshot routine as well.

I think you might have just wanted a simpler answer, but this, in addition to the other posters, is what you really need to hear.