golfrewind.com

I was hitting some balls today at the range using my 9,7, and 5 iron.
While overall i was somewhat pleased(majority of the balls went straight some with decent loft) i noticed that i was only hitting the 5 iron about 15-20 yards longer than the 9 iron.
Now i'm probably not swinging as hard as i should(still trying to get the takeback down and making sure i close the clubface) i thought it was a little odd. I am still using my starter irons which may or not be the reason.
I am just starting to notice this because until recently i was so inconsistent i didn't hit a high percentage of shots good enough to tell what was going on.

when you went to go hit some balls, did you hit on grass or mat??
if you hit it on the mat, then you probably weren't making the contact that you should. you see the mats are very forgiving on mishits for irons.
the grass tells you right away which is why i like hitting them on the grass, if my practice range has the mats out on a day, i practice on my driver more. i still hate the rubber tees.
i dont think your irons are the problem.

Unfortunately where i live there really aren't ranges with grass so if i want to learn this game i'm stuck with mats.
I have been going to a par 3 chip and putt (unfortunately the tee boxes are mats though)so i get a few shots off the grass but they are mainy chip shots.

I guess i will continue working on my swing and although maybe not ideal ,will try to make good contact and hit it straight(off the mats)

Until you make solid contact with the ball, your club distances will be suboptimal. There is about a 10-15 yard gap between each club. It is not a matter of swinging harder - it is a matter of swinging efficiently, consistently and with an effective swing speed.

Just for an example: five months ago, prior to my lessons, I was hitting the 2 hybrids, 3 wood, 5 wood, and driver the same distance.