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I was wondering if anyone could help me with a little issue I have been having. Whenever I tee up an iron I hit it very thin, or shank it. I have even tried teeing it up with the tee pressed right into the ground (essentially not doing anything) with the same results. So I am almost positive it is all in my head. When I walk up to a tee box and drop the ball on the deck I hit beautiful iron shots. But everyone always advises me to take every advatage you can on the golf course, so I was hoping to give myself a benefit by using a tee.

Any ideas? drills, anything? Help would be greatly appreciated

I usually (estimating) tee the ball about 1/4 inch off the ground when I tee off with an iron, as this (I believe) works out to be half the ball above the head of the club.

Sounds like it's in your head, there is no real difference between a tee shot and a off-the-ground shot besides the fact you get more leverage. Maybe the problem is you are trying to hard when it's tee-ed up, which is obviously a mental problem... sometimes tees are a bit intimidating IMHO.

Its funny I have the same exact problem. Except I hit them fat not thin. Your probably right about it being mental though but if you have a "mental block" like I do y dont you just make a mound out of the ground and hit it. If anyone asks you what yu are doing just tell them your copying Laura Davies abd how she tees off. If you really want to use a tee though just think less and relax it usually helps.

standing too close to the ball or a bent right arm at address thats striaghtening out on the downswing - might be the cause of the shank
hitting thin , assuming your not hitting the ground first and bouncing into the ball , id say negative weight transfer
quick fix - try playing the ball further back in your stance .
or dont try to hit it so hard.

You see the ball higher, on the tee, and your instinct is to swing higher so swing for the level of the grass or the tee and swing to the target letting the ball get in the way of the club head.

This sound like the reason for your problem. You're thinking tee shot instead of iron shot. I went through the same thing a few years back and just quit using tees for awhile. If you hit 'em fine off the turf, just get yourself a good lie and go at it.

This is great advice. Often pros on the tour don't use tees when using irons or fairway metals while teeing off so what you do is not wrong, it can be a strength. Always look at the best in your game and build off it.

Good Luck

I rarely, if ever, see PGA Tour players not use a tee. This includes iron shots and fairway metals off the tee. I don't see every player, but those I do see on TV and in person I've never seen them just drop, or place, a ball on the tee box and hit. Can you give us an example of a Tour pro who does this? I'm not trying to be confrontational, it's just that I've never seen it and I watch a lot of golf. Am I missing something?

All the advice I've ever read, or received, says it is best to always use a tee when you can. Even if the ball is only teed up fractionally, it still promotes better impact and reduces your chances of a mishit. That's what I've always seen, and been told.

guess it goes back to personal preference and confidence
if im not playing well and have no chance of getting back into it i will often just throw the ball on the deck and hit off the ground for practice
being a longer hitter on a somewhat shorter course one tends to not hit many mid/long irons or even woods off the deck so why not get the practice
I only tee it up a tiny bit anyhow,but agree - its an advantage to use a tee - be crazy not to take it

I have to agree with League. In 5 years attending The Masters and The Heritage, I have never seen any of the participants tee off without a tee (not to say someone did as I don't cover all 18 holes every second but I spend quite a bit of time at the Par 3's). Come to think of it, the guys even tee it up at the Par 3 contest on Wednesday at The Masters too. I really do not see an advantage to NOT using a tee unless it is a personal preference. Granted they only tee it up barely above the turf but they still tee it up.

wouldn't one suppose though, that if your swing is fundamentally sound and you swing down and threw, it's a matter of preference of how high to tee it up, etc.

mine is not yet, cuz i tend to want to lift up with the irons when i tee it up, and so, it's just more to work on.

stagday

did you see the battle at bridges? john daly did it numerous times! but then again, that is big JD!

it sounds like your problem itsalebaron is all in your mind, and the only thing i can think of is keep teeing irons up, until you can consistently hit them well off it, and you will gain your confidence again!

I am a teaching golf professional and during the 53 years that I have played golf I and other pros, I have played with have not used tees from the teeing ground form time to time. I agree that it is better to use tees for the average player but sometimes because of wind conditions or the amount of spin you need to shape a shot you will see a better player not use a tee with a iron or fairway metal.

David Leadbetter is an advocate of teeing the ball up
You aint allowed to use a tee on the fairway for a reason "its an advantage"
makes sense to take that "advantage" when its available no ??
there are times when "LOW" handicappers want the ball off the deck sure . but to encourage your average joe golfer not to use a tee is silly
let them try it sure .may only be psycological for them - and might help
but on the whole using a tee is the better bet

Keep in mind that the original post asks for help. The fact that that this person finds that they do well without teeing it up, which is much harder than teeing it up, then the fastest way to make a change is to build upon this ability. This person's instincts change when they see the ball elivated, this means that the focus is on the ball too much which is causing a swing change. So I recomend that thinking more of swinging to the target and sweeping the tee to the target will help.