6 Iron yardage

I know this is a bit of a speculative question as none of you know how good or bad I am but il ask anyway

If I learned to use this club really well how far do you reckon I could be hitting

How far can you hit it with a 6 Iron. Bare in mind im a pretty average player

Just thought id look for some advise


Steffan

My advice for what it's worth is to hit it as far as you hit it. It's far more important to be able to hit it the same distance and straight every time and to know what that distance is than to hit it any particular distance you have in mind.

Hibbz wrote:My advice for what it's worth is to hit it as far as you hit it. It's far more important to be able to hit it the same distance and straight every time and to know what that distance is than to hit it any particular distance you have in mind.

True but how far do you reckon you can hit it with a 6?

Okay just for you, I reckon I could hood it slightly, hit a big savage draw and maybe hit it about 180yds (assuming calm, warm conditions). This would probably come off about 1 in 10/20.

Alternatively if I'm about 155/160 yds away from the flag (assuming the same calm, warm conditions) I'd hit a six iron and be satisfactorily close i.e. on the green maybe 7 in 10, and close i.e. within 10' 2 in 10.

My handicap is 6 if that matters.

Or..........If you are playing into a westerly gale....maybe 90 yards.

Steffan, as we are all saying, you are much better concentrating on how straight rather than how far.

No trust me I am not that concerned on how far it goes as long as it is straight I just wanted a bit of advise on possible distances with it

Heres another one. Do you use a 9 Iron and if yes how often?

I have generally started using mine for the rough now as il be honest I just cant get to grips with my hybrid club

Never reeally use it close to the green as I always prefre my pitching wegde or if its a bit further get the 8 out

I hit my 6 iron around 210 in calm flat conditions.

I hit my 6 iron about 165 yards in the summer months and about 150 yards in the cold winter months, its important to know how far you hit your irons, but distances will change, from summer to winter months, so it is important to keep your swing the same no matter how far the ball travels

Mac:

6 iron, 210yards!!!! Are you dustin johnson!!! Or merely exaggerating your length!(So to speak)


However based on my own yardages 6 iron165yards comfortably. If trying knock the skin off it I can get it out there further but that sacrifices accuracy and imo that's not beneficial.

McLaren wrote:I hit my 6 iron around 210 in calm flat conditions.

Hit your driver 400 do you?

My 6 goes 185ish in warm conditions when I'm striking it well. At the moment I'd say it's going about 175/180.

Well thanks for all the advise so far fellas. So what about 9 irons when do you use that normally (im kinda new as im getting back into golf after years). As I say I would mainly use it for the rough due to the angle and I just cannot use a hybrid

You use a nine if it is too long for a wedge but not quite an 8 iron.


Of course I dont hit my 6 iron 210, although the guy claiming 185 is just as ludicrous, just thought I would yank yeh alls chain. I probably use the 6 iron at about the 165-175 mark.

As poster #2 opined, consistency is more important than distance.

A 6-iron distance of 150 yd +/- 5 yds is better than 175 yd +/- 12 yds.

If you are playing a 6000-6500 yd course (an IMO, an average player should not playing championship tees) a 150 yd 6 iron should be all that is needed.

As you improve your game, and start playing longer courses, then you should be thinking about adding some distance.

Is this guy for real? If you are a fat bloater who is four foot tall with a swing speed of 50 mph you aren't going to hit it as far as an athletic six footer with a swing speed of 90 mph. It's simple physics.

180-185 is roughly my 6 iron. someone can hit the ball 5-15 yards further than you (an amateur who doesnt play regularly) is hardly pigs flying mac!

About 160 yards carry on level ground, with no wind and in warm conditions.

At the moment, when it's cold and I'm wearing lots of clothes it goes about 155.

Hitting down a hard fairway in the summer, where the ball doesn't stop, I could probably hit it 190 yards, of which 30 would be roll.

I play off 4.

Mac
210 yards...You probably can during a drought off the 17th tee on Gullane No2.

Me...6 iron length ...no wind 155 to 165 yards.
Steffan..as a rough guide it is 10 to 12 yards +or- per club.
So for a 'normalish' player
Start with a 9 iron at 130 yds and work up.

It's very much an "all depends" but all things being equal and no wind and average temperature and not at altitude, with a normal ball and not a range ball about 165 to 170. In winter knock a good 15 yards off unless your on frosty ground in which case add about 50 yards of run.
At Carnoustie last year I overshot the 245 yard 16th with a 5 iron, so a 6 iron would have been the club. By the same token the 3rd shot at the par 4 17th (about 100 yards) was also a 6 iron!!
Top tip, don't play in a 5 club wind, it messes with your head!!!

What is with people peeing up the wall about 6 iron distances. What matters is how many strokes it takes to get the ball into the hole, the club you use is irrelevant.

Many of you lot are a dream for Taylor Made's "longest club yet" doctrine.

Super Yes you are correct but of course the club you use is relevant, what is irrelevant is trying to attach a pre prescribed distance to every club in all conditions.

How far a ball goes in a strong tailwind tells you not very much as the landing is a big determining factor on the eventual destination of the ball. Uphill in the rough it's journey is basically over whereas a a downhill links fairway landing can add a ludicrous amount of yardage.

Super

I get it matters not how far you hit a six iron in comparison to others but as you are someone who drives for lower scores do you not think knowing how far you hit each club is very important. Just look at tiger, your favourite guy, his iron distance control R4 pebble was terrible then R4 honda it was spot on. Add in some good putting and you have a 13 shot swing. If you are not working out how far your irons go you should be.

Hend,

This may also apply to you, as when you say; you can hit it 185 what do you mean?

Does this mean 50% go that far with shots ranging from 150 to 185 or what?

In that case JAS, it's important to understand how far you "carry" the ball with each club, however most people simply go by a general rule of what they think they are supposed to hit it. Pretty laughable and no surprise that most golfers are rubbish.

Mac, I'm saying exactly that. Every pro knows how far they hit each club in different conditions, amateurs tend to simply think they know how far they ought to hit it, I bet at least 95% have never measured their club distances.

I have my distances written in the back of a scorecard holder, and try to leave an optimal distance for playing a full controllable shot into the green, hitting as far as you can off the tee simply isn't the best way to improve. Course management is.

My point is that people should not be obssessing over how far others hit it, but how far they actually hit THEIR OWN clubs.

I do agree we should all focus on how far we hit the ball, but when it comes to improvement can you look at how far others hit it?

If your playing partners are always knocking it past you and using three clubs less is it time to think about a way to increase distance?

After all a 6 iron is easier to hit than a 3 iron.

Mac, it depends, if your mates are built like oxes with smooth athletic swings and you are a four foot billy bunter who can hardly move it isn't realistic to hit the same distance.

John Daly is hardly the "athletic" type but I bet he can out hit Mr. Gym Woods.

Gyms are gay and uneccessary.

Lol Super gyms are NOT gay, whenever I don't feel like a planned gym session I just think of the totty that will be there bouncing and jiggling on the treadmill. They might not be necessary for many but you can't deny the beneficial effect on the likes of Westwood & now McIlroy. Most of us amateurs however would benefit more from a stretching program which can be done at home and not neccessarily the gym.

... Of course your other mate Lowry probably agrees with you that gyms are unneccessary

"Gyms are gay and uneccessary."

Super maybe for the likes of you that go on SEAL courses, but for others without theat oppertunity the gym serves a purpose.

I assume it is on military courses you have gained your vast knowledge of the training programme and not just through commando comics?

Mac, what I mean is there is no need to be a member of a gym, the whole of the outside is a gym. You don't need to pay 50 a month to be surrounded by bufty boys in lycra, you can go out for a run or cycle and probably get a better workout.

Mac,
by saying 180-185 i mean this is my average (median) length. sure ill probably catch the odd one fat that will go 160 and i might catch the odd one thin or flush that will go 195.
on average though from 180-185 yds out in normal wind free parkland conditions ill hit a 6 iron and ill probably be past the pin approximately as often a i am short of it.

hend, you must have a very good swing. what do you play off?

Mac, he may just have a fast swing and no idea of where it's going to finish, bit like Woods, Garrigus, Watson et al.

I have to say super I like your idea of writing my yardages on something that hangs of the bag. It would be a good mental reminder not to get over confident and under club. Might give it a go.

Mac, A mate of mine has his yardages taped onto the shaft of each club. I keep mine in my back pocket.
Worth doing every year to see how they change.

MOst people who have GPS though, see the yardages e.g 150 yards and automatically pull out a 7, without actually knowing if they can actually hit it 150., therefore for most people they aren't getting the real benefit out of their GPS/LAsers

I think for me it is less a case of not knowing how far I hit the clubs but actually sticking to what I know to be true. It is ever so tempting to start to feel like you have made an improvement and hit a club less mid round. I reckon always playing to the known yardages would produce better results, and carrying something which is a reminder of this will help.

That's part of course management Mac, trust your yardages. Easier said than done, but that's all there is to it really. If you know to within a few yards how far you hit each club and you can swing consistently then you'll score well.

I see a lot of yanks come over and they try to hit a wedge 150 yards, because the pro's can, its hilarious

Mac im currently playing off 5. im probably about a 2/3 from tee to green and an 8-10 from there in.
working on my putting and pitching alot in the off season.. altho to be honest it seems to be one step fwd and 2 back at the moment. hopefully see some progress when the season proper kicks off in the next few weeks

very speculative steffan..

impossible to tell you!!

i carry mine 180 in calm flat conditions-measured in trackman and about correct on the course- thats with a swing speed of 93 mph

One time 12 handicapper now off 19 and use the 6-iron sparingly. Probably hit it around 150-160yds on a good day. Much prefer my 5-iron hybrid for shots from 150-175. Just make some adjustments to grip and set-up. Much more forgiving.

Rava

It is good to see someone get inventive on the course and understanding how to get the full range out of a club. Too many people just hit the bog standard set up shot with each iron.

True Mac but why mess about with a shot unless you have to?

FWIW (i.e. not a lot!), I carry my 6-iron about 170-175 on a nice, still warm day. Play off 3.

Navy, we have another beast on the boards.

Does anyone have a separate set of yardages for do or die shots over forced carries?

I said 165 for a 6 iron but if I had to make a carry I reckon the 5 iron would come out just to be sure.

McLaren wrote:Navy, we have another beast on the boards.

as Navy said FWIW (i.e. not a lot!)... if i have a forced carry and im between clubs i prefer to hit the hard 9 iron rather than the easy 8.
both prob go the same distance but the 9 iron has a higher flight and thus longer carry

Navy, as to the beast comment it's just that you can hit it far.

hend085 wrote:as Navy said FWIW (i.e. not a lot!)... if i have a forced carry and im between clubs i prefer to hit the hard 9 iron rather than the easy 8.
both prob go the same distance but the 9 iron has a higher flight and thus longer carry

Would tend to agree in the past but recently I've avoided thrashing the shorter club as I get stacks more backspin than normal, increased ballooning in the air and actually, it rarely goes any further than normal even if I flush it.

McLaren wrote:Navy, as to the beast comment it's just that you can hit it far.

Didn't think it was that far to be honest given my handicap. The 170-175 is obviously based on a pretty flush strike; I'm also ~6'1", about 110kg (OK, OK, about 10kg over my optimum fighting weight but it is coming down slowly...honest!) and I have +1" on my iron shafts.

i would have though 175 is about average for your handicap NB. fair point re the balooning!

Not disputing any yardages navy, just saying it is a good effort and you must strike it really well.