Adding length to irons

[WildcatCoach]

Does this have anything to do with distance?

When one of my golfers asks me a question that I can not answer (which happens more often than I care to admit), I turn to you all on the forums.


I have a golfer who ordered some irons from one of my coaching websites (which I will not name for professional reasons) that were supposed to have an extra 1" added to each iron, because of his height. Anyway, for whatever reason, the irons arrived yesterday and they are standard length.

Before I called the company and informed them of the problem, I told him to go out and hit them to see if maybe they would work fine without the extra inch of length.

He went out today and played a round with the new irons. And beside him standing a bit closer to the ball, he said the irons felt fine. They only problem was that he hit each of them about a club shorter than he did with his old set. I did some research, and the lofts are the same on both sets (both come from the same OEM.) When researching his irons, several reviewers said his new irons should be "half a club to a club longer" than other sets by this OEM.

So the question I pose to you is this: is the shorter iron shaft contributing to his short shots or is it just because he hasn't fine-tuned his swing to the new irons? I know with the driver the longer shaft means more distance, but I didnt' know if this was the same for irons.

As always, any help is appreciate. Thanks!

[a4sport]

Longer is stronger. If he's having that much trouble hitting them longer, add some extensions. Or, you can always tell him you extended them and see if that makes a difference. LOL.

[SCFgolfs]

It's pretty ridiculous for an OEM to send a set that's 1" off. He probably paid close to a $1k for a nice set, waits a few weeks to get them, and they're not even built correctly- just completely unacceptable, IMO. Ask for a new set, and tell the company you want them at cost for the inconvenience.

EDIT: Maybe he got them at cost already, but still, get the 1" longer set made. And Yes 1" longer iron of the same loft is going to typically fly 8-10 yards farther for the same golfer.

[agentphil]

The bottom line is longer length clubs increase your distance. If my 5 iron goes 180 yards and then I throw on an extra inch of shaft length the ball WILL go further. This is simply a result of an increase in club head speed. Also keep in mind that as you continue to add length to the shaft you'll begin to lose control and consistency. Everyone needs to find the length that provides a balance between distance and control.

 

Remember that just because he's tall doesn't mean he should be throwing an extra inch onto his iron shafts. His arm length may compensate for the height. It would be important for a professional club fitter to help him find his ideal length.

[Hydrolyser]

Longer also generally means softer flex (for the same tip cut) so maybe the stiffness of the short shafts are hurting. Anyway, send 'em back.

[marker]

The difference in distance between clubs is due to approximately 50% loft and 50% length.

Therefore if you are between clubs simply grip the club down an inch and swing the same to shave 1/2 a club off the shot.

This is why your guys clubs are shorter also.

[Bobbers]

All things being equal, which they rarely are, the extra inch of length should add to the overall arc of the swing, hence an increase in clubhead speed, hence added distance.

All things being equal...

 

The variations possible have been touched on; if the clubs were simply extended an inch from the butt, the flex likely softened. We don't know, or at least I can't figure out from your OP, what shafts he used to play and what he ordered in the new set. This obviously can have an effect on shot shape and distance.

 

You said the loft and lie was similar on the new set as I recall, so that's likely not much of an issue.

 

Any chance to swap out one shaft in like the six iron and see if that helps? Then again, depending on the how skilled the golfer is, does distance really matter? Meaning, if he's hitting a 48* for his 150 yard shot where he used to hit a 52...well, you get the point...

[WildcatCoach]

Thanks for all the help guys - exactly what I thought I'd get from golfwrx - informative and helpful posts.

 

To answer a few questions, the OEM has apologized profusely for the mistake and asked we send them back and they will be fixed free of charge. Usually, they are very good for us (not to mention that they sell us stuff at cost) - I believe this was just an oversight and we're willing to forgive them.

 

Again, I appreciate the answers fellas.