SHORT IRONS

PUT YOUR BODY IN CONTROL

Club players frequently get into trouble with short irons and pitching because they rely too much on their hands and arms to strike the ball. As our role model Tommy Fleetwood points out opposite, it's possible to pitch well like this, and he cites Seve as a famous example. But for golfers without prodigious talent or hours of time to practise, it more often leads to a wristy, inconsistent release pattern in which face aim, attack angle, clubface loft and clubhead speed are impossible to regulate.

Your antidote is to watch Tommy Fleetwood hit short irons and pitches. His excellent technique is almost the opposite of the loose, armsy swing many longer handicappers employ. He blends relatively short arm travel with an aggressive body rotation, using the big dependable core and shoulder muscles to control arc, path and speed. His hands and wrists remain relatively muted right through to the end of the swing, putting tremendous stability into the shaft and clubhead.

If you're struggling to control your most lofted clubs, listen to what Tommy has to say; then turn over to learn a three-step exercise that will show you how to harness impact speed, attack angle and loft by letting your body make a bigger contribution to the strike.

TOMMY SAYS...

The first thing to say about short irons and wedges is that there's not one true way to play them. Steve Stricker is an excellent pitcher of the ball but uses almost no wrist action; Seve was one of the best with his short irons but he used plenty of wrist cock and hinge. Every golfer needs to find their own way of creating a consistent strike, and it’s an important first step; only when you make regular solid contact can you know what your 100-yard swing or 80-yard swing looks and feels like.

While it’s important to find the method that works for you, here are three technical elements that have worked for me. Give them a try; they might help you too.

1 Return the shaft to its address angle at impact. I feel golfers get too obsessed about using the bounce of their short irons and wedges. If you do that your impact can become flicky. Personally, I like to set my hands slightly ahead of the clubface at address and try to repeat that relationship for impact. This helps me guarantee a crisp, clean strike.

2 Favour your lead side. I set a little extra weight on to my front foot at address and it barely moves from there during the swing. This helps me to control the swing’s low point, and the contact.

3 Stand a little open. This helps me see and feel the shot a little bit better. I also tend to open the face a touch to pitch the ball; it looks better to me and helps me cut the ball up a bit, which promotes a softer and more controlled landing.