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Chipping with Irons

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expat_in_asia

expat_in_asia

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A guy I was playing a round with was chipping from the fringe using his irons, and I tired it and loved the idea. What is the theory behind this and is the technique the same as using your wedge? (Weight on fwd leg, hands fwd at impact?) I was thinking of concentrating on using the 6 iron and really getting the feel for that 1 club (3,4,5) are hybrids. Any other thoughts or suggestions?

Thanks
 
The point of it is to get the ball rolling forward as fast as possible. The less loft on your club, the easier this is to accomplish. I've seen people do it with fairway woods, too.
 
I usually chip with my 9 iron unless I have a lot of fringe to carry. I have practiced enough with it to know my expected roll out distance based upon the strength of my swing. My uncle likes to chip with a hybrid. Different strokes for different folks makes the golf world go 'round...
 
It depends on the green really. The ball is more predictable rolling on the green than in the air, more like a putt. However, if you have a big mound or a large chunk of fringe or something in front of you it may be best to go over it. Of course, comfort level plays a big part too.
 
This is the Ask The Pro section. Please keep these threads clean until the GolfTec guys can get here to answer.
 
Might be my fault for posting in the wrong section. Sorry. Noob here.
 
Do a little experiment: take two paint buckets filled with golf balls. Stand 3 feet off the green and throw the balls from the first bucket at the hole, but as high as you possibly can. With the second bucket, "bowl" all the balls to the pin, gentle and underhanded. Obvious logistics of that many balls piling up and getting in the way of each other aside, the 2nd bucket's balls would have a much tighter cluster.

Why do something so goofy and time consuming? To prove the point that getting it on the ground and rolling it as soon as possible is consistently more reliable. And precisely why chipping with irons instead of just your wedge all the time is a good choice.

A few additional points: make sure you pick a "safe" landing spot (the flatter the better) and anticipate the roll out from there. In terms of anticipating roll out, it's good to have an idea of what percentage each particular iron tends to stay in the air vs. it's release on the ground. For example (assuming a flat green), my 7 iron rolls out 10 times as far as it is in the air when I chip. So I can pick a good landing spot and pace off the remaining distance to the cup for a better idea of which club to choose from right off the green.

Of course this doesn't mean that you should always leave your wedges in the bag from just off the green. It just means you should diversify a bit.

Like anything, this requires a bunch of practice to acquire a feel that will translate to the course. Invest in a shag bag.

Hope that helps,

Trevor Broesamle, PGA
GolfTEC Santa Barbara, CA
 
That is some very, very good info! Thanks for sharing that with us Trevor!
 
One other thing to considering with chipping with an iron vs a wedge is that with an iron you can make a shorter swing and with a shorter swing theres less time for things to go wrong.
Also, when chipping with a wedge theres less spin, which makes it easier to predict how much roll the shot will have. With a wedge the spin can vary with how cleanly you hit the ball but with an iron the amount of spin is much more consistent and easier to predict.
Im to the point now where the only wedge I chip with is my pitching wedge and even then I only use it when I need to fly the ball a bit of distance onto the green. If Im within 10' of the green I will hit a 9, 8 or 7 (depending upon the distance of the shot) and will leave the wedges in the bag. The wedges are great for when I have to fly the ball a considerable distance but I find it to be a much lower risk shot if I simply use an iron and use a putting stroke to get the ball rolling as soon as possible.
 
Thanks for all of the help and especially the visualization. Now to put it into use.
 
One other thing I've heard/seen/read is that using your irons for chips (along with the wedges) allows you to have one stroke - just substitute in the correct club to give you the right carry/roll - as opposed to using one club, which requires a player to have skill at making different types of shots to cover the different flights and rolls.
 
Ive used my 8i and pw
 
I always use my PW or 9 iron when I can. If I'm forced to carry something I'll use a SW or lob wedge


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Ive been working on this as of late, used the 7I for lots of roll and the 9I and PW around the greens closer....my worst shot with them is still way better than my worst shot with a skulled wedge
 
During the winter The Golf Channel had a golf acadamy series over the winter and Raymond Floyd discussed this. He basically has the philosophy of getting the ball rolling as quickly as possible.
To your point, he takes the distance of the chip and how far he needs to get the ball just over the fringe (in a safe landing spot) and use the club that accomplishes both. If it's a 6I great, if it's a SW, that's fine too, but his goal is to get the ball on the green and rolling quickly (just like a putt).

I started doing this a few years ago and while it takes some practice, it has certainly improved my short game. A 7I provides so much more forgivenss than a 56* SW - (basically eliminating those skulls and fat shots).
 
Iv'e done it a few times just to get a good roll on the ball, ends up being almost like a putt, not much loft on the ball at all
 
I love chipping with my irons. I am pretty consistent with it. I have seen video's of Jim Furyk (on here I think) where he talks about using irons for chipping. I've even used a 5 iron at times with a putting stroke and grip and got the ball very close on a long chip shot. Much more reliable for me and the ball had a more predictable roll as well.
 
Rvick82 said:
I love chipping with my irons. I am pretty consistent with it. I have seen video's of Jim Furyk (on here I think) where he talks about using irons for chipping. I've even used a 5 iron at times with a putting stroke and grip and got the ball very close on a long chip shot. Much more reliable for me and the ball had a more predictable roll as well.
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I used to do this and should try to get back to it. I used to take a mid iron and make my putting stroke without any wrist break and get the ball rolling as soon as possible. I probably fell in love with my Clevelands as I never had a good set of wedges until last year. Using an iron to chip is a great technique that every golfer should have in their shot collection to use.
 
Chipped in from about 15 feet with my 8 iron today for a birdie. Just used a putting stroke with it and it really worked well. I'll have to use my irons more often for chipping, especially when I have some room to run the ball.
 
my buddy uses all sorts of irons around the greens and the low runners always take 2 bounces and check up for him, but keep rolling on for me. I cant see anything he is doing differeently than me, is there something Im missing?
 
mikedean441 said:
my buddy uses all sorts of irons around the greens and the low runners always take 2 bounces and check up for him, but keep rolling on for me. I cant see anything he is doing differeently than me, is there something Im missing?
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Could be a couple of things: a softer "tour" ball tends to check up a lot better than a typical $25 price range ball (all other things being equal). Also, a little better release into the ball that comes from more wrist set on the way back. Be really careful with this one though, it can very easily turn into a flip through impact. Think of it this way: if I have my back to you and only turn around just in time to see you hold your finish, I shouldn't be able to tell the difference of the stroke where you break your wrists more on the way back and the one with "stiff wrists". All the action comes before and right into imapct, not after.

Hope that helps,

Trevor Broesamle, PGA
GolfTEC Santa Barbara, CA
 
GolfTEC said:
Could be a couple of things: a softer "tour" ball tends to check up a lot better than a typical $25 price range ball (all other things being equal). Also, a little better release into the ball that comes from more wrist set on the way back. Be really careful with this one though, it can very easily turn into a flip through impact. Think of it this way: if I have my back to you and only turn around just in time to see you hold your finish, I shouldn't be able to tell the difference of the stroke where you break your wrists more on the way back and the one with "stiff wrists". All the action comes before and right into imapct, not after.

Hope that helps,

Trevor Broesamle, PGA
GolfTEC Santa Barbara, CA
Click to expand...


that makes sense and come to think of it, he has more wrist in his shots than me. Since im new to chipping with irons this way, im trying to not "break the triangle" so I look real stiff chipping like this, but Ive hd way less skulls and chunks that normal, so it doesnt bother me one bit. And if I cant generate the sping doing it this way, so be it
 
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