As the golf instruction editor for The Daily Duffer, I’m thrilled to kick off a new series designed to help you unlock your full scoring potential. We all know golf is a game of inches, and nowhere is that more apparent than in your “Scoring Range Performance”—those crucial shots from 150 yards and in. This part of the game is where rounds are truly made or broken, and it deserves focused attention.
I’ve seen it time and again in my 15+ years of teaching, from aspiring tour players to dedicated weekend warriors: the golfer who can crush a drive but struggles with a 50-yard pitch, or the one who’s deadly with a putter but can’t hit a crisp 9-iron to save their life. So often, we lump all these different shots into one big “short game” bucket. But that’s a disservice to your potential!
“You cannot lump all these into one bucket called “the short game”; instead, you must give each of them focused attention.”
That’s exactly what we’re going to do. We’ll break down the scoring range into distinct segments, starting today with perhaps the most critical: your short iron and wedge shots that call for a “full” swing. These are your scoring clubs, your chance to set yourself up for easy pars and birdie opportunities.
Mastering Your Short Irons and Wedges: Accuracy Over Power
On the PGA Tour, short irons and wedges are the engines of low scores. Pros aren’t constantly draining bombs from 200 yards; their scoring prowess largely comes from their ability to attack flags from closer distances. As the source article points out, “the very low scoring that has become common to PGA Tour events comes from the fact that these guys hit the majority of their approach shots with an 8-iron or less.” Think about your last round: how many approach shots did you have with an 8-iron or less in your hand? If that number isn’t steadily climbing towards 8-10, working on your course management to create more of these opportunities is a great goal, but practicing these shots with purpose will pay dividends regardless.
The key to consistent short iron and wedge play isn’t about raw power; it’s about control. When I teach my students, I often emphasize that a “full swing” with a driver is very different from a “full swing” with a wedge. With a short iron in hand, a full swing doesn’t mean swinging as hard as you can. It means focusing on repeatable contact and path.
The source article puts it beautifully:
“The key to consistent short iron and wedge play is to make consistent contact with a consistent swing path. That’s the only way to achieve repeatable trajectories and therefore distance control. And the best way to ensure more consistency is to slow down to about 80-85% of what you might consider a “full swing.”
This “80-85% effort” concept is crucial. It allows you to maintain balance, control the clubface, and most importantly, deliver a consistent downward strike needed to optimize spin and trajectory. My experience shows that most recreational golfers try to hit these shots too hard, often leading to thin or fat shots and a loss of accuracy. Instead, think of it as a controlled, compact swing.
Fundamentals for Crisper Contact
To achieve that consistent, penetrating ball flight, here are a few fundamentals I encourage you to focus on:
- **Left Side Dominance:** For right-handed golfers, developing a feeling of your left side leading the downswing is vital. This ensures your hands arrive at the ball before the clubhead, promoting that desired downward strike. It’s like pulling a rope with your lead arm.
- **Slightly Flatter Swing Plane:** A flatter swing path can promote a more direct strike on the ball. This isn’t about radically changing your swing, but subtly feeling like the club moves more directly towards the target through impact, rather than an overly upright motion. This often naturally shortens the backswing, leading to greater control.
Why do these work? A downward strike maximizes spin, giving you control over the ball’s flight and stopping power on the green. A slightly flatter swing helps you deliver the clubface more squarely to the ball, resulting in solid contact and a more penetrating trajectory that resists wind and lands soft.
Actionable Drills for Improvement
Ready to put these ideas into practice? Here are a couple of drills:
Try this: The “Feel the Lead” Drill
Grab a 9-iron or Pitching Wedge. Set up as usual, but as you begin your takeaway, focus on initiating the backswing with your shoulders and core, not just your arms. As you start the downswing, consciously feel your lead hip (left hip for right-handers) initiating the movement, pulling your left arm and the club through. Focus on letting your hands lead the clubhead into impact. Practice this at a slow, controlled pace, emphasizing the feeling of your lead side driving the motion. Your goal isn’t distance, but the sensation of hands-first contact.
Here’s a drill: The “80% Punch” Drill
Take your 8-iron or 9-iron. Instead of thinking about a full, powerful swing, imagine you’re hitting a controlled “punch” shot. Make a three-quarter backswing – not quite to the top, but enough to feel loaded. On the downswing, focus on accelerating smoothly through the ball with that 80-85% effort. Finish with your hands relatively low, pointing towards the target, rather than a high, full follow-through. The ball flight should be lower and more penetrating than your usual full swing, giving you a better feel for solid, controlled contact. Experiment with targeting a specific distance, slightly shorter than your full swing distance for that club.
Unlocking Precision: Gripping Down and Face Control
Once you develop a consistent full-swing feel, let’s talk about fine-tuning your distances. Many golfers struggle with those “in-between” yardages. Instead of trying to manipulate your swing speed for every single shot, I recommend a simpler approach:
“Given that it is difficult for the recreational player to devote enough time to master multiple swing speeds, the simplest way to do that is to learn to grip down precisely to shorten the club and therefore reduce the distance the ball will fly. It takes a little experimentation, as each golfer is different, but gripping down about 1/2 inch should take 3-5 yards off a short-iron or wedge shot. Another half inch will cut off another 3-5 yards.”
This is a game-changer! Spend some time on the range hitting shots while gripping down. You might be surprised how precise you can get. For even more control, you can slightly open the clubface and aim a bit left. A few degrees open will add loft, making a 9-iron fly more like a pitching wedge but with a touch more distance than your actual pitching wedge. This nuance helps you cover those precise “half-club” distances with confidence.
Remember, improvement is a journey, not a destination. By focusing on these fundamentals and practicing with purpose, you will absolutely learn to keep the majority of your full swing short iron and wedge shots within reliable two-putt distance. You’ll even start enjoying those moments when you stick one close for a makeable birdie putt. Keep practicing, and I promise you’ll start seeing lower scores!
Next time, we’ll delve into developing a killer pitch shot!
