Dreaded 50 yards in...

This is definitely a shot that I need. I had this 3 times yesterday to hit GIRs and hit the green but was definitely nowhere near a puttable par. All 3 times I hit my 59 degree Vokey TVD but was unsuccessful. I tried 2 different shots: ball in middle and ball back in stance above my right foot (I'm a righty). For both types of shots I leaned to my leading side and tried keeping my lower half really still but I think this compromised my tempo a bit. The swing was a 1/2 swing and not enough. I'll be watching some 'Titleist Tips From the Tour' tonight. 

Make a trip to your local PGA Professional. Not only will he be able to help teach you the correct technique for the "less than full" shot but he will also be able to properly fit the wedges in your bag.

Already did that...

I received some wedge advice that I believe might be useful to your situation. It has certainly helped me wrap my head around the breakdown in yardage differences.

Imagine a full swing rotation as a clock where 6 o'clock would be the ball and 12 o'clock would be directly over your head. With a full swing you would be making a complete 12 o'clock to 12 o'clock rotation. For 75% swing you would want to make a 10 o'clock to 2 o'clock. For 50% swing you would want to make a 9 o'clock to 3 o'clock. So on and so forth. Now I'll admit that the exact start and stop position would vary depending on player and type of swing and the above is just an example. If you envision your swing into a realistic comparison such as with this clock comparison then I believe you would be more consistent both on the range and on the course.

-Brandon

One thing you can try on this shot (besides repeated practice) is taking the 56 and just open the face a litte to create more loft.   You can experiement with this on the range or anywhere you can simulate a 50 yard shot.   You said it yourself, you can execute the shot in practice, so you know how to do it.   Just try to biuld in that feeling so it comes to you on course.  

I know this is not ground breakiing data!

Dickson is the winner!  I tried this on today's round and hit it perfectly.  Seems opening the face and taking the fuller swing was very similar to a sand trap shot - which I perform well.   From there on out I just imagined hitting a sand shot with the open face and nailed it...CHEERS DICKSON!

What works for me is I think of my swing like a clock on these types of shots. 50 yards for me is taking my lead arm (right) to "3oclock" and same speed through as I normally would. 50 yards dead on with my 56 is 3 o'clock. 2 o'clock is 60 yards. 1:30 is 65. You get the picture. Now I'm a lefty so it would be opposite for you assuming you're a righty left arm to "9oclock" and same speed through. Give it a try.

I had a recent period where I could not dial down the distance on some of my wedge shots on the course and was consistently chipping the ball oong on my approach shots.  Same deal, I was hitting the distance in the practice area but exceeding it on the course.  First, I spent more time practicing various length shots.  I spend a lot of time in the practice area with a single wedge (in my case, it is a 60 degree wedge) alternating shots at differnet targets at differnet lengths.  I have found that opening/closing this club and swinging less than 100%, I have a very wide range of distance on this club.  Hitting a different length for each shot enabled me to get the feel for different lengths.  Second, on the course, I focused on a spot short of the hole as I was making my approach shots.  This helped me to dial it back a little as well.

I think you nailed it when you said mentally!  This shot is certainly a tough one and will only find it in the dirt!! Good luck! I play my 56 with ball just inside front foot, with stance slightly opened and weight on front foot. Distance dictated by upper body rotation and keeping lower body very still.  Took a while, but it's there!  Keep after it!!!!

I recently won a tournament in NY and the course was playing about 6700 yards so i had plenty of these 50 yard shots as an approach.  I like to open my stance slightly and open the face slightly so I'm getting a steeper angle of attack so I can have a little more spin. For me this setup provides that If I hit the ball with a 3/4 swing (58* wedge) I get a lower checking shot that always works for me. I shot 71 72 70 71 in the tournament and won.

Hey Nate,

Congrats on winning the tournament. Great low scores!

Thanks for the tips on hitting the 50 yard checking shot. Will be practicing this tomorrow with my SM4 TVD 58 Vokey. 

50 yard shots aren't as difficult as most make them to be.  These are my distances.

8 iron - 1/4 swing pitch/

9 iron - half swing pitch choked 1/2"

PW - half swing pitch 

SW - full pitch

60* - full swing choked 1" 

64* - full golf swing.

The longest my backswiing is on a full shot with any short iron is where the arms are parallel to the ground (no need for the Big 90 Degree Backswing).  My half swing is arms around 8 oclock and shaft about waist height.

The worst thing people do is get wristy on short shots; they flip their wrists.  Like any other golf shot, the hips start the downswing.

I know my full swing with a PW is 100 yards, with a 54* is 80 yards, with a 60 is 65 yards and with a 64 is 50 yards on a full swing.

My open stance pitch distances with a full swing are:

PW - 70 yards

54 - 50 yards

60 - 40 yards

64 - 30 yards.

Half swing (8 oclock arms)

PW - 50 yards

54 - 35 yards

60 - 25 yards

64 - 15 yards

The rule of thumb for shaving distance - 

1/2" = 10 yards on a full swing, 5 yards on a 1/2 swing and 2.5 yards on a 1/4 swing.

I've had a pretty deadly short game since 2006.  

If one could take a smooth swing with the wedges and not be concerned with knocking the snot out of it, it makes it easier to control distance.  I could put a little heat on it and hit a PW 125 yards but take a smooth swing and hit it 100.

I don't know if I do this correctly because I've never taken a golf lesson. I take about a 3/4 quarter back swing, and speed up or slow down on swing through depending on distance. It's taken a lot of practice to get a good feel and a lot more practice to just trust myself with the shot. Another thing I've done to eliminate what I call "overthinking the shot', I used to take one or two practice swings before my shot. Now I walk up, get the alignment I want and take the shot. I tried this so that I couldn't think about the shot and I've been doing it ever since. Hope you get it figured out

Changing swing speed leads to inconsistency.

Backswing length and amount of choke down are how you control distance.  What has worked for me is narrowing the stance with backswing length. 

I've gained some distance since my last post.  What I do know is a full swing with a PW is about 115-120, one with a 50* wedge is around 100, one with a 54* SW is 90, one with a 58 wedge is 75 and a 64 is 60 yd.    I know that a full pitch is 80 yards with a PW, 70 with a 50, 55 with a SW, 45 with a 58 wedge and 30 with a 64.  I get 50 yards with a 1/2 swing pitch on the PW and 50, 35 yards with the 54, 25 with the 58 and 20 with the 64. 

The rule of thumb about cutting 10 yards on a full swing or pitch for every 1/2" of choke down, 5 yards on a 1/2 swing and 2.5 on a 1/4 swing works.  My "1/2 swing" is arms at 8 oclock.  and "1/4 swing" is arms at 7 oclock.   Also remember the backswing is a bit restricted with an open stance. 

Trying to take a 6" backswing can be touchy sometimes so the solution would be to use a more lofted wedge. The thing to avoid on the short swings is flipping the hands (=skulls, etc).

I have just learned a whole lot more about iron shots with this thread!! Thank you all!!! My irons have been my biggest nemisis since I started playing again!!

I discovered 64* wedges in 2006.  There are  really only 2 shots - a full swing at 60 yards and a pitch at 30 yards with about 5-10 feet of green between the fringe and the pin.

I have the miz mp-t4 with a DG spinner shaft. It is easy to check up. It is a 60 degree loft with a .08 bounce.

I decided to drop the 64 after about an hour of practice with it and the 58. 

The 64 wedge CAN be a bit finicky.  It is good for about 50-60 yards on a full swing and about 25-30 for a pitch; however, you can do similar things with a 58-06 by opening the face a bit.

The SM4 64-07 is more suited to grassy lies or soft short, deep bunkers.  Despite its "effective" bounce it is not that great on tight lies.