What is the difference between irons in golf

Irons are usually sold in sets of up to 9 irons. Within each set the irons are numbered to correspond to the loft of the club.

The long irons in a set are usually numbers 2, 3 and 4, although these days it is rare to see a 2 or even a 3 iron. The benefits of this type of set are clear. The cavity back short irons offer maximum forgiveness and control for shorter shots into greens.

Following that, the hollow back mid irons move the weight and therefore centre of gravity of the club head lower and further back on the club to produce easily-hit high mid iron shots. Lastly, the long irons combine fairway wood distance with the control and accuracy of a long iron.

For a high-handicap or older player, this set could provide the perfect mix to help your iron-play. The most commonly chosen shaft for irons is steel. Steel is stronger and heavier than graphite, meaning it produces less flex and is more consistent and accurate. The carbon steel or stainless steel used in shafts is thick and offers consistent torque and flexibility, allowing you to have the same flex and stiffness in your 4 iron as you have in your 9 iron.

The reduced price and highly durable nature of the metal make it a popular choice for all golfers. Not as common as steel in the iron market, graphite can still be a great advantage because it is lightweight and flexible.

This enables you to increase swing speed and perhaps unlock more distance in your game. The drawback of graphite is the feel from the shaft. A stiff graphite shaft will not feel like a stiff steel shaft and may mean the feel is not consistent through a graphite-shafted set of irons.

Another drawback is price, as the process of making graphite shafts is more expensive than steel. However, if you are an older, junior or lady golfer who perhaps prefers a light feeling club, then the extra money you spend may benefit your game.

A less common method of shaft construction is the multi-material shaft. This type of shaft combines both steel and graphite in one shaft. It tends to be made up mainly of steel, with a graphite tip. The steel section of the shaft offers a solid shaft that allows players to control the ball flight more. The graphite tip lets the club have a limited amount of 'extra speed into the ball that can help produce more distance. The graphite tip also helps filter out any unwanted vibrations at contact to optimize the feel of each shot.

For more information on shafts, go to the Golf Shafts Buying Guide. This may seem a fairly elementary question but actually there are many options when it comes to deciding exactly which individual clubs you buy. The wedges are used to strike the ball and make it fly high into the air before landing on the putting surface. These clubs are lofted much higher than the others; for example, a pitching wedge has a loft between 46 to 51 degrees, and a lob wedge's loft can be as high as 64 degrees.

Golfers usually select a pitching wedge when the shot is as far as yards to the green and a sand wedge to escape from bunkers and very tall grass. The lob wedge is chosen when the ball needs to rise quickly to clear a hazard but not have to carry a great distance. Golf sets generally come with a pitching wedge; other wedges must be purchased separately. The putter is the club that gets the most use. It is utilized to roll the ball along the green toward the hole. Putters come in different sizes, with the standard putter about 34 to 35 inches tall.

The belly putter and broomstick putter are much taller clubs and are used to give the golfer a better putting stroke when the player has problems using a standard putter. The heads of putters can be in the form of a flat blade or a mallet with a flat surface. John Lindell has written articles for "The Greyhound Review" and various other online publications. A Connecticut native, his work specializes in sports, fishing and nature. Lindell worked in greyhound racing for 25 years.

You may believe that since 3 and 5-irons are made of iron, a material harder than wood, that they would be used for longer distance shots, but this is not the case.

Generally speaking, a 3-wood is used for a shot in the range of yards, while a 3-iron is used for a shot in the range of yards. A 5-wood is used for a shot of about yards, while a 5-iron is used for a shot of about yards. As you may have deduced from the numbers above, a 5-wood and 3-iron are both typically used for the same distance shot and should be chosen based on the desired loft for the shot.

Wood golf clubs are long-range clubs used at the beginning of every hole when you tee off. For longer courses, use wood golf clubs in the second swing. Woods have large, circular club heads with a flat front where you strike the golf ball. Iron golf clubs are used after teeing off; you can recognize them by the extreme angle of the club heads.

Every golfer has more iron clubs than any other golf club in their bag! Make sure you stock up before you swing on our South Florida golf course.

You will undoubtedly learn more about golf and golf clubs by playing.