More trouble hitting off fairway than rough

[Luke]

At the moment, an acceptable score for myself is anything under 100. My driving and putting are (relatively) solid while the remainder of my short game and irons need lots of work.

One of the biggest problems I have is I struggle hitting just about any iron off of the fairway - usually fat or thin. If I'm in the 1st cut or moderate rough, I'm much more likely to end up with a clean shot.

Anyone have any advice, suggestions, swimg thoughts, etc, to offer?

Thanks in advance,

Luke

[JTrout]

It's likely that the bottom of your swing arc is slightly behind the ball. It needs to be in front so that you're catching the irons on the downswing.
This is the reason your tee shots are solid, and you can hit from the rough (if the ball isn't all the way to the bottome of the rough).

Fat shots and thin shots are caused from the same swing flaw- having the bottom of your swing behind the ball (catching it on the upswing).

Make sure that you are shifting your weight to your left side to begin the downswing. Often "hanging back" leads to the problem you're having.

Practice hitting shots off the dirt. Trust the loft of the club to get the ball in the air.

Best of luck.

[Luke]

Thanks for the words of advice JTrout. I think your comment about shifting my weight to begin my downswing might be the key for me.

When I was struggling with my drives I found that once I began to start my downswing with my hips I found a lot more fairways. There's a decent chance I'm still leading with my hands on my iron downswings.

I'll give your tips a try when I finally get some time to practice.

[black knight]

The reason you find the rough easier is because you don't have a lot of consistency in your swing and being in the rough causes your slightly fat shots to come off normally...the fairway, OTOH, really punishes those same slightly fat shots.

Advice? Seek a lesson...that's always the best. The problem is your lack of consistency in where you're getting the club back to the ball though.

[Troll_Inc]

There are little tricks I've stumbled upon or someone told me along the way.

The one for hitting off the fairway is quite good and can be practiced at the range easily.

Place a dime directly in front of the ball, almost touching it. (An imaginary dime works just as well). Now instead of trying to hit the ball with your swing, try and hit the dime.

(This assumes of course that the ball is setup correctly.)