HAT IS YOUR SMASH FACTOR?

How much further do you hit your #7 Iron than your #8 Iron? It will almost certainly be about the same as the gap between your #8 and #9 Irons. It is also likely that it will the same as the distance gap between your #6 and #7 Irons. However, when you examine the distance gaps between your #3, #4, #5 and #6 Irons look honestly at the distance gap you ACHIEVE ON AVERAGE and not the distance gap if you hit the perfect shot. A test conducted with 4,000 amateur golfers (with handicaps of higher than 15) found that the average distance achieved for a #3 Iron was barely beyond their average for a Pitching Wedge, and a lot shorter than the average for a #7 Iron. Barney Adams, another club maker who started working with real golfers rather than Tour Pros, noted that the average mid/long Iron distance gaps of even single figure handicap golfers blurred down to a few yards. The reason for this is that the 'smash factor', the ability of a golfer to strike the sweet spot consistently, declined as they moved into the mid/long Irons, irrespective of handicap.

Whichever you choose remember this: playing with a golf club whose shaft length or Lie Angle does not suit your game will make it harder for you to maximise your smash factor. It makes obvious sense to get those fitting specifications, along with the shaft flex, absolutely right or your investment in golf equipment technology is wasted.