6 Iron (Keys, Tips, Benefits)

 

As golfers, the total number of clubs you can have in your bag is 14.

Since this is a limited number of golf clubs, it makes sense to be able to hit all of your golf clubs well.

The six iron is not always a favorite for golfers.

With a six iron, you must be able to hit the ball cleanly as there is not as much loft on a six iron as there is on other golf clubs.

With the six iron in play, you will have to keep a few key tips in mind to help you succeed.

In our guide on how to play with a six iron, we will give you all the information you need about the keys, tips, and benefits of becoming a great six iron player.

Many people are struggling to get this club to do what they need it to do, so don’t be one of these people, and learn to play with the six iron the right way and reap the benefits.

 

Benefits Of A 6 Iron

 

The first thing to be aware of is the benefits of a six iron.

Ensuring that you have a good idea of how to use this club and use it well can really help you become the player you are meant to be.

Here are some of the benefits of a six iron.

 

1. Ball Flight Is Easier To Control

 

With a six iron in your hand, you can easily control the loft that you get with your golf shots.

Controlling the loft is essential because it allows you to hit certain types of shots that you may struggle with when using certain golf clubs.

For instance, when you try and hit a knockdown type of shot with a nine iron, you may notice that the ball is lifted too high off the ground.

Therefore, it makes more sense to use something like the six iron and allow yourself to keep the ball down and have it penetrate the air in a bit of a different way.

Ball flight is not something golfers should struggle with if they are sure to pick the right piece of equipment.

If you are careful about the lofts that you choose and the clubs that you put into play, you will have no issues controlling the overall ball flight.

 

2. More Accurate Approach Than A Hybrid

 

The six iron is a great club for attacking pins.

When you have an approach shot into a green, it makes sense to pull out the six iron instead of the hybrid.

Although you may have to be a bit more precise when you hit a six iron, you will also be able to benefit from the ability to hit the ball close to the pin.

Hitting the ball close to the pin with a hybrid is a bit more difficult because it can’t generate as much spin as other golf clubs.

The hybrid golf club and the iron have different strengths.

Accuracy when hitting into a pin is not a great strength of the hybrid golf club.

The six iron, on the other hand, is a club that you can use to send the ball directly to the pin.

If you practice with the six iron, it can be very helpful in getting you close to the pin on your longer approach shots.

 

3. Can Be A Great Club For Playing In The Wind

 

The six iron is typically an excellent golf club choice for playing in the wind.

On those windy days when the conditions keep blowing the golf ball around, you will find that the six iron does a great job of cutting through the wind.

When you have a hard time keeping the ball from ballooning and getting pushed around, the loft on the six iron can help.

If you can learn to swing the club with controlled swings, you may be able to learn to hit the six iron a few different distances.

For instance, you can practice hitting 100-, 130-, and even 160-yard shots with the six iron cutting through the wind.

 

4. Is Useful When Getting Out Of Trouble

 

The six iron can be an excellent club for punching the ball out of trouble.

For golfers who tend to get the ball stuck in the woods, the six iron can be used to punch your way out.

Many times, players reach for a club like a pitching wedge to make the punchout easier and have it just advance to the fairway.

However, if you are a serious player who is looking for extra yardage and advancement down the fairway, the six iron is probably a great option to consider.

The six iron will keep the ball low and have it fly under any branches, and then, when it advances to the fairway, it will likely roll for quite some time.

The only thing to be aware of here is that the six iron can fly rather far.

If you don’t have much fairway to work with, be careful about which golf club you are going to use.

 

Keys To Hitting A 6 Iron

 

At this point, you should have a pretty good idea of why you would want to carry a six iron around on the golf course.

This is a club that the majority of golfers will benefit from, especially if the equipment is correctly fitted to the needs of the player.

Here are some of the things to consider when hitting with a six iron.

Keep these ideas in mind so that, when you break out the six iron, you are ready to get the most performance out of it that you can.

 

1. Hit Down And Through The Ball

 

If you want to see the best distance that you can get from a golf shot, you must hit down and through the ball.

The six iron is a club that will benefit significantly from making contact with all of the grooves on the club.

If you end up hitting the ball cleanly and not hitting down and through it, you will miss out on some of the loft, and you will end up struggling with the total distance.

Essentially, many golfers will hit a ball thin when they have their six iron in their hands.

It is important to remember that this is a club that needs to hit the ball with a descending blow so that the golf ball can compress properly.

Those who struggle with this concept and try to pick the ball may feel as though a six iron is not the club for them.

The next time you are practicing hitting golf balls at the range, try to take a slightly narrower stance with the six iron.

Practice hitting some half-swing shots and see what kind of distance you can get from doing this.

The extra distance and impressive launch will have you excited to learn to hit down and through your golf shots.

This is a very powerful golf club when it is used correctly.

 

2. Use Your Swing Speed

 

Golfers need to use their swing speed when they hit a six iron.

The six iron is a bit longer than some of the short irons in the bag, and this ends up making it more difficult to swing the club as fast.

A difference of even just a quarter-inch in a club’s length can make it feel as though you need to put in a bit more effort to swing it around yourself.

The six iron requires a good bit of swing speed to be able to hit it solid.

This is why you see some senior golfers taking the six iron out and putting in a six hybrid.

However, if you still have enough swing speed to hit a seven iron well, you should be able to do so with the six iron.

Instead of thinking about increasing your swing speed, golfers need to think about using their swing speed.

We all have a good bit of swing speed that we can use to help launch the ball and carry it quite a bit further.

However, when we try to start swinging hard just to hit the ball far, the results are not always as good.

Swinging hard when you have great tempo, stability, and balance can be a good thing.

However, swinging hard when your technique is not perfect will cause some major issues.

The six iron is a great golf club if you have the proper swing speed to hit it well.

If you do not, you can work on gaining strength and speed, or you can simply replace this golf club with something like a hybrid.

 

3. Place The Ball Slightly Forward Of Center

 

Since the six iron is a longer iron, some golfers will benefit from playing this club with the ball slightly forward of center.

Keeping the ball at the back foot or in the middle of the stance makes it difficult to get the same ball flight and precision that you may need.

In addition, many golfers do a better job of transferring their weight forward and getting the extra height and ball flight when they play the ball slightly forward of center.

Forward of center can get exaggerated rather quickly.

Make sure that you just consider the center position and then maybe a ball’s width ahead of this.

If you end up anywhere near your front foot, you are likely going to have a very hard time getting the performance that you need.

 

4. Release The Club

 

One problem that some golfers have with a six iron is that they forget to release it.

This happens because a player is typically so worried about getting the club head speed that they need, they often forget to swing through the ball the way that they should.

Releasing the club head allows for a much straighter shot and a better ball flight.

A player who slices their driver knows how important this feeling of a release is, and it must be thought about with a six iron shot as well.

If you are typically blocking your six iron out to the right or even slicing it a bit, the reason could be that you are afraid to release the club.

This is going to take a bit of practice on the range, but you can learn to do it.

As you start swinging down from the top of your golf swing, you will want to feel the golf club start to turn over and release.

The release of the club is not always going to feel like the most natural movement, but if you practice it, you should be able to learn to do it.

Once the release is learned, you can then easily repeat it to be able to hit great six iron golf shots.

 

5. Transfer Your Weight And Finish High

 

The six iron requires you to transfer your weight during the swing.

This is a full golf swing that requires weight to get to the back leg and then transfer all the way through to the front leg.

When you do this, you must finish with the club high above your shoulder and with your body fully facing your target.

The complete weight transfer from the balanced and centered position to the right and then to the left side is something that takes practice, but it will help you get more solid shots with your six iron.

For golfers who struggle with being able to hit a six iron cleanly, make sure that you are turning and properly transferring your weight.

You can check this by working on drills, or you can have a friend video your golf swing for you.

Either way will help you see and understand what it takes to hit a great golf shot and finish it.

 

6. Focus On A Specific Point Of Contact

 

As we have mentioned, hitting golf shots with a six iron is something that requires a bit more precision than hitting a shot with a pitching wedge.

The six iron is a lower lofted golf club that requires you to make contact with the ball at a very specific point on the club head.

Although some six irons have a large sweet spot, the overall strike you need to make should still be quite precise.

Our favorite way to practice this is to learn to hit a specific point on the ground.

You should head to the driving range, and if you can find a can of turf marking paint, you will significantly benefit from it.

Simply mark a spot on the turf with a line that runs perpendicular to where you stand as a golfer.

Then you will set up so that this line represents the golf ball.

Take swings that essentially make the line disappear with a divot following it.

This is going to help you learn to hit a specific location.

When you put the ball back in play, try to think of the line that you were just hitting as the line directly behind the golf ball.

So many players look at the whole golf ball as opposed to focusing on one tiny spot at the bottom of the golf ball.

You would be surprised to learn what a difference this will make in your game to simply direct your attention to a smaller and more precise location to hit the ball.

 

Should I Carry A 6 Iron?

 

Now that you have all the information you need to hit some great six iron shots, let’s take a look at whether or not you should even be carrying a six iron in your golf bag.

The answer is that, for the majority of players, the six iron is still very necessary.

Only senior golfers with very low swing speeds or high handicappers who have a hard time getting the ball off the ground should consider skipping the six iron.

The six iron still serves a very important purpose for those serious about the game and hitting a variety of different golf shots.

If you can’t keep the ball low, there are times it can cost you.

For those who have a hard time getting the ball flight that they need, it may be worth learning how to hit knockdown shots or punch shots with your hybrids.

This is a shot that is absolutely possible, and if your seven iron is your lowest lofted iron, it may be a shot that you need to learn to work with.

Overall, it makes sense for most players to put a six iron in their bag.

Even if this is not your favorite golf club, the performance that you can get from it will often help you to become a better player in general.

 

Conclusion

We hope you feel more confident in your ability to hit a great six iron shot.

This is a club that is worth working with.

If you invest a little time into your six iron, you will end up with some excellent overall performance.

The ability to hit the ball a long way and get spin and ball flight are key benefits of the six iron.

For players who care about having a complete set of clubs, simply make sure you have enough swing speed to hit your six iron solidly.

If you do not, consider putting in a slightly shorter or lighter shaft and see how that impacts the success that you get with your golf club.

Overall, this is a valuable tool that most golfers carry, so give yourself the same advantage and learn to hit a six iron well.