How Far Should You Hit 7 Iron? Average, Fast & Very Fast Players 

Absolutely love this. Please do more of this kind of thing. It’s really hard to give lesson on RU-vid as most people dont know what their swing is really like but these kinds of ‘general truths’ are really really helpful

This was a intriguing test. Please do more like this. Thanks Matty

So knowledgeable and you express the expectations well. Nice to see this comparison to show how swing speed affects distance. The math calculation was a nice addition.

This was a fantastic lesson. You’re a very talented golfer/athlete. Thank you for doing this!!

Really enjoy your style Matt! Keep up the content.

Really appreciate this content - i have a GC3 and so access to all this data but never understand what good should absolutely look like.

Seems good. Also highlights the fact that high speed gives you a higher flight that will also stop like lawn dart for any and all scoring clubs.

This is very useful. Thank you!

Excellent video showing how to easily evaluate the quality of your 7 iron shot. It would be awesome to see the coefficient for the other clubs, maybe in a table format, for us to use along side our launch monitors while we practice. Thanks again

So impressed by your ability to control speed, and of course the ability to produce speed!! 👏👏👏 I struggle to go beyond 82-83mph with my 7-iron on most days.. 🥺😂

Spot-on, Matt! I am now 74 years old (almost 75), and am losing clubhead speed to the point where I currently get 147-152 yards with a well-struck 7-iron at my 78 MPH clubhead speed. Not too many years ago, I was at about 88 MPH with a 7-iron, and at that time, my "stock" length (carry distance only) with a 7-iron was 174 yards when not playing at altitude and with no wind assist. Occasionally, I still catch one perfect and with a bit more clubhead speed than usual, and I get the 7-iron out to 160 yards, or a bit more, but those instances are few and far between.

Interesting Matt. I’ve often wondered how we could find out approximate distance knowing a few math parameters! Thanks

This is a fantastically helpful video. It would good to see this for driver as well

I love this types of video!

Wow this calculation worked. Thanks Matt

Spot on. Indoors on Trackman My average Swing speed with my 7 iron (T100S) is 81 mph. And my avg carry is 154-155 yards. Which is exactly 1.9 x 81 mph. Brilliant!!

I love how my top end speed (90ish) is just a flick for Matt 😂 Great content and I’ll echo that I love these types of vids that give a benchmark to compare our numbers against.

Very good calculation - I’m about 92-94chs and are 176-178 with my 7iron! Very good 👍🏻

I could only dream of a 100mph on my 7i! I'm just under thats for my bloody driver! Great video, love these sorts of technical topics.

Awesome content. Wedges would be really interesting also.

Glad i finally found you! Missed you from the 'other place'. In fact i haven't watch much anything there since.

Love the content and you logic with this. Keep up the great work. Also, what software is that? I have a GC3 and wonder if I can use the same software?

Math works out with my 87mph club head speed for 7iron, would love you to go through the whole bag with this, I can’t always get onto a launch monitor and I know I’m leaving some distance on the table with some clubs.

I'm getting a bit stiff and creaky, but a few years ago a smooth 7 was 150. I could go 160 or 170, but unless I was getting reasonable amount of practice and play I could not always count on hitting it square. So my advice is to play below your maximum, unless you want to dial it up. Too many amateurs play redline golf at the limit and spray it, or miss hit it.

75 yo, 17 hcp, avg carry 147 y.. . Next year …summer 2024 ….my new Titleist combo T- 350/200 probably a bit longer but not my first objective . Good show, thanks. Merry X-mass everyone 🎉 ErEf, Montréal

Very cool! Haven’t seen someone do this. Very helpful…would be interested in the breakdown by club type (Player distance, GI, player), to account for the different lofts across the spectrum, but I think the way you’ve done it sort of covers all possibilites by laying out the range of numbers across the board…well done….I like it!! Do you think the 1.9 factor applies to the other irons as well, or would those be different?

I just went through all this at a club fitting…an easy swing for me, with the right head (T790s), a stiffer and heavier shaft (130g), and an improved loft angle (approaching 20 degrees), generates a 92mph swing, and about 180 yds of carry. Very informative!

I didn't know this calculation but it was very good.

Great video Matt! Really good way for us to gauge appropriate distances. Would you be able to associate desired ball speeds to the swing speeds you stated in the video. My stock BS with a 7i is 126-128mph and I carry it about 180yds (peak height about 125 ft and spin in the low 6000s). Does that sound like it’s in line?

I'm 63 years old, I get 180 with my driver! Lol! But I just started golf, Working on my swing right now not distance Great video, gives me an idea how far I might be able to hit the ball lol!.

My 7-iron is 35 degrees and my 6 is 31 degrees so my 7 may be closer to a standard 8-iron. Callaway Rogue has its 7-iron at 30 degrees. . I like the idea mentioned that you can hit it harder to reach further but what stopping power do you want/what landing angle. So, I need to use my 6 instead of a harder 7, just to stretch the distance 5 more yards but screwing up the landing angle.

Speed is not the only thing that matters. You can go as fast as you can but if you don’t have a decent angle of attack, and/or a decent angle of path and/or don’t hit more or less on the sweet spot of the club head then the ball will go all over the place.

Love the bump in views on this vid, short vids with good content are becoming rare in golf youtube. A lot of very long content out there now which im sure is excellently put together but hard to set time to watch.

A good hit for me sees a 7 iron carry 135yards. At 1.9 this would suggest a 70mph club head speed. Seems a bit light to me but very possible.

Depends on the clubs too. I was playing with a kid the other day who was hitting his PW 150 yards. I looked up the specs and his PW was 43 degrees, which is slightly stronger than my 9 iron. Lofts are so jacked these days

I have to multiply my club speed with the 7-iron with approximately 2. I have good smash factors and tend to draw the ball so that helps. Clubspeed around the 83 mark. Srixon Z585 which has been added loft one degree, now 32. Age 65.

My current 7 iron is 30.5 degrees with a hollow body and a trampoline effect. My previous 7 iron was a solid piece of metal with 36 degrees of loft. Which one do you think I hit farther? BTW, I wish I still had my old clubs.

Yep dead on never thought of it that way before

It early May here and temperatures are struggling to get above 10C. This has a massive impact on how far my 7 iron goes. Currently ~ 145 but when it warms up above 25C it usually goes 160+.

What loft does your 7 iron have? Makes a difference. I'm definitely in the slow speed range as I am 82, but have played over 60 years, practice and have a pretty good swing. I use a classic forged blade with 34 degree loft, no tungsten or tech. Not sure what my current swing speed is because the indoor bays where I go use overhead Foresight GC Hawk monitors that only give ball speed not club speed. Three years ago I had a Trackman workup and got 74.8 mph with best carry 137. But that was with 120 gram stiff Royal Precision Rifle Lite shafts (the original Kim Braly ones). A year ago I had a second set of the same heads built with much lighter 87.5 gram Nippon Pro Zelos 8 stiff shafts, so I can get more swing speed than with the heavy shafts, but am probably just offsetting the loss in speed with the extra three years of age. My carry with the 7 iron is between 130 and once in a while with a perfect hit 140, so basically a 135 yard club. But if I test something like a P790 head with 30.5 degree loft on a TT 95 gram regular flex shaft I can get an extra 7 to even 10 yards, but then that's my 6 iron. It might be nice to have new irons with more tech to get the necessary peak height and steep descent angle even with stronger lofts, but when you're on a pension cost is the issue. Besides, I love the feel of forged blades. Have a kind of perverse satisfaction from making myself work hard to get good contact.

When you're in the skill range to swing a controlled 7i around 100mph, I'd suggest you think about adjusting ball flight first by selecting a ball with appropriate spin. That would allow you to keep your swing as is, while potentially seeing the trajectory you want.

Still working on understanding how I fit into this. I have around 98-100 club head speed, yet I carry it around 175. I play stock p7mcs. I know I hit the ball a mile high with way too much spin. (I can spin it to 9k) I think a lot of it is taking away loft dynamically alongside bending my irons strong. But how much to work on for either is the question. It’s tough out here.

Just got fitted with new Calloway Paradyms. Averaged 86 club speed, 116 ball speed, average was 185 yds, happy with that. I’m 55.

Any idea how these numbers stack up against the PRGR with range balls? My 96-101 swing normally comes out in the mid 180s. I normally play in windy conditions so my distance control is largely based on feel. Ive had pitching wedges fly 155m and stop dead, and have had 7/8 iron come up short on the same hole if the wind switches

Would it be better to look at this as how far you should carry you 34°ish lofted club? How does club length impact this? My JPX HM Pro 8 iron is 33°.

This is really cool. Can you do this for each club just the equations? It'd be really cool data. At low 50s in age I hit my 7 iron 140-175 which is spot on. It depends on my approach which I can control based on ball position in stance. Same swing speed. I once hit a 52 degree wedge 120 yards which is the same distance as my 8 iron. It was all ball position/approach.

Very nice. Still would have like to see a traditional 34-35 degree and a "stronger" iron with 31-32 and the speeds.

Those who know you know you hit the piss out of it. I love this because though I would love to hit it as well as you do, I know im at least in a good place. Fantastic stuff!

What is your 7-iron loft? Do you have an idea of the range of lofts for 7-irons? My Costco Callaway set has a 30° 7-iron.

Due to back issues, I have the Cobra Radspeed XB in a ladies UST nanocore 5 wood shaft. Goes about 200 yds. Would you suggest this is max performance, or could I gain more, without using standard driver shaft?

Tjis is my exact issue - newish golfer playing with 2019 T300s and hitting low lasers that don't stop. With 90 mph with a 7 iron do I just need more traditional lofts?

Smooth swing brotha

What software is this? Currently using the gcquad with fsx and gspro.

Matt. How do you get your club data on FSXPRO up on the screen like that?Thanks

I have a clubhead speed of around 90 but with a good connection, I get a carry of 155 so dunno what's going wrong there. Useful info though, thanks.

What is the brand and model of hitting mats do you use?

Great video. Can you also include your ball make/model and club make/model for reference?

I've heard if you're swinging at appropriate effort levels, (driver hard, irons medium, wedges easy), then a rule of thumb is that your 6 iron swing speed should be about 80% of your driver swing speed. Maybe 5 iron for some, 7 iron for others. So if you're swinging 7 iron at 100mph, then driver should be cruising at 125 mph. So don't think there's a lot of guys even on tour swinging their 7 irons above 100mph very often. Also at that point, height and spin control becomes a mess. Berkshire basically can't go anywhere near his max speed with mid/short irons. The equipment and game isn't meant for it. Even heard Hovland say he hits more half and three quarter swings than anything with irons. None of this is a critique to the video though, just some related thoughts. BTW, there's a few mph difference between quad and trackman when measuring driver swing speed. Is it the same for irons?

Makes me want to get back in a bay asap! I carry my 7i roughly 195 in the summer (jpx921 tour) and it stops basically right at its pitch mark on the greens at my local course, but now I’m curious of my club speed and peak height. Great video, keep them coming!

Hey Matt! Appreciate the video. Was this with a T100 at the standard 34° of loft? Like you said, loft on the club changes things. And were the spin numbers at each speed where you would expect/want to be? Thanks!

Now I know why I occasionally hit one 15-20 yards past the green. I'm a faster swinger. I don't golf enough to hone it in completely, but I'm normally the longer hitter in my group. I've been treating my standard lofted 7 iron as a 165 club. I obviously don't golf enough to hit it clean all of the time. The ones that fly that far over the green must be my pure hits.

So low 90 mph 7 iron. Hit the T150s with modus 105 stiff super well in a fitting. Didn’t have an x stiff to try. Any detriment to playing a stiff if you swing too quickly or am I putting too much emphasis on stiffness level when weight and timing is really what’s more important?

Why is my distance so much shorter? Im lucky to get 120 with 75mph swing. What metrics should i look for to tell if im hitting the ball in the right place

For the folks out there who want to know how to convert this into meters. Its the same formula but just multiply it by 0,915. E.g for me 85 * 1,9 = 161,5 yards * 0,915 = 147,5 meters which is nearly spot on (+/- 2-3 meters)

Definitely pretty much bang on with numbers and all that as far as what swing speed gets you with ideal delivery. However, I have one question that doesn't get asked and I'm trying to figure out. About how much of the loft should be taken away at impact? Based on what I've found in testing and during a fitting, I'd look to be delivering about 75-80% of the club head's loft at impact. I've never asked any pros, but I'd guess that's fairly close. My iron lofts are very weak and I'll use my 7 iron as an example; 36° of loft. I'd be guessing that I'd want to deliver between 27° and 28.8° of loft at impact if we're going to be really precise. Not that it really matters for me, but I'm curious because that might explain why I've had iron shots balloon in wind where I don't feel like I swing that hard.

how do you swing so easy and generate so much speed. I not by any means not strong enough or not an athlete but i struggle to generate 80mph club speed with a 7 iron with my 7 iron i am hitting around 75ish club speed and 145 carry descent angle of 47.1 as well

I hit my 5, 6 & 7 all the same distance. Any advice on correcting?

Would this be for "traditional" lofted clubs? I swing in the just above 80 mph range with 7 iron. With my old Mizuno JPX 921 SEL irons (34 degree 7 iron) I was getting about 155 with a decent strike. I found I wasn't playing often enough to be consistent with those irons and decided to opt for something with a little help, and also a little bit stronger lofts in the Titleist T200. I haven't hit them outside yet, but in the SIM I am getting about 1 extra club with the 30.5 lofted 7 iron...or about 166 carry +/-. The peak height is higher with the T200, and I'm loving the way they feel - even compared to a well hit Mizuno. So I guess the question in there is - if you're playing stronger lofted irons - does that change this ratio....or if you were fitting someone would you discourage them from opting for clubs that go farther than this 1.9 x clubhead speed number?

Club head speed x 1.9 really means nothing without accounting for loft angle but glad you mentioned it aint hard and fast science.

Does the factor of 1.9 change with every club? What would be a realistic factor for driver? Is there a place to find this info?

What do I do with a launch angel around 17 and slow swing speed? Just play with more loft?

This will be handy to work out my club head speed as well so if I know the distance I hit I can /1.9

If that would be correct I would hit my 7 iron a few yards extra. Can it be the loft who makes it shorter. Say if I would be correct it should be 208 yards with my 7 iron now it's 202?

Worth adding that this is at sea level elevation. Plenty of people getting confused on launch monitors at the ball going further/shorter than they're used to, when they have their altitude set to 2000ft above sea level, or suddenly hit on an LM with it set to above sea level.

Which software are you using in this video? Thx

What is the loft your 7 iron? My wilson V6 7 iron is 35 degrees. Game improvement clubs would generally have a lower loft to help with distance. Not all 7 irons are created equal.

I agree that 1.9*CHS a good rule of thumb!

Annoyingly, I swing my 7i (mizuno jpx921 forged at 31 degrees) at around 85 and only carry 150. I know I'm leaving a lot on the table, but I'm not sure how to get it out

Very nice video. What is the loft on the 7-iron used for this testing?

Learn something new everyday! Is it 1.9 across the board with irons. Wondering where you learnt about the 1.9. thank you, great video, very interesting

Love this formula. Would you expect the multiplier to move up/down depending on loft? For example, I think the PGAT uses a 2.5xchs for optimized drives (carry)

Does this formula work for all the other clubs?

I'm blown away with how much speed you generate without exerting much energy. Teach me please

Hmm, I’m at about 108 MPH with a driver and 275 yards carry, but I’m typically only carrying a 7i about 155 yards. Will have to take a look at my 7i club speed

What software are you using? Looks so much nicer than the standard foresight software?

I wonder what my speed is? I feel like I'm on the higher side of speed, but my irons are 28 year old Callaway X12's and are more lofted. I hit in the 150-160 range but a LOT of height. I guess I will have to watch the driver video.

What I think is more important (and likely something more people want to know) is, what is my hand speed and how far do I hit it. In other words, how efficient am I. And from there, where is my power leak in my golf swing. Once you maximize efficiency I suspect most people would be quite pleased with their distance numbers. And no, don't think for a second I'm suggesting I'm efficient in building speed. This is actually a huge personal question. I don't even know of a place near me that can measure hand speed.

Nick Faldo used to hit 7 iron 150 yards, back in the day.

My 7 iron, 140 in the winter and 150 in the summer.

I hit my 7-iron (2019) t100 blade around 150-155 my game improvement previous irons I hit it around 165-170...not sure why this is but for me the t100 is just a better club allowing me greater control of the ball flight, feedback and greater accuracy than my old game improvement irons also they just look better behind the ball but it did surprise me they are 10-15 yards shorter. 🤷 Remember folks the iron game is all about proximity to the target...whether your club has a 9, 8 or 7 on it means nothing that's why we have 14 clubs to choose from for different yardages. I feel some club models/manufacturers have lower lofts so ppl can brag about hitting their new set farther...I'm happy that I'm hitting my new set CLOSER.

If a Foresight simulator tracks club head speed slightly faster than a Trackman. Which one is more accurate?

Very informative. Would be fun to see you hit shots on an actual course with your club selections based off actual lies.

Damn, that's insane speed for a 7 iron. I'm 34 started golf 2 years ago and my goal this season is getting from 80 mph to 90 with my 7 iron and if I can get from 8 to 5 HCP that would be amazing as well.

I have to hit the longest iron in my bag and hope it rolls some to get 150 yards. I have to hit my 6 iron from about 120 yards and my 17 iron from about 100 yards.

Matt, would you mind identifying the elevation the GCQuad is reporting. I believe that is also a valuable piece of data. If your numbers are based off an elevation close to sea level, those of use at 3400-5000 ft (Calgary) will have "drastically" different carry numbers

Are you playing the PX LS shaft there? Love that flight

180 yards, 120 ball, 7800 RPM backspin, 48 deg descent angle, Wilson Staff Blade

I only do 3/4 swings with irons now. So 180. Mizuno 223 pro.

It would be great if you could do the same comparison with a driver.

Nice video, 59 yr old getting 85-86 club speed with my 7i isn’t so bad😂