Equipment
Forum Thread of the Day: “How I learned to stop worrying and love single length irons”
Today’s Forum Thread of the Day comes from pinestreetgolf who shared his experience using single length irons. In pinestreetgolf’s excellent and thorough write-up, he explains just how single length irons worked for him, despite his previous suspects, and why he feels others should considering making the move to single length clubs in the future.
“First, I made a mistake I am constantly on others for making. I thought all-or-none. The whole “same stance, same swing, same plane” thing isn’t true. However, I decided that since one of them wasn’t true (if the lie changes, it all changes), then none of it was true. That was dumb. It’s about 80% true, and that is a lot. What I mean by that is that I struggle with ball position. Now I don’t. The club always feels the same, so you always just sort of start lining up the same all the time. It’s hard to describe, exactly. When my ball position creeps back, I start to get stuck. Now it doesn’t creep back. I grab the club, and the address position feels natural and easy.
Second, I made the mistake of thinking yardage gaps have to be consistent to be useful. They don’t. As my SL set tends towards its extremes, my gaps get larger. My 5 iron isn’t 10 yards behind my 6. But I know how far it is behind my six and I know I hit the center more often, so effectively, because I get much better contact, my gap is much more consistent even though it is smaller.
Third, I learned to hit a hybrid. I play them through 4 iron. I cannot get a SL 4 iron off the ground consistently, but my gaggle of G30 hybrids from the 2nd swing is fantastic.
Fourth, I kept my PM Grind for in and around the green complex.
Fifth, it makes practice MUCH more effective. Swap them out all the time. Hit a 6, hit a SW, hit a 9, hit a 7, rapid fire.
It took me a long time to get used to them, but the two massive pros are the setup/stance and practice. You set up the same way almost instinctively, and that is HUGE. I also feel like I get a ton more out of practice AND that my practice feels like the course a lot more.
There are some drawbacks. I found three specialty shots I had to add clubs at top and bottom to pull off:
1. A short-game only club, like a PM Grind.
2. Where the last SL doesn’t get airborne anymore. I used 3 hybrids below it. They hit middles of greens.
3. Ground balls – I can’t punch out nearly as well with a SL 5 as a CB 3 or 4. I’ve learned to use my driver on this shot.
If you are thinking about something new for irons and have some cash, I would recommend trying SL. It grew on me. I was wrong about it. The key is to stick with it. Just throw them in the bag for two months and when practicing switch up irons constantly – do NOT just bang one iron with an SL set.
Finally, either get fit or play with lie angle a lot. Mine are +3 up, and I’m only 6′. Feel great, dead even dirt line. But since they are all the same, they better be right. Just my thoughts on SL. They’ll be in my bag for the May – Sept. tournaments. I would highly recommend 1. ignoring my earlier posts on them and 2. trying them.”
Here are what a few of our members have said in response to pinestreetgolf’s post, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.
- snowman9000: “Some people get hung up on thinking that they aren’t supposed to have a shorter wedge. I kept one, no big deal. As to hybrids, that’s no biggie either. I mean, it’d be great if we could get good results with 13 clubs the same length, but that’s just not possible. Having SL irons is a huge simplification of the game, regardless of the rest of the bag.”
- ChrisLC40: “OP I love how you summed everything up. I made the switch a little over two years ago and have made huge improvements. At times I think about going back to variable length irons because of the offerings, but OL is so repeatable, and I feel I may go backwards and need to relearn some things.”
- LONGBALL777: “Welcome to the Dark Side!”
Entire Thread: “How I learned to stop worrying and love single length irons”
Neal Shipley was the first to admit that he enjoyed his food while in college. But since his days at Ohio State, he’s slimmed down and earned a PGA Tour Card.
That hasn’t stopped him from having fun with his wedge stampings, though it’s led to some misunderstandings.
On the 54 (degree), we have ‘Big Fudge,'” Shipley told GolfWRX. “It was supposed to be ‘Big Fridge,’ so this happened a little while ago. ‘Big Fridge’ was a nickname between my college teammates and I, with ‘fridge’ meaning stomach, a big stomach.
“We told the Ping guys to put … ‘Big Fridge’ on it, and I think maybe some bad cell service or something, and they thought I said ‘fudge,’ so they put fudge on it.”
On Shipley’s 50-degree he also continues the food theme, this time with his go-to order at the “Golden Arches,” and his stamping “DONS 7.”
“The number 7 meal, the two cheeseburger meal, that was my McDonald’s order, back when I would have McDonald’s frequently,” Shipley shared.
At GolfWRX, we are a community of like-minded individuals who all experience and express our enjoyment of the game in many ways.
It’s that sense of community that drives day-to-day interactions in the forums on topics that range from best driver to what marker you use to mark your ball. It even allows us to share another thing we all love – buying and selling equipment.
Currently, in our GolfWRX buy/sell/trade (BST) forum, @raw10628 has a L.A.B. DF3 putter and Masters putter cover up for grabs.
From the listing: “Some great items here today, time to thin out and make room for next set of gear. All prices include shipping.
LAB DF3 Purple 33.5” 68° lie with TPT – $725. LAB Masters release DF3 cover – $150.”
To check out the full listing in our BST forum, head through the link. If you are curious about the rules to participate in the BST Forum, you can learn more here: GolfWRX BST Rules
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 5-M4
3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4
5-wood: Ping G440 Max (19 degrees @18)
Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4
Hybrid: Ping G440 (23 degrees)
Shaft: Oban Isawa Red Hybrid Shaft 04 Flex 70 Gms
Irons: Srixon ZXi7 (5-P)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i80
Wedges: Cleveland RTZ (50-MID, 54-FULL, 58-MID)
Shafts: Aerotech SteelFiber Private Reserve i105
Putter: L.A.B. Golf OZ.1i
Shaft: ACCRA Putter Shaft
Grips: Golf Pride Tour Velvet
Aaron Rai’s winning WITB: 2026 PGA Championship
Russell Henley’s winning WITB: 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge
Photos from the 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
CJ Cup Byron Nelson Tour Report: Koepka and Kim’s newest putters finally get hot
Charles Schwab Challenge Tour Report: MacIntyre, Åberg and Spaun all switch putters, TaylorMade launches new Spider
Details on J.J. Spaun’s surprise putter switch
GolfWRX Launch Report: 2026 Titleist GTS drivers
Photos from the 2026 Charles Schwab Challenge
PGA Championship Tour Report: Fitzpatrick, Koepka among big-name putter switches for Aronimink
Photos from the ShopRite LPGA
Maria Torres WITB 2026 (June)
Driver: Ping G440 LST (9 degrees) Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 5-M4 3-wood: Ping G440 Max (15 degrees) Shaft: Accra TourZ Green 6-M4 5-wood: Ping G440...
Eric Cole WITB 2026 (June)
Driver: PXG Lightning Tour Max (9 degrees) Shaft: Project X Titan Yellow 70 TX 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D (15 degrees) Shaft:...
Si Woo Kim WITB 2026 (May)
Driver: Callaway Quantum Triple Diamond (8.5 degrees) Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Black 6 X Mini driver: Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke Mini...
Wyndham Clark’s winning WITB: 2026 CJ Cup Byron Nelson
Driver: TaylorMade Qi4D (10.5 degrees) Shaft: Project X Titan Yellow 60 TX 3-wood: TaylorMade Qi4D Tour (15 degrees) Shaft: Project...
retired04
Apr 27, 2019 at 4:57 pm
Am 72 and been a single digit since I was 15 (yes, from shorter tees now). As attractive as some of the new club offerings are each year, I am actually afraid to give up my Cobra single length irons (6I-gap wedge). Until your give them an honest try, you will never know the confidence that comes with same ball position, same swing positions, same feel, same overall weight and swing weight(my irons-1/4″ long with extra tape under the 2G white grip-are exactly D2 and +/- 2 grams overall weight through the set). My set is a little odd-F8 one length 8I-Gap and the black TEC one length 6 and 7 (couldn’t stand the goofy “distance” grooves in the F8 6 and 7 irons-one bounced to many over the green with no ball spin-somehow Cobra missed the memo that golf is a point A to point B game with irons). Yes, definitely get fitted for lie angle and you will not believe the difference single length makes.
beachguy
Apr 27, 2019 at 3:11 pm
Definitely not a gimmick but not earth-shattering either.
99.999999% of people aren’t golfing to get on the PGA tour so the key is having fun and people able to strike the ball nicely; seeking perfection is a waste of time.
If you can’t strike the ball nicely, you need lessons, not OL clubs.
Once you learn to strike a nice ball, if you work on short game and putting you will have a lot of fun on the course.
Benny
Apr 27, 2019 at 7:30 am
Love it and love the idea. Just don’t think I could do it. I will say David’s idea abve is exactly what I have thought about. Most golfers have a hard time with the longer irons. Make they all the same as a 7-6i. You will need their lie’s adjusted but should add to much more consistancy. Does our swing speed really change with a 3i vrs a 7i? Or is it so slight that being closer to the ball is more important?
David
Apr 26, 2019 at 5:51 pm
i believe SL irons is slowly gaining traction. its here to stay for a number of people.
Can someone explain to me why u couldn’t mesh SL iron concept with current config irons. could u have 2-7 irons same length for greater control then step down 8-SW irons per normal. why not have driver 3W same length for grester control. i understand the lie and consistent ball position of the SL irons is different to std length irons of today.
anyway i think SL irons and observing some of the best tour pro’s who are mixing and matching their clubs so why not us. we can have some fun too playing what we like. yipee for Golf.
Chauncey Gardner
Apr 26, 2019 at 9:05 am
I had read of single length irons years before Bryson came on the scene. I had my Cleveland TA-3’ all standardized to my 7 iron. The first thing I noticed was how high I now hit the ball. Distances were about the same. My aching back was alleviated. Negatives are making the adjustments to chipping or pitching. Gotta choke down. Happy I did it after two seasons.
Robert Dicks
Apr 27, 2019 at 12:25 am
Peter Sellers appreciates the salute, Chauncey.
Ken
Apr 25, 2019 at 12:18 pm
Have been playing Wishon Sterlings for 3 years now and I am convert, 5-LW. I do choke down on the GW-LW IF I am hitting a chip or pitch, otherwise same swing, ball position, etc on 3/4 to full shots. No question about it, my ball striking consistency has improved while simplifying any practice I do with irons. Probably not for everyone, but it is also not a “gimmick” that a lot of forum members like to state while bashing the idea on the topic.