7-iron — 2026-03-31

Your 7-iron averaged 152 carry at 114 mph ball speed. Your 8-iron session earlier today averaged 137 carry at 107 mph. That's a clean 15-yard gap and 7 mph of ball speed separation between clubs -- exactly what you'd expect from a well-gapped iron set. Total distance averaged 157 with about 5 yards of rollout, consistent with a 44-degree average landing angle. On the course in today's conditions (75 degrees, 12 mph SW gusts), 152 carry is your planning number. In calm, warm conditions, expect 158-162.

More than half your shots registered 114 mph ball speed. The full range was 107 to 121, but the median and mode both sit at 114. This is a level of speed consistency you haven't shown with the 8-iron, where ball speed varied more widely. The 7-iron may be a more natural, repeatable swing for you. Shots 4 (118), 6 (120), 9 (119), and 12 (121) were the outliers on the high side -- all four produced carries over 162 yards. Shot 11 at 107 mph was the only real speed dip.

Your three biggest carries were shot 6 (176 yards, 120 mph), shot 12 (171 yards, 121 mph), and shot 4 (169 yards, 118 mph). These are 6-iron distances from a 7-iron. But shot 6 went L9 offline, shot 12 went L26, and shot 4 went L6. The same pattern from your 8-iron session is amplified here: when you generate maximum speed, the miss goes left. Shot 12 is the extreme case -- 121 mph and 171 carry, but 26 yards left with L6 curve. That's a pull-draw at top speed. On the course, 26 yards left is the next fairway or worse.

Your offline range spans from R20 (shot 17) to L26 (shot 12) -- a 46-yard window. Only 6 of 20 shots landed within 5 yards of the target line (shots 1, 8, 10, 14, 17 was actually R20... let me recount: shots 1 at L3, 10 at L1, 14 at R2, 11 at R2, 20 at L3). That's 5 of 20 within 5 yards -- 25%. For the 8-iron session, you had roughly similar accuracy. The 7-iron's extra speed is creating more offline distance on mishits. Shots with curve under R5 averaged only L4 offline. Shots with curve over R8 averaged R13 offline to the right or were paired with big left pulls.

Shots 5 (L23), 6 (L9), 12 (L26), 18 (L23), and 19 (L14) all went significantly left. Shots 5, 12, and 18 had left curve (L8, L6, L4) -- these are genuine draws that started left and kept going. Shot 19 had zero curve but still went L14 -- a straight pull. This mirrors the 8-iron pattern where your fastest swings produce left misses, but with the 7-iron the magnitude is larger. The 5 left misses averaged 19 yards offline. On the course, aim right-center of the green with this club and let the pull work back toward the pin. Don't aim at a left pin.

Just like shot 12 in the 8-iron session, shot 3 here was a thin strike: 12-degree launch (vs. 17 average), only 15 yards of height, 35-degree landing angle, and R21 curve -- the most curve of any shot in either session today. Ball speed was 112 mph, so it wasn't a weak strike -- just low on the face. Carry was only 133 (19 yards below average) with 9 yards of roll. The R21 curve sent it R12 offline. Two thin shots across two sessions in roughly the same spot (shot 3 and shot 12 of the 8-iron) suggests early-session contact might be slightly low until you dial in the bottom of your arc.

Three shots went significantly right: shot 7 (R17, R8 curve), shot 15 (R18, R13 curve), and shot 17 (R20, R14 curve). These are open-face fades that ballooned right. Average carry on these three was 143 -- 9 yards below session average. The pattern: when curve exceeds R10, carry drops and offline dispersion explodes. This is the same relationship seen in the 8-iron data. Your best shots have curve between R1-R6; your worst have R13+. The face angle at impact is the single biggest variable in both distance and accuracy.

1. Your 7-iron carry is 152 in moderate wind at 75 degrees. Expect 158-162 in calm conditions. That gives you a clean 15-yard gap from the 8-iron. 2. The pull-draw is a 20-yard miss left on your fastest swings. Same fix as the 8-iron: check stance distance and ball position when swinging hard. If you feel acceleration, trust the loft and don't chase it. 3. Face control is everything. Shots with curve R1-R6 averaged 156 carry. Shots with curve R8+ averaged 145 carry. That's an 11-yard penalty. Get the face quiet and the distance takes care of itself. 4. Consider testing 9-iron and PW next session to build the full gap table. You have 8-iron (137/145 neutral) and 7-iron (152/160 neutral). The gaps between those and the scoring clubs matter most for approach shots. 5. Your two thin strikes (shot 3 today, shot 12 on 8-iron) both came in the first third of a session. Commit to 3-5 easy warmup swings before full effort.