The secret to going flag-hunting with a knockdown iron swing
![tommy fleetwood hits an iron](https://golf.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/tommy-fleetwood.jpg)
Being able to hit many different shots with the same club is the hallmark of a good player.
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Using the same club to hit different distances is the calling card of a player. Once you get good at it, there’s absolutely no reason you can’t snuggle an iron close.
Most rec players assume that taking off yards from a certain club is a matter of controlling the length of your backswing. My advice is to keep your backswing the same. Why complicate things? The trick is to combine your everyday backswing with a different type of finish, depending on how far you need to hit the ball.
Use 20 minutes at the range to get the right feels. Start with, say, a 7-iron. Make your normal backswing, but, instead of swinging to a full finish, stop your motion at about 90 percent complete (below right). That’ll give you about, well, 90 percent of your total distance.
![eric johnson demonstrates the knockdown shot](https://golf.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/erik-johnson.jpg)
Now try one where you stop the club just as you feel it re-hinge in your follow-through (middle). Notice that this gives you about 75 percent of your full yardage — and a much lower ball flight.
Then, swing and stop the club as soon as the shaft reaches parallel to the ground (left). That’s about 50 percent and results in a penetrating flight that cheats the wind and gives you the shot-stopping spin you only see on Tour.
Eric Johnson is a GOLF Top 100 Teacher who teaches at Yellowstone Club in Big Sky, Mont., and The Turn Club in Cranberry, Pa.