180 Yards With A 9-Iron? Seriously?

As the final round coverage of the Wyndham Championship began, they highlighted the play of Tommy "Two Gloves" Gainey. He had an approach shot from 180 yards out. He pulled out a 9-iron and knocked it onto the green and left himself with about 20 feet for an eagle putt.

9-iron from 180! Are you serious? And Gainey isn't even one if the long hitters. It's no wonder the pros are so good. With length like that, they are giving themselves great chances to score well. 180 for me is a 6-iron and since I still struggle sometimes with this club, I might use my 22 degree hybrid and choke down a little.

Gainey isn't a big guy. He's not small in stature either, but he's not Dustin Johnson or Gary Woodland. It probably has to do more with club speed. I get compliments on how smooth my swing looks and I have improved on my distance in recent months, but how much more confident would I be with a 9- iron in my hands from 180 instead of a hybrid club.

I think it may be time to start looking into what drills or exercises I should be doing to get even longer. I was thinking about doing a more golf specific workout program. Just like in any sport, certain muscles need to be developed to maximize efficiency for that activity.

I'm not complaining with where I am right now, but we can all use a little more distance right? Have a great round analways hit your target.

*I'm still posting from my iPhone, so if things are not as pretty as they usually are or if there are a few typos, that's why. Editing is the tough part.


Photo found here.