This indoor combination revealed hidden weaknesses in my game

The offseason doesn’t have to be a dormant period where your clubs collect dust and your game goes into hibernation. In fact, some of the most valuable insights you’ll ever gain about your tendencies (and even your gear) can happen when you’re not on the track at all. I was reminded of that recently when I decided—more out of curiosity than anything—to run through an indoor combine focusing on my long irons.

I’ve played long enough to trust my patterns… or at least what I do thought they were. I always believed my long irons were a strength, but I wanted to make sure they were still the right tool for the job. So I set up my Full Swing KIT Launch Monitor at a local indoor bay to get a clear, honest picture of what those clubs were really doing.

After a short warm-up, reality set in. My actual carry distances didn’t quite match the distances I had played. My 5-iron – the club I rely on for those standard 175-yard approaches – didn’t travel as far as I expected. At least not consistently. The combination exposed a noticeable gap between my best swings and my average swings, something that’s easy to miss on the course when adrenaline or even luck can smooth out inconsistencies.

Dispersion told an even more interesting story. Shot after shot, a pattern emerged: a tight, predictable fade with my 6-iron, 5-iron, and even my hybrid. Then I got to my 3-wood and that familiar blur disappeared. It wasn’t exactly disastrous, but it did help explain why long approaches on the course always felt like a gamble.

The real breakthrough came with the gap. I assumed the problem would be between my irons and my hybrid, but those numbers were actually called. The real problem was the gap between my hybrid and my fairway wood – a gap large enough to disrupt my strategy and force tough decisions. When I saw that mismatch on the screen, the solution became clear: adjust my setup and fill that distance gap with a well-fitting hybrid or fairway wood.

That’s the beauty of an off-season combine. As an experienced player, I don’t try to reinvent my swing. I refine, validate and discover things that I would never notice during an informal session. The quiet months give you the space to do that work.

So if you think you know your long irons as well as I thought I knew mine, spend an hour indoors with a launch monitor. You might be surprised how much there is still to learn.

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