- You can't be serious about the ball flight of 3 irons and 9 irons... The only thing that makes a 3 iron fly further than a 9 iron is the loft itself. I think the problem your explaining with ball physics has more to so with the ground. The greens are far too soft and so are the fairways in my opinion. They can be made fast but often times it's like the ball is rolling on a bed.