Shank, shank, shank

Since I just increased swing speed and hit longer, I would expect to play better golf and get lower scores. Well, this expectation is short-lived. After only a couple of good rounds, I started hitting shanks, with irons only, for sure.

It first came at the 8th hole, par 3, at Glenview East on June 2. This was close to the end of my round, so I did not care much, also because shanking was an old problem to me, and I thought I knew how to fix it. But I was wrong this time... On June 6 (Wed), I took a half day vacation for golf with my family. My son just started golf, improving his game, and my wife was playing well. But my round was totally ruined by shanks, especially since it was basically a Par-3 course, with most tee-shots needing an iron.

Shanking is not new to me, as I got this problem occasionally in the past. It was because either I leaned too much towards the ball, or I stood too close to it. So I knew I got to adjust my weight balance. But it did not work this time... I tried to keep good balance on the course, and even worked on it later at the range after the round. But still shank after shank... My iron shot was worse than a beginner, as shank is truly the most embarrassing shot in golf.

Quiting is not the right way, and I am not even taking a break... But I got to figure it out soon, so I got on-line to get some tips.

There are mainly 3 reasons for shanks:
http://www.hermanwilliamsgolf.com/stop-shanking-golf-ball/
Weight balance
Swing path (inside-out or outside-in)
Too much hand action near impact

I first tried to adjust weight balance, following the tip provided by this website:
http://www.sirshanksalot.com/shanking-drills-golf-drills-82/1133-fundamentals-that-cure-your-shank
Hit some wiffle balls at home on June 8, and shanks seemed to be gone.

But at today's round, shanking came back again, at 3rd hole, my second iron shot. This continued for almost all irons shots for the first 9 holes. At the second 9, somehow I could make solid contacts for a couple of holes, and then it came back for the last two holes.

So I went to the range immediately after the round. First, I tried to adjust weight balance again. Not working at all.  Then I tried more upright swing (another tip from other golfers on-line), and it didn't work, no solid contact.

Finally, I tried to address the ball with the toe of the iron face (another tip from on-line). This actually worked, to my surprise, amazingly. To make sure, I tried 5~9 irons, all made solid contacts. So this would be my temporary fix for now.
As I am writing now, I think it has to be my swing path, i.e., my backswing and forward swing are not on the same plane anymore. Still not sure if I am also having an inside-out or outside-in problem. But this should be easily found out next time I go to the range...