I think I found the cure (was shankitis with short irons)

Question
The fault (which occurred after 45 min of practice) was determined to be not clearing the left hip and the right foot getting stuck on the downswing, and a loss of balance.  It caused a shank or a topped shot on full swings and a severe pull on 1/2 swings.  I've pretty much contained it over the past few months and I believe I may have eliminated it altogether.

It was reduced somewhat by using a 38 degree hybrid vice a 7 iron and constructing 8-LW irons that are 1/2" longer than standard (current length 36.5 for 8, 36 for 9, and 35.5 for wedges).  The 38 has been my "recovery" club because I could work it between 80-140 yards until things settled down (usually about a hole or two).

The severe pull was eliminated by putting the ball slightly behind center for pitch shots.  

I've been maintaining about a 12 handicap since the beginning of the year.

What I believe to be the cure is what appears to be a compact backswing (my golfing partners had noticed if I kept my eye on the ball during the swing that I hit it way better).  I get the clearing of the left hip, the right foot coming up and the belt buckle pointing at the target.  I've been pretty consistent with the driver, the woods and the hybrids for awhile now.  I recently applied this to the short irons and the fault has virtually disappeared.

I think what was happening before is that if I would try to take a big backswing, the weight would shift too much onto the right foot.  This probably also explains why I never had any difficulty with a half swing or a sand/flop shot.

On to perfecting putting..  

Answer
Lou:

Way to go.  Be careful though, all the things you speak of are just hiding.  Carry on and continued success, but the golf game is like the real estate market.  Lots of ups and down, highs and lows.  It's great when you work on something enough to fix an issue, most people don't have that much discipline.  Have a great year and next step is to get under a 10!

Eddie