Who is playing a higher lofted driver

[Pinglauncher]

Just wondering who has gone to higher lofts in driver and having good results.

I have always been a lowish hitter with driver and in the past I have dabbled with higher lofts but never got paticularly good results. I think most of that was swinging differently and not being comfortable with the "too much loft" thoughts.

Since screwing up my elbow earlier this year the swing went off and driver became a real problem. I picked up a cheap Launcher COMP 11.5* driver with the stock Reg. Fuji and started finding fairways again with some good high launch.

It is maybe 10 mtrs shorter than other drivers I have hit so of course I wonder how can I get the distance back :-k

What have others experienced ??????

[PeteyD]

You could try the 12* G10 that someone bought off Gaz that might be for sale again (hint hint).

I use a Sumo 13* wit han aldila proto MOI shaft at the moment. Hits fairways. Definately shorter than my Burner 9.5, but not in the trees.

[haysey]

I'm using a 907d2 at 11.5 degrees with zcom6 regular shaft at the moment.

Had the same problem with low launch but I'm hitting it higher and straighter than before.

I haven't noticed much of a distance loss either.

[Pinglauncher]

You could try the 12* G10 that someone bought off Gaz that might be for sale again (hint hint).

I use a Sumo 13* wit han aldila proto MOI shaft at the moment. Hits fairways. Definately shorter than my Burner 9.5, but not in the trees.

What does the "someone" not like about the G10 :wink:

Have considered a Lucky 13* but just can't get my head around the loft.

[PeteyD]

The shaft. I was thinking of swapping shafts, but if you want it make an offer.

[BrisVegas]

not me. I'm back to an 8.5deg low spin driver. Apparently it's because I'm a shit golfer who flips at it. :wink: Whatever? It works. I hit driver pretty high still, but generally fairly straight.

[3oneday]

Ask me Sunday... oh hang on, you'll see for yourself :lol:

[leighthebee]

tried the 11.5 degree 905R with stiff fujikura. hit it nowhere. although i think this was more shaft than degrees.

now in cobra 9 degrees but with high launch shaft that goes high as i want it.

if your happy with the driver head, just change to a greater moi shaft.

V2 high launch or similar.

[adlo]

I'll be taking my 12 degree Mizuno out tomorrow for its second full round. Hugely impressed with the initial results. Good distance, good trajectory and amazing forgiveness. I only hit 6 fairways last weekend, but 7 other drives were less than 2 metres off the fairway. Only 1 very bad drive.

[v205]

How high (say + - 3M) should an ideal drive go? And for that matter, I've seen people hit their PW up to 2 times the height of mine.

I'm thinking a 2-3 storey height house would be the ideal height of a drive regardless of speed? Thus the launch angle (loft + shaft) becomes the factor to reach the ideal height. Finally, the spin determines how well it stays in the air.

[markTHEblake]

I'm thinking a 2-3 storey height house would be the ideal height of a drive regardless of speed?

for the average to good golfer possibly, but definitely not 'regardless' of speed.

[3oneday]

Ask me Sunday... oh hang on, you'll see for yourself :lol:
correction... no you won't !

A higher lofted driver is very very easy to hit, inspires confidence at least.

Damn short though :( not sure I want to be hitting 3 iron instead of 8.

[adlo]

A higher lofted driver is very very easy to hit, inspires confidence at least.

Damn short though :( not sure I want to be hitting 3 iron instead of 8.
Not for the SS challenged! I am hitting further with a 12 degree driver than a 10.5 driver.

[3oneday]

I went from an 8.5 to a 12. I think 1.5° in your case would be like me going to a 9.5, hardly noticeable.

[adlo]

Yeah true. But it isn't launch angle the biggest factor? More and more pro's are hitting 10+ degree drivers for the forgiveness and using shafts for the correct launch?

[virge666]

Launch the bloody thing as high as you can. The newer balls love it. Anyone seen how high Adam, Tiger, Retief hit it... exactly.

Kenny Perry is about 300 years old and puts it in the statosphere. Go and check his driving stats.

Play a higher degree driver and Bomb it.

If it is into the wind - lower the tee height. next problem.

[3oneday]

Yep, works for everyone.


:roll:

[virge666]

Yep, works for everyone.
:roll:

Yeah mate - it does.

Yes . . . there is an optimum height you should hit it and that depends on your BALL speed, the grass you play on, the weather and how much you spin it.

But you will be surprised just how high that is.

People are starting to come around to the idea of more loft is better, which is good. But the problem is - you keep the same lightweight hi-launching shaft in there. You then wonder why you lose so much distance . . .

The aim is to get a combination that hits a shot that ALMOST baloons. I won't bore you with details... but you have 3 things at work. The head, the shaft and the ball.

Changing one of these 3 and then saying that high lofted drivers don't work is like changing the tyres on your car and wondering why the car doesn't go any faster.

Enjoy

[3oneday]

I'll refer Steve Bowditch to you for a lesson then ?

I won't talk about me, because you didn't ask what I had changed so I guess I simply have no idea ?

It's fine to say that Tiger, Scott and Retief hit it high, but your lessons in journalism are clearly paying off (never let a good story etc etc), what loft driver are they using ? I'd bet Jarro's next paycheck they aren't using a ****ing 11 or 12° driver !!!

Horses for courses, there is nothing anywhere to back up your claim that "people are slowly warming to the idea".... If I could be tossed I would go dig up threads on BSG from 4 years ago mentioning using higher lofts, it's so slow it's still frozen !

Gee, I'm starting to sound like Jono :lol:

[virge666]

It's fine to say that Tiger, Scott and Retief hit it high, but your lessons in journalism are clearly paying off (never let a good story etc etc), what loft driver are they using ? I'd bet Jarro's next paycheck they aren't using a ****ing 11 or 12° driver !!!

Gee, I'm starting to sound like Jono :lol:

WTF are you talking about ? and WTF has Bowditch got to do with it?

I never said that Tiger and Retief are using high lofted drivers. I said they are hitting it stupidly high. You can either see it live or you can see it with pro Tracer. (Both Tiger and Retief are using 8.5 degrees)

The long drivers we fit use anything from 4.5-7.5 degree drivers, when you have a swing speed of 150mph. And they also bomb it stupidly high.

As I said there is an optimum, but it is way higher than you may think. It shocked the hell out of me when I saw both Mickelson, DemArco and Perry and few others in the flesh.

Part 2 of the post detailed the trap a lot of people fall into of just changing the head to a higher loft and wondering why they are losing distance.

And from that - you get "All the Pro's are using high lofted drivers" :shock:

I have heard of a couple of Pro's going up in loft, Hensby was the last one, he took a 11.5 degree driver head and put a very butt stiff shaft in it, (I think a tipped Vista 27.3 or Speeder) he said that it gave him a tighter dispersion.... didn't do much for income though.



I won't talk about me, because you didn't ask what I had changed so I guess I simply have no idea ?


And the post was not aimed at you - you are a big boy, you have more than enough clubs to experiment with. I aimed it square at people who still think 8.5 degree drivers go further when you swing it sub 100mph because of the extra roll you get. not to mention the lack of roll when you are in the rough !

Are we on the same page now ?

[virge666]

Yeah true. But it isn't launch angle the biggest factor? More and more pro's are hitting 10+ degree drivers for the forgiveness and using shafts for the correct launch?

And just to confirm this . . . NO THEY ARE NOT.

The shaft is not going to change the launch angle enough to make a difference. Wishon reckons the shaft can only change the launch angle by plus or minus one degree. It can however MAJORLY change spin rate.

You cannot have a swing speed of around the 110mph (Tour Average is 113mph) and hit a 11-12 degree driver. There is just too much spin from the loft on the face and the ball will baloon.

There are some exceptions, mainly to do with angle of attack and very heavy shafts, but you look at any WITB and you will still see the majority of players with sub 9.5 drivers. I think Freddy Couples is still 7.5.

Higher lofted drivers are aimed squarely at the lower swing/ball speeds.

[3oneday]

WTF are you talking about ? and WTF has Bowditch got to do with it? I never said that Tiger and Retief are using high lofted drivers.
read the title of the thread, if you didn't go off on a tangent half the time it'd be easier to follow exactly WTF you are trying to say ?

Nice correction though, one post says "everyone should use one" and now tempered, as it should.

[virge666]

Nice correction though, one post says "everyone should use one" and now tempered, as it should.

Yeah - probably should have said - Everyone should hit it higher, and if you need to add loft to the driver. Go for it.

My bad.

[Pinglauncher]

C'mon kids back on track :wink:

I am definately in the slowing swing speed category so a couple of further questions.

Virge is saying heavier shafts with higher lofts (hope I am correct). For people like me where I am losing strength and swing speed at what seems like a daily basis how does that work. Isn't the heavier shaft slowing me down even further.

I am loving the Launcher COMP 11.5 and have no idea what the stock shaft weighs but when already short off the tee it is hard to give up 10 mtrs. I have an Adams XTD 10.5 which when I am swinging well is a good 10 - 15 mtrs longer but at the moment my game is so bad I will take finding fairways as a good start so the COMP stays.

So is there a means of getting the launch of the 11.5* COMP and the distance of the ADAMS. Or is this all "pie in the sky" thinking :-k

[virge666]

As I said before it is all a trade off. But the air is less resistant then the ground, especially when it has grass on it. You can get cool charts that allow you to work out YOUR specifications.

Forget swing speed. Work off BALL SPEED. From Ball speed - work out you best launch angle. Take 1 degree off what they say as we are in Australia and not the USA. (Has something to do with Humidity)

Righto - you got ball speed and you got launch angle. All you have left is spin rate, but to be honest don't worry about it too much, just look at your ball flight. You will see which ones go further.

BALL FLIGHT
You want it to look like your ball is coming down slowly. You want it to look like it is fighting and clawing to stay in the air.

You will hit some clubs where the ball just stays up there that little bit longer.... Those are the ones you want... it may only be 1/2 a second longer... but that is ball flight, the ball is spinning properly and staying up there a bit longer.

In the old days - long drivers would simply time their shots. 7 seconds in the air = good.

So use a launchy for ball speed and launch angle, and thereabouts for spin... You can tune the spin rate with balls and shafts. Any decent clubfitter can give you the right shaft from then on,

Shafts
If you are getting older - get lighter shafts. If they spin too much - go for a stiffer shaft.

it is a process of deduction...

Heavy shaft - low launch and spin
Lighter shaft - higher launch and spin
&
Stiffer shaft - low launch and spin
Softer shaft - higher launch and spin

On top of this there is flex points, butt stuffness and other cool stuff. But the above will get you started.

You have to find the mix that suits you.

Enjoy

PS: As you get older - you can only do so much with equipment... As your muscles get weaker the technique has to get better. My Nanna was over 85 and played off 12.

You cannot beat tuition EVER.

[markTHEblake]

Its all very interesting, however from my own personal experience, when I am hitting my longest drives , they are not going high. I would describe it is medium at best (when compared to others at the same distance and skill level) That could be partly due to using a 350cc head I supposed.

I remember going to a demo day a few years ago (waste of time that was) and when I told the bloke I didnt like it because ball flight was too high he said it wasnt high enough, and tried to make me hit it even higher. Oh i hated that :-)

[v205]

When I see the best drivers hit (250m+ carry), they always seem to have an amazing air time. Can't remember what I've read before.. it was something like 6-8 sec?

[BrisVegas]

When I see the best drivers hit (250m+ carry), they always seem to have an amazing air time. Can't remember what I've read before.. it was something like 6-8 sec?

Occasionally, when I hit a really nice high drive, it's in the air so long the next guy can tee off before it's landed. Doesn't help that we have some seriously elevated tees at Brookwater. :lol:

[virge666]

I remember going to a demo day a few years ago (waste of time that was) and when I told the bloke I didnt like it because ball flight was too high he said it wasnt high enough, and tried to make me hit it even higher. Oh i hated that :-)

Ha !!

Not aimed at you Mark but I fight this all the time. Especially with the old blokes and women. They want that low penetrating flight that gently climbs that looks good. The problem is that when you are swinging about 90mph, you just don't get the ball speed and compression to do that.

In the long run it is just easier and way more accurate to hit it higher. You may get the same distance with a lower shot sometimes... but you don't lose any distance going higher and you gain accuracy with a higher launch angle. Lastly - low shots in the rough stop... high shots into the rough also stop but land further up the fairway.

People fought it when metal woods came in - they fought permeter weighted irons, they fought larger putters, because the game is so old and played by people all their life... the changes are always fought against as it ain't what they used to do.

It all comes down to the ball.

Just like the shaft - you have to make the ball do it's job. And that is to compress and spin. if anyone here does sailing or boating - they will know what i mean when they get hull "up on plane". It is the part where everything works together and forward momentum is easiest.

The hard part is that different balls spin and compress differently, different heads compress the ball differently and different shafts also effect that spin. You have to find that combination that suits YOUR swing.

Just like year 10 maths - you have a couple of constants to start with - and that is ball speed and launch angle. So find your ball speed and then find out the best launch angle for you. Yeah - it will be different to what you are use to do . . . but we have solid core 4 piece balls now, not liquid center, wound balls. (The driver spin is a LOT less)

THEN . . . go and find a head / shaft / ball combination that works. Yeah it is hard work and a pain to do, but you only have to do it once.

Lastly - I leave you with what Tiger said when people asked why he doesn't use a Hybrid club. He simply said "I can't get the numbers right with them"

You have to find the right numbers...

Enjoy

[Grunt]

I will soon be one of those with a high loft driver in their bag. I have just ordered a Cobra L4V M speed 12* reg shaft Driver. Will be in the bag next week.

[henno]

Will be in the bag next week.

... and out of the bag the week after, and up for sale in the Pro Shop! :mrgreen:

[Grunt]

Not me I am not the Ho here, Last driver was in the bag for over 2 years.

[Pinglauncher]

Not me I am not the Ho here, Last driver was in the bag for over 2 years.

I think the additional loft will be good for you Grant. As you are very (overly :wink:) aggressive with driver is the reg flex going to be okay.

[Grunt]

only ever had reg flex Ping, we shall see.

[just]

Grunt

The secret to this is not only the higher loft but using a shorter shaft, either cut the shaft or do what I do and grip down. Since doing this my distance and accuracy have improved. If only I could putt I would be set!

[Grunt]

We shall see how it plays as it is Just, this whole thing has been done in consultation of my pro.

[Jarro]

Gripping down/cutting down the shaft a tad will help you hit the sweetspot more Grunt.

[Grunt]

We will just see how much I hit the sweet spot as my swing is as the moment. Driving has been pretty good lately but just not quite right.

[henno]

The secret to this is not only the higher loft but using a shorter shaft

Hmmm... interesting.

I am knocking around with a 12-degree at the moment and loving it, but I don't know how I'd go with a shorter shaft. I am guessing it'd be a double whammy on distance, although big shaft + low loft hit off-centre is always going to be shorter than a short shaft + high loft hit pure out of the middle I suppose.

I might have to get another glass of wine and ponder this further...