Help with hitting my Driver

[Dave]

I got a new driver (callaway hyper x) for Christmas after my old one snapped, i've had about 5 rounds and 200 range balls with this driver now and still can't hit it. I've looked up and tried the tips like hitting more forward in my stance and lining up the ball and club in the air not on the ground. But every time i hit the same shot, it hooks terriblely and has huge top spin

Does anyone have anything else to try?

Anything is appreciated at this stage

P.S. will try and get a video of me swinging my driver very soon

[Johnny Canuck]

Get the video up, you'll get some help then.

[3oneday]

Does anyone have anything else to try?

a new driver ?

;)

[TheNuclearOne]

The first question would be did you hit your old driver better? I'd assume so reading between the lines. Do you have a reasonably repeating swing? Then what specs was your old driver and what is the new. Overall club length, shaft type and flex, head, loft yada, yada. If you hit your old driver quite well you might simply be attempting to adjust your swing to suit an ill fitting stick. If not i'd be getting that vid up.

[TheTrueReview]

Is it a hook or is it a pull? The ball goes left for both but for different reasons.

[Webster]

swing straighter

[Dave]

The first question would be did you hit your old driver better? I'd assume so reading between the lines. Do you have a reasonably repeating swing? Then what specs was your old driver and what is the new. Overall club length, shaft type and flex, head, loft yada, yada. If you hit your old driver quite well you might simply be attempting to adjust your swing to suit an ill fitting stick. If not i'd be getting that vid up.
Defenetly hit my old driver better, it had a slight fade to it but it was easy to compensate for
Old driver had 10.5 loft, regular flex and was also a 400CC head(i think)
callaway is 10 loft, regular flex and 460cc head

Is it a hook or is it a pull? The ball goes left for both but for different reasons.

Pull

all my other clubs go straight

[rubin]

without seeing anything, I would initially suggest to swing easier instead of trying to smack the crap out of it. It could also be that with your swing type you may be using a shaft that is to soft for you...?

Granted that the specs are very similar to your old club, but every club is different and you may have modified your swing (subconciuosly) to fit your old driver. But regardless, my first suggestion is to swing easier......

just my 2 cents.

[Dave]

Alright cheers mate, will try to slow it down and just to to hit it in the middle

[razaar]

Dave

You are moving forward onto the ball instead of hitting past yourself. It is a problem that plagues us older guys particularly when we don't keep the hips ahead of the shoulders during the down and through-swing. This tends to go hand in hand with an incomplete shoulder turn and letting the upper chest move towards the target during the downswing. A good thought is to keep the base of the neck/upper chest behind the ball position until it is pulled off by the follow through. I'd say you are using a swing for an iron shot with the driver which doesn't work with the Callaway. It may have worked with the Tittleist 905R because that driver has a shallow face and was designed by Titileist to get a decent result with a downwards strike. Hope this helps.

[Dave]

Thanks a lot mate, will take that on board and try to make some changes

i'm in trouble if i already have old man problems at 21

[Stuartd147]

If you hit your old driver OK and your irons straight I would be trying a few different drivers with stiffer or heavier shafts in them...thought about getting fitted properly by a pro somewhere??

[Dave]

If you hit your old driver OK and your irons straight I would be trying a few different drivers with stiffer or heavier shafts in them...thought about getting fitted properly by a pro somewhere??
Might have to save up so i can if i can't start hitting this driver, i thought about it when i got this current driver but thought it wouldn't really make much difference cause i'm not that good

[Dave]

slowed down my swing today, hit it better but it feels really weird making myself swing slower than natural

[razaar]

Thanks a lot mate, will take that on board and try to make some changes

i'm in trouble if i already have old man problems at 21
I'd say you have more troubles than many old codgers I know, including me. No offence intended.

[Dave]

I'd say you have more troubles than many old codgers I know, including me. No offence intended.
bit hard not to be a little offended coming from a bloke i've never met

[razaar]

bit hard not to be a little offended coming from a bloke i've never met
Dave
When I first posted in your thread I mistook you for Daves, who I have played with and know his swing & who plays with a Titleist 905R. No worries, the same fundamentals apply to everybody. Having seen your swing in another thread, then IMO you have lots more problems than many golfers my age, mid 60's. Just replying to your comments.

[Daves]

Dave
When I first posted in your thread I mistook you for Daves, who I have played with and know his swing & who plays with a Titleist 905R. No worries, the same fundamentals apply to everybody. Having seen your swing in another thread, then IMO you have lots more problems than many golfers my age, mid 60's. Just replying to your comments.

Now you have me worried!? hehe;)

[MegaWatty]

He knows a lot of good golfers Dave. Didn't you say you've recently taken up the game? I'm guessing the boys Raz plays with and knows have many many many.....many years more golfing experience than you.

BTW, he actually knows a lot of shit about swings, equipment etc, so just hope that he's going to post a bit more to help you out. Oh yeh....he's normally BRUTALLY honest. :)

[Dave]

Dave
When I first posted in your thread I mistook you for Daves, who I have played with and know his swing & who plays with a Titleist 905R. No worries, the same fundamentals apply to everybody. Having seen your swing in another thread, then IMO you have lots more problems than many golfers my age, mid 60's. Just replying to your comments.
oh yeah, my golf game is terrible, don't ask me why but i took your other comment a different way (i don't know why)

I'm grateful for any tips or comments i can pick up from people with experience

[TheTrueReview]

Defenetly hit my old driver better, it had a slight fade to it but it was easy to compensate for
Old driver had 10.5 loft, regular flex and was also a 400CC head(i think)
callaway is 10 loft, regular flex and 460cc head


Pull

all my other clubs go straight

Hmmm .... isn't a pull the hallmark of an outside to in swing?

[rubin]

slowed down my swing today, hit it better but it feels really weird making myself swing slower than natural

when I first started trying to slow it down, it felt weird too. Having said that, once everything starts coming on line or your hitting better, you'll find u naturally speed up, or in my case I did anyway.

I seem to remember u saying ur young bloke as well, so ur slow speed will, in many cases, be a hell of a lot faster than what some of the old boys can ever manage.

Remember, distance isnt always the be all and end all. Get the club under control, and once you've done that, you can learn to let rip on them an let them fly!

EDIT: I should have mentioned that if you hit the driver in the sweet spot, the balls gonna go and go anyway!

[Dave]

here's a video of my swing (slowing my swing down just trying to hit it)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=biTgVG69HGw

[Daves]

All sorts of things going on in your swing Dave, most of them not good. As suggested by others in your other swing thread you are swinging with your arms, not your body. You are also tilting to get the club above your head. You really need to get a coach and have a series of lessons so they can help you get on the right path.

In the interim this Leaderbetter vid gives a good insight and a simple suggested drill that should help;


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc1kt6MASDY

[Dave]

cheers mate

[Daves]

Here is another vid/drill that should help;


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7AXReWUx4Cg

[razaar]

Now you have me worried!? hehe;)
When I first saw this tread, I immediately thought of your drive on the 9th on day one of the Champs. Up till then you had been hitting the driver exceptionally well. I just happened to notice what you did on that particular pull hook, hence my post. :)

[Daves]

When I first saw this tread, I immediately thought of your drive on the 9th on day one of the Champs. Up till then you had been hitting the driver exceptionally well. I just happened to notice what you did on that particular pull hook, hence my post. :)

Oh I have been there, had the hooks for a few months earlier the year.:roll: Caught them off Eags I reckon.;)

[markTHEblake]

I got a new driver (callaway hyper x) for Christmas after my old one snapped, i've had about 5 rounds and 200 range balls with this driver now and still can't hit it.

Obviously it doesnt suit you, its like when you buy a suit in the wrong size, no matter how hard to try to suck in your gut, or puff out your chest, it still doesnt fit.



Does anyone have anything else to try?

It does not make much sense to just grab anything to see if it works. Go see a clubfitter. Will cost you around $100 for a session if you dont buy anything from him, and he can give you a 'prescription' of exactly the specification of driver (and complete set) that you need.

If you bought your Hyper X off the shelf it probably has one of those 'one size fits all' shafts, and invariably, it doesnt fit a lot of people. If you really like the head of the driver you just bought, a fitted new shaft to that head will make it feel like its worth a million dollars to you. Price range for a decent shaft fitted to you would probably be in the range of $100-200.

[Dave]

Alright, looks like club fitting and lessons are the first things to buy when i start working in feb

[razaar]

This tip is specially for you Dave because of your build. It relates to how you grip the golf club. It is good fundamentals to have your hands high at address so that there is a small angle between the left forearm and the shaft (the view from behind, looking down the ball/target line). This makes it easier to keep the clubhead on the correct plane and to return the hands at impact through their address position. Low hands at address with more of an angle between the forearms and shaft can lead to all sorts of problems, especially the pull hook if the arms get a bit slow for the upper body. Keep this in mind when you grip all your clubs. To do this you may have to go down the grip an inch or two.

[Dave]

Went to the driving range today, tried to take a lot of this on board, hit a lot straighter and a bit under 200 metres consistently. Just need to keep working Til this swing is more automatic instead of thinking about every step


Thanks everyone

[Dave]

straight and about 200 metres every drive today, quiet happy with that for now