13.5 degree driver!!!

[BigSpuds]

Hi all,

just though id get some general opinions on my new club. like a lot of players on a 18 handicap the driver can be a bit of a monster to tame. high and right being the normal shape of shot. ive recently picked up a secondhand ping rapture v2 with a 13.5 degree loft and im loving it.......8 out of 10 straight with the other 2 still an improvement on before, and an extra 10-20 yards. i have more confidence driving which has improved my whole game, in fact the the last three rounds i have played better than my handicap.

but hear lies the issue, a number of my playing friends have said the club masks my driving faults and i should address my swing instead of changing the club. also a few have mentioned the 13.5 degree will not allow me to improve on my distance (currently 230-250)

should i listen and pay for more lessons and a lower degree stick in order to improve my distance?

and do any pro golfers use a higher degree driver?

any advice offered will be greatly received, thanks

 

[viscount17]

<u>and pay for more lessons and a lower degree stick?</u>
if it works for you, keep it; lessons are always worthwhile

<u>the 13.5 degree will not allow me to improve on my distance</u>
230-250 is at or above average for an amateur golfer

<u>do any pro golfers use a higher degree driver?</u>
do you swing as fast or as consistently as a pro? if not what does it matter?

 

[kid2]

Id have to agree with viscount17 here Bigspuds.
Im currently off 18 and i use a 10.5 degree Ping G10 sith a stock stiff shaft... i used to have a problem sith the slice but iv sorted that.. i hit on average about 250/260 yards abd had my swing speed measured at average 108mph. teh reason i bought this was a friend of mine had the exact same driver and i borrowed it for a round one day. long story short it sorted everything out for me... iv never been custom fitted for one just went straight in the shop and bought off the shelf... like viscount says if it aint broke it doesnt need to be fixed... there isnt alot wrong than knocking the ball. i think and dont quote me on this cos like you im learning still that the higher loft will give you more carry too...

 

[RGDave]

I too agree with viscount.

I have a 13 which I use from time to time, it's great.

No shame in hitting the ball 20 yards shorter than your best with an 11 degree or something. If it works for you, be happy.

Why miss all the fairways when you have a chance to hit them all?

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I have to say if it's working for you why worry what others think or say. It sounds to me like your mates are running scared now you are finding the fairway and getting a consistant distance and are trying to get you back into the old ways with your old driver.

Stick with what you have. The other thing to bear in mind is come the winter your 13.5 will give you more carry than a lower lofted driver and so will go further as it won't get caught in wet fairways. Seems like a win/win to me

 

[Adrena1in]

As with what everyone else has said, if it aint broke and you're getting good distance, why change?

My question (to everyone) would be, if you're hitting it straight with this club, is that more to do with the shaft than the loft? What would happen if you put a less lofted driver head onto the same shaft?

 

[viscount17]

Just happen to have The Science of Golf (John Wesson) to hand. The following is paraphrased . . .

At the start of the swing the shaft is bent backwards by about 3 deg. Halfway into the swing it begins to straighten until in the final phase of the swing (about 0.02 s before impact) the bend reverses and the clubhead moves ahead of the shaft. (A significant part of the forward bend being due to the offset CofG of the clubhead). The forward bend alters the effective loft of the club by about 1.5 deg/inch of bend (typically about 2 in. or +3 deg).

However, whether this is a good thing or a bad thing (it can alter distance by up to 10 yards) depends on what you have and on what your optimum loft is.

So, before you do anything about changing clubs find out what you should have not what you think you should have (ego makes bad choices).

 

[Imurg]

I did read of one USPGA Pro who uses a 12 degree driver and regularly gets a 2nd one ripped by his playing partners. But he naturally hits the ball so low that he needs all the help he can get to get the ball into the air.

If it works - don't knock it - and don't let anyone else knock it either.

 

[BigSpuds]

thanks guys some good advice,

at the end of the day its improving my game so it must be right, have to agree with viscount and get fitted at a good supplier, ive never been measured for any club but think its about time i find out exactly what is good for my swing

 

[ChrisDowning]

I've been using a 13.5 Ping G10 for the past year and no problems at all. Don't get the playing partner thing at all - how would someone know it's 13.5. The only reason my partners ask what I'm playing is they get pretty hacked off at me going down the fairway all the time and never hitting off line. Distance - well I can easily do 220-240 and when I need to rack it up a bit to 250. At 66 years old that's OK for now.

The question you have to ask yourself is, do I want an extra 20-30 yards and risk 2-4 visits to the rough. If I hit it 240 and then use my 18deg rescue, I'm 440 yards down the centre of the fairway. With long hitter partners I do end up trailing them to the green - they'll be at 50 yards and I'll be at 80-90. So I polished up my short game - something you can really do when retired and can practice a lot. Any younger player will tell you how frustrating it can be playing an older partner who's short game is killing them around the green. It's what we should be good at because we have time to practice the short game for hours on end ( once retired ).

Yes I am tempted to try a 10.5 or 11 but I still need lots of work on putting and chipping. I'll let you know where I am by September this year. I don't want to risk having to play out of the rough at the moment just to get some more distance, so...

One of the side issues is with 13.5 you don't have think about hitting up on the ball on the tee or leaning right - just use a normal long iron swing.

 

[Ethan]

Nick Watney uses a 11.5 degree drivers and Lee Westwood a 10.5 tweaked to 11:

http://www.golfwrx.com/77307/nick-watney-witb/

http://www.golfwrx.com/93972/lee-westwood-witb/

The name of the game is optimising trajectory. You almost certainly have less clubhead speed than either of these guys, so you need at least as much and probably more, loft.

Strong 3 woods have become popular as driving clubs that give as much distance as drivers, but more accuracy. You are basically doing the same thing.

Nothing wrong with a club that masks your faults. I have been looking for a set of those for many years now.

 

[MegaSteve]

I also use a HT driver these days... Don't tend to play longer courses nowadays so don't feel the need to carry an out and out driver... Driving has always been a strength for me... Back when low profile drivers were the order of the day I was quite happy to play my driver 'off the deck'... Wouldn't even consider it with the current big headed crop...

 

[Foxholer]

If it works, don't knock it.

Think how much hassle Rory is having trying to sort a Driver to match his swing.

It's about the score, not clubs you use to get it!

 

[CMAC]

my playing partner (off 4) uses a TM HL driver 13*, hardly misses a fairway.

 

[Odvan]

Despite not having a handicap nor being a member anywhere, because I could and because the missus hasn't a clue, I bought an Adams Speedline Super S. I have the typical amateur slice with any wood (I hit beautiful, easily manageable 'fades' with irons). I plan to use the adjustable loft and set it to 11.5* whilst I work hard at getting shut of the slice in the hope that the slight increase in loft will at least tame it a little.

PS: I hadn't hit the Adams, just went off reviews and the fact that the length was longer than standard, same as my irons. Paid just £150 for it from the states, inclusive of delivery and duty, so know if it isn't the right driver for me, can recoup most, if not all my spend.

 

[Piece]

but hear lies the issue, a number of my playing friends have said the club masks my driving faults and i should address my swing instead of changing the club. also a few have mentioned the 13.5 degree will not allow me to improve on my distance (currently 230-250)

Every golfer in the world has a driver that suits their game, whether its 7.5 or 13.5. Ignore the Jackson Pollocks they are saying. You've found a driver that improves your game no end and that is what most of us want, isn't it?

You can certainly try to improve your swing and spend time and money doing so, but reading between the lines here, there's no point.

I guess your mates all play with improvement irons to mask their swings faults or are they all playing with blades whilst working on the mythical perfect swing?

 

[ScienceBoy]

Golf is full of things like this, anything too far from the norm is open to ridicule.

Best thing is to answer it with a good shot and a good score. Everyone's game and swing are different, play to your strengths and you will get a good score. I hit a 3 iron as far as some peoples driver, yet I wish I could hit a driver as straight and reliably as they can!

Don't let anyone get to you, just hit the ball until it goes in the hole in which every way gives you the most pleasure.

 

[Beezerk]

Count yourself lucky mate, I can't hit the damn things for toffee

 

[SocketRocket]

I take it these are 'Forum' Yards being given. I see very few golfers above single handicaps hitting 250 real yards.

 

[Shiny]

I use a 13.5 degree G15 and its always commented on. Even to the point of playing yesterday and my fame preceded me with some good natured banter on the first tee (In an interclub competition with a gallery watching and we were the first group out - no pressure then). The first two chaps sliced their low lofted drivers into the tree's, I hit mine straight (as is usual) 220 yards down the middle, a nice par for me and a bogey and double bogey for them.

The banter stopped on the second hole when even though they found the fairway I was 10 yards past them.

Let the mocking continue........