Distance con

shewy

shewy

Journeyman Pro
Joined
May 25, 2009
Messages
2,084
Location
Newport South Wales
Visit site
Just ordered myself a couple of hybrids from 08,Tm burners in 4&5,looking at the specs. The Tm stage 2 hybrid of the same loft is 1 3/4 inches longer. Now I love my 3h but I can see where the distance is coming from now. The 08 burners are only 1/4 inch longer than their iron equivalents so should fit in the set better me thinks.
Has technology moved on are all the manufacturers at it?
 
Virtually all manufacturers are doing it...

A bit longer here, a stronger loft there and - Hey Presto 10-15 yards longer than the club it replaces.
Well it would - it's basically a club more than the club it replaces...
This is all well and good but gaps are going to start appearing at the bottom end of sets.
If your PW is now really a 9 iron but will be equivalent to the 8 1/2 iron or 8 iron in terms of distance in 2 years time, how many wedges are you going to have to carry to cover the gaps...?
All Golfers think about is distance because that's what the manufacturers can give us and that's what they drum into us.

With regard to hybrids, they are supposed to be long iron replacements.
Why, then, are they designed to fairway wood distances rather than iron distances?

1 3/4 inch longer graphite shafts and less loft - how can that equate to an iron of the same number?
If you want to replace a 3 iron you really need a hybrid of around 24 degrees - a 4h....simply because of the shaft length and the graphite increasing your swing speed..
 
It's natural evolution; in their quest for more distance, hybrids are gradually evolving into fairway woods, fairway woods are gradually evolving into drivers and drivers are going who knows where. :whistle:
 
most have been gradually getting longer - in TM's case, comparing the #4, the Stage 2 is 0.25" longer than the RBZ, which was in turn 0.5" longer than the Rescue 11. However the Burner (Superfast) was 0.25" longer than the Rescue 11 (on the basis of physical comparison rather than specs).

others manufacturers are similar
 
I think 48" is the max length for a 'legal' driver shaft......

TaylorMade's new illegal offerings will probably have 60" shaft....... with a 900cc head :rofl:


I wouldn't mind having a go with a 48" shaft just to see how it goes, but have no idea where to find one that I can TRY.
 
I had a club feeding frenzy this year due to an unexpected PPI payout and replaced most of my kit due to a crack in my driver face and my Mizy irons being almost groveless in the middle.

The Ping i20 irons are working well now I am getting used to them and the RBZ driver is behaving it's self nicely, I already had an RBZ 3 wood which has been a great fairway wood.

Anyhow, I replaced my Mizuno 5 wood and 4 hybrid with TM's. I have had a royal nightmare with these two new clubs and just cannot get decent contact with them. I have spent time on the range and even had a free lesson when I told the Pro I was about to snap them and post them through the Pro shop letterbox. He didnt seem to help me much, said I was swinging OK but maybe needed a bit more time getting used to them :confused:

Last Friday I put them in the garage and put my Mizuno 5 wood and Hybrid back in the bag. What a difference, striping them again. I will have to get to terms with the TM's as they were not cheap but maybe they are a little longer and it is creating the problem. Who Knows?
 
Last edited:
SocketRocket said:
..... maybe they are a little longer and it is creating the problem. Who Knows?
Click to expand...

I would have thought you would know if there were length differences......

As to what creates such issues - there's no doubt in my mind that it doesn't take much in terms of many elements; but length alone for these clubs isn't that critical (and most people will adjust slightly in their grip if it feels wrong/long)
 
I've just lopped an inch off my driver. Think most of the pros use around 43 inches, but I stand to be corrected. The difference in control is night and day with the shorter shaft. I definitely haven't lost any distance either. I think I've hit 2 bad drives in 2 rounds since the shortening, and coincidently had back to back cuts. I tried a 45" driver last year and it was long but uncontrollable
 
DappaDonDave said:
http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/37200-average-driver-shaft-length-on-the-pga-tour/
Click to expand...

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

so a query of a purported 'fact' on an internet forum gets another thread from an internet forum provided to back it up...... classic!

did you even read the thread?

anyway, to save time, it's generally refererenced that the driver length has averaged around 44.5" since 2005; and the posts that provide any 'evidence' in that thread are consistent with that as well.

it's higher on the seniors tour, and there are an increasing number of LPGA players using even longer drivers now.

the reasons are long and complex, but basically the Tour pro's simply don't feel they want any more clubhead speed/distance - most aren't hitting driver, or swinging flat out with their drivers, right now; 2013 driving stats are down for the men (up significantly for the ladies).
 
duncan mackie said:
I would have thought you would know if there were length differences......

As to what creates such issues - there's no doubt in my mind that it doesn't take much in terms of many elements; but length alone for these clubs isn't that critical (and most people will adjust slightly in their grip if it feels wrong/long)
Click to expand...

I know I have little confidence when addressing them so that doesn't help.
 
A lot of manufacturers have been cranking lofts for years and it definitely isn't just TM that do it. I have gone to a more forgiving set with no loss of distance as I'm hitting it better and therefore get optimum distance in excess of the TM Tour Preferred's I had. Not sure how different the lofts between the two are (and too damn lazy to check) but I am getting it out there with less effort
 
I went for the Tour versions of the RBZ woods where possible, as they have slightly shorter shaft lengths and neutral face angles when compared to the standard version.
 
I think it is well known that lofts are changing. I think that irons are the starting point, there is little doubt that many PWs are equivalent to 9i of only a few years ago. In fact, many current GI/SGI clubs are genuinely a club longer in specs than current players clubs. That being the case, that means that the long irons are similar - I cant help but believe that our current 4i to GW is probably directly equivalent to a 3i-PW of 5 years ago. The only benefit is probably mental, people believe they can hit a 4i better than a 3i... even though their 4i IS effectively a 3i. Moving on from this, that means that your 3h now has to go as long as a 2h would have a few years ago, otherwise you will have a big gap. Then, at the other end, it causes issues with wedges. 10 years ago, 4 wedges was pretty exotic - now days it is really very common because there are so many PW clubs at 45 degrees and stronger!

I am going to be changing my bag pretty soon and I am going to end up with the same number of irons in total. The longest one will go the same distance as my current longest. The shortest will go the same as my present shortest. They will have different labels, that's the lot. Another thought is that the manufacturers have pulled a blinder. We used to get 9 irons for our hard earned money. Nowdays it is 7 or 6 and it is the same (inflation corrected) costs. Now we have to add the costs of additional wedges! The manufacturers have managed to have us punters paying a whole load more simply by changing the numbers on the clubs and convincing people that means they hit the ball further!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

C
Power spec or retro spec?
2 3 4
Replies
60
Views
7K
Deleted member 1147
D
Gleb
Asking for gapping advice
Replies
17
Views
1K
Klimski
K
harpo_72
Grip position impact on wrist action and consequential face angles
2
Replies
21
Views
1K
Neilds
N
N
Filling the Gaps
Replies
6
Views
3K
ntommo
N
sjw
Fitting frustrations. Anyone had similar?
2
Replies
38
Views
3K
sjw
sjw
Top