Driver / 3 Wood Distance

[thepodgster]

Hi All - Merry Christmas,

In the summer it got to the point where I didn't have any confidence standing on the T with my driver in hand so I have got rid and gone with a 3 Wood.

When out playing it doesn't seem to leave me chasing the yards and may be long enough for where I am with my game right now, but we always want to chase those extra few yards - after all it is all about the length!

On to the Question:

What is the difference in distance you would expect to find between your Driver and 3 Wood from the T?

 

[Matty]

I used to get about 20 yards further total distance with the driver on average and about 30 yards with a best strike. My hybrids were creeping ever closer to my 3 wood distance so I ended up dropping the 3w from my bag as I was hitting the driver better.

Still, that's different from your situation. If you are thinking of restoring a driver you need one that works for you, instils confidence and forgives the off centre hits. If you cannot find a club that meets that then stick with your 3w and be happy that you are not losing any yards - or at least you are not risking losing them 9 times out of 10 and getting 30 more 1 time in 10.

 

[Break90]

Driver goes 240 ish
3 wood goes 220-240

If I could guarantee hitting fairways every time I would be seriously tempted to drop the driver tbh

 

[ScienceBoy]

About 20 yards for a good 3 wood vs an average driver.

3w up to 230, Driver 230+.

Both about the same ratio of good to bad but the 3w does not go as deep into trouble as I set up to it with my standard stance. The driver has its own stance so has more potential.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Average about 230 with driver and about 210-12 with 3 wood. I'm a notoriously short hitter by forum distances

 

[HankMarvin]

About 25-30 yards, drive goes between 275-290 depending on ground conditions.

 

[duncan mackie]

Driver goes 240 ish
3 wood goes 220-240

These are my current carry distances - with close to 0 roll...

In the summer I can get significantly more roll with the driver than the 3 wood - and miles more than currently!

 

[Face breaker]

Hi All - Merry Christmas,

In the summer it got to the point where I didn't have any confidence standing on the T with my driver in hand so I have got rid and gone with a 3 Wood.

When out playing it doesn't seem to leave me chasing the yards and may be long enough for where I am with my game right now, but we always want to chase those extra few yards - after all it is all about the length!

On to the Question:

What is the difference in distance you would expect to find between your Driver and 3 Wood from the T?

Had to drop my driver for the minute as I've been having issues with it but prior to said issues I was getting between 250 & 300yds, recently bought a 'tour stiff X2 hot/3 wood' which I'm using off the T and that's giving me on average 225-250yds so not really losing out much say 25-50yds !...

 

[GeneralStore]

All depends on the strike for me, can be zero yards difference and can be around 40 yards if both are well hit

Irrelevant though, because if I absolutely have to find the fairway then I go with my hybrid anyway. 225 yards total and I could comfortably play a round off the whites using that as my longest club

 

[Fish]

I love these threads, I've played with so many forumites and I can count on 1 hand the amount who drive some of these declared distances, and even those are rarely consistent!

I reckon most of you are retired fisherman who used to catch Gudgeon which turned into whopping great Carp by the time you got out the pub😂😂😂

 

[thepodgster]

Ha ha ha - you've made me giggle first thing in the morning, nearly as much as we do at your beloved Chelsea at the moment ;-)

I'm comfortable with my 3 wood, but now debating where I can continue to improve. The main area is going to be my accuracy and approach with irons followed by short game within 20 yards of the green.

I imagined the majority of people to have a difference of 20 yards + between driver and 3 wood and that seems to be the case. For me those 20 + yards are not worth the accuracy difference between Driver and 3 Wood so I will not be changing any time soon.

Thanks everyone for your input and comments

 

[Hobbit]

I might push a rare drive out to 260, but most are between 240-250. A good 3 wood might make 230 but the majority are 215-225. However, I rarely miss a fairway with the 3 wood, whereas the driver can have some serious off days.

 

[Face breaker]

I might push a rare drive out to 260, but most are between 240-250. A good 3 wood might make 230 but the majority are 215-225. However, I rarely miss a fairway with the 3 wood, whereas the driver can have some serious off days.

Sounds a familiar story as I rarely miss the short stuff with the 3 wood but as of late the driver can be a bit "hit 'n' miss" as far as accuracy goes !...

 

[Face breaker]

I love these threads, I've played with so many forumites and I can count on 1 hand the amount who drive some of these declared distances, and even those are rarely consistent!

I reckon most of you are retired fisherman who used to catch Gudgeon which turned into whopping great Carp by the time you got out the pub

Yeah, absolutely, I couldn't agree more, they're almost as bad as the ones that believe that because they're not capable of doing something then nobody else is either !...😂😂😂😂😂

 

[ScienceBoy]

Yeah, absolutely, I couldn't agree more, they're almost as bad as the ones that believe that because they're not capable of doing something then nobody else is either !...😂😂😂😂😂

Some people are honest and end up looking like short hitters.

I admit I can drive 270, one every other round at best! I certainly don't try and carry anything over 190 to the far edge just in case. Personal rule if mine.

 

[UlyssesSky]

Question for the guys who prefer their 3 wood because of "accuracy issues" with the driver: how far offline do you hit your drivers? Semi, rough, deep rough, OB/trees/"lost ball territory"?

As long as I'm in one of the first two most of the time with the driver, I'd take those 20+ extra yards with the driver each and every time.

20+ yards is at least a two club difference, which means a much better chance of getting your approach on the green or closer to the flag even from the rough. At least you probably won't be worse off than hitting two clubs more from the fairway.

If you then take the holes into account where you actually hit fairway with your driver and can hit a shorter club from the short stuff, I would be willing to bet that playing driver (as long as you don't lose balls) will result in better scores, even if you don't hit as many fairways as with your 3 wood.

 

[ScienceBoy]

I would be willing to bet that playing driver (as long as you don't lose balls) will result in better scores, even if you don't hit as many fairways as with your 3 wood.

On courses with well maintained fair rough then driver is fine for me, worth taking the risk as it can go deeper into trouble than others clubs.

If the course does not look after its rough I go for fairway.

I hit the same ratio if bad shots for all clubs just the longer club go deeper into bad stuff.

 

[UlyssesSky]

On courses with well maintained fair rough then driver is fine for me, worth taking the risk as it can go deeper into trouble than others clubs.

If the course does not look after its rough I go for fairway.

I hit the same ratio if bad shots for all clubs just the longer club go deeper into bad stuff.

Great addition!

Basically the sensible strategy is to chose clubs on a hole by hole base, and not generally leave one club in the bag. If you're faced with a tight hole, and a miss (your typical miss) could result in big trouble or a lost ball, chose the safe option.
Just don't use it all of the time because the ball looks better on the fairway than 30 yards further in the rough.

 

[ScienceBoy]

Great addition!

Basically the sensible strategy is to chose clubs on a hole by hole base, and not generally leave one club in the bag. If you're faced with a tight hole, and a miss (your typical miss) could result in big trouble or a lost ball, chose the safe option.
Just don't use it all of the time because the ball looks better on the fairway than 30 yards further in the rough.

My driving rules are:

Hole over 360 I take driver, under take 3wood
Unless...
The hole shape or hazards dictate otherwise
And...
Don't try and make a carry over 190 to the far edge.

 

[Face breaker]

Question for the guys who prefer their 3 wood because of "accuracy issues" with the driver: how far offline do you hit your drivers? Semi, rough, deep rough, OB/trees/"lost ball territory"?

As long as I'm in one of the first two most of the time with the driver, I'd take those 20+ extra yards with the driver each and every time.

20+ yards is at least a two club difference, which means a much better chance of getting your approach on the green or closer to the flag even from the rough. At least you probably won't be worse off than hitting two clubs more from the fairway.

If you then take the holes into account where you actually hit fairway with your driver and can hit a shorter club from the short stuff, I would be willing to bet that playing driver (as long as you don't lose balls) will result in better scores, even if you don't hit as many fairways as with your 3 wood.

Usually somewhere where it's irretrievable, out of bounds or I simply just can't find it !...