driver question (probably stupid)

[time_vans]

driver question (probably stupid)

your lining up on a 500yd par 5 , you send a nice drive 255yds middle of the fairway sat there on a nice lie.you have 245yds to go to get on the green, as you hit (like most if not all) a three wood less distance then your driver then your not going to reach the green.my question is this......why not take your next shot with your driver again? i am a total novice but to me it looks the same type of club as a three wood so surely a ball could be struck off the deck with it? result...you reach the green in two.
forgive me if this is daft but was just wondering. cheers

 

[PeterPumpkinEater]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

With todays huge drivers its very difficult to hit it off the deck, where as with the smaller headed drivers years ago it was a lot easier (although still difficult), but there is no reason why you cant give it a go. Go down the range and try and hit a few off the mat and see how you get on.

 

[Parmo]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

I once hit a driver off the fairway, it went low and fast for 100 yards then took a sharp right and ended up around 150 yards in the bushes!! Last season a Pro used a driver off the fairway and he did pull it off, but with the sweetspot so high up its a tricky shot with modern tech.

 

[HTL]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

C. Monty, has done it a few times this year with not bad results, however, he is a bit good and for us normal people its an almost impossible shot to pull off. Agree with what Parmo siad they just aint made for hitting off fairways.

You cant be a total novice if you are going for par 5s in two!

 

[CarpeDiem]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

I remember the Micheal Campbell used his driver off the deck in this years British Masters. I think

 

[USER1999]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

I have tried it a few times, with somewhat limited success. A couple of times it has worked really well, a few not so good. Not had any real disasters, but most of the time I am better off with a 5 wood or 3 hybrid. Better to be consistent really.

 

[John_Findlay]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

It ain't easy to hit these nowadays. I'll only try it when there's a howling gale against me and a low running ball is the answer. Even most pros will try to fade them to give them a little height, a la Monty or Vijay. It's hard to pull off a draw with a driver off the deck.

 

[Imurg]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

You need a to put a really good swing on it to hit a driver off the deck.

Don't forget, off the tee the ball is high on the tee and easy to hit. On the ground you've got to get the clubhead exactly to the bottom of the ball other wise the result will be similar to Parmo's.

The pro's can do it but most mere mortals can't. Not with any degree of consistency anyway.

We have a grass mound that we are allowed to pick and place on. If I land on it I try to have the ball as high in the grass as I can an then get the driver on it. Its on a par 5 and mostly I can get to within 10 yards of the green in 2.

 

[Canfordhacker]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

What's wrong with a smooth 7 iron and a dialled in sand wedge right over the pin for a birdie putt? Much lower risk and should be a dead cert par.

 

[TonyN]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

Agree with above, If you nail a drive down the middle of a par 5, just go for a birdie with a layup and a close GIR. You could so easily end up with a 6 for trying that.

I am sure there where a couple of pro's using drivers off the deck at birkdale this year to keep the ball low.

There was a guy at the range a few months ago knocking the ball 250 yards with his driver off the deck. I suppose with enough practice you might be able to master this shot, like any other. But no doubt its got to be the hardest shot to play. A near perfect swing is required and anything less is going to make a mug out of you.

Try it at the range and see how you get on. I did, and I was crap!

 

[PeterPumpkinEater]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

Agree with the above, I got a birdie on our 506yrd 17th on Sunday by driving it 249yrds, hitting my 3 wood 25yrds from the front of the front of the green and a nice little chip and run 2 ft from the pin.

Unless you are Dormie (against) I really wouldn't go with a driver unless you REALLY have to.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

Not worth the risk in my book. The heads of modern drivers are too large and the sweetspot too high up the face to guarantee the same solid contact as a tee shot. For me it would be a 5 wood or 3 hybrid to around 60-80 yards and then a 3/4 wedge or my 52 degree. Chances are I'll hit the green and hopefully close enough for a birdie or cast iron 2 putt.

I've tried hitting driver of range mats which are pretty forgiving and had very mixed results. I can hit a 3 wood off the deck and so if the hole was downwind and I needed to make something happen I'd give that a go but not a driver

 

[Cernunnos]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

your lining up on a 500yd par 5 , you send a nice drive 255yds middle of the fairway sat there on a nice lie.you have 245yds to go to get on the green, as you hit (like most if not all) a three wood less distance then your driver then your not going to reach the green.my question is this......why not take your next shot with your driver again? i am a total novice but to me it looks the same type of club as a three wood so surely a ball could be struck off the deck with it? result...you reach the green in two.
forgive me if this is daft but was just wondering. cheers

Tim you're on a Par 5, so you have 3 shots to get to the green, it really doesn't matter what club you take for your second shot just so long as you keep the ball in play & it allows your third shot to get the best chance of a good position on the green...

What's to say if you took 3 wood, you wouldn't hit the green, or only need a chip'n'run to get upto the hole.

I'd also echo the point about the size of drivers, though apparently Monty is supposed to use a lofted driver to allow him to do the Driver off fairway shot... or so he says.

You could always carry a strong 3 wood, if there are a lot of par 5's that give you a chance of green in two if you had the right distance with your club... At one time people could get 2 woods, 4 woods or whatever wood they wanted.

But either way, why take a high percentage shot into a green that is likely to be small seeing as its a par 5

 

[Herbie]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

your lining up on a 500yd par 5 , you send a nice drive 255yds middle of the fairway sat there on a nice lie.you have 245yds to go to get on the green, as you hit (like most if not all) a three wood less distance then your driver then your not going to reach the green.my question is this......why not take your next shot with your driver again? i am a total novice but to me it looks the same type of club as a three wood so surely a ball could be struck off the deck with it? result...you reach the green in two.
forgive me if this is daft but was just wondering. cheers

I often take two drivers for this purpose, I have learned to hit reasonabley well with on from the lawn. When it is windy or a very long course I will often chose this method. It can wear on a driver though and unless well practiced is not worth the hassle.It also depends on the hole, even on some par 5s where I have only had 240 or less to go I have sometimes layed up due to risks around the hole rather than go for it. Same with using a driver, unless confident and can achieve what you are after should you hit it well, I wouldnt bother.

 

[thecraw]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

I was playing an open competition earlier on this year when I blocked my drive at the par 5 16th right off the tee and with the left to right wind it went about 30 yards into the cabbage.

I obviously played a provisional ball then went a hunting.

I walked straight into the shin high rough and instantly found my Srixon Z-URS sitting up like a coconut. It coulnt have been placed better if I tried. After a couple of practice swings with a 7 iron I decided France to that and pulled out the driver, from 245 out, in shin high wispy grass I nailed my driver to 3 feet and slotted the eagle putt. I then pitched in at 18 for birdie 3 and came runner up in the scratch with a one over 70.

Driver off of fairway, well I prefer it out the rough!!!!

Bottom line is could I have pulled that shot off, off of the short stuff? In a family fortunes scheme of things I know what the survey would have said!!!

 

[andiritchie]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

Off the deck the driver only has about 2 degrees of loft i tried it a few times with terrible results i find its better to hit a hard 3 wood if i was going for the par 5 in 2 then again my course hit it in the right spot and its only a 6 iron into them at the most

 

[theeaglehunter]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

There really is no comparison between hitting a driver or a fairway wood off the deck. Drivers just are not designed for this, where as FAIRWAY woods are, they are much easier to hit and would definitely be the better option. It isn't worth practicing either- spend the time on putting / short game instead as this will save you more shots than a driver nailed off the deck ever will.

 

[mrmotorbikeman]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

I have only ever hit one driver off the deck, and I am unable to remember the name! Suffice to say it was a loong time ago, but it was when the really shallow driver heads were coming into fashion, and therefore it's head was much more like a fairway wood. I was able to hit an 8.5* with no hassle, nice flight, straight as a die from grass on a demo day for these at the East Anglian open. Also suffice to say I couldn't afford one!

I don't think that with todays style of driver I would ever consider hitting it off the ground though, sweetspot would hardly ever be anywhere near the ball, and therefore the ball hardly ever anywhere near the hole!

 

[Smiffy]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

My driver is tiny in comparison to some of the monsters that are around at the moment.
I have had a go from the fairway on a couple of occasions with it, like others have said if you are into a stiffish breeze and want to keep it down under the wind it can be a useful shot to play.
Not too bad a result but on a par 5 receiving a shot?
I'll knock a safe 3 wood down on the basis that I have a much better chance of getting up and down for a birdie from close range than two putting what's left of my attempt with the driver second shot!!

 

[Cernunnos]

Re: driver question (probably stupid)

There really is no comparison between hitting a driver or a fairway wood off the deck. Drivers just are not designed for this, where as FAIRWAY woods are, they are much easier to hit and would definitely be the better option. It isn't worth practicing either- spend the time on putting / short game instead as this will save you more shots than a driver nailed off the deck ever will.

I think its about time manufacturers started getting away fromthese massive headed drivers & started producing small shallow headed drivers, that would surely cut through the air easier & b of some actual use other then off the tee. I love my fairway woods whether off the tee, the fairway or the rough...

So come on manufacturers... give us a fairway driver..!