driver shaft

[aromero]

im a 26 year old male relativley new to the game. i have played for a couple of years every couple of months or so with work but this april i took the plunge and joined my local club.

since then i have played mid week 9 hole comps plus weekend comps on both saturday and sunday.

initially i was given a handicapp of 24. my game is starting to come together although still, as to be expected from a newcomer, a little inconsistent.

my problem is a hit my driver consistently high. i currently play a ben hogen 9.5 degree driver with a stiff shaft. i occaisionally have hit a fade

it was suggested recently by a playing partner that i may benefit from a driver with a regular shaft. would you concur with this advice??? and why?

 

[RGDave]

It's not an easy question to answer. You need to get a reading of your clubhead speed with a driver in your hands. If it's fast enough (which it could be) then a stiff shaft could be the correct shaft.

 

[aromero]

which is what i thought. im young and athletic, i have no problem in achieving a full swing and if anything i am often too quick. though when i do get hold of it a hit it well.

i beleive my problem to be one of weight transfer.........i finish on with my weight on my right foot so im obviousley not transfering weight and hitting through the ball. the comment on shaft just nocked my confidence a little and now im thinking im handicapped by using the wrong equipment

 

[RGDave]

i beleive my problem to be one of weight transfer.........i finish on with my weight on my right foot so im obviously not transfering weight and hitting through the ball.

Yes

 

[aromero]

so you would agree with my thinking in that the driver is ok for my swing i just need to get my weight transferred?

any tips?? advice in achieving that then???

 

[RGDave]

so you would agree with my thinking in that the driver is ok for my swing i just need to get my weight transferred?

any tips?? advice in achieving that then???

NO....I didn't mean that. The shaft might be correct, but with a better/different swing the loft may not be right.....no-one can help you with this other than a professional or club-fitting expert. If you sort your swing out and the ball gets up nicely, you could keep your club, but there are too many variables.....you'll have to see how you go when/if you change your swing.

As for getting onto you left foot at the end of the swing, just practice it without a ball at the range. Swing down, get off the right foot and hold your finish posture like a golf hero!....maybe with the club wrapped around your neck.

Here's me.....I'm hardly the best golfer ( ) but look at what's happened.....my right foot is resting on my tip toes, I'm facing the target and the club is almost wrapped around.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

The ball is currently flying 45 degrees right towards a big wet pond but the follow through is good. Only joking Dave!!

The simple answe would be a single lesson and get a pro to talk you through the principles. He'd also be able to advise you having seen your swing whether he thinks the shafts is suitable.

 

[JustOne]

You don't have to get your weight through when hitting a driver as you are hitting up on it (unlike irons when you hit down)... in fact it's OK if you fall backwards off your driver.

to save me explaining here's a vid....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NdcfWG8_KE

here's Angel Cabrara lashing one 340yds... he steps/falls back as his weight stays back, even the commentator mentions it
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VkHCQC2og4Q

Sounds like your shaft is OK but you might be coming down too steep, hard to tell without seeing your swing.

 

[RGDave]

You don't have to get your weight through when hitting a driver as you are hitting up on it (unlike irons when you hit down)... in fact it's OK if you fall backwards off your driver.

I'm not going to disagree with you.....no, for sure, a player can hit better drives without the finish I show in the picture. I DO leave my weight very much on the back foot...but I thought the O.P. was asking for "general swing" advice, and I think everyone should practice their finish and try for a Faldo-esque finish. My fault.....

Would you agree that if you don't transfer the weight through that it's quite possible to play with a lower loft driver?

 

[RGDave]

The ball is currently flying 45 degrees right towards a big wet pond but the follow through is good. Only joking Dave!!

It was the one after the 5 wood that went horribly wrong.

How far back was I there Homer? 300 to go....

 

[JustOne]

I'm not going to disagree with you.....

I don't mind if you do Dave, it's a free world... albeit an expensive one

Would you agree that if you don't transfer the weight through that it's quite possible to play with a lower loft driver?

Absolutely. If your swing is solid enough to support a lower loft.

If you lower your driver loft you are lowering your margins as you only need to get through it with your body an inch or two and you are suddenly faced with a 5° driver that you can't get airborn

The idea is to get the perfect trajectory with the minimum spin. Often people think that hitting it lower will mean further as you'll get some run, that's not the case. You need the hang time but you don't want the spin. There is less friction in the air than there is rolling along the ground so you want it up there as long as possible.

Most people have 8.5 - 10.5 drivers as they give enough spin to get the ball airborn, it's not too much that the ball stalls in the air with uber spin, and they give enough backspin to compromise any sidespin imparted by a poor strike.

 

[RGDave]

I feel like having a try with my 10 degree....Cabrera style!

 

[JustOne]

I feel like having a try with my 10 degree....Cabrera style!

That man can REALLY rip it! I hope you get a vid of your Cabrera shots

The knack is to hit it BEFORE you fall back, not the other way round

I actually hit a 10.5° FT-iQ about 30 yards further than my 9.5° titleist simply because the FT imparts less spin so the ball cuts through the air better, apparently it has something to do with the design

Also the ball doesn't go any higher with the 10.5 it goes about the same as my 9.5 as it has less spin so won't climb.

Same height, less spin = more distance.

 

[bobmac]

it's OK if you fall backwards off your driver.

Although this thought may be ok for someone of Cabrera's strength, timing and ability, I doubt it is suitable advice for a 24 handicap newcomer to the game. Just my opinion.

 

[JustOne]

it's OK if you fall backwards off your driver.

Although this thought may be ok for someone of Cabrera's strength, timing and ability, I doubt it is suitable advice for a 24 handicap newcomer to the game. Just my opinion.

As long as they are aware that is is ONLY with the driver then I don't see why it would be bad advice. The nature of the advice is that you unwind and hit the ball, no need to try and get your weight excessively over your left foot - which would only encourage sliding, if it were the case that you had widened your stance then it would be doubly difficult to do so.

I like the video posted as the guy clearly says "If the club pulls you forward then that's OK, if you fall back then that's OK too" It should make sense to even the highest handicapper.

Would you advise that someone should move their weight forward with their driver?

 

[bobmac]

It depends on their requirements.
I teach everyone according to their abilities, how much they practice, what their faults are what their ball flight is etc etc.
If say a 2 handicapper wanted to hit the ball lower at a links course, I would not advise him to lean back on the driver.
If however a 2 handicapper wants to hit the ball higher and he tends to finish with the weight on the outside of his left foot, I would suggest he swings in such a way that the weight finishes on the inside of the left foot, therefor little lateral slide of the hips forward, just more of a turn.
If a high handicapper has problems as he is hitting it high and right with little or no footwork, I would suggest he kept his body centred over the ball on the backswing and finished with more weight on the left side than the right. Then work on the swing path and clubface.
Some seniors cannot finish up on their right toe, so I teach finishing the swing with the weight 70-30 ish left with a shorter follow through.
Some people in their effort to 'drive the legs' end up sliding their hips and not turning therefor getting ahead of it causing all sorts of problems. Then I would suggest pulling the left hip back on the downswing feeling the left side turning and clearing.
Etc
Etc

One thing I always advise is to finish in a balanced, comfortable position. This has several advantages.
It prevents the reverse 'C'. A major contribution the golfers with back problems.
It improves control of the swing, the tempo of the swing, the length of the swing the speed of the swing.

Not all my pupils can hit it like Cabrera...unfortunately

 

[JustOne]

I agree with your sentiment, it's a tweak here and a tweak there according to the standard/physical capability of the player.

I would never recommend anyone to lean back on a drive unless they wanted to slice the life out of the ball. Keeping your weight behind the ball isn't leaning back. You swing back and then swing through using the uncoiling of your core to hit the ball... no lateral movement is required at it's a rotational strike, an inch or two as the left hip clears wouldn't be be overly destructive.

Trying to get onto the left foot can make you hit down on the ball and/or come in too steep or leave your hands trailing too much, none of which are conducive to a good, consistant strike. It's incredibly difficult to get onto your left side if you have widened your stance...it generally causes people to bob all over the place during their swing as they try and get their weight to move off their right side. The driver swing is considerably easier than that.

The point of the post was that the original poster thinks that they need to finish balanced over the left foot like you would with an iron and that simply isn't the case. Hopefully the video shows that.

The vid of Cabrera was to show that even the pro's at the top of their game fall back off drives.... It's not implying that everyone can hit it like him but it certainly shows that he didn't get through onto his left outstep and finish balanced ready for a photo to be taken.

Out of interest do you disagree with the video?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NdcfWG8_KE

 

[bobmac]

I dont think it matters to this thread whether I agree with the vid or not.
If a 24 handicapper is finishing his swing with his weight on his right foot and he is hitting it high and right, It's a no brainer as far as I'm concerned.
I certainly wouldn't suggest anything about reverse pivot, stack and tilt or falling off the driver.
Keep it simple and protect the back from injury.

 

[JustOne]

I dont think it matters to this thread whether I agree with the vid or not.
If a 24 handicapper is finishing his swing with his weight on his right foot and he is hitting it high and right, It's a no brainer as far as I'm concerned.
I certainly wouldn't suggest anything about reverse pivot, stack and tilt or falling off the driver.
Keep it simple and protect the back from injury.

Interesting you should say that as the guys website states on the homepage...

Professional athletes, corporate executives and those with pre-existing and golf related back ailments, the Passive Swing Method has brought many to understand that golf is not about being aggressive with the arms, hands and hips but passive power with the stronger core muscles.

so one would assume this method is hardly going to incur a back injury if it claims to HELP people who perhaps already suffer with one

 

[bobmac]

Glenbo, apologies for hijacking your thread.
My advice is
Finish in a balanced position up on your right toe. This should lower your ball flight a bit
Let us know how you get on.