Driver vs 3 wood

[poorputter]

Hi folks, perhaps you guys can help.

I've been struggling with my driver recently. I'm using a Ping G10 9* with a stiff grafalloy pro launch red shaft. I got this club a few years ago to help control a high ball flight, and it has in the past worked quite well. It gives a nice penetrating flight. But recently I've been struggling to control it. And I think "control" is the right use of the word. Some shots are a bit hooky, some I lose right, I just can't get comfortable. When using my 3 wood off the tee, which is a TM RBZ 15* with stock Ozik regular shaft, I feel so much more confident that I can put a good swing on the ball. The only feeling that I can describe between the 2 clubs, is that I can control the 3 wood better because the club head feels "lighter" than in the driver. The flight on the 3 wood is quite high, but overall I'm probably only losing 20-30 yards when both driver and 3 wood are struck well, and because I'm hitting driver so inconsistently I think I'm probably averaging similar numbers. But whilst I'm happy using 3 wood and giving up on driver for a while, I can't help but think that there must be a driver out there that has similar characteristics to the 3 wood that would help me feel that same level of control.

Can you guys recommend some drivers that might help me get that same feeling I get in the 3 wood? The RBZ driver is an obvious choice! But wondered if there were any others out there and anyone else's experience of this issue? Just wondering if I'm the only one!

Cheers,
Tom

 

[Tashyboy]

Heyup tom me man and welcome to the forum.

I had a fitting at Ping the other week and mentioned I have no confidence playing a 3 wood off the tee. The exact opposite of your problem. After a couple of swings the guy suggested a couple of tweeks and I have never hit a wood so well, both off the floor and tee.
First thing I would recommend ( and I suggest others on here) would be to have a lesson.
The second thing is, I had a SLDR driver which quite frankly £300 plus of rubbish it got so bad I was trying to guide the ball down the fairway with no success what so ever. I now have the Ping G30 and it is gorgeous. Noticed they have some in the Ping club shop ex demo for £120. Very forgiving driver, but and it is a massive but, the club won't solve the problem of hitting it left right and centre.
A lesson will. Let folk on here know what part of the world you are from and they may well be able to recommend a good pro. 👍

 

[virtuocity]

Ping G10s are as forgiving as they come. Save some cash, get some lessons.

Or, buy a driver, enjoy it for a month, then get some lessons.

#harshbutfair

 

[USER1999]

Stop steering it and spank the heck out of it. Thats what it's for.

 

[poorputter]

Thanks for the comments, much appreciated. I'm a member at a club, and should have a lesson, as you guys mention, with my pro. I'm sure I could also get a G30 or an SLDR or whatever it might be, and maybe "feel" more confident for a while, but it doesn't solve long term problems. I'm confident with most other aspects of my game. I shot 79 today, but it was my driver that cost me shots, and I ended up using 3 wood on the back 9. Just wondering if there were any thoughts on the dynamics of the 2 clubs that might help the 3 wood be consistent for me, and the driver not so much?

 

[Imurg]

Used my driver on the front 9 yesterday - shot +9
Used the 3 wood on the back 9 - shot +1
Been like it for years.
As some on here will testify I hit the 3w well, in fact I remember Murph saying to me once " what the hell do you need a driver for?"...
Use the 3 on the course and practice with the driver but don't put it in the bag until you can hit 6/7 from 10 into the area you're aiming at.

 

[poorputter]

Yer same! What feels different between the 2 clubs for you and how have you tried to address it? If at all?

 

[Imurg]

It's in the swing.
I know what to do and when I do it right then ball goes miles - trouble is I can't do it to order...
I'm also stubborn when it comes to lessons. I'm a poor practicer and don't have the patience for it.
If you're going to have lessons, and it's not a bad idea at all, then you have to beat balls for a few weeks to bed my changes in.
I can hit a driver straight if I don't swing hard - but then it goes less distance than the 3 wood so it's pointless.
3w to the fairway = 8/10
Driver to fairway = 3/10 if that.
I'm going to be using 3w almost all the time now.
Maybe worth looking at the mini drivers - Aeroburner, Big Bertha 1.5 etc.
Only a bit shorter than a driver and play much more like a 3w

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Get a lesson, get the set up and way to use a driver sorted in your hand, hit some balls and go out on the course and trust it. If you can hit the 3 wood you'll be able to get the driver sorted. And welcome along too

 

[Bigfoot]

It might be all in the mind. I hit my 3 wood superbly at the range but poorly on the course (and would only need it for 3 shots in a round) so I stick to my driver that I know I can hit straight but not very long.

 

[Region3]

If you want your driver to feel lighter, you could shorten it by half an inch, or have a very light grip put on.

It might also help to pick a distance target before you hit as well as a line. Pick a distance you can comfortably hit and just try to put it there. You'll be surprised how far a controlled swing with a good strike will go.

 

[Jensen]

I imagine it's technique with Driver. When you hit the ball where does it come off the face and what happens to your tee peg after impact ?

 

[poorputter]

I had my driver shortened from 45" to 44" and it hasn't made much difference. It feels like the head is too heavy for me to control accurately. I could try a lighter grip.

Really interested to demo a mini driver. Anyone with any experiences of them?

 

[duncan mackie]

I had my driver shortened from 45" to 44" and it hasn't made much difference. It feels like the head is too heavy for me to control accurately. I could try a lighter grip.

Really interested to demo a mini driver. Anyone with any experiences of them?

Depends on the model and spec - I have both a SLDR mini and RBZ 3 wood. The latter has a lower loft.

Hit well they go the same - the mini has a larger head, higher loft and is easier for me to hit.

 

[poorputter]

I think if there's very little difference between the mini driver and the RBZ 3 wood in distance, I'm far less likely to bother with it. Unless you notice a difference in ball flight etc. My better option is to get lessons for my current driver or perhaps get fit for a new driver and see which clubs out there have similar feel to my 3 wood.

With my driver, I feel like it takes a lot more energy to transfer in to the swing and that gets me out of shape and feeling like I need to "hit it" rather than the feeling I get with the 3 wood, which is more about focusing on the plane of the swing and getting through the ball, and it's a much smoother swing, without losing too much distance. But I know if I could transfer the same confidence in to a driver, it'd go further than the 3 wood. Don't get me wrong, I've hit my driver well in the past, but nowhere near as consistently as I need to if I'm going to challenge my handicap of 10 on a more regular basis than I do!

 

[the_coach]

so given the driver has worked pretty good in the past ... something somewhere's in the either set-up or motion or both has changed

would buy a can of footspray and at range checkover what the strike location of say a bunch of 6 swings - once warmed up and hitting a 6i pretty good

unusual that the driver (head?) now feels heavy particularly with a stiff shaft - would as a norm complaint more tend to not be able to feel the head - usually too most folks would tend to feel more weight in the 3 metal

assuming no plug in the driver head so no melt been added before you acquired it? (if not bought from new)
the shaft is still only around 64g so wouldn't really suggest the club is 'heavy"

what was the measured driver chs to have the pro red?

my take would take a guess that's somethings happening somewhere's that's put the sequences of the swing motion a little ways out of sync - so some kinda of sequence/timing issue is maybes what's goin down that translating to you that the club feels heavy at strike

can you borrow or do you have a driver with a reg of some sort in it - if so would give that a whirl see if the sequence falls in more naturally

as been said a trip to the Pro would soon sort if as assuming no damage to the head or shaft it's got to be some kinda 'pilot' issue as opposed to gear issue

 

[Region3]

I had my driver shortened from 45" to 44" and it hasn't made much difference. It feels like the head is too heavy for me to control accurately. I could try a lighter grip.

Really interested to demo a mini driver. Anyone with any experiences of them?

Oops sorry, I meant heavier grip should make the head feel lighter, not a lighter one.

Taking 1" off the length should make it around 6pts lighter. If you can't feel that I doubt the grip would help.

 

[poorputter]

The only reason I wanted the pro red was because I was struggling with a high spin launch and so wanted something that kept the ball down a bit. I then was suffering with snap hooks for a while, and now it's a combination of badly-timed, unbalanced swings with the driver that rarely come out the middle - but I can't feel what exactly the are doing. Perhaps the spray will help me understand where off the face they are coming. its the exact opposite feeling of the swing and impact I get with my 3 wood - which I comfortably hit, with consistency, right out the screws. On average, probably about 230 or so.

Maybe there is damage to the club... it's pretty old now... Or maybe it's just me being a handicap golfer!

 

[the_coach]

might not be the case but could be that the swing speed not there to 'work' the pro red comfortably so subconsciously there's more of an effort to swing it that's filtering into balance the shot issues

if you not able to get to a Pro would shoot some footage on cell fone - if you can shoot slow mo best option

shooting position at hands height directly behind the hands on line parallel to target line frame to get clubhead in frame at top of swing, the dtl viewpoint - better to have the fone in landscape not portrait (as portrait give big black side to image) (you may know all of this stuff but just in case you don't)

then from center face on viewpoint again shooting at hands height (framing and fone format as above)

shoot the 3m swing and the driver swing from both angles will give you something to work on and compare to start to identify what the difference is, 3m to driver, and then maybes you can work to correct it

(if you can't shoot in slow mo - can either use an 'app' or if you load up the swings to a youtube pages (assuming you have an account) if your computer software & browser up to date you can click on settings under the video framing to slow the footage down to 0.25 speed)

 

[poorputter]

Ok cool, I've got a GoPro, so I can take some footage. Am I able to upload it to here? Via YouTube or something?