Swing Speed - Interim Report

Seems to me everytime anyone suggests Tim puts his disply on public display either in a round with GM forum guys, a GM meet or now a long driving event there is always an excuse as to why not. Do you think he's just very, very shy. Come on Tim, anybody on here will tell you that the only way to ever get better is to test yourself and the state of your game and ideally against better players.
 
Seems to me everytime anyone suggests Tim puts his disply on public display either in a round with GM forum guys, a GM meet or now a long driving event there is always an excuse as to why not. Do you think he's just very, very shy. Come on Tim, anybody on here will tell you that the only way to ever get better is to test yourself and the state of your game and ideally against better players.

Okay - when I feel more confident with the new swing I'll be happy to meet.
 
Don't long drivers have specialised swings which don't translate well to accurate scoring on a course?

All tour Pro's have specialised swings, with natural talent and God given ability. Something you'll never aspire to, not at aged 40 anyway.

Golfmmad.
 
So can we clarify then. Do you

a) want to hit it 300 yards every time and play to 10 at best
b) get as low as possible even though that may mean less is more in terms of distance and particularly accuracy. I still think they are not mutual especially aged 40 and without a progressive golf background
c) make some kind of living from the game (long driving etc)
d) happily just bash it 300 yards at the range and play par 3 courses for ever
 
I must be in the minority on here, so far nothing Tim has said has put my back up. I get the impression that one of his goals is to hit the ball further, happens to be one of my goals too although i don't think i'll get much more distance, i still intend to maximise what i have.

In my opinion, you can reach scratch handicap hitting it 'only' 220 - 240 yards with the driver or even shorter. But, hitting it 300 yards would make it easier, if it's straight. The most important factor is how you manage your game and your skills from 100 yards and in.

Some people really enjoy hitting the ball a long way and if it brings more enjoyment to the game, i see nothing wrong with that.
 
e) hit it 230 and never break 10

f) hit it 230 and get to single figures (and with persimmon and balata). Been low handicap. Done that and didn't need 270 yard (about the pro average in the 80's) drives to get there

g) hit it 230 and play off 10-13 and try and be competitive but enjoy it whether I do well or not and enjoy the company of the club members and GM forrumers I'm playing with. If it clicks and we threaten 9 again happy days. If not, hit it, find it and hit it again. I'll keep on trying but there is too much else in life to worry about now and not being single figures isn't one of them
 
A long driver's focus <u>is</u> on hitting it as far as they can (but even then they have to be within a width tolerance for their drive to count) so there must be things you could learn from them, even if you only go along to watch.

It was just a suggestion, take it or leave it.
 
So can we clarify then. Do you

a) want to hit it 300 yards every time and play to 10 at best
b) get as low as possible even though that may mean less is more in terms of distance and particularly accuracy. I still think they are not mutual especially aged 40 and without a progressive golf background
c) make some kind of living from the game (long driving etc)
d) happily just bash it 300 yards at the range and play par 3 courses for ever

You never did answer the question
 
Just a wonder, but why are the distances (both the long and the short examples) so extreme?

Why is it either 220 or 300?
Why can't it be 270?

I think distance is useful, but after about 270-280 yards, you start getting diminishing returns. If you get more naturally great, if you’re working hard to do this, you have to decide if it is worth all the extra effort to try and get more, when the extra effort may yield a greater return if applied to other areas of the game.

Once you hit it that far, you can typically reach all par 4s and most par 5s in two. Depending on the course you play, you may also find you just have to take less club off the tee to avoid going through the fairway at doglegs etc.

Also about this ‘potential’ to get lower scores that you may have if you hit it further, remember potential is worthless unless you realise it.
 
Just wondering, why can't someone be a big hitter of the ball and be accurate at the same time???

I just can't see why people are willing to shoot this guy down if he has aspirations to try and become a longer (and accurate) driver of the ball.

Tim if you mange to achieve your goal then there will be some sour faces on here. If you don't then atleast you've tried.

Remember when you were a kid and Someone said to you 'what do you want to be when you grow up'?? If someone said you could never achieve it and took the piss out of you then remember how you used to feel. Well all Tim has done is come on here and tell of his quest to achieve something and all some people can do is belittle him and shoot him down. If it was anything else but be a big hitter then I bet no one would verbally put him down the way he's currently receiving it now.

Disappointed to see his overall welcoming to the forum. I know some people think it's light hearted but I just can't see why people can't be more supportive rather than shooting him down at the first step.
 
No idea whether or not these threads are a wind up or not, but for what it's worth:

I reckon I could go down the range tomorrow and swing at over 110 mph fairly comfortably and I'm 49 although still reasonably athletic. The point is that if I was lucky maybe 1 in 10 would go straight enough with the desired launch angle etc for it to be of any use on the course.

I take the driver off 10 or 11 tee's at my track, so that would be 1 ball in play, probably at least 4 OOB and the rest deep in the clag! Not really conducive to scoring well!

At the range it's different, you tee another up and smash it as hard as you can, no risk only reward!

Of course we would all like to hit the ball further, but abolutely not at the expense of accuracy.

With regard to irons, if you hit a PW 140yds does that mean you have to 'manufacture' more shots for distances between say 60 - 140 yards? Sure the Pro's must do it, but they have the time, motivation and coaching resources on tap to be able to hit 1000's more practice balls than us lesser mortals do.
 
Just wondering, why can't someone be a big hitter of the ball and be accurate at the same time???

You can, if you have the time to practice and a decent coach. I could swing over 100 mph but my timing would be shot and I suspect I would hit the ball shorter than I do now as a result.

I have no issue with what the OP is trying to do, I just think his logic is flawed and that it isn't the best way to reach scratch. I also don't believe you can increase your SS 20mph in one week without messing up your timing unless you have a lot of time and a good coach or masses of natural ability (in which case you'd be close to scratch already)

However good luck to the OP who should check out Adam Stacey, PGA Pro at my old club and European Long Drive champion in the last couple of years. He was a pro before he stumbled across long driving so he has a game as well but his driver has 4deg of loft and something like a stupid long shaft about 4" longer than normal.
 
Just wondering, why can't someone be a big hitter of the ball and be accurate at the same time???

In part it comes down to simple physics. The top pros miss their drives on average 7-9% lets say an accurate amatuer misses by 10-15% on average. The further the ball travels forward the further it will travel left or right off it's intended line. That means for every 10 yards the ball travels forward it will deviate left or right 1-1.5 yards so a 300 yard drive will miss by 30-45 yards left or right on average.

It is not perfect science but it does highlight the problems the longer hitters have keeping it straight.
 
Seems to me everytime anyone suggests Tim puts his disply on public display either in a round with GM forum guys, a GM meet or now a long driving event there is always an excuse as to why not. Do you think he's just very, very shy. Come on Tim, anybody on here will tell you that the only way to ever get better is to test yourself and the state of your game and ideally against better players.

Homer. Give Timmie a break.

Another "my round of golf thread" thanks Homer.

And yet others manager to post similar without such comments - cest la vie. No-ones forcing you to read it

Pot and kettle come to mind...

:D :D
 
Yet again one person singled out. Look at all the others that have posted on this AND the original in similar vein. Who gets picked out for scrutiny?

If this guy is going to achieve his goal and swing fast and hit accurately then fair play. I still don't think he has a sniff of scratch or low single figures but I admire his belief. However hiding away on a range impressing his mates, tackling par 3 courses etc are a world away from standing on a full length course with one chance to hit it great. The only true test is to get out and do it. There are hundreds on here plus the forum meets and I think he'd benefit more from more golf (which surely is the bottom line anyway) and who knows he might even get some words of wisdom from the low guys on here that might help, put him on the right track or show him that speed + distance isn't the be all.
 
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