Why are most blinded by distance?

[Lord Tyrion]

I used to drive the ball a good distance, but the consistency was nowhere and so many times I was reloading or chipping out or taking an unplayable.
I decided to get fitted at Precision Golf, and while it cost me a good bit, I now have I driver I can trust even with an average to mediocre swing on it. I've lost 10 yards, maybe 15, but I'm now playing from the fairway or first cut so much more than ever before. I'm probably hitting it about 230 - 240 now, but for more consistent.
I got the Ping G425 SFT, which has a 23gram weight in the heel to help me square the face on return, with the Aldila NV Green, 65gram stiff shaft. Does it work all the time? No. Does it guarantee me par every hole? No. Do I fear pulling it out of the bag on most par 4s and all par 5s? NO!
It was all about consistency and finding the short stuff for me, so losing a few yards didn’t bother me.
The Sim 2 Max which is allegedly a bombers dream saw me hit three balls and then hand it straight back, as I was carving it miles right.
So, I'm the opposite of chasing distance!

230-240 isn't short though. I get that 250 would be nicer but the distances you get are still within an iron of most par 4's and healthy for a 5. I totally get your point but it's easier to make when you are still putting it out there.

 

[Deleted member 18121]

Funny that you post this thread now... Just the other day my regular pp and I were playing a laughing about how 6-7 years ago we were obsessed with how far everything went. More blown away by our 160 yard 8 irons and 280+ yard drives than putting a decent score together.

Its only now that we've started playing to single figures. Funnily enough at a time a well hit drive for me might carry 240..... Moral of the story, ego accounts for much in golf. None of it good.

 

[Bratty]

230-240 isn't short though. I get that 250 would be nicer but the distances you get are still within an iron of most par 4's and healthy for a 5. I totally get your point but it's easier to make when you are still putting it out there.

It's short compared to some boasts on here, and almost every post about distance on golfwrx! ?

 

[SteveW86]

It's short compared to some boasts on here, and almost every post about distance on golfwrx! ?

When did you have your fitting at Precision, and who did it?

 

[SocketRocket]

Changing a driver won't stop you hitting the ball into the woods or out of bounds. Before looking for another ten or so yards make sure that you have a reliable swing that gets you on target.

 

[4LEX]

A fitted shaft and ball will add more than 15 yards and cost less than £500.

 

[nickjdavis]

The golf club doesn't know who's holding it. At the end of the day it's a piece of metal hitting a ball. I'm sure modern drivers are more forgiving but people are claiming gains of 30 yards plus. Sorry but if you have a driver that is 30 yards longer than your previous driver then you where very poorly fitted before. I hit my ping g10 as far as my sim 2. The Sim 2 is just nicer and "slightly" more forgiving

The point was that Crossfield et al are decent players who are likely to find the centre of the face more regularly than the average golfer. Due to COR rules there has been very little progress in terms of distance when a ball is hit out of the middle of the club, and the results in the video come as no real surprise to me. Where the gains have been made, is on off-centre hits....and who better to demonstrate the differences between a modern club and an older club on off-center strikes than someone who is inconsistent?

Whilst 30 yards is a bit much I would not be surprised if an inconsistent driver of the ball found 10-15 yards improvement with a modern driver on off-centre strikes compared to a stick that is 6 or 7 years old.

 

[Oddsocks]

Absolutely it is , you're more likely to par a hole with an 8 iron to the green than a 5 iron

If the gapping between your 8i and 5i is 15-20 yards then I’d get your lofts checked ?

 

[Bratty]

When did you have your fitting at Precision, and who did it?

6th May with Mike. He was great, and his knowledge and ability to help me understand was excellent. I also had a wedge fitting with Pete Lockett in July 2020 and again was a great session with a great guy.
Precision Golf are brilliant at what they do.

 

[chrisd]

If the gapping between your 8i and 5i is 15-20 yards then I’d get your lofts checked ?

Be fair Baz , I've seen you play and I was trying to be generous ??

 

[Oddsocks]

Be fair Baz , I've seen you play and I was trying to be generous ??

I only need to carry my 9i, I can chunk that 20yds or knife it 180yds. There’s a bit of a running joke with a few old op’s.

 

[Banchory Buddha]

Changing a driver won't stop you hitting the ball into the woods or out of bounds. Before looking for another ten or so yards make sure that you have a reliable swing that gets you on target.

Straightness is not an issue for me, I'm the straightest person I know. I'm short for a cat1 though

 

[Banchory Buddha]

The golf club doesn't know who's holding it. At the end of the day it's a piece of metal hitting a ball. I'm sure modern drivers are more forgiving but people are claiming gains of 30 yards plus. Sorry but if you have a driver that is 30 yards longer than your previous driver then you where very poorly fitted before. I hit my ping g10 as far as my sim 2. The Sim 2 is just nicer and "slightly" more forgiving

nickj has already replied, but if you're not trolling here, then you're not grasping where the gains are coming from. In summer I'll bang them out to 250ish roll out, but the poor ones will be around the 220yds mark, it's those I'm looking to hit less of as well as find a bit on the good ones. Side by side fitting showed that gain, real world will tell when summer comes around.

 

[BiMGuy]

Changing a driver won't stop you hitting the ball into the woods or out of bounds. Before looking for another ten or so yards make sure that you have a reliable swing that gets you on target.

It might help if you get one set up correctly for you!

 

[Backsticks]

The point was that Crossfield et al are decent players who are likely to find the centre of the face more regularly than the average golfer. Due to COR rules there has been very little progress in terms of distance when a ball is hit out of the middle of the club, and the results in the video come as no real surprise to me. Where the gains have been made, is on off-centre hits....and who better to demonstrate the differences between a modern club and an older club on off-center strikes than someone who is inconsistent?

Whilst 30 yards is a bit much I would not be surprised if an inconsistent driver of the ball found 10-15 yards improvement with a modern driver on off-centre strikes compared to a stick that is 6 or 7 years old.

There is ample evidence of two of the clearest correlations in golf - distance you hit it and handicap, and, that all clubs are the same and do not affect the distance you will hit them.

Is there any evidence that there have been gains on off centre hits, or is that just advertising spin (?).

The power of golf marketing, repeated often enough and cleverly enough, does seem to distort the reason of otherwise normally rational people. Their greatest success is that golfers do associate more expensive with better, and newer with better, without it ever having to be justified by the manufacturers.

 

[Oddsocks]

Just to reinforce that most things can be found on the internet, here's maybe an alternative view.
Check out the dispersion area.

(Apols to GM for use of a competitor vid ?)

I really like they way of analysing drop off, dispersion and area covered.

 

[Banchory Buddha]

There is ample evidence of two of the clearest correlations in golf - distance you hit it and handicap, and, that all clubs are the same and do not affect the distance you will hit them.

Is there any evidence that there have been gains on off centre hits, or is that just advertising spin (?).

The power of golf marketing, repeated often enough and cleverly enough, does seem to distort the reason of otherwise normally rational people. Their greatest success is that golfers do associate more expensive with better, and newer with better, without it ever having to be justified by the manufacturers.

This is patently false

 

[hovis]

nickj has already replied, but if you're not trolling here, then you're not grasping where the gains are coming from. In summer I'll bang them out to 250ish roll out, but the poor ones will be around the 220yds mark, it's those I'm looking to hit less of as well as find a bit on the good ones. Side by side fitting showed that gain, real world will tell when summer comes around.

So are you saying a sim 2 is 30 yards longer than a r11 with off centre hits? That's the clip of mark crossfield.
The point I am trying to make is most golfers think their new driver is the dogs danlges when they are not. You are not gaining 30 yards with a new driver. Even with off centre hits. As a chronic toe striker I can vouch for this. I'm not saying you're not 30 yards longer than before. I'm saying you had a very poor driver (for you) previously

 

[Boomy]

There is ample evidence of two of the clearest correlations in golf - distance you hit it and handicap, and, that all clubs are the same and do not affect the distance you will hit them.

Is there any evidence that there have been gains on off centre hits, or is that just advertising spin (?).

The power of golf marketing, repeated often enough and cleverly enough, does seem to distort the reason of otherwise normally rational people. Their greatest success is that golfers do associate more expensive with better, and newer with better, without it ever having to be justified by the manufacturers.

Ohhhh here he is again, the naysayer peddling out his scepticism to anything involving progress and development “nothing has changed in 40 years, my Ping eye2 irons are still as good, long and forgiving as any modern club, it’s all marketing” Utter rubbish. As I said on your previous posts - I’ve seen and felt the difference myself, the forgiveness in the P790 (2019) vrs the Titleist AP2’s (2008) on off centre hits was huge! (Both clubs were stickered up for tracking on a launch monitor so we could see where the strikes where etc) The same as the difference on off centre hits between the Titleist T200 (2021)and AP2 (2008) (I also tried the T200 when testing the P790)

 

[hovis]

Ohhhh here he is again, the naysayer peddling out his scepticism to anything involving progress and development “nothing has changed in 40 years, my Ping eye2 irons are still as good, long and forgiving as any modern club, it’s all marketing” Utter rubbish. As I said on your previous posts - I’ve seen and felt the difference myself, the forgiveness in the P790 (2019) vrs the Titleist AP2’s (2008) on off centre hits was huge! (Both clubs were stickered up for tracking on a launch monitor so we could see where the strikes where etc) The same as the difference on off centre hits between the Titleist T200 (2021)and AP2 (2008) (I also tried the T200 when testing the P790)

You can't compare ap2's with a p790. They are two completely different clubs. Irons are a minefield to compare with the variety they have. Not only do you have the loft difference but now you have the hollow bodies design. I agree that the p790 are extremely forgiving. But they produce very inconsistent numbers too. The ap2's not so much