Help Selecting a Driver

[tsunami]

I have pretty well given up on the driver. I have a tried a few different kinds, mostly non-name brand. I seem to have no control or consistency and the length sucks. I was at a tournament that had a machine to measure swing speed and I came in at 108. I was not trying to swing any faster so I feel that number is good. When I hit my three wood/metal off the tee I hit it farther and straighter than the driver. Sure, occasionaly I can launch one with the driver but it is not worth the 1 out 25 drives. I'm sure someone will say "then just hit your three wood". I may end up there but my question is can a golf shop match my three wood in a driver. It seems like this club matches my swing and I feel very confident with it either off the fairway or tee. So does anyone know of someplace that can match a club? Thanks in advance.

[Txxxxxxx]

What do you mean by "match a club" ?

[tsunami]

I mean match all the characteristics of my three wood but in a driver. Things like shaft flex etc. Perhaps this is a not the smartest question but worth a try.

[Txxxxxxx]

Well you could always buy a driver with the same shaft as in your 3-wood, but normally, a 3-wood shaft is going to have different characteristics than a driver shaft. That's why they make shafts specifically for fwy woods and specifically for drivers.

[tsunami]

I would but my three wood was a 19.99 special and I doubt I could find the same shaft. Thanks anyway.

[Chieflongtee]

What you need is a different head configuration not a matching club. The 3w is good because it generates less sidespin. I bet you slice push your drives. Am I correct?

[LobWedge]

I'm not a huge Taylor Made fan, and I'm certain that they're making plenty of money anyway, but I've heard good things about their new R7 Draw driver.

[Marcos]

Try and get a higher loft driver with a shaft that is good for you and relax your swing speed and you will hit more fairways.There is no substitute for a well hit ball right on the screws.

[tsunami]

Thanks to all for the input. Yes André I do tend to fade the ball but even when hit straight I do not get the distance. What do you mean "head configuration"? BTW the Odyssey is working real well. Thanks again.

[Chieflongtee]

What club are you playing now? If you slice look for an offset 10.5 loft at least. The offset closed face will launch the ball higher(2 degree closed equals 12.5 effective loft). Sure if you are playing with a 9 degree open face driver(effective loft will be less than 9) you are not launching the ball high enough. Anyway long story short you can try my driver but it's not for sale.

[mcnorth]

Try a nice short high-lofted offset driver. Worked for me.

And what do you mean by, "do not get the distance?" You don't hit it as far as your 3 wood or don't hit it as far as you want?

[Gofish2]

go there and get a 12 degree offset driver

[Indio]

I'm not a huge Taylor Made fan, and I'm certain that they're making plenty of money anyway, but I've heard good things about their new R7 Draw driver.

I picked up an R7 Quad (or I should say Bugsy bought me a nice Xmas present present) and all I can say is I have never had a driver that I can hit as straight as this. I used to have a real bad power slice but I have the weights setup for a full hook and I now either hit it dead straight, or a slight fade (with the occasionl hook but not often). This club saved my game and I will never trade it in for anything. Yes there are times I can't hit the damned thing and if I find that after 4 or 5 drives it just isn't going to work, well I leave it in the bag and hit my 3 wood

[sharkhark]

I have pretty well given up on the driver. I have a tried a few different kinds, mostly non-name brand. I seem to have no control or consistency and the length sucks. I was at a tournament that had a machine to measure swing speed and I came in at 108. I was not trying to swing any faster so I feel that number is good. When I hit my three wood/metal off the tee I hit it farther and straighter than the driver. Sure, occasionaly I can launch one with the driver but it is not worth the 1 out 25 drives. I'm sure someone will say "then just hit your three wood". I may end up there but my question is can a golf shop match my three wood in a driver. It seems like this club matches my swing and I feel very confident with it either off the fairway or tee. So does anyone know of someplace that can match a club? Thanks in advance.

I forget the term, but when I read how to find the perfect golf club by wishon, he described a growing popularity by certain club fitters to do exactly what you describe.
Match the three wood. He said golfers can take any club they hit really well and a club fitter trained in the process, could take all the characteristics of the one you like, to find other clubs with same match.
It can even be done for the whole set, matching irons as well.
It is not simply looking at shaft, loft etc, it involves MOI, load points etc etc.

Maybe someone familiar with wishon, could point you to a local fitter trained in this new process.

[Chieflongtee]

I forget the term, but when I read how to find the perfect golf club by wishon, he described a growing popularity by certain club fitters to do exactly what you describe.
Match the three wood. He said golfers can take any club they hit really well and a club fitter trained in the process, could take all the characteristics of the one you like, to find other clubs with same match.
It can even be done for the whole set, matching irons as well.
It is not simply looking at shaft, loft etc, it involves MOI, load points etc etc.

Maybe someone familiar with wishon, could point you to a local fitter trained in this new process.

Easier said than done shark. How do you match a $19.99 3 wood. Shaft is probably generic so for anyone to match the shaft characteristics the existing shaft would have to be profiled and measured for butt frequency. Then a close to shaft would have to be selected. How do you match a generic head centre of gravity wise,loft and lie wise and face angle wise. Lastly not too many clubmakers have Wishon's MOI period counter so therefore a possible MOi match could be done via a Xcel spread sheet. Not an easy task imo.

[tsunami]

Interesting that most recommend a higher loft. The driver I am hitting now is an SMT Nemesis 370 at 11 deg. I bought it off another André from this site. It has a reg. flex shat at 43.5. I hit all my drives way too high. They start off great and then the ball dies and drops. I never get any roll. Played in a charity tourney at Predator last week and gave up on the driver to hit my three wood. Distance on Driver was max. 250 (when I hit it properly). Three wood was consistent and best drive was apprx. 270 with some roll. Perhaps a stiff flex on the Nemesis? Thanks again to all with their comments. Also, I believe the Nemesis is an offset head.

[Chieflongtee]

What shaft do you have in there? Perhaps you should try a 9 degree offset. If your offset is 11 degrees and has a 2 degree closed face the effective loft is 13 degrees. It' hard to tell over the internet. Are you sweeping the ball or hitting on the up slope?
How high do you tee the ball up with both clubs.?

[tsunami]

I have Mercury reg flex shaft. I believe I am hitting on the up slope but I only say that because of the launch angle. Regarding height of tee, I tend to tee the ball fairly low (2"?) with the driver to try and bring down the height I am getting. With the three wood I have the ball apprx. 1/4 inch off the ground.

[mcnorth]

I was really worried about my 11 degree driver because I too was hitting it really high and had zero roll. Simply started teeing it lower and I've had much more roll.

[Chieflongtee]

I was really worried about my 11 degree driver because I too was hitting it really high and had zero roll. Simply started teeing it lower and I've had much more roll.

That's the tricky part. If you tee it lower you are likely to get more spin or hit it on the bottom part of the club which has less loft unless you have a club with constant loft(no roll) across the face. Back to square one

[kerisb]

I would suggest finding a golf course that lets you take demos out on the course for a round. Use different ones till you find the one you like and the one that works for you. But be careful, I did this and fell in love with a TM R7 425 on the first drive I hit, by the end of the round I was pouting when I had to hand it back in.. Needless to say I had to go buy one, then my husband tried it and guess what I had to go buy him one yesterday!!!! No comparison between my old cheap driver and my new driver, best thing I did to improve my game!!!!

[dbleber]

250 with no roll is pretty good. If you fixed you swing to stop slicing it would be even better. Because of your slice I would stick with the 11° you have and get fitted by a good clubmaker who can get you fitted with the right shaft. Most clubmakers and pros are trying to get a higher launch angle to max out on carry distance, but a club maker would be able to put a different shaft that could give you a better trajectory for your swing. So that's my 2 cents, work on a proper in to out swing path and go get fitted for different shaft. Just off swing speed you should be playing a "stiff", but if you read some past articles BC Mist explains the diffferent characteristics of the golf swing that can determine the proper shaft. It's not cut and dry and someone would really have to take a look and see before a proper head combo could given. But IMO the head makes very little difference once you have the right loft, except for what looks good for you, the shaft is going to do all the work.

[jvincent]

So many variables when fitting a driver.

Step 1. Find one you like the look of. Seriously, if you don't like it the chances of you hitting it well are small.

Step 2. Unless you swing over 110 mph with the driver, 11* or higher loft.

Step 3. Find a shaft that works for you. This is the hardest part since the way the shaft feels when you are swinging it will have a big impact on your ability to control it and get good distance. You have two options, trial and error or visit a club fitter and hit a bunch of different shafts.

[Chieflongtee]

I tend to disagree with you here a bit Denny. IMO the shaft is just one part of the equation. The head is just as important imo. Sure we can disccuss shaft profiles all day but if you driver loft and face angle is not right for you then you are in no better position. Other factors also just as important : club length.shaft weight, swing tempo. and. If you are a high ball hitter I don"t think you can bring it down much just by switching shafts. Just my 0.02

["Richard"]

forget the driver, buy lessons

[dbleber]

I tend to disagree with you here a bit Denny. IMO the shaft is just one part of the equation. The head is just as important imo. Sure we can disccuss shaft profiles all day but if you driver loft and face angle is not right for you then you are in no better position. Other factors also just as important : club length.shaft weight, swing tempo. and. If you are a high ball hitter I don"t think you can bring it down much just by switching shafts. Just my 0.02

Good points Andre. I may have simplified my answer a little. I did mention that once you have the proper loft the head isn't a big of a factor, but I was referring to the fact that most drivers are made out of the same material and while some have movable weights and the CG maybe slightly different they are all pretty much the same thing when you use good quality components or OEM.

I would be surprised if you couldn't bring the launch angle down or at least more penetrating by changing the shaft. I went from a 6-7° launch to a 12-13° with just a shaft change.

In the end this question is pretty easy. If you can't hit an 11° 43.5" driver then you need to work on your swing and when you get a proper swing path then see a professional club maker and get a driver fitted for you. If you don't want to work on the swing, then get a offset 14° driver that will straighten you out but if you are hitting your 3 wood 270 + added roll then you won't get anymore distance with a high lofted offset driver. Do you hit your 3 wood straight? A 11° 43.5" driver is almost a 3 wood.

[Txxxxxxx]

Just buy one of my drivers for sale and you'll hit the ball long and straight.

[Chieflongtee]

Just buy one of my drivers for sale and you'll hit the ball long and straight.

If it were so long and straight you would not be selling them

[Txxxxxxx]

If it were so long and straight you would not be selling them

I have three that are long and straight.

[Chieflongtee]

I have three that are long and straight.

Just pulling your leg