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When is driver off the deck a good play?


trackster
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I was inspired for this topic from the irrational golf habits topic. Some one mentioned hitting driver off the deck.  And I can't think of any time this is a good play?  Off the tee maybe, but you would just be better off teeing it up really low if you wanted to play a low shot.  Drivers are made to be hit on the upswing and thus work better with a tee.  I would guess that 99% percent of golfers could hit there three wood farther and more consistently off the deck then a driver.  Maybe if you have a high lofted driver.  But with the driver I have right now I couldn't imagine hitting that thing off the ground.

Anyone hit driver off the deck with success?

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I use a 12 degree driver and I have never been able to do it with any consistency.  I can hit my 3W off the deck, but all conditions must be just right for me to really put the screws to it.  Otherwise I just use my 5W.

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The minute i saw this thread I knew i had to say something! Last year I was playing with a buddy of mine in gale force winds.  We were playing a nice 510 yard par 5, both of us hit our drives to about 250 down the fairway and we were into 18 mile an hour winds.  Now me, with my high ball flight, I decided to try a driver off the deck to reach.  I've always had good carry on the driver, and never good roll, so i felt I could make it.  260 out, bunker surrounded green, pin on the upper tier, I decided it was a perfect time for a bet. "20 bucks if i knock it on?" I yelled to my friend. He took it instantly.  Now the key to hitting the big dog off the deck is it helps to be on an upslope, which makes your body slightly upright naturally. allowing you to swing up at the ball.  I took a few practice swings, got into address, and picked my ProV clean off the fairway. The ball flight was astounding, like a true TW Stinger. It ballooned a bit in the end, and hit the lower right edge of the green, and rolled a good thirty feet, up the tier, to a good 6 feet from the flag. 20 dollars made. That was the one and only time I have EVER tried driver off the deck.  Hope this story motivates ya to do the same sometime! Who knows, you could just walk off the course 20 dollars richer, well, minus the greens fee.. (:

Handicap: 5

Home Course: The Highlands (Grand Rapids, Michigan)

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If it's a 460cc......most will be better served cranking the 3........ '

just sayin'.....

What's in Paul's Bag:
- Callaway Big Bertha Alpha Driver
- Big Bertha Alpha 815 3-wood
- Callaway Razr Fit 5-wood
- Callaway Big Bertha 4-5 Rescue Clubs
-- Mizuno Mx-25 six iron-gap wedge
- Mizuno Mp-T4 56degree SW
- Mizuno Mp-T11 60degree SW
- Putter- Ping Cadence Ketsch

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It's not a shot I practice so I never even try it, plus its not a shot I ever really need. I have a buddy though that is a good player but is fairly short off the tee. He can really hit driver off the deck well. I have seen him pull it off numerous times.

Danny    In my :ping: Hoofer Tour golf bag on my :clicgear: 8.0 Cart

Driver:   :pxg: 0311 Gen 5  X-Stiff.                        Irons:  :callaway: 4-PW APEX TCB Irons 
3 Wood: :callaway: Mavrik SZ Rogue X-Stiff                            Nippon Pro Modus 130 X-Stiff
3 Hybrid: :callaway: Mavrik Pro KBS Tour Proto X   Wedges: :vokey:  50°, 54°, 60° 
Putter: :odyssey:  2-Ball Ten Arm Lock        Ball: :titleist: ProV 1

 

 

 

 

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yeah I just don't see a spot I would ever need it.  If i am over 220 I wont attack the green and will just play a 7 or an 8 into a better spot.  I have an old 1 persimmon wood that I can hit pretty good off the deck, but that club head size is comparable to todays 3 woods not drivers.

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driver off the deck is a 95% fail.............................

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What's in Paul's Bag:
- Callaway Big Bertha Alpha Driver
- Big Bertha Alpha 815 3-wood
- Callaway Razr Fit 5-wood
- Callaway Big Bertha 4-5 Rescue Clubs
-- Mizuno Mx-25 six iron-gap wedge
- Mizuno Mp-T4 56degree SW
- Mizuno Mp-T11 60degree SW
- Putter- Ping Cadence Ketsch

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How good is it to hit on the bottom half of the clubface on a driver? I would imagine a 3 wood could probably go just as far.

:whistle:

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I had never considered it until about 3 months ago I was put with 3 young college players, one of whom has turned pro and is on his way thru the nationwide tour. We were playing the Bandit in McQueeney. Hole 15 is a long 560+ yd par 5. he hit his drive to just under 300. Well in front of the rest of us, btw. The other 3 of us hit 3 woods and we all got up the fairway and got within a decent approach wedge. I see him pull his driver out and thought, ????? He took his stance, hit the ball, it never got more than about 30 ft in the air, but it just kept boring thru the air and rolled just on the edge of the green. I was seriously impressed. He missed his eagle putt, but birdied the hole. In that round, he doubled bogeyd one hole, bogeyd another and still tied the course record ( for the third time) with a 63. Heres the thing, the next time I found myself about 270 off a green, I thought, what the heck. I know it can be done, Ive seen it. So......I tried it....Lets just say I wont be trying it again. I have no idea how he got the ball up.I saw his lie. It was a good lie in the fairway, but not overly "up". I'll stick to my 3 wood.

btw...playing with those guys was a fantastically humbling experiance. I cant wait for him to make the PGA tho....because on number 4, slightly downhill par 4, he drove the edge of the green, (which btw had a 4some putting on it), the other 2 drove just short of the green. I hit the best drive I have ever hit, you know, that holy crap where did that come from type of drive, and drove my ball about 30 yds past his as it rolled thru the green ....with the 4 some still on it.. They were upset till they found out we were hitting from the championship tees. Then they were impressed. Sooooo, I did out drive him.....once....

Picture the shot.....Believe the picture....

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In a scramble and other shots are in perfect postion and you are just trying to get a little bit better. I can remember one where we were in the right rough with a tree limb in the way. A couple of guys layed up to a good spot so I pulled out the driver hoping to hit a low cut under and around the tree and hopefully run it up to the green. It worked out that time, but not many others. I never rely on it as a go-to shot.

I will judge my rounds much more by the quality of my best shots than the acceptability of my worse ones.

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I don't practice this so would not ever do it on the course.  But if you have some confidence in your ability to pull off the shot and it buys you something a 3W doesn't and the consequences of a bad shot are not too severe, go for it.  However the modern drivers with the deep faces make it difficult to get a good strike off a tight lie on the fairway so the reward for a good shot should be great or it isn't wise choice IMO.

Butch

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  1. When there's no trouble on the ground along the way.
  2. When there's relatively little trouble to the right.
  3. When the ground is firm and I'm into the wind.

I'll hit driver off the deck when there's some combination of the three things I just said. Drivers off the deck are lower, roll farther, and tend to cut a little.

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • AuthorLowest Score Wins
Golf Digest "Best Young Teachers in America" 2016-17 & "Best in State" 2017-20 • WNY Section PGA Teacher of the Year 2019 :edel: :true_linkswear:

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Originally Posted by BuckeyeNut

If it's a 460cc......most will be better served cranking the 3........ '

just sayin'.....



True it may not be good with 460 cc's, as most drivers are this size, but with anything smaller, like with one of cleveland's HiBore drivers, It's a pretty cool play.

Handicap: 5

Home Course: The Highlands (Grand Rapids, Michigan)

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So we're all agreed on "very seldom"?

I can hit a fairly reliable low cut with my driver off the range mats when screwing around, but wouldn't even consider it on the course unless in a superbly fluffy lie and under some very specific circumstances. So specific, in fact, that to date I never have!

Stretch.

"In the process of trial and error, our failed attempts are meant to destroy arrogance and provoke humility." -- Master Jin Kwon

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I have very, very, rarely ever used a driver off the deck. Most of those shots were quite a few years ago with much smaller clubheads too.

When I was in high school me and a buddy used to play a round of golf where the winner of the hole would pick a golf club. We both had to play the entire hole with that club. It was a fun way to learn new shots. He was fond of picking driver for some reason, so I got some practice in.

I discovered that as long as the lie is good (hardpan, straw, tramped down grass, etc.) you can use a driver to hit a super low, fast rolling punch shot. I ended up using the shot in tournaments every now and then.

A good example is being about 70 yds out in pine straw, with those low lying pine trees in your way. I remember hitting  a shot about that distance up onto an elevated green with a driver. It never got above 4 feet off the ground and sailed right under all the branches then rolled up the hill and onto the green. Without that shot I would have had to punch out backwards into the fairway.

As far as a full swing shot in the fairway, it would have to be a very unique set of circumstances like Erik described above.

Driver -  909D2 9.5*
3 Wood -  975F 14.5*
5 Wood -  909F 18.5*
3I-PW -  Apex circa 2000
SW -   SM 54.08

LW -   SM 60.04

Putter -   Newport 2

Ball -  Pro V1

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I've been in some lies in the rough where the ball sits up really nicely and have executed the shot. Honestly, with a 460 cc driver, hitting off the fairway is next to impossible. I mean, I can hit it, but there is no way you can find the sweet spot with short fairway grass. It doesn't help if you have 9.5 degrees of loft or less. In a tournament, I will always play the 3 wood. Margin for error is greater. With the driver, you've got to pure it.

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Driver off the deck is NEVER a good play.

Whats in my :sunmountain: C-130 cart bag?

Woods: :mizuno: JPX 850 9.5*, :mizuno: JPX 850 15*, :mizuno: JPX-850 19*, :mizuno: JPX Fli-Hi #4, :mizuno: JPX 800 Pro 5-PW, :mizuno: MP T-4 50-06, 54-09 58-10, :cleveland: Smart Square Blade and :bridgestone: B330-S

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Originally Posted by trackster

I was inspired for this topic from the irrational golf habits topic. Some one mentioned hitting driver off the deck.  And I can't think of any time this is a good play?  Off the tee maybe, but you would just be better off teeing it up really low if you wanted to play a low shot.  Drivers are made to be hit on the upswing and thus work better with a tee.  I would guess that 99% percent of golfers could hit there three wood farther and more consistently off the deck then a driver.  Maybe if you have a high lofted driver.  But with the driver I have right now I couldn't imagine hitting that thing off the ground.

Anyone hit driver off the deck with success?


I've been playing driver off the deck for more than 20 years.  Back in the late 80's I didn't even carry a 3W, just two TaylorMade drivers, and MacGregor 2I thru SW.  I had an 8.5° Tour Preferred driver for tee shots and a 9.5° Burner (the original burner driver) for a fairway wood.  I've never feared hitting driver from the deck unless the ball was on a very tight lie.  I hit it from first cut and light rough all the time.  But I don't hit my driver on the upswing either.  I sweep it at the bottom of the arc, just as I would a fairway wood.  I can even adjust that to just before the bottom of the arc and take a small divot with it.  It's a great trouble shot to have in the bag when you need to keep the ball under some branches but still want more distance than a closed down iron will give you.


Originally Posted by BuckeyeNut

driver off the deck is a 95% fail.............................



Speak for yourself.  for me it's 95% success, and my current driver is a Callaway Diablo Edge 12°.

Rick

"He who has the fastest cart will never have a bad lie."

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Note: This thread is 2478 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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