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Hit Smaller Drivers Better

drtbk933

By drtbk933,
in Instruction and Playing Tips

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drtbk933 Well Established Member

drtbk933

Whenever I would hit my off-brand 460cc driver with intermediate flex I would always produce a huge slice. I decided to get my old Dunlop PowerFlange 1 Wood out and hit it straight down the yard about 230 yards. Why os it that I can hit a smaller headed driver straighter and farther than a bigger headed driver. I just purchased a Callaway Great Big Bertha and a TaylorMade SuperSteel 250 Driver. The Callaway is a graphite stock extra stiff shaft and the Taylormade is an Aldila Stiff shaft. Is it the shaft causing me to hit a slice or something else? My grip and stance/swing stay the same for all drivers.

Driver: Hyper X Tour 10.5* Graffalloy Prolaunch Blue Stiff Shaft
Hybrid: Acer Select 5000 16* Ping Cushin Stiff Shaft
Irons: NDS 3-PW (missing #7, replaced with clone) True Temper Uniflex SpeedStep Shaft
Wedges: Acer XK Tour 56*10 Precision Stiff Shaft, Revolution 60*10 True Temper Wedgeflex

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kc8kir Well Established Member

kc8kir

You're not the only one. A big downside of 460cc heads is that they are more difficult to turn over in the swing. The higher the MOI, the more it will want to stay in its position rather than turn through the swing, ie you have to apply more effort to close the face. Now, the 460cc is more forgiving, and with modern balls, produces more distance (given the club is matched). That being said though, a smaller club could give the same distance if the face restitution, impact material, and strike conditions were the same.

I find swinging those smaller drivers to be great. My wrists are not very strong, so they work great for me. I have a hard time turning over a 460cc head. Granted though, they are not very forgiving. I compromised with my driver and got a mid size head with a stiff tip shaft.

I remember reading some trade-off research on club head size, drag, and distance. I think they concluded a 320cc head was most efficient for a standard pear shaped driver head. A lot depends though on shaft weighting , shaft torque, stiffness, and aerodynamic head design (the new tour burner is designed for lower drag).

Take into account your old driver is probably about 1 inch or more shorter than your modern 460cc driver. This equates to more control. Many pros trim their 460cc drivers down to by .25 to .75 inches to improve control. Grip down on your 460cc and you'll see the same effect.
Favorite Practice Course:
Z Boaz Municipal, Fort Worth <<< Ben Hogan grew up playing here!
--------------------------------------------------

In the bag: 983E 9.5*, Fuji Speeder S RPM LP, 4W, Neutral Bias STAFF Ci6 irons, S (going up for sale soon) Tom Watson PVD 08 Wedges (G.S,L)... and a 4...
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drtbk933 Well Established Member

drtbk933

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Take into account your old driver is probably about 1 inch or more shorter than your modern 460cc driver. This equates to more control. Many pros trim their 460cc drivers down to by .25 to .75 inches to improve control. Grip down on your 460cc and you'll see the same effect.

I've heard this before. Maybe I'll get it cut down a little and try it. I'm not worried about screwing it up because I got the driver for ten bucks at walmart. Thanks.

Driver: Hyper X Tour 10.5* Graffalloy Prolaunch Blue Stiff Shaft
Hybrid: Acer Select 5000 16* Ping Cushin Stiff Shaft
Irons: NDS 3-PW (missing #7, replaced with clone) True Temper Uniflex SpeedStep Shaft
Wedges: Acer XK Tour 56*10 Precision Stiff Shaft, Revolution 60*10 True Temper Wedgeflex

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jambalaya Dedicated Member

jambalaya

I am confused. Do you have three drivers now? Shaft stiffness, loft and kick point can make a difference with these new big drivers. The big heads and new technology add a lot of variables I think. So, what is the loft? A 7 degree is harder to hit straight than a 10.5. Here is part of an article I just googled:

This is my favorite type of question because both answers can be correct. A high "kick point" means the shaft bends during the swing at a point slightly closer to the grip (with less bowing toward the tip of the shaft). A shaft with a low kick point bends slightly closer to the clubhead so there's relatively more bowing. A shaft with a high kick point can generate a low ball flight because the clubhead tends to maintain its loft at impact. Increased bowing from a shaft with a low kick point might add loft at impact. To increase your launch angle--and carry distance--you can increase the loft of your driver, but additional loft can increase spin, and more spin can decrease distance. Because a shaft with a low kick point tends to increase loft at impact, you can slightly decrease the loft of your driver and still launch the ball at an ideal angle and avoid distance-sapping spin. The ultimate answer is to find the combination that creates the lowest spin with the highest trajectory. For a swing speed of 100 miles per hour, it's ideal to have a launch angle of about 15 degrees and a spin rate of 1,500 revolutions per minute for maximum carry (about 13 degrees and 2,200 rpm for maximum overall distance). My advice: Find a reliable launch monitor (visit golfdigest.com/equipment to find one near you). You're probably better off experimenting with loft angles, low-spinning balls and longer tees to get the ideal trajectory. Adjusting the kick point is a final refinement. One more thing: Ashaft with a high kick point tends to feel a little firmer than a shaft with a low kick point.

What is the loft of that old driver of yours? Could be up to 13 degrees nearer to what used to be a 2 wood back in the day.

My Clubs
Nicklaus Progressive XC Irons: 3H,4H, 5-GW
Ray Cook SW & Gyro 1 Putter
Taylor Made Burner Driver 10.5
Taylor Made V-Steel 3 & 5 MetalsMy Home Course: Indian RiverMy Blog: Rant-o-Rama-Ding-Dong

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kafka01 Great Member

kafka01

Squaring that thing actually is a big problem for me. I got a new FT-5 and so i still can see the imprints of the balls on the clubface when i hit it. Then i wonder, why on earth did i just "faded - its not a real slice" the crap out of it, when i hit the ball dead center. When i hit my 3wood i just get a normal fade and if i want to draw it, i can do this - but with my driver - no chance - clubhead just isnt gonna close, nevermind how far i swing inside out. Thats really annoying.

I guess i will try to get one of the R5´s with a clubhead of 425cc and see how this feels.....

Burner 9°
FW Burner 15°
Burner Rescue 19°
MP67 4-PW
CG10 50° CG12 DSG 54° & 60°

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titaniummd Dedicated Member

titaniummd

I had the same problem. I have a Nike SQ 460 cc which I even cut down to 43.75". It was too whippy with the stock shaft. However, I feel that I lost some yardage even though there is more control.

I have a Macgregor NVG2 which is 440cc (I think) and I hit it straighter (maybe because of the 11.5* loft) and farther than the Nike (20 yards).

I really wanted the Nike to work out for me but I cannot seem to hit it very far.

STR8 Dymo 10.5
Dymo 3W
Mid Rescue 3
MP-33 4-PW
Eidolon 52* GW LW, SW Titleist Bullseye Putter

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drtbk933 Well Established Member

drtbk933

  • Author
I believe the loft is around 10 degrees. It could possibly be a little more or less, but not much. I'm going to take all three to the driving range and buy a few buckets of balls and see what happens. Thanks for the input.

Driver: Hyper X Tour 10.5* Graffalloy Prolaunch Blue Stiff Shaft
Hybrid: Acer Select 5000 16* Ping Cushin Stiff Shaft
Irons: NDS 3-PW (missing #7, replaced with clone) True Temper Uniflex SpeedStep Shaft
Wedges: Acer XK Tour 56*10 Precision Stiff Shaft, Revolution 60*10 True Temper Wedgeflex

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cshelton Member

cshelton

I still hit a 312cc Titleist 983e. Tried multiple big head drivers and just cant work them or hit them like my old one.

Titleist 983E 9.5 Accra 65 Stiff Shaft
Titleist 906f2 15 Bassara Stiff
TM Burner Rescue 19
Titleist AP2 4-PW
Titleist Vokey 52, 56 Ping Craze g2i

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Treemagnet Established Member

Treemagnet

I had the same problem. I have a Nike SQ 460 cc which I even cut down to 43.75". It was too whippy with the stock shaft. However, I feel that I lost some yardage even though there is more control..

How much distance do you think you lost by cutting the shaft? Did you only cut it .25"? How much easier is it to control now than before? I'm asking so many questions because I'm thinking of cutting my shaft down to gain a little more control. Thanks.

In the bag
driver- G5
3wood-
5wood-
irons- cpr 4-pw[B]wedges[/B]- 52,56,60 cg12putter-odyssey:
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titaniummd Dedicated Member

titaniummd

How much distance do you think you lost by cutting the shaft? Did you only cut it .25"? How much easier is it to control now than before? I'm asking so many questions because I'm thinking of cutting my shaft down to gain a little more control. Thanks.

I cut it an inch but I lost about 10 yards. I have read that Tiger has his driver length of 43 inches.

It is just for some reason, I can hit my Mactec further.

STR8 Dymo 10.5
Dymo 3W
Mid Rescue 3
MP-33 4-PW
Eidolon 52* GW LW, SW Titleist Bullseye Putter

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Uthinkso Well Established Member

Uthinkso

I smash my 16* fairway wood off a tee. My 9.5* R7 is a 425 and I slice it bad. My 3w I slice bad, and I have a 10.5* Hi-Bore driver on the way. I hit steel heads better than anything else. That has been my observation.
Weapons Of Choice
R5 Dual 9.5* Driver
R7 Draw Hybrid 3
Tight Lies #4 16* Fairway Wood
HCT Tour Irons 5-SW CG-11 52 CG-11 56 CG-11 60 BC-101 Putter
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jambalaya Dedicated Member

jambalaya

Squaring that thing actually is a big problem for me. I got a new FT-5 and so i still can see the imprints of the balls on the clubface when i hit it. Then i wonder, why on earth did i just "faded - its not a real slice" the crap out of it, when i hit the ball dead center. When i hit my 3wood i just get a normal fade and if i want to draw it, i can do this - but with my driver - no chance - clubhead just isnt gonna close, nevermind how far i swing inside out. Thats really annoying.

I think a key for most of us is that we don't get those hips turning and opening up to help square the clubhead. Those kind of flaws show up with driver.

My Clubs
Nicklaus Progressive XC Irons: 3H,4H, 5-GW
Ray Cook SW & Gyro 1 Putter
Taylor Made Burner Driver 10.5
Taylor Made V-Steel 3 & 5 MetalsMy Home Course: Indian RiverMy Blog: Rant-o-Rama-Ding-Dong

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iacas Hall of Fame Member

iacas

  • Administrator
I cut it an inch but I lost about 10 yards. I have read that Tiger has his driver length of 43 inches.

That was his old steel shafted driver.

Erik J. Barzeski — ⛳ I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • Author, Lowest 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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Note: This thread is 5735 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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