Hitting all clubs well except the driver

**Caddyshack** · July 31, 2009

as the title suggests i am hitting all clubs in my bag well except the driver. 3wood and Hybrid off the tee are great and all irons off the deck are good too (good solid contact) So my question is why cant i hit the driver well too, its all over the place some left some right some high some low. I have been taking the 3w and 2H off the tee recently but its starting to hurt me on the longer courses and also i want to get on top of it i cant let it beat me !!

**PiKapp23** · July 31, 2009

I know it seems rather elementary, but try choking up on the driver. Most drivers these days are just too long and result in lost accuracy. I struggled all season, until I bought my Str8-Fit driver. Even then I was still spraying a little bit but once I started choking up I am suddenly hitting lots of fairways again and not losing and real distance because I'm hitting the sweet spot (which I had started to think was just an urban legend). Most modern drivers are 45+ inches long, but many experts suggest having shaft cut down to 44 inches (or even 43) for accuracy and instances where people have done this it makes a huge difference. This effectively not only shortens the club (putting you closer to the ball), but also stiffens up the shaft a little which is better for accuracy. I now choke up about 1.5 inch for all drives and am contemplating getting shaft shorted by that amount (I think it's current length is 46 1/2 inches long).

**enduro** · July 31, 2009

Are you swinging harder? It seems a lot of people have a tendency to swing the driver harder than other clubs for some reason. When really, the club will go much faster with the same swing speed due to its length.

Impossible to tell you without a video though. Maybe its the driver? What loft is it? What kind of shaft? How about your other clubs? Maybe the shaft is too flexible for your swing and you're losing control of the head, hence spraying it all over.

Take easy swings and swing it the same as you do everything else. Driver is going to expose flaws more than any other club. Its length and slight loft amplify mistakes more than people tend to think. You're not going to hit that club straight every time.

pmorelli · July 31, 2009

It happens exactly the same to me.
I tried many different things with the driver but I still not sure of the problem.
At this stage, my best guess, is that when i grab the driver, my brain starts sending orders like "it has to be a long shot" and then I get too tense and my tempo is too fast, my lower body moves too much and hit to hard.
So, relaxing a little bit and trying to "hit no so hard", could be some things to try.
Good luck.

**abris33** · July 31, 2009

I know it seems rather elementary, but try choking up on the driver. Most drivers these days are just too long and result in lost accuracy. I struggled all season, until I bought my Str8-Fit driver. Even then I was still spraying a little bit but once I started choking up I am suddenly hitting lots of fairways again and not losing and real distance because I'm hitting the sweet spot (which I had started to think was just an urban legend). Most modern drivers are 45+ inches long, but many experts suggest having shaft cut down to 44 inches (or even 43) for accuracy and instances where people have done this it makes a huge difference. This effectively not only shortens the club (putting you closer to the ball), but also stiffens up the shaft a little which is better for accuracy. I now choke up about 1.5 inch for all drives and am contemplating getting shaft shorted by that amount (I think it's current length is 46 1/2 inches long).

Do you think that this would fix my problem of popping up the driver?

**prutkows** · July 31, 2009

^tee it lower

**abris33** · July 31, 2009

^tee it lower

I was trying that for a while and it worked for a while but I think it only made my swing steeper and now i pop it up anyways.

**enduro** · July 31, 2009

I was trying that for a while and it worked for a while but I think it only made my swing steeper and now i pop it up anyways.

Stop trying to hit the ball and just swing the club. If your swing is changing due to where the ball is teed, you're doing it wrong.

**PiKapp23** · July 31, 2009

Do you think that this would fix my problem of popping up the driver?

For the vast majority of golfers it's definitely not going to 'hurt' your drive problems (cutting shaft or choking up). I would think that 'yes' it would at least help with you problem of poping up the driver simply because it will shorten your swing and put you closer to the ball for a more controlled swing.

**enduro** · July 31, 2009

Or just stop hitting your driver all together since it is obviously out of your skill range to use it effectively. Practice with it but remove it from the bag when you play. You're not any less of a man when your friends hit driver and fail and you use 3 wood.

If you're really hitting your other clubs very well like you say then your only problem with the driver is mental. It's the exact same swing. Once you can get over this mental block and stop swinging the club wrong then you can consider using it on the course.

Until then you're best off putting your ego aside and using what you can use. You'll have more fun and shoot better. I used a 3 iron for a long time before I felt comfortable with a wood (before I figured out the only difference in clubs is where you stand and the angle which it creates)and I still use my 3 wood more since it makes my mistakes hurt less.

**flopdarock** · July 31, 2009

i have the exact same issue but i can occasionally hit my driver now...
i fixed it with my stance... ball position and tee height...
my problem was i could hit a ball off the deck but not off a tee...
my 3w was going 230-245 and my driver was lucky to get past 200...
when i address the ball with my driver... (im rt handed)
1. the ball is in line with my left breast pocket(or where a pocket is supposed to be)
2. my insteps are a shoulder length apart (usually measured by by the inside of my heels)
3. with my arms hanging down... the toe of the club is right behind the ball... (this is important to me cuz i miss the sweetspot and always hit off the heel of the club... not quite a shank but almost)
4. tee height... this is really important... if there isnt any wind... i will put my driver face down while im pushing the tee into the ground to make sure half the ball is above the top of the driver face
5. make sure i make a regular swing... if i go for the fences and swing outta my shoes... its gonna be a duck hook or a mean slice... if i follow all of the above and make a regular swing... that baby has a nice fade/draw and goes pretty far... 250-270 on a well struck ball with an easy swing... when i wanna kill it... it goes 200-230 :( which sad to say happens more often than not

**Yukari** · August 1, 2009

I know it seems rather elementary, but try choking up on the driver. Most drivers these days are just too long and result in lost accuracy. I struggled all season, until I bought my Str8-Fit driver. Even then I was still spraying a little bit but once I started choking up I am suddenly hitting lots of fairways again and not losing and real distance because I'm hitting the sweet spot (which I had started to think was just an urban legend). Most modern drivers are 45+ inches long, but many experts suggest having shaft cut down to 44 inches (or even 43) for accuracy and instances where people have done this it makes a huge difference. This effectively not only shortens the club (putting you closer to the ball), but also stiffens up the shaft a little which is better for accuracy. I now choke up about 1.5 inch for all drives and am contemplating getting shaft shorted by that amount (I think it's current length is 46 1/2 inches long).

That is absolutely true. My driver is 44.25 inches. Haven't lost any distance but gained accuracy. Now it's almost as accurate as my 3 wood.

**Brakkus** · August 1, 2009

Even the mighty Woods has his struggles with the big dog.I have the same issue and when I do hit it well the distance pay off is very slight compared to my 16" hybrid.

I'm a shorter guy only 5ft 8 so I wonder if shorter guys struggle more with this and we have all seen Anthony Kim choking his driver.

**ks8829** · August 2, 2009

choke up on your driver and slowly move up the grip until you are at the end as you are hitting fairways.

The driver is the longest club in your bag and sometime the most difficult to hit straight. If you slice the ball play the percentage and use the tee box to your advantage and play from the right side.

**right handed phil mickelson** · August 2, 2009

I agree, also try and hit the driver on the downswing like your irons. Most people say to hit the driver on the upswing, but I saw that the straightest drivers in the game hit the ball on the downswing with their driver. (as I do)

Careyst · August 2, 2009

I'm new to the game and last week when I hit my driver for the first time, I could not do anything right. It kept on slicing right and could only get 150 out of it.

I took a lesson yesterday and was consistently hitting 250. My instructor kept stressing to me to make sure I do a complete 180 degree turn on the swing and make sure I turn my wrist to keep the ball straight. It worked very well for me.

**anthony** · August 3, 2009

Assess your tempo. I read here somewhere to imagine you're hitting the ball over a 100 yd. lake. That completely changed my driver game. I hit the driver better than ever this weekend by taking it back slow, starting the downswing by rotating my hips and making a smooth swing. It exploded off the head of the driver too. A couple I absolutely smashed. All with nice, easy swings.

**mtsalmela80** · August 3, 2009

Would you believe I hit my driver pretty nicely but all my other clubs are suffering!

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Hitting all clubs well except the driver

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