Changed Driver

Hey All

I really learned my swing on my 07 Burner; however, I never felt comfortable with the club. Just the feel of it and I had trouble determining specifically where the club was in my swing. Went to the golf store today to try out a few drivers and the two I really liked were the G10 and G15. If you go by the machines they use, not sure how accurate they are, I had less spin and more distance with these two clubs as well. Tried the new TM and R9 along with Calloway, Cleveland, and Cobra. I liked the feel of both Ping Drivers and the machine kept showing that my spin was lower, projectory was good, flight was typically straight with a slight draw when not, and distance was anywhere from 10-20 yards farther with the pings then the next club...not major I know. The machine also showed that I was hitting The G15 straighter and with less spin than with the G10 so I went with the G15. Now can someone tell me if the following if the numbers truly as meaningful as the salesman was telling me.

My hits with the G15 showed the following
spin rate was on average between 3000-3200
Launch Angle was around 15
Hits were straight with slight draw when not and machine showed an average of 280 yards.

Hits with G10 showed on the machine the following.
Spin rate average between 3400-3600
Launch angle was around 14-15
Hits were straight with some slight draws and fades...he said these were within 5 yards...doesnt seem like much of a draw or fade.
Machine showed average yardage of 270

Other clubs all had spin rates of 4000 or more with launch angles ranging from 14-18 degrees with distances from 240-265.

Now i was told this was pretty good spin rates and the lower spin rates were probably the reason for my increased distances here. These numbers look right to you or are these machines pretty much a sales gimmick. Regardless I like the Drivers...both hit very well and I really like the new G15. This is just for personally knowledge and curious as to what is a good spin rate and launch angle for low to mid handicapper...i am mid working on low .

Any feedback would be appreciated here...hope you hit well on the greens this week.

I wish I could help with the numbers aspect, but as far as the machines go I dont trust them. I feel that you should hit the clubs outside to truly see what your ball is doing. I recently bought irons and the machine had me hitting my 9 iron 170 yards. I never have and never will hit a 9 iron that far, I usually hit my 9 about 20 yards short of that. When purchasing my driver this year, I demoed a variety of drivers at my club's range without a machine. I chose my club based purely on performance, and have no regrets (I shaved 3 strokes since changing drivers). So my advice would be to hit the clubs outside and see how the ball flies, and which club you can hit the most consistently and feel most comfortable with. The guys with the machines swear by them, but what good are spin rates and launch angles if you cant hit your clubs on the course.

PS I love my G15

I agree, I'd have to hit them on a range before buying. I hit some in a machine at a PGA Superstore, and the yardage seemed off.

The area i live in has two true gold shops and couple Sports Authorities and none of them have a demo program were you take them outside the store. The Sports Authority has a hitting net set-up and the true golf stores have a machine. I went out and hit 18 yesterday and the club hit great. I pulled my back a little in some rough around hole 11 and after that I was pulling out of my swing a little; however, when i stayed down the ball flew with a better projectory then when i hit my TM Burner. I am pretty satisfied with the club and the guys I usually golf with said I seem to hit the club better despite my little swing hiccup. I appreciate your input and thought pertaining to that machine. I thought they were putting a lot of emphasis into a machine which was judging my swing by hitting 8 feet into the net. So far I have to agree with you Chris...I really like the G15 so far as well.

A good golf course should have demo clubs you can take to the range, if you want to do that.

Alternatively, take your current driver into the sim. If you know you hit your driver 240 now, and the machine says you're hitting it 300, that will give you a baseline.

great idea about bringing your driver