Driver shaft length - Page 2

Titleist staffers:

Rory: MB's

Stricker: AP2's

Scott: MB's

Watney: AP2's

Simpson: 680's

Haas: CB's

Tae Kim: MB's

Fowler: MB's

Karlsson: MB's

Dufner: AP2's

Johnson: AP2's

Ogilvy: MB's

Van Pelt: CB/MB's

So.... Just at the ones I looked at its a 60/40 split.

My current shaft is 46.5 inches. But at the same time, I am 6'4", and tried a lot of shafts before I found the perfect one for me and my driver head (Ping Rapture). The original 909d was horrible. I had a very hard time to get a ball out past 220 yards.

I'm short (5'6") but didn't shorten the shaft on my Nickent Evolver.  I have three different shafts from 44.5 to 45.5" and for some reason I make much more consistent contact on the sweet spot on the driver than I do with the longer irons in my bag.  Go figure.

I have a 910 D3 9.5* (adjusted to 10.25*) with a 45" stiff Ahina shaft, and I also have a Razr Fit 10.5* with a x-stiff 45" Kaili shaft.  The Razr Fit has a considerably tighter dispersion than the D3 and so far I have not noticed much distance loss.  (It feels and sounds like it's shorter than the D3, but I can't prove it yet)

The problem is that I don't know if the difference is more attributable to the clubhead, the shaft type, or the shaft stiffness.  (If I knew it was the shaft, I'd get a matching one for the D3 and try it out)

To tie into the OP's question, if I just tried a shorter shaft in the D3 to go straighter, distance would probably come down (all else being equal) so I don't think that is necessarily the answer.  

EDIT: And for the record, I am 6'-3".

I cut my Cally Octane Tour to 45" and still grip down. When I walk into a store and pick up some of those 46.5s they just seem too long. Are we going working towards every driver being a "Killer Bee" and we can all be Rocky Thompson? 

I played a standard 43" driver for 20+ years until last summer.  Bought the 910D at stock 45" and it felt too long.  Played with it for a month gripped down 1-2 inches and liked it--so I cut an inch off the butt.  I love it (and I still grip it down an a half inch to an inch most of the time).  I actually hit it longer than when it was 45" because I'm in the sweet spot more often and it doesn't feel as awkward as when I was gripping down 2 inches.

I've used a Callaway FT-5 driver for the last 5 years, and had it cut down to 43" before I left the store.  The golf pro tried to talk me out of it when I asked to shave it down by 2", but in hindsight, it was the best decision I could have made because it allowed me to gain confidence with the big stick.  I still averaged between 250 - 265 off the tee, but my drives were always fairly straight.  The only ego crushing problem is that my golfing buddies consistently out distanced me.

I purchased a RAZR Fit over the weekend, and I'm in panic mode because it's 45.5" long (a full 2.5" longer than my former baby).  Although I did fairly well on the launch monitor, I won't know how accurate I am until I can get out there...nail biting time.

If logic prevails, I'll be cutting it down in the spring because I do value accuracy over length (ego check at the door).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pat007 

Tests on launch monitors and Iron Byron have shown that for every inch of length you remove, you lose 7 yards of distance. Small trade-off. To not hit it into the woods. It's worth the trim

That's assuming you hit the ball on the sweet spot as the length goes up, something not many of us hackers can do.  My current driver is 45.5" and I hit a 44" driver today further because I was making more consistent contact and was more confident swinging harder.

Am the same h'cap as the OP.  Interestingly for me I found my R11 to be way more accurate than my RBZ, but the RBZ 30 yards longer than my R11.  Solution was simply to put the R11 shaft in the RBZ. Result was near RBZ distance with R11 accuracy - the R11 shaft is slightly shorter.  However, best results for me come from the 910 D2, which has an even shorter shaft but delivers length and accuracy.  Yes, I know this may be comparing apples with oranges but that's what I've found.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kujan 

Just for the heck of it I'm gonna pull the lead tape off my 44 inch Superfast and see how that goes compared to my standard 45.75 G15. That is once it warms up a bit!

I've tried to play my 44" G-20 without the lead tape, and the results weren't good.  I didn't think at my level it would make a big difference, but it did.