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New Driver Help Needed


Lbob
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I've decided to get a new driver with a high MOI. This is based on the belief that I will get more distance/accuracy from miss-hits. I would guess that around half of my drives are off center to some extent. I went in to try new drivers on a launch monitor. The spin rates I got were not what I expected. The highest I ever attained was around 2300. Most were well below that (1000 - 1800). This was true even with my old driver which hits the ball higher than I'd like. My swing speed is 85 mph.

Is this possible/reasonable?

Robert Reid

In the bag:

Driver Cobra M/F Speed3 Cleveland LauncherCleveland Halo 2i Nike CPR 23 degree5-PW Mizuno MX 23 (graphite shafts)56 degree SW Mizuno MT

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Absolutely. It is my understanding, and I may be wrong, but the lower your spin rate the better.

The higher the spin rate, the more the ball is likely to curve in the direction of the spin. You want a club with a lower spin rate. Less spin = straighter flight. If the ball is higher than you like, you may want to try lower lofted drivers, and/or try flex shafts. Don't quote me but if you want a lower flight of ball you should go with a stiffer shaft. I would verify that with a fitter or others here on the board, but at the very least, you will be asking a question that needs to be asked. Hope this helps, or points you in the right direction
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Absolutely. It is my understanding, and I may be wrong, but the lower your spin rate the better.

Not exactly but somewhat right...

There is an optimum spin rate depending on your launch angle and ball speed. For most people a driver spin rate of between 2500-3500 is a good target area. Less spin does equal a straighter shot, but if the spin rate falls too low, the ball can knuckle and veer off line. I don't know how low of a spin rate would cause this, but I do know that there is an optimum number. As to the stiffer shaft comment... If you are swinging at 85 mph you are likely a regular shaft. They key is to find one with a proper bend (kick) point. A higher bend point will produce a lower flight, while a lower one will produce a higher flight. Obviously driver head loft will also effect ball flight. I would recomend seeing a proper fitter to get all these matched up. Or find out what the optimum spin rate is as well as launch angle that corresponds with your ball speed, and keep trying different loft / head / shaft combinations until you find what is right. here is a link to a chart showing optimum numbers... http://thesandtrap.com/playing_tips/driver_fitting another chart I found says this... Ideal Numbers: 170 mph 11.5-15.5 2000-2400 289 yards 160 mph 12-16 2200-2650 271 yards 150 mph 13-16.5 2300-2800 252 yards 140 mph 14-17 2350-2950 233 yards 130 mph 14.5-17 2400-3100 215 yards 120 mph 15-17 2500-3300 196 yards
My Clubs: Callaway FT-i Tour LCG 9.5° w/ Matrix Ozik Xcon 6 stiff; Sonartec GS Tour 14° w/ Graphite Design Red Ice 70 stiff; Adams Idea Pro 2h(18°) & 3h(20°) w/ Aldila VS Proto 80 stiff; Adams Idea Pro Forged 4-PW w/ TT Black Gold stiff; Cleveland CG12 DSG RTG 52°-10° & 58°-10°; Odyssey...
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GolfDigest said that the new Nike Sumo Squared had the highest MOI of all

"People think the size of the head is most important. Wrong. It's getting a quality shaft. test different shafts to see which goes the straightest. Also, more degrees of loft on the head is better than less. Eleven degrees is about right."

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Man you guys make this game harder than it needs to be all the math and angles and moi's and all that jargon is giving me a headache.Now if you want to get better with out all the technical stuff just practice your swing and play as much as you can,or maybe take someone along that is better than you to point out some things you may be doing wrong,get lessons.I just think that everyone relys to much on these crutches
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Man you guys make this game harder than it needs to be all the math and angles and moi's and all that jargon is giving me a headache.Now if you want to get better with out all the technical stuff just practice your swing and play as much as you can,or maybe take someone along that is better than you to point out some things you may be doing wrong,get lessons.I just think that everyone relys to much on these crutches

being fitted properly for equipment is NOT A CRUTCH...

Of course practice is the best way to get better... no one said otherwise. The OP simply asked about spin rates and his high ball flight, so I tried to help him which is more than I can say for your post. I actually tried to answer the guy's question, not just tell him forget that and go practice. Maybe he does practice plenty, but wants to know how to make sure he has the proper driver? I'm pretty sure everyone knows that the quickest route to lower scores is practice, but using a stiff shafted low lofted driver when you should be using a light flex high lofted driver CAN and WILL be detrimental to your game. But hey... like you said... just buy any old club, I'm sure they're all the same. Any other nuggets of wisdom.
My Clubs: Callaway FT-i Tour LCG 9.5° w/ Matrix Ozik Xcon 6 stiff; Sonartec GS Tour 14° w/ Graphite Design Red Ice 70 stiff; Adams Idea Pro 2h(18°) & 3h(20°) w/ Aldila VS Proto 80 stiff; Adams Idea Pro Forged 4-PW w/ TT Black Gold stiff; Cleveland CG12 DSG RTG 52°-10° & 58°-10°; Odyssey...
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Man you guys make this game harder than it needs to be all the math and angles and moi's and all that jargon is giving me a headache.Now if you want to get better with out all the technical stuff just practice your swing and play as much as you can,or maybe take someone along that is better than you to point out some things you may be doing wrong,get lessons.I just think that everyone relys to much on these crutches

You have to know about technology--it seems like you have a ---buy a club and just "grip it and rip it" mentality....getting fitted works

"People think the size of the head is most important. Wrong. It's getting a quality shaft. test different shafts to see which goes the straightest. Also, more degrees of loft on the head is better than less. Eleven degrees is about right."

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I've decided to get a new driver with a high MOI. This is based on the belief that I will get more distance/accuracy from miss-hits. I would guess that around half of my drives are off center to some extent. I went in to try new drivers on a launch monitor. The spin rates I got were not what I expected. The highest I ever attained was around 2300. Most were well below that (1000 - 1800). This was true even with my old driver which hits the ball higher than I'd like. My swing speed is 85 mph.

You need proper fitting. You didn't mention your launch angle or the loft of the drivers you demoed. There is a proper launch angle range and spin rate range for each player, depending on ball speed. Those are important things for proper fitting.

One thing you can be certain of, higher loft = higher spin and higher launch angle. Most players with 85-90 mph swings would probably benefit from a driver with 12 or even 14 degrees of loft.

Driver- Geek Dot Com This! 12 degree Matrix Ozik Xcon 6 Stiff
Adams Tour Issue 4350 Dual Can Matrix Ozik Xcon 5

Hybrids- Srixon 18 deg
Srixon 21 deg Irons- Tourstage Z101 3-PW w/Nippon NS Pro 950 GH - Stiff Srixon i701 4-PW w/ Nippon NS Pro 950 GH-Stiff MacGregor...

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Is it just a fluke for me or what? I have never been fitted and I can still hit the ball long and straight. Hmmm.. probably not a fluke... you guys don't think that Palmer, Jack, Player.. or any of the other old greats ever used launch monitors do you? Most of that stuff is BS. Big deal, you might gain an extra 5 yards if you do it but then you have to buy the clubs that "work best for you" and the ball that "works best for you" ... too much technological BS that really isn't advancing the game. Weird how I don't see all the guys who just spent $2500 on their new equipment and getting custom fitted on the PGA or any other tour. Oh.. wait.. you shaved 2 strokes off your 34 handicap.. good job.. good thing you got turned into a robot/retail slave for that one day.

*sigh*... rant over.

Titleist 913 D3 10.5*

Adams Super XTD 17*

Adams DHY 21*

TaylorMade TP MB 4-PW

Titleist SM4 54*/58*/62*

Bettinardi SS 11

Leupold GX-3i Rangefinder

Titleist ProV1 Ball

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Thanks for the backup Dave 39 could not have said it better myself,And by the way I never said that if you want to spend the money on cavity back clubs or the very best driver money can buy and you can bet if you sucked before you will still suck after the pro shop takes your money.Myself I play with Max-fli blades and 1 hybrid and a Taylormade r 580 xd 10.5 loft and can use them very well thank you
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Is it just a fluke for me or what? I have never been fitted and I can still hit the ball long and straight. Hmmm.. probably not a fluke... you guys don't think that Palmer, Jack, Player.. or any of the other old greats ever used launch monitors do you? Most of that stuff is BS. Big deal, you might gain an extra 5 yards if you do it but then you have to buy the clubs that "work best for you" and the ball that "works best for you" ... too much technological BS that really isn't advancing the game. Weird how I don't see all the guys who just spent $2500 on their new equipment and getting custom fitted on the PGA or any other tour. Oh.. wait.. you shaved 2 strokes off your 34 handicap.. good job.. good thing you got turned into a robot/retail slave for that one day.

Do you really believe that? First of all, no Nicklaus, Palmer and Player didn't have launch monitors, they just went to the factory and tried hundreds of clubs until they found the exact ones they wanted. They didn't need launch monitors because they had an unlimited supply of test clubs at no cost to them, and enough help from experts and the experience to select the best fit for them. Recently they tested Bobby Jones hickory shafted irons and found all of them except his 8 iron were perfectly frequency matched. Jones also had that unlimited supply from manufacturers, even in the 20s.

But today Tiger gets hand made irons built by Mr. Miura himself. We can all get them for $25,000 a set. Every tour pro gets not just launch monitor fittings but an unlimited supply of heads/shafts etc to dial in their exact specs. Will perfect fitting make your short game better? Maybe the right wedge grind for you will help, maybe not. Yet the guys who play for a living get this done. Heck my instructor goes to Carlsbad and has his clubs perfectly fit too. Perhaps they just don't know what they're doing.

Driver- Geek Dot Com This! 12 degree Matrix Ozik Xcon 6 Stiff
Adams Tour Issue 4350 Dual Can Matrix Ozik Xcon 5

Hybrids- Srixon 18 deg
Srixon 21 deg Irons- Tourstage Z101 3-PW w/Nippon NS Pro 950 GH - Stiff Srixon i701 4-PW w/ Nippon NS Pro 950 GH-Stiff MacGregor...

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Hey BIG M I took a look at whats in your bag and thats some nice equipment you have there and as I posted you see what I have as well and I would love to play against those nice clubs you have and see the outcome,by the way you dont have to make it so personal I never picked on you so there is your nugget of wisdom
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Do you really believe that? First of all, no Nicklaus, Palmer and Player didn't have launch monitors, they just went to the factory and tried hundreds of clubs until they found the exact ones they wanted. They didn't need launch monitors because they had an unlimited supply of test clubs at no cost to them, and enough help from experts and the experience to select the best fit for them. Recently they tested Bobby Jones hickory shafted irons and found all of them except his 8 iron were perfectly frequency matched. Jones also had that unlimited supply from manufacturers, even in the 20s.

No doubt..I am sort of a golfsmith junkie and try the drivers out on the launch monitor...for me the Nike Sumo Square gives the best results out of the stock clubs they have for demo, and i can just tell by hitting it it feels the most solid and the launch monitor "confirms" it.

But I am a "handyman" and spine aligned (I know..big deal) and put together my current driver that i really like (ebay for a total of $90 for head and $20 for the shaft)...but if i had a gift certificate i would get the Sumo because of the results on the monitor compared to all the big name clubs i've swung.

In the Bag...Ping Hoofer

3dx Tour Square - UST V2 HMOI X Flex
3dx 15* - X flex
Baffler DWS 20* Aldila NV Stiff 4-GW 600XC Forged Irons- S Flex 55* SW - Burner XD 60* LW - Burner XD Craz E Putter <----ProV1x---> Pellet

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I can see why the pros do this,but the average golfer with a 20 or above handicap in my opinion needs to cut that in half before he or she worries too much about all that.I dont think Tiger is on here,the game was designed to be fun not cost a fortune,so I will play with what I have and cotinue to get better with them did not mean to make this a arguement PEACE...........
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I can see why the pros do this,but the average golfer with a 20 or above handicap in my opinion needs to cut that in half before he or she worries too much about all that.I dont think Tiger is on here,the game was designed to be fun not cost a fortune,so I will play with what I have and cotinue to get better with them did not mean to make this a arguement PEACE...........

No problem...a good golfer can take any driver and do well...hell I can take my kids junior driver and outdrive the hacks i get paired with in scrambles. But you have to admit it is fun to tinker.

In the Bag...Ping Hoofer

3dx Tour Square - UST V2 HMOI X Flex
3dx 15* - X flex
Baffler DWS 20* Aldila NV Stiff 4-GW 600XC Forged Irons- S Flex 55* SW - Burner XD 60* LW - Burner XD Craz E Putter <----ProV1x---> Pellet

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exactly,thats what I should have said to start with,all I am saying is until you get to the point that you really need to fine tune your game(not a 36 handicap) that practice and more rounds will do more for you handicap than spending a lot of money.wouldn't you agree,but hey each to their own
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yes, agreed.

In the Bag...Ping Hoofer

3dx Tour Square - UST V2 HMOI X Flex
3dx 15* - X flex
Baffler DWS 20* Aldila NV Stiff 4-GW 600XC Forged Irons- S Flex 55* SW - Burner XD 60* LW - Burner XD Craz E Putter <----ProV1x---> Pellet

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Hey BIG M I took a look at whats in your bag and thats some nice equipment you have there and as I posted you see what I have as well and I would love to play against those nice clubs you have and see the outcome,by the way you dont have to make it so personal I never picked on you so there is your nugget of wisdom

anytime you want to play just let me know... I'll be in NC starting in May... and I always enjoy playing with new people even if we have different opinions. You will notice my woods are knockoffs and I spent around $200 for both of them. My putter was essentially free (golf coupon to play at course for equipment purchase and it was $100). I bought my wedges at a golf show for about half price. Before I got new irons I played with the same irons for about 10 years, same goes for putter.

exactly,thats what I should have said to start with,all I am saying is until you get to the point that you really need to fine tune your game(not a 36 handicap) that practice and more rounds will do more for you handicap than spending a lot of money.wouldn't you agree,but hey each to their own

I agree with this statement... I just wanted to answer the guy's question, not just tell him that launch monitors are BS and he should just practice. There is a balance like anything else... you can get proper fitting equipment without paying an arm and leg... some component places will put you on a monitor for free, and you can always try something at golfsmith or where ever and then order off e-bay. I agree equipment is not as important as practice, but there's also no sense in a high handicapper playing a 9* driver with an extra stiff shaft when he should be playing a 13* driver with a regular flex, or playing blades when they need game imporvement irons, etc.

I wasn't trying to be a dick... I just didn't understand why you were basically knocking the people who were trying to answer the OP's original question.
My Clubs: Callaway FT-i Tour LCG 9.5° w/ Matrix Ozik Xcon 6 stiff; Sonartec GS Tour 14° w/ Graphite Design Red Ice 70 stiff; Adams Idea Pro 2h(18°) & 3h(20°) w/ Aldila VS Proto 80 stiff; Adams Idea Pro Forged 4-PW w/ TT Black Gold stiff; Cleveland CG12 DSG RTG 52°-10° & 58°-10°; Odyssey...
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Note: This thread is 5850 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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