Best Driver Loft for swing speed of 104

[CarlSpackler]

I am questioning the loft of my driver at 10.5*. Last time I was on the monitor, swing speed was 104 consistently with my driver (R7 460 Dual). It seems that I hit my 9* Ti Bubble II 20-30 yards longer a few years back, but I didn't have my fancy GPS device to measure. Thoughts?

[TN94z]

I wouldn't necessarily base the loft on the swing speed. The loft is going to be more a result of your swing itself. The loft would be determined by whichever you hit better with more or less spin that nets you the ideal spin/distance/trajectory ratio.

[CarlSpackler]

I wouldn't necessarily base the loft on the swing speed. The loft is going to be more a result of your swing itself. The loft would be determined by whichever you hit better with more or less spin that nets you the ideal spin/distance/trajectory ratio.

I can say that the 9* would take off lower and climb where the 10.5* takes off with a higher trajectory and does not roll as much. This is just personal observation though. The R7 is much more forgiving, so I certainly don't want to go back to the Ti Bubble II, although is does come in handy on windy days. Anyway, just wandering if there was a good rule of thumb for selecting a driver loft.

[Bear]

I am questioning the loft of my driver at 10.5*. Last time I was on the monitor, swing speed was 104 consistently with my driver (R7 460 Dual). It seems that I hit my 9* Ti Bubble II 20-30 yards longer a few years back, but I didn't have my fancy GPS device to measure. Thoughts?

Unfortunately it's not as simple as "what loft". There are way too many variables to just pick a number. The design of the driver, the shaft type, the kick/flex point, tip stiffness, your impact angle into the ball, your launch angle, how much spin you impart on the ball at launch etc..etc..etc... My best advice is to take your current driver to a golf shop or clubfitter with a launch monitor. If you like your current driver you can change your ball flight with a simple shaft change. Much cheaper than buying a new driver! :)

[TN94z]

Unfortunately it's not as simple as "what loft". There are way too many variables to just pick a number. The design of the driver, the shaft type, the kick/flex point, tip stiffness, your impact angle into the ball, your launch angle, how much spin you impart on the ball at launch etc..etc..etc...

This is what I meant. I agree.

[CarlSpackler]

Unfortunately it's not as simple as "what loft". There are way too many variables to just pick a number. The design of the driver, the shaft type, the kick/flex point, tip stiffness, your impact angle into the ball, your launch angle, how much spin you impart on the ball at launch etc..etc..etc...

Granted they will most likely be able to tell me this, but is there ideal launch angle, spin rate, etc. that I should be looking for?

[Bear]

Granted they will most likely be able to tell me this, but is there ideal launch angle, spin rate, etc. that I should be looking for?

There are specific parameters that a good club fitter will try to get you to. Don't quote me on this cause I'm going from memory but I think you're looking for around 3000rpms and a launch angle between 12 and 17 degrees.

[Leftygolfer]

I believe the ideal launch angle is about 13 degrees. I have the same swing speed and I am pretty sure I have good launch conditions. Not confirmed on a LM but visual observation comparing it to the pro tracer on TV. I fly it right at 250. I might be closer to 100 in SS.

[scubasteve86]

i was reading golf digest the other day, and they were saying that lower lofted drivers are for 2 kinds of people, good golfers, and those who think they are good. if you don't fit into those categories theres no need to go with a lower loft, you probably wont get much more out of it besides a different ball flight height

[MiniMoe]

I think there are two issues when trying to find a driver. One being max distance, and the other being max control. There is a balance between the two. I have been fitted numerous times for a driver and every time I am told the driver I am playing right now does not produce "optimum" results.... my launch angle is too low and my spin rate is too high so I don't get the max carry and roll I "could" be getting. So I take a driver/ shaft combo that is suggested hit balls on the range and go play a little with it. Without fail, the suggested drivers are harder to control. I will not give up control for 5, 10, or even 50 yards. Especially since you only get the most out of a driver with perfect swings... I don't know about yall, but I don't hit them perfect nearly enough.

My point? Those numbers that you get off launch monitor are averaged after you hit driver after driver after driver after driver. Who does that in the real world. We hit driver at most 14 times per round. The numbers are just a starting point, and by no means what is going to produce the best results for you.

[deronsizemore]

I think there are two issues when trying to find a driver. One being max distance, and the other being max control. There is a balance between the two. I have been fitted numerous times for a driver and every time I am told the driver I am playing right now does not produce "optimum" results.... my launch angle is too low and my spin rate is too high so I don't get the max carry and roll I "could" be getting. So I take a driver/ shaft combo that is suggested hit balls on the range and go play a little with it. Without fail, the suggested drivers are harder to control. I will not give up control for 5, 10, or even 50 yards. Especially since you only get the most out of a driver with perfect swings... I don't know about yall, but I don't hit them perfect nearly enough.

This is good advice. Most people try to get the numbers which will give them the most distance which is great because you want to hit it as far as possible with the driver but not at the expense of control.

There's really not a lot of difference in a 9 degree head and a 10.5 degree head. Sure there is a difference, but I'd bet the reason for your distance gain with your old club was because of the shaft, not the loft.

[Mizzy57]

I agree, you should get your swing checked and on a monitor. Off the shelf drivers are bought for basically 2 things- you look at what shaft you think you need (sen/reg/stiff etc) and loft. Even if you get the correct shaft for your swing speed, torque and kickpoing might be way off for you. Better to spend $35 and get your equipment narrowed down by a pro before dropping $500 on that new fancy driver that you won't hit any further.

Also remember that lowering the loft doesn't just lower your traj. Lower lofted drivers are harder to hit because they cause less backspin. But that "lost" spin is accentuated into side spin, so you'll hit more hooks/draws/fades/slices everything else being equal in your swing.

[TheNatural]

i have a 9.5*tm driver and its head flew off the shaft at the range tonight,,,went about 150 carry! LOL..

SS is 115-125 and i have a low launch angle, I tend to lean forward/towards hole at impact, so I will even top a little(ok a lot). I am going to ask the pro for a used 13.5 degree driver, I still have another 9.5 with x-stiff to fall back on.

I want to go higher so that when I mishit, i top a little less.

Even when I hit pure, the carry may be better off.

[CarlSpackler]

I've been hitting it great the last few days. Granted my distance isn't what it was back in the day, but the fairways I missed were only by a few feet except on a few holes.

[hippyboy]

I got fitted for a set of irons a few months ago so thought I would check my driver swing speed while I was there, I was using a TM R5 dual type D 9 degrees with reg flex shaft at the time . My swing speed was/is 94-101, so I was told a stiff shaft was in order, so being on a tight budget I went on ebay, the cheapest R5 with stiff shaft I found was 10 degree (maybe 10.5) & I found I was hitting much more accuratly with this than the old 9 degree without any noticible loss of distance.