Is it the club or my swing???

[ScottyCameron]

This is the oddest thing with my golf game right now. I hit my wedges and irons very solid and straight but my driver right now is slicing like crazy. I dont quite understand.

I got a new driver roughly a month and a half ago. I didnt slice my old driver at all, but when I got my new one, every single drive slices I did go from a regular shaft to a stiff shaft. If my swing needs a regular rather than a stiff, could having the stiff cause the slice? I say that because I dont know anything else that could possibly cause the slice.

Could the shaft be the problem to my slicing? I have a swing speed around 92 mph.

Thanks, any input will be greatly appreciated.

[EGS]

Next time you go to the range, try hitting a hook. I dont mean like a draw, I mean like a dead snap hook. Hit ten of those in a row. Then take your normal setup and a nice easy swing and see what happens.

If this does not work, try chocking down on your driver and take a 50% swing. Just take your hands back to six or seven o'clock, maybe eight at the most. If you cannot hit little straight bullets this way, you may have a problem.

[ScottyCameron]

Next time you go to the range, try hitting a hook. I dont mean like a draw, I mean like a dead snap hook. Hit ten of those in a row. Then take your normal setup and a nice easy swing and see what happens.

What does taking it to six or seven o'clock mean?

So you dont think the shaft is the problem?

[BigDave]

Go see a teaching pro. I have one that I worked with last year. My season started late this year and I had a slice problem. In 30 minutes she fixed the posture problem that was causing it and I'm hitting better than ever.

[EGS]

Imagine your swing in terms of a clock. Your normal address has your hands at 6 (straight down). Your hands at the top of your backswing should be at about 12. A 50% shot is at about 9, or where your left arm becomes parallel with the ground.

The drill I mentioned has you taking a swing to only about 7 or 8 o'clock, in other words, less than 50%.

Your shaft is not likely the problem as you have stiff shafts on your irons (according to your signature) and you did not mention a slice problem there. I doubt you will even need to get to the clock drill. If you hit ten dead hooks, as I mentioned before, and then take a normal swing and still slice I would be really surprised.

[deronsizemore]

This is the oddest thing with my golf game right now. I hit my wedges and irons very solid and straight but my driver right now is slicing like crazy. I dont quite understand.

Yes, it could be (and likely is) your shaft. All swings are different and it's difficult to say "I've got an X swing speed... what shaft flex do I need?" Everyone loads the shaft differently, etc. BUT, with a 92 mph swing speed, I would definitely think about going back to a regular flex. On top of that, the Titleist 909 drivers all have a .5 degree open clubface which will promote a fade more than it will promote a draw.

A driver is the longest club in the bag and has the least amount of loft so it's more difficult to close the clubface on a driver than it is on say, an 8 iron. Same reason it's easier to hit a wedge straight than it is to hit a 3 iron. 3 iron is a longer club and has less loft so it's more difficult to square the face. So, having stiff shafts in your irons doesn't necessarily translate into needing a stiff shaft in your driver. Although I'm guessing you'd be better off with regular shafts in your irons as well. You'd likely hit the ball with a higher trajectory and a little farther too. The Titleist drivers are also bore-through heads which means the shaft penetrates to the sole of the clubhead (instead of stopping right at the hosel). With bore-through heads the shaft will typically be a little stiffer simply because the shaft is going farther down into the clubhead. So your "stiff" shaft is probably a little stiffer than it normally would be in another clubhead. If it helps you at all, I have the exact same driver (909 D3) and shaft (Stiff X-Con 6) that you have. When I was fitted for my driver a couple months ago on the Trackman, my slowest swing speed was 110 and my fastest was 114 with an average of all shots being 112. This shaft is just fine for my swing and is the reason I think you'd be better off with a regular. Hope that helps.

[catz122]

I have a similar situation. I have Mizuno MX-25 irons which I hit high and straight. I also have Taylormade Burner 5 and 3 woods that I hit high and straight. All are stiff shafts. I liked the Burner woods so much that I bought a 2009 Burner Driver off the rack. I used to hit a slight draw and got a lot of distance out of my 360cc Orlimer Hip-Ti. I wanted to upgrade the driver for technology and forgiveness and now I slice it regularly. I can barely hit a draw even if I try with the new driver. Do you have any suggestions, or do I need to re-load with another fit driver? Can I do some fitting with the 09 Burner Driver? I am tentative to mess with the swing just for the driver. Thanks.

[elchene]

Did you go down in driver loft?

It could very well be the shaft, my slice becomes much more pronounced with stiffer shafts. I have a swing speed around yours and I use regular shafts.

[ScottyCameron]

Yes, it could be (and likely is) your shaft. All swings are different and it's difficult to say "I've got an X swing speed... what shaft flex do I need?" Everyone loads the shaft differently, etc. BUT, with a 92 mph swing speed, I would definitely think about going back to a regular flex. On top of that, the Titleist 909 drivers all have a .5 degree open clubface which will promote a fade more than it will promote a draw.

Since you got the same shaft I do, and have a faster swing speed than me, I might need to go to a regular. How can I try out the 909 d3 with different shaft combos to see which shaft I need?

I do have a pretty high trajectory with my stiff would a regular cause a extremely high trajectory?

[CG031]

Get a regular flex shaft, but something that has a low-mid trajectory. Something like the Graffaloy ProLaunch Red.

Also, what was your other driver? The 909D3 has a slight open face, so that I'm sure is contributing.

90% of it is the shaft flex though. I swing around 93-95 mph with my driver and I have regular.

[deronsizemore]

Since you got the same shaft I do, and have a faster swing speed than me, I might need to go to a regular. How can I try out the 909 d3 with different shaft combos to see which shaft I need?

The Titleist 909 drivers have a fitting cart and a lot of courses and driving ranges will have this fitting cart where you can demo all of their stock shaft offerings quickly as all of the shafts and heads are interchangeable by unscrewing them. All things equal a regular shaft would give you a higher ball flight and you would probably see some balls balloon on you. A master club fitter who could see your swing and make recommendations would definitely be able to help you more than I. It's really difficult without seeing your swing and seeing your ball flight with each shaft so I don't want to start making assumptions. But, typically with your swing speed you could benefit from a regular flex but you have to also keep in mind that one company's regular flex may be the same as another companies stiff flex. There's no standard for each company when dealing with shaft flex. That's why you really have to try a lot of shafts to find out what works. Typically a shaft with a stiffer tip will offer a lower ball flight. But, like I said everyone swings differently. With my swing speed my trajectory is good; not low, but not high either. So that just shows you the difference in swings that your 92 mph swing can hit the ball too high and my 112 swing hits a more penetrating flight with the exact same club. Just gotta find the right shaft for your swing.

[Herrick9]

Conventional wisdom says..."It ain't the arrow... it's the indian."
BUT that said we really don't know if the red man switched shafts.....

[Zeph]

What position are your wrists at at the top of the backswing? Are they the same with driver as with irons? Do you in any way turn, flip or cock the wrists on the downswing?

[CalBoomer]

Here's a simpler suggestion. Shorter irons generally have a more vertical swing plane for optimal performance. Drivers need a flatter plane. Hank Haney claims that one of the major causes of slicing is too vertical a driver plane. So maybe you are just consistently using too vertical a plane--it works for shorter irons, but not your driver.