Hitting Up or Down with the Driver in an Inline Pattern

[iacas]

Originally Posted by ControlJunkie

Seems like going back to the position Charlie has the ball in will at least favor a lower ball flight compared to moving the ball slightly forward which favor the higher shot

Face angle at impact and location of hands relative to the clubhead at impact are about all that will affect delivered loft. Clubhead speed, attack angle, etc. can affect launch angle. Charlie hits the ball pretty high but his clubface is open to the target line and his hands aren't too far ahead of the clubhead. That and the negative AoA hurt his height, but he can get a little back with shaft flex points and clubface loft, too.

Again, we're not promoting flipping here, but low point being just slightly behind the ball means you can still have the wedge in and catch the ball on a slight upswing.

[Bo the Golfer]

Fantastic thread. Thank you Erik and Dave for the info. Since the snow has been melting up here I have been working on a "Trevino" fade with very good results. This thread seems to say I am on the right track. On pre-setting the hips forward with the driver, how much forward would you presrcibe?

[Zeph]

Originally Posted by Bo the Golfer

On pre-setting the hips forward with the driver, how much forward would you presrcibe?

It is not a requirement, but something they advice to get more weight forward and shallow the swing out more. Looks like an inch or so on this video .

[Bo the Golfer]

Thanks Zeph!

[Kieran123]

I have very low driver ball flight, but good connection ( only club in the bag with this issue ). I have tried moving the ball forward, back etc....the only way i can get the ball up in the air is if I feel like I am leaning WAY back in the swing

I am going to post a video hopefully soon with both caddy and down the line and maybe you guys can see what the issue is

[Zeph]

Originally Posted by Kieran123

I have very low driver ball flight, but good connection ( only club in the bag with this issue ). I have tried moving the ball forward, back etc....the only way i can get the ball up in the air is if I feel like I am leaning WAY back in the swing

I am going to post a video hopefully soon with both caddy and down the line and maybe you guys can see what the issue is

You are hitting a 9.5º driver, which might be too low for your swing. Having the hands too far forward at impact will lower the launch angle. How high do you tee the ball? Usually, the lower you tee it, the lower it will go. Do you know where you hit it on the clubface? Like suggested in this thread, teeing the ball up at the inside of your left heel is forward enough.

Do you have access to a launch monitor where you can hit some shots and get some data on your swing? Knowing launch angles, spin rates, clubhead speed etc. will help in understanding it better. And yeah, a video is very useful. Hip height, in the middle of your stance.

[Kieran123]

Originally Posted by Zeph

You are hitting a 9.5º driver, which might be too low for your swing. Having the hands too far forward at impact will lower the launch angle. How high do you tee the ball? Usually, the lower you tee it, the lower it will go. Do you know where you hit it on the clubface? Like suggested in this thread, teeing the ball up at the inside of your left heel is forward enough.

Do you have access to a launch monitor where you can hit some shots and get some data on your swing? Knowing launch angles, spin rates, clubhead speed etc. will help in understanding it better. And yeah, a video is very useful. Hip height, in the middle of your stance.

I am curious about the height of the ball too as the range has the stupid rubber tees that aren't very high ( I would be annoyed if the whole time this is the cause )

Would widening my stance help a bit?

I think I am going to take this driver to a launch monitor this weekend....didn't have this issue with my old 9.5* Nickent.

Am pretty positive it is my swing though and not my driver

[Zeph]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kieran123

Would widening my stance help a bit?

Am pretty positive it is my swing though and not my driver

Don't know how wide you stance is today, but if you keep the same ball position relative to your left foot, a wider stance will move your body more back, which would make you hit down or more up on the ball. So yes, it would probably launch the ball higher, but unless your stance is really narrow, I wouldn't recommend it. It might not work either if you still got the hands fairly far forward of the ball at impact.

Either the driver does not fit your swing, or the swing does not fit your driver. Neither is a problem so to speak, it's just that they don't work that well together. A launch monitor is a very good place to start.

[Kieran123]

Originally Posted by Zeph

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kieran123

Would widening my stance help a bit?

Am pretty positive it is my swing though and not my driver

Don't know how wide you stance is today, but if you keep the same ball position relative to your left foot, a wider stance will move your body more back, which would make you hit down or more up on the ball. So yes, it would probably launch the ball higher, but unless your stance is really narrow, I wouldn't recommend it. It might not work either if you still got the hands fairly far forward of the ball at impact.

Either the driver does not fit your swing, or the swing does not fit your driver. Neither is a problem so to speak, it's just that they don't work that well together. A launch monitor is a very good place to start.

Thanks mate

I will go get it check this weekend and post some results.

[Stretch]

Bump for a very good thread.

Here's Andrew Rice talking about hitting up with the driver. Takes a slightly different approach -- focused primarily on getting the club coming from the inside -- but well worth a watch I think.

Some more detail at his Web site: http://www.andrewricegolf.com/2011/08/getting-more-out-of-your-driver/

[mchepp]

This is exactly what I did for my set up with the driver. Went from -4 to +1 on my AoA. Hopefully nobody from my golfing group finds this video.

[The Gill]

Eric-

You've played with more driver loft than most with your swing speed over the past years. Now that you're hitting up on the ball more what loft are you playing with?

[iacas]

Originally Posted by The Gill

You've played with more driver loft than most with your swing speed over the past years. Now that you're hitting up on the ball more what loft are you playing with?

9.75° in the 910D3, I believe. With an X flex shaft.

[colin007]

i gotta check this out later.

[jgreen85]

how much left to right movement is ok before one starts to lose too much distance due to the sidespin?

[iacas]

Originally Posted by jgreen85

how much left to right movement is ok before one starts to lose too much distance due to the sidespin?

Technically any tilt to the spin axis is a less effective strike than otherwise. It depends on how you define "too much distance."

[Fearlessgolfer]

Originally Posted by Stretch

Bump for a very good thread.

Here's Andrew Rice talking about hitting up with the driver. Takes a slightly different approach -- focused primarily on getting the club coming from the inside -- but well worth a watch I think.

Some more detail at his Web site: http://www.andrewricegolf.com/2011/08/getting-more-out-of-your-driver/

I have been using this set-up with much success with a slight modification to 55/45 (L/R) hips bit forward. If push draw is what is required, I make a conscious attempt to swing out bit more yet still hit up and extend.

I must give Erik due credit for several things here additional to great blog/forum:1. I recall him sharing his findings way back about moving the ball forward and hitting up for the maximum distance, which I use when calls for during my play.  2. His writings whether a comment or an explanation is usually pretty concise. 3. Great info about CP vs. CF.

Question though, between CP fade with the ball forward as OP vs. CF draw, which is longer when measured?

[iacas]

Originally Posted by Fearlessgolfer

Question though, between CP fade with the ball forward as OP vs. CF draw, which is longer when measured?

Depends on how you're asking the question.

I will say, in general, people throwing their arms off their chest, early extending (even if only a little), etc. tend to have a little more clubhead speed. In general, CP tends to be more about control, CF more about speed... and also in general, CP tends to be better for a ball sitting on the ground versus teed up.

Generalizations, though, and I don't really think of golf in terms of "CP" or "CF" swings. They are, at the end of the day, single swing patterns.