Would you trade hitting driver for a consistent 210 dead straight off the tee?

[JerseyThursday]

Just thinking out loud.
The driver sure is fun to hit. Part of the fun is you’re not exactly sure what you’re going to get. You could crush it and impress everyone in your group and also have the benefit of a short(er) approach shot. But also, just as likely, you’ll put yourself in the rough or jail. That of course is based on the average golfer who hits the fairway with a drive 50-60% of the time.
I’m pretty sure I could hit the fairway with a knockdown hybrid at around 210 yards 90+% of the time. But would that be prudent (and not to mention not as much fun)?

[westcyderydin]

Well it depends on the distance and layout of the whole, as well as how you are hitting the ball that day.

you dont want to leave yourself a 3 iron to the green when you could have had an 8 iron in, but maybe one day your driver is not working for you or there is some trouble farther forward and you dont want to take a risk.

but i would not trade my full driver shot for 210 down the middle every time....cuz i have that option with my 3 iron anyways.

the other thing i have noticed is when i am not hitting the ball well and there is trouble down the side of the entire fairway, i will not try to tee of with an iron to be safe because since i am hitting the ball bad, if i hit the ball 200 yards and in trouble, i am 50, 60, or even more yards behind where i would be if i would have hit my driver.  better to hit a 250 yd shot and have to drop than a 200 yarder with a layup shot back to the fairway...

[max power]

All good points here.  If the hole demands accuracy and 210-225 is plenty of distance off the tee then 3 iron or 5 wood is probably the best option off the tee for me.  But as westcyderydin pointed out, if my swing is really off with the driver there's a decent chance I'm also not swinging the 3 iron or 5 wood very well, and I'd rather have the extra 50-60 yds.  Depends on the course, a really short track and 210 down the middle would work great, at 6500-6800 yds or so the extra driver distance really starts to help on par 4s.

Originally Posted by westcyderydin

Well it depends on the distance and layout of the whole, as well as how you are hitting the ball that day.

you dont want to leave yourself a 3 iron to the green when you could have had an 8 iron in, but maybe one day your driver is not working for you or there is some trouble farther forward and you dont want to take a risk.

but i would not trade my full driver shot for 210 down the middle every time....cuz i have that option with my 3 iron anyways.

the other thing i have noticed is when i am not hitting the ball well and there is trouble down the side of the entire fairway, i will not try to tee of with an iron to be safe because since i am hitting the ball bad, if i hit the ball 200 yards and in trouble, i am 50, 60, or even more yards behind where i would be if i would have hit my driver.  better to hit a 250 yd shot and have to drop than a 200 yarder with a layup shot back to the fairway...

[goblue107501]

No way.  210 just isn't far enough, especially on a long par 4 or par 5.  Then you have another 210 or more to the green, without the benefit of a perfect lie and a tee.  I'll take my chances with the driver.  250-260 I might start thinking about it, but even then I wouldn't want to do it every time.

[Zeph]

210 off the tee would mean hitting a lot of 200+ yard shots on par 4s and 5s, so no, I would not take that offer.

[JerseyThursday]

Originally Posted by westcyderydin

better to hit a 250 yd shot and have to drop than a 200 yarder with a layup shot back to the fairway...

Not sure I understand that part.
If you hit a tee shot 210 yards and are in the fairway you're going to hit you next shot more than 40 yards. Thus, you’d be much better off than someone who hit a drive 250 and had to take a drop.

[JerseyThursday]

Okay, let’s make this a math equation.
In the fairway at 210 every time vs. fairway (lets say 265) 55% of the time. Course is fairly tight and 6,400 yards.

How you are hitting the ball that day is irrelevant.

[iacas]

To answer the question... nothing.

[JerseyThursday]

Originally Posted by iacas

To answer the question... nothing.

Thanks for contributing.

I’m not sure being the continual sarcastic sourpuss adds much to thesandtrap.com

[pope1086]

I would definitely say 210 is not long enough. I would rather take my chances with my driver then have to use a 3 or 4 iron for the majority of my approach shots.

[sean_miller]

100% fairways with a 4-iron versus 55% with a 2-iron? I'll vote for 45% with a driver on the driver holes (4-5 per round) and 75% with 3-wood and 90% with a 3-iron.

[Shorty]

I would certainly take 220 straight every time.

It happens to be about 40 yards further than most people think it is and is very close to the 300 yards the average hacker thinks he hits it.

And, to the OP who says

"I’m pretty sure I could hit the fairway with a knockdown hybrid at around 210 yards 90+% of the time."

Why don't you leave the driver at home one day and try it? I would bet money that if you were to do it you'd break your handicap by 5 shots comfortably.

Look at those old guys who play off 6 who don't hit it very far but never miss a fairway.  That's what they do.  That's how they do it.

[golf4fun12]

I would not take 210 yards down the fairway. if it was 250, I would.....probably take it. hitting a 200 yard approach compared to a 160 yard approach is a big difference. now, if it were 270, I would for sure take that all day.

[Pinseeker81]

Not a chance. I hit worse with the 3H than the driver anyway.

[JerseyThursday]

Originally Posted by Shorty

Look at those old guys who play off 6 who don't hit it very far but never miss a fairway.  That's what they do.  That's how they do it.

True.
If you are in fairway every time, even at 210 yards, you’ve eliminated a lot of bad things like bad lies, out of bounds, hitting out of heather, behind trees etc.
Then it comes down to hitting the approach shot somewhere around or on on the green and relying on the close game to do the scoring.
So, at what percent of fairways missed does using the driver do more harm than good?

[clubchamp]

Originally Posted by JerseyThursday

Just thinking out loud.

The driver sure is fun to hit. Part of the fun is you’re not exactly sure what you’re going to get. You could crush it and impress everyone in your group and also have the benefit of a short(er) approach shot. But also, just as likely, you’ll put yourself in the rough or jail. That of course is based on the average golfer who hits the fairway with a drive 50-60% of the time.

I’m pretty sure I could hit the fairway with a knockdown hybrid at around 210 yards 90+% of the time. But would that be prudent (and not to mention not as much fun)?

I actually would have a hard time believing the average golfer hit's 50%-60% of fairways in a round.

Originally Posted by Shorty

I would certainly take 220 straight every time.

It happens to be about 40 yards further than most people think it is and is very close to the 300 yards the average hacker thinks he hits it.

And, to the OP who says

"I’m pretty sure I could hit the fairway with a knockdown hybrid at around 210 yards 90+% of the time."

Why don't you leave the driver at home one day and try it? I would bet money that if you were to do it you'd break your handicap by 5 shots comfortably.

Look at those old guys who play off 6 who don't hit it very far but never miss a fairway.  That's what they do.  That's how they do it.

I agree

[phillyk]

Yeah, 210 is not nearly far enough to be straight every time.  My most trusted club is my 4 baffler which I hit 240.  So, if I know I need to be straight, that's what I'd use.  But, normally, I use the club that gets me to a certain distance regardless on how consistent I may be with that club.

[awmgolfer]

I wouldn't take it either. I struggled with my driver at the end of last season, developed an out to in swing which gave me a wicked slice. Didn't realize this till winter so I look forward to seeing if it is fixed. I hit my 3 wood about a little under 210 and more often then not straight or if it's off, it's off the fairway by a few yards at most. It's great to have but really, really makes going into the green difficult. I would much rather be hitting into the green with a 7 iron or higher over a hybrid or another 3 wood on the long par 4's. On days I had my driver working well for my I was hitting around 250 and that extra 40 yards makes a huge difference on that approach shot.