Hitting the ball too high ... causes ?

[inthehole]

A buddy of mine I play with often is a much better golfer than me, but he hits his drives & irons a mile high - he says this has always been a problem for him.       I hit an average ho-hum drive, and we are about the same length ... if he could get his ball down, he'd out drive me by 50 yards.      He has a steep swing, and moves the ball around in his stance for various clubs, so I don't think it's a ball position issue.     It happens on both irons & drives, so I don't think it's a matter of tee-ing the ball up too high.     FYI - he hits a 9.5 degree driver.

I don't have a video, but I'm just curious if there are any common tendencies or rules of thumb that are known to lead to such a high ball ?

Thx (the easy fix would be to find an 8 degree driver, but I'm not sure 1.5 degree would do all that much to tame such a high ball)

[Long Ball Larry]

It sounds like it's partially a combination the things you've listed. Your friend could also benefit from a stiffer shaft, especially one with a stiffer tip. I used to have the same problem with my old 11* driver with a shaft that bordered on regular and stiff. I lucked out with my current 910D2, which I absolutely love, although my club guy informed me that the default setting is actually 9.5* (not 8.5*) and that the stock Diamana Blue Board shaft is really extra stiff, not just stiff. I haven't seen its statistics on the launch monitor or anything, but it just works at the range and on the course.

[Bpurc22]

I'm not sure if this is too obvious or not but it sounds like your friend is swinging to vertically for a drive. Should be on a horizontal path instead of vertical. I used to swing vertically and hit the ball way too high with my driver but I adjusted so I bring the club further back and with more of an angle (further away from my body) so I am hitting the ball out instead of up. Teeing the ball up lower or getting a lower-lofted driver could also help, but why not try to fix the problem instead of wasting money to not get a real fix?

[inthehole]

interesting ... I think I'm guilty of this too (swinging too vertically).    I'll have to do some online research & see if there's some video's out there on how to bring the club further back, instead of up over the top.      Thanks !

Originally Posted by Bpurc22

I'm not sure if this is too obvious or not but it sounds like your friend is swinging to vertically for a drive. Should be on a horizontal path instead of vertical. I used to swing vertically and hit the ball way too high with my driver but I adjusted so I bring the club further back and with more of an angle (further away from my body) so I am hitting the ball out instead of up. Teeing the ball up lower or getting a lower-lofted driver could also help, but why not try to fix the problem instead of wasting money to not get a real fix?

[mike194]

I have always had the same problem of hitting too high with all my clubs, caused by the club head getting ahead of the hands at impact. Try to keep your hands slightly cocked at impact so that they lead the clubhead. Good Luck

[inthehole]

Thanks guys - really appreciate the info ... any other ideas ?

[mdl]

The things already mentioned cover everything I can think of.  Shaft issues are definitely possible, and it's probably worth it for him to go get fit, but I'd try mike194's advice first.  I feel like I've heard that too flexy a shaft will lead more often to lack of control, and not consistent control but high flight.  Don't quote me on that though.  I lean towards mike194's advice just because I'm a pretty big believer in the old adage that it's the indian, not the arrow, and so I'd guess it's more likely he's just a bit of a flipper and should work on keeping the hands in front at impact.

[montru]

I used to hit the ball high, my local pro suggested that I get my driver shaft changed to a MID KICK rather than a low kick, OMG what a difference, I now hit it a lot lower on a nice trajectory that gives me probably another 20-30 yds. I had a club fitting and had my iron shafts tipped to give me a similar flight, amazing difference!

[BirdieNumNums]

I've played golf for 3 years now and since I started playing I had this problem.  Key word, "had".  I didn't see a pro or get my shafts altered to fix the problem.  It could be the swing like someone said above, but for me all it took was going from a neutral grip to a strong grip.  Nothing else but a slight placement of the hands more clockwise at address.

I used to hit the ball ridiculously high with my driver and play a nice draw but here in TX you run into a big problem with that play when you are hitting into high winds until June. I'd see a benefit with the wind at my back, but when I make the turn, My 270 downwind drive turned into a 220 headwind drive.  To give you an idea of what the grip change has done, I used to hit 270 max drives, now thats a normal drive for me as opposed to swinging outta my shoes.  It transfers over to the irons too.  Have your buddy try it out.  It may help him, it might not.  Be warned its a different feeling if he isn't used to it.  For me, I wanted to give up, but I stuck with it and its paid off tremendously.  Broke par for the first time 2 weeks ago.

Like I said, this may help, it may not.  For me it did, hope it works out for your buddy!

[Harmonious]

Maybe he loses the lag on his downswing, and doesn't hit the ball with a forward shaft lean.

[rustyredcab]

Ball goes up because of launch angle and backspin. Too high means that one or both are too high. My GUESS is that it is more likely spin. It is possible that with long irons he is adding loft with his swing, but in my personal experience that will only do so much. Spin is the high-ball creator for me.  Shaft changes make a huge difference in spin. So does swinging a bit easier. Hard swings often put more spin on the ball including backspin (thus the saying, "When it is breezy, swing easy.") A visit to a Golfsmith or other big-box with current clubs could get some readings that would help solve the mystery. They have been great at checking launch, ball speed, and spin rates on my current clubs to help assess where I might need help -- no charge or obligation. I have also heard that many newer drivers produce less spin when hit near the top half of the club instead of the center. So, in yet another golf paradox, teeing it up a little may bring the flight down.

[inthehole]

Thanks again guys !     I've applied some of this to my game & really concentrating on lagging the club head seems to help even with teh driver...