No rollout on driver; shaft/loft issue?

[LuciusWooding]

I have been having issues with my driver the last few weeks; I have a swing that brings about 260 yard carry, but it's not doing much for roll. If I hit it more controlled, however, it will carry about 180 to 200 and roll until the ball hits a tree, 30-40 yards or more, with a low trajectory.

Obviously, I want all the distance I can get out of my biggest club. My question is this: is it possible to have enough backspin to kill my roll, even if the ball doesn't balloon or go too high? My ball flight is straight enough, and I have hit drives both massively high and pretty low in the 260-270 range lately, but neither rolls out. I want to get the best distance I can get from my swing, but I don't want to pay a wad of cash for a fitting; I don't intend to buy an off the rack club either. For one thing, it'll be trimmed to 44", and not cost 400$.

My current driver is a 10.5 degree loft, I believe it to be a clone of some Nike square driver. It has a reg flex shaft with 5+ torque, mid kick, 77g, and I think it plays a bit soft. The club itself isn't high launching, and has a closed face angle, so the effective loft is a tad higher. No clue what my SS is, I intend to buy a radar for practice, but it's between 95 and 110 depending on who you ask, I'd say 100-105. For the amount of carry my best drives get, I must be putting out some pretty decent ball speed, but all that energy is disappearing once my ball hits the fairway. Part of it is how soft the fairways are on Long Island due to all the rain, but I still get plenty of (often unwanted) roll on more controlled drives. The flight looks pretty level to me, I don't hear/feel the ball spinning like I can with irons/wedges at times, nor see it climb much.

If I get a stiff shaft, a 9.5 degree head, and a bit lower spinning shaft, might I see more roll? I hit my irons plenty far, I want 260-280 from my big stick. I'd hit a draw, but straight is the best trajectory, and a snap hook is something I'd rather not see. And I'd rather not move to Texas.

[WUTiger]

Two other things to consider (from my driver fitting two years ago):

• Your descent angle (if it becomes shallower, you should roll out more); need to balance this with launch angle.
• Type of ball you play. You might go to the Srixon site to see the possibilities. Site has several screens of info that show you how the ball's cover, mid-layer(s) and core influence such things as spin and rollout. (I don't play Srixon, but I found the site very interesting)

[LuciusWooding]

Good points, I can only think of launch angle, max height, and spin as the factors in the descent angle. Any other variables which might affect it?

I play Top Flite Gamers, they do well off my other clubs and I like the price, so I'll probably stick with them, but the Srixon site was interesting. I'd prefer a spinny ball because I like the feel off my irons, but I see a lot of roll on most people's drives. It's great to check a wedge or approach shot, but I'd be happier not backing up my drive in the fairway, and I'd rather not plug the ball when it lands. It is mighty impressive to carry the ball that far, though; it's majestic. But the guy who carries it 240 will be past me a good percentage of the time if he can launch it low and hot, and if the fairways are dry. Plus it takes the wind out of the equation to hit it lower.

I got a 3W with a grafalloy prolaunch red, I'm curious to see if I like that shaft when I finally get to try it out. Anyone have experience with a red or platinum in their driver?