3 Wood vs Driver Off the Tee Box...

[baller7345]

58 minutes ago, sirhacksalot said:

Going to try out a 12* driver and see if its the best of both worlds.  I tend to hit pully worm burners followed by big slices so I believe it has a lot to do with loft for me. With current driver 9* some / my best rounds I deliberately opened the face and aimed left playing the slice...cough... I means ... fade ;) so I hopeful for the greater loft. 

When you aren't hitting worm burners how is the height on your drives.  I bought a 12* driver last year and while I loved the thing, as it was the first new driver I owned in over 8 years, I came to the conclusion that the extra loft was causing me to lose distance.  I dropped down to 10.5 and I can still get plenty airborne and as far as I can tell have similar carry numbers as my old 12* but now I get more roll.  I've gone from expecting a 230 yard drive on a great one to expecting a 250 due to that roll out.  Now if only I could make those great drives happen more often.  The only thing I miss about my 12* is the looks on peoples faces when I hit a good drive off an elevated tee.  For a guy that doesn't have great distance that ball certainly took a long time to come down.

If you can manage it get fitted for a driver.  I feel that if I had gone that route I would have felt more comfortable that I was maximizing my drives earlier.

[sirhacksalot]

7 hours ago, baller7345 said:

When you aren't hitting worm burners how is the height on your drives.  I bought a 12* driver last year and while I loved the thing, as it was the first new driver I owned in over 8 years, I came to the conclusion that the extra loft was causing me to lose distance.  I dropped down to 10.5 and I can still get plenty airborne and as far as I can tell have similar carry numbers as my old 12* but now I get more roll.  I've gone from expecting a 230 yard drive on a great one to expecting a 250 due to that roll out.  Now if only I could make those great drives happen more often.  The only thing I miss about my 12* is the looks on peoples faces when I hit a good drive off an elevated tee.  For a guy that doesn't have great distance that ball certainly took a long time to come down.

If you can manage it get fitted for a driver.  I feel that if I had gone that route I would have felt more comfortable that I was maximizing my drives earlier.

On wet days my driver 3 wood distance is about the same if not better with the 3 wood.  So I wood say on average its lower trajectory

[onthehunt526]

@iacas you can correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't more loft equal less side spin (usually)

My suggestion for those of you who struggle with the driver is to pick up a Driver with more loft. 12 degrees is ok, but higher is better, Hell if you have to buy a "senior driver" and reshaft it with the flex you need, it will help you more than a 3 wood because the Drivers these days are so forgiving... Even if it means, you don't carry a 3-wood and your first fairway wood is a 4 or 5... it will help your game immensely more to have a high loft driver, than a 3 wood, even if the driver has 3 wood loft.

 

[iacas]

58 minutes ago, onthehunt526 said:

@iacas you can correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't more loft equal less side spin (usually)

Eh… more loft tends to mean it's tougher to tilt the spin axis, if you want the more technically correct version of the language. But…

Look at the launch angles of the 3W and driver.

[onthehunt526]

5 minutes ago, iacas said:

Eh… more loft tends to mean it's tougher to tilt the spin axis, if you want the more technically correct version of the language. But…

Look at the launch angles of the 3W and driver.

The Driver launches higher.

[SavvySwede]

11 minutes ago, onthehunt526 said:

The Driver launches higher.

I think that's because the stats count 3 woods hit off the deck.

[iacas]

Just now, SavvySwede said:

I think that's because the stats count 3 woods hit off the deck.

3-woods hit off the tee are often hit basically off the deck, too. It's not like players are teeing them up.

Point is the spin loft on a 3W is small, too, so they often curve just about as much as a driver.

[onthehunt526]

4 minutes ago, iacas said:

3-woods hit off the tee are often hit basically off the deck, too. It's not like players are teeing them up.

Point is the spin loft on a 3W is small, too, so they often curve just about as much as a driver.

Erik, that simplifies it enough for me.

[SavvySwede]

42 minutes ago, iacas said:

3-woods hit off the tee are often hit basically off the deck, too. It's not like players are teeing them up.

Point is the spin loft on a 3W is small, too, so they often curve just about as much as a driver.

So you're saying most tour pros tee up a 3 wood basically like an iron? Interesting, I would have thought they'd tee it a bit higher and shallow out the AoA.

[onthehunt526]

9 minutes ago, SavvySwede said:

So you're saying most tour pros tee up a 3 wood basically like an iron? Interesting, I would have thought they'd tee it a bit higher and shallow out the AoA.

You really can't because it has a much shallower face than the driver... Good theory though @SavvySwede...

I think that's partially why TM and Callaway made Mini-Drivers, because they are the best of both worlds.

The Driver is the only club in your bag you hit on the upswing, so naturally it will have a higher launch than a 3-wood. Hitting your driver off the deck is really dumb.

[SavvySwede]

1 minute ago, onthehunt526 said:

You really can't because it has a much shallower face than the driver... Good theory though @savvyswede...

I think that's partially why TM and Callaway made Mini-Drivers, because they are the best of both worlds.

The Driver is the only club in your ball you hit on the upswing, so naturally it will have a higher launch than a 3-wood, and hitting Driver off the deck if really dumb...

Yeah but the Tour versions of most three woods have deeper faces. I just picked up an old TM 300 Tour version 13* 3 wood and can tee it up a decent height without the equator of the ball being above the crown. Has helped me cut a few doglegs off the tee already. For Tour players I would think the extra height would help them land the ball softer to hold those firm fairways.

[onthehunt526]

1 minute ago, SavvySwede said:

Yeah but the Tour versions of most three woods have deeper faces. I just picked up an old TM 300 Tour version 13* 3 wood and can tee it up a decent height without the equator of the ball being above the crown. Has helped me cut a few doglegs off the tee already. For Tour players I would think the extra height would help them land the ball softer to hold those firm fairways.

The Tour versions may be deeper faced, but still not as deep as the driver.

[SavvySwede]

1 minute ago, onthehunt526 said:

The Tour versions may be deeper faced, but still not as deep as the driver.

Well that part is fairly obvious, I'm saying they can be swept off the the tee a lot less steeply than 3* down to get better launch conditions.

[paininthenuts]

On 2/28/2012 at 8:55 PM, mrbillinoc said:

I love this game! I play 3 to 4 times a week and usually play as a single so I get put with a twosome or a threesome. Been lucky 'cause in over 20 years I've met some great friends and only met 2 or 3 guys that were a "pain" to play with.

 

One thing I always find interesting is this...probably a good 70% of all the guys I play with would have MORE fun and score MUCH better if they used a 3 Wood vs Driver off the tee box. Their drives go left, right, up, down, then they pull out the 'ol 3 wood and nail it straight down the middle!

 

Just a thought...if you only get out every once in a while to play try leaving your driver (and your ego) in the garage and hit your 3 wood off the tee. Make the game FUN again!

I have a  TM R15 driver. I hit it well about 65% of the time. I have a Callaway 3 wood which I hit well about 50% of the time.

[baw1]

Spieth struggled with his swing/mechanics this weekend (Masters 2016). He tee׳d off with his 3-wood on a good number of holes Sunday.

[b101]

If you get decent contact and hit it relatively straight, the driver should always be the club, provided it doesn't bring any hazards into play. The reason so many of us struggle with the driver is because it magnifies any spin due to the higher swing speed, often turning a fade into a slice or a draw into a hook. The main game-changer for me has been learning to hit up on the ball, which massively lowers the spin and means it's flying longer and straighter. When I hit down on the ball with the driver, it was all sorts of horrible... For those who can hit a 3W but find the big stick unmanageable, I'd really recommend you get on a launch monitor and look at your angle of attack. Chances are that yours is negative (I had -7 degrees a year ago and now up to +1, which has made all the difference).

[Bump-n-MI]

I always play to my strengths.....a 63 yard approach shot is less than desirable for me.  Shot shape, length, distance to hazard/trouble, etc, should all be taken into consideration when selecting a club.