Is it really all about the long ball ??

[inthehole]

From all we read about longest clubs, longest balls, most efficient swing to get 99.9% of potential swing speed to give maximum distance ... I may be the only golfer left who isn't concerned with distance.     My game has improved DRAMATICALLY when I changed the whole way I approached it - I have a bad back, so I have recently worked on a swing that suits me & I can actually play rounds in consecutive days - never could do that before without practically overdosing on Advil.    I'm all about a slow backswing, controlled downswing and solid ball contact.     Never hit better & my distance hasn't dropped off much at all.    It's amazing what happens when you make clean ball first contact & don't try to overpower it.      Yesterday, I hit 14 out of 15 fairways with my ho-hum 220-240 yard drive.  Game is monumentally more enjoyable playing from the fairways.    Hit a 3w on a 220 yd par 3 to 15 ft.     Granted, I don't have the body left to give me the distance required to ever be a scratch player, but this new approach is paying huge dividends for me on the scorecard.

Curious if anybody else has given up their quest for the long ball & went for more of a controlled game ?

[carpediem4300]

YES

as you mighta seen in other threads ive had my driver chopped down to 43.5" for better accuracy as opposed to distance,

Yet to take it to the course but im expecting much lower scores with hitting second shots from fairway rather than trees haha

[lumpuckeroo]

Didn't have a choice, after I hit 50, I started to lose distance on all of my clubs, but my handicap has not suffered.  I can still get up and down from anywhere.

[DocPangloss]

I recently changed the way I gripped my driver and lost about 15 yards in the process. But I also lost about 15 yards of slice/hook too. Granted that still leaves me with drives over 300 yards, so I'm not really giving up the long ball, just the longer ball.

What I haven't been able to do is stop overswinging. I tend to lose control if I don't overswing, so when I have to hit an iron light when stuck between clubs is where most of the large mistakes in my game come from (save those bloody three-putts). This could be attributed to not practicing enough, I'm not sure.

Whatever makes the most significant improvement in your scores - go for it. For me that is chipping and cutting down on three-putts. For you, control seems to do the trick. Its not as if you have to give up the long ball forever, once your handicap plateaus you can always try to start hitting the ball longer again.

[Precis1on]

I've played with my dad's old med school friend (70+ years old), who can't drive it past 200, but is never OB or in hazards and is always pin seeking from 100 yards in. He plays in the upper 70s, low 80s all the time.

[inthehole]

Originally Posted by Precis1on

I've played with my dad's old med school friend (70+ years old), who can't drive it past 200, but is never OB or in hazards and is always pin seeking from 100 yards in. He plays in the upper 70s, low 80s all the time.

awesome - I hope to be that guy some day ...

[DocPangloss]

Oh, to answer your thread title - yes, it really is all about the long ball. Almost never hitting a high (3-6) iron on your approach to a par 4, and usually having a shot at eagle on every par 5 means scoring opportunities abound once you are a good enough golfer. You could be the best putter in the world but if you're never putting for eagle on a par 5 then you are basically never making eagle on par 5s.

Now if you are an average golfer..... I would say the long ball is a much smaller part of your game.,

[inthehole]

Originally Posted by DocPangloss

Oh, to answer your thread title - yes, it really is all about the long ball. Almost never hitting a high (3-6) iron on your approach to a par 4, and usually having a shot at eagle on every par 5 means scoring opportunities abound once you are a good enough golfer. You could be the best putter in the world but if you're never putting for eagle on a par 5 then you are basically never making eagle on par 5s.

Now if you are an average golfer..... I would say the long ball is a much smaller part of your game.,

Understand ... distance is clearly necessary if you're shooting low or really low scores.      I guess when you're that good, the risk/reward with going for the long drive is worth it ...

[jetsknicks1]

Originally Posted by DocPangloss

Oh, to answer your thread title - yes, it really is all about the long ball. Almost never hitting a high (3-6) iron on your approach to a par 4, and usually having a shot at eagle on every par 5 means scoring opportunities abound once you are a good enough golfer. You could be the best putter in the world but if you're never putting for eagle on a par 5 then you are basically never making eagle on par 5s.

Now if you are an average golfer..... I would say the long ball is a much smaller part of your game.,

Absolutely. I'm usually pretty good with the driver but a nightmare with my irons, especially 100 yds and in.

[JCoop]

The Long Ball is certainly desirable, but if you're like me, over 50 and new to the game, focusing on control is a better strategy. Having said that, as I improve I also hope to also extend driving distance.

[Kieran123]

Gaining distance is harder than gaining accuracy IMO

I hit it O.K 280ish - sometimes 250, sometimes 300.

But I would rather work on accuracy than trying to hit it further ( with control )

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by Kieran123

Gaining distance is harder than gaining accuracy IMO

I hit it O.K 280ish - sometimes 250, sometimes 300.

But I would rather work on accuracy than trying to hit it further ( with control )

I'm driving it shorter than I was 2 years ago, but hitting fewer OB or to the wrong fairway. I'm playing quicker and shooting lower scores on average. Fewer eagle chances and fewer birdies, but also fewer double and triple bogeys and that's imporant too.

[Jwat381]

I'm a short hitter, and my best days are all about accuracy, not distance. Distance helps, but accuracy is far more important.

[soon_tourpro]

distance when enough is then all about accuracy.

I was a short hitter and now are 4 clubs longer and way longer with drive.

Now, its time for consistency and tempo to suit the distance for my game.

Hitting it short simply isnt fun.

[inthehole]

Originally Posted by soon_tourpro

Hitting it short simply isnt fun.

Friend, beg to differ.     Swinging hard & watching your ball sail into the rough or OB more often than not & always trying to recover from the rough is NOT fun.    Keeping the ball in play is more fun than I can handle.     Guess it boils down to our respective skill level, what we consider fun...

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by inthehole

Quote:

Originally Posted by soon_tourpro

Hitting it short simply isnt fun.

Friend, beg to differ.     Swinging hard & watching your ball sail into the rough or OB more often than not & always trying to recover from the rough is NOT fun.    Keeping the ball in play is more fun than I can handle.     Guess it boils down to our respective skill level, what we consider fun...

http://thesandtrap.com/t/57470/how-would-you-play-this-shot-if-you-were-me

Kudos for finding another way, but some guys just can't accept having to hit driver, 3-wood, wedge into par 4 s.

[MEfree]

Are you trying to have a debate about the importance of distance or how hard you should swing?

Originally Posted by inthehole

My game has improved DRAMATICALLY when I changed the whole way I approached it -   I'm all about a slow backswing, controlled downswing and solid ball contact.     Never hit better & my distance hasn't dropped off much at all.    It's amazing what happens when you make clean ball first contact & don't try to overpower it.

Originally Posted by inthehole

Friend, beg to differ.     Swinging hard & watching your ball sail into the rough or OB more often than not & always trying to recover from the rough is NOT fun.    Keeping the ball in play is more fun than I can handle.     Guess it boils down to our respective skill level, what we consider fun...

Let`s see, swing hard and hit it all over the place without any significant distance gain OR swing controlled, know where its going with almost the same distance??  Doesn`t seem like much of a debate to me.

Now if the question was would I rather hit it 300+ hitting 55% of the fairways or 225 hitting 80% of the fairways, that might be something worth thinking about.

[soon_tourpro]

Originally Posted by inthehole

Friend, beg to differ.     Swinging hard & watching your ball sail into the rough or OB more often than not & always trying to recover from the rough is NOT fun.    Keeping the ball in play is more fun than I can handle.     Guess it boils down to our respective skill level, what we consider fun...

yup ;)

Ballstriking is important, I normally hit 70% fairways but that wont help if I am to short.

Its a balance but I rather be long and wild than short and accurate.

its easier to fix the wildness than add distance :D