How many of you play without a Driver?

[Callie in MI]

Originally Posted by darkhunter139

You have a 9W??? I hit my 3 wood pretty well off the tee but after that I only use it if I have a great lie. Have you tried hybrids?

Yes, I know, a 9W!!!!  I also have a 7W, but don't actually keep it my bag (that was my $35 ebay find).  But keep in mind, I'm a girl.  And I do have hybrids - 2 of those currently in my bag.  I use those out of the long rough.  (Believe me, I'm one of the biggest "women" club ho's you will find - so equipment is not the issue.  I think it's my swing - no, I KNOW it's my swing. )

I think the problem for me is my swing speed is so much lower than you guys - those clubs with the longer shaft take more precision to hit properly.  I seem to have the 9W down.  It's easier for me with the 5W off the tee (but forget it trying to hit that sucker flush in the fairway).  My driver, even though it has a long shaft, it also has a huge head (Callaway FT9, 13 deg) and I get to tee up the ball - which makes striking it easier.

I guess my point was play what you are confident in and comfortable with.  I'd rather have a half-way decent or good shot than a bad/horrible one (I think every golfer feels like that.)  And if it means that bench the driver and go with the 3w, why not?  For me, there is no 3w.  It's just my driver.  I've actually used my driver (choked down a little) on par 3's.  (I know - insert funny comment here.)  However, that choked down driver got me closest to and $50!  So, I'll take that!

Cindy

[3PuttKing]

Originally Posted by Callie in MI

I guess my point was play what you are confident in and comfortable with.  I'd rather have a half-way decent or good shot than a bad/horrible one (I think every golfer feels like that.)  And if it means that bench the driver and go with the 3w, why not?  For me, there is no 3w.  It's just my driver.  I've actually used my driver (choked down a little) on par 3's.  (I know - insert funny comment here.)  However, that choked down driver got me closest to and $50!  So, I'll take that!

Cindy

Nothing wrong with using clubs you know you can be consistent with. I bet you lose a lot less balls than those that are to "proud" to keep the driver in the bag on the tight fairways.

My dad tells the story all the time about the time he got paired up with an 80 year old man down in Florida. The old man had 7 clubs, and only hit about 150ish off the tee every time with his 7 wood, and he still shot an 80 (granted he played from the seniors/womens tees). Either way, it just goes to show that a consistent golf swing is way more important than having a full bag of clubs you can't hit with

[dsc123]

I haven't used a driver this year.  Working on a swing change and for whatever reason I can't hit it straight, even though I'm hitting my 3W better than ever.  I avg 235 with the 3W, and figure that's good enough.  On my home course there are two par 4s that I need a hybrid to reach, the rest I'm hitting anything from mid-irons to wedges.

I might get fit for a new driver this month, though.

[Callie in MI]

Originally Posted by 3PuttKing

Nothing wrong with using clubs you know you can be consistent with. I bet you lose a lot less balls than those that are to "proud" to keep the driver in the bag on the tight fairways.

My dad tells the story all the time about the time he got paired up with an 80 year old man down in Florida. The old man had 7 clubs, and only hit about 150ish off the tee every time with his 7 wood, and he still shot an 80 (granted he played from the seniors/womens tees). Either way, it just goes to show that a consistent golf swing is way more important than having a full bag of clubs you can't hit with

Bolded portion - yes, you're right.  However, ALL bets are off if there's water involved.  ANYWHERE where I can see it.  Because as we all know, those darn balls are magnetically attracted to the water and will find their way into it. (Maybe it's because I play the girlie pink balls.)

Cindy

[DocParty]

I just have to start by saying, I can't hit the driver well enough for it to take up space in my bag. 250 yards with many of the shots being out of the fairway or in the adjacent fairway is not acceptable. Being physically limited makes it even more difficult. So, I have gone to 3-5 hybrids and now I'm 200 230 and always in the fairway, if I do my job. Sure I get out driven all day long. But I'm never looking for my ball, it's in the fairway. I make up for being out driven by being in the fairway. I never have a 'make up' shot, or hitting from the trees, or from behind some bush, or from the dirt that is common in Texas courses rough's. Just a bogie golfer on an average day, if I do my part, so I'm a happy old man.

Doc

[dfreuter415]

Originally Posted by inthehole

key to hitting a driver is to shorten it.      There's tons of information on this on this board alone, but relative to your height, there's nothing that makes hitting a driver easier and more consistent than shortening it.       Makes a world of difference ... believe that.

I agree with inthehole . Most of the stock drivers in a golf shop are 45"-46" long. Tiger Woods used a 43.5" driver to win most of his majors (http://www.amigo4golf.com/shafts.php). A stock 3 wood  is 43" - 43.5" long. So, using a 3 wood is not a bad idea, but if you have an extra driver why not shorten it to a 3 wood length?

I did this last year. I have been using Ping G5 (9°) driver for a few years and hit it relatively long (for me), but am sometime erratic with the direction. Last year I won a used Ping G10 driver (9°) as a door prize, and tried it a few times, with little difference to my G5. Since the G5 has a ProLaunch shaft that I love, I decided to cut down the G10 to 44".  The result is that it is now about 5 yards shorter on average, but I feel that I have more control. Usually after a couple of rounds I go back to my G5 (it's the testosterone talking) and continue until I get too erratic, then go back to the G10 for a couple more rounds. It's becoming a vicious cycle.

[DocParty]

Shortening works well for me. I'm short, 5 foot 8. My hybrids are 39.5 and swing like my irons.

Doc

[preisman]

I broke the shaft of my driver and while waiting for warranty work being completed, I used my wood and hybrid a lot. In a short time I improved drastically with those clubs. And since I was 30-40 yards shorter than usual, I was using my long irons more. Therefore, I was improving those clus too.

I would say this is a good idea until you work the kinks of your driver. What sucks is, the course I used to play oten has a few holes that have a 200 yard carry over a hazard. And with wind that are typically over 20 mph makes tee shots very scary.

[dsc123]

Funny, I just wrote this on another thread:

Originally Posted by dsc123

My 2 cents is to not give up on the driver.  I did that last year and the results were good at first, but then plateaued.  You get to the point that you're in good position but having to hit long irons into the greens.  I figured I was good enough with a 6 or 7 iron that the driver wasn't worth the risk.  But you need to hit a good shot from 160-170 yards out, sometimes more, and two-putt or you're fighting for bogey.  Forget about birdie.  Work on the driver and hit 9 irons and pitching wedges into those par fours.

Then saw some new posts on this thread, and came across this:

Quote:

Originally Posted by dsc123

I haven't used a driver this year.  Working on a swing change and for whatever reason I can't hit it straight, even though I'm hitting my 3W better than ever.  I avg 235 with the 3W, and figure that's good enough.  On my home course there are two par 4s that I need a hybrid to reach, the rest I'm hitting anything from mid-irons to wedges.

I might get fit for a new driver this month, though.

I did get fit.  And hit it well (for a while), and the scores dropped significantly.

[dpgator33]

I went for a while not hitting a driver, and found that my long iron play improved as a result, which got me to where I was thinking, "if I could only hit my driver i could...(fill in the blank)".  So I said screw it, I'm going to master this club no matter what it takes.  And while I've not mastered it by any stretch, many extra sessions at the range working exclusively on driving has paid off immensely.  I did it right, though, not being tempted to go for distance just because I had a wide open landing area.  I worked the yardage markers like they were tree lines or bunkers, etc., worked on an occasional intentional fade or draw, etc.  And I eventually put it back in my bag and I've shot 3 of my best rounds lately with a much stronger driving game.  I'm not yet getting all the distance out of the club so I'm not going for par 5s yet, but I'm steadily in the fairway 225-250 and shooting a lot more 7 irons that 4 irons.

[mailman]

Originally Posted by Mattplusness

My dad's last round he played without a driver, and surprise surprise, he shot the best round of the season so far.

It's a club that's more trouble than it's worth when there's no control. Sure you can be 300+ yard away, but that's no good if it's 3 fairways over in a bunker, under a tree, and over water.

What? When did you watch me play??? :)

The course I play is a pretty tough one where control is pretty important and the driver is the one club that I cant control! So I leave it for the most part in the bag and use the 3w to tee off and that works for me. Ill continue to work on my driver swing as being able to get the big yards on the longer par 5's would help me a lot.

Regards

Mailman

[Chas]

My wife, who sometimes accompanies me on rounds, has suggested on occasion that I leave driver at home. I don't get it .......

[RichWW2]

Should I drop the drive from my bag? Probably if I ever intended on playing in a serious match.  I can hit my 3-iron around 230 and hit it a lot straighter off the tee than the driver, so that would service me pretty well on 95% of the courses I play.  However, most of the time I'm just out having fun with my friends and having a few beers so it's fun to pull the driver and swing away.

[mailman]

Surely if you can hit a 3i then you should be able to hit a driver straight? Arent they both equally as tough to get the shot straight?

Regards

Mailman

[phan52]

Originally Posted by mailman

Surely if you can hit a 3i then you should be able to hit a driver straight? Arent they both equally as tough to get the shot straight?

Regards

Mailman

Not in my experience, with people who have problems hitting a driver. I think it is mostly in their head. I play with a guy who played 20 years before he finally had the nerve to put a driver in his bag, He could hit a 3-iron 220 and in play, so that's how he played. Put a driver in his hands and he started shaking. He still hits it all over the place, but not as bad as it used to be.

[dfreuter415]

Originally Posted by RichWW2

Should I drop the drive from my bag? Probably if I ever intended on playing in a serious match.  I can hit my 3-iron around 230 and hit it a lot straighter off the tee than the driver, so that would service me pretty well on 95% of the courses I play.  However, most of the time I'm just out having fun with my friends and having a few beers so it's fun to pull the driver and swing away.

Should you take your driver out of the bag? I recommend to try a few rounds without it in your bag, and establish what you feel is an "average" round, then play with it in the bag. See if the temptation of having it in your bag, changes your game at all.

I caddie for a doctor who used to hit a 4 iron-225, 5 iron-210, 6 iron-195, etc.  When he had an important match, his partner in the four ball match would request me as a caddie, because he knew I could always talk the doctor out of hitting a driver. We won a lot more matches than we lost, simply by hitting a 4 iron off of the tee.

The doctor now hits a driver off of the tee, but with limited success. Perhaps with time he will become more consistent. I can't wait until this spring to see how his tee game is developing.

[brj872]

Driver is my favourite club. Could never part with my baby. Nothing beats the feeling of swinging as hard as you can and just knowing you're going to crush it. Sure, it's more wayward than a 3 wood (which I do use for placement off some tees while other blokes go with the big stick) but I'm lucky that my home course is a links so as long as I avoid water I'm usually not in too much trouble. The more confident and excited to hit a club I am the better the result.

[stealthduffer]

Gave up my driver in 1988 and played best golf ever.  Have used one, with VERY limited success on occasion since then but generally play 3w off the tee.  But just bought another new one - hope springs eternal.  Spent a lot of time getting fitted and finding the best one for me.  I know that this is THE ONE!  I may even name it "Neo".

If nothing else I've got more gifts for my golf buddies.