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Drivers and Small/Big Heads 2013


navidfirouz
Note: This thread is 3127 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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Hi

Most of the threads I found relating to small vs big driver heads are years old.

Some of them are by golfers who, for example, achieve more control and distance with woods or hybrids from the tee instead of using the driver.

This year, again, Titleist is leading that conversation by releasing the 913 D2 (460cc) and D3 (445cc).

The typical claim is that the bigger club head has more club face, hence offers more forgiveness on miss-hits.

The smaller club head offers more control and "workability" (whatever that really means).

Now I like the look of the the new PING G25 driver and it seems only available in 460cc.

I hit my wood and hybrid straight and controlled over 200 yards on rare good days close to 250 yards.

However, when using the driver (460cc), I'm plagued by mishits and barely hit it straight over 200 yards.

I'm in my first year of golf and planning to buy my first golf set as I've been using someone else's old set to begin with.

I don't believe I can just go to a pro shop and spend hours trying small vs big driver club heads until I can decide what to buy.

Where I live most of the shops don't have a range, they may have sensors in-door though.

I have the feeling that I may hit better with a smaller driver head, but I'm uncertain.

Any thoughts or experiences you can share please?

Thanks,

Nave

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It's not the difference in face area that makes the distance loss. It's the fact your hybrids and fairways are about 2-4 inches shorter in length and you can get it on a better plane as well as make center contact. You can't compare older drivers to today, since the specs have gotten so different, but if you set up modern heads comparably in terms of shaft and length to older drivers, they do work better. Note that fairways have hardly changed their specs from 15 years ago, except they're a bit shallower in general.

Try a fitted 44 inch driver with a little heavier shaft in the 70-80g range and see if you hit it better.

In My Bag:

Adams Super LS 9.5˚ driver, Aldila Phenom NL 65TX
Adams Super LS 15˚ fairway, Kusala black 72x
Adams Super LS 18˚ fairway, Aldila Rip'd NV 75TX
Adams Idea pro VST hybrid, 21˚, RIP Alpha 105x
Adams DHY 24˚, RIP Alpha 89x
5-PW Maltby TE irons, KBS C taper X, soft stepped once 130g
Mizuno T4, 54.9 KBS Wedge X
Mizuno R12 60.5, black nickel, KBS Wedge X
Odyssey Metal X #1 putter 
Bridgestone E5, Adidas samba bag, True Linkswear Stealth
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With regard to driver heads..........

What do you prefer:

A 5.7L HEMI..........or a 2.2L zit?  Think about it.................you decide.

What's in Paul's Bag:
- Callaway Big Bertha Alpha Driver
- Big Bertha Alpha 815 3-wood
- Callaway Razr Fit 5-wood
- Callaway Big Bertha 4-5 Rescue Clubs
-- Mizuno Mx-25 six iron-gap wedge
- Mizuno Mp-T4 56degree SW
- Mizuno Mp-T11 60degree SW
- Putter- Ping Cadence Ketsch

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As a starting golfer you will need more forgiveness. The D2 has a larger sweetspot (compared to D3), so thats good when you have trouble hitting it. And most (allmost all) golfers in their first year have (most golfers have this problem a lifetime ).

An other thing is shaftlength and loft. When you can't hit your driver very well, try a 1 inch shorter shaft and some extra loft. I would guess a D2 44 inch and 10.5-12 degree of loft would be worth a try.

Moneywise take the D910 instead of the D913. You won't feel the difference.

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Originally Posted by MacDutch

Moneywise take the D910 instead of the D913. You won't feel the difference.

Nope, they both cost 400$ new, sadly. You could find maybe a demo or used 910, but Titleist doesn't really seem to give price drops the way other OEMs do.

That said, if you can find one cheaper then the 910 is a good option.

In My Bag:

Adams Super LS 9.5˚ driver, Aldila Phenom NL 65TX
Adams Super LS 15˚ fairway, Kusala black 72x
Adams Super LS 18˚ fairway, Aldila Rip'd NV 75TX
Adams Idea pro VST hybrid, 21˚, RIP Alpha 105x
Adams DHY 24˚, RIP Alpha 89x
5-PW Maltby TE irons, KBS C taper X, soft stepped once 130g
Mizuno T4, 54.9 KBS Wedge X
Mizuno R12 60.5, black nickel, KBS Wedge X
Odyssey Metal X #1 putter 
Bridgestone E5, Adidas samba bag, True Linkswear Stealth
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Stores I shop in that have 910's left have dropped the price $100 compared to the 913.  910's selling for $299, 913's are $399.

Originally Posted by LuciusWooding

Nope, they both cost 400$ new, sadly. You could find maybe a demo or used 910, but Titleist doesn't really seem to give price drops the way other OEMs do.

That said, if you can find one cheaper then the 910 is a good option.

Joe Paradiso

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Razr Fit Extreme:  Lofts 8.5, 9.5 and 10.5 are 440cc,

11.5 - 13.5 are 460cc and only available for RH as is 8.5.  Lefties only have 440cc option in 9.5 and 10.5 loft

Originally Posted by colin007

the new Callaway Razr Fit Extreme has a smaller than 460cc head.

Joe Paradiso

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To be fair, I also think the 909 driver was a good driver even being a few years old. It doesn't have the adjustable capabilities compared to the newer models, but you can still get it fitted. And it does have a 440cc head in the D3 model.

Originally Posted by LuciusWooding

Nope, they both cost 400$ new, sadly. You could find maybe a demo or used 910, but Titleist doesn't really seem to give price drops the way other OEMs do.

That said, if you can find one cheaper then the 910 is a good option.

Best Regards,
Ryan

In the :ogio: bag:
:nike: VR-S Covert Tour Driver 10.5 :nike: VR-S Covert Tour 3W :titleist: 712U 21*
:nike: VR Pro Blades 4-PW :vokey: Vokeys 52*, 56* & 60* :scotty_cameron: Studio Select Newport 2
:leupold:
:true_linkswear: 

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Originally Posted by navidfirouz

Hi

Most of the threads I found relating to small vs big driver heads are years old.

Some of them are by golfers who, for example, achieve more control and distance with woods or hybrids from the tee instead of using the driver.

This year, again, Titleist is leading that conversation by releasing the 913 D2 (460cc) and D3 (445cc).

The typical claim is that the bigger club head has more club face, hence offers more forgiveness on miss-hits.

The smaller club head offers more control and "workability" (whatever that really means).

Now I like the look of the the new PING G25 driver and it seems only available in 460cc.

I hit my wood and hybrid straight and controlled over 200 yards on rare good days close to 250 yards.

However, when using the driver (460cc), I'm plagued by mishits and barely hit it straight over 200 yards.

I'm in my first year of golf and planning to buy my first golf set as I've been using someone else's old set to begin with.

I don't believe I can just go to a pro shop and spend hours trying small vs big driver club heads until I can decide what to buy.

Where I live most of the shops don't have a range, they may have sensors in-door though.

I have the feeling that I may hit better with a smaller driver head, but I'm uncertain.

Any thoughts or experiences you can share please?

Thanks,

Nave

I don't buy into your argument of big head, small head drivers.

The 460cc drivers are typically more forgiving on off-center hits.

It's a driver, and you may be attempting to swing hard to get it to go farther and losing technique in the process. Ya' gotta walk before you run. Do some drills and "punch" some drivers off the tee - half swings, 3/4 swings, etc. I would not use a driver over 45 inches when you're new. You can add a couple of layers of grip tape on your lower hand to grip down and make the driver swing shorter.

good luck.

Ping G400 Max 9/TPT Shaft, TEE EX10 Beta 4, 5 wd, PXG 22 HY, Mizuno JPX919F 5-GW, TItleist SM7 Raw 55-09, 59-11, Bettinardi BB39

 

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Originally Posted by navidfirouz

Hi

Most of the threads I found relating to small vs big driver heads are years old.

Some of them are by golfers who, for example, achieve more control and distance with woods or hybrids from the tee instead of using the driver.

This year, again, Titleist is leading that conversation by releasing the 913 D2 (460cc) and D3 (445cc).

The typical claim is that the bigger club head has more club face, hence offers more forgiveness on miss-hits.

The smaller club head offers more control and "workability" (whatever that really means).

Now I like the look of the the new PING G25 driver and it seems only available in 460cc.

I hit my wood and hybrid straight and controlled over 200 yards on rare good days close to 250 yards.

However, when using the driver (460cc), I'm plagued by mishits and barely hit it straight over 200 yards.

I'm in my first year of golf and planning to buy my first golf set as I've been using someone else's old set to begin with.

I don't believe I can just go to a pro shop and spend hours trying small vs big driver club heads until I can decide what to buy.

Where I live most of the shops don't have a range, they may have sensors in-door though.

I have the feeling that I may hit better with a smaller driver head, but I'm uncertain.

Any thoughts or experiences you can share please?

Thanks,

Nave

My 2 cents............  when you see a smaller head driver in the store....turn away and walk in a different direction.    The smaller headed clubs are more difficult to hit..  These clubs are designed with accomplished players in mind. (not beginners)    Even with that said, the majority of PGA golfers are still using the bigger drivers.  I guess it depends on who's clubs they are endorsing...LOL

What's in Paul's Bag:
- Callaway Big Bertha Alpha Driver
- Big Bertha Alpha 815 3-wood
- Callaway Razr Fit 5-wood
- Callaway Big Bertha 4-5 Rescue Clubs
-- Mizuno Mx-25 six iron-gap wedge
- Mizuno Mp-T4 56degree SW
- Mizuno Mp-T11 60degree SW
- Putter- Ping Cadence Ketsch

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Originally Posted by BuckeyeNut

With regard to driver heads..........

What do you prefer:

A 5.7L HEMI..........or a 2.2L zit?  Think about it.................you decide.

A reminder not to drunk post........LOL

What's in Paul's Bag:
- Callaway Big Bertha Alpha Driver
- Big Bertha Alpha 815 3-wood
- Callaway Razr Fit 5-wood
- Callaway Big Bertha 4-5 Rescue Clubs
-- Mizuno Mx-25 six iron-gap wedge
- Mizuno Mp-T4 56degree SW
- Mizuno Mp-T11 60degree SW
- Putter- Ping Cadence Ketsch

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Thank you LuciusWooding, BuckeyeNut, MacDutch, newtogolf, colin007 and Mr. Desmond

By coincidence I hit 8/10 driver shots straight just over 200 yards last week. With two different old Taylormade and some random Dunlop driver.

It was through stabilizing my leg pose more and reducing how much I swing back.

Now I'm curious how a smaller club head can help an accomplished player more?

Does a smaller club head allow a higher swing speed? What's the benefit actually?

I'm aiming to get either a PING G25 (I just love the looks) or a Titleist 913 next month.

Thanks again to everyone for your comments so far!

Nave

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Thank you LuciusWooding, BuckeyeNut, MacDutch, newtogolf, colin007 and Mr. Desmond  By coincidence I hit 8/10 driver shots straight just over 200 yards last week. With two different old Taylormade and some random Dunlop driver. It was through stabilizing my leg pose more and reducing how much I swing back. Now I'm curious how a smaller club head can help an accomplished player more? Does a smaller club head allow a higher swing speed? What's the benefit actually? I'm aiming to get either a PING G25 (I just love the looks) or a Titleist 913 next month. Thanks again to everyone for your comments so far! Nave

Not a problem, welcome to the Sandtrap! Some better players feel that the smaller heads allow them to work the ball better because the bigger the head, the more forgiving it is, or less workable. Remember that the Titleist 913 D3 has a smaller head.

Colin P.

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  • 2 years later...

I used to play as a kid before the age of Titanium. Drivers were for pros and low handicappers, I wouldn't have dreamt of playing one. I picked up golf again after 20 years off, a couple of years ago and bought new clubs. The Driver is still the club I can't work out, I play my best rounds when I don't play it, even on a longer course. Even though my 3w only carries 230-240 yards vs 260 with most of the drivers I've tried, it doesn't seem to be worthwhile in terms of scoring. And I can't even blame the bloody sticks, I've bought and dumped 6 different ones and had 2 fitting sessions.

My guess is that the very long shaft and the high club face (hence high tee and ball position way forward vs usual) force you to tilt your swing plane quite radically, and it's very tricky to constantly jump from a more upright swing plane to a flatter one, so you end up losing a lot in consistency both on the drive and with your 2nd shots. For beginners I think it's absolute nonsense to play with a driver, it's all for the show and it's a marketing battle the brands are winning against the consumers.

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Note: This thread is 3127 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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