Can an adjustable driver really help you curve the ball?

[boil3rmak3r]

I've always wondered if an adjustable driver can really help you with the shot shape. I have a newer Titleist driver. It's 9.5* and the loft can be adjusted +/- 0.75* or 1.25*. The settings for the ball flight are something like - draw, slight draw, slight fade, or fade. At setup, don't we all align our club face toward our target and position our grip in relation to that alignment. It seems that no matter what ball flight setting I have the driver at (I.e. draw), I would still position the club face the same old way and the "draw" setting wouldn't matter. Do these settings really work for curving the ball?

[Golfingdad]

Originally Posted by boil3rmak3r

I've always wondered if an adjustable driver can really help you with the shot shape. I have a newer Titleist driver. It's 9.5* and the loft can be adjusted +/- 0.75* or 1.25*. The settings for the ball flight are something like - draw, slight draw, slight fade, or fade.

At setup, don't we all align our club face toward our target and position our grip in relation to that alignment. It seems that no matter what ball flight setting I have the driver at (I.e. draw), I would still position the club face the same old way and the "draw" setting wouldn't matter.

Do these settings really work for curving the ball?

I started a similar thread regarding the TM drivers several months back with the same thought, so I totally agree with you regarding drivers that allow you to adjust face angle.  I guess the idea is that if you were to ground the club behind the ball THEN take your grip, then it would be pointing 1 degree right or 2 degrees left or whatever its set at.  (I'd still think that you'd pick it up and notice it was crooked and fix it, but whatever)

Now, as far as the Titleist drivers go, it is my understanding that they are only adjustable for loft and lie angle, but not face angle.  So when it says the certain setups promote a draw or fade, I believe they are just talking about the lie angle.  If a club is too upright then the toe will be up, thus tilting the normal of the clubface to the left, and the opposite is true of a club that is flatter than standard.

But does that promote a draw or a fade?  Well, that all depends on the swing.  Assuming that you have the upright setting, all its going to do is promote the ball to start a little left of where it was going to start.  If you happen to have an outward swing path that was producing pushes, then yes, it will probably help you draw the ball.  On the other hand, if you had an OTT inward swing path that produced a pull fade or just a pull, then that draw setting is going to hurt you.

Understanding the ball flight laws is the first key to knowing exactly how the adjustments would likely affect your shots. :)

[boil3rmak3r]

Now, as far as the Titleist drivers go, it is my understanding that they are only adjustable for loft and lie angle, but not face angle.  So when it says the certain setups promote a draw or fade, I believe they are just talking about the lie angle.

When I first got the club, I quickly reviewed the settings available. The thing has a chart for all the options. The axis' are labeled with "higher", "lower", "more fade", "more draw". I just pulled it out again and see that the more fade/more draw axis is -0.75* flat up to 1.5* upright. That makes a lot more sense to me. I have it set on a standard lie and hit push draws. Maybe I'll monkey around with the lie angles on the range to see what happens... Thanks, GD! I had never recognized that...

[Golfingdad]

Originally Posted by boil3rmak3r

I have it set on a standard lie and hit push draws. Maybe I'll monkey around with the lie angles on the range to see what happens...

Sounds like you have it in the right setting already ... but it certainly can't hurt to monkey around with it on the range. :)  I think I've gone through every option on mine at one time or another ... only to end up back at "standard" anyways. :)