Take driver out of the bag???

[GangGreen]

Absolutely, and I probably easily hit 20-25 balls on the range for every 1 or 2 I actually hit on a course (and probably 10 3W's for every 4 drivers I hit during a round). That being said, though, there's a big difference (for me at least) hitting my driver (or any club for that matter) well at the range vs. executing the same shot during an actual round. I just feel like eventually I want/need to be able to hit the driver well on the course so if I'm looking at say a 380+ yard par 4 with a wide open fairway then what better way to see if what I've been working on at the range is actually working when it counts. For me, consistently practicing with a club and never actually using it is kind of like studying for a test you never plan on actually taking...at some point you just have to apply the knowledge and learn from the mistakes. Part of it too is mental, I think you have to feel confident when your standing on the tee with that club in your hand and that comes, I think, by putting yourself in the situation increasingly more often. But that's just how I approach it.

[TN94z]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TN94z

My advice would be to go to your local golf shop and try out different ones.  For me personally, my 3w has to really fit my eye in addition to hitting well.  I still have an old Nike Ignite 3w that smashes the ball and I love it.  I recently bought a new Titleist 3w and have since retired the Nike, but I will keep it just in case.

You don't have a driving range?  Many more chances to fix the issue without losing balls or hurting your score.

I have a friend that does this. It just doesn't fit me.  I can hit that shot, but I would rather take a full swing with another club.  But my friend is great at it.  He hits his driver off the deck very well too.  Whatever works!

Absolutely, and I probably easily hit 20-25 balls on the range for every 1 or 2 I actually hit on a course (and probably 10 3W's for every 4 drivers I hit during a round). That being said, though, there's a big difference (for me at least) hitting my driver (or any club for that matter) well at the range vs. executing the same shot during an actual round. I just feel like eventually I want/need to be able to hit the driver well on the course so if I'm looking at say a 380+ yard par 4 with a wide open fairway then what better way to see if what I've been working on at the range is actually working when it counts. For me, consistently practicing with a club and never actually using it is kind of like studying for a test you never plan on actually taking...at some point you just have to apply the knowledge and learn from the mistakes. Part of it too is mental, I think you have to feel confident when your standing on the tee with that club in your hand and that comes, I think, by putting yourself in the situation increasingly more often. But that's just how I approach it.

Absolutely!  It just sounded like you were doing most of your practicing on the course.  It is different hitting on the course than the range.  What I have seen from buddies, is that the range is wide open, so if the ball is hit solid and goes it's a success.  It didn't matter how offline it was.  So when they carry this to the course, they are confused as to why their drive goes 20 yards offline.

Yes, if you are hitting the driver good on the range, then there is no other test than to take it to the course.  And yeah, no one wants to be a range pro...haha!!

[GangGreen]

So true! When I took the game back up this summer my driving range sessions used to be "fools gold" for me. I couldn't figure out why I couldn't transfer my driving range shots to the course and then I realized...I ACTUAL WAS...turns out, I just wasn't being critical enough of what I was seeing on the range and those shots really weren't that good to begin with. Not to get off-topic, but what's helped me was reading suggestions from the forum to spend more time picking out targets at the range to hit to (flags for irons, imaginary fairways for driver/3Ws, etc.) and using aligment sticks to make sure I was setting up properly. Really wasn't until I started doing that that I realized how poorly I was lined up and how much that was affecting the quality of my shots.

[TN94z]

Not to get off-topic, but what's helped me was reading suggestions from the forum to spend more time picking out targets at the range to hit to (flags for irons, imaginary fairways for driver/3Ws, etc.) and using aligment sticks to make sure I was setting up properly. Really wasn't until I started doing that that I realized how poorly I was lined up and how much that was affecting the quality of my shots.

Yes!  I was going to bring that up but I didn't want to steer the topic down a different road for such a simple question.  That's the biggest mistake I have seen.  It can be very misleading unless you know where you're aimed.