Newbie question: Is driving the hardest part of golf?

[Strandly]

Hmmm...that does sound bad. I guess I was coming at this from more of a consistent action that everyone must deal with on a regular basis. Putting is always tough - no doubt about that - but the situation you described should not happen at every hole. Driving, like putting, is pretty much required at every single hole.

You might be surprised how often you get this crappy lie next to a green, especially after you get good enough contact to reach greens in regulation and just enough aiming ability to be a hazard to yourself.

Putting I think is rough until you learn to regulate your swing.  All I mostly think about when I putt now is.. if my backswing is 8 inches, then I should swing 8 inches past the ball.  If it's 4 inches back then it's 4 inches through the ball.  It was awkward at first but I'll tell you what.. swinging 5 inches back and then 10 inches through to power a shot across a large green makes for an accuracy nightmare imo.

[inthecup]

I have found driver difficult over time.  This year I have been hitting the driver longer and straighter than ever  (on some days).  I agree in the beginning it can be very difficult.  Long and wrong leads to penalty strokes which can be very frustrating.  Most people start with a big slice, no fun.

My only advice is to get lessons with video and swing smooth and loose.  My longest drives are not a rip at the ball but smooth and loose.  That is not to say slow but if all you muscles are tensed up ripping at it club head speed is reduced.  At least in my case.

It is a journey.  In my case a slow journey.  Thankfully I am relentless or to dumb to quit, probably the latter.

[brice]

For me its paying for it

[Strandly]

[Royster1984]

driving is the thorn in my side always, i've only been playing 18 months so hopefully it will get better over time

[MrDC]

It's all hard, just when you think you have a certain part of the game down it smacks you back and you struggle, I think it's important for all beginners to concentrate on driving early in their learning, because if you can drive decent you can go out and play, and playing is the only way to really learn, but I find all parts of golf pretty much equally difficult.

[Brakkus]

Looking at this thread from the past and maybe this all has to do with relative strengths and weaknesses in our own games. For example Luke Donald awesome short game but he's short and crooked with the driver relative to other pro golfers. Rory on the other hand is the other way and isn't known as the most natural putter. A year later and my game has improved out of sight but my driving remains a bit of an enigma although I have to admit I'm playing a driver that I bought second hand and have never been fitted properly for my driver. Has anyone been through that where they bought off the shelf then got fitted and it made a big difference to their accuracy and power?

[Jeremie Boop]

The hardest part of golf is putting all the aspects together, for me. I can have a good driving day but bad approaches or a bad driving day with good approaches. No one specific part is "the hardest" to me.

[inthehole]

I think the driver is the hardest part of golf (more than putting) because a bad drive can have serious penalties, more than a bad putt.

I would totally agree with this.     Getting the driver to be reliable takes time / practice, and is the easiest way to ruin a round with a few OB tee shots.  The consequences are worse with a driver if it all goes bad ...

[Patch]

I think with out quality instruction, or learning by one's self, the driver is the hardest club to hit. That's why I think most new golfers would be wise to start out with their 5 wood, if woods are the clubs they want to learn to hit first.

[dkolo]

Driver is the best club in my bag, but that's taken 3 years of work with lessons and the How To Hit Your Driver thread. I think beginners would benefit from playing around with their driver (and all clubs, really). Seeing what happened when I choked down two inches or just hit it half speed made a big difference to me in understanding cause and effect, as well as developing situational shots that come in handy (like when I had a fairway with water along both sides). Understanding how to put the forgiveness of the huge head to good use has been tremendous for me. I still have misses but the misses still get a lot of distance and, more importantly, I know enough cause and effect to self-diagnose during a round, which I didn't have early on.

[SavvySwede]

I think with out quality instruction, or learning by one's self, the driver is the hardest club to hit. That's why I think most new golfers would be wise to start out with their 5 wood, if woods are the clubs they want to learn to hit first.

What's the third option.? Lol.

Back on topic. I started out using the 5 wood exclusively off the tee as well. It'll get the job done just fine. Before 460cc drivers took a lot of the skill out of driving there were quite a few seasoned golfers that didn't carry a driver at all. My dad used a 5 wood almost exclusively for years, only used the driver on a sharp dogleg right.

[jcjim]

Well at my club more complain about putting than anything but our greens are very fast and tough...Driving has always been a thorn but you only use it 12/14 times...and you can use a 3 wood or others but driving has always been about dialing back your aggressiveness  and making a smooth swing......After thinking about it, it all depends on where you are having problems. that's where the problem are.

[Patch]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Patch

I think with out quality instruction, or learning by one's self, the driver is the hardest club to hit. That's why I think most new golfers would be wise to start out with their 5 wood, if woods are the clubs they want to learn to hit first.

What's the third option.? Lol.

Back on topic. I started out using the 5 wood exclusively off the tee as well. It'll get the job done just fine. Before 460cc drivers took a lot of the skill out of driving there were quite a few seasoned golfers that didn't carry a driver at all. My dad used a 5 wood almost exclusively for years, only used the driver on a sharp dogleg right.

The third option might be a PW off the tee, then a driver off the deck like Moe Norman did a few times. Just aim a little left with the driver off the deck....... .

[arturo28mx]

We need to define the meaning of "hardest". Does "hardest" mean the type of shot that an average player requires the most time and effort to learn to do properly? In my view, irons are the hardest because you need to hit the ball in the right direction AND the right distance. With the driver, you just need to hit the ball in the right direction but distance wise it does not have to be exact. You just hit it as far as you can.

However, the driver is the club where usually a bad shot penalizes you the most (e.g., stroke and distance if you go out of bounds or you lose the ball), more than a bad iron shot or a bad putt.

For me, I get much more satisfaction out of a good iron shot than a good drive