How to Hit a Driver (Hit it Further and Stop Slicing!)

[IowaGreg]

28 minutes ago, Shindig said:

I might be teeing it too low, even though I am picturing it high.

This is what I do........  Just a non pro opinion.......

Go to WalMart and get a can of Equate Athletes foot spray.  (about $5-6)  A light spray of it on the driver face will tell you where on the club face the ball is striking.  It will leave a light white film that doesn't affect the impact itself. If your swing is fairly consistent, you should quickly see a pattern emerge,  and you can easily tell it your teeing too high or low.  Tell if you need to move a little closer of a little further back.  Simple, CHEAP way to tell where your ball strike is.  Everyone is going to be a little different.  You need to find YOUR sweet spot.  Instant feedback. Understanding where the ball is striking on the club face is more than half the battle. Typically you want the center of the ball to strike just a hair forward of dead center and a hair above the centerline.  This should get the best result.  But center of the club face will work quite well too.  Hit it a few times, wipe off with a wet towel, dry and re-spray. 

It will look somewhat like this.  Notice the heel strike is circled.

[mvmac]

On 5/23/2019 at 8:41 AM, DavidM said:

This vid has some good thoughts to get the clubface closed. 

I would avoid a lot of what that video advises. Rolling the clubface typically isn't a good way to go for hitting a draw. It's also a tough way to play by manually swinging out to the right. An outward path is just a result of other pieces being in place well before impact.

For a draw, clubface closed to the path, yes, but the face should be pointed to the right of the target. Ball starts where the face is pointed and curves away from the path.

[trainsmokegolf]

1 hour ago, mvmac said:

I would avoid a lot of what that video advises. Rolling the clubface typically isn't a good way to go for hitting a draw. It's also a tough way to play by manually swinging out to the right. An outward path is just a result of other pieces being in place well before impact.

For a draw, clubface closed to the path, yes, but the face should be pointed to the right of the target. Ball starts where the face is pointed and curves away from the path.

are you someone who is comfortable hitting the driver with multiple shot shapes? I have seen you on IG and it looks like your swing pattern is capable of shot shaping

[DaveP043]

9 hours ago, trainsmokegolf said:

are you someone who is comfortable hitting the driver with multiple shot shapes? I have seen you on IG and it looks like your swing pattern is capable of shot shaping

I've played with him.  He's quite capable of doing a lot of good stuff on the golf course.  That said, I don't remember a lot of "shaped" drives, I remember a lot of high straight ones.

[Shindig]

2 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

I've played with him.  He's quite capable of doing a lot of good stuff on the golf course.  That said, I don't remember a lot of "shaped" drives, I remember a lot of high straight ones.

My recollection of playing with him too.  Of course, every shot seems good compared to mine.

For that matter, touring professionals tend to hit their stock shot shape most of the time. 

I know he's capable of the shapes because he has demonstrated it before.

[mvmac]

10 hours ago, trainsmokegolf said:

are you someone who is comfortable hitting the driver with multiple shot shapes? I have seen you on IG and it looks like your swing pattern is capable of shot shaping

Yes. I tend to draw it from a square stance but I am trying to hit more "power" fades off the tee. There are a few holes on my home course where I have to fade it (or curve it more than a fade) and I'm comfortable doing it. I always seem to hit a good drive on one of those holes.

Played Torrey South yesterday and it's a course that favors a little fade off the tee and was happy with a lot of the drives that were either straight or fading a bit.

I don't try to do anything different with the swing, just aim my body left and make sure the ball is a little more forward for the fade.

Played in a tournament a month ago where there were a few holes where driver might have been too much club or I had to hit a really solid 3-wood. I chose to hit "bunt" drives instead, choked down halfway, aimed my body left and felt like I made a 3/4 backswing. Hit it great every time, tend to prefer that over hitting 3-woods off the tee.

[trainsmokegolf]

Very cool,  and the game gets so much more fun as you work toward these new shots and it feels powerful when it's executed on the course. 

1 hour ago, mvmac said:

Yes. I tend to draw it from a square stance but I am trying to hit more "power" fades off the tee. There are a few holes on my home course where I have to fade it (or curve it more than a fade) and I'm comfortable doing it. I always seem to hit a good drive on one of those holes.

Played Torrey South yesterday and it's a course that favors a little fade off the tee and was happy with a lot of the drives that were either straight or fading a bit.

I don't try to do anything different with the swing, just aim my body left and make sure the ball is a little more forward for the fade.

Played in a tournament a month ago where there were a few holes where driver might have been too much club or I had to hit a really solid 3-wood. I chose to hit "bunt" drives instead, choked down halfway, aimed my body left and felt like I made a 3/4 backswing. Hit it great every time, tend to prefer that over hitting 3-woods off the tee.

 

[Nail]

This is probably a silly question to some but when aiming the driver for a draw like this do you just adjust feet, hips and shoulders and not adjust grip or do you also close the club a bit and regrip?

Basically do you aim the club first and then adjust the stance without regripping?

Or do you look at the target and then align the body first and then close the club to path and regrip?

Does this even make sense?

[Yukari]

On 8/10/2019 at 3:24 AM, Nail said:

This is probably a silly question to some but when aiming the driver for a draw like this do you just adjust feet, hips and shoulders and not adjust grip or do you also close the club a bit and regrip?

Basically do you aim the club first and then adjust the stance without regripping?

Or do you look at the target and then align the body first and then close the club to path and regrip?

Does this even make sense?

For myself personally, I take a usual stance and then move my back feet (right as I am right handed) slightly further back.  This causes the ball to move forward relative to my usual parallel stance.  For a fade, I do the opposite. 

I find this is the most simplistic method in avoiding having to adjust other variables.

[ChetlovesMer]

On 5/24/2019 at 12:39 PM, IowaGreg said:

This is what I do........  Just a non pro opinion.......

Go to WalMart and get a can of Equate Athletes foot spray.  (about $5-6)  A light spray of it on the driver face will tell you where on the club face the ball is striking.  It will leave a light white film that doesn't affect the impact itself. If your swing is fairly consistent, you should quickly see a pattern emerge,  and you can easily tell it your teeing too high or low.  Tell if you need to move a little closer of a little further back.  Simple, CHEAP way to tell where your ball strike is.  Everyone is going to be a little different.  You need to find YOUR sweet spot.  Instant feedback. Understanding where the ball is striking on the club face is more than half the battle. Typically you want the center of the ball to strike just a hair forward of dead center and a hair above the centerline.  This should get the best result.  But center of the club face will work quite well too.  Hit it a few times, wipe off with a wet towel, dry and re-spray. 

It will look somewhat like this.  Notice the heel strike is circled.

This method works great. But I'm still a fan of the dry-erase marker method. I'll put a dry erase marker line on the ball where I intend to strike it. If I put that line straight up and down, I get an added bonus of seeing what my lie angle looks like as well. The dry-erase marker wipes right off the club with my towel or my thumb. The mark itself normally comes off the ball before it stops rolling as well. 

Both methods are there to do the same basic thing. Show where the impact is. But for me, the dry erase marker stores better in my golf bag and its even cheaper. I usually get them for less than a buck, and it will last me several seasons. Just a thought.

[IowaGreg]

@ChetlovesMer  Good idea.

The minor differences I can think of is the spray can show the dimples on impact, of lack of showing distinct ball dimples which can indicate too hard or too soft a ball and getting or not getting the ball compression for your swing.  It's more about the "feel" of the golf ball than any real distance or spin advantage. Also, it shows several strikes on the club face, that can show contact consistency a little better.  Just have to make sure you get the Powder spray and not the clear spray...  LOL

I like your idea too, I used to have one of those markers in my bag.

 

[DrMetal]

On 5/28/2019 at 9:11 AM, mvmac said:

Yes. I tend to draw it from a square stance but I am trying to hit more "power" fades off the tee. There are a few holes on my home course where I have to fade it (or curve it more than a fade) and I'm comfortable doing it. I always seem to hit a good drive on one of those holes.

Played Torrey South yesterday and it's a course that favors a little fade off the tee and was happy with a lot of the drives that were either straight or fading a bit.

I don't try to do anything different with the swing, just aim my body left and make sure the ball is a little more forward for the fade.

Played in a tournament a month ago where there were a few holes where driver might have been too much club or I had to hit a really solid 3-wood. I chose to hit "bunt" drives instead, choked down halfway, aimed my body left and felt like I made a 3/4 backswing. Hit it great every time, tend to prefer that over hitting 3-woods off the tee.

Great thread!  Curious what you (and others of course) might think about the 'strong grip', where you left hand is turned over, so the logo on your glove is facing out, and you can see 3 knuckles....for the purposes of correcting a slice?  I noticed a lot of instructional videos suggest it.  I've tried it.  Of course it works to get rid of the slice, but then it results in a bad hook.     Could you possibly use something in between a strong and regular grip, to correct the slice, but not hook it as much? 

[iacas]

8 minutes ago, DrMetal said:

Great thread!  Curious what you (and others of course) might think about the 'strong grip', where you left hand is turned over, so the logo on your glove is facing out, and you can see 3 knuckles....for the purposes of correcting a slice?  I noticed a lot of instructional videos suggest it.  I've tried it.  Of course it works to get rid of the slice, but then it results in a bad hook.     Could you possibly use something in between a strong and regular grip, to correct the slice, but not hook it as much? 

It can help you hit a pull, but that's what it's going to tend to be.

The real reason most people slice is because they swing across the ball, to the left (for a righty). It may start because they keep pushing the ball with an open face, but they currently swing left. Fixing that is the real fix.

[DrMetal]

5 minutes ago, iacas said:

It can help you hit a pull, but that's what it's going to tend to be.

The real reason most people slice is because they swing across the ball, to the left (for a righty). It may start because they keep pushing the ball with an open face, but they currently swing left. Fixing that is the real fix.

Thanks. That makes sense.  So, what should I do about the 'strong grip'?  I've gotten pretty accustomed to it, and it does work for me, but I'm worried that I may using as a crutch, and ultimately it'll hurt me.  Go back to a neutral grip? Or something in between, maybe just a slight strong grip to give me that feel?  

[iacas]

7 hours ago, DrMetal said:

Thanks. That makes sense.  So, what should I do about the 'strong grip'?  I've gotten pretty accustomed to it, and it does work for me, but I'm worried that I may using as a crutch, and ultimately it'll hurt me.  Go back to a neutral grip? Or something in between, maybe just a slight strong grip to give me that feel?  

There are an infinite number of grips between "super ridiculously strong" and "neutral."

[chop]

I have learned to keep it simple. I was a slicer for a long time on the edge of a fade and the slice. For me and many it is in the swing path. I was always had an inside takeaway and then loop it outside. It worked with irons but not the woods, specifically the driver. I would slice two, three, and sometimes more which put me in bad places more than half the time. 

So what I did was change my takeaway. When I take it back, I make sure the clubhead goes down the target line. That makes it so easy to drop the club into the inside slot in the transition. The only other thing I did was slow down the takeaway which helped me on the transition into the inside track. 
I now hit baby draws and straighter irons shots. My miss now is if I over-do the dropping on the inside. My draw gets close to being a hook. Now I can work a shot however I want which is cool to be able to do. This has taken me from an 80s player to a 70s player. Too bad it took me until I was 63 to figure this out. I'm 65 now and can't wait to win some tourneys in 2021.  

[djake]

@mvmac or @iacas do you have drills to help get this down?  I guessing you do, this site is filled with a lot of great stuff

From deliberate to eventually full swing.

Thanks

[iacas]

On 2/3/2021 at 6:36 PM, djake said:

@mvmac or @iacas do you have drills to help get this down?  I guessing you do, this site is filled with a lot of great stuff

From deliberate to eventually full swing.

To help get what down? A full swing? I'm not sure I understand - there are a ton of full swing drills scattered about the site.