Non-compliant heads

[Covert]

With help from forum members on my Long distance driver for compromised senior thread, I purchased a new driver extended one inch with a senior flex shaft. And from also changing my swing to include much more cocked wrists at the top of the uptake, and more depth from greater right elbow extension outward on the uptake, and applying a whipping motion at contact, the result was phenomenal. I went from hitting 210 to 250 plus on a range, re-challenged in three trips there to assure against a possible one-time fluke.

So, that’s not enough. Now I would like to purchase a good non-compliant head and have it fitted with a 48” extended senior flex shaft, 3” longer than standard. Does anyone know which non-compliant head(s) is/are best? Also, is it possible that they aren’t that much better than my new Nike Vapor Fly head, so all I would need is a longer shaft put on it to charge further toward that quixotic 300-yard drive? I've seen Calloway ERC, Cobra SS430, 900+Cor Super Speed by TPF, Juggernaut 515, and Hicor clubs advertised on the Web, but know nothing about any of them.

[woodzie264]

9 minutes ago, Covert said:

With help from forum members on my Long distance driver for compromised senior thread, I purchased a new driver extended one inch with a senior flex shaft. And from also changing my swing to include much more cocked wrists at the top of the uptake, and more depth from greater right elbow extension outward on the uptake, and applying a whipping motion at contact, the result was phenomenal. I went from hitting 210 to 250 plus on a range, re-challenged in three trips there to assure against a possible one-time fluke.

So, that’s not enough. Now I would like to purchase a good non-compliant head and have it fitted with a 48” extended senior flex shaft, 3” longer than standard. Does anyone know which non-compliant head(s) is/are best? Also, is it possible that they aren’t that much better than my new Nike Vapor Fly head, so all I would need is a longer shaft put on it to charge further toward that quixotic 300-yard drive? I've seen Calloway ERC, Cobra SS430, 900+Cor Super Speed by TPF, Juggernaut 515, and Hicor clubs advertised on the Web, but know nothing about any of them.

I could be wrong, but I doubt many on this forum will have alot to say about non-conforming clubs

[shanksalot]

From all I have gathered the non compliant heads for COR do not give you a lot of extra distance. Probably 3" longer shaft will help some but you will also lose control of your drives more. You will probably hit more off the fairway and although your good drives will gain some distance (5-7yd?) you may not recover from your bad drives. If you can get it out 250 with your new swing I would stay with that and just enjoy the heck out of being 35 yards longer. You may be one of the lucky ones who can hit a 48" driver in the short stuff, but most do not hit it consistent or straight enough to help them in the long run. 

As  an adder to my other post. Some twenty years ago I was building clubs for members at our golf course. One gentleman was in his mid 70's and I built a 48" driver for him. He gained almost 15 yards but his old driver was an old persimmons head. I gave him a new metal head and between the two he gained that yardage. But the caveat here is he was a 3 handicap at one time in his life and was still a very good player and had lost distance. He was very happy with the distance, but after the honeymoon was over he too started to lose his shots out of the fairway and sometimes mishit the shots. He eventually gave up the driver and went back to just 45" for the club. 

[Covert]

Thanks, Shanks. For a while I thought I’d dropped an egg on a community of groupthink with a single mouthpiece. I loved the irony of woodzie’s vernacularism, “alot,” and you with your name morpheme, “alot,” kind of coming to my rescue. I certainly don’t want to do anything criminal, or unethical; I wouldn’t use non-compliant equipment in any kind of formal play. I am just playing around with physics, for the fun of it, and a touch of old-man ego. I’m perfectly happy on a range or banging long drives on a course in the early morning with nobody to see but God.

I’ll try a 48” shaft. I’m not concerned with losing control; it’s just another variable to experiment with. I did find with my slightly extended shaft and modified swing that I could control right and left drift by how much I rotated my hips and how far I extended my right elbow out. I was hitting pretty straight when I adjusted those two variables correctly, and believe I can with an even longer club. But if it turns out that I can’t stay in the fairway most of the time, I will forget about the extra distance and go back to my current club, with at least the one-inch advantage.

[boogielicious]

2 hours ago, Covert said:

Thanks, Shanks. For a while I thought I’d dropped an egg on a community of groupthink with a single mouthpiece. I loved the irony of woodzie’s vernacularism, “alot,” and you with your name morpheme, “alot,” kind of coming to my rescue. I certainly don’t want to do anything criminal, or unethical; I wouldn’t use non-compliant equipment in any kind of formal play. I am just playing around with physics, for the fun of it, and a touch of old-man ego. I’m perfectly happy on a range or banging long drives on a course in the early morning with nobody to see but God.

I’ll try a 48” shaft. I’m not concerned with losing control; it’s just another variable to experiment with. I did find with my slightly extended shaft and modified swing that I could control right and left drift by how much I rotated my hips and how far I extended my right elbow out. I was hitting pretty straight when I adjusted those two variables correctly, and believe I can with an even longer club. But if it turns out that I can’t stay in the fairway most of the time, I will forget about the extra distance and go back to my current club, with at least the one-inch advantage.

I would recommend checking out some of the long drive champions and see if they have information on how they do it. Some are incredibly flexible, which I am not, so that won't help. But they also have other techniques you can explore.

Non-conforming heads will have COR that is higher, but it may also come with increased variability in launch and off axis spin, which can affect accuracy. If you have access to eBay, you may find low cost options to experiment with.

[Index95]

I'm  71 yrs  old and  like  many  geezers  have   lost driver   distance.  

Have  tried  regaining  some  with several  things:

1.  Bought higher  COR driver .   0.86 COR vs. USGA max of  0.83.  TaylorMade  R7 Quad with   Max on face.  My swing  speed  of  85 ish didn't  work  with   it. I had considered  getting  one  with  shaved face, but heard  they  may crack and still  need  higher  swing  speeds  

2.  Bought Cleveland   ultralight  270 gram club with 1" longer  42 g Myazaki shaft .   Went from  205 to 215+, but now fighting  slice

3.  Went back  to  my pro fitted Ping G15.  Must be swinging  better   because  getting  near 230 again  with  it  55g stock  Ping shaft  

4,  plan to  work  with  both  maybe add lead tape  to  hossel  area of Cleveland  to  help  with  slice

Good  luck  keep us  posted  

 

[RussUK]

On 12/2/2016 at 6:34 PM, Covert said:

With help from forum members on my Long distance driver for compromised senior thread, I purchased a new driver extended one inch with a senior flex shaft. And from also changing my swing to include much more cocked wrists at the top of the uptake, and more depth from greater right elbow extension outward on the uptake, and applying a whipping motion at contact, the result was phenomenal. I went from hitting 210 to 250 plus on a range, re-challenged in three trips there to assure against a possible one-time fluke.

So, that’s not enough. Now I would like to purchase a good non-compliant head and have it fitted with a 48” extended senior flex shaft, 3” longer than standard. Does anyone know which non-compliant head(s) is/are best? Also, is it possible that they aren’t that much better than my new Nike Vapor Fly head, so all I would need is a longer shaft put on it to charge further toward that quixotic 300-yard drive? I've seen Calloway ERC, Cobra SS430, 900+Cor Super Speed by TPF, Juggernaut 515, and Hicor clubs advertised on the Web, but know nothing about any of them.

You could take a look at http://www.tpfgolf.com/

They seem to specialise in non conforming drivers for seniors. Dont see a problem with non conforming clubs. If they help someone enjoy the game then good on you.

[Covert]

Thanks, Russ, I wrote the URL in my notebook and might try one of their clubs. I'm going to have to set up a slush fund that my wife doesn't see if I am to keep buying drivers. She doesn't see the humor in it and insists I should accept my senior limitations and just be glad I can play at all.

[Covert]

11 hours ago, Index95 said:

I'm  71 yrs  old and  like  many  geezers  have   lost driver   distance.  

Have  tried  regaining  some  with several  things:

1.  Bought higher  COR driver .   0.86 COR vs. USGA max of  0.83.  TaylorMade  R7 Quad with   Max on face.  My swing  speed  of  85 ish didn't  work  with   it. I had considered  getting  one  with  shaved face, but heard  they  may crack and still  need  higher  swing  speeds  

2.  Bought Cleveland   ultralight  270 gram club with 1" longer  42 g Myazaki shaft .   Went from  205 to 215+, but now fighting  slice

3.  Went back  to  my pro fitted Ping G15.  Must be swinging  better   because  getting  near 230 again  with  it  55g stock  Ping shaft  

4,  plan to  work  with  both  maybe add lead tape  to  hossel  area of Cleveland  to  help  with  slice

Good  luck  keep us  posted  

 

Thanks, Index. An important tip I get from your helpful data is that I need to work with a pro to try different variations (including non-conforming heads) until I find the best one for my swing. I have an additional gnatty issue caused by an over-aggressive twist thing I tried at the gym, which pulled something in my lower back two months ago that I can’t shake. Now I’m spasmed and stiff and can’t work with weights to strengthen my back, like I was doing. I’m putting off seeing a chiropractor fearing that he could potentially make it worse. I can still play, now; I just can’t swing as hard.

[Index95]

All of us super seniors seem to fight physical issues relative to golf ,in my experience , except my cousins husband who is healthy as a horse, or else he's too proud to admit it & flirts with scratch index,  Damit.

I tend to think your lady may be much smarter than we , but I still have enough testosterone left to keep me in the hunt for just a bit more yardage , please 

Roll Tide!

[StefanUrkel]

Use a bazooka if you want. Just don't gamble with people, play in tournaments, keep a handicap for events, or tell your kids it is ok to cheat. 

[Covert]

Thanks, but that goes without saying, Stefan; I’m talking about practice and recreational play.

I notice that most recreational golfers don’t observe all the rules, especially with regards to improving their lies, and dropping balls. I actually observe more rules and etiquette than most golfers I see. I even take my hat off to enter golf shops. Do you always?

Regards teaching my kids not to cheat, I purposely didn’t have any, out of respect for greenery and the environment in general. There are enough people on the planet already. And I might not have been able to afford playing at wonderful courses like Pebble Beach and Streamsong if I had had kids.

[RussUK]

5 minutes ago, Covert said:

Thanks, but that goes without saying, Stefan; I’m talking about practice and recreational play.

I notice that most recreational golfers don’t observe all the rules, especially with regards to improving their lies, and dropping balls. I actually observe more rules and etiquette than most golfers I see. I even take my hat off to enter golf shops. Do you always?

Regards teaching my kids not to cheat, I purposely didn’t have any, out of respect for greenery and the environment in general. There are enough people on the planet already. And I might not have been able to afford playing at wonderful courses like Pebble Beach and Streamsong if I had had kids.

I have 2 kids under 4 years old and it certainly does impact my playing . Just have to play smarter and choose the best course deals. I love playing on a budget!

10 hours ago, StefanUrkel said:

Use a bazooka if you want. Just don't gamble with people, play in tournaments, keep a handicap for events, or tell your kids it is ok to cheat. 

I wouldnt go that far. My 3 year old wants to play golf with me so im going to take him to the range next year. If he wants to play he can use whatever club he wants even if it is "illegal". I dont see this as telling them its ok to cheat, more that it's ok to have fun which at a young age is far more important than rigidly adhering to the rules of golf.

Sure, as they get older and if they want to play in comps, get a handicap then explain to them why they cant use the no conforming club/ball or whatever. By that time they will be able to understand the reason better.

A large proportion of golfers globaly do not have a handicap or club memership so why not let them use equipment that allows them to enjoy the game?