New driver

[Typhoon92]

My swing speed and iron distances are like yours.  You need to add more wedges to avoid too many partial shots or after your 50 degree you should bend the next 2 wedges to a comfortable gap.

 

To get the extra wedges....you hit it far enough to not need so many clubs at the top of the bag. ( I think there was renetly a thread about this.)  U don't need a stretch 3, 3 wood and 5 wood.  Hitting driver almost 300, no need for one or both of the 3 woods.  Even the 5 wood....how about scrapping the 3 of them for a 4 wood.  After the 4 wood u go to a 4 iron.  

How many times in a round are u 280 out looking to hit the green.  U are a good player, u can choke down on a 4 wood to get it 5 wood range or smoke it like a 3 wood. 

You'd be better off with the extra wedges or bending.

[Nutsmacker]

27 minutes ago, Typhoon92 said:

My swing speed and iron distances are like yours.  You need to add more wedges to avoid too many partial shots or after your 50 degree you should bend the next 2 wedges to a comfortable gap.

 

To get the extra wedges....you hit it far enough to not need so many clubs at the top of the bag. ( I think there was renetly a thread about this.)  U don't need a stretch 3, 3 wood and 5 wood.  Hitting driver almost 300, no need for one or both of the 3 woods.  Even the 5 wood....how about scrapping the 3 of them for a 4 wood.  After the 4 wood u go to a 4 iron.  

How many times in a round are u 280 out looking to hit the green.  U are a good player, u can choke down on a 4 wood to get it 5 wood range or smoke it like a 3 wood. 

You'd be better off with the extra wedges or bending.

I usually don't take the stretch 3 wood out with me unless I am playing a course in which I need it to reach a par 5 in two that is long..  It is kind of a useless club in reality.  I like it, and I can hammer it off the deck...but its actual practical use is not that high.  My usual club selection is driver, 3 wood 15.5 degree, 5 wood 18.5 degree, 4-PW, UW 50 degree, SW 53 degree, and LW 60 degree.  I feel like I am missing a club between SW and LW.  

I was actually thinking about pulling my 4 iron out....A) because I don't hit it that great and B) I rarely use it.  The only time it comes into play is usually on par 5's when trying to get home in two or even rarer situations where I have a really long par 3.  I hit the 4 iron about 215-220..My 5 wood 235ish, 3 wood 250.  I hit the 5 iron in the 200-205 range.  I just feel like at that 220 distance; I am better off hitting a choked down 5 wood with less muscle because I am much more consistent with the striking of the ball than I am with the 4 iron and then putting the extra wedge in there.  I feel like I find myself in a situation to use the 5 wood much more often than the 4 iron...for layup tee shots, to going for par 5's in 2.  I use the 3 wood off the tee a lot...not the stretch guy...just my regular...again because of the consistency of the strike.  if its a hole 385-350, I pull the 3 wood typically.  Anything less than 350 I will go with the 5 wood.  over 385 I am hitting driver off the tee.   The only thing is I feel like a wuss taking out the 4 iron but I don't think I really need it...I guess I can only try!

[MarvChamp]

As ad old duffer, I should not even be on the same golf course with you guys, much less putting my 2 cents out there...I was wondering though- How much distance is enough? I would think the optimum would be to hit it as far as possible but in the fairway in position to set up the next shot. I wish I had the problem to work on. - Marv

[Nutsmacker]

1 minute ago, MarvChamp said:

As ad old duffer, I should not even be on the same golf course with you guys, much less putting my 2 cents out there...I was wondering though- How much distance is enough? I would think the optimum would be to hit it as far as possible but in the fairway in position to set up the next shot. I wish I had the problem to work on. - Marv

I guess there is always a limit...but length always helps.  As long as my consistency doesn't diminish with the length; why not go farther?  My issue is that I can hit a 15.5 degree 3 wood about 250+ yards consistently over and over again.  Yet, my 8.5 degree driver goes 270 -280 on average.  I feel like I should be squeezing out another 10 yards with the swing speeds and relation to the other clubs.  My swing speed with the 3 wood is around 100mph, but with the driver it tops out around 110..yet I am not that far behind with the 3 wood and a whole heck of a lot more consistently in the fairway.  If I could be putting it out there 290-300 in the fairway, I am going to shoot lower scores.  

[onthehunt526]

49 minutes ago, Nutsmacker said:

I guess there is always a limit...but length always helps.  As long as my consistency doesn't diminish with the length; why not go farther?  My issue is that I can hit a 15.5 degree 3 wood about 250+ yards consistently over and over again.  Yet, my 8.5 degree driver goes 270 -280 on average.  I feel like I should be squeezing out another 10 yards with the swing speeds and relation to the other clubs.  My swing speed with the 3 wood is around 100mph, but with the driver it tops out around 110..yet I am not that far behind with the 3 wood and a whole heck of a lot more consistently in the fairway.  If I could be putting it out there 290-300 in the fairway, I am going to shoot lower scores.  

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You hit it plenty far enough, my clubhead speed is similar to yours. However I'm lucky to get 260 out of my driver on average due to inconsistent strikes and I hit the ball way too high.

About the wedge thing, since you like the Eye 2 so much, why not get the XG sand wedge? I think it's a 56° model but don't quote me.

Hilariously,  @Nutsmacker I almost said eff it to Exotics and picked up an old set of Ping Eye2 irons. But it's hard to find a white dot model that's 1 inch long on eBay. I'm 6'5" ish (6'4" to 6'9" depending on which convenience store I'm leaving)

Why don't you try to get a G25 or G30 driver? Just make sure you have the right shaft in it. Depending on the teajectory you are looking for, you need to have the correct bend point, and flex profile. You can probably almost play the shaft I play in my woods which is the Matrix Black Tie 7M3 but the 75M4 is the newer version of the shaft. 

On the bottom end, I would go 55 or 56° for your 3rd wedge. Going D, 3w, 5w is fine if you don't like hybrids. I thought of going with the "traditional set-up" for a bit before I settled on D, 4w. This is a lot of rambling, but simply make sure you get the right shaft in your driver, and get a 55 or 56 degree wedge to replace the 53°.

Just my $1.98 

[Pretzel]

I didn't think that a driver would make much difference to me, but I usually tested annually to see if the latest and greatest worked any better than the G10 I found on clearance. The year of the G30 I found that both the G30 and whatever the Callaway driver was that year actually gave me 10-15 more yards over my G10. I promptly switched, and have been waiting for a similar performance increase before making another purchase. 

That said, I will note that the new Taylormade and Callaway drivers both gave me small improvements over my G30, but it wasn't enough for me to budget out a $400 purchase for it.

[NCGolfer]

I reviewed the Epic earlier this year.  It's still in the bag and not going anywhere if that says something.  I also hit the M2 during the testing and liked it quite a bit as well.  

It's a bit of an investment though.  I'd suggest trying both (and the Titleist 917 as well) where you can get on a launch monitor to check your numbers out.  Good luck!

[Nutsmacker]

3 minutes ago, NCGolfer said:

I reviewed the Epic earlier this year.  It's still in the bag and not going anywhere if that says something.  I also hit the M2 during the testing and liked it quite a bit as well.  

It's a bit of an investment though.  I'd suggest trying both (and the Titleist 917 as well) where you can get on a launch monitor to check your numbers out.  Good luck!

Yea, I read your review.  It is so tempting to get that club but the price tag is really high.  I am a little shocked at the price to be honest.  Golf is struggling at the moment and they are putting out 5 hundred dollar clubs?  That thing doesn't cost 3 or 4 hundred to actually manufacture.  They are gouging a bit on that Epic.  I was collecting data on my current driver yesterday and it was really odd the changes in distance on off center strikes vs. the sweet spot.  I had two drives that went over 305 when struck perfectly and on slight off hits that still went straight I had a couple that were 260 yard range.  That seems to be such a huge drop off when not hitting it directly in the sweet spot.  I assume that this is where I will see the biggest advantage with a newer club in that the sweet spot will be larger and I won't need to make such a perfect strike to maximize the distance.  The club I use has a very small head for a driver.  

[Jack Watson]

I know one thing.  A compact driver head like my m85 persimmons feels SO different to swing than my g25.

I actually really like the feel with the small heavy driver heads,  but the g25 is super forgiving.

[Nutsmacker]

2 minutes ago, Jack Watson said:

I know one thing.  A compact driver head like my m85 persimmons feels SO different to swing than my g25.

I actually really like the feel with the small heavy driver heads,  but the g25 is super forgiving.

I really like small driver heads too.  It provides more feedback IMO.  The only problem is, playing 15 year old tech probably is not conducive to shooting a better score...My current driver came out in 2002 I think....I am still playing it in 2017.  In 2002 15 year old tech would be persimmon woods....I feel like its time to change...right?

[NCGolfer]

1 hour ago, Nutsmacker said:

Yea, I read your review.  It is so tempting to get that club but the price tag is really high.  I am a little shocked at the price to be honest.  Golf is struggling at the moment and they are putting out 5 hundred dollar clubs?  That thing doesn't cost 3 or 4 hundred to actually manufacture.  They are gouging a bit on that Epic.  I was collecting data on my current driver yesterday and it was really odd the changes in distance on off center strikes vs. the sweet spot.  I had two drives that went over 305 when struck perfectly and on slight off hits that still went straight I had a couple that were 260 yard range.  That seems to be such a huge drop off when not hitting it directly in the sweet spot.  I assume that this is where I will see the biggest advantage with a newer club in that the sweet spot will be larger and I won't need to make such a perfect strike to maximize the distance.  The club I use has a very small head for a driver.  

Read more  

Understood on the price and, yes, it's a bit high.  I'd suggest possibly looking at a M2...still getting on the launch monitor and scoping out a lightly used one.  Not a bad option if you can find it.  Sometimes you can find good value at TM's preowned site.

[Jack Watson]

7 hours ago, Nutsmacker said:

I really like small driver heads too.  It provides more feedback IMO.  The only problem is, playing 15 year old tech probably is not conducive to shooting a better score...My current driver came out in 2002 I think....I am still playing it in 2017.  In 2002 15 year old tech would be persimmon woods....I feel like its time to change...right?

I'm the type to say not necessarily if what you have is working.  It just depends if the modern driver makes a big enough difference to warrant purchasing.  Ten yards?  13 yards?  Is it worth it?

I got used to the feel, but like I said the best feeling to swing drivers are older imo.

[onthehunt526]

@Nutsmacker, if you are consistently hitting it 250+ with your 3-wood, then 270-280 with your Driver is about right. You typically have carry distances of round about 90% of your driver distance with your 3 wood.

the ratios are as follows:

Driver: 100%, 3w 90%, 5w 84%, 3i/hy; 80-81%, 4i/hy: 77%, 5i 72%, 6i 68%, 7i 64%, 8i 59%, 9i 54%, PW 49% the chart doesn"t list wedges higher than a pitching wedge but you get the point, because most of the numbers would be skewed because of all of the speciality shots the pros play with speciality wedges. If you were hitting your 3-wood 270 total (250 carry+ 20 for run), you would expect ~300 yards total off the tee ~280 carry+20 yards of run.

So basically what I am saying is you wouldn't expect to drive 300 if your 3-wood is only going 250+. if its all carry with the 250+ with the three wood you would be pretty close to 300 with carry and roll with your driver.

[Typhoon92]

So Nutsmacker, try bending the 60 to 58.  Don't add another wedge unless it's a 64 degree.

If u  go with a 64, I'd toss the 3 and 5 wood in favor of a 4 wood.  Myself...hitting it far off the tee I'd rather have the 64 degree option than the fw's.

I like where you're other thoughts are choking down on the 5 wood etc...I do that.  Leaving the 4 or 5 iron out would work fine too.  Just choke down if need be.  Good thoughts you got there bud!

[onthehunt526]

2 hours ago, Typhoon92 said:

So Nutsmacker, try bending the 60 to 58.  Don't add another wedge unless it's a 64 degree.

If u  go with a 64, I'd toss the 3 and 5 wood in favor of a 4 wood.  Myself...hitting it far off the tee I'd rather have the 64 degree option than the fw's.

I like where you're other thoughts are choking down on the 5 wood etc...I do that.  Leaving the 4 or 5 iron out would work fine too.  Just choke down if need be.  Good thoughts you got there bud!

@Typhoon92 what if he replaces his 53° Eye2+ with the newer legal XG which I believe is 56°?

This thread is starting to look more like an update my equipment thread and not just a "New Driver" thread. @Nutsmacker does need a new driver. He has a 15 year old r510 that he would definitely benefit from tech from the last 5 years. As a TEE guy, I can't really comment on the new TM, GBB Epic or any of that.

But like I said before the OP and I have very similar clubhead speed, I have spin that is very high around 3000 rpm, so I get robbed of distance from that. I think my issue is more my swing and angle of attack...but that's a different topic for a different thread.

[Jack Watson]

The reason I would be leery of making a driver change is if you know where it's going with the driver you have.

I went through six or seven drivers before finding the one I use now.  I don't hit big but what I like is unless I absolutely put a terrible move on it I can hit in the vicinity of my aim.

I am very weird though I like a flexible r shaft and I choke up about two inches.  If I max out on the range like the one swing I put up my sea level carry is 260-270-well over the six foot high fence on the back of the range that lasers 248.   I don't do that on the course though due to my swing faults causing too much dispersion at max power.  

On course all I care about is dispersion.  I just swing at a comfortable pace so I am not as good a striker as the op.

 

[Nutsmacker]

14 hours ago, NCGolfer said:

Understood on the price and, yes, it's a bit high.  I'd suggest possibly looking at a M2...still getting on the launch monitor and scoping out a lightly used one.  Not a bad option if you can find it.  Sometimes you can find good value at TM's preowned site.

That is the less gimmicky one right?  I was confused by which one was which.  I was thinking about that and checking out a pre owned as I heard they are pretty nice.  I am always curious about pre-owned brand new clubs like an M2...sort of when buying a newer used car.  Why would the previous owner rid themselves of it if it was a good vehicle(club)?

[NCGolfer]

8 hours ago, Nutsmacker said:

That is the less gimmicky one right?  I was confused by which one was which.  I was thinking about that and checking out a pre owned as I heard they are pretty nice.  I am always curious about pre-owned brand new clubs like an M2...sort of when buying a newer used car.  Why would the previous owner rid themselves of it if it was a good vehicle(club)?

I'm pretty sure.  I've bought a putter through this site and had no issues with it and was better than advertised.

I'm not sure if it is as much a "previous owner" thing or that they get back some demo or other clubs and then clean and certify them.  Like I said, the one I got was well better than advertised.