Anyone playing 44inch Driver? Pros and Cons

[Mark_Tha_Tinkerer]

Mellow Yellow 420, 10.5 degree playing at 43.75 inches.  Static weight 330 grams with D4.2 SW.  

 

I lost 10-15 yards but have great accuracy and accept that tradeoff if indeed that is what it is.  

 

For context, I cut it down because of shoulder surgery and I found I no longer could get a  comfortable full swing with a 45+ inch driver during my recovery/rehab.  My backswing still is not as long as it was pre-surgery so the loss of distance may be from the shorter swing rather than the shorter club.  

Edited July 20, 2023 by Mark_Tha_Tinkerer
Forgot to put the D in the SW number

[southpaw72]

So everyone playing a 44 or so driver are you playing 41-42 3 wood? 

[Mark_Tha_Tinkerer]

24 minutes ago, southpaw72 said:

So everyone playing a 44 or so driver are you playing 41-42 3 wood? 

No.  Don't play a 3W.  My only Fairway Wood is 358 gram, 5W playing at D3.0. It is 42.5 inches. 

[NRJyzr]

1 hour ago, southpaw72 said:

So everyone playing a 44 or so driver are you playing 41-42 3 wood? 

 

Depending on which club I'm using, it's 42" or 42.5".

 

While 3 woods have gotten longer in the last 25 years, they haven't done so at the rate drivers have.  When the 3w was lengthened to 43", the driver was only 44".  Grossly generalizing, 3 woods have gotten about a half inch longer while drivers are one to two inches longer.

[SollyinGA]

My 3/5wd are still standard length. I don’t have an issue hitting the fairway with them.

 

Driver is 44.5 for reference.

[rbpwrx]

Rickie's at 43.5" and he seems to hit it pretty good.
I've been at 44" for practically ever. 3W @ 42, Hy @ 40.

Also been experimenting with a 42" mini driver (old T-M 300Ti) with surprising results, *especially* on the course.

I can absolutely bash it, never miss the fairway, confidence monster.
But it's as much about stiffness/ lightness (OG Blue X tipped 3", 63g/head 195g) as it is about length. Feels like a Fisher Price toy. But I'm scoring way better. It's slowly nudging even the 44" out of the bag. Might just be mini-D + hybrid. Extra wedges, anyone??

[rbpwrx]

On 7/20/2023 at 5:09 PM, NRJyzr said:

Depending on which club I'm using, it's 42" or 42.5".

 

While 3 woods have gotten longer in the last 25 years, they haven't done so at the rate drivers have.  When the 3w was lengthened to 43", the driver was only 44".  Grossly generalizing, 3 woods have gotten about a half inch longer while drivers are one to two inches longer.

 

Y'ever notice the smartest comments often go along with the most interesting signatures? As a long-time Ram Tour Grind guy, nice to see all those TW sets in yours. (And no, younguns, that doesn't mean Eldrick.)

[byoshio82]

I’ve toyed with 45”, 44.5” and 44” and for me 45” is the sweet spot. Gain way more accuracy but give up a little distance so it depends on what you’re looking for out of your driver. 

[dokex]

If you want to shorten your driver, you should increase the weight of the shaft. In other words, don't play a 50 gram shaft at 44 inches; you would have to add too much weight to the head to get a playable s.w.. Conversely, don't play an 80 gram shaft at 46 inches; it would be too heavy.

[rbpwrx]

8 hours ago, dokex said:

If you want to shorten your driver, you should increase the weight of the shaft. In other words, don't play a 50 gram shaft at 44 inches; you would have to add too much weight to the head to get a playable s.w.. Conversely, don't play an 80 gram shaft at 46 inches; it would be too heavy.

Yeah, for me 70g is the sweetspot at 44".

[Ger21]

10 hours ago, dokex said:

If you want to shorten your driver, you should increase the weight of the shaft.

Maybe that's why I'm hitting it so well. Went with the 70g shaft because I got a fantastic deal on it vs the 60g.

Must have tried 10 different 60g shafts in the last few years, with poor results, after getting rid of my best driver ever with a 70g shaft. Thought I needed to go lighter as I get older, but not really the case.

[FirstFlight]

Tinkering, discovered 43.5 -44" was my niche length. Then discovered the 70g shaft range was my niche. Then discovered that when torque is below 3.0, that pulls and pushes go away. Then discovered that 6-10g lead tape on the head made club feel even better everywhere in the swing.

Used to average well below 40% FIRs, now, about 60%...not looking back.

 

*a major pro to dialing in the driver for me...when my driving starts to go awry, it is now much easier and faster to right that ship and salvage the round.