Gaining distance with the driver?

[4thand11]

HI all,

 

Have been working on my game a lot this year and have got myself down to a 14 handicap which is the lowest it's ever been. Hitting the ball much more solidly (huge debt of thanks for that goes to Jim Waldron and his "arm swing illusion" thread). Iron play and accuracy off the tee has improved dramatically.

 

However I can't seem to get much distance with the driver. I am 43, in good shape, no physical issues... yet my drives pretty much go from 200-220 tops. Maybe 230 if I flush one perfectly but those are rare. My friend routinely hits 270-280 off the tee and he is the same age and pretty much same size as me. So I feel it must be an error in technique on my part.

 

The strange thing is I can usually hit my 3-wood 200-220 off the fairway, so I am really not getting any more distance with my driver off the tee than I am with the 3w.

 

Can anyone give any tips for adding distance off the tee with the driver? Any good videos that address this?

[UberDave223]

Have you been fitted for your driver by a reputable and expert fitter? Do you know what your swing speed is?

[HitEmTrue]

Try a higher lofted driver...12 to 14 degrees...and maybe a shorter shaft. Used ping g10 12 degree on eBay is a somewhat inexpensive experiment.

[MadGolfer76]

Take a shorter swing.

[tsmithers]

Sounds like you should get fitted for a driver. Is your 3 wood the same brand/model as your driver?

[larrybud]

Two things to increase length without increasing swing speed:
1) A more centered hit which give you more ball speed
2) Better launch conditions (launch angle and spin).

[elvis]

[quote name='4thand11' timestamp='1371485290' post='7263660']
HI all,

Have been working on my game a lot this year and have got myself down to a 14 handicap which is the lowest it's ever been. Hitting the ball much more solidly (huge debt of thanks for that goes to Jim Waldron and his "arm swing illusion" thread). Iron play and accuracy off the tee has improved dramatically.

However I can't seem to get much distance with the driver. I am 43, in good shape, no physical issues... yet my drives pretty much go from 200-220 tops. Maybe 230 if I flush one perfectly but those are rare. My friend routinely hits 270-280 off the tee and he is the same age and pretty much same size as me. So I feel it must be an error in technique on my part.

The strange thing is I can usually hit my 3-wood 200-220 off the fairway, so I am really not getting any more distance with my driver off the tee than I am with the 3w.

Can anyone give any tips for adding distance off the tee with the driver? Any good videos that address this?
[/quote]

I am in the exact same boat. I can hit my 3 wood off the deck farther than my driver teed up. Heck,I can get my 4 hybrid out there with my driver.
I suspect (duh) we both have major powewr leaks with the driver. My SS is 95 mph,which should get me 225- 235 yards easy and I'll struggle to get 200. This is a two year problem for me,with a sudden drop off from where I was averaging about 240. And I'm in better physical condition now.
I'll be watching this thread with interest,but I think our only hope is lessons.

[Daniel Eason]

In response to anyone saying get a driver fitting I'd bet if your mate used your driver for a few shots he'd find it easy to hit the ball further.

[mikpga]

Get fit.

[UberDave223]

[quote name='Daniel Eason' timestamp='1371641244' post='7280138']
In response to anyone saying get a driver fitting I'd bet if your mate used your driver for a few shots he'd find it easy to hit the ball further.
[/quote]
Are you saying NOT to get fitted?

[Evil Ecstasy]

I guess you should find out if its a clubhead speed problem or a smash factor problem. But if its a clubhead speed problem, how do you fix that? How do you get your clubhead speed up to 100+ mph on a consistent basis? Would love to hear answers other than "hit the weights". There are scrawny kids who couldnt bench press the bar who have 100+ mph swing speed..

[JustTheTips]

Age, size and weight have little to do with distance. Swinging fast, hitting it solid, and generating the right AOA all do. If 2 guys the same size and shape lined up for a race, would you expect them to run the same time?

I never get why people mention the bench press when talking about hitting it far. You don't use those muscles to hit the ball. And unless you have seen the scrawny kid on the bench, I would never make assumptions about strength. I have seen scrawny 130lb kids benching 220lbs 10 times. You can get pretty strong without getting big if you work out and do a lot of aerobic exercise.

You want to swing faster. The basics are
1) Mechanics. Make sure you are not throwing away the energy you are generating
2) Strength training - don't have to do weights. There are a slew of body weight type of exercises you can to do get stronger
3) Flexibility -up to a point being more flexible helps you generate more speed
4) power - things like box jumps and medicine ball throws help you turn your strength into power.
5) speed training - Alternating slightly lighter and slighter heavier clubs. Note the world slight. Swinging a 10lb club isn't going to help you.
6) Pick good parents - At the end of the day being born with a crap load of FT fibers is a big asset when trying to generate power. Most of us will never swing 130mph no matter how long we train. Have the right body frame can also help.

If you are hitting the driver as far as the 3 wood (and the 3 wood is going 220), 1 is the big limiting factor. When you are hitting the driver 240 or so then look at the rest. It could be a fit problem but if you are using something like a 10.5 in regular or stiff, you should be in the ball park. You might be giving up 10-15 yards by not being fit but you should still be out hitting your 3 wood consistently.

[quote name='Evil Ecstasy' timestamp='1371646044' post='7280468']
I guess you should find out if its a clubhead speed problem or a smash factor problem. But if its a clubhead speed problem, how do you fix that? How do you get your clubhead speed up to 100+ mph on a consistent basis? Would love to hear answers other than "hit the weights". There are scrawny kids who couldnt bench press the bar who have 100+ mph swing speed..
[/quote]

[PutterKilledTheDream]

Get your numbers first...then evaluate. Sounds like you're not getting the correct ball speed and hence smash factor. If you're swing is overly steep you'll lose effective loft and get high spin numbers and most likely miss the sweet spot. Most likely a swing flaw, but without knowing numbers it's hard to say if you're leaking power or maxed out based on what you've got. But based on what you're saying about the 3-wood, it appears you're not making consistent center-face contact with the driver because of possibly a bad fit, but most likely bad impact alignments ( steep AoA, high spin, low launch=low carry)