Driver Distance

Well what's your SS? How far do you hit the ball now. Give us some vitals. Handicap maybe a swing video or two.

My swing speed as of now is in the 90 mph and I hit the ball on avg. 230-340 yards. My handicap as of now is between 5 and a 6.

I hope you didn't mean to type 340! Thats not struggling.lol

Well what's your ball flight like? For your ss 240 is fine.

Yeah sorry about that I meant 230-240 yards. And my ball flight is quite high but sometimes I have a tendency to hit the ball off the bottom part of the face of my club and the ball goes low. Another question I had is that I am a 5 or 6 handicap golfer and I feel that if I can hit the ball consistently 260 to 270 or even 250 it would make me a much better golfer, using a 6 iron instead of a 4 or 3. I just didnt know if something that I could change within my driver that would help me increase distance (or helping me increase swing speed)

[quote name='UNCC Golf#1' date='10 February 2010 - 07:21 PM' timestamp='1265847690' post='2242371']
Yeah sorry about that I meant 230-240 yards. And my ball flight is quite high but sometimes I have a tendency to hit the ball off the bottom part of the face of my club and the ball goes low. Another question I had is that I am a 5 or 6 handicap golfer and I feel that if I can hit the ball consistently 260 to 270 or even 250 it would make me a much better golfer, using a 6 iron instead of a 4 or 3. I just didnt know if something that I could change within my driver that would help me increase distance (or helping me increase swing speed)
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Well besides making your driver longer, you can't really increase swing speed just from an equipment change. I suggest lifting and stretching to increase your SS.

I was reading a long drive magazine and it said that putting in a higher end shaft could really increase swing speed. Do you believe that to be true?

Just because a shaft is high end does not mean it is going to increase your swing speed or distance. I suggest you go to a fitter who can get you into the best possible shaft for you. If you are looking to increase your swing speed you might think about going to a lighter shaft. But again, the best thing you can do is get fit so you know that the shaft you choose will match how you swing perfectly. Beyond that, as mentioned before, you should consider working out and trying to increase your core strength. Your swing may also be contributing to your loss of distance. Final point, while a shaft may increase your dispersion and distance somewhat it is not a magic cure all. It is unlikely that simply by throwing in a high end shaft you are going to go from averaging 230 yards to 270yards off the tee. Get fit for the proper shaft and get your swing looked at are my suggestions.

at that swing speed, just hit the weights my friend , then it will come natural

How big are you? If you are 6' or taller, and 170 lbs + , I would be worried about how far you are hitting it. But if you are normal sized for your age I wouldn't worry about it. When I was in HS I played against this guy who was a little on the small side, couldn't hit it out of his shadow ( 215-220), but he managed his game well, and made a ton of putts. He got to go play D1 golf, grew, and started hitting it farther. Even won on tour I think...His name was Ben Crane.

[quote name='im a doughball' date='10 February 2010 - 11:02 PM' timestamp='1265860937' post='2242961']
How big are you? If you are 6' or taller, and 170 lbs + , I would be worried about how far you are hitting it. But if you are normal sized for your age I wouldn't worry about it. When I was in HS I played against this guy who was a little on the small side, couldn't hit it out of his shadow ( 215-220), but he managed his game well, and made a ton of putts. He got to go play D1 golf, grew, and started hitting it farther. Even won on tour I think...His name was Ben Crane.
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haha thats a great story, but im just like you OP im a 5-6 handicap. But i have reg shafts and hit the ball about 250 on a fly, and im lucky to get to 260 on a roll, just start lifting and stretching, it'll come trust me

Yeah I am 6'1 and like 200 lbs, that' why I posted this topic, I am real worried about my distance

at 6'1 200, it's time to change the swing. the equipment isn't holding you back, your swing speed is. your swing speed is avg for a senior golfer

If you want to improve the distance on your driver: go get tested on a launch monitor and see how your numbers are: Pay special attention to rpm, launch angle... the person helping with the stats on the monitor can interpret the results for you. It all depends cause its different with everyone. For me I have a 114 mph ss launch angle of 11-13 and a spin rate below 3100 rpm with a smash factor around 1.48, but I get around the 300 mark. Just get your swing tested and they can help with equipment, or tell you that you're just not hitting it properly due to technique.

With your 3 wood, it seems that you would need something that puts spin on the ball to get the ball in the air thus hopefully increasing your distance.


Hope it helps

[quote name='UNCC Golf#1' date='11 February 2010 - 02:32 PM' timestamp='1265916748' post='2244163']
Yeah I am 6'1 and like 200 lbs, that' why I posted this topic, I am real worried about my distance


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You probably just flip the club. Figure out how to get some lag in your swing, and you should definitely be gaining some serious yards.

Ok. Thanks a lot guys, all of this information is sure to help.

How about you post a swing video? If so, we could probably find what is causing you to lose distance. Being 6 1, there's no reason you couldn't hit it at least 270, if not much further.

I will post a video soon. Where I live we got 2ft. of snow on the ground. I practice in this indoor warehouse but I haven't been able to reach it due to the snow and roads, but as soon as I can I will post a video.

This might sound really stupid, but how do I upload a video of my swing once I have it on tape.

[quote name='UNCC Golf#1' date='11 February 2010 - 07:38 PM' timestamp='1265935085' post='2244972']
This might sound really stupid, but how do I upload a video of my swing once I have it on tape.
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It's not stupid at all, you could upload it to youtube, and then embed that video in this thread, do you know how to upload to youtube? If not, it's pretty simple, we could help you with that also.

$300 spent on gym memberships/protien suplements will always go further then $300 spent on shafts if you want more distance.

Is there anyway to upload the video without having to pay for an account on youtube?

youtube is free...

[quote name='UNCC Golf#1' date='12 February 2010 - 12:45 PM' timestamp='1265996704' post='2246529']
Is there anyway to upload the video without having to pay for an account on youtube?


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Yeah, youtube is free, just make an account, and you should be able to browse to the video on your computer then upload it.

Cool. thanks guys I will upload a video as soon as possible

hows it coming? video wise.

I would, like everyone else has said, hit the weight room. I'm about you size (6', 205 lbs) and I have a swing speed of 108 MPH. All the high end shaft is going to do is fine tune your ball flight to add MAYBE 5-6 more yards. Other than that, being a 5-6 handicapper and only hitting 230, has got to tell you something. If you can score while your that short then it must mean you can hit greens, get up and down, and putt. THOSE are the most important aspects, distance will come if you work hard on your strength.

i agree with all the get fitted advice and what not...
but a few years ago i was in the same scenerio i was like 5'6" weighed like 100 lbs
and i wanted to hit it farther i was hitting it like 200 tops so i was like screw this...
stumbled upon on article where tiger says 90% of his power comes from his core
so after that i started doing tons of situps started with like 20 a night moved to like 50 then to about 150
over the course of a year i grew two inches gained 25 pounds from other sports too,
then all of a sudden my swing speed moved to about 108 from the previous oh 94 or so
now that i swing harder i have began to tinker with high end shafts, develope your strengths and
then get the right shaft

Thanks for all your tips, I am working on doing sit ups and push ups everyday and practice my technique as well. I will hopefully post a video of my swing within the next week hopefully so I can get more perspectives from others on what I need to work on.