Is it a dumb idea to carry two drivers?

[golfer55082]

Driver 1: regular driver, 45” long, regular loft, carry about 280 yards.

Driver 2: long driver with 47-48” shaft, 7-8 degree loft. Carry about 300-310 yards, with 60-65 wide dispersion.

take out gap wedge to stay at 14 clubs.

the long driver would only be used when fairway is very open, and/or I feel it.

I guess this must be a novice and border line crazy idea. Would it work? I think if the long driver can cut me 1-2 strokes per round, it would well worth the reduction of gap wedge. Thoughts?

 

[grm24]

Phil Mickelson won The Masters while carrying two drivers. You can decide from there if you should try it.

[JungleJimbo]

I carry 2 Drivers: one a ‘standard’ 45” Rogue & 10.5* Loft ;

the 2nd a 15.5* 44" Bertha Fusion driver more akin to a 3-wood/ “thriver” (for Long par 3’s, or those narrow/short par 4’s where control is priority/ easier to hit a draw. ).

[Red4282]

I guess if the course you are playing has tight AND wide open holes perhaps, If you only hit one driver 1-2 times it really worth it? How many times would you use the gap wedge? And that includes chipping, etc.

[cliffhanger]

it would only be a conceivably dumb idea if you couldn't hit either of them well.

[golfer55082]

LOL. I hit my regular driver decently well, but You are right, adding a driver of different length and likely a new swing that comes with it might change that....

[Jwags]

I also play two drivers. One a Ping G410+ 10.5 45" shaft

The second a Taylormade original one Mini driver 13.5 with 44.5" shaft that I choke down on.

My home course calls for certain shapes off the tee. I hit low draws with the Taylormade and forgiving fades with the Ping.

I never hit 3 wood off the deck so the mini is a longer 3 wood off the tee.

Are you able to cover all your yardages with the 3 wedges and are you still playing a 3 wood? Maybe dump the 3 wood and get your gap wedge back.

 

 

[Valtiel]

I feel like that type of driver setup would be in play somewhere on tour if it were of any reasonable benefit. The only real dual driver setup we have seen any more than once is the Mickelson one, and that was meant for shot shape, not distance specifically.

With that range of dispersion you are far more likely to cost yourself strokes over saving them, especially since you have now lost a scoring club which you would ostensibly need to capitalize on your now shorter approaches in to the green. It is kind of a weird Catch 22 I think. In order for an extra 20-30 yards off the tee on only specific holes to actually gain you 1-2 strokes per round, your approach to the green would need to be of a fairly high level to consistently take advantage of that, and if your approach is of that high a level, you're better off giving yourself MORE options there, not fewer. Plus, the moment the long driver misses a fairway, any advantage you had is likely gone, or worse. And if your approach is not as strong and the extra 20-30 yards actually WOULD make a difference, then it seems unlikely that you would possess the raw skill needed to consistently control a long driver (no offense, just speaking hypothetically). I can't imagine someone that has enough of a problem hitting a 6i that dropping down to an 8i actually helps significantly being able to also wield a 48" driver effectively.

I hope that makes sense, kinda tough to explain! hah. In my opinion you are likely better off finding ways to squeeze more out of your current driver via ball flight e.g. the classic fairway finder cut shot vs. the big bomb draw.

[b.mattay]

60-65 dispersion with the long driver is pretty good. I would just play that one.

[James the Hogan Fan]

You're basically carrying a driver and 2-wood at that point right? That used to be quite common; I'd expect it's not that crazy, especially if you're turning par 5's from 3 shoters to 2 or driving the occasional par 4.

I imagine you'd be able to work around the dropped gap wedge, especially by picking the driver that doesn't leave you in the gap.

[dacatalyst41]

I’m seeing more and more guys carrying a 2nd driver. It’s typically a shorter and easier to control setup for tight tee shots and short par 4s.

[Rapidcat]

I am also interested in this idea.

What could be a suitable 2nd driver that can be 'playable' as a strong fairway metal eg deeper face but enough weight low in the clubhead?

Always feel more comfortable hitting a deeper face long club off the tee.

If I could find such a 2nd driver, I would drop my 15 deg 3 wood (which I hit off the deck ok but don't love it as a tee club) for this 2nd driver and play a 4 wood or lofted down 5 wood in a 43 or 42.5 inch shaft.

[Mookieb10]

I guess we all think we have “good input”, but I haven’t seen this said yet so I’ll add my .02. I dropped a wedge this year to simplify my short game. It’s worked well, but I’ve not figured out where to put the extra club. If dropping the wedge at very least yields no difference, than it would seem to be a reasonable idea at very least.

[BIG STU]

Personally I do not think it is crazy at all. One has to do what fits their game and courses. Like James pointed out back in the persimmon days guys used to carry a driver and 2 wood. And actually going back to those days the difference between the two with the balata ball is dead on what you posted. Distance wise no but flight and game plan yes. And I do not subscribe to the theory of what Joe Pro does or does not do on tour. Like I said you have to do what fits your game and courses. Remember in this game there is no etched in stone sure proper way to go about playing it. Heck according to "mainstream thinking" I am odd on the top end-- I carry a 23* hybrid a 18* 5 wood and a bent to 19* 2 iron. My 4 wood is 16*. Also I am odd on the bottom end 48* 51* 56* wedges and get this 3 different brands too.

Mookie I used to carry only 2 wedges because I could do most stuff around the greens and 110 in with the 56*---- But that is the way I learned the game--- But lately due to frankly getting old and not swinging as hard I did add a 50* I bent to 51* to put a little bounce in it. But like you said I keep it simple.

I will also add what works for me may not work for you or anyone else and visa versa

[MtlJeff]

Mathematically if you're going to hit them both 4-5 times each in a round than it isn't that crazy, many clubs we carry we hit less than that. I may use my 56 sand wedge once every 2 rounds honestly

If you are only using the Long driver like once a round, maybe I'd say no, find something else of greater value

[Fuscinator]

I carried a fade driver and a draw driver until I started hooking the fade driver.

[aquapig]

310 carry :)

[Davidv]

One way to find out try it and let us know the results .

[uglande]

I think it's a great idea. I have toyed with it. I have a mini-driver that I love, although it's not in the bag at the moment. I like the idea of one driver set up as a shorter-shafted club with more of a high-draw bias and a standard length driver with more of a mid-power-fade setup. But given how important driving is, I think it makes total sense.

[cardoustie]

I disagree, tour guys can hit 13* fairways off the deck

this higher lofted second driver makes sense if you don’t like a 3w off the deck or tee, and one of your drivers is a safety driver ... or you can move one L to R and the other R to L .. ymmv

i did it for half a season, 10,5 and 13 w a 43 shaft .. but then I found a a few 3w’s I loved and went back to more traditional

[puttingmatt]

If it allows you to score better, why not.

Your evidence to support it, should be in

the number that is printed on your card at the end of a round

That said, setting up a fade or draw biased driver, and carrying both assumes your swing already produces a relatively straight ballflight, hence the benefit of setting up the drivers for each the fade and draw settings.

[getitdaily]

Not a dumb idea if your gapping down the bag isn't a concern.

My only thoughts are around the 2 driver setup. It would make more sense to me to have a draw biased driver and a fade biased driver so you can play any hole the way they're designed. 280 carry is going to get it done anywhere you play.

If I were to play 2 drivers then I'd have them setup so the fairways get wider for that 280 carry. That dispersion number on the longer driver isn't any good...

[davep043]

So you're talking about gaining 20 yards or so a few times per round. What are we talking about, 4 or 5 tee shots? And you're thinking that 20 yards will mean something like a half-shot every time? I'm not sure that math works out. I'm not saying not to try it, and it may depend on how you'll deal with the gap in your shorter irons, but I'll be surprised if its really an advantage.

[northernmi]

I carry two but the second replaces my 3 wood and plays much more like a two wood. Primary driver is a Ping Gmax 400 with a 45" shaft -carry being in the 235-240 region. The other is a 14* Acer Thriver at 43" with carry at about 215-220 and lower trajectory. I love and use both each round. I go to a 21* 7 wood after that that carries (and stops at) around 200 yards. Leaves a bit of a gap but if I am playing a course with multiple 200+ yard par 3s then I am on the wrong tees. With no 4 or 5 wood I can carry a full complement of wedges.

[Haber]

I don’t see this making much sense. Unless you’re playing tour length courses with 450 yard par 4’s and you’re looking to hit a shorter iron in. But really if you’re left with 130 in as opposed to 150 are you that much more accurate with a wedge as opposed to a 9 iron?

for the average length course it makes 0 sense. If you’re carrying your driver 280 you will be hitting a short iron or wedge in on almost any hole as it is and able to attack most par 5’s in two.

[golfer55082]

I typically play at around 6800-7000 yards, that is from the tip in regular courses and the second tee back in longer courses. The advantages of 300+ drives in open fairways , assuming landing on or near the FW, would make the 2nd shot a mid-iron for par 5s and wedge for longer par 4s. I feel much more comfortable to hit 7i vs 5i, and pw vs 8i. I don’t see it used for shorter or regular par 4s because the FWs there are usually tight.

[tbonetw]

I can imagine doing this, but I'd never consider kicking the GW out of the bag to try that. If I were taking a club out to try 2 drivers it would definitely be one of my longer clubs. For me it would either be the 3 wood or my 2 hybrid. But I'd rather even take my 6 iron out of the bag and hit a choke down 5 iron that take my gap wedge away. If you're pretty good you expect to hit a 110 yard wedge to 10 feet. Trying to consistently do that by gearing down on a pitching wedge seems risky. And even if you can dial in the distance, trying to hit easy PW to a front flag or in firm conditions where you can't put as much spin on it just doesn't sound like a great plan to me. No offense. Not debating the overall strategy. I just think there's a better choice of clubs to take out of the bag.

[jons1]

 

Is this based on theory or actual testing? Most people find that the longer shaft does little to help them. They miss the sweetspot of the head way more often, and dispersion is more erratic. A longer driver can produce more clubbed speed, but often times during testing produce the same ball speed as the shorter driver. So I would say in general it's not the way to go.

 

 

 

[Valtiel]

I don't disagree with that, I was specifically referring to the OP talking about carrying a standard driver and a long driver, not anything related to low lofted fairway woods.

[PowderedToastMan]

If a club existed that I could carry 310 yards, I’d do anything necessary to find a spot for it in the bag. What you really should be doing is practicing more with the long driver so you can find it off the tee more often.

The people who are debating whether or not an extra 20-30 yards is advantageous don’t understand the modern game, IMO.