Why does one choose an "open" face driver?

[ChipDriver]

I was in the pro shop the other day and was listening to someone who was asking about a Cally Razr Hawk Driver (square and also 1* closed) vs. Cally Razr Hawk Tour driver (1* open). Our head pro plays the RH Tour and hits it a ton - but he says he needs it b/c he "slams the face closed and the open-face of the Tour gives me more room for error"; whereas the other pro (teaching pro who played Div 1 golf) says that it helps to produce a fade (a preferred pro shot). Needless to say I was confused, and amused at the same time.

 

Why do you play an open-faced driver?

[fireguyfrank58]

I play a SF TP 2.0 because my miss is a hook. It the only driver that I dont hook the piss out of. Any square face driver I can play but on my bad days.......it's gonna be hard left.

[SpinMill75]

Several players that have very consistant swings prefer an open faced driver. The main reasons are because an open driver will promote a fade as well as prevent hooks. Closed drivers ( most Game-improvement drivers are closed) promote a draw flight to prevent a slice.

hope this helps.....spin

[tembolo1284]

[quote name='fireguyfrank58' timestamp='1311173449' post='3407308']
I play a SF TP 2.0 because my miss is a hook. It the only driver that I dont hook the piss out of. Any square face driver I can play but on my bad days.......it's gonna be hard left.
[/quote]


yap.

[mwink822]

I like open faced drivers because they promote a fade (my preferred shot shape), help keep me from missing TOO far to the left and also set up better to my eye. That's just me though.

[bub72ck]

[quote name='SpinMill75' timestamp='1311173480' post='3407312']
Several players that have very consistant swings prefer an open faced driver. The main reasons are because an open driver will promote a fade as well as prevent hooks. Closed drivers ( most Game-improvement drivers are closed) promote a draw flight to prevent a slice.

hope this helps.....spin
[/quote]

This for me. I have my driver set up to hit a fade and to not hook. Its a combination of the open face of the driver as well as shaft set up to take the left side out of play as much as possible. Obviously shutting the face down with the hands will still produce a left ball but one out of twenty is better than nine out of twenty.

[misterlau]

So that I get a push draw instead of a straight hook.
I can take a square faced driver and weaken my grip to open it up, but then I'm increasing the loft.
Open face lets you do the same thing without altering the intended loft.

[blacksby]

thanks, that's the best explanation of this that i've read[quote name='misterlau' timestamp='1311174160' post='3407334']
So that I get a push draw instead of a straight hook.
I can take a square faced driver and weaken my grip to open it up, but then I'm increasing the loft.
Open face lets you do the same thing without altering the intended loft.
[/quote]

[Lsuhacker]

as players swings progress they usually severely reduce the coming over the top effect (Fades). Thus their misses then come from dropping the shaft at an angle to low to the ground promoting a draw/hook. In an effort to cure this most players will switch to an open face driver to reduce this effect.

[VKV052]

Here is an article that I find very interesting. Hope you find it useful:

http://www.rotaryswing.com/golf-instruction/golfequipment/golf-launch-monitor.php

[VKV052]

I have a 1 deg open face on my driver, and my normal ball flight is right to left, so I don't quite think the idea of an open face is to hit fades. I think it's more to do with effective loft at impact. For you to hit a straight or a draw with an open face, you're effectively shutting the face prior to/at impact, causing the club's loft to go down, keep the spin down and get ideal launch conditions. My 2 cents!

[Fourmyle of Ceres]

Well how about this. One of my many swing flaws is that I hold onto the club for dear life, failing to return it the address position at impact. If I start with the face square to the target line, when I get to impact it will be 3-4 degrees open. So I either use the normal slightly closed-face driver (like my FT-9 Draw) or with a square-faced one (like my Titleist driver) I purposely set up with it closed a bit.

 

I wonder if the same thing applies in reverse to stronger players who hook the ball. Don't you think some of those guys hook because they return the club to impact with their hands turning over just enough to make it more closed than it was at address? By using an open-faced driver they are going with the same plan as me, in reverse. Start with it a degree or so open at address and their natural tendency to shut it down during the downswing will result in a more or less square face at impact.

 

Isn't that what's probably going on? Weak players hold on and fan the club open during the swing. Strong players over-release and shut it down during the swing. Of course weaker players have path and angle-of-attack issues as well, not to mention the inevitable alignment mistakes...

 

P.S. I remember going to a clinic once and the teacher talked about swinging too flat with the driver. He said his swing thought was to swing the driver down on the ball like chopping wood with an axe, as a reminder not to come in so flat.

 

Since my driver swing already looks like someone chopping wood with a dull axe, I put my fingers in my ears and said "Na-na-na can't think about that" until he was done.

[bkends35]

For the opposite reason people play closed face drivers. To prevent the pull hook. Plus open face looks much better at address than closed face.

[Nay_Nay]

[quote name='VKV052' timestamp='1311175525' post='3407389']<br />I have a 1 deg open face on my driver, and my normal ball flight is right to left, so I don't quite think the idea of an open face is to hit fades. I think it's more to do with effective loft at impact. For you to hit a straight or a draw with an open face, you're effectively shutting the face prior to/at impact, causing the club's loft to go down, keep the spin down and get ideal launch conditions. My 2 cents!<br />[/quote]<br /><br /><br />

+1

[cobragolf2929]

The open face works better for me because I have a tendency to swing from the inside. Doing this with a closed face promotes a draw, and most times with my swing, a snap hook. Plus I have no confidence in a closed face driver. Closed face drivers are for golfers who have a slice swing (coming from the outside in).

[gr8 flopshot]

Personally, my miss is a hook so the open face helps me guard against the hook while making it easier for me to hit hte fade when i need to.

[alexhsi]

I have a strange case. I want to achieve a straight to draw flight, but with a square and close driver, I was so afraid of turning over the club, I hit a nasty slice. an open face FT tour help me put a complete swing and have a straight or a draw, and if I miss it's a slight cut. It's totally mental, but it works for me.

[Swingie]

I heaerd all the cool kids were doing it and I didnt want to be left out - doy

[DeCuchi]

Because closed drivers scare me more than a severe downhill left to right putt on fast greens. I swear I could hook a ball into my left ankle if I'm not careful. For me it's visual. If i see a closed face then I'm thinking about not hooking it. I see an open face then all I'm thinking about is where I want to play my approach shot from and I swing with confidence. It just depends on where your misses tend to go. Guys that hook the ball do not want a closed face built into driver, and guys that hit it right don't want to see an open face.

[liquiddi2]

If I hit anything that does not have a straight face or open the ball simply goes left. I have a 117mph swing speed and I'm a 3 handicap. I can't stand any club that looks closed at address. I would not play golf if I had to look at closed faced clubs. I would just drink beer instead.

[lowballbomber]

I am a low handicapper (1.5). I personally prefer a driver that is NOT open. I hit a very straight ball, and prefer a draw. If I even attempt to hit an open face driver, I hit it low and right.

[bladestriker]

[quote name='misterlau' timestamp='1311174160' post='3407334']
So that I get a push draw instead of a straight hook.
I can take a square faced driver and weaken my grip to open it up, but then I'm increasing the loft.
Open face lets you do the same thing without altering the intended loft.
[/quote]

On the money!

[MtlJeff]

my driver is square but i like to think of it as 360 degrees open.

[paulchung]

Open face drivers let you release with no fear of left. I use to play open faced drivers until I developed a bad habit of releasing too hard on my irons, which caused a hook.