Driver and Woods for Hitters

[EdZ]

It sounds like you are coming into impact too steeply, potentially caused by either a ball position that is too far forward, a slight reverse pivot, or a head that moves forward combined with the right shoulder being too high.

As a hitter, you can be confident in driving cross line - out to right field - combine that with a head that stays steady and behind the ball with the driver, and if needed, move the ball position back a touch. Also, doulbe check your shoulder alignment, it is quite easy to slip into open shoulders as the ball position moves forward, and check that your right shoulder is slightly lower than your left at address.

[nuke99]

Oh .... No wonder I hit a few good ones when i deliberately moved the ball back and felt that I swing across ..

Thanks Edz.

Do you think as a hitter, a slightly closed face angle driver would help alot?

[EdZ]

Personally, I don't care for closed face drivers, they are a compensation that will prevent you from improving your motion. A touch of offset in the irons can be helpful to hitters however.

[nuke99]

I agree It looks like its compensating.

However my angle is, in order to have a impact fix position, ball below armpit, the shaft ever slightly leaning forward. A slightly closed face driver like 1-2 deg helps a great deal in setup. otherwise a square club would look a touch open and frankly thats what I have. 1-2 deg is quite a norm in retail offerings.

Afterall, a Hitter fades.

Does that makes a bit of sense?

[Yoda]

A touch of offset in the irons can be helpful to hitters however.

Interesting, Ed. Why is that?

[jim_0068]

You need a driver in the 8.5-9.5 true loft range. You need a minimum of a 70g shaft with a very stiff tip and you roughly need .5-2* closed face.

Just my experience in fitting hitters.

[nuke99]

Hum... anyway... I stuck some lead tapes to the bottom of my 10.5 true loft driver to close it 1-2 deg .. so it should end up 9.5-8.5 range.

Anyway, I am hitting way too high so it might be a nice thing.

Edit: Could be another thing though... I read a Tom Wishon post that Especially for woods, if you play with a too flexible shaft, its going to Droop too much downwards during impact thus skying the shots, I did notice that the impact is On top and closer to toe, usually 3/4 of ball below the crown and man the ball sky! And irons are much less likely to Droop down because its much stiffer and more flexible my irons is 1/2 inch shorter than std and stiffer than std. It could be that I become alot more efficient that the lag is much better.( maybe .. i wish).. Man.. Golf is tough.

I have this exact same problem with 3 hybrid , and the s300 i put in feels pretty soft for some reasons though it is hardstepped once.

Now i dont know its my swing or my golf club ...

[golfgnome]

You need a driver in the 8.5-9.5 true loft range. You need a minimum of a 70g shaft with a very stiff tip and you roughly need .5-2* closed face.

Just my experience in fitting hitters.

If the average player produces ball speeds in the 130-140mph range and at that speed the optimal launch angle should be around 13-14 degrees how do you get a heavy, stiff tip driver at 8.5 degrees of loft airborne without some compensations?
I am not being critical but I think that these are fairly strong suggestions without knowing the player. I just want caution in prescribing because before you know it ALL hitters would feel that this is what they need. I have fit hitters in lofts ranging from 8.5 to 16 depending on their motion and their launch angles.

[nuke99]

Thanks Jeff, Edz and Jim.

Certainly learn stuffs about golf every single day.

[EdZ]

Interesting, Ed. Why is that?

Given the natural result of a hitter/an angled hinge is a fade, the offset functions to square up the face a bit easier, resulting in a straigher ball. The crossline motion of the hitter's move is also a factor. In short, the closing and layback of the angled hinge can effectively be more closing/less layback with a club that has more offset, allowing a hitter's motion to result in a more efficient line of compression than an angled hinge would otherwise produce, everything else being equal.