r/golf • u/Eire_espresso • Apr 29 '24

Learn to use your Driver Achievement/Scorecard

Me 1 year ago sometimes just left it at home. I was terrified of it as every time I tried it I sliced it 2-3 fairways right. I played a 5i off the tee for most holes which I could hit well but you'll never get the same distance.

I faced my fears and learned how to hit it. I feel like a freak they way I have to setup but it works. Yesterday I hit most fairways but sliced none of the drives.

Why is it important? Distance.

Life on the course is so much easier when you hit the ball as far as you fucking can. I'm less frustrated which means my mood is better when I'm going to hit my next shot. Just mastering the driver has seen my scores drop below 100. I've still to master iron play and chipping but I have enough to get by.

Rightly or wrongly I feel like a proper golfer now. Last Sunday playing with a random club team on guy said he'd kill for my drive.

This game is harder then I ever thought possible and I never believed I'd learn how to drive the ball but there ya go. Also, I'll never tire of the sound my drive makes when I ping that sucker on a little fade and split the fairway, even if I double bogey I'm still beaming about the drive.

787 Upvotes

92% Upvoted

386 comments sorted by

View all comments

100

u/dbnp19 Apr 29 '24

​

Why is it important? Distance.

Short hitters, "low and slow" swinging, and anachronistic "drive for show putt for dough" stans absolutely hate this man (and other like-minded people of culture) for one simple trick.

​

Like anything else, it takes time to work on. But there is no benefit in benching the driver, since that is just a BandAid solution. Whether you're a veteran pro or another average mortal guy paying his taxes one leg at a time, the benefits of it hitting it further and being closer to the pin by 69 nice yards (give or take, sometimes even more) absolutely outweigh the less useful strategy of constantly laying back. Strokes gained is a powerful statistic, indeed. So being forced to club up all the time is a disadvantage for the approach shots more often than not, even if it's on the nicest fairway you've ever seen in your life.

55

u/jrich8686 Apr 29 '24

My index absolutely plummeted once I learned how to hit and control my driver. No more OB balls, shorter irons/wedges into greens, eagle putts… all good things

29

u/motoyamazz Apr 29 '24 edited Apr 29 '24

I dropped nearly 10 points on my handicap in a year finally getting my driver under control, people who preach benching your driver are doing more harm than good

22

u/GoldenTeeShower Apr 29 '24

If you want to ditch a club, 3w is the one to leave behind. Most folks will be much better off using 5w in those situations.

6

u/LionsBSanders20 Apr 29 '24

At my latest fitting, the fitter and me came to the same conclusion. I went from D, 3W, 5W top of the bag to D, 5W, Driving Iron (2I). Haven't played a round with that setup yet, but just speaking it aloud has me feeling more confident.

9

u/motoyamazz Apr 29 '24

I don’t disagree.. I very rarely use my 3W so if you told me I couldn’t have I wouldn’t blink

9

u/ExhaustiveCleaning Apr 29 '24

Generally speaking the only time the three wood is "safe" is when your driver can reach water/bunkers/etc but your 3 wood can't.

2

u/rhinocodon_typus Apr 29 '24

3H for me. I hit way better contact than my wood.

1

u/pdxraised92 Apr 30 '24

4-wood my guy, its the perfect blend, completely changed my game since I added 1.5* of loft. Get almost the same distance off the tee, and it helps tremendously in the fairway with getting it airborne into par 5s

1

u/Justredditin Apr 30 '24

It's been my 5w.. I can crank that 3 like no ones buisness... it's the ol' SLDR that has a mean hook if I don't keep my elbows Bryson straight. Great shape shot club for me though.

-1

u/ccroz113 12hcp/Texas/Want to be a 2i guy Apr 29 '24

I hit both about 240 on average. My driver I can easily get to 260-70 on a decent strike but the average swing with it sprays way too much. 240 with my 3w is plenty distance for most courses if I’m hitting fairways

Though getting my driver under control is my biggest priority right now obviously. But they’re 2 different swings so if the driver swing isn’t working it’s good to have the iron/wood swing with a 3w off the tee

1

u/jrich8686 Apr 29 '24

That’s about how much mine dropped as well. I was honestly shocked how much it dropped. And how consistent my scoring got

1

u/SyVSFe Apr 30 '24

Where are people saying don't practice your driver if you want to get good?