A vast majority of the golfers that I run into believe that the only way to increase their distance off the tee is to use a longer driver. After all, a longer driver automatically means longer distance, right? I mean, that's what all the advertising and conventional logic tells us - so it must be true.
The facts tell an entirely different story.
Longer length drivers usually spell disaster for most golfer's distance. While it's true you may be able to generate a little more clubhead speed with a longer driver, distance and accuracy suffer for one crucial reason.
Most golfers, even the pros, aren't able to hit longer length drivers "on center" a majority of the time. A majority of the time is 4/5 shots hit on center.
When you miss the sweet spot on the face of any golf club, you lose distance. That's a cold hard fact. When you increase the length of any given golf club for a golfer, you will get to a point where they will not be able to hit shots "on center" a majority of the time. That's another fact.
Now, here's the rub with longer length woods - drivers in particular.
As you increase the length, a golfer may be able to pick up a little bit more clubhead speed. However, the longer club also makes it harder to hit the ball "on center" more often. So, what essentially happens is this: any distance increase from clubhead speed is offset by the distance loss from not being able to hit the ball on center.
In fact, the distance loss from off-center hits is more than the distance gained from the increased clubhead speed. Overall, you are losing distance - even if you can swing the longer driver faster!
Furthermore, when you start hitting shots off the toe or heel of your driver - you are going to have some serious accuracy problems.
The guy at the retail store isn't going to tell you that. He is going to tell you that 45" or 46" driver will increase your distance and improve your game. His goal is to get you to take that overpriced, ill-fitted driver up to the cash register and open up your wallet!
Here's another fact for you. The PGA Tour average length for drivers is 44.5". That's significantly shorter than many of the drivers that come into my shop!
Wouldn't you think that the best players in the world would use a 45"-46" driver, just like the ones you have access to in the stores? The reason they don't is because they can't hit them on-center and straight! If they could, the average PGA length would be longer than 44.5".
It's hard to argue with that statistic.
Every golfer on the planet is subject to these clubfitting principles. Length becomes a detriment at a certain point, and most of you are playing with drivers that are well past this point.
Since most golfers are obsessed with distance, I don't see the major club companies shortening their clubs anytime soon. Distance sells, but it sure doesn't improve your overall game.
In fact, all these longer clubs are causing all kinds of frustration by hurting your game.
One final fact to illustrate why driver length is not as important as you think.......
The distance gained from using a 45" driver vs. a 43" driver? 1 yard.
Think about that for a few minutes.........1 yard.
By Deron Frederickson
Looking for information on custom fitted golf clubs? Check out Deron's series of guides that cover numerous areas of custom clubmaking and how to improve your game. These guides are written to give you the no-nonsense information you need to find the right golf clubs for your game. The guides are available at http://www.ClubCustomFitGolf.com
Deron Frederickson is owner of Frederickson Custom Clubs (http://www.fccgolf.com) and a Professional Clubmakers Society (PCS) Certified "Class A" clubmaker with 8 years experience. He is also a USGTF Associate Teaching Professional with 3 years teaching experience.
Contact Deron Frederickson for more on this topic. Direct line: (702) 374-7232 Email: deronf@fccgolf.com Other helpful information regarding custom golf clubs can be found at: http://www.ClubCustomFitGolf.com
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