Have you tried a longer driver?

Equipment
#1

I’m not advocating it, just curious… I’ve listened to 2 pros (Hovland on Hack it Out Golf, Homa on Get a Grip) talk about trying longer drivers this offseason, with Max speculating 50% of pros are going to try drivers over 46 inches this season. Not necessarily put them into play, but at least give them a try…

It will be interesting to see if longer shafts make their way into fitting carts over the next few years… I’ve never done a Club Champion fitting, do they have different shaft lengths (and if so, do they go over 46 inches?)

I actually have an old long driver I bought on a whim (it’s 48 inches, and has an ADAMs head) and it’s fun to take out to the range… Once I’m fully healed, I’ll get on the launch monitor and compare numbers.

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#2

I tried longer drivers years ago, but my quick tempo never got along with them. My current gamer is only 44.5" so I’m not even at the 45-46" that most OEMs are pushing. I have a longer 3 wood now that is surpassing the driver though so I have been thinking about revisiting this topic. I think I would need to play around with the head weight and overall weight to get the balance right…also 45 to 46" may be the next step for me given my lack of tempo lol.

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#3

I spoke with a major OEM last week, and they’re going to help me do an experiment with a longer driver shaft. My friend’s at Pete’s Golf (the fitter I use) are going to get everything weighted properly for me, the longer shaft will likely require some counterweighting in the grip.

Anyway, I’m hoping to have the new head and shaft by mid-February. I’m going to practice with it for a month versus my current shaft (44") and see what kind of numbers I get. I’m not out to prove that my results will dictate what everyone else will see, but I’m going to share testing results/research from the OEM and the clubfitter.

Long story short, there are A LOT of variables to consider if you want to do it right, and I’m not sure it’s going to be a move that everyone should pursue. But I am interested to see if I could pull off the dual driver setup, I barely use my 3-wood. We’ll see what happens!

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#4

Awesome! I think there is an interesting dynamic in the golf equipment world where you want to be an “early innovator” but not necessarily the first… I can’t imagine the expense of trying to roll out longer shafts to fitting carts (with heads or weights to match) + the training required to get fitters to build the clubs correctly.

It sometimes amazes me when I look at what’s on the USGA approval list, and how the pros are playing different stuff than we are, but “what’s in the bag” is what sells… So it will be interesting to see if an OEM can figure out a way to get people fit and buying longer shafted stuff… Plus the 2 driver setup means double the driver sales!

I can see Callaway or Cobra taking the lead on the long drive front, Cobra had the Long Tom a few years back, plus Bryson. Callaway has Phil and seem to be spending cash to gain market share… Being the “Longer Driver” guys might be an interesting niche.

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#5

Oh it’s coming, but I really think it’s going to be a niche thing. Maybe similar to utility/driving irons.

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#6

I’m sure it is… I have a logistical background, so I always delve into the “roll out” of ideas… Though, honestly, i don’t know exactly how fitting carts work and who pays for what… I guess the logical thing to do would be have the longer driver as an option in the OEM owned fitting vans and let the players who want to try them chase that experience down.

It’s also just going to be interesting to see who does it on tour… Max Homa basically said he’d never thought to try it, hit 2 balls with one and is now interested… Distance = money for those guys, so I’m sure we will see some people adopt longer shafts. Which is hysterical, considering all the crap Bryson got with the 48 inch driver at the Master’s declaration.

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#7

I think my SIM is 46.5 which is about 1 longer than my previous driver I had. Not sure if it plays a role but in the fitting the Hazardous Yellow 70 gave the best result, perhaps slight more weight syncs up the tempo better. In any case I was driving it really well the past season so for me going slightly longer was not an issue.

I’ve now in several places seen the discussion that one trend is going to a two driver set-up. One is the “bomber” and the other is a little shorter and different spin profile / geared to another shot shape. To me this would make sense for amateurs as Shot Scope etc. all have shown that 3w off the tee is really not any more accurate than driver and the forgiveness of a 460cc head is always going to be better.

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#8

I’ve been thinking about building out a 12 degree short driver… honestly, it might be interesting to have two drivers in the bag but I’m not sure what my strategy would be…

Hit the 12 when distance isn’t as important (short par fours that aren’t drivable) or when I’m not swinging great… hit the 46+ driver on par fives and long, open par fours.

I can actually build out a decent profile on my home course…

Short driver:
1, 9, 10, 11, 16
Long driver:
3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 13*, 14, 15, 18…

Thirteen could be either club… it’s a downhill par four and would depend on how well I was hitting the ball…

I have some shafts laying around… would just have to pick up a head.

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#9

When I played in college in around 2003 a guy showed up to the range one day with a 50" shaft on a Great Big Bertha head. I got to try a couple swings and it was very hard to control. First swing I made contact but it didn’t go over 200 yards. 2nd swing I hit the hosel and the club head snapped off and went around 50 yards.

My current driver is 44.5" and I would be interested in getting a 47-48" driver and would welcome the extra distance if I could get it dialed in. But I would wait a couple years to see how the experiment plays out, and continue speed training to get the max out of my current club.

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#10

I went into longer drivers many years ago. As soon as lighter graphite were practical. I was never long so I was always searching for distance. Fortunately I could always find the center of the face and I was a straight
hitter with a very smooth tempo. So no problems.
I went from 44 to 45 to 46 and finally to 47 1/4. This was over a period of about 15 years. I am 77 now. The year I turned 75 was my second using the 47 inch driver
I played about 1/2 the year and was having trouble hitting it solid and began to shorten the club up. I play at 46 now. Don’t know what happened but think it was a loss of speed and timing due strictly to age.

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#11

Awesome! Appreciate the feedback.

#12

I’ve used a 48" shaft for over a year and it’s worked well for me. I get about 3-4mph extra chs when I do head to head at the range with a 45" shaft. I tried going all the way down to a 44" shaft for a couple of weeks and didn’t see a noticeable difference in accuracy or better strike pattern so I went back. I’ve always liked heavier clubs so it works for me.

I’m only 5’6" so it’s not a height thing – I just need all the distance I can get. FWIW, I also have a 3iron which has 2" longer graphite shaft on it that I like a lot as a driving iron as well.

Edit: just looked at my arccos data and I’m hitting 52% of fairways which doesn’t seem bad.

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#13

Impressive… I think the longer shaft probably makes sense for people who can give up some accuracy for yardage… (or people who don’t lose accuracy).

Im looking forward to getting on a launch monitor and trying a few different lengths.

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#14

The one thing that is hard to do is to keep the swing weight or feel of the club as you go longer. I have had drivers with adjustable weight ports which helps but even then I’ve had to remove the weight entirely and just cover the port hole with tape.
You might think that you should use a stiffer shaft as you go longer but if you lighten the clubhead to retain SW you may actually have to go more flexible.
It’s a lot of trial and error in the beginning.

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#15

Probably 10-11 years ago I hit a 48" driver when I got lucky enough to get paired up with a local long drive competitor. At the time I could really bomb it before getting old and fat. I probably averaged 270 with my 45" driver at the time. I hit this guy’s 48" driver and it went 320, but it was really hard to turn over.

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#16

Interesting! Nice job on hitting the fairways. I’ve wondered about the longer drivers since I read that Phil Mickelson was also trying a longer driver. I’m 5’6 also, and also need more distance…obviously would have to adjust my setup or swing to accommodate the longer driver. What did you change, to adjust for the added length?

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#17

Not a lot, really. I think besides standing a bit farther away from the ball at setup. I think the biggest thing for me was adjusting my timing a bit to deal with the extra torque.

I’ve played with other people and let them try my driver from time to time and I don’t think they’ve had much problem hitting it although their timing might get a little off and push it right a bit.

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#18

You need a wider stance and more weight transfer… with a little practice, you’ll be sending that club head 75 to a 100 yards every snap.

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#19

I have 3 Drivers at the moment. They are all 9.5*. One is 44&3/4, one is 45&1/2, the one currently in the bag that is serving me well is 46&3/4