Hitting off the deck

gapwedge

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I've been playing a long time and have always been troubled by being unable to hit a 3 wood of any kind off the "deck" consistently. I have a Titleist910F and it's set up for a slight draw and the loft is +.75 making it almost 16*. I have an older model TM V-Steel 16.5* 4 wood. I'd like to know what I have to do to be able to hit either one of theses off the deck easier and consistently. Any suggestions. I have reg flex shafts on both clubs.
 
I moved this into its own thread so the GolfTec guys have a better chance of seeing it.
 
Thanks smallville.
 
gapwedge - some clarification would help. Are you struggling with the 3 wood because you hit it solidly and the ball still doesn't get up much or are you having troubles hitting the ball solidly?

Looking at shafts could help if your hitting it solidly.
If your not hitting it solidly then thats another issue.

Do you have troubles with other clubs off the deck or is it "just" the 3 wood?

Patrick Nuber
PGA Certified Professional
GolfTEC - Golden, CO
 
I used to be the same, but now I almost prefer not teeing it up. My problem was not hitting it consistently, but after watching something on the golf fix or school of golf where they said it needed to be lined up almost directly where the logo on your polo shirt would be, I was able to really get good contact with the ball. It shouldn't be all that different from being able to hit it off the fairway directly.
 
I'ts just the 3 wood. I changed from a TM 4 wood that I could easily hit off the turf. I've got a new Titleist 910F 15* that struggling with, it's set up for +.72 more loft to produce a slight draw. Where should I be playing the ball from in my stance? Right now it's just forward of the left heel. I hope that helps clarify. All my other clubs pose no problem, just the 3 wood. I've hit both the 24* and 19* hyrids well, and they have a stock Titleist 4875 graphite shaft (r). I also have a TM 21* 7 wood that I can hit better than any of them, but I need a 200-210 yard club and that's the 3 wood. It's shaft is Diamanna 75 (R) flex. Any help would be appreciated. Gap
 
OOps, I meant 4175 shaft in hybrids and my olf 906F had a (r) 4375 shaft and I hit that ok. I'm askingn the pro because I've gotten so many other therorie from my pals and it's driving me nuts and spendingn all my range time hitting the 3 wood. Help!
 
Loft and length of 3 woods have kicked em from my bag. I do much better with 4 and 5 woods with more loft and less length. I've found the slightest drag behind the ball destroys 3 wood shots. It's a problem I choose to ignore as I would prefer to spend more time in practice on other things. I'm not pin hunting with a 3W from 230+ yards off grass. Pretty much just want to advance the ball at that point and my 5W does that quite reliably. I appreciate how detailed you are about your FWs, might that effort be better spent on other aspects of the game?

I'm sure Patrick will have excellent advice and if you follow it and practice you'll improve.
 
...Where should I be playing the ball from in my stance? Right now it's just forward of the left heel...

Hopefully, the pro will chime back in. To me, that seems way too far forward for hitting any club consistently off the deck. When I'm struggling with hitting long clubs consistently off the turf, I do the following: I will play the ball just forward of the middle of my stance and focus on making a smooth swing while keeping the lower body relatively quiet. Also, I try to keep my head from moving up or down through the swing. Once you can do that and make consistent contact, then add back in some lower body rotation to increase speed/distance.
 
I appreciate all the sound advice on this matter, I'm definitely positioning the ball too far forward in my stance as scrubs noted, and that has helped. I normally play from the senior Tees and the only time I hit a 3 wood is on tight par 4's where getting in the short grass is paramount off the tee. The problem comes up when "ego" takes over and I play with a younger crowd and hit from the mens regular Tees, usually 40 yards longer. This makes me either laying up and hoping for a 1 putt or going for it, so pin seeking I'm not. Perhaps a 4 wood in my bag and 1 less wedge, or stay at the "geezer" tees. I just don't know!
 
This may be a little off subject but is it weird that I can hit my driver off the deck better than any 3 wood as long as the lie isn't tighter than a frog's butt.
 
a little tip that lee trevino gives on hitting off the deck is to play it further back in the stance so you are hitting down on the ball.like you would with your irons,he believes this would help the ball get in the air much better.

i personally play it further forward,not as far as you do though,i would say inside the left heel at the very most.i struggled at the start of the season and went with a tm superfast 2.0 and it was awesome,the flight i would get is unbelievable.
 
I have a 14 degree driver that I carry in place of a 3 wood from time to time which is real easy to hit off the deck but it is an older small head driver. I used to hit driver off the deck about once a round with my old Warbird driver but I don't think it is worth hitting today, it is just not a high percentage option anymore. I hit my 3 wood straight or with a draw as far as or farther than I can hit a cut driver off the deck and the percentage is much higher. If you can hit one of these 460 drivers off the deck without adjusting your swing or stance in any way more power to you but they are designed to be hit off a tee which has made them harder to use off the deck.
 
a little tip that lee trevino gives on hitting off the deck is to play it further back in the stance so you are hitting down on the ball.like you would with your irons,he believes this would help the ball get in the air much better.

I believe this is the best advice for the average golfer. I feel like trapping the ball off the deck is easier than sweeping it off. But, of course, I'm a digger. I've also started to think that moving back to steel in the 3 and 5 wood may help with consistency off the deck.
 
Try this tip - I am pretty good at hitting the driver off the deck, and I apply this to my swing for that. Shorten your backswing slightly - not a lot, just don't reach all the way back. It really helps clean up the contact and costs very little in distance.
 
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