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Driver shaft length- what do you make of this

SuperStroke
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Acesteve

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Let me start by saying I've played golf 30 years but in last year have made more meaningful improvement in my golf game then prior 30 years. So my swing is changing. I'm going from a steep angle of impact to less then steep.;;; but probably still rather steep.


I have a driver I keep in Florida with 44 inch shaft. During my January trip, I flat hit that driver. Fastforward to yesterday, I threw the 44 inch shaft in my current gamer in KY and took it out. at tee off it was 37 degrees. on the second hole I hit one of the best drives of my life in spite of my age. By the end of the round it was 55 degree's and I'd hit 5 drives at an almost out of body kind of way. If I say why- the ball had low spin cutting the wind a bit and rolling a bit. My launch was not low or high, ball just drilled.

It begs this question, how can I be both longer and straighter with a 44 inch shaft then the 45 and 45.5 that normally are in my clubs? I'm 6'1 so not short.
 
One possibility is that strike location is improved with the shorter shaft. You might be finding the center of the face more.
 
I would agree with this for sure. On the 5 I drilled they must have been very near the center. but I have played other clubs for many years and surely I got lucky and hit one near the middle a few times. I wondered if I was able to generate more club speed by a better release related to a shorter club.
 
Like they said, it's all about strike location. For a lot of people, shortening the shaft helps them to find the center of the face more frequently. And being that it's shorter and assuming you didn't completely correct the swingweight, the lighter swingweight is helping to square the clubface up. I hit some of my best drives ever a couple years ago with a 44" driver at a swingweight of C9.



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I’m 5’7” and have played my drivers at 44” since the early 2000’s. I’ve tried going longer a few times and can’t control the ball. I also play my irons shorter than standard.


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And somehow Brooke Henderson uses a 48” shaft on the LPGA tour!!


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AvionicsMan said:
And somehow Brooke Henderson uses a 48” shaft on the LPGA tour!!


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She chokes down on it about 4" though. Friggin long swing too. Reminds me of Sadlowski. Not quite as long, but close.


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I have found, with golf, one or two rounds does not a trend make.

And looks and feels are not the same as a larger batch of objective data.
 
blugold said:
I have found, with golf, one or two rounds does not a trend make.

And looks and feels are not the same as a larger batch of objective data.
Click to expand...
And it changes from clubhead to clubhead. In my 915 and my z565, I loved the way it felt and the results I got at 44". But in the F9, I prefer 45" for some reason. I tried one of my shafts that plays at 44" in it... not as good for me.

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jshuff said:
I’m 5’7” and have played my drivers at 44” since the early 2000’s. I’ve tried going longer a few times and can’t control the ball. I also play my irons shorter than standard.


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+1
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Quality of strike. If you pick up any manufacturers “Tour” editions, it is likely to be 1/2” to 3/4” shorter than the mass market edition. Pro’s have better control of their swings. Us Joe Sixpack weekenders want distance. Longer shaft, more speed, ball go far.

Right now, I’m gripping down about that 3/4” on the Driver to get some control over the club. As the season moves on, I’ll move back up a bit at a time


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I’ve played a shortened driver for the past few years. They tend to launch lower for me than a 45.5”.
Maybe playing the shorter driver put you into a better launch and spin window ??
 
My guess is my balance stays better with the shorter shaft. Regardless my normal gamer shaft is going under the knife. I see no evidence that longer shaft equals longer drive

I should note I lighten grip when I shorten shaft as I like heavy swing weights
 
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