Is short the way to long?

I really like playing with the shorter shaft in mine. First the big thing with me is I am vertically challenged and going a little shorter for me certainly gave me better control.


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I really like playing with the shorter shaft in mine. First the big thing with me is I am vertically challenged and going a little shorter for me certainly gave me better control.


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Me too, I took off 1/2 inch and my contact greatly improved. That half inch made a world of a difference for me. However when we are the Live Driver Testing, I'm curious to know what lengths we were playing because I don't think I was choking down and was getting some great distance and accuracy with them.
 
I wanted to bump this thread with a slightly unscientific test I did today at the range. I brought my K15 which is cut to 44.5" and an X2Hot which is 46". Obviously there are other big differences between the two - shafts, technology, etc. but the goal here was to see the differences between the two when it came to shaft length.

The X2Hot was set to standard 10.5* loft, neutral face. The K15 has the SF Tec weighting to promote a square face, and from what I understand the X2Hot has a bit of a draw bias due to internal weighting as well, so the clubs were pretty evenly matched on that front. I hit 15 balls with each.

I also made sure to grip both clubs right at the butt end to ensure I was getting the full length of the club into play. I'll admit to feeling more confident with the K15 in the beginning, but I was able to adjust to the X2Hot after a few swings, mostly just standing an inch or two further from the ball.

Distance - X2Hot was the clear winner. When I caught it with a good swing, the ball just flew. The ground was soaked so there was almost no rollout, but I was landing them in the 220-225 range which is fantastic for me. The K15 was more in the 200-210 range.

Accuracy - The K15 was basically point and shoot. I did move some left & right a bit, but none would have been penalizing, and they were mostly straight pulls or pushes. The X2Hot I hooked a few times, snap hooked badly once, and had a few fades on overly quick swings (but no banana slices).

Again, we're talking two different clubs here, and I didn't hit enough balls to honestly bring forgiveness into play here as far as one being better on heel or toe hits (which is one of the main reasons I bought the K15). But to talk only about distance between the two, the longer shaft was the clear winner for my swing. Well, today anyways. My swing tomorrow may be completely different :D


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I have always had issues making center contact with the driver due to an array of swing flaws. However, since choking down one inch for over a month now in my 45.5 inch driver, my contact is far better.
If a player's contact is solid to begin with, i dont think it would make sense to do what i do.


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I have always used a 45" driver, so anything longer just makes me feel like I am too far away from the ball.
 
This past weekend I went for a driver fitting. After doing the measurements I was told that because I was 6'4" that I should be at or a little over the 46" my driver was playing at. I explained that I felt uncomfortable at that length. He agreed that golf is so much mental that who cares what the numbers say if I'm not feeling it.

I ended up getting 1" cut off and now play it at 45" and have never felt more comfortable. My swings are finding the center of the club face way more often, my ball doesn't slice hardly, if any, at all, and all of my drives are longer than ever due to finding the center more often.

My first round at my home course had me hitting from spots I had never done before. Which led to shorter approach shots and lower scores. I've always hit my hybrids better and sometimes longer than my drives and now I'm convinced it was because the shafts are just a little shorter and easier to control, for me.

Only wish I had done this sooner!
 
I can probably hit a 5W that has a shorter and heavier shaft longer and straighter than a long light shafted 3w.
 
I broke down and cut my Fubuki ZT to 44.5" and took her to the range tonight. Consistency was excellent. None of the shots would have been in trouble playing anything but the tightest fairways and looking down at the 460 cc head with an inch removed provided a lot of confidence that I could return the club to square easily. I was making consistent contact and two or three hopping to the back fence. With 45.5" when I caught it flush I would hit the back fence on the fly, I flushed one that felt incredible but it came up short so it appears I have given up distance. I didn't think to bring my Rogue which is still 45.5 but that will be the next experiment.

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Removing and inch took my driver from a D-5 to a D-0. She's a D-4.5 now.

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I am 193cm long(6 foot 4 inches) and have 45,25 inch stock bio cell+. Can rip lit long but my fir stats would probably benefit from a short shaft...it is a ponder for me.

Wow,the Bio Cell is 45.75. Waiting for a 44.25 shaft to arrive and try out. I am the same height.


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For the record - putting a mid sized grip on my X2Hot made it far more easy and comfortable to choke up.


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Is short the way to long?

I'll ask this, why is it so hard to just choke down from longer when you need to?

I watched 9 guys go longer than their gamers, all gained speed, and all gained a lot better dispersion. All different caps, all different skills, all different swings. I've got the numbers all saved on my phone and I'm going with the numbers. There's no right or wrong with your own game, but I'm going to take the knowledge and evidence and run with it in my game.

I know it's the Internet and rationalization is the king, but I simple love spreading the knowledge and information from the sources who develop and do this for a living.

Its all gravy.

Jman, let me get this straight: after seeing what you saw, you now believe that an amateur with a non repetable swing (like most of us) will make similar contact (or even better contact) with a 46inch shaft than with a 44inch shaft?
If so, i agree to disagree.
Also, keep in mind that one thing is to be hitting balls in a range and another thing is to be deep in competiton. I believe that if i have a one shot lead in the final hole of a tournament, i will be verry glad to have a shorter lengh driver, but everyone is different.



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I'll ask this, why is it so hard to just choke down from longer when you need to?

I already choke down a half inch, I don't want my driver looking like a counter balanced putter when I swing. :alien:

Plus, if all that extra length is at the end, I'm going to be tempted to use it...I can't help myself and always push the red button. :act-up:




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As soon as I started playing my driver at 44.75 or 44.5 I realized I could control my drives. Prior, I had NO IDEA where it was going off the tee. I've always been fairly long off the tee so this made me a decent golfer all of a sudden. Then, because I had a little success, I started to put the work in on other parts of my game. This to me was the motivating factor that made me a single digit.
 
So here is the thing that I never really understood. I get that cutting the shaft from the butt end decreases swing weight, 1/2 inch is 3 SW. So in order to increase your swing weight up you have to add the missing weight to the head. Why is it that the weight goes to the head and not to the butt end where you took the weight off?

Freddie was right, and when you shorten a club, you move the balance point. Find the balance point with the grip on before butt trimming and then find the balance point once the club is trimmed and re-gripped. SW is subjective. I butt trimmed my driver to 43.75 (making it 44 with the grip) which is what my fitting told me was my perfect length, and I lost the feel of where the club was at, so I added lead tape to the heel of the head near the shaft. Helps with SW and it helps getting that big head back to square. Took 5 layers of tape, but it helped.

Many can butt trim and never notice a change in weight, so it is subjective as to what is right and wrong. No clear answer for everyone.
 
Jman, let me get this straight: after seeing what you saw, you now believe that an amateur with a non repetable swing (like most of us) will make similar contact (or even better contact) with a 46inch shaft than with a 44inch shaft?
If so, i agree to disagree.
Also, keep in mind that one thing is to be hitting balls in a range and another thing is to be deep in competiton. I believe that if i have a one shot lead in the final hole of a tournament, i will be verry glad to have a shorter lengh driver, but everyone is different.



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Read the first sentence of the post you were quoting.
 
I have to face the facts.

My 3W is a glorified driver. It's a Cobra Bio Cell set to 13.5 degrees with a 43.75" shaft. I've been taking lessons and the GC2 had clocked my SS at 91 mph with it. I hit it about 215 carry and it rolls out to around 230.

My driver is a Callaway Big Bertha 2014 model set to 11.5 degrees. The shaft was cut down to 44.5" because I couldn't control the 45.5". This had a surprising effect of both lightening the SW from a D2 to a C8 or 9, and increased my SS with the club from 86 mph to just under 94 mph with more accuracy. Unfortunately I still suffer the spraying driver syndrome.

I have an extra R shaft for the club and may want to try 44". The question remaining is 1" butt cut, and should I tip cut it 1/2"? Or do a full 1-1/2" butt cut? Considering that the SW will be even lighter the SS could require a stiff shaft. Or is it time to start adding lead tape to the club?

If I had better tee shot control I could be single digit HC. My tee shots kill me. I'm usually adding one to two strokes because of them. Honestly I should be hitting 5 irons off the red tees. I'd be shooting in the 80s.
 
I have to face the facts.

My 3W is a glorified driver. It's a Cobra Bio Cell set to 13.5 degrees with a 43.75" shaft. I've been taking lessons and the GC2 had clocked my SS at 91 mph with it. I hit it about 215 carry and it rolls out to around 230.

My driver is a Callaway Big Bertha 2014 model set to 11.5 degrees. The shaft was cut down to 44.5" because I couldn't control the 45.5". This had a surprising effect of both lightening the SW from a D2 to a C8 or 9, and increased my SS with the club from 86 mph to just under 94 mph with more accuracy. Unfortunately I still suffer the spraying driver syndrome.

I have an extra R shaft for the club and may want to try 44". The question remaining is 1" butt cut, and should I tip cut it 1/2"? Or do a full 1-1/2" butt cut? Considering that the SW will be even lighter the SS could require a stiff shaft. Or is it time to start adding lead tape to the club?

If I had better tee shot control I could be single digit HC. My tee shots kill me. I'm usually adding one to two strokes because of them. Honestly I should be hitting 5 irons off the red tees. I'd be shooting in the 80s.

This is a good example of where there may be a need for the smaller headed, lower loft "mini" drivers like the deep faced woods. I'm really watching to see what Callaway brings to market later in this area. For us hackers, we have to find the center of the face every time and that is easier said then done, plus the big 460cc heads do twist on off center hits. Smaller head = less twisting maybe?
 
An update on my experiment with shorter drivers. I cut down my regular flex shaft on my Mizuno JPX-EZ driver from 45.5 to 44. The stiff shaft I am waiting on. I also cut down my shaft on my Nike SQ Dymo STR8-Fit in my second bag in Little Rock. It went from 45.5 to 44 as well.

The fellow who cut down the driver also adjusted the swing weight. It started at D4 and he adjusted it with hot melt to D2.

Have played 27 holes with the Nike and probably hit 50 balls on the range with it. I love the combination. I am longer and straighter with the driver and just pounding the sweet spot. I can high launch/low spin this driver easily with high bombing drives (cutting dogleg by knocking it over tall trees at 150 yards). Ground has been damp/wet this week so it's an all carry game right now so I have hit some shots with lower trajectory. Getting 250 carry into the wind and straight. That shot was on a 430 yard par 4 leaving me 178 into the wind. Hit a 5h to 18" from the hole for my first ever birdie on that hole.

The guy who did the work also did some other things for me (change shafts for my old King Cobras, some new grips) and the work was all fantastic. I am really tempted to bring my Mizzie down to Little Rock for him to adjust. Also tempted to go get another one of the Nike drivers for my main bag. I am just loving it.
 
Freddie was right, and when you shorten a club, you move the balance point. Find the balance point with the grip on before butt trimming and then find the balance point once the club is trimmed and re-gripped. SW is subjective. I butt trimmed my driver to 43.75 (making it 44 with the grip) which is what my fitting told me was my perfect length, and I lost the feel of where the club was at, so I added lead tape to the heel of the head near the shaft. Helps with SW and it helps getting that big head back to square. Took 5 layers of tape, but it helped.

Many can butt trim and never notice a change in weight, so it is subjective as to what is right and wrong. No clear answer for everyone.

I have a Cleveland 588 Custom I trimed 1" off of it to 44.5" I then got the extra weights for the head it comes with a 3 gram weight and I got the 7 gram and 11 gram weights to bring up the swing weight. But I got better results with the standard 3 gram weight, I then changed the grip to a Golf Pride Tour 25 gram grip which is 10 grams lighter than the standard grip and got better results again it seems the lighter the whole package is the better for me.
 
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