Will Phil drive Hootie and the Faz nutz?

[RJ_Daley]

What do you guys think of Fluffy going crazy and carrying 2 drivers, one for the draw and the other for the fade, and with differing distance characteristics.  He said he decided to do that at Augusta even before his extraordinary runaway this week.  

I hope Phil stays crazy hot, and maybe even a few other guys try this 2 driver approach at the Masters this week and have success, just to see what the Hootser and the Faz do to the course next!

[peter_p]

I finally taught him something. I carried two drivers for a number of years before my clubs were stolen. One tended to fade, one drew and I could hit one off the deck. Though they both went about the same distance.

[Rick Shefchik]

Every reputable teacher says the three most important clubs in the bag are the driver, the putter and the wedge.

Pros are already carrying four wedges. Two drivers doesn't seem like a stretch.

[Andrew Thomson]

he could carry 3, I doubt Phils 3,4 and 5 irons get much use

[A.G._Crockett]

My intuition tells me that two drivers are great IF you are hitting it well, and then one would do anyway.  If you aren't hitting it well, you would have twice as many problems.

The last time a player won the PGA event the weekend before a major and then won that major was in 1988, I believe.  Floppy may need more than two drivers to overcome that kind of negative mojo.  If he wins the par 3 tournament as well, he should go on home.

[Craig Sweet]

Phil could carry 6 drivers and he still wouldn't win another major.

[John Shimp]

Craig,
Given the way he just played and the fact that he won the last major that was played, what makes you make your statement?

[Brent Hutto]

About Phil's chances at the Masters, let's look at the predictors...

How does he usually play at Augusta? Well, he won the darned thing a couple years ago. Check.

How did he do in the majors last year? A mixed bag but he finished up strong by winning the PGA Championship. Check.

How is he playing lately? Well, he lapped the field at the last tournament before leaving for Augusta. Check.

Does he have the word "Tiger" in this name? Nope.

So I'd say out of the four most important predictors, he looks good on three of them. So I'll pick him to finish second to Tiger this week  

[JESII]

The two driver thing will work great for him until the first time the fade driver hooks or the hook driver fades. That happens once and he'll go back to normal. Or at least as normal as he can get.

[RJ_Daley]

Brent, sorry bout your dog.

Currently, you might add to your check list that Phil bested Tiger the last outting shared by 3 strokes at Sawgrass, and Tiger hasn't been sub 70s only once in his last 8 rounds if you take out that matchplay Tigerstock cup.

I dunno, Phil looks somehow "different" lately.  I'm not sure how he ever shakes that tag that Barney gave him, however.  Floppy McChokelstien is one of the all time funniest monikers.  

[Jerry Kluger]

I would interpret the use of two drivers to mean that in Phil's view, any hole at ANGC can be attacked if you're in the fairway.  With the length of these guys at say 320 in the fairway, there's not a lot of holes where they can't go at the pins.  You also have to remember that with all their choices in wedges they are also unbelievable around the greens.  Their only problem is putting when they are so fast and they're on the wrong side of the hole.  The only defense that a course such as Augusta would have would be to make the greens incredibly firm - almost like Shinnecock.

[Sean Leary]

Which holes at Augusta is Phil going to want to draw the ball off the tee? I would think that there are a lot more fades for him than draws...

[Patrick_Mucci]

Four wedges?  Two drivers?  

Sounds like excellent reasons for making 9, perhaps 8 clubs the max a player can carry.  

Now watching a pro with 8 clubs in the bag would be entertaining to watch.

Do you really think it would make that much of a difference on the average golf course ?

With the use of Driver, wedge, putter, they don't need many more clubs.

And, those guys are really really good, they can hit a single iron in a variety of ways, making it akin to a utility club.

8 or nine clubs would be plenty for them, they're that good.

It's the amateur and duffer who needs all the clubs, not the Pros.

[cary lichtenstein]

Putting 2 drivers in your bag. It is such a simple idea, it could be brilliant. I draw the ball, so I always start it out at the right edge of the fairway or green, I would love to have a club that would go the other way when the hole calls for it.

I could just take my 4 wood, add an inch and a half to its length, get rid of my 3 wood and carry an extra driver.

By George, I think I'll do it.

[Brent Hutto]

Cary,

What Mickelson is doing is really no different than the guy who adds a 4-wood to his bag one week instead of a 2-iron because there are a couple of shots where he expect that to be the perfect club.

There have been discussions on this forum about the forgiveness and straightness of current drivers. The traditional thinking among longer-hitting Tour players has been to use the driver for distance and tee off with a 3-wood for control whenever you need to work the ball. Phil may have determined that a second driver lets him work the ball as safely as a 3-wood without giving up any distance. I'd think ANGC nowadays is a place where the correctly-shaped driver is a better choice because there aren't a lot of doglegs you need to avoid hitting through by using the 3-wood.

[Martin Del Vecchio]

Which holes at Augusta is Phil going to want to draw the ball off the tee? I would think that there are a lot more fades for him than draws...

He said that on #11, he has to hit a long draw, which for him is a left-to-right shot.

[tlavin]

Phil could carry 6 drivers and he still wouldn't win another major.

That's a losing proposition if ever I heard one...

[Garland Bayley]

Phil could carry 6 drivers and he still wouldn't win another major.

I used to say that Phil would never win a major. Before Mike Weir won, I said that Mike Weir would win one before Phil would. Then Phil had the scare of his life with the birth of his son and nearly losing Amy. When I read what he said after that, I knew he had changed perspective and had begun to live more in the real world. I picked him for the Masters and he came through. I no longer count Phil out, ever.

[Jason McNamara]

Four wedges?  Two drivers?  Sounds like excellent reasons for making 9, perhaps 8 clubs the max a player can carry.  Now watching a pro with 8 clubs in the bag would be entertaining to watch.

Agree with you there, Sean, but just for the record, apparently Phil went with only 3 wedges last week (no 56*).

Jason

[Jim Nugent]

Phil could carry 6 drivers and he still wouldn't win another major.

Really, Craig?  You don't think Phil wins another major the rest of his life?