[Andy Hughes]

OK, I am inclined to give some credence to the distance doom-and-gloomers here at gca led by Pat Mucci and others.  I am even inclined to discount the evidence of my own lying eyes of all the golfers I see when I play and their lack of length.

But what really bothers the sh%t out of me is my lack of length as I hear all this talk of ridiculous lengths. There is nothing in my game that threatens the classics or renders the architecture meangingless.  
I have to consider Hell Bunker if I play St Andrews.  Now, I am not short; a good solid drive will go 260. But that's about where I hit it 10 or 20 years ago.  I use a ProV1 without too many scuffs or gouges. I even broke down and found a nice new Callaway with an enormous head that I can hit solidly. But par 5s are still par 5s for me.  A 450 yard par 4 is still a lengthy hole for me.

What am I missing? Why has the revolution left me behind?

[Mike Hendren]

Andy, like me you are one of the lucky ones.

[Craig Sweet]

Look at it this way Andy, your drives are NOT the ruining any classic courses.  

[Jerry Kluger]

Andy: I agree with you that the equipment doesn't appear to be helping me as much as others and I think there are two reasons for that.  The first is that the benefits with the ball are far greater if you have a very high clubhead speed - Fred Funk spoke about this recently and said where some of the guys were saying that they gained 20 yards with a new ball he was gaining about 5 - and I don't think he was kidding.

The other factor is the courses today.  I find myself going to a new course and playing the course farther back than I would have considered a number of years ago simply because the courses are bigger.  Courses were 6900 from the tips but they're now 7200 or 7500 or more so we play one set up from the tips and we're at 6800 or 6900.  Also, the courses are softer than they were years ago and the ball isn't rolling as far - that 20 or 25 yards of roll makes a big difference.  Distance has become so important that guys like Vijay are going to 48 inch drivers and not caring about what direction only how far.

[redanman]

work on your lag.

[Craig Sweet]

I think Tiger is an excellent example for ALL golfer.

He was very long when he first came up. But he wanted to be longer, or saw the future need to be longer, so he totally changed his swing, worked out in the gym harder, and then changed his swing again. Yes, he went with a larger driver, but he would tell you most of his longer distance has come from swing change and more attention to his physical condition.

The average golfer, on the other hand, in an effort to get longer, buys a different ball and a new driver and that it is.

The lesson here, is...take some lessons! Work on becoming more flexible and athletic...take more lsssons....change your swing...you will get longer.

The added distance IS NOT all about better equipment.

[Bill_McBride]

Andy, join the crowd!  

I was so unhappy about not making a couple of 210 yard carries at Tobacco Road that I soon enrolled in golf school and spent a weekend being tilted, video'd, realigned, etc.  We'll see.

One interesting thing I learned is that I am lined up approximately 20 yards right of where I think I am aimed.  This led to many years of my over-the-top move and a lot of well-struck pull hooks.  You'd think after a half century of golf you could figure some of this stuff out on your own!  

Pro: "Where do you think you are lined up, what's your target?"
Bill:  "About half way between those palm trees."
Pro: "Huh?"
Bill: "Yeah."
Pro: "Which palm trees?"
Bill: "That pair right there."
Pro: "Stop right now, put the club down on what you THINK your aiming line is and come back here.  See that bunker way over there?"
Bill:  "You're kidding, right?"

This was on the third day of a three day golf school.  

A couple of days later I played with Pete Buczowski at Orange County National and it finally kicked in late in the round - one over last four holes with a three putt.  We'll see!

[rjsimper]

Lower body movement
Timing and lag/release of your hands
Catching the ball on the upswing instead of downswing or at the bottom
Trajectory
Conditions of the courses we play versus the tour conditions

[Tom Huckaby]

Andy - I've made this same point many times in here - it sure isn't for normal guys like us that huge distances are happening.

With modern sticks I'm still 250-260 off the tee if I catch it - pretty much the same as I've been for the last 25 years.  Now OK, I am a geezer of 42 now, so I guess I technically should be shorter... But in any case no courses are ruined for me.

BUT... my point in my whole hickory thing is that the modern driver makes it SO much easier to hit the ball STRAIGHT, that in and of itself is an issue....

TH

[Garland Bayley]

The simple fact of the matter is that if you go out and hit driver on the range more than 1000 times per day, then you will get very long. If you go out and play twice each weekend, you will get no longer.

I believe the best alternative to massive amounts of muscle training on the range is to get a weighted club and swing it several times a day.

[wsmorrison]

Bill V is absolutely correct.  The lag is the most important factor in increased clubhead speed and making use of the balls that react over a certain speed.

I helped Craig Disher with his lag.  He got longer but got hurt.  I'm always hurt so maybe I ought to swing like the senior player I almost am.

[Garland Bayley]

PS I believe the weight of the weighted club helps to train the lag.

[DMoriarty]

What am I missing? Why has the revolution left me behind?

Yes, the distance revolution has likely left you behind.  If you are like the vast majority of golfers, your swing speed isnt fast enough to reap a distance advantage from the new equipment.  Therein therein lies the dilemna of the distance revolution-- distance gap between long hitters and the rest of us is out of balance.
___________________________

Craig Sweet, if you look at the statistics it becomes readily apparent that the new technology is the primary force behind the crazy distances big hitters hit it today.   Take a look . . . the PGA website has distance stats going back to 1980.  Take a look, focusing on players that were around before the latest jumps in distance.

Moreover, even those players who are in the weight room to get quicker are there because new technology has enabled them to take a new approach to the game.   Or do you suppose these players would be getting the same results if they were swinging 120-130 mph with a 190 cc persimmon head and a balata ball?

[Craig Sweet]

DMoriarty...I don't think Andy is a big hitter, nor do I think 95% of the golfers falling under RA/USGA rules are big hitters on the PGA stat sheet...

Andy sounds like an average golfer asking a very good question...why aren't I longer despite using new technology?

For Andy, and the vast majority of golfers out there, some lessons,some work at being physically better, will add more distance to his game regardless of equipment used.

[Pete Lavallee]

If Andy is hiting it 260 I doubt he is flipping his hands at the ball; surely his swing has some lag. In a recent Golf Mag they asked 4 pros if they had changed their driver loft within the last 5 years. The 3 long hitters all had gone from 7* to 10*; and had gotten longer. Scott Verplank said he had not changed; his swing speed just can't take advatage of the ball/equipement synergy. I suspect Andy falls into this group; your swing speed has to exceed the testing level before you can steal extra yards.

Craig,

Tiger actually claims he was longer in his youth than he is now.

[Tony_Muldoon]

PS I believe the weight of the weighted club helps to train the lag.

Garland I believe these clubs are good things - in the right hands.  Harvey Pennick recommends them over and again in his ‘books’, particularly for the older golfer. But I think they should come with a word of warning.

I'm relatively new to golf and have had at least 10 lessons each of the past 4 winters.  Each night I walk the dog and carry my ‘momentous club’ with me swinging it over and over - every night.  But I wasn't getting any better.  Lessons were an endless circle where every fifth lesson it was back to basics like the takeaway or not getting too steep in the backswing.  I was beginning to think it was me.  But when I took the heavy club into a lesson we agreed to give it a rest as the extra weight was preventing me learning the lessons I was supposed to be practicing. So recently it's been a regular club with me on the walk and I finally feel I'm making real progress.

I think if you have most of your swing in place they can be a good thing but not if you're still learning.

[redanman]

Watching video of Els, Goosen, Applebee and especially Garcia helps your lag.

Hogan, too.  

[Bob_Huntley]

Watching video of Els, Goosen, Applebee and especially Garcia helps your lag.

Hogan, too.  

Bill,

A full turn, back and front works wonders.

Bob

[Jerry Kluger]

Forget all those young guys - you want to watch a swing that can help guys get better by learning tempo try watching Jay Haas.  He shows that staying relaxed and making a quick move through the ball is what it's all about.  

[Garland Bayley]

There is a sports Ph.D. at as I remember U of Kansas that researched length production, flexibilty vs. strength. Strength won big time. One of the two, I forget which, Holmes or Watson, does not make a big turn.  Therefore, I think strength is the answer.

[DMoriarty]

DMoriarty...I don't think Andy is a big hitter, nor do I think 95% of the golfers falling under RA/USGA rules are big hitters on the PGA stat sheet...

Andy sounds like an average golfer asking a very good question...why aren't I longer despite using new technology?

First, 260 yards is much longer than average . . .  But still Andy's question is much a very good one.   The likely reason Andy is not longer despite using the new equipment is that his swing speed is probably not fast enough to reap a distance benefit from the new technology.

For Andy, and the vast majority of golfers out there, some lessons,some work at being physically better, will add more distance to his game regardless of equipment used.

You are likely correct.  Practice and exercise might help Andy gain a few yards regardless of the equipment used.  But andy's question wasnt regardless of the equipment used, but rather about why he did not benefit from the equipment revolution.   The answer to this question likely has very little to do about lessons or exercise, and very much to do with his physical inability to produce a swing speed fast enough to take advantage of the technological "advancements."   In fact, it is quite possible that some of the advancements, the high performance low spin ball, may hurt his carry distance rather than help it.

[Garland Bayley]

...  In fact, it is quite possible that some of the advancements, the high performance low spin ball, may hurt his carry distance rather than help it.

What this is getting at is did Andy get fitted for ball and driver when he bought his new tee ball bat, er driver. Just buying a new driver won't necessarily change anything.

[Steve Pozaric]

I know you said you hit your new Cally solidly, but is it optimized for launch and spin rate?  Changing heads/shaft/balls might be a solution.  

Try a launch monitor (such as a Vector rather than the nifty big screens where you can see ball flight - Golf Galaxies have both) or, some place like Hotstix in Phoenix (www.hotstixgolf.com).

- I was typing as Garland was posting.

[Craig Sweet]

Garland, you took the words right out of my mouth!

If Andy, or any golfer for that matter, were to get fitted with driver AND ball, they should see an increase in distance.

Don, Andy doesn't have it have a faster swing speed, though it might not hurt, if he is using a ball that matches his swing speed and his driver (and his launch angle etc, etc)

[johnk]

SHAFT

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