Golf Digest Article

[golfer1]

There is an article in the December Issue of Golf Digest regarding a study made by GD and some of the major equipment manufactures regarding driver carry and roll. It states that in order to get the maximum roll out of these 460 drivers, the "angle of descent" needs to be be less than 42º or your drives will not get much roll, which is currently my problem with my Cleveland Launcher 460 Ti. 10.5 loft driver.

Anyone seen it?

[warbirdlover]

I saw the term "angle of descent" used in a thread in here somewhere so someone must have read it. I didn't.

[Res Ipsa]

I read the article and before people get too hung up on angle of decent they should realize that this is the last place to start your tweaking. The article admits that this is a source of potential gain of distance but mostly only for the faster swingers. Also it states that this is an aspect of distance but one of minor importance and should take a back seat to launch condition tweaking. In essence this is for the best golfers who already hit there driver well but could squeeze out a few extra yards by hitting it flatter.

[BigJim13]

I agree with Res, I too read the article and while it makes for good filler in GD, I would not start there in trying to find more distance. Good fundamentals are the key, lessons etc. Then get on a launch monitor and find a shaft/head combo that gives you the ideal numbers...

I am actually considering cancelling my subscription to Golf Digest AND Golf Magazine because there is simply TOO MUCH instruction. If I wanted instruction i would take a lesson or buy a book. I want reviews, interviews and info from the tour... there i got that out...

[Eracer]

Originally Posted by BigJim13

I agree with Res, I too read the article and while it makes for good filler in GD, I would not start there in trying to find more distance. Good fundamentals are the key, lessons etc. Then get on a launch monitor and find a shaft/head combo that gives you the ideal numbers...

I am actually considering cancelling my subscription to Golf Digest AND Golf Magazine because there is simply TOO MUCH instruction. If I wanted instruction i would take a lesson or buy a book. I want reviews, interviews and info from the tour... there i got that out...

Amen. Amen. Amen.

[goatster]

also it will only work on fairways that are not soaked or soft.if a fiarway is soft your gonna want more carry.

proof of this is 3 yrs. ago my partner was driving the ball close to me.he hit low runners and the course being only a few yrs old.it wasnt grown in yet and the clay that it was built on was hard and the ball would roll forever.

know that the course has matured a little and they are watering the fairways and front of the greens you need more carry to get your distance.

know i avg. about 30 more yds. then him.although its not all due to trajectory.about 1/2 is.as know i hit it much straighter then i used to.

[JEFF4i]

Originally Posted by warbirdlover

I saw the term "angle of descent" used in a thread in here somewhere so someone must have read it. I didn't.

Probably from me, I've spoken about it a few times.

The ideal angle of descent currently seems to be 37*, which is why it's good to be outside with a launch monitor, to see what you are getting.

Honestly, I love all the instruction with Golf Digest and Magazine, but I also wish there was Tour and club info.

[Mors Ab Alto]

Originally Posted by goatster

also it will only work on fairways that are not soaked or soft.if a fiarway is soft your gonna want more carry.

proof of this is 3 yrs. ago my partner was driving the ball close to me.he hit low runners and the course being only a few yrs old.it wasnt grown in yet and the clay that it was built on was hard and the ball would roll forever.

know that the course has matured a little and they are watering the fairways and front of the greens you need more carry to get your distance.

know i avg. about 30 more yds. then him.although its not all due to trajectory.about 1/2 is.as know i hit it much straighter then i used to.

I too have found this to be true. My home course (like most public courses in west Texas) consists of hard, fast fairways, and over the last 4 years I have gone from a driver with 10.5* to 7.5* of loft (and I even set my weights for a low neutral ball flight). Out here carry is fine, but roll is where it's at. I can say without fear of being called a braggard, that I hit on average 2 or 3 drives at or around 300 yards, with quite a bit of that being roll.

However, I recently went to Mississippi for 6 weeks and was dragged down to earth. The fairways on the courses I played were soft and lush, and my low ball flight did not translate to long drives. I had to change my weights to a high neutral position (thank goodness for adjustable weight drivers) and found that I was maxing out at 265-275 on my best drives.

I think the angle of descent idea comes from someone just noticing that lower shots roll farther than high shots, something most golfers already know. I think that if you are trying to adjust the angle of descent, then the rest of your game must be the $hit already.

[golfer1]

My take on this subject is that you can't have it both ways, long carry and maximum roll with the current generation of 460 drivers without some analysis and shaft tweaking.

Can anybody post their swing analysis results so we can get an idea of what you get for this service?

[BigJim13]

Originally Posted by JEFF4i

Honestly, I love all the instruction with Golf Digest and Magazine, but I also wish there was Tour and club info.

And that's why they are still in Biz, for every person like me, there is someone that likes all the instruction...to each his own...

[JEFF4i]

Well, to be fair, I don't have a subscription because I find it lacking at the same time, for reasons you've already outlined.

[gwlee7]

I gave up on all the mags save Golfweek because the hot tip this month usually contradicts the hot tip of next month or last month.

[BigJim13]

Originally Posted by gwlee7

I gave up on all the mags save Golfweek because the hot tip this month usually contradicts the hot tip of next month or last month.

Exactly, I think i will be giving up everything except GolfWorld. That has tons of stories and comes out each week.