draw bias or offset for chronic slicer

[tomcoleman1]

at age 66 I don't think I will develop a good swing with a full pivot and good follow through. I hit a reasonable tee shot all arms about 200 yards but every other shot is a banana. My Pro told me stand closer, stand taller and swing easy--it helped but not enough.

Borrowed a friends Cobra Offset and had some awe inspriring shots, similar results with another guy's draw bias driver one degree.

Any suggestions from you who have been there and done that? Which approach would be better spent $150 or so on a used club. I feel its time to turn in my big bertha and look for technology relief

"golf is an exercise in frustration played with equipment ill suited for which it was designed"---I saw this at 19th hole 40 years ago. I am a believer

 

[slickpitt]

Depending on what Big Bertha you have... new technology could surely help. For Christmas I got my Dad a Ping G5 driver with a R flex shaft. He was using my old Callaway Hawkeye Pro Series driver with an X stiff shaft. His driving has improved greatly.


Edit: My Dad is 68 and can't make a full turn either... knee and back problems.

 

[RickinMA]

it depends on the player
for some, a hook faced club is enough to mitigate a slice - for others, that same club looks funny and they actually wind up holding it open so it looks right and the fix doesn't work at all
More offset and "draw bias" can act the same way
of course, you could always get an offset club with a closed face and draw bias
Shortening the shaft should help you too

 

[warbirdlover]

If you don't feel you can change your swing a draw biased driver will certainly help you. And it should be a regular or even A flex shaft.

 

[Pa Jayhawk]

I hit a reasonable tee shot all arms about 200 yards but every other shot is a banana.
...
Borrowed a friends Cobra Offset and had some awe inspriring shots, similar results with another guy's draw bias driver one degree.

Another consideration for which I didn't hear enough information.

What is the loft on your current driver? Also if you own a 3w or even a 5w, what is the loft and ball flight on them?

With a tee shot of about 200 yards you would likely gain distance by going to a driver upwards of 13.5*. In doing so you may also eliminate your banana. Personal opinion, I would steer clear of an offset driver, and go with the option of maybe a degree or so closed if you intend to do one or the other. My driver came naturally with 1* closed and while it was the club I wanted, the 1* closed concerned me. I did not get it to fix an issue with my drives, and cannot really say I notice a difference at setup. My driver does tend to side towards a fade and is what I want, but not sure if it really changed things.

I think you may gain what you want by going with more loft, and shortening the shaft length may also improve your consistency and dispersion rate.

I would bargain to guess if you currently hit something 11* or less you are not only hurting your distance, but not helping with the Banana. You can get the big faced 460cc drivers all the way up to 16*. If the big face is not what you are looking for, you could likely just pick up a 3w or 4w and gain distance and accuracy.

 

[SiberianDVM]

I have hit that offset Cobra driver, and IMHO, that's the one you should buy. I hit high hooks with it, repeatedly, so you should be able to hit repeated straight shots or even draws.

M speed offset, 12° with regular or senior flex 45gm shaft.

Oh, and try standing further away from the ball to hit a draw.

 

[88cupfan]

I think thats some good advise from PA Jayhawk. I knock it 260+ in the air consistently and still play a 10.5 deg driver. I tend to draw the ball so opening the face, increasing loft is not a problem for me. Plus. We have some trees that stand at the corners of Par 4s and 5s that I can hit over with a higher ball. I dont get the roll that I would with a lower loft but I don't run the ball into trouble as much either. 275 - 285 is long enough when I can hit short irons and wedges because I cut the corners. At slower swing speeds, the higher loft wont make your ball spin as much and it should still roll out.

 

[golfer749]

Tom,

I actually have used the Cobra driver and usually enjoy it. Last few times out I wasn't that happy with my performance. I had originally started with my Cobras with the senior shaft M speed with a 12 degree, then upgraded to the LD M speed senior shaft 10.5, then migrated to the LD M Speed with regular shaft and 10.5, and now to the Draw Taylor Made Burner 9.5. To me I saw a difference between the Burner and the LD. I notice that the Burner has me moving more from left to right, where the LD had me starting more down the right side or right side of middle then kicking right. It also dropped the height of my drive.

 

[MGP]

Another consideration for which I didn't hear enough information.

What is the loft on your current driver? Also if you own a 3w or even a 5w, what is the loft and ball flight on them?

With a tee shot of about 200 yards you would likely gain distance by going to a driver upwards of 13.5*. In doing so you may also eliminate your banana. Personal opinion, I would steer clear of an offset driver, and go with the option of maybe a degree or so closed if you intend to do one or the other. My driver came naturally with 1* closed and while it was the club I wanted, the 1* closed concerned me. I did not get it to fix an issue with my drives, and cannot really say I notice a difference at setup. My driver does tend to side towards a fade and is what I want, but not sure if it really changed things.

I think you may gain what you want by going with more loft, and shortening the shaft length may also improve your consistency and dispersion rate.

I would bargain to guess if you currently hit something 11* or less you are not only hurting your distance, but not helping with the Banana. You can get the big faced 460cc drivers all the way up to 16*. If the big face is not what you are looking for, you could likely just pick up a 3w or 4w and gain distance and accuracy.

Good advice I think. I'm playing a 12º Exotics driver now (recently ho'd head on ebay) too. I carry this driver farther and with less spin than any driver I've ever hit, getting some decent rollout where I didn't before because of backspin. It's got my tee ball to a manageable gentle fade and added about 10-15 yds to my drives. The last three rounds I've played with it almost every drive is in the fairway and I'm even surprising myself with the distance I'm getting. Making my approach shots much easier and my scoring is reflecting that too.