Long Drives are Over Rated

[SilverUberXeno]

Give me a 9 iron into a green instead of a 4-iron and I'm going to score better 7, maybe 8 out of 10 times.

That's a HUGE difference. Generally it's comparing a 9 to a 7 or a 7 to a 5.

 

[Clugnut]

I know the pros play longer courses and longer drives are a huge advantage but there are still the Corey Pavins around.

If Corey Pavin hit it 40 yards longer, he would win 3-5 times a year. He competes despite driving it short.

 

[fisher]

That's a HUGE difference. Generally it's comparing a 9 to a 7 or a 7 to a 5.

Even the difference between a 7 and a 5 is huuuuuge as far as scoring goes. I'm flag hunting with a 7 but I'm happy to be on the green with a 5 in my hands.

 

[shep3470]

I should have been a little clearer. The number aren't the angle the face makes at impact. It is just the total angle offline from dead center the ball can be and still be in the fairway. I.e. if you pull-slice the ball and it starts left, but curves back to the center-line, then it is zero degrees of.

My point was that for a given width, of course the longer you are the more accurate you have to be as well, because the effective width of the fairway shrinks just because of geometry.

With that being said, if you hit your drives shorter you would have to be more accurate with your long irons than someone who bombs their driver using a short iron. Correct?

 

[nututhugame]

Even the difference between a 7 and a 5 is huuuuuge as far as scoring goes. I'm flag hunting with a 7 but I'm happy to be on the green with a 5 in my hands.

For me my cut off line of expecting to be on the green is about 150 (8i). However, my ballstriking is either good or bad equally with all irons, 4-pw. I don't feel significantly better about hitting 7 than 4. For me that's a mental state I try to keep... I don't say oh shit i'm 200 out and probably won't be on. Rather I try to hit every shot as if i'm going to be on and that's all there is to it. Same with bunkers and water... I pick the club that I know will carry if struck well and assume i'll be on. If i'm not then I did something wrong and I usually know what that something is.

All that being said, I currently am working on a happy medium favoring accuracy with the driver. My buddy still swings out of his shoes with his 8.5* driver and when he doesn't duck hook or slice it off of earth he hits em a long way, but that's not very often. I myself got REALLY tired of playing out of trees. It wasn't serving my goal of working on my iron play to be punching out for my 2'nd all the time. WBL knows the round i'm talkin 'bout.

 

[SilverUberXeno]

With that being said, if you hit your drives shorter you would have to be more accurate with your long irons than someone who bombs their driver using a short iron. Correct?

Very, very good point.

 

[warbirdlover]

I learned how to play golf when I was well past my "athletic" prime. I played many years before that with no idea of what I was doing because I couldn't afford lessons. Now I'm retired and have a pretty fair idea of what you are supposed to do with a golf club but I simply can't drive the ball far. You young guys WILL experience this as you get older. Some more then others. Then the "health" issues will enter in and you'll have to fight pain or weakness that does not allow you to swing the way the textbooks tell you you're supposed to swing. My whole point in this is being lost. If you play a normal length course from the white blocks and don't hit long drives or botch some you still won't have that many long shots into the green. So in the everydayman's world of golf you can still enjoy playing a respectable round. We're all not pros in here.

 

[zaphod]

Good point WBL---We have planned obsolescence in our bodies. To compensate for this obsolescence the GOLF Gods have granted us different tee boxes. Pick the one that gives you the correct iron into a par 4 and ---Viola--the equalizer is in effect.

Acceptance of the Golf Gods Gift is a hell of lot cheaper that a Driver A Week Habit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[TheTrueReview]

....If you play a normal length course from the white blocks and don't hit long drives or botch some you still won't have that many long shots into the green. So in the everydayman's world of golf you can still enjoy playing a respectable round. We're all not pros in here.

A very good point WBL. I've seen many a senior golfer who couldn't make GIR but have manufactured a deadly chipping & putting game.

 

[nututhugame]

A very good point WBL. I've seen many a senior golfer who couldn't make GIR but have manufactured a deadly chipping & putting game.

I AM NOT A SENIOR!

 

[warbirdlover]

I AM NOT A SENIOR!

nututhugame

Well then how come you play with golf with one? :emot-angel:

 

[limpalong]

This is quite an interesting discussion... one that has taken place for years in golf forums or around a table in the 19th Hole. As we go through the years of invincibility, we know in our minds the only way to success on a golf course is by being a "big stick". We discuss all day long the advantages of hitting a shorter iron into a green. We discuss all day long the lower scores we know we can post by being one of the longer hitters on the course. There is validity to those arguments... until we meet up with some old fart who cleans out our pockets and sends us home with the burning desire to ditch our driver in the nearest dumpster.
As WBL, I took up this dastardly game at a very late age. However, I was still fairly supple and strong and was able to hit the ball a long ways. I was blessed with the opportunity to bag the newest and best as it would hit the racks in the local golf shop. I wore the right clothes... clothes alone will account for 2 or 3 strokes... bagged the right clubs and scored fairly well. Still, I would get paired with some old coot that would hit the ball 20 yards shorter and score better. It did not make sense!!!
It didn't make sense until I am there! I will never play this game at scratch or better. This body won't let me. However, I will compete with most who do play this game on a recreational basis. I will shoot quite a number of rounds each year in the 70s. Most of the time I will shoot in the low 80s. Now and then, when the bad knees or bad back or overextended waistline come into play, I will bless myself with something higher. And... I do not hit the ball far compared to the young flat-bellies who can pound the ball 300 yards.
As WBL also stated, much of the ability to score is the short game. Our course has postage stamp greeens. There aren't that many long-knockers who have a high GIR on our course. So, if you are just off the green with a PW or a 9-iron, you still need to chip. If I'm just off the green with my 6-iron... the one who has the best short game is the one who cards the lowest score.
So much of long driving depends on the course you play and the tees from which you play. Certainly, there are some courses where you must hit 250+ drives to even get the ball in play. Most course, however, will give those who can consistently hit the middle of a fairway at 230 to 250 a good chance to score well.
None of the above will convince those who hit it long that they do not have a substantial advantage over those who are 20 to 50 yards shorter off the tee. And, none of us old farts who know we will never be able to again hit it 300 consistently will give up on this game simply because we are told we cannot compete with a "short stick" in our bag.

 

[TheTrueReview]

This is quite an interesting discussion... ... And, none of us old farts who know we will never be able to again hit it 300 consistently will give up on this game simply because we are told we cannot compete with a "short stick" in our bag.

Limp, I think something that has been lost in this thread is the role of the handicapping system. Something that allows golfers of different skill or physical prowess to compete on a level playing field. What is a net par, birdie or bogey depends on a player's handicap. GIR for one may not be GIR for another.

 

[fisher]

[video=youtube;6i0c7QPxUc0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6i0c7QPxUc0[/video]

 

[shep3470]

Limp, I think something that has been lost in this thread is the role of the handicapping system. Something that allows golfers of different skill or physical prowess to compete on a level playing field. What is a net par, birdie or bogey depends on a player's handicap. GIR for one may not be GIR for another.

One thing in golf I hate is the hadicap system. Yes I keep one and so do by buddies, but when we play, we don't use them. To us, a shot is a shot. If you play baskeball with your friends is a free throw worth 2 points or is a 3 pointer worth 4 if you are not as good as the others you are playing with?