"15 Minutes of Body Action Drills Are More
Important Than Hitting 200 Balls"
Tom's Featured Tip: Three More Key Factors That Contribute To Optimal Driver Carry Distance
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Three More Key Factors That Contribute To Optimal Driver Carry Distance
For simplicity, all advice on actual swings or drills is provided from a right handed perspective.
Two Great Training Aids For Indoor or Outdoor Practice
The Divot Board
This is the most useful ball striking development training aid that I own.
Click here ImpactSnap.com to buy now. Start using the ImpactSnap training aid indoors or outdoors to make you instantly aware of proper hand and wrist action, which is second only to low point awareness for great ball striking.
Three More Key Factors That Contribute To Optimal Driver Carry Distance
We have discussed swing speed in previous articles and how it relates to driver carry distance.
Here's a cool chart from Adam Young Golf on swing speed and carry distance:
Your maximum carry distance in golf is limited by your swing speed. If you swing 100mph (flat range, sea level, 72 degrees temp) you're going to top out at 260 carry.
Having said that, perhaps you are unable to put in the physical work to build more swing speed.
The good news is that there are a few other power aspects of your swing that you can work on to get the most out of what you've got.
Three More Key Factors That Contribute To Optimal Driver Carry Distance
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The Problem: LOW LAUNCH ANGLE
Most amateurs don't launch the ball high enough.
The Cure
Optimal launch for most players is between 16 to 20 degrees. Most manufactured driver lofts range between 8* and 12*, so how do you obtain those extra degrees of launch angle?
You get the higher launch angle by striking the ball on the ascending portion of your swing circle arc.
The Ball Is Not At The Bottom Of Your Swing.
For irons, you should strike the ball on the descending portion of your swing arc. That produces a strike that contacts the ball first, then the ground.
The driver is the only club that we need to hit on the ascending portion of your swing circle arc. That produces a strike where the clubhead passes the low point of the swing arc and contacts the ball while the clubhead is naturally ascending, lifting the ball off the tee.
Those strike points are accomplished by correct ball position, correct weight dispersion at impact, and a consistent swing circle arc and depth.
- The Problem: TOO MUCH SPIN
Spinning the ball too much is also a common distance killer.
Optimal Driver Spin Rates- For swing speeds slightly above 105 mph, a spin rate range of 1,750-2,300 RPMs (revolutioms per minute) would be appropriate.
- For swing speeds from 97-104 mph, a spin rate range of 2,000-2,500 RPMs would be better.
- For swing speeds from 84-96 mph, a spin rate range of 2,400-2,700 RPMs is best.
The Cure
Too much spin is often caused by a strike on the downward portion of the swing circle arc, that imparts spin. Hitting more up on the ball allows us to obtain a proper launch angle without adding too much spin.
The ball you use also affects spin properties. I switched to a Titleist AVX ball because the ProV1 was giving me too much spin off my driver and costing me carry distance.
Shaft flex - too much flex contributes to more spin.
Shaft kickpoint also affects spin. Everyrthing else being equal, a high kickpoint produces the lowest spin, a low kickpoint produces the highest spin.
- The Problem: LOW BALL SPEED
Low ball speed is not the same as low clubhead speed, but low clubhad speed is a contributor.
When you divide your ball speed by your clubhead speed, you get your Smash Factor. You need a launch monitor or simulator to get these numbers.
Smash Factor relates to the amount of energy transferred from the club head to the golf ball. The higher the smash factor the better the energy transfer.
Generally, 1.5 is an ideal smash factor, but the average golfer's smash factor is only about 1.42, TrackMan says. If an average golfer could achieve a smash factor of 1.5 (by solid, center hits), that would increase ball speed by 8 miles per hour and reduce spin by about 30 percent. A double benefit!
Here's some dramatic proof of the effectiveness of a good smash factor.
During a lesson yesterday, my middle aged male student produced a 93.4 mph swing speed with his driver, but only had a 1.25 smash factor - that ball carried 185 yards.
On his very next swing we concentrated on better center face contact and although he only had 90.1 mph swing speed, he had a 1.45 smash factor - that ball carried 231 yards!
I'm sure that processing my verbal instruction slowed his swing down, and we will continue to work on picking up his swing speed with good face contact in future lessons.
The Cure
Monitor your center face contact with some Dr Scholl's (or other brand) foot powder spray on the face of your driver.
- Hit up on the ball
- Use the right equipment for your swing
- Produce a center face strike
Try it you'll really like it.
Email Comments: to TomTuckerGolf@gmail.com
Mike Bennett and Andy Plummer, The Stack and Tilt Swing
Love your practice, own your swing, own your health,
Tom
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Lessons are available for all ages and skill levels, please contact
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Train with a Rypstick to improve your swing speed and gain more distance off the tee. If the versatility of three different swing weights in one club appeals to you, this is your swing speed training aid of choice.
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Use your club or hand to re-set the board after your strike
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BONUS: when you buy through the newsletter link above, you'll also receive free access to my Putting Lesson Videos ($50 value) which cover: The Elevated Aimline Drill, The Squareness Awareness Drill, The Aimline Accuracy Drill, The Stock Putting Stroke Drill, The Barrier Drill, The Short Putt Channel Drill, and more.
Train with the Impact Snap training aid to improve your hand and wrist coordination for a powerful strike. A Golf Digest 2021 Editors Choice Training Aid
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SuperSpeedGolf.com Buy now and get to work on increasing your swing speed now.
Club Champion Don't waste another dollar on clubs until you've gone through a fitting at Club Champion, 1669 Pittsford Victor Rd., Suite 400, Victor NY 14564. Call Master Fitter & Builder Jeff St. John. PGA work: (585) 978-8513, cell: (585) 831-2292 to schedule your fitting today1 Mention my name and you'll get special attention.
All the best,
Tom Tucker
Teaching Professional, Batavia Country Club
WGTF ' "Top 100 Golf Teacher"
USGTF Class "A" Teaching Professional
IGPA Certified Golf Psychology Coach
Cell: (716) 474-3005
Email: TomTuckerGolf@gmail.com
http://www.TomTuckerGolf.com
"There are no substitutes in the quest for perfection1"
~ Ben Hogan