9.5 vs 11.5 loft

[Gman209]

Ok, so I have two drivers, I have a Cleveland XLS Hibore Monster driver with a 9.5 loft and a stiff shaft and aCleveland XLS Hibore driver with a 11.5 loft and regular shaft. my swing speed is about 105, I dont know launch angle but I hit my 9.5 degree an average of 265 to 270 and have hit it over 300 a handful of times. with my 11.5 I of coarse get much more air time but hit it an average of 260 to 265 and also have it over 300 a few times. (hard pan enhance of course)

My question is does the the difference in the 2 degree's make that much difference? I keep thinking I should be using the 9.5 because isn't it suppose to get more roll and distance? I'm only seeing approximately 5 yards or so difference and the 11.5 seems to be more accurate as far as hitting more fairways, not that I'm not able to hit the fairways with the 9.5, I know i'm rambling a bit but all my golf buddies tell me because of my swing speed I should be using the 9.5 with the stiff shaft but I just dont see that much difference in distance or am I doing something wrong where I should be getting more distance with the 9.5 than the 11.5?

[KrudlerAce]

Lofts

Hi there,

Yes the 9.5 should be getting you more roll on the fairway because it has a lower launch angle and should produce a lower, more penetrating ball flight. For me I have never seen that much difference between a 9.0 to 11.0 loft off the tee and it sounds like you are very similar. The difference in degrees and the results does vary from golfer to golfer. For some there is a huge difference and for others not much at all. I'm very similar to you in that it doesn't seem to make that much difference. Hence why I went from a 8.5 to a 9.5 loft because it was much more accurate and not a lot of difference in distance.

My personal opinion is I would stick to the 11.5 if you are hitting it just as far and a bit more accurately. You could probably try experimenting at the driving range with different ball positions in your stance with the 9.5 and see what happens.

At the end of the day if you are hitting a driver well and it's doing the job for you I would stick with it regardless of whatever anyone is telling you.

All the best

[Gman209]

Re: 9.5 vs 11.5 loft

Thanks for the advise, I think your right, I will probably stick with the 11.5, I hit the 9.5 pretty good but as I said, i'm a bit more acurate with the 11.5, I guess it's partly because most people feel that if you want to be good you need to increase your swing speed and go to a lower lofted driver and have a stiff shaft yada yada yada, I take a lot of teasing from the guys I play with but I hit as far as any of them and farther than most. I just wanted to know of there were others out there that find that much difference in the higher lofted drivers.
I take the 9.5 with me sometimes and just for kicks hit it at some of the longer par 5's, then after finding that it really didnt go that much further (if I hit the fairway) I end up putting it back and going back to the 11.5, I guess my biggest problem is my own thinking that I should be hitting the lower lofted club when the reality is I should be hitting the club that is absolutely most accurate with not that much less distance.

[LowPost42]

Re: 9.5 vs 11.5 loft

The greater the loft the greater the backspin. So the 11.5 is more accurate by nature of the fact it's more lofted - more backspin makes for a lesser percentage for sidespin.

That said, it's why you're getting the higher ball flight - with a 105 SS and nutting the 11.5 you're likely approaching the upper limits of optimal spin.

FWIW, I start out with an 11 degree driver (measured at 11 degrees) until I've gained some confidence and knocked some rust off. Then I go to a 9 degree in the same head for extra yards. I over spin the 11 and it's junk in any moderate wind once the rust is off; hence the usefulness of the 9.

[Gman209]

Re: 9.5 vs 11.5 loft

I have done that where I use my 11.5 driver but bring my 9.5 and hit a few fairways with it when it's like a long par 5, when I hit my 9.5 I can really get some distance but generally and average wise I dont really get that much more distance as a whole. I guess I'm just like most golfers that we feel the lower the loft and stiffer the shaft the longer it's going to go not taking into consideration consistancy. I guess I'm going to stick with the 11.5 until i'm as consistant with my 9.5 as I'am with the 11.5

[LowPost42]

Re: 9.5 vs 11.5 loft

Why not take both drivers to a clubfitter with a FlightScope or Trackman launch monitor and get your launch numbers with both? Then you'll know if and where improvements can be made.

[Paraneva]

Re: 9.5 vs 11.5 loft

I made my first visit to a clubfitter (an Australian Pro) and found out that I had (at least in those laboratory circumstances) a quite constant launch angle of 14 degrees with my 9½ Burner. I am not sure if such +4½ loft is regular but I really like the driver and the Pro did not find any better combination for me. Don't be fooled that my 14 hits are high: the trajectories are actually really low. It might be that if you have a 12 driver, your launch angle is actually 16-17, eg. close to club 2 !