After driver which is the next longest club..

[jamesh]

I thought, after your driver, save a 1iron, or two iron, your next longest club would be your 3 iron, or equivilant. I have been using a 3 hybrid Baffler - I think it is around 20 degrees. I heard a longer club would be a 7 wood which has less loft and is even longer....in addition to my 3 hybrid what other long clubs are easy to hit and can go farther than a 3 hybrid with 20 degrees of loft...

Many thnanks!

James

[bill reed]

Re: After driver which is the next longest club..

hi
with me my
driver hits about 260yds
3 wood hits about 240yds
1 iron hits about 220yds
3 iron hits about 195yds
bill

[LowPost42]

Re: After driver which is the next longest club..

The rule of thumb is less loft = more distance. (I can never keep it straight in my own head, so I had to come up with the rhyme 'stronger is longer' in regards to loft and distance).

Now, with every rule comes exceptions. In this case, it's more like caveats.

Distance can be represented mathematically, where:

Swing speed + quality of contact + spin rates + launch angle = distance obtained.

For the first two variables, the lower the number, the lesser the distance. IOW, less swingspeed and less power transfer (or smash factor) the lesser the distance. Please note, that loft plays a tremendous effect on power transfer (as increased loft creates a more glancing blow). Still, missing the sweetspot is missing th sweetspot.

As for spin rates and launch angle, they operate on a sliding scale, relevant to swing speed. Launch too high, and you've wasted velocity. Launch too low, and the ball's not in the air long enough to maximise carry. Spin works much the same way - too much and you create drag and the dreaded ballooning effect, losing distance. Too little and the ball knuckles and falls out of the air, as there's not enough spin to sustain lift.

For the average male golfer (90MPH Driver SS) their next longest club will be their 3W (15°, give or take).

When SS's drop below the high 70's, then quality of contact is more important than SS in the lower lofts, as there's not enough SS to work with the loft to create the necessary spin for optimal lift. This is why it's recommended that slower swingers use lighter clubs and higher lofts - the lighter club helps get the SS up, and the higher loft adds more spin, helping the ball stay in the air.

So, James, you could reasonably go with a 16° club (or 17 even) as your next longest club. Just make sure that the length is fit properly to the lie, and you'll be fine.

[Scragger63]

Re: After driver which is the next longest club..

It's probably of no value whatsoever....

But, I have hit my pitching wedge 200m when I blade it realley really badly...



Cheers

[jamesh]

Re: After driver which is the next longest club..

LowPost42;

Thanks for such a thorough reply. So a three wood it shall be – I wasn’t aware that those kinds of clubs could be fitted. Are some of the 3 woods easier to hit than others, i.e., is there a “utility” 3 wood… I notice that I have been developing a preference for a heavier club – especially with the driver. My Cobra is pretty light – I would have preferred it to be heavier – my swing speed is about 108 mph - is there any advantage to having a heavier driver in terms of distance….

We had a work tournament yesterday – best ball – we pared every whole – except for the last two – and we came in two over. Thanks for the suggestions regarding our group names – we settled on the Dukes of Hazard and kept our jobs. For the longest drive we were atop a hill and by the time we got there the wind had picked up substantially. The greens were really fast, and I thought, one strategy to win the longest drive may be to hit a low burner and let it roll forever. I thought about this after the competition. My drive was about 10 yards short of the longest drive. Now, the person who won the longest drive was in his sixties and about 5’4 165 lbs. A lot of people were taken back by this, but I thought it was cool, demonstrating the importance of technique and to a lesser extent – driving before a strong counter wind picked up!

James

[LowPost42]

Re: After driver which is the next longest club..

It's probably of no value whatsoever....

But, I have hit my pitching wedge 200m when I blade it realley really badly...



Cheers

That's nothing. I hit power shanks all the time - 50, 60, and sometimes even 80 yards!

James, you're looking for a 15° or 16° utility club. Ashton makes the Xbrid at 16°, but poke around and see what you can see.

Other options to get the weight up: You can get a clubmaker to add hotmelt to the head (increasing the weight and lowering the CoG), and you can go with a heavy steel shaft - increasing both static weight and swing weight.

As for a heavier driver, it helps if you're handsy or come over the top - the extra weight helps drop you into the slot. You'll lose speed, but if your contact improves, you won't notice a distance loss and may actually realise a gain.

With your SS, there's no reason for you not to go with something in the 15° range.