Swinging a hollow metal-headed driver meant the overall weight of the club could be lower, which would instantly increase swing speed. At the same time, the heads could be made bigger thanks to the weight savings. Therefore, golfers suddenly had access to clubs that were bigger (meaning a bigger sweet spot) and lighter all at the same time.
Why do golf drivers have hollow heads?
What one person claims is music to one’s ear; the next golfer may be totally turned off by it so engineering a particular sound into a driver is becoming a more important factor into the design. For years after the advent of the “metal” wood (1979), the hollow heads were foam filled. The reason was two-fold.
Should you hit driver or fairway wood for golf shots?
Those who support hitting driver argue that getting closer to the hole, over time, will lead to lower scores. Those who support the three-wood, on the other hand, side with caution and say that hitting fairway wood is more accurate, and it will keep you away from trouble and penalty shots.
What is a hollow metal-headed driver and how does it work?
Swinging a hollow metal-headed driver meant the overall weight of the club could be lower, which would instantly increase swing speed. At the same time, the heads could be made bigger thanks to the weight savings. Therefore, golfers suddenly had access to clubs that were bigger (meaning a bigger sweet spot) and lighter all at the same time.
Are drivers still fun for golfers?
All golfers love to improve, and you aren’t going to find improvement through your driver alone. Drivers will always be fun for golfers. They love to talk about them, try out new ones, and hit them as frequently as possible during a round of golf.
Are driver golf clubs hollow?
Originally, the driver was only slightly larger than any other wood and was designed to be used from the tee or the fairway, but with the advent of hollow metal clubhead construction, the driver has become highly specialized for use off the tee by incorporating an oversized head and a deep striking face to maximize the ...
Why are golf drivers not flat?
Driver Bulge A clubhead's horizontal curvature is known as its bulge, which is designed to partially counter the gear effect. If you hit the ball closer to a driver's toe, the face imparts sidespin that causes the ball to hook -- curving to your left, if you're right-handed.
Why do drivers have no grooves?
Most companies opt out of grooves on the face of a driver in part because driver faces have become so thin that designing for grooves might require a thicker face construction.
Why is a driver face rounded?
When the club head hits the ball the club head is rotating around the center of gravity axis which is in the middle of the club. When the head rotates and hits the ball the gear effect comes into play.
What does CG stand for in golf?
CG stands for centre of gravity and in a golf club head it is the point that all of the weight is acting through. If you drew a line through all the different vertical and horizontal balance points of the club then the intersection of all those lines is the centre of gravity.
What are golf clubs with flat heads called?
Irons. Irons come in a variety of lengths, but all are generally made of solid metal and have flat faces with more loft than woods. They are intended for shots requiring more accuracy than woods; the flat faces and increased loft result in shots that do not travel as far but stop more quickly once they land.
Does a driver need grooves?
The only reason for grooves on the face of a driver is that this it is “traditional." In some cases it helps visually align the club head. The effect on spin is minimal and if anything grooves on a driver may reduce the spin rather than increase the spin.
Do golf drivers need grooves?
It completely depends on the loft of the club and playing conditions. For dry conditions, a driver without grooves will generate similar amounts of spin. But in wet conditions, the ball will actually hydroplane off the face because there's no escape route for the water.
Why are there grooves on golf club heads?
Golf club grooves have the exact same function as the treads on a tire. They allow water and debris to move away from the ball's point of contact to provide cleaner contact with better control. Striking a ball from the rough can be unpredictable when there is a lot of debris between your club and the ball.
What does flat driver mean?
A flat lie angle means that the angle between the shaft and the ground is smaller, making the club shaft more flat as compared with the ground. If your club is too flat for your swing then it means that during your swing, the toe of the club will be lower than the heel (normally you want them level at impact).
What causes toe shots?
The most common cause of hitting off the toe is releasing the club early, the wrists unhinging and the right arm straightening too soon on the downswing. Players who do that hit a lot of fat shots, so they learn to yank the club upward either by standing up or bending their left elbow.
What is bulge and roll?
What is bulge and roll? Bulge is the curvature of the clubface from the heel to the toe. Roll is the curvature of the face from the crown of the club to the sole. Both features have a huge influence on ball flight, due to the science behind gear effect.
What is a driver's face?
Face Welds – many of you are aware, like the crown, a driver’s face is a separate piece that must be welded, brazed, or otherwise attached to the body.
Can you see performance on a car?
While you can’t actually see performance, or even center of gravity locations, frankly, it’s just kinda cool to peel back the hood (or the crown) and take a look inside a driver. Today we’re giving you a chance to do just that in the most literal sense possible.
Do you need to break in a golf driver?
There is no need to break in a new golf driver. Unlike a wooden baseball or cricket bat, which may require some knocking in first before using it in competition, your driver should be ready to use from the moment you buy it. Simply unwrap it, step onto the first tee, and let fly!
Do golf drivers go dead?
Golf drivers are extremely durable and should not go dead, or lose their ‘pop’, over time provided there is no damage to the club head (such as cracks, or dents).
What does a driver sound like at impact?
Depending upon the shape and wall thickness in certain areas of the club, a driver’s sound at impact can range somewhat from muted to sounding like a cowbell. And remember a very important fact – sound is “feel”.
Why are hollow heads foam filled?
One was to prevent the faces from caving in. Secondly and most importantly was to dampen the sound at impact as the metal woods were fast replacing wooden woods whose sound what muted or more of a “thud” sound. That lightweight density foam added a good percentage of weight in those heads too.
How much weight does a cotton ball add to a driver?
Each cotton ball you add you are also increases the weight. On a driver you are looking at approximately 1.6g of weight to equal a 1 swingweight point increase. By adding just 3 cotton balls, you will exceed that slightly. Luckily, most golfers have a hard time telling the difference by adding 2-3 swingweights.
How many cotton balls can you put in a driver?
The volume of a driver might allow you to stuff 20 cotton balls inside if you tried. But you may go from one extreme (cowbell) to the other (dead thud). Use them sparingly and use the tap test on the face to test for the sound. There are always to solutions to virtually any problem.
Is sound a feel in golf?
And remember a very important fact – sound is “feel”. Unfortunately there is no way to please every golfer. What one person claims is music to one’s ear; the next golfer may be totally turned off by it so engineering a particular sound into a driver is becoming a more important factor into the design.
Can you use stainless steel golf clubs without foam?
Over time manufacturers began to realize the stainless steel drivers and fairways would hold up quite well without the foam and as a result the clubhead could be made larger after the weight savings. As a result, clubheads became much more forgiving on off-center shots.
How fast do you have to be to play golf?
You need to be at least 105 to 110 miles per hour and play A LOT of golf and practice a lot. Bottom line is that while drivers do have a shelf life, you’re probably going to buy a new one before your current driver fails on you. A 90-mile-per-hour swing speed has nothing to worry about.
Who are the editors of Golf Digest?
And they are sharing their knowledge with you. Golf Digest's equipment editors, Mike Stachura and E. Michael Johnson, have covered the golf equipment business for decades, and there are few who know the equipment industry better. We've asked them to answer your questions in a weekly equipment round-up.
Who was the golfer that played the Wilson Invex driver?
At the 1995 Open Championship at St. Andrews, John Daly hauled out the very large and unusually shaped Wilson Invex driver from his bag, prompting Jack Nicklaus to comment, “I can’t believe he’s going to play that golf club off this tee.” That tee happened to be at the Old Course, not exactly a place for non-traditional thinking. Daly went on to win that Open, but the driver, which a Wilson sales rep once referred to as “a salmon right out of the river” was pretty much used by no one but Daly. Then again, it did work quite well for J.D.
What is golf equipment landscape?
The golf equipment landscape is a continual cycle of innovation and bold ideas brought to fruition through manufacturing prowess—all to help everyday players and tour pros play better. Most of the time those ideas hit the mark, or at least are not far off of it, gaining acceptance from consumers.
What does the pop do in baseball?
The pop gives you greater distance with a shot, much like a hollow bat gives a baseball player the ability to hit a home run. Drivers that are not legal allow a spring action when hitting the ball. The USGA calls this spring measurement the coefficient of restitution (COR).
Can you use non-conforming drivers on the PGA?
Non-conforming drivers cannot be used during any sanctioned event on the PGA, LPGA, Nationwide or Champions Tour. In addition, the American Junior Golf Association follows guidelines and rules identical to the USGA regarding non-legal golf clubs.
Does the USGA evaluate clubs?
The USGA only evaluates clubs for tournaments in the United States . The Royal and Ancient Golf Club of St. Andrews has been following the same procedures for conformity as the USGA since the revamping of the Rules of Gulf in 2008.
How to do a three wood golf test?
Mark the golf balls from one of the sleeves with a special marking to denote your three-wood shots. Select three different holes for the test: a dogleg left, a dogleg right, and a straight hole. Then, hit six tee shots on each of the holes; three shots with your driver and three with your fairway wood. Bring a notepad with you to write down the ...
Should you hit a three wood straight or a wild slice?
If you tend to hit a wild slice with your driver, but you hit your three-wood straight every time, then three-wood is the obvious choice to hit more often.
Do you hit a 3 wood or a driver?
It should be noted, however, that some slower speed swingers may hit the three-wood as far, or farther than, a driver. A three-wood imparts significantly more backspin, which will help with accuracy most ...
Is hitting fairway wood more accurate?
Those who support hitting driver argue that getting closer to the hole, over time, will lead to lower scores. Those who support the three-wood, on the other hand, side with caution and say that hitting fairway wood is more accurate, and it will keep you away from trouble and penalty shots.
Does Newer Mean Better?
Every year, equipment manufacturers tell us that their latest products are the longest, straightest clubs ever created, and every year, thousands of golfers buy new drivers in the hope that it’s true.
How We Tested
We brought together five testers and four drivers, each from a different decade – the 80’s, 90’s, 2000’s, and 2010’s. Each player hit each driver five times, and every shot was recorded.
The Results
Unsurprisingly, we found that new drivers are significantly longer than old drivers. When looking at the group average, the modern driver was 30 yards ahead of the persimmon driver and 13 yards ahead of the driver from the 90’s.
Conclusion
The next time you see an ad touting the latest driver as being the longest ever, remember what you’ve seen here: a driver that’s nearly 10 years old went toe-to-toe with the best driver of the year because of a well-fit shaft. It’s true that drivers do improve every year, but the improvements are gradual.
How to Quiet A Driver’S Sound by “Cottoning” It
The Days of The “Thud”
- For years after the advent of the “metal” wood (1979), the hollow heads were foam filled. The reason was two-fold. One was to prevent the faces from caving in. Secondly and most importantly was to dampen the sound at impact as the metal woods were fast replacing wooden woods whose sound what muted or more of a “thud” sound. That lightweight density...
Cotton
- Now back to our potential problem of reducing the sound of a driver. We could look back at our past and consider foam filling the heads. Well that is not exactly an option today as lightweight density foam could easily add 20g back to these voluminous titanium driverheads. And for you do-it-yourselfers, foam filling an existing clubhead is messy. My old workshop had foam that explod…
Getting Started
- First the shaft needs to be safely removed using a puller (assuming it is graphite-shafted). Next, the plastic stop at the bottom of the hosel needs removed if it doesn’t come out during the shaft removal process. The stop is there to prevent epoxy from entering the head and causing a rattleat a later date. To remove a plastic hosel stop it is as simple as using a hand drill with a small drill …
Whoa, Don’T Overdo It!
- Each cotton ball you add you are also increases the weight. On a driver you are looking at approximately 1.6g of weight to equal a 1 swingweight point increase. By adding just 3 cotton balls, you will exceed that slightly. Luckily, most golfers have a hard time telling the difference by adding 2-3 swingweights. If you start to add 9 or more cotton balls, then you may want to consid…