The driver is a tough club to hit. In fact, it's probably the hardest club to hit consistently out of all of your other clubs. It doesn't help that most drivers today are being built way too long for the average golfer either, which makes it even more difficult.
TK was having trouble slicing his driver and any progress he had was cut short due to surgery on his left shoulder last year. He's looking for any tips or ideas on how to hit the driver straight.
Surge,
I've watched your daily videos for some time now. What I have never seen you talk about is someone who is ambidextrous. I am left hand dominant, but I golf right handed. I struggled for about four years time hitting my driver, with my right arm lagging in the background and slicing all my shots. Last year I finally got my driver to go straight but had it cut short of perfecting it due to surgery on my left shoulder. Is there some trick or routine to help keep the driver going straight? Love your videos and the PPGS swing!
TK in Minnesota
The first thing I have to address is the golf club itself. I have to make an assumption that TK is hitting the other clubs in his bag fairly well because he only mentioned the driver. So, it might be the club, not his swing. This is often the case if only a few of your clubs give you problems. If that's the case, it's time to get to a PPGS Certified Club Fitter.
Most drivers today are built way too long with heads that are way too big, such as 460 CC. This is why people usually hit their fairway woods and hybrids better because they're built shorter. But, what if it's not the club that's causing you to slice?
Many golfers have the idea in their head that they're going to slice the driver anyway, so they end up playing for it by opening up and aiming out to the left (right handed golfer). I ask these players why they're not aligned correctly and they say because they have to play for the slice. My answer to them is always the same. If you don't want to slice then don't play for it.
The first thing you need to check is your golf club. If you've already been fit for a driver but are still having trouble slicing or hooking the ball, then you need to work on alignment, setup, and maybe even your swing. If that's the case, you need to contact a PPGS Certified Instructor. If you're looking to really improve your game, have a look at our Upcoming PPGS Golf Schools near you!
You can also check out the archives of daily videos that are here to help you out. Just use the search bar and type in any sort of swing problem you may be having.
Keep it vertical!
The Surge
If you can't view the YouTube video above try CLICKING HERE. You must allow popups from this site for the link to work.
Comments
Low compression golf balls
For those of us with slower swing speeds, using a low compression ball gives us more backspin and control on pitches and short approach shots, just because the ball stays on the clubface longer. I get the same amount of control with a Wilson 50 as I do with a Pro V1, and the shots go straighter and just as far. And they feel much better. Appreciate the tip.
Low compression golf balls
Lerner,
Pro V1's, Srixon ZURS etc feel like I am hitting a stone not a ball. Same with the Srixon Tri-speed. The latter I like off the tee and fairway with woods, but hate it for pitch shots and putting. Practicing I take a couple of balls of different brands and trial them against one another. Chipping I just drop them and play to various targets. When finished I check the ones closest to the targets. There are several I like, Srixons, Wilsons and Bridgestone,and Callaway. For all around performance, for me, the softer compression balls perform best.
Even blindfolded I can tell which is which by feel and sound alone.
Pro V1 for lots of amateurs is totally unsuitable. Don't believe all the hype checking out different brands for your self makes more sense. It is in all cases how the balls react for you. Will look at Wilson 50's when I get the chance. Thanks for that.
Arrow not the Indian?
hahaha Surge! Loved the video today as always. Before watching it I had been watching the Houston Open. During ad breaks, I got out the old wooden driver I used on my last outing. I had a permanent marker on my balls. The face of the small headed club had upright lines marking the face, where it had come into contact with the ball through impact. I had luckily not cleaned them off. With the exception of on mark on the heel of the clubface, all the others were upright in the middle of the sweetspot!!! Even the one on the heel was upright. Now that leads me to believe that the lie angle on the driver was spot on,ie, the shot off the heel an obvious 'Indian' fault on that particular shot, which hooked. So I have dug out the irons to that set and will have a swing session shortly. Now they were 'my colour code' but not measured for me. The present clubs in use were, supposedly fitted to me and shortened 1/2" an inch before I collected them.They are meant to be 2degrees flat. Now that was for a rotational swing. With the more upright PPGS swing perhaps my old arrows were the bees knees! Interesting indeed.
Proof positive as Surge emphasized, yet again, it is likely the arrows and not the Indians at fault. Better golf is only a fit away, resonates more today than it did yesterday ; - )
My wife has just made some biscuits. She saw the recipe in a Chinese newspaper, we picked up while shopping yesterday. Flavouring provided by two teabags!!! They are yummy and will be well worth taking a few to munch on next time on the course. Shhhh! don't tell Dick Lee or R2 heh heh heh!
Thanks again Surge for your very timely and interesting Easter message.
Food!
DH: I was doing fine until I read about the biscuits your wife made. Now i'm hungry and it's 11pm here in Utah - too late to make anything fancy so I 'm just gona dish up a big bowl of ice cream with some choclate and carmel toppings. Me thinks we just gotta get together some day, play a couple of rounds, and trade recipes! lol. Enjoy! R2
Fresh biscuits?
Yum. Dang it. it's too late for me to be getting the munchies too. I like your plan for us all to get together and eat.................. oh, and play some golf too!
Could relate to TK`s letter
Hi Don,
thanks for todays video. I had the same problem as TK and I was lucky enough to attend one of your 1-day schools in the Nedtherlands last September with yourself and Leo. During that school Leo fitted my driver to fit me. Actually he cut off 2inch and it made quite an impact as my drives instantly improved and were straighter than ever. I had doubts if a shorter shaft may lead to shorter drives but as the drives got straighter they also were longer and still are. Combined with all the other tips I left the Netherlands with a boost in confidence. Thanks again for that great 1-day school.
So I do encourage TK to see a fitter to adjust his driver to fit him which might help him big time in curing his slice.
I like to ask a different question. I think I am on a good way with the swing, actually I am quite happy with my game, tee to green but on the greens I am not as happy. I do have a good distance control but I struggle in seeing the breaks on the green which lead oftne enough to strange putting results. Now while searching the web there are quite a few companies offering a solution if I only buy their sunglasses which promise to improve my reading of the greens and see the breaks better.
Does anyone has some expereince on golf sunglasse,s is there something behind the promise by Nike, Oakley, Callaway etc. or is it only a hoax to sell useless glasses?
I would appreciate any advise on good glasses if they excist.
Keep it vertical,
happier on the greens
I doubt if it a hoax to sell useless sunglasses, just a ploy to sell sunglasses.
Try this instead. All greens drain excess water. Look at the slopes and see where the water has to drain.. That will give you the general slopes.
Look at the slope where the ball is. Your feet will tell you the slope that you stand on when addressing the putt. Be careful to not let it over come how the ball will roll. The longer the length of putt the less the slope you stand on will affect the roll near to the putt's start.
The slope around the cup is important. Look to see if there is enough slope that one side of the cup is lower. This determines how the ball will break as it slows down at the hole.
Last is every putt is a straight putt. The cup is either left, right or on the initial aim line. Find a spot to get aimed and square to and let the ball roll on it. Reading the speed and judging how it will break will determine how wide to aim the start of the putt.
Good luck and good putting is hitting the putt on the line you choose with the speed you want is a successful putt. Making the putt with a bad stroke only sets you up for future failures.
Thanks for your detailed reply
Thanks mate, I appreciate your tips on reading greens.
Sunglasses
ich-mit-mir,
As to the sunglasses -- just my .02 worth. I play in ordinary , gray polarized sunglasses all the time. I have some amber ones for "overcast" days that are supposed to improve contrast on such days, thereby improving green reading. I really do not notice any difference between the two pairs of sunglasses. However, I do believe either of them improves green reading vs no sunglasses.
Also, I agree with Shortgamewizard in regards to green reading. Additionally, IF you have Bermuda greens (I think not in most of Europe) - -the grain of the grass can effect the breaks also - and must be considered. With the grain is a little faster; against the grain is a little slower. Across the grain, the ball with move a little to the side. In extreme cases, the ball MAY even break uphill. In general, Bermuda grass bends to the west, specially in the afternoon.
What I really hate is this time of year when the Winter grass (overseeded Rye) has not burnt out and the Bermuda has not quite come in yet. Makes every green a new adventure!
Keep hitting them STRAIGHT and LONG
Amos
bermuda grain
I like Amos' comments on how the bermuda overseeded greens are tough to play when they start to transition from the rye. A lot of courses have poa that creeps in early in the morning on the shoes of the maintenance person who changes the cups. The Poa grows faster during the day and can make the greens lumpy and makes chipping and putting a crap shoot.
What a lot of players don't know is that the dry air makes the bermuda breaks a lot less than in the more humid climates.
Humid bermuda
That's definitely true that humidity affects the growth rate (and hence the power of the grain) in bermuda grass. I know when I was in Vegas, I would often over-read the affect of the grain after I'd visited my parents in California. Their course sits in a little valley in the coastal hills and gets a lot of morning fogs and such, and the grain definitely is strong enough on some of those greens to make balls break up hill. Never had that experience in Vegas.
Smaller headed drivers
Don mentioned in his daily video of 31st March 2013 that we are probably all playing with drivers that are too long and the heads are too big.
On the too big side he said that there was a 360cc head available but didn't go into details.
I would be most interested in obtaining one of these, but have two problems. Firstly I am left handed and it is always hard to get the full range of clubs in left handed and secondly I live in Australia where the choices on all golf equipment are more limited.
Is there any further information about the 360cc drivers availalble
Thank you
Small Headed Drivers
deleted
Small Headed Drivers
I'm from the West and was lucky enough to get fitted with a 350cc head driver while I was in Melbourne last November as I was travelling on business that time. Doc has a system in place for fitting on-line and you can get his details from clicking on the top bar "Certified Fitters". It's an 11 page questionaire made simple by ticking boxes/pictures, give it a try.
Driver and no slice
Surge has covered it here and as he said, many times before. The driver is very often the club that is most challenging until you get it fit best for you. I am an example of lots and lots of experimentation with different shafts and driver heads and lofts until finding the right combination. I have continued using the same driver choice (originally fit for me 3 years ago) and am very happy with it and see no reason to buy another or use any of the 8 others in my garage.
Personally I am convinced that the shaft is the most important aspect of the fit when it comes to the driver. Based on my club head speed and previous 40 years plus of golf I would never had picked the driver or shaft I ended up with. It was only because of seeing a PPGS fitter that I am normally really happy with my driver.
If you have never been fit for a driver and it is still the most difficult club for you do yourselves a favor and get fit even if it is only for the driver.
In person is the best BUT if you cannot then remember that Doc Griffin does long distance fitting and has many happy customers.
Long distance fitting
http://www.thegolfstop.net/Products.html
DJ
Surgites, DJ is in the field next week for the Valero Texas open.
Hal
A must watch !!!!
All about a complete club fitting.
Wow! I just finished watching an "All about club fitting" program presented by Don Trahan and Lynn Griffin. I highly highly recommend any and all golfers to watch this detailed video that covers in great detail an actual complete fitting by Doc with a gentleman named Randy. it is 86 minutes long and so you may want to watch it in segments. It answers likely any question about golf clubs we may have and several questions and points are made that many would certainly not ask during a fitting. To Lynn. thank you so much for putting this video together and congratulations on an excellent presentation. It absolutely blows away any of the countless clips I've watched on you tube and on other sites. Really impressive stuff. If you golfers have not seen it yet you have to watch it. What an education for any serious golfer and anyone considering whether they should get a 'real' fitting of this level some day.
Here it is on Doc's web site. When you get to the page, scroll down to the bottom to find the video.
http://www.thegolfstop.net/Blank.html
You may want to have a note book, pen and popcorn ready
Fitting video
Great video Robert. Thanks for posting the link.
P.S. I still disagree with Surge about the ribbed grips. Feeling the rib actually makes it easier for me to work the ball, not harder. I know where the club face is during the swing from the rib. It's why tennis rackets, ping pong paddles, hammers and axes don't have round handles.
Fitting video
Glad you enjoyed it. I really appreciated the back and forth between these gentlemen as they discussed the various aspects of golf clubs. Interesting that Randy was hitting the blade styles the best. Too, the diagonal mark made on the iron face was revealing when Doc checked the lie angles. I will use that along with several other ideas in my future amateur fitting adventures in my garage. I know it is long (86 minutes) but I will watch it again and hope serious Surgites make the time to watch (or study) it too as soon as they can. It ties together most of the many subjects Doc has already covered but in greater detail and in a way that brings it together logically. I see both sides of the ribbed concept and personally prefer rounded for feel when opening or closing the grip. Obviously the ribbed grips have merit and that's why many PGA pros like them. Personal taste and feel prevail again. Of course I normally go with the 120 gram giant Jumbo Max grips any how and that is yet another interesting topic covered when they talk about light or heavy grips and speed. I can varify that a heavier grip does not make for a slower swing speed just as a lighter grip does not equate to a faster swing speed. Trust me I've tried light and heavy- back weighting and tip weighting.
It's all very cool stuff that will get more views in the future. Again I recommend it for all. What an education as it had my attention from start to finish.
Learning a swing encapsulated
All of the comments above are different learning approaches in a nutshell. None are right and none are wrong (only different).
Some people are going to paint by the numbers and follow all of the rules of one technique or one instructor.
Some are going to try ideas from different sources, find the things that click, and try to put something together that works for them.
Some are going to look at the general path of a technique and swing their own swing along that general path.
Some are going to practice and play a lot and some are not.
Some are going to put thousands of dollars into trying to improve their game and some are not.
Nothing wrong with any approach. In the end how well you do depends on what you want out of the game, how much you want to spend (in time and money), and most of all how much talent you have.
No matter what you do there will always be that guy out there that does it totally differently that can beat you by 10 strokes.
Agreed
Certainly your thoughts are true and there are so many ways to learn and so many ways to get the little white ball around and in the hole. My only point was that in order to get most things done with any consistency we need to pick one and then do our best to fully understand and apply it in practice and play. Heck as you (and I concur) there are many approaches that will work if you stick to it and have a measure of talent. However I too tried the bounce around from one style to the next for several years but never made any serious progress until I found Surge. Others may still be searching and in some cases the PPGS may not be for them. I do know that it was only after I paid for the actual video lessons and watched and practiced them over and over that I began to get serious results. What's Tiger call it? Reps?
Every one has there own journey in life and golf.
On another note, I think this years Masters and all the majors are going to be especially compelling because of Tigers improved short game and putter along so many other players that may surprise us this year like Bud Cauley, K. Bradley, Billy Horshel and several more. Phil the thrill may find it too. Going to be a fun watch. I'd most like to see Steve Stricker win one this year.
In case anyone missed it.....................
Consider watching the best club fitting discourse I have ever seen.
When you get to this page, scroll down to the featured video on Fitting;
http://www.thegolfstop.net/Blank.html
It's long (86 minutes) so you may want to watch half today and the rest tomorrow. I will watch it again soon. It is comprehensive yet in understandable detail.
Thanks again Lynn and Surge.
Slicing, hooking, and other unintentional misses
Aha!!!
Every point of the Peak Performance Golf Swing is essential!
I went out to hit balls today. I thought I was perfectly setup, but started topping, chunking, slicing, hooking, and every other possible mis-hit. Ugh!
Then, I realized that I had three flaws: (1) My PLHR was way too heavy. I could pick my left (lead) foot up and hold it up; (2) In PLHR position, my shoulders were level instead of in the secondary spine tilt; and (3) my right elbow was even with my left and about six inches away from my right side.
Once I corrected each of those flaws, every succeeding shot was straight and as long as they should be for the club I was using into a 5-10mph wind. Apparently I am susceptible to negative thoughts. Listening to the latest videos about topping and slicing stuck in my subconscious.
slicing driver
a tip i got was to keep the back of your left hand perpendicular to the ground and parallel to where you are aiming in your back swing
More or less
You can't keep the left hand parallel to the aiming line through the whole back swing, but in general, that's a good thought. With PPGS we say it slightly differently, focusing on the palms. Your palms should remain perpendicular to the ground throughout the swing. That means from address to finish, unless you're intentionally doing something like holding off release to hit a fade, or over-releasing to hit a big draw.
I admit that for me this may be one of the hardest elements to get consistent in the swing. My arms tend to over rotate on both sides of impact, so I have to really work to keep my palms perpendicular.