Play The Lie - Article 4
Get More Distance With Your Driver.
By Lawrence Bredenkamp. Ezine Articles Expert Author.I am about to spoil some of the things you may believe about getting more distance with your driver. And then I am going to tell you how you can quite easily get more distance using your existing driver.
So many golfers think that by going out and spending $800 on the latest driver all their problems will be solved and that miraculously they will be able to hit the ball the proverbial mile - and straight to boot!
It's a fascinating fact that with the huge advancement in golf technology over the past 50 years the average club member's handicap has not improved by as much as even a half a stroke. These are facts borne out by statistics not some BS that I am making up to get you to give up the game of golf.
You see the manufacturers of golf equipment have to make a living and they do so by preying on us - you and me. Telling us that this or that latest driver or golf ball is the key that will unlock the power within and send our shots sailing straight as an arrow for never before achieved distances and control. Bollocks.
If we were to wake some of the old timers (Sam Snead and his mates) up and hand them the equipment that we have today they would most certainly be impressed and after a short period of adjustment would no doubt be playing better than they used to. But these are exceptions to the rule. These are professional golf players not weekend hackers (no offence meant) or even low handicap club golfers who play twice a week.
Let's reverse the technique and give our current crop of top professionals (Tiger, Phil, Ernie, Jim and those boys) the same equipment that the old timers used. Again after a short period of adjustment you would find that they would all be able to play a pretty mean game with all that old stuff. Maybe they wouldn't be able to hit it as far as they do with the new technology but they would still play good golf.
And that my friend brings me around to telling you how to get more distance with your driver.
If you are like me you probably don't spend much time doing golf related exercises and also not much time practicing. Instead you go out on the course and with a limited warm up routine hope to hit the ball long and straight from the first tee. That's all OK but don't try to hit it far. Just look at some of the long hitters on tour as an example (Tiger excluded because he lashes the ball and is quite simply almost a freak!). Men like Ernie Els, Vijay Sing, Adam Scott and the like. They hit the ball phenomenal distances with what appears to be no effort. And they could do it with the very driver you want to replace with that new $800 job the pro shop is trying to sell you.
So what is their secret? Well there is no secret. It really is all about getting everything correct before during and after impact. That means your grip, your alignment, your takeaway, your weight transfer, your follow through and everything else associated with the swing. If you got all that right why would you need new equipment?
What you need my friend is to understand that club head speed is generated not by the club head shape, color or brand name but by YOU. You are the driving force behind the ball and the club head speed is all about tempo - utilizing your big muscles to maximum efficiency to generate maximum club head speed through impact. And that is what makes a drive (or any shot) go further. It's that simple.
I bet you have had a drive where you just don't know what you did right as the ball hurtled off your club face further than any other drive you've ever hit and all without much effort. Well that is the secret - that is the key. Effortless execution producing maximum club head speed.
If you really want to get more distance with your driver then you need to put a bit of effort into training and stretching your golf muscles, which are distinctly different to say your bench pressing muscles, and a bit of time practicing to get your tempo just right. There is no point buying a new club and then standing on the tee repeating the old problems of lashing at the ball with your arms. It just won't work and buying a new driver every day will not solve the problem.
Get more distance off the tee with your driver and enjoy the game more. Learn to swing through the ball with maximum club head speed and see how far you really can drive a golf ball.