Teeing it up

I mentioned this in another thread somewhere but I thought it is more useful here.

For those that wants extra distance every now and again where the fairway is nice and wide, try doing this:

1) Tee the ball up slightly higher.
2) Put your ball more towards the left side of your stance (even on your left big toe).
3) Swing and try to feel like you are coming up on the ball at impact. (doing the first 2 steps will allow for this).


This will help the ball trajectory to be higher and is great when the wind is behind you.

Be warned that people whose swing path is not in good shape may have trouble hitting it straight. The shape of the flight should be towards a draw.

Give it a try and hopefully you can add an extra 10 yards or more to your drive.

Pinyo,

You are correct, teeing the ball up and all the top tips, straightening left leg at impact, lifting, ball forward.

Ask yourself this will 10/20 yds make a significant difference(it will if your in the trees), when you need a big drive you should work more on a smooth swing, maybe a touch slower going back, I think you should swing the same all the time with the driver, safe option, big swings lead to big scores.

Take it easy.


Ian.

Hi Ian,

I do agree with keeping everything the same with the driver and I dont recommend people to do this everytime they tee up. There are holes where you do have room where precise accuracy is not needed and that extra 10-20 yards could mean the difference between say, hitting two on for a par 5. I definitely would never say to give it that oomph when doing so.

Since this is in the long driving forum, I mention this purely just for people to know that there are different kind of shots they can play without extreme changes(just like different techniques for chipping, lobbing, putting).

Big swings certainly lead to big scores but when you are practicing, its always good to know what else you can do.

Cheers.

Pinyo,

The long drive comps are all about brute force with no game consiquences should it be a poor drive. The long drive guys are pure talent and I like the 6inch tees with the gorilla type swings.

My point is just a simple one, if your in a match on say 16 a par five do you grip it and rip it, or should you keep it in play with the safe drive. You could throw the game or score with one over active attempt to reach the hole in two, also my main point is I feel the game is hard enough without trying to change the driver swing.

It's only my opinion and I am sorry for not noticing this was in the long drive forum.


Ian.

__________________
Once you learn the swing, your next step is mastering golf psychology................

Hey Ian,

Dont worry about it as I respect everyone's opinion and these kind of forums are exactly what its for.

As for choosing whether to grip it and rip it, I have to say it depends on your strategy, style of play and situation. Although I consider myself to be an aggressive player, I certainly wouldnt give it a rip if I was leading or in a matchplay tournament. However, If I was behind and you know that you have to really score, then I would go for more pending that the course layout allows me to.

Again, there are a lot of factors that could change your decision when on the course and perhaps this can continue on and go into course management or strategy forum. I would certainly like to know what would people here choose in certain situations.

I do look forward to reading your opinions on other topics as well.

I wouldn't say it's exactly about brute force - they still have to put it in the grid - so there is a penalty for an 'errant tee shot'.

But, it's still a fairly wide 'fairway', so accuracy (obviously) is not the premium thought - although still necessary.

This is interesting. I was watching Tiger play the other day and he certainly looks like he's ripping every driver shot. But he seems to be finding the rough quite often nowadays. My first thoughts : why doesn't he just slow it down a bit and try to hit it straighter and get it on the fairway, no doubt sacrificing a bit of distance? But at least he might not be finding the rough that often?

I think that his swing speed is already so fast it looks like he is ripping it everytime. If one of us were to swing like that (if we could generate the speed), we are probably likely to dislodge a disc or something.....

Anyway, when I usually see Tiger uses driver it would be on holes that he wants the extra distance. On other holes, I notice him using 3 woods or his long irons more and his swing speed is definitely not as fast as his driver. Also, sometime being in the rough (as long as its not US Open rough) is not so bad. As long as you are not in the trees and have a clear shot to the green, I definitely rather use say an 8iron than a 5 iron.

Just my opinion.