Before you go out and spend $600 on a new driver, please come to grips with this reality;
Your driver isn’t allowed to hit any farther than it already does. All drivers are created equal.
In 2003 the USGA instituted a new rule limiting the COR (Coefficient of Restitution) to 0.83. Meaning that if you fire a golf ball at a club face at 100 mph, it is only allowed to bounce off the club face at 83 mph.
Why?
In the late 1990s club manufacturers found ways to bring up the coefficient of restitution to about 0.86 and balls were going much further, so they made this new rule to limit this. Previously, the CORs on most drivers were in the range of 0.75-0.78. So going up to 0.86 made a big difference and made courses much shorter for players with high swing speeds.
If you have a driver made after 2003, it’s already maximized. You don’t need a new one to hit farther. Sure, a newer driver may be more forgiving for off center hits, but if you hit it straight every time, a new driver won’t make your shots go further. Save your money.
So how do you increase your driving distance?
First of all, do you really have to increase your distance? If you can drive 230-240 yards reliably, just play that way and give yourself an extra shot to each green on very long holes. Or play the shorter tees. Golf is already very tough, why play back from the farthest tees?
If you really want to increase your distance, you will need to get your swing speeds up reliably. Get one of those cheap speedometers and see how fast you are swinging. If your swing is reliable and stable at 88 mph, aim for modest gains and to try and get to 92 mph reliably. Going for modest gains is easy and achievable, without compromising control and reliability of your swing.
If your swing is in the 95 mph range, aim to get to 98-100 mph. Not everyone is going to have a 120+ mph swing. In fact, only the fastest swings on tour are that fast. Very few people on earth can do that. If you can get yourself to the 102-105 mph, you will be fine. So don’t aim too high, because you will be disappointed.
So when your friend says he can hit it further with his new driver, you can secretly laugh inside knowing he is full of hot air. Sure, maybe his off center hits are better, but not ones that are centered on the face.
