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The Search for the Magic Driver (Part 1)

By Leith Anderson

It's a safe bet that if you're an avid golfer, you've bought quite a few drivers in your life. It's also a good guess that you've got some drivers that "didn't work out" in a closet or the garage. It's amazing that golfers are so tolerant about losing money on golf equipment. They go into a golf shop, waggle a driver a few times, maybe hit some practice shots into a net, and lay out several hundred dollars without ever taking the club to the course. Fact is, most new drivers never make it "in the bag".

There is a way to raise the odds that the next driver you buy will be one you will actually play with. The purpose of this article is to lay out six steps that will help you make sure that the next driver you buy fits your game and doesn't end up in the closet or for sale on eBay.

Knowing your swingspeed with your driver is the first step that will get you in the ballpark. There are many ways to get this done. Most golf shops have computerized fitting equipment that measures swing speed as well as other statistics. Swing speed is measured in miles per hour. As a rule of thumb, 100 MPH is the "macho" line. A swing speed under 90 will require a flexible shaft. Most golfers are in the 90-100 range. 100 to 110 is the strong amateur and average professional range. Gorilla territory starts about 110. Tiger and the long drive contestants are north of 120.
Understand "frequency matching". In the old days, golf clubs came in A, R, S, and X flexes. Today, a much more sophisticated method of measuring "stiffness" has been developed. The golf club is clamped at the grip an oscillated. The oscillations are measured by an electronic instrument in "cycles per minute" or CPM. The faster the club oscillates, the stiffer the shaft. The measurements for each club are plotted on a "slope chart". (Illustration) The slope chart divides each flex (A, R, S and X) into ten sub flexes. According to Royal Precision, the makers of Rifle shafts and the inventors of frequency matching, 4.5 is equivalent to an "R", 5.5 is an "S" and 6.5 is an "X". Consequently, a 6.0 would be midway between an "S" and an "X". In matching swing speed to flex, it is perfectly reasonable to say that you want a "driver on a 6.0 slope" that measures 253 CPM at 45". You know exactly what you're getting.
Get some professional advice and recommendations. The artistic part of fitting a driver goes beyond matching a swing speed to a certain flex. The way you swing will determine your best final frequency choice. If you swing hard and "load" the shaft, a club fitter will recommend a shaft at the high end of the appropriate CPM range. Conversely, if you are a smooth swinger with a "soft transition" you will probably get better performance from a shaft in the lower end of the appropriate range. An experienced club fitter will also be able to recommend specific shafts with performance characteristics to deliver a higher or lower trajectory. Your club fitter should have some test clubs to try out.
Base your choice on measurable data. It's possible to get started fitting a driver indoors, hitting into a net. However, there is no substitute for hitting balls and watching the ball flight. This can only be done outdoors, at a range. Insist that your club fitter allow you to take a few recommended test clubs to an outdoor range. Ideally, your fitter would accompany you and he would have access to electronic equipment that will help compare the performance of your test clubs. We use the Distance Caddy which is also built into the Callaway fitting system. The Distance Caddy gives the carry distance, head speed, ball speed and delivers an "efficiency" rating. The efficiency tells you how well the head transfers energy to the ball, a shorthand calculation for how "solid" the shot is. When you think about it, how else are you going to know which test club performs the best? You can't see where the balls are landing. Basing a choice on "feel" alone is unreliable.
Make sure what you buy is what you get. If you buy a driver from any of the major manufacturers, be sure to check the frequency before you accept delivery. It is very common for name brand drivers to be different from what you expect. For example, Titleist drivers have a 5 inch "throughbore". The effect is that shafts play much stiffer than specified. If you buy a "Graffaloy Prolite S" in a Titleist 975 it will probably play to an "X". Also, certain shafts are much stiffer than the designated flex. For example, Proforce 75 "S" flex plays to the frequency of an "X" in most drivers, especially Titleist. Proforce 65's, on the other hand, tend to play true to flex. Once again, the knowledge and advice of an experienced club fitter can be invaluable in making sure that you actually get the driver that fits.
Finally, have patience and be willing to experiment. Sometimes, Americans are accused of wanting a "quick fix". The only way to understand the right driver for you is to try a lot of different drivers. But testing is only effective if you know what you are testing. For this reason, it is imperative to work with a club fitter who can tell you precisely what he is recommending and then allow you to hit test clubs that have been measured and calibrated. Make sure that you get some reliable performance data from electronic equipment like a Distance Caddy. Then, you will have the information and experience you need to make an informed choice.

In the end, the goal is to make sure that you find a driver that fits your swing. A good fit comes from a combination of factors. Match swing speed to flex, adjusted for your individual swing characteristics. Experiment with several different drivers with known specifications under the watchful eye of an experienced PGA pro or club fitter. Finally have the patience to try recommendations with an open mind. The "Magic Driver" is frequently an unlikely choice that "just works".