“Are You Calling My Driver a Liar?”
I’m not a big hitter off the tee. But I had this one driver that I really could blast. It flew the ball high and long and found the fairway more than any other driver I ever owned. I would still be playing it had it not been stolen. It had a 10.5 degree loft and I was glad that I had swallowed my pride and finally moved up to a higher loft. One day in the shop I decided to measure the actual loft and “Hokey smokes Bullwinkle!” it was 12 degrees. I was perplexed by how far off the actual loft was not to mention how well I hit it.
Customers frequently come to my shop to have their equipment evaluated and one of the most revealing specifications is the actual driver loft. Sure, sometimes they are on the money compared to the stated lofts but more often than not I find them to be off (+/-) by a degree or more!
While interviewing the player I ask questions and listen to him/her describe their ball flight characteristics including trajectory. I find that asking them about their ball flight apex compared to tree top level to be useful. Using an impact label, I have them hit a few balls to see if they are making impact at the center of the face. The center of the face is where wood head loft is measured. Obviously if the actual loft versus the stated loft doesn’t agree then that can explain a lot about an undesired trajectory.
But here is my favorite case: The loft is more or less accurate but the customer tells me that the best shots are hit when he/she makes impact above the center line of the face. Hmmm… They have also heard that there is a “gear effect” working for them which increases their carry distance by reducing backspin. Hmmm… This is when I gently explain that the most likely cause for the longer carries is that they are hitting the part of the face which has more loft. You see most driver faces have a rolled (curved) face from top to bottom. The higher up the face the more loft and vice versa. According to club designer Tom Wishon in his book Search for the Perfect Golf Club, your 10.5 degree driver may have as much as 13 degrees of loft at the top and as little as 8 degrees at the bottom!
Tom Wishon has been gradually moving away from rolled face designs to what he calls GRT (Graduated Roll Technology). His vertically flat face designs are intended to ensure a consistent launch angle at any impact location. You can learn more by reading his book or visiting his website.
Many of my component suppliers offer a hand select head service for a nominal fee which guarantees the loft accuracy. This type of service also provides the opportunity to get a custom loft. For example, if a certain head comes in 10.5 degrees, it is possible to get it in 11 or 10 degrees. If you would like to find out how accurate your current driver loft is, please call or email me for an appointment.
Patrick Blair
Blair Golfworks
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