What IS My Driver Loft?
I think that everyone who buys a driver through a web site deserves to be sure they are getting what they think they are getting. I had some experiences this past week or so with clients that made me want to share some simple information with you about drivers.
If you buy a driver from a web service provider and the advertisement says that it is “10.5 degrees of loft” can you be SURE that is the loft of the driver? Well…………maybe………….sort of. Here are some simple things that you should really know about buying a driver sight unseen!
1. There are two things that determine the True Loft of a driver AS YOU PLAY IT….The real measured loft of the face, and the FACE ANGLE of the driver.
2. In recent years, most drivers I have seen in stores have some amount of Closed Face Angle to them. This means that when you set the driver so the face is flat on the ground and you do not attempt to manipulate it so that the face is square to the target line, that the face will look a little shut to the target line. Some players can actually benefit from a closed face angle particularly if the slice the ball……..the close face can help them to somewhat reduce the amount of their slice.
3. However…..if you have a driver that for example has 10 degrees of loft, and say it has a 2 degree closed face angle. Now if you set this driver face so that the face is square to the target line……the EFFECTIVE LOFT of the driver face will actually be 12 degrees. And you might wonder why you hit that driver higher than you think you should.
4. And the opposite holds true. If you have a driver with 10 degrees of loft and 2 degrees open face angle, and you square the face, then the Effective Loft of that driver will be 8 degrees.
My tip to you then, particularly if you want to play with a driver that has a face that is square to the target line at address…… Make sure you know what you are buying before you click “Purchase.” If you want a 10 degree driver with 0 degree face angle, be sure that is what you are buying!
Tony
