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Sports

Hitting the Driver, Not the 3 Wood

Weekly Tips from Old Warson Director of Instruction Rick Ewing.

Old Warson's Director of Instruction, Rick Ewing, offers different tips to get your golf game moving in the right direction.  If you'd like to ask Rick a question or book a private lesson (Patch reader exclusive), email him at rickewing@pga.com.

Sometimes the right choice is the bigger one. Fairway woods have indeed come a long way. I’d actually say that my current fairway is both bigger and longer than a driver was 20 to 30 years ago. And yet, despite the advances in fairway woods, drivers have exploded in size, making them not only bigger, but also enormously longer and more forgiving.

So, why not use one as often as you can? If you’re faced with a choice between driver and fairway wood on a tight hole, consider the bigger, more forgiving alternative.

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You could do more with it, such as choking down on the grip, teeing the ball lower or even making a three-quarter swing to mimic a fairway wood but still take advantage of the bigger, more forgiving head. Using a 460cc driver can maximize your distance and get as much forgiveness across the clubface as possible. 

Are pros better off hitting the driver, too?

To answer that question, let’s take Robert Garrigus for example. As of the end of August last year, Garrigus was leading the PGA Tour in driving distance with an average bomb of 312 yards. In addition to being long, Garrigus was ranked 7th in greens in regulation (GIR), hitting approximately 70 percent of all greens.

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Coincidence? We think not. Longer drives generally mean shorter and easier approach shots—even if they’re hit from the rough. (The USGA also realized this and has put restrictions on grooves to counteract the lessening effects of missing the fairway.)

We’ll see how that changes things in 2011?  

But what about you? Well, if you’re just as accurate with your driver as you are with your fairway wood, then hit the driver. It’s longer and more forgiving off the tee than any fairway wood.

If you would like a private lesson with Rick Ewing email me at rickewing@pga.com.

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