GOLF DRIVER SHAFT LENGTH

Golf can be a complicated sport to learn. You would need to practice for a prolonged period of time to get a good hold on the basics. And once you have learned much about the game you would want your game to be at the top.

While playing golf, you would want to hit the ball farther. And to do that you love to have the best driver in your possession. There is nothing more satisfying than lining up a tee shot on the box and making the perfect shot to see the ball sail long and straight. But hitting it long and straight doesn’t always work out in your favor.

What are Driver Clubs?

When you start playing golf, the driver is the first club that you would want to learn about right at the beginning.

During the initial days of golf, all sort of golf clubs were made of wood. But the modern-day golf clubs have almost nothing to do with woods. But keeping in mind the initial days, the driver clubs are still known as woods.

The driver club is commonly called as wood, since it belongs to the woods category of golf clubs. The driver would be the first club you would use in a game of golf (the tee shot). The goal is to hit the ball as far as possible towards the green, and that is why the driver is typically the longest club that a golfer carries.

The driver has the biggest head, and the lowest loft compared to other clubs. The largest and the most popular clubhead has a size of 460cc (in volume).

For a beginner, the 460cc driver is the best choice. This helps in minimizing the chances of you missing off-center shots. Once you believe that you have gained a good level of skill and experience, you can choose to go for a driver with a lower cc (440cc or less). A driver with lower cc will give you better workability and shot range.

The clubs today are made of elements such as steel, titanium, etc. Modern-day clubs are more efficient than ever before, but the pursuit for maximum length has led many golfers to opt for drivers with shafts that are one to three inches longer than the standard recommended length. The shafts of the driver are mainly made of graphite.

Resource: How to score below 100, 90, 80 in golf

Understanding Driver Shaft Length

Understanding the driver shaft length is one of the most critical components for improving your golf. While you would like upgrade your clubs every now and then, a big part of your club is the shaft itself. If you are not playing with the correct shaft length then even the best clubhead in the world will make it hard for you to find fairways and will lead you to hit bombs.

A longer shaft might occasionally fetch you a farther drive, but having a longer shaft doesn’t always guarantee more distance. In fact, the longer the shaft is, the harder it is to control the club and hit the ball accurately.

Appropriate Driver Shaft Lengths

Men’s Drivers Shaft Length

The standard shaft length of a driver for men used to be 43.5-44 inches (43 inches with steel shafts, and 44 inches with graphite shafts). But over the past two decades it has increased to 45 inches.

Women’s Drivers Shaft Length

The length of driver shaft is normally an inch smaller for women as compared to men drivers. The standard length was 43 inches earlier but since 2012, it is 44 inches.

Importance of Shaft Length

The shaft length is extremely important. It plays a huge part in determining how fast you can swing the club, the path of the club and the angle of attack, and the prefect center-face contact. With a longer shaft, you will have a faster clubhead speed.

Even though there is a risk of finding yourself hitting the ball with a lot less accuracy, and chopping the ball out of the rough and fairway bunkers on a regular basis, longer shaft lengths will get you more distance than a shorter shaft. For this reason, the standard shaft lengths are increasing over the years.

Resource: How to score below 100, 90, 80 in golf

The increasing shaft length, and addition of great new technologies is making it easier for golfers of all skill levels to hit it farther than ever before. Players often use the mantra- the longer the driver, the farther distance you will get. And golf club manufacturers are cashing on by selling this distance mantra, and people looking for ways to get an advantage of a few extra yards are happily going along with it.

Even though many golfers opt for longer shaft lengths, it is not solely responsible for hitting the ball farther. It depends hugely on the golfer’s ability hit the ball with the correct spot (sweet spot) of the clubface.

Increasing the shaft length can make it more and more difficult to be consistently be able to hit the ball with the sweet spot. This is a reason why the average driver shaft length on the PGA tour is actually shorter than the average driver length used by amateurs. The professional golfers understand the importance of finding the center of the clubface (which is something that amateurs should emphasize more on).

Distance vs Accuracy

To focus on distance or to focus on accuracy is a very confusing stand for golfers (especially amateurs). Getting a clear understanding of this can significantly improve your game if you feel that you are not getting the results as per your talent.

If you hit a 43-inch driver on the screws, your golf ball should travel about 250 yards. A 43.5-inch driver would get you about 262 yards, a 44-inch driver will get you almost 270 yards, and a 45-inch driver will fetch you around 275-280 yards.

If you have a smooth and rhythmic swing then you would have a better chance of controlling a driver that is longer than the average length. It is important to match your swing speed and driver length with the correct shaft in order to gain more accuracy. The right shaft tilt along with the right shaft length will help bring about the best combination of distance and accuracy.

Golf Video Courses + Practice Plans

Golf Practice Plans Only

Or hop onto our email newsletter and get the free weekly golf tips we send out to our community plus updates and other announcements you don’t want to miss!

How to Break 80
Golf Practice Plan