Driver - Attack angle and hands position at impact

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Hi,

Have only recently come across the subject of hitting up on the ball with the driver (ala Bubba Watson, JB Holmes and many others). Makes sense to me, with one exception ...

In order to maximize power, I have been taught to keep my hands ahead of the ball at impact (causing the shaft to be slanted). Isn't this in contradiction with hitting up on the ball? I can only visualize the club rising much later in the release stage!

Is this where the spine/ axis tilt comes in handy? ... would love for someone to elaborate on this aspect of swing mechanics.

Thanks!
 
Go on youtube and look up Brian Manzella's videos. If my memory serves me correctly he had a video on there where he shows different angles of attack with the driver all with a forward leaning shaft.
 
It's not easy getting forward shaft lean and hitting the ball on the upswing. The tendency is for the club head to be in front of the shaft at impact. You can't get the forward lean AND hitting up unless you're using a good pivot. An all arms swing won't get this done or your hands will get too far away from your body.

What do I do? I buy a lower lofted driver (5*) because I can't keep the shaft lean and hit up simultaneously. The average tour player hits down 1.5* with their driver. I find it hard to follow my own advice, thus, I fool around with the loft of my driver.

My 5* driver is new and I normally hit a 9.5* driver and hit down.
 
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I've also been having trouble swinging up with the driver. I'm now solid throughout the bag (in great part to this site) until the driver which I spray left and right. Adding that axis tilt to get an upward AoA really throws me off leading to too many massive sweeping hooks and slices. I'm someone who likes to smash the ball into the ground like a grape so hitting up just feels unnatural. Pretty much sticking to the 3 wood these days. That all said, I'm committed to getting it right.

Looking forward to a southern california stop this year!
 
Thanks everyone ... Brian's ep 7 on youtube was an interesting view!

For now, i'm going to concentrate on my swing path and club face angle at impact ... And in time will get back to perfecting my drive.
 
I use 4 inch tees with my 5* degree driver to hammer home hitting up. I can't wait to see the positive attack angle number on Trackman.

It's fun to experiment with this stuff and I know the lower the loft the easier it's to tilt the axis of the golfball. Hit one if you get the chance and make sure you tee it up very high.
 
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