Golf Club Length

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Ryan Smither

Super Moderator
I've been reading Tom Wishon's book-- Search for the Perfect Golf Club-- and am intrigued by the idea of shortening my clubs.

My wrist to floor measurement is 32.5" (damn I'm short) and the book recommends that my driver length should be 42.5". I believe that Tiger has used a 43.5" most often and average on tour is 44.5". Wishon basically says that 45" drivers are a joke--if tour players don't swing them, why should we.

42.5" seems very short to me and I am very scared to whack 2.5" off my driver.

FYI, he says that for 90 mph swing speed with a driver, every .5" you take off the driver it decreases the distance .2 yds. Basically, he squashed the idea that driver length has alot to do with distance. Also, this data was measured for on-center hits only. It does not take into account mishits.

Any golf club/repair/physics afficionados feel free to weigh in on shortening clubs (all my clubs) and the effect (positive or negative) it will have on my game.
 
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hcw

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Ryan Smither said:
I've been reading Tom Wishon's book-- Search for the Perfect Golf Club-- and am intrigued by the idea of shortening my clubs.

My wrist to floor measurement is 32.5" (damn I'm short) and the book recommends that my driver length should be 42.5". I believe that Tiger has used a 43.5" most often and average on tour is 44.5". Wishon basically says that 45" drivers are a joke--if tour players don't swing them, why should we.

42.5" seems very short to me and I am very scared to whack 2.5" off my driver.

FYI, he says that for 90 mph swing speed with a driver, every .5" you take off the driver it decreases the distance .2 yds. Basically, he squashed the idea that driver length has alot to do with distance. Also, this data was measured for on-center hits only. It does not take into account mishits.

Any golf club/repair/physics afficionados feel free to weigh in on shortening clubs (all my clubs) and the effect (positive or negative) it will have on my game.
Click to expand...

why not just choke down 2.5" and try it out and see what happens?
 
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TexasAg

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lia41985 said:
Watch out because this will stiffen the shaft.
Click to expand...

No it won't. Cutting material off the butt-end of the club isn't going to have any effect on real-world stiffness since the part of the club that's in your hands isn't what is flexing during the swing.

Also, you will have to add weight to the clubhead to keep the swingweight the same.
 
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chrisfx811

New
Alot will change if you just lop off 2.5".
Most 460cc heads nowadays are very light. ~190-200g.
If you shorten your existing shaft, it will stiffen the shaft substantially, lower the total club weight, and greatly lower the swingweight.
The club will feel extremely light imho.
You can experiment with a heavier and maybe even softer flex shaft than you normally play, and add some weight to the head.
By the time you cut it down, it will be stiffer and closer to the total club weight you were used to playing.

Fwiw, I currently use a 75g shaft in a 44" driver.
Another, less expensive experiment, would be to try a super light steel shaft like a DG SL or a DLG SL in your driver and see how you like that.
Maybe a dg sl s300, playing @ 43-43.5"?
A 460cc head would look a bit funny on such a short shaft, I bet. ;)
 
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swingobsessed

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Is swing weight and kick point affected the same if you just choke down on a club as opposed to cutting the shaft? Seems like it would to me, and many people will choke down on clubs for a particular shot.
 
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Ryan Smither

Super Moderator
i'm intrigued Jim, because i haven't swung 90 mph with a driver in awhile...I don't imagine it's too far off his numbers though with a swing speed in the 105 range...

more info to ponder from the book, Wishon says that for every quarter inch that you miss the sweet spot you lose about 10 yds...this is the main reason that he recommends a shorter club...the small amount of distance that you may lose from shortening the club is easily trumped by the gain in average distance from more on-center hits...
 
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jmessner

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As I have built almost all my clubs (not the putter), all Wishon designs, and spend time on his forum, I'm drawn to this thread.

I'll be interested to see Jim's results, because I think the answer on driver length really depends on the golfer. The test Tom recommends is to try different lengths with impact stickers and look for repeatable center contact. Some lose center contact at anything over 43" and others may have success at longer lengths. Personnally, I've done that with 43" up to 46" and my contact pattern hasn't really changed. As pointed out, it is difficult to get a decent swingweight (or MOI if you're into that) with the short drivers mostly because of the lightweight shafts and the relatively high balance points. At about 3 SW points per half inch, you can see that a D2 @45" becomes around C0 at 43". You'd have to add around 20g of weight somehow to the head to achieve the D2 @ 43". Of course that messes with shaft flex, too. It's all interrelated and that's where a good clubmaker can help. Bottom line - don't cut 2.5" off your current driver, get a new one and design it short.

Try a tour weight (90-100g) shaft if you can find one you like with weight added to the driver head and see what happens. You may lose a few mph at the shorter length (I find about 2-3mph per inch), but Tom suggests the better center contact will make up for it.
 
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Jim Kobylinski

Super Moderator
Here ya go, here is something i did for another forum a while back. Notice that this particular golfer had a 5 MPH difference in swing speed from 44-45". Now is this the norm? Probably not, so substitute your swing speed in for my analysis and see what you can come up with. :)

Here is an easy way to figure it out...we'll take the guy in the person in this thread who says he swings @ 120 with a 45" and 115 with a 44"

lets assume a 1.45 smash factor

45" Driver = 120 swing speed x 1.45 = 174mph ball speed
44" Driver = 115 swing speed x 1.45 = 167mph ball speed

Difference of 7mph of ball speed

What is that 7mph of ball speed worth in carry distance?

120mph x 2.5 (max efficiency) = 300 yard carry
115mph x 2.5 (max efficiency) = 288 yard carry

So what is that worth per yard per mph of ball speed?

12 yards (difference in carry) / 7 (difference in ball speed) = roughly 1.71 yard per mph of ball speed you lose.

Here's the check:

7mph of ball speed x 1.71 ~ 11.97yards

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Hmm....so this poster for that one inch he lost he gave up about 12 yards of carry distance. However this is taking into account he is hitting the center of the face on both drivers.

So we have to change a variable....basically change the efficiency rating by decreasing it.

120mph x 2.3 = 276 yard carry
115mph x 2.5 (max efficiency) = 288 yard carry

hmmm....which is looking better now ;)

also just for giggles 115mph x 2.3 = 265 yard carry

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So what the hell does all this mean?

Basically with your 45" driver you are going to be much further on flush hits but your AVERAGE driving distance should theoretically be LESS than the shorter driver because you should be able to hit it flush more often.

But conversely if you mishit the short driver you are much shorter than you would've been with the mishited 45" driver.

DECISIONS? DECISIONS?
 
B

bray

New
Jim,

That's some awesome info. man thanks for the math and post.

Sorting Through the Golf Nut's Catalog.

B-Ray
 
J

Jim Kobylinski

Super Moderator
tongzilla said:
Just use a 45 inch driver and grip down the club more when you need to.
Click to expand...

True, BUT that will decrease the swingweight "in your hands" SIGNIFICANTLY and can throw off your feel with the driver and may in the end cause you to hit it more erractic and in the end shorter.
 
R

Ryan Smither

Super Moderator
Thanks a bunch jmessner and jim...

It's all very interesting indeed...I'll probably end up going 43.5" and will certainly consult my clubfitter...
 
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