Should you try a 48-inch driver?
Driver shafts are a hot topic in golf right now, specifically regarding length after the governing bodies recently proposed a new Model Local Rule from January 1, 2022, where organisers of professional or elite amateur tournaments can limit the maximum club shaft length, excluding putters, to 46 inches. Amateurs can still use a driver shaft up to 48 inches, so it begs the question: is there a big advantage to be had?
Titleist sent me a 47.5-inch shaft for my fitted TSI3 driver in the same model/flex, two inches longer than the standard shaft. I hit a series of shots with both on the Flightscope Mevo+ launch monitor.
The headline findings were that my clubhead speed went up by 2.3mph with the longer shaft, ball speed increased by 3.5mph and the average carry distance went up by six yards.
This sounds great, but there are two caveats to note. The first being that the quality of strike certainly got worse. Yes, once I got use to the longer shaft I was able to connect relatively cleanly, but hits from the middle were still harder to come by. A knock-on effect was a reduced ability to control direction. My dispersion was wider and also more inconsistent – a one-way miss became a two-way miss.
I really enjoyed trying the longer driver and the results on good shots are certainly tempting me to try it out on the course if I’m swinging well, but I’m not sure it’s worth the risk for an extra handful of yards.