Proper amount of Roll?

[LD Thailand]

Hey All,

 

New to the forum and I suppose relatively new to the sport. Started playing golf when I became a partner in a garment factory in Thailand 2.5 years ago. From the time I first picked up a driver I have always been able to hit it straight and far. In the 2 years since beginning, I entered 2 long drive competitions with stock clubs.

 

The first was a Cleveland Launcher Comp (9* and 44" with an S flex).... 4th place at 261 meters (286.52 yards).

The 2nd was a stock Taylormade Burner (10.5* and a 45.5 with an S flex)...4th place at 271 meters (296.37 yards)

 

Ok so for the question: What is an optimal amount of roll? As of now I get zero roll and all carry. In both competitions the official said my ball checked on the fairway and the Taylormade hopped and spun backwards about 3 inches (I don't "get" this at all).

 

Do I lose distance by not getting roll?

Does an optimal drive have to include roll?

 

thanks from a new member in Thailand

[idrive400yards]

your angle of decent is off, which is why you get no roll, maybe too much backspin, or too high of a launch angle. Find out which is killing you for roll wise and see about fixing it.

 

Roll can also be prohibited by the conditions of the fairways/grids.

 

Mike

[LD Thailand]

Idrive400: thanks for the reply Mike.

 

I asked my playing partners yesterday about my typical ballflight. Unanimously they agreed that my ball flight resembles a football and not a tear drop. Every once in awhile I will experiment with my ball position and move it a hair forward. I normally hammer these on the screws well in excess of 300, but they are typically dead pulls with no draw.

 

I have been told over and over by local Thai swing coaches, that my follow through is way too shallow. My problem is that I am in the heart of Thailand and conveying complex theories can be a problem with the language barrier. What types of drills do you have for improviong a longer follow through with a low hand release? I have heard and read the standard types of training commentery (such as invisioning a target a foot ahead of the ball), but these dont seem to register. I guess everyone learns differently.

 

Thanks again,

Jason

[idrive400yards]

Jason,

 

The only thing I invision or even think about on my follow thru is to make completely sure that I fully release the clubhead thru impact, that gives me my most power and best ball flight. Thru a whole lot of practice, I can tell when I haven't gotten full extension by the sound of the ball off the driver and ball flight. I can not give you any drills to work on for this because I don't know any, Hopefully someone else like slicefixer can help us out with this one. Sorry I couldn't help out any more.

 

 

Mike

[jaacobbowden]

Yes, you lose overall distance by not getting any roll. In a regular game of golf, having a ball be all carry and stick isn't too bad...because at least then it's more predictable where your ball will end up. Similar to you, I use a 44" 9.5* driver that sometimes backs up a few feet. With a smooth swing, my drives go 290-330 yards.

But for long drive competitions you need all the carry and roll that you can get. I find that the optimum distance conditions are somewhere between a 10-15 degree launch angle with 1800-2200 rpm backspin. To achieve that I'll use a 48" 6* degree driver in my long drive competitions. I have to tee it up a little higher and swing up on it slightly to get a high enough launch angle, but I definitely get more distance that way. With the different equipment and swinging as fast as I can, this year I hit between about 345 and 421 in competition.

Jaacob
Swing Man Golf

[PGW]

place a tee about 8" in front of your ball and about 3" out
tee >o

ball >o
swing out with your clubhead in the path of the tee-that usually helps get rid of pulls and helps with extension-it's a drill that has worked for many and also reduces spin,promotes draw and gains rollout-
it is especially important if you are going with a longer club
9-10*'s also arent going to help roll wise maybe try at least a 7-8*
Hope this helps!