Golf Club Advice Needed
 

I'm looking for a new driver and was out shopping today. I hit the TaylorMade Burner Draw driver, 9.5 loft with the regular shaft. I was hitting long, but kept pushing everything right. So I tried a regular Burner driver with a stiff shaft and was hitting long and pretty straight with just a little, but very manageable fade.

The problem is, the regular Burner driver is $299, a little out of my price range. The Draw driver is $199, but they didn't have one with the stiff shaft for me to demo.

Has anyone had any experience with these clubs? Since I was only hitting a slight fade with the regular club, is the draw driver with the proper shaft going to cause problems? Or is there a comparable club to the TaylorMade that you would recommend?

See the links below for the two clubs I am referencing.

Taylormade Burner:
http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/pr...ductId=2614370

TaylorMade Burner Draw:
http://www.dickssportinggoods.com/pr...ductId=2862798

It won't cause you problems but get the right shaft

If I go with the draw driver, it will definitely be with the stiff shaft.

Have you had any experience with either of these drivers?

No, I am not much on TM. All the new drivers are good.

No one hits 9.5

What? That's what I hit now. It's just a crappy cheap driver though.

9.5 = 1... maybe 2 iron.

Whatever dude. I know I was hitting a 9.5 loft burner today and getting plenty of height.

I'm old, so here's my take.

Golf balls today have far less spin (which is good) than they did in the days of balata. You don't need a shallow lofted club to take the spin off of a high spinning ball. The 1 and 2 irons were necessary in the soft, high spinning balata era but that's a bygone era. I remember seeing pros back shots up 40'+ when they hit the green. That was stupid and it has evolved into lower spinning balls and higher lofted clubs.

Height? What? Carry on.

I'm saying that I was hitting the 9.5 pretty high in the air. Why would I hit a higher lofted club and lose distance?

My buddy has been using that Taylor Made draw this year. He's always had trouble with slices and he's hitting the shit out of that new club. Mostly straight, occasional slight draw with it.

Bob, Go with the TM Draw, it will be fine with the stiff shaft.

BTW, went out and played a round today for the 1st time since Oct. 2007. Pretty sore from the abuse, but Damn, I enjoyed it. My health is finally coming back. :D

Couldn't disagree more. 9.5 degrees of loft is pretty much the standard for your average weekend golfers. I wouldn't be surprised if the average modern tour model ball spins more than the old balatas as well.

A 1 iron is around 16 degrees and a 2 around 19.

I bought a Burner when they first came out. It was a 10.5 with the regular flex shaft. I loved it at first, but after a while I became too inconsistant with it. I'm sure most of it was my fault due to too many bad swings. The 46" shaft made it hard to control. I probably should have gotten a stiff flex because the regular flex was kind of whippy feeling. Also, the closed club face gave me some trouble with my alignment. Sometimes I would hit it straight, and other times I would push it high and to the right. But when I could connect, boy did it fly. But since I was too inconsistant with it, I ended up trading it in about 6 months later. I've never hit the draw version of the Burner, so I can't comment on it.

I don't know if you hit the Burner on a launch monitor, or out on the range. I highly recommend you hit it on the range so you can see your actual ball flight. If you want to buy one, go to rockbottomgolf.com . They have both versions of the Burner for a little cheaper than at Dicks Sporting Goods. Its a legit website. I've bought stuff from them before without any problems.

Why would you want to hit it high, if you do it is going to land with not much follow-on roll. Also high shots are more susceptible to the wind currents. Yes they are pretty, but is that your goal? Seems like a low (almost line drive that you can draw or fade) would be your goal. But I cannot play anymore so don't pay much attention to me. I am just a fan these days.

Haven't hit the TM's but I love my PING G10 9.5 deg

My advice is to demo at someplace like Dicks and then buy off of Ebay or Discount Dans in Oregon(No tax and free shipping). Don't be afraid to buy a used stick...you will save at least $100. You are just going to hit it anyways right?

Here you go...

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-TAYLORMADE-B...d=p3286.c0.m14

If you really want to improve your swing and play better(without getting lessons) so that you don't need a draw driver. You should get one of these...

http://www.medicus.com/

It will train you to swing on plane. The 5 iron works pretty well too. It is one of the few training aids out there that's worth the money. It will get rid of your push

Then spend an hour per day on your short game. Guaranteed results.

Very true. My short game has improved greatly...especially my putting...part of that is because I've had the same putter for the last 3 years.

I found out that going to the stiff shaft pretty much eliminated the push I was seeing. That's why I was asking about whether the draw driver was even necessary now. I was hitting the regular driver with the stiff shaft consistently straight, with an occasional very slight fade (on a driving range, btw).

I've found the regular burner onEbay for $199 new, so I'll likely go that route.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=320265799396

Thanks for everyone's input.

Yes they do

No not even close

You can get golf balls today that spin a ton. The average loft of a pga pro is around 9.5*.

The higher the loft you have more control. Studies have found that more carry leads to longer drives. Line drive? No tat should not be your goal.

This thing works. Have a friend that is a golf coach, has all his students use one.

Okay guys, here is the deal. The draw bias on a driver is only about 2*. It will not make much of a difference either way. It gives some confidence. But the shaft on the other hand is very important. Sounds as if you are getting plenty of height, I would go with a low kick point, low torque shaft. Shafts IMO are the most important thing to fit yourself to than anything else.


If you guys enjoy golf and discussing rounds and swings, we have a thread on it.
http://www.chiefsplanet.com/BB/showt...184595&page=13