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Lower for control? High to let it fly? How teeing height REALLY affects your drives

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The one thing we all know is that optimal launch characteristics and the proper impact point are the keys to hitting consistent and longer drives. What the Trackman has taught us about these two factors has created a revolution in the way of more forgiving club designs and drivers with different centers of gravity.

However, in the quest for better “numbers” people often forget the simplest of solutions in lieu of working on something more complex. I guess it’s human nature to think that “it just can’t be that simple!”

For this article, I will hit a series of 10 drives using my normal tee height. Then I will tee the ball lower and higher than my “normal” heights and you will instantly see the differences. We will look at three correlations: impact bias and location, ball height and landing angle, angle of attack and carry distance. It’s here that you will find the “best” tee height for your game and fundamentals.

Impact Bias and Location (NOTE: Were Only focusing on Impact Height)

Normal Tee Height— As you compare the three impact photos you can see on the impact height is better with my “normal” tee height and I believe that this is related 100% to the look that you are more comfortable with. It seems that tee height can influence impact location but usually your best chance for more centered impact is to use the one that’s most comfortable for you.

Lower Tee Height— When you tee the ball ultra-low, you can see that obviously it will influence the ball to be hit lower on the face and this is proven by the impact location photo. We once thought teeing the ball lower would be better in the wind. This is refuted by this impact photo: hitting the ball lower on the face will cause the ball to spin more, and this is proven by the data.

Higher Tee Height— What is most interesting is that teeing the ball ultra-high does not tend to influence the impact height as much as you would think. Yes, I do feel that this tee height might give the player the feeling of more “room” for the driver head to come through the impact zone. I wish it was cut and dry that to control the impact position on the face you only need to change the tee height but that is not the case. However, I feel that it might mentally make a difference and sometimes that’s all you need.

Ball Height and Landing Angle

Normal Tee Height — With the normal tee height, we can see that the height average was 79 feet with a landing angle of 32.7, which is pretty good, but both are still a touch lower than optimal.

Lower Tee Height— The lower tee height provided a very flat launch at 61 feet and much flatter landing angle at 28.4 degrees. If your fairways are harder, then something between the normal tee height and the super low tee height might work better, but be careful not to hit the ball too low on the face and spin it too much!

Higher Tee Height— It’s funny, seeing the balls I hit with this tee height, that looked SO high were actually closer to the Tour Averages! They were only 92 feet in the air and landed around 38 degrees, which for me is awesome. The key here is keeping the spin low while you tee it higher, and my average of 2500 is right where it needs to be for what I’m looking for.

Angle of Attack and Carry Distance

Normal Tee Height — My AOA with my normal tee height was 4.2 and the carry was 248.4 here at sea level. The carry would be better if my impact was less on the toe overall.

Lower Tee Height— The AOA was flatter at 1.8 degrees with the lower tee height by a few degrees. We can see that teeing the ball lower will cause you to have some issues if you already have an AOA that is too shallow. The carry was 10 yards shorter than the normal tee height which is to be expected. As stated, if the fairways are hard this isn’t a bad way to play.

Higher Tee Height— On the high tee height, we see that the AOA went up slightly to 5.0 and the carry went up as well by 10 yards. Remember that if you have wet conditions you want the ball to stay in the air longer and this tee height could influence you to make that different motion. A higher tee height can also help the struggling downward AOA player a touch as well but be careful with this as well too much of anything can get you in trouble.

Conclusions

So now that we have examined tee height and drivers, we can see that it helps with certain issues and does not make much difference with other things. Take your time to understand your issues with Trackman and from there you can make better and more educated decisions when it comes to your best and most optimal tee height!

Normal Tee Height

Low Tee Height

High Tee Height

 

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Tom F. Stickney II, is a specialist in Biomechanics for Golf, Physiology, and 3d Motion Analysis. He has a degree in Exercise and Fitness and has been a Director of Instruction for almost 30 years at resorts and clubs such as- The Four Seasons Punta Mita, BIGHORN Golf Club, The Club at Cordillera, The Promontory Club, and the Sandestin Golf and Beach Resort. His past and present instructional awards include the following: Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher, Golf Digest Top 50 International Instructor, Golf Tips Top 25 Instructor, Best in State (Florida, Colorado, and California,) Top 20 Teachers Under 40, Best Young Teachers and many more. Tom is a Trackman University Master/Partner, a distinction held by less than 25 people in the world. Tom is TPI Certified- Level 1, Golf Level 2, Level 2- Power, and Level 2- Fitness and believes that you cannot reach your maximum potential as a player with out some focus on your physiology. You can reach him at [email protected] and he welcomes any questions you may have.

33 Comments

33 Comments

  1. shawn

    Jun 5, 2018 at 11:45 am

    Total Failure…. that’s the result of this article because the author refuses to engage in reasonable discussion to answer valid questions. GWX should not post any of his articles because Stickney does not respect golfer’s questions. He’s done it before. #fail

  2. sid

    Jun 5, 2018 at 12:12 am

    4 days later and Stinkney refuses to respond to legitimate questions. He dumps on forum then cuts and runs to Mehico… wotta woose!

  3. larrybud

    Jun 4, 2018 at 9:17 pm

    “high tee height” is pretty meaningless if you’re still going to hit it low on the face. Hit it above the equator and that carry distance will go way up.

  4. HDTVMAN

    Jun 4, 2018 at 7:53 pm

    What length tees are you using for your normal height?

  5. S

    Jun 4, 2018 at 4:33 pm

    Here’s the quick answer for those dont want to waste time looking at this confusing article: 2-3 positive AOA and right on the center or maybe 1/8-1/4 inch higher on the face (depending on the weight distribution on the clubhead’s bottom).

    • Kyle

      Jun 4, 2018 at 4:52 pm

      How about using heavier CofG backweight as low as possible and hitting up 2-3º, as well as higher on the face to take advantage of Vertical Gear Effect (per Ping)? Is that what you are suggesting as optimal? Thanks.

      • S

        Jun 5, 2018 at 2:16 am

        Sort of. Nothing fancy. Little higher on the face if the weight is on the far back away from the face and vice versa, just for the right spin number. Now factoring into the loft, the swing speed, and individual skills, us mortals can only try NOT to hit lower on the face nor with any negative AOA. You will definitely feel it in your hands when you hit it with the right combo dialed in. You won’t need the Trackman numbers to tell you.

  6. steve

    Jun 4, 2018 at 4:30 pm

    So many good questions… and so few detailed answers. It seems Stinckney likes the publicity but is avoiding accountability on this free forum provided by the good folks at GolfWRX.

    • steve

      Jun 4, 2018 at 4:32 pm

      Furthermore, when Stinckney, who is a Trackman University Master/Partner, a distinction held by less than 15 people in the world, avoids responding to questions that casts doubt on his professionality.

  7. Bob Edgar

    Jun 4, 2018 at 12:03 pm

    Tom,
    Why wasn’t the contact point higher on the driver face with the higher tee height?

    Bob

  8. Tim F

    Jun 3, 2018 at 6:00 pm

    The numbers have me confused. You state: “They were only 92 feet in the air and landed around 38 degrees, which for me is awesome. The key here is keeping the spin low while you tee it higher, and my average of 2500 is right where it needs to be for what I’m looking for.”

    When I look at the screen cap of the higher tee height numbers, they show a 105 height and spin of 2836. I don’t see the numbers of 92 feet, 38 degrees or 2500 spin anywhere. What am I missing?

  9. Kyle

    Jun 3, 2018 at 5:25 pm

    Tom… all of the impact concentration points are at or slightly below the geometric center of the driver face and towards the toe. If you had hit the ball above the geometric center and taken advantage of “Vertical Gear Effect” would you have better results? Ping was touting VGE many years ago for optimal results on their drivers.

  10. Brett Weir

    Jun 3, 2018 at 11:15 am

    For me, I just want to tee the ball high enough so it impacts dead center on the face. I don’t want to hit the ball slightly higher above the center, and definitely not lower.

  11. larry

    Jun 3, 2018 at 9:15 am

    horrible

  12. J Zilla

    Jun 2, 2018 at 4:15 pm

    So was there any difference in dispersion?

    • Tom F. Stickney II

      Jun 3, 2018 at 10:06 am

      Not of any consequence

      • sid

        Jun 5, 2018 at 12:13 am

        Snotty response… snotty stinkney… (_o_)

      • Badger

        Feb 5, 2019 at 4:10 pm

        What’s the actual heights of Tees in the Ground without the Golf Ball-
        Normal, Low and High?

  13. SK

    Jun 2, 2018 at 4:05 pm

    Thanks for the screen data on the tee height drives. Please tell us which driver you were using, it’s face loft and position of weights if any. Also the shaft and specs as well as ball. This would provide a full context to your testing. Thanks again.

    • Tom F. Stickney II

      Jun 3, 2018 at 10:08 am

      Taylor Made M3. Stock x shaft 8.5 degree stock weight settings for simplicity

      • SK

        Jun 3, 2018 at 8:25 pm

        Back-calculating 151 mph ball speed divided by 1.48 smash factor gives you a 102 mph clubhead speed. Based on your AoA numbers how did you arrive at an 8.5º face loft driver as optimal? Thanks.

  14. Dan Freshley

    Jun 2, 2018 at 12:18 pm

    Valuable information for sure Tom. So, here is my question, which I believe is critical to understanding and utilizing the data for maximum effectiveness- what exactly is your “Normal?” Would that be ball equator to top of crown of the driver?
    I am a TM Tech Rep and see a significant amount, maybe 60%+ of players that tee the ball WAAAY to high to be effective with their AOA and, when lowered to a more normal height, we see those players smash factor and spin improve significantly when we lower the ball height to no more than about 2/3 above the crown .
    Thanks for the feedback-

    • SK

      Jun 2, 2018 at 4:12 pm

      How about correlating driver face loft to clubhead speed? I see golfers with 90 mph driver head speeds buying a macho 9.5º driver and then teeing it higher to get higher ball trajectories. They should use 12º loft drivers and teeing lower for optimal results. Agree?

      • Tom F. Stickney II

        Jun 3, 2018 at 10:09 am

        Depends on their AOA

        • SK

          Jun 4, 2018 at 4:46 pm

          Dan, as a TM Tech Rep, do you correlate driver face loft to clubhead speed or AOA as Tom alludes to? Would you recommend to some in the “60+% of players” to increase their face loft, or alter their AOA if they swing at <90 mph? Thanks.

    • Tom F. Stickney II

      Jun 2, 2018 at 4:40 pm

      Email me your number and we’ll chat.

      [email protected]

      • craig

        Jun 3, 2018 at 1:04 am

        Answer the questions on the WRX forum so everybody can benefit from your replies. Having private discussions is not only disrespectful it’s unprofessional.

        • Tom F. Stickney II

          Jun 3, 2018 at 10:05 am

          For your information we’ll be discussing TM business since I’m on their staff. Get your facts straight

          • craig

            Jun 3, 2018 at 8:32 pm

            Okay discuss TM ‘business’ privately but openly respond to Dan’s valid question about ball equator to driver crown. That can’t be ‘private’.

        • James T

          Jun 3, 2018 at 12:52 pm

          Craig… there are certain secrets to long driving and tee height that just can’t be shared in a forum on the internet. You’re on the outside looking in. 🙂

          • sid

            Jun 5, 2018 at 12:15 am

            Stinkney is a fraud and should be dumped by Trackman for disgraceful performance.

    • larrybud

      Jun 4, 2018 at 9:20 pm

      Dan, when a player tees it too high, what are you seeing as being a negative effect? Are they hitting off the crown?

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Instruction

The Wedge Guy: The easiest-to-learn golf basic

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My golf learning began with this simple fact – if you don’t have a fundamentally sound hold on the golf club, it is practically impossible for your body to execute a fundamentally sound golf swing. I’m still a big believer that the golf swing is much easier to execute if you begin with the proper hold on the club.

As you might imagine, I come into contact with hundreds of golfers of all skill levels. And it is very rare to see a good player with a bad hold on the golf club. There are some exceptions, for sure, but they are very few and very far between, and they typically have beat so many balls with their poor grip that they’ve found a way to work around it.

The reality of biophysics is that the body moves only in certain ways – and the particulars of the way you hold the golf club can totally prevent a sound swing motion that allows the club to release properly through the impact zone. The wonderful thing is that anyone can learn how to put a fundamentally sound hold on the golf club, and you can practice it anywhere your hands are not otherwise engaged, like watching TV or just sitting and relaxing.

Whether you prefer an overlap, interlock or full-finger (not baseball!) grip on the club, the same fundamentals apply.  Here are the major grip faults I see most often, in the order of the frequency:

Mis-aligned hands

By this I mean that the palms of the two hands are not parallel to each other. Too many golfers have a weak left hand and strong right, or vice versa. The easiest way to learn how to hold the club with your palms aligned properly is to grip a plain wooden ruler or yardstick. It forces the hands to align properly and shows you how that feels. If you grip and re-grip a yardstick several times, then grip a club, you’ll see that the learning curve is almost immediate.

The position of the grip in the upper/left hand

I also observe many golfers who have the butt of the grip too far into the heel pad of the upper hand (the left hand for right-handed players). It’s amazing how much easier it is to release the club through the ball if even 1/4-1/2″ of the butt is beyond the left heel pad. Try this yourself to see what I mean.  Swing the club freely with just your left hand and notice the difference in its release from when you hold it at the end of the grip, versus gripping down even a half inch.

To help you really understand how this works, go to the range and hit shots with your five-iron gripped down a full inch to make the club the same length as your seven-iron. You will probably see an amazing shot shape difference, and likely not see as much distance loss as you would expect.

Too much lower (right) hand on the club

It seems like almost all golfers of 8-10 handicap or higher have the club too far into the palm of the lower hand, because that feels “good” if you are trying to control the path of the clubhead to the ball. But the golf swing is not an effort to hit at the ball – it is a swing of the club. The proper hold on the club has the grip underneath the pad at the base of the fingers. This will likely feel “weak” to you — like you cannot control the club like that. EXACTLY. You should not be trying to control the club with your lower/master hand.

Gripping too tightly

Nearly all golfers hold the club too tightly, which tenses up the forearms and prevents a proper release of the club through impact. In order for the club to move back and through properly, you must feel that the club is controlled by the last three fingers of the upper hand, and the middle two fingers of the lower hand. If you engage your thumbs and forefingers in “holding” the club, the result will almost always be a grip that is too tight. Try this for yourself. Hold the club in your upper hand only, and squeeze firmly with just the last three fingers, with the forefinger and thumb off the club entirely. You have good control, but your forearms are not tense. Then begin to squeeze down with your thumb and forefinger and observe the tensing of the entire forearm. This is the way we are made, so the key to preventing tenseness in the arms is to hold the club very lightly with the “pinchers” — the thumbs and forefingers.

So, those are what I believe are the four fundamentals of a good grip. Anyone can learn them in their home or office very quickly. There is no easier way to improve your ball striking consistency and add distance than giving more attention to the way you hold the golf club.

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Clement: Stop ripping off your swing with this drill!

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Not the dreaded headcover under the armpit drill! As if your body is defective and can’t function by itself! Have you seen how incredible the human machine is with all the incredible feats of agility all kinds of athletes are accomplishing? You think your body is so defective (the good Lord is laughing his head off at you) that it needs a headcover tucked under the armpit so you can swing like T-Rex?

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Instruction

How a towel can fix your golf swing

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This is a classic drill that has been used for decades. However, the world of marketed training aids has grown so much during that time that this simple practice has been virtually forgotten. Because why teach people how to play golf using everyday items when you can create and sell a product that reinforces the same thing? Nevertheless, I am here to give you helpful advice without running to the nearest Edwin Watts or adding something to your Amazon cart.

For the “scoring clubs,” having a solid connection between the arms and body during the swing, especially through impact, is paramount to creating long-lasting consistency. And keeping that connection throughout the swing helps rotate the shoulders more to generate more power to help you hit it farther. So, how does this drill work, and what will your game benefit from it? Well, let’s get into it.

Setup

You can use this for basic chip shots up to complete swings. I use this with every club in my bag, up to a 9 or 8-iron. It’s natural to create incrementally more separation between the arms and body as you progress up the set. So doing this with a high iron or a wood is not recommended.

While you set up to hit a ball, simply tuck the towel underneath both armpits. The length of the towel will determine how tight it will be across your chest but don’t make it so loose that it gets in the way of your vision. After both sides are tucked, make some focused swings, keeping both arms firmly connected to the body during the backswing and follow through. (Note: It’s normal to lose connection on your lead arm during your finishing pose.) When you’re ready, put a ball in the way of those swings and get to work.

Get a Better Shoulder Turn

Many of us struggle to have proper shoulder rotation in our golf swing, especially during long layoffs. Making a swing that is all arms and no shoulders is a surefire way to have less control with wedges and less distance with full swings. Notice how I can get in a similar-looking position in both 60° wedge photos. However, one is weak and uncontrollable, while the other is strong and connected. One allows me to use my larger muscles to create my swing, and one doesn’t. The follow-through is another critical point where having a good connection, as well as solid shoulder rotation, is a must. This drill is great for those who tend to have a “chicken wing” form in their lead arm, which happens when it becomes separated from the body through impact.

In full swings, getting your shoulders to rotate in your golf swing is a great way to reinforce proper weight distribution. If your swing is all arms, it’s much harder to get your weight to naturally shift to the inside part of your trail foot in the backswing. Sure, you could make the mistake of “sliding” to get weight on your back foot, but that doesn’t fix the issue. You must turn into your trial leg to generate power. Additionally, look at the difference in separation between my hands and my head in the 8-iron examples. The green picture has more separation and has my hands lower. This will help me lessen my angle of attack and make it easier to hit the inside part of the golf ball, rather than the over-the-top move that the other picture produces.

Stay Better Connected in the Backswing

When you don’t keep everything in your upper body working as one, getting to a good spot at the top of your swing is very hard to do. It would take impeccable timing along with great hand-eye coordination to hit quality shots with any sort of regularity if the arms are working separately from the body.

Notice in the red pictures of both my 60-degree wedge and 8-iron how high my hands are and the fact you can clearly see my shoulder through the gap in my arms. That has happened because the right arm, just above my elbow, has become totally disconnected from my body. That separation causes me to lift my hands as well as lose some of the extension in my left arm. This has been corrected in the green pictures by using this drill to reinforce that connection. It will also make you focus on keeping the lead arm close to your body as well. Because the moment either one loses that relationship, the towel falls.

Conclusion

I have been diligent this year in finding a few drills that target some of the issues that plague my golf game; either by simply forgetting fundamental things or by coming to terms with the faults that have bitten me my whole career. I have found that having a few drills to fall back on to reinforce certain feelings helps me find my game a little easier, and the “towel drill” is most definitely one of them.

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