Most golf drivers today offer some means of adjustability. The type and degree of adjustability may depend on whether it’s a regular adjustable hosel or a more advanced customized weighting. However, as standard as these features has now become, it’s still rare to see regular golfers who know how to use them correctly.
Regardless of your skill or level of expertise in the game, learning how to use the adjustable drivers properly will certainly help. Depending on your experience or handicap, it may help you fine-tune your swing. Or, it may simply add more convenience to your playing style. So, there’s no doubt that it offers something for everyone on the course.
Today, we’ll take you through a complete rundown of how they work, how to use them, and even some recommendations on which ones will work the best for you. Let’s begin!
| Photo | Title | Buy | Our Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Cobra Golf 2019 F9 Speedback Driver Black-Yellow (Men's, Left Hand, UST Helium 50, Reg Flex, 10.5) | Check Price On Amazon | |
|
TaylorMade SIM MAX Driver, Fujikura Ventus Blue 6 Shaft, 10.5 Degree Loft, Right Hand, Regular Flex | Check Price On Amazon | |
|
TaylorMade Men's RBZ Black Driver, Black, Right Hand, Stiff Flex, 9.5 Degrees | Check Price On Amazon |
What are Adjustable Golf Drivers?
Adjustable golf drivers are, to put it simply, any drivers that allow you to perform some degree or type of adjustability. So, it can be a hosel that enables you to tweak your lie angle or loft. It can also come in the form of sliding weights that can change position and let you tweak the center of gravity in your driver.
Since these are two broad categories of adjustability that exist today, let’s look at each feature in a bit more detail.
Types of Adjustable Golf Drivers
As already mentioned, the hosel and weights are two types of adjustable parts for the driver. Finding the ideal setting of the two is crucial in correcting your shots. And the first step here is to learn what each feature does.
Adjustable Hosels on Drivers
The main effect of adjusting the hosel is that you can either raise or lower your loft. So, it’s an excellent feature to have if your shots off the tee go excessively high or keep too low.
· When you increase your degree of loft, the driver’s face will also close marginally. It’s not a significant deviation from the initial angle. But it affects the outcome of your shot.
· Likewise, the driver’s face will open slightly when you decrease the loft. Again, it’s not a huge difference, but it matters if you’re fine-tuning your shots.
· Some drivers can alter the lie angle without directly affecting the degrees of loft. In this case,
· If the lie angle is increased, there’s more fade bias in the overall shot.
· On the other hand, if you decrease it, you generate more draw bias.
Movable Weights
A more advanced type of driver adjustability comes in the form of moveable weights. You can use a key/wrench to adjust the settings by moving these weights forwards/backward. Or you can also move them between the toe and heel of the driver.
· Moving the adjustable weights backward or forwards generally creates more or less ball flight.
· Moving the weight backward can help in the launch, which gives higher flight and, consequently, more carry.
· If you move the weight forwards instead, you’ll get a lower launch. This will give the ball’s flight more focus and increase the roll-out too.
· When you move the weights between the toe and heel, you can change your shot’s draw/fade bias.
· More weight towards the toe means you’ll be generating a fade bias.
· Moving the weight closer to the heel allows you to create more draw bias.
How Can An Adjustable Golf Driver Help My Game?
For the majority of players, they will give you more variety and wiggle-room in a single club. As explained above, you can make a wide range of actions and adjustments to tweak your swing and your shots.
Here are some ways they can enhance your game if tuned correctly.
- Adjust ball trajectory and flight
It takes some trial and error before you can move the weighting around to precise levels. But once you get the hang of how it affects your shots, you can considerably change the way the ball moves through the air. For instance, if you want a higher ball trajectory and your current swing just isn’t cutting it, moving the adjustable weight backward may help.
- Better loft for beginners
When you first start, slow swing and high handicap scores can plague your game. It’s hard to get a good flight because you cannot generate the desirable loft when you swing. An adjustable hosel can allow golfers to increase the loft with a minor tweak.
- Fix your slice or hook
Hooks and slices can become annoying hindrances to golfers. Every time the ball veers away from the intended direction, you end up much further than you wanted. You end up piling extra shots to your score, and it’s just an unpleasant experience.
One of the most common root-problems of the hook and slice is the driver’s face. Figuring out the right angle can be tricky when you’re still getting used to your driver. An adjustable hosel and weight can slightly correct this problem for better results.
- Stick to the same driver longer
As your game improves, you can gradually outgrow your driver. Very soon, it feels like you’re using someone else’s driver, even if it was a perfect option not long ago. Adjustable golf drivers can allow you to make your club change along with your game.
When tuned correctly, the hosel and weights can do wonders to change the club’s balance. So, you get to use it for a longer, instead of investing in a new club every time you get slightly better.
Who should Use An Adjustable Golf Drivers?
Given the wide range of shot-benefits they offer, practically anyone can use adjustable golf drivers. Golfing beginners may struggle with fine-tuning at first. But any average golfer stands to get a lot out of adjustable features. Whether it’s your ball flight, driver face, balance, or control issues, adjustable drivers can assist you all the way.
Of course, they aren’t a substitute for working on your swings and intentionally improving different areas of your game. That will ultimately have to come from you. But a little help from your driver can undoubtedly go a long way. And an adjustable golf driver offers you the best assistance in that process.
Our Top Choice of an Adjustable Golf Driver
- Radial Weighting Technology-Radial Weighting is the strategic placement of weight relative to the CG to optimize speed, forgiveness, and flight direction from the fairway or off the tee
- CNC Milled Infinity Face-An infinity edge face design expands the milled area by 95% to increase the zone of maximum ball speed
- Thin-Ply Carbon Crown-The Carbon Wrap Crown system features a new carbon fiber material that is 30% thinner which creates another 6 grams of discretionary weight
- Lighter T-Bar Chassis-A refined T-Bar speed chassis design is 7 grams lighter, giving us even more discretionary weight to position mass within the frame to optimize performance
- Extreme Back Weighting-The Radspeed XB Driver frame features 20g positioned in the back (14g of fixed and 6g of adjustable weight)
