Would you give up distance for accuracy?

[ScramblinMan]

Interesting question! My take on this subject(and as evidenced from the responses) is that the longer hitters are willing to give up distance for accuracy and the shorter hitters are unwilling to sacrifice any distance. I think a large percentage of golfers embellish the actual distance of their drives!!! Very few 15-20 handicappers are hitting 270 yard plus drives! If they did, they would have much lower handicaps. About 25% of my drives rollout to that 270 number and I would gladly sacrifice yardage for accuracy! I am currently in my early 60's and age/flexibility are slowly deteriorating my game. I can understand how younger players 20-40 years of age "chase distance" and consistently exceed those yardages and probably would be less willing to give up distances but I think it depends on the courses played. My home course has "out of bounds" or a hazard on all 18 holes so accuracy is at a premium...

[Barrio6]

At 68 years old it has been and will continue to be a battle for distance and leaning on the putter to make up for wide left or right off the tee.

[Kevin W]

Depends on the hole and it's hazards. OB, water, thick rough, deep bunkers, I want accuracy first. Wide open holes, distance for sure. Hitting into hazards and/or OB gets old fast. I've played with guys who hit it short and accurate and they always score well. Long and accurate is when the game is most fun though. 

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

I’d give up ten yards for tighter dispersion but only if that tighter dispersion isn’t drastically differ than what I have. With the cost of drivers now, you can get the best of both worlds with a fitting (something I actually need to do with the big stick). And then just stick to what you were fit for, no tinkering with weights, shafts, etc (I am very guilty here). 

[NM01]

10 minutes ago, ScramblinMan said:

Interesting question! My take on this subject(and as evidenced from the responses) is that the longer hitters are willing to give up distance for accuracy and the shorter hitters are unwilling to sacrifice any distance. I think a large percentage of golfers embellish the actual distance of their drives!!! Very few 15-20 handicappers are hitting 270 yard plus drives! If they did, they would have much lower handicaps. About 25% of my drives rollout to that 270 number and I would gladly sacrifice yardage for accuracy! I am currently in my early 60's and age/flexibility are slowly deteriorating my game. I can understand how younger players 20-40 years of age "chase distance" and consistently exceed those yardages and probably would be less willing to give up distances but I think it depends on the courses played. My home course has "out of bounds" or a hazard on all 18 holes so accuracy is at a premium...

I’m a relatively long hitter and have no desire to give up distance. The data doesn’t support giving it up either. 

[jamespolley00]

This is a tough one. My opinion is if you’re not losing balls off the tee, then hit it as far as possible even into the rough. But one or 2 LBs can kill a round. At that point you’re better off hanging back and keeping in the fairway. I play a Ping G425 Max. I don’t believe you actually have to sacrifice distance for accuracy anymore with the newer drivers. 

[NM01]

I’m curious what those who are for more accuracy define as accuracy.

what is the accuracy you would take over distance? 

[Vegan_Golfer_PNW]

1 minute ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

I’m curious what those who are for more accuracy define as accuracy.

what is the accuracy you would take over distance? 

For me a more consistent dispersion pattern, which should be accomplished through a proper fitting and getting a head that lessens your worst miss (for me the dreaded toe hook).  Fairways are overrated. Staying out of trouble is key. 

[PalmCoastGolf]

Most definitely! I hit father than most, but don't always have the accuracy... and the accuracy gets compounded the further I hit it. I also think hitting hard and far takes a greater toll on the body as I get older.

I'd much rather have smooth, accurate shots and brag on my low score than boast about my 300 yard drive and admit to a triple bogie 

Swing smooth! Score low! 
P

[Ahart4444]

Not a chance, age is taking enough distance.  I am striving to maintain and as distance decreases, the width of the miss does as well, so a fair trade.   

[NM01]

I have a feeling for some based on the posts in the thread is more fairways hit.

i suspect a small number it’s to reduce the bigger miss.

For those obsessed with fairways and giving up distance to be in the fairway, strokes gained data doesn’t support the approach nor does data in general.

https://www.golfmonthly.com/features/is-hitting-fairways-overrated-according-to-the-data-obsessing-over-the-short-grass-could-be-a-mistake

[ScramblinMan]

14 minutes ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

I have a feeling for some based on the posts in the thread is more fairways hit.

i suspect a small number it’s to reduce the bigger miss.

For those obsessed with fairways and giving up distance to be in the fairway, strokes gained data doesn’t support the approach nor does data in general.

https://www.golfmonthly.com/features/is-hitting-fairways-overrated-according-to-the-data-obsessing-over-the-short-grass-could-be-a-mistake

I would define accuracy as a playable next shot! Fairways hit or a shot out of the rough can still give you the opportunity to make par or better. My point was that a ball hit out of bounds or into a hazard such as water or woods would probably result in bogie or worse and I'm convinced that regardless of age or distance that the average player would gladly sacrifice distance for accuracy...

[Notjackdaniels22]

 

39 minutes ago, ScramblinMan said:

Interesting question! My take on this subject(and as evidenced from the responses) is that the longer hitters are willing to give up distance for accuracy and the shorter hitters are unwilling to sacrifice any distance. I think a large percentage of golfers embellish the actual distance of their drives!!! Very few 15-20 handicappers are hitting 270 yard plus drives! If they did, they would have much lower handicaps. About 25% of my drives rollout to that 270 number and I would gladly sacrifice yardage for accuracy! I am currently in my early 60's and age/flexibility are slowly deteriorating my game. I can understand how younger players 20-40 years of age "chase distance" and consistently exceed those yardages and probably would be less willing to give up distances but I think it depends on the courses played. My home course has "out of bounds" or a hazard on all 18 holes so accuracy is at a premium...

I have to disagree with a portion of this wholeheartedly... I'm a high handicap (or would be if i kept track of it), and I have yet to break 100. Granted I have only been playing a few short months overall, but a 270 plus drive for me is pretty normal (I'm almost 40 with a pretty abused body from the military), 310ish if I really get ahold of it. Distance doesn't really do me any favors if that 270ish is 20+ yards off the fairway in the trees and crap, or next fairway over. It takes another... however many shots to get out/back and such. I know accuracy will come with more time and practice in my case, but i would gladly sacrifice distance and gain accuracy. Conversely, what good does a 300 yard drive do someone if their 100 and in game is also trash? 300 yard drive, a trash chip shot, or a missed 5 footer all count the same lol. Personally, if i can stay in or closer to the fairways, i give myself a few birdie putts a round, and plenty of par chances. My rounds fall apart when that accuracy fails off the tee (which is often ). I can club up for more distance in an iron or wood... but again... that's just me. The rest I would say is spot on as far as how I feel about it all. 

[NM01]

2 minutes ago, ScramblinMan said:

I would define accuracy as a playable next shot! Fairways hit or a shot out of the rough can still give you the opportunity to make par or better. My point was that a ball hit out of bounds or into a hazard such as water or woods would probably result in bogie or worse and I'm convinced that regardless of age or distance that the average player would gladly sacrifice distance for accuracy...

That’s typically a swing issue and/or an alignment issue that then compounds the swing issue. Or overswinging. 

shorter hitters can still hit it ob or in a hazard. But also when we look at strokes gained and course management strategies like decade which uses strokes gained, understanding ones dispersion and picking both the right target and acceptable risk one can mitigate the risk of hitting a ball that’s not playable or requires some kind of recovery shot. Another issue is many try too many hero shots rather than the smart play. 
 

In some cases it’s also a ill fitted equipment problem.

[musmgr]

     I think we have to take where we normally play into account, as mentioned in another post or two. If you have woods that cannot be played out of, lakes, or OB's, you are going to have to keep your dispersion down.

     I have played the Ping G400 Max since it came out, and Ping drivers previous to that. I played Ping drivers for so long, other drivers just look foreign. I play on a course with a lot of trouble, but I will usually be in the fairway or in a playable position on almost all holes. I had become unsatisfied with the amount of spin I was getting. The ball would be a good trajectory, but hit soft and not roll out, even though the shots were not fades. I ordered a newer Taylormade to try to get less spin and more distance. I started suddenly hitting fades on some days that constantly put me in trouble. I nearly gave up on it. Then I found some tweaks to my swing that stopped that. I did not hit fades with the Ping, so I think it was less choosy on not as good of swings. The Taylormade has forced me to improve a swing that I thought was fine. It does not spin as much, and I am happy. Now I need the fairways to dry out to get some roll. So, I gave up accuracy to find more distance, because I thought I had a driver swing that worked. In the end, I got a better swing and less spin, and the accuracy is coming back. If I hadn't learned to control the Taylormade, I would have been back to the Ping. You can't play from unplayable places.

[Chef Brando]

I did just that, got fitted for new irons with TaylorMade , went with stiff graphite shafts, didn’t loose yardage but didn’t gain as much yardage as I should have getting fitted but my dispersion was great, a lot more accurate. 

[munson7]

For everything it always depends. Would I give up 15 yards? (1 club) - Probably, but on certain holes I would much rather be 15 yards closer even if it meant a lie in the rough instead of the fairway. If we are talking anything over 30 yards I am always going to take the distance, even with a rough lie I could club accordingly

[NM01]

5 minutes ago, Chef Brando said:

I did just that, got fitted for new irons with TaylorMade , went with stiff graphite shafts, didn’t loose yardage but didn’t gain as much yardage as I should have getting fitted but my dispersion was great, a lot more accurate. 

Getting fit isn’t a magic bullet for gaining distance. Theres or of factors that go into that. I have had two clubs with a couple degrees of different lofts that went the same distance. I was fitted for both. The design and how that affected launch characteristics played into why 

Sure some gain distance and in some cases a fitter can get someone more distance on a launch monitor but at the same time it sacrifices playability of the shot.

Just like a fitting doesn’t guarantee anyone will play better

[benrd5420]

The answer to this question for me has changed after moving from Arizona to Ohio.  When I live in Arizona, I would have leaned into being more aggressive and tried to get more out of my driver distance wise.  Since moving to Ohio, that has shifted.  Many people have already  eluded to this here, but it all comes down to what the penalty is for the errant shot. 

In Arizona, the rough can be penal but doesn't tend to get grown up too much and is rarely wet and sticky.  Additionally, if you really spray one right or left your real danger is not less lost balls (assuming the course is not lined with houses), but cactus and things that want to bite and sting you.  When you find the ball, getting back to the fairway is usually a pretty open shot.

Since moving to Ohio the courses are much more likely to be tree lined, have thicker rough, and play much more wet.  If you are not landing in the fairway you are getting no rollout, and your next shot is at a significant disadvantage if not blocked out completely.  

So for me, losing distance loss is negligible if you aren't having to bunt back to the fairway.

Still, all this considered, max I think I would give up is 15 or so yards in the end, which in the end is a club, club and a half.

[Huse343]

I would definitely give up 15 yds - max of 20, if I were to hit the fairway 60% of the time. I’ll take 280 in the fairway every single day. My iron play is good, so that would definitely take me from a 3hdcp to scratch

Edited May 31 by Huse343

[Dcfrench3]

I would definitely prefer accuracy over distance.  All the distance in the world doesn't help if your having to the hit your approach or of some trees or trying ty get your ball out of a pond

[OhCanada1954]

I would give up distance for accuracy for sure. It’s hard to hit greens in regulation from the rough, behind trees, or from hazards. Fairways don’t always lead to pars or birdies but they certainly are more likely to end-up with lower scores. 

Cheers

[VeganGolfer]

Tighter dispersion so I hit more fairways in regulation. I would absolutely sacrifice distance. I’ve always said I’d gladly hit 230 to the middle of the fairway instead of 260 to the tall grass.  But alas my slice rears its head

[NM01]

1 minute ago, VeganGolfer said:

Tighter dispersion so I hit more fairways in regulation. I would absolutely sacrifice distance. I’ve always said I’d gladly hit 230 to the middle of the fairway instead of 260 to the tall grass.  But alas my slice rears its head

Strokes gains tells us the 260 in the rough is better than 230 in the fairway.

even the pros hit really bad shots ob or into other fairways or the trees.

[RickLit]

Well...At my age (Let's say close to 60), my game has switched to that by default. After returning from health issues, I found my distance game was nothing. So, I relied on accuracy to keep up with my overall game. Honestly, I should have gone this way right from the get-go. I find I am enjoying the game a lot more and saving money not having to look for goofballs that have gone in whatever direction. 

[BallsLeon]

Listened to a recent podcast from No Laying Up with Stephen Jaeger and they touched on similar subjects.

He talked about chasing distance/swing speed and how it’s improved his game. He’s always sprayed the ball a bit off the tee, so he’s worried about that less and focused on distance which has translated to better strokes gained. Thought that was really interesting, and would lead me to favor distance as well.

[Hugemidget]

I would give up my second born for consistent accuracy lol

[Hitnhunt]

As with many on this site, I'm not limited to one driver (or perhaps a dozen or so...).   So, the short answer is yes, depending on the course, accuracy might be far more important than distance.  Manufacturers keep touting distance above all, with each new model being longer than the last, which is interesting since all of them have claimed to be up at the USGA limits for quite a few years now.  If we are to believe the claims, we're down to manufacturing tolerances on things like face thickness, which might be good for a yard or two, but it's awfully hard to imagine it'd be worth more than that.  As someone who worked in manufacturing, I can understand that when you look at a large population of items, reducing manufacturing variation might make the "fliers" tighter to the design goals, but we're not talking huge numbers here.

I used a driver in league yesterday that has additional weight in the head and has an overall length of 43".  Some might remember that as the traditional length of wooden headed drivers.  Didn't miss a fairway and shot even par.  The course isn't overly long, but is tight, and very penal if you get out of position.  At my 65-ish age and length, there isn't massive clubhead speed there anyway, and lower speeds reduce the gains of things like COR, so even with my shorter driver, I didn't see enough difference to matter.

[Bortery]

This is an easy answer for me… an astounding yes. I have always said I will hit shorter for a straight shoot. Now with that being said the other question could be “how are you going to lose the distance for the accurate shoot”. Seeing how you could use a lower club or what some people may or may not think about is slowing your swing speed down when using the higher club. I believe some people may forget about that option and they swing a lower club thinking they are getting the more accurate shoot with shorter distance. Which in reality it’s the uncontrolled swing during a faster swing speed that is actually hurting your accuracy. I feel some times people don’t think that way or even realize that is their problem to begin with. Seeing how I’m not hitting like any pro or even coming close to their score or accuracy. I play with the mind set slow and steady swing. And when I do, I find that I actually am hitting more straight/accurate shoots with good distance. 
 

So I feel working on the basics will give a player both accuracy and distance  in the long run. 
 

Just my two cents. thanks for allowing me to share and reading it. Hope someone finds my answer helpful in their game. Happy Golfing Everyone!

[KG221]

I chase distance, always have most likely always will till my body says no more.  I don't hit a lot of FWs, but I'm in play....usually, kinda been on a mental slump.  But I digress,  I'd rather have a shorter shot in, as I think all of us would. Honestly I don't rely on the driver that much any more.  I can wield my 3w on avg of 260+.  With that all said I shall continue to pound away and be that shankasaur that I am.  Play well everyone.