Shorten Your Driver Like The Pros Do!! 

I’ve found choking down on the grip to the length you want. It will square the club properly the way you want. No messing with all the swing weight headaches. Didn’t get mentioned but cutting down the shaft stiffens it also, which really changes the feel. I’ve been down the rabbit hole! It’s dark down there!

At age 70 (7.8 hcp) I have developed arthritis in my hands. I have a typical Titleist driver with a stock shaft. I might hit it pretty good starting the round but as I get fatigued I begin to struggle. I got the TaylorMade mini driver, 13.5, and it has been good for me. I hit it as far or farther on most holes and finish the round stronger. I like this video because I have been considering shortening the shaft on the Titleist and I want to get off to good start if I try it. Thanks Nerd!

From the 20’s through the 80’s the club length stayed the same. I recall in the 80’s and through now the company’s went crazy lengthening the drivers and 5 irons. It was all marketing promising more distance. The golfing public bought into the propaganda, and everyone was saying my driver is longer than your driver . Not to mention the exorbitant prices they charge . I heard once Lee Trevino would play people for money and beat them using a coke bottle for a putter. Don’t listen to all the hype and sell pitches. Find a club and length that suits you and stick with it. I think it was Bobby Jones who said, “ Find the club you hit best, and hit it the most”’!! I hope all has a happy and healthy day. Cheers!!

I have been playing a shorter 70g shaft this year . I like it . I disagree with the shaft flex though . Shortening the shaft and making it heavier makes it stiffer .

Just bought a Taylormade QI10 driver. I’m 5’10”. I took 1/2” off shaft. Much better control and I really don’t see a loss of distance. This QI driver is awesome!!!

I wish I found this last year. I just started choking up by 2" to match the mini length. Can't miss the fairway.

I am a lifelong Golf Pro. My trusty old clubs felt like I was at a disadvantage recently. With this encouragement I updated all of my clubs in groups. One group consisted of Driver, 1 iron, 2 iron, 3 iron. Following some research I replaced them with Ping 425. However I had the standard 3 wood shaft put in the Driver. I had a matching 3 wood shaft put into a new 7 wood. In the new 3 wood, I put a standard Driver shaft. I also added a 17* Hybrid. Results : Driver: I saw no measurable distance change. But my fairway percentage boosted from 69% to 78%. 3 wood : I hit the crap out of this club and its distance is nearly the same as the Driver. It's longer than the 1 iron it replaced, although it lacks the versatility. 7 wood : Another amazing performer, one that hits a high soft landing draw. Hybrid : This was the biggest surprise. This club is long and hits a low draw, bringing back some of the loss of versatility of the 1 iron. Overall Im thrilled with the changes. The G425 series are super easy to hit.

Thanks for the thorough explanations. Very helpful.

I put a 76g 3 wood shaft in my TM M2 driver. Adjusted up to 12 Deg. Working well.

I have been doing what you describe for the past 10 years. Definitely helped. However, you have missed a couple key points. Re shaft flex: for every 1 swing weight (2 grams) added to the head you soften the shaft flex 1/10. It would take 20g of additional head weight to change a stiff shaft to a regular, or change a regular shaft to a senior. If only adding 10 grams additional weight you will change the shaft flex only half way (which works for me). The other key point overlooked is lie angle - for every 1/2 inch of shaft length removed the lie angle will flatten 1 degree. Probably ideal for a shorter person but not for a taller person.

You should add insulation/sound board in the floor joist above your head - if there's going to be anyone upstairs while you hit.

Could you just grip the driver further down the grip

Nicklaus played about 43.5 in length and hes the best to do it and ive tried this also and it really helps and you dont notice a loss in distance and because you may be more accurate your going to be longer so try it just get the right driver shaft for you and cut it to length and go practice and you will see a big change, you welcome

First off, great video. Second, can you add lead tape to the shaft instead of buying a new shaft?

Love the video and appreciate the information! If I’m already using the stiffest shaft available in the lineup and can’t go up one flex level - Would you recommend tipping the shaft or anything like that to achieve the stiffer flex you mention? Thanks!

i like my 48 inch driver it's so good. i can go further ... now i have 44.5 good enough

Bruh, this video is awesome. Thx for the info!! My question is, I'm thinking about turning my Cobra 5 wood into the same specs as an Callaway Apex Utility Wood, so the loft will be adjusted to 19° and i'm going to buy a shaft that's an inch shorter at 41.5 inches. So I'm wondering if i buy a shaft that's already premade at 41.5" (like a Callaway Utility Wood shaft), would i have to alter any weighing on the head of my 5 wood? Or would the weight of the shaft be sufficient, since I'm not physically cutting off any weight

Thanks for the explanation. I would ideally like a driver at 43 to 43.5 or so inches. I am more than willing to give up a bit of distance, if at all, and gain accuracy

3 wood shaft in my driver immediately corrected my slice and now I play a 10 yard fade every single time.

Great video. Does shortening a driver shaft change the lie angle? Will a shorter driver shaft make the club sit more upright thus making the ball want to go right?

Instead of adding weight to head , think of removing weight from grip .. a dritac lite grip is around 23grams the golfpride cp2 wrap is around 64grams ... a cheap swing weight scale can help you adjust ... or just running to a golf store to check.. informative vid thank you

In practice, I think most people can adjust to a 1” shaft length change without even messing with the swingweight. Swingweight is best used for matching an iron set with itself. I’ve never been able to feel the difference between a heavy grip and light grip for instance. The heavier a club is, the harder it is to swing fast so I’m skeptical that adding weight would add distance for most players. There is also a trend towards playing the lightest shaft you can to increase speed. Lighter, whippier shafts cut down a bit is worth experimenting with.

Great video. Everything I need to know to cut down my driver. Thank you!

Im about 5,6” shortened my driver by around 4” I didnt add any weight and its the best thing i did. Swing weight for average golfers is pretty pointless

Good video 👍 Only one thing that’s incorrect and that’s the stiffness. I’ve worked in a big brands custom build and repair centre doing all sorts and any time you shorten a shaft you make it stiffer whether it’s from the tip or butt end. It’s due to taking away leverage so the shorter you make it the stiffer it gets and you can test this by having the head in one hand and grip on the other like you did here and as you move the grip hand further down the shaft and try and flex it the stiffer it gets. Once your hand is halfway down you’ll barely be able to flex it at all! Granted like you said adding weight to the head will make the shaft feel softer but because you’re shortening it, it’s just counteracting that so essentially it’ll feel similar to the original flex if not a little bit stiffer still. Hope all that makes sense!

i think, professional's get personalized fittings and aren't doing this as weekend project in their garage. some have every club the same length, based on their height. then, what distance is gained by matching every club in the bag to the driver, except the putter?

Why not just remove length from the tip and then use a lighter grip so you can use the same shaft? Tipping fixes the decrease in stiffness that occurs and the grip addresses the swing weight change. Should eliminate all the other compensation you mentioned 🤓🤔

Say your fitted for a stiff flex at 67 grams 45.5” D3 swing weight. Would you go up to X flex 74g and butt trim to 44”? My plan is to get as close to the swing weight with the shaft and tune the rest with swing weights. Am I going down the right path?

Choke up on the club. Nothing new. Thanks.

I found my swetspot is 44.75 inches long with the shaft in the 65 gram range.

I cut a driver down to 3W length around 5 years ago and has been my go-to since. I have been trying to find the best way about going about packaging a shaft and head. I was wondering if I could just buy a 3W shaft for driver head instead of cutting down. You mentioned in your video that the G weight is higher in a 3W shaft and if you are going through all of the calculations to mimic that CG and gram weight, it seems like this would be the best route to go. If not, why would this combination not be the best option or why wouldn't it work?

Wouldn’t the lie angle of the Club change if you shorten the shaft? In this case, it would be flatter, and there for tend to fade the ball slightly more. Maybe it’s insignificant, but just curious.

If I ordered a shorter driver would the company make the adjustments instead of me doing it myself?

so if you are replacing a shaft for its weight can't you just order it in a shorter version?

At 4:25 you say that when you shorten the shaft it gets softer. From a physical point of view that is not correct. Even if you remove the stiffest part of a rod, the remaining part is actually stiffer. Do the thought experiment in your head on other objects like plumbing tubes, drinking straws etc

Question for you. If cutting the shaft down at the butt end looses weight at the butt end, and adding weight at the head is advised to counteract this lose in weight, aren't you just shifting the fulcrum point even closer to the head? Both these alterations would make the head feel heavier, no?

Shorter 1” makes the shaft stiffer approx 1 flex. No?

G425 drover has a counterbalanced shaft. I like the feel but want to shorten. I believe its an 8 gram weight. How wound you calculate for this?

I want to take my PING G400 SFT head and put it on the PING G400 3 wood shaft. How much weight would I need to put on the back of the head to get it up to specs ?

Great video. Does this method apply to irons and does the swing weight stay the same for all clubs in the bag? MikeE

When measuring where exactly do you measure to and from?

Looking to go from 45.75" (54g) to a 45" (66g) + lighter grip. Would the difference in weight cause the flex to maintain it's stiffness since less weight is needed in the club head? Or would you still recommend going up a stiffness?

35" is my balance measurement on my driver. I didn't hear player height as being a factor and curious if it should be considered? I have seen charts for the 7 iron length compared to player height but not sure about the driver. Being 5'9" I could benefit from a 3/4" to 1" shorter driver I'm sure.

I’m 5 ft 6.5 inches , with shoes on, I cut 1.5 inches from the butt, added 5 grams of lead to the bottom of driver and I like it , no issues !

I dont get the math, you take lets say 2in from a 44in shaft, that is less than 5%, which will mean a 2 to 3.5gram loss (assuming shafts weight between 50-70grams)... That sounds pretty insignificant to worry much about changing the shaft or adding weights, etc, etc...

I'm half tempted to try my hybrid shaft on my driver. I hit my hybrid extremely consistent. 100g stiff flex. 42 inch. Anyone tried this?

What if I switched my driver shaft for my 3wood shaft?

and for beginners. .

What if I just choke down instead?

Interesting watch...but knowing i'll need a new stiffer shaft and a weight kit i'd just get fitted for a new shaft that's the right specs for me

Thanks so much for the video! But couldn't you add some lead tape to the back of the newly shorten shaft to compensate the weight for the cut-off piece, instead of adding more weight to the head?

So if ordering a new driver then just order a shorter shaft and you won't have to add all that stuff correct?

Rory just went back to full length. Nuff said.

Why not just put in a 3 wood staff

Anytime you shorten a club it gets stiffer not more flex

Why not just grip down on the club? Cutting the shaft limits your ability to step on one of you want to. Pro’s already swing fast enough to hit it over 300, but most amateurs don’t.

Why not tip it?

If a shaft is 60 grams and you take off 2 inches your losing less than 2 grams

There are some flawed physics in this video. Unless you are cutting off more than 3 inches. You don’t need to add stiffness or weight. The shorter shaft will be naturally stiffer. For example if you buy -1.5 clubs they DO NOT use a stiffer shaft, heavier shaft or change the head weight. This is all misleading information. Shorter shaft will naturally add torsional rigidity, because the club head is now closer to the leverage point, your grip.

Use what works for you and not what the pros use get fitted for all your clubs since i did that my game has gotten better

i am not touching my driver

Why not grip down on it a bit?

todays golfers are taller and look more ike vollyball players. . Not all but most. The average build players have longer shafts. Average players cant afford to give up too much length because it destrys the feel and control of the shaft anyway. almost averything that I found mentioned that the average player would end up between 44.5 and 45". in fittings. Those in the extreme end of stature would then have shorter shafts.

Ok...Dude Respectfully Need some Clarification here. Just to clarify Your Video is helpful but incomplete, let me Clarify with my own conclusions here A.You must replace the shaft with one that is 10 grams heavier (Equaision 1) B.You will lose 3 SW points for each 1/2" you cut off (Equaision 2) C. You need to add back weight to the head 2 grams for evry 1 SW Point (Equaision 3) In your case you cut off 1.5" from your driver and lost 9 swing weight points so since you cant purchase 18 gram Weights..You purchased a New shaft that was 70 GRAMS or 10 grams Heavier than your existing shaft and then added 8 Gram weight to the head ? Are my conclusions Correct? If so, then what do taking a Measurment at the balance point and entering it into SW Calculator have to do with the whole process ? You could do the whole process without getting a Weight or Measurment if the other points are valid then the Calculator will only reveal to you what is being done by the calculations right ??

Jack Nicklaus’ driver was 42 1/2”. I figured if it was good enough to him it was good enough to me. I hit it straighter than ever and I didn’t lose any noticeable distance. I just used a jig saw and regripped it. I guess it changed the swing weight but I couldn’t tell.

been doing that long time ago.. my slogan is control over distance

Why not just grip down lower?? Less risk that cutting

One of the clearest explanation of all of the factors that go into shortening a driver.

RU-vid has more golf coaches than there are golfers in the world!!🤣🤣🤣