One more angle to attack; before you buy a higher-lofted driver, check out the way you're swinging it

Golf Digest, Nov, 2003 by Tom Wishon

We all need more loft. How much more? That's a tricky question. Swing speed certainly is a big key, but there's another critical factor. It's what clubfitters call "angle of attack," and essentially what it means is that not all 90-mile-per-hour swingers are created equal.

The angle of attack is the angle at which the clubhead travels on its way to impact. The club can be traveling on a path level with the ground at impact (zero angle of attack), but more likely, the clubhead is either on the way down (moving below the teed height of the ball after impact) or on the way up (having bottomed out before reaching the ball). Hitting the ball on a downward path results in a negative angle of attack. Hitting the ball on the upswing is called a positive angle of attack.

How do you know what type of move you have? Well, first, look at your ball flight and your club's loft. If your club's loft is 11 degrees or less, and your tee shots tend to fly on a medium to low trajectory, your angle of attack is likely downward (negative). If your trajectory is high even with a 10.5-degree-or-lower driver, you are probably contacting the ball on the upswing (positive angle of attack). Second, look at your swing. Here are some general guidelines:

Swing tendencies, downward angle: Upright swing plane, over-the-top move, early wrist break on the takeaway, reverse pivot on the back-swing, swaying on the downswing, ball position too far back.

Swing tendencies, upward angle: Flatter swing plane, inside-out swing path, early unhinging of the wrists on the downswing, falling back on the rear leg on the downswing, ball position at forward toe or beyond.

Opposite angles of attack mean opposite results--even for the same swing speed. Using the Trajectory and Ball Flight modeling software developed by Tom Wishon Golf Technology, it's easy to see that a downward angle needs more loft, while a positive angle of attack needs comparatively less. The first example illustrates a golfer with a 90-mph swing speed with a downward angle of attack of minus-3 degrees. Here, as loft increases up to 14 degrees, the carry distance increases from 190 yards to 206 yards. Why? Because the much higher loft results in significantly more backspin with a significant increase in launch angle.

The second example is for a golfer with the same 90-mph swing speed but with a positive angle of attack of plus-3 degrees. First, look how this golfer's carry distance with an 8-degree driver is actually greater than what the 90-mph golfer with the downward angle of attack achieves with a 12-degree club. Still, it's important to note that the best driver loft for this type of swinger at this speed is still 11 to 12 degrees. Again, the key for every golfer is to be willing to try lofts not previously considered. You might be pleasantly surprised.

Swing speed: 90 mph
-3 Negative angle of attack

LOFT          CARRY

 9.5          190
10.5          196
12            202 *
14            206
16            208

More loft works best for players with a negative
angle of attack.

Swing speed: 90 mph
 3 Positive angle of attack

LOFT          CARRY

 8            203 *
 9            207
10            210
11            211
12            212

* A positive angle of attack yields similar
distance with less loft.