So I got my new driver last night, and decided to hit both the driver and the 4 wood off of every tee where it applied. The driver and 4 wood went back and forth most of the night, where accuracy and distance were being measured. When I connected with both clubs, most of the time the driver would go a bit further, but sometimes not by much or would be the same distance.
Also, after further consideration, achieving 280 with the 4 wood, which happened again last night on the same hole fwiw, was more a result of hardpan fairways then it was of actual club distance. On several holes where hardpan wasn't in play, the 4 wood went about 220, and the driver went about 240-250. Granted, that was into the wind, and I cut the 4 wood a bit, which drops it's distance a bit.
Last night's results were somewhat inconclusive, as the adjustable lie and loft on the driver was throwing off my accuracy with the driver. I actually adjusted the lie on the driver mid round, to move it from draw to neutral, because every drive was going left, which I do not want at all. Once I made it neutral the ball went straight down the middle.
I'm also not sold on the launch angle I am getting with this driver. I was previously playing a 13.5 degree driver, and I need that extra loft, because I de-loft most of my drives on impact. This is a 10.5 degree driver, and I had it on +1 for loft, making it at about 11.5 degrees. But to me the launch angle still seemed low, with the exception of one hole where I simply got under the ball and popped it up about 150 yards into the junk on the left.
As I told a buddy this morning, I will continue to test both clubs, and when I am simply practicing and not keeping score, I will play both off the tee, and see how they both fare going forward. Ultimately I'll probably end up switching between both clubs, depending on the hole. Short and tight par 4s might see the 4 wood come out, and wide open long par 4s and par 5s will see driver make an appearance.
Ultimately the distance seems to be a moot issue in this case, as accuracy, and getting the ball in the fairway, is more of a premium for me. It's hard to make par from the trees, even if you hit it 300 yards.
