What do you see?

Let’s be honest: one of the best feelings in golf is watching your golf ball hurtle down the fairway with a grin on your face, knowing you’ve just hit a great shot.

They say the short game is where you make or break your round, but surely the most fun is had with the big stick?

Driving is very much an art within itself. Having the ability to shape your ball flight to suit certain dogleg fairways or avoid perilous hazards is a skill that the best in the game can apply with aplomb; but it’s not as easy for those of us with higher handicaps.

Everyone’s different when it comes to golf, and everyone can tell you what their ball flight with a driver tends to look like. Thankfully, there’s a definite reason as to why your shots look the way they do, and it has to do with your swing and approach to the ball. Today we’re going to take a look at notorious drives and why they’re the ball flight they are.

Ball Flight #1 - Lots of height

If you find you’re regularly hitting the ball high up in the sky, there may be a few different things you’re doing to pop the ball up in the air but have it not go very far.

You may have your ball teed up too high, causing you to scoop the ball upwards rather that hit through it. The more you get underneath the ball, the higher and shorter your drive will be.

You may also be standing too upright and close to the ball, which forces you to have a steep backswing that can create a ball flight that’s too high.

Ball Flight #2 - The dreaded slice

Slicing your drives is one of the issues most amateur and beginner golfers face on the tee. If your ball curves excessively to the right (for a right-handed golfer) when you tee off, you may be compensating by aiming to the left to give yourself a chance of finding the fairway.

If you’re slicing the ball, your clubface will be open (point to the right) in relation to your swing path. This is what imparts that side spin onto your shots. The more open the clubface, the more likely you are to hit to the right.

Ball Flight #3 - The destructive hook

If you hit the ball way to the left, your shot shape is what’s known as a hook. There are a few different reasons why you may be striking your drives this way.

Your grip might be too strong. For example, if you’re a right-handed golfer and you’re gripping your club too tightly with your dominant hand, your hand will slide right and move underneath the club. This will cause you to close the clubface on impact, which will point your ball to the left of the fairway.

How a Mizuno driver can help your ball flight

If you’re struggling with your ball flight, it may be a case that you’re not using the right driver for your swing. Mizuno makes exceptional clubs and the latest drivers in their ST 230 range are packed with all kinds of tech to help you succeed off the tee.

The ST-X PLTNM 230 is a super lightweight driver that has a slight draw-bias to help you keep the ball on the fairway if you have a tendency to hit your shot to the right. This driver is an excellent choice if you have a slow swing speed.

If you’re looking to build up some consistency off the tee, the ST-Z 230 is a straight-bias driver that’s been engineered to provide a lot of forgiveness on off-center hits. The clubhead’s mass has been evenly distributed to encourage a stable ball flight.

The ST-X 230 is a high-spinning draw-biased driver that will suit most high-handicap golfers. The club’s face has a multi-thickness design to promote a constant ball speed across the face.

If you’re on the lookout for new gear this summer and you’d like to seek our expert advice, you can contact us in the pro shop. We’d be happy to take a look at how you play and offer you our recommendations.