Put Your Swing Plane in “Takeoff” Mode for Better Driving
To maximize the performance of your driver you want to launch the ball high, but spin it low. In order to do that, one of the best ways to make sure that happens is to learn to catch the ball on the upswing. If you’re catching the ball on the downswing, you’re going to launch it low and spin it high and lose a lot of distance, even if the club head speed is the same.
We often use an aircraft analogy. With the iron and the ball on the ground we want our aircraft in landing mode, and the runway isn’t until over here beyond impact on the left side of the ball. With the driver, it’s more as if the club head is an aircraft in takeoff mode and the nose wheel is just leaving the ground as it’s getting to the ball, which will help you get that higher launch and lower spin.
So to practice that, tee the ball maybe a little higher than you normally do, play the ball farther forward in your stance than you normally do and tilt your spine to your right into what feels like an exaggerated position. Your body will be kind of bent sideways like this with your head over here over your right leg. These three things encourage a wider swing with a shallower approach to the ball and therefore an upward attack angle into the ball to give you that high launch, low spin.
