Golf Club Length

The major manufacturers market clubs in standard lengths, which are determined by the respective company.  Usually, the standard for steel shafted irons is based on a 39" 3 iron.  The lengths do get shorter in increments of 1/2" as the clubs progress from the long irons to the short irons.  The only problem with standard golf club lengths is the fact length is not standard from one company to the next AND true length must be determined by the physical characteristics of the player using the clubs, along with their individual set up and swing mechanics.  Humans come in all sizes and shapes, one length WILL NOT fit all! 

Driver Length.  The average length of a driver used on the PGA Tour is 44 1/2".  Yet virtually any driver purchased in golf stores these days is 45" to 46" in length.  The reason is because the manufacturer wants you to hit their driver further than the competition's driver.  These drivers are at least 1 to 2 inches too long.  All things being equal, it is possible to hit the ball 3 to 5 yards further with a 45 1/2" driver as opposed to a 44 1/2" driver.  However, the longer the club, the more difficult it is to control.  

Consistent impact must be made with the center of the clubface in order achieve maximum distance and the clubface must also be square to the target at impact to produce accurate shots.  If impact with the golf ball is made just 1/2" from of the center of the face in any direction, the shot will decrease by 3 to 5 yards with respect to distance AND trajectory will also increase or decrease due to vertical roll (vertical roll is discussed in greater detail in the Vertical Roll section below).  If impact is further away than 1/2" from the center of the clubface, distance will decrease and trajectory will increase/decrease even more dramatically.  I'm not even going to address the difficulty of controlling the angle of the clubface at impact with the longer length driver. 

Every golfer will impact a higher percentage of shots in the center of the clubface using a shorter driver than they will with a longer driver; this statement cannot be disputed.  The final result is the shorter length driver will actually produce the longer drives on a more consistent basis because it's easier to make impact very near to the center of the face more often.  Therefore distance will be maximized and trajectory will be more consistent.   The professional golfer knows this.  If they could hit the longer driver as consistently as the shorter driver, they would use the longer length driver.  This statistic alone should tell you all you need to know about the distance myth associated with longer length drivers.  In virtually all cases, drivers should be 43 to 44 1/2 inches in length.