Why everybody needs to try more loft—and that means you! New Golf Digest testing proves you need more loft on your driver than you think

Dick Helmstetter remembers the first time he saw a group of long drivers in training. This was long before portable launch monitors, laser-distance-measuring devices or even reliable swing-speed gauges.
"They were using stopwatches," says Helmstetter, Callaway Golf's senior executive vice president and chief of new products. "They figured 10 seconds of hang time was what they needed to be competitive. They had it figured out back then. They knew that the longer the ball stays in the air, the farther it's going to go. Period."
The lesson of the stopwatches from years ago has been confirmed by recent Golf Digest player and robot testing. Higher is better. The action plan for average golfers is simple: Take the headcover off your No. 1 club right now. If the numeral on the sole is less than 10, and you are not a member of the PGA Tour, try a driver with more loft. It could change your life.
"The single thing that I have found to help people hit the ball better with the driver is to give them higher loft," says Tom Stites, director of product creation for Nike Golf. He's convinced that about 90 percent of average recreational golfers would see better results if they could add 1 or 2 degrees of loft to their drivers. "But golfers really do have a psychological barrier to loft," he adds.
Even older pros are learning the benefits of more loft. Lanny Wadkins, who has played high-level golf for more than 30 years, has always been known as the quintessential low-ball hitter, and he played drivers with as little loft as possible during his glory days as a pro. He's a changed man.
"The launch monitor has taught us all to try to launch it higher with less spin," says Wadkins, who says more loft also helps him work the ball. "I started thinking about it after watching a long-drive exhibition. I thought they were popping the ball up. But then I saw those pop-ups were going 330, 340."
So what's the loft on Lanny's new driver? 9 degrees? 9.5? Try 10. "I'm enjoying the new technology," he says. For you to do the same, the short answer is go higher.
10 more yards
For most golfers, adding loft to their drivers will add an average of at least 10 yards to their drives.
That's right. Shots hit by a higher-lofted club flew an average of 10.8 yards farther than those hit with 9-degree drivers at robot swing speeds of 65 to 95 miles per hour (the range for most golfers). The robot tests were performed for Golf Digest by Gene Parente, owner of Golf Laboratories Inc. in San Diego.
Does this mean we all should dump our 9-degree drivers for new clubs with 3-wood loft? Not exactly. As driver technology improves, a loft designation becomes more of an afterthought. Instead, focus on getting the proper launch angle and ball flight.