The driver is one of the two most important clubs in the bag. A good drive sets up the hole and can make the round a lot easier.
While an inconsistent driver can leave you scrambling all day and crush your confidence levels. Mastering your drives is key to getting the most out of your game.
Today, I’ll share seven best golf drills for driver, a few training aids to help with accuracy, and how to hit drives 10+ yards longer.
Best Golf Drills for Driver
If you’re like most golfers, I bet you have no issues practicing with your driver enough. But are your practice sessions actually helping your game, or are they just mindless sessions? If so, these driver drills will turn an ineffective session into a productive one fast.
Key Takeaways
- Stop leaving the driver in the bag in favor of 3W – you’re missing out on distance and making golf so much more difficult.
- To have confidence in your driver, use these seven drills to create a more consistent golf swing so you hit it straighter and longer.
- Consider overspeed training with the trainers below to add more distance for shorter approach shots.
1. Swing Plane Drill
The right swing plane is key in golf – especially when hitting a driver and struggling with shots off the toe/heel.
If you’re like most golfers, you probably have too steep of a downswing, which leads to a nasty slice. This is caused from an outside to inside downswing.
This swing plane drill can help fix the issue with immediate feedback. Start by teeing up a ball then placing another tee six inches outside the ball and the other six inches inside the ball.
Practice hitting the ball without touching the tees. This will ensure your swing is on plane and not too steep or shallow.
Also, you can use something like the Eyeline Speed Trap to improve your accuracy and path for better drives.
2. Pause Drill
After warming up and hitting some drivers, try out the pause drill. Setup like normal, take a regular backswing but stop at the top of your swing for 1–2 seconds. Then, focus on making a smooth, controlled downswing.
This drill can help improve your transition, make a better weight transfer, and make sure you’re using ground force properly. Don’t forget, power comes from the ground up!
To learn more about the transition, read this article next.
3. Perfect Your Tempo
Tempo is an underestimated part of golf – from putting tempo all the way to full swing tempo. However, if your driver needs work, one thing you should evaluate is your tempo.
Start by downloading the Tour Tempo app, which makes it easy to find the right tempo for your swing. Using tones or voice queues, you will know when to set the club at the top of the backswing and when to strike the ball. This makes for an incredibly effective practice session and will help sequence your swing a lot better.
Before using this app, I had a slow backswing and often rushed my transition. But the Tour Tempo app helped me speed it up, improve my sequencing, and added several miles per hour of clubhead speed. Plus, it can help with your short game tempo too.
4. One Shot Drill
The next driver drill is pretty simple but will help you develop a go-to shot shape on the golf course.
After warming up, find a target in the distance that is about 30 yards wide to simulate a fairway. Then, hit 10 shots and see how many you can get in the target playing one shot shape (either a fade or draw, whichever comes naturally to you).
Make it a goal to get five or more drives in the fairway.
Go through your pre-shot routine, pick the same target, and try to hit the same shot. Rest after five balls for a minute, then hit the remaining five. See how many you can get out of 10 so you have a go-to tee shot on the golf course.
Learn more about block practice here.
5. Low and Inside Driver Drill
Eric Cogorno, a top instructor on YouTube with more than 300,000 subscribers, says this drill is the only one you need for more consistency. It’s a bit complicated to set it up but worth it once you get the hang of it:
As he mentions, it’s key to learn how to swing the driver (and really any club) slightly from the inside. Otherwise, you risk getting steep and hitting weak pull slices.
Start by swinging with your lead arm, only to get the feeling of your lead arm to rotate through the shot. Allow the toe to pass the heel of the club slightly. The key is to make sure your head stays back, not forward toward the target.
Next, add your right arm and make sure your right shoulder stays down and head back. Once you get this feeling, focus on swinging more in to out so you create more lag on the downswing.
Then, make sure to set up the practice station using a range bucket and alignment rods as mentioned in the video. Follow the rest of the instructions in the video so you can start hitting draws (or at least reduce your slice) for more tee shot consistency.
6. Speed Sessions
Distance is so important when it comes to hitting your driver well. Sometimes you need to stop worrying about driver drills and technique and focus on speed above all else.
After warming up with wedges, irons, and woods, focus on adding speed. Hit 3–5 shots without worrying about accuracy and focus on speed above all else. Use a speed radar device and/or a personal launch monitor to see how fast you can swing the club.
Do this driver drill a few times per week and you’ll begin to increase clubhead speed over time. Additionally, it’s a good idea to try out overspeed training as well.
Using weighted golf clubs, you can improve your swing speed fast to hit it longer than ever. Read our reviews of the three most common speed trainers below.
7. Pre-Shot Routine
The last driver drill isn’t so much a drill but preparing you to prepare better on the golf course. After warming up, go through your full pre-shot routine for 20+ drivers. This includes stepping behind the ball, creating a fairway on the range, taking rehearsal swings, and walking into the shot.
The more consistent you can make your routine, the more confidence you will have on the tee box. Learn more about creating a pre-shot routine now.
Other Driver Tips
These driver drills will help your game so you can have more confidence with your technique. Here are a few other tips to help you improve your driving skills.
- Get a custom fitting, so your driver is right for your swing. Having the right club head and shaft is half the battle in maximizing distance and getting the most out of your game.
- Play one shot shape off the tee. Since you can’t change ball position with the driver (unless you want a skymark on the top of your club) focus on hitting one shot shape. Learn more about fade vs. draw here.
- Develop a fairway finder. Tee the ball lower and choke up an inch to hit a more controlled shot off the tee. This is a golf skill that every golfer can benefit from, especially when you’re playing tight courses.
FAQs About Hitting Driver
Do you have more questions about improving your driving skills on the golf course? If so, keep reading through the most frequently asked questions and answers now.
How many fairways should I hit every round?
Having the right expectations is key to playing your best golf.
For example, the PGA Tour driving average is about 58% while scratch golfers are close to 50% off the tee. Track your statistics so you can study your strokes gained driving to see how you stack up with elite golfers.
How do you practice driving in golf?
The seven driver drills above will help you improve your driving skills and hopefully find more fairways. Not to mention hopefully add more distance off the tee. Make it a point to work on your driver a lot, as it’s one of the most important clubs in the bag.
How do I improve my driving?
To become a more accurate driver, make sure to have the right club, practice regularly, and have a tee box strategy.
My Experience
The sooner you can learn to love your driver, the sooner you can reach new handicap levels. When I look at my own game, I find a direct correlation between longer drives and lower scores.
Speed training and the Tour Tempo app have helped my driving as much as anything else. Paired with regular practice, playing one shot shape, and these drills, I find a lot more consistency in my tee box game.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully these seven driver drills will give you some new ideas to make the most of your practice sessions. Paired with the right equipment and fundamentals, you will have more confidence on every tee box.
Ready to learn more about driving the ball like a pro? Check out these articles next: