Drill library · Driving range

Three Fairway Finders

Driving rangeHandicap 15 or better20 minrandom / pressuredrivercourse strategy

Why this drill

On the tightest driving hole you don't need your best swing — you need your most certain one. Testing three candidate fairway finders (soft fade, three-quarter driver, and 3-wood) against the same window tells you which one is yours, with a number instead of a feeling.

Setup

Driver and 3-wood, fifteen balls, a 30-yard fairway window framed by two range markers.

The drill

Five balls each, full routine every time: your shaped driver (for most players a held-off fade), a gripped-down three-quarter driver, and the 3-wood. Score each set out of five for balls in the window, and note carry honestly — a finder that gives up sixty yards isn't finding much. The winner becomes your named tight-hole club, and "named" is the point: decided on the range, not debated on the tee.

One thought to take with you

The fairway finder is a decision you rehearse, not a swing you hope for.