Rollback Busters: Proven Golf Training Aids for More Distance

Like it or not (probably not), a rollback is hitting golf. Specifically, golf’s governing bodies are dictating that it should take an increase of five miles per hour of clubhead speed to hit the Overall Distance Standard of 317 yards (under specific launch conditions). 

The popular opinion among recreational golfers is that this rollback is bad, and weekend players shouldn’t be forced to give up their hard-earned distance, not even a yard. Fair enough, but I’ve got a completely different take. The rollback can actually be an advantage to your game. 

How can that be, you ask? Here’s the thing, there are some really darn good tools available to you that, with pretty minimal effort on your end, can easily add way more distance to your game than the rollback will take away. Meanwhile, your opponents will be a half-club farther back.

Some might call these tools golf’s speed and distance training aids. I call them Rollback Busters (that just has a better ring to it if you ask me).

Given the typical distances amateur golfers hit the ball, the impending rollback should ding you 5-7 yards or less. On the other hand, if you’re not already using one of these speed and distance training tools, you can realistically expect to gain 20 yards or more with most of these when you follow the prescribed training.

That means if you play against someone who doesn't put in the effort to gain swing speed and distance before the rollback, and you do, you can expect to be on the right side of a 20-yard swing in distance off the tee against that player. That sounds like a pretty nice advantage if you ask me.

So without further ado, here is our list of Rollback Busters that we can confidently say will gain you more distance (in most cases much more when used as directed) than the USGA's rollback will take away.

I’ve explored all the various speed training systems out there, and after everything I’ve seen, used, and learned, I’m more impressed by the Stack System than any other speed training system in golf. 

The Stack System was developed by two of the smartest men in golf, Marty Jertson and Dr. Sasho MacKenzie. Jertson is an engineer at PING, leading the designs of some of the best drivers in golf. He’s also a PGA Professional and has qualified for multiple PGA Championships, even making the cut at Bethpage Black in 2019. MacKenzie, meanwhile, is a professor of Sports Biomechanics with an expertise in the training and biomechanics of speed generation.

The Stack System hardware is similar to other overspeed training systems. It’s a weighted golf-club-like object that you swing fast, which trains your brain and body to swing your own clubs faster. While the Stack System hardware is effective, it’s the software that takes this product to the top of our list.

The app that drives the program is actually AI-based, and constantly runs countless A-B tests and then uses the results to optimize training programs for all users.

For example, if you and I both start training with the Stack System tomorrow (assuming we have similar player profiles heading into training), beginning with the baseline training protocol, Stack will assign us two ever-so-slightly different training programs. Based on our results, and the results of countless other A-B tests, the app learns which training protocols are most effective, and constantly optimizes workouts for every user to get the best possible results.

I spoke with MacKenzie at length at the 2024 PGA Show and got a first-hand demonstration of how the app, hardware, and training programs work. 

The results I saw speak for themselves and the bottom line is simple: if you do the work, you will see the gains.

Of course, those results come at a cost. The Stack System itself will set you back $349, and you also need a radar device to track your speeds. The Stack now offers its own StackRadar, which easily connects to the app, for $289, but you can use other units, like the PRGR which is usually around $229. On top of all that, the hardware comes with a two-year subscription to the app, but after that you have to pay an additional annual subscription fee.

My recommendation is that the Stack System is best for the most dedicated golfers who are willing to put in the effort to improve. On top of the cost, training with The Stack System (typically about three times per week) requires you to interact with three different devices – the hardware, the app, and the radar unit – each time you train. So if you’re a minimalist who likes to keep your training simple, there could be other options out there that better fit your taste. 

That said, it’s really not that much effort to open an app, turn on a radar, and start swinging, and if you’re looking for the biggest gains from the best speed training system, The Stack System gets our vote as the best overall Rollback Buster.

Training with Perfect Hands Golf will increase your swing speed and distance, and it will also improve your accuracy. Those aren’t just Perfect Hands’ claims, I validated them in my own personal testing.

That’s right, I personally put the Perfect Hands Golf system to the test and in about two months I gained eight miles per hour of club head speed and 23 yards off the tee. I also ended up with a significantly more neutral club face and a neutral swing path, which led to much straighter shots.

Training with Perfect Hands Golf is pretty simple. You strap the belt around your waist and slip on the glove, then swing rhythmically until you start to fatigue or lose balance. You can really do it in 5-10 minutes a day, and for the results you get, that’s an easy investment into your game.

There are two things you need to know about the Speed Toad. First, it’s the only speed training product that works with your own driver shaft, which is a huge factor in converting your speed gains in training to speed gains on the golf course.

Second, one of the co-founders of the Speed Toad, Sam Attanasio, broke the ball speed world record (previously held by Kyle Berkshire) in 2024, training with none other than his very own Speed Toad.

That should be all the proof you need that the Speed Toad is one of, if not the best, speed training device on the market.

Here’s another unique element of the Speed Toad: unlike most other speed training systems, there’s no element of swinging anything heavier than your actual driver. Attanasio and fellow co-founder Bryce Mooney, both professional long drivers, told me this is for two reasons. First, swinging heavier objects brings in more risk of injury. Second, swinging a heavier object in theory can help improve technique (although that theory often does not pan out), but it can actually work against your goal of gaining speed, since you swing heavier objects slower than lighter objects (the whole principle of overspeed training is that you raise your body’s standard of how fast you can swing a club).

The Speed Toad is also significantly more affordable than the aforementioned Stack System, and even costs less than Perfect Hands. When you get the unit, you also get access to an app with training protocols, but training with the Speed Toad is actually less intensive than most other products, usually just once a week.

Considering all these ways the Speed Toad differs from its competitors, it really is a unique product, and the results are undeniable.

The OG speed training system, SuperSpeed Golf and its training system have helped many players unlock huge distance gains. I’m one of them.

SuperSpeed was around well before any of the training systems listed above, and really paved the way for overspeed training in golf. However, SuperSpeed was slow to evolve, allowing products like the Stack System to establish themselves as competitors in the space. However, SuperSpeed recently announced a significant upgrade, implementing an app of its own with new training protocols and a gains and accomplishments tracker.

The SuperSpeed system itself is a three-club set of weighted speed training clubs with a light club that can be swung faster than your driver, a club weighted to replicate the weight of your driver, and a heavier club. You train with SuperSpeed for about 10-15 minutes a day, three days a week, which makes it one of the easier ways to gain speed and distance.

Overspeed training works, it’s simply science. No matter what overspeed training system you use – if you follow the prescribed training protocols as best you can – it will work.

Rypstick is another overspeed training system, and if you use it, you will gain speed. It’s really that simple.

The thing about Rypstick is, similar to the Stack System, it’s just one club and you can adjust its weight through the weight ports in the head.

Like other speed training products, Rypstick also has an accompanying app, which tracks your progress, demonstrates training drills, and prescribes workouts.

For the most part, the Rollback Busters we’ve mentioned on this list utilize overspeed training to unlock more swing speed and distance. There’s good reason for that – it works, and it’s also pretty easy.

But overspeed training is not the only way to add distance. In fact, any overpseed training routine should incorporate a strength-building element. Building strength not only helps protect you from injury during speed training, but stronger muscles themselves lead to faster swing speeds.

That’s where GolfForever comes in. GolfForever is not an overspeed training system. It’s a strength, flexibility, balance and swing training system focused specifically on golf (you probably could have guessed that) that helps you play better all the way around, including hitting the ball farther.

GolfForever takes a holistic approach. Improving flexibility, range of motion, and strength while reinforcing golf movements and good posture. If you train with GolfForever – which is an at-home training system – you’ll notice you hit the ball farther thanks to improved strength but you can expect to enjoy additional benefits that come with adding flexibility and endurance, like less pain and stiffness.

I went through one GolfForever training session with a trainer and was impressed by how it teaches you – forces you, really – to use great balance throughout the training, which is easily translatable into a golf swing.

The Orange Whip is one of the most versatile and effective training aids out there. Yes, using it will help you increase your swing speed, but it will also improve your technique and tempo. 

In case you don’t know, the Orange Whip is the training aid the looks like a really whippy driver with an orange on the end of it. So yes, it is appropriately named.

We love the Orange Whip because it’s one of those training aids that needs no instructions (although you can find them if you want them). If you try to swing it with poor tempo, you’ll feel it right away. If you try to swing it off-plane, you’ll feel it right away.

Finally, it’s an excellent warm-up tool. It gets you loose and reminds you of the feeling of perfect tempo, and many players prefer a few pre-round swings with the Orange Whip over a warm-up session on the driving range.