I would actually say most people don’t even need a driver. I went through a serious struggle with my swing for a while and I didn’t even carry a single wood in the bag for about 4 months. I teed off with a 3h or a 4i depending on how I was feeling. My scores were lower without the driver because I couldn’t hit the thing straight. For me, 170-180 yards straight was better than 220 yards in the other fairway.
Big facts. When I got back into the game as an adult, I only had an iron set and a putter. I got the only eagle I’ve gotten in 4 years with that setup. 4i 190, 4i 190, pitch that rolled right into the cup.
That being said, consistently being able to hit a driver straight has been the biggest hype for me in the last two years.
Oh 100% being able to hit driver well feels amazing. But it really isn’t that important for most people.