Stiff shaft flex

[Bogey in The Woods]

So I got my new VR-S COverts last week. I did so on the advice of the guys at Golfsmith who put me in a bay and had me swing a few times. I had been hitting R-flex. They said I needed to move up to S-flex. No problem. Just the excuse I needed to tell the wife to justify new clubs right?

 

Anyway, I get out and get some video of my swing to work on my mechanics. As I am looking through the videos frame by frame I am concerned at the amount of flex in the shaft.

 

In the first two pictures you can see the flex of the shaft. the club if flexing forward, even though I havent broken my wrists yet.

 

However, in the third frame, just after contact, the club looks normal. So the question is: is this normal for a club??

[fozcycle]

All that matters is that you are able to return the shaft to square at impact.  Yes, the flex shown in your pix is normal. I have had stock graphite shafts measured several times and often they are not the flex as stated on the shaft. I was playing regular shafts for the past 15 years and switched to stiff flex this year. When I compared the stiff vs. the regular on a launch monitor, I was getting 5 yards longer and 6-10 yards more accurate with the stiff.

[revkev]

OEMs know that guys dig S flex so they often make clubs with weaker then marked shafts. A number of years ago I had the flexes of all my shafts checked by a fitter. All were supposed to be S except my driver and 3 wood.

 

My irons were actually closer to X my hybrids were spot on R (marked S) and my driver marked d R was squarely in the S range while my 5 wood marked S was actually a weaker flex, both by the same OEM.

 

No issue with the pics, that's what the swing normally looks like when we take it, as I understand some of that is an optical illusion.

 

I would think twice about what the guys at golfsmith said however. Why do they think you need S flex? Based solely on swing speed? How about your transition, ball flight, etc. Best to get a second (real) opinion before pulling the trigger there.

[hckymeyer]

Like Rev mentioned a lot of that bend is actually an optical illusion of the camera due to the way it takes an image.  Here is a good, but kind of technical article on why that happens.

 

http://www.tutelman.com/golf/measure/focalPlaneDistortion.php

 

I would worry more about ball flight and how they feel to you.  If you are hitting them well and like the way they perform then don't overthink it, just enjoy.  Option 2 is to pick a more qualified fitter and get on a launch monitor to confirm they are giving you the best numbers.

[Bogey in The Woods]

hckymeyer - That was an AWESOME article. I was a photographer for 5 years and never knew most of that. Thanks a ton. I feel a TON better.

 

and yes, the clubs feel great.