I've known Ryan for many years as we worked for the same company in the golf business. He knows the golf industry as well as anyone BUT, I will not agree with the idea of totally free fittings.
In my 17 years a a Certified Custom Fitter at Golf Town I saw the pendulum swing in several directions regarding fittings. At one time I was doing $100, full bag fittings, and then the company promoted free fittings for 60 days. It was then that the vampires appeared.
What is a golf vampire? It is someone who will suck every last drop of information from the free fitting and then rush home to scour the 'net for the best deal on what I recommended based on the hundreds of hours spent on PK's, video sessions and product seminars I attended put on by the OEMs. So in one swoop, fittings had no value as I could have sold $500-$1000 of gear in that hour to a customer who was ready to buy. To be sure, many customers honestly took my advice and bought from our store and that was much appreciated. When something becomes "free", it has little or no value.