A Beginners Guide To Club Fitting

[Danwell]

Hello everybody ! im new here. My name is Daniel Jönsson and im from sweden. Im 38 years old and played golf since i was 10 years old. I want to share my experiences and help people to become better golfers My latest blog is about club fitting. Read and share your thoughts and i will be happy to answer to any questions

[Detonator]

Link? 

I've been playing for a few years but thinking of getting fitted. I'm still a high handicapper with HH swing flaws so being fitted seems like it will likely only factor out ill-fitting clubs (if my current set is indeed ill-fitting). 

[tony@CIC]

1 hour ago, Detonator said:

 

I've been playing for a few years but thinking of getting fitted. I'm still a high handicapper with HH swing flaws so being fitted seems like it will likely only factor out ill-fitting clubs (if my current set is indeed ill-fitting). 

You'll be surprised what a fitting can do for you. In the past I've spent more on a club that doesn't work than on my fitting. Note: I'm a high handicapper as well with a neg AOA and plenty of swing flaws. Also I was a tester for Ping 410 SFT this year. The shaft recommendation based on Ping's online fitting tool was a Senior Flex CB as I only have a SS in the low 80's. First thing he did was change me out to a shorter Reg Flex  - resulting in an immediate improvement in dispersion and slight improvement in distance (only $72.). He also told me to take the 3W and 3H out of my bag. Put me into a higher launching 5W and 9W. Both of these resulted a huge improvement to my game. I haven't yet bought the irons recommended since my wife had a fitting as well and all new clubs. So hopefully I'll have new irons later this year. 

We have a forum member here  @McGolf who is a fitter in central Ohio - you might want to talk to him 

[Detonator]

7 minutes ago, tony@CIC said:

You'll be surprised what a fitting can do for you. In the past I've spent more on a club that doesn't work than on my fitting. Note: I'm a high handicapper as well with a neg AOA and plenty of swing flaws. Also I was a tester for Ping 410 SFT this year. The shaft recommendation based on Ping's online fitting tool was a Senior Flex CB as I only have a SS in the low 80's. First thing he did was change me out to a shorter Reg Flex  - resulting in an immediate improvement in dispersion and slight improvement in distance (only $72.). He also told me to take the 3W and 3H out of my bag. Put me into a higher launching 5W and 9W. Both of these resulted a huge improvement to my game. I haven't yet bought the irons recommended since my wife had a fitting as well and all new clubs. So hopefully I'll have new irons later this year. 

We have a forum member here  @McGolf who is a fitter in central Ohio - you might want to talk to him 

Interesting. 

I could pick @McGolf 's brain for hours. Unfortunately, he is about 3 hours away. Fortunately, there is another golf digest fitter about a 9i from my home (John Dranschak - Dead Solid Perfect golf) if anyone has any feedback. 

I'm playing sort of a mixed bag right now. TM R-15 driver, Adams 3w, Wilson staff progressive iron/hybrid combo 3h-pw, Cleveland CB-16 52deg, Top-flite 56 & 60 (when they were owned by Callaway). 

I am a basket case right now...I like the local pro I've taken lessons from but he is hard to see. When I do see him, it exactly like when you take your car to the mechanic for that noise...you know where I'm going with this. 

[tony@CIC]

59 minutes ago, Detonator said:

.I like the local pro I've taken lessons from but he is hard to see. When I do see him, it exactly like when you take your car to the mechanic for that noise...you know where I'm going with this. 

Do you mean he's that busy with other students?  The fitter that's close by to you may also provide lessons, or at the very least a session on the Trackman launch monitor would be enlightening.  The data plus a video of your swing would be an important reference tool. 

 Perhaps another approach to lessons might be in order as well as an objective analysis of your game - since what happens on the lesson tee might be different  then on the course. At one point we had our instructor go out with us to play 9 to see we messed up - course strategy, swing faults, etc.

I'm a bit OCD when it comes to data - so on the course I take notes - what went well and what didn't. Chipping issues, 3 putts, etc? Then it's to the practice holes. 

And then after all of that even the best of us will have a off (re: terrible) day on the course.  I played with 3 low handicappers in our league this past Tuesday. It was cart path only, heat index was 105 so by about the 12 hole everyone was worn out and dripping wet. Only one of us broke 100.  There will be days like that. 

[Detonator]

56 minutes ago, tony@CIC said:

57 minutes ago, tony@CIC said:

Do you mean he's that busy with other students? 

 

Yes, that and clubhouse responsibilities make it a tough to see him regularly. 

The club fitter does offer video and data capture, which I think will be helpful. He also said he has some coaches that he can recommend. This guy is my 3rd. The first one was a clinic type thing with no individual flaw correction. The second guy was also tough to see and constantly tried to tell me I was out of lessons when I paid for more...got the sense he was trying to rip me off. This third guy is great just tough to see. I finally broke 90 under him and first HIO. 

I know where I am giving up strokes...not shocking...tee shots (penalty strokes or heading left on a dog leg right), chipping/pitching (not close enough) and putting. 

I keep some notes of my rounds on the scorecard. Like, 5/2 for score and putts. Left, right or down arrow if I missed the fairway. Check mark for GIR. Last round was comical army golf. The round previous was a tale of two nines; front nine were misses right, back nine were misses left. 

[McGolf]

If you are that close to John, I am actually a hour and some change from him.  I just had a golfer from Cedar Rapids Iowa in for a fitting and a few weeks later we built his clubs.

From a fitters perspective a mixed bag of stuff normally means a mixed bag of swings to adapt to the clubs when it should be the other way around. It is not bad to have a mixed bag just that ,as we have seen, not all makers are created equal but can be made too be.

If consistency is the issue the #1 cause IMO is the length of the club. 0% if not more of drivers built today are far too long for any golfer let alone a high HC'er.  Easy fix is to just choke down a bit and see. what happens. Give it a few tries before changing.