Getting Fit for Clubs

[cciciora13]

How Important is it getting fit for your own clubs; driver and irons particularly? I have never been fit before but am planning on it following this pandemic. I was wondering how it affected your game? Improved distance, better accuracy, higher spin and launch angle? Golf has been on my mind so much lately and not being able to play is only adding to that fire!

[coyote_jones]

I just did an iron fitting at 2nd Swing in Minneapolis. With my fitting, I was limited to what they had in their used stock because of my budget. They had me hit some balls using the Mizuno Shaft Optimizer. This was a pretty cool process. The software gave top recommendations for shaft/flex, loft, lie, etc. Going into the fitting I was struggling with my big miss being a hook. By the grace of the golf gods they had a used set of irons that had my number one recommended shaft, a Steel Fiber i95 S flex. They also weakened the loft 2 degrees and adjusted to a more upright lie (the length was also 1/4" short which for me being 5'7" works great). The results were crazy. They basically eliminated the right side of the center line for me (left handed) and my spin numbers and carry went up. My dispersion was also much tighter than before. Overall, I came away a believer in club fitting. I think that if I had the money to get fit for a new set of irons I would, but this was a good option for me as the adjustments are included in the fitting and they found a used set with the shaft that was recommended. 

Overall it was a great experience that I would recommend to anyone looking to get a new set of irons. I'd only ever played straight off the shelf clubs, but I never will again. I wasn't fit for my driver or fairway wood, but when it's time to upgrade I definitely will.

Good luck!

[cnosil]

How Important is it getting fit for your own clubs; driver and irons particularly? I have never been fit before but am planning on it following this pandemic. I was wondering how it affected your game? Improved distance, better accuracy, higher spin and launch angle? Golf has been on my mind so much lately and not being able to play is only adding to that fire!

I think getting fit is important. What it does is make you more consistent with a full swing and helps distance, dispersion,
Launch, spin, etc. it won’t improve your swing; a fat shot is still a fat shot with fitted clubs. What I do know is that I have the right tools in my hand. Think about hammering in a nail. You could select countless types of hammers to accomplish the job but hammers designed for roofing will perform better when roofing than a sledge hammer.

You also have to remember golf isn’t always a full swing game and requires less than ideal swings and adapting to situations. This means that just because your clubs are fit doesn’t necessarily translate to lower scores.

[cciciora13]

11 minutes ago, coyote_jones said:

I just did an iron fitting at 2nd Swing in Minneapolis. With my fitting, I was limited to what they had in their used stock because of my budget. They had me hit some balls using the Mizuno Shaft Optimizer. This was a pretty cool process. The software gave top recommendations for shaft/flex, loft, lie, etc. Going into the fitting I was struggling with my big miss being a hook. By the grace of the golf gods they had a used set of irons that had my number one recommended shaft, a Steel Fiber i95 S flex. They also weakened the loft 2 degrees and adjusted to a more upright lie (the length was also 1/4" short which for me being 5'7" works great). The results were crazy. They basically eliminated the right side of the center line for me (left handed) and my spin numbers and carry went up. My dispersion was also much tighter than before. Overall, I came away a believer in club fitting. I think that if I had the money to get fit for a new set of irons I would, but this was a good option for me as the adjustments are included in the fitting and they found a used set with the shaft that was recommended. 

Overall it was a great experience that I would recommend to anyone looking to get a new set of irons. I'd only ever played straight off the shelf clubs, but I never will again. I wasn't fit for my driver or fairway wood, but when it's time to upgrade I definitely will.

Good luck!

Thank you! Appreciate the reply. I too have only played off the rack clubs but with all the new technology it seems like it would be great to be custom fit. Can't wait until this is over to get it done.

[RickyBobby_PR]

Outside of lessons it’s one of the best investments one can make in their game. Regardless of skill level having clubs that work with your swing will help. 

[palvord]

After going through a full bag fitting for the 2019 Cobra Connect Challenge, I will never buy clubs any other way.

Granted I wasn't exploring all club offerings, but the work we did to figure out length, lie, loft, shaft type really hammered home that it is best for your game if you can eliminate as many variables as possible.

The analogy that @cnosil used is accurate. After a fitting, you trust that the tool in your hand is the right one for you and that trust does wonders for the mental side of your game.

[MDGolfHacker]

Fitting is critical to make sure that the clubs will work with your swing.  A good fitting may add more distance and better control for some.  For others, they may totally be fine off the shelf with the standard length, loft and lie.  It's never a bad idea to get fit to see where you fall in this spectrum.

 

MDGolfHacker

[coyote_jones]

30 minutes ago, cnosil said:

 

I think getting fit is important. What it does is make you more consistent with a full swing and helps distance, dispersion,
Launch, spin, etc. it won’t improve your swing; a fat shot is still a fat shot with fitted clubs. What I do know is that I have the right tools in my hand. Think about hammering in a nail. You could select countless types of hammers to accomplish the job but hammers designed for roofing will perform better when roofing than a sledge hammer.

You also have to remember golf isn’t always a full swing game and requires less than ideal swings and adapting to situations. This means that just because your clubs are fit doesn’t necessarily translate to lower scores.

 

Totally agree about knowing that you have the right tools! When I said "they took away the right side of the course," I definitely mean more mentally. Of course I still have my miss. But I don't walk up to a shot worried about it or expecting it like I used to. It's amazing what having the right hammer will do for your mental game!

[twyatt700]

I would also say to be open to trying One Length clubs as well if you're looking to improve your consistency.  Helped me!

[Dragon3]

13 hours ago, cciciora13 said:

How Important is it getting fit for your own clubs; driver and irons particularly? I have never been fit before but am planning on it following this pandemic. I was wondering how it affected your game? Improved distance, better accuracy, higher spin and launch angle? Golf has been on my mind so much lately and not being able to play is only adding to that fire!

I would highly recommend it.  I gained accuracy and distance and overall consistency.  I tend to have to choke up too much on my clubs, especially Drivers.  My first set were custom fit so won't ever go back.

[xOldBenKenobiX]

A club fitting should be of great benefit for your game.

With improvements on lie and angles, those clubs should fit your swing, for optimal performance, not the other way around where any of us usually tries to fit our swing around the clubs.

If your budged allows, custom shafts should help a great deal with the ball spin and accuracy.

 

[RickyBobby_PR]

17 minutes ago, SnakeDoc said:

A club fitting should be of great benefit for your game.

With improvements on lie and angles, those clubs should fit your swing, for optimal performance, not the other way around where any of us usually tries to fit our swing around the clubs.

If your budged allows, custom shafts should help a great deal with the ball spin and accuracy.

 

The last part is truly golfer dependent. The vast majority of the golfing public will see minimal to no improvement from a stock shaft to an after market one. Some will benefit even more from the made for shaft than an aftermarket no upcharge shaft. 

[Striker]

On 4/8/2020 at 8:12 AM, cciciora13 said:

How Important is it getting fit for your own clubs; driver and irons particularly? I have never been fit before but am planning on it following this pandemic. I was wondering how it affected your game? Improved distance, better accuracy, higher spin and launch angle? Golf has been on my mind so much lately and not being able to play is only adding to that fire!

I got fitted for a 3W and hybrid back in February. For me it was about getting the right shaft in the club. I was hitting the Hybrid 220 with nice spin rates. The 3 wood was 250 again with good spin rates. I also paid to have the shafts Pured. Not sure that was worth it but I have found that I have hit those clubs well when I practice and the few times I have played. Now,  I still have my occasional hook but that is my swing fault these days. 

[Erik-M]

I have never been fit for clubs. I usually buy from second hand stores and ebay online.  I have noticed that with my latest set of irons that shafts do make a difference. I bought a set of app irons on ebay and put project x rifle 7.0 in thenm and it completely changed my ball flight.  I used to always hit a 5 yard or more fade with stiff shaft kbs tour. Now I consistently hit a straight to slight draw with my irons. That might just be how my swing has changed but it was instantaneous when I hit the new shafts. Plus I went from Adam's cb3 with offset to Titleist ap2 so I'm assuming it's not the heads that's making the difference. I would say that fitting could be very beneficial to figure those things out, but I'm in an area in the world(the U.P.) that it would be 2 1/2 hour drive to get to a fitting place. Plus I would feel bad getting fit and not buying clubs from the place.

[tony@CIC]

I have never been fit for clubs. I usually buy from second hand stores and ebay online.  I have noticed that with my latest set of irons that shafts do make a difference. I bought a set of app irons on ebay and put project x rifle 7.0 in thenm and it completely changed my ball flight.  I used to always hit a 5 yard or more fade with stiff shaft kbs tour. Now I consistently hit a straight to slight draw with my irons. That might just be how my swing has changed but it was instantaneous when I hit the new shafts. Plus I went from Adam's cb3 with offset to Titleist ap2 so I'm assuming it's not the heads that's making the difference. I would say that fitting could be very beneficial to figure those things out, but I'm in an area in the world(the U.P.) that it would be 2 1/2 hour drive to get to a fitting place. Plus I would feel bad getting fit and not buying clubs from the place.

Sounds like you've found the right combination. BTW I wouldn't feel bad about not buying if I'm paying for the fitting.


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[Tom the Golf Nut]

It all depends on the golfer. I was custom fit for irons years ago and all my results came back that I am standard off the rack except I need  mid-size grips. Then I got custom fit for a driver about 2 seasons ago and it made a big difference. I still got the make and model I was interested in but what  I thought I needed wasn't even close to what I wound up with in regard to loft and flex. I gained 20 yards and more accuracy.

 

[Jbmullin]

I never cared about fitting until I started reading posts on here and went and got fit and seen the difference it makes. Watch videos on YouTube by TXG and see the difference fitting makes and how shafts and adjustments can make significant differences


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[Rchang]

I got fit for my driver. What a difference it made. It was also the first driver I got new instead of eBay. Of the 4 drivers I got on it over 18 years, only one did ok, with the last being such a disaster that I went back to one that was 5 years old, but at least could find the golf course. I probably would have saved money by fitting into the right driver and keeping it longer. Also if you want to save money, get fit just before the new drivers come out. I got a G400 about a month before G410 and paid about $100 less. 

[joshuac3]

I'm very short (5'2"), so I imagine that I would benefit from a fitting once I have a semblance of a swing down. I'm brand new to golf so I can't quite justify the cost of fitting and ordering custom clubs yet. For right now I'm guiding my purchases on Ping and Callaway's static fitting guides for length and loft.

[tony@CIC]

My wife wanted a new driver so I took to a fitter. He told her she didn't need a new one. I was pretty happy until she started taking to him about irons . Well maybe next year I'll be able to afford new ones for myself.


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[Kaplack]

I have read a lot of replies that a fitting was great at improving, spin, distance and accuracy. Scoring not so much.

[cnosil]

I have read a lot of replies that a fitting was great at improving, spin, distance and accuracy. Scoring not so much.

The items you listed put a player in a position to score better. There is more to golf than hitting full swings and hitting the optimal shot you have to recover, hit partial shots, and have good course management.

[RickyBobby_PR]

1 hour ago, Kaplack said:

I have read a lot of replies that a fitting was great at improving, spin, distance and accuracy. Scoring not so much.

The clubs don’t swing for the person. The golfer is still responsible for making the strokes and getting the ball in the hole with least amount of strokes. Improving the launch characteristics and dispersion allow the golfer to have a club optimized for their swing thus reducing the dispersion due to better launch characteristics. Even a perfectly club won’t prevent a play from making a completely dum swing and having the big miss, pros miss big more than we see

[Nolan220]

Was fitted from club champion in January, pretty much made my shot dispersion a lot tighter, with my driver Ping G400 SFT, when fitting my shaft with the the green hzrdus smoke shaft I bombed one the furthest like 15-20 yards further then any other shot, but the other 4 shots were all over the map. We tried the KBS shaft and hit all 5 shots within 5 -10 yard radius. I gained a little distance but nothing crazy but I know the shot dispersion should be better then my stock. 

[Rchang]

5 hours ago, Kaplack said:

I have read a lot of replies that a fitting was great at improving, spin, distance and accuracy. Scoring not so much.

Can only say that not losing strokes to drives into OB or untenable situations was an easy improvement. My easiest  issue now is improving my chipping and pitching to get the ball on the green. That is more technique and practice. Depends on what you need

[jkpigott]

On 4/8/2020 at 8:12 AM, cciciora13 said:

How Important is it getting fit for your own clubs; driver and irons particularly? I have never been fit before but am planning on it following this pandemic. I was wondering how it affected your game? Improved distance, better accuracy, higher spin and launch angle? Golf has been on my mind so much lately and not being able to play is only adding to that fire!

I do some fitting, so I'm inclined to think it's worthwhile if for no other reason than to identify really mis-matched gear. I've seen a bunch of folks who bought 2nd hand gear from a friend but it doesn't fit their game and makes it much harder.

Recently listened to the TXG guys discuss their approach. They suggested starting with a full bag analysis which I think makes sense. Look at where you struggle, significant gaps, etc.  And also think of which clubs you actually NEED on a course. Then determine what you really need and pull the trigger. If you can't update all at once, develop a priority plan on what to upgrade and when.  When you are buying new, current year models, you can really get the most out of a fitting by getting the right shaft, length and lie-angle right from the factory. And there are usually quite a few shaft options available at no upcharge to what you would buy off the shelf. Mizuno is really good with that.

Last, if you are struggling with your swing, see a pro first. He can diagnose and fix big issues and also spot gear that's holding you back.  Fitters (unless they are also a PGA pro) ought to match the best gear to the swing you bring in, not change it.