Shorter Shafts??

[Pupini]

Hey guys - 

Considering shortening my golf shafts. I'm short 5'4" and currently use standard length shafts. What would happen to my distance if I shorten the clubs. I am a 12-14 handicapper and hit an 8 iron about 155. I would gladly give up some distance if I would see an increase in accuract (which I expect). I just don't want to lose a full club. My thought is cutting 1/2 inch off. - Thanks.

[cnosil]

2 minutes ago, Pupini said:

Hey guys - 

Considering shortening my golf shafts. I'm short 5'4" and currently use standard length shafts. What would happen to my distance if I shorten the clubs. I am a 12-14 handicapper and hit an 8 iron about 155. I would gladly give up some distance if I would see an increase in accuract (which I expect). I just don't want to lose a full club. My thought is cutting 1/2 inch off. - Thanks.

You might gain distance or you might lose distance.    Do you hit the sweetspot of the clubs consistently?  If shorting the clubs results in better contact you may get more distance even with a slower swingspeed.  For an idea of how it might work,  choke down on your club.

[Pupini]

My contact is pretty decent. My wear mark is more like a quarter instead of a dime, and it is a little I little high on the club face towards the toe. I know that will improve because trimming the shaft will make the club a little flatter, or so I've read.

[cnosil]

10 minutes ago, Pupini said:

My contact is pretty decent. My wear mark is more like a quarter instead of a dime, and it is a little I little high on the club face towards the toe. I know that will improve because trimming the shaft will make the club a little flatter, or so I've read.

If you are that consistent in hitting the same spot,  I probably wouldn't change anything. 

[GolfSpy_BNG]

If you are that consistent in hitting the same spot,  I probably wouldn't change anything. 

Gotta agree with this. If you are that consistent, why would you want to change anything?
My guess (and it is only a guess knowing nothing about your swing or you other than your height) would be that you would lose distance.
If all you do is cut a 1/2" off the clubs, you will alter them severely. Lighter swing weight, flatter lie, etc. Obviously they can be adjusted but I would take cnosil's advice and try choking down first.

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[therod]

Or you could try it on 1 club. Have a local fitter / builder make you a 7 or 8 iron, have it built exactly how you want it, and see how it plays compared to your current gamer.

[perseveringgolfer]

grip down half an inch for awhile before doing anything drastic. 

[Pupini]

Thanks for the advice guys.

[Golfmanufaktur]

As already pointed out by others, impact location determines playing length. If you hit the ball well, don't change playing length. If you have issues with the contact, you can start with some adjustments. The advice to grip shorter is your first starting point, if you want to feel it out.

Cheers,
Michael

[Gman24]

I cut my driver down to 44.5" and picked up some distance and more consistency.  A couple of friends did the same (I have Mitchell equipment in my basement..LOL) and shaved strokes of their handicap.  I recommend it to most folks.

[silver & black]

On 4/27/2020 at 7:03 AM, therod said:

Or you could try it on 1 club. Have a local fitter / builder make you a 7 or 8 iron, have it built exactly how you want it, and see how it plays compared to your current gamer.

That's the route I would go before cutting all my irons down.

[pozzit]

I agree with most choking down is the best way to test it out if you want to ok make sure it's the right change. Put some masking tape on the top of the grip so not only is it a visual reminder but you will likely feel the texture difference when you grip it full for a reminder.

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[Guest Delete]

On 4/26/2020 at 11:05 AM, Pupini said:

Hey guys - 

Considering shortening my golf shafts. I'm short 5'4" and currently use standard length shafts. What would happen to my distance if I shorten the clubs. I am a 12-14 handicapper and hit an 8 iron about 155. I would gladly give up some distance if I would see an increase in accuract (which I expect). I just don't want to lose a full club. My thought is cutting 1/2 inch off. - Thanks.

Shortening the shaft will make the lie more upright, lower the swingweight, make the club slightly lighter, and could make it play a fraction stiffer. 

Being short usually means making the lie flatter with standard length clubs.

If you feel you have to make adjustments to get good strikes, have perfect timing, or just feel inconsistent, then getting fitted for shorter shafts may help. 

On good way to know a club is to long is how you stand. If you feel like you have to stand almost straight up and swing out to the ball, only to have the toe of the club sticking up in the air at impact then the clubs are too long.

 

Also, checking your divot for the heel digging in will show you. The goal is the divot to have the club enter and exit as square as possible. 

[GolfSpy_BNG]

32 minutes ago, TimoTe said:

Shortening the shaft will make the lie more upright

All good points in your post except this one. Shortening the shafts will make the lie angle flatter with no adjustments. It is the reason I play shorter shafts but have to go 1* upright to compensate. 

[Guest Delete]

1 hour ago, blackngold_blood said:

All good points in your post except this one. Shortening the shafts will make the lie angle flatter with no adjustments. It is the reason I play shorter shafts but have to go 1* upright to compensate. 

That's right. I was thinking that you would need to make the shorter club more upright because it sits more flat naturally after it has been shortened.  

Usually the person playing standard clubs that are too long already have the club too upright anyways.

Sorry for the confusion. Thanks for correcting me. 

[Hitnhunt]

I've done shorter driver lengths for people (and myself) as mentioned here.  And as mentioned typically find better control, with minimal to no loss of distance as the center of the clubface is found more consistently.  Finally convinced my brother to go this route, and now he's hitting it past me.  He's thrilled, I'm disappointed.  Love working with the adjustable heads that have all the various weight options, so we can try different swingweights once we get the length in the ballpark.  As a side benefit to better contact, increasing the weight of the head results in higher MOI and a more forgiving club as well.

[Gman24]

On 5/9/2020 at 10:46 AM, pozzit said:

Put some masking tape on the top of the grip so not only is it a visual reminder but you will likely feel the texture difference when you grip it full for a reminder.

Great suggestion!

[GolfSpy_BOS]

as a fellow 5'4 golfer when I was fit we went 1/4 short, but also 2-3 degrees flat which makes them essentially play "regular length."

I will say that I play with a 44.5-45 inch driver and that is light years better for me than the current "stock" lengths for drivers.  

Were you fit for your set?  Taking a little off could get you strike more to center if you favor the toe.. but that's just in theory.  Try choking up as other suggested and giving that try for a round or two.  If you think you'll forget use some tape to remind yourself to grip below it.

Either way let us know what you end up doing! 

 

[heavygolffeels]

Anything is possible, but i've seen going shorter help more people than it hurt. Most of us hit the ball better when choking down. Im 6'1 and while I play my irons at standard length, I've shortened my hybrids by as much as 1 inch. Helps with contact, and the flatter lie reduces the hooks. 

[Pupini]

So I decided to cut down my 9 iron 1/4 inch and played a round on Sunday. I have to say that my strikes with that iron were very good. Playing another round on Friday and will see how it goes. Originally I tried chocking down, but it didn't have the same feel. Another two rounds are probably needed to make a decision unless a range opens up soon.  Thanks everyone.

[therod]

I would also be curious to know what your ball flight looks like. I'm 5'5", I play shorter clubs with flatter lie angles. A standard iron, off the rack, is a hook machine for me, even when hit well. Because they are too upright for me, I couldn't dream of hitting a fade. Hitting a straight ball was tough enough, even with a wedge. But when I went to a flat lie angle, the world changed. Again, it's something requiring an experiment and a builder / fitter with bending equipment. I would look at flatter lie angles with at least as much curiosity as length. In my opinion, at least with your irons since impact with the ground is part of the outcome, lie angles are more important than shaft length.

[aerospace_ray]

Complicated question to me although it seems an easy one. My experience over the years has been one of I prefer standard to a little over standard lengths but require flatter lie angles. I use to go off pure wrist to floor measurement/static fitting (told me I needed shorter clubs) but found that my center strikes occurred with a little longer length clubs. Figured out that I stand further from the ball at address position (think single plane / Moe Norman like) and tilt accordingly. That posture for me requires a little longer club lengths (at least for my swing)  and corresponding lie angle tweaks. I am under 5'9. Additionally I counter weight (add weight under grip) my clubs  to ensure I achieve what I like to feel for each club. I have gone through a lot of impact tape to identify where the strikes on the club face occurs and tweak accordingly. And fitting options (places like a Club Champion, etc) are much better today for testing at different lengths. 

[crope1]

I think that one day I will try the shorter shaft option. I just think it would work.

[Casual Golfer]

I played with a set of Ping I-5 irons, standard length, green dots for years, even won a league championship with that set of irons.  But, despite how many good days I had with those irons and the achievements I experienced with them, I never felt really good about the way I was striking the ball, because I just couldn't do it as consistently as I wanted to.  Then, I tried something radical.  I shortened the shafts by 1-1/2 inches on the whole set, from the 60 degree wedge all the way down to the 4-iron.  And wow, what a difference it made, almost immediately.  Rather than lose any clubhead speed at all, I actually picked up speed, started striking the ball cleanly and solidly, gaining both distance and accuracy and went from a golfer who was averaging in 85-95 range to someone who was playing consistently in the 75-85 range, primarily because I had a lot more confidence in my ability to strike the ball consistently.  So, based on my own experience with shortening the shafts on a set of Ping irons, I would highly recommend giving it a try, especially if you are struggling with striking the ball cleanly and achieving accuracy at hitting your target.  Keep in mind, you can always add the length back onto the club shafts if it doesn't work out for you, next time you get them regripped!

[PJVicary]

I am 5’8” with shorter legs. I have played with 1/2” shorter irons for the past 30 years. Changing to standard lengths would definitely be a challenge. My swing plane has adjusted to this length and would not change. That said, I just added a 2” extension to my Talamonti driver shaft . My swing plain is a little flatter but I have picked up 7-10 yds off the tee. As others have suggested, try choking down 1/2 inch or pull your 7 and 8 iron heads and try your 7 on the 8 iron shaft. 

[tarrantian]

I'm 5'9" and my driver is just under 44" and have cut down my other metals and my irons as well - Accuracy has improved across the board and distance loss has been negligible. 

Cheers,

- Ian

[Golfnut0226]

On 4/26/2020 at 2:05 PM, Pupini said:

Hey guys - 

Considering shortening my golf shafts. I'm short 5'4" and currently use standard length shafts. What would happen to my distance if I shorten the clubs. I am a 12-14 handicapper and hit an 8 iron about 155. I would gladly give up some distance if I would see an increase in accuract (which I expect). I just don't want to lose a full club. My thought is cutting 1/2 inch off. - Thanks.

My guess, take an inch and a half off the butt, you'll hit it straighter and more on the face, likely longer with the contact

[HDTVMAN]

I assume you weren't fit for your driver. I've had many customers 5'4" and I've never sold any of them a "standard" length driver. I'm 6' and use a 44.5". At your height I'd be looking at 1.5"-2" shorter, and when properly fitted, the weighting from the factory is correct. Before cutting your driver, go into a shop where you can hit different length drivers and have each weighed. When you find the length for you, have a club fitter cut it down then add the correct amount of weight for balance. I use lead tape which I can easily add or subtract, placed in the correct areas, to make the club fit correctly.

[dlow206]

I play 1/2" short, 2 flat. I've always wanted to try shorter, but have never committed to that experiment. Fitters that I have worked with have never had any strong recommendations on playing shorter irons or not. Probably need to find a better fitter. 

For reference, I am 5'5" with shoes on, but also have short legs. 

[Albatrossx4]

First the clubs WILL NOT GET FLATTER the lie is dialed in at the hosel.  If you had your clubs adjusted originally to a flatter lie because they are longer then you might have to have them bent more upright, if you shorten them, if you did not, then you might get better ground contact where the heal is not digging, if that is not a problem then your lie is good now, then do not change anything without experimenting by choking up, if you see the toe dragging then you know what adjustment is needed.   Other than that, shorter club could be faster, could have better contact, but I have always gone longer, carried a 52 inch driver until the USGA Nazi's took that away and still carry a 48. but I am back to stock in my irons etc.