Shorter Shafts??

[Pupini 10]

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 13,679]

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 10]

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 13,679]

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. 

[blackngold_blood 3,892]

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 69]

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 4,792]

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

[Pupini 10]

Thanks for the advice guys.

[Golfmanufaktur 24]

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 63]

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 5,350]

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 658]

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. 

[blackngold_blood 3,892]

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 20]

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 63]

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!

[B.Boston 7,806]

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! 

 

[scooterhd2 386]

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 10]

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.