UST Proforce VTS Shaft

[Tony Covey MGS]

UST Proforce VTS Shaft - Just Arrived!

 

These just arrived for use in a lab article we're cooking up. It's one I think you guys are going to be very interested in. We're still a few weeks out on getting started, but I wanted to share a little bit about the shafts will be using in our test.

 

The UST Proforce VTS is the latest offering in UST's flagship line. The VTS stands for Velocity, Torque, and Speed (more on that in a bit), and in some respects it can be considered an evolutionary, if not revolutionary product.

 

I'd venture to say that none of us here has ever bought a golf club without giving some consideration to shaft flex. Those of you who have tinkered with your shafts have no doubt thought about the bend point of the shaft, and how it relates to your desired ball flight. Some of you might even have chosen a lighter shaft to help generate more speed, or a heavier shaft to increase control. Just about every shaft on the market (save the Nunchuk) is available in multiple flexes and multiple weights. How many of you have really considered torque?

 

The conventional wisdom that has developed largely as a result of torque being all but ignored is that guys with faster swing speeds need less torque, and guys with slower swing speeds need more. What's come from that are a collection of single profile shafts. Shafts designed with higher swing speeds (and often temp) in mind, are generally designed to produce lower, more penetrating ball flight, and their torque rating is often much lower than shafts design to hit the ball higher with more spin. It an unofficial rule that many of have basically come to accept.

 

With the introduction of the VTS, UST Mamiya is basically saying "NOT SO FAST". During the development of the VTS, UST Mamiya worked with experts in bio-mechanics to gain a better of how the shaft and golfer work as one. What came out of that research is the notion that performance can only be maximized when the linear torque profile is matched with the golfer's Swing DNA.

 

What the hell does that mean?

 

What UST calls the Linear Torque Profile is the relationship between shaft weight, flex, and torque. Swing DNA is basically how you swing.

 

The bottom line is here is that UST says that slow swingers don't always need high torque, and fast swingers don't always need low torque. There are a multitude of factors to consider, and swing speed is but one. In order to provide an ideal fit, UST offers 3 different torque options ( Black - Low, Silver - Mid, and Red - High) in each and every VTS shaft. You want a 80 gram shaft, in XX flex, with high torque? No problem. Want a 50 gram shaft, in R flex, with a low torque. Yup, you can do that to.

 

As you can imagine, you're probably going to need to get professionally fit to determine your ideal combination of flex, weight, and torque.

 

For the purposes of our tests we'll be utilizing the 6R model (65 gram), and 7S (75 gram). We chose silver (3.5 torque) for this test. The black has a torque rating of 2.5, while the red comes in at 4.5.

[Springbok]

I am very interested in the VTS Red shaft. You don't need a field tester for this one do you?

[Matt Saternus]

T, thanks for explaining the idea behind the VTS line. I had heard of it before, but never gotten a clear picture of what was unique about it. I LOVE the idea. I've been looking around for shafts to try and it's very hard to find something higher launching that has a little more weight to it, as you said, companies assume that if you want something heavy and have a little bit more swing speed, you want a low ball flight. This is definitely on my radar now.

[Moecat]

The VTS is in the Adams A12 hybrid. I wonder if Adams is able/willing to provide the weight/flex/torque options without additional upcharge? And of course, it would be useful to read of any opinions of how the shaft and head combination performs.