Graphite Design Tour AD Shafts - 2024 Forum Review

[GolfSpy_APH]

This season there have been a lot of different driver shafts tested through MyGolfSpy Forum member testing and it wouldn’t be a complete season without including Graphite Design. 

About Graphite Design

Established in 1989 in Japan and 1997 in the USA, Graphite Design Inc. has been at the forefront of golf shaft innovation for over three decades. Their founder, Mr. Megumi Yamada, worked to revolutionize the industry with his cutting-edge lamination technology. This works to ensure their shafts are both lightweight and incredibly strong. This advanced technology, coupled with state-of-the-art design and the finest materials, makes Graphite Design shafts the premier choice for both professional and amateur golfers.

Graphite Design's "Tour AD" logo stands for "Accuracy and Distance," a promise that their shafts aim to deliver consistently. These key competitive advantages have helped countless golfers optimize their performance. Their shafts have been the most dominant on the JGTO (Japan Golf Tour Organization) Tour for the past ten years, and they continue to support professional golfers worldwide.

With some of the most iconic shafts in golf we are excited to bring them to our member testing platform this season.

Testing Opportunity Details

We are seeking eight golfers to test the Graphite Design Tour AD premium shafts. As a tester you will get to test, review and keep a Graphite Design Tour AD shaft of your choice. 

We want to know how the Tour AD line of shafts compares to your current gamer. Where does it excel and where do you think it could get a little better? Real feedback for real golfers with a wide variety of handicaps and abilities. 

Testers will be asked to provide on course feedback, launch monitor data and comparisons to their current driver shaft over a four week testing period. 

Please welcome and congratulate our testers!

@WaffleHouseTour 

@Nick_D 

@pete1276  

@kam89 

@Alan Stewart 

@DukeStKing 

@GolfSpy_BNG 

@GolfSpy AFG

 

[WaffleHouseTour]

“Do not go gentle into that good night, Old age should burn and rave at the close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” - Dylan Thomas

 

The Problem
I finished 2023 a solid 8 handicap, and have climbed back up to a 10 in 2024. This spring has been my slowest, most troublesome start to any golf season.  I went into the winter dedicated to the Stack system, yoga twice a week, the elliptical five days a week, a golf specific kettle bell routine three times a week.  I was going to start the spring with faster swing speed and reclaim the lost distance of my youth. Uh-huh.  This is not a crack on the Stack - but I ingrained some nasty habits.  If I don’t see the impact in ball flight it’s too easy for me to throw the club in a way that may generate speed on the radar but not on a ball.

I have an over the top swing, where I take it across the line and then tend to throw the club out and around.  If the timing is right, it works out.  If it’s not… I’ve been consistently trying to address my Left Path with Right Face to Path or Face to Target with a Skillest instructor.  I’m a work in progress. 

As you can see in the video I tend to have an “aggressive” tempo or move at the top. As a result the last two fittings I’ve had the fitter has put me into a “stiff, low spin, low launch” shaft as a way to optimize for that transition.   I put those in “quotes” because those words can be so subjective.  My hope with this review is to bring some objectivity. 
 

Current Set Up

I’m currently gaming a Sub70 849D driver head fitted with the Hzrdous Smoke Black RDX in a “stiff”. Low launch, low spin. Previously I had a Callaway Maverick Sub Zero with an LAGolf Blue Tour AXS also “stiff”, also low launch, low spin.

   

I fear the high wipey fade. At my home course, not the PClub in the video, danger lurks just right of the fairway.  I’ve been willing to trade distance for accuracy with my last two drivers by opting for a shorter shaft. But the distance has shrunk more and I haven’t gained the accuracy advantage.

So I’m excited to try something new. But self fitting?  Now I’m nervous.

I use a Mevo+ launch monitor and the FS Golf app - and that will be my go to tool for this test. The Optimizer option in the app has consistently said I need to lower my spin and increase my launch angle.  Again, my last two driver shafts have been “low spin” but FlightScope says I need to go lower. And while the shafts have been low launch, FlightScope says I need to go higher.

I’m all in on lowering my spin. But I fear increasing my launch angle. My attempts to do so through my swing motion lead to either leaving the face more open to the right than it already is, or catching the ball way to high on the club face and shooting rockets to the moon.

To try and increase launch while also keeping the club face closed I’ve adjusted my Sub70 849D to “Plus 2” which theoretically adds 2* of loft but closes the club face 4.5*.

So I’m interested to see what a lower spin with mid trajectory launch would do for me.  I looked at the high launch shafts but just couldn’t pull the trigger. I’m clearly launching too low with a low launch shaft - let’s see what a little higher will do. Mid launch seemed like the place to start.

The Solution ?

So I chose the Graphite Design Tour AD- UB (Upward Bound) Low/Mid Spin, Mid Launch.

I thought long and hard about the Tour AD- DI (Deep impact) Low/Mid Spin, High Launch. But I decided to take raising my launch one step at a time.  If I can’t get my my launch angle up from a 13/14* to 17/18* then we learned something.  The spin either comes down or it won’t. Both are described the same though the graphic/chart shows the DI as low, but the description says Low/Mid. So we’ll learn something. 

 

 
 

Right now my swing speed as measured by my Mevo+ has me averaging 91 mph, 92, 93.  Occasionally I’ll get a 96.  Late last summer/early fall I was finishing practice sessions with a 95 mph average - getting a few up to 98 (stiff category), but just as many around 93…

Despite a winter of Stack training I didn’t reach my goal of getting to 100mph.  I regressed, and I believe that’s more because of swing mechanics than actual strength or speed.

Looking at this fitting chart I’d thought about the Regular shaft.  But as I’m still aspirational (rage, rage, against the dying of the light)  and know I have it in me somewhere I thought the SR Flex (92-98) was the right place for me.  A mix between where I am and where I’m going…  I’ll keep an eye on the speed and compare results. I’m hopeful this is the right shaft for me today and watch what happens if I’m able to find a few more mph.

Control Factors
Of course it’s what happens on the fairway and the scorecard that matters most.  But for purposes of this review and trying to keep accurate data I’ll be doing all my testing here on the “practice pad” in my backyard with the Mevo+ and FS Golf App on an iPad. Titleist ProV1 RCT ball in the backyard and a ProV1 Yellow ball on the course.

  

I know folks here are not shy.  Fireaway with those questions.  Provide suggestions.  What is it that you need to hear or see for this to be a good test.

 

Unboxing & Building

The delivery from ProsChoice arrived about an hour after I got home from a trip to North Dakota.  My heart skipped a beat when I saw the box... but just one.  Everything was safe inside. 

Then I was off to my local Austad's Golf where Jacob, one of the fitters, club builders, jack of all trades built it for me.  More on that process can be found here.

 

First impression 8 out of 10 – I had some trepidation about the self fitting we testers did for ourselves. But that’s part of the test I suppose.  First impression was “this club is whippy” – because in comparison to my gamer it is.  That isn’t necessarily a bad thing.  I changed flexes – going from a stiff to a stiff/regular.  It certainly has more bend.  Matches up with the profile with a “medium” flex in the butt and mid sections only getting “stiff in the tip”.  

The speed/flex chart on the ProsChoice web site was, I believe, spot on for me.  And I was honest enough about  my swing speed.  I’ve been averaging 93-95 mph in my practice sessions, and that is right in the sweet spot of the 92-98 MPH recommended Stiff Regular flex. 

(UBy really pops in this shot)

I expected the ball to fly higher.  After all I was going from a self described “low launch” to a self described “mid-trajectory”.  But I didn’t see that.   Balls that went too high and popped up, went too high and popped up.  But on the whole I didn’t see an increase in my average ball flight.  I will say again, terms like Low, Mid or High trajectory are subjective. I wanted to increase my ball launch, but I was nervous about jumping from a Low to a High so I settled on the Mid – and have to admit to being a bit disappointed it didn’t launch higher.  But I made that choice.   Still, the lower than expected ball flight is why I knock the scored down to an 8 of 10.

Aesthetics 20 out of 20 – I’m not really sure how important aesthetics are for a driver shaft.  I suppose there may be some that could be off putting.  But this is clearly very sharp.  I had the logos initially turned down – so I just see the clear blue shaft with the black bands.  I like that look.  Again, no impact on performance but it is pretty.   If I had my choice of colors blue would not be among them, but it does look really sharp.  Nothing distracting about it. 

The Numbers 10 out of 20 – Here is the meat of my review.  I’ve been on my Mevo+ A LOT.  More than I what I actually post.  

If I look back at the first side by side comparison – I’d hit a few with my Hzrdous, then switch shafts and hit a few with the UB, rotating back and forth – the average spin was about the same (3,800 UB vs 3,700 HZD), and similar launch (13.6 UB vs 15.8 HZD – this was a surprise).  But where I immediately started to see a difference was in the ball flight.  The UB “average” on lateral was 2 yards left – it stretched from shots 24 yards left to 13 right.  The Hzrdous average was 11 yards right of center – stretching from 12 yards left to 30 right of center.     I was hitting the UB with a 3.8* Path Left average, with a Face to Target Average of 1.5* Left; where I was hitting the Hzrdous with a 4.1*  Left Path average while averaging 1* Right Face to Target.  Yes, averages can be misleading – but I’m trying to simplify here. 

While this was day one, it was a trend I would continue to see.  For me the UB had more of a left bias.  Now, in talking with my Skillest coach we chalked that up to being able to get the club face closed more often or just more, due to the flex of the shaft and where it was flexing.  On course I started to adjust my targets.  I am happy with that small shift in dispersion

To try and bring that spin number down I lowered the loft of the driver head, and for the most part,  it came down – averaging more like 2,600 rpms in some practice session – but would still creep up over 3,000 rpms in other session.   This inability to consistently get that number down is a disappointment – whether that should be in myself or in the shaft I’m unsure. 

My average launch hasn’t changed.  Also a disappointment.  But again, I chose the one step at a time approach.   Had I been more bold, and selected a high launch shaft like the IZ, then I may have gotten the launch I wanted. 

 My path is still averaging somewhere in the 3-4* Left zone (a shaft won’t fix my over the top) and my Face to Target is hovering around the 0-1*L (Oh, I’ll hit some wide open, or super shut, but it is getting closer to being closed or just a little closed on a much more regular basis)  The more I’ve played it, the better my dispersion pattern has become.   As I’ve said in other posts – in practice I’m trying to hit a 30 yard wide fairway.   I’m not always hitting it, but the misses are better.  

The biggest disappointment – I haven’t gained any distance.  The Mevo Flight Optimizer continues to tell me I need to lower my spin, raise my launch, and hit it more in the center of the club face to increase the smash factor.  My hope was this shaft would help me accomplish those goals.   So the circle isn’t farther down the driving range – but it is smaller.   To me that is 10 out of 20 – for a shaft with “Accuracy & Distance” printed on the shaft I got the “accuracy” half of that. 

On the Course 15 out of 20  

My last three rounds on the course have seen my Strokes Gained Driving average tick up each time – my last three rounds saw my SG-D increase over my ten round average +1.2, +0.1, +2.  I’ve learned to adjust my target a bit more toward than center, again something I’m very happy to do.   I’ve smoked a few – but for me the benefit has been accuracy – not distance.  

 

These were my rounds since putting the UB in play:

And this is Arcoss Strokes Gained Driving average for the last ten rounds.  Across shows how my driving has changed over the last ten rounds - but as I have more than ten rounds in I'm comparing myself to previous good rounds - so it gets harder to improve.  But improve I think we did. 

These are my Strokes Gained Driving against a 0 Handicap...

As I'm currently an 8.4 handicap, these are my Strokes Gained Driving against a fellow 8 handicapper....

Interesting to note the differences - Even though my shots are unchanged, just against whom I'm comparing myself - my distance isn't as bad as compared to playing against a scratch, and my accuracy is even better against someone of my own handicap level.   So clearly, I need to pick up some distance. 

The Good, the Bad the In Between 10 out of 10

I realize I’m being repetitive – the Good is the accuracy, the Bad is the lack of distance gained due to not enough increase in launch and decrease in spin, and the In Between is that it does feel smooth, and I do feel it release.

I'll also share here, and it won't surprise anyone who has followed the thread - because I'm looking for a higher launch, I'd like to test UBy against an IZ version.  Just didn't work out for this test. 

Play it or Trade it – 20 out of 20  Oh, I’m going to Play It.  I can’t argue with the improvement in dispersion.  I still have misses, but the misses are smaller. Too much to the right can be deadly at my home course.  However, I do want to try a higher launching version of the Graphite Design AD shafts. There may be some after test posts if I can lay my hands on a Graphite Design IZ if I can find a gently used one with the same SR flex, or break down and purchase one new. 

Conclusion First, I’m a tough grader… Second, despite some of my complaints up above, I’m happy with Uby and unless or until I find something better she’ll stay in my bag, as my accuracy has improved over my old gamer.  I clearly like it well enough I want to try another version of their shafts.  However – I highly recommend fitting.  I really wish I could have compared or been fit in the process of picking which Graphite Design shaft to test. Get thyself fit. 

Final Score 83 out of 100 

 

Edited Sunday at 09:28 PM by WaffleHouseTour

[Nick_D]

Graphite Design Tour AD CQ - Official MGS Forum Review by Nick_D

Introduction:

Hello all! My name is Nick and I want to start by saying thank you to MGS & Pro's Choice/Graphite Design for giving me the opportunity to test a Tour AD shaft. This is my second testing opportunity, some of you may know me from the BirdieBall 2-in-1 Putting/Hitting Mat test last year.

I’m 27 and live in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I picked up golf about 10 years ago after playing with some friends and have been hooked ever since. I am lucky enough to play year-round here in Michigan after my wife let me build a simulator in our garage and joining a private club down the road from our house. 

6th green looking back towards the 5th fairway at my home course

Home simulator setup where I'll collect all my testing data

Now for my testing opportunity! I chose to test the Graphite Design Tour AD CQ-5 Stiff. I have always liked lighter shafts that feel very active and have a distinctive "kick" in the tip. As you'll see in Graphite Design's marketing material, the CQ is on the "softer" side of the Tour AD line overall and especially in the tip.

 

My current gamer that I will be comparing to is a Maltby MPF Pro Series UL shaft in A flex screwed on to a PING G430 Max. For any of you that frequent the Otto Phlex thread it may sound familiar to you. I have a pretty out-to-in swing path at the moment that I'm working on, but my driving is one of my strengths. Below are my current numbers with the Maltby/G430 setup. My overall goal with the driver is accuracy first, then distance.

I hope to see similar accuracy with the CQ and gain some distance! I think there is most room for improvement in spin and launch angle. I launch it pretty high in my current shaft and the spin is definitely not low. I will be gathering data in the garage to compare these shafts, but overall my focus will be on the golf course. According to Grint my driving accuracy is 45% hit, 38% right miss, and 16% left miss. I want to improve my driving accuracy of course, however I want to step onto a tee and be confident pulling driver every time I need to. Improving the driver numbers is one thing, but for any followers of No Laying Up we all know the "Eye Test" is also important! 

Unboxing & First Impressions (10 out of 10):

The Tour AD CQ arrived in a nicely branded white box and survived the journey from California. Upon unboxing I found a nicely protected shaft ready to be built up! The gold, black, and subtle red hits look fantastic and would go well with many different drivers in my opinion. The black of the shaft has just a slight sparkle that looks great without being distracting from address.

Shipment Receiving Manager Fitz approves of the box branding

Shaft was packed with paper and inside a plastic sleeve to prevent any damage in shipping

Shiny Gold, Red, and subtle sparkly black (hard to pick up in photos!)

After unboxing, I got to building! We received build instructions from our friends at Pro's Choice that it was recommended to not tip the shafts for Driver applications, but if we'd like to we needed to maintain .5" of the parallel section of the tip above the adapter. I went with the recommendation and didn't tip the shaft. I set the adapter to the big minus (-) on the ping adapter for my G430 Max and added a Golf Pride Z-Grip Cord. According to an online swingweight calculator I'm right at D2. 

Golf Pride Z-Grip Cord, Ping G430 Max & Adapter, Epoxy, and Shafting Beads

Overall, the unboxing and first impressions of the shaft were everything I was hoping for! It really feels like a premium shaft and the experience was everything you'd expect. I took it for a first spin in the garage simulator for a round and was pleased with the first few swings. I want to spend some time with it before sharing data, but it felt very smooth while still giving me the feel of loading the shaft. According to the website, the CQ features the "new Nitta 2g-Namd carbon-fiber material technology" that "aids in a higher degree of energy transfer thru the golf club and more solid impact of the golf ball than shafts without the technology". 

So far I have noticed my ball speed jump up a few MPH, but I want to do some more testing vs my other shaft before jumping to conclusions.

Aesthetics (20 out of 20):

I think this is a great looking shaft. It's subtle while still looking very premium. I've gotten tons of compliments and a lot of playing partners noticed it within the first few holes and wanted to see it. Everyone is familiar with the classic orange Tour AD DI that Spieth and Hideki made famous on tour and people still recognize the graphite design rings on the shaft, but are surprised to see different colors. The black, gold, and red looks really good in person, no complaints here!

The Numbers (18 out of 20):

I did several different testing sessions in the garage with my Bushnell Launch Pro comparing the CQ to my gamer and saw very similar results in every session: higher launch and better dispersion.

I'm definitely working on my club path and can attribute a lot of the higher spin some shots with both shafts to that issue. Regardless, you can see I delivered both shafts very similarly and the CQ gave me some small gains namely in Launch Direction and Offline stats. I added an absolute value column to remove the left misses offsetting right. The CQ has definitely helped my consistency a bit and I have definitely noticed it on the course as well. While there were two big left misses in this set of data, I rarely will see that on the course. Since switching to the CQ the left side of the course is completely out of play for me and has helped me keep the dreaded double cross to a rarity. I never feel like the club head will get away from me in the swing.

I took a couple points off here just because I don't necessarily see Graphite Design's claims of "higher degree of energy transfer thru the golf club and a more solid impact of the golf ball than shafts without Nitta 2G-Namd technology". I can't say I was expecting magic ball speed or 10 extra yards of distance, but worth noting anyway.

On the Course (17 out of 20):

I had a bit of a delayed honeymoon with the CQ on the course. Earlier in my review I noted my driving accuracy stats according to Grint being 16% left miss, 45% hit, and 38% right miss. My first few rounds I struggled with keeping the ball on the planet, missing nearly everything right. That mostly rings true when looking at my stats now: 13% left miss, 47% hit, and 40% right miss. I even had one round with only one fairway hit. This was about rock bottom with the CQ, it did get better!

I struggled a lot in the wind for a couple rounds and then it slowly started to click. I think it was a combination of a few lessons with my club pro and figuring out my setup as well as just aiming better with a little better course management. My most recent round I hit 4/7 fairways with the other 3 being a couple paces into the right rough. This is a really stable, smooth feeling shaft and I just get a very predictable ball flight out of it every single time once I got accustomed to it. If you like the feeling of a very active shaft this is probably a bit more on the smoother/stable side, but certainly isn't stout. I think this feeling for me has a lot to do with most of the load being close to the tip vs. higher in the shaft that I'm used to.

Taking away points here because I did really struggle for a while, not that it's necessarily the shaft's fault. I was surprised at the adjustment period I needed with the CQ after playing around with several different shafts in the past year or so and not feeling the same way about those.

The Good, the bad, the in-between (9 out of 10):

I want to again highlight in this section that the feel is really smooth and stable. I can see a lot of people trying this shaft and liking it. If you struggle with launching the ball low, this shaft could definitely help with that without getting into a super "whippy" type shaft. 

The bad or in-between with the CQ for me would definitely be the price. At $379 it's definitely a premium shaft choice and I would argue that I could get fit into a much more affordable shaft that would give me similar results. I could also argue that the CQ definitely looks and feels more premium than a lot of other offerings that I have tried. There are also a lot of shafts in this same price range that are very popular, so I wouldn't say it's priced unreasonably either. Just something to be aware of!

Play it or Trade it? (19 out of 20):

I really am still undecided, however if I had to choose right now I'd say the CQ is in the bag. The past few rounds I have started to see some great results and I do love the way it feels. For me it produces a predictable ball flight and is really smooth and stable. As I continue to make swing changes, I expect that my spin numbers will come down a touch and make the CQ even better. It's taken the left miss out of play for me and keeps getting better each time I go and play.

This shaft would be best for players that need to increase their launch angle and like a smooth feeling shaft. I really think this would be a great match for a lot of people in a fairway wood. I would recommend anyone curious about the CQ to go to their local club fitter and give it a try as it certainly won't be for everyone. While we didn't get fit into these shafts, I wouldn't have bought the CQ without a fitting myself. Overall, I think I did a pretty good job of choosing from the Tour AD lineup as I had an idea of the types of shafts that fit me well and the type of feel I like.

 

Conclusion:

The Tour AD CQ is definitely a great premium shaft offering. It looks fantastic and feels great. It took a while for me to get used to it and produce good results on the course, but it is a very smooth and stable shaft with a lower load point that produces a higher ball flight. I think this shaft would be popular for those looking to increase launch angle in their driver, or it would be a great fairway wood offering for a lot of golfers.

Final Score (93 out of 100)

 

Edited Sunday at 10:19 PM by Nick_D

[pete1276]

Graphite Design Tour AD - Official MGS Forum Review by pete1276

Hello Spies!

I’m very excited to be chosen to review a Graphite Design driver shaft.  I am looking forward to the testing and reporting on my findings.  I hope to provide valuable feedback that helps contribute high quality content to the Forum.

Introduction

About Me

My name is Brock and I live just outside of Minneapolis, MN.  I work in Cybersecurity which has been both rewarding and challenging.  I have more of an analytical mind, which drew me towards my occupation, and has carried over into other aspects of my life, such as golf.  I like to deep dive into numbers and technical details, but as you know, golf is so much more than that.

I was born and raised in Minnesota, and the summers here are great.  They give us plenty of opportunities to get out and enjoy the weather.  The winters can be harsh, but they also give us the chance to recuperate, train, and start gearing up for the spring.  My wife, Dawn, and I will be celebrating our 12th anniversary this year.  We both have our own hobbies - me with golf, and her with biking.

We like to travel, and Dawn even lets me squeeze in a few rounds here and there (when time permits).  Over the years, we’ve visited several different spots within the states like Phoenix, San Francisco, San Diego, and most recently, Palm Springs.  We’ve also been over to Europe a few times to places like Scotland, England, France, and Ireland.  I was almost blown off a cliff at Old Head, near Kinsale, Ireland last fall.

We have two adorable dogs named Penny and Bisou (kisses in French).  We adopted them about 3 years ago, they are a bonded mother/daughter pair.  They are the sweetest girls, and they’re always excited to see us when we come home.

My game

I have been golfing for about 20 years now, but I’ve only been taking it seriously for the past 10 years or so.  That’s when I really started to buckle down, take lessons, and spend some time and effort on getting better.  It’s been an interesting journey, but I’ve managed to get my handicap down into the mid-single digits.  Over the past couple of years, my handicap index has been relatively stable around the 4-6 range.  I’ve also managed to increase my swing speed over time with training and technique.  My driver swing speed is typically around 105-110 mph.  

I’ve also discovered that I enjoy the game more when I am able to draw or fade the ball on command.  It unlocks my creative side, which is a side I didn’t really know I had, until I started playing around with it and getting good at moving the ball around.  As a result, I’ve gravitated to being more of a feel player.  Even with the driver, I like to be able to move the ball in either direction and play around with different flights depending on course and weather conditions, direction of the hole, or whatever other variables are thrown my way.  

Testing and methodology

For this test, I will be reviewing the Graphite Design Tour AD IZ driver shaft.  I will be testing the 75 gram, X-Stiff flex version of this shaft.  It will be tested with my Mizuno ST-X 230 driver head.  I am currently using a Fujikura Ventus Red TR 7-X shaft which has a very similar weight, stiffness, flight, and spin characteristics of the Tour AD IZ shaft.  However, they each have very different bend profiles, which should make for some interesting results.  

I have access to an indoor simulator, and I will be providing the results of key numbers such as launch, spin, height, ball speed, and dispersion.  I will also be testing and reporting the workability of shaping the ball in each direction.  I will report numbers on different shot shapes, as well, but workability is a feel and is generally more subjective.  I am also planning on playing several rounds with this shaft on my driver on course for the next month.  This is likely to be the best way to judge feel and workability.  

I use Arccos to track my rounds, and I have been tracking the results of my current driver setup.  I will be creating a new club in Arccos with the Tour AD IZ shaft so that I can start fresh and compare the results at the end of the test.

Expectations

I know that Graphite Design has an excellent reputation and is well established in the golf industry as a leader in graphite shaft technology.  Several professional golfers on every major circuit have won using their shafts. Coming into this test, my expectations are high.  I will be testing a well-established premium driver shaft from one of the best in the industry.  I’m looking forward to putting it to the test and seeing how it responds.   

I currently have Graphite Design Tour AD 95 shafts in my driving irons, and I like the way they load and release through the shot.  They give these clubs very different feel and flight characteristics than the previous steel shafts that I was using in these clubs.  I am excited to see what the Tour AD IZ driver shaft can do for my driving game.

In order for this the Tour AD IZ shaft to earn a permanent spot in my bag, it must show equal or better numbers on the simulator and through Arccos than my current Ventus Red TR, and it must have a better feel for workability.

First Impressions (9 out of 10)

My new Graphite Design Tour AD IZ 7-X shaft was delivered and setup to my specs last Thursday.  It looks great and the color scheme is fantastic.  I really like the black matt finish and raised lettering.  This thing looks and feels premium. 

Once I took a couple of swings, I could fee the shaft loading at the top and releasing at the right spot which gave me a lot of confidence that this was a good fit for me.  I played a few rounds and I was able to work the ball both directions, which is a key component to my game.  

Aesthetics (20 out of 20)

This shaft has much more of a traditional color scheme and look than some, but it blends very nicely with traditional style drivers.

Here is the completed setup, cut to 45.25" with my Mizuno ST-X 230 driver head.

It looks even better in the sunlight. When I first addressed the ball, it looked shorter than my other shaft, but I think it's due to the black finish, giving it more of an optical illusion.  

There are nice little touches like the words "Distance" and "Accuracy" written at the bottom of the shaft and blended into the white section of the shaft.  

By the Numbers (19 out of 20)

I took the new setup to the simulator and alternated between the IZ (that I've nicknamed Izzy), and my Ventus Red (Ginger).  

Initially, Izzy was giving me a higher ball flight than Ginger, and when I struck it well, it also had low spin.  I was able to get faster ball speed, higher launch, and equivalent spin than Ginger.  

After dialing it in a bit, I discovered that Izzy performed better when I had lowered my driver head to 8.5°.  So, I went back to do another session to compare the two at the new driver head setting.  I ended up with the same ball speed, a bit lower launch and higher spin.  The two shafts produced essentially the same results, but with slightly different ball flights.

The first thing I noticed is that Izzy did seem to be a bit fade biased for my swing, as claimed by Graphite Design.  With my swing and a smooth tempo, Graphite Design Tour AD IZ gives me a go-to fade off the tee.  It also helps guard me from turning a draw into a hook when I try to turn the ball over.  Over time, I discovered that I was able to produce a draw pretty easily when I quicken my tempo.  With that faster tempo, I can feel the shaft loading at the top easier and it releases well which allows me to turn the ball over on command.   

On the Course (17 out of 20)

I played several rounds out on the course with Izzy before lowering my loft.  I definitely saw the ball flying higher and carrying further, which was great since we've had such a wet spring and summer so far out here in the upper Midwest. 

After lowering the loft, I felt like I was able to get some distance back out on the course and not lose much on accuracy.   Here are the final Arccos numbers  

At the onset, my miss with Izzy appeared to be a left pull.  This seemed to be a swing adjustment that I needed to make.  Over time, as I got used to the load of the shaft, and the numbers stabilized.  As of now, I will miss equally left or right when I miss the fairway.  

According to Arccos, Izzy was just as long as Ginger on distance.  As for accuracy, Izzy found the fairway almost as much as Ginger but did not favor the left side as much.  I think this is important when trying to guard from a certain type of miss.

I did notice that I had far fewer hooks off the tee with Izzy which allowed me to gain more confidence on the tee and swing a bit more freely.  As a result, I was able to gain a very stable fairway finder swing and not lose much distance from it. 

The Good, the bad, the In-between (8 out of 10)

One of the more difficult aspects to describe is how a driver shaft feels, loads, and releases.  When I focus on my tempo, I can feel Izzy loading at the top, and releasing on time at the bottom. 

My miss with Izzy is when I get out of rhythm and the timing of the release is off.  When that happens, the strike is often low or on the heel, which creates more spin and often results in a miss to the right.  However, I also feel like Izzy protects me from those types of shots and the end result is rarely catastrophic.

As I got more and more comfortable with Izzy, I could start to play around with my tempo which produced striking results.  The setup with this shaft seems to favor players with a quicker tempo and fast swing speeds.  I can feel the shaft load and release more with a quicker tempo.

I am used to being able to switch from a fade to a draw on command with the same tempo.  Izzy is a bit of a different beast.  It took some getting used to, but I am able to shape the ball on command, I just have to get a bit quicker to draw the ball.  It's not something I'm used to, but I think I could get used to it with some practice.

Play it or Trade it? (20 out of 20)

I will be keeping the Graphite Design Tour AD IZ in my bag for the foreseeable future.  My home course has tight fairways and a lot of wooded areas and hazards.  I think that Izzy gives me a better chance of keeping the ball in play more often and finding more fairways now that I had had some time with the shaft and know what it's capable of.

Conclusion

I love the way the Graphite Design Tour AD IZ looks and feels.  The numbers are right where I would expect them to be and trending in the right direction.  It did take some time to get used to the feel of the new shaft, but now that I have it dialed in a bit, I have more confidence with it.

I had high expectations coming into this test for the IZ, and it did not disappoint.  It stood up to the test and even exceeded expectations at time.  It is a very solid, stable, reliable shaft.   

Final Score (93 out of 100)

 

Edited Monday at 06:51 PM by pete1276

[kam89]

Graphite Designs Tour AD DI driver shaft review - Official MGS forum review by kam89

INTRODUCTION

 

Hi Spies my name is Kameron Rush. Im a 35 year old father and husband playing out of Lincoln Nebraska. I'm fairly new to golf. I hurt my knee playing basketball and was suggested golf by a friend. In the 9 months I've been playing my best score is a 88 but I avg around 96 to 98. I mostly stick to playing a par 3 that my daughter and I walk together called Jim Ager Jr. Memorial course during the week and try to play one big course on the weekends. My favorite course so far is Pioneers Park in lincoln. I also have access to a 24 hr fullswing simulator that i use everyday after work. I got really into wedge juggling over the winter, which I was talked into putting it on Instagram. This has opened so many opportunities for me including how I wound up here on MGS. 

 

My swing speed currently sits from 105 up to 116 with good contact my control of speed is still a work in progress. I can get myself up to 120-123 but my face will open causing horrible contact. I currently swing a Taylormade m6 with a regular shaft and the face dropped to lowest loft setting. My launch angle sits around 14 to 16 degrees currently and avgs about 270. 

 

For my testing opportunity I will be testing out the Graphite Designs tour AD DI stiff 60g. I was mostly interested in this model for trying to get my spin rate down I'm very interested to see how it performs.

   

First I would love to thank MGS for the opportunity to test out the Graphite Designs Tour AD di. This was an amazing opportunity to learn. In doing so I have also realized I have an immense amount to learn about all the data coming in. Thank you to my fellow testers the information you have come up has helped me tremendously. 

 

Aestheticts- 20 out of 20 

 

The orange tour AD DI shaft might be the most striking and beautiful shaft I have seen personally. The orange really pops in the sunlight and even in the sim seems to shine. The hints of green on the tour AD logo really stand out to me as well. My dented up m6 head looks at odds with how beautiful this shaft is.

 

 

The Numbers 18 out of 20 

 

For the numbers I have been hitting on a fullswing sim pro. This has become my after work hangout at 230 am. In the sim I was able to keep a very close eye on my face and path control and get a better idea of what this shaft is really capable of. With my previous shaft a swing speed of 108-112 would end with 250 to 260 being my max with a pretty decent amount of fade. Without changing anything the fade disappeared to almost minimal, and my drives were extended another 20 yrds. After tinkering in the sim awhile I was able to get my fairway finder to around 270 to 290. With my swing speed reaching up around 116-119. This brought a fade back into play but it's not huge. In the last week or so I learned how to flip my wrists and can now produce a draw with the same swing speed. The low spin claim I found to not be true for me as my back spin went up, but it did level out and become consistent around 2700rpm. The high launch I did find to be true though as I'm now constantly launching between 11.9 to 13.4 for a sweet spot. Compared to the 8 to 10 degree angle I had before.

 

On course- 20 out of 20

 

On course I could not be happier with this shaft something about the color and feel just give me confidence in my swing. The only issue I had is my fade plays back because I get excited and overswing. That is on me though. When I am controlled and in my groove this shaft does almost everything I want it to. I have gone from shooting high 90s to high 80s and I will say the driver has been the biggest part of that I used to be scared of it and hit 3w off deck to be safe. Now I am generally just a wedge in on par 4s. I went to a tournament in MN and lost the longest drive due to the ball rolling 5 in. Into the rough but I outdrove the winner by 10yrds so that made me feel really good even if I didn't win. I did notice the grip tape seems to have some issues adhering to the shaft. It slid up on me once and I had it redone only to have same issue again. Maybe tape or grip too I haven't solved this.

 

 

The Good the Bad and the In-between- 8 out of 10

 

The Good- this shaft has been an absolute game changer for me I can honestly say it knocked 10 strokes off my game( I have been playing less than a year and had no faith in my driver before this test). The color is amazing and the consistency it gives my swing has been incredible. If swung well it will do everything it says other than the higher spin rate in my findings. It has also given me the ability to draw or fade. And gave me my first 300 yrd carry.

 

The Bad- I don't have many knocks against this shaft the grip not adhering is one but I had a shop put one on and I did one myself to same results. I can live with that though given how much it's helped in other areas.

 

The in-between- it's consistent and maybe a little less spin would be good for me but my side spin is under 100 consistently and backspin around 2700 so all in all I think it fits me well.

 

 

Play it or trade it- 20 out of 20 

 

This shaft is in the bag and staying there the improvement I have seen is incredible and only getting better the more time I spend with it. I will continue to update this as I get better I am sure I am holding this shaft back from it's true potential. But it is definitely taken me to the peak of mine. Being able to drive the ball almost 300 yrds on course has boosted my confidence and shrunk my score. I have to give a massive thank you to MGS you changed my perspective on what a driver could do and gave me confidence It would have taken me years to build otherwise.

 

 

 

Conclusion- 96 out of 100

 

From just the amazing looks of the shaft to the huge on course boost I saw the Graphite Designs Tour AD Di shaft is incredible. If your newer to golf or just struggle with a drive in your hand I feel like this is a great shaft as a starter to really dialing in your swing. It is possible one of the other shafts would have worked even better for me. This however I believe is a wonderful starting point for really dialing in a driver swing. If you find yourself in the same position as me this shaft would be a great option and you should definitely give it a try.

Edited Monday at 02:24 PM by kam89

[Alan Stewart]

Graphite Design Tour AD UB Driver Shaft – Official MGS Forum review by Alan Stewart

About Me

Howdy y’all! I am super excited to get invited to test the GD Tour AD head to head with my current shaft and see how they compare.  Many thanks to MyGolfSpy and Graphite Design for this opportunity.

To start with, let me give you a little of my golfing background.  I grew up in Appleton, Wisconsin, a couple of blocks away from the local muni.  Starting at age 12, my brother and I had season passes and were at the course all the time.  I played a lot and hit the driver really well for a 115 pound teenager with a persimmon headed, Dynamic Gold steel shafted driver. My best driver ever was over 425 yards at Mt. Massive Golf Course in Leadville, CO, a golf course over 10,000 feet in elevation and hard fairways, but not downwind. And more importantly, my dad, my brother and brother in law were playing with me and witnessed it.

My wife and I left Appleton to see the world but returned and now live on the same side of town where we grew up.  The cool thing is that within a 1.5 hour drive of my house are of 11 of the top 100 courses.  We have 2 adult special needs kids at home and our third child, our oldest son, is working and loving life in Madison. And look, I finally made a hole in one a couple of years ago.  This is the same course where I played my first ever round of golf.  I birdied this hole during that first round and it only took me 45 years to best that score. You can see the ball mark just short of the hole, one hop and into the cup.

 

At 59 I still can hit it decently and enjoy experimenting with different clubs and combos. Current HI is 10.7 and I am aiming to get to 9 or less this year. I am a very feel oriented player with a smooth transition and acceleration from the top.  Right now, a stock driver swing speed is 100 mph to 102 mph and I can get 105 mph to 107 mph. 

I play and practice at Royal St. Patrick’s Golf Links in Wrightstown, WI, and use mostly NextGen Golf Green Bay and Luke Welsing for Trackman bays, fittings and lessons.

I am an engineer by training and nature, and I love helping people come to grips with STEM.  I worked in the Geographic Information Systems consulting for a while, then spent 15 years as a patent attorney.  More recently, I have been teaching as an adjunct professor at several local universities and working in logistics. 

The Champ: My Current Driver and Driving Performance 

That leads to this review, where I will be testing the Graphite Design Tour AD UB shaft in 6S, using my Cobra LTDx 9 degree driver head and comparing against my current HZRDUS Smoke Blue RDX 60 6.0.

 

Arccos shows that driving is statistically the worst part of my game currently and I am looking for ways to improve this.  Driving used to be my strength and I am working to get that back.

I just got into the LTDx driver this year and my current Arccos data shows that my distance is only average (and I want to be WELL above average) for a 10 handicapper and my accuracy is slightly better than average.  But when I miss, my big misses are usually right and I am costing myself too many strokes, especially with penalties in the lateral native grass and water hazards on my local courses.

Current average drive distance for this year is 246 yards and I am really trying to get that to 260 by year end. It has been a wet Spring and early Summer so I have a fighting chance, if only by improved meteorological conditions.

The Challenger: Graphite Design Tour AD UB 6S

I have heard of the Graphite Design Tour AD line before but have never tried it in any testing. Graphite Design seems to have shafts covering a huge spectrum of flex and bend profiles and weight and great reviews in the online world.  All of the reviews I read before I applied for this testing opportunity and while I was confirming my shaft choice were very positive.

It seems that I have been gravitating toward HZRDUS shafts over the last 5-7 years and this review gives me a great chance to dive deep into another line of high-end shafts.

I selected the GD Tour AD UB shaft in 60 grams and Stiff flex.  This shaft looks very comparable in flex and weight to the Smoke Blue RDX.  The bend profiles are a little different.  Both have a more flexible mid section, which I like to feel the club loading, and both have a stiff tip section for managing launch.  Where they differ is in the butt section, with the Tour AD UB showing more flexibility, while the butt section of the Smoke Blue RDX is listed as “stout.” As an added bonus, it keeps with the blue color scheme of my LTDx head.

The Process

The plan is to get into the Trackman bay at my local shop in Green Bay and see how these 2 shafts compare by the numbers and the feels using my LTDx head.  With my pro’s help, we are going to try different adapter settings or any small swing adjustments to squeeze everything we can from the GD Tour AD shaft. 

Next will be playing and practicing on grass.  I use Arccos for playing stats, as you can see above.  On the range and on the course, it will be more about feel and playing with the trajectory and shot shape.  I have been playing a fade more with the modern drivers and need this to be more controllable and predictable.  I prefer a mid/lower ball height rather a soaring arc.

Once we have good Arccos stats for the Tour AD UB shaft, I will return to the Trackman bay and redo the numbers comparison to see how my swing adapted to the new shaft.

This will be a numbers and feels comparison.

To justify swapping out the shaft, the Tour AD UB needs:

·         the comfortable feel of loading and releasing that I get from the Smoke Blue RDX. 

·         to feel controllable when I do try for a bigger drive.

·         to produce comparable or better distance and dispersion numbers. 

I am willing to accept similar distance and feel if I can get a more consistent shot shape. 

Up Next

Anyhow, all this is theoretical until the shaft shows up.  As soon I have the box in hand, I will grab some unboxing snaps and start the review and evaluation process.

This is a great chance for me to do a detailed review/comparison of a high end shaft and to have y’all along for the ride.

Let me know if any of you have experience with this shaft or if you have any questions you would like answered as I go through the review process.

Unboxing and First Impressions TL/DR

Good looks.  Solid first Trackman session and setup with 1 degree less loft, the Tour AD UB 6S gave numbers very close to my original shaft.  Flex was more pronounced than original shaft but comfortable very quickly.  Bend profile may give opportunity to squeeze more from the Tour AD UB with more experience.  Great first outdoor range session.  Shaft is very comfortable, delivering good height and a nice draw. 

Obligatory Unboxing Photos

Shaft was delivered on time in a box that does not exactly hide what might be inside (shape and brand marking kinda give this away).  Box showed no shipping damage.

Packaging was sufficient to protect the shaft.

Once it emerged from the packaging, shaft sure was pretty in the midday sun.

First Impressions: 10 out of 10

Assembled Driver

I got the adapter mounted and my usual Lamkin 360 grip in regular put on yesterday and got a chance to try it in my Cobra LTDx 9 degree head yesterday.  The guys at NextGen Golf Green Bay were great in getting this turned around and matched it up to my current ProjectX HZRDUS Blue RDX for length.  Couple of pictures below of the assembled club, using my red chair as a prop.

I am digging the color scheme and like the transition to silver toward the head.  Looks weren't high on my list of scoring criteria but this combination surprised me.

Aesthetics: 20 out of 20

The Numbers

I also got into a Trackman bay for about an hour to find what adapter settings were going to work best with the Tour AD UB and also to gather some initial data for comparison.  I run the HZRDUS Blue at 9 degrees and regular lie and started there with the Tour AD UB.  I found the height of the Tour AD UB was much greater, so I turned it down to 8 degrees and kept the regular lie to get the flight down to a more comfortable range.

Initial Trackman Data

I struggled a little with the standard plastic tee heights and was catching the ball higher on the face.  I typically am 1-2 degrees up at impact and like a lower tee height to kept the trajectory between 100-120.  I did not bring my cutdown tee with me but will for the final testing.  I had a number of shots with both shafts that had good distance but were over 140 feet high which I do not want to see on the course.

After culling out the shots used for fitting and getting used to the shaft, and also culling out those shots over 140 in height or overly out to the sides, I got a group of 14 good hits with the Tour AD UB and then swapped the old shaft back in and got 9 comparable shots.  In the chart below, Driver in red is the Tour AD UB and 2W in blue is the HZRDUS Blue.

Very comparable across the board.  These were smooth hard swings, not fairway finders but good passes at the ball.

Biggest difference was really that my original shaft tended more left and the Tour AD UB tended a little right. 

The dispersion of the Tour AD was a bit larger but I put that down to getting used to how it felt and reacted in my hands.  I will be curious to see how this looks after I have been using the Tour AD UB exclusively for several weeks.  It could be that I reduce the Tour AD UB dispersion with experience and the HZRDUS  Blue suffers from lack of recent usage.

I was surprised at the consistency between the 2 shafts as the feel was very different.

First Feel Impressions

I really could feel the additional flex in the Tour AD UB shaft.  It was not whippy by any means and it felt like other stiff shafts I have tried.  It was certainly easier to feel load up in the transition.  Like I mentioned above, it certainly wanted to send the ball higher than may HZRDUS Blue, which I was curious about as they both have very stiff tip sections but the Tour AD UB is more flexible in the butt section.

I do like the feel of the Tour AD and as I swung it more, I was getting more comfortable with managing the loading after 45 swings.  I think once I have more time with the club, I will be better able to work with this.

I headed to the outdoor range today for some more testing but due to overnight rains and the current sodden nature of NE Wisconsin, Nick (the Golf Course Owner Guy) was requesting that we not hit past 150 yards.  I will try again tomorrow and capture some action shots and video as well.

Another trip to the Trackman is planned if weather prevents outdoor range time or play this week.  I plan to use more correct height tee and then will collect a set of approx. 20-25 shots per driver setup for a better comparison of dispersion and other data points.

The Numbers: 20 out of 20

ON THE COURSE

First Outdoor Range Impressions

FINALLY, I got to hit off of grass today!!!!   I had to work a bicycle race on Saturday (I am a race official for USA Cycling) and our area has been awfully wet this summer so far, meaning I have not had the chance to get to the full range at Royal St. Patrick's Golf Links for a couple of days.  No launch monitor data to be had but I was able to make some good swings with the new weapon today.

After warming up, I hit three groups of 5 balls with the new shaft, and hit other clubs in between these sets.  

The Tour AD UB shaft loads really easily without feeling whippy.  I was focusing on "stock" driver swings today, around 100 to 102, and was using my normal lower tee height.

I was able to find the middle of the club face consistently and had 4 real misses and the rest acceptable drives.  2 misses were hard left in the first 2 swings.  The shaft was encouraging me to really roll through impact and I gave into the temptation.  Later, I also just fanned the face open on one swing (my scary miss at the moment) and also hit a slightly over the top slice on another.  Other than those swing faults, I was pretty consistent with a draw and very nice height.

Exceedingly comfortable session with the stock swing effort. I do not feel like I have to aggressively swing this stick to get the shaft to work.

I am VERY happy with the first experience off of grass and looking forward to my first round this week.  Will report back with more pictures and ARCCOS data following the round.

That's all for now.  This process has been fun already and I am looking forward to the next couple of weeks of focused work.

Thanks again to MyGolfSpy and Graphite Designs for this opportunity and to all y'all following along in the forum. 

On the Course

This is where this tale gets more interesting and why we play golf outdoors rather than on Trackman.

Overall, my driving improved and got back to being SG above my target 10 handicapper.  I hit more fairways and particularly reduced the number of right misses.  Distance was pretty comparable to my original HZRDUS shaft.

Original Arccos graph: 

After Arccos graph:

I was practicing a lot during this period with typically 3 range sessions per week.  I have hit more drivers in practice this year than I have in years (old range was limited to 220 yards).  Just as the test program got going in earnest, my game was starting to show the payoff from the practice.

THAT BEING SAID, objectively, I have to score the driver shaft well in on-course performance.  The numbers show improvement.

The feel of the shaft, as noted above, was overall more flexible than my HZRDUS shaft and I had no complaints about the subjective performance of the club with the the Tour AD UB shaft.

I tried to upload an action video, but, Dang it! My video won't load!!!!

Anyhow, here is the best still clip from the video:

 

Shaft looks very nice in this shot!

On the Course: 20 out of 20

The Good, the Bad, and the Inbetween

Closing Trackman Session (or not)

The electronic data gods laughed at me! I did an hour session with my swing coach to try and address my persistent left to right ball flight then went straight to another bay for the driver A/B test.  60 more swings with the driver in groups of 5 until I had 30 swings with each shaft. I wasn't swinging great but I was consistent so that I had equal quality with each shaft.

Nice and fair. And I was tired!

I reviewed them groups on screen and started culling bad swings or extreme outliers to create good datasets for each. 

Then Trackman refused to let me save and export the file. ARGHHHHH!

So, no pretty graphs and detailed data to show you at this time.  I will go back and redo the A/B testing next week and will post it in a separate post in this thread.

THAT BEING SAID, I did have a good qualitative feel for what I saw between the 2 datasets.

Graphite Design Tour AD UB6 stiff had just about the same height (set 1 degree down from standard and neutral lie), spin, carry distance and total distance as the HZRDUS Blue RDX 60 gram 6.0 (set stock at 9 degrees and neutral lie). All the same or within the standard deviation.

Dispersion between the 2 shafts was functionally the same.

HZRDUS dispersion started at the centerline and went a little right of center.

Graphite Design dispersion started about at the right edge of the HZRDUS dispersion and was further right.

The Good, the Bad, the Inbetween: 8 out of 10

Play It or Trade It

Final Impressions

Not much to separate the Tour AD UB S6 from my original shaft.  Feel was different but more than acceptable.  Overall performance was essentially equivalent with the exception of the more right dispersion.  Shaft looks great and feels and acts more than acceptably.

WILL IT BE IN MY BAG TUESDAY FOR MY NEXT ROUND?

Nope. I am a very feel oriented player and I just prefer the HZRDUS feel.  The numbers are the same and the Graphite Design is a great shaft.  But I played on last Friday with the HZRDUS shaft and here is the Arccos graph:

Nothing at all against the Graphite Design Tour AD UB S6 shaft, I just like my current shaft better.  And it works for me.

Play It Or Trade It: 15 out of 20

Total Score: 93 out of 100

MORE TRACKMAN DATA TO COME NEXT WEEK WHEN I REDO THE A/B TEST!!!! 

 

Edited Monday at 02:04 AM by Alan Stewart
Update with Final Results

[DukeStKing]

Graphite Design VR Review 2024

Thank you MGS and Graphite Design for this amazing opportunity to test the AD VR 6 shaft! I feel so luck for this chance because tinkering with driver shafts is one of my favorite gear head things to do and I’m a big fan of Graphite Design. I’ve sampled the HD, TP and have the UB- all were shafts I tested when getting fit for the original Callaway Paradym. I now have the Ping G430 Max 10K and mostly play the UB and put the Mitsubishi Kai Li White in play for a change of pace- more on that later.

Introduction

I’m 53 from New Jersey (thus the Springsteen reference in my Screen Name), married, and have 3 kids. Having a super understanding wife and being a teacher has afforded me the chance to play a lot of golf; my wife is sooooo understanding of my golf addiction. My son plays but doesn’t have the disease- my main playing partner is my Uncle who originally taught me the game. I’m so grateful that at 85 he still loves teeing it up. I’m DYI with my swing and equipment, fitting my myself and fixing my swing. Here is my swing with a 7 iron (I use video to fix flaws when I’m not striking the ball well).

   

These are the numbers with my 7 iron:

 

My handicap has been going back and forth between 6 and 7 this season. When I switched to the Ping G 430 10K my driving stats improved and now I would consider it one of the better parts of my game- Gamin has told me so:

I play the most at a municipal and these are my stats (over 60 rounds):

I don’t practice as much as I should because any time I dedicate to golf is to playing. That’s why I switched from the Paradym to the G430 Max 10K- I value forgiveness over distance (although my average with the 10k has gone up 10 yards- but that could be because our courses in NJ are usually wet and this year they’ve been pretty dry.) So for the VR to make the bag, it will have to do what it advertises (be draw prone) and be as good as the UB with dispersion (the UB is definitely as advertised- fade biased):

   

Unboxing

I got my AD VR today and I have to say it looks spectacular. The matte blue is stunning. It looks so good with the white handle and stripes. Should look great with my PING 430 Max 10K.

The photo doesn’t do it justice. Maybe outside photos will show the pop. I really like the blue and the scheme better than my UB. 

Within an hour of getting the shaft I installed the adapter and will cut the butt end tonight after the 4 hour cure time. I'll be playing the VR at 45.25- just like the 10K came with the Kai Lai White 6S. I would imagine that the swing weight will be the same at D4. 

Build is Complete

All done assembling the AD VR 6S. I cut it to 45.25 inches and with my PING 430 Max 10K, its swing weight is barely at D4. The Mitsubishi Kai Li White 6 S (also 45.25 inches) is solidly at D4 and the AD UB hovers between D3 and D4- the UB is a 1/4 shorter than both. If the VR ends up staying in the bag, it will be because I’ll be able to do with it what GD says- hit a draw. And if it stays in the bag, I will definitely find a nice red grip, because imagine what that would look like: red, white, and blue! 

I weighed all 3 shafts I’ll be comparing and here is what they came in at (they all have the same grip):

So my work is done- now I’ll be on to the fun part! I can’t wait to hit this beauty. Now that I’ve assembled it, the dark blue matte paint job looks so good with the matte black PING head! 

Giddy-up!

First Impression

I went to the range on Thursday night to get a sense of what setting I should play the AD VR in with my 10.5 PING G430 10K in. The results were a bit inconclusive- I hit it about the same in the small - (9.5) and the standard 10.5. As one would suspect the trajectory was a bit higher in the 10.5, but the spin was a bit less in the 9.5. So I decided to go with the 10.5 to get a bit more carry after severe thunderstorms, anticipating that the course would be wet early in the morning. The first session confirmed what I've always loved about Graphite Design shafts: they are soooooo smoothe! The AD VR feels stout but not boardy- you can feel a nice release when loaded right. 

I played on Friday with the AD VR. I teed off at 6:50am with this beauty on a beautiful morning:

The course is a bit soggy after thunderstorms the night before and the fact that they are watering it in anticipation of the heat we've been having. You would think that after almost 30 years of teaching High School, I would be a morning person, considering there's no such thing as "easing into your day" when your a teacher and 25 kids are asking you 50 separate questions at 7:45. So I didn't really wake up until the 6th hole- as a result I was struggling with a bit of a OTT swing because I wasn't completing my back swing. My laziness led to a few dramatic slices on the first 1/3 of my round. Luckily, I woke up and was able to get a good sense of how the AD VR felt. Just like the AD UB, the VR has a real smoothe feel. When I loaded correctly by completing my shoulder turn I felt a powerful, stable release. This is a typical shot for me on this downhill par 5 (my all time longest drive was on this hole- 340 yards): 

The distance with the AD VR was similar to the AD UB and shorter than the Kai Li White. Of course this was after one round and I will be getting into a launch monitor to see if this continues. The AD VR, like the UB, had better dispersion than the Kai Li White. I was never out of play after the first 6 holes (I had a punch out on #4 after a pretty dramatic OTT slice.) Despite not having my best stuff, I shot a respectable 81. This shot was uphill and pretty typical for me on this hole:

My average distance was 261 with 12 driver shots, which is 10 yards shorter than my average on the season. Of course the first 6 holes didn't help that average. So based on my first impression, the ADVR appears to be an excellent candidate to replace the ADUB as a shaft that will give me better dispersion than the Kai Li White and a shaft that I can turn over with a draw more consistently than I can with the UB. I'm hoping it can give me similar distance to the Kai Lai White with the dispersion I've enjoyed with the AD UB. 

Here were my numbers with the Kai Lai White when I got fitted for the G430 10K:

The Trackman numbers were in the 9.5 setting. I also captured a few swings in the 10.5 setting when I first hit the 10k, which seems optimize my launch at 14 degrees:

So, I'll definitely be testing the AD VR at 10.5- I may also give the +1 setting a go. The numbers are similar to what I felt at the range on Friday- higher trajectory and launch in the 10.5 and lower with the 9.5… amazing how that works

So moving forward, I plan to hit all 3 shafts on Trackman and play as many rounds as I can with the VR to get a good sense of whether my first impressions are correct. Stay tuned. 

Final Review

Thank you again MGS and Graphite Design for this amazing opportunity to test the AD VR 6 shaft! I see the hard work that the moderators do to ensure the quality of the reviews, so a special thank you to them. Also, great job fellow testers in pushing me to produce so much information- thank you to them as well. It’ll be fun to continue to update our experiences with this bunch.

Aesthetics (20 out of 20)

I have always been a fan of Art Deco design, so the labeling is gorgeous. The color scheme with the white near the handle and blue stripes is beautiful and the dark matte blue finish is spectacular- especially with my matte black PING G430 Max 10K. Great job Graphite Design- no wonder you have “design” in your name- form is equal to function. Again, pictures don’t do this shaft justice, but I’ll try again: 

It’s just so lovely- so high quality looking!

The Numbers (20 out of 20)

I went with the “A+” because of the “playability” of the ADVR. I’ll explain what I mean by playability by the end. First, a re-cap of my methodology: I did two sessions in a launch monitor- one at the beginning of the test and one at the end. I used different settings in my G 430 Max 10K- 10.5 with Trackman and 11.5 in the Foresight. They were dead even in total distance in my first LM session (Trackman), while in my most recent session the ADVR was better.

I was not swinging the club as well yesterday in the launch monitor. But that’s very important when evaluating these shafts- we don’t always have our best swing going, so this gives you a sense of which shaft is better overall. My most recent numbers with the Graphite Design AD VR 6S from Foresight:

The launch was low with the increased loft (11.5 in the +1 setting in the PING G430 10K) compared to 10.5 with the Trackman session. Spin was worse as well- despite that, the ADVR was keeping the ball in play, with an average of 11.6 offline. Not bad considering 9/10 were left and 1 was right. Again, the dispersion was excellent. Here’s the numbers with the Kai Li in the same setting:

With the Kai Li I hit some offline doozies- just a little outside! 30 yards offline with the Kai Li vs 11 yards offline with the ADVR. The numbers confirmed what I had been seeing on the course over the last month or so- the dispersion with the ADVR is much better than the Kai Li. In this second session, the peak height average was slightly better with the ADVR, which supports the claim made by Graphite Design that is shat is one of its higher launching models. That is something I definitely saw on the course, even though my average with this session was 69 feet. Clearly, my swing got steeper in between sessions (more backspin with lower launch) resulting in the disparity in numbers. Again, I think the take-away is that when I didn’t have my best swing, the ADVR bailed me out in terms of dispersion and even distance compared to my Kai Li. I think we could consider the playability to be much higher gaming the ADVR on a day to day basis.

I experimented with the settings a bit more in my last session, trying the 10.5 (Flat Setting) with the ADVR:

Here are the numbers in the 9.5 with the ADVR:

And finally the Kai Li in the 9.5 with the ADVR:

As I was getting tired at this point, I only included the 5 most similar shots (I deleted the outliers) in each setting to avoid big swings in deviation- instead of the 10 (no deleting outliers) I used in the 11.5 setting. These numbers with my swing issues right now clearly show that the ADVR gives me the best chance on the course, and thus improves playability. I went to the Ping 10K because I feel it gives me the best chance to score, so this is the factor I value most in a driver and its what the ADVR gives me as well. Thus, how I justify the A+ (20/20) for the Graphite Design ADVR is that it does what it says – it’s left bias and it’s accurate.

On the Course (18 out of 20)

The Graphite Design ADVR deserves the solid “A-” for its performance on the course. Again, this grade is the result of the dispersion I get with the VR. The only reason it gets the minus is that I’ve yet to hit it as far as my furthest shots this season with the Kai Li. That may very well be because I was hitting the ball better earlier in the season than I am right now, which I would have to say that is the case because my last round in the 70’s was on 6/30. I’ve been in the low 80’s 5 times since, but haven’t put it all together like I was earlier in the season. That of course has not been the Driver’s fault either, but I just haven’t seen a drive in the 280 range yet with the ADVR. But what I have seen, which is how I would justify the A-, is excellent accuracy. The course I play is very punitive off the tee as almost every fairway is lined with dense trees. When I play at a Private Country Club (at least the ones that I’ve played) are much less punishing with tree lined fairways where you can find you ball, I almost never lose a ball. At my home course, losing one or two balls is usually very good. I consider this a pretty good gauge of playability that with the ADVR/10K combo, I’ve played two rounds at my course without losing a ball. Generally, my stats have remained consistent (hitting 8/14 fairways), but it’s the big misses that the ADVR has eliminated. When I miss the fairway, the ball has been staying in play. If you’re like me and you value keeping the ball on the fairway or near to it, than the ADVR will not disappoint.

One of the things that makes the ADVR so good in terms of dispersion is how smooth it feels. This is true if you try to swing out of your shoes or let up a bit- it never feels out of control or boardy. It doesn’t have huge kick, but that may be my swing speed (98-101) with the driver. Or it could be how Graphite Design designs its shafts as most of the ones I’ve tried (ADTP and ADUB) are smooth. The difference between the ADUB and the ADVR (and why I wanted to try the VR) is that the VR definitely has a left bias. I also hit the ADVR higher than the UB, so from my experience, the claims made by GD in this chart have been true:

  On the course, the ADVR has been high launching and it favored the left side of the course (both LM sessions confirmed the left bias). Since I switched the setting from 10.5 to 11.5, I was seeing a really pretty ball flight. Those of you who have followed my posting may have seen some of the examples I’ve posted from the on course data I have taken with my Garmin G80.  This hole is an uphill par 4 (tough finishing hole) and I hit this gorgeous baby draw that was mostly carry:

 

Shots like this one make me think I’ll hit the 280’s eventually with the ADVR (like I did with the Kai Li). Believe me I don’t expect 280’s all the time, but I would like to match the Kai Li once or twice just so I don’t feel like I’m leaving anything on the table. Of course this is a pretty petty desire, but I’m a baby in that way. I should just be happy with the dispersion and shots in the 250’s, but we all want to hit some bombs. My on course average has dropped in the past week and a half to 254 from 262- could be the swing or could be the very wet conditions lately… or probably both. The launch monitor numbers show that my drop-off in distance is not the ADVR’s fault, but my swing issues. Still, I haven’t hit it in the 280’s so I’m going with the A-. Call it vanity or an attempt to limit grade inflation (because I really love the VR), I can always come back and give it an A+ once I hit it in the 280’s.

The Good, the bad, the in between (9 out of 10)

I went with the 9/10 because the Graphite Design ADVR deserves another “A,” but it’s not perfect.  The good is definitely the dispersion and feel. The VR is very stable and a shaft that you can really swing hard with and take something off without it feeling boardy. The smooth feeling is great. I hadn’t hit my Kai Li White in weeks until yesterday in the launch monitor and I have to say, I didn’t like it. The Kai Li felt harsh in comparison to the ADVR. I did notice the Kai Li had a bigger kick at impact, which I missed a little with the ADVR. So if I’m going to say there’s a bad or rather an in between, its that the ADVR doesn’t have that kick feeling at impact. But that’s why it feels so smooth- the consistently through the stroke. I’m no club fitter, but that could be what leads to its better dispersion. I know that I really enjoyed the feel of the ADVR and say its one of my favorite attributes. I can’t really call the distance drop-off compared to the Kai Li “bad.” The drop-off is marginal with the ADVR and is more than offset by the playability I’ve spoke about. Everything is opportunity/costs in golf like in life. The opportunity to hit more fairways? Well, that will cost you distance. So it goes.

 

Play it or Trade it? (19 out of 20)

Could you guess it? Of course, its “play it” for me. The feel, the dispersion, and the fact that its so good looking all are keeping it in my bag. The confidence that I will not have a big miss unless I make a terrible swing is very nice. Considering the course I play the most is so punitive off the tee, the dispersion I get with the ADVR gives me the best chance to score. That’s held up on the course and shown to be true when I didn’t bring my best swing into the launch monitor. Considering the price, I had to give it a 19/20, but I would do that for most golf equipment as I think everything is overpriced. But considering the joy it may bring to your game, that price may be well worth it. If you’re like me and you value accuracy over distance, then the ADVR is something you should try. If you also want something that gives you a better chance to see the left side of the course, than the ADVR may be for you also. Finally, if you want a smooth feeling shaft, than most of the Graphite Design offerings may be in your future as well. So I can definitely say the Kai Lai White is going in the closet and the Graphite Design ADVR will be in play. Stay tuned to see if I can get it out there to the 280’s.

 

Conclusion and Final Score

For those of you who want the cliff notes version of the review, here it is. Graphite Design’s claims about the ADVR are correct. In my experience, the VR does go high and favors the left (draw). I wanted a shaft that would be easier to draw the ball with than the ADUB and was a long as the Kai Li White. While the VR was indeed easier to turn over for me than the UB, the Kai Li was a bit longer with the PING G430 10K.  It remains to be seen that I won’t hit it as far as the Kai Li, but that doesn’t matter, because the dispersion has been so good with the ADVR. The trajectory has been high and straight for me- the ball has stayed in play for me more than it did with the Kai Li White. My misses have been minimal, allowing me the best chance to score. It’s actually highlighted a problem with my irons- more shots from the fairway have exposed the problems I’m having with the high VCOG in the i525’s; hitting from the rough, that wasn’t a problem. What a great problem to have, right? More shots from the fairway! Last, but most important, is the great feel of the ADVR. Its so smooth and stable. After playing with it for more than a month, the Kai Li felt harsh (sure didn’t feel that way before I played the VR). My only knock on the VR over the Kai Li is that I haven’t hit a big bomb with it. As I like to say, stay tuned.  

Final Score: 96 out of 100

 

Edited Sunday at 07:06 PM by DukeStKing

[GolfSpy_BNG]

Graphite Design VF Review 2024

As always an enormous debt of gratitude to MyGolfSpy and Pro’s Choice Golf Shafts for this amazing opportunity.  

Also wanna give a shout out to my fellow testers as we want to keep you front and center on this review. @WaffleHouseTour @pete1276 @DukeStKing @kam89 @Alan Stewart @Nick_D  

@GolfSpy AFG myself and the rest of the staff are thrilled to have you on this test and I’m sure I can speak for Hayes and myself saying we are grateful to be in this journey with you  

 

 

Introduction

 

My name is Mark and I am a staff member here at MGS. I am just over 1 year into this position and couldn’t be happier to be a part of this great group of staff. I have been here long enough to remember the “old” days of a decent testing season, followed by a non existent one, then slowly rebuilt into what you see now.  I can’t wait to see what the future holds for the best golf forum on the interwebs. 
 

I have been married to my beautiful wife Jen for almost 9 years now. I keep telling her I’m glad she settled. lol. She tolerates my obsession with golf and club goin’ to a point.  I have a daughter Karley(Kat) who will be graduating later this year and I couldn’t be prouder of her. 
 

Pre-Testing thoughts

For this review I will be testing the Graphite Design Tour AD VF-5s. It’s only right I test Tiger’s shaft as he is the reason I got into golf.

For those that pay attention, Yes, I had the VF-5s for a minute and a half this winter. I moved on quickly from it to help fund the Cobra Darkspeed LS. Always kinda regretted not truly giving it a run.  Luckily this opportunity came up. 
 

I am currently gaming a PXG Black Ops 8* driver with an Aretera Alpha One Grey 65/4 shaft.  I went lighter with the VF as I believe the best chance for the VF to make the bag will be to gain yards while maintaining dispersion.  I also have a Callaway Smoke AI Triple Diamond Max TA 8.5 head coming next week to use as well. I use all fit adapters so I can use the same shaft in both heads quickly and easily. 
 

I will be using my Flightscope Mevo Plus I reviewed for MGS for comparisons.  My ball of choice is the new Wilson Staff Model ball. 

For setup I will be tipping the VF 1-2”(still deciding) to help lower spin and playing at 45.25”. 
 

Please ask any questions or comment anything you wish to see tested. This great group is ready and raring to go. 
 

Unboxing/First Impressions 10/10

When I got home from work to check out the package that arrived a few hours earlier, I was like a little kid at Christmas. I love getting boxes and it turns out I got a graphite design shaft and a Callaway Smoke AI TD Max TA driver on the same day. 
 

The packaging was the exact white box I was expecting from Pro’s Choice as I have ordered from them before. No extras needed for this guy. I love the all business box and packaging.  The shaft was wrapped well and there was no wiggle when I shook the box telling me that they took care to protect the shaft. 

As I mentioned I have had this shaft for a bit this winter but got rid of it quickly like an idiot. The shaft was everything I remember. A really nice deep red and gloss black shaft that looks as good in my driver as it does in Tiger’s!  

I picked up the all fit adapter from my local guy and installed it logo up cuz I like to go against the grain. I tip trimmed the shaft 1.75” to try to help slightly with spin and launch.  Slapped on a Golf Pride Tour Velvet Align grip and I was set.   
 

 

Aesthetics 20/20

 This is an easy slam dunk.  Bright red moving to black at the bottom half.  Few combos hit as strong as Red & Black.  Maybe that is just the Tiger effect on me but outside of Black & Gold, Red/black tops everything else for me.

 

The Numbers 18/20

For the numbers section I used my Flightscope Mevo Plus a couple times and like a fellow testers on one occasion I got the dreaded "Ipad too hot, please wait for it to cool down" alert.  When I was able to get it to work, I really struggled with setup of the mevo.  Until this test I never really tried to get much outside as it is mainly a winter golf simulator for me.  This resulted in some wonky numbers and non-centered flight paths.  This was all on me though and by seeing the flight myself I was able to differentiate the data.

All that said, as you can see the VF is not far behind the Aretera Alpha One Blue.  The VF definitely had more of a left bias than the aretera which is a good thing for me.  The one thing sort of lacking for the VF is that super low spinning bomber that the aretera has.  that certainly helps consistency though.

On Course 15/20

I first thought this was gonna be a slam dun perfect score.  The first few rounds with the VF were amazing.  I hit a butt ton of fairways.  Like way above my average.  Once the "honeymoon" period ended, reality set in and I was back to my usual 50% FIR.  The flight is probably my biggest plus for the VF.  As a chronic slicer when I started playing, I worked my tail off to change that. Now I very much prefer to see the ball move left not right and can get squeamish when it starts fading.  Not that I can't play a fade if it's consistent but in the back of my head I'll always be thinking don't go too far right. I did have several at the beginning where I drove a green or 2 or real close. This is the 296 yard dog leg left par 4.

For context this is the 363 yard par 4 with the Aretera. It’s the gear that the VF doesn’t have and probably the only reason for the final score.

The Good, The Bad, The InBetween 8/10

The Good:

Killer color combo, amazing feel, and a right to left ball flight tick 3 big boxes for me.

The Bad:

The only real knock I have is the high spinny shot that creeps in from time to time and kills the distance, which is probably a me thing more than the shaft but can be a problem with force carries on dog legs or over hazards.

The InBetween:

The VF shaft is fairly consistent in all aspects.  Never feels loose or out of control, spin stays in a nice window(outside the spinny one mentioned above), and I never experienced the low spinning knuckleball that goes hard low/left for me.

 

Play It or Trade it 10/20

This may look harsh here but I'll explain the score quick before giving it depth.  We as staff have changed the grading to this category in an effort to eliminate the 90+ out of 100 score and the product not making the bag.  I managed to forget to mention this to the other testers so my score will be different than theirs.  Basically we are looking at 20 for making the bag, 10 for unsure/more testing needed, and 0 for trade it.

All that said I have more work to do to see if the VF will make a full time spot.  The VF ticks a lot of boxes for me but isn't head and shoulders above my aretera.  Luckily I have lots of season left and this gives me a good reason to come back and update along the way.

Final Score 81/100

TL:DR

The Graphite Design Tour AD VF shaft is as good as any premium shaft on the market. As long as it fits you though.  I didn't mention it in my review but will here as a note.  The VF is billed by some(not Graphite Design) to be a ventus black competitor and for me that probably isn't even close.  The VF is more active, higher launching, and spinning in comparison.

If you want a great feeling and consistent shaft the VF may be right up your alley!

[GolfSpy AFG]

GOLFSPY AFG'S REVIEW OF THE GRAPHITE DESIGN TOUR AD DRIVER SHAFT

Hello everyone! My name's Hayes...I've been a forum member for a good bit now, and graduated to forum staff almost a year ago now. (Holy s#%&, has it been a year already?) I'm the guy running the MGS Forum social media accounts, so if you're not following us, please take a break from reading this and go fix that!

In my day job I'm on Active Duty in the Air Force and am currently stationed at Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton, Ohio. I'm a husband and devoted father of 3 little ones as well. And when I'm not being an Airman, husband, and father, I'm eating sleeping and drinking golf.

That doesn't mean I'm good, but I'm getting there. I'm currently a 7 handicap, but I'm starting to see some signs of improvement. I've recently begun taking a few lessons, with a heavy emphasis from my instructor on improved setup and using the ground more efficiently to gain clubhead speed. 

I'm no slouch off the tee, but I'm maddeningly inconsistent...I'm liable to hit one 290, and then 250 the next hole. My gamer driver is a Titleist TSR2 with a Ventus Blue 6S (with Velocore) shaft. However, the MGS Truefit system suggested a different driver was needed, so for this test I pulled the trigger on a new gamer...

That's a brand spankin' new PING G430 Max 10K, 9 degree, with the PING Tour 2.0 65g shaft.  For this test, I charted on course performance with the stock PING setup, and then charted the same number of shots on the same course with the UB. The results were...interesting.  The PING Tour shaft is reportedly no slouch, so I was excited to see how the comparison would shake out.

What Graphite Design shaft did I get?  The Graphite Design Tour AD UB 6S.  My approach game has really improved of late...a few more fairways and the scores could really start falling, and I was excited to see if the UB might be the secret sauce to help make that happen.

Many thanks to the MyGolfSpy Forum community for this opportunity!

Unboxing & First Impressions (9/10)

I should probably have mentioned in my intro, I'm not exactly a shaft connoisseur. I've got a bag full of Fujikura Ventus shafts, but that's largely because that's what I was fit into.  I'm typically not the type to order an aftermarket shaft.

The point is, this is my first trip down the lane of unboxing a shaft. The box arrived intact and clad in not-so-subtle white with a big "Graphite Design" script. Inside, the shaft was packed inside a plastic sheeth that was wrapped in a decent amount of brown paper, although there was definitely room for it to rattle around. All told, no harm no foul on the packaging.

 

It took a few ticks, but I was able to pick up the built up shaft in about 5-6 days.  I'll say this, she's purdy...

 

I'll discuss this more in depth in the next few sections, but while waiting for this shaft and the build I got some rounds under my belt with the stock PING Tour shaft. For my entirely subjective first impressions, I can say FOR ME the UB felt like a massive improvement over the stock PING Tour shaft. I got noticeably higher launch and I felt I had much more control with driver than in previous rounds.  And while I've never been the type to say I can feel a shaft load (I seem to be pretty numb to perceiving shaft behavior) this is one of the first times I can honestly say I feel this thing kick. It's a fun feeling and pretty confidence inspiring.

That being said, I still hit a few really poor drives. My FIR was 40% on that maiden voyage, and I only left myself in jail after my tee shot once, but from a scoring perspective I need better performance out of driver.  Could just be the PING head didn't behave for me, but I did knock it down a point on the first impressions scale for not being love at first round, if you know what I mean.

Aesthetics (20/20)

I like to think I’m not a flashy guy, but I’m also paying attention to aesthetics. I want to look good, and I want my stuff to look good too. From my perspective, that’s where the potential to be confidence-inspiring comes from, and to my mind the UB really aces the eyeball test. The word “sleek” comes to mind. I wouldn’t call it flashy; there’s not hot pink here (sorry Autoflex fans). That said, the bright blue and the smooth transition down to silver where it meets the head results in an attention-getting shaft that simultaneously doesn’t distract when you’re over the ball. I found it to be a huge aesthetic improvement over the decidely muted stock shaft. While an entirely subjective assessment, Graphite Design nailed it here…max points baby.

The Numbers (18/20)

So here’s where things start to get interesting. Given how much my fellow testers were justifiably using launch monitor data, I wanted to do something a little different and chart on course performance. Let me be the first to recognize up front, doing that means I stripped out the “controlled-environment” quality of my review…I played in different temperatures, different winds, different course conditions, I get it. That said, and maybe I’m in the minority here, but I truly feel like I swing better outdoors than in an indoor box. And, like I said, I wanted to add some variety to the test. Hopefully you’re not in a lab coat holding a clipboard and I’ve offended your scientific sensibilities.

Moving on. Below is a chart of the 3 rounds I played with the stock PING Tour 2.0. On my course, that means 30 drives (only 10 holes call for the big stick).

Put mildly, not a fan. And since the description of the shaft is low launch and low spin, I wasn’t surprised. Frankly, I picked it up on the basis of being closest in weight to the UB. Speaking of the UB, here’s how she charted out:

As you can see, on the average that’s a 13 yard jump in distance and a 13% increase in fairways in regulation. Sooo, why the 2-point decrease?  Because I expected more. In a one-round sample during the middle of this little experiment, I took my gamer to the course…a TSR2 with a Ventus Blue 6s. It was only 10-drives and not worth charting, by my average drive was 278, and I hit 5 of 10 fairways. I can’t give the UB full points on the course if I maybe have something better in the closet. Perhaps that’s unfair of me, but I’ll talk about that at the conclusion.

On the Course (10/20)

Yeah, a full 10 point deduction. Again, perhaps it’s unfair and I’ll talk about it in my conclusion, but if you look at the UB chart again you’ll notice a decided right miss bias. I play a draw, and while I’m no robot, a hook is a rarity. If I miss, it’s typically a ball that starts right but just doesn’t turn back enough. With the UB, I couldn’t for the life of me get the ball to turn over. In fact, I was fading the ball! I eventually started lining up to play fades and that’s how I was able to hit some fairways, but frankly I don’t want to play that way. The shaft should fit the golfer, not the other way around, right? Let’s discuss that a bit.

The Good, the Bad, and the In Between (5/10)

Yeah, I’m a mod on an equipment forum, but I’m the least hoe-iest among the club hoes that I know. If you start talking to me about shaft specs and torques, I’m out. I want a fitter to tell me what the numbers say works, and then I’m done thinking about it.

Which brings me to this little experiment. On "The Good" this shaft was an upgrade over the stock shaft. On "the Bad" it was a poor fit for me. On the "In Between," I found the shaft to be serviceable but not ideal, and that's kind of my fault, right? I spent some time reading a few reviews but I certainly didn't go try to find and get fit into a particular Graphite Design shaft, and that's certainly where I went wrong. It's entirely possible there's a Graphite Design shaft that would fit me quite well, in fact I'm sure there is.  It's just that it's not the UB.

Play It or Trade It (10/20)

Let's be clear, I could probably make the UB work. I shot some pretty decent scores with it in the bag and I feel like I sorted out how to get around the course with it. So, I could play it. However, I've traded it...it's now in the hands of another forum spy. Why? Because it definitely wasn't ideal...that honor belongs to the Ventus Blue 6s I was fitted into way back when.

Conclusion

The Graphite Design Tour AD UB 6 S is a sleek high-quality shaft that will likely outperform many of the stock off-the-rack offerings in stores today. However, know your swing and know your own limits when it comes to your technical mastery of the shaft world. In my case, limited as I am in my own knowledge of shaft specs, I  dove in without getting a proper fitting and I got it wrong. You should absolutely give Graphite Design's offerings a long look if you're shopping for aftermarket shafts.

I'm giving the UB a final score of 72 out of 100, but it's entirely possible it'd be a 100 out of 100 for you. Get fit!

[Josh Parker]

Congrats testers. Can't wait to see the choices and results. 

[Northern Monkey]

Congrats guys

[Fongle]

Congrats testers! 

[GolfSpy_BNG]

Congrats to my fellow testers. I’m stoked to be a part of this and can’t wait to get started.

[JAYER38]

Congrats to all testers!

[TJ Hall]

Congratulations testers…hope these shafts work well for you, excited to see your feedback!

[crisJ]

Lucky!  Congrats everyone 

[Triple_Putt]

Congratulations testers!

[Mike10487]

Congratulations All! Looking forward to seeing the results.

[MattWillGolf]

Congratulations testers! Looking forward to seeing the shafts that are chosen.

[GolfSpy_BEN]

Congrats to the testers! This should be a fun one to follow.

[rkj427]

Congratulations to this great group of testers.

Really looking forward to the comments and reviews, especially from @GolfSpy_BNG and @GolfSpy AFG.

[3Putt4Double]

Congrats testers!

[sirchunksalot]

Congratulations to a great group of testers!

[bens197]

Congrats fellas. AD-VF guys I’m watching you

[Preeway]

Congrats, testers. Love seeing all the tests this year for driver shafts. This is should be another great thread to follow!

[DukeStKing]

Thank you so much MGS and Graphite Design for this awesome opportunity! Can’t wait to get started! 

[MDGolfHacker]

Congratulations testers! 

[pete1276]

This should be fun! Thanks for the opportunity, MGS.  I'm looking forward to it!

[spikyash]

Congrats to all testers

[djrexyman]

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