When to get fitted for clubs

Every player can and should be fit for golf clubs. Your playing ability will determine the depth of a club fit. The reason for fitting a golfer for clubs is simple. Everyone is different, and using stock equipment adds a variable that can limit potential.  The way to progress in the game is to limit the amount of variables. Using equipment that does not “fit” your swing, can cause unwanted habits, modifications or rob you of needed distance and control….So regardless of your ability, get a trained professional to find the right club for you. It can lead to amazing results, and that is what you want…results.

Waterfall principle

There are two types of club fitting. Static and Dynamic. A basic fitting is done using Static methods, and is the choice for all beginning golfers, or high handicap golfers. Dynamic is more in-depth, intensive and requires a golfer that can repeat a swing. Think of Static Fitting as a raindrop, while Dynamic Fitting is more like a waterfall.

Static Fitting

Static fitting takes into account the physical aspects of the golfer. Measurements are taken for the length of the club, in relation to the position of the subjects grip (most of the time it’s going to be standard length). Taller golfers tend to need longer clubs, while shorter golfers need shorter clubs. The key is to make sure that the subject (you) fall within a certain range. Clubs that are too long or too short will effect the lie angle of the club. Lie angle determines the direction the ball will fly, so it is very important, especially in higher lofted clubs! A second measurement will be for grip size. If your grip is too small, it will allow you to release the club early, usually resulting in a right to left ball flight. If the grip is too large, the release is delayed, and your shots will typically fade or slice. The size of the grip will determine how you hold the club, and what type of grip you use, so this is something that should be looked at. The third measurement is how the subject swings the club. This information will determine the flex of the shaft. And the shaft is the engine of the swing! Check out this post to learn a little more about shafts. A trained club fitter can watch your swing and through past experiences, determine the correct flex. If your swing is slow, or without much power, a more flexible shaft would be recommended or a lighter club. If you have a fast or quick tempo, a heavier shaft could be used. The idea behind a static fit is to get your equipment in the “ball park”.  For most golfers standard length, regular flex and a neutral sized grip fits 80%, but the other 20% need some modification. You won’t know until someone that understands the swing can give it to you straight!

Dynamic Fitting

This type of fitting is more intensive, and requires some time. Dynamic fitting works best if you can repeat a swing. The process is dependent on many different variables, and if your swing is not consistent, the information for dynamic fitting is worthless.  I’ve fit approximately 200 golfers for irons using dynamic fitting, and roughly 50% were not ideal test subjects! The reason is that they could not repeat their swings and provide data that would allow me to suggest a lie angle that would benefit their game.  In dynamic fitting measurements are taken for lie angle, length of club, and to some extent shaft flex. Grip size should be taken into account, but most golfers that can be dynamically fit should have a “feel” for what grip they prefer.

Lie Angle

This is the most important aspect I feel in getting fit for golf clubs. If your lie angle is off by 1 degree, you can miss your target by up to 3 yards…and it gets more hokey as the club gets shorter in length! That is why lie angles for drivers and woods are not as important (some of my fellow Professionals might disagree with me…I welcome it, but I feel that only super-stud golfers could even remotely determine 2-4 degrees of lie angle on anything above a 3 iron) as they are for irons. The process for finding the lie angle is…

• Placing marking tape on the face and sole (most fit carts have stickers that leave a mark on the material)
• Hitting golf balls off of a lie board that is level
• Using identical clubs with lengths varying by 1/2″

The markings on the face and sole will allow the fitter to fine tune the club that best suits your swing…FOR THAT DAY! I recommend that you get fit twice…yep twice before you submit your specs for a new purchase or club tweak (bending). I learned the hard way, with a lesson that failed to tell me that he had slammed his hand in the car door prior to the fitting and wasn’t comfortable. Well we ordered clubs that didn’t fit his swing, but had to bend them upright 2 degrees, and in the process snapped a head…ouch!

Fitting for Dynamic length

Follows the same process as for lie, except we are finding the proper length of the club. Now remember, distance is relative to clubhead speed. So a longer club will potentially hit the ball farther.  Actually there is a limit, a point in where length will not deliver a greater distance factor. A good club fitter will find the optimum length that you can control without compromising control. It should be noted that as the club gets 1/2″ longer, the effective lie angle of the club is increased by 1 degree. So if you are fitted for a clubs standard lie, but add an inch to length, your effective lie for that club is +2 degrees Upright. A club that is 1/2″ shorter would have an effective 1 degree flat lie angle.

Swing Speed and Shaft flex

In some cases, the swing speed (beyond the normal investigation) will also be a measurement for dynamic fitting that can either simplify a problem or present more variables. Most golfers that are of the “player” category need to have the shaft flex analyzed to determine torque and it’s effect on ball flight. I mention it because it some people can really fine tune the components of the shaft to improve, but if you are reading this….thank you!

There is still more!

Fitting is science, and I truly believe that it can change a players game. The problem is that golf is also about feel, and feel is a personal thing that science hasn’t found a way to adequately measure. I always asked what does this club feels like, how about this one, or this one…I gave people choices. There are basically hundreds of combinations of clubs, maybe thousands, the key is finding one that fits your game.  Feel can be physical and mental. I know people that only buy a specific brand, it has to match their “emotional” needs. The coolest thing I ever did was fit people with HG clubs. The cool thing was that the shafts were not labeled, but rather color coded. This way the subject couldn’t determine ahead of time what shaft was being used. From an emotional side, I found that this allowed me to fit someone that needed a weaker shaft (and most do!) without telling them this is a Senior Shaft. All they knew was that the green shaft worked the best…

The club also needs to be visually appealing. Thin top line, thick top line, cavity back, muscle back, chrome, forged, oversized….it goes on and on. If the club does not instill confidence, then DON’T buy it…the mind takes over where the body fails.

So go and get fit. The season starts soon, and wouldn’t it be great to buy some new gear!