Is Golf Club Shaft Fitting an Inexact Science?
In 2012, given that the golf industry's shaft manufacturers' tolerances are as good as they have ever been, combined with the ability to measure so much of what the golf club and ball actually do leading up to, during, and after impact, predicting which shafts should best fit individuals should be as easy as ever. However, my opinion is that, while certain features of a shaft (weight, flex, torque, kick point/flex profile, etc.) may tend towards certain ball flight effects, the actual results an individual golfer will experience is very subject dependent, and will .
Even in robot testing, I would guess that different golf-ball-hitting robots (Pingman vs. Iron Byron, for example) would experience different resulting ball flights due to the individual loading patterns of those machines. Furthermore, while the robot itself will perform the same motions each time, regardless of the shaft it is swinging, a human golfer will unavoidably swing differently as shaft characteristics change, making it even more difficult to predict resulting ball flights.
I have seen (launch monitor verified) golfers: swing heavier shafts faster, hit higher kick point shafts on a higher launch, hit lower torque shafts more left (RH golfer), and other feats contrary to the common rules-of-thumb in shaft fitting. Though they are more rare, these instances suggest that, since the resulting ball flight is ultimately what we're looking at, you might want to try some different flexes (softer and firmer) and weights (heavier and lighter) and see what combination gives you the most consistent launch.
While the fitting process will, no doubt, continue to evolve and improve as player profiling advances, I still think that it is tough to accurately predict the changes in a players ball flight, just based on the different characteristics of the shaft. You'll have to see it to believe it.
The best avenue for shaft fittings is to try different varieties, with the help of a machine that can accurately measure (at least) ball speed and spin.
Just some of my opinions...
Mark
@StrongerGolf
Further to this point is the actual frequency of the shaft. Shafts that frequency low (softer flex) are designed to create a high launch/high spin effect. The opposite is true for shafts that frequency high (stiffer flex) designed for lower launch and lower spin.
ReplyDeleteI have seen both do the opposite of the intended flight based on how an individual loads the shaft.
The biggest factor of this, in all the testing and thousands of fittings I have done over the years in the angle of attack a player has. A player who has a descending blow (steep angle of attack) will produce the desired result, matching the characteristic design concept of the shaft 95% of the time.
A player with a sweeping or ascending strike, will produce the reverse effect.
Just some of my opinions....
Andrew Jeffers VP, Director of club fitting GolfTEC Canada.