Custom Club Fitting Starts Today!
Well, today is the beginning of my custom golf club fitting process. I am heading out today to meet with Bob Swets of NoSwetGolf in Farmington, CT. (cool name, huh!)
I have been doing a tremendous amount of reading and research on how custom golf club fitting can really make a measurable difference to your game that I am excited to go through the process. I will be just getting fit for a driver at this time.
I was just reading in the latest GolfDigest (July 2010) and there was an article on new equipment (pages 50-51) and came upon this quote by Nate Radcliffe, metal-woods development manager at Cleveland golf:
“If you’re in the wrong loft, flex, head design or weight of a driver, you could easily leave 20-plus yards on the table”
A few pages forward Bubba Watson shares a story of his wife who went from a 9 degree driver to a 13 degree driver and gained 45 yards! A common misperception is to get a lower lofted driver (like John Daly’s 7 degree) to get more distance – not necessarily true!
Bubba also says:
“Trying a longer shaft is a popular suggestion these days, but most players should, if anything, try a shaft half an inch shorter than what’s in their driver. (The average, off-the-rack drivershaft today is 45 1/2″ inches) Tiger Woods at his longest used a relatively short 43 1/2″ inch driver, with a steel shaft to boot. You’ll find it easier to hit he sweet spot with a shorter shaft, and you can go after tee shots without losing much control”
So there is so much information and misinformation that it will be interesting to work with a professional by testing the myriads of component variations and adjustments.
Heck, be glad to – as long as I’m guaranteed another 20 yards! – well maybe not 20 but will be very interested in the outcome.
As I mentioned I will be documenting this process as thoroughly as possible and , of course, sharing everything I discover. Stay tuned, this should be fun!
Related posts:
- Custom Golf Club Fitting (Part 2)
- How Custom Golf Club Fitting Can Measurably Improve Your Game
- My GolfTec Club Fitting Experience
- Custom Fit Golf Clubs
- Getting Custom fit for New Golf Irons
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Comments
I make changes to my swing from year-to-year. For example, two years ago I stopped trying to crush the ball in favor of swinging with a better tempo. Currently, I’m working on shortening my swing. And, I assume the next time I take a lesson from PGA Pro, there will be something else that changes.
My question is this: If a golfer’s swing is changing from one year to the next, is getting fit for clubs a waste of money?
Jim Dauer
FullForesome.com
Good point Jim. But I can say this. I don’t think your swing speed will change dramatically – this was confirmed with my meeting with Bob. Same with your “general” tempo. So I would say the basic “cake” is the same but the frosting can change a bit. With custom club fitting we’re worried about the cake. To be on the safe side I would call Bob – he will gladly give you more accurate info than I ever could. His number is on the post (and I guarantee he won’t mind)
Doug
Thanks Dexter. It really was an enlightening experience. There is so much crappy and unaccurate info out there. I hope some of these posts will help to clarify that. It might be worth it just to give Bob a call.
It’s great that you can now get properly fitted for your clubs. This way it enables you to play to your maximum, as you are playing with clubs that have pretty much be designed around you; by the way you are built, height, play technique, etc.
Looking forward to reading about your results. I have been wanting to get properly fitted for some time now. An extra 20 yards would be very useful. Great post.