Shafts

[shark]

Hi All .... can somebody advise me on which shaft to use. i currently play off 5 handicap with a lazy/deliberate swing at around 86-88mph using Callaway Razr black with uniflex shafts and hit a 8 iron around 150 yards. but found when i went after the ball, i pulled/hooked the ball a little too much, so i recently bought Ping S55 irons with CFS stiff shafts, when hitting them in the nets i was warmed up and swing around 92mph, ball flight/direction and distance(a little short than normal) seemed ok on the monitor. But once out on the course i found a had lost about ten yards and it seemed hard work to just hit the ball with any consistently, more fluffed/pushed shots..... what shaft should i go for .... thanks for any help given... cheers

[k-troop]

Hi All .... can somebody advise me on which shaft to use. i currently play off 5 handicap with a lazy/deliberate swing at around 86-88mph using Callaway Razr black with uniflex shafts and hit a 8 iron around 150 yards. but found when i went after the ball, i pulled/hooked the ball a little too much, so i recently bought Ping S55 irons with CFS stiff shafts, when hitting them in the nets i was warmed up and swing around 92mph, ball flight/direction and distance(a little short than normal) seemed ok on the monitor. But once out on the course i found a had lost about ten yards and it seemed hard work to just hit the ball with any consistently, more fluffed/pushed shots..... what shaft should i go for .... thanks for any help given... cheers

For starters, welcome to TST!  We're glad you stopped by for some advice and hope you stick around to become part of the community.

Some of your shaft problems seem obvious and some don't.

Your SS is on the low side, so undoubtedly the lighter weight and softer feel of the uniflex shaft helped you gain launch and distance with your irons.  Those same properties--particularly the lighter weight--usually result in pulls and pull-hooks when you get too quick.

As for the change from uniflex to CFS, I'm not 100% sure.  You have a head and shaft change, but the S55 and Razr Black are similar enough that we'll assume that's not causing the difference.  The CFS is billed as a mid-high launch, low-spin shaft.  I've heard some folks who have switched from the Nippon uniflex to lower-spinning CFS because the Nippon spun too much and "ballooned" on them a bit.  In your case, lower spin might be costing you distance, as the higher spin rate can help compensate for lower ballspeed to keep your ball in the air longer.

As for what shaft you need...well you just have to hit some.  You can narrow your search to higher launch shafts, and try a few weight ranges from 80s to 115ish to see what feels better and fits your tempo.  Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[JoePete]

i currently play off 5 handicap with a lazy/deliberate swing at around 86-88mph using Callaway Razr black with uniflex shafts and hit a 8 iron around 150 yards. but found when i went after the ball, i pulled/hooked the ball a little too much, so i recently bought Ping S55 irons with CFS stiff shafts, when hitting them in the nets i was warmed up and swing around 92mph, ball flight/direction and distance(a little short than normal) seemed ok on the monitor. But once out on the course i found a had lost about ten yards and it seemed hard work to just hit the ball with any consistently, more fluffed/pushed shots..... what shaft should i go for .... thanks for any help given... cheers

Assuming you have standard specs on both the Callaways and the Pings, there are slight differences in the loft and length of those clubs in addition to the shaft differences. My understanding is the Callaway Uniflex is a softer shaft compared to typical stiff of most manufacturers - perhaps including the CFS stiff (I have no direct experience comparing the two). That would fit with an assumption that your new clubs are slightly stiffer than what you are used to. It could explain a slight loss of yardage and misses. But I think you also have to allow some burn in time with the new clubs. Not sure where you live, but if you have been mothballed this winter, you need to give your swing some time to get up to speed, not to mention the fact that air temperature alone can cause a 10 yard loss on distance.

As k-troop noted your swing speed is maybe on the slower side, but it is not crazy slow. If you are sure these clubs aren't working for you, I would see if you can trade them in for a set (same Pings) with the CFS regular. I think that shaft, in both flex and weight, will be closer to what you have been used to. As always, consider some time with your local PGA pro. Hearing about your typical miss when "went after" the ball, he or she might be able to help you with not only that miss but pick up your swing speed a little. One cause of the pull hook is getting off plane on the downswing and that can tie to being more hands and arms (common problem when trying to get aggressive) than shoulders hips.

[Hwkmn05]

I seem to be hearing this issue more and more from amateur golfers. I too have been surprised by the results of different shaft weights, flexes etc. I have always used a S shaft with a low lofted club for about 20years. Mostly hitting high shots with all my clubs. Recently I noticed some loss in distance and accuracy. Looking for a rescue club one day at the course, I grabbed a Ping 17*, but the Pro only had an R shaft on it. I played 9 holes with it, and hit the living tar out of it, dead straight. Got back inside, and ordered the same club, in an S. You can only guess where this is going. Lost 10 yards and was all over the course with the S shaft. Pro tells me its not so much about swing speed as much as my tempo, which is long and lazy. Traded in 9.5 driver with S shaft for 10.5 R shaft and I cannot believe the difference in accuracy and distance, about 20 yards avg longer. Go get tested and fitted, worth the time and money before thinking

or guessing which club is best for you.

[David in FL]

I seem to be hearing this issue more and more from amateur golfers. I too have been surprised by the results of different shaft weights, flexes etc. I have always used a S shaft with a low lofted club for about 20years. Mostly hitting high shots with all my clubs. Recently I noticed some loss in distance and accuracy. Looking for a rescue club one day at the course, I grabbed a Ping 17*, but the Pro only had an R shaft on it. I played 9 holes with it, and hit the living tar out of it, dead straight. Got back inside, and ordered the same club, in an S. You can only guess where this is going. Lost 10 yards and was all over the course with the S shaft. Pro tells me its not so much about swing speed as much as my tempo, which is long and lazy. Traded in 9.5 driver with S shaft for 10.5 R shaft and I cannot believe the difference in accuracy and distance, about 20 yards avg longer. Go get tested and fitted, worth the time and money before thinking

or guessing which club is best for you.

Good advice, and well said.

Welcome to the forum!

[JoePete]

I seem to be hearing this issue more and more from amateur golfers. I too have been surprised by the results of different shaft weights, flexes etc.

And one thing to bear in mind is that there is no standard for flex. One manufacturer's "S" maybe another's "3" or someone else's "S300" and so on. Also, if you look at how materials and manufacturing (techniques and location) have changed over the years, what someone once called a stiff shaft may be different today. Like everything golf, the quality and consistency of shaft manufacturing has improved, but you are still dealing with an arbitrary system of measuring and identifying flex. Even within a manufacturers "regular" range, there often is overlap with their other flexes (i.e. a regular may actually be stiffer than a low-end stiff).

[WUTiger]

Callaway was the first major OEM to use the Uniflex steel shaft. The original version started out at about 110 grams, and was between R and S in flex.

The Uniflex was designed to fit about 60% of male golfers. Some people howled about the shaft feeling funny, but it was designed to be an OK shaft for lots of people, but not the ideal shaft for very many.

I'm not sure about the specs of the current Uniflex.

Also, many of the legacy iron sets have Uniflex shaft. Legacy sets are reissues of a model from a year or two ago targeted for the sub-$400 market. The models have an extra letter of two in the title to distinguish them from the first run version. Current examples are Callaway X.Hot N14 ($399 for 4-AW) and the Nike VR_S X ($299 for 4-AW).

To compare your Uniflex with other flexes, you would need to do a comparison on the launch monitor, see which performed better for you.