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Titleist AP1 Fitting!!


RaCs
Note: This thread is 3426 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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Hi guys! Hope you all had a great weekend! I experienced my first ever fitting on Saturday. Went there with both the AP1’s and AP2’s in mind as I would like to get myself a Titleist iron set within the next couple of weeks. I am currently shooting in the mid 80’s (84, 85, 86 is the norm for me now) and I would now like to look at shooting in the low 80’s or even break 80 here and there so thought it would be good to finally actually get fit for my new irons to try and help me get to the next level. Surely custom fit irons tailor made to your swing gives you a better chance rather than buying blind! Obviously it’s going to take practice and dedication to get down to this level but I am fully committed as I can’t get enough of this crazy game. I have been playing a super game improvement iron in the 2010 Nike Slingshots and these have served me very well for the last 2 and half years helping me get down from 28 to the level I am at now so I feel that now is the right time to upgrade and try and go lower. My ball striking is much better and more consistent now and my short game is what really helps keep my scores decent! I come from a Cricketing background so my hand/eye coordination, feel and timing has been good because of this. I have always had the belief that it’s not the clubs that help you get better but your technique and swing and commitment to practice and improve is what gets you lower. Sure if you have the right tools for the job then that is an added benefit and certainly helps too. The shafts I have in the Slingshots are down as Uniflex and have been told that these are closer or even softer than Regular Flex shafts???? Can someone confirm this? Anyway, as I mentioned in one of my recent posts, I ended up hitting the AP1’s with the XP95, KBS and Nippon shafts. To be honest, I really wanted the AP2’s to work for me however the AP1’s felt that much better! I hit them best using the True Temper XP95, R300 shaft. My average iron swing speed ranges from about 76mph to 82 mph and the ball flight was quite high, perhaps a bit too high but the irons felt great with a solid feel! This is the first time ever hitting Titleist irons and compared to what I’ve been gaming for the last 2.5 years, I instantly recognised the quality and feel most people associate with Titleist. My spin rate was around the 6000rpm mark. I am 5foot 11 inches in height so the fitter identified that we needed to add half an inch to the length of the shaft which did help also but we kept the club at a standard lie angle. Since I feel the flight was perhaps a bit too high for my liking, perhaps the XP105 R300 shaft would be good for me in terms of ball flight? I’m sure you would still get good height with these but would carry a more penetrating feel. I did hit the Nippon shaft which is at 105g and it did give me similar spin rate but the launch was lower than the XP95. The feel for the XP95 however was much better than the Nippon hence why the XP105 may suit. Is there anyone who has similar specs to mine based on what I have said above? If so, would love to hear your reviews, stories, views etc! For those who don’t your views and advice would be much appreciated! Thanks all!

Local Club - San Roque Golf & Country Club http://www.sanroqueclub.com/en/club-house/history Whats in my Nike M9 Cart Bag Nike VRS Covert Performance Driver Nike VR Pro 3 Wood Nike Slingshot 3 & 4 Hybrid Nike Slingshot Irons 5-PW Vokey SM5 52/8F, 56/14F Scotty Cameron Golo 3

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Thanks for the posting.

Scott

Titleist, Edel, Scotty Cameron Putter, Snell - AimPoint - Evolvr - MirrorVision

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I wouldn't worry too much about the height, as long as it isn't ballooning the higjer the better imo. Most ams hear pros talking about getting their flight down in the lower irons and think hitting it high is a bad thing, but what they don't realise is that keeping it down for a tour pro is still a towering shot with more height than ams get. Those guys hit it so hard and so sweet they can afford to take off a bit of height to gain more control, but most ams need more height to get more distance. I certainly would like a bit more height on my irons and I'm a decent ball striker and longish hitter. For guys who struggle with distance height is your friend as long you are hitting it solid and not cutting across and ballooning it. If I were you I'd try the 105s just to settle your mind, but you will probably not notice any difference in flight between the two. I think you have made a great choice with the AP1s, they are a super solid feeling club but still have plenty of forgiveness. IMO they are a better club than the AP2.
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So much of golf is mental, I would put a lot of weight (no pun intended) into what feels and looks the best to you.

My son is a 14 year old competitive golfer, and the Titleist fitting guy kept guiding him toward AP1s.  My son tried the 1s and 2s, and he kept going back to the 2s.  He said the 1s felt clunky.  And investment cast clubs do indeed have more of a clunky feel.

So he went AP2 and never looked back.  He loves them.  Have they cost him any strokes?  I doubt it but it's possible.  But confidence is a huge issue, so you want to feel confident looking over the club.

I'm a 23 handicapper, mostly because I am do a lot of pull hooking into problematic places, but I still prefer a forged iron - Wilson Staffs to be exact.  That's just what I have always been comfortable with since I was a 5 handicap in high school.  I tried King Cobras, Titelist DCIs, and even some Ping Raptors for a while, and I hated all of them.  I don't like cast irons.

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I think one of the big considerations when looking at the XP105 vs XP95 is the change you'll get in the "feel" of the clubs as you swing them.  earlier this year I switched from Ping G20s with their proprietary graphite shafts and tried about 6 various steel and graphite options in my new AP1s.  For me, shaft weight makes a really noticeable difference in feel.  The i95s I ended up with are heavier than the shafts that were in the Pings, but still pretty light in the overall scheme of things.  Given that you like the feel of the XP95, I would definitely suggest finding a fitter that has the XP105 shaft to try before just ordering clubs with those shafts.

And since the topic of forged vs cast has come up, I'll just mention that of all the clubs I've given a try over the last couple of years, some forged irons do indeed feel "softer" than some cast irons, but when it comes to smooth feel when the ball is hit flush I find that the real difference is between steel and graphite shafts rather than forge and cast heads.  I know a lot of folks figure they aren't old enough or sissy enough to bag graphite shafted irons, but they think nothing of graphite on their drivers.

Driver: Titleist 913 D2 10.5*, Aldila RIP Phenom 50

Fairway 1: Titleist 913F, 17*, Titleist Bassara W55

Fairway 2: Titleist 913F, 21*, Titleist Bassara W55

Irons: Titleist AP1 714 5-PW, Aerotech Steelfiber i95

Wedges: SCOR 4161 48/52/56/60, Genius 9

Grips: GolfPride New Decade Red Mid-size on all of the above.

Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport 2 - Super Stroke Slim 3.0

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@RaCs I was fitted for the first time a couple years ago.  Though I certainly thought highly of Titleist equipment, I didn't go into the fitting with any preference as to OEM or model -- I just wanted the best "fit" for me in terms of look, feel, and of course performance.  The training center I went to isn't "married" to just one or two OEMs, so they literally tried several options with me -- Taylormade, Titleist, Nike, Adams, Callaway, etc.

I ended up with the Titleist AP1 (712) and have zero regrets.  Regarding the shaft, my situation was very similar to yours both in terms of higher ball flight and a swing speed/load characteristics which fell in between some shaft flex (R vs S) depending on the brand.  Ultimately, we settled on Dynamic Gold S300 shafts over the KBS equivalent.  While I lost just a little distance with the S300 compared to the R300 (per trackman), I felt more comfortable with that shaft.

In theory, the S300 is slightly too heavy/stiff but the ball flight was lower (which I wanted) and the consistency (lack of dispersion) was better.  Good luck!

What's in the Bag:
Driver: Taylormade SLDR 12*
3-wood: Taylormade Burner 15*
Hybrid: Taylormade Burner 19*
Irons: Callaway XR

Wedges: Vokey 50*, 54*, 58*
Putter: Scotty Newport Studio

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Nickel, Did you actually go out on the course and compare shafts or just rely on trackman? Reason I ask is cause personally I find it hard to believe you would play better with S300s than R300s. I'm firmly in the school of thought that most ams play shafts that are too stiff, especially in their irons. S300s are much more demanding than R300s, why make the game harder? I'd bet that in real life on the course you would not notice this perceived higher bal flight of R300s, but you would sure appreciate the extra distance and forgiveness.
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@Playah No, I didn't take demo sets on the course.  We relied on the Trackman, which obviously was hit outdoors.  Yes, I hit the R300 a bit further (sometimes), but nothing significant.  I'm no great player and my swing obviously isn't grooved like a tour player or anything.  But compared to the S300, my swings with the R300 were less consistent in terms of both distance and accuracy.

Hitting the 6-iron, R300's would go anywhere from mid-150's to mid-160's and the S300 seemed to consistently hang right in the middle.  At the end, we switched back and forth -- hitting a few with one, and then the other.  For whatever reason, same thing kept happening.  If it matters, I don't recall what my swing speeds were with the irons but when I was hitting drivers (didn't buy one, by the way) all but one or two of my swing speeds were in the 98-103 range.

And for the record, I'm not an ego guy.  My driver, for example, is a regular flex and has 12* stamped on it.  I'll hit a damn senior flex if it feels like I get the most out of my swing.

What's in the Bag:
Driver: Taylormade SLDR 12*
3-wood: Taylormade Burner 15*
Hybrid: Taylormade Burner 19*
Irons: Callaway XR

Wedges: Vokey 50*, 54*, 58*
Putter: Scotty Newport Studio

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@RaCs I was fitted for the first time a couple years ago.  Though I certainly thought highly of Titleist equipment, I didn't go into the fitting with any preference as to OEM or model -- I just wanted the best "fit" for me in terms of look, feel, and of course performance.  The training center I went to isn't "married" to just one or two OEMs, so they literally tried several options with me -- Taylormade, Titleist, Nike, Adams, Callaway, etc. I ended up with the Titleist AP1 (712) and have zero regrets.  Regarding the shaft, my situation was very similar to yours both in terms of higher ball flight and a swing speed/load characteristics which fell in between some shaft flex (R vs S) depending on the brand.  Ultimately, we settled on Dynamic Gold S300 shafts over the KBS equivalent.  While I lost just a little distance with the S300 compared to the R300 (per trackman), I felt more comfortable with that shaft. In theory, the S300 is slightly too heavy/stiff but the ball flight was lower (which I wanted) and the consistency (lack of dispersion) was better.  Good luck!

Sounds like you were thorough. I have a stiff shaft in driver but play regular iron shafts cause I can be a bit smoother with them and I like more height as I'm a low ball hitter. You must have a consistent swing to get better results with S300s, I've always found them to be a difficult shaft to get consistent results with.

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Sounds like you were thorough. I have a stiff shaft in driver but play regular iron shafts cause I can be a bit smoother with them and I like more height as I'm a low ball hitter. You must have a consistent swing to get better results with S300s, I've always found them to be a difficult shaft to get consistent results with.

A couple guys I play with (both in the 5-7 handicap range) were fitted closer to your setup -- i.e. stiff with driver, 3-wood, hybrid but regular shafts in their irons.  And I know they both have more club head speed than me.  I've never had a lesson in my life.  It's a compact swing, which I think is a little quick with the transition and load.  Maybe that's the reason I felt better with the S300's.

What's in the Bag:
Driver: Taylormade SLDR 12*
3-wood: Taylormade Burner 15*
Hybrid: Taylormade Burner 19*
Irons: Callaway XR

Wedges: Vokey 50*, 54*, 58*
Putter: Scotty Newport Studio

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Note: This thread is 3426 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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