My fitting experience.

[TN94z]

Okay, I just got back from being fitted at a local shop here. I have been here before when I got fitted for my driver.

Okay, first I hit a few drives to get my swing speed which was 96-100mph. The guy told me I need stiff shafts for sure...I kind of already knew that. So he tells me that my driver is okay because it already has a stiff shaft. Then we proceed to check my lie angle on my irons. Basically I hit a couple of 6 iron shots. The tape shows that I needed it bent 1 degree flat from where it was. I don't really hit my off shots to the right. My misses are usually too much draw than anything.

That was all there was to the fitting.

He said that I have 2 options on my irons:

1) Put stiff shafts in them which are about 25 per club.
2) Or bend the clubs 1 degree flat.

Which option should I choose? I would rather wait until I got a new set of irons before purchasing shafts but I will if that is the better way to go about it.

Does this fitting sound complete? Should I go somewhere else and compare what they say? I assumed it would take longer than it did.

[bogeymike]

I think it depends on if you like the heads or not. If you really like them get them altered. If you are thinking about new clubs get them or go with the cheaper option for the time being.

[TN94z]

Yeah, I really like the heads for now. They are the Mizuno MP-32s and have a great feel. I don't really see any reason to get new heads at the moment.

That leads me to another question. When I do get ready to get a new set, can you order the heads you want and order shafts seperate and come out cheaper?

[goblue107501]

When I do get ready to get a new set, can you order the heads you want and order shafts seperate and come out cheaper?

Maybe. The big thing would be how much they charge for just the heads. I would guess their shaft, grip, and installation costs are pretty small compared to what you could buy at retail. Their cost breakdown might be 75% head and 15% shaft, 8% installation, and 2% grip. In which case you are probably better off getting form them. If the cost break down is more 50-50 you might be able to get them a little cheaper. I would find out how much it would be to buy heads only and go from there.

[TN94z]

Maybe. The big thing would be how much they charge for just the heads. I would guess their shaft, grip, and installation costs are pretty small compared to what you could buy at retail. Their cost breakdown might be 75% head and 15% shaft, 8% installation, and 2% grip. In which case you are probably better off getting form them. If the cost break down is more 50-50 you might be able to get them a little cheaper. I would find out how much it would be to buy heads only and go from there.

I was just curious. I haven't really looked into it as I have always bought my stuff straight off the shelf.

[MrKadash]

He said that I have 2 options on my irons:

I may be way off here, and if I am someone please correct me, but why "or" with the two options? Is shaft stiffness related to the lie angle? Our club pro has recommended altering both at the same time on many occasions.

[TN94z]

I may be way off here, and if I am someone please correct me, but why "or" with the two options? Is shaft stiffness related to the lie angle? Our club pro has recommended altering both at the same time on many occasions.

Well, with an upright lie angle, the heel will dig into the ground causing the toe to come around and essentially close the clubface down. The same will happen with a shaft that is not stiff enough..it will whip around and shut the clubface. To alleviate, you can bend the club flatter to fix the upright lie angle and hit the ball straighter or you can get stiffer shafts (which I need) to stop the whip. Now this is "MY" situation because the lie angle is only off by a hair and my misses really aren't bad. The shaft option came because my shafts are regular and my swing speed dictates a stiff shaft....does that make sense? Also, there is a big cost difference between the two as well. That is why he gave me the options. I could get them both done at the same time, but at a higher price.

[cigarnut81]

Go somewhere else man! That is not even close to a "fitting". An iron fitting will take a few sessions over the course of a week not a couple of shots off a lie board!

Here are a few links to help you find a real clubmaker!!!!!!!!!!!!

http://www.twgolftech.com/locator_re...egion=seregion

http://clubfitter.org/html/tennessee.html

[TN94z]

Go somewhere else man! That is not even close to a "fitting". An iron fitting will take a few sessions over the course of a week not a couple of shots off a lie board!

The only downside to that is all of these places are at least 2 hours away from me. So multiple visits would add up to a lot of time. But if that is what it takes then I don't mind it.

[Ken Smith]

I agree... You need to try and locate a real clubmaker in your area.

[TN94z]

Go somewhere else man! That is not even close to a "fitting". An iron fitting will take a few sessions over the course of a week not a couple of shots off a lie board!

I finally took your advice man. I couldn't wait any longer. I got in touch with Dan Wilt on the AGCP list and talked with him on the phone. Man this guy is knowledgeable!! I made an appointment with him tomorrow. It is a 2 hour drive but from talking with him on the phone, I have no doubts that the experience will be great! My fitting today took about 25 minutes. Dan told me that it would take him at least 2.5 hours and that I could come back if I wanted to for additional visits or ship him the clubs and he can make the changes and ship them back. I can't wait now. It was a little more expensive but sounds like it would be well worth it. He said I will also get a mini lesson from his PGA pro! I will let you guys know how it goes tomorrow evening. Thanks man!

[Doctorfro]

Yeah, that didn't sound like any fitting that I would be happy with.

[PiustheDrGolf]

I finally took your advice man. I couldn't wait any longer. I got in touch with Dan Wilt on the AGCP list and talked with him on the phone. Man this guy is knowledgeable!! I made an appointment with him tomorrow. It is a 2 hour drive but from talking with him on the phone, I have no doubts that the experience will be great! My fitting today took about 25 minutes. Dan told me that it would take him at least 2.5 hours and that I could come back if I wanted to for additional visits or ship him the clubs and he can make the changes and ship them back. I can't wait now. It was a little more expensive but sounds like it would be well worth it. He said I will also get a mini lesson from his PGA pro! I will let you guys know how it goes tomorrow evening. Thanks man!

Good to hear that you decided it to go visit a AGCP. Just for my experience, I had learned a lot from my professional club fitter. Wedges and putter fitting are also important. It sounds like more $$$.. but worth every penny. Good luck.

[Big Padrigo]

I got fitted a couple of weeks ago with my pro. I have written about it elsewhere on here, but just wanted to re-iterate that I found it a really valuable experience. The fact that my pro has seen my swing over a long period of time made me more confident in his suggestions. Trying different shafts to get a trajectory that worked for me was really valuable. Anyways upshot is I got my new irons on Thursday and have played with them 3 times. I'm amazed that I'm able to hit the ball off the centre of the club so often!

[TN94z]

WOW!!!!!! I had no clue what a true club fitting was. After learning what I learned today, I will NEVER just buy a club off the shelf without getting fit. There are too many variables that make the clubs terrible. If the shaft in your driver is not installed correctly (the spine of the shaft lined up right) then there is no way it can be consistent. I won't get into detail on my fitting because we did so much....I'll just say that on Friday the fitting I went through lasted 25 minutes. The fitting I experienced today lasted 4 hours! I also basically got a lesson from the pro there who videotaped my swing. There are two things I need to work on. The pro said my swinged looked really good though. I highly recommend getting a fitting from one of these guys.

Now I have two questions:

1 ) Should I get my Mizunos retrofit with the specs that were determined today or,

2) Should I get him to build me a set of irons from his club maker....non-name brand

I hit some of his clubs today and the woods were HOT! So were the hybrids. The irons looked good too. He told me that buy the time I retrofit my clubs to the specs, that he can build me a set of his for about the same price. What do you guys think?

[TN94z]

I have another question. During the fitting, as we were testing clubs, he put together a 6i that was an inch longer that my 6i. I hit the longer 6i much better than I hit my 6i. I am only 5'8" and that was the last thing I expected. Right now I am working through a swing flaw where I come up on my toes at impact. My question is, do you think I really need to add an inch to my clubs or was that result skewed because of my swing flaw?

[Jenks465]

What heads did he suggest? Most of the component companies (KZG, Wishon, Snake Eyes) make stuff that is every bit as good as any OEM!

[TN94z]

What heads did he suggest? Most of the component companies (KZG, Wishon, Snake Eyes) make stuff that is every bit as good as any OEM!

Wishon and I loved them!! They are just too pricey for me at the moment. Actually, the blades that I liked look identical to Mizunos. They are very sweet clubs and their woods and hybrids are HOT!!!