Sneak Peek: Graphite Design Review and TST Q&A

[mvmac]

Got to spend some time today with Bill McPherson, Sales Manager at Graphite Design , hitting a variety of shafts from their new line on Trackman.  I'm going to be doing a review of some of these shafts and talk about how the performance characteristics varies and the reasons why.  These are the same shafts played by Tiger, Matt Kuchar, Nick Watney and Adam Scott.

Some company info from the website:

"Graphite Design International manufactures the highest quality shafts in the world for Pure Distance and Perfect Accuracy. Graphite Design shafts can be seen in play by the best professional players on the PGA, Nationwide, Champions, Japan, European and LPGA tours. Graphite Design shafts reinforced its dominance on the Japan Tour, where it has claimed 163 consecutive graphite wood shaft brand counts -- an unprecedented streak which dates to 2003. On the PGA Tour, Graphite Design shafts have helped professionals earn 78 victories since 2004 and millions of dollars in prize money."

Some pics from yesterday:

Box full of toys

Hit all 4 of these shafts in an R11 and also hit my Ping 20 with it's stock TFC "Tour" shaft

Here's Bill on Trackman

Bill is excited to get the word out about the new G-series and would like to hear from you guys, The Sand Trap Community .

What questions about graphite shafts or Graphite Design Intl. do you have?  Ask your question by making a post here and we'll answer them in this thread.  Ask any related shaft questions you want, can even be as basic as, "What is torque?  How does it effect the performance of the club?"  Let's have some fun.

[Deryck Griffith]

Thank you for this thread as I'm currently looking to purchase a GD shaft (specifically the Tour AD Di7X).

I would lik to know:

- What are the fundamental differences between the Tour AD DJ, Tour AD DI, and Quatrotech MD shafts and are these 3 shafts the answer to the ilima, kai'li and ahina shafts?

- How does the Tour AD DI differ from the famous Whiteboard.

- What exactly do the Tour players, (Tiger, Scott, Watney, Kuchar) see in the GD shafts?  What made them switch from what they were playing before...feel, accuracy, ball flight?

- If there is one thing GD shafts are known for, or one thing a player can be sure to count on with this shaft, what would that be?

Thanks for taking the time to share this information with us!

[iacas]

Sweet. C'mon guys, let's hear some questions. I have a few:

1. How can a user "fit" himself with a shaft?
2. How much does the performance of a club depend on the shaft versus the clubhead? If you have a clubhead and fit a bunch of similar-flex shafts to it, how much variation can you see in distance, spin, launch angle, etc.?
3. Are the shafts put in OEM clubs which still carry the Graphite Designs brand name as good as the shafts you can buy separately? Are they slightly tuned versions to fit that clubhead?
4. Why the push to the ultra-light? Do you find amateurs mishit lightweight shafts/clubs more easily?
5. Driver length: if you had to go 46 or 44, which would you choose and why?
6. Have shaft flexes been softened in recent years? So that people who "think" they need a stiff shaft are now getting a shaft somewhere between a regular and a stiff?

[rustyredcab]

How different is the performance of the same shaft with a different head? 910 D3 vs R11?

When starting from scratch in a fitting, the fitter has always started with the head in the few driver fittings I have had done. As a shaft guy, would you start with the shaft, find the one that "works" and then fit a head?

[Graphite Design]

Mike,

Thanks for taking time to come out and spend some time with us to learn more about our products.  I look forward to being a part of the Sand Trap community and supporting the Q&A; threads.

[Graphite Design]

Deryck,

Thanks you for your interest in our products.  See below in blue for answers to your questions.

Originally Posted by Deryck Griffith

Thank you for this thread as I'm currently looking to purchase a GD shaft (specifically the Tour AD Di7X).

I would lik to know:

- What are the fundamental differences between the Tour AD DJ, Tour AD DI, and Quatrotech MD shafts and are these 3 shafts the answer to the ilima, kai'li and ahina shafts?

There are alot of differnces, but in general the DI and DJ shafts used a special DI technology that includes a special nano-alloy material.  The special material has been found to help increase stability without effecting feel, in other words we found that we can design shafts that play stiffer though out the bend profile without having them end up feeling boardy.

The QuattroTech MD (Blue shaft) and Quattrotech (Green shaft) are two shafts that utilized a 4 axis weave material.  The MD empolyed the 4 axis weave in the tip section to increase stabiloity and reduce ovalization thru the swing to impact.  The original Quattrotech used the 4 axis weave from the tip to the butt, with the same idea in mind.

In regards to the MRC shaft question, no these are not an answer to these shafts.  We do not necessarily design shafts to answer to another competiors offerings, but rather to what the customers and industry in general is asking for.

- How does the Tour AD DI differ from the famous Whiteboard.

DI is a High Launch and Low Spin shaft, the Whiteboard is more of a Low Launch and Low Spin shaft in my opionion, thus two very different animals.

- What exactly do the Tour players, (Tiger, Scott, Watney, Kuchar) see in the GD shafts?  What made them switch from what they were playing before...feel, accuracy, ball flight?

I feel that each player has their own reason(s) for switching and I cannot precisely say why.  Now why did the players you list change, well they have access to every shaft out there, and they most likely test more than anyone out there.  It is obivious that they found a GD shaft to simply perform better than their current shaft and thus made a change.

- If there is one thing GD shafts are known for, or one thing a player can be sure to count on with this shaft, what would that be?

Feel more than anything else.  When our engineers go to the drawing board our first and foremost thougth is to design a shaft that will feel good.  Rarely will you find a GD shaft that feels boardy.

Thanks for taking the time to share this information with us!

[Leftygolfer]

How in the world can you pick a shaft without being fit to it?  Being LH, I find demoing clubs almost impossible.

Also, how much distance do you loose going to a heavier shaft.  I've been interested in going to a 70 or 80 gram shaft in my driver to help gain control.  Do people who choose a heavier shaft gain control or is that more of a myth.

The shaft I've wanted to try is the old classic ys-6 or 7.  Does this still perform well compared to your more expensive shafts?

[Graphite Design]

iacas- please see below for my thoughts on your questions-

Originally Posted by iacas

Sweet. C'mon guys, let's hear some questions. I have a few:

How can a user "fit" himself with a shaft?

That is some what hard to do.  You really need a launch monitor, a fitting cart with fitting/inter-changable heads and shafts and a good fitter to advise you.  I strongly recommend you find a fitter in your area with a launch monitor and start with what your current Driver is providing you in the way of Launch Angle, Spin, and Landing Angle and total distance.  Also you will want to know your club head/swing speed and your angle of attack is good to know as well.  Once you have this we could help to direct you to a shaft that may help improve on these attributes and thus gain yardage.

How much does the performance of a club depend on the shaft versus the clubhead? If you have a clubhead and fit a bunch of similar-flex shafts to it, how much variation can you see in distance, spin, launch angle, etc.?

There are simply way to many variables in my opinion to be able to answer this question.  I have seen a simple shaft change increase the total distance off the tee by as much as15 to 20 yards.  In general on average a player that has never been fit should be able to gain at least 5 to 10 yards off the tee after a driver shaft fitting.

Are the shafts put in OEM clubs which still carry the Graphite Designs brand name as good as the shafts you can buy separately? Are they slightly tuned versions to fit that clubhead?

Co-branded/ stock OEM shafts are usually tuned to the club head to optimize the club performance at the target cost.  Cost being the key here.  Now that does not mean that a our Tour AD original brand shaft will necessarily perform better than the stock shaft, but I can say that when we manufacture our original brand Tour AD shafts that the materials that we use are premium and specifications/tolerances that we follow are tighter than some of the OEM Stock shafts.  This is what make the more expensive aftermarket shafts usually perform and feel better.  This is where a individualized shaft fitting can answer the question of stock shaft performance vs. aftermarket shaft performance.

Why the push to the ultra-light? Do you find amateurs mishit lightweight shafts/clubs more easily?

Lighter shafts have become more popular in OEM clubs over the last few years.  It is true that a lighter club will generate more club head speed.  It is how the golfer is able to control the lighter club that comes into play.  I really cannot answer the amateurs question, but in general they will have more mishits no matter what.   I feel the main reason that OEM's have offered the light weight clubs to their customers is it is something different more than anything else.  It is a "new" story to tell and sell.  If a player can control their current driver well, then usually going down 10g's will usually work without control issues.  Going down 20g's can cause control issues that takes time to learn and correct.  If the golfer is willing to invest time in learning how to control the lighter weight club then they should see a long term gain in distance.

Driver length: if you had to go 46 or 44, which would you choose and why?

I really do not have enough experience with a 2.0" variance in club length to answer that.  I would most likely choose the 46.0" club.  I feel that most average players will find that a 44" driver will most likely be easier to hit and control than a 46" driver.  Better players (10 and under) may find the longer clubs are better performers.  It is really an individual preference.

Have shaft flexes been softened in recent years? So that people who "think" they need a stiff shaft are now getting a shaft somewhere between a regular and a stiff?

I would say that the OEM stock shafts have maybe become a bit softer, but not much.  I would say that in general we have stiffened up our aftermarket shafts a bit over the last 5+ years.

[Deryck Griffith]

Bill, today I was the proud recipient of your GD Tour AD DI7x shaft.

I am more than excited about using this shaft in my driver (910D3) after all of the great reviews I have seen on it.

I will test it out very soon and will provide a review on this forum after I've had some time with it.

Thank you for sharing some insight to GD.

[mvmac]

Originally Posted by Deryck Griffith

Bill, today I was the proud recipient of your GD Tour AD DI7x shaft.

I am more than excited about using this shaft in my driver (910D3) after all of the great reviews I have seen on it.

I will test it out very soon and will provide a review on this forum after I've had some time with it.

Thank you for sharing some insight to GD.

That's a great shaft and look forward to the review!