My experience at the Titleist Oceanside Test Facility

[WillM]

Today I went to Oceanside to get fitted where the pros get fitted. My experience follows:

I arrived a bit early and checked in then met my fitter for the day, Steve. The range was not quite ready yet so they sent me to the putting green where they had bags full of putters (see one of the pictures below). I rolled a few putts with various different putters and decided that I liked my Edel putter much more (Duh!) but the X5 and X5r do give my current a gamer a small run for its money.

I went back inside and we finally got to head out to the range and it was basically the coolest thing ever. You can see in some of the other photos below. Just long green fairway, a Trackman monitor and a bunch of clubs. There were rows and rows of different shafts too but I didn't get a chance to snap a picture.

I warmed up and then we started by hitting my current driver (913 D2 10.5 w/ S-flex Diamana Whiteboard) and looking at the numbers. I was launching the ball at about 7-8 degrees and at 3300-3500rpms which is obviously not optimal. Part of that was because I hit DOWN on my driver an average of 4-5 degrees!! So before really trying any other drivers Steve asked me just to change my setup a little bit to hit more up on it. Once I got the hang of that I was only between 0 and -2 degrees which was much more manageable. We went through various shaft and head combos trying to get the spin rate down and ultimately settled on the 915 D3 8.5 degrees w/ X-flex Aldila Rogue Silver. I was launching that between 9-10 degrees with about 2600rpms and my dispersion was much, much tighter than my current driver, as well as any other combo we tried. Also just because I was there I asked to try the Oban Purple because I hit it in a friends driver... didn't like it as much as I thought for a $400 shaft!

After that we went to work on the 3-wood and settled on the 915 Fd 3+ (13.5) w/ X-flex Aldila Rogue Black. This was pretty easy to do because Steve said typically you want the same shaft in your driver and 3-wood for the similar feel.

Then we started to hit irons. My current set, 2011 Taylormade MCs w/ Project X 6.5s, actually fit my pretty well but they spun just a tiny bit too much and the shafts were also just slightly too stiff and heavy for me. We discussed what irons I wanted to play and came up with the MB/CB combo set, just like I thought. I just didn't like the AP2s very much. in the MB/CBs I first hit the DG X100 which I did not like very much, the dispersion was not great and they just felt uncomfortable to me. After that Steve put me in the KBS C-taper which I fell in love with almost immediately. The weight felt great and the dispersion was much tighter compared to the rest. Just to give me anther option, Steve had me hit the TT AMT shafts which get progressively lighter as the shaft gets longer. It was nice, but not nearly as good as I felt with the C-taper. Interesting concept though.

Then came the hybrid vs 3 iron discussion. But. I kind of solved it on my own. I asked to hit the T-MB 3 iron and loved it right away. It launched higher than a regular 3-iron but I could still play the low runner if I wanted. Put a KBS C-Taper in it and called it good. Then it was onto the actually 5 wood replacement hybrid but unfortunately by then I was really tired. I had hit about 150-200 balls by then and my body was sore from a new workout program my college team had started. So, I had a bit of trouble hitting the thing straight. I was flushing every one but hitting mostly fades and some slices. This is where Steve's expertise really came in because he put me in four or five different shafts and even though I only hit 1 or 2 good shots with each, he was able to make a good, educated guess as to what shaft would fit me best.

After that we went to hit wedges. This was pretty simple because I already had two Vokey wedges in my bag. It was more about making sure the gaps fit. I ended up with a 58 degree M-grind with, I think, 8 degrees of bounce. I can't remember off the top of my head. The other wedge we agreed on was a 52 degree F grind with 12 degrees of bounce, my previous gap wedge had been a 54 that caused some problems with distance gaps. In one of the pictures you can see just a giant grassy area with a few greens off to one side, that is where we did the wedge testing. I thought it was the coolest part of the fitting.

Overall I really enjoyed myself. I thought the fitting itself was not worth the $600 I spent on it, but combined with the experience I thought the price was acceptable. Now I have to order the clubs!

What Will Be In The Bag:

Driver: 915 D3 8.5* w/ X-flex Aldila Rogue Silver 60

3-wood: 915 Fd 3+ (13.5*) w/ X-flex Aldila Rogue Black 80

Hybrid: 816 H2 19* w/ X-flex Fujikura Motore Speed HB 8.8 Tour Spec

Driving Iron: T-MB 3 Iron w/ KBS C-Taper

Irons: KBS C-Taper S+ (125g) 4-6 CB, 7-PW MB... 2* flat, 1* strong

Wedges: 52* w/ 12* bounce, F grind, KBS C-Taper. 58* w/ 8* bounce, M grind, TT DG S400.

Putter: Edel custom

Grips are all going to be Golf Pride Multi-compound plus 4s

[alleztom]

Nice post - looks like a fun day.

I'm interested in your distance gapping between the 19* hybrid, 3 driving iron and 4 iron - roughly what are your distance gaps there?

[WillM]

Nice post - looks like a fun day.

I'm interested in your distance gapping between the 19* hybrid, 3 driving iron and 4 iron - roughly what are your distance gaps there?

We were hitting into a pretty stiff wind so we could not tell what the actual yardages were. It was probably about a club and a half to two clubs of breeze. I would venture to say (for carry): 205 4-iron, 215-220 3-iron and 230ish for the hybrid? Best guess. Will find out for sure when I get them.

[boogielicious]

Thanks for posting @WillM

[RandallT]

Great to see the process other people take in getting fitted. Thanks for taking the time to share. 

[garush34]

Sound like a good day out.

[Mr. Desmond]

Looks like a great day.

Did you try the newish KBS 610 Wedge shaft?

Since you have an Edel putter, have you been fitted/tested for their wedges?

Good luck with the clubs.

[WillM]

Looks like a great day.

Did you try the newish KBS 610 Wedge shaft?

Since you have an Edel putter, have you been fitted/tested for their wedges?

Good luck with the clubs.

Did not try the shaft, from what I know of shafts in wedges I like what he put me in. I also do not like the Edel wedges, the way the grooves go all the way up the face is very unattractive to me. To each their own, just not for me.

[Mr. Desmond]

Did not try the shaft, from what I know of shafts in wedges I like what he put me in. I also do not like the Edel wedges, the way the grooves go all the way up the face is very unattractive to me. To each their own, just not for me.

Yes, to each their own, but the grooves towards the toe do perform a valuable function. Studies show when you open the face, typically the toe side gets the hit -- so the outer grooves help produce more spin, and is one reason Phil M uses them on his gawdawful ugly PM wedges. Vokeys are prettier, but there are advantages to the Edel. Good luck in your play.

[WillM]

Yes, to each their own, but the grooves towards the toe do perform a valuable function. Studies show when you open the face, typically the toe side gets the hit -- so the outer grooves help produce more spin, and is one reason Phil M uses them on his gawdawful ugly PM wedges. Vokeys are prettier, but there are advantages to the Edel. Good luck in your play.

Did not know that! Thanks for the insight.

[mvmac]

Yep, they do a great job with their fittings at Oceanside, thanks for posting. 

[WillM]

I think one thing that is interesting for everyone to note is the fact that I got fitted in an 8.5 degree driver. I don't hit the ball super high and figured I would be put into a 10.5 or 12 degree driver. However, what the lower lofted driver does is drop the spin (typically) and thus I was putt in a lower lofted driver and tweaked my setup instead. I was quite surprised and fascinated by that. Just shows how useless preconceived notions are.

[Golfingdad]

Yes, to each their own, but the grooves towards the toe do perform a valuable function. Studies show when you open the face, typically the toe side gets the hit -- so the outer grooves help produce more spin, and is one reason Phil M uses them on his gawdawful ugly PM wedges. Vokeys are prettier, but there are advantages to the Edel. Good luck in your play.

Did not know that! Thanks for the insight.

Interesting, neither did I.  I agree that it's not the most eye-catching though.  I'm quite happy with my Ping Glides, though, so all is well. 

[Mr. Desmond]

 

Interesting, neither did I.  I agree that it's not the most eye-catching though.  I'm quite happy with my Ping Glides, though, so all is well. 

Whatever works for you is what matters. I like Ping Wedges, played others, but found more versatility with the Edel, especially with the lower leading edge but high bounce. Whatever works...

[JP golf]

Awesome, thanks for sharing @WillM 

[rob0225]

What are your thoughts on the advanced fitting centers? Would they do just a good a job as the tour fitting center?

[WillM]

What are your thoughts on the advanced fitting centers? Would they do just a good a job as the tour fitting center?

I can't speak to "advanced" fitting centers but I did not want to go to a regular store to get fitted because I would not trust the fitting. I chose to do this because I knew I would be able to trust my clubs if I went to the same place the tour guys got fitted.

[RFKFREAK]

I'm curious, do they give a break on the fitting price if you purchase the clubs or was it a straight $600 regardless of whether you purchased the clubs or not?