How much can a new fitted shaft improve your game?

[jkelley9]

I feel like I'm getting pretty familiar with some of the better brands of shafts and all that but when I read some people's posts regarding highly customized/special shafts I get lost quickly. The buzz words that got me thinking, were "low launch" and "high launch." I had no idea that was a specification. 

I wasn't fitted for a driver during my fitting, they just basically told me the stiff flex was good and that I should cut down on my shaft by some amount. So I got it cut down.

I know there are shafts that can cost SEVERAL hundred dollars. I'm not that guy. I groove my swing to make good shots. I don't care about having an absolutely optimized swing at the tune of several thousands of dollars. I ain't got the skill for that anyways.

My question is: just how much benefit can an optimized driver shaft yield? Of course there's several variables, including what current shaft you're playing and your skill level and such. But seriously, are there single digit players that can get double-digit gains in distance by a sweet new, optimized shaft? Or is it more mild than that?

I'm really liking my driver swing and distance right now so this is really a question of curiosity.

[Groucho Valentine]

It can pay off big if its done correctly. The only club I've gotten shaft fitted for is my driver, and its made a world of difference for me in that club. Yes, i paid some 300 bucks just for the shaft, but I've had it for years and it still works great for me. A good fitting optimizes shaft flex and torque to the tempo and speed of your swing. I feel like i can swing that club has hard as i want without losing the clubhead anywhere along the swing. 

[Jeremie Boop]

The average person isn't likely to see that sort of difference unless the shaft in their club is horribly fitted for them to begin with. Most of their issues with hitting target is going to come from swing flaws, not because the kick point is off or the shaft flex is slightly stiffer or softer than another brand/model. Once you get to a certain point, like @Groucho Valentine, a more specific and in depth fitting for a club shaft may be more beneficial because errant ball flight is much less likely to be caused by a swing flaw as opposed to flex and kick point characteristics.

[Tat14]

If you really like your driving performance as of late, you may want to take note of the shaft specs you currently have. Useful the next time you go shopping.

[oregongolfguy]

i would say depends on how well the existing shaft fits.

there is a pretty big performance difference for me going from say a 40gram r flex 46" shaft and a 60-70 gram s flex 45" shaft.  but with similiar specs...not so much.  although i always thought thr rip shafts looked cool

[David in FL]

1 hour ago, oregongolfguy said:

i would say depends on how well the existing shaft fits.

there is a pretty big performance difference for me going from say a 40gram r flex 46" shaft and a 60-70 gram s flex 45" shaft.  but with similiar specs...not so much.  although i always thought thr rip shafts looked cool

This.  

If your current shaft is completely inappropriate, you may benefit a lot.  If it's close to what you really need, not so much...

[jkelley9]

17 minutes ago, David in FL said:

This.  

If your current shaft is completely inappropriate, you may benefit a lot.  If it's close to what you really need, not so much...

So if I'm hitting the ball well, has a good flight, and I feel good tempo in my swing then I can reasonably assume that it's pretty decent for me already? Or did I just learn how to swing this shaft to produce those results? I'm hitting 220 yard carries with some good roll from a nice draw (240-250 yard total). 5' 7" shorty guy relatively athletic build. I feel like I'm probably never going to hit farther than maybe 260 yards?

This is where I'm getting lost. I'm wondering if it's better to just learn how to swing the club with the equipment it has (shaft), versus looking at getting a new shaft.

I'm assuming that if you're a reasonably good player (single digit?) that has played a LOT (years) so you have a muscle memory swing where it's hard to break down and re-work on the swing then maybe that's the point at which you might want equipment over swing work?

Right now I haven't been playing for too too long so I'm able to sort of break down my swing and start over when I have massive flaws in my swing. So I'm thinking that now is NOT the time to be even close to thinking about a new shaft in my driver? Is this a reasonable assumption?

Edit: I have no idea what my ball spin or anything is for any of my clubs with my new swing. Would this tell me something?

Edited September 13, 2016 by jkelley9

[WUTiger]

5 hours ago, Groucho Valentine said:

It can pay off big if its done correctly. The only club I've gotten shaft fitted for is my driver, and its made a world of difference for me in that club. ...

In 2008, I got fitted for a driver. The pro checked my numbers on my old Zevo as baseline, and then had me hit seven different model drivers with R and S flex. It came down to a tie between a Calla HyperX Tour, and a Cleveland HiBore. I took the Calla because it "fit my eye better." It then held its own for 5 years against all other drivers I tested.

More recently, we're into a lot more adjustable drivers with the ability to swap shafts in and out with a magic wrench. I had narrowed my list of drivers at Christmas and at January and March demo days, and then made final selection in April. (Calla XR.16 Pro with R-flex Speeder 665 shaft - low/mid torque).

Recently, the club makers have been offering a wide variety of shafts for "no upcharge" both in long clubs and irons. Thus, a skilled and helpful fitter can get you an excellent fit shaft for stock price. For the standard XR.16 driver, Calla offers some 30 different shaft models for no additional cost. (And others available for upcharge)

A $400 shaft? If you have a well tuned swing, and consistently have between 103-107 MPH clubhead speed on your driver - and you have lots of $$ - the $400 shaft may be worth it. But for most of us, with much more variance in our swing, a tube roughly in our personal shaft zone will get it done.

[Groucho Valentine]

13 hours ago, WUTiger said:

In 2008, I got fitted for a driver. The pro checked my numbers on my old Zevo as baseline, and then had me hit seven different model drivers with R and S flex. It came down to a tie between a Calla HyperX Tour, and a Cleveland HiBore. I took the Calla because it "fit my eye better." It then held its own for 5 years against all other drivers I tested.

More recently, we're into a lot more adjustable drivers with the ability to swap shafts in and out with a magic wrench. I had narrowed my list of drivers at Christmas and at January and March demo days, and then made final selection in April. (Calla XR.16 Pro with R-flex Speeder 665 shaft - low/mid torque).

Recently, the club makers have been offering a wide variety of shafts for "no upcharge" both in long clubs and irons. Thus, a skilled and helpful fitter can get you an excellent fit shaft for stock price. For the standard XR.16 driver, Calla offers some 30 different shaft models for no additional cost. (And others available for upcharge)

A $400 shaft? If you have a well tuned swing, and consistently have between 103-107 MPH clubhead speed on your driver - and you have lots of $$ - the $400 shaft may be worth it. But for most of us, with much more variance in our swing, a tube roughly in our personal shaft zone will get it done.

Yeah, i imagine things a little different now from when i got mine done. This was like 4 years ago. Just the beginning swappable shaft era. I originally got my fitted shaft for a Titleist 910 model D3 Driver. But i put it in my 913 a few years ago and it still works great for me. Money well spent IMO. 

[jkelley9]

I have a TM R1 with the stock shaft in stiff @ 10-deg loft.

I was not fitted for this driver, I merely bought it on craigslist because it was on the cheaps and I verified it was authentic. I was fitted when I had my TM R11 in regular flex @ 9.5-deg loft. That was when they told me to cut down ~1/2" on the shaft, for that driver. Which is what I did when I got my new driver as well (R1).

I'm wondering if I would benefit from another fitting just with my driver... to see if I should adjust the weights, lofts, etc? Do you think this would beneficial?

[TourSpoon]

A shaft fitting in general is not going to turn a 20 cap into a 7 but it may give you more carry, better ball flight, and a tighter dispersion. Once you are "In the Ballpark" it's about fine tuning to just squeeze that last bit of efficiency from your swing. It really is the law of diminishing returns but 3 yards of carry is 3 yards of carry. When I got my Razr Fit TA, I went in several times to the launch monitor to optimize the loft and weights.