Some questions/comments/concerns from my recent fitting

[allenc]

I recently did an iron fitting that I mentioned in another thread, but I wanted to change the topic to some of the fitting and launch monitor specifics.  There were a couple things I didn't think to ask the fitter at the time, so I'll ask the internet.  First here are my Trackman averages for 3 swings with my old 6-iron (gamer) and about a dozen swings with the club I was finally recommended.

First of all "gamer" goes farther and lower because it was measured to have about 5* more loft than jpx.  As far as the weighting of the club affected my swing, the heavier jpx reduced my swing speed but increased my smash factor enough to deem it to be causing me to swing better.  

...smash factor questions:

    - I looked up PGA/LPG tour averages for 6 irons and the smash factor is at most 1.40.  Obviously they hit it better than I so how can mine be so high?

    - LPGA tour players impart 6000 rpms of spin with their 6 iron -- 5000 with 5 iron, maybe their lofts are higher -- so is their reduced smash factor caused by more energy being imparted toward spinning the ball rather than sending it forward?

    - Is the fact the the JPX has a 'hot' face the cause?  If so then why were we dismissing other clubs that gave more spin with a less hot face just because I couldn't achieve as high a smash factor? (that might not have been the only reason).  ie. "Wow, great swing, that's about as well as you can hit it.  But look, you only got 1.45, lets move on."

    - There was a lighter shaft (similar to my gamer) that I hit a very close second to the Paderson smash factor wise.  We didn't really discuss whether the extra 5 mph club speed I would get might be worth having to be more careful with my tempo.  But carrying a 6-iron mid 170s rather than high 160s would certainly stretch out my yardages better.

...lie angle:

The way we decided on lie angle was something I hadn't seen or read before.  I hit off a lie board with sole and face impact tape as usual.  But the fitter used the fact that I made dead center face contact 3 times in a row that the lie angle was correct.  Even though the sole contact was a bit toward the toe.  But...

    - I had hit a whole bunch of other shots earlier with the same club and missed the center with several of those.

    - I thought the point was if the club isn't level when hitting the ball your face would be pointing left or right.

    - Although the fitter didn't say so, in defense of toe down, I was obviously hitting lots of draws and hooks according to the Trackman data.  So maybe that would straighten it out a bit.

 

[Lagavulin62]

Well I think doing your own research is the best bet. I won't even go into all the technicals but my advice would be to take that recommended 6 iron and hit it a few sessions at a real grass range. Then work from there. I do agree with him on the lie, but primarily because you need to hit that club many times on grass to get the best indication of your needs. Bottom line, no matter what they advise, you will find out on the range if it works. 

[iacas]

There are enough questions on there that I'd be concerned too.

The first one is why you swung your iron 4.5 MPH faster than the other one. Was the shaft shorter, was it heavier, etc.?

1.45 smash factor with a 6-iron is… yeah, it's a bit crazy. 1.48 is even more so. 1.38 is what I see here: