X-Stiff Shafts thinking of slowing swing speed

[AndrewB242]

I have been playing golf for about 5 years now but never really invested time into equipment or training but that has all changed. I got a deal on basically mint JPX 800 pro clubs with KBS Tour X shafts. I had my swing speed clocked around 110 at about 90% effort so I was told the X shafts would work for me but I have some worries. The other day on the range I was hitting shots at about 70% effort which I was spreading the ball (slice/hook/fat) but when I bumped up the effort to 90% I was hitting straight screamers that had penetrating flight with fades. Obviously distances between the 2 efforts were incredibly different (50+ yrds) as well. My worry: at 70% I felt more in control of my swing and more consistent with my technique but at 90% I felt that though I maintained my technique I had little control/stability; yet the ball flight was the complete opposite for the 2 efforts. Was this due to the shaft stiffness and slowing my swing down or was trying to slow my swing down throwing off my timing/ tempo causing my troubles? Or is this just a simple case of needing my practice so that I become comfortable swinging my club at 90% effort? What should I do? 

[Rainmaker]

More likely to cause dispersion issues would be shafts that are too flexible.  Shafts that are too stiff wouldn't necessarily cause increased shot dispersion.  It's probably a feel thing and slowing down your swing causing you to go off. 

I recently upgraded to irons with stiff shafts.  I'm at the borderline of needing regular vs stiff shafts and my previous irons were regular flex.  Initially the stiff shafts felt very stiff to me . .like I needed to swing extra hard just to "make 'em work right".   I quickly got used to them, though, and they don't feel that way anymore. 

One of my current practice routines is hitting shots in close-to-slow-motion . .so the shafts definitely work at slow speeds.  I say .. since you got em, give yourself a chance to get used to them . .think it took me about 4-5 practice sessions. If you just can't get used to them then sell them off and go get fit for new shafts or irons. 

[Hatchman]

Welcome Andrew.    Good topic for me to keep my eye on also.   Having a correct shaft and making it work right; and, having a good and correct swing may be separate issues.  My box of pulled shafts in the garage may attest to this (@ 120g - 90g) :).    

[AndrewB242]

On ‎12‎/‎7‎/‎2016 at 6:51 AM, Hatchman said:

Welcome Andrew.    Good topic for me to keep my eye on also.   Having a correct shaft and making it work right; and, having a good and correct swing may be separate issues.  My box of pulled shafts in the garage may attest to this (@ 120g - 90g) :).    

You are right. I am kind of a big athletic guy so I like weight behind my clubs which I seem to get from stiff steel shafts. May stick with them and see how well I do.

On ‎12‎/‎7‎/‎2016 at 1:42 AM, Rainmaker said:

More likely to cause dispersion issues would be shafts that are too flexible.  Shafts that are too stiff wouldn't necessarily cause increased shot dispersion.  It's probably a feel thing and slowing down your swing causing you to go off. 

I recently upgraded to irons with stiff shafts.  I'm at the borderline of needing regular vs stiff shafts and my previous irons were regular flex.  Initially the stiff shafts felt very stiff to me . .like I needed to swing extra hard just to "make 'em work right".   I quickly got used to them, though, and they don't feel that way anymore. 

One of my current practice routines is hitting shots in close-to-slow-motion . .so the shafts definitely work at slow speeds.  I say .. since you got em, give yourself a chance to get used to them . .think it took me about 4-5 practice sessions. If you just can't get used to them then sell them off and go get fit for new shafts or irons. 

Thanks. I think this is the answer I was looking for. I do believe in slowing my swing down I started thinking to much of rhythm and motion dissecting my swing as I go through it. When I put more power behind it I just swing away which may be the difference. I will give the clubs a shot I've heard pretty good reviews about them.

[Lihu]

On 12/6/2016 at 9:25 AM, AndrewB242 said:

I have been playing golf for about 5 years now but never really invested time into equipment or training but that has all changed. I got a deal on basically mint JPX 800 pro clubs with KBS Tour X shafts. I had my swing speed clocked around 110 at about 90% effort so I was told the X shafts would work for me but I have some worries. The other day on the range I was hitting shots at about 70% effort which I was spreading the ball (slice/hook/fat) but when I bumped up the effort to 90% I was hitting straight screamers that had penetrating flight with fades. Obviously distances between the 2 efforts were incredibly different (50+ yrds) as well. My worry: at 70% I felt more in control of my swing and more consistent with my technique but at 90% I felt that though I maintained my technique I had little control/stability; yet the ball flight was the complete opposite for the 2 efforts. Was this due to the shaft stiffness and slowing my swing down or was trying to slow my swing down throwing off my timing/ tempo causing my troubles? Or is this just a simple case of needing my practice so that I become comfortable swinging my club at 90% effort? What should I do? 

 

50+ yards with an iron at 110mph driver swing speed is huge. For instance, that's like a 6i carrying from 180 yards down to 130 yards? I can't imagine that much difference without some serious change in the swing?

Unfortunately, there is no simple fix type of answer. It's one of those things that requires a swing video to see what's going on, and potentially a swing fix. Not saying that I can figure out what's wrong with a video, but there are people on this site who can. . .

[Piz]

Sounds like the missing 20 per cent is being drawn from the wrong source(s).

[AndrewB242]

2 hours ago, Lihu said:

 

50+ yards with an iron at 110mph driver swing speed is huge. For instance, that's like a 6i carrying from 180 yards down to 130 yards? I can't imagine that much difference without some serious change in the swing?

Unfortunately, there is no simple fix type of answer. It's one of those things that requires a swing video to see what's going on, and potentially a swing fix. Not saying that I can figure out what's wrong with a video, but there are people on this site who can. . .

I think I may need to take your advice and make a video of my swing. I would say I saw the greatest distance variations with my longer iron 5-4i whereas I slowed my swing down the most. For a good comparison I would say my 6i there was a 20-30 yrd difference between 70 and 90% swing effort. When I'm swinging with confidence 180-190 yrds is my 6i range but when I slow down and concentrate on contact and control it drops to 160-170 which I can easily hit with my 9i. I just feel I'm not getting the best out of my clubs when I hold back impact feels clanky but when I put in the hammer down I barely feel when I make contact. But I do believe I should make a video and have it analyzed. 

[Buckeyebowman]

I would say look at your ball flight! If the results are satisfactory at 90% effort, than that is where the shafts in your clubs work! Why argue with success!

[AndrewB242]

7 minutes ago, Buckeyebowman said:

I would say look at your ball flight! If the results are satisfactory at 90% effort, than that is where the shafts in your clubs work! Why argue with success!

and that's where my mind and heart are at. I just don't like the feeling like 'skating on thin ice' when I swing at 90%. But I guess that's where practice comes in.

[Buckeyebowman]

8 minutes ago, AndrewB242 said:

and that's where my mind and heart are at. I just don't like the feeling like 'skating on thin ice' when I swing at 90%. But I guess that's where practice comes in.

I can appreciate that. Don't know how old you are, but if you're under 40 I'd say go for the gusto! I'm 64 now, and 40 years ago I could really bomb it out there! Played the blues! Nowadays I can still play the whites, but God knows how much longer that will last! Not quite ready to "graduate" to the gold, meaning "old", tees!

Enjoy your length while you have it! Practice it, define it, refine it! It's a wonderful thing!

[AndrewB242]

11 minutes ago, Buckeyebowman said:

I can appreciate that. Don't know how old you are, but if you're under 40 I'd say go for the gusto! I'm 64 now, and 40 years ago I could really bomb it out there! Played the blues! Nowadays I can still play the whites, but God knows how much longer that will last! Not quite ready to "graduate" to the gold, meaning "old", tees!

Enjoy your length while you have it! Practice it, define it, refine it! It's a wonderful thing!

I'm 32 former all round athlete so not in my best shape I can be. Working on getting fit which I think can add another 10-20 yrds to my game. And I love going for the gusto on a avg par 4 and wedging my 2nd shot. Really starting to fall in love with the game wishing to take it to the next level. 

[Pretzel]

The only issue I've seen with playing shafts that are too stiff is that you might lose distance (which you noticed) or you might start letting the ball hang out to the right a bit more (which is fairly consistent if it happens, not wildly spraying the ball). I would suspect that you're changing something between the two swing effort levels that makes you more inconsistent rather than the shaft being the culprit for anything but some of the distance loss (since you lose the effect of loading the shaft at lower speeds). 

That said, you should only swing as hard as you can while still feeling as though you maintain control. It does appear that you're in control at your 90% though if you are hitting it consistently, so I wouldn't worry too much about swinging at that level unless you start hitting it wild or inconsistently.

KBS shafts are fantastic, I have the same one in my s55's and love them, though I do have a driver SS of about 12-15 mph faster than you so your mileage may vary. The feel on them is pretty great though for an x-flex shaft, so that's a definite plus.

[Lihu]

14 hours ago, AndrewB242 said:

I think I may need to take your advice and make a video of my swing. I would say I saw the greatest distance variations with my longer iron 5-4i whereas I slowed my swing down the most. For a good comparison I would say my 6i there was a 20-30 yrd difference between 70 and 90% swing effort. When I'm swinging with confidence 180-190 yrds is my 6i range but when I slow down and concentrate on contact and control it drops to 160-170 which I can easily hit with my 9i. I just feel I'm not getting the best out of my clubs when I hold back impact feels clanky but when I put in the hammer down I barely feel when I make contact. But I do believe I should make a video and have it analyzed. 

That is extremely good control you have over your body!

Personally, I could feel like I'm using 25% effort and actually be at 70%. This makes me jealous. . .

 

 

13 hours ago, AndrewB242 said:

I'm 32 former all round athlete so not in my best shape I can be. Working on getting fit which I think can add another 10-20 yrds to my game. And I love going for the gusto on a avg par 4 and wedging my 2nd shot. Really starting to fall in love with the game wishing to take it to the next level. 

That kind of explains things. . .

 

8 hours ago, Pretzel said:

The only issue I've seen with playing shafts that are too stiff is that you might lose distance (which you noticed) or you might start letting the ball hang out to the right a bit more (which is fairly consistent if it happens, not wildly spraying the ball). I would suspect that you're changing something between the two swing effort levels that makes you more inconsistent rather than the shaft being the culprit for anything but some of the distance loss (since you lose the effect of loading the shaft at lower speeds). 

That said, you should only swing as hard as you can while still feeling as though you maintain control. It does appear that you're in control at your 90% though if you are hitting it consistently, so I wouldn't worry too much about swinging at that level unless you start hitting it wild or inconsistently.

KBS shafts are fantastic, I have the same one in my s55's and love them, though I do have a driver SS of about 12-15 mph faster than you so your mileage may vary. The feel on them is pretty great though for an x-flex shaft, so that's a definite plus.

Definitely lose distance.

From what I understand, using a stiffer shaft is only so you can control a faster swing better. A few weeks ago, one of my range buddies who is used to using a G30 with a 55gm shaft tried to hit my driver which is an i25 PWR75 Tour X Stiff, and barely carried 150 yards with an anemic 10-15 yard high flight. It rolled for another 40 yards. He kept trying and trying, but could never get it to land past the 150 yard flag.

This was an extreme case, but that's also been my experience.

[Pretzel]

10 hours ago, Lihu said:

Definitely lose distance.

From what I understand, using a stiffer shaft is only so you can control a faster swing better. A few weeks ago, one of my range buddies who is used to using a G30 with a 55gm shaft tried to hit my driver which is an i25 PWR75 Tour X Stiff, and barely carried 150 yards with an anemic 10-15 yard high flight. It rolled for another 40 yards. He kept trying and trying, but could never get it to land past the 150 yard flag.

This was an extreme case, but that's also been my experience.

3

True enough, I know in high school a bunch of underclassmen wanted to try out my old G10 with a Proforce V2 X-flex in it (super low torque, reasonably tip stiff) and not one of them could get it much above what you're describing in terms of height. 

I haven't tried to hit a regular shaft in a while, so I can't say for certain that it would result in an increase in distance, and I know people will only lose distance in a too-stiff shaft if they're not properly loading the lighter flex anyways.

It sounds to me like the 75% swing wasn't fast enough to properly load the shaft, causing the big distance loss.

[AndrewB242]

Thanks for all the input. I guess I have the bug. Can't stop thinking of the game and itching to play. Hope to be a more active on this site and take my game to the next level.

 

On ‎12‎/‎11‎/‎2016 at 8:53 PM, Buckeyebowman said:

I would say look at your ball flight! If the results are satisfactory at 90% effort, than that is where the shafts in your clubs work! Why argue with success!

and that's where my mind and heart are at. I just don't like the feeling like 'skating on thin ice' when I swing at 90%. But I guess that's where practice comes in.