What is the magic question for Driver Fittings?

Tonight I thought I would watch a well know golf show on a well know golf channel since there was to be a discussion on hitting drivers.

The show also included a discussion on driver fittings, and how it is now "easy" to get fit for a driver using one of the new fitting carts from an OEM company.

The first interesting thing that I heard is that the person doing the show plays a 44-1/2 inch driver - which is great, he knows that the longer drivers sold in stores fit only a small element of the golfing community.

The rest of the show consisted of lots of discussions on how things affect club performance - like shaft weight affecting ball spin (not true), and playing a larger head can be good for someone who slices the ball (not true, in fact the opposite is more likely to help). Or if you want to reduce ball spin you can play a stiffer shaft (not true in general, maybe for some - but then what does the stiffer shaft do for your overall driver performance?).

My takeaway for YOU from this show is what you should do if you consider having a driver fitting done using a fitting cart from an OEM. You need to ask the Magic Question as much as possible - and that question is WHY?

If someone tells you playing a bigger head can help you eliminate a slice, ask them to explain why. If they suggest that a heavier shaft helps you to reduce spin, ask them why. It is your money, and your golf game - you deserve to know if the person doing the fitting actually understands what the influence of things like club flex, shaft weight, clubhead size, etc.

And if they do not have good, understandable answers to your questions - well, then you need to decide if this is the right place to spend your money.

The Fit Is IT!!

Tony

Driver Fitting Basics......

There is presently a lot of buzz about some new driver heads that have weights about 25 grams or so lighter than present "conventional" driver heads. These are being promoted to produce more clubhead speed and more distance with the driver. One of the ads I saw for a light driver suggested it would be best to play with a 47.5 inch shaft. This is more than 1.5 inches longer than present driver shafts that you can purchase in stores, and this recommendation is being made so that the club swingweight will be heavy enough so that you can feel the clubhead.

While I am not convinced that lightweight drivers are a good option for most players, here are some basics that you might want to consider when you purchase your next driver - hopefully from a precision clubfitter:

1. The key fitting elements that affect the performance of a driver are the club length, shaft flex and flex profile, club swingweight/MOI - AND how you swing the driver (more on that later).

2. For any player of any level of skill, the maximum performance you will get from a driver in terms of Carry Distance is 2.5 times your swing speed. So if you have a swing speed of 100 mph, the maximum carry you will achieve will be 250 yards. No matter what anyone tells you, with whatever head and shaft combination you use, you will not carry the ball further than this. And this is with perfect contact on the sweet spot of the clubhead.

3. For players of swing speeds of 70 mph or lower, the 2.5 factor is more like 2.2. So for a player with a 70 mph swing speed, the most he will be able to carry his drives is about 154 yards. Again, with best contact on the sweet spot.

4. Contact with the sweet spot of the driver is king! So if you can find a club length, shaft, and swingweight/MOI combination that promotes the most consistent contact on the sweet spot, you will have the best opportunity to maximize carry distance.

5. For slower swing speeds, drivers with higher lofts can help to provide maximum carry distance.

6. Now beyond carry distance to total distance - roll out of the drive is influenced by ball speed, launch angle, and ball spin. The shaft can have some influence on ball spin, but most likely your technique will have a major influence on your ball spin. The ball you play with can also have an influence.

7. If you decide to have a fitting done for your driver, a key parameter that is measured as part of the fitting is the Power Transfer Ratio - PTR - which is the ratio of the ball speed divided by your swing speed. For drivers option PTR is about 1.48, and if your measured PTR is much below this you are not achieving optimum conditions with the driver you are testing.

8. Finally, of you do decide to hit some very long drivers with lengths in the range of 47-1/2 inches, if at all possible do some test with impact labels. If you see you are consistently hitting this driver in the center of the face great. But if not most likely this club is too long for you.

Happy driving!

Tony

What IS A Driver Fitting?

I have done a pretty large number of driver fittings in the last month or so. In doing these, I have realized that it is important to set appropriate expectations for what can and cannot be accomplished in driver fittings.


There is no question that everyone would love to get more distance with their present driver head or with another driver head. This is always a key focus for a driver fitting. It is important to know, though, that the maximum that a player can carry a driver is pretty much defined by physics. If you know a player's swing speed, you can get a pretty good estimate of their maximum carry distance by multiplying their swing speed by 2.5. 100 mph swing speed, max driver carry length will be about 250 yards.


A major focus in all driver fittings that I do is consistency. I work to find the right length driver that the player can hit in the center of the clubface the most. Finding the right shaft for the player - based on his swing speed, swing tempo, and club release point - has a major influence on the ability for a player to hit consistent drives with minimal dispersion of shots.


Another important focus that can help consistency is shaft weight and club MOI/SW. These two variables can influence swing path and the ability of the player to close the clubface when he hits the ball. The right choice of shaft weight and/or MOI/swingweight can help the player to hit straighter shots or at least to reduce the magnitude of pull and pushed shots (see the 9 Ball Flight Laws from last week's post.....).


And yes you can also provide help to increase driving distance. Some players can benefit from a different type head, from a head that is smaller (to help them to be able to close the clubface), and sometimes with a head that has some offset or closed face angle - to reduce the magnitude of a slice.


For players with very slow swing speeds who want more distance, you can use very lightweight shafts with very soft flexes - and can use a superlightweight grip for the player so that they have the lightest possible club to swing. Or, in some cases, you can help them more by building them a 3 wood with 13 to 15 degrees of loft, or can build a driver that has a higher loft than often played.


There are, then, a LOT of ways to help players to improve their driving. Some can lead to more distance, and in a lot of cases increased consistency can be as important or more important as more distance.


Tony

Driver Fittings - And Optimal Flight Software

First things first though! - We spent the weekend with our grandson Emerson and his mom and dad this weekend, and I realized a little while ago that I did not write a blog post last night.....first time I forgot in about a year. I guess watching Emerson attempt to hit golf balls distracted me from getting on the computer last night!


It is going to be a busy driver testing and fitting week - one test session and two fitting sessions coming up. I am actually adding two great test heads to my fitting clubs - the Alpha V5 LX head and the SMT 455 DB head. Club Conex Faz Fit fittings to use with my present group of test shafts. Am also making up two new 44-1/2 inch test shafts to fill in some holes in test shaft group.


In addition to collecting data launch monitor and video fitting data (and using the BMT shaft fitting system for choosing the right driver shaft) a workhorse for driver fittings is the Optimal Flight software (www.qualitygolfstats.com). Optimal Flight takes the launch monitor data to another level of usefulness - it allows me to do a lot of "what if"" projections in terms of what launch angles and ball spin rates can produce the best driver results. It also has the capability to do Real Time collection of the launch monitor data so that I can evaluate how changes in launch parameters can improve results.


Today I purchased the 2010 version of the software - well, most likely just the first version this year, because the developer Todd Koss is great at updating Optimal Flight on an almost continual basis. He is going to help me with learning how to use some of the new capabilities of the new release - so that I can do a first test drive on Thursday night.


If you ever want to get a sense for what this software does, you can in fact purchase a 1 week license to use it and give it a thorough test drive. Or you can come to Centenial some time and let me show you the capabilities that it has. It is a First Class piece of software that is invaluable for driver fittings.


Tony

Who Is That "Average" Golfer?

I am beginning to wonder what that average golfer out there is, particularly in terms of the right lengths of clubs for him/her to play.


If I look over the fittings I have done in the past few months, I would say that "average" length clubs do not fit at least 50% of the people I am working with. Right now I am working with three people all who I expect will not fit into standard length irons and in fact will need irons that are a lot shorter than standard.


A large majority of my iron fitting clubs are built to do testing with people who fit into standard length clubs. And I can adapt these to be able to fit folks who need clubs just a bit longer or shorter than standard.


However, when people need clubs that are more than 1/2 inch shorter than standard, it is important to have some fitting equipment particularly devoted to these players. Today for example I rebuilt some driver fitting shafts so that I could do testing for players who might need 42-1/2, 43, or 43-1/2 inch long drivers..............................this is compared to the 45 inch plus drivers they would most likely buy in golf stores.


Shorter clubs can mean significantly lower swingweights/MOIs, and it becomes very important to test for swingweight/MOI for shorter sets - and add clubhead or shaft weight if necessary - and be sure players can "feel" the clubhead when they swing it. Often players who have shorter clubs have never been able to truly feel the weight of the head, and when they actually can get the right swingweight/MOI in their clubs their ball striking immediately improves.


Working with players who need shorter clubs is another gratifying experience - because often they have never felt what a golf club that is the right length and swingweight/MOI for them feels like and performs like.


Tony

Advice - I wonder what will happen....

I am not against giving players a bit of advice on golf clubs sometimes.....usually about the simple things like driver length.


I had a meeting this weekend with a pleasant person who is interested in getting new clubs. I made a few measurements with him and identified that he will likely play best with clubs shorter than standard length. Maybe a 43 to 43-1/2 inch length driver, and irons perhaps a half inch shorter than standard (cannot know real best lengths without impact label testing....).


During our discussion, I was wondering what might be the result if he went into a golf store and said "I am pretty sure I would play my best golf with a 43-1/2 inch length driver, what can you do for me?"


To my knowledge, all of the stores carry drivers that are at least 45 inches long. Someone in a store MIGHT say "well I can just cut that driver down to length for you and that would work." Well, if you cut down a driver from 45 inches to 43-1/2 inches, you reduce the swingweight of that driver 9 swingweight points. Say the 45 inch driver had a swingweight of D2, the cut down one would have a swingweight of C3 - very very light and probably not good for this player.


The right way to modify a driver to a reduced length is to add appropriate weight to the head, and/or to reshaft the driver with a heavier shaft. It can be made to work....but simply cutting the shaft to a reduced length will typically not work.


Still, I would love to be a fly on the wall for the conversation with the salesman about reduced length clubs.....


Tony

"Please Release Me!"

It has been a pretty quite week in Oak Ridge clubfitting land, because of big family visits for the baptism of grandbaby #2.


However, there are some interesting fitting developments coming up. I have been reading a number of posts lately related to fitting people who are hitting the ball High and Right (talking right handers....). And have had two similar discussions with local people who are having some similar results.


One is a single digit handicapper who is interested in getting more clubhead feel. I provided him some lead tape to put on the bottom of his club to test, and he said that adding 4 grams of lead tape was causing him to hit the ball high and right. Now, this is a player who has pretty good swing mechanics. So it is highly likely that the cause of high/right in this case is in fact due to the higher club swingweight and head weight that could be inhibiting him from closing the clubface - releasing the clubface - at the end of his swing. We are going to work together later this week with the Opti Vibe optimization weights - some weight down the shaft and some at the butt end, and vary the location of the weight down the shaft - to see if we can come up with an optimum club feel for him that can produce some more distance and not produce high/right shots.


Another case is just speculation at this time.....I got a call today from someone who hits his fairway woods well, but has the high/right shot pattern with his driver. I sent a post to the AGCP forum tonight asking for some feedback from others on solutions to high/right, and one of the answers from a fitter whose views I respect was Be Sure He Releases The Club (he said "Please Release Me!". And Ball Position can also be a cause of high/right.


It is also possible, however, that driver characteristics can be helping to promote High/Rightitis. If the driver is too long for this player (a good possibility...) then the player may not be setting up in an athletic position and may in fact not be able to release the club as he should. If the club swingweight/MOI is too high, then as much as he would like to be able to release the club, he might not be able to do so easily.


So no full answers on this yet - hopefully meeting with the second person later this week to get some club measurements as a start and then see if they tell me anything. And it is also clear that good swing mechanics are important - but also that sometimes club characteristics can keep a player from producing swings that provide good results. Bottom line - it is important to look at the combination of a player's swing and his clubs to find the true cause of mishit shots.


Tony

And The Driver Length Beat Goes On......

In my three years of professional clubfitting, I have not worked with one player who is playing a driver that is the right length for them. All too long. I think this is why I keep noting the lengths that PGA pros use for their drivers. I hope by doing this that as many readers of this blog will at least have an initial estimate made of what would be the best driver length for them.


This weekend I met a player who is taking lessons from Des Mahoney at Centenial, and Des steered him to me so that I could check his driver length. Another 46 inch driver, and in this case most likely he would hit his drives most solidly if he used a 44 to 44-1/2 inch driver.


And what is great about getting knowledge about the best driver length for you is that an initial fix for this is VERY easy. You can have a professional clubfitter cut some length from the end of shaft, add some lead tape to the bottom of the club so that the swingweight can be adjusted - cutting a half inch of lengh reduces swingweight by about 3 points, and adding 6 grams of weight increases swingweight the same 3 points.


The other often good element about adjusting swingweight by adding lead tape is that this also decreases the flex of the shaft. Many people are playing with store-purchased drivers that have shafts that are too stiff for their swings. So adding head weight can also have a positive influence on shaft flex for a lot of players.


When building drivers of lengths in the range of 44 to 44-1/2 inches, unless you use very heavy shafts it is necessary to add some weight in the hosel to achieve a swingweight that is a good fit for a player. Normally the best way to do this is to add "tip weights" that slip inside the shaft - 2 to 9 gram weights are typically available.


Today I purchased a new piece of equipment for my shop that will make adding appropriate weight to driver heads even easier. I bought the "Silencer System" from KC Products - it is a hot glue gun designed specifically for adding weight inside of driver heads. I believe this product is now used in many Tour club vans, and with it I will be able to add as much as 10 grams of addiitional weight inside of driver heads. My plan is to use this as a supplement for using tip weights to set the best driver swingweights for players.


If you are interested in finding out if you are playing the right length driver, I hope you will stop in to my Centenial fitting center on Saturdays or make an appointment to meet me there for some quick measurements. In 5 minutes I can do a quick evaluation of what your present driver length is and get a good approximation of what it should be. And you will have knowledge that can help you to play better golf.


Tony


PS - for the U.S. Open this week, a hard call as to who to root for more, Tiger or Phil. The best case is for the two of them to be playing in the final foursome on Sunday....how can it get any better than that!!

Those Great "Year End" Specials on OEM Drivers?

I continue to find it interesting when I get emails from different suppliers of OEM golf clubs advertising their year end driver specials.

At the same time, all of us are now seeing advertisements for the new great innovations in drivers - the coming 2009 models.

I guess all of this makes me want to pose a question......if that great driver from a year ago is now marked down by $100 to $200, what does that really mean? Does it mean that driver was not really worth the $399 (and sometimes more!) that players paid for it when purchased early in 2008?

If companies have to keep coming out with the "new greatest thing since sliced bread" to justify charging $399 for a driver at the beginning of the year, maybe that driver is not all that great for every golfer. Something to consider when you make your next driver purchase!


AND.....continuing the thread that I shared a few blog posts ago, today I received my February 2009 issue of Golf Magazine, and it had club specs for Camilo Villegas. Not unlike Stuart Appleby, Camilo plays a 44 inch length driver, and he plays a 3 wood that has 15.5 degrees of loft. I will continue to keep posting this data from Golf Magazine as I receive it, but that 44 inch driver length just keeps showing up!!


Tony

An Example Driver Fitting

I have promised my younger son, David, that I would do a driver fitting for him. He came home from Athens, GA this weekend (with our 1 year old grandson, Emerson!) and we finally had time to do this. It was an interesting fitting, and I thought some of you might like to hear some of the particulars about this one.

David hits the ball a mile, but not always straight. His primary interest in getting a new driver was not in obtaining more distance but in getting more consistency - hitting more fairways.

His present driver is a Cleveland Launcher 8.5 degree loft, 46 inch length. It has a Fijikura Launcher Gold 65 S flex shaft.

I first measured David's wrist to floor distance - it is 37-1/2 inches. Based on some correlations that I have from publications by Tom Wishon (33 years in the clubfitting and clubmaking business and one of the premier golf club designers) a first estimate of the correct driver length for David is 44-1/4 inches long - a lot shorter than the driver length he is presently playing.

I then made some measurements of his hand size to get an initial idea of the size of grip that would work well for him. He has the biggest hands I have yet measured in a golfer - the distance from his life line to the tip of his middle finger is about 9-3/8 inches. This is about an inch longer than the longest measurement I previously made for other golfers. My initial estimate is that he should be playing in grips that are at least 1/16 inch in diameter over the men's standard size. I asked him to grip his present driver, and it was clear that the size of this grip was approximately men's standard, much too small for him.

I then took some video of his golf swing (all of the fitting was done indoors at the Centenial Teaching/Fitting Facility). Based on looking at slow motion of his swing using his present driver, I found that his "tempo time" - from start of his swing to ball impact - was about 1 second, and that he "released" his wrist cock at about an 8 o'clock position (for comparison Tiger releases at about 6 o'clock, right at the ball location).

We then did testing to identify the driver length that David would hit most consistently in the center of the club. We did "impact label" testing with three different driver lengths - 44, 44-1/2, and 45 inch lengths - these tests were done with one driver head and three different shafts that could be attached to the head using the Club Conex "FAZ FIT" connector system. All of the test drivers had approximately the same D3 swingweight. The results were very clear - David hit EVERY shot in the middle of the clubface with the 44 inch driver, and the results with the other lengths were no where near as good as for the 44 inch length.

We then collected driver performance data using the Zelocity Launch Monitor. We did tests with David's present driver and with 5 other test drivers; all tests were done with the same test shaft and by adding weight (lead tape) to the head to make all test driver swingweights be approximately D3. David's average swing speed was about 116 mph (wow, what can I say....). The spin rate for the majority of his test shots was typically less than 3,000 rpm, a good range to be in but there is room for improvement by reducing ball spin.

The main purpose of the driver head testing was to identify if there was one head that produced significantly better performance results and that felt the best to David. One head did in fact provide better overall results - lower spin, slightly longer carry distance, and higher "power transfer ratio" - the ratio of ball speed to swing speed. However, David did not like the overall look of this driver head, and so the slightly better performance results were not as important to him.

The driver head that we finally decided on based on the performance testing was the Wishon 919 THI head. The test head that he hit was actually a bit higher in loft than the other test heads - 11 degrees compared to 9 degrees for the other heads - but overall performance results were comparable to those achieved with other test heads. And this particular head is one that has a high clubhead moment of intertia (MOI) and so is more forgiving of off center contact - again, remember David's desire to get more consistency in hitting fairways.

I then did some additional analyis of David's launch monitor test results to show him where there are some areas where he could improve his driving distance - in particular, lowering driver spin rate and increasing launch angle.

I used a shaft fitting program developed by Jerry Hoefling Sr. - a well respected AGCP clubfitter. Jerry's "BMT" software - butt, middle, tip - was used to identify the best candidate shaft for David's new driver. This software has a database of many available shafts where flex profiles have been measured to determine shaft butt, middle, and tip flexes. The program allows me to input the measured driver swing speed, swing tempo, and release point and choose a shaft that will be the best fit for David's swing. The shaft that is the best fit for him is the Aldila VS Proto "By You" shaft.

The final result of the fitting is that I will build David a Wishon 919THI 9.5 degree driver, 0 degree closed face, 44 inches long, with a Aldila VS Proto S shaft, and will build this to a final D3 swingweight. I will use an Midsize Star Grip that I will build up to slightly over 1/16 inch diameter over men's standard size.

And I hope that he does not use this new driver to beat his dear old dad in golf yet.....but if he beats his father in law, well what can I say!!


Tony