Interesting Shaft vs Head Comment

[JB]

Had a long talk with a now retired club designer yesterday, who's resume is pretty stellar. He said in his testing and working with everything from tour players to high handicaps, one thing held true.

If he handed a player a club with a shaft that was too soft, and they hit it, they said the shaft was not for them.
If he handed a player a club with a shaft that was too stout, and they hit it, they said they didnt like the club head.

Both of those things are regardless of results.

Do you agree or disagree? And why?

 

[ttucliffhanger]

I can see that. too soft can make it feel wippy and too stout can change the feel of the club in general.

 

[baylrballa]

Hmmm, something like that has never crossed my mind.
I would agree a too soft/too light shaft is much easier to feel than the opposite

And I would guess the mishit feedback would be harsher on stiffer shafts but have nothing to back up that statement.

 

[smgoldstein]

Makes sense. Seems like an ego thing to me. "This is a X flex-must be the head"

 

[BuffaloPlunger]

I think that makes perfect sense. Feel, in my mind, directly correlates with comfort. If you’re not comfortable with a club, why use it?

 

[PhillyV]

That might be right on for me haha i just switched to a less stout driver shaft and my first thought was "man this feels great"

 

[Daluteh]

The statements make sense to me. You probably have more shaft feedback when it's more whippy and it could feel different. You probably think (and maybe you do) have more head feedback when it's too stiff and that makes you think about that piece of the club more.

I would never have gotten to that conclusion on my own, but if it is presented as a truth I also can't see a position to argue it.

 

[AnthonyC]

That's pretty interesting.

 

[AnthonyC]

I agree because the player can feel that shaft whip, most likely. However with lack of shaft movement or whip, all they feel is the head.

 

[Just_Brad]

Interesting.
I can see it with the shaft, with it maybe throwing off timing etc.
Weird that people would say it is a head issue with the shaft being too stout, and that they wouldn't identify it as being a shaft issue as well.
In my own experience if the shaft gets too stout, I tend to think the flight gets lower, I guess that could be seen as a head issue....

 

[MarMill]

I am not sure. Sounds like a good test in the tech studio.

 

[Greg Kulbick]

I wonder if it has more to do with the feel at impact through the hands...

 

[Iceman!]

I never blamed the head.
When I get a shaft where the profile doesn't fit me, I always say "I feel like I'm working too hard to make it work"

 

[willplaysgolf]

Feeling like you don't have control of the shaft is a bad feeling, so makes sense when a shaft is too soft. You are kind of feeling that perceived lack of control before you make contact, so it feels like the shaft.

When a shaft is too stout, you have the illusion of more control, so when you make poor contact, it feels like the problem is in the head.

Seems logically illogical to me, haha

 

[golfinnut]

Not for them = ball is going all over the map. Army golf .... left, right, left, right.

Don't like the head = they aren't hitting it square, off the toe one time, off the heel the next. So there is no 'feel' in the head of what a pure shot would be like. I know if a shaft is too stout for me, I tend to overcompensate & swing harder each time since the shaft is either too heavy or there is no tip action.

Either way, it's the shafts fault & not the head.

 

[OldandStiff]

I definitely see that. I definitely see plenty of people with the wisdom to say that shaft is too stiff for them too.

 

[Scorp]

I wouldn't doubt it. It's never the golfer's fault is it? It's always the equipment.

 

[alistaird]

I'm with them on that - with a soft shaft I can not feel where the club head is and hate it....

A

 

[Hawk]

I wonder how much of that has to do with impact when it comes to the too-stiff shaft.

 

[Templet0n]

soft feels good, stout feels harsh.. regardless of head. It is interesting where the blame goes though.

 

[jbb2388]

Perception differences and biases are an interesting thing

 

[That post]

The feel of a shaft that is too stiff is pretty terrible at impact so I can see people equating that with the head.

 

[Tee/Ski]

Geez, that does make sense but for me, this is a rabbit hole.

I’d always wonder “what if”.

 

[blugold]

I guess, I agree that was his experience. Personally, I haven't come across that but I also don't experiment with shafts and heads often

 

[Coloradomrg]

In my own experience, this sounds about right I know my previous 3W head was good, but the shaft wasn't right for me (too stiff, and low launch). I developed a mindset of that club in it's entirety wasn't for me.