Are you playing the loft you think you are?

I recently read an article that cannot be linked here discussing the accuracy of stamped lofts on clubs. The industry standard tolerance is +/- 1 degree so right off the bat your club could be up to a degree off. The study found even more troubling results. Only 8% of drivers tested were in spec. 16% were off by more than 2%. Of the 105 drivers tested only 7 had less loft than marked. Mizuno was on spec the most, Cobra the least. Part of it is also intended by the makers

"Our targets have been historically 0.5-1° weak in loft for drivers and fairways to account for the buying psychology of not buying enough loft. Usually we err on the side of more loft to help golfers, even though they won’t admit that they need more loft." – Tom Olsavsky, Senior Director of Product Creation for Metalwoods at TaylorMade

Very interesting stuff.

My driver is set at "just right". Doesn't matter what the loft is marked at.

This is pretty common. I guess this is why some people buy tour issue heads. With adjustable drivers and launch monitors, I don't think this is that big of an issue anymore.

I probably am playing a different loft from what I know. It's the sad truth, but I happens a lot.

This I just like having a club shaft stating it's a S-Flex but it truly is a R-Flex. Since the clubs are mass manufactured, this happens so many times.

There was a rather large thread with some great data a few months ago. Can't find it anymore though

Edit: Here it is http://www.thehackersparadise.com/f...y-stamp-on-the-bottom&highlight=measured+loft

Interesting... my driver is the exact one (head and shaft) I hit during my fitting process. So whether it is to spec or not doesn't matter to me. It is exactly right for me!

OEM's ability to create clubs to spec is generally poor. It's not just loft but lie angle and swing weight as well. That's why it never hurts to have them checked.

I had some Cleveland wedges a couple of years ago where my 56 degree was flying normal distance but the 50 degree was perplexing me so I took them to the golf store. I had them check the loft and the 56 was right at 56 but the 50 was at 51 1/2 which explained the distance issue I was having with it. I had them bend it to 50 and all was good. Anymore I have them check the specs on all irons or wedges I buy before I leave the store. As to driver, I'm with others in that I buy one that is giving me the best numbers so I don't care if it's 1/2 or 1 degree off the stamped loft.

blugold said:

My driver is set at "just right". Doesn't matter what the loft is marked at.

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Yeah mine too, after some testing with my lofts and my club pro showing me the best launch for my driver, I set it to +.5 degrees and left it there, according to the launch monitor, I was getting 11* of
Launch, so maybe it's 10.5 or 11* lol all I know is that the 11* launch have me a solid ball flight and distance


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I'm actually a little surprised to hear that that many are off, especially when every wedge or iron advertisement boasts about having the most precise grooves in the industry, You'd think that they would have lofts and lie as an automatic. I am with everyone else though, if I hit it well on a regular basis i'm not gonna worry about it.

i've never really thought of it. I'm pretty content with my set up but would be interested to see true loft.

to me its actually not simply just OK for this to be. Quite frankly it annoys me. My fiiter I went to ( last summer) told me the same thing. That they are all over the place. And I dont like waht that TM rep stated. These companies advertise and over-hype technology,materials, precision, performance, etc.... You get fitted, you spend big money, you buy the so called "best clubs" and then you dont end up with what you believe you bought or what was your recomended fitting. Its just not right if you ask me.

You may buy a 10.5 or whatever your supose to buy and then you end up with 12 or 13 or whatever. Just wrong! And to say what TM said is even worse. It would of been one thing to say if it was not possible to be so precise within a degree but to say they do it on purpose and then also add the fact its not precise as well. Its just not acceptable to me that such high priced and prestigious best equipment as they'd have you believe is sold to you and then its not what it is? And this is just supose to be OK? Well it certainly shouldnt be.

Shafts are one thing because there is no standard for what stiff, reg, or soft should fall into so with that they are all over the place even worse. One companies stiff is anothers regular and then changes and can be all over with shafts within the same companies. All they'd have to do is create a standard of CPM range and from there determine to call one S, or R, or senior, whatever. Like so. = A range of "x thru y" is stif. A range of "a thru c" is reg and so on etc.... Its not so hard but there is no standard so even though not the right thing to do iether I can almost except that they are all over with the shafts.

But not with driver and wood heads or even irons as well. That should not be the case. And if they want to cater to ego's thats is wrong. If someone is innocently ignorant to what they need or wether someone is stubborn or needs to satisfy an ego with a lower loft is no reason to purposely make higher lofted clubs than what is marked. No matter which one of those reasons someone wants a lower lower loft than they require it should be thier own problem.

This just shows me (as discussed in other threads) about how fancy names, fancy looks, over hyped tech and advertising is more geared towards the new kid on the block or the egotistical player that just buys whats cool and to me shows a loss of integrity towards the maker. If they are as great and proffessional as they showcase themselves to be then they should be above the worrying about purposely making drivers higher than whats marked just so people who dont buy the correct equipment will hit longer because they really need a higher loft than what thier ignorance or ego's tell them. In my eyes (along with overhyped tech and advertising about being the best best ever and the longest ever ever) is another way they lose integrity IMO. They should make them what they are marked as being and except for tollerences they should be what they are marked. They are supose to be proffessionals making top noch equipment for the game and its not that the equipment isnt good or great but having such equipment not be what it is marked to be and actualy to do it on purpose which such the reason they gave is a total let down in many ways.

OK, Im done. lol

When all's said and done, they are in it to make money. If 8.5* guy hits and 8.5* driver, chanced are he won't succeed. But if he grabs an 8.5* driver really that is 10*, he might bomb it. Sold.

JF said:

When all's said and done, they are in it to make money. If 8.5* guy hits and 8.5* driver, chanced are he won't succeed. But if he grabs an 8.5* driver really that is 10*, he might bomb it. Sold.

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Yea but IMO its still the wrong thing to do. If the guy with the 8.5 driver needs a 10 then all he has to do is actually hit the 10 and also bomb it and "sold". Unless his ego or ignorance forces him to buy the 8.5 anyway and than that it his own fault. Yes your right, its about sales and thats why to me ther is a loss of integrity with the brand.

I don't like it but I'll get over it. This just speaks to the importance of getting fit and thoroughly trying a club out prior to opening the wallet.

I am actually not surprised by this one bit and was told by a pro and club builder that TM is the worst about this and the quote by them verifies it. He said its not all that uncommon to see clubs in a set with the same loft coming from TM.

I think its crap that manufacturers miss label their clubs because of ego's of buyers. When i purchase something I expect that it is what they say it is.

I know with fittings it shouldn't matter what the loft says on the club but when you are trying to compare clubs it makes it difficult when all 10.5's aren't 10.5 or close to it.

I know this isn't the same concept, but I highly recommen anyone playing forged clubs get them checked a couple times a year. When I was playing competitive golf, I owned a Mitchell and checked my clubs every couple of weeks, and at least one was always out of spec. I realize you can drive yourself crazy with this; however, it's amazing how much forged heads can move.

ArmyGolf said:

I don't like it but I'll get over it. This just speaks to the importance of getting fit and thoroughly trying a club out prior to opening the wallet.

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yes but there still an issue, infact two isues. One being that even the same exact driver can varry in loft due to the +or- 1 tollorances alone and then theres no telling how much extra exactlythey gave each individual club even if the same head.

Then lets say ur fitter recomends you for a 9.5 and you already checked or are going to check out different drivers. You not always just going to be able to check each driver in every loft. So you may as often people do, find one you like swinging very much even though not your loft you decide thats the one for you and so you order one but order it in your recomended loft. And thats it, you ordered it, it comes in, its yours, then you never know its not the 9.5.

And I wonder now if you buy one and have it checked and if anything more than the marked spec or within tollorence of such, can you send it back? IDK.

rollin said:

yes but there still an issue, infact two isues. One being that even the same exact driver can varry in loft due to the +or- 1 tollorances alone and then theres no telling how much extra exactlythey gave each individual club even if the same head.

Then lets say ur fitter recomends you for a 9.5 and you already checked or are going to check out different drivers. You not always just going to be able to check each driver in every loft. So you may as often people do, find one you like swinging very much even though not your loft you decide thats the one for you and so you order one but order it in your recomended loft. And thats it, you ordered it, it comes in, its yours, then you never know its not the 9.5.

And I wonder now if you buy one and have it checked and if anything more than the marked spec or within tollorence of such, can you send it back? IDK.

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Great question, but I don't know the answer. I do know my driver loft is on spec because I can get it hand picked to the exact loft I want from the factory, but I don't know of any OEM's that would do this...well unless you're on tour.

Perkins Rooster said:

Great question, but I don't know the answer. I do know my driver loft is on spec because I can get it hand picked to the exact loft I want from the factory, but I don't know of any OEM's that would do this...well unless you're on tour.

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hahaha lol. Yea I guess, if I was on tour.

Crazy huh, my Ping irons I bought and had bent to 1 degree upright (yellow dot).
From the set the guy at Golfsmith said all had to be tweaked 1-3 degrees to what I wanted from their standard loft(black dot).
The rep told me that is normal that almost nothing is as it says.

Yes, have learned to not measure the book by it's cover.