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Question from my fitting

Nippon Shafts
Shook

Shook

Shooktacular
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Last Saturday I finally went in for my iron fitting. I got on the launch monitor with my Nike VR Split Cavity 6-iron and my shots were all showing 125-135 yards total distance. However on an actual course my 6-iron is my 150-160yd club. I asked the pros doing my fitting about this difference and they swore up and down that it's always accurate and they've never seen anyone lose that much distance on the monitor compared to a real course. I think they thought it was my ego talking and that I was BSing them. But I really really do hit my 6-iron 150-160.

So I started trying other irons. They all hit the same 125-135 range as my Nikes. Then I got to the AP1s and the X-Hots. I hit these on the monitor in the 155-165 range. So my question (before I sink a bunch of money into these) - are they just accurate on the launch monitor and I will hit them in that range on a real course? Or will I see the distance gains from the monitor and hit them in the 175-190 range on an actual course?
 
You'd likely see a gain in distance. Can't say what exactly it would be though.
 
I'd say that you will see distance gains with the AP2 or Xhot, how much I don't know.

I'd see if you can take those irons to an outdoor range and compare them to your irons distance, trajectory and dispersion.
 
I'm with the OP. I'm not long by any means, but my 6 iron is my 150 - 160 yard club. On the monitor at Golfsmith it shows 135 yards. My driver is 215-225 on the course, on the monitor I don't even break the 200 yard mark. No big deal to me, and I don't even bother to ask about the discrepancy - I'm more interested in how the ball flights, than distance.
 
GenErr said:
I'm with the OP. I'm not long by any means, but my 6 iron is my 150 - 160 yard club. On the monitor at Golfsmith it shows 135 yards. My driver is 215-225 on the course, on the monitor I don't even break the 200 yard mark. No big deal to me, and I don't even bother to ask about the discrepancy - I'm more interested in how the ball flights, than distance.
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Whew glad I'm not the only one with that issue. Is that due to the way we swing, or maybe due to specific clubs?
 
Where did you go? I know TGW's monitor shows the same thing for me. Also depending whos monitor I'm on I get different results, so I have a hard time believing/trusting them
 
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bulldog said:
Where did you go? I know TGW's monitor shows the same thing for me. Also depending whos monitor I'm on I get different results, so I have a hard time believing/trusting them
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Golf Etc. The flight path seemed accurate. Just not the distance...
 
Shook said:
Golf Etc. The flight path seemed accurate. Just not the distance...
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I would wait till spring when all the Demo days start up and find where they are at an outside range and hit them , or just trust the fitting guys at Golf ECT for the correct shafts , length and lie , and buy the clubs you want then . Just hope you don't like any other shafts as its going to get expensive fast with them !
I did a driver fitting there and it wasn't a bad experience , just had a crappy swing going that day . Went back in the next day , much better swing going on and settled on the shaft and head I have now . Don't care for their high prices , doubt I will be back as I am going back to my old club builder in Derby .
 
GenErr said:
I'm with the OP. I'm not long by any means, but my 6 iron is my 150 - 160 yard club. On the monitor at Golfsmith it shows 135 yards. My driver is 215-225 on the course, on the monitor I don't even break the 200 yard mark. No big deal to me, and I don't even bother to ask about the discrepancy - I'm more interested in how the ball flights, than distance.
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I've had similar experiences. I was on a monitor this past weekend and was 20-25 yards shorter with every club. While warming up with a 9i it was reading 95yds. Seemed off to me. So I tried my 7i, averaged 125yds. This pattern continued throughout the set. I am certain these numbers were off. My typical 7i is 145-155yds. No biggie. I was also more focused on ball flight and dispersion.
 
I do have a quick question. If you can't trust the distance, how can you trust the trajectory?
 
bulldog said:
I do have a quick question. If you can't trust the distance, how can you trust the trajectory?
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You know Bulldog I had that typed out at first but deleted it , I didn't think it showed how high I truly hit the ball either ( you know my game and I can punch clouds with a 9.5* driver ) , but direction seemed to be pretty close , when I hit one I knew was a low hook or high fade it registered it pretty good .
You just have to trust what you know of your game and see how much difference between your driver and all the ones you can hit at GolfECT . All I know is my fitting brought down my spin #'s drastically and brought my flight down as I hit up on the ball . That was done with shafts and a 9.5 head . So all in all i was happy , but hated the $500 purchase of a driver and shaft !!!
 
It did confirm mine.
 
If you hit 150-155yd 6 iron on the course then the monitor sounds messed up. I would recommend you go to another golf shop and hit 6 irons on their monitors to see if it's consistent.
 
bulldog said:
I do have a quick question. If you can't trust the distance, how can you trust the trajectory?
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It looked like my normal shot in the screen, but just fell short :)
 
Depending on the monitor, it may not be reading/calculating your spin properly.
 
I've always heard to pay attention to the spin and launch numbers more than what you're seeing as far as distance. There are a lot of factors that affect a true distance reading, including the fact that a lot of times you're hitting very used Maxfli balls or the like, so those other numbers are the ones that matter.

Yet if you're seeing a distance increase with certain irons while hitting on the same LM, then that will likely translate onto the course. To be sure before you make a purchase, see if you can hit a demo club outside.
 
Shook said:
Whew glad I'm not the only one with that issue. Is that due to the way we swing, or maybe due to specific clubs?
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So when I hit the stage 2 3W 260 I should expect longer?
 
I don't trust the distances either on those things. Theres a setting on the launch monitors that enables you to swing 20mph and hit the ball 500 yards.

The one thing I would check is the MPH with each club, and spin rate with your clubs and the clubs you are testing, as well as ball speed. If you compare your clubs to the ones you are getting you should see something.

Also, I would think you would see gains if you are hitting them farther on the launch monitor, maybe your spin is lower, ball speed is up. JMO
 
I had the same thing happen when I was looking at drivers. Went to 4 different shops and with the same club was hitting between 230 and 290 depending on the store. I finally decided to just focus on the relative numbers on the same monitor and assume some percentage of that would transfer to the course. I used my current clubs as the reference since I know what I hit those.
 
I will mention I took a sleeve of new balls I normally play for my fitting , used the Nike 20XI 2013 models , and hit every shot with those as I read somewhere its a good idea to get fit with the balls you normally play to get the numbers the fitter is looking for , for your swing .
I do see a difference in this new driver I had fitted , it does not get up in the air like my old Ping G20 did before the fitting and I do hit it better , plus I get more roll out .
 
SprayTech said:
I will mention I took a sleeve of new balls I normally play for my fitting , used the Nike 20XI 2013 models , and hit every shot with those as I read somewhere its a good idea to get fit with the balls you normally play to get the numbers the fitter is looking for , for your swing .
I do see a difference in this new driver I had fitted , it does not get up in the air like my old Ping G20 did before the fitting and I do hit it better , plus I get more roll out .
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There was a 10mph increase in ball speed compared to my current clubs.

But they left the monitor on when I hit off the lie board at the end, and it showed my 6iron carrying 250+ lol. They said there isn't any resistance on the board as opposed to the mat. So my worry is that the Callaway clubs only "appear" to have less resistance on the monitor, and in reality would give the same ball speed as my Nikes.

So I'm going to take most peoples advice and try to find some demos to hit outdoors. Wichita guys - are there any around here?
 
Shook said:
Wichita guys - are there any around here?
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Try Golf Headquarters. I believe they allow you to take clubs out to demo. They're on N. Webb just N of Central
 
bulldog said:
Try Golf Headquarters. I believe they allow you to take clubs out to demo. They're on N. Webb just N of Central
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Awesome. Next time it's 40+ degrees outside I might try that
 
I think Golf Headquarters is about the only store around Wichita that will let you demo their clubs , when I got back in to the game a few years ago they let me take 2 different Hybrids out to try .
With clubs costing so much I would wait till spring and hit the clubs you are interested in against your clubs outside if you feel the monitors are way off , or as long as the numbers are better on the monitor then what your playing now , then I say go for it .
Just use your better judgement is all the advise I can give ya .
 
bellairemi said:
Depending on the monitor, it may not be reading/calculating your spin properly.
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This is correct. It also depends on the type of monitor as well. Things to keep in mind when hitting in a monitor or simulator:
- You are always hitting at see level in "standard day" conditions", no humidity, no heat, no wind.
- Make sure you warm up before they start measuring. There have been times where I've gone in and they start measuring right away before I'm even kind of warm.
- There's usually a difference of 5-15 yards depending on the club you're hitting. I generally don't get amped over distance because of this and my first bullet point. I'm looking more at spin, ball speed and launch angle numbers. Based on that, I can tell whether or not something is right.

Going to a good fitter is really key to it all. As much as I love my guys at Golf Galaxy, unless you're in tight with them you don't get a "true" fitting. Places like Club Champion and GolfTec locations are always the way to go for a great fitting. Or, if you are close to an OEM fitting location it's even better.
 
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