Shorten Irons

[M2Giles]

I play my irons off a 37.75" 5 iron measured to the end of the grip. Depending on the manufacturer, that is either .5" under standard to standard length. Before I swapped out my shafts and had them cut down I had a lot of issues controlling flight. With my shorter lengths I feel like i hit it farther due to more centered strikes but also with better control.

When shortening the shaft generally they get stiffer, especially if you shorten from the tip side. But, if you swing weight it back to normal it is pretty much a wash. Irons that are built 1" over length usually have lighter heads from the manufacturer in order to keep swing weight reasonable. But adding tip weights or tungsten powder usually works out fine. Or if you don't care about the look lead tape.

 

[dacatalyst41]

My irons are actually a 1/4 inch long, but I think it affected comfort more directly and therefore performance more indirectly. Once you start moving into half an inch or more, the dynamics change imho.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[-CRW-]

I called the local golf place and they said that taking an inch or more COULD change the flex of the club and of course it would change the swingweight.

I called Callaway and they said when the clubs were made they would have been adjusted flex wise so that if you took an inch or so even up to two inches off that it would NOT change the flex and also would do very little if anything to the swingweight. Of course they can't tell me exactly how the irons were made to spec wise cause they don't keep that info.

So who is right here?

Butt trimming isn’t going to change the flex, or it will be so minimal it won’t be noticeable.

BUT, you may have to add some weight to the head to alter the swing weight which could affect flex some. It will definitely affect feel if the swing weight is different enough from what you are used to.

Tip trimming will. That’s typically only done with parallel tipped iron shafts.

 

[OGputtnfool]

I called Callaway and they said when the clubs were made they would have been adjusted flex wise so that if you took an inch or so even up to two inches off that it would NOT change the flex and also would do very little if anything to the swingweight.

Wow, it's hard to believe you got such bad info from a well respected company like Callaway.

 

[lil'mike]

Wow, it's hard to believe you got such bad info from a well respected company like Callaway.

I didn't understand it so I even question the guy numerous times on what he was telling me. Of course their s/n doesn't mean anything except to prove that the club heads are legit and nothing about the specs made to, which doesn't help any!

 

[Paddy1Putt]

I went to see the Golf MD in Kansas City last year and he found that by shortening my irons 1/2" I was actually gaining distance because my swing speed increased.

I have read about this as well. The longer the shaft the longer you hit the ball is a myth.