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Getting Fitted without consistency

Are you planning on taking lessons and working on your game to get it to a higher level?
 
Yeah. I posted about an eye opening lesson I took about a month ago....and I've also pre-paid for 5 more, but since my free time is limited, playing a round is always a priority over range/lessons in the spring/summer. I'm going for another lesson this week (luckily it's indoors and open until 9pm). I'm playing with a set I got used 4 years ago, I just don't want to buy a new set unless I get fitted for one, and don't want to get fitted until I am a little more consistent. Some people say to get fitted and take lessons with the new set, some people say wait....
 
I would wait then. Go through the lessons, do the drills and work on your game. When you are happy with where your swing is at, then treat yourself to some new sticks.

Just be realistic and honest with yourself and your fitter about the state of your game when you get fit and your plans long term.

Nothing worse than putting in a ton of work, getting fitted for a fantastic set of clubs that are more demanding, but fit your swing and practice routine at the time,but then realize that you won't be able to practice and play as much as you did prior to the fitting and should have gotten more forgiving sticks.

#speakingfromexperience
 
Fantastic advice from Jlukes.
 
This is a great question and one I've been curious about as well. There is such a difference between my "good" swings and "bad" swings I would hate to be fitted on a bad day for swings. I could be wrong, but at the same time, I would assume during the fitting you would be taking a lot of swings and they would be looking to fit you to the good ones.
 
Throw out the completely awful hits (shanks, worm burners, chunks, mega slice), but keep everything else. You want a good representation of your swings without skewing the data too much towards perfect strikes or mishits.
 
moosejaa said:
This is a great question and one I've been curious about as well. There is such a difference between my "good" swings and "bad" swings I would hate to be fitted on a bad day for swings. I could be wrong, but at the same time, I would assume during the fitting you would be taking a lot of swings and they would be looking to fit you to the good ones.
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As a 15 handicap, you are going to see a consistent swing and consistent misses. Fitting only to the good is not always a great thing.
 
I was fitted for my new set of irons I purchased in October. I held off buying my first set of real irons bc of this very reason.
Now, some 8 months later, I believe my swing is dramatically different than it was when I was fitted (I'd only been golfing for about a year at that time).
But, that was one of the reasons I chose to only look at forged irons. At least it allows for some flexibility in that regard.

My swing has surely changed, and I've also hit a lot of balls off of mats. I read here last week that can also change the lie. I have to take them in to get re-fitted.
 
JB said:
As a 15 handicap, you are going to see a consistent swing and consistent misses. Fitting only to the good is not always a great thing.
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So, there is a real commitment to grooving a swing, lessons, practice, etc. For someone that might not be able to apply the time needed to do so, will a fitting still help or don't bother until your swing is consistent?...which for some, may never happen.
 
How much do you really expect to change? I'd look at that somewhat critically first. From what I'm reading, your chances of making wholesale changes are pretty low this summer. That's going to take some dedicated practice time and it seems like you're more interested in playing with your limited free time. Fwiw, that's 100% fine too and I'm not criticizing you. Still, to give you an idea of what changes you may see, in the last 18-20 months I've taken numerous lessons and my specs haven't really changed at all.

As for getting new irons and getting fit, I don't anticipate your needs are going to change all that much based on the above. I also don't think anything more than a basic length, lie, and flex fitting with a few options will do that much for you, so if you want some irons I say go demo some and get a basic fitting. Lean towards the clubs that give you good results on the good swings and the best possible results on the normal/average/poor swings.

Consistency is a tricky word in golf. Consistent swings can produce inconsistent impact. Just because you don't hit the ball as well as you like doesn't mean you're not doing many of the same things every time you swing.
 
My swing is far from textbook , but it is what it is and I got fitted based on my swing. Fitting can absolutely help an average swinger.

However, if your goal is to change or fix your swing, then wait until that happens before getting fitted.

Say you have a wedding in 6 months and you planned to lose 15 lbs . Would you go to the tailor and have your suit fitted now, or would you wait until you lose the weight and then go to the tailor?
 
i agree with jlukes about waiting until after lessons.

mooseja...in your case the fitting would probably be more geared towards bringing your dispersion in closer.
 
moosejaa said:
So, there is a real commitment to grooving a swing, lessons, practice, etc. For someone that might not be able to apply the time needed to do so, will a fitting still help or don't bother until your swing is consistent?...which for some, may never happen.
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I think you might be confused with a good swing vs a consistent swing. Consistent means repeatable. It does not necessarily mean it has to be a good golf swing or honed abilities.
 
I also have to agree with jlukes. From my own personal situation, i was fitted for driver on a particular shaft based on how i was playing at the end of last year. Over the winter, i took a series of lessons that helped my swing mechanically and i ended up gaining swing speed. When i used to hit the club straight and consistent, i'm now struggling with misses on both sides. Its incredibly frustrating.
 
Hawk said:
How much do you really expect to change? I'd look at that somewhat critically first. From what I'm reading, your chances of making wholesale changes are pretty low this summer. That's going to take some dedicated practice time and it seems like you're more interested in playing with your limited free time. Fwiw, that's 100% fine too and I'm not criticizing you. Still, to give you an idea of what changes you may see, in the last 18-20 months I've taken numerous lessons and my specs haven't really changed at all.

As for getting new irons and getting fit, I don't anticipate your needs are going to change all that much based on the above. I also don't think anything more than a basic length, lie, and flex fitting with a few options will do that much for you, so if you want some irons I say go demo some and get a basic fitting. Lean towards the clubs that give you good results on the good swings and the best possible results on the normal/average/poor swings.

Consistency is a tricky word in golf. Consistent swings can produce inconsistent impact. Just because you don't hit the ball as well as you like doesn't mean you're not doing many of the same things every time you swing.
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With the multitude of good quality iron sets out there, you could do this and be set for years. I'm a HH, playing older irons (X-22s) and even though they are not this year's model, I still don't play them up to their potential.
 
While I agree with Joe and everyone else that lessons are pretty much the only way to work towards a consistent sound swing, I think going through a fitting is a good idea most of the time, instead of waiting for your swing to be perfect, or at a place you're happy with. A fitting may show you're in need of different clubs. Using analogies, going for a run in size 7 shoes when you're really a size 12 is going to affect your performance. So I don't see any harm in getting fit now, educating yourself and having confidence in your equipment, as you continue taking lessons. Your clubs will still work great even if your swing improves.
 
The question I would have is how well does OP's current set fit his swing. If the current set is forged, then at least lie might be adjusted at a nominal cost. Length could also be fit if that's an issue.

The biggest question for me would be shaft. Personally, give me the wrong shaft and ask me to work on my swing and things might get ugly quick. I just re-shafted some old King Cobras with some Recoils and I just can't hit those things for beans. My regular set Mizunos with Orochi graphite I hit great so I am going to have to shell out for some more Mizuno's for my second (location) bag.

OP - at a minimum, get someone to look at your swing and current set to see how well they are matched. Perhaps swing the Mizuno shaft optimizer to see what kind of shaft it recommends to you and how that compares to what you have.
 
Philly Golf Guy said:
Your clubs will still work great even if your swing improves.
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This appears to be the disconnect. People are assuming consistency means better or improvement. What I think JL and Hawk and myself have said is that the swing needs to be the same. Going to a fitting (and I could use the one with Bob Van Sweeden you had in Orlando) when the swing is not consistent or repeatable leads to virtually nothing in terms of actual fitting.

The same could be said about being fit and then completely altering one's swing. Then it was as if the fitting never took place.

The shoe analogy does not fit really because clubs not fitting and shoes not fitting have much different impacts. THe body and mind will adapt to the clubs, almost every single time. The same cannot be said for the shoes in quick fashion, which would cause major discomfort and possible damage.
 
I will say that going through a fitting at Club Champion helped immensely in finding a driver, putter, irons and wedges that improved my game. And I kept taking lessons, my swing both improved and became more consistent than before and the clubs were still a great fit. So I guess I don't see too much of a benefit in waiting to go through a fitting until your swing is where you want it, especially if you're playing clubs that are not ideal for you.

And I forgot Orlando. Never happened. :) But yeah. I agree if the majority of your shots are shanks, a fitting isn't going to do much for you while your swing is like that.
 
If you don't mind me asking, what irons are you playing currently?
 
If your fitter is like the one I use in mn, they will re fit you at no charge for the life of your equiptment that you buy.


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Just a quick bump and update. It's been about 9 months since I posed this question, and I had decided to not get a fitting done. I played a good amount over the summer, and took only 2 more lessons in that time. I had another little mini breakthrough in my preshot routine and in the month of September really started to "feel" improvement every time out. If I had better putting I would have been able to shave about 7-9 points off my handicap (currently 30). Basically, I had been scoring between 100-103 in my last 5-6 rounds, with a 3 or 4 putt on 15 out of 18 holes (roughly speaking).

I've been working on flexibility, putting and doing some drills at home. I had a decent round on the Sim a couple times. Scoring in the low 90's with a 3 ft putting "gimme".

I'm feeling much more comfortable with my fundamentals, and I'm FINALLY getting set up to the ball more consistantly. I've pretty much eliminated the really REALLY bad shots from my rounds (although 2 or 3 always seem to creep back in a round).

Basically, I've set a goal for myself. If I can shoot in the mid-low 90's early this upcoming season...I'm going to get myself fitted and get an all new set of clubs for my birthday.
 
I think you have to be fairly consistent with your swing before a fitting becomes practical, I'd say if you're hitting 7 shots the same way out of 10.

Note that I say consistent, not good. Let's say if you're hitting your 7-iron 10 times, and you skull and shank a couple, and have 7 shots with similar trajectories going 140, and you hit one really nice one to 155, your clubs should be fitted for those 7 average shots.

If out of 10 shots no percentage is particularly dominant, you can imagine how "confused" your fitting will turn out.

Still, as some have said, you can still have a fitting any time earlier, but the benefits of the fitting will not be as profound.

Also, like some have said here, getting clubs that offer some adjustability (forged, adjustable weights and lofts, etc) may allow you to keep using your original clubs by getting them tweaked.

Club fitting is a moving target, it is not absolute. Once you get better your swing may subtly change, and you might need to be refitted.
 
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