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Fitting and issues with it(long winded)

Nippon Shafts
Sighman23

Sighman23

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Joined
Mar 28, 2012
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Location
Columbus, OH
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GHIN 13
There has been a lot of conversations on fittings and shaft options, golf instructions, getting more people in to the game, etc lately. It got me thinking of how poorly I have been fitted in the last 5 years and I have had no experience like most people on here. What really prompted this, is that I tried to go to Golf Galaxy and get fitted for the new Callaway Big Bertha and today my buddy and I went to Golf Smith because he wanted to try out some clubs with either X100 shafts or Project X 6.5 or 7.0.
Also in the last 5 years, I have "been fitted" by either the Course Pro or Course Instructor at 2 private clubs, 1 semi-private club and 1 public course all here in Central Ohio.

We are going to break down some of these fittings.

These first two were before I really found THP and new anything about fittings or clubs.

1. Ping I20 fitting - Club Pro at a Private course. He brought out the 7 iron in the I20 and the G20. Put down the lie board and taped up the club. No other gadgets or gizmo's. I hit 3 shots. Now I know I don't hit the ball well with people watching and giving instruction. It gets in my mind and has me taking wild swings. Needless to say these 3 shots weren't very good. He then handed me the G20 and said you will probably want to buy this. Again 3 shots ball marks showed everything was standard. He told me see that is the club you need. So I asked him to turn around and talk with the guy beside me on the range and I picked up the I20. I hit several shots with it and hit it very well because there was no pressure. The Pro turned around and said see told you, you needed the G20, then I showed him that I was actually hitting the I20. Needless to say I never went and saw that pro again.

2. I won a free R11 driver & fitting from another private club in a raffle. The Instructor for this club set up the fitting. He brought out the R11 with the stock Stiff flex and Regular Flex shaft. He had me hit 4 or 5 balls with both and told me I needed the regular flex and gave me the club. No TrackMan or other type numbers. I didn't know anything about TrackMan or launch angles and spin.

3. Golf Galaxy and The new Big Bertha. I went in an told the guy I was interested in getting fitted and buying the new Big Bertha. He says no problem and sets me up in the bay and asks me what I currently hit. I tell him, he brings two off the shelf in stiff and regular flex. Sets me up in the Sim and has me hit a few. He doesn't go over any of the numbers other than distance. Tells me the regular shaft is the one for me and says he will walk me up front to purchase it. I ask him about launch angle and spin numbers and if they have other shaft options and he mumbles something and tells me my numbers are perfect and that is the right shaft for me. I see that my launch angle is at 8* and spin is about 4300. Since I know a little about numbers from being a member here I pretty much tell the guy to shove it and leave.

4. Golf Smith - My buddy now has a set of Callaway Diablo Edge irons with X100 shafts. He likes Callaways and was looking at a new set today and we went in and told the guy what he wants. The guy hands him the stock off the shelf with a Callaway Uniflex shaft in the iron. My buddy hits a few and doesn't like it. Asks the guy about different shaft options and we were told that was the only shaft that club comes in and there is no way to change.

So I guess my gripe is that to get more people in the game, they have to enjoy it. I think it is easier to enjoy if you have the right clubs and the right instruction, but without this site, I would have no idea that what these people were telling me wasn't true.

I don't know where to go to get properly fitted and find my ideal shaft and numbers for a set of clubs.

Sorry for the long rant, but the two "fittings" this week just made me irate.
 
How far are you willing to go for a fitting? Do you want OEM or would you consider component?

Sighman23 said:
There has been a lot of conversations on fittings and shaft options, golf instructions, getting more people in to the game, etc lately. It got me thinking of how poorly I have been fitted in the last 5 years and I have had no experience like most people on here. What really prompted this, is that I tried to go to Golf Galaxy and get fitted for the new Callaway Big Bertha and today my buddy and I went to Golf Smith because he wanted to try out some clubs with either X100 shafts or Project X 6.5 or 7.0.
Also in the last 5 years, I have "been fitted" by either the Course Pro or Course Instructor at 2 private clubs, 1 semi-private club and 1 public course all here in Central Ohio.

We are going to break down some of these fittings.

These first two were before I really found THP and new anything about fittings or clubs.

1. Ping I20 fitting - Club Pro at a Private course. He brought out the 7 iron in the I20 and the G20. Put down the lie board and taped up the club. No other gadgets or gizmo's. I hit 3 shots. Now I know I don't hit the ball well with people watching and giving instruction. It gets in my mind and has me taking wild swings. Needless to say these 3 shots weren't very good. He then handed me the G20 and said you will probably want to buy this. Again 3 shots ball marks showed everything was standard. He told me see that is the club you need. So I asked him to turn around and talk with the guy beside me on the range and I picked up the I20. I hit several shots with it and hit it very well because there was no pressure. The Pro turned around and said see told you, you needed the G20, then I showed him that I was actually hitting the I20. Needless to say I never went and saw that pro again.

2. I won a free R11 driver & fitting from another private club in a raffle. The Instructor for this club set up the fitting. He brought out the R11 with the stock Stiff flex and Regular Flex shaft. He had me hit 4 or 5 balls with both and told me I needed the regular flex and gave me the club. No TrackMan or other type numbers. I didn't know anything about TrackMan or launch angles and spin.

3. Golf Galaxy and The new Big Bertha. I went in an told the guy I was interested in getting fitted and buying the new Big Bertha. He says no problem and sets me up in the bay and asks me what I currently hit. I tell him, he brings two off the shelf in stiff and regular flex. Sets me up in the Sim and has me hit a few. He doesn't go over any of the numbers other than distance. Tells me the regular shaft is the one for me and says he will walk me up front to purchase it. I ask him about launch angle and spin numbers and if they have other shaft options and he mumbles something and tells me my numbers are perfect and that is the right shaft for me. I see that my launch angle is at 8* and spin is about 4300. Since I know a little about numbers from being a member here I pretty much tell the guy to shove it and leave.

4. Golf Smith - My buddy now has a set of Callaway Diablo Edge irons with X100 shafts. He likes Callaways and was looking at a new set today and we went in and told the guy what he wants. The guy hands him the stock off the shelf with a Callaway Uniflex shaft in the iron. My buddy hits a few and doesn't like it. Asks the guy about different shaft options and we were told that was the only shaft that club comes in and there is no way to change.

So I guess my gripe is that to get more people in the game, they have to enjoy it. I think it is easier to enjoy if you have the right clubs and the right instruction, but without this site, I would have no idea that what these people were telling me wasn't true.

I don't know where to go to get properly fitted and find my ideal shaft and numbers for a set of clubs.

Sorry for the long rant, but the two "fittings" this week just made me irate.
Click to expand...
 
I went through the same BS prior to becoming active on THP. I've said it before and I'll say it again, not all fittings are created equal.
Heck at GolfTowns demo day for the Bio Cell and Cell + two weeks ago I went through the same thing.
I think that at the very least a launch monitor needs to be present to call it a fitting. That way even if the pro is of little help you can take your numbers to the interwebs.
 
Sorry you got so much bad advise. Usually when you say you want a fitting even at big box stores they get someone who is at least qualified to help or arrange another time for you (this is my experience) Good thing you knew better.
 
Thats too bad to hear. Have you played any rounds with someone else that has been fitted that you can ask for some guidance of where to go? Thats what I did with a couple people I play with, and they have referred me to a shop that I am going to be getting fit for my driver at in the next couple weeks.
 
bellairemi said:
How far are you willing to go for a fitting? Do you want OEM or would you consider component?
Click to expand...

I would travel for a good fitting, ideally what I would like is to pay for a fitting with no expectation to buy. I just want to see my numbers and see what different clubs could give me. I have only ever hit OEM clubs, so that is what I would prefer.
 
Dunn6253 said:
Thats too bad to hear. Have you played any rounds with someone else that has been fitted that you can ask for some guidance of where to go? Thats what I did with a couple people I play with, and they have referred me to a shop that I am going to be getting fit for my driver at in the next couple weeks.
Click to expand...


I have talked to others that I golf with and most have never had a true fitting. They buy either at the private clubs that I had experience with or have gone to the big box stores.
 
Never a fitting a box store. They are there to sell sell sell sell...........

Go to GolfTec or find a clubfitter in your area that has the right equipment.
 
OEM would be Golf Exchange in Cinci - also Miles of Golf if their Cinci location is open yet - both are very good.

Sighman23 said:
I would travel for a good fitting, ideally what I would like is to pay for a fitting with no expectation to buy. I just want to see my numbers and see what different clubs could give me. I have only ever hit OEM clubs, so that is what I would prefer.
Click to expand...
 
I've done two fitting with my coach and both were very comprehensive, downside is his selection as he only mainly carries Ping and Titleist but can and will order Callaway. He had Nike last yr but not sure he's going back with them this yr.
 
It's a damn good thing that you have a well adjusted BS-O-Meter Sighman hahaha. I have been through this before so many times at so many box stores. Dudes offering you a fitting in an indoor bay with no launch monitor. Dudes asking you your handicap and handing you a club, like that's the only thing that matters. Dudes straight up not knowing the difference between a players' CB and an SGI shovel. Shameful. Which is why it was so refreshing to go to the golf store here in town, where at least two of the guys actually know something, and the pro watched me bang some drivers to compare on the sim and upon looking at the numbers, say "I'd love to sell you a new driver, but the way you're hitting yours I really would not advise you switch."

I echo what others have said, find a trustworthy PGA pro/fitter and pay for a fitting with no buying obligation.
 
I certainly hope you didn't PAY for any of those so-called fittings. So sorry that you've had such bad experiences. I can only echo to stay away from the big box stores unless someone you know can recommend a certain person. You really have to be pro-active with some of these guys. Even stores with good reputations can have good and so-so or even bad fitters. I'm planning to go to Club Champion for a comprehensive fitting the next time I'm ready for new clubs. Keep asking friends and fellow golfers who and where they would recommend for a good fitting.
 
I'm sorry that you have had such a bad experience with your fittings. I think that we are fortunate here because a lot of us know what we are looking for in terms of numbers but it is safe to say that there are quite of few people that haven't the slightest clue what they need for launch and spin. I can relate to you because when I first started buying clubs the salesmen only had me concern with distance and thats all I needed to worry about it according to them. Its good that you were the wiser one and told these guys to go push rocks.
 
Club Champion does a solid job with fittings, as does Golftec. The big box companies may have one or two guys who know what they're doing, but more often than not it's tough to trust a fitting at one of them.
 
That's a bummer you had such poor experiences. Definitely all fittings aren't equal. Hope you have better luck in the future. Done right, it can really be helpful.
 
Same story with fitting here.

First time fitting was at a fitter that mainly sold Miura.
Basically, he told me he wasn't going to fit me because my hcp was too high to use fitted clubs.

Second time was at a big box store, they measured me up, stuck some impact tape on my clubs and had me hit some balls, they didn't want to tell me the results but they did offered to adjust my clubs (which they did, but recently I saw that my 60* is actually longer than my 56*?).

In both cases there were no numbers off any kind (besides my height)


Going for a fitting at the Mizuno National fitting centre in Paris, France this Saturday. Pretty curious to see what they'll say...


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