We've launched the new forums! Read more here

Did some static fitting today, and it was good!

Nippon Shafts
BamBooBender

BamBooBender

See-Moe
Joined
Jul 2, 2011
Messages
5,933
Reaction score
5
Location
Green Bay WI
Handicap
My brain
I actually went in just looking for a Vapor pro driver to demo, but ended up with some great info about what I need to fit my swing properly. I found out that my current clubs are too flat, causing me to dig with the toe first and send the ball right if I make a normal swing. And nearly all of my consistency issues with my irons stem trying to compensate for that. The guy there watched me hit some balls and confirmed that was the case. He put together a demo RSI 1 7i (at 2 up +1 stock graphite regular shaft), and man was that great to hit, and so freakin easy to hit the ball straight with it's not even funny. I mean I still hit a few thin or thick due to flipping a little now and then (clubs certainly can't fix that), but most of them I actually flushed. I was hitting off grass on the range and most of the time the grass mark was right in the center. Then he left and came back out with an RSI 2 7i (same settings but KBS stiff), and I hit that one even better after getting used to the heavier shaft. I also think that my trajectory was better with both demo clubs, still getting high but on a flatter plane, as opposed to my usual loopy trajectory. He went on to explain that this is also the reason why I hit my driver better than my irons right now, because lie angle is not as critical with the driver ( the more loft, the more problems caused by incorrect lie angle). I'm pretty sure I have read all that before, but didn't give it nearly enough credence.

This is just a initial idea of what will fit me best, but it was already a night and day sort of change. I came away thinking what an idiot I've been and how much time I have wasted with clubs that just didn't fit my unorthodox swing, not to mention the frustration on the range and course. Today was good day!
 
Cool deal, man! I have thought about doing it myself but am afraid I will be told all my clubs are wrong for me and I need all new ones. :D My wife would kill me for sure. Seriously...
 
DufferRob said:
Cool deal, man! I have thought about doing it myself but am afraid I will be told all my clubs are wrong for me and I need all new ones. :D My wife would kill me for sure. Seriously...
Click to expand...

You might find they just need a little adjustment as well.
Nobody wants to bend my Altitudes because they don't have the right jig and are concerned about crushing the hollow heads. haha
 
BamBooBender said:
You might find they just need a little adjustment as well.
Nobody wants to bend my Altitudes because they don't have the right jig and are concerned about crushing the hollow heads. haha
Click to expand...

Your only bending option may be to send them in to be bent. Getting the lie right for each of us is important.
 
HoosierGolfer said:
Your only bending option may be to send them in to be bent. Getting the lie right for each of us is important.
Click to expand...

That's what I've been told, but I don't want to be without them for weeks. I'm going to have one lengthened and see if that helps.
 
Good stuff man. A lot of small things in golf are overthought by internet warriors like us, but lie angle is not one of them. It's critical to have the right length/lie on your irons if you want to have success.
 
ArmyGolf said:
Good stuff man. A lot of small things in golf are overthought by internet warriors like us, but lie angle is not one of them. It's critical to have the right length/lie on your irons if you want to have success.
Click to expand...
Thats for sure, as I've now found. Getting fit is not really an option where I live, have to do some traveling. I always just bought of the rack or Internet figuring it would be close enough. I see now that close is not good enough when it comes to length and lie.
 
I went and hit the same club again today ( RSI 2, KBS S) just to see if was as good as yesterday, and it was. If there is a lighter shaft that is just as stable I really think it would be ideal.

I also dropped off three of my clubs (7,S, and Smart sole) to have them lengthened +2 and jumbo grips installed. I really think that adding the 2" is going to achieve the same thing because I gripped the club as if it were already 2" longer, holding it way down in my left hand. I can't swing that way obviously, but the static lie looked about right. Another thing is that I can still have a single axis set up/swing using an overlapping grip, and the lie is right without any alterations, but I'm just not as consistent with overlapping vs. my right hand palm grip. So I'll just get the alterations and see how it goes for now. If it works well I'll just have them all done for now. I am probably still going to get some new fitted clubs this year anyway, driver for sure, but in the mean time I can at least not be fighting the lie angles.
 
Picked up the clubs that were extended and it had the desired effect, the lie is right now. Hit some balls with them and liked the results. I really like the wedges now, hit a bunch of medium length pitches and didn't thin a single one. Of course they feel heavier with the extra length, but I already think that helps me swing the club rather than giving in to the hit impulse. I was hitting into a light breeze so I can't tell if I gained anything carry wise, but it seemed like I was hitting them about where I normally do despite the breeze. I'll have to get on an LM somewhere and see what's going on with SS and BS.
 
Played nine today as a sort of practice round, even though my clubs are not all adjusted. It's a shorter course and I hit driver off the tee on every hole I could so I would mostly have wedge shots left. The wedges at +2 seemed a little unwieldy at first, but I didn't thin a single one. Chunked a couple, but no thins, which is nice because I would much rather be short of the green than over.

I did get some ball speed numbers with the 7i and was at 121 avg, not fantastic, but not bad either.
 
Hi bamboobender
Just wondeting how tall you are and wrist to floor?

I have been toying with the idea of putting a 1.5 inch extension in to see what that does.

A friend (internet golf forum version, so haven't seen that in person) who is my height recently got a set at +1.5 and he said it makes a huge difference.

I am 6ft 6 in socks with a wtf over 40 inches.
 
fern said:
Hi bamboobender
Just wondeting how tall you are and wrist to floor?

I have been toying with the idea of putting a 1.5 inch extension in to see what that does.

A friend (internet golf forum version, so haven't seen that in person) who is my height recently got a set at +1.5 and he said it makes a huge difference.

I am 6ft 6 in socks with a wtf over 40 inches.
Click to expand...


I'm just 5'10" and I don't remember my wrist to floor, but it is in the average range as well. The reason I am adding length is due to my right hand palm grip, gripping 2" farther down the grip than most people would. I also set up with the shaft on much higher plane than conventional, so that throws off the normal static fitting numbers. If I played conventional golf I could play off the rack with no issues, except for the inconsistency I get that way.

With your height and wtf, I'm pretty sure you would need longer shafts. I'm certainly no expert, but I think that's a given based on your numbers.

My son is 6'5", he has my old clubs (all standard) and it looks like he is trying to play with a kids set, he definitely needs some extensions and lie adjustment.
 
Ok, i see. My irons are an inch over already-just wondering what might happen with a bit more!
 
fern said:
Ok, i see. My irons are an inch over already-just wondering what might happen with a bit more!
Click to expand...

It's hard to find, actually more like impossible really, to find demo irons that are more than +1. I just had to go ahead and have a few extended to give it a try.
 
It's pretty obvious to me now after a few days with the extended clubs that just adding the 2" is not a perfect solution for me. For one thing they are still about 1* flat, which makes sense I guess since 2 up and +1 would be more like 3 up for my swing. I found this out by hitting balls with a fresh vertical sharpie line on them. At least I hit more of them out of the center with the club this way, which is nice. Another problem is that adding the extensions made the shafts play softer, too soft for my liking. It also raised the swing weight, but I kinda liked that.

I think I hit a lot more solid shots with the RSI 2's, though I think it's due more to having the right fit than it is the actual head. I'm not in a position right now to do a full on custom fitting since I have to move soon. I am, however, thinking of just a getting a reasonable used set of irons that can be bent for now, and then doing the full fitting either late summer or early next year.
 
I hit a bunch of irons today just letting the guy at the place hand me whatever he thought would work well for me. The ones that stood out the most were:

Rsi2's - no surprise there really
Ap2's - again no surprise because I have hit them many times and liked them, but they are always so darned costly.

Mizuno Mp h4's - Nice surprise there as I have never seen them, but they performed great with CTL shafts in them.
 
Last edited:
To the OP: I was attracted to this thread because I'm trying to figure out if it makes any sense to do a "static" fitting. I know the thread title implies it does but I guess my sense of "static" is a bit different.

Basically, I am pretty bad at golf (don't have a handicap and play only 9-hole courses) but I want to keep trying, have taken some lessons (no help there) and right now am trying to figure things out by myself. I have a 3-year old set of MacGregor MTs that I bought off the shelf. Since I'm kind of (well, very) short, 5'2'-5'3", I thought it might help if I had the clubs "static" fitted and cut down, if necessary (also thought the lie angle might need to be adjusted). I know I'm not at the point where I can benefit much, but I thought it couldn't hurt. So I went in to a local club fitting shop with a good reputation and asked for a static fitting, I thought the clubs MIGHT be a bit long, etc. Unfortunately, the fitter asked me to take a few swings and proceeded to dress me down about my swing, giving me a "pop quiz" and basically making things very unpleasant (I know I don't get onto my left side, don't need to be ridiculed for it). I should have left right then and there but I got him to at least cut the shafts down a bit, thought it might help. Nothing was done to the lie angle.

I still think it MIGHT help if I could get a "static" fit on the lie angle but am somewhat reluctant to try again (won't go back there, but there are other shops). Also, maybe the guy was right and I shouldn't even bother getting "fit" with my swing. I guess I wanted to ask, given your experience, is there a fitting a competent shop can do that MIGHT help me or am I just trying to blame my problems on equipment and should wait until I can get onto a regular course and develop a handicap (if ever)?

Thanks in advance for your (or anyone else's) thoughts.
 
Static fitting, or just getting the right length /lie at address is only a starting point for me. I have an unusual grip and swing, so I really can't rely on any charts based on wrist to floor and such. I found someone who is helping find clubs that work best for me and my swing, while at the same time helping me to repeat a better version of my swing. It's been working great so far, and I'm in no hurry. once I settle on irons, then we can begin to work on dynamic fitting. I really like the fact that he is not trying to fit me into the PGA mold swing wise, since I never will really. I have been to a few that wanted me to change my grip, stance, everything really, and I said thanks, but no thanks.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top