First Ever Fitting (Thank You Callaway Canada)

So this year I was very fortunate and I got an overhaul for my entire bag. The new set was comprised of the following clubs.

Driver: Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 9[SUP]o[/SUP] / Mitsubishi Rayon Fubuki ZT-60 R-Flex 45.5” / Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize
FW Wood #1: Callaway Big Bertha 3W / Fujikura Speeder VC 6.2 S-Flex 43” / Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize
FW Wood #2: Callaway Big Bertha 5W / Fujikura Speeder VC 6.1 S-Flex 42.5” / Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize
Irons: Callaway Apex 4i-9i, PW, AW, SW / Project X PX95 5.0 Flighted Standard Length / Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize
Wedge: Callaway Mack Daddy 2 S60[SUP]o[/SUP] / Project X PX95 6.0 Flighted Standard Length / Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize
Putter: Odyssey Metal X Milled #9 HT / Black Shaft / Superstoke 3.0

About Me:
So here is a little background about me. I’ll try and keep it short. Not a good golfer. Haha. But I love the game. I can shoot depending on the track and day mid 80’s to mid 90’s. But I wont give up. I play around 25-30 rounds a year (Canadian short golf season) and I would say 2/3 are corporate scrambles. With 4 boys under 5 at home it’s hard to get out and play on the weekends when your wife needs your help at home for 2 days to catch her breath. My driver swing speed is around 100mph but I’ve seen it go as high as 110mph on my hulk moments of brilliance, and I have never been fit for clubs in the past. My previous set was Callaway RAZR FIT Driver & 3W, Callaway FT-iZ 3-4H, Callaway X-Forged 09 5-PW, Callaway Jaws X Series MD 52-58-64 Wedges and Odyssey White Hot #9.

There is no debating it. I am a Callaway homer. It’s just the way it is. I love their stuff. I am 100% of the belief all OEM’s make awesome stuff and there is no “junk”. But I just have a soft spot for Callaway when it comes to golf.

A few months ago I went on a trip to the Mecca of Golf in Carlsbad, California and visited Callaway. It was an incredible experience. Got to see the inner workings of Callaway and how things are done. Even got to go hit some balls at the Ely Callaway Performance Centre. The new stuff was just about to get rolled out to the masses. So I was looking forward to hitting the 2014 line before the general public. But one problem. Big problem that is, I’m a lefty. And there was no LH 2014 clubs when I went. L Talk about major bummer. But I made the best of it and had fun.

Why did I go with this setup?

Remember I said I never been fit before. And I’m big on feel. How the club feels in my hands, during the swing and at ball impact. I would say I’m 90% about feel. Well I was until recently that is where I have now made a compromise and have listened to the pros. More about that as we progress.

Driver: My big miss-hit is a slice. Yup I’ll confess. I am a slicer. Or was that is. But it still creeps back once in a while. When I started golfing 15 years ago I would banana slice everything. I can hit a brick and somehow I would slice it. Since then I have tamed it and changed my swing and worked with equipment that would help reduce the slice or effects of a bad swing.

The last 3 years I became an internet golfer. Started reading up on forums like THP for help. I learned about the impact of shafts, low spin, kick point, bend point, etc. So for the first time I took the plunge and bought myself an aftermarket shaft. After much research I purchased an Aldila RIP Alpha 60 S-Flex. Put it on my RAZR FIT 9.5 head and the results where instant. I could hit baby fades all day with it. Yea sure once in a while the sliced ball would come back. But I was hitting for the first time the majority of my drives around 260-270 and in the fairway I would say 75% of the time. There was one problem. And this applies to all the clubs and just not the driver. Freaking thing felt so boardy and harsh on my hands. Like swinging a 2x4. I liked everything about the shaft due to the results alone but hated the feel.

Then one day I went with Mrs. OUZO to the range. She’s a lefty also. And for fun I picked up her driver. BAM. They went straight but not far due to length and loft. But man it felt awesome. The women’s flex felt so awesome. OK, Make fun of me now, I don’t care. But the whippy shaft felt fantastic in my hands and I felt no pain.

Driver Head: So why did I pick the Callaway Big Bertha Alpha 9[SUP]o[/SUP]? Spin baby. Drop that spin rate as much as I could to fight my high backspin numbers (3500 avg).

Driver Shaft: Why the Fubuki ZT? I went feel. I couldn’t go low torque again, it just felt terrible and I thought the low spin head would make up for dropping the spin rates. I even went with an R-Flex with the experience I had in my head after hitting my wife’s driver. I know I might have gone overboard here and went completely the opposite direction.

Other Shafts: Now I’m going to have to skip the selection process for the other clubs or else I’ll lose your attention by the time we get to the actual fitting experience. But in general the same process applied to the shafts for all the other clubs.

Grips: Why Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize? Because I hold my clubs with the GRIP OF DEATH. Like I want to choke them. I cant let off. I try but I cant. This resulted in a lot of pain in my hands and fore-arms. I also liked the really soft feel of them. Actually this was a good call. They really helped and the pain caused by my terrible powergrip is gone.

On The Course PRE-FITTING New Club Results:
Overall I would say I was happy with my selection. As for feel they all felt great. The new stuff was definitely an improvement over the old bag. I was killing the BBA with the odd errant drive. The Apex felt awesome. I loved the lighter shaft. Again an improvement over my older set. The distance was definitely improved but accuracy was a little bit of a problem. The FW’s I didn’t hit much so I cant comment. It just happened that I didn’t get much time with them. I was hitting the 3W great for the few times I hit it. But not doing so well with the 5W. We just couldn’t connect. I was happy I went with the set matching wedges. I find them so much easier to hit than a blade type wedge. That’s where things have really improved for me. I feel so confident 100 yards and in with the matching Apex wedges. The killer is the MXM #9HT. I don’t think in the last 15 rounds I’ve had to do a 3 putt even from bad/distant locations on the green from the pin. I’ve just meshed perfectly with it and the 20gr weights & Superstroke 3.0 combo.

CALLAWAY CANADA:
So after my trip and upon my return the boys over at Callaway Canada came in contact with me and offered to make things good. Yea they fixed Harry’s & Chads mess-up. Lol. I was very surprised and overwhelmed by their actions. They invited me over to get fit at their Toronto location. I have to say Bruce Carroll-Callaway Canada GM & Brent Mallard-Marketing and Product Manager are gentleman and awesome. Yea I’m going to name drop them because they deserve it. You all know Harry, Chad, Greg, Chris, Rhionna, Scott, Jason etc.. well these two gentlemen are of the same formula and their generosity and hospitality is second to none. It’s no coincidence they are with Callaway.

So they offered me two options back in January. Come in get fit now before I get my new clubs and order them based on the results, or wait a few months and go to their new location that’s going to be state of the art. I wanted to wait for the new location. But I also couldn’t wait for my new clubs. Who are we kidding? I wanted them badly. I wanted them to ride shotgun with me on my way to the office in 3 feet of snow in February, I wanted to have long talks with them and drink coffee together. Plus I would need them for a good 10-15 rounds before the new location was open.

Fast forward to mid-June and Brent gives me the call. The move happened and the new offices are up and running. What day works for you he asked me? We set it up and I couldn’t wait for that day. But then I asked myself, what is the point? Why trouble them and take up their time? I already have my clubs. Then the golf junky inside of me smacked me on the back of the head and said fool you’re going to go get fit.

Finally the day came when I get to visit Callaway Canada. Right when I get through the door Brent came and greeted me and introduced me to the pro-fitter Mike Lefevre. He gave me a tour of the place. It was awesome in there. And they treated me like a celebrity. Lol. I can safely say that the new Callaway Canada headquarters from an appearance and fitting capabilities perspective has nothing to be jealous of from the mothership in Carlsbad with the exclusion of the Top Secret R&D that goes on down there. The décor is top notch and the fitting facilities are state of the art.

Mini Spoiler: I also got to see the new 2015 Bag & Headwear Lineup in an off limits secured room with a vault door. Oh boy are all of you in for a treat. As for the bags. New direction. New colour schemes and patterns. Wide variety and some very cool BOLD patterns and colour combos. I loved every one of them. There was one I was about to grab and run away with. Yea Brent, that one I told you Callaway will have a hard time keeping up with Demand/Supply. And there was one bag I don’t think has been done before by any OEM. I personally have never seen anything like it. It’s a brilliant idea. This will definitely be a bag for the serious golfer that plays about 4 rounds a week to have in their stable of bags, one for special occasions. I know it sucks that I can’t say more. But I swore to not take pics or elaborate further on details. Just take my word for it. They all will be a hit.

What blew me away was the fitment area. And on screen they had……





Look familiar? Yup, you guessed it. ECPC in Carlsbad. Bet some THP #Grandaddy members are getting nostalgic even looking at this pic. Having been there I have to say. I was about to cry. I was fascinated and there were so many memories and emotions running through me. I think I needed a minute or two to settle down after that view. Almost let a tear go. I know Brent & Mike were talking to me. But I just had a blank stare looking at the ECPC range on the screen and unintentionally blanked them out. Brent & Mike if you picked up on that sorry guys.

The hitting mat was so cool. I never liked hitting off mats. My only experience was with driving ranges and local big box stores. And they felt harsh. I hated hitting off of them. But this mat was cool. You would never know it was a mat. I forgot to get details. But I’ll ask Brent what it was. I can say for sure it looks expensive. I swear it felt like hitting off of grass. I suspect there are some THP members that know what it is and what the product is called.



So Mike Lefevre gave me the lowdown on the fitting system they use. It’s a very elaborate system. Too complex for a guy like me, but for a true fitting freak like some of you Hackers in here I bet you would love it.

It’s called Aboutgolf. I believe it’s the same system Golf Channel uses. The main difference is that the folks in R&D at Callaway have developed their own fitting software to overlap about golf to provide a more technical experience. You can dumb it down to display the basics which is ideal for me or show hundreds of parameters if you’re super analysing your swing and results. I suspect for an inconsistent swing like mine dumbing it down is the best. I have a hard time replicating swing after swing.



In my case we did the typical parameters. Carry, Overall Distance, Spin Rate, AoA, Launch Angle, Dispersion, Swing Speed, Ball Speed. I believe anything else wouldn’t be of added value again due to my inconsistent swing.

The Aboutgolf system uses High Speed 3D cameras to take pictures of the club and ball at almost 2500 frames per second to pick up ball speed, trajectory and spin as well as clubhead speed and 3D path as well as clubface angle.

I found the system to work great and the type of shot I felt I hit was always represented in the shape of shot and the numbers were shown on the screen and believe me this thing will pick up some fairly big hooks and slices.

...... to be continued in next post

I knew what was on the screen the second I saw it. Very cool.

THE FITTING:

Irons: So Mike started me off with hitting my Apex 6i / Project X PX95 5.0 Flighted Standard Length / Wynn Dri-Tac Midsize. As I was hitting balls he was explaining to me the procedure and what the goals are. I must have had a good 40 swings. Inconsistent swings that is. Left & Right. I guess I had stage fright. Then he tells me he’s also a PGA Pro Instructor. OK I didn’t need to know that I said to myself. So now I got this guy super analysing my swing. I felt awful. But he quickly reassured me to just relax and have fun. We are here to get you dialed in. Not change or point out faults of your swing. But I have to say at the beginning Mike had a stone cold look on his face. A puzzled look. I was about to go hide under a rock.

I explained to him why I went with the combo I went with. Heads, shafts & grips. This helped him a lot to narrow down the ideal setup for me with the characteristics I like. No point in going with a heavy shaft if I don’t like the feel.

He took my measurement, height, length of arms, arms to ground etc.. He told me standard length is what I need. Which is good cause I never knew. I was worried I was like a T-Rex like Neil-xThor.

Then he proceeded with determining if I needed any lie adjustment. Again I always wondered if I needed any adjustment to the lie of my clubs. Again I was good with standard length. See pic…. (well the photographer, me, dropped the ball on that one)



We stuck with the Apex heads because that’s what I had and like. Didn’t hit any of the other heads and he started putting different standard length shafts in Apex heads for me. All this time during our discussion and me warming up hitting balls with the current set he was recording my shots. One thing Mike pointed out is that I had to go up in shaft flex. The PX95 5.0 was too soft for me and my swing speed. He gave me a visual demonstration of what happens with a too soft flex shaft and a high swing speed by bending the shaft in front of my and where the head is pointing most of the time. So off we went and started testing different shafts. I’ll try and summarise quickly the shafts I tried with some results.

True Temper XP95 S300: This is the stock offering with the Apex irons. The results where an immediate improvement over the PX95 5.0. Feel, distance and dispersion showed improvement. Hit about 20 balls. Off the get-go we had a candidate.

True Temper Dynamic Gold SL S300: Didn’t feel good. Felt heavier in my hands. I know this falls in the lighter category. But still felt heavier than what I was looking for. He tried them because I told him I liked the soft stepped DG S300 I had in my X-Forged which replaced the PX 6.5 Flighted I had in them when I bought them and hated them. But after trying the PX95’s I loved the lighter shaft and the feel and there is no going back. So we crossed that off our list. I truly can’t remember the results from the LM on this shaft. Sorry.

Project X PX95 6.0 Flighted: This is 2 flexes up from the shafts I came in with to the fitting. BOOOOOM….remember that movie Limitless where Bradly Cooper pops those pills and his IQ skyrockets and he gets a massive rush? That’s exactly how I felt with these shafts in my hands after the first swing with them. I felt like I ripped the skin of the ball. Shot after shot these felt so good. The perfect smooth snapping feel. The head interaction with the ball was so pure. I just dropped my jaw after the first swing and told Mike we have a winner. And the results don’t lie. Check this out. Gained over 10 yards and my dispersion just narrowed in drastically.

Yellow PX95 6.0
Blue PX95 5.0


Projext X PXi 6.0: These didn’t feel good. Felt harsh in my hands. To be fair I didn’t give it much thought or chance. It was hard to after how awesome the PX95’s felt. Mike did say considering I am not using hybrids then let’s not go with these. We would have investigated further into these shafts if I was a hybrid user. He said they blend in nicely and provide a better transition or better feel for those using hybrids.

The iron fitting verdict? It was obvious. Apex Head, Std Length & Lie with Project X PX95 6.0 Flighted.

Driver & Woods:
Now I know this is the segment of the fitting most of you are looking forward to. Unfortunately it was a let down. I’m truly sorry guys. It was a fail not because of the fitting process or Callaway’s fault. It was 100% my fault. I feel like I let down Mike & Brent mostly. I bet Mike must have been frustrated in the end with the driver fitting attempt. I know I let him down. But seriously guys I was just hitting 150-200 balls for the past 2 hours and I was spent. My arms felt like noodles. Mike tried different heads, shafts you name it. But I was hitting high and left. I had lost my swing and I was exhausted. I even told them to stop because I couldn’t get my swing back and that they have done all they can do. I was so disappointed in myself that for a few swings I just had to muster the strength and put the extra effort to hit a few long solid shots just to be able to say that I can, but that’s as far as it goes today.

But don’t worry. There are results that will follow in the post round review section.

So based on my iron fitting, the AoA and whatever data Mike could make of the driver swings he suggested I drop the stock Mitsubishi Rayon Fubuki ZT-60 R-Flex 45.5” and go with the same shaft in S-Flex cut down to play at 44.5”. Turn up the BBA +2 and Draw settings. With the shorter shaft I can also add some more weight 7 & 5 to keep the SW where I wanted. I like a high SW so I have gone ahead and ordered a new matching weight kit. I used the ones from the RAZR FIT series before.

As for the woods. There was no point in even hitting them. Like I said I was spent. So he noticed that the 3W and 5W had two different shafts. The 6.2VC and 6.1VC respectively. He asked why? I did say it was an error that must have occurred in the order process or I could hae made the error somewhere. He asked me which shaft I prefer and I said the 6.2VC. He said that is what he was going to suggest going with in the 5W also.

A Fitting Ending:
So with Brent & Mike we concluded that there wasn’t much more swing in me. They proceeded to print out the results and this is where I got cold feet. I now have a set of clubs that don’t fit me ideally, they work as my wife would put it and I was happy for what I had. But knowing now that with something else I could get better results just eats me inside and this hacker didn’t like this. I’m not going to lie. A family of 6 with one income isn’t the best place in the world right now. It could be worse, so I’m not one to complain. But the budget for golf equipment and changes of this magnitude just isn’t available at this point. No way could I tell the wife, “Hey good news, I need $xxx for new shafts”.

So I had to ask. I asked Brent what was this all going to cost me? He looked at me with a smile and said “NOTHING. This is on us” Was I ecstatic? Yes. Ready to cry from joy? Yes. Surprised? No. Callaway has always shown how accommodating, gracious and approachable they are throughout the years. Doesn’t matter who it is your dealing with in Callaway. Callaway is a people company and they never cease to amaze me with their actions of kindness and generosity.

So they kept my irons to get them reshafted and regripped and they offered me loaners until I got them back. The Driver and woods I kept because I had to just swap out the shafts when they arrived.

What did they give me for loaners? How about these rare Lefty Legacy!!! I didn’t know they existed in LH. Let me tell you I played 2 rounds with these babies’s and they are smooth. I was actually tempted to not return them. Haha. I was shocked at how well they played. With the 6&7 I couldn’t miss. I stuck it wherever I wanted.




And it didn’t stop there. Bruce and Brent had more bombs to drop. Limited Canadian Metal X Milled Versa #9HT was waiting for me with a Mystery cover.




On Range and Course Review:
So it didn’t take long. In 1.5 weeks they had the new shafts and the irons reshafted and regripped back to me.

I was excited to take this out and try them. I went the next day at lunch to the range to see the results. Mike hit the hammer on the head. The driver Fubuki S-Flex ZT felt great. It’s such a smooth shaft I didn’t lose any of that feel I liked with the R –Flex. As for the ball flight. Well let’s just say winner. Small penetrating baby fades and with it being an inch shorter I didn’t lose any distance and mydispersion was so much tighter than the 45.5” R-Flex.

The PX95 6.0in the Apex. Was point and shoot. That feeling I felt in the fitting session was there. Exactly same feeling. Crisp snaps at the ball followed by an explosion off the face. No random left or right shots.

On the course. Well on my 1[SUP]st[/SUP] outing I hit the panic button. The driver wasn’t cooperating. I suddenly was ballooning high and left again. Yup I thought I had to go back to the R-Flex. But I gave it one more shot. 2[SUP]nd[/SUP]round it all came together again. Long baby fades again. It’s amazing howthings can change from one round to another. 3[SUP]rd[/SUP] round didn’t go so well for the big stick. On my 4[SUP]th[/SUP] round I was about to put in the RFlex @45.5” but I gave the S Flex another go. I was glad I did. I was killing the driver again and must have only missed 2 fairways. 5[SUP]th[/SUP] Round again the 44.5” Stiff flex was money. Mike made the right call on the driver stick.

As for the Big Bertha 3 & 5 woods. The last few rounds I have spent a lot of time with them and gained so much confidence I pulled the 3Deep out of the bag. The Big Bertha 3W does the job I need with the confidence I need. I played one round with the 6.2VC in the 5W and one with the 6.1VC. The 6.2VC was the clear winner and stays on the 5W.

The Apex irons in the 2 rounds I played have been excellent. Much better results in actual play with the new shafts than the shafts that were in them before, which just supports the fitting results.

Final thoughts:

Pro’s:

If you’re aone OEM mind player this approach is just awesome regardless of the OEM. Sure there are fitting centres out there that know their stuff. This isn’t a knock against them. But if you are brand loyal or know generally what you want from one OEM this is the way to go. How can you compete with a fitter that knows theproduct better than anyone else, does it on a daily basis and has a much narrower selection to work with thus not risking guiding you in the wrong direction?

The cost is actually very reasonable. I believe a full bag costs $65 CAD. I wouldn’t hesitate to drop that amount for a one club fitting. You can go for just FW’s or just hybrids for example. With the amount of shaft options Callaway now offers at no upcharge or at a little additional cost this is a no brainer.

I’m going back there on a yearly basis from now on for the odd one club upgrades. It will be in the fall or winter I want to try that Apex driving iron that’s coming outand the rumored hybrids.

Con’s:

The only Con I take from this experience is not to anyone’s fault but my own. It’s tough toget fit for one full bag. It’s exhausting. Callaway was up to the task. They intended to pull it off in one sitting. But I couldn’t physically keep up. I advise anyone getting fit for a full bag to consider breaking it down to sessions.

Guys I hope you enjoyed this review. Special thanks goes out to all of Callaway Canada, Bruce Carol, Brent Mallard & Mike Lefevre, thank you for your generosity and hospitality. Words are not enough to express my gratitude. If you have any questions specific to the fitting you can ask me here in this thread or you can always look up the guys on Twitter.

END OF SEASON UPDATE NOVEMBER 5 2014

Just an update to this thread post fitting.

I finally got everything tuned in exactly the way I wanted.

I went with all the recommendations the fitter suggested and provided with one exception.

Driver acted up on me again. So I did what every HO would do. I yanked out my Aldila Rip Alpha out of my RAZR FIT that was just sitting there and put the new 2014 tip on it.

MAGIC. For 5 rounds I couldn't be happier. Low peircing bullets just the way I wanted and dead straight.

Gravity core down. 15gr heel and 1gr toe. 9* Draw.

Yea it plays heavy ad D8sh. Just the way I love them.

Finally found the driver formula that works for me.

I have to resize the fitting spreadsheet. I'm working on it guys.

that is a really good write up on your fitting process. Thanks for sharing.

Well holy crap. That ending was a surprising twist!

hhmm the cut paste option from word is messed up. It merges two words together.

Sorry if it's a hard read guys. I'll go through the post and edit it.

Very good read and I am impressed with Callaway taking such good care of you.

Fantastic writeup dude!

Hope I can to see you with these clubs in action at a THP event one day!

nice writeup. Sounds like an awesome experience. Great job Callaway! as usual. I would love to do a fitting like that someday.

Wow that's pretty awesome. They took care of you pretty dang well that's for sure!

Howzat said:

Very good read and I am impressed with Callaway taking such good care of you.

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They treated me like a pro. I sware I felt very humble.

Wow awesome write up! great info and just wow detail! love reading these makes me want to spend the $$$ and get fit myself.

jlukes said:

Fantastic writeup dude!

Hope I can to see you with these clubs in action at a THP event one day!

Click to expand...

hopefully there will be an invitational close to me one of these days.

Great write up, I love reading about other folk's fitting experiences.

I had to read this in stages, just busy, but enjoyed every bit of. Great write up. Callaway treated you exceptionally well, and I am not surprised.

Fantastic write up. Thank you for sharing.

Great review Kostas. I'm doing that some day soon. One of my bucket list items actually. You know how I feel about Callaway. Have the same soft spot for them. Just think they're absolutely the best. Glad it was such a good experience for you. I have an ECPC close here but I want the mother ship.

Great review, Kostas! Fantastic job sharing all the details, I'm very jealous. I honestly have no brand allegiance, but I can say from experience that Callaway is top notch in customer service and interaction. I have always said, until I start receiving checks from an OEM, I will play what works best for my game regardless of the brand name stamped on the club. But, the way Callaway has treated myself and others time and time again makes it hard not to have some inherent bias towards their products. I may play a variety of brands in my "gamer" bag, but I have a backup bag that's all Callaway- 14 clubs and the bag, and I'd have no problem playing it exclusively. Again, great write up, Kostas. Glad you're enjoying the new sticks. Hit 'em straight, and hopefully we can figure out some way to hook up and play a round or two sometime in the near future!

That, was a fun read.

Just an update to this thread post fitting.

I finally got everything tuned in exactly the way I wanted.

I went with all the recommendations the fitter suggested and provided with one exception.

Driver acted up on me again. So I did what every HO would do. I yanked out my Aldila Rip Alpha out of my RAZR FIT that was just sitting there and put the new 2014 tip on it.

MAGIC. For 5 rounds I couldn't be happier. Low peircing bullets just the way I wanted and dead straight.

Gravity core down. 15gr heel and 1gr toe. 9* Draw.

Yea it plays heavy ad D8sh. Just the way I love them.

Finally found the driver formula that works for me.

Well done on the write up OUZO. Enjoyed reading that we, in Canada, can get the same treatment as our southern cousins