[Lanny_McDonald]

An extension of the club fitting discussion as I believe there is way more here for people to understand about the process. All of it tagged with nested NSFW sections to you can dive as deep as you want.

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Originally Posted by Enoch Root

LOL

Exactly what I would expect from you. Oblivious, vitriolic arrogance.

Honestly, it astounds me that you continue to put in so much time and effort with this belligerent act. It impresses no one, but that clearly doesn't deter you in the slightest.

You keep doing you.

What you call pontification I call educating people. So please save your juvenile insults and try to learn something yourself. I'm trying to share some knowledge here, and save a lot of people some time and money, because fitting is not a solution to the problem of hitting the golf ball. Fitting isn't even the solution to getting a solid set of clubs unless they are built to spec by a clubsmith (more on that to come). So why listen to what I have to say? "Pontification" incoming.

NSFW!

I speak from experience and expertise in this domain. This is not something I speak a lot about because I consider it a personal failure, but during a midlife crisis I put my professional life on hold and took on the challenge of earning my PGA card with hopes of competing on the senior tour. I achieved the goal of earning the card, but failed in my attempts to get on the senior tour (hands of a brick layer), but ended up working in the business to keep the dream alive and make ends meet by being on staff at one of the top facilities in Florida. Here I would become APGA certified as an instructor (apprenticed under Brad Brewer, who passed away earlier this year), as well as a certified fitter on Acushnet and Ping Karsten systems. I was also the clubsmith on staff and did all repairs and custom builds from fittings. It was four years of giving lessons for little to no money, doing fittings to earn extra cash here and there, and then fixing the problems of fitted clubs that come from the factory. Do I know everything about the fitting process? Nope. Because it continues to evolve with the equipment advancements and with the benefits of the launch monitor technology, but the foundations I learned in the PGA program and from industry training from the manufacturers are still the basis for the BOK in regards to this domain.

You're a data scientist, so maybe this will make you understand the complexity of the fitting process. Did you know there are 12-13 variables in fitting (1 being a culmination of several others)? As a data guy, does that not tell you just how complex the process is, and how advanced a player needs to be to control as many of these variables as possible?

This next part is for the education of readers. This "pontification" is for people that want to understand the variables in fitting and why it takes so much time to properly fit a player (four to eight hours is not unheard of, PXG offering a two day fitting - one for irons and one for driver/fairway woods). Here's the variables that professional fitters consider when they work with a customer.

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This is going to be quick and dirty to save time and the boredom of the technical issues of each.

Loft and Lie are the basics. This is what most people focus in on when talking about fitting, but they are small percentage of the fit. Loft relates to the adjustment between clubs for a manageable distance gap between clubs. Lie refers to the angle of the shaft in relation to neutral, + being upright and - being flat, or hands ending up higher or lower in relation to neutral. DoubleK actually referenced the process of determining lie, but hitting off an impact board with - gasp - impact tape to determine bias in heel to toe hits. Another basic is grip size, which is to find comfort and feel for the player. Grip size is predominantly a comfort thing, but grips that are too big or too small can lead to quick or slow hands which affect ball flight. This is more of a minor thing, but a variable to consider.

Club head is a major consideration while doing a fitting. What type of head are we talking about, what are the characteristics, and does this establish a club requiring heavier shafts to prevent over torque during the swing or possible club failure. It is important to know the type of player you're working with, their playability, the level of game they play, and areas where they are trying to find improvement. Proper head selection sets up the rest of the fitting.

The most important facet of fitting IMO is the shaft, and the variables associated with the shaft itself. This is about 80% of the work for a fitter, and starts with the chronograph. Shaft flex is the most important thing to consider, as it controls the release of the head. Tempo and swing speed determine the flex, as a quick/fast swing needs a stiffer shaft to keep the head of the club on plane. Length is crucial here as well, and it is driven by the player's posture more than anything. It is very old school for a fitter to break out the tape measure and measure from the floor to the break in the wrist to determine shaft length, which is completely wrong. Shaft length is determined by the player's posture and swing plane. The kick point of the shaft, sometimes referred to as bend profile, is next most important, as it determines trajectory and ball flight. Getting this right can help add distance or produce stopping power on the green. Shaft torque is also a massive consideration, as the twist in the shaft can force the head off plane and leave it open or closed at impact, creating a slice or hook. Swing speed and hand position greatly impact this variable. Shaft weight can greatly affect a player's ability to work the club, as heavier shaft weights can cause drag, and too light a club create the opposite effect.

Once proper shaft is identified you can move on to marrying the head to the shaft and determining the club weight and swing weight (two very different measures), with the swing weight the one you want to maintain most consistently, as this will produce the most consistent results. Head weight can be adjusted through weights or tape to correct for certain shot shapes or the flaws in head manufacturing affecting balance.

So that's being as general as I can be on the components that impact a fit and become variables in fitting an individual. The next question to ask is where to get the fit done?

If you go to a big box store I can pretty much guarantee you they will not be paying the appropriate attention or detail to get you properly fitted. Getting a good fitting is more like going to performance driving school, while getting a fitting at a big box store is like going for a test drive in a car you're interested in. Most of the time they are only giving you time is to sell you on the clubs and get you in and out. They want you to hit the club a dozen times and tell you how well you are hitting it so you'll develop a "relationship" with the club and be compelled to take it home with you (basic sales technique). It is unlikely they are going to work you through all clubs in the bag, definitely skipping the most important ones (wedges and putter) and instead spending most time on the driver and woods (most expensive clubs they can sell you). If you really must get fitted, go to a professional who is certified and is going to take the time with you.

So now that you have completed your fitting, now what? Who's building those clubs for you? Are you relying on the factory? If you are, you're again wasting your money. The factory is about mass production. They may stick in a custom length shaft or throw on some different grips, but they may not doing everything else you expect. A friend recently bought a fitted set of clubs that were supposed to +.75, 1 degree upright. When he got them he asked me to inspect them for him and spec them out. All shafts and grips were correct, but three of eight clubs were standard rather than up right. He never would have known unless they were put on the loft lie machine. With the number of clubs on backorder from the factory, this was not surprising. So be careful where you get your clubs made. Also, if you really want this fit to make those 1 to 2 degree corrections, make sure your clubs are built by a qualified clubsmith. Pontification as to why.

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Golf shafts are tubes that are imperfect in their construction. They have a seam that runs down the tube and has a join. Hopefully this join runs in a straight line, but many times it is inconsistent. The spine has an affect on the bending of the shaft as well as how it handles torque. This seam, called the spine of the shaft, needs to be found and then aligned consistently on all your clubs so those one degree changes you paid for in fitting are now counter acted by the imperfections of the components. To solve this problem a clubsmith will follow a process called frequency matching, sometimes called flat line oscillation, where they put the club on an oscillator and mark where the clubs all bend/vibrate in the same direction. This guarantees the straightest shots possible. The factory does NOT do this, and this is a process that time consuming and expensive. But this is where that fitting is maintained and where it pays off.

Clubs are then weight matched and blueprinted, identifying each component and adjustment made to the club, so if it is damaged or lost it can be replaced with almost an exact copy. The clubsmith will likely have you come in and do one more swing test pass with each club, validating their work on - gasp - impact tape. All of these adjustments, and all of this work, are designed to do one thing and that is to help you find the center of the club with most of your swings (80-85% is a good target) and the only way they determine that is with the impact tape.

When you pick up your shiny new clubs you should be walking out with more than just those clubs. You should be leaving with a blueprint of your clubs that has all your specs and documentation of the build process. Some clubsmiths may even include the impact tape (face and sole) to show the results of their work and something for others to work from should repairs or replacement done by another clubsmith.

That's the process and everything that goes into club fitting. Has anyone who has recently been fitted at Golftown had that level of attention given to them? Did you ask them why they didn't fit your putter or wedges, seeing as they are the most important clubs in the bag and you use them the most?
Have your clubs been built and delivered to you in that fashion? If you're not going through this process and getting the appropriate documentation all you're getting is a up sold and making your clubs harder to sell when you want to get rid of them (who wants clubs customer fit to you which won't fit anyone else). Fitting is specific to you and is about making these micro corrections (1-2 degrees in all directions) to tighten your shot dispersion by a few feet. If you're to that point where those few feet are going to make difference, by all means, invest in a fitting. But also recognize that fitting is only half of that game you're investing in, and then you need to get your clubs built the right way to leverage those adjustments. Most players don't have the skill level to leverage those advantages, and those that do can make a rake, shovel, and hoe work for them (Tin Cup reference).

I hope this was educational and helpful to those interested in the fitting process.