Buyers Guide - Golf

ruthyou a backyard fitting.
Lets be honest you decided to click on this link for oneOk, enough of the rambling by us lets get down to
of the following reasons:how we are going to help you become not only a
You want to improve your golf game (score).more knowledgable golfer but a better golfer as well.
You were intrigued by the prices we offer comparedKick Points
to Name Brand equipment.Ball flight is a problem for many golfers that are not
You want to finally have a set of irons or a driver thateven aware of it. Many golfers are losing 3-5 strokes
is custom fit to your swing.a round just because they have too low of a ball flight
With that being said, I want to tell you that you havepattern. No, we do not want you to have a high
come to the right place, and our Buyer's Guide will helpBALLONING ball flight. But, yes you do want a more
you in ALL of those areas. And lucky for you it will notpenetrating higher ball flight that lands softly. Think
be in the typical complicated jargon that most Fittingabout the shots that you have to play over a bunker
guides are arranged in. This will be in a straight forwardwith the pin tucked closely behind . With too low of a
step by step process, that will have you on your wayball flight you might land on the green but not be able
to a better, more enjoyable game in no time.to stop the ball before you have run it 30 ft past the
The Problem(s)pin. You happily walk up to the green, pray for a two
Golf is actually a simple game our brains and golfputt and go to the next tee box. But what if you could
magazines just make it more complicated then ithave played that same shot and been able to stop the
needs to be. The majority of golfers have the sameball 10-15 ft past the cup. You might have been able to
problems that need to be fixed. But most of us comesink a one putt and saved one to two strokes on that
to the solution in the wrong manner. We tend to thinkhole alone. The tables below show which shafts give
that if something new comes out it must be better andyou the ball flight you are looking for.
that the higher the price on the equipment you buyShaft Torque
means the better the equipment must be. Then weJust because a shaft says stiff flex does not mean
tend to blame ourselves when that $1200 set wethat it is the right shaft for you, even if you fit that
purchased does not lower our score.criteria. Torque comes into play as well when properly
We want you to remember that the Pro shopfitting a shaft to a golfers swing speed.
salesmen that sold you your set has most likely neverThink about a $4 graphite shaft that is a stiff flex and
built a set of clubs and most likely does not knowa $40 graphite shaft that is also a stiff flex. There has
what the specifications of the Pro-line shafts are. Theto be a reason why that shaft is more expensive .
shaft is the motor, and who wants to buy a LexusGenerally it is for a couple reasons : Better materials,
with a Yugo motor under the hood?better tolerances, and more precise kick points and
The Solutiontorque tolerances for the flex it should correspond
Whether the problem you are having with your gamewith.
seems to be simple or complicated. It most likely canTo get the maximum distance and control out of your
be fixed by looking at your present game andshaft you need to have the right torque rating . If you
equipment from only a few different angles.hit the ball 275 on average without roll and are playing
You could feel like you have the best swing in thea 2.5 torque stiff shaft you are most likely not getting
world and the following variables could be killing youreverything out of that shaft as you should be.
game. Club Head Style, Shaft Choice, Shaft Length,Remember torque is the amount the head turns on the
Grip Size and Flex are the major components toshaft from right to left. If you do not put enough load
properly fitting a golfer and if ONLY ONE of theseon the shaft to maximize the 2.5 torque rating you are
variables is not matched up to your swing you couldnot allowing the shaft to load and unload to its
be in for a nightmare of bad habits to come.maximum capacity. Therefore you are not getting the
Take only a few minutes out of your day to look overmaximum distance out of your new stick.
the following Self-Help Guides and we promise thatMost hitters need "a little pop" to help the clubhead
you will not only improve your game but you will berelease properly through impact. Players should not get
become the most informed golfer on your block.carried away in thinking that lower torque means
Club Head Stylebetter control. The following chart will assist you in
Did you ever say to yourself, “I don't feel likegetting the right torque rating for your next driver shaft.
my swing is that bad, why can't I still breakRemember that this rating is more precise for higher
(80,90,100).” Well if you do then CLUB HEADquality shafts, due to the fact that they rate there
STYLE might be one of your problems.shafts more accurately.
Technology has come a long way, so if you are stillShaft Weight
playing irons that are 5 years old or more you mostDON'T PAY ATTENTION TO SWINGWEIGHTING
likely could benefit from the advances in new iron headSO MUCH. To many golfers get caught up in trying to
construction. Here are some of the variables of aget that D2 weighting they hear about . But remember
head that have an impact on making the game a littleevery golfer likes a different feel . Some like more feel
easier for the average golfer. Click on each title forin the head some like their weight more evenly
how each one can help your game. Yes, we knowdistributed throughout the entire club. And remember
this is a lot of information for just the first section butalso that irons and woods are different . I prefer a
take it step by step and let it sink in a little.lighter feeling head on my driver, so by the 14 th hole I
Offsetdon't feel like I am lugging around a 2 X 4 . This way I
Offest is the amount the face of the club sits backfeel like I am in more control of my game throughout
from the hosel, this aids in helping reduce a slice withmy entire round. This is just one opinion, but the point is
your clubs. Generally the better golfer you are the lessto have you start actually thinking about the clubs in
offset you want. However this is not always true. Foryour bag in a different light . Think about it, if you could
some reason the better your score gets the less youafford a $5000 suit that was totally custom fit to your
start liking the look of the iron head sitting that far backbody and money was no issue then you would do that
from the hosel. It is a hand control issue more thenfor yourself. Well why wouldn't you completely
anything else. When you feel like you are the onecustomize your driver or new irons if you could afford
actually in control of the club you want there to be lessit. Oh yeah you can!! With the prices we sell our
and less offset on your new sticks. But for a Mid toequipment for, you can customize your clubs in every
High handicap player offset can be a MAJOR factor inaspect possible.
making solid contact more often. And the best analogySHAFT LENGTH
I can give you is if you were a baseball player wouldShaft length is very important but typically shaft length
you rather have the feeling of hitting a home run or ain drivers is where most golfers are making their
broken bat single. Solid contact plays a major role inmistakes . However for your irons we do not want
ditance and accuracy control. So if you are constantlyyou tailoring your swing to your clubs . There are
having that broken bat single feeling with your ironsenough variables to be worried about in golf, the last
you might want to consider going to a head with morething you want is to have a perfect swing and
offset.equipment that does not match up.
Perimeter WeightingDo you find yourself choking up more often then not?
You might have noticed the trend in the cavity designOr do you wake up the morning after your round with
of new irons lately. Irons in past years had more of thea sore back? That is your body telling you that you
weight behind the impact area of the cavity. Today'sneed to get your clubs custom fit. In addition, that is
irons have more of the weight towards the perimeteralso your body telling you it is having to change its
of the cavity. This is what is called PERIMETERmotion to match up to your equipment. NOT GOOD. If
WEIGHTING . If you always hit the ball dead centeryou take your body out of its natural rhythm, BELIEVE
perfect, you would want a small sweet spot and nome your game will never be allowed to flourish.
perimeter weighting so you could put as much physicalBelow is a list of problems that could be occurring due
mass directly behind the impact point of the ball. Thisto the wrong length shaft:
would make a very long shot. However, if you are offClubs Too Long
— even just a millimeter — your shot will goLow Hook - Tends to make the toe of the club stick
astray. By having an iron that is perimeter weightingup. This causes the heel of your club to grab first
you are maximizing the forgiveness of your irons. Sowhich turns your toe in causing the right to left spin on
unless you play 4 to 5 times a week you most likelythe ball and the lower ball flight.
do not hit the center of the sweet spot 100% of theHigher Ball Flight Then Normal – Many times
time. Therefore you might want to consider thegolfers with too long of a club will tend to try to over
amount of perimeter weighting you need on your irons.compensate, which causes them to stand too tall and
Sole Widthlean back on their downswing. The leaning back can
Sole width is another factor when considering yourcause extra loft to be added to the head which can
next iron set purchase. Put simply the larger the masscause a high shot with a loss of distance.
on your irons the easier it is to be grabbed in a tighterSuper Fat Shots - Your body has to compensate for
lie out of the rough. A narrower sole is easier out ofthe extra length if your clubs are too long. But since
tight lies and wider soles are easier from plush lies.this is not your bodies natural motion it will tend to
That is why we tend to recommend a mid to wideforget about 40% of the time. So when your body
soled iron and more blade style wedges. The majorityforgets that extra length makes contact with the
of your wedge shots are going to be from tighter liesground a hair to soon. This is what will cause those
or you might have to carry a bunker and still be able toSuper-Fat shots.
stop it quickly on the green. So for your SW and LWWorm Burner - This is the opposite of the Super-Fat
you might want to consider looking in our wedgeshot . In this instance your body actually over
section and choose from a more traditional shapedcompensates for the length and stands too tall. You
wedge.then make your contact in the center of the ball. This
Heel to Toe Lengthwill cause that screaming worm burner or the shot that
This iron attribute is more cosmetic then anything else.flies 60 yds. over the green.
But it does affect forgiveness. Some players like theClubs Too Short
look of a more compact iron, although a longer heel toPush Or Slice - Too short of an iron will have to toe
toe design has a larger effective hitting area. So if youpointing down into the ground. This causes the toe to
are the kind of golfer that is looking for the maximumgrab to early and pushes your heel forward. This
amount of forgiveness you might also want tocauses the left to right spin or the open face which
consider a longer heel to toe design.causes the push or slice.
Face HeightCatching It Thin - If you are catching it a little thin more
Face Height is similar to Heel to Toe length. If you areoften then not. You might have a set of irons that are
looking for the most forgiving iron you should take facea little too short for you.
height in consideration.SHAFT FLEX
SHAFT CHOICEImagine taking your 9 yr old sons clubs out to play in
Shaft Choice is the most important dynamic toyour next tournament. Or imagine playing with the long
improving your present game and equipment. Wedrive Champions driver. You think you would be able to
know that you are hearing this a lot lately, but this isperform as well with their equipment? Most likely not.
one statement your buddy is right about.And one of the reasons is because the flex of those
Most recreational golfers think that flex is the ONLYclubs most likely does not fit your swing speed . Flex is
thing they need to worry about in regards to being fitthe amount the club flexes from front to back. Torque
properly. You don't know how many times we get theis the amount the head twists from right to left (FOR
guy saying, “Give me x-stiff in my driver, andRIGHTIES). So both components are important when it
he hits the ball 175 yds off the tee. Or the guy thatcomes to picking the right shaft for your game.
says, “Well my buddy saw me swing and heToo flexible of a shaft and your going to have less
said I need stiff.” First things first, don't listen tocontrol, and you will produce a draw or a hook.
the buddy who just read a “Golf Digest”Too stiff of a shaft and you are going to lose some
and thinks he's the golf guru, but still shoots 20 strokesdistance, and you will produce a fade or a slice.
worse then you do. I personally think that custom clubWe would love to give you a table that shows exactly
builders are the most knowledgable in the business inwhat swing speed corresponds with what shaft flex.
regards to being able to properly fit a golfer. That isBut unfortunately every shaft company goes by
our job, to properly fit and build irons and woods to adifferent standards . So a UST Gold 75 stiff might play
golfers swing. Pro Line shops are there to sella whole flex stiffer then a Penley Graphite Light Stiff.
equipment and have most likely never built a club . SoThe following tables are a good rule of thumb for the
we would hope you would call someone in our fieldmajority of shafts on the market.
before having “Harry the Hacker” giving