Welcome to GOLF’s “Firsthand with a Fitter” series, where with the help of True Spec Golf we dive into some of the most common questions golfers have about club fitting, issues they struggle with on the course, and how properly fit equipment can help fix those issues and make the game easier.
For this edition of Firsthand with a Fitter, we dive into an equipment hot topic for golfers of all skill levels: How can certain shaft profiles and weights help correct potential swing issues and help golfers hit it longer and straighter?
Before we get started, let’s make one thing clear, golf shafts on their own don’t magically change ball flight or your golf swing, but they can help change a golfer’s dynamics into the impact. The end result is much more efficient contact and better results that include longer shots and improved dispersion.
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Understanding shaft profiles
A golf shaft’s bend profile helps explain how a shaft moves, flexes and torques when forces are applied to it during the golf swing. These characteristics can quantify why certain shafts work better for some players and even work better in particular golf club heads and styles.
The other aspect of this is when all of these profile elements are brought together, they result in how a shaft feels to players with different speeds and load patterns, with the goal of a fitter to match a shaft up with a golfer’s swing to create the best results.
A simple way to approach this fitting process is that golfers with faster swing speeds and transition might find the best results come from a shaft with a stiffer handle and tip section for better control, while a golfer with a more moderate swing speed may find the most benefit from a shaft with a softer handle and tip section to help generate more clubhead speed thanks to improved timing.
Again these are simplified scenarios — now it’s time for specifics.
Reducing dispersion
Poor dispersion is caused by a golfer’s inability to control the club face-to-path relationship, the greater the control and more consistent the relationship the better the dispersion gets. If the club face is open to the path, the result is a shot that fades from left to right (for a right-handed golfer), and if the face is closed to the path the result is a hook or a pull left.
For higher swing speed golfers with a faster transition, a shaft with a stiffer handle and tip selection can help the club feel more stable, which can lead to better awareness of where the club is during the swing. Think of it as improving how you might open or close a tennis racket to hit a certain shot.
Fujikura Ventus TR Black Wood Shaft
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This awareness of the club’s face orientation and the path the club is being swung on can result in a much higher dispersion, especially for those faster and stronger players.
It could also go the opposite way for players with a more moderate swing speed and tempo who struggle to swing a stiffer shaft that can feel difficult to load correctly. This is where going lighter and softer for these players can help them gain the same kind of control faster players do with a stiffer shaft.
Spin and launch too high
Launch and spin are directly controlled by dynamic loft at impact and club face impact point. When talking metal woods, specifically drivers, shots hit lower on the face jump up in spin, while shots hit higher on the face spin lower.
Now if you’re already in the right driver loft for your game but still struggling with excess spin, it could be that the shaft you’re using has a softer tip profile, and that softer tip is flexing more and creating a higher dynamic loft resulting in more spin.
A shaft with a stiffer tip section can help reduce this flexing into impact — called shaft deflection, and lower dynamic loft and spin to fit into an ideal launch window for more distance.
Fujikura 2024 Ventus Blue Wood Shaft
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Spin and launch too low
Although most golfers try to reduce spin with their driver and fairway woods, too little spin can cause just as many issues with dispersion and loss of carry distance, especially on mishits.
This is exactly where lighter and more flexible shaft options (relative to swing speed) can help deliver more deflection into impact to help increase launch and spin. A great example of this is the R2 flex options from Fujikura in the Ventus Blue and Red profiles. These lighter shafts weigh close to 50 grams once installed into a golf club and can help golfers who struggle with too little spin gain it back.
Fujikura Ventus Red Wood Shaft
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Lighter weight shafts can also help golfers pick up extra club head speed in their swings and speed also helps to create spin and lift to help gain extra distance.
Check out our latest Fully Equipped podcast for more on the latest gear news and information.
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