New clubs

Hi everyone,

 I am currently running a custom fitting business and would just like some feedback on product.

I am going to offer the Snake Eyes 675 forged iron series in my range and I was just wondering would you guys go somewhere if shaft puring and frequency matching was offered as standard?

Having had my irons pured and frequency matched, I wouldn't go without it for any new clubs.  Offering it as a standard would be a positive and for the better player/more technically savvy will swing it in your favour. 

People are becoming more aware of technology in golf.  Some want to ensure they are getting the best out of their game, whilst some are just desperate to have the latest tools and techniques applied

It is double dutch to me as well, Philip, but it seems to be the in thing at the moment. No doubt, like everthing else, new clubs that hit 30 yards further, balls that go another twenty yards, yet we all still hit the ball the same, no matter what we put in our hands.

Pureing - No shaft is perfectly round or uniform in shape.  Pureing aligns the shaft in the clubhead so that the flex is optimal and consistent for the player through the set.  A single shaft can be anywhere from stiff to soft depending on how it is aligned in the club. 

Frequency matching - Typically goes with pureing.  The shafts are held at one end and a weight hung on the other.  The club is bent and released (like you used to do with your rule over the edge of the desk at school) and the number of oscillations (bounces), measured.   This is a measure of the stiffness.  As shafts get progressively stiffer as the loft increases, frequency tuning makes sure that the difference from one club to another is always the same.  For example, if the shaft in your 7 iron bounces 1000 times per minute and your 8 iron 1100 times a minute, your 9 iron will bounce 1200 times per minute and your 6 iron 900 times per minute. 

Physics lesson over.  Hope that helped. 

I'd like to say that helped me but I'm still lost...

If I got that done to my clubs would it stop me being so inconsistent? ie I eagled a par 5 and double bogeyed a par 4 two holes later.

The problem the manufacturers have that do this kind of work on clubs is they cannot prove that it is an imnprovement as every shot one plays is different and there is no way of knowing whether the ball that drifted two yaerds off to the right was because the clubs were not pured and balanced or whether it was a poor swing. You all know where my money goes on this subject.

Any improvement in your golf clubs must be a bonus for players of any standard.

But to get the best benefits I'd say you would need to be a low handicap golfer.  This is because a low handicap golfer should hit the ball better and more often than a high handicap golfer.

The problem used to be that it cost more to buy clubs with these improvements, but if you are offering it as standard then yes I would go out of my way to buy my clubs from somebody offering this service.

Russ

Andy - Take a plastic rule and bend it, trying to get the two wide edges at opposite ends together.  Fairly easy.  We'll call this soft.  Now try to bend the rule so that the two narrow edges come together.  Almost impossible.  We'll call this stiff.  Now stick a club head on the end.  Depending on how you align the club head, when you swing the ruler it could be really whippy (soft) or really stable (stiff).  The ruler hasn't changed, but you can see how hard or difficult it can be to bend it depending which way you bend it.  Shafts are exactly the same, although not quite as extreme as this example.  Was that a little clearer?  As regards consistency, like beauty, that is in the eye (hand) of the club holder. 

Santo - I'd agree with your comment re frequency matching, but not so with pureing.  If you have been fitted for a regular shaft and you buy an un-pured set of irons off the shelf, they can play anywhere between a stiff and a soft depending on how the shaft was aligned.  They will also be different from club to club.  Ever heard someone say "I always seem to pull/push my 'X' iron but I don't swing it any different to the others".  This is often down to an un-pured shaft causing it to play stiffer/softer than the rest of the set.  As long as you have a reasonably consistent swing speed (and most of us do) then pureing will help. 

I got mine done by Golfsmith in Santa Ana, California; a long way to go if you want to use the same people Jonny!  However, our very own Dave Ley will do it for you as I know he has the kit.  It will also save him from himself because if he's not someone elses he starts messing about with his own clubs!  I think he as some sort of affiliation with Golfsmith UK, but I could be wrong. 

I don't believe that about Tiger at all. I doubt anyone could tell the difference. His ability to win tournaments is not dowm to his driving or his iron play, there are many players on tour with better stats in both of those departments. Where he comes to the fore is he has a wonderful short game and has the ability to hole fairly long putts for par pretty consistently.

You're not suggesting that that games are won on and around the green as opposed to being able to boom it 320 yards off the tee are you John........

I am not suggesting anything, Chris,though one would think that booming it 320 yards off the tee should make things a little easier. but as you found out the other day at the Belfry after hitting a beauty across the corner and finding the fairway that the 70 yard shot that you left was not as easy as you thought.

On the other hand I would love to have a booming 320 yard drive evertime as this game would suddenly become easy again.

If you could boom it 320 yards John you'd have Tiger worried and be play off +9.  Next Christmas I'd be asking the missus for John Pettitt '10 for the X Box!

Well I doubt that very much, Chris, but I do think that if I could do that, I could play to scratch again. Even on a 7000 yard course.

14 drives of 320 x 14 holes = 4480 yards

4 short holes ave 175 = 700 yards

leaves 1820 yards divided by 14 holes = an average second shot of 130 yards, which in actual fact would be less on the par fours as I have not taken into account the  4 par fives.

What a simple game it is if one can drive a long way.

"What a simple game it is if one can drive a long way"

Only if you have a short game to back it up John. 

I have thought about this many times as to why powerful hitters trend to struggle with judgement of distance when playing the shorter irons. I suppose it is because they have to hit everything hard, when a little bit of control is needed. Danny B has this problem, a superb striker of the ball with a long game that is as good as anyones, but when relatively close to the green he just cannot see to be able to adjust to what is required. Funny old game isn't it?

Cheers Chris makes sense now but I cant imagine it improving my game that much.

I've played with with all kinds of clubs including hired clubs that I've hit perfectly and poorly.

I put my inconsistency down to not playing or practising enough and losing concentration....but thats my own fault..oh and the fact that I've never had any lessons

I just play for the enjoyment

That was in 2007 though, bit out of date don't you think. Also from a very reduced number of rounds which favours that type of statistic.

i personally think sergio garcia is the best player in the world (albeit his putting can let him down),but teeing off approach shots and short game imo he is a better golfer than even tiger but and its a big but tiger has more mental strength than anybody thats what makes him the supreme talent that he is.

  when he won with his dodgy knee that was amazing, any one else would have felt sorry for themselves and gave up but to tiger it was another challenge and we know he likes a challenge don t we?

Sorry to butt in here so late in the thread, but - It's a Rule, Perry, not a Ruler - call yourself an engineer - pfah!

I think you will find, Mr Hawkins, that I have called it a rule in every place but one.  I AM an engineer, and as such am allowed to make a typo.