Question of golf club fitting, help really appreciated

Hi there, I have picked up golf for about three months now, and I have been practising with my dad's set of golf clubs which are entry-level, as he played just for recreation.

My height is pretty close to my dad, at about 179cm. After quite a few sessions with my coach, he recommends that I get a customised set of golf clubs, fitted for me. He measured me from the ground to my hand, and it was 35 inches, which falls in the yellow range in the Ping's colour chart.

He compared my 7 iron to a yellow-marked Ping one, and mine was angled less steep than the Ping one. He says that for me, its pretty difficult to find one that fits well off the shelf, and it is better to get a customised one, from a club fitter he recommended, or from Ping(which is pricier and more branded). He says that that is better than getting clubs off the shelf and fitting it to the player.

I intend to play golf long-term, and wish to get a set to last me for a long time. With that, I am fine with paying a little more. I am not sure whether there are different clubs specifications when I buy off the shelf, or is it better for me to get customised ones. Also, do I need to know what shaft I prefer? eg graphite/steel etc

Any feedback from you golf seniors out there is really appreciated, thanks!

Your coach was referring to the clubhead's lie angle. Ping uses cast iron model which can't be bend easily so they manufacture heads with different lie angle, hence the color coding.

I recommend forged irons. a fitter can bend the lie angle to suit your swing. E.g. Mizuno has some friendly models like jpx or older mx series. Miura pp9003 if you got the $. My personal choice is BFG cb1003 if you are not particular abt branding. Bridgestone J38/40 is very underrated set.

Find the list of fitters on the sticky section, choose a fitter fr the list and get an appointment. Since you want a lasting set, it's important to get it right first time. Hope it helps.

Hey thanks for the reply pushslice, that definitely did help!

u can google on forged clubs and see how they are manufactured. becos of their manufacturing process, forged irons feel much softer than cast irons, which in turn translates to better feel. ie you can 'feel' how and where the ball comes off the club face. bcos of the manufacturing process, they are also typically more expensive

in addition, as PS mentioned, cast irons can't be lie and loft-adjusted, ie they cannot be bent because the casting process makes the metal brittle. forged irons, on the other hand, can be lie and loft-adjusted bcos they are softer and more malleable. so if u need to make any adjustments in the future, the forged iron will allow u to do that.

Ah I see.. from your inputs, forged iron does sound like a better choice as it has a better feel and it can be bent to adjust to the player's swing:)

Actually at 179cm (about 5ft 10-11in), you are lucky in the sense that most golf clubs off the rack have been designed with lie angles for golfers of this height. Unless you have unnaturally long (or short) limbs, most standard clubs will suit you pretty well.

That being said, a nice forged clubhead does feel very nice and can be tweaked to accomodate your swing. Also, to me, and I guess a lot of the guys here, buying new stuff and modifying your own clubs with aftermarket shaft and other kinds of customizations are part of the joy of the overall golf experience.

Just wondering if you have tried a variety of different irons on different shafts to see if there are any which you have a natural affinity for. Don't rush the selection process, sometimes deciding what to buy is more fun than actually purchasing the product.

Perhaps one approach would be to tell yourself that when 100, then you can reward yourself with a new set of clubs. In general, the more consistent your swing, the more productive the fitting experience.

Your dad's clubs may be entry level, but if you give them to any of the good players here, even those with fast swing speeds, they will find a way to shoot at least low 90s to high 80s even if they are touching it for the first time.

Apologies if you are already shooting in the 80s or 90s consistently now. If that is the case, then I would say that a trip to a club fitter for a customized set is overdue.

I feel otherwise guys.. Sorry..

After having gone one huge circle in golf and equipment change... I would suggest going to see a fitter first before any equipment purchase... And during the fitting session, get the fitter to see your swing, ball flight, etc, and fit the recommended set of irons with a mutually set of objectives... Also, I think it's very important to have the fitter commit that he/she would provide continual fitting for the set of clubs you buy from him/her, and not just a one off purchase/sale...

I believe that fitting is like a long term relationship, there's no immediate fixes most of the time, and one has to trust and believe in the fitter and walk that path with the fitter together... I strongly won't go to one who is just pushing me equipment, nor one who just put in a shaft without looking at my swing, cos a 12 hcp player can have very strong swing or slow swing, thus it's not down to one's scores but something very individual.....

Talk to more people on which fitter they go to, what do they do there, and compare the differences..? You could also visit a couple of them and see if you have any chemistry with them and how comfortable you are with them.. Everybody has their preference, so it's down to who you feel more confident in..

Merry Christmas !

scottycollector wrote:

in addition, as PS mentioned, cast irons can't be lie and loft-adjusted, ie they cannot be bent because the casting process makes the metal brittle.

Hi Luke,

Just to share...

I've tried bending my cast iron both lie n loft by 1 deg...

I've seen others bending cast iron loft 2 deg(maybe its risk taking, luckily, non iron break)...

I've not seen cast iron bend for more than 2 deg...

Ah yes Pat, i have heard that some fitters will do bending for cast irons, but at the customer's risk. Also, even if it doesn't actually break, there may be some 'internal damage' that will only show up after some use.

all in all, i think it's just too risky to try and bend a cast iron.

u r a brave man =)

scottycollector wrote:

Ah yes Pat, i have heard that some fitters will do bending for cast irons, but at the customer's risk. Also, even if it doesn't actually break, there may be some 'internal damage' that will only show up after some use.

all in all, i think it's just too risky to try and bend a cast iron.

u r a brave man =)

bro...

yup yup, gotta agree with u... its risky...

@derek

yes, I have tried both kinds of shafts(steel and graphite). my dad's clubs have graphite shafts fitted on, and I have tried clubs with steel shafts before too, and I seem to prefer graphite shaft as they seem to have less feedback to my hands, ie i jerk less when the club contacts the ball. However I seem to hit a little further with the steel shaft as well.. So it's quite a dilemma.

Initially I thought that should try out the different kinds of irons and shafts first before visiting a club fitter, and I told my coach that. He then provided me the analogy saying that you go to a doctor to get diagnosed before getting a prescription, and not thinking of what medicine to get before seeing him. Maybe if the fitter really allows me to try out the different stuff there then yes, I should just go straight away.

@chien I do agree with you about looking for a good fitter, one who isn't purely concerned about making more profit, and also has to also have a good experience to analyse and fit what's best for me. And yes, now I will take note if he is willing to continue fitting for me in the future should there be a need:) For now, I have heard from the fellow GR-ers that BFG is a good place to go to have my club fitted, or maybe get a new customised set, in fact I should be making a trip down tomorrow, hopefully it wouldn't be too crowded! Lastly, Merry Christmas to you too:)


Thank you both for your replies, I am learning alot!

BFG irons CB 003 with Steel Fibre is a good combination... be warned!!!

@TS

My advice is nv try a Miura iron....

If u try n like it, n eventually if u buy it... Thats it for u... Ur entire life will be stuck with one brand of iron...

@ mengteck71 yes I read about the cb003, it seems to have many good reviews, and is inexpensive:)

@3131t do you mean to say Miura irons are really good? For people who are suitable for it that is

maleo_boom wrote:

@ mengteck71 yes I read about the cb003, it seems to have many good reviews, and is inexpensive:)

@3131t do you mean to say Miura irons are really good? For people who are suitable for it that is

Well mate... Everybody has there own view... like others have their own view of other brands of irons. Im just sharing mine, just my personal opinion... It can be more disagree than to agree with my view.

Once again... thats my personal opinion n view...

Just went for fitting with Eric yesterday for the BFG irons. Had in mind the KBS Tour 90 shaft until I tried the steelfibre. The feeling was Awesome. Can't wait to get hold of it.

Just go on try the few recommended fitters by our bros here. I'm sure if you'll find something that you like and most importantly fit your budget. Good luck in your search.

3131T wrote:

maleo_boom wrote:

@ mengteck71 yes I read about the cb003, it seems to have many good reviews, and is inexpensive:)

@3131t do you mean to say Miura irons are really good? For people who are suitable for it that is

Well mate... Everybody has there own view... like others have their own view of other brands of irons. Im just sharing mine, just my personal opinion... It can be more disagree than to agree with my view.

Once again... thats my personal opinion n view...

Miuras are one of the best i have used.. and i have virtually tried all brands... US, Jap, Korean... everything..

im still fond of my miuras........... as well as epons...

and i cannot change equipment anymore....

My friendly advice is to see if you can T-loan any irons you may wanna fit and see how u like it on an actual game..

Very often, the performance of the irons on the flightscope and range is different from the actual golf course..

the most impt is your feel of it.. the visual at setup.. and how confident on every shot..

do u like small head, compact head, big head, strong loft, standard loft etc etc..


before i got my fubuki iron shafts, the fitter was nice enough to lend me a demo piece to try for 3 games... and im sold .. cos it performed for me

then my swing changed and it became too light for me...

and the story goes on..

hope this is helpful to you..

Cheers

Andrew

@idrahus glad you found the irons that fit you well:) hope I will find mine soon too!

@andrew-golf yes, I feel I should try our some different irons first to have at least a slight idea of what I prefer before engaging a fitter:)

maleo_boom miura poisoning has no known antidote ... lol

haha miura really does sound like some lethal poison! I bet it comes with a hefty price tag as well hahaha just curious, where can miura clubs be bought in sg?

Torque golf at laguna country club driving range

I see I see thanks:)

Gd evening

I would like to air my personal views on custom club fitting.
Opinion expressed are totally mine and mine alone, and are not bias to anyone or any party but just my own personal experience with custom fitting.

You see, I have been gaming for some years now but sad to say I was still playing just as badly as the day I started out swinging with an iron.
Have never believed in custom fitting, nor wanting to visit any club fitter. Knowing nothing about golf, what is lie, loft, shaft etc. Basically don't know how to play and don't know anything about golf. Believing that I can and will be able to play better golf over time and enough number of games.

How was I ever wrong!

It was not till I had accidentally stumble upon this forum. Joined, made new friends, became great golfing buddies and started to learn what is golf.
Side track abit here.....paisay. I would like to say 'Thank You' to a particular Bro here whom I had almost bought one of his premium Japaness gaming set but didn't. Otherwise I would not be able to share my thoughts on club fitting today.

Anyway about some 9 months back that 'things' start to changed. Started to visit a fitter, SIGMA, together with some of my buddies. Then one fine day in Nov 2013, I did something I have never thought I would do....I committed to a brand new custom fitted set of irons!

I was gaming with a used Titleist 710 AP2 on SF i95 then. Reshafted from KBS C-taper, after a series of iron changes from ENA to Callaway X16, to X Forged to Mizuno MP62 then to current Titleist. And with the latest change of shaft, I was more comfortable with the set up. But still gaming in the high 90s to mid 100s.

So it began....discussions, notes taken, followed by me hitting and swinging my swing, trying out some shafts with various spec and different heads.  Selecting the heads, shafts, grips and was told to come back 2-3 days later. By now, it hasn't really sink in what I had one! To make matter worst, I managed to sell off my current set of irons!!

Bo pian liao.......am committed with no way back.....     

It was a emotional, exciting and scary 3 days wait. Was told that my new set was ready for collection. Arriving at the shop with a mix of anticipation and reservation at the same time.
It was my 1st ever brand new set of irons. And it was custom fitted to suit me...wow!  

It wasn't long before I game with it. it felt good, the set of irons. And I played the best game I ever had....I broke 80 that day! I was elated     I couldn't believe it but somehow, something and everything just click and fall into place I was having a wonderful enjoyable game. So much so I said to myself this must be a lucky fluke. Didn't take long before I played into the 90s again. It was an emotional roller coaster of highs and lows....depressing.  

Ever heard of 3rd time lucky? Well, on my 3rd game, I felt more comfortable playing with the set and again returned in the high 80s. From then on, the last few other games (latest being 21st Jan) all playing in the mid 80s range. Distant control, flight dispersion and accuracy are playing to a higher percentage then before. Translating to more chances of converting pars and hopefully netting birdies soon.    

So there you have it....my personal experience of being custom fitted with a set of iron, enabling me to enjoy the game more without having to worry or contradicting myself after hitting a wayward shot. Because I know that I can recover for the next shot.  

Hopefully, it will help shed some light on custom club fitting to any new golfers thinking of getting fitted.

This is just my 2cents worth of personal opinion.

Thank you SIGMA.

Great decision butterfingers !!!

I too benefited from Sebastian of Sigma (despite his idiosyncrasies... ).. My current 7 year old irons were re shafted and refitted by him.. And I would never change the set now...

Again, what a difference fitting can really make to our game...