Official WRX Gear Trials Event Thread: Results are in and Data live- Page 27

[HipCheck]

What was determined to be the ideal launch angle and spin rate based on swing speed?

 

For example, 90 - 95 what was the ideal launch angle and spin rate? 96 - 100? 101- 105, etc.?

 

Hey Sean.

 

I manned one bay with observation (the 90-100 SS crowd). There's no one answer to this. Lots of factors involved, but primarily it'll be based on his ball flight, launch and spin numbers. You can have 2 different players with 95mph swing speed and launch at 14* but have 1900/3300 spin numbers due to their swing & impact. Take into account ball flight, and you have a general idea what driver heads are going to be most beneficial. Shaft then gets dialed in too, but heads were the focus.

[bruinsPATSirish]

AD DI ends up as the most popular shaft in the Gear Trials and then Hideki wins the PGA Tour event with it in his driver....great timing

...and Rickie loses because he hits a 360 yard bullet cut over the green into the water with the King LTD (not to mention some bombs on 15 and 18). It's like the universe is just reaching into my wallet.

LOL. I'm not one to get superstitious...but this has got to be a sign, doesn't it? Now if only I could find a buyer for my 915 gear...COBRA TIME!

The universe commands us to bow to the KING!

 

Just got a quote on the LTD..... COBRA TIME?

 

But I already have the M1, decision decisions...

[Nelly32]

AD DI ends up as the most popular shaft in the Gear Trials and then Hideki wins the PGA Tour event with it in his driver....great timing

...and Rickie loses because he hits a 360 yard bullet cut over the green into the water with the King LTD (not to mention some bombs on 15 and 18). It's like the universe is just reaching into my wallet.

LOL. I'm not one to get superstitious...but this has got to be a sign, doesn't it? Now if only I could find a buyer for my 915 gear...COBRA TIME!

The universe commands us to bow to the KING!

 

Just got a quote on the LTD..... COBRA TIME?

 

But I already have the M1, decision decisions...

 

What a nice problem to have. You had a 1 and 1A with that M1 and Cobra. The LTD Pro was a clear winner for me...my wallet thanks me

[bruinsPATSirish]

 

 

Just got a quote on the LTD..... COBRA TIME?

 

But I already have the M1, decision decisions...

 

What a nice problem to have. You had a 1 and 1A with that M1 and Cobra. The LTD Pro was a clear winner for me...my wallet thanks me

 

I think getting the ADDI for my M1 is plan A. Tip it a little extra like Shawn was talking about and get that dispersion tighter like the Cobra and it would have been the clear winner.

 

If I happen to get the LTD it really wouldn't surprise me lol

[Nelly32]

Just got a quote on the LTD..... COBRA TIME?

 

But I already have the M1, decision decisions...

 

What a nice problem to have. You had a 1 and 1A with that M1 and Cobra. The LTD Pro was a clear winner for me...my wallet thanks me

 

I think getting the ADDI for my M1 is plan A. Tip it a little extra like Shawn was talking about and get that dispersion tighter like the Cobra and it would have been the clear winner.

 

If I happen to get the LTD it really wouldn't surprise me lol

 

Spoken like a true club ho. I would expect nothing less!

[Doc420]

I know there will be variations, especially with how this test was run, dealing with so many heads and golfers. Could anybody tell me how long it took to dial you guys in at first.

 

I was on the SLDR trip, and I think I was one of the quicker guys to get dialed in. I think I hit 4 or 5 shaft combo's and only took 10 to 15 mins. to get me setup. Other guys at my site took longer.

[CDLgolf]

Thanks to all who participated it sounds like it was a blast.

 

My question is who does this type of fitting benefit most.

 

It seems like most guys in this thread are low handicap, high swing speed players, who more than likely have a pretty consistent swing and are fine tuning a driver.

 

Would it help a slower swing speed player (90 to 100mph) who is a mid handicap player (7 to 15) and doesn't have as consistent swing. Or is this overkill.

[OCHack]

Great thread!

 

One thing I learned from this thread is that you need to be properly fitted. It would be great if there was a thread that recommended the best place to be fitted per state. I mean a place that has many after market shafts and not just the few shafts offered by the manufacturers. Too bad I don't live in Michigan!

 

Any recommendations for a place in Los Angeles? I go to Roger Dunn but they don't have a lot of shafts.

[knudson81]

I was probably one of the higher handicaps, 9.4, in the group and it was great to do. The biggest thing for me in the fitting was finding out what club works best on your non-perfect swings. Most drivers if struck perfectly go long and straight, but for me the biggest selling point is what driver is still playable on a poor swing.

[Boricua Golf]

Well, we had our gamer there, so they took the measurements and tried to get shafts as close as possible to what we played, that being said, my driver shaft is 44", so my fitter had me swing 45" which was good, then he had me hit 44.5" and this was the optimum shaft length for me, weights differed on the shafts, but I was between 75-80g shafts in terms of optimum performance, I always say that if possible get fitted for your equipment, it should help your overall game by knowing that your are playing with the equipment that fits your swing or at least you will have an idea of what would be the best for you, I was in the higher swing speed group and of all the combinations of driver heads and shafts the one that was the best fit for me was my gamer (Cally RFX, 10.5*, Diamana WB D+ 72 (second gen diamana) at 44" and swing weight of D4), a very close second was the M1 460 at 12* (weights moved to the fade side (two clicks from the end) and one click forward of neutral) with the AD DI 7x or the Diamana WB D+ 70X (third gen diamana)..Shawn suggested to get my driver extended (only if I felt like trying something out) .5" and add lead tape towards the toe and rear of the driver to almost match the M1 in terms of distance (it was 5 yards longer than my RFX), hope this helps a bit...there was a lot of information put out, I am sure the results will be upcoming from the GolfWRX guys...

[3_Jack_Par]

I know there will be variations, especially with how this test was run, dealing with so many heads and golfers. Could anybody tell me how long it took to dial you guys in at first.

 

I was on the SLDR trip, and I think I was one of the quicker guys to get dialed in. I think I hit 4 or 5 shaft combo's and only took 10 to 15 mins. to get me setup. Other guys at my site took longer.

I felt like I was the easiest for our fitter to figure out. He saw me hit a couple of clubs and pretty much immediately knew what heads were going to work for me. I hit about 15 different ones, just in the name of going through the testing process that we were there to do, but there were some that we knew weren't going to work at all, just because I spin the ball a lot. I think I hit the fewest balls of anyone in my group, as a result. The only thing that really seemed to surprise him was that the M1 didn't work very well for me. We thought that it would really knock down my spin, but I don't think the numbers were nearly as good as he expected, and I really didn't care for the feel. Some of the other guys hit a couple different shafts in some heads and really gave more of a workout to certain heads, because their swings were such that a wider variety of heads fit them.

 

I came out of the experience a little confused about some things. First, I feel like I hit the center of the clubface pretty regularly, but my smash factor struggles to get much higher than 1.47. The exception to that was the King LTD Pro, where I saw a few above 1.5. Second, my attack angle is generally neutral to a couple degrees positive, and my path is within a couple degrees of the target, with a pretty square face. SS around 115. None of these things, aside from the SS would generally seem to explain why I'm such a high spin player. I was a little mystified by that.

[3_Jack_Par]

Great thread!

 

One thing I learned from this thread is that you need to be properly fitted. It would be great if there was a thread that recommended the best place to be fitted per state. I mean a place that has many after market shafts and not just the few shafts offered by the manufacturers. Too bad I don't live in Michigan!

 

Any recommendations for a place in Los Angeles? I go to Roger Dunn but they don't have a lot of shafts.

I've heard good things about Cool Clubs -- I think they're in Irvine.

[Stuart_G]

Would it help a slower swing speed player (90 to 100mph) who is a mid handicap player (7 to 15) and doesn't have as consistent swing. Or is this overkill.

 

Well, the fitting process itself can help players of all abilities. In fact, many believe that when done properly, a fitting can actually help the higher cappers (15-22) more than the better players. Proper loft, playing length, shaft weight can be influential in helping minimize the inconsistencies and severity of misses associated with certain swing flaws. Now for those types of individuals, distance gains may have to be balanced more with dispersion and shot shape consistency.

 

And for the record, we did have folks in that range. I was swinging in the mid 90's and my index is 13.6 and my inconsistencies didn't really impact the ability of my fitter at the trials to get some clear results.

[3_Jack_Par]

Thanks to all who participated it sounds like it was a blast.

 

My question is who does this type of fitting benefit most.

 

It seems like most guys in this thread are low handicap, high swing speed players, who more than likely have a pretty consistent swing and are fine tuning a driver.

 

Would it help a slower swing speed player (90 to 100mph) who is a mid handicap player (7 to 15) and doesn't have as consistent swing. Or is this overkill.

There was a wide range of swing speeds from around 90-115 who participated in the testing -- when the full article is published, you'll be able to see all of the individuals, and you can focus if you'd like on guys who are in that 90-100 mph range. When WRX asked for applications, they limited it to 0-10 handicaps, because they figured that to get the best results, it would be best to have testers who have fairly consistent swings. Though, not many of us were exactly Iron Byron (swizbeatz, Nelly32 and itw419 were the closest).

To me, there's two ways you can approach fitting (ideally, you will blend the two) -- you can focus mainly on maximizing distance by getting as close as possible to your ideal launch conditions, or you can focus on minimizing how bad your misses are. A really good fitter will help you to find the best blend of the two. You may not be able to find the holy grail of a club that is both the longest and most forgiving, but you can get into something that will help you as much as possible given the constraints of your swing. It's definitely a lot more effective than just buying something off the shelf or being a giant club ho and searching for the best option that way. Fitting is like club ho'ing in fast forward and without all the wasted money.

[The Chicken Connoisseur]

I know there will be variations, especially with how this test was run, dealing with so many heads and golfers. Could anybody tell me how long it took to dial you guys in at first.

 

I was on the SLDR trip, and I think I was one of the quicker guys to get dialed in. I think I hit 4 or 5 shaft combo's and only took 10 to 15 mins. to get me setup. Other guys at my site took longer.

I felt like I was the easiest for our fitter to figure out. He saw me hit a couple of clubs and pretty much immediately knew what heads were going to work for me. I hit about 15 different ones, just in the name of going through the testing process that we were there to do, but there were some that we knew weren't going to work at all, just because I spin the ball a lot. I think I hit the fewest balls of anyone in my group, as a result. The only thing that really seemed to surprise him was that the M1 didn't work very well for me. We thought that it would really knock down my spin, but I don't think the numbers were nearly as good as he expected, and I really didn't care for the feel. Some of the other guys hit a couple different shafts in some heads and really gave more of a workout to certain heads, because their swings were such that a wider variety of heads fit them.

 

I came out of the experience a little confused about some things. First, I feel like I hit the center of the clubface pretty regularly, but my smash factor struggles to get much higher than 1.47. The exception to that was the King LTD Pro, where I saw a few above 1.5. Second, my attack angle is generally neutral to a couple degrees positive, and my path is within a couple degrees of the target, with a pretty square face. SS around 115. None of these things, aside from the SS would generally seem to explain why I'm such a high spin player. I was a little mystified by that.

 

I used to be like this, but was ever more positive AOA than you (+4/+5). It was because I used to have a bit of a flip, so I needed the lowest spinning heads out there. It also caused me to sometimes hit my irons very high and short. Now that I have improved it, my spin isn't as high, while still maintaining a high launch

[Medic]

Would it help a slower swing speed player (90 to 100mph) who is a mid handicap player (7 to 15) and doesn't have as consistent swing. Or is this overkill.

 

Well, the fitting process itself can help players of all abilities. In fact, many believe that when done properly, a fitting can actually help the higher cappers (15-22) more than the better players. Proper loft, playing length, shaft weight can be influential in helping minimize the inconsistencies and severity of misses associated with certain swing flaws. Now for those types of individuals, distance gains may have to be balanced more with dispersion and shot shape consistency.

 

And for the record, we did have folks in that range. I was swinging in the mid 90's and my index is 13.6 and my inconsistencies didn't really impact the ability of my fitter at the trials to get some clear results.

 

This reply is dead on. I am 100% certain that those of us with slower swings benefitted enormously from the process. The fitter was able to tell us about our swings. The good, the bad, and the ugly so to speak. While he did not offer advice for improvements he would say something like "you are out on the toe over and over" and it was left to us to adjust.

 

In addition and frankly IT WAS A BLAST!!! Even a high capper will enjoy the process and gain valuable info from it. Fitting isn't something designed around helping pros hit better. The process centers on helping anyone hit better. Because off the rack may or may not be your ticket to good results. And most players simply don't know what they really need so on impulse they buy something hoping it will work for them. Most of the time it isn't long before they are shopping again. Getting fitted will make the most of what you are doing with a golf club. That's my honest belief having gone through the process.

[1puttTUT]

Well I just booked a max driver fitting for next Friday at MOG.

 

Thanks for the motivation guys!

[knudson81]

Well I just booked a max driver fitting for next Friday at MOG.

 

Thanks for the motivation guys!

 

You're going to have a blast and be well taken care of!

[PreppySlapCut]

Have loved following this thread. As someone who's been fortunate enough to work with WRX on a couple fitting/testing type situations, I know you guys had a blast. Thanks to WRX, Miles of Golf, and the testers for the effort in getting this info out there!

[bruinsPATSirish]

Have loved following this thread. As someone who's been fortunate enough to work with WRX on a couple fitting/testing type situations, I know you guys had a blast. Thanks to WRX, Miles of Golf, and the testers for the effort in getting this info out there!

 

How the french toast do you hit the 915D4?!

 

I gave that bad boy 4 swings and said "This one doesn't work..." and handed it back to the fitter

[PreppySlapCut]

Have loved following this thread. As someone who's been fortunate enough to work with WRX on a couple fitting/testing type situations, I know you guys had a blast. Thanks to WRX, Miles of Golf, and the testers for the effort in getting this info out there!

 

How the french toast do you hit the 915D4?!

 

I gave that bad boy 4 swings and said "This one doesn't work..." and handed it back to the fitter

That's why they make different drivers! It hasn't been on the course, yet. Did a little sampling on the range and liked the flight. I'm going on staff with Titleist so I only had 3 options. I couldn't get the D2 to fly like I wanted to, and the D4 had faster ball speeds than both the D2/D3. My rep said he'd talk to his fitting buddy about a D2 setup for me to try, but for now I think the D4 will be just fine. We'll see.

[CDLgolf]

Would it help a slower swing speed player (90 to 100mph) who is a mid handicap player (7 to 15) and doesn't have as consistent swing. Or is this overkill.

 

Well, the fitting process itself can help players of all abilities. In fact, many believe that when done properly, a fitting can actually help the higher cappers (15-22) more than the better players. Proper loft, playing length, shaft weight can be influential in helping minimize the inconsistencies and severity of misses associated with certain swing flaws. Now for those types of individuals, distance gains may have to be balanced more with dispersion and shot shape consistency.

 

And for the record, we did have folks in that range. I was swinging in the mid 90's and my index is 13.6 and my inconsistencies didn't really impact the ability of my fitter at the trials to get some clear results.

 

This reply is dead on. I am 100% certain that those of us with slower swings benefitted enormously from the process. The fitter was able to tell us about our swings. The good, the bad, and the ugly so to speak. While he did not offer advice for improvements he would say something like "you are out on the toe over and over" and it was left to us to adjust.

 

In addition and frankly IT WAS A BLAST!!! Even a high capper will enjoy the process and gain valuable info from it. Fitting isn't something designed around helping pros hit better. The process centers on helping anyone hit better. Because off the rack may or may not be your ticket to good results. And most players simply don't know what they really need so on impulse they buy something hoping it will work for them. Most of the time it isn't long before they are shopping again. Getting fitted will make the most of what you are doing with a golf club. That's my honest belief having gone through the process.

 

Thanks to you and the other posters above who answered my question.

[Warrick]

Wow, was not sure I would ever do this...

 

I have never had a lesson or fitting in my life, but am about to schedule one with a Pro here in town for the driver.

 

As much as I have spent on stuff, I suppose $50 aint much.

[bruinsPATSirish]

Wow, was not sure I would ever do this...

 

I have never had a lesson or fitting in my life, but am about to schedule one with a Pro here in town for the driver.

 

As much as I have spent on stuff, I suppose $50 aint much.

 

A fitting isn't necessarily always a REAL fitting either.

 

I was fit by a Taylormade sales rep (albeit quickly before a tournament) into my gamer M1 setup. It was straight and decently long, but come to find out I was leaving 20+ yards on the table and got it without sacrificing control from the SAME driver head.

 

Hope your fitting yields you a sweet setup for the tee ball buddy, keep an open mind

[Warrick]

Wow, was not sure I would ever do this...

 

I have never had a lesson or fitting in my life, but am about to schedule one with a Pro here in town for the driver.

 

As much as I have spent on stuff, I suppose $50 aint much.

 

A fitting isn't necessarily always a REAL fitting either.

 

I was fit by a Taylormade sales rep (albeit quickly before a tournament) into my gamer M1 setup. It was straight and decently long, but come to find out I was leaving 20+ yards on the table and got it without sacrificing control from the SAME driver head.

 

Hope your fitting yields you a sweet setup for the tee ball buddy, keep an open mind

 

Thanks, and I will.

 

I trust this guy (Ken Schall), played a year on Tour and has taught a long time, has a new facility not too far away. My brother is a near scratch player, and assistant manager at a local course, he knows Ken and suggested him.

[Sean2]

What was determined to be the ideal launch angle and spin rate based on swing speed?

 

For example, 90 - 95 what was the ideal launch angle and spin rate? 96 - 100? 101- 105, etc.?

 

Hey Sean.

 

I manned one bay with observation (the 90-100 SS crowd). There's no one answer to this. Lots of factors involved, but primarily it'll be based on his ball flight, launch and spin numbers. You can have 2 different players with 95mph swing speed and launch at 14* but have 1900/3300 spin numbers due to their swing & impact. Take into account ball flight, and you have a general idea what driver heads are going to be most beneficial. Shaft then gets dialed in too, but heads were the focus.

 

Thanks Rob. That's good to know. I was always under the impression there was a hard and fast rule, but what you say makes sense.

[Sean2]

What was determined to be the ideal launch angle and spin rate based on swing speed?

 

For example, 90 - 95 what was the ideal launch angle and spin rate? 96 - 100? 101- 105, etc.?

 

There wasn't one "ideal" number for launch and spin based on swing speed. It was based on several factors, such as attack angle, launch angle, smash, etc

 

Thanks Nelly!

[Sean2]

What was determined to be the ideal launch angle and spin rate based on swing speed?

 

For example, 90 - 95 what was the ideal launch angle and spin rate? 96 - 100? 101- 105, etc.?

 

Everyone's different. If you want to know how to hit the longest drive at a certain SS play around on flightscope optimizer.

 

I am beginning to see a theme here. :-)

 

As I said above, I was always under the impression there was a certain range.

[cota0429]

Am I missing something here? It seems like the moral of the story is to get properly fit. I was expecting a driver shootout with the same shafts across the board for each person to see which ball speeds and spin were the best. Correct me if I'm wrong here.

[OCHack]

Great thread!

 

One thing I learned from this thread is that you need to be properly fitted. It would be great if there was a thread that recommended the best place to be fitted per state. I mean a place that has many after market shafts and not just the few shafts offered by the manufacturers. Too bad I don't live in Michigan!

 

Any recommendations for a place in Los Angeles? I go to Roger Dunn but they don't have a lot of shafts.

I've heard good things about Cool Clubs -- I think they're in Irvine.

 

I just looked them up and that's perfect!! Wow, you know more about Socal than I do!