DG AMT shaft confusion

[jls667]

I'm confused about a couple things with iron shafts right now and hope some of you could help me out. 

 

Over the last couple of years I've noticed that one of my biggest weaknesses has been my longer irons. I have a faster swing with the Mizuno optimizer giving me numbers of 96mph 6.33 3.33 8.00 5.00. I've played Project X LZ's (which I was fitted for) in both 6.0 and 6.5, C-Taper S+ and X100's in recent years.

 

With all shafts the issue remained the same. I have above average distance in the short irons but once I get past the 7 iron the differences in distances decrease rapidly. I'll easily hit a 7 iron 175 but then struggle to get my 4 iron over 200 (even well struck ones). I then try to swing harder and you get the idea. So I decided to grab a set of AMT White X100s at a good price. Everything I read seems like they'd be perfect: the profile of standard DGs but lighter on the long irons for the extra speed/distance I've been missing. I've also found that I'll tend to get a bit worn down towards the end of 18 leading to sloppy finishes after great starts. So it made sense to try them.

 

Now I haven't tested them as it's cold and awful weather here lately but I did as much research as I could. All the anecdotal reviews seem to, more or less, confirm what TT says about the shaft: they'll perform like regular DGs just lighter as the club gets longer. I assume they'll spin a bit more in the longer irons but it would only make sense since you'd swing faster. Then this morning I was looking on GolfWorks website in case I wanted to purchase an additional shaft and the guy (JimY) says they play two flexes softer in butt stiffness and says even the LZs are stiffer. I know the internet is a dangerous place with lots of opinion and misinformation but this is the GolfWorks website, so I assume there's some truth to this.

 

I don't want to go through the effort of swapping out the shaft if I'm replacing my current regular X100's with something that will just be way too soft for me. His info seems to fly in the face of what I've found but given the source it's obviously a bit of a concern for me. I know they're not going to be telephone poles like C-taper 130s but I also assumed they'd naturally be much stiffer than LZs, which I always read were soft to flex (with 6.5's being more of a S+ than a X).

 

If anyone can help clarify this for me, I'd really appreciate it. 

[Golfrnut]

Haven't read through it, but here's a thread on the two.  Main reason I linked is there are the pics of the EI profiles for the AMTs.  They do get 'softer' in the longer irons, whether that effects you negatively/positively/not at all is anyone's guess.  I discussed my theory behind the flex difference in another thread, but I think they shrunk the wall thickness to save the weight, that naturally makes the shaft profile softer, all else being equal, when you do that.

 

 

[mgoblue83]

They are definitely softer but that is not a bad thing in long irons.

 

I play tour issue X100s 4-pw and X100 AMT in my 3 iron (driving iron) and absolutely love it. I swing my 3 iron 100-105mph and while its noticeably softer than my other irons it's still very stable and consistent. 

 

 

One thing to keep in mind is that if you are struggling with your distance gaps in long irons then it points to a ball striking issue and not necessarily a shaft issue. Shafts can influence delivery but I'd guess the bigger issue is you are struggling with low point control and center face contact as the shafts get longer regardless of what shaft it is. 

 

Some people have a lot of success going with lighter and shorter (6 iron length) shafts in long irons because they pick up the speed with the lighter shaft and are able to strike them correctly with the shorter shafts. They effectively have normal length gaps up to the 6 or 7 iron and then play single length with lighter shafts in the 5 and 4 iron. You can also do the same concept but only go up by 1/4 in each club instead of 1/2in.

[PorkChopExpress]

Agreeing with @mgoblue83

Ball striking - Longer the iron, the swing generally flattens along with less angle of attack. 

 

Using a lighter softer setup doesn't always equate to longer distances. Though not having to work hard on your swing late in the round is always good.

[Cwebb]

What head design are you using in your longer irons...and have you had them measured for actual loft?  You may find that you benefit from a full 4* spacing through all of your long irons, instead of the 3* gaps that most them go to after the 6 iron

[jls667]

Thanks for all the feedback. I really appreciate it.

 

I know my main miss is towards the toe but that exists in all clubs. Maybe it's just punished more in the long irons? I have played JPX 900 tours for years now (which Club Champion fitted me into along with the 6.0 LZs) and last summer I picked up some JPX 919 forged heads for 6-4 to give some relief/forgiveness but there was no appreciable improvement. And while my miss may be towards the toe, it's not that far off from the center. I play to a 3 hcp and believe me, it's not because of my short game. I've always been more of a ball striker.

 

Lofts were last checked about a year and half ago and needed little adjustment from what they should have been. However this issue had existed for a while.

 

I switched from 6.5 LZs as my natural draw was worsened, which I attributed to it's softer profile. The DGs definitely straighted it out but the longer irons remained problematic.

 

So that's what scared me about what I read that the LZs play stiffer than the AMTs. If that's the case then I may just be wasting time with the AMTs. Maybe I'm just wasting my time as a whole and need different irons?

[Cwebb]

You could always create your own combo set.  Keep your current set, up to whatever iron works for you and the distance gaps you want,...then try some other head shaft combinations for your longer irons