Custom Fitting Question/Advice

[SC Pilgrim]

Would love to get some feedback from other members on this...

 

Let me start by saying, I understand the guys here are a rare breed.  We are the select few who find this site more important than the nightly news.  I'm sure I'm not alone when I admit how much time I spend on the site each day daydreaming about the gear you are selling in BST and how it could shave strokes off my game if I buy.  Each time I'm in the market for something new (which is every day), I come here first to get your opinions, so I can make an informed decision.  Lots of you know more than your average retail golf store associate and I value the time you take to give me your opinions/data. 

 

Segway into my need for help...  I've never really had a proper club fitting.  Don't get me wrong, I've paid for 3 full bag fittings over the last 10yrs, but I've left all 3 feeling as though the fitters don't understand my desire to know and see the granular detail of this process.  The last of the 3 occurred this past week at a South Carolina fitter that is supposedly recognized as one of the top in the state, according to some publications.  Fortunately, the fitting was cut short and I was not charged.  We got halfway through the fitting and it was clear I knew more about brands, specs, and equipment than the person handling the fitting.  I'm not saying this to brag, simply saying it because of how shocked I was to ask questions about specific items and only get a blank stare in return, or to be told I should not be worried about such insignificant details.

 

Maybe the guy was right.  Maybe a 6 handicap who only gets to play twice a week should not worry about proper gapping, swing weight, and how certain equipment reacts to a heavy swinger with horrible tempo and an aggressive transition.  Maybe the granular detail is what keeps me thinking if I spend enough money, I can buy my way into a new swing.😉

 

Let's get to the point - I spend hours reading about equipment and I love it.  I know a little about a lot, but I have no idea how to apply it to what can make me a better golfer.  Should I spend less time looking for new equipment and more time seeking lessons?  Absolutely, but this is more fun...

 

So finally we get to the question - where does a WRX gearhead go to get a proper fitting?  Not just a "you should be happy I showed you how to add 7yds to your 7 iron fitting", but a real down to the granular detail fitting.  Here is your swing, here is what I believe will best help you improve and this is how we arrived at this conclusion. 

 

Fire away!

[DArnie]

Sea Island and while there you can get lessons if you want. Win, win.

[Stuart_G]

10 hours ago, SC Pilgrim said:

Let's get to the point - I spend hours reading about equipment and I love it.  I know a little about a lot, but I have no idea how to apply it to what can make me a better golfer.  Should I spend less time looking for new equipment and more time seeking lessons?  Absolutely, but this is more fun...

 

 

I'm not saying the objective club specs are not important but the biggest breakdown when it comes to fitting the equipment is a lack of understanding of the effects of the subjective aspects of equipment fitting.  We're not robots who respond in a predictable manner to changes in equipment specs.  The feel of the club can act as a driver or feedback in the way we control the club during the swing.  Even the way it looks at address or sounds at impact can potentially influence the set-up and swing as well.  And everyone is different so there are no 'rules' or generalizations you can rely on.  No amount of research will help you out there as it's something that can only be determined with time and effort through trial and error.   And even then it's not always easy to distinguish between the object and subjective - especially in the limited context of an hour fitting considering the extremely high number of possible permutations that can exist between all the club specs to make up the club you have to swing.    That's likely why many of event he better fitters don't dwell too much on the details.   It's the results that really matters, the "why" is nice to know certainly but not always critical to getting good results.

 

Now yes, ideally it would be great to take the time to work out all the 'why' somethings work better for you than other things as it will help down the line for future fittings.  But if you're interested in understanding it at the level you seem to want to, you're likely going to have to take the time on your own to figure it out.  You wouldn't be the first nor will you be the last that came here and figured out they'd be better off fitting themselves than having someone else do it.    It basically comes down to isolating each individual spec and comparing the results after only changing that spec and that spec only and monitoring how the results change.

 

Here is a good place to start.  Tom Wishon authored a series of 10 articles each covering a different aspect of fitting.  Here is the first (links to the rest are at the bottom of the page)

 

https://www.golfwrx.com/261559/wishon-what-length-should-your-golf-clubs-be/

 

 

 

[animalgolfs]

2 hours ago, Stuart_G said:

 

I'm not saying the objective club specs are not important but the biggest breakdown when it comes to fitting the equipment is a lack of understanding of the effects of the subjective aspects of equipment fitting.  We're not robots who respond in a predictable manner to changes in equipment specs.  The feel of the club can act as a driver or feedback in the way we control the club during the swing.  Even the way it looks at address or sounds at impact can potentially influence the set-up and swing as well.  And everyone is different so there are no 'rules' or generalizations you can rely on.  No amount of research will help you out there as it's something that can only be determined with time and effort through trial and error.   And even then it's not always easy to distinguish between the object and subjective - especially in the limited context of an hour fitting considering the extremely high number of possible permutations that can exist between all the club specs to make up the club you have to swing.    That's likely why many of event he better fitters don't dwell too much on the details.   It's the results that really matters, the "why" is nice to know certainly but not always critical to getting good results.

 

Now yes, ideally it would be great to take the time to work out all the 'why' somethings work better for you than other things as it will help down the line for future fittings.  But if you're interested in understanding it at the level you seem to want to, you're likely going to have to take the time on your own to figure it out.  You wouldn't be the first nor will you be the last that came here and figured out they'd be better off fitting themselves than having someone else do it.    It basically comes down to isolating each individual spec and comparing the results after only changing that spec and that spec only and monitoring how the results change.

 

Here is a good place to start.  Tom Wishon authored a series of 10 articles each covering a different aspect of fitting.  Here is the first (links to the rest are at the bottom of the page)

 

https://www.golfwrx.com/261559/wishon-what-length-should-your-golf-clubs-be/

 

 

 

Adding to this gem of advice 

 

Generally one can tell if a club has the "it" factor within a few swings. Everything that happens after that should be fine tuning....which includes real course playing time. 

 

The Pro's get this type of treatment- this is the type of fitting service one should seek

Edited March 7, 2021 by animalgolfs

[SC Pilgrim]

9 hours ago, Stuart_G said:

 

I'm not saying the objective club specs are not important but the biggest breakdown when it comes to fitting the equipment is a lack of understanding of the effects of the subjective aspects of equipment fitting.  We're not robots who respond in a predictable manner to changes in equipment specs.  The feel of the club can act as a driver or feedback in the way we control the club during the swing.  Even the way it looks at address or sounds at impact can potentially influence the set-up and swing as well.  And everyone is different so there are no 'rules' or generalizations you can rely on.  No amount of research will help you out there as it's something that can only be determined with time and effort through trial and error.   And even then it's not always easy to distinguish between the object and subjective - especially in the limited context of an hour fitting considering the extremely high number of possible permutations that can exist between all the club specs to make up the club you have to swing.    That's likely why many of event he better fitters don't dwell too much on the details.   It's the results that really matters, the "why" is nice to know certainly but not always critical to getting good results.

 

Now yes, ideally it would be great to take the time to work out all the 'why' somethings work better for you than other things as it will help down the line for future fittings.  But if you're interested in understanding it at the level you seem to want to, you're likely going to have to take the time on your own to figure it out.  You wouldn't be the first nor will you be the last that came here and figured out they'd be better off fitting themselves than having someone else do it.    It basically comes down to isolating each individual spec and comparing the results after only changing that spec and that spec only and monitoring how the results change.

 

Here is a good place to start.  Tom Wishon authored a series of 10 articles each covering a different aspect of fitting.  Here is the first (links to the rest are at the bottom of the page)

 

https://www.golfwrx.com/261559/wishon-what-length-should-your-golf-clubs-be/

 

 

 

Thanks for that well thought response; how you laid it out makes perfect sense.

 

I did forget to add that the fitter never did provide any numbers.  No launch, spin, AOA, or anything else for that matter.  When I inquired, again I was told I should not be concerned.  I did receive a copy of a Trackman report that showed a comparison of the dispersion between my gamers and the 4 variables I tried while I was there.  When I tried to click on the other areas of the report, there was no data there to be seen.

 

I will begin reading the articles you mentioned and try to learn as much as I can on my own.  I guess my underlying question still remains though.  Once that is done and I eliminate as many of the variables as I can, who/where do you recommend someone go that has the inventory and the knowledge to get me from the 25yd line to the goal line? 

[SC Pilgrim]

20 hours ago, DArnie said:

Sea Island and while there you can get lessons if you want. Win, win.

That place looks pretty awesome.  Let's just hope I can make it a day trip bc $900 a night at the lodge might eat into the equipment budget a little too much!

[DArnie]

1 hour ago, SC Pilgrim said:

That place looks pretty awesome.  Let's just hope I can make it a day trip bc $900 a night at the lodge might eat into the equipment budget a little too much!

No need to stay there, just call them.

[Stuart_G]

10 hours ago, SC Pilgrim said:

Thanks for that well thought response; how you laid it out makes perfect sense.

 

I did forget to add that the fitter never did provide any numbers.  No launch, spin, AOA, or anything else for that matter.  When I inquired, again I was told I should not be concerned.  I did receive a copy of a Trackman report that showed a comparison of the dispersion between my gamers and the 4 variables I tried while I was there.  When I tried to click on the other areas of the report, there was no data there to be seen.

 

I will begin reading the articles you mentioned and try to learn as much as I can on my own.  I guess my underlying question still remains though.  Once that is done and I eliminate as many of the variables as I can, who/where do you recommend someone go that has the inventory and the knowledge to get me from the 25yd line to the goal line? 

 

Some fitters (and teaching pros for that matter) don't like to share the numbers with the individuals during the fitting because lots of people have tendencies to "swing for the numbers" or seeing the numbers can negatively influence the way they swing and go away from their natural swing.   e.g. they see a swing speed number and want to see if they can swing faster or get too focused on distance.  

 

But after the fitting is done, IMO, the fitter should be willing to go over the numbers results and answer any questions at least for a reasonable amount of time.

 

Can't speak to the TM software or report.  The Flightscope data can be fully shared and accessable if the fitter creates an online account for the customer.  So I would expect it to be similar with TM but don't know the details of how that's done or if something might have gone wrong with the data being posted.

Edited March 8, 2021 by Stuart_G

[lefthack]

I realize folks are more likely to post about bad fitting experiences than good, but for folks who are reluctant to get fit, it sure isn't encouraging.

 

You have had 3 full bag fittings in 10 years and don't seem all that happy about them. I have bought 2 sets of irons off eBay in the last 6 months and have loved both of them. The first set I bought half on a whim due to the price, the second set I bought off of repeated recommendations of the second from the good folks on here. Didn't change the shaft because it's a shaft I like and I always change the grip.

 

I am still going to talk to a fitter about my driver swing and shaft. But I'm not looking to change out my whole bag because I love the hodgepodge setup I have put together myself. And you don't want to know the price as my whole bag was likely less than your driver.

 

But the bottom line is if I am paying someone for a service, I expect to get it or I get a refund.

Edited March 8, 2021 by lefthack