Am I playing the Wrong Flex

[TallGuy90]

Playing Nippon GH NEO stiff shafts in my irons which are JPX 921. My 7 iron distance is 150. 
 

my driver is barely carrying 214 and a Stiff CK 

 

The reason I ask is I can go about the same distance with my 4W that has a LZ 5.5 Shaft in it. 

 

[nsxguy]

3 minutes ago, TallGuy90 said:

Playing Nippon GH NEO stiff shafts in my irons which are JPX 921. My 7 iron distance is 150. 
 

my driver is barely carrying 214 and a Stiff CK 

 

The reason I ask is I can go about the same distance with my 4W that has a LZ 5.5 Shaft in it. 

 

 

The answer is a definite maybe.

 

IMO shaft weight is more important than flex so long as the flex is "close". But remember, dispersion is key.

 

I hit my 7 iron 150 as well. I hit Dynamic Gold S300s, 130 grams uncut I believe. I could probably hit R300 or X100 and not notice any appreciable difference.

 

Then again, you started off talking about irons but it seems the 4wd vs. driver is the main concern, yes ?

 

Seems like the shaft (and/or the head) of your driver isn't a great fit. Shafts for drivers often need more precise fitting than with irons to get optimal results.

 

For reference, since we hit the 7 iron pretty much the same distance, my best drives carry right around 230. That's no wind, perfect center contact, trajectory and spin. While it's not necessarily a given we should hit the same distance we should be in the same ballpark.

 

Good luck. 👍

 

[TallGuy90]

@nsxguyI was really concerned about it all actually . At 29 degrees loft for a 7 I feel like 160 should be my number 

[nsxguy]

1 minute ago, TallGuy90 said:

@nsxguyI was really concerned about it all actually . At 29 degrees loft for a 7 I feel like 160 should be my number 

 

Well, the lofts on irons are getting stronger and stronger. My bad for the "7 iron" assumption.

 

Pretty soon the 4-PW will have gaps of 1*.

 

Again, just for reference, my G20 7 iron is 32* which, back in 2012 when I got them, was considered strong. Nowadays, with GI irons, 29* is getting to be downright common.

[Jmccas]

I play JPX 921 HMP and hit my 7 about 160 with Recoil 95s. 
 

I can outdrive my driver with my 4W. A lot of it comes down to mechanics and confidence with a driver. I have 0 confidence with a 460cc driver so I’ve been using a 13.5* 3+ wood off the tee. I swing it with confidence and speed and easily outdrive my driver. 
 

The shaft could be an issue but it’s not a major issue I would think. 

Edited September 4, 2021 by Jmccas

[Stuart_G]

10 hours ago, TallGuy90 said:

Playing Nippon GH NEO stiff shafts in my irons which are JPX 921. My 7 iron distance is 150. 
 

my driver is barely carrying 214 and a Stiff CK 

 

The reason I ask is I can go about the same distance with my 4W that has a LZ 5.5 Shaft in it. 
 

 

Unfortunately, there are a lot of potential reasons for that.  While the shaft stiffness is on the list,  it's pretty low down on the list of probable causes for loosing distance.  There are other things you should really consider first before worrying about stiffness.

 

And don't get overly fixated on the flex label.  It's pretty unreliable for anything other than comparing stiffness with a different flex of the same model.   It doesn't help much comparing stiffness with other models.   There are plenty of "stiff" shafts out there that are either softer than some other "regular" flex shafts or stiffer than some other "x-stiff" shafts.   Or if you were to plot a graph of stiffness feel vs shaft flex, there would be lots of overlaps.

 

More common distance problems with the driver tend to come from issues with the consistency of the face impact location or too much dynamic loft delivered causing too much spin.  Those are more commonly "fixed" by fitting for playing length, shaft weight, and head weight.    Stiffness can be important for some but those other specs need to be dialed in first before it can be determined if you fall into that category or not.   But without more detailed LM data, it's purely speculation.

 

Without that detailed data, all I can suggest is that you try this DIY fitting tutorial and see if it might help. 

 

 

Once the playing length, shaft weight, and head weight are dialed in, then you can consider different shaft stiffness profiles to see how that effects your results for you and your swing.  But that can only be done by getting out and testing different options and comparing the results.

Edited September 4, 2021 by Stuart_G

[Howard_Jones]

12 hours ago, TallGuy90 said:

Playing Nippon GH NEO stiff shafts in my irons which are JPX 921. My 7 iron distance is 150. 
 

my driver is barely carrying 214 and a Stiff CK 

 

The reason I ask is I can go about the same distance with my 4W that has a LZ 5.5 Shaft in it. 

 

Length, Weight, Balance, feel of flex....thats the order of priority.

Post ALL specs you got on your 4W, and i can do some numbers of where your driver specs "most likely" will work better. (post the drivers specs to for reference)

Whats needed is
- Play length
- Total weight
- SW value
- Grip type/ weight.
- Shaft model and flex label

Im NOT able to give you specs that works 100%, but you will get into the right ball park for further tuning, and maybe all thats needed is some small mods on the driver you got now

[TallGuy90]

@Howard_JonesCallaway XR 16 4W , The Stock Project X LZ 5.5 flex 43 inches. A TV Jumbo Grip. D2/3 SW. 

[Howard_Jones]

47 minutes ago, TallGuy90 said:

@Howard_JonesCallaway XR 16 4W , The Stock Project X LZ 5.5 flex 43 inches. A TV Jumbo Grip. D2/3 SW. 

I need Total wgt of that club, or uncut shaft wgt.
Is that SW value stock or with the Jumbo grip on?

Specs on the driver you are not that happy with?

Edited September 4, 2021 by Howard_Jones

[Nessism]

Shafts don't provide propulsion, it's more a feel and launch issue.  As long as you are okay with the feel and the launch is high enough, changing shafts won't improve distance. 

[TallGuy90]

1 hour ago, Howard_Jones said:

I need Total wgt of that club, or uncut shaft wgt.
Is that SW value stock or with the Jumbo grip on?

Specs on the driver you are not that happy with?

SW is estimated from callaway based on grip. LZ are 55 Gram shafts uncut. Do not have total weight 

 

 

the driver was a stock Taylormade Sim Max D with the Tensei Blue CK 60 Gram Stiff Shaft. Stock everything. Z grip is 47 gram , 60 gram uncut shaft . 45.75 is listed as playing length. D3 SW

[Howard_Jones]

Im not sure i got it all correct, but here is my take on it.

Shaft...
If we say the shaft you play in your 4W has the right weight (se below), and that actual uncut wgt was 55 grams, and we at the same time say the drivers length is good (i think its rather long), a shaft with the same Balance point should be MINUS 3.5 grams pr inch. Difference from the driver to the 4W is 2.75 x 3.5 grams = 9.6 or 10 grams down = 45.....that does not sound right for you.

Grips
You are playing GRIPS that makes a world of a difference.
GP Tour Velvet Jumbo is 61 grams, so your 4W is like a 66 grams slightly Counter weighted shaft, but your profile name indicates a man taller and with larger hands than average, and then a standard size grip will not work good. (variable face angle, and hands that are not comfortable)

The first i would do, is to change the grip on the driver to a Jumbo size, but do NOT use a grip with more wgt than Tour velvet (61 gram as jumbo). We move total wgt by 14 grams up using TV Jumbo (on the paper), and thats not really needed from what we see here, but since that size works good on your 4W, start in that end, and see what happens before we mess with something else.

End note
At the moment, this 2 clubs has opposite Total wgt of what they should have to be a good match for the same player, but i suspect the "good fit" on the 4W is far from perfect, but it has a better grip, and "balance" (actual wgt distribution) and maybe a better profile (feel) who makes it easier to navigate it. The driver should feel more heavy and more "head heavy" with a too small grip now, so there is a certain risk a Jumbo grip makes the club as a whole feel heavier than you want it, but since the grip is as important as it is, we have to start in that end, and thats the end a good fitting should start, since both size and grip wgt makes a influence on both total wgt and balance.

[TallGuy90]

@Howard_Jones thanks , yes I was having to go off the internet and what the manufacturer says. I am a big person at 6 5. 250

[Jmccas]

7 hours ago, TallGuy90 said:

@Howard_Jones thanks , yes I was having to go off the internet and what the manufacturer says. I am a big person at 6 5. 250

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