steel shafts in fairways / drivers??

glennmaitland · February 20, 2008

I'm sure there is a reason for this but i cant be sure what it is. . . . . . . almost all of us use steel shafts in the irons without even trying graphites and graphite shafts in the fairways and drivers without giving any consideration to steel. .. .

I'm looking for a titleist 585 as a 2 iron replacement and would pref to get steel dg s 300 shaft to match the set up of my irons but almost all of the ones i'v seen on ebay etc have graphite shafts. Why do we all use graphite in the fairways and drivers yet steel in the irons???

Couldnt be a distance thing or we would use graphite in the 2and3 irons also?? Can someone explain please???

texashigh10 · February 20, 2008

Steel generally offers more control, graphite more distance. So, in the clubs you hit into an area with a 15 foot radius we would want control, with the club you are trying to get as much distance as you can and are trying to keep it within a 40 yd wide area. Graphite shafts are lighter, hence higher shots with more distance, but with a lot more torque than steel which is heavier for lower straighter shots.

Mongo26 · February 21, 2008

I switched to a steel shafted 3 wood and it didnt seem to lose any distance and it felt like I had a more consistent flight pattern

astamm8 · February 21, 2008

i think steel is a great choice for hybrids. particularly with the new options available in lighter weight steel.

but, thing about graphite is, you can do what ever you want with it. what i mean is you can make it to any weight, torque, kickpoint, etc., etc. you want (within bounds of course). many pros use graphite shafts that aren't that much lighter than light weight steel options that are available. however, i'm convinced that the performance attributes of these graphite shafts are superior to the steel.

glennmaitland · February 21, 2008

Thanks very much for the replies guys, makes sense that the graphite (possibly) gives extra distance while the steel more accuracy which makes me think that someone who sprays his driver/3W all over the place would be best advised to get a steel shaft?

Wonder what the distance loss would be? anyone out there hit any given club (same loft, lie, length etc) with steel shaft and graphites that could give us an idea of the distance loss in the steel? (Tim thinks he didnt lose distance = would that be consistent with every one else?) With the way the game is now i would guess alot of ppl would sacrifice the extra 10-20 yards if accuracy was improved in using a steel hybrid rather than graphite.

I'm thinking the marketing companies have got us all believing that we NEED graphite shafts in the longer clubs when this may not be the best choice for us.