Switching To A Heavier Driver Shaft

[RH82]

I'm looking at trying a driver shaft around 75g which up from the usual 60ish gram driver shafts I've played pretty much my whole life. Anyone have experience with going heavier? Better, worse results?

Edited May 22 by RH82

[Ri_Redneck]

I use 70-75g shafts in my 44.75" drivers to aid in weighting. For years I played graphite wood shafts in the 80 - 90g range with great success. As I got into my 50s and now 60s, I prefer to go a bit lower. It really depends on what your swing needs. Some golfers find a little added total weight smooths out their transition and allows for more consistency. Only trying it will tell if it is right for you.

 

BT

[Ger21]

I'm most consistent with a 75g shaft at 44-1/2".

But I'm playing a 50g at 46" to try and get more distance. 😁

I'll be playing the 75g at Cabot Cliffs next week.

[NRJyzr]

Big fan of heavier graphite.  75g is about as light as I will go; I prefer 80s and up if I can get it.  I've stockpiled a few NV85 for that reason.

 

In Ye Olde Days, I would use 100g graphite in driver.  Might put one of them in my Mini

[phizzy30]

I've played both 60 and 70 gram shafts.  I do better the heavier I go in general.  While 60 gram shafts sometimes gives me higher ball speed, the stability/dispersion factor comes into play.  With 70 gram shafts, I find better dispersion and contact in general even though I may not get the fastest ball speeds.  Going heavier helps me with timing and contact.  I also have an aggressive transition which may factor into why I do better with heavier shafts. 

[Warrior42111]

As an average golfer score-wise I found the heavier shaft was better for me. Probable less distance I've noticed observational, but more acceptable tee shots, observational, and less lost tee shots from my stat tracking. I'm sure there's some science behind it but with a lighter club I lose the feel of it behind me and then my brain does some crazy stuff and poor shots everywhere.

[Cellis]

The heaviest I have played is 75ish grams. It was fine, but I definitely lost a few MPH. I feel like later in the round when I began to get a bit tired, the heavier driver shaft definitely was not helping me. Ironically I found a home with a 5x shaft with more weight in the head. Picked up a few MPH and dispersion was similar to 7x oddly enough. If I were you, I would give both a try just to see for yourself.

[ProV1Killa]

For me a 60 gram is playable and with my best strikes gives me the best ball speed and distance.  At the same time 60 gram shafts also punish me more if I get a bit sloppy.  I settled on the TR Blue 7X which is on the heavier side of the 70 gram class.  I want to say true weight is 78 grams.  For my swing the heavier weight is better for timing and feeling muscle connection for sequence.  On optimal shots I give up 5 - 10 yards with the 70.  If I get sloppy I am not punished as much with the 70 compared to the 60.  

 

To put numbers on the difference if I dead nut the 60 gram total distance 325ish compared to 315ish.  If sloppy means I miss center by an 1/8" they are pretty much neck to neck.  If sloppy means I'm off by 1/2" I loose 20 - 25 with the 70 but it's still in play compared to loosing 30ish and flight being in the hands of God with the 60.

[ShortGolfer]

I played really well with a 65g shaft in a 42" driver.

That is heavy considering my irons have 45 gram shafts!  That driver shaft is 20g heavier than the iron and wedge shafts I play.

Senior flex in woods and ladies flex in irons and wedges.

My swing is quite consistent.  I've been able to hit tiny greens with my mid irons.

Driver is getting better now that I've figured out proper setup to minimize lateral dispersion!

I've been learning for the past few months using a 53g shaft 41 inch driver that Club Champion made for me.

Edited May 22 by ShortGolfer

[CWT33]

Ventus 6x are in the 68-69 gram range. Kind of a nice tweener weight 

[Mike_C]

I really struggled years ago when lightweight/graphite shafts came out.   I never felt like I could feel where the club was when I swung, I could hit them a mile, but felt like I had no idea where they were going.   But I slowly adjusted over the years.  I used to play 75 grams, then slowly moved down and have been playing 60-65 the past several years.   I did have a GD Tour AD DI 7X that I hit pretty well about 5 years ago, but I don't have the swing speed for it anymore, just sold it last week.   

 

Having said all that, just put a Qi10 in the bag and went with the AV Limited Black 65 S, which comes in at 68 grams, a bit heavier than the HZRDUS gen 4 60 6.0 I was playing.   It feels noticeably heavier to me, but may help slow down my transition, as I have a habit of rushing from the top now and then.   I bought it stock length, but I may end up trimming it 1/2 to 3/4 inches. For now, I'm just chocking up on it a bit. 

[darkhelmet]

"Better/worse" depends on if you really need it and/or how well your current setup suits your swing.

 

Quick transition here, and heavier definitely works better for me.

 

Went to an outdoor demo day a number of years back, ended up with a Titleist 910D2 with an 80g MFT shaft (ahina, maybe?).  Had tried a few different shafts at 60g and 70g, when the rep suggested I try the 80g he had cut to driver length (it was technically only listed in the catalog as a FW shaft at the time). All of a sudden, results became super consistent.  Like flipping a switch.

 

Tried the other weights again. 70g - all over the place.  60g - all over the place.  Back to the 80g - straight ball after straight ball.  Stiff flex, so I wasn't a super-hard swinger, but that little bit of extra weight smoothed everything out.

[EddieEdwards]

I once thought lighter was longer and went with 50g shafts.  They tend to snap after awhile though. 

 

Moved on to 60g shafts, just as long and don't break. 

 

Tried a 130g steel shaft for awhile at 44".  At least 10 yrds shorter.

 

Read a thread on here about x flex for slow swingers. Decided not to 1/2 a** it and went with a 70g x.  More control and no distance loss.

 

Bought a couple dynamic gold sl wood shafts (110g) on closeout for $3 apiece and didn't use them for years because they are reg flex.  Tipped one 5-1/2" and put it in a cleveland classic xl.  Expected to lose 10 yards or so.  I went from 45" to 43-1/2".  Plays like an x-flex, just as long on avg and way straighter.  I give up distance on an occasional shot though.

 

Tried a 80g proforce v2 x tipped 1-1/2" at 43-1/2" (2 rounds)  I hit it higher, not as straight, and shorter.

 

Stock shot with driver is a short quick backswing, mid 90's swingspeed, high ball flight.

 

[phizzy30]

6 hours ago, EddieEdwards said:

I once thought lighter was longer and went with 50g shafts.  They tend to snap after awhile though. 

 

Moved on to 60g shafts, just as long and don't break. 

 

Tried a 130g steel shaft for awhile at 44".  At least 10 yrds shorter.

 

Read a thread on here about x flex for slow swingers. Decided not to 1/2 a** it and went with a 70g x.  More control and no distance loss.

 

Bought a couple dynamic gold sl wood shafts (110g) on closeout for $3 apiece and didn't use them for years because they are reg flex.  Tipped one 5-1/2" and put it in a cleveland classic xl.  Expected to lose 10 yards or so.  I went from 45" to 43-1/2".  Plays like an x-flex, just as long on avg and way straighter.  I give up distance on an occasional shot though.

 

Tried a 80g proforce v2 x tipped 1-1/2" at 43-1/2" (2 rounds)  I hit it higher, not as straight, and shorter.

 

Stock shot with driver is a short quick backswing, mid 90's swingspeed, high ball flight.

 

What 50 gram shafts did you have that broke???  Even those don't normally just  break under normal use.  A 60 or 70 gram shaft isn't exactly more durable than their 50 gram counterparts these days.  Maybe the shafts of yesteryear were more fragile, but not modern shafts.   

[EddieEdwards]

It was 20 yrs ago, cant really say for sure, but is was 3 or 4 different shafts.  All except one were over my shoulder on the follow through.  The other one snapped into 3 pieces.

[phizzy30]

35 minutes ago, EddieEdwards said:

It was 20 yrs ago, cant really say for sure, but is was 3 or 4 different shafts.  All except one were over my shoulder on the follow through.  The other one snapped into 3 pieces.

Ah, shoulder slam?

[Titleist_LFF]

My best shafts have always been Speeder 757's which in x-flex are 77-78 grams. I just feel that the heavier shafts keep me in better tiempo and give me better control. I also find that the heavier shafts give me a better trajectory. Similar shafts in the mid 60 grams seem to launch higher for myself. Still one of my favorite driver shafts of a few years back was an Oban Devotion 8-05 at 44.5 inches long. That thing was just awesome in a 910D3