|
.
.
By Joshua
Walker
GOLFViews Contributing Writer
There are
basically three parts to a golf club, the
head, shaft, and grip. The only moving
part is the shaft, and thus the part that
should fit a moving swing. The shaft is as
True Temper advertises, "The engine of the
club." PGA Touring Pro Jesper Parnevik
confirms this notion and tells us in a
Golf Digest article that "the right shaft
is worth 20 yards."
Plane and
simple, there are benefits of having the
correct shaft. In fact with the correct
instruction and practice, a golfer will
only get better if the most important part
of the club (the shaft) fits their
swing.
So how do we
determine the correct shaft? True Temper
has developed a measuring system that has
revolutionized club making. It's called
the Shaft Lab. For the last 8 years the
Shaft Lab has been following the PGA and
LPGA players helping them determine the
correct shaft for their swing. The likes
of Arnold Palmer, Greg Norman, Davis Love
III, and others have all had their swings
tested on the machine.
By capturing
8,000 data points during the downswing the
Shaft Lab tells exactly how an individual
bends the shaft giving a unique shaft
deflection and swing profile. After years
of studying many golfers, True Temper has
developed proprietary systems to interpret
an individual's deflection profile. The
more one "deflects" or bends the golf
shaft, generally the stiffer shaft flex
he/she needs to optimize impact
repeatability, which contributes to
consistent and accurate shot making.
Why is this
system better than testing swing speed?
Swing speed is
only one part of many factors that
contribute to how one bends or deflects a
shaft. Swing speed can also change from
day to day, hole to hole, all on how good
you feel and how hard you feel like
swinging.
What about
testing clubs on the range?
Testing clubs on
the range is a lengthy trial and error way
of finding the correct shaft. There is
also no guarantee from the manufacturers
that the club that is hit on the range
will have the same characteristics as the
one made. From testing thousands of
golfer's equipment at D'Lance Golf they
have found some so called "stiff" flexed
clubs to actually be softer than "ladies"
flex. D'Lance has also found that while
one club may be in a "stiff" range the
others vary. Thus leaving only one or two
clubs in a set that feel and perform well,
while the others do not.
Unfortunately,
this shaft inconsistency doesn't end at
the amateur level. PGA pro Mark
Calcavecchia described his disappointment
in manufacturers inconsistency in a
January 2002 Golfweek article.
Calcavecchia needed a new driver after the
shaft broke in the one that earned him a
win at the 2002 Phoenix Open. "I tried 50
of them with the same combination and
couldn't find one I like," Mark explains.
"They can make 10 supposedly identical
drivers and one will be fine and nine
won't feel right."
Break the cycle
of "try and buy." By testing your swing on
the Shaft Lab and finding a reputable club
maker like D'Lance Golf that can build a
set of clubs consistent to your shaft
recommendations you will play better golf
and have more fun.
The end result
of matching the shaft to the golfer will
be golfers performing closer to their
maximum capability giving the golfer
better feel, greater distance, and
increased accuracy.
Visit D'Lance
Golf and experience the True Temper Shaft
Lab for yourself. Make an appointment
today or visit the D'Lance Golf booth at
the Denver Golf Expo. For more
information, call 303-730-2717 or visit
the website at www.dlancegolf.com.
Joshua Walker is
the Director of Marketing for D'Lance
Golf, a game improvement facility and
custom club company with locations in
Colorado and Georgia.
|
