Tuesday 4 December 2012

Shafts- Distance vs Control depends on the shaft weight

Hi ho everybody.
Today's topic is a simplified take on Shafts. The main factor we are talking about here is the weight.
If you have a quick tempo, spray the ball a lot with a wide dispersion or hit the ball too high, then a heavy shaft is good for you. Not talking about the flex but the weight of the shaft. But invariably a stiffer shaft tends to be heavier. (not going into torque, EI, GJ, stiffness profile). But the drawback of a heavy shaft is the distance is loss slightly. But this is only in a golfing robot. However with a human player, the heavier shaft will give you better feel and control and you will actually end up hitting further.This has happened for me. The asian specs of the clubs tend to be lighter and don't suit me.
Another point to note is how much you play. If you play often then a heavy set of clubs is ideal. I am with the school of thought of playing the stiffest flex and heaviest shaft that you can cope with. (i.e. before distance starts tapering off too much) Often you hear the sales person in the golf shop spewing nonsense, was once told to swing easy and play regular instead of stiff. That seems to be some peoples take on the game.
In contrast, if you swing with a slower tempo, have less dispersion, need help lifting the ball and don't play often, then a light shaft beckons you. (as is the case of my wife).
So for the Driver, a light weight for distance would be 50g -65g. Whereas, 70g-85g would be heavy for control, leaving the happy medium of 60g-75g for both distance and control.
For the irons, a nice and heavy shaft would be the True Temper Dynamic Gold, KBS Tour, C- Taper or the Project X. Play it stiff at 110+g. Light would be 50-70g graphite shafts.
So now you know.
But to throw a spanner in the works, Cleveland Ultralite system, uses a light shaft to gain swing speed. And this surprisingly works for me with the hybrid. It's a Miyazaki C Kua at 62g as opposed to heavier shafts which are in the 80+g range. This is how the torque and other characteristics complexifies the issue.

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