Why High Tech Club Fitting Works
By Dan Sueltz

There is a dramatic difference in club fitting techniques available to golfers.  In the last few years concepts like frequency matching shafts, testing for launch angle and spin rates on a launch monitor have helped every golfer improve distance and accuracy.  But most golfers still do it the old fashioned way.  They try it in the store or on the range.  They buy it there or on-line.  They get inconsistent results.  They trade it back in on the 90-day plan or sell it on-line.  They buy another club.  The cycle continues until FINALLY, they find a club that works.  Stop this madness!  There is a way to get consistent results for EVERY club in your bag.

The difference in club fitting techniques

The chart below shows the difference in club fitting techniques available to most golfers:

                                 Good               Better               High Tech

Static Tests:

• Club Length                            Yes                 Yes                     Yes
• Lie Angle                                  Yes                 Yes                     Yes
• Grip Size                                  Yes                 Yes                     Yes
• Shaft Flex                                 Maybe             Yes                     Yes
• Shaft Weight                            Maybe             Yes                     Yes
• Swing Weight                          Maybe             Yes                     Yes

Dynamic Tests:

• Shaft Loading or Bending         No                 No                    Yes

• Club Head Speed                       No                 Yes                  Yes
• Ball Speed                                  No                 Yes                   Yes
• Carry Distance               No                 Yes                     Yes
• Launch Angle                             No                 Yes                     Yes
• Spin Rates                                  No                 Yes                     Yes
• Shot Dispersion                          No                 No                     Yes
• Descent Angle                            No                 No                     Yes
• Test New vs. Your Clubs           No                 No                     Yes
• Multiple shaft/same head             No                 No                  Yes
• Same shaft/multiple heads           No                 No                Yes

Recommendations:

• Shaft Tip Profile(Trajectory)       No                 No                    Yes
• Specific Shaft Weights    No                 No                      Yes
• Set Make-up (Hybrids, etc.)       Maybe           Yes                   Yes
• Custom Built Clubs                     No                 Maybe              Yes
• Ball for best performance            No                 Maybe             Yes

A “good” club fitting is usually free and is not very scientific.  Based upon the experience of the person fitting the golfer, he/she may actually get some pretty good recommendations, but they will not be based on facts, just ball flight observation and the feedback from the golfer.  A “better” club fitting will be done with the assistance of a shaft frequency analyzer and a launch monitor.  These devices can help the golfer see what the actual shaft flex they are playing and see the results in distance and launch angle for clubs they are testing.  The golfer will typically be hitting demo clubs that may or may not suit his/her swing profile so the results will be recommendations for the best of what is available in the store or golf shop.

The High Tech Fitting Difference

Interchangeable Shafts?  What’s Next?
By Dan Sueltz

The golf industry is continuing to improve its ability to make this game easier for everyone to play.  Larger heads for bigger sweet spots.  Increased MOI (Moment of Inertia) for more forgiveness on off-center hits.  Adjustable weight technology for the ability to reduce draws and slices on drivers.  Now, the USGA has approved interchangeable shafts so that you can get the right shaft for your particular swing, and for the type of course you are playing.

What are interchangeable shafts?

In the last three years, several companies have designed driver heads that allow the golfer to quickly change a shaft using a connection system that usually involves an adapter on the shaft that can be tightened into the hosel of the driver using an screw-type connection.  We began using this type of system for fitting in 2004.  Burrows Golf (no longer in business) had a system like this for their drivers but purely for fitting purposes.  In the last two years, Alpha Golf, Nakashima, and Versus Golf have developed heads that have adapter mechanisms for quickly interchanging shafts.  The major OEM’s like Callaway Golf (Opti Fit) and Taylor Made (Select Fit) have developed fitting systems that make it much easier to dial a golfer in to the proper shaft rather than having several bags full of demo clubs.  For example, we can easily try stiffer, softer, longer, shorter, heavier, lighter shafts with the same head to determine which combination gives the best result.  Now, the USGA is allowing you to change shafts before a round without having to go to a club maker to change out the shaft.

Alpha C830.4 Plasma driver with Interchangeable Shaft

When will this be available?

Three companies now offer driver heads with interchangeable shaft capabilities:  Alpha Golf, Nakashima, and Versus Golf.  Again, innovation comes from the small companies.  While nothing has been confirmed or announced by the major OEM’s, we fully expect Taylor Made, Callaway and Titleist to test the waters with drivers in 2008.  This is great news for every golfer.  Now you can get dialed in to the best shaft option available without having to purchase a new driver.  How each company will bring this to the marketplace is not certain.  For example, will you be able to buy a package with two shafts for your driver?  Will you be able to exchange one shaft for another for a fee?  The other issue is that each company will likely have their own unique connection system so you will not be able to swap a Callaway IS(interchangeable shaft) into a Taylor Made head.  Again, there will be no “standard” connection system in the industry.

What does this mean for YOU?

For starters, it will now be easier, assuming you have a good club fitter, to fit the shaft perfectly for you that will give you the best distance, accuracy and trajectory.  Second, it will be less costly to switch out shafts since you can keep the same head and just buy a new IS (interchangeable shaft).  Third, if you are a competitive golfer, you will be able to change shafts between rounds if you need a draw bias or fade bias shaft from one course to the next, a la Phil Mickleson.  As a custom club fitter, this is a great thing as we will be able to provide you with more options at a lower cost than having two or three drivers in your bag.  Lower spin, low launch shafts for windy conditions and higher spin, higher launch shafts for normal playing conditions.  The best of all worlds!

Looking into 2008, we see some very exciting things with this new technology.  The bottom line is that all of this is designed to help you hit longer, straighter shots with more consistency.  Helping golfers play better can only enhance the enjoyment of the game.  What a concept!

Do YOU Need High Launch, Low Spin?
By Dan Sueltz

The trend these days is high launch, low spin to get maximum distance.  I agree totally with low spin as that truly will get you more distance as the ball will cut through the air and roll more on impact.  But launch angle, spin rates AND descent angle will get you the optimum performance.  Equipment manufacturers will tell you it’s the club head design that controls the launch angle and spin rate, but it is the right combination of club head design AND shaft that makes for optimum performance.  But getting fit for the RIGHT shaft is even more confusing to the average golfer.  Unless you know the characteristics of a particular shaft you are guessing at what is right for YOUR swing.

Now we can measure your shaft load before impact, your “release point” in your downswing, and the kick velocity of the shaft at impact.  After testing and fitting over 7,000 golfers, we have developed a unique formula for proper shaft selection.  We can literally help you get more distance with tighter shot dispersion with the right shaft.  Now you can hit those long, straight shots more consistently.  But what shaft and head design is right for YOU?

Measuring Shaft Load. 

There is really only one way to accurately measure your pre-impact shaft load and that is with the True Temper Shaft Lab.  When you take a swing with the test five iron or driver, the club literally measures how much you bend the club in your downswing in two dimensions;  toe-up/toe-down, and lead/lag.  How much you load the club and when you stop accelerating in your down-swing determines your optimum shaft flex.  The larger the load, the stiffer the shaft.

Downswing Time.

Every golfer has a unique tempo.  Ever had your buddies tell you to “slow down”?  Sorry, Charlie, but your tempo and downswing time are unique to you and your personality.  Sure, you can probably do it for a few swings in a round, but then you go back to your old habits!  When we test golfers, downswing times vary from as little as three tenths of a second to as much as a full second.  The slower your downswing time, the lighter the shaft and club swing weight you may need to control the club.  Faster downswing times require heavier, higher swing weighted clubs so the golfer can feel where the club head is during the downswing.

Release Point.

Every golfer “releases” or stops accelerating the club at different points in their downswing.  This is true for everyone, even the pro’s!  This loading and releasing action creates a unique profile for each golfer.  After testing over 8,000 golfers, we have identified six common profiles, or “swing prints”, like fingerprints, that help us determine what type of shaft will work best.  Let’s look at three of them. 

   

Casting Profile
      

           Double Load Profile                     Pro Load Profile

Each of these load profiles will require a different weight, flex and shaft tip stiffness for the best performance for the golfer.  And, for the majority of golfers, this profile does not change with lessons or practice!

Shaft Kick Velocity

The proper shaft for you takes into consideration your launch angle for both woods and irons.  By using your shaft kick velocity as determined by the Shaft Lab, we then test the golfer with different shafts with different tip stiffnesses to determine the best one.  The higher the kick velocity, the stiffer the tip in order to control the clubhead and launch angle.  Golfers with very low kick velocities will benefit from softer tip shafts that help get the ball in the air and actually accelerate through the ball at impact.  By testing on a launch monitor, we can measure launch angle, distance, shot dispersion, and several other key statistics and properly fit the shaft to the golfer.

So What Should You Do?

To hit each club in your bag the farthest and straightest of your ability, each club needs to be matched to your optimum shaft flex, weight, swing weight and tip stiffness.  The first step is to have each of your clubs tested to determine their exact flex, swing weight, and weight.  Then, you can see how closely they match your swing profile.  If the shafts are off by as little as a third of a flex, three swing weights and 10 grams in total weight, you will notice that your shot dispersion is quite a bit greater than you would like.  While we can tell you that you need to have a shaft flex in your woods of low stiff (5.7 Shaft Flex Index) with a 75 gram shaft in a stiff tip, it will be highly unlikely that you can purchase a club off the rack that has those exact specifications.  By custom building or re-shafting your existing equipment, D’Lance Golf can frequency match your clubs to the EXACT CPM you need prior to building your clubs, put in the correct weight of shaft, and swing weight them to your exact specifications.  Buy your clubs off the rack and you will be lucky to get the consistent, accurate clubs you bargained for. 

So, don’t waste your hard earned money on the trial and error method of club buying.  Call D’Lance Golf at 303-730-2717 today for an appointment to get your shaft load analyzed and your current clubs profiled.  That way you are assured that each club in your bag will perform consistently from swing to swing, day to day, throughout the season.

What is MOI, Really?
By Dan Sueltz

It seems like 2007 is going to be the year of MOI, or Moment of Inertia.  The golf marketing guru’s are pushing this feature on drivers as the greatest thing since sliced bread.  MOI, in simple terms is the ability of an object to resist twisting around a given axis.  The higher the MOI, the more resistant the object is to twisting.  In golf terms, this means the higher the MOI, the less likely you are to lose shots left or right on miss-hits off the heel or toe.  But there is a lot more to it than just getting the hottest new square or high MOI driver.

It’s All About Forgiveness

MOI is all about creating the most forgiving clubs possible.  The MOI mentioned by most manufactures these days is the MOI around the vertical axis of a club head’s center of gravity.  It makes sense that most golfers (actually 56% of you, according to a survey done by Fujikura), prefer accuracy over distance.  The highest MOI drivers will approach the USGA limit set in 2006 of 5,900 grams/centimeter squared.  This is a technical term that serious club head designers like Tom Wishon take into consideration when coming up with new designs.  With today’s modern materials, it will be difficult to exceed that limit without making a club that is too heavy to swing for the average person.  The way around this is to make a club head that has a high volume (within the 460cc USGA limits) and has the weight portioned around the perimeter and sole such that the MOI is maximized.  Voila!  The new square drivers from Callaway and Nike have MOI’s of 5,200 to 5,300 g/cm2.  But with all the forgiveness, what are you giving up?  For better golfers, you will not be able to “work” the ball as easily.  In addition, since high MOI is typically achieved by moving the center of gravity back and down, you typically will have to hit the ball higher on the face in order to reduce spin and achieve the correct launch angle. 

What about the shaft?

The second piece to this MOI puzzle is the ability of the SHAFT to resist twisting on off-center hits with these larger and higher MOI clubs.  Several shaft companies, notably Fujikura and Matrix, have introduced shafts with lower torque ratings to go along with the new heads.  The lower the torque, the less the shaft will twist around its axis when the ball is hit off the heel or toe.  But be careful!  For better golfers, low torque is a good thing.  The ball goes exactly where you want it to go.  For higher handicapper’s, a little more torque is helpful as it allows the club to square itself easier, and impart a little more side spin that will actually correct the ball flight for heel and toe hits.  Only by testing the new heads with different shaft combinations can you tell for sure which shaft delivers the best performance in terms of accuracy and distance. 

And finally, there is club MOI.

The heavier the club the higher the MOI.  The lighter the club, the lower the MOI.  But it all has to match your particular swing.  That is why we have developed a fitting system that recommends the weight of the shaft, swing weight, butt stiffness and tip profile using several swing criteria like downswing time (tempo), total shaft deflection, your body mass index, and kick velocity.  This quickly gets you into a shaft and head combination that feels comfortable to you and gets the best performance on our launch monitors.  We still want you to hit the lightest, longest, softest shaft that you can control.  But the correct club will give you and MOI that delivers consistency, accuracy, distance and feel.

So, is High MOI for You?

It always seems that the closer we are to any “limit” the more we like it.  Kinda like driving just enough over the speed limit to NOT get caught.  I have no doubt that a lot of you golfers will test the MOI limit with a new driver this year.  Bottom line?  Will it increase your accuracy?  Probably.  Will it increase your distance?  Probably not.  Again, with the right shaft and a little more weight, you can increase the MOI of your current driver to almost the same specifications as these new drivers.  The soft side of the fitting of these new, high MOI drivers is the look, feel and sound.  If it doesn’t look good, feel good or sound good you will not have the confidence to hit the club consistently.  Funny thing about us humans.  The mind has a lot of influence on our performance.  I can tell you one thing for sure.  Consistency builds confidence.  If you get properly fit into a new, high MOI driver that you hit consistently well, your confidence will soar and your scores will drop!

Extreme Makeover-Golf Bag Edition
By Dan Sueltz

The golf season is heading into the beautiful fall and it is time to reflect on your game this year.  Were you consistent and long off the tee or would you like to get an extra 10-20 yards?  Did you find that you just did not have the right club to hit some of those long par threes?  Were your irons letting you down by missing greens left, right, long and short.  And what about your wedges?  Do you have the right gaps?  Maybe it is time for an extreme makeover of your golf bag!

Makeover your driver.

If you are not straight and long off the tee, your confidence takes a big hit.  Tour players tweak their drivers more than any club in their bag until they get it right.  So should you!  Are your drives too high or too low?  When we test players on the TrackMan ball flight monitor, what you THINK is the right trajectory may be completely off.  Trajectory (launch angle AND descent angle) will give you the optimum distance, both carry and roll-out.  This is a combination of driver loft and shaft tip profile.  Soft tip, high launch may be good for a lot of people but your roll-out may be limited because the descent angle is too steep.  Are you straight off the tee?  The right shaft weight, flex and swing weight will cut your shot dispersion by 50% or more and give you more distance.  Makeover your driver and get your confidence back!

Hybrids, long irons or fairway woods?

While hybrid clubs have been the rage for the past couple of years, it still amazes me that some golfers are still struggling with the long iron, fairway wood or hybrid dilemma.  Personally, I think a good hybrid club can take the place of most long irons and SOME fairway woods.  First of all, a hybrid club is much more versatile from the tee, fairway and rough than a long iron such as a 3, 4 or even a 5 iron.  Of course it is always good to have a 5 iron in your bag for those “punch shots”.  If you do not generate a good amount of ball speed, going to a low lofted hybrid like a 16 or 20 degree is not such a good idea.  You are better off with a 5 or 7 wood.  Should you try a 9 wood?  Again, I think a hybrid club is a better idea as it is more versatile.  The trick is to have the correct length, weight and flex in the shaft as well as the correct loft.  Hybrids should have slightly lighter shafts than your irons and heavier than your fairway woods in order to promote a good, consistent swing.

Are your irons consistently hitting greens? 

When we test a golfer’s irons during our high-tech fitting, we see a tremendous amount of inconsistency in shaft flexes.  We also see golfers playing irons that are either too heavy or too light for their swing profiles.  Whether you are a beginner or accomplished golfer, you have a unique swing profile that determines the equipment specs that will fit your swing.  This is not based upon swing speed or tempo, but on how you bend or load the club during your swing.  This can only be tested on the True Temper Shaft Lab.  Then, we have you test a variety of clubs with the correct shaft on a launch monitor like the Golf Achiever or TrackMan to see which club gives you the best distance, launch angle and shot dispersion.  The result will be clubs that fit your swing giving you greater accuracy, consistency and distance.  You’ve been Made Over!

        Your Existing Clubs                            “Made Over - Perfect” Clubs

So give your golf bag and extreme makeover!

When you go through a complete fitting at D’Lance Golf, we will test all of the clubs in your bag, evaluate your shaft loading profile, and test you with the right shaft on different heads to find your optimum fit!  The result will be a 50% reduction in shot dispersion and 5-10% more distance.  This will give you the confidence you need to shoot lower scores.  You probably do not need to replace or re-shaft every club in your bag, but you certainly need more consistency.  So, make it a point to go through a detailed fitting and find out how extreme you need to be in making over YOUR bag of clubs. 

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Equipment Consistency is the Key to Better Golf

After interviewing thousands of golfers about their games and what they would like to improve the most, the resounding answer is CONSISTENCY!  Whether it is hitting more consistent shots off the tee, striking their irons with more consistency, or putting their wedge shots in a very tight, consistent circle, every golfer will play better golf and lower their scores with a more consistent set of golf clubs to match their swing.  This is the only sport I know of where you use thirteen clubs to hit one ball!  So how do you make sure that your bag has a set of consistent clubs?

Consistent Club Length and Length Progression

The first step in consistency is to have clubs that are the correct length and get consistently shorter as you go from driver to lob wedge.  Every manufacturer from Cleveland to Mizuno has a slightly different set of length standards.  The standard men’s Ping G5 driver is 45 ½” long while the standard Taylor Made R7 460 is 44 ¾” long.  From there, a standard men’s 3 wood is 43” and 5 wood 42”.  Irons are a different story with men’s standard lengths in a 5 iron with a steel shaft at 37 ¾” and 38 ¼” in graphite.  The reason for the discrepancy in lengths is that graphite shafts are lighter so the extra ½” length gets club swing weight back up to standard (D0-D2).  Hybrids are usually ¾” longer than the equivalent iron replacement.  This means a 3 Hybrid should be 39 ½”, but we see them from 39 ¼” to 40 ½”.  When we test a set of clubs for length it not uncommon to find a lot of inconsistency in shaft lengths.  If clubs are too long, you will hit fat shots off the heel and usually pull the ball.  If shafts are too short, you will tend to hit thin shots off the toe of the club, pushing the ball right (for right-handed golfers).  Lady golfers and juniors are especially challenged as stock clubs are a half inch to an inch shorter than men’s standard, while some women actually need men’s length clubs.

Consistent Weight and Weight Progression

Another key to consistency is weight of the club, swing weight (weight distribution), and the progression of shaft weights throughout the set.  The lightest club in your bag is your driver and the heaviest club is your sand or lob wedge.  As your clubs get shorter, the shaft weight should get slightly heavier in order to keep a consistent feel and balance throughout the set.   We see a lot of drivers with shaft weights from 45 grams to 75 grams in off the rack sets, with the most common being a 65 gram shaft.  From there is gets less consistent.  Some manufacturer’s make lighter, 60 gram shafts in 3 woods, and light, 60 gram shafts in hybrids.  While this may be good for smooth tempo golfers, it is not good for fast tempo “hitters”.  Too light of shaft will give you no feel for the club head in your downswing potentially causing an over-the-top move.  Too heavy of club will make you labor to get the club square causing slices and pull shots.  Again, consistency throughout your set will give you a consistent feel from club to club.

Consistent Shaft Flex

Most importantly the shaft flex at both the butt end and tip end of the shaft should match your swing profile.  Every golfer we test, believe it or not, has a VERY consistent shaft loading profile.  This means that with the correct practice and instruction to develop better swing mechanics, golfers can improve very quickly with the correct equipment that matches their natural swing and shaft loading profile.  When we test off the rack equipment, and even clubs that have been custom fit by major manufacturer’s, we see as much as 3 to 4 flexes difference from one club to the next.  If your shafts are too soft (flexible) you will have a very erratic shot pattern, both left and right, high and low.  With shafts that are too stiff, you may tend to hit more consistent shots, but your ball flight will typically be low with a slight fade.  With thirteen clubs in your bag, you will tend to adapt your swing to try to accommodate the variances in each club.  This is a prescription for inconsistency.  We custom build every club we make, whether it is a re-shaft of existing clubs or new clubs so that EVERY club in your bag matches your swing profile in terms of length, weight, swing weight and shaft flex.

So if you want to improve the consistency of YOUR golf game, start by looking closely at the equipment in your bag.  Then, commit yourself to getting the proper instruction and developing a practice regimen to create the muscle memory you will need to make consistent shots. 

To find out the consistency of your equipment and get a prescription for the most consistent equipment to match YOUR unique swing, call D’Lance Golf Performance Center at 303-730-2717, www.dlancegolf.com, or visit our fitting trailer at a course near you, www.dlancefitting.com.

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Get More Distance!

If you are like most golfers these days, you are always looking for a few extra yards in distance.  Why?  Heck, why not hit a shorter iron into the green instead of a 5 iron or hybrid?  Well, with advances in drivers, shafts, and balls, you should be able to get an extra 20 yards off the tee and get more distance out of your irons.  So what are the secrets to more distance?

Match Your Driver Loft to Your Ball Speed

That’s right, I said ball speed, not swing speed.  The old measure of fitting driver lofts and shaft flexes was to look at swing speed and tempo.  The new measure of fitting driver loft is to accurately measure ball speed and spin rate.  Ball speed is determined by a number of factors, most importantly club head face elasticity (C.O.R.), shaft flex and tip stiffness, and ball type.  For a given swing speed with your driver, the maximum ball speed you can achieve is about 1.6 to 1.  So for a swing speed of 100 mph your maximum driver ball speed will be 160 mph.  At 10 mph ball speed your optimum launch angle that gives you the most carry distance will be between 12 to 13.5 degrees.  This means you would play roughly a 9.5 degree driver to achieve this launch angle.  Most golfers that we test on the TrackMan II have a ball speed of 125 to 135 mph, which means they should be playing a 10.5 to 11 degree driver. 

TrackMan II Ball Flight Monitor

Play the Right Ball For Your Ball Speed and Spin Rate

There is a reason why there are so many golf balls on the market today.  Every golfer should match the type of ball they are playing to their swing speed and spin rate.  If your ball speed is under 110 mph, you should play a soft, high spin ball to get more loft and carry distance.  Good examples are the Titleist DT SoLo, Callaway Big Bertha and Precept Laddie Extreme.  Between 110 and 130 mph ball speed, you should try the Titleist NXT, the Maxfli Noodle Softest, or the Srixon AD333.  Once you get above 140mph ball speed you REALLY need to match spin rates to launch angle.  By hitting a lower spin, lower launch ball like the Titleist Pro V1, Callaway HX Tour 56 or the Srixon ZUR-S, you can pick up an extra 15 yards carry AND better roll out!

Shafts Are A Big Factor in Launch Angle and Spin Rate

If you think you need a light weight, stiff flex, low kick point, low torque shaft to hit the ball a mile, think again.  In addition to launch angle, you need to consider the overall weight, swing weight, shaft flex, shaft stiffness profile, and tip stiffness.  There is a dramatic difference between shafts made by Aldila, Fujikura, Grafalloy, MATRIX and others in terms of which one best suits your game.  By testing your swing on the True Temper Shaft Lab to determine optimum shaft flex, and then using the TrackMan II to test several different shafts, we can determine EXACTLY the right shaft for you.  The new Grafalloy BiMatrix Prototype shaft used by Tiger Woods and Bubba Watson, for example, can reduce spin rates as much as 30% giving more distance at higher ball speeds.

Select the Correct Shaft Weight

If you think graphite is better for you as you get a little older, don’t put yourself on the porch just yet.  While lighter weight graphite shafts can create more clubhead speed, your swing may get out of control and cause you to actually LOSE distance and accuracy.  By properly matching the weight of the shaft to your swing dynamics, you can actually pick up a full club length distance in your irons.

So there you have it, if you want to hit the ball farther this year, match your lofts, golf balls, and shafts to your swing. With the right head, ball and shaft you will be hitting the ball farther and straighter than you ever have before!

If you would like to determine the proper equipment for your swing to get more distance, call D’Lance Golf and schedule a time on the Golf Achiever or TrackMan II Launch Monitor by calling 303-730-2717.

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Graphite or Steel Shafts? 
By Dan Sueltz

For years it has been pretty simple to decide whether to play graphite or steel shafts in your clubs. In the past year, dramatic changes have been made in both weight and composition of graphite and steel shafts so that the lines are really blurring. Before you spend your hard earned money on new clubs or re-shafting your existing equipment, let’s see what decisions you need to make.

It’s Not About Weight Anymore.

The typical decision point for steel versus graphite was weight. Steel is heavier than graphite so faster swingers preferred a heavier shaft so that they could feel the clubhead being delivered to the ball. The problem for players with a slower forward swing is that the weight of the steel shaft felt too heavy so the player would attempt to swing harder causing a loss of accuracy and consistent contact. This is especially true with longer irons (3, 4, 5), and woods. That is why almost all the wood and hybrid shafts you see today are graphite. A typical graphite wood shaft weighs 65 grams while a steel shaft weighs 128 grams, almost twice as much!  But all this is changing. Now you can find light weight steel shafts like the True Temper Dynamic Gold SL that weigh as little as 100 grams and graphite shafts that weigh as much as 115 grams. The new
M-80 steel shaft from True Temper weighs only 80 grams!  For some players, especially juniors and some ladies and seniors, steel will still be too heavy and graphite will be the best option.

What About the Feel of Graphite?

Another major reason for choosing graphite shafts instead of steel is feel. Graphite tends to absorb the shock of a miss-hit much better than steel. The feel of a “stinger” when you hit a thin shot with a steel shaft is very uncomfortable, especially if you have arthritis or tendonitis in your hands or elbows. TrueTemper makes an option in steel shafts called Sensicore that actually dampens the vibration substantially, but the shafts are still heavier than graphite. Several PGA Tour players like K.J. Choi, Hale Irwin and Rich Beem are now playing graphite shafts in their irons because they like the feel better than steel.

Isn’t Steel more Consistent?

Steel shafts in general are much more consistent than graphite shafts because of the way they are manufactured. The rolling or extruding process of making a steel shaft versus the wrapping process of graphite shafts produces more even shaft walls and weight distribution throughout the length of the shaft. At D’Lance Golf we test thousands of graphite and steel shafts to select the most consistent shafts on the market. When we manufacture finished clubs at D’Lance Golf, we make sure that each graphite or steel shaft is frequency matched and spine profiled so that each club in your set, regardless of whether it is steel or graphite has the same flex and feel. There is no reason to fear inconsistency in graphite shafts when they are custom-built and frequency matched!

So What Should You Do?

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Do You Have a Weight Problem?
by Dan Sueltz, D’Lance Golf

No, I am not suggesting you go on a low-carb diet or have the people at Weight Watchers review your golf swing. What I do know is that every golfer needs clubs that have just the right weight, both balance or swing weight, and total weight, for them to hit consistent, long, straight shots. Our research shows that factors such as body mass index, downswing time, and total shaft flex dictate how heavy and what swing weight will work best for each golfer. All golfers should try to play the longest, lightest, most flexible shafts that they can control. The biggest factor, next to shaft flex, for loss of control, is club weight.

Heavy Shafts or Light Shafts?  In the last several years, shaft weights have gotten lighter and lighter. The reason?  Lighter shafts are easier to swing and usually give you more distance. In general, steel shafts are heavier than graphite shafts. This is why most drivers and fairway woods have graphite shafts instead of steel. The problem is that if your shafts are TOO light, you will be very erratic and not hit the ball consistently. The smoother your swing and slower your downswing time, the lighter the shaft you can play. Major manufacturer’s usually put only one weight of shaft in their clubs, 65 grams in drivers, for example. You usually tell how much a stock shaft weighs by looking at the logo on the shaft. The Aldila NV 65, for example, is a 65 gram shaft, while the Fujikura Speeder 757 is a 75 gram shaft.

Swing Weight versus Static Weight. Those of you that play racquet sports know the difference in feel of a racquet that feels heavier toward the head versus one that feels heavier in the handle. The same goes for golf clubs. The three components of the golf club; grip, shaft and clubhead, make up the total static weight of the club. How those components fit together determines the swing weight or balance of the club. There is a swing weight scale that goes roughly from C-1 (lightest) to E-9 (heaviest) in terms of head-heavy feel. Most golfers cannot tell the difference between 3 swing weights, C-7 versus C-9, for example. However, if you put a light swing weight club (C-7) in the hands of a golfer that is used to swinging a heavy steel shafted club (D-6), they will immediately be able to feel the difference. Also, the heavier the grip (a jumbo Avon Chamois grip), the lighter the swing weight. That is why golfers that change their own grips can completely destroy a great performing set of clubs by putting heavier or lighter grips on them. Heavy grips AND shafts mean high swing weights. This is why when some golfers switch from steel to graphite in their irons it takes them a long time to adjust to the new clubs.

Progressive Weighting. Since golf clubs get progressively shorter from driver (usually 44-45”), to lob wedge (35-35 ½”), the swing weight and feel of the club will change unless the shafts are progressively changed throughout the set. This means your lightest shaft should be in your driver and the heaviest shaft should be in your lob wedge in order to obtain the same feel. This goes for ALL golfers, not just tour players. For example, when Tiger Woods won the 2005 Masters, he played an 83 gram shaft in his driver, 103 gram shafts in his fairway woods, and steel shafts (127 grams) in his irons. At D’Lance Golf, we have always used progressive weighting in making sets as this gives the best feel and performance.

So How Do You Know What Weight is Right for You?  At D’Lance Golf Performance Centers, we have done extensive research after testing over 7,000 golfers and have developed a model that predicts shaft weight, swing weight, shaft flex and shaft tip stiffness.

From there we test your shot dispersion by using several different weighted clubs in your shaft flex on our launch monitors. The club that gives you the longest, straightest shots is the one for you!  So, no more whining. Get your clubs checked and swing profile analyzed to determine what shaft length, weight, and flex will help lower your scores.

For more information or to schedule a True Temper Shaft Lab swing profile and club analysis call D’Lance Golf at 303-730-2717 or visit the website at www.dlancegolf.com.

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I spent two days in California last week visiting two of the top graphite golf shaft manufacturers in the world:  Fujikura and Matrix Composite Corporation (Matrix). I was determined to unwrap the mysteries of the new graphite shafts we are seeing in the marketplace today. Fujikura has been the Number 1 wood shaft on the PGA Tour for the past five years and is going strong again this year. Matrix has the Number 1 graphite iron shaft on tour and has a reputation in the industry for making the highest quality shafts. So what is new?

High Loft and Low Spin

Every golfer should be trying to increase their launch angle and combine that with a lower spin rate of the ball they are playing. Why?  The modern golf ball and club head are designed to be matched. If you took an old persimmon wood and hit a Pro v.1 it would barely get off the ground. With today’s technology the ball should launch high ( roughly 16 degrees off a driver with a 125mph ball speed). Both Fujikura and Matrix are producing shafts that have multiple trajectories for different players. Both companies agree that higher launch angles create flatter trajectories with today’s lower spin golf balls. The result is more distance as the lower spin and higher launch creates a longer roll-out after the ball lands.

Matching Shaft Profile to a Golfer’s Swing

Every golfer should be playing the longest, lightest, softest shaft that they can control. In addition, the shaft and club head should provide the optimum launch angle and spin rate to give the maximum ball speed and minimum shot dispersion. At D’Lance Golf Performance Center, we test every shaft in eight different places along the shaft to determine its quality, butt stiffness, tip stiffness, and trajectory rating. For example, we know that a Fujikura zCom shaft will have a much softer tip than the Fujikura Speeder. While we know this from the product brochures, now we can evaluate shafts from multiple companies and have a true comparison. The graph below shows the relative tip and butt stiffness of several 75 gram wood shafts.

Materials Make a Difference

Make no mistake, there is a shortage of carbon composite for golf shafts. The war in Iraq and the boom in the aircraft industry has taken a huge share of the available graphite for golf shafts. In addition to the 40 million new golf clubs sold each year, over 25 million shafts are sold in the after-market for re-shafting existing clubs. The companies with the longest business history like Fujikura and Matrix will get their share of high quality composite material. To make lighter, stronger shafts that still have good feel and control, both Fujikura and Matrix have introduced more exotic materials. Fujikura has several new designs of its Triax weave material made of Kevlar being introduced later this month in their Rombax wood shaft. Matrix has gone a step farther and introduced their OZIK shaft with Zylon, a body armor material that absorbs shock and provides an extremely fast recovery time. What does this all mean?  Longer, straighter shots with better feel and control.

What Graphite Shaft Should YOU Play?

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Are You MAXED Out?
By Dan Sueltz

The golf industry has literally maxed out. We are at the maximum allowable driver head size at 460cc. We are at the maximum allowable C.O.R. (coefficient of restitution), or how “hot” the clubface can be. We have maximum driver lengths, and we are about to reach a maximum in MOI for drivers (the resistance to twisting so your shots go straighter). You have tried all the new maxed out clubs and it still has not helped your distance, accuracy or consistency. So how do you maximize YOUR performance this season.

Maximize Your Swing

If you are not taking lessons, now is the time to start. When you work with a qualified instructor, you will understand how the fundamentals of grip, alignment, stance, posture and balance all work together to create a more consistent, repeatable swing. Only by viewing your swing with a video analysis system can you actually SEE what you are doing in your golf swing. Are you making a “death move”?  Do you have the proper weight shift?  Do you lose your balance in your swing?  A good instructor will notice these simple faults and put you on track to maximizing YOUR swing, not trying to have you emulate Tiger Woods or Annika Sorenstam. Make it your goal this year to maximize your swing potential.

Maximize Your Equipment

Equipment is much easier to change to match your swing. Since golf is played with fourteen clubs, the chances of each of those clubs being matched to your swing are slim to none. The correct length, weight, shaft flex, and head design can make a HUGE difference in accuracy, consistency, and distance. The perfect match of swing to equipment starts the day you pick up a club. Even beginning golfers will benefit from the right equipment. The most important things are club weight, length, shaft flex, swing weight and shaft tip profile. If your golf clubs are too heavy or too light you will make very inconsistent contact. If your clubs are too long or too short your will hit fat or thin shots. If your shaft flex does not match your swing your shots will be left, right, short and long. If your shaft tip profile is not correct, you will hit high or low shots and have a “dead” feeling club. While you are trying to maximize your swing, your imperfect clubs are getting in the way! With the right equipment, you can immediately see and feel the difference.

Your Existing Clubs

“Maximized” Clubs

So Maximize Your Golf Game This Year! 

First, make sure that you visit a qualified instructor to help you with your swing. At the same time, make sure that you are fitted to the correct equipment for your swing profile. Whether you are a beginner or accomplished golfer, you have a unique swing profile that determines the equipment specs that will fit your swing. This is not based upon swing speed or tempo, but on how you bend or load the club during your swing. This can only be tested on the True Temper Shaft Lab. Then, test a variety of clubs with the correct shaft on a launch monitor like the Golf Achiever to see which club gives you the best distance, launch angle and shot dispersion. The result will be clubs that fit your swing giving you greater accuracy, consistency and distance. You’ve been MAXIMIZED!

Visit D’Lance Golf Performance Center and get yourself maximized. Make an appointment today to visit D’Lance Golf in Englewood (303-730-2717). For more information, call or visit the website at www.dlancegolf.com

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Find YOUR Perfect Golf Clubs!
By Dan Sueltz

OK, it’s long after the traditional golf season and you are sitting in your easy chair watching the Golf Channel and reflecting on YOUR golf game. You bought a new driver off eBay. Tried it for a while. Then sold it to your buddy. You purchased a new hybrid club and still can’t keep it from snap hooking OB. You irons are a disaster and your wedges are an adventure in long, short, left and right. If only you could find those perfect clubs!  You know. The ones you had that you hit straight and long but somehow you sold them or broke a shaft. Well, stop this eternal searching! 

Why Perfect Golf Clubs are Hard to Find.

My passion is golf and, being an engineer, I also like to know how and why golf clubs that seem to go long and straight are not the same for everyone. It is actually pretty simple. This is the only sport I know of where you use 14 clubs (or more!) to hit one golf ball. The chances of every golf club in your bag having the right length, weight, swing weight and shaft flex are slim and none. Stew Calder, a fly fisherman and avid golfer, made my first set of custom clubs for me about 20 years ago. My first comment was, “Man, this is like cheating!”  All of my clubs worked. I mean ALL of them. So when I started the company, I made it my passion to know everything there was to know about fitting and building custom golf clubs. Enter Tom Wishon. Tom is the most knowledgeable individual I know of when it comes to designing golf equipment that can be fine tuned to each individual’s swing. In fact, Tom’s books have been instrumental in how we at D’Lance Golf Performance Center have developed and refined our fitting and golf club building processes. His latest book, “The Search for the Perfect Golf Club” is a must-read for anyone seriously interested in improving his or her game by getting equipment matched to them. Even Tiger Woods, the number one player in the world, in an interview on The Golf Channel said that for every amateur player, “the ultimate key is have equipment fit to you, not you try to fit your equipment.”

Golf Clubs are Built for the Masses.

Click image for details

I spent a day at the Callaway Research Center in California this spring. Todd Stribel, director of PGA Tour Operations, said to me, “Dan, our objective is to sell $300 million in drivers this year. We cannot possibly fit every golfer like you can.”  And the same is true for all of the other manufacturer’s. The market sweet spot for each manufacturer is a particular range of handicaps for each line of clubs. A “forgiveness club” will usually have a very big sweet spot, large offset, and soft shaft. Why?  Studies have shown that the two most important things golfers want in irons is feel and to get the ball in the air. So, soft shafts make the clubs feel good. And, big cavity back, wide sole clubs get the ball in the air. The problem is, these clubs are way to whippy for most golfers. The result is high, off-center shots and the occasional shot that gets airmailed over the green!  This is especially true of the hybrid clubs. Even worse, shaft companies are spending a ton of money branding their shafts with bright colors and logos on Tour. So, the average golfer sees his favorite pro win with a particular shaft and just has to have it in his driver on Monday!  Now c’mon!  Are you all of a sudden going to add 30 yards to your drives with XYZ shaft?  Not unless you have it fit to your swing!

It’s Not the Club it’s My Swing.

We have all heard the argument that it’s not the golf club it’s the person swinging the club that makes the perfect shot. If this were true, every player could play the same clubs and all they would have to work on is a better swing. Indeed, every golfer should be trying to develop his or her own perfect swing. The trouble is that the fundamental swinging motion is pretty well fixed by the time you are 8 years old. The way you walk, talk, chew your food, is “learned” at a very early age. That is why the most successful golfers started very young. After testing over 7,000 golfers, I can tell you that the actual swinging motion (shaft load, downswing time, release point) is incredibly consistent from one swing to the next. It’s the mechanics of your swing that cause inconsistent shots. The only thing lessons can change is the mechanics of your swing.

So, Get YOUR Perfect Clubs!

The most important things for matching your swing for your perfect clubs are club weight, swing weight, length and shaft flex. The only choice you have when you buy clubs off the rack is shaft flex. If your golf clubs are too heavy or too light you will make very inconsistent contact. If your clubs are too long or too short you will hit fat or thin shots. If your shaft flex does not match your swing your shots will be left, right, short and long. While you are trying to create the perfect swing, your imperfect clubs are getting in the way!  With the right equipment, you can immediately see and feel the difference. Whether you are a beginner or accomplished golfer, you have a unique swing profile that determines the equipment specs that will fit your swing. This is not based upon swing speed or tempo, but on how you bend or load the club during your swing. This can only be tested on the True Temper Shaft Lab. Then, test a variety of clubs with the correct shaft on a launch monitor like the Golf Achiever to see which club gives you the best distance, launch angle and shot dispersion. The result will be clubs that fit your swing giving you greater accuracy, consistency and distance. So go to D’Lance Golf and experience the most extensive golf club fitting outside of the Tour. All fittings are done by appointment so make your appointment today. Call D’Lance Golf Performance Center in Englewood (303-730-2717) or visit the website at www.dlancegolf.com

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Load, Release and Kick That Shaft!
By Dan Sueltz

The science of fitting golf shafts has gone to a whole ‘nother level. Golf shaft fitting used to be more of an art than a science. Watch the ball flight on the range. Get a sense for the feel of the shaft. Estimate how many of your shots were on target. Yep. That’s the shaft for you. Not anymore. Now we can measure your shaft load before impact, your “release point” in your downswing, and the kick velocity of the shaft at impact. After testing and fitting over 7,000 golfers, we have developed a unique formula for proper shaft selection. We can literally help you get more distance with tighter shot dispersion with the right shaft. Now you can hit those long, straight shots more consistently. But what is right for YOU?

Measuring Shaft Load.

There is really only one way to accurately measure your pre-impact shaft load and that is with the True Temper Shaft Lab. When you take a swing with the test five iron or driver, the club literally measures how much you bend the club in your downswing in two dimensions;  toe-up/toe-down, and lead/lag. How much you load the club and when you stop accelerating in your down-swing determines your optimum shaft flex. The larger the load, the stiffer the shaft.

Downswing Time.

Every golfer has a unique tempo. Ever had your buddies tell you to “slow down”?  Sorry, Charlie, but your tempo and downswing time are unique to you and your personality. Sure, you can probably do it for a few swings in a round, but then you go back to your old habits!  When we test golfers, downswing times vary from as little as three tenths of a second to as much as a full second. The slower your downswing time, the lighter the shaft and club swing weight you may need to control the club.  Faster downswing times require heavier, higher swing weighted clubs so the golfer can feel where the club head is during the downswing.

Release Point.

Every golfer “releases” or stops accelerating the club at different points in their downswing. This is true for everyone, even the pro’s!  This loading and releasing action creates a unique profile for each golfer. After testing over 7,000 golfers, we have identified six common profiles, or “swing prints”, kinda like fingerprints, that help us determine what type of shaft will work best. Let’s look at three of them.

Each of these load profiles will require a different weight, flex and shaft tip stiffness for the best performance for the golfer. And, for the majority of golfers, this profile does not change with lessons or practice!

Shaft Kick Velocity

The proper shaft for you takes into consideration your launch angle for both woods and irons. By using your shaft kick velocity as determined by the Shaft Lab, we then test the golfer with different shafts with different tip stiffnesses to determine the best one. The higher the kick velocity, the stiffer the tip in order to control the clubhead and launch angle. Golfers with very low kick velocities will benefit from softer tip shafts that help get the ball in the air and actually accelerate through the ball at impact. By testing on a launch monitor, we can measure launch angle, distance, shot dispersion, and several other key statistics and properly fit the shaft to the golfer.

So What Should You Do?

To hit each club in your bag the farthest and straightest of your ability, each club needs to be matched to your optimum shaft flex, weight, swing weight and tip stiffness. The first step is to have each of your clubs tested to determine their exact flex, swing weight, and weight. Then, you can see how closely they match your swing profile. If the shafts are off by as little as a third of a flex, three swing weights and 10 grams in total weight, you will notice that your shot dispersion is quite a bit greater than you would like. While we can tell you that you need to have a shaft flex in your woods of low stiff (5.7 Shaft Flex Index) with a 75 gram shaft in a stiff tip, it will be highly unlikely that you can purchase a club off the rack that has those exact specifications. By custom building or re-shafting your existing equipment, D’Lance Golf can frequency match your clubs to the EXACT CPM you need prior to building your clubs, put in the correct weight of shaft, and swing weight them to your exact specifications. Buy your clubs off the rack and you will be lucky to get the consistent, accurate clubs you bargained for.

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No, we are not going to discuss your latent desire for someone to videotape your next round of golf. What we are going to uncover is the truth about loft and it’s effect on distance, lie angles and the effect on direction. We will also discuss what high-speed videotape can tell you about the shafts in your clubs and how they effect BOTH distance and direction of your shots.

Loft, Launch Angle and Distance Explained.

In the past 30 years, the lofts of all golf clubs have gone down dramatically. Why? Everyone is looking for more distance and a lower lofted club angle will give you more distance….or maybe not. A 6-iron in the 1980’s had a loft of 34 degrees. Most modern 6-irons are between 30-31 degrees. The problem is that, unless you create enough ball speed for your launch angle, you can actually LOSE distance with those new clubs. The average golfer will have a ball speed of 100 mph for a 6-iron and 120 mph for a driver. The optimum launch angles for these ball speeds will be 22 degrees for a 31 degree 6-iron, and 16 degrees for a 10.5 degree driver. Only by testing your ball speed on a launch monitor can you accurately determine the correct loft of club, shaft launch angle and club length. Every clubhead and shaft combination can create dramatically different distances. Ever wonder why you hit your 7 iron the same distance as your 8 iron? It could be that the loft of your 7 and 8 irons are very close to the same and they need to be adjusted.

Don’t Lie about Your Lie Angle.

The lie angle is the angle the shaft makes when the club is resting flat on the sole of the club. We talk about lie angles that are too flat (toe of the club is pointing down at impact), or too flat (toe of the club is pointing down at impact), or too

upright (toe pointing up at impact). If your clubs are too flat you will tend to hit shots right of target (for right-handed golfers). If your clubs are too upright, you will tend to hit shots left of target. The effect of incorrect lie angles on direction is more pronounced with shorter clubs, like wedges than for a longer club. If your lie angle is off by 2 to 4 degrees, you will hit your wedge 5 to 10 yards off line from 120 yards! You should have your loft AND lie angles checked at least once a year by a professional clubfitter to make sure they are accurate, especially if you are playing soft, forged irons.

The Videotape Won’t Lie.

When you swing your golf club the shaft will bend in six directions; 1) toe up, 2) lag, 3) toe down or droop, 4) lead, 5) twist right, and 6) twist left. If your shafts are not matched to your swing, you will get either too much bending and twisting in the shaft or not enough. A properly matched shaft will have just the right amount of toe up/toe down to return the shaft to the same spot it was before you took your swing. Shafts that are too soft (flexible) for your swing will cause too much toe droop at impact. Without adjusting the lie angle to compensate for these soft shafts, you may push the ball to the right. Likewise, a properly matched shaft will have just the right amount of lag/lead to store the most energy in the shaft so that you maximize distance. Too little lag/lead and you will lose distance. Too much lag/lead and you will hit inconsistent distances (long on one shot, short on the next).

Soft Shaft at Address Too Much Toe Droop at Impact

So What Should You Do?

First, by testing your swing on the True Temper Shaft Lab at the D’Lance Golf Performance Center, you will know the optimum shaft flex for your natural swing. Each person has a natural way of swinging the club that produces an optimum shaft flex for both their woods and irons. Next, you should test both your woods and irons to determine their lofts, lies, and launch angles using a loft/lie machine and a launch monitor. This will give a reference point against the optimum launch angles for your ball speed. The lofts and lies of your irons can be adjusted to give you the optimum performance. The lofts on your woods are not easily adjusted so you may have to look at a different loft and/or shaft combination to get the optimum result. Call D’Lance Golf at 303-730-2717 ( Englewood) today for an appointment to get your swing analyzed and determine the optimum loft and lie for your clubs! The videotape won’t lie.

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It is amazing to me how many golfers that tell me they have had their clubs custom fit to them, but were really fit the old-fashioned way. They go to a location that has a bag of demo clubs, hit a few on the driving range while the club fitter watches their ball flight, and then make a selection based solely on length of the club, lie angle, shaft type, and grip size. I’m sorry, but this is like tuning an automobile engine by listening to the sound and looking at the color of the exhaust. Today’s modern club fitters take advantage of launch monitors, shaft load testing systems, and high tech club building techniques to fine-tune a golfer’s equipment to match their swing. The results are truly amazing for golfers of all abilities.

Get Tested on a Launch Monitor

Any modern club fitter should be testing you on a launch monitor that shows launch angle, ball speed, carry distance, and spin rates. This will help you determine the correct loft of driver and irons. It will also help you determine the appropriate launch characteristics of the shaft you should be playing. Be careful to choose a club fitter that knows how to interpret the results. A Ping G2, Taylor Made R7 Quad, and Cleveland Launcher Comp, all at 10.5 degrees will have quite different launch angles due to several factors. Proper launch angles mean optimum distance for both carry and roll.

Measure Your Shaft Loading

The old fashioned way of fitting shafts is to check your swing speed. If your swing speed is 90-95 mph you need a regular shaft, and so on. This “post impact” measurement does not take into account that each person loads the shaft differently. A smooth swinging golfer can generate far more club head speed with less shaft loading than an aggressive “hitter”. Only by truly measuring “pre-impact” load using the True Temper Shaft Lab can you properly determine the appropriate shaft flex and weight. Then, a high tech fitter can have you test various heads on test shafts to dial you in to the shaft that gives you the most distance, the best accuracy and the best feel.

Accurately Measure Shot Dispersion

I was tested by a major manufacturer for a driver this year. I hit several balls with four different drivers with the results for launch angle and spin rates determined by their launch monitor. The recommendation they made was probably accurate based upon spin rate and launch angle, but I could not keep the ball on the range! High tech club fitters can actually show you which combination of shaft flex, head type, loft, and shaft launch angle will give you the best results. For example, with the right club you may pick up 7 more yards of carry with a shot dispersion that is +/- 5 yards instead of +/- 17 yards!

Clubs Built to Your Specifications

The final step is placing you order with the club fitter. He or she recommends the shaft length, grip, lie angle, and shaft flex. For most major manufacturers, their custom build operations only deal with these variables. They do not do frequency matching, so all clubs will not perform the same. They may do swing weight, but no two clubs will exactly match. A high tech club fitter also will have a high tech production shop that builds your custom set of clubs to very tight tolerances.

Custom Set - Major Manufacturer

Custom Built Set

Results are Dramatic!

With properly fit equipment, you can drop 2 to 20 strokes off your game. The most important result is the feeling of confidence that you will get, knowing that each club in your bag will perform consistently. Sean Thomas dropped from a 6 to a 3 handicap in just a few weeks after getting properly fit equipment. Each player is different but the results are the same. More consistency. Better accuracy. Lower scores. More fun! Go high tech in your next fitting and savor the results.

Call D’Lance Golf Performance Center at 303-730-2717 to schedule your high tech club fitting!

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I’m dead serious. When you follow the tips in this article for improving your golf game, it will make you feel like you are cheating! When I had my first set of clubs custom built for me my reaction was the same, “this is like cheating.” No, I am not going to show you how to hit a foot mashie, or tell you to buy pencils with erasers. I am going to show you how with the correct equipment, your shots will improve so dramatically that you will feel like you were cheated because you did not make these changes sooner!

Give Yourself the (Right) Shaft. Each week we see the touring professionals drive the ball farther and stick their shots closer to the pin. Why? Sure they have a lot of talent, they practice a lot, and have the best instructors. They also have the tour vans that test and tweak their equipment to give them the competitive edge. Of all the parts of the golf club, the only one that moves when you swing is the shaft. The touring professionals play the longest, lightest, softest shaft that they can control. Once they see an increase in shot dispersion, they stiffen up the shaft, make it heavier, and cut it down. When we fit Future’s Tour player Kathleen Robinson in a new driver before the Colorado Women’s Open, we made sure the weight, length and shaft flex were matched to her swing. We also aligned the shaft so that the spine, or rotational axis of the shaft would keep the clubface square at impact. She went out and hit all 14 fairways the next day. That’s not cheating but it’s close! Ask Barry Jennings, Robert Cloud, Barbara Churchich or Stephanie Ferguson. The right shafts can drop 2 to 20 strokes off your game. Make sure that all fourteen clubs in your bag are matched to your swing. We know that even if you were fit by one of the major manufacture’s the clubs were not custom built to your exact length, weight and flex. If the shafts don’t match your swing you will lose distance, miss more fairways, and fly more greens. You’ve been cheated.

Typical “off the rack” set

Custom Built Set

Check Yourself on a Launch Monitor. If you have not been on a launch monitor, you need to check out the launch monitors at D’Lance Golf. We tested a gentleman the other day that has always played very stiff shafts in his irons and woods. He bought a new driver with an extra stiff shaft and was hitting it high and right. First we tested the club and found that the actual loft of the driver was not 8.5 degrees but 11 degrees! When we tested him on the launch monitor, his launch angle was 19 degrees, or 6 degrees higher than his optimum for his ball speed. By testing different shafts and heads, we dropped his launch angle to 14 degrees, the perfect angle for his ball speed. Even better, he picked up 10 yards distance in the process. Now that’s cheating.

Get a Big(ger), Better Head. While keeping your ego in check, you definitely should take advantage of the latest driver technology. Ask Rob Barber, Al Keeler, Danny Wyrick, and David Sewell. Better yet, ask their playing partners that lost a few side bets. Stepping up to a larger, more forgiving driver with the new harder faces will give you at least 10 more yards and you will hit more fairways. Why? Because the harder faces cut down on the spin rate and let the ball bore through the air easier. Cheating? Not hardly. Just taking advantage of new technology.

Play the Ball Fit For You. Yes, that’s right. It DOES matter what ball you play. And playing the right ball will give you more distance, consistency and accuracy than you ever thought possible. If your ball speed off a driver is under 130 mph you should player a softer ball like the Precept Laddie Extreme, or Maxfli Noodle Spin. These balls spin more and will help you get a higher launch angle for more carry distance. Once you go over 140 mph ball speed off your driver, you need to play a lower spin ball like the Hogan Tour Deep, the Callaway HX Tour, or the Maxfli M3 Black. These balls have a special urethane cover design that spins less the faster it is going. That’s cheating.

So, put away your cheating thoughts and start cheating the right way. The right shaft, the best launch angle, a hot new driver, and the right ball will have your playing partners scratching their heads in wonder. Even better, when your equipment is perfectly matched to your swing and precisely built to your specifications, even YOU will think you are cheating!

To schedule your FREE swing analysis and club profile, call 303-730-2717 (Englewood).

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In the past year there have been some tremendous improvements in golf shafts. Nanotube technology, super light steel shafts, variable launch angle, constant weight shafts. What makes it even more confusing is that major club manufacturer’s are starting to offer even more custom shaft options. But, before you decide to buy the latest shaft you saw some pro win with on tour last Sunday, let me offer you a little advice about the three most important factors: flex, weight, and launch angle.

Soft Shaft at Address	Soft Shaft at Impact
A shaft that is too soft for your swing will not get back to square at impact. This shaft is drooping 5 inches at impact causing a high, right shot!

What shaft flex should you be playing? With all of the changes in shaft technology, major golf club companies still try to build clubs with a few flexes that will fit the majority of golfers. Some companies like MacGregor have started offering subflexes in their woods like “S” and “S+” because they know that distance, consistency and accuracy can be dramatically different with the right flex. In general, shafts that are too soft for you will have a very good feel to them, but your shots will go left, right, long, and short, with a lot of inconsistency. Shafts that are too stiff will feel harsh, have a low or extremely high ball flight and will usually play shorter than a properly fit shaft. Shaft manufacturer’s typically use swing speed to determine the proper flex, however, we have learned that two players that have exactly the same swing speed will need completely different flexes because of the way the bend the shaft in their downswing. By using the True Temper Shaft Lab, we can determine exactly which flex is optimum for your swing. Then, by testing you on a launch monitor, we can see which shaft gives you the tightest shot dispersion and the best distance.

Why does shaft weight make a difference? The lighter the shaft the more swing speed you can generate which should give you greater distance. The problem is that golfers with a very fast forward swing will feel out of control with a very light shaft. Tiger is a perfect example. It took him almost 6 months to transition from his old heavy steel shafted driver to his new Diamana graphite shafted driver. His driver shaft is toughly 15% heavier than what you and I can buy off the shelf. Then, he couldn’t hit his steel shafted 3 wood because it felt too heavy. So now Tiger plays a slightly heavier graphite shaft in his three wood than in his driver. This is what we call “transition or progressive weighting”. Your lightest club in your bag is your driver and your heaviest club is your sand wedge. The weights from club to club should transition smoothly and get progressively heavier so that all clubs in your bag feel the same. In general, smoother “swingers” need lighter shafts while stronger “hitters” need heavier shafts. The problem is that major manufacturers usually put only one weight in their stock sets.

What about kick-point or launch angle? Thank goodness we in the golf industry have started using launch angle instead of kick point. The launch angle of the shaft can affect ball flight by as much as two degrees but usually not much more. Most shaft companies offer a high launch and standard launch version of both their wood and iron shafts. In general, the more launch angle the better as you will get more carry distance. The Aldila NV has a slightly lower launch angle than the Aldila NVS. All of the shaft manufacturer’s are providing better options across the board. Do not confuse shaft stiffness with launch angle. Some of the latest shaft technology allows extremely stiff shafts to have softer tips and therefore higher launch angles.

So, how do you put it all together? Putting the right shaft with the right club head can turn that clunker in your bag into a diamond. First, make sure that you are professionally fit to the correct length, weight, launch angle and flex in your shaft. Then, make sure that the clubs are built to your exact specifications. At D’Lance Golf, we specialize in custom fitting AND custom building. The True Temper Shaft Lab allows us to determine your optimum shaft weight and swing flex to within a tenth of a flex. We then build your clubs to that exact specification. If your shafts are not matched to within two to three tenths of a flex, you will see dramatic changes in shot dispersion and consistency. So, don’t guess at which shaft will be best for you. Call D’Lance Golf today to schedule your swing analysis and club profile. You will be on your way to more consistent shots and lower scores.

To schedule your FREE swing analysis and club profile, call 303-730-2717 (Englewood).

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It seems like the hottest words in golf these days are “launch angle”. At D’Lance Golf Performance Centers, we have been using launch monitors for the past three years to perfectly match YOUR swing characteristics to the launch angle that is best for you. Knowing your current launch angles for both your woods and irons is important in order for you to adjust your clubs to get your optimum distance and ball flight. But, before you plunk down your hard earned money on new clubs or new shafts, I will let you in on a few secrets.

Match Your Club Loft to Your Ball Speed
That’s right, I said ball speed, not swing speed. The old measure of fitting club lofts and shaft flexes was to look at swing speed and tempo. The new measure of fitting driver loft is to accurately measure ball speed and spin rate. This also goes for fitting irons for optimum trajectory and distance. Ball speed is determined by a number of factors, most importantly club head face elasticity (C.O.R.), shaft flex and tip stiffness, and ball type. At 150 mph ball speed your optimum launch angle that gives you the most carry distance will be between 12.5 to 14 degrees. This means you would play roughly a 9.5 degree driver to achieve this launch angle. Most golfers that we test on our launch monitors have a ball speed of 115 to 135 mph, which means they should be playing a 10.5 degree driver. When we test players using a 6 iron with a 31 degree loft (standard), the optimum launch angle at a 100 mph ball speed is 21 to 22 degrees. This is because an iron creates much more spin from the descending blow into the ball.

Different Heads Produce Different Launch Angles
A MacGregor MAC TEC, Alpha C830.2 and Taylor R7, all at 9.5 degrees of loft with the same shaft will produce different launch angles. The reason for this is that each club head designer is trying to achieve maximum performance for their intended market. In fact, we have tested several drivers that are marked 10.5 degree that have an ACTUAL, measured loft of 12 or even 13 dgrees. The only way to truly determine which loft is correct for you in a given driver is to test it side by side on a launch monitor to accurately measure launch angle, spin and distance. The same goes for irons. A Mizuno MP-32 will have a much different launch angle than the MacGregor M675, for example.

Shafts Are A Big Factor in Launch Angle
If you think you need a light weight, stiff flex, low kick point, low torque shaft to hit the ball a mile, think again. In addition to launch angle, you need to consider the overall weight, swing weight, shaft flex, shaft stiffness profile, and tip stiffness. There is a dramatic difference between shafts made by ACCRA, Aldila, Fujikura, Graphite Design, Grafalloy and others in terms of which one best suits your game. Even within a manufacturer’s line you will find different shafts with dramatically different launch characteristics. The Aldila NV, Grafalloy Comp NT, Fujikura Tour Platform and MCC MFS TTR are low-to-mid launch shafts. Their cousins, the Aldila NVS, Grafalloy ProLaunch Blue, Fujikura Vista Pro and MCC MFS+ are higher launch shafts. Be aware, however, that we can only change launch angle by 2 to 3 degrees purely by changing shafts. Only by testing your swing on the True Temper Shaft Lab to determine optimum shaft flex, and then using the Golf Achiever to test several different shafts and head combinations can we determine EXACTLY the right shaft for you.

Test YOUR Launch Characteristics

So there you have it, if you want to hit the ball farther this year, with more control, get a better launch angle. With the right head, ball, shaft, spine angle, and power coil, you will be hitting the ball farther and straighter than you ever have before!

If you would like to determine the proper launch angle for your swing, call D’Lance Golf and schedule a time on the Golf Achiever Launch Monitor by calling 303-730-2717(Englewood).

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Of all of the things I noticed at the PGA Expo this year, it seems that every golf club manufacturer is jumping on the hybrid club bandwagon. My guess is if you don’t already have a hybrid club in your bag, you will by the end of 2005! These clubs are seen as a replacement for long irons (2, 3, 4 iron) and make it much easier to get the ball airborne off th