I have gone from averaging 110 to the high 80’s with the clubs you built for me in 2007. Consistency is the key to my improvement. -Jim K., Littleton, CO (March, 2011)
What We Look For in This Step
When we do a fitting, it is important to establish a baseline of how the golfer is hitting their clubs. At a minimum, we do baseline testing with the customers 6 iron and their driver.
Swing Dynamics
Each golfer has their own unique swing dynamic. This is based upon the kinetic structure of their bone and muscle structure. The factors that we look at actually determine how a golfer loads the shaft of the club during the swing. This loading action determines the type of shaft profile that will give the golfer optimum performance. The three dynamic fitting factors we start with are:
Tempo
This is the general timing of the golfer’s full swing. The full golf swing takes between .8 and 2.5 seconds. Our testing shows that the average golf swing is 1.2 seconds, of which roughly 75% is in the back swing and 25% in the forward swing.
- Fast Tempo: Less than 1.0 sec.
- Medium Tempo: 1.0 to 1.4 sec.
- Slow Tempo: 1.5 to 2.5 sec.
In general, the faster the tempo, the golfer will benefit from heavier shafts and swing weights. Slower tempos will benefit from lighter shafts and swing weights. The transition information is used by the BGF Fitting System to determine initial shaft weight and swing weight recommendations.
Transition
This is the swing move at the top of the back swing where the golfer “transitions” to the forward swing. This measure is can only truly be determined by accelerometers or other devices in the golf club. In general, the faster the transition, the stiffer the butt section of the shaft recommended. Other factors affected by transition are shaft weight and swing weight. Usually, tempo and transition are very similar, i.e. fast tempo golfers have fast transitions, and slow tempo golfers have slow transitions, but that is not always the case.
Release
This is the point in the golfer’s forward swing that they stop accelerating the golf club. Every golfer stops accelerating, or releases the club at some point prior to impact. Better golfers typically have a late release while beginners and high handicap golfers typically have an early to mid release. When the BGF System used the True Temper Shaft Lab, it was easy to determine a golfers release point based upon data captured by the system. D’Lance Golf is currently developing other methods, including High Speed Digital Video to determine the actual release point. This feature will be incorporated into future releases of the BGF Fitting System. A simple way to determine the release point in the golf swing is to have the golfer take their driver and hold it upside down, gripping just above the head, and take a full swing like they were hitting a ball. You should be able to hear the “whoosh” of the club at one of three places in the swing:
- Shoulder-high Whoosh: Early Release
- Waist-high Whoosh: Mid Release
- Knee-high Whoosh: Late Release
In general, golfers with later release points need stiffer tip sections in their shafts, and potentially, need a lower trajectory shaft. Golfers with early to mid release points can benefit from shafts that have softer tip sections to deliver more kick velocity at impact.
Shot Measurements
During this phase, the golfer will warm up and then hit several shots with his/her current driver and 6 iron. The statistics captured from this session are:
- Swing Speed
- Ball Speed
- Launch Angle
- Spin Rate
- Attack Angle
- Carry Distance
- Total Distance
- Landing Angle
- Dispersion
These statistics are then analyzed by the BGF Fitting System along with the swing dynamics of Tempo, Transition and Release. The BGF system then recommends an initial starting point for shafts to test to improve the golfers performance. To measure your shot measurements, D’Lance Golf uses both the True Temper Shaft Lab and the Mizuno Shaft Optimizer systems.
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