It seems like every year we see new shafts come to market to either fill a void (weight, profile) or go directly after a competitor. This year we are seeing a lot of competition heating up for the hybrid steel/graphite shaft market. This market has been really owned by Aerotech with their SteelFiber line but new entrants from Fujikura (MCI -Metal Composite Iron), Mitsubishi Rayon OT, Alpha PT95, and Loomis EFP 95 shafts are making some headway. OBAN i series and Accra i series have also made some additions in terms of profiles and weights. What is intriguing from my perspective is that each series of shafts will perform quite differently in terms of feel, launch and spin. We measure 24 different data points about each shaft including weight, flex, torque, SQI (Shaft Quality Index), balance point and loading profile. While we really can only change launch angle a couple of degrees with a shaft, it is pretty amazing to see on our TrackMan ball flight monitor the differences. That is how we are able to really dial our customers in to the perfect fit to the iron head they like. With well over over 200 iron shafts to choose from, I know we can get the right iron shaft and head combination to optimize YOUR game!
Dan Sueltz