Time For a Fall Club Check

Fall is a good time of the year in the cooler climates as well as the warmer climates who are at the end of a long golf season. Think of it like a "tune-up".

Here are some things to check:, worn Grips, loose club heads (slipping away from the ferrule), any bent or damaged shafts (check to see if your graphite shafts are nciked from the other clubs bumping them), and see if the groves on your Irons need cleaning or repair.

Importance of Loft In Club Fitting

The Loft of your clubs is a very important fitting factor. In the Irons, there are several considerations. Are you a strong hitter of the ball? Generally you can test a decrease in the Loft of your irons. Strong players (think TIger Woods) usually hit the ball high. A more "boring" trajectory can improve distand & control.

For the slower swing speeds and golfers with a smooth transtion an increse in Loft may help with more distance. A higher ball flight creates more carry distance.

Grip Fitting - An Easy Way To Check

The Golf Grip is very important to your Feel, Control and Release. So how can you tell if your current Grip is right for you in order to determine if you need to change if needed?

One accepted method is to go ahead and Grip you club as you would in your set up. If you are a right handed golfer, take just your right hand off the club at address. Look to see where the last three fingers of your left hand touch the palm of the left hand with it still gripping the club. If these fingers just barely touch, your grip is OK. If they are pressing into your palm, the grip is too small. If they don't touch at all, the Grip is too big.

Grip Fitting - Nows The Time

This time of year usually represents the end of the golf season for many golfers and well into the season for those who play year round. By now, your Grips are probaly warn from lots of rounds of golf. The fall is a great time to get your clubs regripped. You will be amazed how much better your golf clubs will feel and perform with new grips.

Take them to your Club Pro or golf shop and get new grips. Make sure that you determine what size grip fits your hands the best. This can be measured several different ways but is very important. For seniors with a bit of arthritis in the hands, try over-size or "afthritic grips".

Putter Fitting

Most golfers I see have putters with a "toe-up" lie angle when set in the putting position. Toe up means the toe is off the ground at set up. Set your putter up with your normal stance and have someone slide a 3X5 index card first under the toe and then under the heal. The cards should come together the same distance from the exact center of the club face.

If the toe or heel is more in the air at address, it may be a club length problem. But if you are comfortable with the length, take your putter to a golf shop or custom club maker and have the shaft or hosel bent just enought to have the putter level at address.

Fitting Between the Pitching Wedge & Sand Wedge

Most golfers have heard about the "Gap" between the Pitching Wedge (PW) and Sand Wedge (SW). Ideally, you want about 4 degrees of loft difference between your Irons. Typically, the PW ia about 48 degrees and the SW about 56 degrees. That's an 8 degree gap!


The GAP Wedge has become the answer to this gap but requires some thought.


First, determine your "gap" in degrees between your PW & SW. Next determine the mid-point degee of Loft between them. Try to find or order a Gap wedge with the exact mid-point. Most Wedges can be bent +/- 2 degrees for loft so a custom golf shop can make any fine adjustments.


Also, to stay within the 14 Club limit you will have to give up a club (probably that hard to hit long iron).

Hybrid Clubs Fitting

We have talked about the Hybrid Woods vs. Fairway Woods. More thought on the Hybrids is warranted because they are fast becoming a wise choice for Amateurs and Pros alike. In contrast to the log irons (2,3,4 & even 5 irons), the new generation of Hybrids are much easier to hit and get airborn.

In fitting the Hybrids we need to make sure that the length is correct. If you can hit some Demo clubs and use club face labels to see if the ball is being struck in the middle, you can get the length right. Next, if you select a Hybrid with rear weight port(s), you can add or reduce weight to control how high you will hit the ball.

Grip Fitting - Wedges

One of the newest innovations in golf club grips is longer grips for the Wedges used in the short game. I just installed these grips on all four Wedges used for the short game...PW, Gap, SW and LW. The ability to choke down for controlling the Pitch & Chip shots is very important.

The longer length Wedge Grips allow you to choke down very comfortably without your fingers being on the club shaft. The Grip gives much better control than the shaft.

Fitting For The Chip Shot

In terms of scoring improvements, there is much support for the short game around the greens. We have discussed before the preferred technique of getting the ball on the green as soon as possible and rolling to the hole. Some players will find that chipping with a lower lofted club such as a 7 0r 8 Iron in more of a putting stroke works best. Others will find using a higer lofted club such as a Sand Wedge or Gap Wedge and accelerating (applying energy on the through swing) allows better control.

Whichever club selection works for you, there are two key fitting techniques that make a big difference. First is "Bounce" or the sole angle. The more bounce the less your club digs into the turf. The less bounce the more dig. When chipping you don't want too much of either depending on the turf. Soft turf, more bounce...hard turf less bounce. Same with the leading edge of the club. Not too sharp for soft turf...not too blunt for hard turf. Check these factors against your normal course turf conditions.

Club Length Fitting - You Can Choke Down

Having your clubs custom fit to your unique needs for Length is a mjor factor in accuracy and distance. As a general rule, the shorter the Club the more accurate you will tend to hit the ball.



But whether your clubs are fit to length or not, you can very easily experiment with "choking down" between 1/2 inch and 1 1/2 inch and sometime more. Try choking down 1 inch on your 8 iron and see if you hit it about 9 iron distance or a bit more. Tiger Woods uses this technique as do many Pro's. You will find that you hit the ball solidly, accurately and with good distance control.

Fitting Irons for Sweet Spot Consistency

One very simple technique that can make a big difference in consistently hitting the Irons in the center of the club face (sweet spot) is to use club face labels. You can purchase these on-line or at the chain golf stores. You place the label on the face of each Iron and hit 5 - 8 balls with each club. When you hit the ball it leaves a "ball mark" on the label.

You will be able to see where you are actually hitting the ball most of the time. You can then begin to make adjustments such as standing a bit closer or farther away until you see the ball marks on the labels more in the center of the club.

Fitting Clubs For Consistency

It doesn't really matter whether you hit the ball straight, Draw it or Fade it. What matters most is consistency. I played in a tournament where one of the players had a big Draw (curved the ball right to left - right hander). I thought 'this guy will have trouble with that big Draw'. Not so, he hit the same big Draw every shot. Never missed a fairway all day.



If you have a tendency, say you draw or fade your shots, but only sometimes, you can benefit by club fitting particulary in your driver and fairway/hybrid clubs. Here's how. Say you draw the ball a little but not consistently. Have your Driver/Fairway/Hybrid clubs set up to enhance the tendency to Draw the ball. Use a 1 - 2 degree closed face, find clubs with weight ports and set the weights to promote more of a draw. Experiment with these fitting techniques until you can draw the ball more than 75% of the time. Use the same approach for a Fade (open face & weight ports for a fade). You will achieve consistency and set up to play your Draw.