Opinion & Analysis

“Picking a shaft based solely on swing speed isn’t a great idea”

Published

14 years ago

Nov 27, 2012

I see a lot of threads/post on here about golfers selecting shaft flex for their irons or driver based solely on swing speed. To quote the inimitable philosopher Peter Griffin, “that really grinds my gears”

Swing speed is only one element in choosing shaft flex. Yes, it’s an important element, but it’s not the only one. Other critical components in choosing a shaft include:

a golfer’s tempo (from nice and smooth to almost violent)
a golfer’s transition from the top (after the backswing is complete, what kind of transition does the golfer make?)
a golfer’s release point (when does the golfer release the club?)

For example, golfer “A” can have a similar swing speed as golfer “B” yet require a regular shaft, while golfer “B” may require a stiff shaft. Why? Golfer A’s tempo is nice and smooth, he has an easy transition and releases the club a tad early. Golfer B’s tempo, on the other hand is faster, he has a more forceful transition and he releases the club much later.

So you see, picking a shaft based just on swing speed isn’t a great idea. Sure it will give you a starting point, but that’s it.

If you pick the wrong shaft, a lot of bad things can happen.

If the shaft if too stiff:

the ball will flight will be too low
the ball flight will have a tendency to go right (for a right-handed golfer, this means a fade or a slice)
hits won’t feel as solid

If the shaft isn’t stiff enough:

the ball flight will be too high
the ball flight will have a tendency to go left (for a right-handed golfer, this means draws and hooks)

The next time you’re in the market for a choosing flex for your new irons or driver, please consider more then just swing speed. If you can’t see a fitter for any reason, consider your transition, rhythm, tempo and your release. Even if you narrow that down a bit you’ll come a lot closer to making the right choice in choosing the correct shaft for yourself.

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Sean Foster-Nolan

Sean Foster-Nolan was born in Wiesbaden, Germany, and has lived all over the United States. He picked up the game of golf at the age of 50, and currently plays at Harmon Golf & Fitness Club in Rockland, Mass. Sean is passionate about all things golf and has been a member of GolfWRX since 2007. He is a retired counselor, where he last worked with high school kids who had severe emotional and behavioral problems in an alternative high school. His philosophy is treat all people with kindness and respect.

6 Comments

Doug

Nov 30, 2012 at 7:42 pm

I have always been curious about the best way to select shaft flex. During the swing, it seems to me that the shaft is flexing in multiple directions. At the beginning it would be flexing in a primarily toe-up direction, and as the swing progresses, the flex develops a backwards component and a toe-down component. It has always seemed to me that all of this flexing is making it difficult to return the club square to the ball at impact, and that everyone would benefit from using the stiffest shafts possible. You indicate that if a shaft is too stiff for your swing your ball flight will be lower and to the right, and if the flex is to soft your ball flight will be higher and to the left, but don’t provide any explanations of how the shaft flex could cause these changes.

Reply Report comment
- Joe Golfer
  
  Dec 1, 2012 at 1:26 am
  
  Doug: If the shaft is too stiff, it doesn’t load well, so it doesn’t release well, leading to low shots that tend to fade to the right (for RH golfers). If the shaft is too flexible, it loads too much, it releases too much, leading to higher shots. And because it is releasing early, the clubface closes earlier, leading to shots that curve left as a draw/hook or a pull hook, depending on initial aiming point.
  
  Reply Report comment
Sean

Nov 29, 2012 at 12:34 am

Thanks Tony. 🙂

Reply Report comment
Tony Wright

Nov 27, 2012 at 7:50 pm

Sean, your post is absolutely right on. There are many of us in the Assn. of Golf Clubfitting Professionals (AGCP) that use a driver shaft fitting process that is similar to what you suggest – this process has been called BMT – Butt, Mid, Tip. We measure swing speed, swing tempo, and release point and correlate these to shaft flex profile measurements. This process works very well. Reduces shot dispersion because the shaft flex profile is a good fit to the driver swing profile.

Reply Report comment
- Eric
  
  Nov 30, 2012 at 12:13 pm
  
  Tony:
  
  Fascinating – Did not know any of this.
  
  I am a scratch golfer for 35 years, and have switched to a Rifle 5.5 from a Dynamic X-100 because my swing speeds are down. I swing very fast with a quick transition. How should I decide which shaft to choose??
  
  Reply Report comment
td

Nov 27, 2012 at 12:01 pm

Tom? Is that you?

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Opinion & Analysis

5 Things We Learned: Thursday at the PGA Championship

Published

2 weeks ago

May 15, 2026

Ronald Montesano

Aronimink is not a storied club, but when Donald Ross himself proclaimed it to be as good as he can design and build, one had to take notice. Jay Sigel was the pre-eminent male amateur golfer from the mid-1970s to the mid-1990s. He might have called any number of Philadelphia clubs home, but he chose Aronimink. It served him well. Gary Player won a PGA Championship here in 1962, and was followed by the 1993 winner … nobody. Aronimink gave that event away to Inverness, for reasons of which it is certainly not proud. So be it. We had to wait sixty-four years for the PGA to return to Newtown Square, but here we are. Aronimink has been neo-restored by Gil Hanse and team, to return Ross features with an eye toward defense against the dark arts, errrr, high-tech equipment.

Day one saw Rory McIlroy and Bryson DeChambeau dig big holes, to the tune of plus-four and plus-six, respectively. Since the first-round lead will be minus-three at worst, many shots will need to be made up for the power couple to reach contention. By nightfall, seven golfers held the day-one lead at three-under par 67. Shots and sticks caught our attention, and we are proud to present Five Things We Learned on Tech Thursday at the 2026 PGA Championship. Thanks to InsideTourGolfer, Today’s Golfer, and GolfWRX for initial equipment research.

First, meet Min Woo Lee

Min Woo Lee, aka Dr. Chipinski, has once again thrust himself into the conversation of Can he, will he, when will he? Lee has so much talent, wins not nearly as often as we believe that he should, and has no major near-misses (much less titles) on his wiki. The young Aussie is getting older and wiser, but is he able to avoid the scarring that holds the older and wiser back from breaking through? Philadelphia offers another opportunity. Min Woo signed for five birdies and two bogeys on day one, and grabbed a share of the opening-day lead at Aronimink. Winners transcend history and the moment, and Lee will need that sort of ascent to lift the Wannamaker on Sunday.

Second, meet Aldrich Potgeiter

The young South African golfer can rip driver with the best of them. Aronimink tips out at nearly 7400 yards, but beyond the fairway bunkers that ensnare only the mortals, Potgeiter can take his chances with wedge from the rough. On Thursday, he spent plenty of time in the spinach. Like Popeye, he used his muscles to gouge and thrash and dig his way out. Six birdies against three bogeys on the card brought AP in a three deep.

Third, meet Martin Kaymer

Not a major event takes place without a where’s he been throwback moment. We know that Martin Kaymer left the PGA and DP World tours for LIV golf, but the two-time (US Open and PGA) major winner has a lifetime exemption into at least one major event, and he seizes the opportunity each May. Kaymer joined the six-seven brigade with four birdies and a solitary bogey on day one. Kaymer was never a long hitter, and the years are kind to no golfer. The German champion will need to uncork every bottle of guile and strategy in his cabinet to remain in contention. For today, though, he occupies a rung on the ladder of Tour Tech.

Fourth, meet Scottie Scheffler

Let’s see, he’s the defending champion at the PGA, and he found his way back to the top tier with five birdies against two bogeys. To be a favorite and then play up to that stature and expectation is quite difficult. Just ask Rory, Bryson, and some of the other pre-tournament heartthrobs. Scheffler’s game is complete, and to knock him off the OWGR #1 pedestal, one needs to defeat him at the majors. Aronimink is the sort of course that fits Scheffler’s game. Better yet, it unfits the game of many of his challengers. Don’t expect Scheffler to go away anytime soon. Come Sunday, he’ll be around.

Fifth, meet Stephan Jaeger

Clocking in for the unheralded players shift are Ryo Hisatsune and Stephan Jaeger. Hisatsune logged seven birdies on day one, but gave most of them back with four bogeys. Still, he’s tied at the top for a time. Jaeger pitched five birdies against two bogeys, including a run of three consecutive, from holes four through six. Odds are that one of the two will hang around through 36 holes. Odds also suggest that both will be gone by Saturday evening. Still, the PGA Championship has historically been the major most likely to be won by an under-known. Both Hisatsune and Jaeger feature on that list, so good luck, lads!

Club Junkie

Club Junkie’s Titleist GTS driver fitting results!

Published

2 weeks ago

May 14, 2026

Brian Knudson

On this episode of the Club Junkie Podcast, I head to the Titleist Performance Institute for a full driver fitting with the new Titleist GTS lineup. We dive into the fitting process, talk about what made the biggest difference in performance, and break down how the different GTS heads and shaft combinations compare on the launch monitor. If you are thinking about a new driver setup for this season, there is a lot to take away from this one.

I also get into Brooks Koepka and the gear setup he brought to the PGA Championship, including the putters that caught my eye during the week. There are some interesting equipment trends showing up at the highest level right now and we break down what stands out.

To wrap things up, I talk about reshafting a few wedges, what I learned during the process, and swapping an adaptor onto a new shaft for another build project in the shop. A gear packed episode from start to finish for anyone who loves golf equipment and club building.

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Club Junkie

Club Junkie WITB, week 16: New Titleist GTS woods!

Published

2 weeks ago

May 14, 2026

Brian Knudson

Excited for this week’s WITB as we get to add the new Titleist GTS woods to the bag! I was fit at Titleist’s TPI facility in Oceanside California a few weeks ago and my new clubs just showed up. I am also adding a cool set of irons that I built last year some wild custom wedges into a new golf bag. Speaking of the bag I have a new Ghost Anyday Black Ops stand bag that I will be using on my Motocaddy Remote M7 electric cart.

Driver: Titleist GTS3 (11 degrees @ 10.25)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 6s

3-wood: Titleist GT1 3Tour (14.5 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD CQ-7s

5-wood: Titleist GTS (18 degrees)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s

9-wood: Titleist GT1 (24 degress)
Shaft: Fujikura Ventus Red 7s

Irons: Bettinardi CB24 (5-PW)
Shafts: KBS C-Taper Lite 110 stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (50-09 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (56-12 SB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Wedge: TaylorMade MG5 (60-08 LB)
Shaft: Mitsubishi MMT 125 Stiff

Putter: Dan Carraher ZT Proto

Ball: Callaway Chrome Tour

Bag: Ghost Anyday Black Ops Stand Bag