There are numerous ways to measure shaft flex. The most common way is to clamp the butt end of the shaft, attach a weight to the tip, displace it, and measure the CPM (cycles per minute) or frequency that the shaft oscillates. This can also be done in reverse – clamp the tip and weight and displace the butt.
What happens if golf shaft is too flexible?
When a golf shaft is too flexible, you will not be able to hit the ball straight. You will also end up losing a bit of distance. When a golf shaft is too flexible, it isn’t easy to control the clubface and get it to square up at impact. Faster swinging players are the golfers that need to worry about a shaft that is too flexible.
How to tell if your golf shafts are too stiff?
What Happens If My Shaft Is Too Stiff?
- Struggle To Hit The Ball Far And High. One of the most significant indicators of a too stiff golf shaft is that you struggle to hit the ball high.
- Hitting Slices And Fades. ...
- Decreased Swing And Ball Speed. ...
- Inconsistent Contact. ...
What is the Flex and frequency of a golf shaft?
· Typically there will be 10 cycles between shaft flexes. Thus if one shaft registers 250 cpm and another is 270 cpm, there is a 2- flex difference between the shafts regardless of what flex the manufacturer claims them to be. By assigning a specific frequency number to a shaft, the shaft can be closely matched to a player.
What Golf Club shaft stiffness should I use?
What swing speed requires a stiff shaft?
- Swing speeds above 105 mph Extra Stiff
- Swing speeds between 90-105 Stiff
- Swing speeds between 80-95 Regular
- Swing speeds between 70-85 Senior
- Swing speeds less than 70 Ladies
How do you determine the flex of a golf shaft?
Some General Guidelines About Shaft FlexTake a look at the distance you hit your driver. ... If you have a very smooth swing, you might benefit from a softer flex even if you swing fast. ... If your drives go left, you might benefit from a stiffer flex; if your drives go right, you might benefit from a softer flex.
How do you measure club Flex?
If there is not a facility convenient to your location, the rule of thumb measures to use for clubs that are used to hit the golf ball from 150 yards are: Ladies Flex for a 3 iron or wood; Senior Flex for a 4 iron; Regular Flex for a 5 or 6 iron; Stiff Flex for a 6 or 7 iron and X-Stiff Flex for a 8 or 9 iron.
How do you test a golf shaft stiffness?
1:0112:23Golf Club Fitting - Golf Shaft Stiffness Measurement - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipThe value of AI can be calculated by the three-point bending test in the three-point bending testMoreThe value of AI can be calculated by the three-point bending test in the three-point bending test first the shaft is placed in a horizontal position on a pair of supports.
How do I know if my shaft flex is too soft?
If the shaft is too flexible, you will have a 'whippy' feeling in your hands, and you won't be able to feel the clubhead on the downswing. When the golf ball is struck it will generally have too much spin if the shaft is too flexible, this will cause a 'ballooning' effect on the shot and it will tend to go quite high.
What does 5.5 mean on a golf shaft?
Regular – 5.0. Regular Plus – 5.5. Stiff – 6.0. Extra Stiff – 6.5. Extra Stiff Plus – 7.0.
What swing speed requires a stiff shaft?
What swing speed requires a stiff shaft? Golfers at driving speeds over 90 mph should generally use a stiff shaft. Under 90 mph should probably use a regular shaft.
How do you know if your shaft is stiff?
"L" is the most flexible shaft and "X" is the stiffest shaft:"L" denotes "ladies flex""A" or "M" denotes "senior flex" (might also be designated "AM" or "A/M," or "Senior")"R" denotes "regular flex""S" denotes "stiff flex" (might also be designated "Firm")More items...•
What happens if shaft is too stiff?
There are a few tell tale signs that your shafts are too stiff, firstly you will lose the ball to the right, because the shaft is to stiff it will be hard to square up at impact, causing the face to be open when you hit the ball, this is going to produce a fade or slice shot, generally ending up on the right side of ...
Will I lose distance with a stiff shaft?
If the shaft flex is too stiff, your average distance will remain low.
What shaft is best for a slice?
Unlike the pros, you should look for shafts with weaker tip sections that allow for more release of the club head as it comes into impact. A more active tip section will generally allow for a faster rate of closure, which is beneficial to golfers suffering from a slice.
What happens if your golf club shaft is too weak?
Generally speaking, a driver shaft that's too stiff will cause shots to launch too low, with too little spin and low peak heights. A shaft that's too weak, on the other hand, may cause shots to spin too much, fly too high, and widen dispersion patterns.
What happens if a golf club shaft is too soft?
Incorrect flex A golfer using a shaft that is too flexible may experience a ball flight that is too high, a ball that spins too much, or a shot pattern that has inconsistent dispersion.
What golf shaft flex is right for me 7 iron?
Find the Correct Golf Shaft Flex for Your Swing Speed 8-iron or 9-iron: You'd likely want an “X” or extra stiff flex shaft. 6-iron or 7-iron: You'd likely want an “S” or stiff flex shaft. 5-iron or 6-iron: You'd likely want an “R” or regular flex shaft.
Which iron shaft flex is right for me?
If you're between 97 and 104 mph with the driver, you need a stiff flex. Regular – Now we are getting into the range where a majority of recreational golfers fall, and also where many LPGA pros fall. If you're between 84 and 96 mph, regular is going to be best for you.
What do golf shaft flex numbers mean?
These numbers are the weight of the shaft in grams. Shaft weights typically range between 50 grams and 85 grams with the 50-60 numbers being pretty common as seen in the example shafts above.
What swing speed needs a senior flex shaft?
If your swing speed is between 75 and 85 miles per hour, then you will need a senior shaft. If you are between 85 and 95 miles per hour, then the regular shaft will be the best choice.
What Is Shaft Flex?
Shaft flex is the degree to which the shaft will bend or flex during the swing. A more flexible shaft bends easily during the swing and has the potential to produce a longer-ranged shot.
How Does Shaft Flex Impact Your Golf Game?
The shaft flex of your golf club has an immense effect on the game’s outcome as a whole. From high irons to wedges and drivers, you have to make sure they have the correct flex for trajectory, accuracy, and distance.
How to Choose the Shaft Flex for You?
You can know the correct flex for your shaft by evaluating your swing at a golf equipment store. They’ll check all kinds of things like ball speed, distance, clubhead speed, spin, and many other factors. They also try several shafts in the same driver head to give the most accurate results.
What Shaft Flex Should You Use for The Driver?
It would be best if you choose the stiffest shaft flex for your driver because it is often the club that has the maximum swing speed. Since it carries the maximum swing speed, you may consider choosing the most accurate shaft flex.
How to Determine the Right Flex for Your Iron?
Choosing the right flex for the iron depends on the club you use for hitting a 150-yard shot. If you’re about to take a 150-yard shot, consider using these flex for your irons.
Final Thoughts
When selecting a flex for the shaft in your clubs, the tradeoff is between accuracy and distance. Choosing a senior flex helps you to achieve greater distance due to its flexibility but at the cost of lower accuracy.
Golf Practice Plans with Step by Step Schedules to Follow
Or hop onto our email newsletter and get the free weekly golf tips we send out to our community plus updates and other announcements you don’t want to miss!
Which shaft is better for a golfer?
When a golfer has an accelerating club head speed with a late wrist release into impact, they will usually hit better with a stiff tip shaft. Conversely, if a golfer has a decelerating club head speed coming into impact with an early wrist release, they tend to hit better with a medium or soft tip shaft. Of course, ball flight observation can ...
What are the properties of a golf shaft?
Shaft properties, including flex, torque, bend point (also referred to as kick point or flex point), shaft length and weight, play important roles. These factors affect the balance and feel of golf clubs as well as ball trajectory. Particularly, graphite shafts come with a wide range of specifications. Shaft flex is probably the most important and ...
What does a bend point on a shaft mean?
Once the bend point location is identified, this will indicate the degree of shaft tip stiffness. If a shaft is considered to be “tip stiff” – this means it is “butt flexible”. Hence, the bend point is located closer to the butt end of the shaft than the tip. This is what is termed as a High Bend Point. On the other hand, if a shaft is thought ...
What are shaft profiles?
At a minimum, most shafts will have profiles that identify the “stiffness” in the butt section, mid section and tip section.
How many bend points does a golf shaft have?
A golf shaft has only one bend point. The majority of club Manufacturers do publish their bend points of new shafts. Older shafts may not be labeled. Trimmed shafts used to customize club length may not have been tested for bend point prior to installation.
Why do golfers use low bend points?
It is also a function of feel. A low bend point generally works for golfers who want to feel the club head more in the swing.
Where is the bend point on a golf club?
The bend point is located closer to the tip rather than the butt end . This is referred to as a Low Bend Point. The Bend Point only moves a small distance in all shafts. However, the movement can dramatically change the shaft’s playing characteristics – how the club performs.
How to measure shaft flex?
The most common way is to clamp the butt end of the shaft, attach a weight to the tip, displace it, and measure the CPM (cycles per minute) or frequency that the shaft oscillates . This can also be done in reverse – clamp the tip and weight and displace the butt.
What is shaft flex?
Mitsubishi Rayon (MRC) and Fujikura told us about how shaft flex is a guideline for connecting swing speed to a particular shaft.
Is there a standard way to measure flex?
Given that there’s not a standard way of measuring flex, you can correctly assume that there is no standard for labeling flex either. What one manufacturer calls “stiff” might be “regular” to another. This is why they universally emphasize the importance of fitting.
Is flex only one part of the equation?
While they didn’t agree on much, every shaft manufacturer that we spoke to said that flex is only one part of the equation . MRC noted that torque values will vary widely from model to model, and that has a big impact on performance.
What is the best mph for senior flex?
Between 72 and 83 mph signifies you need to be hitting senior flex. Ladies – By no means do all women’s golfers will fall in this category, but this is where many of the recreational women’s players find themselves.
Can you extrapolate your swing speed to driver?
You should consider that your swing speed for your irons might not extrapolate perfectly to driver (and vice versa), so while a certain flex might be right in some clubs, that might not be the case in others.
What happens if your golf shaft is flexed?
If the energy isn’t released quickly enough -- in other words, if the shaft is still flexed on impact -- you’ve wasted potential energy. If the shaft straightens prior to impact, the potential energy you have built is gone and, again, you’ll lose distance on your shot.
How does the shaft work in golf?
A golf shaft stores energy when it flexes during the backswing and the start of the downswing. The energy is released at impact when the shaft whips forward. As the Leaderboard website notes, if you put the grip end of a club into a vise, then pull back on the clubhead, you’ll feel tension in the club. This tension is the stored energy, which will spring the club head forward if you release the club. To achieve maximum distance, Leaderboard.com explains, the stored energy must be released at the moment of impact during a golf swing. If the energy isn’t released quickly enough -- in other words, if the shaft is still flexed on impact -- you’ve wasted potential energy. If the shaft straightens prior to impact, the potential energy you have built is gone and, again, you’ll lose distance on your shot.
What is the difference between a higher flex point and a lower flex point?
All else being equal, Thomas explains, a higher flex point produces lower ball flight, while a lower flex point results in a higher launch angle.
How fast should a golfer swing?
Longtime USGA technical director Frank Thomas advises golfers with swing speeds of 80 to 95 mph to start ...
What is flex point in golf?
He notes that a shaft’s flex point, also known as the kick point, is the spot where the shaft will bend the most.
Is there a flex standard for golf shafts?
Unfortunately, as “Golf Magazine” editor Scott Kramer notes, there is no industry standard regarding flex. In other words, two S shafts manufactured by two different companies may have different amounts of flex.
How to choose shaft flex?
These are just general guidelines, however; the best way to choose shaft flex is to go through a club fitting. Not every golfer can (or is willing) to do that, though.
Why do golf shafts bend?
Shaft makers vary the amount of stiffness because golfers have different types of swings—different swing speeds, different tempos—and different amounts of stiffness in a shaft better match up to those different swings.
What happens if you mismatch your golf shaft?
If your swing is mismatched to your golf shaft flex—if you are using an X flex shaft, for example, when you should be using an R flex shaft—you will have a harder time squaring the clubface at impact. The way your shots are flying can clue you into the possibility you might be using the wrong flex.
When were steel shafts invented?
Alas, no. Golf industry veteran Tom Wishon, of Tom Wishon Golf Technologies, explains: "Shortly after steel shafts were introduced in the 1920s, steel shaft makers discovered they could change the diameter and wall thickness of the tubes to create shafts with different amounts of stiffness to better match to the different swing speeds ...
What does it mean when a golfer's swing is slower?
The slower a golfer's swing, generally speaking, the more flex he or she requires in the shafts that are in their golf clubs. And the faster the swing, the more stiffness. Tempo also matters: A jerkier swing requires more stiffness, a smoother swing less stiffness, generally speaking.
