Should you shorten your shafts when playing golf?
Most golfers are on a mission to better their performance and, while at it, enjoy the game as much as they can. So if shorter golf clubs are going to make you achieve this, there is no reason for you to continue using those long clubs. Below are some of the benefits of shortening your shafts as opposed to using the standard golf clubs.
What happens when you cut off a golf shaft?
The more shaft you cut off, the lighter, more stiff, and effectively flatter the club becomes. For every 1/2 inch you remove, you will lose approximately three swingweight points.
Does shortening a driver shaft affect driving distance?
It is possible that shortening your driver shaft will actually decrease the distance that you drive the ball. A longer driver shaft has generally meant a greater distance when driving. This isn’t always the case, as we have already talked about, but it can happen.
Why is my golf club too short?
This feeling results from you standing too close to the ball and may take time for you to adjust to. If you continue feeling this way for a while, there is a high chance that your club is too short. Finally, when you shorten your club, it loses a significant amount of weight.
What happens if I shorten my driver shaft?
Shortening the shaft will make the club shorter but it will also make the shaft stiffer and adjust the swing weight as well. Plus, the more length you remove, the less flex your club will have. Depending on how much you cut it down, it could move a regular flex to a stiff or a stiff to an extra stiff.
Is it bad to shorten golf clubs?
For the average golfer, having clubs that are a bit shorter than normal will produce the most consistent shots. Being closer to the ball and more bent over will give you a better relationship to the ball, which will result in more distance, better trajectory, and increased control.
Does shortening a golf shaft make it stiffer?
"Cutting more of the tip will have the effect of getting rid of some of the weaker end of the shaft which, in turn, makes the shaft play and feel more stiff.
Is a shorter driver shaft better?
The long and the short of it Your current length may be perfect for you. You may even need a longer one. But, as our experts and test have shown, a good number of golfers would benefit from a shorter shaft. You may actually increase distance and there's a good chance you'll hit more fairways.
Do pros shorten their irons?
Not really. Usually the clubs stop getting shorter above the 9-iron, meaning the various wedges are the same length as the 9-iron. And yet each wedge above the 9 hits the ball less far.
How long should golf clubs be for my height?
Using the ratio of every 6" of height there should be a 1" change in length then there should be a 1 ½" difference between their 5-irons. For example, recommend 36.5" for the lady and 38" for the man (or 36.75" / 38.25").
How long should my driver shaft be for my height?
Driver Shaft Length Based Solely on HeightHeight (feet/inches)Driver Shaft Length5'4″-5'7″45.5″5'2″-5'4″45″5'0″-5'2″44.5″4'10”-5'0″44″6 more rows•May 9, 2021
How do I know if my driver shaft is too long?
Here's how to tell if your golf clubs are too long:Completely upright posture.Improper golf swing.Odd ball flight.Feels cumbersome and unmanageable.Shaft feels weak.Consistency hitting with the toe.The measurements are wrong.
What happens when you butt trim a shaft?
1:363:54How Does Butt Trimming a Golf Shaft Affect Playability? - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipChange when cutting one inch or less or or more off of the butt end probably. The biggest downsideMoreChange when cutting one inch or less or or more off of the butt end probably. The biggest downside of cutting. Or making a closed shoulder is the effect that it has on swing weight.
Why do I hit my 3 wood farther than my driver?
Players who hit their 3- or 5-wood as far or longer than their driver are typically using too little loft with the driver for their clubhead speed. You know, it's a funny thing with the driver and its loft compared to the other clubs in the bag.
Does shaft length affect distance?
Benefits Of Longer Driver Shafts Testing shows that an inch of extra shaft length adds approximately 10 yards in distance to your drive. Therefore, everything else being equal, a 45.75” could add 20-25 yards extra over a 43” driver.
Can I cut down my driver shaft?
1:144:01How to Cut Golf Shaft DIY - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo for the first step you have to remove your old grip. I find the easiest way to do this is toMoreSo for the first step you have to remove your old grip. I find the easiest way to do this is to literally just cut a line all the way down your club. Obviously you don't want to cut the table like I
Why shorten the shaft on a golf driver?
For some people, shortening the driver shaft can help them to hit the ball farther and keep it in play more. That last part is something that we all want to do.
Why is the shaft shorter on a golf club?
Making the shaft shorter makes the club shorter, the shaft stiffer, and it will adjust the swing weight. Your club will have less flex when you remove weight. A regular flex can become stiff, and a stiff can become extra stiff when you shorter it, but that all depends on how much you shorten it. You need to be sure this is what you want ...
Why is a shorter driver shaft better?
Pros: A shorter driver shaft will shorten the arc of your swing. This will help you to hit the center of the clubface more often. Hitting the center of the clubface more often means you are more likely to keep the ball in play than you were before.
What does a longer shaft mean?
A longer shaft means a wider arc to your swing and that creates more speed. But hitting the center of the clubface is much more important. A shorter driver shaft means a shorter arc in your swing and that makes hitting the center of the clubface easier. Many players don’t lose any clubhead speed when they shorten their driver shaft by about an inch.
How long is the average driver on the PGA Tour?
On the PGA Tour, the average driver length is 44.5 inches. That’s shorter than the standard 45-46 inches.
Does shortening your driver shaft help?
More practice equals more consistency. Yes, better equipment helps. And equipment that is attuned to your needs helps even more. Shortening your driver shaft could be beneficial for you and combining that with the want to improve is a step in the right direction.
Does shortening a driver shaft make your handicap fall?
Most professional golfers are aware of the benefits that shortening their driver shaft, at least a little, can give them. This doesn’t mean that shorten ing your driver shaft will immediately make your handicap fall. The biggest factor is still your technique and how you play.
How to shorten a golf club shaft?
To do that, the DIY golfer will have to: 1 Remove the existing grip. 2 With steel shafts, use a tubing cutter to trim the shaft; with graphite shafts, shorten using a hacksaw. 3 Re-install a grip on the newly shortened shaft. 4 And, most importantly, Wishon says, add weight to the clubhead in some manner to restore the swingweight feel of the club. "If clubs are shortened and no weight is added back to the clubhead, the chances of the length reduction having the desired effect are somewhere between slim and none."
What is the difference between a golf shaft and a tip?
All golf shafts taper; that is, their circumference is greater at the grip end than at the tip end. That means that the grip end is the strongest part of the shaft and the tip end the weakest, which, Wishon says, leads trimming to have different effects: "Cutting more of the tip will have the effect of getting rid of some of the weaker end ...
Should the reduction in length be made from the grip end only?
"If the goal in making the clubs shorter in length is a desire to gain an improvement in accuracy, the reduction in length should be made from the grip end only ," Wishon said.
What happens when you shorten a golf club?
When you shorten your club, there are a few things that happen. First, the club becomes stiff and loses flexibility. It will require you to use more swing speed to hit like before. Short clubs have lower swing speeds, and this makes it hard to achieve long distances.
Why shorten a golf club?
A short golf club is expected to give you better accuracy and control of the ball, while the long club gives you more distance.
What percentage of golfers do not use standard length clubs?
What will surprise you is that about 90 percent of golfers do not use standard-length clubs. It is a marketing technique for them to sell you more expensive custom fit clubs. We hope that you now have a better understanding of the effects of shortening your golf clubs.
Why does my golf club become lighter?
The golf club becomes lighter due to the weight loss, and the remedy is adding more weight using lead tape so that you do not overpower the club.
Why are short golf clubs better than longer golf clubs?
When you use a shortened club, you will realize that you have more authority against the driver because of the reduced flexibility. The clubs are also lighter and stiffen up a little bit.
Why is it important to have a shorter golf club?
While a shorter club may reduce your distance or yardages, it comes with several advantages . To some golfers, these are their desired accomplishments, while to others, they are added benefits to what they expected. Most golfers are on a mission to better their performance and, while at it, enjoy the game as much as they can.
Why do manufacturers recommend long clubs?
Manufacturers advocate for long clubs because they offer better distances, but the sad reality is that their accuracy is usually off for most golfers. With short clubs, you are likely to improve your accuracy, which is the most important aspect when trying to improve your performance.
What is a cycle in a shaft?
the 'cycles' is the reference term to shaft bend profile, shaft frequency - so in effect it's what's generally spoken of in terms of shaft 'stiffness' or 'softness'. if you just cut the butt end & didn't add weight to the head then the shaft would play a tad stiffer not by much though - but the whole club would maybes 'feel' light which could ...
Does the grip on a golf swing affect weight?
That's because the grip will be thinner at the point you grip down to and, , more importantly, the excess will be acting as a very slight counterbalance - which will affect the swing weight - while you are doing so.
Does taking a butt off the tip affect flex?
Much more (stiffening) effect if you take it off the tip than off the butt! Taking it off the Butt (the normal method and how it would be done if you simply specified a shorter length) has a marginal effect, while taking it off the tip typically alters the flex by half a flex per inch.
Does adding weight to a shaft make it stiffer?
Adding weight to the head will indeed make the shaft feel less stiff. Again, depending on the amount of weight, this might not be noticeable, but for those who are particularly sensitive, the tape can be added near the ferrule and balanced by some under the grip.
How does shortening a golf shaft affect swing weight?
Shortening the shaft can make the golf club less flexible. If you are going to shorten a golf club, there are a few things to keep in mind. The more shaft you cut off, the lighter, more stiff, and effectively flatter the club becomes. For every 1/2 inch you remove, you will lose approximately three swingweight points.
How many swingweight points do you lose when you remove 1/2 inch?
For every 1/2 inch you remove, you will lose approximately three swingweight points. You can readjust the swingweight by adding lead tape to the head of the club. Any amount of cutting will slightly stiffen the club. It will probably go unnoticed if you take 1 inch or less off the club.
Is Accuracy One Cut Away?
The purpose of Golf Myths Unplugged is to challenge the accepted wisdom of golf, but even we have blind spots. One of those was revealed recently when we realized that we had never tested the concept of shorter driver shafts being more accurate.
How We Tested
For this test, we brought together five golfers with a range of swing speeds and handicaps. Each player hit seven drives with each of three driver shaft lengths: 44″, 45″, and 46″. The shaft ( Nippon Regio Formula B) and head were the same in each test, and the swing weight was held constant.
Conclusion
If you’re in search of more consistency from the tee, don’t be so quick to shorten your driver. While it’s entirely possible that a shorter driver will help you hit it straighter, our data shows that a longer driver could also be the solution.
Why is a shorter shaft better for golf?
A shorter driver shaft increases the likelihood of a golfer making better contact off the center of the driver’s face. The more often a golfer hits the center of the driver’s face, the more consistency they will see in their driving accuracy and distance.
Why use a shorter driver shaft?
Using a shorter driver shaft will help most beginning and intermediate golfers square up the clubface better at impact thus creating more consistency in distance and accuracy.
How to change the length of a golf driver?
The easiest way to change the length of your driver is to just slide your hands down the golf grip about a half an inch. This mimics the same swing you would have if you were to cut down the shaft. For more advanced golfers, you can take off the golf grip and use a saw or shaft cutter to take off the butt of your club.
How long is a golf driver?
The average length of a men’s driver is 45.5 inches and for women, 43 inches. Obviously, everyone is a different height so these standard lengths are not universal for everyone. For a majority of golfers, a driver that is half an inch shorter will improve their ball striking off the center of the face. By making your driver shorter, you are moving ...
Does a longer shaft increase clubhead speed?
For most golfers, a longer golf shaft is going to produce faster clubhead speed. Faster clubhead speed combined with square contact of the center of the face will maximize the ball speed off impact. The problem is that a lot of golfers struggle with getting the square contact and are never able to use a longer length club to their benefit.
Is golf good for old people?
Golf is a great sport for young and old alike. It’s a sport that you can try out as soon as you are old enough to walk and hold a club. It’s a sport that you can play well into old-age if your health permits. It’s no contact and low-impact, so there is little risk ] Continue Reading.
Can you change the shaft length on a miss hit drive?
Unfortuately, its not the cure-all solution for all miss hit golf drives. For better, more consitent golfers, you may not want to change your driver shaft length at all as it will alter your swing timing and create more inconsistcy.
What to do when cutting a golf club down?
The first thing that you need to do when you’re cutting a club down is to get the old grip out of your way. In order to do that safely, you need to have plenty of space to work in and a way to hold the club steady while you’re cutting. That’s where the prepared workspace and the vice come in.
How to get adhesive off of golf club?
Heating the tape up will soften the adhesive and make this step easier. Heat the adhesive with a heat gun or a hairdryer. Peel the tape off until you have removed it all from the shaft of the club.
How to get better adhesion on a grip?
It will also emulsify the adhesive and help it to get better surface adhesion with the inside of the grip. Plug the small hole in the top of the grip with a finger and turn the grip upside down. Spray some adhesive into the inside of the grip.
How long does it take for a grip to dry?
Once you have the new grip in place, you will need to let the adhesive dry and cure. It will take approximately 6-8 hours for a full cure.
What tool to use to cut graphite shaft?
For steel shafts, a hack saw is the best option for a clean cut. For graphite clubs, you will need to use a rotary tool with a cutting wheel to get the best cut possible. Cut the desired amount from the shaft. Be careful to avoid cutting yourself with the saw or the tool.
Does trimming an inch off a golf club affect the weight?
But since you’re only trimming a little bit—it will only have a small impact on the overall performance of the club. Like we said earlier, big changes have big side effects.
Is it a good idea to cut down a set of golf clubs?
Written by Justin Adams in Beginners' Tips. Some golfers will tell you that it’s never a good idea to cut down a set of clubs. There are others who swear by it and do it all the time to make sure that their clubs are a custom-tailored fit for the golfer who will use them. There are good arguments on either side, but one thing is for sure, ...