# stiff or regular



## markgs (Oct 26, 2013)

my swing speed with my 3 wood is 90 mph do i require a stiff or regular? also is there a benefit of a stiff shaft in terms of distance over the regular?


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## golfdub (Oct 26, 2013)

I would say that's pushing on stiff. If your swinging fast then stiff will give you more stability in your swing and a regular will give you less control with a fast swing.

Hope that makes sense


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## kid2 (Oct 26, 2013)

markgs said:



			my swing speed with my 3 wood is 90 mph do i require a stiff or regular? also is there a benefit of a stiff shaft in terms of distance over the regular?
		
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Im no expert Pal.... But i swing a 6 iron at nearly that speed i think around 88-90 mph and i use stiff shafts in my Irons DG S300's..... I have Kia Li Stiff shaft in my driver but my 3 wood is a Rag shafted Kia Li.... It works for me..... Im not sure of my driver SS... I think its up around 104 mph.....

But ultimately it will boil down to how aggressive you are..... You might be a fast smooth tempo'd swinger in which case you'd probably be able to use both types of shaft..... Or conversely you might be a more aggressive swinger which might warrant a stiff shaft....

As a guide if your carrying a 7 iron 150 yards or over you'd probably fit into a stiff range... Im not sure what the 3 Wood would equate to....


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## Oddsocks (Oct 26, 2013)

My ss with a 3w is 91-93 as tested today, and I play a very heavy stiff.  I'd say at least you should be playing a stock stiff around 55/60g, but a lot will depend on your tempo. If in doubt get fitted


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## harpo_72 (Oct 26, 2013)

markgs said:



			my swing speed with my 3 wood is 90 mph do i require a stiff or regular? also is there a benefit of a stiff shaft in terms of distance over the regular?
		
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Basically no, you can get some quite stiff profile regular shafts or you can get them tipped so that they are half a step stiffer. You will get some stiff shafts that will work for you but in reality they will be regulars. The problem lies in what determines whether it is called stiff or regular. I swing a 5 wood at 96mph and a driver in excess of 100mph, I use regular shafts. I have a smooth transision and tempo, the shafts are tip stable. My irons are stiff, but they are lower scale stiff, this is for height and dispersion. 
If you know your swing you can make a better decision, if you don't see someone, do some reading around.


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## markgs (Oct 26, 2013)

cheers guys my swing is aggressive so stiff it is


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## DAVEYBOY (Oct 27, 2013)

Still probably best to get fitted... Its free most of the time so why risk it. Not every stiff shaft is the same.


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## One Planer (Oct 27, 2013)

Thing is with having a stiff shaft based solely on swing speed is it will give you zero help when you're swinging poorly. 

I've always heard it said that you should play the softest flex your swing can handle.


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## HawkeyeMS (Oct 27, 2013)

markgs said:



			cheers guys my swing is aggressive so stiff it is
		
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Stiff or regular mean nothing as all manufacturers differ with what they call stiff. If you want to avoid an expensive mistake, get fitted.


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## Snelly (Oct 27, 2013)

HawkeyeMS said:



			Stiff or regular mean nothing as all manufacturers differ with what they call stiff. If you want to avoid an expensive mistake, get fitted.
		
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Or try both then buy the one you like the most. Seems quite obvious?


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## HawkeyeMS (Oct 27, 2013)

Snelly said:



			Or try both then buy the one you like the most. Seems quite obvious?
		
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The one you like the most may not give the best results but yes, you could do it that way. It could take a while though. A decent fitter can look at the stats and rule out shafts without you having to try them.


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## Pin-seeker (Oct 27, 2013)

Snelly said:



			Or try both then buy the one you like the most. Seems quite obvious?
		
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This ^^^^


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## Pin-seeker (Oct 27, 2013)

HawkeyeMS said:



			The one you like the most may not give the best results but yes, you could do it that way. It could take a while though. A decent fitter can look at the stats and rule out shafts without you having to try them.
		
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If you try both then surely your going to like the one that gives you the best results.
& let's be honest the stats don't always work.


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## HawkeyeMS (Oct 27, 2013)

Pin-seeker said:



			If you try both then surely your going to like the one that gives you the best results.
& let's be honest the stats don't always work.
		
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I assume you aren't suggesting he just pick one shaft, try stiff and regular in it and pick one of those?


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## Pin-seeker (Oct 27, 2013)

HawkeyeMS said:



			I assume you aren't suggesting he just pick one shaft, try stiff and regular in it and pick one of those?
		
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No but the question was Regular or Stiff


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## HawkeyeMS (Oct 27, 2013)

Pin-seeker said:



			No but the question was Regular or Stiff 

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To the OP. You have two options...

One you get fitted, you get the right launch angle, spin rate dispersion etc etc.
Two you just go and try a load of shafts and decide which you prefer

There is no right way but why you wouldn't want help from the technology and a good fitter is beyond me considering how many shaft options are available. It's not even like fitting is expensive. It's up to you, I hope you find the one that is right for you.


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## Ethan (Oct 27, 2013)

Oddsocks said:



			My ss with a 3w is 91-93 as tested today, and I play a very heavy stiff.  I'd say at least you should be playing a stock stiff around 55/60g, but a lot will depend on your tempo. If in doubt get fitted
		
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That is not at all heavy for a 3 wood shaft. Until recently, something in the 70-80g range was pretty usual for a 3 wood shaft. Now some are down in the 60g range, but you need to be sure that works for you.

To the OP, 90mph 3 wood would be 92 or 93 mph driver, so I think that could be regular of stiff depending on the brand (shaft flexes vary enormously) and other aspects of your swing. The quicker the tempo (e.g Sergio Garcia or Ernie Els?). the stiffer you generally need.


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## mashleyR7 (Oct 27, 2013)

I've been told that I swing my 6 and 7 iron around 86 mph and that I'd need a stiff shaft. That said I have 85g reg shafts in my irons and I seem to be playing to a good standard with them at the moment. 
My driver is a stiff shaft and my 4h is a regular.


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## Foxholer (Oct 27, 2013)

HawkeyeMS said:



			If you want to avoid an expensive mistake, get fitted.
		
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While I'm a definite advocate of fitting, there's no guarantee that getting fitted won't be a/the expensive mistake either! 

Does seem to me that you are in the same 'either/or' area that I am in. Ages (10 years) ago, I was conservatively fitted (with warranty) with a Regular (Accra T60), though tipped slightly to beef it up a bit. Worked beautifully first day or so, but because I had so much more confidence, I went after it more (ie. my swing changed) and the high rights started. Got it swapped for no charge and the result (Soft Stiff Accra SC65) was perfect!

The above shows the advantages and pitfalls of 'getting fitted' - and how/where.

If there is a proper fitter nearby, then I'd suggest you go that way, but make sure you agree what's involved - and agree a warranty! This is something the 'fittings' at big Retailers can't do - they simply provide Stiff or Regular with no real comeback if the 'swing on the day' is either not typical or it changes because of the change!

After all the waffle, I'd suggest you err on the Stiff side. You may lose a few yards but, imo, be more likely to end up on the shorter grass with the Stiff.

Snelly's approach works very well too! I very much doubt he'd get sufficient (or any) benefit to justify the cost of getting fitted, though there are plenty of low-cappers who can/do.


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## SocketRocket (Oct 27, 2013)

The shaft flex is much about squaring the clubface to account for shaft droop     I have found a good policy to assist with consistency is to use as stiff a shaft as you can handle.


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