(Another ) stupid question

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CrapHacker

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This time about shafts.

I'm using S300s in my absolutely fantastical Titleist 962s, and am slowly getting the hang of them.

Initially I was having trouble getting any distance and / or height with them, but I'm gradually getting the height thing sorted, and ( at the moment ) I'm not too bothered about the length - that is gradually improving, and I've got plenty of time to work on it.

Now how would that translate to a driver.

I'm asking coz I need a driver, and all the bargains I'm thinking of come with a stiff shaft.

I tried Smiffy's Benny a few months back and although I know it's a decent enough club, it felt pretty awful to me at the time. Which I put down to the shaft being too stiff for me.

Popped into the pro shop today, and the pro is on hols, so I asked the assistant. Now this guy is as sweet as a nut, but I'm not expecting to see him on 'Millionaire' any time soon.

He reckons that coz I'm hitting my 3w 210 - 220 ( ish ) then I need a regular shaft ( if I were hitting 250 + then a stiff would suit ). When I mentioned the improvement in my irons recently he suggested that the S300 is actually quite an unstiff shaft by modern standards, and therefore that backs up his ideas on a regular flex.

I'm beginning to confuse myself, any thoughts / suggestions please. How stiff is the S300 ? How does iron flex translate to driver flex ?

And anything I've forgotten to mention :D
 
PS I'm not looking to go get a brand new model for £200 odd, so I can't see where I can go to try a launch monitor.

I'm wondering if I can get away with a stiff shaft is it worth trying the Benny again ? Or if it was wrong a couple of months ago, can that possibly change so quickly ?

I don't want to waste anyone's time, but I neeeeeed a driver, I think.

:(
 
Hmm, really not sure.

I know plenty of folk that play S300 shafts in their irons and get on just fine. I conclude that as they have regular shafts in their woods/drivers and don't out hit me by much (if at all) then they ought really to be playing with regular flex steel OR S300s aren't that stiff really.

I played with reg flex woods and stiff flex irons until a few months back. I went back to reg steel shafts and now my irons are much better, but that's just me.

My opinion is that irons are for accuracy and woods for distance (more or less!) so players on the cusp could easily play reg woods and stiff irons....

I've played with all types of irons in the past, including even a game with a ladies set....which went OK actually.

A driver with the wrong spec will "kill" your chances of maxing the driver distance and accuracy. Irons...hmm...maybe not so bad.

:D :D
 
PS I'm not looking to go get a brand new model for £200 odd, so I can't see where I can go to try a launch monitor.
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My local AG does 2nd hand clubs and will let you go on the moniter to test them out. Might be worth a shout.

Also you could try a modern iron and driver with the shafts - it won't be perfect but it'll give you an idea.
 
I play S300 shafts in my Mizuno MX200 with a driver swing speed of 114mph (Not sure what my irons are but it rapid). They work fine for me. As for the height issue, they are designed for high launch so that should improve the more you use and get use use to them.

How far do you hit your 7 iron with the S300. I average 170 and play stiff graphite shafts in my woods (Steel in 3 wood) and 3 iron.

Back to your question, all I can say is get down your local range and try out some different clubs with Regular / Stiff shafts an See what work bests.
 
I play S300 shafts in my Mizuno MX200 with a driver swing speed of 114mph (Not sure what my irons are but it's rapid). They work fine for me.
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HTL - on 114 mph with driver I'd be surprised if S300 weren't pretty damn fine! No way should you be on Reg.
 
that's nothing.
I remember playing in a match at Chesham years ago and the match was drawn. So the last pair went out again for a sudden death playoff. Their 18th is an uphill par 3 of nearly 250 yards. I caddied for our player and he was so up for it he grabbed a 3 iron and put through the back of the green - on the fly!! And he played off 16.
Monstrous.
 
How far do you hit your 7 iron with the S300. I average 170 and play stiff graphite shafts in my woods (Steel in 3 wood) and 3 iron.

Back to your question, all I can say is get down your local range and try out some different clubs with Regular / Stiff shafts an See what work bests.
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There's no way I'm anywhere near 114, doubt if I'm anywhere near 90-100 tbh ( which is why I'd like to try a lauch monitor, but without having any intention of buying I wouldn't know where to go )

Your 7I is nearest in loft to my 6I, which I can hit about 150-155. It's slowly getting better, but I'm not sure how much better that's going to get 'naturally' - It can be pretty straight on a good day, and with the new height I'm getting, I think I've got to settle for it for the time being.

I tried the range today ( back on the mend - wahoo [ definately on the skive for 18 holes next week if I can sneak it into the schedule ] ) and the only demo drivers they had was a Benross VTXtreme max (14*) in regular or a Nike SQ dymo2 9.5* in stiff. Not exactly like for like.

On good shots the Nike was good. But on bad shots it was terrible ( wicked, WICKED slice ). How much of that is down to the shaft, and how much to the loft ? ( assuming my crapness is constant ). The Benross didn't slice at all, but it did have a lovely tendency to snap hook or go VERY high. And I managed a few nasty snap hooks with the Nike as well.

Basically I haven't got a clue where to go from here.

:D
 
I had S300 shafts fitted to my Callaway X18 irons....way too stiff for me. Felt like I had girders in my hands.
I've seen you play Clive. Contrary to what you might think you have a very good, smooth swing. Lefties recent video taken at Highwoods proves it.
I am very surprised you are playing S300 shafts. I bet if you tried a regular shaft you would get on better with them. Your swing speed isn't high enough to get a stiff shaft working properly for you.
And as for the Benny? Yep, it does have a "stiff" shaft fitted to it, but I have the same shaft fitted to my Ping woods but in regular, and they actually feel stiffer than the Benny one does!!
 
When I mentioned the improvement in my irons recently he suggested that the S300 is actually quite an unstiff shaft by modern standards
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It may well be......if you had the swingspeed of a pro...
If you are looking for a forgiving driver for not too much money I could heartily recommend the Ping G10. With your swingspeed either fitted with the standard Ping TFC shaft in regular (nice high ball flight) or if you wanted to hit it a bit lower, the Grafalloy Prolaunch Red. 10.5 degrees would be good. They come up quite often on ebay and you can pick up a good second hand one for about £100.00 (I've just sold mine for this amount).
As I say, they are very very forgiving. You have to be putting a really terrible swing on them to get them to mis-behave. A draw model is also available, but unless you are plagued by a slice or fade (which I don't think you are) the standard club is fine. I tried a "draw" model once and was hitting big duck hooks with it, so I avoid them if I can. The standard model for me hits it straight or with a very slight draw. See if you can seek one out to have a bash with Clive.
 
I've got S300s coz JammieDodger is a damn good golfer :)

I know I have a slowish swingspeed but, given the amount of effort I can put in, I'm not unhappy with the way my swing is going.

A question for another day is how far can anyone improve their swingspeed over time, and how much are we stuck with what god gave us in her wisdom.

I appreciate these answers, and tbh I was wondering if it was worth giving the Benny another go, but maybe it's best to try and start getting some stuff that is suited to me, rather than me suiting what I've got to play with. What do you think ?

You mention the G10. What about the G5 ? Is that any good ? Is it just too old ?

And that shaft you mentioned Bob. What exactly are you suggesting I do with just a shaft, coz I can tell you now, I'm not that kind of chap.
 
You mention the G10. What about the G5 ? Is that any good ? Is it just too old ?
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Certainly not Clive. The G5 was (still is) a good club and the differences between that and the G10 were less than the G10 and the G15. A lot of people have the G5 and love it...and they are still available brand new at "silly" money.
By the way......I'm not criticising your golf swing one bit. Far from it....you have a very good swing. As I say, I'm just surprised that you are using a stiff shaft when your swingspeed is what I would term as "slow to medium" rather than "medium to fast". You really do need a fairly fast swingspeed to get a stiff shaft to load up and work properly. I'm a firm believer in playing with what you've got. If your natural tendency is for a slower swing, then buy the shaft to suit rather than alter your natural rythmn to suit the shaft.
We can all put a fast swing onto a club every now and then. Problem is, doing it on a regular basis, and if it doesn't come natural to you you it aint gonna happen!! All you end up with is a big lurch in all the wrong places...I talk from experience!!


;)

Edit: Just found this "ex-display" one for a good price..
http://www.jamgolf.com/uk/listing/8576
 
Dammit !

I've been working on that big lurch for weeks now !!

:p

Tbh I've been surprised at how well the 962s are working for me, and I understand that the shafts are definately part of the reason I'm so short with them. But they are straight enough, so I'm not as worried about needing that extra club ( or 2 ) as I was a few months ago.

But being short with them means I am going to have to have the best driver for me that I can get.

I'm thinking 10*-11* with a regular shaft, should do nicely for starters, then when my 'gigolo to the old dears' business takes off, I'll be able to afford a trip to New Malden.

:cool:
 
If it's of any use to you, I was once told by a pro that the driver should have the stiffest shaft of all your clubs.
 
I have stiff shafts in my wedges (S300s - flex makes no odds to me with short irons, and that is what they had in stock), regular in my irons and hybrid, and stiff in my woods and driver.

I used to have S300s in my irons and hybrid, but now have R300s. At my c/f session the fitter said I was on the border for the S300s, that I could go either way, and there would be no difference in terms of distance. From the evidence of the impact tape, I was getting a more consitent strike with the R300s, so we went with that.

With a driver, my swing speed is 96mph. Which again is borderline stiff. I could hit either, but the fitter thought stiff would be better.
 
If Smiffy can hit the Benny with his 46mph swing then I'm sure you'll be able to :D..... depends how much he wants for it though... £20?
 
CH: I dont think S300's will be doing you any favours at all if you think you have a slow tempo. I know I tried them when I got my AP2's and I didnt think they had any feel at all for me. My Driver swing speed is 100mph, smooth tempo usually.

If I were you, I wouldnt get hung up on 'swing' speed per se, it isnt just about swinging fast, its about control and tempo, and in actual fact, I think you can generate as much power in your shots thru the lateness of the wrist 'snap' than just swinging fast, if you know what I mean ?

A slow swing but with a late wrist release can still generate good clubhead speed and therefore distance, but with far more control perhaps than swinging fast.
The faster your swing, the harder it is for everything to be timed exactly right, and the more critical to have good technique ?

I settled on ProjectX 5.5, which I think is pretty much 'regular', and there is no way I would have stiff shafts in my irons.

Ideally, get to Ping or Titleist's Custom fitting centre, and see what they reccommend for you.

Hope that helps.
 
Ideally, get to Ping or Titleist's Custom fitting centre, and see what they reccommend for you.

Hope that helps.
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I'd love to.

But I'm in no position to be able to buy anything that way, so I don't feel that it'd be right, me just wasting their time.

:(
 
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