Club Speed = Distance

The key to distance is clubhead speed. Higher clubhead speed equals greater distance. It's the most important goal for clubfitting, lessons, and fitness training. Accuracy is important and consistency is important -- you definitely need them to score low, but you don't play golf thinking about how to lay up. You think first about how far you can hit the ball. 

Every choice for shaft properties (stiffness, torque, weight, length, balance) and clubhead design (shape, weight distribution, club face flex) should be made to optimize club speed. Brand preferences and exotic design features only matter for performance if they yield more clubhead speed. 

The effectiveness of fitness and range-of-motion training should be evaluated by measuring clubhead speed and distance gained. In golf, rotational power is more important than linear power -- the speed of rotation is more important than the speed of lifting. The muscles you train and how you train them need to be customized for each golfer if the goal is increasing clubhead speed -- and distance. 

The key goal of golf lessons should be learning how to achieve increased distance and better accuracy with every club in the bag. The two go together. Better technique needs to deliver more distance. If you are learning the game, learn how to swing fast and practice techniques that help you do it. 

We question any strategy aimed at swinging a club slowly. We question any "deliberate practice" advice that doesn't increase clubhead speed. When we walk onto the first tee of our favorite golf course with driver in hand, our first thoughts are focused on gearing up every part of our swing technique to hit the ball as far as we can. It's why we train for speed.

Club Acceleration Fitting

FLIGHTSCOPE FITTING with JTCLUBS

CLUB ACCELERATION PROFILES

The Acceleration Profile, like the Speed Profile (described in a previous blog), generated by the FlightScope launch monitor software is another unique tool for analyzing the path of the clubhead as it approaches impact. We find it a useful tool in clubfitting and in understanding your swing mechanics. 

The FlightScope launch monitor works by beaming radar at the club during the swing (and the ball during flight). Reflections back to the launch monitor allow measurement of the Doppler effect (think of a high speed train passing you at the station and the sound changes frequency as the train moves away from you -- that's the Doppler effect). It allows the launch monitor to detect the speed of the clubhead and whether it's accelerating or decelerating as it reaches impact.

Driver clubhead acceleration profiles (panels B, D, F, H) and speed profiles (panels A, C, E, G) are shown above selected from our Flightscope launch monitor sessions with four mid-handicap golfers. Several driver shots were hit by each golfer with various combinations of shafts and clubheads. For each golfer, a unique shaft/clubhead combination was identified that facilitated a repeatable swing as indicated by superimposed curves in each panel. 

One golfer (panels A, B) shows a relatively straight clubhead acceleration profile (panel B) indicating a nearly linear deceleration into impact. It's consistent with golfer A/B generating maximum clubhead speed (panel A) as the club swings into the ball at impact. The shaft and clubhead are an excellent match to the golfer's swing.

Other golfers in this group generate acceleration profiles that reach a fully decelerated minimum (bottom of curve) then the clubhead accelerating again into impact. Inflections are seen in the speed curve (panel G) that correspond to the fishhook-like change in the acceleration curve (panel H). These findings suggest movement of the clubhead due to shaft instability or irregular hand/wrist movement. 

Shot dispersion differences (shown above) are among key launch monitor data that correlate with acceleration and speed profile changes. The data show shot cluster area is associated with the performance of each shaft; the size and shape indicate shot consistency, and the position of the ellipse on the figure indicates overall accuracy. 

The data in the above figure shows the results when golfer A/B hit more than a dozen balls with his driver. The landing area shot cluster (left panel) is much smaller than for the half dozen balls hit by golfer G/H (right panel). Golfer A/B can expect greater consistency and accuracy with his driver than golfer G/H can achieve with his current shaft/clubhead combination. 

For golfers of all abilities, our data show that optimizing the fit of a shaft to a player's swing mechanics improves shot dispersion results. Speed and acceleration curves show that shot dispersion is a direct result of clubhead movement that correlates with shaft instability as the clubhead approaches impact. Additional data that we'll describe in a future blog reveal the swing mechanics associated with club instability.

Speed Profile Fitting

FLIGHTSCOPE FITTING with JTCLUBS

SPEED PROFILES

The Speed Profile generated by the FlightScope launch monitor software is a unique tool for determining if a golf club is stable in your hands as the clubhead approaches impact. We have not seen this feature implemented on any other launch monitor. We find it a go-to tool in shaft fitting, and we think it shows something about your swing mechanics.

The FlightScope launch monitor works by beaming radar at the club during the swing (and the ball during flight). Reflections back to the launch monitor allow for quantitation of the Doppler effect (think of a high speed train passing you at the station and the sound changes frequency as the train moves away from you -- that's the Doppler effect). It's how the launch monitor measures clubhead and ball velocity, etc.

For clubfitting the evidence is clear. A club that is stable in your hands will allow you to execute a more repeatable swing. The speed profile is a great way to show club stability. It's what we see in our clubfitting with both irons and woods, and we use the speed curve to help identify the best shaft for any player. Here is an example of a stable club with a shaft that matches well with a player's swing.

Shown above are the raw data from one of our clubfitting sessions. The data reveals the changing speed of a clubhead through a distance of about 3 feet prior to impact. The speed profiles of six swings are almost indistinguishable in this graph, indicating a repeatable swing. Most of us would be happy with this swing and this club.

Shown below are the raw data from the same player hitting the same clubhead but with a different shaft. The speed profiles of several swings are shown. Launch monitor data indicates a similar clubhead speed for the two shafts. We are isolating the effects of two different shafts here on club performance.

The above graphs are a measure of the speed of the clubhead as it approaches impact. If the clubhead wiggles, the speed curve shows an inflection, or as we sometimes call it, a squiggle. There are two causes for clubhead wiggles prior to impact: an unstable shaft and hand/wrist movement. We see it with Iron Shaft B. Use a shaft that fits the swing better and you get the results in Iron Shaft A. The differences in speed curve profiles translate into shot dispersion (accuracy).

The shaft interacts with swing mechanics. A stable shaft is easier to control and facilitates reproducible swings -- their speed profiles are nearly superimposable. An unstable shaft (shaft B) is more difficult for a player to control. There is less consistency in delivering the center of the clubface to the ball -- the speed profiles lack repeatability. Shaft stability contributes to squiggles at the top of the curve: an unstable shaft generally has greater squiggle variations.

We show results with irons to make the point that speed curve fitting applies to any club, not just your driver. You need to use a FlightScope launch monitor in real time for this analysis.

A couple more points. Iron Shaft A is graphite and Iron Shaft B is steel -- we always recommend fitting for feel, performance, and quality not materials and brands. We generated this data with a player having a low single digit handicap who plays tournament golf. We see similar resuts with players having a wide range of skill levels. Let us know how we can help you.

Play a Different Driver

Most golfers benefit from playing a different driver set-up than what they currently have in the bag. Here's why. There are several design problems that characterize the popular designs available in retail shops and pro shops. First and foremost, driver length is an easy target for scrutiny and for optimizing.

The basic problem is that longer drivers are more difficult to hit consistently in the center of the club face; and that is where you need to contact the ball to get maximum performance from the club. Most golfers understand this point but it's difficult to overcome sophisticated marketing. Driver fitting with impact tape or spray would help with your buying your decision but don't expect to find it at your retailer or demo day.

A longer driver also requires more effort to swing than a shorter driver. A longer driver makes it more difficult to execute efficient swing mechanics. These are two key points that are usually overlooked, but it you fix these problems then center face contact gets easier.

A shorter driver helps you get into an effective address position. We find many players start their swing with significant deficiencies in their takeaway and backswing that can be fixed dramatically by switching to a shorter club. If you hit your 3-wood nearly as far as your driver, then you know what we mean here -- you are a candidate for a shorter length driver.

A shorter driver makes it easier to maintain your posture during the swing. It's partly because the lower MOI of a shorter driver allows you to have greater control over the club -- and your body -- in the transition from backswing to downswing and in the downswing through impact. Swinging a high MOI driver at full speed will tend to destabilize your lower body and your upper body leading to an excessively arm-dominated movement pattern costing you accuracy and distance. We see it with the K-Vest and the launch monitor.

A shorter driver allows you to improve your angle of attack, reduce ball spin, and achieve an ideal launch angle to maximize distance. Surprisingly, players often achieve higher swing speeds because the new club is easier to control and hit the ball in the best spot on the clubface. A lower MOI club requires less effort to swing: you swing it faster. You can see it with the launch monitor and prove it on the course. 

Bottom line is that short-length drivers allow you to execute your most effective swing mechanics. You can swing through the ball at impact while remaining in balance and shifting weight onto your lead side. It's easier to rotate fully through impact and transfer maximum power from hip rotation into the upper body and club. It's the best antidote to the chicken-wing swing fault that you can use. 

We find that players acquire a better game much faster with a driver properly fit for length. If you are making a serious effort to improve your game, we suggest starting with a new driver built to our short-length specifications. Or, cut your driver down and re-balance it with swingweighting and counterweighting. There's a lot to be said for hitting long and in the fairway, and trying a truly different driver might be your best first step.

What is Shaft Stiffness?

Identifying the right shaft for your swing is important. It's a major goal of clubfitting. Focusing on finding the optimum shaft stiffness bending profile, weight, torque, and deflection properties that match your unique mechanics is essential for allowing efficient transfer of swing energy to the club. 

Our clubfitting technologies reveal that the distribution of stiffness through the length of the shaft is the most important property for maximizing your club's performance. There are many methods for measuring shaft stiffness, but we find the EI profile (a function of shaft wall elasticity and shaft local moment of inertia) is most informative.

In this method, the shaft is placed on two supports and a weight is lowered onto a point midway between the supports. A strain gauge measures the shaft's resistance to the weight, and the measurement is made at one-inch intervals along the shaft's length. The data is analyzed and graphed to show how stiffness varies in the tip, mid, and butt sections of the shaft.

The above figure shows the stiffness distribution profiles of four different premium shafts produced by a major manufacturer. Each shaft is classified as regular flex by conventional methods, and it's consistent with the similar stiffness data at the grip end (butt) of the shafts. The same tip stiffness is measured for three shafts (albeit 6 inches from the actual tip due to the limits of the measuring equipment). 

The stiffness distribution of these shafts is dramatically different in the distal region between the mid and tip sections. The shaft illustrated by the red line is much stiffer in the distal region than the other shafts and it would be expected to load differently in the swing. 

We know from deflection measurements that the stiffness measured in the mid region is reflected back towards the grip end (and forward to the tip). And we know from launch monitor fitting and player feedback that stiffness profiles affect performance (think distance and accuracy).

We now return to our original question: what is shaft stiffness? Feel and flex are common answers, but our goal in fitting is to link stiffness to performance and how a shaft responds to the way you swing a club. Drivers, fairway woods, irons, and wedges all have their unique requirements to achieve maximum performance effects.

Matching the optimum stiffness profile to your swing mechanics is critical to your ability to generate full power from your swing. We recommend working with a custom clubfitter who understands the technology and can take the time to get it right for your game.

Fitting for shaft stiffness should be more than just matching the numbers to charts and lookup tables. It should be about understanding the equipment you need to play better golf. A smooth swing needs a different shaft stiffness profile and club MOI than a quick powerful swing when the clubhead speed through impact is the same for both players.