Can You Fit to Correct?

A challenge in clubfitting is how much can be done to alleviate the effects of a swing fault. Golfers think of swing faults mainly in terms of woods and irons, but the same considerations also apply to wedges and putters. Many golfers consider getting new clubs to help correct problems in their swing, but it's a two-way street in terms of the performance they achieve. 

Clubfitting is an essential part of your swing improvement plan. Problems that should always be alleviated through clubfitting are: clubhead design, shaft properties (flex/stiffness distribution, torque, balance), length, weight, swingweight, and grip size to name a few characteristics that affect your ability to play to your potential.

Swing faults can develop because one or more of these specifications don't work for you -- length is a classic example. A club that's too long can cause you to develop problems at address leading to undesirable compensations in your swing. Getting the right length goes a long way to fixing problems.

However, swing faults that result directly from range-of-motion restrictions or stability issues need additional approaches. You really need to understand and fix the underlying cause before any club will give the performance built into it.

Correcting the effects of a slice with your driver, for example, by using a clubhead with an excessively closed face angle will not fix the underlying range-of-motion or technique problem that causes the slice. Accuracy can improve but you will still not get the distance your speed potential would allow. Clubfitting can give you a driver set up to minimize the club properties that enhance a slice, but the biomechanics problem that causes a slice needs additional approaches.

These considerations extend to putter fitting as well. If you have an inefficient address position, a vision problem, or a problematic stroke technique, then fixing your address and stroke mechanics may be more important than anything else you can do to develop consistency and accuracy. 

Bottom line: effective range-of-motion and good technique go hand-in-hand with properly fit clubs to give best performance in your game. You progress faster by taking a comprehensive approach.