Matching driver shaft bend profile to irons?

Big_Mong · July 26

Anyone got any thoughts on matching driver shaft bend profile to your irons? I.e. taking a driver shaft that's close to your iron shafts (in my case, Modus 130 X) and attempting to recreate a similar, if not "identical" profile? Anyone tried it, or can see any merit in it?

Cheers

Johnny Biarritz · July 26

There can be merit in nearly anything with club fitting. It all depends on the player. So it would be worthwhile to either get fitted to see for sure what shaft works best with the driver or just experiment to see how a similar shaft feels. I feel like my shafts have been pretty similar, high bend points, forever.

Big_Mong · July 26

13 minutes ago, Johnny Biarritz said:

There can be merit in nearly anything with club fitting. It all depends on the player. So it would be worthwhile to either get fitted to see for sure what shaft works best with the driver or just experiment to see how a similar shaft feels. I feel like my shafts have been pretty similar, high bend points, forever.

Absolutely will get fitted, the iron fitting for the 130x was an absolute godsend. I'd been playing modus 120s previously (stock when I bought the irons) and the change was insane. Low bend points for me, I need the stiffness through the handle and mid or I lose the clubhead lol.

ShortGolfer · July 26

No. I can swing my irons with "surgical precision."

With my woods it is "swinging for the fences."

They are totally different swings. In order for me to swing my driver with any consistency I had to find a new swing that would allow for throwing the club at the ball as hard as I can.

I now have a driver swing with a rather complex setup that allows me to throw the club head at the ball at the very end of the swing. I needed to find a swing that matched my swing thought!

Edited July 26 by ShortGolfer

Stuart_G · July 26

2 hours ago, Big_Mong said:

Anyone got any thoughts on matching driver shaft bend profile to your irons? I.e. taking a driver shaft that's close to your iron shafts (in my case, Modus 130 X) and attempting to recreate a similar, if not "identical" profile? Anyone tried it, or can see any merit in it?

Cheers

No.

That's because they are designed for very different head weights and playing lengths - so

1) you wont be able to actually find two from each category that really do match.

and

2) even if you could find a match - they wouldn't even come close to feeling similar. If you tried to put a shaft in your driver that matched your iron shaft, it would feel like rebar.

And those two things don't even consider possible differences in the swings, mechanics, or thoughts.

Some people think matching just the shape of the EI profile will get you close enough - but the shape is actually is meaningless. It's the actual values that matter.

Edited July 26 by Stuart_G

phizzy30 · July 26

I do it all the time although it doesn't always work. I have MMT in irons which are classic whiteboard/DG profile where it's mid and tip stiff with a softer handle. Had the AD VF for driver which is the same profile but now in a Diamana BB which is med from tip to grip, technically making it linear on paper, however, it has a bit of bend/load in the mid. 3 metal shaft has a med tip then gradually gets stiffer up the mid then gets really stiff in the handle. Hybrid is a Ventus black HB which is a totally different EI profile. Wedges are pretty much the same EI profile as my 3 metal with slight tweaks. I've cycled through countless shafts over the years through trial and error and testing in general and have always managed to find shafts that fit me.

Edited July 27 by phizzy30

3step · July 26

We apply similar forces onto the golf shaft with all our full swings. Thus, matching shaft profiles on all your clubs is a perfect place to start your shaft selection journey. It is not 100%. However, in the thousands of golfers I have fit over the years, there is a definite commonality of profiles in irons and woods.

This is for one reason- we apply similar forces onto the golf shaft with all of our full swings.

You found an iron shaft model that works well for your swing which has a stiffer butt and mid-section, and softer tip section. If you look at your driver shaft choice from the opposite perspective- should you purchase a driver shaft with a softer butt and mid section and stiff tip section? Hardly! You could try dozens of shaft models and weights and flexes like this, and adjust your head and build specs in every conceivable manner, and you would wind up wasting a lot of money and time, and have a frustrating driver experience.

Instead - think about your driver shaft in terms of a stiffer butt and mid-section and softer tip, and start there. Of course, you need the right head, loft, length, shaft weight, shaft flex, etc, but if you understand that we all apply similar forces to the golf shaft on our full swings, you will get to a happy driver place.

3step