Captain vs Vice-Captain
The season has now officially started!!! The weather played nice for the first event of the season and this year the Captain's team was victorious with a score of 12.5-8.5! Well done to all that played. I am sure a lot of you woke up on Sunday morning worse for wear. The grudge match between David Sandison and Ron Walker vs Neil Ballingall and Bruce Reid was a tight one, finishing all square with a superb putt from 15 feet for the half from Neil! If it wasn't for the red wine he would have missed it!
As most of you will be aware I went for a fitting to St. Andrews Links Driving Range for the new Callaway Equipment. Having been a TaylorMade player for the past year, I decided to make the move to the bright side, with Callaway making great equipment and the best fitting facilities around it was a no brainer to join Ron. I decided I wanted to get fitted for a driver, irons and wedges. Please read on to find out about my experience and what I have ended up with.
Driver Fit
My current driver was a TaylorMade SLDR 13 degrees of loft with a (6.5) X-Stiff Project X Shaft. This driver was good and Martin Jones who was conducting the fitting even admitted it would be difficult to beat. It's with great pleasure that they did and with ease! The technology that they use is called TrackMan. TrackMan gathers data from impact and provides data such as how fast your club is moving all the way to how high you have launched the ball. The most important numbers for a driver fitting are the clubhead speed, ball speed (how fast the golf ball is moving off the clubface at impact), launch angle and spin rate.
The picture here displays my SLDR in blue and the Callaway V Series 11 degrees of loft with a Diamana D+ Whiteboard X Stiff driver in green. With the correct head and shaft combination I managed to reach 110mph clubhead speed which was 4 mph more than the SLDR. This is a great improvement however it is the next component that decides whether I would hit it further. Ball Speed - every mph of ball speed can equate to two yards further. As shown I gained a massive 6 mph to 166.7.
I don't mean to float my own boat but the average ball speed on the PGA tour is 167mph. Due to the slightly increased spin rate of the Callaway driver, my carry distance was 14 yards further!!!! That is massive, with a total distance of 308 yards. A total distance gained of 8 yards! This might not sound like a big distance gain but having the ability to carry the golf ball further is a big advantage.
I must reiterate I did not try to hit the golf ball harder, the gains with the new driver were simply down to having the best combination for my game.
Iron Fit
My current irons were TaylorMade Tour Preffered CB 4-PW with Dynamic Gold XP X100 shafts. Fitted for Callaway Apex Pro 4-PW with KBS C-Taper X-stiff shafts.
The picture below displays three different iron shots: white being my TaylorMade 6-iron showing that it was decent; the yellow golf balls were a light KBS stiff shaft (grouping was a bit wayward due to the lightness of the shaft which felt uncomfortable); and the KBS C-Taper 6-iron in purple with much better dispersion and a bit more distance. For me as a player, accuracy is the most important part of iron play therefore I was pleased that the new iron increased my chances of hitting a green or two.
An iron fit is where you as the player must like the feel of the iron you are being fitted for and like the look of the club. Why play with something you don't like looking at? It would only make you play worse, so bear that in mind if you go for a fitting. The fitter should ask how it feels and how it looks to you.
My new equipment for this year will consist of:
Callaway V-Series 11 degree driver with a Diamana D+ Whiteboard X-Stiff shaft
No 3-wood at this moment
Callaway Apex Utility 21 degree with KBS C-Taper X-Stiff shaft
Callaway Apex Pro 4-PW with KBS C-Taper X-Stiff shafts
Callaway Mack Daddy Tour Grind Wedges 50 Degree, 54 Degree and 58 Degree
Odyssey 2 Ball
All in all I very much enjoyed my time at the fitting centre, I would recommend it to everyone! No matter you age or ability there will be a club that is right for you. If you are interested in having a similar experience then come and speak to us in store or get in touch here for a fitting.
