Body Anchored Putter: USGA and R&A Putter Ban in Effect

From the desk of Tom Wishon:

Those who follow the doings of the golf equipment industry with interest are aware that on May 21, the USGA and the R&A officially announced their decision to ban the anchoring of putters to the body. The decision was made despite the publicly stated opposition of the PGA of America and the PGA Tour to the ban, as well in the absence of any facts which prove the use of a body anchored putter automatically enables a golfer to make more putts.

Body anchored putters have been in play for more than 30 years. Up until 2011 you could count the number of tournaments on one hand that were won by playing professionals using such putters. Of the 700 or so tournaments played on the PGA Tour
between the advent of the body anchored putter and 2011, fewer than 1% were won by pros using a body anchored putter. If one wants to say using a particular type of putter automatically results in better putting, these statistics could be used to say that the pros who used conventional putters during this time had the advantage. After all, over 99% of all the tournaments won between the advent of the body anchored putter and 2011 were won by pros using a conventional putter.

But in 2011 and 2012, 11 tournaments were won by pros using a body anchored putter. Did this all of a sudden prove that the use of a body anchored putter brought an automatic improvement in putting? Perhaps the USGA thought so. On the other hand, the reason for the sudden increase in wins by pros using the Belly or Broomstick style putters is more likely explained by the fact that a much greater number of more pros chose to use this type of a putter so the percentage of their wins simply increased because of statistics.

Even as the use of body anchored putters increased, far more tournaments have been won by pros using a conventional putter. So after 30 years of use of these putters, why did the USGA all of a sudden decide they needed to define that the putting stroke has to be executed with the grip end of the putter free from the middle of the body? After all, the game has been played for 500 yrs without any need to define how one should swing a club. Could it be that among the small number of individuals who decide what the rules of the game will be, a majority simply felt the body anchored putters “look bad” and represent in their opinion a break from one of the traditions of the game?

Rules that relate either directly or indirectly to golf clubs need to be made on the basis of whether the equipment automatically replaces the skill required to play the game for all golfers. Golf balls most definitely can be made so they can be hit significantly farther so we do need to put a limit on the ball. Driver faces could be made so they allow each golfer to automatically achieve a 3-4% increase in distance, so putting a limit on the COR of the face is able to be justified.

But a body anchored putter in no way allows every golfer to make more putts. It is simply a different type of putter. Just like there are golfers who hit the ball better with a 44” driver vs one of 46”, or golfers who gain more on center hit consistency from a D4
swingweight than a D1, or a golfer who hits the ball better with this shaft vs that one, or any other use of different clubs, there are simply some golfers who feel they putt better with a body anchored putter while there are many more who do not. At the risk of being labeled an anti-traditionalist, with my 40 yrs of experience in golf equipment research and design, the recent USGA decision to ban the anchoring of the putter to the body is a capricious and arbitrary decision made on the basis of emotion rather than science and statistics. Thanks USGA, you now have another poor decision to add to your previous rulings to change scorelines, and to restrict the size and length of golf clubs which will do nothing to help the game.

Ping, Titleist, Nike Covert, and Taylormade adjustable drivers...shocking truth:

http://wishongolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/adjustable-hosel-drivers.pdf

What really does control accuracy in a driver?

There always seem to be questions from golfers asking what driver is more accurate/straighter. It is evident that a number of golfers believe that driver accuracy is a product of the design technology of the driver head itself – as if to say this Brand and that Model of driver is straighter so if you buy it you will hit the ball straighter. The only driver club HEAD specifications that have anything to do with accuracy are Face Angle (huge effect), the Lie Angle (small effect), the toe/heel weighting (small effect that really only works for GOOD golfers) and the MOI of the driver head about the axis of the hosel bore (tiny effect, one to forget about). But these four clubhead elements are not really “design characteristics” unique to any company’s design technology – they can be had on some companies' driver head designs that offer a wide range of fitting options. Accuracy is chiefly a factor of the face angle plus a number of other assembly specifications of the driver and how they all FIT the golfer’s swing characteristics. Distance and Forgiveness? Sure, those performance elements can be designed to be a little different from driver head design to driver head design. So when you are asking who has the longest / most forgiving driver, you can talk a little about the brand and model – but keep in mind as well that maxing out your distance and improveing shot consistency are also a HUGE part of fitting. Without question the Clubfitting factors that control driver accuracy do not all have the same importance to accuracy. ALL OF THEM can work differently for different golfers, depending on each golfer’s specific swing characteristics. What brings about better accuracy in a driver for one golfer may or may not do that for another golfer because of differences in each golfer's swing that causes each golfer’s accuracy issues to begin with. This is why you cannot say "go try this driver or that shaft and you'll hit it straighter because it worked for me." What works for you probably has nothing to do with what will be best for any other golfer because your swing is different than other golfers' swings. That's why fitting is SO IMPORTANT to ensure each golfer can play to the best of their ability. One other thing before I explain driver accuracy. When a golfer buys/borrows a new driver and immediately achieves better accuracy with that driver, it is because one or more of the following accuracy elements happens to fit the golfer’s swing better than did those same elements in the previous driver. It isn’t just because of the brand or the model name of the driver. Following are the specifications which control accuracy RANKED IN ORDER OF IMPORTANCE TO ACCURACY. Some golfers, depending on their swing or sense of feel, might find one or more of these more important than others. Main point, for the majority of golfers, this is the order of importance for driver accuracy. Get all these from #1 to #7 fit correctly to YOUR size, strength, athletic ability and swing characteristics and you will hit the ball as accurately as possible. 1.Face Angle 2.Length 3.Swingweight (MOI of the Assembled Club) 4.Shaft Weight / Total Weight 5.Shaft Flex/Shaft Bend Profile 6.Toe or Heel Weighting (Fade/Draw Bias Weighting) 7.Lie Angle 8.MOI of the Driver head about the Hosel Bore If you want to stop now to keep your reading short, you can do so. If you want an explanation of each of the above accuracy factors and how they all can be fit to help you achieve the best accuracy possible, then I welcome you to read on. 1.Face Angle Face Angle has the most effect on driver accuracy because it is a degree for degree correction for the swing path and/or face angle delivery of the golfer that causes the predominant misdirection problem. For each 1 degree CHANGE in the face angle from the face angle the golfer used previously, the ball flight moves 4 to 5 yards sideways based on a carry distance of 200 yds. For example, a golfer with a swing speed of 85-90mph who slices the ball on average 25 yards left to right who changes from a 0* square face angle to a 3* closed face angle will see his average slice reduce to 10-13 yards. The higher the swing speed, the more the misdirection correction for each degree of face angle change. Face Angle is THE #1 game improvement factor for accuracy with the driver and fairway woods. 1.Length TWGT has done a serious engineering study of the effect of driver length on the golfer and the golf swing. There is no question, the longer the length of the driver, the higher the load and the more stress the club puts on the golfer and certain specific swing movements. In short, longer driver lengths cause the swing to break down sooner and more dramatically. The more the golfer fights the following swing issues – over the top, outside in path, earlier release, quick tempo – the more that a longer driver length in excess of 44” can make these swing problems worse as well as much more difficult to correct. The more that a golfer has these following swing characteristics – inside out to square path, later to very late release, smoother controlled tempo – the more they COULD use a driver length of 45 to 46” and have decent results. I say COULD, not SHOULD. The reason is because for ALL but a very small number of golfers, the longer the length, the higher the percentage of off center hits. And when you hit the ball off center, you lose ball speed and you can lose accuracy as well. Perhaps the most common sense and compelling proof of the matter of driver length vs control and accuracy is the fact that for many years, the average driver length on the PGA Tour has been 44.5” and not the 45.5 to 46.5” that is standard on virtually every OEM driver made and sold off the rack to male golfers. The PGA Tour represents some of the best golf swings and best golf athletes on the planet. If THEY feel they need a shorter length to maintain control with their skill level, what does that say about all the regular golfers from low single digit on up to achieve the best driver results with a driver bought off the rack with a longer length? Seriously guys, these driver lengths sold off the rack are not doing anything good for 98% of all golfers. 1.Swingweight (MOI of the Assembled Club) All golfers have their own unique makeup of strength, athleticism, and most important, their own SWING TEMPO, TIMING, RHYTHM. Give a golfer a club that feels too light in the headweight feel for their swing tempo/timing/rhythm and their tendency will be to get MORE QUICK, to fight their tempo, to bring out more of an “over the top” swing error. If any of these happen because the headweight feel is too light for the golfer, accuracy will most certainly suffer. There is most definitely a headweight feel that will allow each golfer to swing with more consistency and with more comfort so they feel they are not fighting their swing tempo or laboring to swing the club. Most golfers reference a headweight feel in a club by its SWINGWEIGHT. However, one specific swingweight is not going to deliver the same headweight feel in all combinations of driver length, grip weight and shaft weight. In other words, D2 at 45” with a 70g shaft and 50g grip does NOT deliver the same headweight feel as D2 at 44” with a 55g shaft. Some clubmakers use the MOI of the fully assembled club to deliver the same overall swing feel in a golf club at different combinations of length, grip weight and shaft weight. If swingweight is used, the golfer has to be aware that as he changes the length, grip weight and shaft weight in his driver, he may have to experiment with different swingweights before arriving at the one that allows HIM to achieve the most consistency and comfort so they feel they are not fighting their swing tempo or laboring to swing the club. 1.Shaft Weight / Total Weight The weight of the shaft controls the total weight of the golf club more than any other component. Shaft weight/total weight acts in combination with the headweight to deliver the overall weight FEEL to the golfer. And, like swingweight, the total weight is also an important element to be fit to each golfer’s unique makeup of strength, athleticism, and most important, their own SWING TEMPO, TIMING, RHYTHM. However, for MOST golfers, changes in the swingweight (headweight feel) are noticed more than changes in the total weight. Of course, if the golfer changes from a 120 gram steel shaft to a 75 gram graphite shaft, they will notice the total weight change from that shaft weight change. But if the golfer changes from a 65g shaft to a 55g shaft, or changes shaft weight by 15g or less, not all golfers will notice that effect on their swing tempo and timing and rhythm. Shaft weight/total weight IS important to fit golfers with the best overall weight feel to help contribute to a more consistent swing tempo and better accuracy. But you can be off in the total weight a little with a golfer and as long as the swingweight (headweight feel) is right for that golfer’s swing tempo/timing, his accuracy will be good. But mess up the swingweight (headweight feel) and you will see some severe problems with accuracy and off center hit frequency. 1.Shaft Flex / Shaft Bend Profile It is true for SOME golfers, definitely not all and definitely not the majority, that a shaft that is too flexible for their swing can promote more of a draw and a shaft that is too stiff can promote more of a push or fade. But in no way does this happen for the majority of golfers nor does it cause a severe hook or slice. If a golfers has experienced a definite hook or slice from a change in the shaft flex/bend profile, most of the time it was something else that changed along with the shaft change that brought about the dramatic hook or slice. Most likely culprit is the swingweight (headweight feel) or possibly the combination of swingweight and total weight that changed when the golfer changed shafts. However, it is possible for some golfers who have a very refined sense of feel for the bending action of the shaft to suffer a definite accuracy problem from a shaft flex/bend profile change. For such golfers, when they feel the shaft bending more than they want, their reaction can cause swing mistakes which result in the more severe accuracy problem. Likewise, when a golfer with an extreme sense of bending feel uses a shaft that is too stiff, a typical reaction is to swing harder to make the shaft bend more and achieve the feel they prefer. And that too brings about swing errors that can result in an accuracy problem. In both cases, the golfer blames the shaft flex for the accuracy problem. In reality it is the golfer’s own reaction to the less favorable flex feel, sometimes conscious, sometimes sub-conscious, which brings about the swing errors that result in the accuracy loss. Bottom line? Always fit the shaft so the flex and bend profile are well matched to the golfer’s swing AND sense of feel and the shaft cannot be a problem for accuracy. 1.Toe or Heel Weighting (Fade Bias or Draw Bias Weighting) It was in Cochran & Stobbs’ milestone 1968 book that the concept was first introduced that adding weight to the heel could enhance a draw ball flight. Along with the late Elmore Just of Louisville Golf Company, in 1987 Elmore and Tom Wishon designed and built a laminated maple driver head with weight in the heel to test this concept. Later in 1995 Wishon had the chance to design an aluminum body driver with weight in the heel to further test the concept. Both these driver heads were the first commercially developed wooden and then metal Draw Bias weighted driver heads. Long story short, they found from all their work that it takes more than 25 grams of the head’s total mass to be positioned deep in the heel to even begin to see the ball draw. At 40 grams or more, the heel located weight has now pulled the center of gravity far enough off the center of the face toward the heel so that if the golfer hits the ball dead center on the face, ball speed is lost and with it, distance is lost. Bottom line? None of the OEM drivers that allow weight movement from heel to toe allow you to move more than 25 grams from one side of the head to the other. Draw Bias or Fade Bias (DB / FB) weighting is good for really good ball strikers to tweak their ball flight so as to encourage a slight draw or fade or to reduce a nagging draw or fade without having to manipulate their path or face angle. But Draw Bias or Fade Bias weighting is NOT for correcting a slice or a hook because it cannot affect the curvature of the ball anywhere near as much as can a Face Angle change. DB or FB work by moving the CG off the center of the face so that an on center hit now causes the head to twist a little, and in so doing generate a small gear effect to slightly tilt the axis of backspin rotation of the shot. Face Angle is a degree for degree correction of how many degrees the swing path and/or delivery of the face by the golfer has caused the face to be open at impact. If you have a very consistent delivery of the club to the ball and you want to slightly tweak the shape of your shot, use 25 to 30 grams of the head’s weight in the heel (draw) or toe (fade) and you will get that very slight ball flight shape change. If you slice or hook the ball, use a substantially different face angle along with a shorter driver length. 1.Lie Angle Lie angle is much more of an accuracy factor as loft increases in the set. While having the perfect lie for YOUR swing is important for every club in the bag, it is much more critical for accuracy in the mid to short irons and wedges than it is with the driver. Yes, it can be said that the smaller misdirection angle of an ill fit driver lie is magnified by the greater distance you hit the driver. But in testing, an ill fit lie angle doesn’t result in nearly as much of an accuracy problem with the driver as it does with the clubs that have much more loft. One big reason is because the acceptable target area for accuracy success with the driver is MUCH WIDER than it is with the irons. Most fairways are far wider than most greens.But it is also true if the driver if off by 4* of lie and the 9 iron is off by 4* lie for the golfer, the combination of the much greater misdirection angle of the off lie 9 iron with the much greater spin of the 9 iron contributes to that shot flying much farther off line at its shorter distance than the driver at its greater distance. Bottom line? If you’re much shorter than average and you see the toe of the driver sticking way up at impact, do hunt for a flatter lie driver or a driver that can be adjusted for a much flatter lie. Everyone else? Don’t worry about driver lie because any possible misdirection problems in the driver can usually be offset by a different face angle. In a world where bending titanium drivers to custom fit the lie is nigh on impossible, that’s the best advice I have for driver lie. 1. MOI of the Driver Head About the Hosel Bore This one’s a real yawner. Not only is its explanation complicated and boring, but it just is not a factor in accuracy fitting with drivers today. Some people like to say that the higher this MOI, the more difficult it is for the golfer to rotate the face back around to be square at impact. And so if this MOI is real high in a driver, a golfer could start slicing the ball because they can’t rotate the face back around to square at impact. Doesn’t really happen that way. For one, almost ALL drivers today have the same MOI about the hosel bore axis. 98% of all drivers today are between 440-460cc with very, very little variation in how far the Center of Gravity is from the center of the hosel bore. And that’s the parameter that determines just how high or low this MOI about the hosel bore axis is. Bottom Line? If you slice the ball, you can hunt for a sub-400cc driver to try to get this MOI Lower to help. But rather than do that, just go get fit for a driver that is shorter and has a face angle that is more closed than the face angle on your present driver. Do that and you will have done FAR MORE to reduce your slice than even a 200cc driver could do from its lower MOI about the hosel bore axis. Golfers, do all these things I just outlined and you will hit the ball as straight as your swing can allow. Better yet? Go find a good, competent, experienced custom Clubmaker who is schooled in all these things and let HIM do it for you in a fitting and custom driver for YOU and YOUR SWING.

Wishon: The way golf clubs are being sold has harmed golf.

By Tom Wishon GolfWRX Contributor Tom Wishon served as Vice President of GolfWorks from 1980 to 1986. From 1986 to 1993, he was president of Dynacraft Golf Products, and from 1993 to 2002 he was Vice President and Chief Technical Officer for Golfsmith International. Wishon started his own company, Tom Wishon Golf Technology, in 2003. I read with great interest the article by Kevin Crook, The Focus on Equipment has Hurt Golf, in which he basically said it’s almost a waste of time to go buy new golf clubs because you have no way of knowing if what you buy is going to help or harm your ability to play the game. The main thing I took away from Kevin’s article is that he is yet one more confused and frustrated victim of the longtime business model of the golf equipment industry. If anything from the golf equipment industry has harmed golf, it is the way that golf clubs are being sold to golfers in a market that is fiercely competitive for sales. Many golf club companies exist to sell their clubs to millions of golfers through thousands of retail golf outlets and websites. The top-5 golf equipment manufacturers now control about 80 percent of the premium golf equipment market with combined annual revenues north of $3 billion. Four out of five of these companies are publicly traded, each with the accompanying pressures from shareholders and financial institutions to grow in revenue, profits and stock price. The only way large golf companies can sell the volume of clubs they must to meet forecasts and satisfy shareholders and executives is to pre-build their clubs to a series of standard specifications so they can be shipped to the thousands of retailers to be put on display and sold off the rack. Demand is driven by massive marketing campaigns that promise improvement and an increase in status upon buying the clubs. Credibility is established by paying professional golfers to play their equipment. After three decades of such fierce competition, the golf equipment industry has become a commodity business. Most retailers are selling the same exact products, so consumers hunt for the best price. Retailers have to discount to get the sale, which results in them making less profit. Making less profit means they do not have the money to hire and retain quality sales people. And retailers can’t afford to allow the sales staff to take more than a few minutes to make each sale, because making money requires that they sell a high volume of products. This is precisely what Kevin has encountered in his frustration with trying to do nothing more than to find the best golf equipment with which to play and enjoy this great game. He’s frustrated because he believes that whoever sells him his clubs should really know what they are doing. Unfortunately, the shortcomings in the current golf equipment business model means the people selling him his clubs do not know much more about golf clubs than he does, and may actually know less. Launch monitors are placed in golf retail outlets to give golfers the impression they are being properly fit for their clubs. Yet little to no training exists to teach sales people how to properly turn the outputs of the launch monitors into the best prescription for clubs for the golfer. Retailers also have inventory to worry about, so it is very common for them to pay a “spiff” to their sales staff to get them to make more of an effort to sell what they need to get rid of. Add to that the effects of the fierce competition among the golf equipment companies. At the wholesale level, it has resulted in drivers and woods that are far too long for the vast majority of golfers to ever hit consistently, which may or may not actually have the loft that is imprinted on the head. Lofts in irons have been decreasing as well, as a way of impressing golfers with more distance in their short irons. But this comes at the expense of golfer’s not being able to hit their mid and long irons as well. Shafts are a problem, too. Average golfers have no idea how stiff the shafts they purchase actually are because of poor quality control and a lack of industry standards. Add it all up, and it’s no wonder that golfers like Kevin Cook are confused and often end up with the wrong equipment. In truth, the best solution for golfers is to return to the original business model for golf equipment sales prior to the early 1900s, back when the only place a golfer could buy a set of golf clubs was to go see a clubmaker. Back then, golfers visited the clubmaker’s shop, where the clubs were built one club at a time, one set at a time, for one golfer at a time. It’s critical to be honest and tell you that some of today’s clubmakers do not have the fitting knowledge to be able to properly match a golfer with clubs that allow him or her to play to the best of their ability. Just because someone can build and repair golf clubs does not mean they know how to analyze a golfer and choose the best fitting specs to match to the golfer’s size, strength, athletic ability and swing characteristics. So golfers who decide to visit a clubmaker to end their equipment frustration MUST DO THEIR HOMEWORK to be sure the clubmaker they choose is a good, experienced and knowledgeable. Such clubmaker/clubfitters do exist and they are without question the very best sources for golf equipment and knowledge. They can truly help a golfer improve and play to the best of the golfer’s ability.

PGA driving distance and accuracy in the past 10 years

One would think there have been vast improvements in both these areas due to the equipment improvements/advancements we constantly hear on TV or read in Golf Publications. The big 3 golf companies promise us 10 more yards and more fairways hit every year it seems. However, if you look at the graph below, you will see the top ten longest hitting players on the PGA Tour have only gained 3.79 yards compared to the top 10 players from 10 years ago.

Driving accuracy has went the other way. 10 years ago, the top 10 most accurate golfers on the PGA Tour were hitting 4.78% more fairways then the top 10 players in 2012. This certainly doesn't seem right with all the adjustable drivers on the market today which allows for face angle adjustments which should help the golfer keep the ball on the fairway.

So why no big improvements in these areas contrary to what we are constantly promised by the Big 3 Marketing Departments? Because the rule-making bodies intentionally intended to limit golf club performance in these specific areas. The COR limits (how lively the face can be) were implimented 1/1/2003 and the 460cc rule went into effect 1/1/2004. So no driver since these dates can have a COR higher then .830 or be larger then 460cc. In other words, the actual driver heads themselves for 2013 can't possibly hit the ball any farther because the faces on these new driver heads can only be so "hot"....830 COR. But if a golfer does acquire a new driver that out performs their old driver, it has nothing to do with actual technology of the head itself (remember all that can be done has been done). The new driver performs better because it is a better "FIT" compared to their old driver's specs regarding loft, length, face angle, total weight, swing weight/MOI, shaft flex and shaft bend profile for that particular golfer's size, strength, athletic ability, and swing characteristics. So if you are looking to hit the ball longer and straighter, providing your current driver clubhead has the correct loft and face angle for your swing characteristics, a properly fit shaft may be all that is needed. Til next time...

Swing Type Plays a Huge Role in Club Fitting

From the desk of Tom Wishon: I feel like the quick answer to this question has to start by saying. . . . DUH!! Clubfitting is and always will be about tailoring the specifications of each golf club so they best match the various swing characteristics of each different golfer. Next time you head to the driving range when most of the hitting stations are in use, stop and look at the differences in how all the different golfers swing at the ball. Inside-out/square/outside-in swing path – fast/medium/slow swing speed – hitting down/swinging level/hitting up on the ball – forceful, aggressive to average to smooth, slower swing tempo – slice/straight/hook the ball – push/straight/pull the ball – early/midway and late release . . . And on and on. The vast differences in how golfers swing at the ball all translate into a requirement for different Clubfitting specifications for the golfers. This is precisely why the golf industry’s typical business model to build their golf clubs to one series of standard specifications for most of the fitting specifications is so utterly flawed. It is why so many golfers buy golf clubs off the rack and never achieve all they can be as a golfer. Now don’t get me wrong. Proper fitting is not likely to put you or me on the first tee of next year’s US Open. But it darn well can make the difference in whether a golfer plays to the best of his/her ability as well as how quickly a golfer can adapt to swing changes when they take lessons. Improperly fit clubs do get in the way of golfers being able to play their best. And not just a little. Let me tell you a few of the relationships between specific swing characteristics and proper fitting specifications: 1) Clubhead Speed: The clubhead speed is a critical part of shaft flex fitting. It is also an important element in determining what spacing of club lofts will deliver what amount of distance difference between clubs. Clubhead speed also affects the amount of backspin any golfer will achieve with any clubhead or shaft design. 2) Downswing Transition Force and Downswing Tempo: Golfers differ in how aggressively they start the downswing from very sudden/abrupt/forceful to very smooth/passive/gradual and all places in between. They also vary in their swing tempo from smooth/rhythmic to aggressive and in between. Downswing Transition force and the Tempo are major factors in choosing the right length, shaft weight, total weight, swingweight, shaft flex, shaft torque. 3) Point of Wrist-Cock Release: Golfers differ in when they start to unhinge the wrist cock angle from immediately after the downswing starts (early) to very late in the downswing (late) to also many different positions in between. The point of release is a big factor in choosing the right length, shaft flex, shaft bend profile, loft. 4) Swing Path: Again, you see golfers with swing path variations from very outside-in to square to very inside-out and paths in between. The swing path is a critical factor in determining the golfer’s best lengths and face angle for the woods and hybrids. 5) Angle of Attack: Whether the golfer swings downward, level or upward to the ball, the Angle of Attack is a key swing element in determining the best loft, best clubhead center of gravity design and clubhead sole design as well. So the next time you encounter a golfer who thinks he or she is not good enough to benefit from custom fitting, clue them into the fact that the more differences they have in their swing characteristics, the more fitting can step up to help them play better golf. And as always, to get the best clubs for your swing, work with a good, competent custom clubfitter – http://wishongolf.com/find-a-clubfitter/ -Tom

How Much Does Shaft Torque Affect Performance?

Shaft torque affects performance a little bit, but not nearly as much as does the shaft’s weight, overall stiffness design and bend profile design. And here’s why. The term “torque” is used to convey the relative, comparative amount that a shaft is designed to resist twisting in response to a specific force. If the Rules of Golf were to allow clubheads to be designed so that the shaft would attach directly in line with the clubhead’s center of gravity, shaft torque would be a non-issue. The reason is because what causes a shaft to twist is, 1) the downswing force of the golfer, 2) the fact that the shaft attaches on the very heel end of the clubhead, which means all the weight of the head sticks out in front of the shaft. With all the head’s weight sticking out there, under the force of the downswing that weight will elicit a twisting force on the shaft. The golf industry’s first experience with shaft torque came way back before the early 1900s when the predominant shaft material was hickory. Wooden shafts had very little resistance to twisting. In fact, a completely different swing technique was required to prevent wooden shafts from twisting too much during the swing. Golfers who are used to seeing torque measurements on today’s shafts between 2 and 5 degrees would be interested to hear that a typical hickory shaft has a torque of more than 20 degrees!! In fact, the biggest reason that steel shafts took over in the 1920s and wiped the hickory shaft off the face of the golf industry was their MUCH lower torque, which resulted in far more accuracy and control of the shot. The first steel shafts were much heavier than hickory shafts, but golfers were willing to deal with the downside of heavier golf clubs to get the far superior resistance to twisting that steel shafts brought with them. Next came the introduction of graphite and fiberglass shafts in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Heralded as a huge break through because they were much lighter in weight than steel shafts, early graphite shafts failed to gain much of a foothold because their torques were over 10 degrees. The companies that introduced the first graphite shafts really did not know how to make their shafts with a lower degree of torque. As a result, the first graphite shafts could only be used by golfers with a smooth, passive, totally non-aggressive swing tempo. And this realization is what led to the industry learning just how shaft torque works, and what had to be done before graphite shafts could gain a much larger following. Because most of the weight of the clubhead protrudes out there well in front of the shaft, the moment the golfer begins the downswing, that force causes the clubhead to exert a twisting influence on the shaft. The greater the golfer’s downswing force, meaning the more abruptly and more aggressively the golfer starts the club down, the more of a twisting force the clubhead will exert on the shaft. At its worst, a very strong, aggressive swinging golfer using a shaft with a torque of 6 degrees and higher can see the ball fly with a severe, low hook. This is because that much torque does not provide enough resistance to the twisting force that a golfer with a strong transition move and aggressive downswing tempo will generate. The reason that torque is not much of a fitting factor today is because the shaft makers all design the torque of their shafts to fall in line with the flex. Shaft makers know that the faster the swing speed of the player, not always but quite often with that higher swing speed comes more twisting force on the shaft. Hence you rarely ever see S and X flex shafts with a torque higher than 4 degrees. And typically for the R, A and certainly L flex shafts, the shaft makers design the shafts with a higher degree of torque. This is because the slower swinger puts less twisting force on the shaft and thus the shaft does not need to have a lower torque.