Driver Shafts? | USHandicap Classic

JD LowIndex
Go to Last Reply 186 Views 13 Replies 3 Likes
I'm sure this topic may have been discussed in the past, but don't recall it recently. I'm considering getting a new driver soon, but want to make sure I get the right shaft. Right now I play a Taylormade R11 TP w/ the TP Fujikura Blur 65g shaft. I like it, but don't know if there's a better option. I am hoping a fitting at golfsmith is an easy answer. But wanted to see if anyone else might have some insights. My swing speed w/ the driver is 108-112mph (sometimes in the 116-120 range when playing regularly, and dialed in), ball speed 153-160, launch between 11-12deg, and ball flight is mid to low/mid. not sure spin rates, torque (i think it's 3.3*) or tip flex (i think it's mid) either. I'm looking at the Titleist 913 and the Taylormade R1 (what do you know w/ Tmade, they changed the sleeve so I can't just use this shaft!). seems like i'm in decent ranges w/ the shaft i have, but was curious about any insights, or shaft experience or suggestions you might have?
LyinLewis Legend
# 1 3/8/2013 7:43:42 PM
Driver shafts are impossible to recommend. I am a long hitter and I switched late last year to the Oban Kiyoshi Purple XFlex shaft. Its low torque, high launch and low spin. Its the best shaft I have ever owned.
ammeraal Professional Champion
# 2 3/8/2013 7:56:20 PM
I agree with LyinLewis, can't say what will be good for you, but I love the Adila NV stiff shaft. I don't have as much club head speed as you so the stiff shaft works for me. Best thing to do is try a bunch of different shafts and pick the one that you like the best. I bought a bunch of different shafts and R11 adapters, tried them all and it was obvious the NV shaft gave me the most confidence. I sold the other shafts on ebay and actually made some money on a couple of them.
JD LowIndex
# 3 3/8/2013 7:58:34 PM
Driver shafts are impossible to recommend. I am a long hitter and I switched late last year to the Oban Kiyoshi Purple XFlex shaft. Its low torque, high launch and low spin. Its the best shaft I have ever owned. Thanks LL. Did you get fit for it, trial and error, or know the characteristics you were looking for and just order it?
JD LowIndex
# 4 3/8/2013 8:12:11 PM
I agree with LyinLewis, can't say what will be good for you, but I love the Adila NV stiff shaft. I don't have as much club head speed as you so the stiff shaft works for me. Best thing to do is try a bunch of different shafts and pick the one that you like the best. I bought a bunch of different shafts and R11 adapters, tried them all and it was obvious the NV shaft gave me the most confidence. I sold the other shafts on ebay and actually made some money on a couple of them. Thanks, little leery of buying expensive name brand stuff from anyone on ebay. i've been screwed before. got fake golf pride grips and a counterfeit odyssey putter. got my money back, but i was pissed!!!
LyinLewis Legend
# 5 3/8/2013 8:25:34 PM
Its all in the family. Last year my brother-in-law bought an xflex Oban kiyoshi purple shaft and our first round out he starts hitting his drives side by side mine (I am usually 20 yards longer). I asked about the shaft, did some research and took the risk. The biggest advantage for my swing was probably the Xflex. It really helped me dial back my misses. After my shaft arrived I picked up 15-20 yards and was back in front of him. Since then my father-in-law and my other brother-in-law have all made the switch. We now have 2 xflex, 1 stiff and a regular among us and everyone saw a distance gain. See photo of the Oban Kiyoshi Purple gang. Now i did it the wrong way and got lucky.
Mark Simmons Legend
# 6 3/9/2013 1:21:05 AM
Yes, it's impossible to legitamitely recommend a shaft or a driver head. You need to get fit.
Pepe4U Professional Champion
# 7 3/9/2013 3:47:28 AM
I would go with MIYASAKI, this is a great shaft, I have them put on my fairway woods, and my drivers,and beleive me they deliver performace. Depending on what you want, will depend on the shaft you buy, but definately try this out, they are not cheap but are not extremely expensive either. If you would like to learn more before buying go to http://miyazakigolfshafts.com
armygrunt47 Professional Champion
# 8 3/9/2013 8:14:30 AM
Get fitted!!!! I could reccommend every shaft that I know of but that will not do you any good if it is not right for your swing.
Geno929 Professional Champion
# 9 3/9/2013 9:03:21 AM
I totally agree with LyinLewis, a shaft is a personal choice. I would venture a guess that a range fitting with a Titleist or TaylorMade rep there to fit you and watch launch angle, lie and carry/roll characteristics is the best way to determine which shaft is the best for you. Off the rack shafts are not the best option!!!!! They may have the name, but their not the real thing. Most elite shafts will cost more than the driver itself. Me, an Oban Devotion 6, 4 flex, standard length on my Titleist 910 D3. It took me a summer of shaft changes to finally get it right. I tried a Fujikuri Motore F3, s flex, a Matrix Ozik stiff and a Re-Axe regular shaft before I tried an Oban. It's a process that can't be done in one session. Good Luck.
LyinLewis Legend
# 10 3/9/2013 9:43:42 AM
When I decide to change my driver and hybrids I will probably go to Chicago or Phoenix for my next driver and shaft combos. I have heard their is a high tech fitting institute in both of those cities...any head...and shaft.
Mark Simmons Legend
# 11 3/9/2013 10:22:00 AM
Take note. When Rory shifted over to Nike he made sure every one of his Nike clubs used the same shaft he has been using with his Titleist clubs. This suggests two things: 1) How much importance the pros place on getting the right shaft for their swing. 2) That Rory felt #1 was so important that he actually got his Nike heads fitted for the shaft and not the other way around.
Dandy Professional Champion
# 12 3/10/2013 9:18:49 AM
Again, impossible as LL says. And somebody else said it can take more than a season - they're right. I got fitted and still didn't stick with that shaft. I went through 4 of them before I settled on a Grafalloy ProLaunch Red X and had it tipped and trimmed to order (you pretty much have to have Titleist do it). So I was a combo of fitting and trial and error. Good luck!
Mark Simmons Legend
# 13 3/10/2013 6:44:21 PM
Again, impossible as LL says. And somebody else said it can take more than a season - they're right. I got fitted and still didn't stick with that shaft. I went through 4 of them before I settled on a Grafalloy ProLaunch Red X and had it tipped and trimmed to order (you pretty much have to have Titleist do it). So I was a combo of fitting and trial and error. Good luck! Glad you stuck with it, but that is the nightmare we all fear. Just goes to show all fittings are NOT equal.

JD

LowIndex

Go to Last Reply

186 Views 13 Replies 3 Likes

I'm sure this topic may have been discussed in the past, but don't recall it recently. I'm considering getting a new driver soon, but want to make sure I get the right shaft. Right now I play a Taylormade R11 TP w/ the TP Fujikura Blur 65g shaft. I like it, but don't know if there's a better option. I am hoping a fitting at golfsmith is an easy answer. But wanted to see if anyone else might have some insights. My swing speed w/ the driver is 108-112mph (sometimes in the 116-120 range when playing regularly, and dialed in), ball speed 153-160, launch between 11-12deg, and ball flight is mid to low/mid. not sure spin rates, torque (i think it's 3.3*) or tip flex (i think it's mid) either. I'm looking at the Titleist 913 and the Taylormade R1 (what do you know w/ Tmade, they changed the sleeve so I can't just use this shaft!). seems like i'm in decent ranges w/ the shaft i have, but was curious about any insights, or shaft experience or suggestions you might have?

LyinLewis

Legend

# 1 3/8/2013 7:43:42 PM

Driver shafts are impossible to recommend. I am a long hitter and I switched late last year to the Oban Kiyoshi Purple XFlex shaft. Its low torque, high launch and low spin. Its the best shaft I have ever owned.

ammeraal

Professional Champion

# 2 3/8/2013 7:56:20 PM

I agree with LyinLewis, can't say what will be good for you, but I love the Adila NV stiff shaft. I don't have as much club head speed as you so the stiff shaft works for me. Best thing to do is try a bunch of different shafts and pick the one that you like the best. I bought a bunch of different shafts and R11 adapters, tried them all and it was obvious the NV shaft gave me the most confidence. I sold the other shafts on ebay and actually made some money on a couple of them.

JD

LowIndex

# 3 3/8/2013 7:58:34 PM

Driver shafts are impossible to recommend. I am a long hitter and I switched late last year to the Oban Kiyoshi Purple XFlex shaft. Its low torque, high launch and low spin. Its the best shaft I have ever owned.

Thanks LL. Did you get fit for it, trial and error, or know the characteristics you were looking for and just order it?

JD

LowIndex

# 4 3/8/2013 8:12:11 PM

I agree with LyinLewis, can't say what will be good for you, but I love the Adila NV stiff shaft. I don't have as much club head speed as you so the stiff shaft works for me. Best thing to do is try a bunch of different shafts and pick the one that you like the best. I bought a bunch of different shafts and R11 adapters, tried them all and it was obvious the NV shaft gave me the most confidence. I sold the other shafts on ebay and actually made some money on a couple of them.

Thanks, little leery of buying expensive name brand stuff from anyone on ebay. i've been screwed before. got fake golf pride grips and a counterfeit odyssey putter. got my money back, but i was pissed!!!

LyinLewis

Legend

# 5 3/8/2013 8:25:34 PM

Its all in the family. Last year my brother-in-law bought an xflex Oban kiyoshi purple shaft and our first round out he starts hitting his drives side by side mine (I am usually 20 yards longer). I asked about the shaft, did some research and took the risk. The biggest advantage for my swing was probably the Xflex. It really helped me dial back my misses.

After my shaft arrived I picked up 15-20 yards and was back in front of him. Since then my father-in-law and my other brother-in-law have all made the switch. We now have 2 xflex, 1 stiff and a regular among us and everyone saw a distance gain.

See photo of the Oban Kiyoshi Purple gang.

Now i did it the wrong way and got lucky.

Mark Simmons

Legend

# 6 3/9/2013 1:21:05 AM

Yes, it's impossible to legitamitely recommend a shaft or a driver head. You need to get fit.

Pepe4U

Professional Champion

# 7 3/9/2013 3:47:28 AM

I would go with MIYASAKI, this is a great shaft, I have them put on my fairway woods, and my drivers,and beleive me they deliver performace. Depending on what you want, will depend on the shaft you buy, but definately try this out, they are not cheap but are not extremely expensive either. If you would like to learn more before buying go to http://miyazakigolfshafts.com

armygrunt47

Professional Champion

# 8 3/9/2013 8:14:30 AM

Get fitted!!!! I could reccommend every shaft that I know of but that will not do you any good if it is not right for your swing.

Geno929

Professional Champion

# 9 3/9/2013 9:03:21 AM

I totally agree with LyinLewis, a shaft is a personal choice. I would venture a guess that a range fitting with a Titleist or TaylorMade rep there to fit you and watch launch angle, lie and carry/roll characteristics is the best way to determine which shaft is the best for you. Off the rack shafts are not the best option!!!!! They may have the name, but their not the real thing. Most elite shafts will cost more than the driver itself.
Me, an Oban Devotion 6, 4 flex, standard length on my Titleist 910 D3. It took me a summer of shaft changes to finally get it right. I tried a Fujikuri Motore F3, s flex, a Matrix Ozik stiff and a Re-Axe regular shaft before I tried an Oban. It's a process that can't be done in one session. Good Luck.

LyinLewis

Legend

# 10 3/9/2013 9:43:42 AM

When I decide to change my driver and hybrids I will probably go to Chicago or Phoenix for my next driver and shaft combos. I have heard their is a high tech fitting institute in both of those cities...any head...and shaft.

Mark Simmons

Legend

# 11 3/9/2013 10:22:00 AM

Take note. When Rory shifted over to Nike he made sure every one of his Nike clubs used the same shaft he has been using with his Titleist clubs. This suggests two things:
1) How much importance the pros place on getting the right shaft for their swing.
2) That Rory felt #1 was so important that he actually got his Nike heads fitted for the shaft and not the other way around.

Dandy

Professional Champion

# 12 3/10/2013 9:18:49 AM

Again, impossible as LL says. And somebody else said it can take more than a season - they're right. I got fitted and still didn't stick with that shaft. I went through 4 of them before I settled on a Grafalloy ProLaunch Red X and had it tipped and trimmed to order (you pretty much have to have Titleist do it). So I was a combo of fitting and trial and error. Good luck!

Mark Simmons

Legend

# 13 3/10/2013 6:44:21 PM

Again, impossible as LL says. And somebody else said it can take more than a season - they're right. I got fitted and still didn't stick with that shaft. I went through 4 of them before I settled on a Grafalloy ProLaunch Red X and had it tipped and trimmed to order (you pretty much have to have Titleist do it). So I was a combo of fitting and trial and error. Good luck!

Glad you stuck with it, but that is the nightmare we all fear. Just goes to show all fittings are NOT equal.

COMMUNITY