Fitting Question

[strongjag]

Hey guys, long time lurker first time poster.

Bit of quick background. I've just been a go out once or twice a year type and have been traditionally quite awful. Last winter I spend the time and money and went to Graham Gunn's winter school and loved it. Got some new irons and wedges and have been hitting the ranges with a massive positive change. I asked about what I should look for in a driver and they suggested I get fitted so I have a club built for my swing that would make it easier to continue to improve and succeed.

So, I have a quick question about fitting. Tomorrow I'm seeing Kevin Haime for a launch analysis and to get fitted for a driver (and 3 wood I suppose) and I wanted to know what to expect. I know that I'll likely just be hitting a bunch of balls and he'll be gauging my swing, and results. At the end does he just give me a "golf club prescription" for what I should be looking for? Will they try and aggressively sell me on something in house? Is there anything I should bring aside from my clubs?

Thanks guys!

[orangeTANG]

I haven't been there for a driver fitting but I did get my irons fit there a few years back. Basically they will start by watching you hit your existing driver then will talk to you about a few driver heads you are interested in. They will build some drivers for you with the different brand clubs so you can hit some and get a good idea the ones you like and dislike visually. From this they will start to work on a shaft & head specs for the driver heads you've chosen between. They will vary the loft in the heads, and the different shafts to get you an optimum set up for your swing.

Of course, one of the biggest factors is being able to reproduce your swing multiple times, or you should talk to them about what your misses tend to be because they may be able to help you fit a driver that will help protect you from those misses.

Enjoy - I know I really enjoyed my iron fitting a few years ago - and I ended up walking out with irons I never even looked at on the shelf, because they just felt right.

[SnazzyD]

Great question, and something I've often wondered about myself. I've always just taught myself to use the clubs I currently have, and that doesn't really make a lot of sense in the long run I suppose.

In terms of cost and value, would the Kevin Haime experience be better than going to Golftown or one of the smaller, independent places in town?

[strongjag]

So a follow up.

Totally worth the time and money. Pretty much I showed up talked with him a little bit about my golf background and what I was looking for. He then had me hit a handful of balls to ensure that my swing was repeatable and that I'd get my moneys worth as I'm a high handicapper. He also checked my bad and my current driver (which, as I already knew was pretty much total garbage and part of the problem).

After that he asked me what I was looking for or if I had any brand preferences and something in particular to try. I told him I like the look of the cobra stuff and I hit a friends Ping driver that I liked the feel of and I had a few good hits.

Then he set up the launch monitor and we started to take some numbers. With my driver my carry was around 180 yards, and had a strong push/slice. He also gave the swing speed, launch angle, spin, smash factor and a bunch of other things and told me what each was and what they meant. After that we pretty much just played around with different heads, shafts etc and found what worked, didn't work, felt good bad etc. He would also offer little swing corrections and tips which was appreciated and let me take breaks when I needed it, not used to swinging a driver non stop for over an hour.

As we watched the numbers started to average out on top of my feedback it was narrowed down to the Callaway Big Bertha and Ping G25, nothing else came close for me. (I actually rattled one with the Bertha for 260 carry and almost 280 total when he told me to really rip it!). After that I went out in the grass to hit some "real world shots" and to what I liked best. It was the Bertha hands down, which I probably wouldn't have ever even tried. While he went to go check prices for me he set up the monitor and just told me to have some fun. I also got pictures of my new averages and all my stats, carry distance was a steady average of 230 (from 180) and my dispersion was much much much lower. My spin speed is still bizarrely low though.

When he came back he told me the cost and he told me that he matched it to Golf Town/Sportchek and that he'd order it to my specs and have it all set up for me as wanted it half inch shorter. He also gave me the option to take the Ping driver as it was about 90$ cheaper, but told me he throw in 3-4 buckets of balls if I wanted the Callaway to kind of offset the cost. I tool the club that was better for me and he ordered it while I was there and told me it'd be in and set up in less than a week.

All in all, awesome and eye opening experience and I'm already getting a session for my Dad and thinking about irons next year now! I mean I took lessons all winter but this actually gave me almost 50yards haha.

[SnazzyD]

Thanks for sharing - great writeup! They sound like a great group to deal with, even going so far as to pricematch another store when I assume from the story that you hadn't even asked them to do that!

Mind if I ask how much the session cost? My Scottish resolve is starting to weaken...

[strongjag]

The fitting was 95 I think after the tax I think. The driver obviously cost me more but the initial cost was worth it to me. I will go back for other items in the future for sure.

[Break68]

I have heard great things from friends that have gone to get fit at Kevin Haime's. Stories like this are why everyone should get a fitting done. Awesome story and enjoy the driver!

[Pattington22]

Just as a follow-up, I also had an iron/wood fitting at Kevin's last year, with David Inch. It was worth every penny. Like strongjag, I ended up going in with an idea of what I was going to buy (Ping G25s) and after analysis and trying out a variety of shaft options (i.e. length, material, flex), I found - and purchased - the clubs that worked best for me (Callaway X Hots). They also price-matched the sale price that GolfTown was offering.

It was such a great experience, I am going back this week for a driver fitting.

[strongjag]

I know next year I'll be going back for an iron fitting.

[dq2003]

Reminds me of my recent fitting story....
I went to OAC for winter golf school and they did fittings.

No wonder I couldn't get any distance with my Callaway driver ..... 19 degree launch and 4500 rpm backspin.... 215 yards carry.

Now with my fitted (8.5 loft, stiff shafted Titleist 915 D2 .... launch is 16 degrees and spin is down to 2200 .... carrying 250 yards.

If I had known this before, I would have done it sooner.