The more I work with a variety of golfers to do custom fittings, the more I am totally convinced that there is more to True Success than the knowledge that I personally have about golf clubs and club performance.
At every point in a successful fitting, the player provides feedback and information that is critical to making the right decisions that lead to success. One of MY critical areas of expertise needs to be getting the right information from players at the right times. Some of the areas where this clearly happens include:
1. PRE FITTING INTERVIEW – obtaining data on what a player’s typical misses are, where he/she wants to improve the most, what clubs work well and what clubs can provide the most game improvement for the player. Also, what physical issues the player might have – back problems, wrist problems, etc.
2. DURING THE FITTING – obtaining feedback during the entire fitting on questions like – does the club feel stiff, too long or short, too heavy or too light, can the player feel the clubhead, etc. Feel is a key element of getting the right club into a player’s hands. Sometimes in fact a player will swing a club and say immediately that that club has a tremendous feel, and often the results from launch monitor measurements confirm this sense that the player has.
Another important element a player has during a fitting is to make small swing changes as a result of what the player and fitter see from video taken of the player’s swing. The player being able to make these changes during a fitting can make the difference between a successful fitting and one that may not produce optimal results.
3. AFTER THE FITTING, CLUB FEEDBACK – In the best fittings the clubs perform perfectly when delivered to the golfer. But sometimes there can be a need to make some small modifications to them to get the final performance results desired. No one but the player can provide this final club evaluation, and his/her honest feedback is critical.
So – My View – There Is No True Successful Fitting Without Face To Face Player / Fitter Collaboration!!
The Fit Is IT!!
Tony