Retro-fit vs FIt before buying

spacecoyote

Hi,

I'm in the market for clubs, was just wondering if people know if there is any difference between buying off the shelf and getting a retro-fit done or if its worth getting a custom fit when buying clubs?

Thanks

Conor J

spacecoyote wrote: »

Hi,

I'm in the market for clubs, was just wondering if people know if there is any difference between buying off the shelf and getting a retro-fit done or if its worth getting a custom fit when buying clubs?

Thanks

Custom fitting is best before buying, as a good pro can tell you which clubs would be best suited to your game, then have them adjusted to suit your swing. This cannot be done of course if you choose the clubs yourself.

Myksyk

spacecoyote wrote: »

Hi,

I'm in the market for clubs, was just wondering if people know if there is any difference between buying off the shelf and getting a retro-fit done or if its worth getting a custom fit when buying clubs?

Thanks

A retro fit will add unwarranted expense. Lets say you buy new AP2s off the shelf for €699-799. Then you go to foregolf or whoever and they suggest you'd be far better off with different shafts. That will cost you about €300-400 just for the shafts. Add another €400 if you have to re-shaft your woods. If fitting is part of the picture it's simpler and cheaper to get fitted before you buy.

spacecoyote

Cheers Lads, have a booking for a fit out in Kinsealy on the 25th. So he should recommend the sets best suited to my game at the time, thats good to know. Wasn't sure if it was a case of picking out the clubs you like and having them adjusted to suit your gaem. Makes more sense for someone who knows what they are talking about to recommend clubs!

Sandwlch

Not sure its worth going for either.

Am thinking that there is a touch of the emperor's new clothes about custom fitting and the effect they will have on your game. Interesting for pros to promote the idea, since it allows them to increase revenue, when increasingly competitive large chains and online retailers mean low margins are being made on the gear itself - or them being cut out of the retail chain completely. Custom fitting allows them to bill you for their time, and convey the impression that it is worth dealing with them rather than the cheaper retailers that they cannot really compete with. Golfers are some of the easiest suckers out there, and on the face of it the argument seams sound, so the handicap golfers wants to believe, and have another excuse to buy something he thinks might improve his game.

But the typical golfer can probably do just as well buying clubs off the shelf going for standard lie, loft, shaft stiffness to generally match his handicap, and whatever game improvement club catches his eye, unless he is really unusally shaped.

Elite golfers looking for a pro career or international level can probably gain something, but they have swings consistent enough for club specs to have a discernable contribution to their performance.

Conor J

Sandwlch wrote: »

Not sure its worth going for either.

Am thinking that there is a touch of the emperor's new clothes about custom fitting and the effect they will have on your game. Interesting for pros to promote the idea since it allows them to increase revenue when increasingly competitive large chains and online retailers, mean low margins being made on the gear itself, or them being cut out of the chain completely. Custom fitting allows them to bill you for their time, and convey they impression that it is worth dealing with them rather than the cheaper retailers that they cannot really compete with.

They typical golfer can probably do just as well buying clubs off the shelf going for standard lie, loft, shaft stiffness to generally match his handicap, and whatever game improvement club catches his eye, unless he is really unusally shaped.

Elite golfers looking for a pro career or international level looking for every edge probably gain something, but they have swings consistent enough for club specs to have a discernable contribution to their performance.

regardless of custom fitting, i think its more valuable for a PRO to gauge which clubs & shafts would suit such a players game. Club fitting should be an added on possibility after this stage.

spacecoyote

Well i'm buying a set anyway as I won a pile of vouchers & cash last year in the society and was well overdue an upgrade so I figure I might as well get the fit done if I'm investing anyway. And from what I've heard most places will knock the cost of the fit off the price of clubs if you're buying anyway, so what harm can it really do?

Conor J

spacecoyote wrote: »

Well i'm buying a set anyway as I won a pile of vouchers & cash last year in the society and was well overdue an upgrade so I figure I might as well get the fit done if I'm investing anyway. And from what I've heard most places will knock the cost of the fit off the price of clubs if you're buying anyway, so what harm can it really do?

fair point, as a side note, be sure to check the prices online before agreeing to purchase. forinstance, i bought my new Taylor made irons for the equivalent of €480 incl postage & Taxman from the US a few months ago, the cost of a new set here was €750 at the same time.

spacecoyote

Conor J wrote: »

fair point, as a side note, be sure to check the prices online before agreeing to purchase. forinstance, i bought my new Taylor made irons for the equivalent of €480 incl postage & Taxman from the US a few months ago, the cost of a new set here was €750 at the same time.

Cheers for that, will definitely keep an eye on prices!