Iron flex/swing speed

elmossman

I am going to invest in a new set of irons, and was wondering what the general view was on swing speed and the coresponding flex.

I am thinking of buying the Nike VR Pro Cavity Back irons as I think the are the best value "game improvement" irons about. The pro at my local is going to give me them for €275.

Today the pro gave me a little Mizuno gadget, bascially a 6 iron with a little device attached. He told me to go hit about 10 balls and record the SS. I only got to hit 3, as the thing stopped working. He thinks it wasted outta batteries. The 3 swings went 79, 80, 81 mph. I feel I could go a little faster as I was only getting warmed up, although not a great deal faster as 2 of the 3 shots were good solid shots.

He told me to wait until I come back during the week to record more swings before chosing a flex. He did however say that at around the 80 mark is between R and S. So my question is, if My swing is generally around 80 mph with a 6 iron and between the flexes, should I go R or S?

TheGolfer01

elmossman wrote: »

I am going to invest in a new set of irons, and was wondering what the general view was on swing speed and the coresponding flex.

I am thinking of buying the Nike VR Pro Cavity Back irons as I think the are the best value "game improvement" irons about. The pro at my local is going to give me them for €275.

Today the pro gave me a little Mizuno gadget, bascially a 6 iron with a little device attached. He told me to go hit about 10 balls and record the SS. I only got to hit 3, as the thing stopped working. He thinks it wasted outta batteries. The 3 swings went 79, 80, 81 mph. I feel I could go a little faster as I was only getting warmed up, although not a great deal faster as 2 of the 3 shots were good solid shots.

He told me to wait until I come back during the week to record more swings before chosing a flex. He did however say that at around the 80 mark is between R and S. So my question is, if My swing is generally around 80 mph with a 6 iron and between the flexes, should I go R or S?

Why don't you trust your pro?.

elmossman

TheGolfer01 wrote: »

Why don't you trust your pro?.

It is not thaat I do not trust him. He said I could go either way, and he would advise me more after more swings are measured. What I am asking is what would be better if (as I assume) I am going to average around 80 mph with the 6i.

He said that if I was missing a lot left that maybe I should go S. However I am a relative newbee to the game and my misses can vary. My good shots are slight draws.

Another thing I am thinking of, is if I improve my SS after buying R irons and then need S, as I am not a man of means to say the least.

PARlance

Not an expert in the area, nor have I even got fitted.
But if you're a beginner or at early stages of golfing career then I'd say your swing speed is more likely to go up rather than down over the duration of these clubs.

Be sure to go back to the Pro with any useful comments here. I don't think he'll be too insulted by you not trusting him, or as some might see it, looking for other people's thoughts.

elmossman

ajcurry123 wrote: »

Not an expert in the area, nor have I even got fitted.
But if you're a beginner or at early stages of golfing career then I'd say your swing speed is more likely to go up rather than down over the duration of these clubs.

Be sure to go back to the Pro with any useful comments here. I don't think he'll be too insulted by you not trusting him, or as some might see it, looking for other people's thoughts.

Cheers, will do. Heaven-forbid I might get some golfing advice on a golf board :eek:

NapoleonInRags

Hi,

I have the exact same irons - great clubs, absolutely love them.

Anyway my swing speed with a 6 iron is 85-86 and I have regular flex irons which suit me perfectly. So I would definitely say regular for you.

Hope that helps!

elmossman

NapoleonInRags wrote: »

Hi,

I have the exact same irons - great clubs, absolutely love them.

Anyway my swing speed with a 6 iron is 85-86 and I have regular flex irons which suit me perfectly. So I would definitely say regular for you.

Hope that helps!

Cheers for the info Napoleon. That more or less makes my mind up, given you have a faster SS. Really looking forward to getting the clubs.

Dr_Colossus

What make/weight of shafts are the R and S flexes? Different manufacturers of shafts have slightly different variations in terms of what they deem R and S flex plus each manufacturer often have different weights of each which can have different strengths in the tip. Each of these factors will l have a bearing on your optimal shaft/flex.

It really is a myriad of matching your swing characteristics with the club and then choosing the optimal shaft in terms of minimising your shot dispersion while opting for your preferred ball flight. It's not as simple as saying a particular swing speed warrants a certain flex of shaft so I don't think anyone online can determine what shaft is best for your swing.

If only one make/weight of shaft is available in the clubs and it's solely a matter of choosing between R and S my suggestion if possible would be to hit both with some impact tape on the face. After a handful of shots with each the tighter the dispersion of the strikes would generally be an indication as to the better shaft. Also worth bearing in mind is that if struggling with ball flight and getting the ball airbone the softer shaft will generally help on that regard. Overall work with your pro and his suggestions and good luck with the clubs and games ahead.

onlyfinewine

elmossman wrote: »

Cheers for the info Napoleon. That more or less makes my mind up, given you have a faster SS. Really looking forward to getting the clubs.

Having the same swing speed numbers does not mean that the same flex irons will definitely suit you because the way the speed is achieved during the swing makes a difference. The reason your pro asked if they were going left is in general because a too soft shaft tends to create high draws while feeling whippy and a too stiff shaft the opposite, low and to the right while feeling a bit boardy. Suggest you get the numbers checked as the pro suggested and let him see you hit some. If no big difference between the two would go with the one that feels best to you.

goodgolfer64

NapoleonInRags wrote: »

Hi,

I have the exact same irons - great clubs, absolutely love them.

Anyway my swing speed with a 6 iron is 85-86 and I have regular flex irons which suit me perfectly. So I would definitely say regular for you.

Hope that helps!

elmossman wrote: »

Cheers for the info Napoleon. That more or less makes my mind up, given you have a faster SS. Really looking forward to getting the clubs.

.......................will you just go and try them at a range....dont be listening to a potentially 25H/C about what flex suit you and taking his advice based on his preference.......your pro is there to help you...

ShriekingSheet

A decent general rule is when in doubt, go with the softer shaft.

A shaft that's a little bit softer than you could handle wont be a big deal - you might not even notice. A shaft that's too stiff for someone can be a nightmare.

You see it all the time with young (and not so young) guys who want S or X shafts like the pros.

I decided to use a softer shaft from 2008-2011, and then got fitted for a new set which was back up in stiffness. Very little difference.

Finlay Harp

Pay a few quid extra and get them custom fitted. The device you were using was a mizuno DNA analyser. Great piece of kit.

stockdam

ShriekingSheet wrote: »

A decent general rule is when in doubt, go with the softer shaft.

A shaft that's a little bit softer than you could handle wont be a big deal - you might not even notice. A shaft that's too stiff for someone can be a nightmare.

You see it all the time with young (and not so young) guys who want S or X shafts like the pros.

I decided to use a softer shaft from 2008-2011, and then got fitted for a new set which was back up in stiffness. Very little difference.

Basically what I would say. It's hard to play with a shaft that's too stiff for you. Unless you have a lot of length then I'd stick with regular. If you are beginning then consistency will be a bigger problem than the shaft you use.

The other problem is that there is no universal measurement of "regular" or "stiff".

I've used stiff and regular shafts and didn't notice a great deal of difference (except one driver that was too stiff for me). Listen to your pro.