Another fitting thread

MarcusP12

HI guys, I know this topic has been done to death down the years but looking for some current advice on fitting.

I'm strongly considering upgrading my irons. There's nothing wrong with them and I do like them but i just fancy something more in line with a forgiving players club, e.g. the new P790s. My current clubs are a few years old now and i just want to treat myself. For the budget I'm working to, i.e. 1k for 6 irons, makes sense to get fitted.

My conundrum is where to purchase from. I'm very near leopardstown so could go to McGuirks and get fitted at the driving range there. And then of course there's foregolf which everyone raves about for the standard of the fitting experience. My expectations from the fitting are just that i can try out a few club options and just get fitted for the right stiffness/wt of shaft and get the grips I like....so pretty straight forward as fittings go i assume.....the concern is that the McGuirk lads are not well enough trained but do they need to be for what i'm looking for? I like that the cost of the fitting is absorbed into the cost of the irons if you order with them and that you don't need to pay upfront when you order if there's a lead time.

Some context....when i'm playing regularly, my irons are pretty good from say 7 up (why change i hear you say!). I'd be above average for GIR for my handicap (14) so i like to think i'd be a single figure ball striker. I like to shape the ball hence something more players orientated but with forgiveness. I lose most of my shots around the green so i don't see that a detailed club fitting for irons will magically turn me into a single figure golfer unless i also address this...

My question is, if i'm already a decent iron player (and hence don't expect a huge improvement based on the spec of the shafts), would a standard fitting by McGuirks (possibly cheaper but definitely handier) be acceptable or are foregolf the only show in town? Very keen on people's recent experience of getting fit at the high street types places like McGuirks and American golf, etc.....

Thanks for the advice.....

BraveDonut

I bought new Irons earlier this week. Current irons about 10 years old

I was interested in Taylormade Max 2 as they were good prices on offer. I went to Halpenny (Carrickmines) as they were 100 euro cheaper than Mcguirks for 5-SW.

The fitting session was great - a full hour. Great set up.

I tried the above clubs but was told that they were not offering them as custom options as the good price was to sell off current stock. Tried the P790s and they really seemed to suit me. However, I was not prepared to pay 1K+ for 5-PW.

I ended up going for Mizuno JPX 921 Hot Metal. I got to try the full set as they had them in stock with my shaft option. Also meant not waiting weeks for delivery.

The guy that did the fitting session seemed very knowledgeable. He showed me that my current 7-iron was giving me a 6k spin rate where the new clubs reduced this to 4k. This was helping me keep the ball on line as my bad shot is to have the arms take over and deliver a pull to the left. This effect of this bad shot was reduced due to the reduced spin - I was hitting the left side of the green rather than missing the green completely. My current 7 iron is about 160yds. New club was consistently getting 165+. I have a very high launch angle and when I could bring this down from 21 degrees to 17/18 (My swing, not the club) I was hitting up to 180.

Overall very happy.

swededmonkey

I've had two fittings so far. One with foregolf for my irons; this was absolutely on the money and would be very reluctant to change them anytime soon. The second was for a driver in McGuirks in Kinsealy and I was just as impressed with their knowledge and detail. The big thing for me is being able to hit balls in an open range as opposed to a screen

ShivasIrons

One of the big misconceptions about a fitting is that many golfers don't realise it's just an information gathering exercise. The fitter watches the golfer hit shots, cycles through different specifications of the club and sees do they perform better than what the golfer is using. The fitter makes a recommendation and gives it to the golfer. It's up to the golfer to decide what to do with this information. There is no requirement to buy equipment. There is also no rule to say you can't go to another fitter to see what they would recommend.

Definitely go to a dedicated fitter. Why would you be concerned with saving €50 or €100 out of a potential €1000-€1500 spend? Go to some one who charges for their advice, they have invested in themselves and know the value of good advice.

Other misconceptions include, the importance of brand, the model of the club is more important than the brand, one fitter won't be recommending a set of G425 irons with lightweight flexible shafts and the next a set of Titleist blades with heavy stiff shafts. If Ping G425 suits, the T300, Sim Max etc will also suit, the brands differ mainly in looks and feel rather than performance.

The biggest misconceptions of all are, I'm not good enough to be fit and my swing changes so much on a daily basis I can't be fit. The reality is, you're not good enough not to be fit and you don't go from one day looking like you're swinging like Eamon Darcy on a bad day to looking like Rory McIlroy the next day.

MarcusP12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118331676#Comment_118331676

Thanks for the reply.....good to hear about a positive experience from one of the more high street golf shops....i'm actually interested also in the JPX921s also.....i'd be hoping to try a range of clubs when i do go for the fitting as not 100% sure of what will suit me....i love the look of the new P790s and read good stuff about how they appeal to a range of handicaps, not just lower ones....but i'd be interested in Mizuno also....anything really in that step up range of 1k relative to what i'm used to (which are nice clubs but just interested in a change)....

MarcusP12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118332485#Comment_118332485

Thanks for the advice....lots of good points in there......definitely agree with you on the brand v model.....whatever feels good and is appealing to the eye and gives consistent performance will be what i go for.....hoping that the P790 works for me but if the T200's give work better for me, then so be it....i don't think i want to go for a game improvement set...my current irons i think are possibly too strong and i'd benefit from maybe closer gapping as i don't need the stronger lofting to make up for a lack of swing speed.....maybe i'm misinterpreting my game but i guess that'll come out in the wash with a fitting....

MarcusP12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118331878#Comment_118331878

Thanks for the feedback and good to know that the guys in McGuirks seems to know their stuff.....i hear ya on the open range fitting....i think that would be important to me also to see the flight....I know McGuirks do it in leopardstown driving range (would hope that it can be done on the turf instead of a mat) so if i did decide to go with the high street then i'll defo go there i think.....i'll keep doing research on it though as not in a mad panic to change.....

NedBagg

Been to fore golf twice now and mixed fortunes...got a bit of a windfall on the ggs and went for the whole hog... got fitted for a driver ... didnt work out and was an expensive mistake.. got irons Sim2s and they are decent and got fitted for wedges (jaws)and they are class...went to Mick in Stackstown (based on some reviews here) and he changed the shaft in my driver (€90)... got 20 yards.. and much more consistent... an absolute gentleman and he just has it... couldn't recommend him highly enough... he set me up in Irons and as soon as I have the money that itch will be well and truly scratched.... and I will be back... a fool and his money !!!! So they say........but I wouldn't go anywhere else now... Good luck whatever you do... us golfers will always be looking for something!!!

spacecoyote

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118332769#Comment_118332769

I was fitted for the P790s in Foregolf. Not sure what you're currently playing, but they do have pretty strong lofts.

For me the biggest benefit was consistency of distance rather than overall distance relative to my prior irons.

My old irons, in the fitting session, showed about a 15-20 yard gap in carry distance, from worst to best. Think with the TMs, after a couple of different shaft options, I got it down to about 6-7 yards. Jus so much more forgiveness across the face.

And I still see that holding true now on the course.

Above re the spin numbers on a 7 iron, generally the optimal, according to what I've read and been told is roughly iron number multiplied by 1000 (though, that is seen to be up to a 1000 lower on them with modern irons due to loft, etc... ie most new 7i are about equivalent to an old 6i. So around the 6k mark would be seen to be good for a 7i. 4k seems very low, and would probably explain the extra distance. Hopefully won't impact ability to hold a green, particularly on anything lower than a 7i

MarcusP12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118333259#Comment_118333259

I’m playing cobra f8….I think the 7 iron is 29.5 degrees compared to I think 30.5 for the p790 so obviously not a huge difference but a difference none the less…

BraveDonut

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118332741#Comment_118332741

Through the session I could try whatever brand that I wanted but I was more interested in the fitters opinion of what would suit me.

The lack of a SW with the P790s was a deal breaker for me as much as the price

MarcusP12

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118336651#Comment_118336651

Thats good to know about being able to try the various brands....I'm happy to only take as far as PW, maybe GW...I'm happy with the vokey wedges i'm using at the moment so am used to them not being a match for whatever set as long as i get the gapping right....

spacecoyote

Yeah, I would have thought very few sets go beyond a gap wedge at this point as most people are buying individual wedges beyond that.

Have heard of a few people in recent times only buying as far as 9i in their iron sets now, and they have full sets of wedges bought separately.

Went as far as GW with my own, which is 50° and already had a 54° and 58° so gaps worked nicely