Some points Senior Golfers should consider before buying Golf Clubs

November 11, 2009 by admin
Filed under Golf Equipment

1. The shaft is the axle of the club, the better the shaft, the better the club.

2. Shaft flex has a major effect on the feel of a golf club and a medium effect on distance, thus an important determination in choosing clubs. If you do not know your speed swing (mph or km/h), some local golf shops can measure it for you. Otherwise the following chart may be helpful.

SWING SPEED CONVERSION CHART

LADIES FLEX	Driver speed swing less than 60 mph (100 km/h). Driver carry distance less than 180 yds. Club used from 150 yds. a 3 iron or wood.
SENIOR or A FLEX	Driver speed swing 60-75 mph (100-120 km/h). Driver carry distance 180-210 yds. Club used from 150yds. a 4 iron.
REGULAR FLEX	Driver speed swing 75-84 mph (120-135 km/h). Driver carry distance 210-240 yds. Club used from 150 yds. a 5 or 6 iron.
STIFF FLEX	Driver speed swing 84-93 mph (130-150 km/h). Driver carry distance 240-260 yds. Club used from 150 yds. a 6 or 7 iron.
X-STIFF FLEX	Driver speed swing over 93 mph (150 km/h). Driver carry distance 260+ yds. Club used from 150 yds. a 8 or 9 iron.

3. Shallow face metalwoods are well established game improvement clubs on the market. Generally, shallow face metalwoods are easy to hit and extremely accurate due to their low center of gravity - something every Senior golfer will appreciate.

Senior Golfers will benefit from these clubs as they take less effort and produce a more consistent ball light.

4. Beginners and novice players choosing a set make-up, should consider eliminating the 2, 3 and 4 irons from their set, replacing those hard to hit irons with #3 and #5 hybrid clubs..

5. All Senior golfers should use standard length clubs unless he or she is short or tall. Standard length clubs allow players to hit the ball on center a higher percentage of the time, thus increasing distance and accuracy. In recent years, light weight Titanium driver heads and Ultralight graphite shafts have extended driver playing lengths from a standard 43-431/2″ to 44-46″. This is good news and bad news. The good news is, when you increase length, you will increase distance. The longer the club, the more club head speed generated , thus more distance.

The bad news is, the longer the club the more difficult it is to control, thus less accuracy. To put this into perspective, the following information will be helpful.

A driver hit on center at 43″ = 250 yds. 43 1/2″= 262 yds. 44″ = 270 yds. 44 1/2″ = 275 yds. 45″ = 275-280 yds. As you can see a significant increase in distance is achieved up to 44″. After 44″, distance increases only a minimal amount .

CONCLUSION - It is not worth sacrificing accuracy for the minimal amount of distance gained past 44″. Keep driver playing lengths to 44″ or less.

Men’s Standard Shaft Lengths (deduct 1″ for Women’s Standard Shaft Length)
Club	Length with Steel Shafts	Length with Graphite Shafts
Driver	43.5″	44″
3 wood	42.5″	43″
5 wood	41.5″	42″
7 wood	40.5″	41″
9 wood	40.5″	41″
1 iron	39.5″	40″
2 iron	39″	39.5″
3 iron	38.5″	39″
4 iron	38″	38.5″
5 iron	37.5″	38″
6 iron	37″	37.5″
7 iron	36.5″	37″
8 iron	36″	36.5″
9 iron	35.5″	36″
PW	35.5″	36″
GW	35.25″	35.75″
SW	35.25″	35.75″
LW	35.25″	35.75″