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The Shaft
Length
A golfer's overall height may
not be the main factor in determining the correct shaft length. The spine
angle at address position, leg length and arm length are factors to be
considered jointly in arriving at the golfer's correct shaft length.
Spine Angle At
Address
The spine angle
at address varies from golfer to golfer despite the golfers
having the same overall height. This is because of each
individual's physical ability, age, gender and personal comfort
at their address position. Generally a good posture set-up at
address position will have a spine angle of between 25 to 40
degrees.
Leg Length
Because tilting of the spine
takes place from the hips, golfers with longer legs will likely need length
added to the shaft. Two golfers of the same height could be fitted with
different lengths of shaft. The golfer with longer legs will be taller at
the address position.
Arm Length
Arm length (or arm span) can
have an effect on the shaft length. If a golfer's arm span is less than his
overall height, adding length to the shaft may be required. Conversely, if a
golfer's arm span is greater than his overall height, he should consider a
slightly shorter length shaft for the whole golf set.
Correct Length
 A
golfer with the correct shaft length will be able to swing much
more comfortably and on the swing plane at address position. He
will be able to learn faster and develop a repeatable swing
tempo.
A longer length shaft will
promote distance, but the overall shot dispersion area may be wider. Only
golfers with good repeatable swing tempo and the ability to strike the ball
consistently will benefit from playing a slightly longer shaft length. If
you cannot control a longer club, playing with a shorter club may lose a few
meters but your ball may reach the green more often.
Just for perspective, when we
speak of longer or shorter shaft length as mentioned above, we are only
referring to plus or minus no more than 2 inches from the industry shaft
length.
Here are
shaft length guidelines.
|
Height |
Suggest #5
iron length |
Suggest
Driver Wood Length |
|
5 feet 2 in |
36.5 - 37.5 in |
42.0 to 43.0
in |
|
5 feet 6 in |
37.0 - 38.0 in
|
42.0 to 43.0
in |
|
5 feet 8 in |
37.5 - 38.5 in |
43.0 to 44.0 in |
|
6 feet 0 in |
38.0 - 39.0 in |
43.0 to 44.0 in |
|
6 feet 2 in |
38.5 - 39.5
in |
43.5 t0 44.5 in |
Effects on Golf Shotmaking
Performance Factors
What happens if the length of
the club is too long for the golfer?
-
Could
have less tilting spine angle in address position.
-
Could
cause the golfer to hit the ball more off the center of
the clubface, thus decreasing distance and accuracy.
-
Could
allow the golfer to hit the ball farther, but only if
the ball is hit on center.
-
Could
make the club feel heavier and more cumbersome;
resulting more stress on the arms, hands and wrists
during the swing.
-
Could
cause the golfer to make swing plane changes to
accommodate the longer length; the longer the club, the
flatter the swing plane could become.
What happens
if the length of the club is too short for the golfer?
-
Could
cause the golfer to hunch/bend his spine in the address
position. This will cause psoas muscle (back ache
symptoms) discomfort after a long period of time.
-
Could
allow the golfer to hit the ball more on the center of
the clubface, thus increasing distance and accuracy
(Only if the golfer was hitting the off center a high
percentage on the time with the pervious longer club).
-
Could
cause the golfer to hit the ball shorter, but only if
the golfer's previous club was longer and the golfer was
able to hit this longer club solidly and on-center.
-
Could
make the club feel slightly lighter and easier to repeat
his swing tempo and rhythm.
-
Could cause the golfer to make swing plane changes to
accommodate the shorter length; the shorter the club,
the upright the swing could become.
FAST FACT
Right length is better than too long. But if
you must try a longer shaft, be sure the shaft is lighter and the golfer is
athletically coordinated enough to hit the ball on the center a high
percentage of the time.
Shorter clubs are always easier to hit for
all levels of golfer ability with a greater chance of hitting the club
on-center.
Since the longer the club, the greater the
chance for distance especially for driver, all golfers should seek the
longest manageable length they can hit solidly with a high percentage of the
time.
Philip Ang, 1999-2000 Winner International Clubmaker of
the Year
conferred by Golf Clubmakers Association (GCA) - USA
compiles this article from Golfsmith Tech Report.
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