Picking the Right Shaft Flex

 

There’s an argument to be made for the fact that the shaft of your golf club is the most important part of the club. The shaft is what transfers the energy from your body into the head of the club to hit every shot, and if you are playing shafts that aren’t right for your game, you could be in big trouble. The truth is that most golfers aren’t playing the right shafts for their game and they are missing out on distance (and accuracy) because their equipment is all wrong. Getting the right flex in your shafts (and a plethora of other specs as well, but let’s take baby steps) is the first step toward optimizing your swing to hit the best shots you possibly can. So let’s take a look at how to choose the right shaft flex for your game. 

When you’re determining what shaft flex to play in your clubs, the most important thing to consider is your swing speed. The faster you swing the club, the stiffer you will want your shaft to optimize all the technical things the geeks love to talk about (no shade, I love the data too). Here’s a general breakdown of swing speeds and their corresponding shaft flexes (bear in mind that these are general suggestions and I’m not a professional club fitter):

Swing Speed	Flex
Under 75 MPH	Ladies or Senior
75 to 95 MPH	Regular
95 to 110 MPH	Stiff
Over 110 MPH	Stiff or Extra Stiff

Again, keep in mind that this chart is a general guideline and won’t necessarily fit all swings universally. There is also more than just flex that goes into a shaft. Things like kick-point and weight need to be considered as well. However, if you stick to this chart, chances are that you are more likely to get a club that actually fits your swing and gives you the best chance to hit better shots. 

Now, you might ask, “Matt, that’s great and all, but how on earth do I know my swing speed?” That’s a great question, and apart from using launch monitors or simulators, it can be difficult to calculate. A quick, approximate way to calculate your swing speed, though, is to take your driver distance (your actual distance, not the distance you tell your buddies) and divide that number by 2.3. This will give you an approximate, and I want to emphasize approximate as loudly as I can, swing speed that you can use to make your choices, or at least have a better understanding of what shaft flex will fit your game.

If you’re like me, you buy most (if not all) of your clubs second-hand. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve opened eBay without the intention of making a purchase and ended up buying a new club. Doing this can make it difficult to get perfectly fit into the right club to match your game, but one thing you can make sure to do is get clubs that have the right shaft flex. As I said earlier, that is just the first step, and there are lots of other things to consider when you are fitting yourself for clubs, but without the right shaft flex, it can be impossible to play your best golf. So make sure your clubs are the right flex, get out there, and hit the best shots you can.