3 different types of club fittings — and why each of them matter

Golf club grips wrapped in measuring tape

Every week, in collaboration with our affiliate-company True Spec Golf, our in-house team of equipment experts host the Fully Equipped podcast. It’s where we break down the most interesting equipment news in golf, from the most authoritative voices in the game. New in 2021, we’re going to be highlighting many of those same Fully Equipped voices on GOLF.com as part of an expanded series of articles, sharing the best equipment insight around, and helping you play better golf as a result.

This week, we’re asking the experts about the different kinds of clubfittings, and what you need to know about each of them.

1. Putter fittings help you square the face

Jonathan Wall, Managing Equipment Editor:  Putter fittings are the most underrated clubfitting, and I don’t think it’s even close. I spoke about this during a recent Q&A for GOLF.com, but it’s the one club in the bag you use more than any other during a round. What’s truly baffling is how few golfers have ever gone through a proper putter fitting. Having a putter built to your specs is going to give you a chance to make more putts. A GOLF.com study once found that a custom-fit putter increases your make-rate by 43 percent. Why? Because it helps you square the face more effectively during your stroke. Fewer putts should translate to lower scores. Even if you find the putter in your bag is the best one for your game, at least you have the peace of mind from a fitting.

2. Further and better — even without a perfect swing

Luke Kerr-Dineen, Director of Game Improvement Content: You can and should be working on your swing. It’s the surest way to hit the ball further, quickly, is to get a driver with the unique way you swing a golf club. A good fitter can bring the spin down, the launch up, and squeeze out a few extra yards with the same swing.

3. Well-fit irons help you through the bag

Andrew Tursky, Senior Equipment Editor: I’m not going to dispute anything J Wall said, because putter fitting is wildly overlooked, but I still think irons are the most important clubs to get fit. Think about how many shots you hit with your irons during a round of golf. If you have the wrong head designs for your swing style, or the wrong shafts, you’re costing yourself distance and accuracy on every single iron shot! How much more fun would golf be if all your irons went 5-7 yards longer, higher and straighter? I’ll take perfectly fit irons and a putter from the garage over poorly fit irons and a dialed in putter.

Want to book a fitting of your own? Schedule a fitting with the experts at our sister company, True Spec Golf.

JWall

Jonathan Wall

Golf.com Editor

Jonathan Wall is GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com’s Managing Editor for Equipment. Prior to joining the staff at the end of 2018, he spent 6 years covering equipment for the PGA Tour. He can be reached at jonathan.wall@golf.com.

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Andrew Tursky

Golf.com Editor

Andrew Tursky is the Senior Equipment Editor at GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com.

Luke Kerr-Dineen

Golf.com Contributor

Luke Kerr-Dineen is the Game Improvement Editor at GOLF Magazine and GOLF.com. In his role he oversees the brand’s game improvement content spanning instruction, equipment, health and fitness, across all of GOLF’s multimedia platforms.

An alumni of the International Junior Golf Academy and the University of South Carolina–Beaufort golf team, where he helped them to No. 1 in the national NAIA rankings, Luke moved to New York in 2012 to pursue his Masters degree in Journalism from Columbia University. His work has also appeared in USA Today, Golf Digest, Newsweek and The Daily Beast.