Welcome to “I Tried It,” a GOLF.com series where we break down items — apparel, gear, accessories, etc. — that we’ve recently taken out for a spin. We’re here to give our honest, no-frills takes on the latest and greatest golf or golf-adjacent items. So, scroll down to read about what we love (or don’t) about golf’s newest (or new to us) products.
OK, hand up. I’ll admit it. When the Rypstick training aid arrived at my door a handful of months ago, I was excited to try it out. And then? I got side-tracked. Life. Work. Etc. You know the drill.
But earlier this month I finally dug in and got to work. And what did I learn? Two things: 1, this was so easy and quick to use, I can’t believe I didn’t carve a few minutes out of my daily routine to try it earlier. And 2, I picked up valuable swing speed in no time. Let’s break it down.
How does the Rypstick work?
So, what is the Rypstick? We are glad you asked. It’s an all-in-one training system that’s designed to increase your swing speed, which will then increase your distance. According to Rypstick, every mph of clubhead speed you can add translates to 3 extra yards of distance. So even adding something marginal like 3 mph to your swing can equal roughly 9 yards, which for approach shots alone is enough to give you a club less into greens. That’s significant.
The Rypstick is essentially a golf club shaft (complete with a grip) but with small weights on the end instead of a club head. Each Rypstick comes with three interchangeable weights at the bottom and an optional counterweight on top of the grip (which I didn’t even touch, but you can), giving you eight different weighting combinations.
They come in different sizes — senior, mens, ladies, junior and indoor — so you can use what works best. I used the mens and indoor, the latter being extremely handy for anyone (like myself) stuck inside during cold-weather winters. It’s 38 inches compared to the standard 45-inch mens Rypstick, meaning you have room to take swings in your living room.
It’s easy to get started, too, with an app, website and YouTube channel that are loaded with different levels of workouts, instructional videos and tips.
I started with the level-one workout in the app and, using the RypRadar, which reads your swing speed with or without a golf ball, got my baseline swing speed of 92 mph. (The RypRadar does not come with the Rypstick, but there are Rypstick Training Packs that package them together. But even without one you can still go through the program and see the results on the golf course.)
Once you get started, you simply follow the app, do the drills, swap out weights as it recommends and track your progress. The plans don’t even call for daily workouts, and nothing takes longer than 20 minutes. Heck, you can even go rouge, create your own plan, work out for as little as 10 minutes and still see a payoff.
If you commit to using the Rypstick three times a week with its 12-day level-one workout plan (which you can check out and copy here) you can be done in a month. As for my results? I saw some progress during the first few workouts but noticed some big gains as I got more comfortable. And while the 12 workout/month plan might work for you, I was a little impatient and knocked it all out in 20 days. My final baseline? On Day 13 I stretched and took five swings, with the average coming in at 101 mph — a 9-mph increase from about three weeks earlier.
But the best part? It felt natural, and not like I was trying to swing harder.
I checked my work in a simulator a couple of days later and found some increased distance as well. Like most Northerners, my game’s been mostly dormant in 2024 — read: inconsistent — but a month from now I’ll be on a course and swinging more regularly. Harder and faster, too. I’m pumped to see the payoff.
