With the season getting underway soon and our trip to MB less than 8 weeks away, I've decided to upgrade to a new driver (currently playing a Taylor Made 580XD about 5-6 years old). Have never had a club fitting before but based on everything I read, it sounds like that's the way to go.

Wanted to get some feedback on others' expereience with club fitting, whether it was worth it and were you able to take the results and shop around? I'm a 17 handicap.

If you wait until you get to MB, Martin's has a department that does that for you sponsored by Taylormade. The guy who helped me was very good. It ended up that I hit my driver better than any of the models he had, so I kept it, but it was very helpful and was free to boot.

It is so worth it! you will get many miles out of a good club fitting. Go find someone and go with an open mind then you will see results.

I am about a 17 handicapalso and completed a fitting in Feb. 2012 with Callawayt. It was the right decision and money well spent. My driver is two inches longer than my off-the-shelf Driver I purchased 2 years ago. Hitting at the range, I am 15 to 20 yards longer, straighter and much more confident. It would be wise to shop around and see what different fitters say about your swing. Before I was fitted, I went on the range and hit 20 to 30 balls before he reviewed my swing on there system. Hope it works out for you when you get to MB!

See fitting as an investment, not an expense!

Take care!

Steve Dresser at Steve Dresser golf Academy is a highly regarded club fitter.

Dick McManus

Three suggestions (if you wait till your Myrtle trip to get fit):
1) Taylor Made performance center in Martins (North Myrtle);
2) Callaway performance center at Barefoot's range;
3) Fit yourself by going to Martin's and checking out 3 of their demo drivers that suit your eye the best. You can take the demos out for free for a couple days and try them on the golf course and see which one does the best. Repeat as necessary.

If you do go to Martin's don't do the generic fitting in their bays that are open to anyone with a generic Martin's salesperson. Those launch monitors are not accurate with regard to spin rate and can result in a bogus fitting. Better off going specifically to the Taylor Made fitting booth (also in Martins) to get a more accurate fit. Those launch monitors are top notch and the fitting process is more comprehensive. The only problem there of course is you'll only be fit for a Taylor Made driver. However, the cost of the fitting is applied to the cost of the driver should you choose to buy (same as with the Callaway center).

Outside of the performance center fittings, I'm a big fan of fitting yourself through trial & error testing the demos. There must be dozens of demo clubs each with different shafts & lofts. A Martin's sales person can help you narrow the possibilities. The true benefit is you can see how they perform on the golf course with real balls. Getting fit for a driver on a range using crappy range balls can be tricky even if the balls look OK. The balls at most ranges are limited distance balls to some extent and almost all range balls fly lower than the balls you play on the course. The other benefit of demo fitting is you get to try before you buy.

Thanks for the feedback. Went ahead with the fitting and a new driver based on results. New driver has a stiffer and shorter shaft and a Ping G20 head that's a bit heavier than my old Taylor Made 580XD. Played 2 rounds with the new club so far and results so far are impressive - much more accuracy and slightly more distance.