Don't Make These 2 Shaft Weight Mistakes / What Iron Shaft Weight is Best? 

I’ve gone down the rabbit hole about swing weight during the last two weeks. Your videos have been an essential part of that. Keep up the excellent work.

For me personally, I went to lighter shafts to help when I have back problems (130 to 120 in irons and 68 to 58 in driver. The lighter shafts help me to be able to move the club decently when my back isn’t super healthy and also energy up when later in the round.

Tempo and transition will have a huge influence on what weight works best. The faster the transition the heavier weight usually suits the golfer, As always there are exceptions and no absolutes. Fitting is always key. Good video.

So true. I struggled with side to side dispersion for over 10 years+ due to playing with lighter shafted irons believing that as I got older I needed to lighten up. I always suspected that my iron shafts were too light since all of my wedge shafts have always been DG X100 130g and I had little to no dispersion issues with these clubs. At 62, I recently switched to heavier shafts in my irons and my accuracy and smash factor (consistent ball striking) have improved tremendously. My accuracy is back on par to what I experienced in my younger days. Of course, the youthful distance is not there, but since switching, I've gained some distance along with the better accuracy. My playing partner has also done the same and has experienced a noticeable improvement as well.

The heavier shaft also does wonders to compensate for imperfections in the shaft.

As always… super valuable Golf fitting content. Thank You!

Best video on this subject I have ever seen. So happy to see and hear someone clearing up widely broadcast myths. I have always found that a heavier iron shaft provided me with much better results than lighter shafts. The heavier shaft helps me maintain a smooth tempo, and it is not so easily manipulated. Thanks for posting this!

Great video thoroughly debunking a myth. I was certainly in that group that thought lighter was faster. So much so I was using my kitchen scale weighing clubs and shafts trying to match a driver shaft to a particular head thinking it was going to be faster. I was perplexed as to why it didn't perform as my hypothesis suggested. Now I have a better understanding

Man what cool info I've been following you for a long time and man you've helped me with my own club craft, always some new trick to learn from you thanks!😅

I recently as an experiment went with a 15 gram lighter shaft in my new irons. I have come to the two following observations. 1. I have to consciously swing smoother and try not to race my downswing because I can definitely tell the shaft is lighter. 2. As pointed out in the video, my slight swing faults become more apparent which has literally FORCED be to concentrate more and possibly improved my actual golf game.

Thanks for posting this. I just picked up a set of clubs that have Oban Ct 125 shafts( I don’t know the flex) but I have found the heavier shaft for me helps with feeling where the club is for me.

It even more pronounced with driver shafts. Lighter shafts in drivers are disaster - heavier shafts are "smoothing" the swing and prevent rapid and uncontrollable transition from the backswing into the downswing. I have noticed that with lighter shafts it is much easier to cut across the line ending in a typical slice. A great vlog!

Great video, very informative as always. Although IMO "Play the lightest shaft you can control" is a valid concept for everyone. When you suggest to go to a heavier shaft then is simply because the lighter shaft was not the lightest one you can control

I'm getting so much information from your channel. So, thanks for that. In the past 2 months I have replaced all my iron shafts. I took a chance and went from 90 gram steel, to 60-65 gram graphite. I cut the graphite .750 inches longer than standard for a more upright swing and to help with the swing weight. I went from approximately D2 to about C9 swing weight. I must have done something right. I went from a hook miss to a straighter shot or draw. I'm also getting more height and distance. At 71 years old, I love my old AP1 irons again!

Very interesting video. Absolutely agree. Light shafts are trap and a recipe for inconsistent shot making.

Best video I've seen on the subject

Hey AJ. Nice expose. I especially like your second point. I've not heard anyone else mention that particular effect before, but it makes a lot of sense. I recently fitted myself for my new shafts and did the light vs heavy swing speed comparison. As a senior golfer, I've lost speed and was looking for a way to recover some of it. But I got the same result as you - virtually no chs difference. I tried a 95g and 106g (R and S) and 120g from the same family/model and compared them to my current 130g shafts and a 120g one from the same family/model. With the 95g shaft I just couldn't find the centre of the club face, so it was eliminated quickly. Both 120g shafts didn't feel any different to 130g ones so I eventually settled on the 106g shafts. That 22g made a big difference. With the new shafts, I got rid of my tendency to get my hands stuck behind me, and lost my right-side bias. My timing and strike improved, although dispersion is roughly the same, just more left. I also saw a big change in how tired I was feeling by the closing holes. With the lighter shaft, I now feel I am swinging the same on the 18th as I was on the 3rd. With the old shafts, the last few holes started to feel like an effort and the swing suffered. Once I settled on the 106g I tried stiff (106.5g) and regular flex (103g). I liked the feel of the R but preferred the weight of the S so settled on soft-stepping a set of the S flex. What I gained is a lower effort swing with improved direction and consistency, and 2 strokes off my handicap. I didn't gain any speed or distance but hey, we can't have everything. Can we? Thanks for putting out such great content. I've learned a lot from you over the past years. Cheers.

Great vid and I could not agree with you more and I've always questioned the light = clubhead speed = goodness mantra. Thank you. I love the tape and choke methods, but I did have some feedback about applying tape. With the introduction of tape, the shaft is no longer symmetric, it's drag coefficient has increased and ultimately it will slow down the shaft. Also, depending on the exact position of the tape relative to swing path, an introduction of the Bernoulli effect could introduce lift to the shaft and make it nearly impossible to make a downswing that actually makes contact with the ball. At least that's what the guy that wanted to sell me a new set of light shafts told me. :) Always appreciate your content.

So I instead went with the Brava shaft on my Stealth plus driver and added weight to the head. It worked out well. The swing weight didn’t hurt my club speed and it helped straighten out my tee shots. Finding more fairways and the ball gets out there further than I was hitting it without the extra weight. I watched your videos on those two topics except instead of using the lead tape I just added an additional sliding weight which I put into the draw position and left the original weight in the center position. I think those clubs had a tendency to fade originally and the newer models just added more weight to the club to help them stay straighter. So I came up with this solution and your videos helped me come to that conclusion. I am no club fitter and I may be all wrong but I know it’s working for me 😅 thanks for your help.👍

Makes sense...Mass and momentum make for better consistency. This proved true in my Son's recent fitting.

Very timely. Thank you. Heading off in the next few weeks to work out what I want in some new clubs/shafts. Moving away from game improvement And very light shafts to more of a players distance combo set.

Good info. Nice swing. Wish I could swing like that.

I like heavier shafts because they slow down my tempo and help my swing stay in sync because I can get quick.

Very good channel with solid, scientific knowledge.

Can you do a video on driver shaft weight? And for purposes of having more videos, a separate one for woods shaft weights, wedges, other videos on misconceptions between the flexes of shafts relationship to weight and swing speed (i.e. everyone with 90mph swing speed must use stiff flex and certain shaft weight), and how these factors can affect the ball flight. Maybe even a live club fitting - video for each (driver/woods, irons, wedges, putter)

Thanks for this info. I've been wondering about shaft weight in my set. Based on what you've posted here I really shouldn't be worrying much about it. I get good ball flight. I had wondered if a lighter shaft would yield more club head speed. Doesn't seem that is likely to be the case. I have tried lighter shafts in a second hand golf shop and definitely had more two-way misses. At some point the shaft gets light enough that I turn the club over too easily. My take away is to play more golf and do less worrying about gear.

Recently I had the fun time of diagnosing what to do with a set of iron heads that were about 10grams under weight after refinishing. This lead me to begin with adding 10g of tip weight (hated it) with the original 130 gram shafts to 115 gram shafts and tip wieght (this was ok but not great) to now the (closer to 100 gram) Nippon NS 950 Neo shafts and adding weight directly behind the sweet spot on the back side of the iron heads. Now the clubs feel right again.😊

✳️ I use NS850 reg ✳️ Rose Zhang a LPGA player is using the same shaft ✳️ very surprising..

Great video again! I’m curious to see stepping in shafts and the differences. Stepped down v standard v stepped up I’d like to understand the peak height difference, dec angle and distance between each of them.

I also think the strength of the person helps determine the weight of the shaft. I am becoming weaker as I age and have found I need lighter shafts. Right now I am playing 70g R flex in my irons and 40g L flex in my driver and fairway wood. This seems to work best for me at 77 years old.

Having played DG S300/S400 growing up (way too heavy) discovered custom fitting in 2008 and have alway fallen into the 105g region and D3 swing weight for irons. Got fitted for Modus 120 soft stepped for some T20 wedges a few years ago and it was a stroke of genius from the fitter!

Great video. Very interesting.

That was worth watching.

Interesting video. I'd be interested in adding the nuances of graphite vs. steel iron shafts in this analysis. As we "boomers" age and like me, are afflicted by arthritic hands and elbows, graphite is a necessary or tempting transition to make. Since many OEMs are primarily offering light (60-70 grams, max) weighted graphite shafts, many of us need to customize through a fitting. And as another poster mentioned, swing tempo is a crucial ingredient in this as well.

best as always!

I think it really depends on the golfer prefer feel and body limitations. I prefer a lightweight shaft, I came to that conclusion when I went to my local 2nd swing store, grab a bunch of different used set with various shaft configuration and headed to the trackman bay. The set up with the heavier shaft didn't correspond well for me and I only swung a 7 iron in the low 70mph. On the other hand, the best feeling used set I was able to hit without putting stress on my body was a set of Mizuno Hot metal 923 HL with Senior ESX recoil 460 in the high 70's club head speed. These shafts are roughly 60g according to the manufacturer website, but didn't want to spend $7-900 on this set, so I got myself a set of Maltby TS3 (6-P) built with fujikura vista pro 50i shaft. for less than $500 new. With this set, I can swing my 7 iron around 76-78 mph according to my lunch monitor.

What about flex, I was fitted into a light shaft but stiff flex to stop it ballooning. Excellent video

Hey ELITE FIT GOLF , I just watched your video and I must say that it was really informative and well-made. I was wondering if I could help you edit your videos and repurpose your long videos into highly engaging shorts? I can also make high CTR thumbnails for your channel

I don’t think I would have ever been fitted into graphite shafts in a fitting because they feel so different than the 130s. I had to live with the graphite for a week or so to get the hang of the timing difference. I do think I had to smooth out my swing to be consistent with them. I’m happy with them now.

Great info. I have a driver shaft that is 8 grams heavier than the Venus shaft I have. Will the heavier shaft slow down my swing speed

Excellent video. Question - my friend (77 y/o) is convinced that switching from his regular flex PXG driver to a lighter senior flex will help his chronic slicing and add more distance. He has a good swing and used to be a single digit handicap. I'm telling him that if he solves his slice, his distance will increase.

Good video. When adding lead tape to the shaft, I would find the balance point and then put the tape half above and half below. That would have the smallest impact on swing weight.

Swinging your mid iron around 90mph will be better with more mass on the club so 120+ grams will help. For short hitters definitely recommend light shafts + go try them out. Each manufacturer has different kick points and one might just be light bulb moment

I have hit Reg shafts my entire life. Was given a set of stiff shafts last week. Holy cow! My ball flight is now lower and my 8i hits, hops, stops. Previously it would come in much steeper, fly higher, hop and roll a few feet. Am changing balls for even more spin.

Went from 90 to 120 Hit great but get heavy after 4x a week. Thought adding weight at the balance point would be better to keep similar SW.

Very interesting.

I use a 90g KBS shaft. Need the ball height. It’s stable in my hands too

Have a friend that went to 'Big Custom Fitters' that recently popped up everywhere. Got talked into light senior flex shafts in his way too expensive 'custom fitted' iron set. He hits the ball all over. Left left left... Right..back to left again. He's always always always asking me how I swing and what I use and this and that... Yet never uses that advice. Always gets talked into crap he doesn't need. I just shake my head. I use a set of USED Hogan PTx Pros with 120 gram extra stiff shafts. Why, because that's is what was in them when I bought them. They feel and hit great! I pick up his feather weight clubs and try to hit a ball and it goes all over the place. I can't control them one bit. Moral... Don't get talked into crap you don't need at these fancy places that hire used car salesmen. Listen to A.J. here. P.S. I'm 65 years old...

I'm 60 and swing 130 g shafts. Tried lighter and lost feel of the clubhead and control of ball flight. Will swing heavy until I can't

It would be nice to know what the swing weight was for each club iron as that can make the club feel heavier or lighter

Excellent video. I had a golf lesson and it was suggested that I got lighter shafts. I went for a fitting and the shafts weight recommended was 105g. I ended up selling my clubs and buying a new set of irons, which I really enjoy. Having said that, I’ve got a set of Mizuno MP-59’s with Dynamic Gold S300 shafts, which I bought years ago and hardly used. I have started using these as my practice clubs and really get on well with them but agree I do feel I get tired quicker. Aside from the tiredness, is it wrong to practise with heavy shafted clubs and play with a lighter shaft?

I've often thought of filling my shafts with sand just to feel the difference of heavier swings.

would like to have in swinweight equivalent in the equation... 80 gr with the same head modify the game a lot...

Thanks for your videos..I play with Dynamic Gold 120 s300 1/2 inch longer..Does that mean they are like 10/20g heavier than a standard length,particularly in the long irons?

Less than +/- 1 oz distributed over the length of a shaft just doesn't matter that much--as evidenced by swing speed. I agree go heavier when in doubt. It's other characteristics of the shaft that cause issues...they just happen to correlate with weight in a lot of shafts. Swing each shaft with no clubhead and you can feel how trivial the difference is-- from a weight perspective.

How do you determine shaft flex?

I think the misconception is from shaft weight vs club weight, they probably mean(or should say) you should play the lightest club weight you can control.

I recently added some lead tape to my driver after shortening the shaft by a full 2". The good news is I'm hitting it straighter than ever with only a ~20 yard loss of distance (285 carry to 265 carry), but I'm wondering if you have any tips on how to improve the durability of the lead tape, or possibly something to coat it in so I don't feel like I'm getting lead all over my hands every time I pull the driver out of the bag. Thanks.

I definitely have fallen into that "I need lighter shafts" but went back to 125g and have become much more consisent.

I've played the X100 but not going to Nippon Pro 950GH which is 115g and saves 15 grams of swing weight from my body/back. The Nippong Pro 950GH is a very stable shaft and it fits me and l am just playing the S, not the X.

Is there anything to be said for slightly lighter shafts in the longer irons. To help with higher launch on long irons. Ie lighter than the shirt irons.

depends on how fast you swing and how accurate you swing.

I have a question about fittings. I have a range close by that i can get fittings at but they use range balls, them there are indoor places to get fit that use a launch monitor and i can bring the balls i use use. Which would be a more valuable option to ise? Thanks! Enjoy your content

My shafts are heavy. I like it that way. I’m a strong guy. I need to learn more about this. After listening, I’m good.

Adding lead tape weight to the shaft to make it heavier will only affect the feel and not stiffness and flight characteristics of a heavier shaft. A heavier shaft will be a stiffer shaft and be harder to square the club face if the player doesn’t have enough swing speed. All in all I think a lighter more flexible shaft is better for amateurs. I once tried to swing a friends forged blade 4 iron with a dynamic gold s300 130 gram shaft. It was like swinging a telephone pole. Lost 30 yards of distance and everything went right. Then I swung a 80 gram stiff graphite shaft. I had effortless power and much better distance and dispersion

Very educational. Although the swing speeds are the same, how about the ball speed? Shouldn't heavier club generate higher ball speed?

What about grip weight. Does that even effect club speed.

Why don't you put 1 or 2 - 4x8 sheets of plywood under the screen, with a 2x4 under the edge by the screen to make a slant board. Why shag balls all day when the ball can roll back to you. Put some astro turf and padding on the ply wood to make look nice. Nice tips. I am ocd about swing weights and shafting. All good info

What about flex, how do you figure that into this?

Can you address ball flight? My understanding is a lighter shaft can help increase peak height and land angle

Shaft weight only helps flatten the swing. People tend to pick up their hands and not use their big muscles. Bend profile is most important.

What about people who require longer shafts? I'm 6'5" with short arms, and my shafts are +1.25. I find the longer, heavier shafts are are too cumbersome.

I have a question concerning grips; which sidze grip is better standard, medium or large?

80g graphite shafts in my irons work’s perfect for my slow swing speed. Anything heavier feels like I’m swinging a sledgehammer.

One thing I do know is my golf bag with my 130g irons and all the lead tape on things weigh significantly more than my friends golf bag. 😂

I switched from ZX5s to P7MC irons and went from nepon shafts to KBS c-taper lite 110g and I can actually hit a draw now lol

HI AJ, I hope you can help me. I have a son, he is a good player +2. his Ping hybrid is spinning too much as he is getting stronger. I am looking at a Graphite Design shaft for him, but they are .370 diameter, Ping says it is a .355 diameter. Is there a good way to make this fit? Thanks for your help.

Does shaft launch and tip stiffness have a big play in your swing?

Would your advice be the same for Woods ?? Respectfully.

Haha!! I’m the exact opposite. I had 130 X stuff in my irons and hooked the ball off the map. I switched to 55g senior flex graphite shafts and now I hit a baby fade and love them. I have a 115mph swing speed with driver for reference. Crazy

I’m a tall golfer +1 inch on all my irons. Would you suggest going to a lighter shaft to balance out the extra weight if that +1?

Please explain. What is the difference between needing a heavier shaft versus needing a higher swingweight??? Are they equivalent???

I paid $150 at house of sport and it was a disaster. He fit me to a 64g, shaft from the 85 go I was playing

Good information! Aren’t we essentially just talking about swing weight? I’d love to see a video on flight characteristics (higher/lower) of a lighter vs heavier shaft, and how much iron shaft flex affects flight and direction, as well.

I found my preferred weight by lots of experiment

Your content is credible. Now get a 60 to 65 year old mid handicap and do the test see what happens. Better yet…do it in the same age bracket with a bad back. That would appeal to a lot of your viewers looking at our age to improve.