Using eFit To Get the Perfect Clubs for You — Beginner

If you're looking for new golf clubs you have lots of excellent choices. New options for drivers, woods, putters and hybrid clubs make getting the right set for you and your game easy to do. Not only do you have more club choices than ever but getting those clubs fit correctly to your game has become a breeze.

Golf clubs used to come in very standard sets. Those sets were made for the average golfer, of average height and average skill level. That was fine as long as you fit into that average category. If you were a beginner, tall, short, a woman or senior, you might just be out of luck. If your swing speed was very slow or very fast you would have a hard time finding clubs that would really fit your game.

About 20 years ago the options for clubs was limited. There were no 7 and 9 woods, hybrid clubs, or large headed drivers. Perimeter weighted cavity back irons were just being introduced. These new clubs are much easier to hit and very forgiving. A beginner wants to find clubs that are as forgiving as possible.

Today there are many new choices of drivers, woods, hybrids, irons and putters. Many of these new designs did not even exist 15 years ago. In addition, you can choose from many styles of grips, shafts, and clubheads, each designed to solve a particular swing problem. For someone who is a beginner or has been out of golf for awhile, all the choices can be overwhelming. Yet understanding how to take advantage of these new options can mean a golfer can find a new level of optimization in their clubs. They now can truly find clubs that will make the game easier and more fun.

Using GigaGolf's eFit System

So how do you make sure you are buying the most effective clubs, shafts and grips for your game. Luckily GigaGolf has a system that not only provides all the options but guides you through the process and teaches what you need to know to make the right decisions. Their online eFit System is an elegant, streamlined ordering process that guides you every step of the way to the perfect clubs for you and your game. Also, because they are the manufacturer, it doesn't take any extra time to get clubs that are customized. Custom clubs usually ship in 2 days.

However, if you are a golfing newbie, you may still find the process a little overwhelming. How do you get fit for YOUR game when you don't even have a game. How do you choose the right shaft for you if the right shaft is based on how far you hit your 5 iron or driver. You may not have a clue. Well you've come to the right place. We're gonna help you every step of the way.

Another benefit of buying from GigaGolf is their 30 Day Play Guarantee. Once you've tried your clubs, if you feel you need to change your selections, you can always contact GigaGolf and they will be glad to make adjustments. They will even give you a complete refund. Talk about a no-risk purchase.

Choosing Your Clubs

The first step is choosing some clubs. But how do you know what to choose? Your first inclination may be to buy that cheap starter set you saw at the department store. Well...everything is included. It's got 3 woods, 9 irons and a putter. Gee it's even got a bag. That's fine if you've got a good place to store it in the garage. Chances are you'll outgrow that set within months or worse yet, you'll hit them so badly you'll give up golf.

A beginner, perhaps more than any other golfer needs clubs that are right for them. Learning the game is hard enough without trying to play it with clubs that are too long, too heavy, and too hard to hit. With a little help you can find clubs that match your ability level and physique.

First a little background on what makes a golf club easy to hit.

Winston Churchill said "Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into a even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." If he was around today he'd be singing a different tune. You CAN find weapons that get the job done. You just need to know what to look for.

Most beginners end up with clubs that are too long, don't have enough loft and don't fit their skill level...or more accurately, lack of skill level. They need clubs that compensate for their inevitable mishits. Here's some club types and features to look for.

Ping invented the easy to hit, perimeter weighted, cavity back iron design in the 80s. Over the years that design has been improved and today, a new category of Super Game Improvement irons are available. These clubs offer maximum forgiveness. They feature cavity back perimeter weighting, wide soles, oversized heads and clubface offset. These features help make a club that is forgiving on mishits, gets the ball up in the air easier, and slides through the turf more smoothly.

The new hybrid clubs offer a great replacement for the hard-to-hit long irons (2-5). Their design makes it easier to get the ball up higher and are great from bad lies and the sand. New offerings in fairway woods (7, 9, 11) with higher lofts and low profiles get the ball up easier and their shorter lengths make consistent contact more reliable.

New drivers have massive heads made from titanium. Titanium is lighter so that allows the clubheads to be larger without making them heavier. The advantage of larger heads is the hitting area (sweet spot) is larger. This makes them more forgiving on mishits and means the average drive will go further because contact is made closer to this sweet spot more often.

So what should a beginners set configuration look like?
As we mentioned a beginner is looking for the most forgiveness possible, so for each club category you want to find clubs with the largest sweet spot, the most loft and the shortest length possible without making the club too light. Beginners should also consider smaller sets (10-12 clubs instead of the allowable 14). Why buy clubs that you probably won't need or use.

• Driver should be oversized with a minimum of 12 degrees of loft.
• Fairway woods should be 5, 7, 9 lofts, and maybe 11 (for slower swing speeds)
• Irons should be Super Game Improvement with numbers 6 through sand wedge.
• Hybrids replace the long irons. You want hybrids 4-5.
• Putter should be one of the new mallets with greater MOI (resistance to twisting).
  

Now let's use GigaGolf's eFit System to select our clubs and fine tune them to our height, swing speed, and grip size. eFit will help you along the way. To get help and more information about your selection click anywhere you see the blue i.

Lets Start With the Irons

GigaGolf offers several Super Game Improvement iron sets. Their Acer XP High Trajectory is an excellent choice. It offers a wide sole, thick topline, large offset and maximum forgiveness. Click here to go to their Acer XP description page. We'll guide you from there.

Step 1- Select Clubs
We don't want the standard set makeup so we need to select "click here to purchase irons individually". This is a very nice feature of GigaGolf. Most online fitters will not allow you to buy clubs individually. You usually have to buy the set as configured. Click on the selections of clubs you want — 6 through sand wedge. When done click on Next.

Step 2- Select Grips
This is where we choose our grips and grip size. If you are not familiar with golf club grips, choosing their default Lamkin Crossline will be good choice. If you'd like to learn about the other choices, select a different grip and the display will change and show you a picture of the selection and provide a description.

For grip size you may need to make some hand measurements. Grip size is important because it effects how you hold and swing the club. An incorrect grip size can hurt distance and accuracy. If you want to learn more, just click on the i to see why grip size is important. After you've entered your information click on Next.

Step 3 - Selecting Shafts
The two parts of selecting shafts are choosing the shaft model and choosing the shaft flex. Getting the correct shaft is a very important part of getting the right clubs for you.

Shaft models differ in terms of materials (steel or graphite) and flex characteristics. Some shafts flex in a way that makes the ball go higher and some shafts flex so the ball goes lower with a more boring trajectory. The main detail to consider for a beginner is material. Graphite shafts are lighter so you can swing them faster. They also have a softer feel. Steel shafts tend to be a little more accurate. Slower swing speeds will probably want to select graphite shafts.

The correct shaft flex is based on your swing speed. Fast swingers need stiffer shafts for optimum accuracy and distance and slow swingers need more flexible shafts. So how do you figure your swing speed if you're a new golfer. You can assume that if you are an average male of average athletic ability, your driver swing speed is between 85 and 95 mph. This means on your good shots your drives should carry between 180-220 yards. You should be able to hit your 5 iron about 145 to 165 yards. For that swing speed you want a regular flex shaft. If you are a young, very athletic male you may need a stiff (S) shaft. For beginner seniors and strong women your speed is probably between 75 and 85 mph which equates to 100-140 yards with your 5 iron so you want an amateur (A) flex shaft. Average women and juniors swing at around 65-75 mph which means 75-100 yards and a ladies flex shaft.

The eFit System will help guide you through your selection. As you select a shaft, the display changes to give you an image and description of that shaft. Above the image are three choices-Shaft Image, Shaft eFit, and Shaft Specs. Clicking on Shaft eFit will allow you to enter your 5 iron carry distance and get a recommendation of your correct flex. Selecting Shaft Specs will give you more details about the shaft like weight, bend point. This is cool stuff and a great way to learn about shafts.

Once your shaft is selected click on Next.

Step 4 - Selecting Length and Lie
The length of your club is important. Not only does it effect your ball striking but it also relates to the lie of the club which can effect shot direction.

The Length/Lie step brings up a display that lets you enter the 2 measurements that effect length and lie. Your height is obviously important but you also want to measure your wrist to floor distance. Long or short arms will effect the correct length of your clubs. When measuring your wrist to floor measurement be sure to be in your stocking feet.

Enter your measurements and select Submit. eFit will now show you your recommended club length and lie and automatically adjust the selections below.

The lie of a club effects how the sole sits on the ground. At contact if the toe is up in the air the ball will tend to go left. If the heel is up in the air the ball will tend to go right. The eFit system provides a wonderful, visual explanation of how this works. Just click on the i and Find out here selection. By the way, lie adjustment can only be done to irons, so these adjustments don't apply to woods and hybrids.

By the way, you might want to consider making your clubs .5 inch shorter. Shorter clubs are a little bit easier to hit.

Step 5 - Review
This step allows you to review all your fitting specifications. If you choose you can edit your selections.

Now on to your driver

A great driver for a beginner is the Acer XP 905. It has a 460 cc head for a maximum sweet spot. Click here to go to the Acer XP 905 description.

Step 1 - Select Clubs
Choose the 12 degree loft if you are an average male. You might want to consider a 3 wood as your driving club if you are a slower swinger.

Step 2 - Grip and Size
You can enter the same grip and grip size specifications from your irons selection.

Step 3 - Shaft and Flex
You want to select a graphite shaft for your driver because it's your distance club and you want your swing speed as fast as possible. You probably can use the same shaft on your fairway woods for the same reason. The default PHG 100 shaft is an excellent choice. It offers a lower bend point in the A and the L flex shafts. A lower bend point is good for slow swingers because it helps get the ball up in the air a little easier.

The shaft flex selection will be the same as your irons. If you want to go through the eFit help system to make sure, click on the eFit button above the selection to enter your driver carry distance. Once again for an average male your carry distance would be between 180 and 220 yards which indicates an R flex. Strong ladies and seniors are between 140 and 180 yards and need an A flex. Ladies and juniors are between 100 and 140 yards and need an L flex.

Step 4 - Length
Enter the same height and wrist to floor as you measured for your irons. There is no lie adjustment for woods.

Once again you may want to consider shortening the shaft .5 inches from what the eFit recommends to help make accurate contact a little easier.

Step 5 - Review
This step allows you to review all your fitting specifications.

Now for your hybrid clubs

Acer also makes a great hybrid club. The Acer XP hybrid has the same length as the comparable long iron but the wood-like sole and face gets the ball up higher with more distance. A hybrid 4 is much easier to hit than a regular 4 iron. Click here to go to the Acer XP hybrid description.

Step 1 - Select Clubs
We want to select the 4 and 5 hybrid clubs.

Step 2 - Grip and Size
You can enter the same grip and grip size specifications from your irons and woods selection.

Step 3 - Shaft and Flex
You can select either a graphite shaft or a steel shaft for your hybrids. We recommend choosing graphite to give you a little more distance. Choose the same shaft and flex that you used for your wood selection.

Step 4 - Length
Enter the same height and wrist to floor as you measured for your irons. There is no lie adjustment for hybrids. We recommend getting them .5 inches shorter.

Step 5 - Review
Review your selections

Now for your putter

The new mallet putters have large head that increase their moment of inertia (MOI). This reduces twisting when you hit the ball on the toe or the heel.

The Ecliptic 3-Ball putter uses the same technology as the most popular putter in the game, the Odyssey 2-Ball putter. It features an easy alignment aid and low-back center of gravity to keep your puts rolling smooth and straight. Click here to go to the Ecliptic 3 Ball description.

Step 1 - Select Clubs
Select your putter.

Step 2 - Grip and Size
Grips for putters are different than grips for the other clubs. There are more varieties and sizes. Try the default until you learn what you like.

Step 3 - Shaft and Flex
There really isn't much to decide here. Go with the default.

Step 4 - Length
Length relates to height but it also relates to how you like to stand when putting. Some golfers like to stand tall and others prefer crouching down more. Your preferred style is a matter of personal preference developed over time. Go with the default selection for now.

Step 5 - Review
Review your selections

Now that wasn't so bad. eFit helped you every step of the way. Now you have clubs that have been adjusted to your height, arm length and hand size as well as optimized for a beginners game.

Remember, with GigaGolf's 30 Day Play Guarantee you can always make changes to your selections. If you want to try a different shaft... a different grip... or even a different club, you have 30 days from the day you receive your clubs to make up your mind.

The point is, as a beginner it's not always easy to find the right golf clubs for you. GigaGolf understands this and provides every tool you need to do just that. Now go out and have some fun playing golf.