Every golfer knows how important it is to have the best equipment fit for your game. Modern golf clubs make that easier than ever these days. Many of the top golf club makers now put a custom fitting experience right in your hands when you choose which clubs to put in play. Not only do players get to build their perfect set of golf clubs, but they can also fine-tune those clubs once they get them in their bag. TGW put together this handy guide to adjustable golf club technology to help you better understand how it can help your game.
Loft
The most common adjustable feature on golf clubs today is the adjustable hosel. One thing the adjustable hosel allows golfers to do is to adjust the loft angle. This feature is commonly found on drivers, fairway woods, and hybrids. The majority of drivers offered now have adjustable hosels while many fairways and hybrids do as well.
Being able to adjust the standard loft of a golf club gives players more control over trajectory. Players who struggle to get the ball in the air off the tee or launch it too low in the long game can add loft to get the ball airborne properly. An ideal higher launch maximizes carry distance. On the other hand, some golfers need to lower their ball flight to get the most distance out of their swing. Hitting the ball too high can cause the ball to balloon and hit a figurative wall in mid-air, dropping sharply and costing you distance. Lowering the loft of your clubs with this adjustable feature can help you bring that trajectory down.
One important thing to keep in mind is that adjusting the loft of a club like this does fractionally change the face angle. When you increase the loft, the face slightly closes. Decreasing the loft causes the face to slightly open. This change is so small that it is not often noticeable to the naked eye, but it is something to account for when adjusting the loft of your club.
Lie Angle
The other thing adjustable hosels allow golfers to change is the lie angle of their golf club. Again, this feature is common in drivers, fairway woods, and hybrids. Depending on the brand of golf club you have, many times the loft and lie settings are adjusted at the same time. Some adjustable hosels, like the Titleist SureFit hosel, allow you to adjust the loft and lie angle independently of each other.
Having the proper lie angle makes you a more accurate golfer. If your clubs are too upright, then the toe will not make contact with the ground at impact and your shots will travel left of your target. If your clubs are too flat, then the heel will not make contact with the ground at impact and your shots will travel right of your target. Increasing the lie angle through an adjustable hosel creates more draw bias while decreasing it produces more fade bias. If you are seeing big misses in either direction, try adjusting the lie angle of your adjustable hosel.
Weighting
Adjustable and movable weights are another popular feature of metal woods. There are two ways golf club manufacturers allow for adjustable weight that produce different results. One is moving weight to the heel or toe of the club head. The other is moving weight forward or back.
Any time you add weight to the perimeter of the club head, this makes the head more stable, helping it to resist twisting, and making it more forgiving. But putting more weight in just the heel or the toe can help produce a different ball flight. Adjustable golf clubs that allow you to place more weight in the heel, or near the hosel, create more draw bias. Added weight in the heel makes it easier to close the club face and can help correct a slice. Sliding more weight toward the toe helps create more fade bias, helping to overcome a hook.
Adjustable back and front weight positions help you customize your ball flight to fine-tune distance and trajectory. Placing more weight in the back of the head creates a higher trajectory with more carry distance. Placing more weight in the front creates a lower, more piercing trajectory with more roll out and helps reduce spin.
Many putters now will also have weights on the sole in the heel and toe. This is to add stability and allow golfers to change out weights to make the putter head feel lighter or heavier, depending on player preference. Having this level of adjustability can be to your advantage depending on the conditions of your greens. Heavier club heads can help on fast greens because golfers will swing a heavier putter slower, reducing the chance of sending the ball flying past the hole on a fast green. Lighter putters can help swing faster on slow greens to help you prevent leaving putts short.
Adjustability is here to stay in the world of golf clubs. While nothing can replace practice time and golf clubs properly fit for you, these small adjustments can add up to make big changes in your game. If you have a golf club with adjustable features but it is worth trying them out using these tips as a guide to fix what may be ailing your swing.
