Every golfer has played with golf clubs that just felt right. You were able to make your best swings consistently, the clubs felt good in your hands, and they made you a more confident golfer. But have you ever wondered what it is that gives golf clubs the right feel when you swing? This is where swing weight comes into play.
Swing weight is a specification that the majority of casual golfers don’t give much thought to but serious golfers and golf club fitters will pay close attention to. It is all about balance and how weight is distributed through a golf club. In this guide, TGW will define swing weight and describe how the right or wrong swing weight can affect your golf swing.
Defining Swing Weight
Swing weight, simply put, is how heavy a golf club feels when you swing it. It is not a finite measurement and is not something measured in grams like the weight of a golf club’s shaft or grip. This measurement was invented in the 1920s to describe the dynamic feel of a golf club as the player swings it.
Breaking it down further, swing weight aims to measure the distribution of weight across the golf club by accounting for four factors. The four factors that come into play when measuring swing weight are:
- Weight of the club head
- Weight of the grip
- Weight of the shaft
- Length of the golf club
These four factors are used because they accurately represent the amount of weight in the top third of the club when compared to the bottom two-thirds of the club.
How Swing Weight Is Measured
Swing weight is measured using a special balance scale that places the golf club at the proper fulcrum point. The fulcrum point is where the golf club is evenly balanced on both ends and does not tilt to either side. Once balanced at the correct fulcrum, club makers move a sliding weight that measures the amount of weight required to balance out the part of the club that hangs over the scale. Once the counterweight balances the entire club, the swing weight scale indicates what the swing weight of that club is. Robert Adams of Adams Golf fame is credited with inventing this system of finding the proper balance in golf clubs.
How To Read Swing Weight Ratings
Swing weights are expressed using a combination of letters and numbers that tell golfers the range of the swing weight and the exact reading within that range. The swing weight range is represented by the letter at the beginning of the measurement. There are six swing weight ranges from A to F. Each range has 10 specific values within it, from 0 to 9. The lightest possible swing weight is A0 while the heaviest possible swing weight is F9.
If you pick up a men’s golf club off the rack with stock options, the swing weight will generally be between D0 and D2. With women’s golf clubs, the standard range will be from C5 to C7. The difference between each swing weight measurement is incredibly small. For example, all it takes to make a golf club go from a D2 to a D3 rating is about .07 ounces in the club head. That is approximately the weight of a single penny. Very few golfers would notice that small of a change. However once you start making changes to a golf club, because the difference between swing weight points is so small, they can add up quickly. Changing the length of the club, swapping out the grip, or replacing the shaft can all change the swing weight. For example, if you have a D3 swing weight driver at 45.5″ in length and cut it down to 45″, that same driver is now a D0 swing weight. While a difference in one swing weight point can be difficult to notice, when they add up fast to a change of three or four different points, you may notice when you swing the club.
Why Swing Weight Matters
Swing weight is important to get the most out of every swing. If a golf club feels too heavy, the golfer has to swing harder, can find it difficult to swing, and tires out through the round. Heavier clubs and a tired golfer means less speed and less speed means less distance. If a golf club feels too light, the golfer will find it difficult to control and keep the club on the proper path through their swing.
It is important to have the proper swing weight for your swing and tempo. An incorrect swing weight can throw off your swing and lead to more off-center strikes and inconsistency. A swing weight that feels right keeps your swing on the correct path and tempo, yielding consistent, accurate results swing after swing.
Finding The Right Swing Weight
The best swing weight for you is one that keeps you in control of the golf club throughout your swing while producing enough speed to give you plenty of distance and a proper ball flight. It should be heavy enough to transfer enough energy to the golf ball at impact while remaining light enough to achieve fast club head speed for maximum distance.
Making Adjustments
As we noted earlier, it takes very little weight to change the swing weight of a golf club. That makes it incredibly easy to adjust the swing weight of a club, but it also could throw off your preferred measurement. Everything from changing the shaft in a golf club, installing new grips, or using lead tape on the club head changes the swing weight of your clubs. Even changing the length of the club adjusts that measurement. Here are four basic guidelines to keep in mind when it comes to swing weight adjustments:
- Adjusting the weight of the club head by 2 grams adjusts the swing weight by 1 point
- Adjusting the weight of the shaft by 9 grams adjusts the swing weight by 1 point
- Adjusting the weight of the grip by 5 grams adjusts the swing weight by 1 point
- Adjusting the length of of the shaft by ½-inch adjusts the swing weight by 3 points
Knowing the ins and outs of what makes your golf clubs a good fit for you keeps you in control of your game and can help you get more consistent results with every swing. Swing weight is something many golfers have heard about but not completely understand. We always recommend getting fit to find the best clubs and shafts for you. When you have your custom specs, head over to TGW.com and shop our selection of custom golf clubs that can be personalized to fit you. Custom golf clubs are built directly by the manufacturer and shipped straight to your door, custom fit for you!
TGW features a great selection of the best <golf clubs from all the top brands, so you’re sure to find the best set for you. We also carry a wide selection of the golf clubs for women as well as youth golf clubs from the best brands on the market.
Swingweight is a 100 year old sales gimmick developed with no knowledge of Physics or Engineering. Swingweight measures the club balance as felt WHEN THE CLUB IS STATIONARY. Swinging the club depends on moment of inertia FOR THE ENTIRE CLUB (not just the club head). Matching moment of inertia for a set of clubs is far more difficult than a simple static balance. More difficult but rewarding.
Thanks for the detail explanation of SWING WEIGHT. I understand that if u change the grip or shaft u automatically change the swing weight. However; if u change the lie angle of the irons do u change the swing weight?.
Thanks again for your detailed info/explanation.
Thanks for your question! Adjusting the lie angle of your irons will not change the swing weight. Since you’re not actually adding or subtracting weight from the components of the club when you do that, only bending or adjusting what is already there, the swing weight would not change.
Anyone know the difference in swing weight points between a regular size grip its corresponding midsize grip?
I believe the difference between a standard grip and a jumbo grip is two grams.
You can change the shaft weight, or add hot melt to the club head to effect the swing weight.
fortunately for use we have have calculus and basic physics to tell the weight and mass of the lever swung at any acceleration and its derivatives can be exactly calculated without even testing the club. Unfortunately not many golf club makers are engineers and are about the same as a barbarian fashioning a club to bash peoples brains in.
Swing weight is at least a starting point …If all your clubs ‘ Feel’ the same then you should be able hit the ball consistently….In a ‘ Matched Set’ of clubs this would give you a good chance of improving your game …..There has to be something in the swing weight theory as I see top pro’s have ‘ Doctored ‘ their clubs by adding ‘ Lead Tape’ to the heads which would not be done ‘ Blindly ‘
Hmm, I would have thought multiplying ‘the amount of weight required to balance out the part of the club that hangs over the scale’ by the distance from the fulcrum to the centre of the club would be an appropriate measure related to the feel of a club and what a player should consider choosing according to strength/swing-speed.
I recall this to be the ‘moment of inertia’ I learned about in my early teens at high school. I went on to do a Ph.D. in physics so I guess that is why I remember that.
Applying a bit more physics, the feel of the club I suppose depend on the flex of the shaft. Hmm, now I don’t quite recall the right word for that – elasticity? I would be happy if someone could put me right here.
The thing about swing weight is that it is not something you choose. It choose’s you. Based on a fitting, you will find your proper golf club based on a number of factors including swing speed, launch angle, spin rate, smash factor, shaft flex, kick point, etc. Your swing weight will be whatever provides you the best results in combination with the other factors. IMHO.
@ Jim Congleton. Elasticity is defined as change in one variable in response to change in another, so for example, PeQd = percentage change in Qd to percentage change in P, where PeQd is the price elasticity of demand, Qd is quantity demanded and P is price – (PhD in economics). So, applied to golf, shaft elasticity (flex) would be change in shaft shape (straight to more bent) in response to swing speed (faster or slower). So a flex definition of stiff would imply the shaft doesn’t “flex” much to a faster swing speed. A limited measure really, that needs to include kick point, ie., where the shaft bends (yip to grip) … I THINK?