Golfshake Member Reflects on Custom Fitting Experience

Golfshake Member Shaun Morgan has been playing the game for around a decade, impressively tracking over 200 rounds on the Golfshake Score Tracker and reaching a respectable handicap of 11, but hadn’t updated his clubs throughout that time or undergone a fitting, something that many keen golfers pursue when purchasing a new set.

So, with that profile making him the perfect candidate for a case study, we took Shaun along to experience a Custom Fitting Session with PING Golf’s Mike Lea. It was an illuminating opportunity for the 31-year-old to learn more about his own game, receive insights behind the technology and manufacturing of golf equipment, and to discover if this process overseen by a renowned brand could make a positive difference to his game.

We captured Shaun’s Story from the memorable and informative fitting day, but the results ultimately wouldn’t be known without a lengthy period of regular play with the new clubs under his belt. Months later, we have reconnected with Shaun to hear about the progress made and his reflections on that fitting with the experts at PING.

“To be honest, I still wasn’t sure that the whole thing was real until I actually turned up on the day! You hear of people winning competitions like this, but I couldn’t actually believe it,” Shaun revealed. “With regards to expectations I was keen to understand what type of changes they would make to my clubs based on my swing and then seeing if those changes actually worked.”

PING’s fitting process aims to determine the key numbers throughout the entire bag; from the loft of your driver, the lie angle for a set and length of putter. Bringing this information together, PING has the technical makeup to create the set of clubs tailored for the specifics of an individual golfer.

For Shaun, the comprehensive work and research behind identifying his key characteristics and requirements was fascinating and rewarding. “I tried four different irons, each with a different shaft and then at different degrees. Each time, the guys made subtle changes to the equipment which would improve my shot.

“The most useful aspect was seeing the dispersion of my shots using the TrackMan, on which all of the shots I hit that day were recorded. I started off with my own clubs and then the PING clubs with the different shafts and heads, that way we could see which club suited me better as the dispersions were minimal on the clubs that I finally got,” Shaun added.

“I now have a range of wedges to choose from, whereas before I only played with a PW and SW. Now I have a 50°, 54° and 58° wedge. Also, I no longer have a five-wood, which was rarely used before, and I now have a four-hybrid. Almost the same club except the hybrid is much easier to hit off the ground.”

This is a journey, with the initial fitting process being only the first stage of the adventure. Selection and manufacturing are naturally the next step, but the results only really come to fruition when the new clubs are in the hands of the golfer, something that did take a period of adjustment after ten years of using the one set that he started with.

“It took three or four rounds to get fully comfortable, and a couple of sessions at the driving range. Particularly the wedges, I just need to practice using them and work out their distances. The putter also took a few rounds, the change in shape from my old one and weight too meant that I needed to adapt my putting technique slightly.

“However, my swing hasn’t changed much since the fitting, it is more that the clubs have changed to suit my technique. The change that I feel I have made is that I can give a little more effort into shots now and know that the ball isn’t going to go miles left or fight and deviate off its path. That comes with confidence of using these clubs that are custom fit specifically to me and my swing.”

There have been noted improvements to Shaun’s game – a better scoring average of two shots on Golfshake since receiving the custom-fitted clubs from PING – and he is hoping to translate that into a continued lowering of his handicap throughout the year ahead.

“I think that I have improved from 100 yards in, due to the variety of wedges that I now have. Before I was having to using a PW or SW and adjust my swing. Now I have a club for the majority of yardages and I can use a full swing. I think that I may have added some more distance with the driver, the G400 Driver is superb. I would recommend it to everyone.

“I have my old clubs for ten years, from when I started golf up until last summer. The progression of my game with those clubs was good, but perhaps slow. I feel that my game will improve faster with these clubs.”

For Shaun Morgan, the Custom Fitting Journey has only just begun, and we look forward to continuing to follow his progress on the Golfshake Score Tracker.