Custom fitting is something that all golfers - especially those keen to get the most from their game - should consider undergoing.
Having clubs specifically tailored for your requirements, swing and technique, can make all the difference. When you think about it, there is no point performing at your best if the equipment you use doesn't offer the same in return.
While you may believe that fittings these days are about those higher handicap players looking to improve, you shouldn't underestimate the benefits of having the right clubs in your bag and the enhancement that can make to the best golfers out there.
Golfshake's Equipment Expert, Ryan Rastall is the PGA Professional at Howley Hall Golf Club in Leeds and a highly skilled golfer, but what would happen when he underwent a fitting with one of the most historic and legendary brands in sport?
Wilson Golf has been the choice of major champions for generations and their irons rank among the very best on the market - with their latest Staff Model irons being released to great acclaim.
We dispatched Ryan to the fabulous Dundonald Links in Ayrshire, where he met Scott Clelland, who is a PGA Advanced Fellow Professional and Tour Technician for Wilson to undergo a truly rewarding fitting experience with these irons.
The First Steps of Custom Fitting
Spending time on the range, Ryan explained just what he was searching for, with it quickly being established that he sought control, flight management and consistency as priorities over gaining distance, desiring a club setup that would allow him to hit controlled, repeatable yardages with predictable spin.
Keen to understand Ryan's preferences, Scott learned that a slightly flatter, controlled cut shape was favoured, with the initial testing immediately showed positive results.
Ryan was quickly impressed, noting how the club produced a noticeably stronger flight than his own irons while still maintaining the shape that he wanted.
Scott explained that - during the process - they were looking closely not only at launch and carry distance, but also at dispersion patterns and how the clubhead behaved through impact.
Finding Exactly What You're Looking For
There was a particularly illuminating moment when Scott asked Ryan to intentionally hit a controlled cut into an imagined front-right flag, with that shot delivering everything that Ryan had been looking for.
Looking at the raw numbers, they revealed:
- Around three miles per hour more ball speed than Ryan’s current setup
- Approximately seven yards additional carry
- A flatter, more penetrating flight
Ryan was impressed by just how much more comfortable he felt controlling trajectory with the new setup, especially in the windy conditions that were present on the links that morning.
As the session progressed, Scott spent considerable time explaining how shaft profile, balance and swing weight were influencing things.
Rather than simply trying to reduce spin through stronger lofts, the fitting focused on helping Ryan manage loft delivery more efficiently.
Scott explained that reducing the flight too aggressively can often widen dispersion, so the challenge for the fitter was finding a setup that lowered launch while maintaining control.
Reaching Ideal Spin Consistency
A major focus became maintaining spin consistency.
Ryan noted that with his previous irons he occasionally saw shots that "pop and spin" unexpectedly, while the new setup appeared to remove those extreme variations.
Scott also referenced how the shaft and overall club balance were helping Ryan control loft more naturally through impact.
Reliability Over Pure Distance
When it came to distance, reliability was the desired result. Ryan described that his ideal 7-iron would carry in the mid-170s before releasing naturally out toward 180 yards.
Rather than wanting a club that occasionally flew 10-15 yards farther, he preferred predictable launch and spin characteristics that would allow him to control landing areas more effectively.
Scott’s testing demonstrated the new iron setup was achieving exactly that.
The fitter also pointed out that the new combination prevented Ryan from "trapping" the ball excessively and killing spin, helping maintain more stable launch conditions across multiple strikes.
By the middle of the fitting session, Ryan acknowledged that the newer setup removed many of the inconsistent "jumpers" he had experienced with previous iron combinations.
For the irons, the successful setup delivered:
- A flatter and more controllable ball flight
- More consistent carry numbers
- Reduced risk of "jumpers" and excessive spin variation
- Improved turf interaction
- Additional ball speed without sacrificing control
The fitting ended with Ryan and Scott agreeing that the overall performance gains were achieved not through chasing maximum distance, but through carefully building a setup of irons that improved consistency, spin control and shot predictability.
This is What Makes a Custom Fitting Special
Following their time on the range at Dundonald, it was time to visit the Wilson Factory, where the components for Ryan's new Staff Model irons were picked out and the clubs assembled before his eyes.
You can see the fitting unfold, including the details of their discussions, in addition to enjoying a tour of the factory by watching our new video below.
