Is Professional Club Fitting for Junior Golfers Necessary?
Chris Asbell has been fitting golf clubs since he was 14 years old and making them since he was 16. At a recent fitting appointment I had a few questions for him with regard to fitting clubs for Junior Golfers.
Who should have their clubs fitted?
Everyone can benefit from a club fitting especially when Juniors hit a growth spurt or when the young player starts getting misses that previously weren't there.
How long should they stay in US Kids Clubs?
The US Kids Ultra Lite golf clubs are very good and are certainly the best clubs to start with. These days with all the emphasis on coaching, kids are becoming better and stronger earlier. Stronger kids are growing out of the US Kids Tour Series faster. Certainly the trend is around 12 years old, or when they are ready for a US Kids size 63, they will find that a professional fitting can make a big difference. A lot of the time, around this age, they are strong enough to move into a major brand.
What are the advantages of major brands for young players?
Ultimately the major brand will help strengthen the golf swing and provide greater consistency. Ping really does a good job controlling head weight, Mizuno does too. (See our Golf Club Guide for Teens and Advanced Juniors).
What is the most important thing in fitting clubs?
There are three main things - lie angle, shaft weight, and length of shaft. The lie angle is the angle that the club sits on the ground. As kids get older the weight of the shaft is key and can be a big factor in being consistently accurate. Some shafts are designed to keep ball flight down and others keep the ball up in the air. They can be the same weight. As juniors get stronger, the shaft needs to get stiffer, generally speaking, to accommodate higher swing speed and retain accuracy.
Also read our article on Club Fitting for Juniors.
Chris Asbell is a Master Certified Club Fitter, PGA Professional and Georgia PGA Teacher of the Year. He utilizes the Trackman Pro Range System to fit clubs at the Georgia Golf Center.
