Balls for custom fitting

DMT

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2014
HCP
6.8
Local club/country
Celtic Manor
Irons
JPX Tour 919 (5-PW) 50, 54 and 60 degree Vokeys
Driver
Ping G 10.5 Tour Stiff
#1
Hi, I'm going to start looking at drivers, including the 900 of course, and would be interested to hear peoples' thoughts on important factors during the fitting, particularly in respect of the balls used.

Are you comfortable buying a driver having only hit range balls, but still with a launch monitor?

Would you prefer to hit range balls and see the full flight or hit your own preferred ball into a net and trust Trackman?

I've tried reading around about variances in spin rates of range balls versus say a Pro V or similar, but am not finding anything conclusive. 

I could take some of the balls I play to the range for a fitting but factoring in a few dodgy swings and it could be a costly exercise.

I know that strike location will have a large impact on spin rates and sadly I can tend to use more of the clubface than is ideal.  So maybe I'm over thinking this and worrying about optimising flight on a ball that in reality I wouldn't be using and I should instead be focussed on the relative differences between my current driver and any test driver.

I know Dan at Bearwood Lakes gets rave reviews but I've used their range and as it's short they have limited flight balls and I'm just not sure I'd be completely comfortable.  I've used a place in Basingstoke which was indoor but using real balls and I'm perhaps leaning towards that option......but do like seeing the full outdoor flight too.  The old Mizuno set-up in Surrey would have been perfect (proper balls into a net then turn 90 degrees and whack some out into the range). 

Most of the places near me are outdoor ranges with Trackman or Flightscope but only range balls.  I'm trying to decide if I should travel to be able to hit proper balls.  The benefit of the local places is being able to do a few fittings to be certain before making a commitment. 

Anyway, enough of my ramblings.  Any thoughts/comments appreciated.

Thanks.
 

Brattz

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 6, 2016
Location
Derby, Derbyshire
HCP
Pro
Local club/country
Derby Golf Centre
Irons
Mizuno JPX 919 Tour (4-PW) - Project X LZ 6.5 120g - 0.5° Flat - 1/2"+
Driver
Titleist TS3 - HC Project X LZ17 6.5 60g, 9.5°, A1 - 11g
#2
Trackman can optimise your results to show the results if you used a premium ball instead of a range ball. It can also adjust for temperature...
 

PaulBoy

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 18, 2012
HCP
WHS 7.0
Local club/country
Army GC
Irons
Mizuno Pro 223 (4-AW) Modus3 120s
Driver
Titleist TSi2 Graphite Design Tour AD XC-50s
#3
The chap at Basingstoke is Jason McNiven who has the reputation as one of the best fitters in the UK - He uses real balls & as you say is indoors hitting into a net - But he does use Trackman, which is what the superstar Pros have in their penthouses etc (suggesting its quite decent?) - In an ideal world you would hit real balls down the range using a LM but that setup is hard to find here in the UK in my experience - Good luck ... Paul
 

DMT

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 31, 2014
HCP
6.8
Local club/country
Celtic Manor
Irons
JPX Tour 919 (5-PW) 50, 54 and 60 degree Vokeys
Driver
Ping G 10.5 Tour Stiff
#4
PaulBoy said:
The chap at Basingstoke is Jason McNiven who has the reputation as one of the best fitters in the UK - He uses real balls & as you say is indoors hitting into a net - But he does use Trackman, which is what the superstar Pros have in their penthouses etc (suggesting its quite decent?) - In an ideal world you would hit real balls down the range using a LM but that setup is hard to find here in the UK in my experience - Good luck ... Paul
Thanks.  Yep, it was Jason I saw a few years ago and I left having ordered my first Mizuno irons.......and a hybrid with a rather expensive shaft!

As I think about it more I expect that's the route I'll go again.  Maybe I'll do some range fittings locally to find a couple of heads I like and then make the trip down the M4 with a better idea of what I like. 
 
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