Anyone do progressive swingweights in their irons?

Equipment
1

This is my first post at ABS - I’ve been a 15 year member of the GEA. Have lurked here, and still there, but want to contribute where I can here as well.

Onto the topic. My Ping i3 Blades are a little light in terms of head feel - they run from D0.2 to D1.4 across the set (inconsistently), as measured digitally. I’m making them heavier through Ping WRX using the CTP badges.

I’m thinking of running a pseudo MOI-matched set, going from D2 to D5. The lengths are standard, and run in 0.5" increments. The progression would be:
3-5: D2
6-8: D3
9, PW: D4
Gw, SW, LW: D5 (with oversized grips)
I’ve tested these using dimes & quarters taped to the back on the sweetspot.

I’m not looking to go through the trial/error, effort, expense and testing of a true MOI-matched set, but I’d like to better match the effort required to swing the irons throughout the set.

Does anyone play a set that approximates this? Not quite MOI, but progressive swingweighting?

2

well, this is my 2nd post here (i think) as the 1st post (which was the reason for me creating an account here) was a question which never got answered. i saw your post referenced over at sitd forum and thought maybe i can put my account here to good use so your question doesnt suffer the same fate as mine but i digress.

anyway, what you wanna do is described by Dave Tutelman in great detail here http://www.tutelman.com/golf/design/swingwt4.php?ref=#sw_scale and this is what i ended up doing to my current set. it made alot of sense (to me) and it works extremely well feel wise (for me). the idea is that they all feel the same when you SWING them and this method achieves just that without the need for much trial and error tinkering on your part. i’m not familiar with ping gear and their weights system so dunno how fine grained those weights you can get. i did this with a truckload of high density lead tape. my set goes from ~D3.5 3 iron to ~D8 pw approx because i dont have a digital scale but as long as you keep the inc/dec amount the same the best you can it doesnt really have to be super precise as you are unlikely to be able to feel the difference anyway. once you all done i recommend trying the entire set for real and if you FEEL any difference in any of them to others re-measure and re-adjust. even if the numbers check out fine forget the formula and re-adjust anyway til it feels right. i found that i didnt have to make any significant adjustments afterwards but ymmv.

hope this helps.

3

There is are many threads on equipment on site. Here are John’s personal specs:

advancedballstriking.com/lag_specs.doc

4

My set is swingweighted progressively from around D4-D5 in the 2, 3, and 4 irons up to D9-E0 in the wedges. They aren’t all perfect, but they are close enough. I like the progression and would never return to wedges that SW the same as my long irons.

5

There are several reasons why I use progressive weighting. For one… I don’t base any of my clubs on swing weight. It’s a worthless measurement as far as I am concerned… but what I do is progressively increase the mass of my shorter irons beyond “normal” or “standard”.

First reason is heavier means more feel. I can certainly handle more mass in a shorter length iron say an 8, 9 or PW due to the shorter shaft. There is no control issue.

Second, I am more likely to encounter bad lies rough or with a shorter iron… green side or pitching. My ball is more likely to be in a deep divot from 120 than from 190. The extra mass helps bulldoze through those situations much more effectively.

Third, since irons are for accuracy… the short irons are really for accuracy, so I like to have firm shafts in them that can accommodate the increase in weight. I am not concerned about how far I hit a PW or an 8 iron… but want control, and to be able to feel the clubhead with a shaft that supports properly.

Forth, I want the clubs to actually feel the same WHEN I SWING THEM… not waggle them. Because the longer irons are lighter in dead weight I get a lot of the FORCE into the strike from greater speed and acceleration and the increase in pull from CF. So with the shorter irons… the length of travel of the head is not as great and neither is the CF or velocity… so I set up my set so that my clubs feel the same when I swing them… NOT WHEN I HOLD THEM STATICALLY.

On tour I played 13.5 ounce persimmon. Now increased the mass to just under 15. The reason is that because I don’t play often… I need to really feel the clubhead. Heavier helps dramatically. But the other good news is that swinging, drilling and playing with a 15 ounce persimmon has made me stronger over time. So now I can swing the heavier club just as fast, but now the head has more mass so I get much better strikes… and the miss hits go much better with more mass in the head. Most all the great strikers went this route. I held Moe’s gear personally at it was SHOCKING at the time. We know Hogan and Snead played very heavy gear. A friend who knew Knudson confirmed that he did also. I have met and discussed with a couple old timer equipment guys… one who did Palmer’s sets back in the 60’s and said he was in the one pound range also.

The verdict is still out if anyone on tour today will be able to figure out how to hit the lightweight gear laser straight. Not seeing it yet. Any real quality test of a layout requires accurate driving of the golf ball. That should always be a priority. Very few players play PGA Tour layouts. In all honesty, they don’t interest me one bit. If I am not asked the question from the tee… a shot shape, trajectory and position in the fairway, I lose interest and respect for a golf course quickly.

Being able to drive the ball straight makes this game a lot easier, and it is a great virtue to have no fear of any golf course due to tee shot accuracy concerns.

If players shy away from tight courses as many on tour to… it shows a lack of confidence and character in my opinion.

6

Hi Lag - what weight did your Driver head come up to when you hit 15oz total weight?

7

I’m pretty much identical to you jrich. D4 2i thru to E0 wedges