"The flight monitor only watches the ball for 15 inches," Kurnit points out, "but having the range lets the client see how the ball really behaves."
Kurnit estimates he's done 1500 fittings since he started in the business 25 years ago. He set up shop in partnership with Fairview just a few days ago. He not only has all the tools to measure your swing there, but a shop on the premises to tweak your sticks on the spot, too. The shop is only a few steps away from the privately-curtained hitting bay he uses to check your swing.
In addition to measuring the golfer's lie, loft, and shaft length, Kurnit emphasizes the importance of having the right shaft flex for your swing. "You hit the ball with the head, but you hit it right because of the shaft," he says. It's also not enough to pick the right shaft according to the manufacturer's specs, either, since any one graphite shaft in a supposedly identical group of ten can vary as much as a full flex from the others. If you're going to spend $300 on the perfect shaft, he emphasizes, you should have it tuned to be sure you're getting what you want.
Kurtin uses a GC2 Foresight flight monitor to check swing speed, ball speed, launch angle, shaft angle at impact, back spin, side spin, percent off line, carry, roll, and peak height. Since the golfer is hitting on a full range, he or she can see what all those numbers really add up to.
I'm a big believer in proper club fitting and can personally attest to one of Kurtin's points: most players will hit their driver further and straighter if they use a shaft shorter than the standard 46 inches. "It's all about controlling the club face so it strikes the ball in the center," Kurtin says. "Center hits on square club faces have less spin so they fly straighter." Even if your clubhead speed is a little shower, it's axiomatic that balls that land in the fairway run out more than those that hit the rough.
A full 14-club fitting can run three to five hours in total (not all at once!) and runs $275. Each driver, fairway wood, and hybrid are individually measured, as are all the irons and even your putter. Irons or woods only are $150. A great way to try out the service is with a one-club "quick fit" for $75. Take your driver--and see what a shorter shaft will mean to you.
DD Custom Golf is at Fairview Golf Center in Elmsford. For more information, call (914) 715-8486. By the way, the "DD" in the name doesn't stand for Dave Donelson--it's "Dynamic Diagnostic" Custom Fitting.
In addition to writing about golf, Dave Donelson distills the experiences of hundreds of entrepreneurs into practical advice for small business owners and managers in the Dynamic Manager's Guides, a series of how-to books about marketing and advertising, sales techniques, hiring, firing, and motivating personnel, financial management, and business strategy.
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