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How many of you have actually been on a launch monitor? I have not, I would love to but the only guy who does this in this area charges $150 for what he calls a driver fitting and $225 for iron and driver fitting. I am worried that if I do this he will tell me that every club I have is not right for me. Then my mind will get in the way and it will end up costing me a ton of money to have confidence in my equipment again. From what I read it would seem that most of you are pretty accomplished golfers, how much would someone like myself who has been playing less than two years and struggles to stay in the 80's benefit from this? I feel good about my equipment, I hit my driver pretty long and straight (260-280) how much gain would be "good" if I were to spend this money. My driver is a 9.5* and I feel like they would try to get me to go higher and I feel like I am the last person to jump on this high lofted driver bandwagon. My ego wont settle for any more than 10.5* Im not even sure what my swing speed is, it was measured at a little over 100mph on a speed stick the other day but im not sure how accurate that is. Does Dicks sporting goods have any services like this? We will be getting one soon, Im very excited about being able to handle and drool over the newest equipment when they get here.

with the guy. The price seems a little steep and he's likely to tell you that you need new irons and/or a new driver. I'd ask is the cost of the fitting is applied to the purchase of a new club (should you need one). Most of the local courses and pro shops that offer fitting services here charge between $50 and $75.00 for fitting the full set of clubs. If you purchased through them they typically apply the fitting fee toward the purchase.

One thing I'd caution against is purchasing a full set of clubs based on the advice of one sales person using the launch monitor. Properly fit clubs can make a difference, IF your swing is consistent. If the swing isn't consistent a set of fitted clubs won't make a huge difference.

Where are you located? There may be more fitter's in your area than you are aware of. Also, might be a good excuse to get yourself to a golf school in which they will take you measurements and fit you as well. Price seems very steep, and being that you are already an 80's player may stand more benefit from lessons than a fitting at this point. You can also look to ebay to get some impact tape and board that checks your lie angles. Lot's of options, just need a little more info....like what is your usual mis? Do you hit the ball high or low? With your driver, is that distance with roll or mostly carry? If you are poking it out 260 carry then your SS would be in the 110 range.....

I had my irons fit by the place where I bought them and I am happy with them. I am actually happy with my driver. I had my irons fit with the lie board and they have been adusted 2*flat. My shafts are stiff based on how far I hit the clubs. What more could be done with a launch monitor as far as my irons are concerned. My misses are mostly due to a lack of discipline in my swing i.e. lifting up and hitting fat or thin. Not committing to a shot and letting my swing get away from me. I guess The launch monitor comes in more handy with the driver. I used to hit the ball high sometimes ballooning with my driver with the factory mas2 55r shaft so I changed to an aldila NV 65s and that lowered my ball flight and gave me 5-10 yards. I carry the driver about 250-255 average 260 on a really good swing. I guess I am not convinced that the launch monitor would help with a whole lot in my case. I would probably benefit much more from a short game school or more lessons.

the fitting experience is 100 percent worth it if your serious about buying expensive clubs

Were my irons "fit"??? If nothing more than the shaft flex was chosen based on swing speed and the lie angle adjusted based on hitting off of a lie board?

NO, they weren't. You can't go by swing speed for picking the correct shaft for your irons. What matters, is how you "load" the shaft that matters, and that's not the same thing as swing speed, nor how far you hit the ball with a certain club. I hit my 9 irons 150 yards carry, and that would mean I need an X-stiff shaft in my irons. And that's exactly what shaft I was told to go with. BUT, when I was tested on a ShaftLab, 3 times, the recommended shaft for me was between R flex and A flex. That's a hugh difference, and it's because I have a smooth swing and I don't load the shaft much for my swing speed, which tops out at 107 with a driver.
You might want to check with Golf Galaxy and Golfsmith. Both stores have launch monitores that you can hit on. I've been on a monitor at both stores a few times, and it's never cost me a dime. They do have a fitting service at both stores, that cost about $30 for a 20 minute fitting. It's mostly to see what your launch angle and backspin rate is, for fitting you with a good driver or for testing what ball gives you the best launch conditions.
I'm one of those "girls", the ones with the high loft driver, 12 degrees in my case. Most people think I'm nuts, at least until they hit my driver one time and can't believe the ball flys 25 yards past their own driver. It's happened more often than you might think. I had the pro at one course hit my driver and he couldn't believe it. The ball was out there some 250 yards, and it was still climbing. He started to walk away, but then he looked back and saw the ball still going, and his mouth dropped open. He said something about heading to the pro shop right after that.
Would a launch monitor fitting help your game? That's hard to say, but I'd be surprised if you didn't find out that your launch angle couldn't be improved with a different driver. I've never seen a golfer out on the course that thinks their launch angle needs to be higher, and I've never seen a golfer that hits the ball high enough for maximum distance. And a launch monitor will tell you exactly what your launch angle is, and how to correct it. What it should be is around 15 -16 degrees, and most guys hit the ball closer to 10 -12 dgrees at best.

Im definitely not closed to the launch monitor especially with the experiences the rest of you have had with it. Maybe I need an out of town trip to a golfsmith. I guess I should save up first....wife says no more golf equipment for a while.
Oneputt- How far do you carry your high lofted driver and did you have a lower loft before that? Definitely a big difference? My ego can get over the high loft if im hitting lob wedge and my partners are behind me with 9 irons.
I am beginner, less than 2 years just getting interested in going farther than grip it and rip it golf.

I can't really tell you how far I hit the ball carry distance anymore. The reason is simple, my eyes are shot, and I can't see the ball land, not even when I hit the greens on a par 3. What I can tell you is the longest carry distance was with my 12* driver, back a few years ago when I could see the ball land, and it was 260 yards. I think I have hit some longer ones, but I can't say for sure, as I can't see it land. I do know that I've hit a few drives over 300 yards total, with a longest of 325 yards. I can also tell you that when I went from a 10.5* driver to my 12* driver, I gained 20 to 30 yards on most all my drives. And there is this one hole, a dogleg left, with a tree at the corner that's at about 225 yards out, and with my 11.5* G2, I hit the ball "over" the tree. It's a good size tree, I'd guess 50 to 60 feet tall. What the carry distance on that shot was, I can't say, but it had to be well over 250 to get over that tree. I do know the drive was close to 300 yards, as I only had about 85 yards to the flag. Not being able to see the ball, even when I find the fairway, really *****, but what can you do when you get old and the eyes give out?

I agree totally with this my 9i is right there with the above yet I use rifle graphite shafts in A flex as these matched my loading the best and Im more accurate and longer now thanks to this. I have a smooth swing yet its a VERY fast tempo. So please do not base how smooth your swing is solely on tempo SS and distance it can be very misleading. Also about the driver I once again agree I went from a 9* to a 10.5* and I got my distance back and got to the right launch. So I agree whole heartedly with the above.

I've never head of a launch monitor being used with irons, only drivers. With irons, I've always dealt with strike plates and loft/lie adjustments. If anyone knows a weblink that discusses it, I would be interested in reading more.

My driver SS is about 105-110 and I probably have 1-3 300 yard drives a round. I currently play a 10.5* X-stiff (see signature below). I used to be one of those who thought the lower loft the better. But, when I went from 9-10.5, I bet I gained 15-20 yards. That driver was given to me by a tour player and it was "spec'ed out" for him. So, I know there are several tour players who are playing "high" lofted drivers.

There's nothing 'girlie' about high loft. Proper trajectory is VERY technical and requires several things to work together to be achieved (Angle you go into the ball at impact, Swing Speed, Shaft Flex, Shaft Kickpoint, etc). Heck if you don't like your driver to say 12*. But, you hit it 300. Then, get a grinder and take the 12* off. Or "man up" and challenge the guy giving you a hard time to a long drive contest. That'll shut him up.

Let's say you're playing a 9* S shaft. If you hands are generally ahead of the ball at impact, you effectively changed the loft of that driver from 9* to 6* or 7*. And, the vice versa is true. You could be someone whose driver is 7*. But, due to hand position and impact, ss, flex and kickpoint combination, you might be changing the effective loft from 7* to 9*. So, instead of keeping the same driver and changing your swing so that hands are even with ball at impact, you only have to change driver loft (and maybe flex/kickpoint). Now, you can keep your same swing (if it's worth keeping). That's a lot cheaper than a years worth of lessons that end up making things worse if you don't completely trust the instructor. And the Average Joe doesn't want to wait 1-2 years for his new swing to be a subconscious move.

I have a 9.5* stiff shaft driver. I carry 240-260 when I am hitting the ball well. I would say that with my driver the clubhead leads my hands. But If I could do better than this I am all for it. Launch monitor here I come......One day.

Corwin: A flex is in fact the flex the ShaftLab recommended for me in my irons. I was using X stiff at the time. So we did a test, first I hit my 7 iron and we checked for directional accuracy. Then we tried an A flex shaft in a test club. It was okay, but nothing great, Then we tried a R flex in the same head, and my "off line" distance was cut 75 %. And that's what it's all about with your irons shots, hit the ball straight and nail the flag. So, that's why I ended up building a new set of irons with TT Tri-Gold R flex shafts. For the driver, the ShaftLab recommend I go with A flex if my driver was 44"s, and R flex if I went with a 45" driver. Again, I was right on the border between A and R flex. If I went by my swing speed which is 100-107MPH, most club fitters would have me in a Stiff flex, which I don't need. I'm not even sure TT still sells the ShaftLab system, but it sure is a great tool for getting golfers in the correct clubs.

Those prices are very high! Here I can go get a driver fitting for 50 bucks or if I actually buy the driver there, it's free. This place has really high rates for everything too, so if they are only charging $50, I can tell you 150 is outrageous.

You not only have a S flex shaft in your driver, (a NV65), but Aldila shafts tend to play stiffer than average. I can't say for sure, but it wouldn't surprise me one bit if a R flex NV wouldn't give you better drives, or a NVS. The only way to find out is to DEMO as few drivers with different shafts and find out what works best for you. If you do get tested on a launch monitor, I'd recommend you bring a sleeve of the golf ball you normally play, as it can make a big difference in the test results you get. Just as with men, "all golf balls are not created equal".