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I see the club lengths posted here and I realize that the flight depends upon hitting the sweet spot, swing speed, launch conditions, etc. I see a lot of people post some long club distances and I was wondering if most people are using 'stiff or stiffer' shafts.
Do you need stiff shafts to hit the 7 iron 170 yards, or driver 250-300 yards?

Dont think so, i hit my X-18 7i 170~175 on a good day using a good ball and they had reg flex shafts.

I now use Stiff in my Mizunos but not used them yet so not sure how far it goes, although i am off to the range in 2 hours so we will see :)

Swing speed and good contact is what makes the ball fly, when you swing speed gets to quick for the shaft, i think you lose control and struggle to square the face up.

This is sort of what you go by to choose what stiffness/type shaft you need...

a Get your swing speed.

b Determine your backswing to downswing transition
1 Smooth - a distinct pause...
2 Average - no distinct pause, but no "pouring it on."
3 Forceful - a visible bend on the shaft.

c. Swing Tempo
1. Smooth swinger
2. Average
3. Fast a sense of aggression

d. Release Move
1. Early release
2. Midway
3 Late

The best thing to do is get tested on a ShaftLab system at a local golf shop. Some custom shops have the True Temper made ShaftLab. and it measures how you "LOAD" the shaft. not how fast you swing the club. Load is what matters most. and the ShaftLab is the best way to measure this factor.
As for distance. I play R flex in my irons, and I hit my 7 iron 180 carry. I have used X stiff iron shafts, and don't see much difference other than my ball flight is higher with the R flex shaft. Distance is the same, and accuracy didn't drop off when I went from X stiff to R flex.

NO you need to use a shaft that will suit your swing speed and preferd trajectory.

No. Generally speaking, you want to match the shaft flex to your swing. That said, I regularly seem to violate that rule. My swing speed (95-100 with the driver) would normally dictate an R flex, yet the only clubs in my bag right now that aren't stiff are my TM hybrids. I played regular flex shafts my whole life until I got tested when I bought my King Cobra irons in August of 2006. For whatever reason, the stiff graphites were better than the regular with my swing, and the results seem to prove that out. The same for the Callaway driver. I never owned a stiff shaft driver before this March (2007). I tried them often enough, but always sliced a stiff shaft horribly. With the stiff shaft neutral bias FTi, I actually tend to hit a draw..... go figure

I may explore the possibility of changing the shaft on my Tour Edge 16° hybrid for an R flex though, as I do tend to fade it a bit. I've gotten used to it though, and it hit often when I actually NEED the fade... so I haven't made the decision yet.