When to Get a Club Fitting: Five Signs It Is Time (and Two When It Is Not)

You searched when to get a club fitting, so you're probably already leaning toward one. Maybe there's a new set you've been eyeing. Or a club in the bag just stopped feeling right. Timing matters here, because a fitting done at the wrong moment can point you at clubs that suit a swing you won't have for long.

We're Athletic Motion Golf Club in Winter Garden. Fitting is available on site as its own booking, in an indoor studio inside our building. We've already written about why a brand-agnostic fitting matters and what the Winter Garden setup looks like. This post is narrower. It's about when to book one, and when you're better off waiting a bit.

Below are five signs it's time and two signs it isn't. At the end there's a short checklist you can run through before you book.

Sign one: you're about to buy new clubs

This is the big one. Before you spend money on a new driver or a new set of irons, get the numbers first. Our club fitting page calls it data before equipment, and honestly that's the whole idea.

When you buy off the rack, a lot of the time you end up going with a head and shaft because you like the look of it, or because your buddy has one in his bag. In a fitting you hit a few different setups and you get to look at what your swing and your ball flight actually did with each one. Then you make the call.

And nobody's expecting you to buy anything that day. You walk out with your numbers, and whether a change is worth it is completely up to you.

Sign two: your swing changed after lessons

Say you've been working with Nick Duffy for a few months. Your path looks different on the screen now, and you're hitting down on your irons where you used to scoop them. Those are good changes. Whatever clubs you're carrying were chosen before any of that happened, though.

Once the new move holds up from one session to the next, that's a smart time to get fitted. The fitting reads the swing you have today. It makes sense to book it when today's swing is the one you plan on keeping.

Sign three: there are holes in your gapping

Gapping is just how evenly the distances space out from one club to the next. You might have two irons that carry about the same number, then a big jump up to the next club. On the course you keep finding that in-between yardage, and nothing in the bag fits it.

A fitting can look at the full bag or just the long game, so you can see where those gaps actually sit. Loft and lie are both on the list of data the fitting looks at, along with your ball flight.

Sign four: one club won't match the rest of the bag

This one can hide in your bag for a while. You're putting a pretty decent swing on it, it feels like you caught it fine, and the ball still ends up somewhere you weren't aiming. Maybe that one club keeps coming up short on you, or it goes left one time and right the next, and meanwhile the rest of the bag is doing what it's supposed to.

When it's one club doing it, that points more toward equipment than swing. The fitting studio measures things like clubhead speed, impact location, face, path, angle of attack and shaft deflection. That's the kind of data that helps you see whether the club is part of the problem.

Sign five: nobody's ever checked your clubs against your swing

Maybe your set came from a family member. Or you grabbed it years ago without hitting a single ball first. Nothing wrong with that. It just means nobody has measured how those clubs match the way you swing.

We're not going to tell you clubs wear out on some schedule, because we don't have numbers to back that up. What a fitting does show you is how the clubs you play right now compare with other options, using your own swing as the test.

Not yet: the same miss shows up with every club

Here's the honest fork. When the same miss shows up with the driver and with every iron you pull, the clubs probably aren't the main issue. The swing is. A fitting measures that swing, so you'd end up fitting clubs to the fault.

Book a lesson first. Nick Duffy is our lead coach in Winter Garden and AMG's first in-house AMG Certified Instructor, and you'll find him on the lessons page. A regular lesson with Nick uses TrackMan and video. GEARS 3D motion capture is something you book with Nick on purpose, in our dedicated GEARS lesson and studio bay, and it isn't part of every lesson. Our club fitting Clermont post goes deeper on the clubs or swing question if you want more on that.

Not yet: you're in the middle of a swing change

Say you started lessons a few weeks ago and the swing still feels a little different every day. That happens during a swing change. Get fitted right now and the fitting captures a swing that's still moving around.

Give it some time. Keep working the drills, and come practice between lessons in one of our 8 private TrackMan bays for rental, where the numbers sit right there on the screen. When the new pattern settles in, the fitting has something steady to measure. Ask Nick when he thinks you're ready, since he's watching those numbers with you.

Your yes or not-yet checklist

Run through this before you book.

• Yes: you're about to buy a new club or a new set.

• Yes: your swing changed after lessons and the change is holding.

• Yes: two clubs go about the same distance, or there's a big jump between two clubs.

• Yes: one club keeps missing while the rest of the bag behaves.

• Yes: you've never had your current clubs checked against your swing.

• Not yet: the same miss shows up with every club. Start with a lesson.

• Not yet: you're mid swing change and it hasn't settled. Wait a little.

One yes and no not-yet answers is plenty of reason to book a fitting. Hit a not-yet and the lessons page is your next stop instead.

Booking a fitting at AMGC

A fitting is its own booking. It doesn't ride along with bay time or a lesson, and it isn't part of a membership hour. Start at our club fitting page, or go to book here and choose the fitting path.

The fitting page lists several types, including full bag, woods and long game, driver, irons, wedge, putter and shaft only. Nobody says you have to do the whole bag. Go back to whichever sign up above sounded like you, and start with the fitting that goes with it. A driver that won't behave can be a driver fitting, while a gapping problem might call for irons or the full bag.

Current fitting types, availability, session length and pricing are shown on the booking page, so check there before you plan your day. We don't put prices in blog posts.

Bring the clubs you play right now, including the one you're frustrated with. Lefties and righties are welcome in the fitting studio, in every bay and in lessons with Nick, GEARS sessions included.

Where the fitting happens

The fitting runs in its own indoor studio inside our building. The building also has 9 TrackMan bays: 8 private rental bays plus a dedicated GEARS lesson and studio bay. The bays are for practice, play and lessons, and GEARS isn't part of a fitting.

The why behind a fitting that isn't tied to one brand is in our brand-agnostic club fitting post. For more on the Winter Garden setup itself, read our club fitting Winter Garden post.

Club fitting questions we hear

How do I know it's time for a club fitting?

Look for one of the five signs above. You're buying new clubs, your swing changed and the change is holding, your gapping has holes, one club won't match the rest, or nobody's ever checked your clubs against your swing.

Should I take a lesson before a fitting?

When the same miss shows up with every club, yes. Start with Nick Duffy on the lessons page, then come back to the fitting once the swing settles.

Do I have to buy clubs after a fitting?

No. You get the data first and you decide whether an equipment change is worth it. Nobody should be rushing you into a purchase.

How long does a fitting take?

It depends on the fitting type. Session length and current times are listed on the booking page, so check there before you plan around it.

Is a fitting part of a lesson, a bay rental or a membership?

No. It's its own booking. Start at club fitting or book here. Lessons, bay time and memberships are separate.

How is a fitting different from a GEARS lesson with Nick?

GEARS books with Nick Duffy as a lesson, in our dedicated GEARS lesson and studio bay. The fitting uses launch-monitor tech in its own studio.

Can lefties get fitted?

Yes. Lefties and righties are welcome in the fitting studio, in every bay and in lessons with Nick, GEARS sessions included.

Do I need to fit the whole bag?

Not at all. You can book a single fitting type, like driver or irons, and start with the club that's bugging you most.

Book your fitting

When the checklist comes up yes, start at club fitting or go straight to book here and pick the fitting path. When it comes up not yet, book Nick Duffy on the lessons page and come back to the fitting once the swing settles. Questions before you book can go to [email protected].

Athletic Motion Golf Club
1230 Winter Garden Vineland Rd, Suite 108
Winter Garden, FL 34787
(850) 604-4653