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If you really want to get the most out of your golf game and enjoy the sport as much as possible, custom golf clubs are your best option. The downside of having custom fitted and custom made clubs is obviously the cost. However, I have spoken to certified custom club makers who say that they can get a golfer into a high quality set for about the cost of an off-the-shelf set from the top club sellers like Calloway or Titleist, for example. These clubs will not carry the leading brand names of course, but they are produced in the same factories as those of the top brand name clubs, on the same equipment and to the same quality standards. For a set of eight irons with steel shafts, this can de done for about $800 or so, depending on the specific components chosen. Of course each custom golf club maker sets his or her own prices so these numbers can vary substantially. You should speak with a certified club maker to figure out what the exact cost would be for your set of custom golf clubs. A web site URL to locate a certified custom club fitter/maker near you will be pointed out at the end of this article.

What Does a Custom Club Fitting Consist Of?

Hitting a few balls with a couple of different clubs from a company trailer at a driving range is not a real custom fitting. You may get a feel for what clubs with different shafts, weights, lie angles, etc., feel like, but that's about it. Most custom club makers will have a procedure that resembles the following:

- Interview and existing equipment analysis

- Measurement of swing speeds with driver and 5 iron and measurement of launch angles

- Measurement of height and wrist to floor distance

- Swing Analysis to determine optimum shaft weight and flex, swing weight and/or optimum MOI (there are actually several moments of inertia to be considered in the process)

- Determine specific shafts and matching club heads

- Determine set make-up, driver loft, loft and lie angle of irons, loft and bounce angles of wedges, proper grips

- Build clubs and make final loft and lie adjustments.

Some club makers might even build a prototype club for the golfer to try out before making final decisions.

Clubs Just Right For You

If you go out and spend a lot of money on a set of brand name off-the-shelf golf clubs, you really don't know if those clubs will fit you properly or fit your game. They were no doubt made for some hypothetical 'average' golfer of average size and ability. Is that you? Chances are about 10 to 1 it isn't. The only way to be certain about this is to have custom golf clubs built for you, and more and more golfers are realizing this and getting better results. An excellent resource to locate a certified club maker near you is the web site of Tom Wishon, noted club maker and author. On his site at www.golfclubliteracy.com is a list of certified club makers he personally recommends, as well as a link to the web site of the PCS (Professional Clubmakers Society) which has a list of its members.