Graphite Designs Tour AD FI Driver Shaft Review

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Graphite Designs Tour AD FI Driver Shaft

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Builder
The Highlands Performance Golf Center, Carrollton Texas 
Golf Digest Certified America’s 100 Best Club Fitter

The Graphite Design Tour AD FI (Flight Intelligence) Driver Shaft released in September 2025. It incorporates some new technologies as well and the latest Torayca fabrics. As my understanding of these fabrics grows, I can see how they influence the properties. Looking at Graphite Design’s Bend Profile ratings, the FI is one of the higher rated shafts in the Mid section with a 3+. The GC is rated 3 and the VF is rated 4. A see high mid stiffness as an Archetype design. The FI is firmly a member of the midfirm archetype. The GC and VF less so. Over the last two years, when I recognized the midfirm archetype, I have fit numerous great ball strikers into the design. While I have come to recognize midsoft as forgiving, a midfirm shaft is unforgiving. Like an iron blade, it is workable for those that can shape shots at will.

The Graphite Design Tour AD FI is without a doubt a member of the midfirm archetype that is my go to design for low single digit and plus handicap players.

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Russ

Graphite Designs Anti-Gravity Driver Shaft Review

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Graphite Designs Anti-Gravity Driver Shaft

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Builder
The Highlands Performance Golf Center, Carrollton Texas 
Golf Digest Certified America’s 100 Best Club Fitter

There have been a number of ultra light driver shafts in 2024. I attribute this to the autoFlex original ultralight shaft. It is a uniquely light weight shaft that was popular in Asia. When released in the US it got the attention of many, including a few tour players. I have not found many US players that swing as slow or as smooth as a light weight soft shaft requires. That fact is echoed in the 2025 release of the a heavier stiffer model line from Korean Hidden Technology for the North American golfer. I will soon get to measure both the AutoFlex and AutoPower shafts.

The Graphite Design ultra light weight Anti-Gravity aG33-3 is a few grams lighter than the now discontinued Chichibu reviewed in 2018. The Anti-Gravity is made with the latest TORAYCA M40X carbon fiber. It is a few grams lighter and slightly firmer in the mid and butt section than the earlier Chichibu.

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Russ

Graphite Design Raune Iron Shaft Review

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Graphite Design Raune Iron Shaft Review

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Builder
The Highlands Performance Golf Center, Carrollton Texas 
Golf Digest Certified America’s 100 Best Club Fitter

The recent review of parallel iron shafts prompted me to open the recent arrival of the box of the new Graphite Design iron shaft, Raune. I don’t fit many carbon fiber iron shafts simply because the decent ones are about double the price of steel. There is so many options in light weight steel, I rarely need to go to carbon fiber shafts. I have a few in play, one former tour pro with arthritic pain in his elbows. Another strong hard swinging pro that likes the lighter weight and over the top stiffness we can get with carbon fiber. The Raune comes in both parallel and taper tip models.

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Russ

Graphite Designs Tour AD GC Driver Shaft Review

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By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Builder
The Highlands Performance Golf Center, Carrollton Texas 
Golf Digest Certified America’s 100 Best Club Fitter

I received Graphite Designs Tour AD GC shaft before the release. That gave me time to measure it and get player feedback before the scheduled release.

This is the sixth shaft from Graphite Design to use Torayca M40X in the butt section of the shaft. This is a high tensile strength and high modulus fiber prepreg. This means the shaft will exhibit more elasticity where the M40X material is applied. In comparing the models that have this material to those that don’t, I see reduced hoop deformation in the handle.

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Russ

Graphite Designs Tour AD VF Hybrid Review

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By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Builder
The Highlands Performance Golf Center, Carrollton Texas 
Golf Digest Certified America’s 100 Best Club Fitter

Graphite Designs introduced the Tour AD VF, Victories requires Force, driver shaft in late 2023. The Tour AD VF Hybrid Shaft released in 2024. The profile is a close match to the VF driver profile. . Stiffness is generally a function of weigh as you can see in the chart below. The uncut weights range from 77 to 107 grams. This wide range is similar to the wide weight range available on the VF driver. The torque numbers illustrate the low tip torque achieved by using Torayca T1100G woven fiber in the tip of the VF Hybrid shaft.

As you can see in the EI profile, the shaft profile is indeed as claimed. the tip section is firmer than all other Graphite Design Tour AD Hybrid models.

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Russ