By Russ Ryden, A Golf Digest America’s 100 Best Clubfitter
Fit2Score, Dallas Fort Worth, Texas
Click here for French translation by Herve Francillon, BackSpin Fitting, Draguignan, France

Graphite Design YS Reloaded Golf Shafts

The YS Reloaded is a updated version of the Graphite Design YS+ featuring better materials, 50 gram versions and new graphics. The profile, a classic, soft mid in relation to tip and butt is largely unchanged. This profile is available from every major shaft brand at many price levels. A bundle of YS+ shafts were in the shop that had never been reviewed. That presented the opportunity to compare the origional YS+ to the 2015 YS Reloaded.

Graphite Design YS+ Golf Shafts

In the YS Reloaded, the point of maximum bend in the shaft is moved up slightly toward the butt to accommodate the heavier heads that dominate the current market. Newer materials deliver slightly improved hoop strength as well as more consistent hoop strength down the length of the shaft.  In the 60 gram models the 2015 YS Reloaded has slightly lower torque. The 70 gram versions are much the same as the earlier YS+

Graphite Design Tour AD MJ Driver Shaft

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Club Maker
The Golf Center at the Highlands, Carrollton Texas

The sixth version of the Graphite Design Tour AD driver shaft line releases shortly. We got an early look at the 10 shafts in the MJ series. They range from 53 grams to 87 grams uncut. The profile is consistent through out the weigh range, each weight/stiffness increment has exactly the same bend profile. They simply get heavier, stiffer and have lower torque.

Since the original Tour AD DI, the Graphite Design AD DI series has had a mid shaft stiffness ‘bump’. Each model has varied the degree and position of this mid shaft stiffness design.

GRAPHITE DESIGNS TourAD MT DRIVER SHAFT

By Russ Ryden, Fit2Score, A Dallas Fort Worth Club Fitter & Club Maker
The Golf Center at the Highlands, Carrollton Texas

The Graphite Design Tour AD line continues in 2014 with another variation on the theme.  The Tour AD MT has the familiar Graphite Design look. The profile follows the same basic design, stiff butt, rapidly losing stiffness toward the tip, and then sharply gaining stiffness into the tip. The difference in the Tour AD models is the mid section. Starting with the 2011 Tour AD DJ, a mid shaft stiffness bump was added. The placement and degree of this bump sets the launch propensity of the shaft.

In the Tour AD BB, the ‘bump’ is subtle and in the low mid region of the shaft. In the Tour AD GT, it moved back and was more pronounced. The mid section ‘bump’ in the Tour AD MT falls in about the same region as the Tour AD GT, it is followed by a rapid loss of stiffness to 16″ then the shaft quickly gains stiffness toward the tip.

What does that all mean to the golfer. This is a highly successful design that is in use by a number of marquee players.  I see a mid launch, mid spin design that is a good mate for the low launch heads and balls we will see in the 2014 models.