Parts of a Golf Club

The Grip
The grip of the golf club is important because it connects the club to the golfer's hands. According to the rules of golf, recognized by both ruling bodies, the grip has to be round, without obvious bumps, lumps or hollows. You'll see grips made of rubber or leather with an assortment of small holes, grooves or ridges. All of these qualities are designed to make it easier for the golfer to hold onto the club without making the grip so large that it will run afoul of the rules. There are various sizes of grips to accommodate different hand sizes and grip styles. According to most experts, the ideal material and design of the grip are a matter of personal preference. 

The Shaft
The shaft of the golf club connects the grip to the head and, like the grip, must be basically round in cross section. Most modern golf club shafts are made of either steel or a carbon-fiber and resin composite. Carbon fiber has the advantage of being lighter than steel, but clubs with carbon-fiber shafts also tend to be more expensive. In addition, some golfers say that hitting a golf ball with a carbon-fiber club feels different than hitting the ball with a steel-shafted club. This difference arises because steel and carbon fiber transmit vibrations differently. As in grips, shaft material tends to be a personal preference. 

The stiffness of the shaft is another variable. Most manufacturers rate their shafts in one of six degrees of stiffness. From least to most stiff they are: 


•L - Ladies 
•A - Seniors 
•R - Regular 
•F - Firm 
•X - Extra Firm 
•S - Stiff 
As you can see, there isn't a grade for "wobbly" or "limp." Most golfers, at least in the United States, seem to prefer a shaft that is stiffer, and manufacturers have obliged. But if golfers prefer stiffness to limpness, why not make everything super-stiff? The answer has to do with distance and strength. 

If you're Tiger Woods, or if you swing a golf club as he does, your body will coil and uncoil during a golf swing so that you apply plenty of energy to the face of the golf club when it meets the ball. If your swing is this good and if you are this strong, you want a very stiff shaft so that every bit of energy you generate in your swing is delivered to the ball, and none is absorbed in making the shaft of the club bend and vibrate. 

If, on the other hand, you do not have a Tiger Woods swing, then you can get a shaft with some flexibility to do some of the work of sheer muscle with a well-timed "whip" motion that stores energy from the top of the swing in a bent shaft, then releases it in time to deliver that energy to the ball. How much flex might you need for your particular swing? If you're serious about answering this question, then you should have a golf pro (a club professional who's a member of the PGA of America) analyze your swing and make a recommendation. 

The Head
The head of the golf club is where all the energy of the swing is transferred to the golf ball. There is more variation in the appearance of golf club heads than there is in either shafts or grips, but all the variations fall into one of three broad categories: the heads of woods, irons and putters.