Questions & Answers Responses from PGA/LPGA Teachers on FINDaLESSON.com                                                                                  << BACK From Martin, golfer: I have just bought a set of firm (graphite) shafted Callaway x-14s and was wondering what would happen if they were not suited to my swing... i.e. being too stiff. What problems would that cause that would tell me they're not right for me? PGA/LPGA TEACHING PROFESSIONAL RESPONSES: Florida "Dear Martin, if your clubs are too stiff you will hit the ball much lower and you will have a tendency to hit to the right if you're a right handed player." - John Pallot, Teaching Professional Michigan "Hi Martin. The two most common symptoms of a shaft being too stiff are a very low trajectory on well struck shots, and a lot of misses to the right. If you are constantly fighting with the ball from going right, and when you do hit a good shot it's pretty low, it's probably time to start exploring shaft options. Good Luck to you in the future." - Brent Veenstra, Teaching Professional Minnesota "Your misses would usually be low and to the right unless you are good enough to sense that the clubs are too stiff in which case you would hit a lot of pulls and fat shots." - Jim Manthis, Teaching Professional Pennsylvania "Martin, if you find the ball going lower that normal and if you find a loss in yardage they are probably too stiff." - Bob Sheppard, Teaching Professional South Carolina "Martin: Shafts that are excessively stiff tend to hit the ball in a fade or slice pattern. Too stiff a shaft will also make the club feel very heavy at the top of the back swing, or it will feel like you are having a hard time controlling the club. A shaft that is too stiff will make the contact of club to ball sound very hard. You want impact to sound soft. You also want the actual feeling of impact to feel soft, versus hard. You might consider spending a little time and money going to a factory certified fitter of the brand clubs you are playing, to check whether or not the clubs fit you. This person can also help you with remedies to getting the right clubs of that brand in your hands. Hope this helps. Let me know if I can help in the future." - John Hughes, Teaching Professional South Carolina "Low and away if too stiff, high and inside if too flexible. Best of luck!"  - Michael Lucas, Teaching Professional Virginia "Dear Martin: In this day of club fitting, I always recommend that a person go to a professional first to fit them with the proper club. The shaft is the most important part of the club. That being said, since you already have purchased the clubs you can look for a few things that might help you determine if the shafts are to stiff. Look for low straight shots that don't seem to go as far as what you normally hit the ball. I would suggest that you seek out a PGA Professional in your area that can measure you to see if you need an adjustment in your shaft or set make-up. Hope this helps."  - David Hansinger, Teaching Professional