As promised, the “pre-fit” interview is essentially where the fitting starts. Often, the success of the fitting hinges on the success of this portion of it – more so than hitting balls. How can you fit someone if you don’t know what they are looking for or anything else about them??

Step number one. Forget what you think you know about the player. Start from scratch and ask them all the questions you would ask someone you don’t know. Even if this is a player you play golf with or teach, I will assure you that you will be surprised by something.

What is the purpose of this interview? To find out what they are looking for, their goals, and what is holding them back from achieving these. If you assume any of these, you will probably get it wrong, so ASK AGAIN. If you think you know, ask him in a question to re-confirm. “So, you mentioned on the phone that you are looking for a little more distance with the driver, correct?” Dig deeper. “Anything else with the driver that you are not happy with?” “Do you have any physical limitations that I should know about? Joint replacements, surgeries, arthritis, anything?” If they are not working with you as an instructor, ask if they work with anyone else. If they work with you, you need to share your game plan (for instruction – “I’m working on these drills to get you to do xxx.”) and vision with him or her as this could affect how your fitting plays out. Finally, look through their bag. Ask them about questionable clubs. Make a game plan for them of where their set should go. But, he just wants a driver… If you are in the business of selling golf clubs AND taking care of your members, part of your job is helping them play better golf. New equipment could do just that. Plant the seed for a future sale!!

I do not ask questions about distance or direction. Never. I tell my guys if they do, they’re fired. You have a $25,000 machine right here that will tell you everything about his golf swing and the results of his shots. Why make him lie to you?? “How far do you hit your 7 iron (or driver)?” is the dumbest question ever. When he says he hits his 7 iron 160, but his club head speed is 68 mph, it is a mathematical impossibility for him to hit it that far. Don’t ask him – just look at the machine and see what the data says. If you ask him, and he says he hits it 160, now he thinks he hits it 160. Say it’s really 120 (which is reality in this example), and you find him 20 yards (to get him up to 140). He’s not going to be happy (when he should be doing back flips). “Tell me about your ball flight.” is another dumb one. LOOK at it, LOOK at the data, and ask him if this is normal. If he is 6* out to in with an 8* open face and he says he hits a draw, you’re making him lie to you. Look at several, and if they always miss the same way, say “Is that a normal miss for you?” or “Is that the shot your are fighting to correct?” Never ask a player something that your launch monitor will tell you. **We’ll get into what data to share and how to share it in a future episode.**

Ask him questions while he’s warming up. Make it sound like two guys talking. Good questions are anything that the launch monitor won’t tell you. “What clubs do you like?” “How do you use this club?” “What is your handicap? (add 3 in your mind)” Keep in mind handicap index is a measure of a players POTENTIAL. If he’s a 3, he doesn’t shoot 75 every time he plays. “How often do you play or practice?” “Do you take lessons?” Do you work on your game? What are you working on?” “What are the strengths and weaknesses of your game?”

Bad questions are “How far do you hit your…?” “What is your normal shot shape?” Look at the data and ask him if this shot shape is normal? Look at the distances and TELL HIM how far he hits it (I use the table view and give him a 5 shot (or so) average. I don’t tell him this until after we are working with a new club. “Here, come take a look at this… With your club, your clubhead speed is 75 MPH and you carry the ball 143 yards on average. With this new club, your club head speed went up to 76.3 MPH, and your ball speed jumped to 103.7 MPH. That’s up almost 5 MPH from your club. The result is about 12 more yards of carry.” SAVE this discussion for DURING the fitting, NOT in the Pre Fit Interview.

Observe the data from the launch monitor while he warms up. Make notes. Give him a target and use it throughout. Use alignment sticks if you need to. How can the launch monitor tell you about his swing if he’s not aimed where you are? 

The bottom line is that you are working WITH the player. You NEED information from him and about him to help him make an informed decision. The Launch monitor will tell you SOME of it, and what it tells you will be far more accurate that what the player THINKS he achieves. USE the launch monitor to get some information. This IS part of your pre-fit interview. You need to come up with YOUR questions for the rest, though. What do YOU need to know to help YOU make an informed decision to help HIM? Come up with a questionnaire if you can’t remember them. Remember this – whether you think you are or not, the player you are fitting thinks you are a professional. As such, no question you ask him is a dumb one (unless it’s about distance or direction, haha) if it helps you make a better decision for him. 

Happy Fitting!!