One of the fundamental differences in club fitting philosophy between the PGA and an OEM is in regards to lie angle. The OEM’s teach that lie angle is adjusted to make the sole flat at impact, while the PGA generally uses lie to adjust for ball flight. The PGA will say that if a player hooks the ball, we need a flatter lie to make the ball go right. Personally, I disagree with this notion, but only in part.

Let’s get to the heart of this one. Lie angle WILL alter the start line of a shot. No question about that. However, with irons there is another variable that comes into play – the ground. Specifically, a divot. All things being equal, a toe deep divot means the club is too flat, so that shot should start further to the right. All things being equal means the club is too upright, so the shot should start further to the left. But, all things are not equal. If the toe digs (meaning the club is too flat for a player), there is more resistance on the toe of the club than there is on the heel. This will open the face, UNLESS the player flips his hands to get the face closed (back to square). Assuming for a second that he doesn’t (and this is a RH player), this combination will produce a shot that starts right and has an open (right pointing) club face. Sounds like a recipe for a slice, doesn’t it? Let’s say he flips his hands closed to try to get the face closed – two questions: How reliable is this? and, what golf instructor anywhere would say “OK, good, now the toe is digging so you can flip your hands hard, but precisely the same amount every time to hit good shots. You should be all set?” HAHA Laughable, right? Yet, that’s what the PGA is saying by using lie to correct for ball flight. You hook it? Bend your clubs flat, let the toe dig in, and then flip your hands to get the toe through and you’ll hit straight shots [once a month].

No. the job of lie angle in irons is the get the sole back to square (level or flat) at impact. Period. If a player hooks the ball, an instructor should correct that. A good divot will be the width of the club head with uniform depth and rectangular shaped. I will often bend down and examine divots. Divots don’t lie. I may have a player warm up (on a grass tee) with their own 7 iron, and go over after a few shots and look at the ground. If I see divots that are not square (like 95% of the divots), I’ll say tell me about your ball flight. Most players who slice the ball will have divots that are longer on the toe side and deeper on the toe side. Giving this player a club that is more upright will help immediately – not because it’s upright, but because the toe is no longer digging and the player can get the face closed through the shot. Hopefully this makes sense.

WHY do we need to adjust the lie angle of a golf club? I know, to make a flat divot… Right, but what causes it to not be flat in the first place? A players height or arm length can, but this should be addressed through length (Next week, we’ll address the effect that a longer or shorter club plays on lie angle – that’s Myth #2). If a player has the proper length golf club with the proper set up & posture, the lie angle should be pretty close at the standard lie. So what causes us to have to bend the lie angle of a golf club?

Simple. The dynamics of the golf swing. In the old days, I would fit by having a player stand at address and hold still. I would slide a business card under the heel or toe (whichever one was up), and see how far in it went. The more it went in, the more up or flat I’d have to go. This was great. I got a perfectly fit set of golf clubs – at address. Once he moved the golf club, though, it was not correct. Insert the lie board in the mid-90’s. Tape the bottom of the head and hit a ball off a piece of plastic. This showed what the head looked like at impact. Now you’re talking!! Interesting how a set that might have been upright at address was now standard lie at impact. Hmmmm….

Here’s some techy terms. At the top of your backswing, you set the club. There should be little force placed on the shaft at this time. Once you start the downswing, you “load” the shaft. As you do this, the head, which is heavy, will look for gravity and the handle will pull downward. Two forces at opposite ends of the club, both pulling in the same direction. This will cause the shaft to bow. You can often see this with the naked eye, which means this is not insignificant. As the club is routed towards the ball, a couple things happen – the head lags, so the shaft is still bowed, and the centrifugal force applied by the swing, along with gravity will cause the shaft to move inward, or more vertical. As the clubhead is released by the player, the head will go from lagging to leading, but the shaft will still bow inward (more vertical). This spec is called “Droop”. There you go… You learned about shaft droop this morning. Shaft droop essentially makes the club head more upright because The shaft is vertical, which drops the toe. We need to adjust the lie upright to account for this. Hopefully this makes sense.

Ever wonder why we rarely see flat lies on stiffer flex players? Flat lies typically occur on player who are shorter in height, and don’t swing the club hard enough to make the clubs shaft droop, or on players with body types that necessitate a more “around” the body golf swing. It is physically impossible to make the shaft droop UP. This means if a player has the club soled correctly, with a good golf swing, the club can’t move to require a flatter lie – only more upright. The golf swing can cause the shaft to be flatter for sure.

When I see flat lies, it causes me to double check what I’m doing. If I see an off the charts upright number (say 5 UP), it causes me to recheck what I’m doing. Chances are the shaft or the length are wrong – but probably BOTH are wrong. With a properly fit length, and a good set up, the lie angle should be within 2 degrees for most players. If the adjustment needed is more than that, the length could be too short, or the shaft could be too light or have too much flex (both will make the club droop too much). What if you flip this scenario? Say you have a player who is 5’6″ tall with a 33″ wrist to floor measurement, and swings a 7-iron at 90mph. He’s currently playing men’s STD length clubs now, so we should stay standard, right? At 90 MPH, he has to be an X-flex, right? Perhaps, but if you give him a STD length 7-iron with a Dynamic Gold X100 in it and he fits 2* flat, can we do better? Maybe. It’s at least worth trying some other options. Should we try him at -1/2″? Yes, we should. This might make the club sole better and be more the right size for him. If we decide to look at the shaft, ask yourself if this player has the tempo and transition to require this heavy and stiff of a shaft. It’s as much about the club head speed as it is WHERE the speed happens in the golf swing and HOW he generates that speed. Perhaps he can use a lighter X-flex or a stiff flex in the same weight. Both would be worth a try at this point. Hopefully this makes sense.

Keep in mind that the lie angle of the club is a spec. It’s a spec we need to get right for the player. It’s also a check point for you in your fitting. If you get an abnormally large number, or a flat number on an X Flex player – re examine your length and shaft choices. Pro tip… If you check lie periodically throughout the fitting, you won’t have any surprises at the end when you do your final lie check. Make a couple shaft changes, re-check the lie.

I hope this helps. Happy Fitting. Adapt, Learn, and Grow.