Hi Bill, this is absolutely the right time for your daughter to be fit for her clubs.  I cannot say, without looking at her swing or seeing some data from a good launch monitor which iron would suit her game. It sounds like she is at a point in her game and life where custom fit clubs would take her to a new level. My advise is to take her to your local club fitter (stay away from big box stores) where you can get the information you need to order the clubs directly from Ping or Titleist or through your local pro-shop.

Hope this helps, if you let me know where you are in the world I can recommend where to go.

AJ 

Thank for the help, gentlemen. We live in Cincinnati, and I know a couple of good fitters at local courses, but not sure who is good with juniors. I told my daughter last night that I would like her to try the AP1 irons, and she was excited about the idea. I let her try my AP2s at the range last night and she liked them, they are just too heavy and too long for her. I really think she will like the AP1 better than Ping, if I can just get some in her hands.

Bill

Since you are in Cincinnati, it may be with the trip to Scioto CC.  They are one of the top 5 most highly regarded Titleist clubs in the business!  I've sent several players to Bill Stines!

RC

Hi Bill, I can recommend that you go see the following club fitters, or at least call them to make sure he can handle your situation.

Golf Exchange

Andrew:

I am very familiar with the Golf Exchange, and Mark. It is a great store with a very personal touch. I will defintely give him a call. And I have an appointment with GolfTEC next week for a lesson myself. (Gift from my wife.)

Thanks for the input!

Bill

I would definitely recommend having your daughter try the AP1 irons if you are considering buying her a new set.  The design of the AP1 iron head has a lower center of gravity to help get good height on the shots and they are very forgiving on off center hits as well.  Plus they have a really good feel at impact, which is important to good or aspiring players.  I'm a PGA Professional and I just bought my 14 year old son a set of AP1 irons (5-PW) for Christmas and he absolutely loves them plus he hits them well.  The key though is to have her fit for them and get the right shaft for her swing. I went with a lighter weight steel shaft (NS Pro 970) for my son in a regular flex. Best of Luck! 

She should definitely be evaluated by a Titleist Advanced fitter by calling 1-888-Titleist.  Our studio is in Austin, Tx.  :)

She may be close to finishing her growth spurt but in any event, The key is finding the right weight and length and playable clubs.  We fit juniors of all ages and the primary theme is club "ejection" not club fitting.  Depending on their speed and skills, a full set may not be necessary. 

Finding the launch numbers for every club in the bag will give her perspective on yardages.  Then from there we would evaluate potential changes.  In my experience, junior girls begin to loose playable trajectories around the 6 iron.  Then from the 6 we mix and match with hybrids/fairways/and driver.  Then we complete the bag with wedges.  Juniors tend to live in the driver/hybrids wedge zones on the course.  Almost every tee shot is driver or fwy/hybrid.  Almost every 2nd shot is fwy/hyb.  Almost every third shot is a chip or pitch.

RC

Absolutely, I got fit for my set of clubs when I was 14. Which was 3 years ago, it definitely helped with a more constant ball flight and dropped my score by a few strokes. The only problem was that I later had to replace all my shafts as they cut them down about 3/4 of an inch. So I got stuck with an extra 110 charge for replacing the shafts. But definitely look into it, it will never hurt to have it looked at. As far as the AP1s they should work out fine as long as the shafts fit her.

Scioto is a great place, but if it is too far for you, our local Titleist rep in the Cincinnati area recommended Larry Drehs at Hyde Park CC.  He is also an Advanced Fittingworks partner and has been travelling around the country conducting fitting workshops for us.  In the next week or so, he will also have the ladies and senior shafts for the 910 metalwoods.   Larry's number is:  (513)321-3721.

Thank you, Cathi!

Bill

Michal Beth was finally able to go through her fitting today with Larry at Hyde Park Golf and Country Club, here in Cincinnati. Larry was great. He was very patient with my ADHD daughter and did a great job of explaining the hows and whys of the fitting process. He even let her try several different shafts and options to make sure she got the best clubs for her swing. When all was said and done she ended up ordering the AP1 Irons with Nippon 970 Shaft (A flex), 1/2" short, 2 up. She had a great time, and now just has to wait the "eternal" week for her first set of Titleist irons.Now, I just have to do something about her favorite hat with that "Chevron" on it.

Thanks again, Cathi and Larry for your amazing support and help. That is why I love Titleist.

Here's a pic of her at the fitting.

6864.Michal Getting Fit.htm

Absolutely get fitted, a fitted set helps a lot. AP1 would help

UPDATE! Michal Beth played in the Cincinnati Junior Open last week, a three day tournament at three different courses. She started a little slow on Thursday, but turned it on Friday and Saturday, shooting her lowest scores ever; 85 and 89 respectively. And as you can see from the picture below, she won her age division for her first ever victory. I was very proud of her and firmly believe her AP1 irons were a big key to her success. Way to go, Michal Beth!

Hi Bill,  Congratulations to Michal Beth! I sent your picture of Michal Beth to Larry over at Hyde Park.  It's always good to hear the follow up story after a successful club fitting! 

Awesome stuff!  Thank you for the update!