Most women’s clubs come with a Ladies flex shaft, chosen before anyone has seen the owner swing. So what does that label actually tell you, and how do you know whether it’s right for your game?
Most women’s clubs leave the factory with a Ladies flex shaft, and many women who buy them never see another option. Look at a women’s set in a shop or online and the “L” on the shaft is generally part of the package, along with a lighter overall weight and, often, more loft.
That may be exactly the shaft the golfer needs. But how do we know?
Shaft flex is simply a measure of how much a shaft bends when force is applied to it during the swing. The familiar letters — L, A, R, S and X — run from softer to stiffer shafts, but there is no universal industry standard governing what each letter represents.
A Regular shaft from one manufacturer won’t necessarily behave like a Regular from another. Even two shafts carrying the same flex designation can perform differently because of their weight, construction and where they bend.
So a Ladies flex tells you that a shaft sits towards the softer end of a manufacturer’s range. It doesn’t tell you whether it suits your swing.
Why are women’s shafts softer?
There is a perfectly practical reason women’s clubs have traditionally been fitted with softer, lighter shafts. On average, women swing the club more slowly than men, and slower swing speeds will often benefit from a softer shaft.
The problem comes when an average is applied to every golfer.
Research published by The R&A and USGA in 2019, drawing together launch-monitor data from female golfers of different standards, illustrates just how much variation there is.
Average driver clubhead speed was around 86mph among the strongest amateur group in the study. It dropped through the handicap groups to approximately 63mph among the highest-handicap players. The professional women included in the research averaged around 94mph.
That’s a considerable range among women golfers before we have even considered the differences between individual swings.
It is why choosing a shaft simply because it has been designated for women makes little sense. A golfer swinging her driver in the mid-80s and another swinging in the low-60s may both be offered a Ladies flex club, despite placing very different demands on the shaft.
For one, that shaft might work extremely well. The other may get better results from something different.
Swing speed only tells part of the story
Knowing your clubhead speed is useful and gives a fitter somewhere to start. But two golfers swinging at exactly the same speed won’t necessarily suit the same shaft.
How you create that speed matters too.
Some golfers change direction quickly at the top and put considerable force into the shaft early in the downswing. Others have a smoother transition and load the shaft differently. The first golfer may benefit from a firmer shaft than her swing speed alone suggests, while the second may be comfortable with something softer.
This is one reason fitting purely from a swing-speed chart has limitations. The golfer and her swing still need to be considered.
There are some clues when the match isn’t right. Fitters commonly associate a shaft that is too soft with difficulty controlling the clubhead, a higher flight and increased spin. A shaft that is too stiff can be harder to load and may produce a lower flight.
But ball flight alone doesn’t diagnose a shaft problem. Loft, strike, swing path and the way the club is delivered can all affect what the ball does. If your shots suddenly start heading right, buying a stiffer or softer shaft isn’t necessarily the answer.
Flex isn’t the only thing you’re choosing
Weight is another important part of the equation, particularly with women’s equipment.
Ladies shafts are generally lighter as well as softer. For some golfers, reducing weight can make the club easier to swing and help generate more speed. Others find an extremely light club harder to control or struggle to feel where the clubhead is during the swing.
It means that changing from Ladies to Regular isn’t necessarily just a change of flex. You may also be changing the weight and characteristics of the shaft at the same time.
Nor do you necessarily need the same flex throughout your bag. Your driver, fairway woods and irons are different clubs making different demands on your swing. A good fitting considers them accordingly rather than assuming one letter has to follow you from driver to wedge.
And what works now may not always be the answer. Lessons, changes to your swing and increases or decreases in speed can alter what suits you. A shaft that was right when you bought your first set isn’t automatically the one you should still be playing several years later.
What should you do when buying clubs?
The simplest answer is to compare.
If you’re being fitted for a driver or set of irons, ask to hit the same or similar clubhead with more than one shaft. Try different flexes and, where appropriate, different weights.
Don’t judge the result from the best shot you hit with each one. Look at the overall pattern: strike, ball flight, distance and, importantly, dispersion. Which combination gives you the most consistent results?
Ask the fitter what your clubhead speed is and why they are recommending a particular shaft. You don’t need to become an expert in shaft specifications, but you should understand why the club you’re buying suits you.
The same applies if you’re buying from a retailer rather than having a full fitting. Ask what shaft is fitted as standard and whether there are alternatives you can try.
There is nothing inherently wrong with a Ladies flex shaft. For many women it will be exactly the right choice.
But if you’ve played one ever since somebody handed you your first set of women’s clubs, it’s worth finding out.
The next time you’re trying clubs, hit the Ladies flex alongside an alternative and look at what actually happens to the ball.
You may end up choosing exactly the shaft you already have. The difference is that this time you’ll know why.
