AVL says: When it comes to the equipment you play, you have countless options. It is dizzying and exciting at the same time. What is best for my game? With a recent trip Carlsbad, California, and with that I had the pleasure to visit the KBS Golf Experience.

KBS has been a household name when it comes to steel shafts. Kim Braly is the author of countless wins in tour golf when it comes to shaft design. Now with the graphite TG Black the lineup expands. Specifically, I visited KBS with getting fit for a new driver shaft in mind, it was time to get this locked in with the new KBS Tour TG Black driver shaft.

I was met by Andrew in the shop and got to see some great merchandise, custom colors for putter shafts and snuck in a few putts before we went to the fitting bay to hit this TG Black. We based the driver off my current gamer. Plenty of options and more when it comes to getting a driver to match your gamer and beyond. Hit a few balls to warm up and we were off and running.

When I’m on the course, I like to see a little left to right ball flight with driver. Andrew and I talked about some of the things were seeing during warm ups and then started to dial in with TG Black. I was hitting a TG Black 70X. After a few swings I knew this shaft was very stable and responsive. The ball sounded really good off the club face as well. As we worked through the fitting I was talking with Andrew on some scenarios you would have on course.

I went through with hitting a lower drive with changing the tee height and trying some swings as if I was on a par 5 where you could let it rip. The shaft was feeling really solid on both kind of swings. Need to have the shaft be able to be there for you with a stock with and when you get in situational scenarios like hitting it low in the wind or letting one go downwind. The TG Black was right there. 

I’m no robot and I liked how the shaft performed on strikes outside of the sweet spot: It didn’t climb too much with spin on mishits. The dispersion stayed very consistent. The first shaft was a pretty good fit, but we tested further to see what else we could capture with the data. I found with a lighter shaft, along with my tempo changing, the mishits were exaggerated but it was amazing how the club felt. Very solid.

I tried a heavier TG Black as well and it just didn’t sync up as well with my swing. I think it was one of the most important parts of the fitting was trying shafts that I normally wouldn’t hit. It was confirming to see why you play what you play. It is truly individual when it comes to fitting, and that’s the main thing I really liked being at KBS, they have seen it all when it comes to shafts.

From the fitting, we found the TG Black 70 X was the best fit for me. We went over to the workshop and Mitch built the shaft to spec. Tipped the shaft a half inch, got the grip on there, logo down of course, and soon enough it was ready to hit. I know the TG Black is going to be one to be swung with confidence when it comes to tournament time! 

More on KBS TGBlack driver shafts

Most golfers know KBS Golf shafts but not many know about their graphite wood shafts. KBS is one of the leaders is golf shaft design but their reach goes much further than just iron shafts. Your whole bag can get the same high performance that your irons have whether it is a driver, fairway, wedge, or even putter. Earlier this year KBS launched brand new driver shafts; the PGW and the TGBlack to fit a wide range of golfers depending on their needs.

The team at KBS went to work on a new driver shaft and sought out feedback from some of the best players in the world on multiple professional tours. What they came up with is the new TGBlack wood shaft for those players who put control and stability first. We have seen quite a few players out on tour with the new TGBlack already like Jason Day who has the TGBlack in all of his woods.

TGBlack is a shaft designed to produce a more penetrating flight with lower spin. KBS uses high modulus carbon fiber throughout the shaft to create a stable tip section to optimize launch and lower spin. To hold all of that high-modulus material together KBS designed a special resin system to increase the feel of the shaft so even stronger, faster players can get a smooth feel from a stable shaft. Usually those two things do not always compliment each other. The EI profile of the TGBlack is smooth in order to use stored energy better to help keep ball speeds up across all weights and flexes.

KBS made sure that the TGBlack can fit a wide range of golfers with their weight and flex offerings. You can get the shaft in a 40g regular all the way to an 80g TXX stiff flex. This range will allow your fitter to test out a few options in order to find the best performing shaft for your swing!

Driver: Titleist TSR4 (9 Degrees)
Shaft: Project X EvenFlow Riptide CB 6.0 S

3-wood: Titleist GTS2 (15 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 7 S

5-wood: Titleist GT1 (18 degrees)
Shaft: Graphite Design Tour AD DI 8 S

Hybrid: Titleist GT2 (24 degrees, D4 SureFit setting)
Shaft: Mitsubishi Tensei 1K Blue Hybrid 75 S

Irons: Titleist T150 (5-PW)

Wedges: Titleist Vokey Design SM11 (50-08F, 54-10S), WedgeWorks (58-K*)
Shafts: KBS Tour Lite S

Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport Plus Tour Prototype

Grips: MCC Plus4 ALIGN

Ball: Titleist Pro V1

In our forums, one user has solidified the entirety of his bag and now finds himself adrift. Specifically, what’s a gear junkie to do when there’s no longer a need to tinker?

@Baxterbarret asked:

“After replacing shafts in my irons, I’m officially satisfied with all 14 clubs in my bag, and it has me stuck. As a gear junkie, I’m lost without the need to try something different. Anyone else get here? What did you wind up buying next?”

Our members in the forum have been offering up advice on where the original poster can go from here, offering up their own perspectives and experiences with finally having a complete bag.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

• cmb71: “First of all, welcome to the club! ? The first step is admitting it. I love trying different driver/fairway/iron/wedge shafts, but be careful. And you have to have a backup bag. I have 2 full bags and backups of my irons and wedges with different loft/bounce/shaft combos. Where I live it’s difficult to get access to testing things, so it’s a lot of trial and error, then sell the losers. The benefit is it really helps me understand what is best for my game.”
• Veebee3: “My condolences, wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. Luckily you just need to play more rounds of golf, preferably at the hardest courses in your city, and you will soon become unsatisfied again lol.”
• mpf08796: “The best part about golf is that you’re only one bad round away from a complete bag overhaul.”
• @Baxterbarret even offered an update of his own: “Update: I scheduled a GTS fitting. I know I have an addiction. So thankful for this community of support and enablement. ??”

Entire Thread: “I’m happy with my bag. Now what?”