Invitation to a Premium Custom Club Fitting

It’s no secret at Luxuria Lifestyle Magazine that our readers’ number one sporting interest is golf. So when I, as the Group’s Sports Editor, received an exciting invitation from American Golf’s UK HQ offering the opportunity to experience and review a new set of 2023 custom-fit clubs, I jumped at the chance.

American Golf proudly provides golfers with the option of purchasing custom-fit clubs. This fitting service is totally free of charge; they guarantee to build made-to-measure golf clubs in order to improve any golfer’s game.

Within their custom-fit clubs category, golfers can purchase custom-built models from Ping, Callaway, Titleist, TaylorMade, Mizuno, Wilson, Cleveland, Tour Edge, Cobra, and Benross. This includes drivers, fairway woods, hybrids, sets of irons, wedges, and putters.

Visiting the Flagship Store

After arranging a date to visit one of their 90+ UK stores, I agreed to meet at one of their flagship locations at A1 Golf in North London. This site has recently undergone an extensive refurbishment into a state-of-the-art facility with a driving range.

On arrival, I was warmly greeted by Toby, the store manager, and ex-professional golfer Chris, their club-fitting expert. They showed me some of their latest 2023 brands and models, then we went through a number of custom-fit questions. This took around 15–20 minutes and included my current handicap, height, reach, experience, how much I play, which clubs I am currently using, my improvement aspirations, and of course, the budget for my new set. This short Q&A can also be done on the phone pre-arrival, but I’d suggest it’s much more fun in-store.

The Custom Fitting Process

Once these initial questions were covered with Toby, I was invited to their state-of-the-art custom-fitting bay, where Chris had already prepared four or five new 2023 brands and models for me to test. I began to hit balls with different iron and wood variations of club length, lie, weight, and size.

After a few shots with each club and looking at the data, Chris would change the specification based on the feedback from their computerised information. For this, A1 American Golf uses Flightscope, one of the world’s most advanced launch monitors, delivering club performance statistics—as also used extensively on the PGA Tour.

I hit around 60–80 balls using various brands and models, and each shot was measured for swing speed, height, trajectory, distance, and ball-striking quality. This provided important digital information about the best type of custom-fit clubs for my current game and future improvement ambitions.

As a current 12-handicapper, Chris felt the Ping irons and TaylorMade woods would allow me to dramatically improve my game moving forwards. I also started to see a big difference in my ball-striking quality and distance of shots, as Chris rapidly narrowed down the final specs for my new set.

Personalisation Options for Every Golfer

American Golf’s fitting service caters to both left- and right-handed golfers, as their impressive selection of custom-built clubs is available in both setups.

By taking advantage of their highly popular custom-ordering process, you can pick and choose which clubs you wish to add or remove within your set. If you’re ordering irons but don’t want a 4-iron and instead want a hybrid, you can simply order the clubs you require—the choice is completely up to you.

Depending on the model, their custom-fit clubs can be ordered in all different types of lofts to best suit the golfer. If you struggle from the tee and launch your driver too high, then you’re best off ordering a lower-lofted driver. Ultimately, if you fancy a set of irons, lofts can be altered to gap your distances perfectly.

Each club aside from the putter features a selection of different shaft options. Whether you’re looking for a graphite set of irons as opposed to a heavy steel set, or an extremely heavy extra-stiff driver, by custom order American Golf can provide the most suitable shaft to match your swing speed.

Final Selections and Delivery

Once all my final club specifications were agreed upon, I chose the new 2023 Ping i230 irons and Stealth 2 TaylorMade woods. We then moved inside to select my new grips and be measured for my grip sizes. Additionally, after 30 minutes on their large new indoor putting green trying various models, I also selected a new Scotty Cameron Phantom putter and the superb new 2023 black-and-white J Lindeberg carry bag to complete my new set.

The American Golf custom-fit service takes around 3–5 weeks for the products to be delivered to your home address or for in-store collection. My whole custom-fit experience was totally seamless and highly enjoyable. The knowledge, service, and advice I received from Toby and Chris were second to none—something I feel all golfers at every level would benefit from.

Additionally, 87% of all golfers who are custom fitted are able to reduce their handicap by at least 10% (GOLF.com, 2022).

Next Steps on the Course

To see how this new set has improved my game, look out for my next feature when I visit the home of golf in late March to play the two championship courses at the stunning St Andrews Fairmont Resort.

To view everything American Golf has to offer, visit their website, or follow them on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.