Two weeks ago, I jumped in my car, and drove from Scottsdale, Ariz. to Palm Springs for the Bob Hope. The real reason I was going? Because TaylorMade had invited me to swing by their TaylorMade Performance Labs to fit me for the infamous r11 white driver. It’s the new thing, it comes out on February 4, and it is, all bias aside, beautiful.
I’ve never been fit in one of these labs before, and I consider myself a pretty good golfer, so to get a chance to see what all the hype was about with fittings was important to me.
The fitting begins with some chatter about your golf game. Jennifer Yockey, the club-fitter in Palm Springs, couldn’t be more perfect for the job, and is worth every penny TaylorMade ships her. Her attitude, mixed with a wit that comes with many years of beating up boys on the golf course, fit perfectly with mine, and we were off. (How great was she? After the fitting, before we teed off, she told me she hadn’t missed a fairway since the 6th grade, and after playing 18 holes with her, I think she’s right.)
The questions come about your golf game in a fury; What ball flight do you hit? What shape shot would you like to hit? Does it go high or low? What is your miss? What’s the longest iron you hit? How far do you hit a 6-iron? how far do you hit a pitching wedge?
All the info is there to help their multi-million dollar computer system define your golf game before it sees it, much like Match.com pulls together profiles to fit different partners before they head out on their first date.
After the questions comes the outfit you see me shamelessly sporting in the above photo. You put on reflectors like an EA Sports game so that the computer can follow your golf swing when you make it. If nothing else, the outfit makes you feel official and like something great is about to happen. 
When the outfit fitting ends, the actual fitting begins. You take multiple swings with 6-irons and drivers they’ve set up with reflectors as well. The computer monitors your golf swing, and sends back more information than a special ops force overseas.
After that, the computer figures out what equipment is best for you.
That’s not the end of it though. Not even the beginning, really. You’re now out at the range, hitting shot after shot with different clubs, shafts, flights, and screws. The idea is, after the computer worked out your swing, Jennifer now puts her finishing touches on it like an editor reviewing your latest column.
She’d comment on different shots, "I like that one," or "I’m not a fan of that ball flight." While a lot of those might have been human error, the point is to find the best equipment to fit your good swings, and help with the bad.
I asked Jennifer a fairly blunt question halfway through the fitting about if it really helps the recreational golfer get better. Her answer wasn’t premeditated or corporate, just honest – "This helps everyone."
After going through the fitting, I’d agree. It really does help. There is no better feeling in the world than to have a golf club made exactly for you, and told, with my golf swing, "You can go as hard as you want with this r11 and it isn’t going to hook." We placed enough weight in certain spots to make the ball go straight off the face.
The results were immediate. After 18 holes at the beautiful Desert Springs golf course, and a score under par, I actually felt comfortable with my driver, the biggest fault in my golf game. It hasn’t stopped either. I’ve played a lot of golf the last few weeks and have continued to feel good about the clubs I’m using.
Is it right for you? Absolutely. No matter if your handicap is a five, or like Busbee, you’re golf game is going to improve if you hit golf shots. Look at some of the charts they print out, where shots are dispersed on the face, and you let the magicians that run the performance centers square you up.
It’s one of those things that after going through the two hour process, I immediately wanted to phone my dad, and get him out to Palm Springs so he could find some golf clubs that he might actually like.
If you haven’t been fit, go get fit. If you’re still buying off the rack, you might as well be listening to your music on cassette tapes, and using dial-up as Internet.
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