Graphite Design Tour AD
The Graphite Design Tour AD HD shafts is the latest in the great lineup of Tour AD shafts from Graphite Design.
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Design
Designed as Hyper Drive, the HD wood shafts have a firm butt section, firm mid and firmer tip section for added stability and reduced spin. This shaft actually improves on the design of the Tour AD XC The Tour AD HD utilizes new MX 40 pre-preg materials from TORACAY for added stability and feel.
Well known for their relatively soft mid section, the Tour AD HD is a slight departure for Graphite Design offering golfers a firmer feel at impact. This is similar to the Tour AD XC (Xtreme Carry) shaft.
Available Models
The Tour AD HD is available in five different weights from 49 to 88 grams at raw length. The Tour AD HD 4 is available in Senior, Regular and Stiff flex. The HD 5 is available in Senior, Regular, Stiff and XStiff. The fact that the lighter weight shafts are available in X flex is a tribute to the fact that certain stronger players can do well with stiffer shafts. The most popular weight HD 6 is available not only in Senior, Regular, Stiff and XStiff but Tour Stiff as well. The HD 7 is available in Stiff, XStiff and Tour Stiff while the HD 8 is only available in Stiff and XStiff. For stronger players, the HD 7 and HD 8 will work great in fairway woods!
Shaft Profile
Our proprietary testing, while very similar to a traditional EI (elasticity index) curve, is a load profile that shows the load a shaft that is bent a particular deflection length puts on a specific point on the shaft. We determine our trajectory and feel characteristics based upon these measurements.
Trajectory and Spin
The HD 4 has a mid-high trajectory and mid-high spin, which is excellent for juniors and slower swing speeds in general. The HD 5, HD 6 and HD 7 are mid trajectory and mid spin across all flexes. The HD 8 is mid to mid-high trajectory and spin. Tipping any of these shafts will reduce the launch angle and resulting trajectory slightly.
Release and Feel
Feel is a very subjective performance factor and difficult to accurately specify. We use a combination of torque (higher torque means softer feel) and shaft stiffness profile. The HD 4 and HD 8 will have the softest feel, while the HD 5, HD 6, and HD 7 will have a much firmer feel. That is mostly because mid section of the shaft is very firm, compared to other Tour AD models, giving the feel of a one-piece shaft at impact.
These shafts will be a great addition to the Tour AD line, especially for players liking a mid trajectory and a slightly firmer feel at impact.
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Dan Sueltz
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