In the Spring of 2021, a funny thing happened on the PGA TOUR. A new shaft started popping up in drivers on the range, with players like Adam Scott testing the multi-colored component from an obscure Korean manufacturer. Word on the street – and on the shaft itself – indicated that it was Korean Hidden Technology powering the booming drives it delivered.
Almost as quickly as it came, the AutoFlex shaft disappeared. For the average consumer, the $790 price tag was likely too high.
Fast-forward nine months and the AutoFlex is back and more golfers in the United States are getting to try out this new technology for the first time. Previously, it was only possible to order the shaft from the Dumina Company website and there was no place to get fitted. That’s all changed, especially on the West Coast.
Garth Mattson, of Vancouver, Washington’s Westside Golf Academy, is one of the few United States distributors for AutoFlex shafts. So far, responses from the golfers who have had a fitting at Westside have loved the performance and been buying them at an impressive rate.
“We’ve had a lot of clients come in for a fitting and the AutoFlex performs so much better than the stock shafts they have in their drivers,” said Mattson. “Many of them have come back to buy shafts for their fairway woods and hybrids.”
The AutoFlex shafts break from conventional wisdom by weighing 20 to 30 grams less than typical shafts, something the designers say takes some of the strain off a golfer’s body. That same lighter weight allows the shaft to respond to a variety of swing speeds and optimize the transfer of energy for longer, straighter shots.
You can schedule a fitting at www.westsidegolfacademy.com or call your local club-fitter to find out if they carry the AutoFlex.