Westwood’s unique approach to fitting
Lee Westwood describes himself as a creature of habit – and it’s not hard to see why.
The Englishman’s bag is a blast from the past, with irons, wedges and a driver that are all around five years old.
To most of us, a five-year-old club seems fairly new, but not to tour professionals, many of whom use only current kit.
The reason behind Westwood’s loyalty is an ‘if it isn’t broken, why fix it’ mentality and he’s reluctant to change clubs once he’s found one that matches his swing.
“I normally give a club two or three shots and if it doesn’t feel right, I move on." – Lee Westwood The 38-year-old told Golf.com in a special ‘in the bag’ interview: “It’s tough to get a shaft to match swing speed, head – one you feel like you can shape.
“You don’t want to adapt to the club, you want the club to fit you,” he added.
“When you get to a certain level – obviously we’re all pretty good out here – if you put a club in someone’s hand that doesn’t suit them, after two or three shots they’re going to change their swing, their rhythm – they’ll have made it suit them by that point.”
So why has Westwood stuck with the same driver since 2007?
“I normally give a club two or three shots and if it doesn’t feel right, I move on.”