7 Most Popular Shafts on The PGA Tour (2023 Update)
People bag watch for clubs and golf balls that pros use on Tour. But on an average PGA Tour, golf club shafts make just as much of an impact as the club head or the ball. Knowing the most popular shafts can help you select better quality shafts that give your shots the control and distance they need.
In this article, you will learn about the top shaft brands alongside their respective popular shafts.
The 7 most popular shafts on the PGA Tour are:
- True Temper – Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100
- True Temper – Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400
- Fujikura – Ventus Black 6 X
- Mitsubishi – Diamana DF 70 TX
- Graphite Design – Tour AD DI Shafts
- Aldila – Rogue Silver 130 MSI
- Nippon – NS Pro Modus 3 Shafts
And to find out the most popular shafts on the PGA Tour, keep reading!
Most Popular Shafts On The PGA Tour
The most popular shafts on the PGA Tour are True Temper, Mitsubishi, and Fujikura, with Nippon, Aldila, KBS, and Graphite Design also having decent bag placements. A total of 82 True Temper shafts made it onto the Tour, which is a higher number than the bottom five most-adopted shaft brands.
| Brand of Shaft | Number of Tour Players |
|---|---|
| True Temper | 82 |
| Mitsubishi | 70 |
| Fujikura | 55 |
| Graphite Design | 30 |
| KBS | 26 |
| Nippon | 21 |
| Aldila | 17 |
So, let’s start with the most popular.
1. True Temper
True Temper has a legacy in making golf club shafts that date back to the 1930s. The brand rarely backs anything that isn’t world-class. Even its Lacrosse arm is known for being used by professionals. But when it comes to True Temper golf shafts, it upstages every other brand, with 82 PGA Tour players using its shafts.
From Abraham Ancer (ranked #24 in 2022) to Adam Long (ranked #91 in 2022), True Temper’s shafts are present across the PGA leaderboard. If individual shafts were considered instead of shaft makers, most of them would belong to True Temper.
Some players who use True Temper golf shafts on the Tour aside from Tiger Woods are Brendan Steele, Chris Kirk, Kevin Na, Ryan Palmer, and Zach Johnson. Which True Temper Golf Shafts do PGA Tour players use?
True Temper golf shafts used by PGA Tour players include:
- Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 (used by 42 pros)
- Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400 (used by 52 pros)
- Dynamic Gold S400 (used by 5 pros)
- Project X HZRDUS (various iterations used by 43 pros)
2. Mitsubishi
The competition between True Temper and Mitsubishi is pretty tight, given that the former’s 82-player adoption rate is just a dozen short of Mitsubishi’s 70-player adoption. Mitsubishi is a far wider label than True Temper yet maintains excellence across all industries it operates in. Mitsubishi entered the golf supplies market formally in 2004.
However, the manufacturer was making private-label golf shafts for some of the biggest names in the business. Later, the company decided to come for the credit it deserved for its excellence, and today 70 of the top PGA players use its shafts.
Some players who use Mitsubishi Golf shafts include Rory McIlroy (ranked #3 in 2022), Brendon Todd, Charley Hoffman, Collin Morikawa (ranked #8 in 2022), and Tiger Woods as well.
The distribution of these shafts across a wide range of ranking shows that Mitsubishi shafts aren’t just for the top professionals. You should know which shaft is best for you before purchasing.
Which Mitsubishi Golf Shafts Do Top Professionals Use?
- Diamana DF 80 TX (used by 6 pros)
- Diamana DF 70 TX (used by 7 pros)
- Diamana D+ Limited 70 TX (used by 2 pros)
- Kai’li 60 TX (used by 2 pros)
Unlike the True Temper shafts, you’ll notice that fewer professionals use the same shafts. This shows that where True Temper excels at making a few shafts that are widely used, Mitsubishi offers a wide range of shafts that are usable across a broader roster of skill and talent.
3. Fujikura
The adoption drop between Mitsubish shafts and Fujikura shafts is almost 1.5 times larger than the drop from True Temper to Mitsubishi. Still, this is not an easily dismissable brand, with 55 PGA Tour players using its shafts.
Older than Mitsubishi and younger than True Temper, Fujikura has been in the shaft-making business since 1995.
Fujikura is known for pioneering the design and development of more efficient shafts, which is why it is fast-rising in adoption despite not having a preexisting footprint like Mitsubishi or a longer history than True Temper.
Currently, players like Cameron Davis, Justin Thomas, Sam Burns, and Tiger Woods use at least one Fujikura shaft each. The player rankings of Fujikura range from top 5 players like Cameron Smith to ones not currently charting.
This diversity shows that the Fujikura shafts are not unidimensional. You needn’t be among the top 10 PGA golfers to use these shafts.
The club shafts used by PGA Tour players include:
- Ventus Black 6 X (used by 10 pros)
- Ventus Black 7 X (used by 9 pros)
- Ventus Blue 7 X (used by 7 pros)
4. Graphite Design
Graphite Design is a brand exclusively distributed by Pro’s Choice golf clubs. The distribution arm’s title would show where Graphite Design’s priorities lie. It has been in the golf shaft-making business for 3 decades.
Ever since its inception in 1989, Graphite Design has maintained strict quality control that has won the company widespread acclaim.
It is the fourth most adopted shaft maker in pro golfing and has 30 players using its shafts on the PGA Tour in 2022. Among these are players like Adam Scott, Jon Rahm, Shane Lowry, and Webb Simpson. Its diversity of ranked players and concentrated adoption of a handful of shafts speaks for these shafts’ versatility.
Which Graphite Design shafts do PGA Tour players use?
- Tour AD DI – Various iterations used by 14 pros
- Tour AD XC – Various iterations used by 4 pros
- Tour AD IZ 7 X – Used by 3 pros
5. KBS
The adoption rate from here falls further, with only 26 players using KBS shafts. Is this because KBS is bad at making shafts?
No. It has more to do with the company’s marketing and sponsorship priorities. Adam Scott, Cameron Smith, Cameron Davis, Shane Lowry, and Ryan Palmer are some of the athletes who have adopted KBS shafts, named after Kim Braly, the product’s creator.
Having launched as late as 2008, KBS even being on the map is awe-inspiring. Its quick growth is primarily due to its high quality and positive word of mouth. KBS doesn’t spend as much on marketing its golf shafts as its competitors.
Still, having top pros use your products on Tour is part of the game all golf equipment manufacturers must play. And many pros choose to include KBS shafts in their bags.
KBS shafts used by PGA Tour players include:
- Tour 130 X (used by 4 PGA players)
- Tour V (different iterations used by 9 PGA players)
My eldest son has clubs with KBS shafts as shown in the below photo. These combined with TaylorMade P770 heads have increased his distance and allowed him to club down on approach shots thus gaining better accuracy and control. He’s still pretty fond of them to this day.
6. Nippon
Nippon is a golf shaft manufacturer who has been in the golf shaft business for a while. Its history dates back to 1959, with manufacturing being based in Japan. Even today, its most sought-after shafts are still made in Japan. The company capitalizes on the connotations between Japanese manufacturing and precision.
However, it doesn’t prioritize marketing enough to buy out a larger chunk of golf bag placements. As a consequence, its high-quality shafts make it to only 21 bags. With a wide range of players with varying records, Nippon’s adoption is all over the rankings charts. But most of them select only a few of the shafts.
Cameron Young, Lucas Glover, Sergio Garcia, and Matt Wallace are some of the players who use Nippon Shafts. The focus of most players seems to be on iterations of NS Pro Modus 3, as you will see below.
Nippon shafts used by PGA Tour players include:
- NS Pro Modus 3 – Various iterations adopted by 20 players
- NS Pro Modus 3 Tour – Various iterations adopted by 12 players
7. Aldila
Aldila is the last among the most adopted golf shaft labels. After Aldila, the adoption rate drops to single digits. This golf shaft maker has been active since 1972. It has made the headlines for being in the winner’s bag in Mexico Open and the Masters.
It seems like Aldila might not be in the news for having most PGA Tour athletes adopting it. But it is always a candidate for being in the winner’s bag. Rahm, Steele, and Patrick Reed are among Aldila users. Other athletes using Aldila shafts on the PGA Tour include Kevin Streelman, Kevin Kisner, and Talor Gooch.
The models adopted are partly sporadic and partly concentrated around several variants. This is because three of the top players use more than one type of Aldila shaft.
Chez Reavie uses Rogue Silver 125 MSI 60 TX, Rogue Silver 130 MSI 60 TX, and Rogue Silver 130 MSI 70 TX; Jon Rahm uses Tour Green 75 TX and Tour Green 85 TX; and Patrick Reed uses RIP Phenom Hybrid 100 TX, Rogue Silver 125 MSI 70 TX, and Rogue Black 130 MSI 70 TX.
Including the multiple shaft adoption, the most adopted Aldila shafts on the PGA Tour are:
- Rogue Silver 130 MSI – Used by 3 pros
- Rogue Silver 125 MSI – Used by 2 pros
- Synergy – Used by 2 pros
Golf Shaft Selection Best Practices
Choosing golf shafts based on the pros’ adoption is tricky. On the one hand, you know that if the best players in the world use a specific shaft, it is of high enough quality. But on the other, you don’t know if the shaft is built for a specific skill level. The following best practices will help you pick out a shaft that works for you.
Avoid Tour Issues if You Want High Flight
Tour Issue in a golf shaft name might make you believe it is meant to be the best shaft a specific manufacturer can make. In reality, the term indicates that a specific shaft was designed based on Tour players’ requests or feedback.
Common issue shafts are good enough for Tour play, which is why most of the shafts covered here don’t include the word ‘tour’ in their respective titles.
Tour Issue shafts are generally made because expert and advanced players want shafts that will let them launch low-flying balls with higher forward penetration. Most high handicappers, novices, and intermediate golfers don’t need special shafts for that.
Think of Your Needs First
Your favorite golfer might have a different swing. Feel free to copy their wardrobe but keep equipment separate from the player. What a brand making onto the Tour means is that it is good enough for you. It doesn’t matter whether it is in 10 bags or 21 bags. As long as a shaft brand is used by PGA players, it is a good brand.
Going beyond that into specific shafts used by players you love doesn’t make sense. The only exception is if you have the exact swing or limitation of a PGA Tour player. Then you can copy their entire bag. Until then, think of your needs first. Ask yourself the following questions:
- What material shaft do I need?
- Do I need shafts for my driver or my iron?
- Do I need a shaft for straighter or slower shots?
- Do I need the ball to spin, or do I need to offset the spin?
Don’t Confine Yourself to a Single Brand
Just because you purchase a Nippon shaft next doesn’t mean you cannot purchase a Mitsubishi after that. Tiger Woods is listed 3 times in this post because he has shafts from at least 3 different brands in his bag.
Some shafts are stiff, others are flexible, and you might need both at different points of the game. Your driver shafts and the shafts that your iron heads adorn cannot have the same specs. So don’t try to get them from the same brand.
Final Thoughts
True Temper seems to be leading the shaft adoption charts. Their two most popular shafts on the PGA Tour are the Dynamic Gold Tour Issue X100 and the Dynamic Gold Tour Issue S400.
Since Tour Issues are highly specialized for the kind of control top pros need, you shouldn’t get these specific shafts without understanding your needs. But once you know the kind of shaft that will work for you, you can trust True Temper, Mitsubishi, and other well-adopted brands mentioned here.
If you want to know which irons the pros use on Tour, check out this post, 7 Most Popular Irons on The PGA Tour.
