Baddazz Iron Shaft Review
In this day and age, the world of golf shafts is a confusing place. We here at DRH like to think we make that world a little easier to navigate, but we still understand how it can be overwhelming. Especially when it comes to graphite shafts and some of the price tags that come into play. What we do know is that a major portion of the market is looking for a premium upgrade at an affordable price, or even a replacement for a necessary repair. One new option in the market definitely worth talking about is the Baddazz iron shaft.
Powered by premium boutique shaft brand VA Shafts, Baddazz is a brand focused on producing high quality graphite golf shafts that perform without the hefty price tag. Baddazz shafts accomplish this by using different materials in a process called “filament winding”. This process delivers a high strength, high performance composite shaft, but at a price point more accessible to a wide range of golfers.
The Looks
If there’s one thing that the VA design house takes serious, it’s making sure their products look good! It was really important to Victor Afable to make sure the Baddazz line of shafts had the same premium looks you’d expect out of more expensive premium shafts. The graphite iron shafts have a matte black base with distinct neon green branding. Woven within the neon green is a grey sketch pattern containing various golf-related graphics. This is a clever subtle touch for when you take a close up look at the shaft.
How Does it Feel?
Feel will be somewhat dependent on which weight and flex you go with in the Baddazz shaft as each one is designed to perform slightly different. VA Shafts offers the Baddazz iron shaft in 45L, 55A, 65R, and 75S options. Most graphite shaft players are looking for something lighter weight with a smooth bend profile and a clean feel. That’s what the Baddazz delivers and will feel more stout the heavier the weight and flex get. Impact feels very clean with enough “dampening” to take a little sting out, yet still feel precisely responsive.
I’ll just say I’ve hit a lot of “more expensive” graphite iron shafts and the Baddazz keeps up with all of them in feel, and even better in some cases.
On-Course Performance
As a lightweight and soft iron shaft, you should expect a higher launch and a little more spin from Baddazz iron shafts. By design, these shafts are easy to launch and generate enough spin to stay in the air for good carry. This helps achieve longer distances throughout the bag. The added spin helps hold greens better all the way through the set as well. All this is especially helpful for more moderate swing speeds where it’s typically harder to get the ball in the air and generating spin that will stop on the greens.
In the case of the Baddazz iron shaft, this performance was easy to achieve while keeping the club under control and accurate. The filament winding process creates “directional strength” which essentially means it will be more stable throughout the swing. This is often a tough task with lightweight graphite shafts, especially at a moderate price point.
Final Thoughts – Baddazz Iron Shaft
Going into this review, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Now, I’m more than confident that Victor Afable knows how to make a great golf shaft, that’s a given. I’ve relied on VA Shafts in my clubs many times over the years, but those were all high-dollar options. Delivering a premium level of quality in a golf shaft gets real tough at this price point. Especially for a boutique brand, but VA Shafts did it with the Baddazz iron shaft. The feel and performance are what I’d expect from a top-of-the-line graphite iron shaft. On top of that, the shaft looks cool in your clubs too!
From my testing, I believe Baddazz iron shafts are great for players with moderate to slow swing tempos looking for premium performance without breaking the bank. They make for a great affordable graphite replacement whether it’s an upgrade or repair. If that sounds like something you’re interested in, check out the VA Shafts site here to locate your nearest dealer to get fit!
*I used Sub 70 639 CB/MB combo irons to test these shafts for this review. You can read my review of the 639 CB here and the 639 MB here.
Great review as always Bill! Would be interested to hear the DRH team’s opinion on Xcaliber Golf’s Rapid Taper iron shaft lineup (and maybe just the overall shaft lineup) and how it compares to VA. Both companies seem to have similar backstories and the iron shafts seem to suit similar golfer types.
Unfortunately we don’t have any contacts there at the moment! As we always advise, if there’s something you want to see on our site, we’d strongly encourage reaching out to the brand through their website and social media channels letting them know you want to DRH cover the gear!
Thanks for stopping by!
like your shafts