guides
Orange Whip vs Lag Shot: Which Tempo Trainer Is Better?
I get the same question every week from readers. “Should I buy the Orange Whip or the Lag Shot?” Both are flexible-shaft tempo trainers. Both cost about the same. Both claim to fix your swing. Most golfers end up buying one, using it twice, and sticking it in the garage.
I have owned both for over a year. I have a strong opinion. Here is the side-by-side.
The Contenders
- Orange Whip Trainer ($109 to $129) — the original flexible-shaft trainer with a weighted orange ball and no clubhead
- Lag Shot 7-Iron ($129 to $149) — a flexible-shaft 7-iron with an actual clubhead you can hit balls with
Both have variants. The Orange Whip Golden runs $149 to $169 and adds weight for stronger players. Lag Shot makes a Driver ($149 to $169) and a Wedge ($129 to $149) in addition to the 7-iron. But for this comparison, I am focusing on the flagship models most golfers are choosing between.
Side-by-Side Comparison
| Feature | Orange Whip ($109-$129) | Lag Shot 7-Iron ($129-$149) |
|---|---|---|
| Has a clubhead | No | Yes |
| Hit real golf balls | No | Yes |
| Primary benefit | Tempo, rhythm, warm-up | Lag, ball striking, tempo |
| Feedback type | Feel only | Feel + ball flight |
| Weight | 1.75 lbs (heavier) | Similar to a 7-iron |
| Good for warm-up | Excellent | Okay but awkward |
| Good for range practice | Limited (no ball contact) | Excellent |
| Learning curve | Low — swing and feel | High — hitting balls is hard |
| Price | $109-$129 | $129-$149 |
What Each One Actually Does
The Orange Whip
The Orange Whip is a 47.5-inch flexible shaft with a weighted orange ball on the end and a counterweight on the grip. No clubhead. That is on purpose. The designer built it without a clubhead so you stop thinking about clubface position and just focus on swinging in sequence.
If you try to muscle it with your arms, the ball wobbles and goes sideways. If your body rotates properly and your tempo is smooth, the ball traces a clean arc and you feel a natural pause at the top. That pause is the whole point. I spent years having my instructor tell me to “feel the pause at the top.” I had no idea what he meant. The Orange Whip taught me in about ten minutes.
The Lag Shot
The Lag Shot is a 7-iron with a flexible shaft and an actual clubhead. It looks like a real 7-iron that someone put on a noodle. The flexible shaft forces you to maintain lag and sequence properly, just like the Orange Whip. But because there is a clubhead and a real face, you can hit actual golf balls with it.
This is the difference that matters. The Lag Shot gives you instant feedback. Swing sloppy and you hit a nasty slice. Swing on plane with a square face and you feel that squishy, compressed impact that good ball strikers talk about. The ball tells you whether your swing was good. The Orange Whip cannot do that. It only gives you feel.
As one MyGolfSpy reviewer put it, the Lag Shot is like a “hittable Orange Whip.” That is the best one-line description I have heard.
Price Comparison
Both trainers sit in the same price band, roughly $109 to $169 depending on the model.
The standard Orange Whip Trainer runs $109 to $129. The heavier Golden version is $149 to $169. The Compact version, which is shorter and more travel-friendly, is around $99.
The Lag Shot 7-Iron is $129 to $149. The Driver is $149 to $169. The Wedge is $129 to $149. They come in men’s, ladies, and junior flexes, which is something the Orange Whip does not offer in the same way.
On price, the Orange Whip has a slight edge at the entry level. You can get into a standard trainer for around $109, while the cheapest Lag Shot starts at $129. That is a $20 difference. Not huge, but if you are on the fence, it matters.
The budget alternative to both is the SKLZ Gold Flex at $40 to $65. It does a similar thing to the Orange Whip but with a lighter, less flexible shaft and weaker feedback. You get what you pay for.
Who Each One Is For
Buy the Orange Whip if you are a 15 to 25 handicap who rushes the transition
If your swing is a lunge from the top, your slice is a 25-yard banana, and you have zero feel for tempo, the Orange Whip is the faster fix. You swing it back and forth for ten minutes a day, you learn what smooth rhythm feels like, and your transition calms down. I know this because it happened to me. My slice went from a 25-yard banana to an 8-yard fade in about three weeks.
The Orange Whip is also the better warm-up tool. I swing mine for five minutes before every range session and every round. It loosens your shoulders, stretches your forearms, and gets your body moving in sequence before you put a real club in your hands. The Lag Shot can warm you up, but it is lighter and the clubhead makes it less natural for continuous back-and-forth swinging.
Buy the Lag Shot if you are a 10 to 20 handicap who wants to make real swing changes
The Lag Shot is the better tool for actually changing your swing, not just your tempo. Because you hit balls with it, the feedback is immediate and undeniable. You cannot fool yourself. If you are casting from the top or flipping at impact, the ball flight tells you. The Orange Whip lets you feel smooth and still have a garbage swing. The Lag Shot does not let you hide.
The Lag Shot is also the better choice if you struggle with ball striking and lag specifically. If you hit fat shots, thin shots, or feel like you have no compression at impact, the flexible shaft forces you to maintain wrist angles and deliver the club properly. One MyGolfSpy tester described the feeling as finding “effortless power from pure contact” after just a few range sessions. That is exactly the lag and compression most mid-handicappers are missing.
Seniors and beginners
If you are a senior or a true beginner shooting 100-plus, the Orange Whip is the safer pick. It is simpler. You just swing it. No ball to hit, no frustration of chunking shots with a weird flexible club, no risk of reinforcing bad contact patterns. The Lag Shot can be genuinely hard to hit at first, and a frustrated beginner will quit using it inside a week.
Low handicappers
If you are a single-digit handicap, neither of these is your top priority. The Orange Whip Golden at $149 adds resistance and is decent for strength work, but you are better off with a Rypstick ($199) or The Stack System ($299) if you want speed. The Lag Shot Driver can help a low handicap groove driver sequencing, but at that level you probably want data, not feel. Look at HackMotion ($275 to $695) for wrist angle feedback that actually measures something.
The Honest Downsides
The Orange Whip gives you zero data. No numbers. Just feel. If you need metrics to stay motivated, this will frustrate you.
The Lag Shot has a steep learning curve. Your first range session will be ugly. The flexible shaft makes solid contact difficult until you adjust, and some golfers never adjust. I have seen forum posts from guys who hit massive hooks with their real clubs after using the Lag Shot, because the exaggerated feel carried over. You have to mix in your normal clubs during practice to avoid that.
Both trainers are one-trick tools. Neither will add distance on its own. Neither will fix your grip or your alignment. They fix tempo and sequence. That is it.
The Verdict
Here is how I would decide.
Buy the Orange Whip if you shoot 90-plus, you rush your transition, you want a warm-up tool you will actually use before every round, and you want the lowest-friction path to feeling smooth tempo. At $109, it is the best pure tempo trainer on the market.
Buy the Lag Shot if you shoot in the 80s to low 90s, you are willing to put in range time, you want feedback that does not let you lie to yourself, and your main problem is ball striking, compression, or lag. At $129, it is the better tool for making actual swing changes.
If I could only own one, I would buy the Orange Whip. It is cheaper, simpler, and I use it more often because it takes zero setup. I swing it in my backyard for ten minutes. No net, no balls, no range. That lower barrier means I actually do it.
But the Lag Shot is the more powerful training tool. If you have a net at home or you go to the range regularly, and you are serious about fixing your ball striking, the Lag Shot will do more for your swing. It just requires more from you.
Most golfers should buy the Orange Whip first. Learn what tempo feels like. Use it for a month. Then, if you are still serious about improving and you have a place to hit balls, add the Lag Shot. Owning both is not redundant. They do different things. But if you are only buying one, start with the Whip.