Amateur Talk Only : Personal Experience/Stories

What Jay is saying is right.  The fit of the club is by far the most important thing, and you need a pro to help you with it.

The loft is actually the last thing that should be done in the fitting.  The loft you need will be dictated by many things.

For example, anyone can look at my driver and see that I play an 8.5 degree loft.  Well, not true.  My shaft is x-stiff, with a high kickpoint.  Also, my driver is 3/4 of an inch shorter than standard (which raises the kickpoint even more).  Also, my driver head has a high center of gravity.  Finally, my clubface is 1 degree open, which makes it (counter to popular belief) actually play 1 degree lower.

With all this into account, I am effectively playing with about 6 degrees of loft.

No way you can figure all this out without a pro helping you.