Four of my favorite suppliers of great golf components are Tom Wishon Golf, Kent Sports (Alpha golf heads), SK Fiber shafts, and Infiniti golf heads. Today they were all part of my efforts to build some new clubs.....
1. This weekend I brought Des Mahoney, the teaching pro I partner with, two new 6 irons to test. These used Wishon Superlight steel shafts - I had rebuilt his irons about a year ago and he wanted to compare his older clubs with two newer clubheads. So I built two new clubs to exactly the same specs as the 6 iron I built for him a year ago. Today I ordered 11 more of these shafts to use to assemble new clubs with the head he chose from the testing.
I also ordered a demo wedge head from Wishon today - the wide sole lob wedge. A great option for a player who wants some help getting out of sand traps.
2. Today I also ordered some Alpha Response Offset fairway woods - 18 and 21 degrees - and an Alpha Response offset hybrid - 25 degrees - to build for a client who needs some help closing the clubface easily.
3. I nearly completed building a new Infiniti Assure gap wedge for a client who needed a distance option between his pitching wedge and sand wedge. This is one of my favorite heads, particularly for someone who loves who likes to play a club with a wide sole.
4. Finally, for the Alpha fairway woods and the Assure gap wedge I am using SK Fiber VIP and TT 80 graphite shafts. The great thing about these is the consistency of them in terms of buildin frequency matched club sets.
All of these companies make the highest quality golf heads and shafts - easy to build with and designed to produce great golf results.
Tony
Monday, November 15, 2010
Monday, November 8, 2010
Your First Set Of Clubs - The Fit Is STILL It!!
You want to get your first set of golf clubs, and you have read that getting clubs that truly fit you are the best way to go.
But most likely you think - how can that matter for me when I am just starting?
Well, maybe just as much as for players who have well developed golf skills, the right starter set will be well worth the investment. Here are some aspects of a good starter set that can help you...
1. A driver that is the right length for you with enough loft to easily get the ball to carry well in the air.
2. A fairway also with lots of loft that will again be easy to hit and get good carry.
3. Perhaps one hybrid club as a substitute for a 4 iron.
4. A 5, 7, 9 iron and pitching wedge with "game improvement" characteristics that are forgiving to mishits.
5. A sand wedge with sufficient bounce to help you hit sand shots well.
6. A putter that is PERFECTLY fit for the right length and lie to make it easy for you to get the golf ball in the hole!
9 clubs to start - but built for you to help you to see good results at the start. And also to help you be able to get good instuction to develop a quality golf swing!
Tony
But most likely you think - how can that matter for me when I am just starting?
Well, maybe just as much as for players who have well developed golf skills, the right starter set will be well worth the investment. Here are some aspects of a good starter set that can help you...
1. A driver that is the right length for you with enough loft to easily get the ball to carry well in the air.
2. A fairway also with lots of loft that will again be easy to hit and get good carry.
3. Perhaps one hybrid club as a substitute for a 4 iron.
4. A 5, 7, 9 iron and pitching wedge with "game improvement" characteristics that are forgiving to mishits.
5. A sand wedge with sufficient bounce to help you hit sand shots well.
6. A putter that is PERFECTLY fit for the right length and lie to make it easy for you to get the golf ball in the hole!
9 clubs to start - but built for you to help you to see good results at the start. And also to help you be able to get good instuction to develop a quality golf swing!
Tony
Monday, November 1, 2010
WATCHING AND ASKING - Very Important Fitting Tools!
It is important to have things like launch monitors and precise fitting clubs to use in club fitting. But it is JUST as important to pay attention to the way a player hits the ball, and particularly if there are any physical issues that he/she has.
A great case of this happened in a driver fitting that I did this weekend. At the start of the fitting, when I was about to take some video of his swing to measure tempo and club release point, I noticed that he had a tendency to keep the clubface open at impact. At the time did not know if this was related to swing mechanics or something else, but I "filed it away" for later evaluation.
I asked what his normal "misses" have been with his driver, and he said he missed to the right (push fade). Launch monitor and Golftek data confirmed that this was also true during the fitting session.
One of the driver head options that can help reduce the severity of push-slice misses is the Alpha HMO Response driver. This head includes both offset and a closed club face, and for players who are not afraid to let the club "play" as it is designed - looking at the clubface closed at address - this can be a great option.
During the process of testing different driver heads, the player noted that he has arthritis in his wrist and this keeps him from easily releasing the club. After hearing that, it became clear that the Alpha head would be a great option for him. Golftek results showed that the face at impact was close to square and final outside testing showed that he hit this club very straight. 44 inches, 15 degrees true loft, and the Alpha head. A winner!
Knowing about physical issues is just as important as any other fitting measurement. This weekend was a great reminder!!
Tony
Monday, October 25, 2010
Fit The Misses Too!
For every fitting that I do, I ask the player "what are your misses?" The answer to this question often provides initial hints into what kind of club improvements can provide the most value to players.
Many fittings result in increased distance with irons or drivers, or reduced dispersion of shots. But a recent post on the AGCP web site caused me to think there is a lot more to consider in paying LOTS of attention to the Misses players make - maybe more atttention to these than to the great shots.
There are a lot of things that can be done to golf clubs to "make misses better." Like fitting with an offset driver when a player slices a lot, or fitting with more loft when a player does not get drives and fairway woods in the air, or even recommending a sand wedge with a very wide sole to make sand shots easier.
So finding ways to increase distance with irons and woods is a great thing to strive for. But just as important is to make sure that the clubs really fit the player's swings - and maybe the best way to helping a lot of folks get more enjoyment in golf is simply to help them make all of their misses better.
Tony
Many fittings result in increased distance with irons or drivers, or reduced dispersion of shots. But a recent post on the AGCP web site caused me to think there is a lot more to consider in paying LOTS of attention to the Misses players make - maybe more atttention to these than to the great shots.
There are a lot of things that can be done to golf clubs to "make misses better." Like fitting with an offset driver when a player slices a lot, or fitting with more loft when a player does not get drives and fairway woods in the air, or even recommending a sand wedge with a very wide sole to make sand shots easier.
So finding ways to increase distance with irons and woods is a great thing to strive for. But just as important is to make sure that the clubs really fit the player's swings - and maybe the best way to helping a lot of folks get more enjoyment in golf is simply to help them make all of their misses better.
Tony
Monday, October 18, 2010
Higher IS Further!!
At the AGCP Roundtable 5, we had the treat of listening to Tom Wishon (Tom Wishon Golf) talk for about 2 hours on things he has learned from working in the golf club business for about 40 years.
He noted his belief that the top 3 factors that have a major influence on driving distance are (in order of importance):
1. Driver loft
2. Driver length
3. Driver MOI/Swingweight
I believe that shaft flex and shaft flex profile are also important in fitting for distance - but I think Tom's point is that the three factors above play the Most important role in obtaining more distance.
The more I have thought about this in the past month, the more I agree with him. I recall one of the best driver fittings that I have ever done, and what I did was put the player into a 13 degree driver with a 43 inch length. This was for a player over 70 years old who I do not think has ever hit his drives 200 yards - but he could with this club.
I also think about what I see from the "big boys" on the PGA Tour. I do not think you ever see drives that are low and boring any more - they all fly high and carry long. All of their drives fly significantly higher than I know my drives do.
But the majority of drivers that we see in stores are still 9.5 degrees, 10 degrees, 10.5 degrees of loft. Maybe good for players who have 100 plus mph swing speed, but most of us are well below that.
Do not be afraid to test 13 and 15 degree drivers - the final results may surprise you!
Tony
He noted his belief that the top 3 factors that have a major influence on driving distance are (in order of importance):
1. Driver loft
2. Driver length
3. Driver MOI/Swingweight
I believe that shaft flex and shaft flex profile are also important in fitting for distance - but I think Tom's point is that the three factors above play the Most important role in obtaining more distance.
The more I have thought about this in the past month, the more I agree with him. I recall one of the best driver fittings that I have ever done, and what I did was put the player into a 13 degree driver with a 43 inch length. This was for a player over 70 years old who I do not think has ever hit his drives 200 yards - but he could with this club.
I also think about what I see from the "big boys" on the PGA Tour. I do not think you ever see drives that are low and boring any more - they all fly high and carry long. All of their drives fly significantly higher than I know my drives do.
But the majority of drivers that we see in stores are still 9.5 degrees, 10 degrees, 10.5 degrees of loft. Maybe good for players who have 100 plus mph swing speed, but most of us are well below that.
Do not be afraid to test 13 and 15 degree drivers - the final results may surprise you!
Tony
Monday, October 11, 2010
Putter Grips - A Little Means A LOT!!
I am amazed sometimes at the little things in club building that can be important.
At the AGCP RT5, I realized that it is VERY important to install putter grips onto clubs so that the flat part is PERFECTLY perpendicular to the face of the putter.
And it makes such sense when you think of it. We all want to square the face up, and when we put our hands on the grip we all want to make the flat part of the grip be parallel to the putting line.
If the grip is not installed properly, we are adjusting and manipulating our strokes to compensate for this. Not something that leads to consistent putting.
So if you read this blog take a look at your grip. If it is not square, find someone who has the equipment to install it totally square to the line to take out this level of uncertainty in your putting stroke.
tony
At the AGCP RT5, I realized that it is VERY important to install putter grips onto clubs so that the flat part is PERFECTLY perpendicular to the face of the putter.
And it makes such sense when you think of it. We all want to square the face up, and when we put our hands on the grip we all want to make the flat part of the grip be parallel to the putting line.
If the grip is not installed properly, we are adjusting and manipulating our strokes to compensate for this. Not something that leads to consistent putting.
So if you read this blog take a look at your grip. If it is not square, find someone who has the equipment to install it totally square to the line to take out this level of uncertainty in your putting stroke.
tony
Monday, October 4, 2010
Some Key Tidbits on The Successful AGCP RT5
Well we had another great AGCP Roundtable this past week. It started with a Demo Day last Wednesday and then 3 days of presentations and interactions with AGCP sponsors who attended the meetings. More than 60 AGCP members attended and there were excellent presentations on key elements of clubfitting including how to fit golfers who have disabilities, on the influence of metallurgy on the ability to bend iron heads, on how some important elements of installing grips on golf clubs, and business basics for clubfitting business development, on how to organize clubfitting websites, and on the key interactions between clubfitting and golf instruction (and more).
From the standpoint of readers of this blog, here are some tidbits that I hope might help your golf games....
1. If you ever the chance to get an evaluation of your putting stroke with the SAM PuttLab, I highly recommend it. This is the Cadillac of putter stroke diagnostics, and it provides some great insights into how you might improve your putting stroke. And you might also want to check out "The Putting Doctor" website - Glenn Combs has a simple process for improving putting that is well worth the investment.
2. A good resource discussed for tracking your golf game shots and identifying areas for improvement is the LinxTracker.... website of the same name.
3. Back to putting, an overlooked area that could lead to improvement is simply to determine if your grip has been put on straight so that you can square up the clubface. You might visually look at your grip and if it is not on straight get your putter regripped.
4. Again back to putting......a way to get an initial check on the effectiveness of your stroke is to simply check if you are aiming the putter on line......and if you are hitting the ball on the sweet spot of the putter.
5. From the standpoint of getting effective help with your golf swing, finding a teacher who focuses on the fundamentals is very important.
By far the best part of the Roundtable happened at the end. Tom Wishon from Tom Wishon Golf Technology gave a 2 hour presentation on what he has learned from 40 years of working in the golf business. He discussed many things - including that almost all drivers that people buy off the rack are too long - but the key thing was something he said at the end and that needs to be emphasized over and over again.....
Custom Built Golf Clubs Are The Best Golf Clubs
That You Will Ever Play With.
Tony
From the standpoint of readers of this blog, here are some tidbits that I hope might help your golf games....
1. If you ever the chance to get an evaluation of your putting stroke with the SAM PuttLab, I highly recommend it. This is the Cadillac of putter stroke diagnostics, and it provides some great insights into how you might improve your putting stroke. And you might also want to check out "The Putting Doctor" website - Glenn Combs has a simple process for improving putting that is well worth the investment.
2. A good resource discussed for tracking your golf game shots and identifying areas for improvement is the LinxTracker.... website of the same name.
3. Back to putting, an overlooked area that could lead to improvement is simply to determine if your grip has been put on straight so that you can square up the clubface. You might visually look at your grip and if it is not on straight get your putter regripped.
4. Again back to putting......a way to get an initial check on the effectiveness of your stroke is to simply check if you are aiming the putter on line......and if you are hitting the ball on the sweet spot of the putter.
5. From the standpoint of getting effective help with your golf swing, finding a teacher who focuses on the fundamentals is very important.
By far the best part of the Roundtable happened at the end. Tom Wishon from Tom Wishon Golf Technology gave a 2 hour presentation on what he has learned from 40 years of working in the golf business. He discussed many things - including that almost all drivers that people buy off the rack are too long - but the key thing was something he said at the end and that needs to be emphasized over and over again.....
Custom Built Golf Clubs Are The Best Golf Clubs
That You Will Ever Play With.
Tony
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