Custom fitting golf clubs involves several easy measurements and a quick self-assessment of your game. You will see many fitting methods out there in the golf universe, but most of them center around the same pieces of information. This method is simple, accurate, and effective. To custom fit your golf clubs, you need to know:
Your gender (male or female)
Your height in your stockings or socks
The distance from your wrist (where it bends) to the floor (without shoes)
Your age
Your handicap or skill level
How fast you swing a golf club
What club you use at the 150 yard marker
Gender is used to put you into the correct fitting scale. The golf industry uses different definitions of "standard length" for men and women.
Your height and the distance in inches from your wrist to the floor are used together to determine the length of golf club that is appropriate for you. The starting point for club length can vary up to 3 1/2" ranging from ladies to mens plus 1 1/2". A tall person with long arms can very easily require shorter clubs than an average height person with short arms. About 80% of golfers are Standard length.
Your age, handicap (if you happen to have one), self-assessed skill level, estimated golf swing speed and club you use at the 150 yard marker are all combined to determined the shaft flex that is appropriate for you.
Club Length & Flex
What should I know about golf club length? Length is simply how long the golf club is as measured from the butt end of the grip down the back side of the club down to where the club meets the ground. A longer golf club will hit further given the same swing speed — so length can be a good thing. However, since the swing arc is longer, it often is also harder to keep under control — so length can be a bad thing. All things being equal, most golfers will opt for longer length to the sacrifice of greater control.
The standard length of a steel shafted Driver for a man is 43 inches. Graphite shafted drivers are manufactured 1 inch longer than steel shafted clubs because graphite shafts weigh less than steel shafts allowing us to produce a longer club with the same swing weight (a fulcrum measurement of the proper balance and feel of a golf club). See Shafts (in Lesson #2) for a more complete discussion of the types of shafts we use and the length chart below for the different golf clubs that make up a set.
The proper length of a golf club is a function of your height and the length of your arms. We provide a Custom Fitting Wizard that determines the correct length for you with just two simple measurements.
How long is a golf club? There is no exact industry standard for golf club length. To make everything clear, we are letting you know our standard club lengths for men and women using both graphite and steel shafts. The measurement is made with the golf club in "address position" — club head resting on the floor, grip end in your hands. The measurement is made from the floor up the back side of the golf club to the butt end of the grip.
What should I know about golf club flex? Flex is the torsional stiffness of the golf club, which is provided by the type of golf club shaft that is used. Generally, stiffer shafts are better for stronger hitting golfers. Common shaft flexes are Men's Regular, Stiff, Extra Stiff, Senior, and Ladies. Interestingly, graphite shaft flex terminology uses Firm and Extra Firm instead of Stiff — we don't know why, they are just the words the golf industry uses.
The proper flex of a golf club is a function of your strength and golfing skills. We provide a Custom Fitting Wizard that determines the correct flex for you in just two simple steps. Determining the correct flex is most important for your Woods and longer Irons. Short irons, wedges and putters are not impacted very much by the different flexes as the differences between flexes becomes very small in the shorter clubs.
Often associated with flex, is "kick-point" — especially with graphite shafts. Less experienced golfers generally benefit from lower kick-point shafts, which help get the ball up in the air. Better golfers tend to favor higher kick points.
Loft & Lie Adjustments
A word about loft and lie adjustments. Pinemeadow can adjust the lie on irons and wedges. The request needs to be emailed to us with your order number or noted in the special comments box in step #3 of the shopping cart.
A lie adjustment requires bending the hardened metal in which an iron is cast. We strongly advise getting your lie fitting done in person. Online fittings while accurate do not take into account your natural ball address. Some players are more naturally upright and some like to “lean into” the ball. Once you have lie adjusted a club it is usually not a good idea to re-adjust if you later find it was the wrong adjustment.
From years of building experience we find it rare to need more than a 2 degree adjustment upright or flat, therefore we only perform lie adjustments to either extreme.
Woods, hybrid clubs and putters can not be adjusted. The reason these clubs can not be adjusted is because the hosel of each is cast in a way where physically bending the head at all will cause damage. In woods and hybrids it will crack or bend the crown of the club, and putter hosels are not made with the strength required for adjustment after the casting process.
Loft adjustments require a different type of bend than a lie adjustment. Some people receive advice in which they require a certain loft adjustment. We have never understood loft adjustments since it merely changes the loft of the club. We recommend buying golf clubs matching loft you seek and avoid custom loft adjustments. Bending the loft of an iron weakens the hardened metal and can lead to future metal fatigue, since the actual bend twists the metal to an extent. If the loft of your 5 iron is too strong, use a 6 iron. If it is too weak, use a 4 iron.
Showing posts with label Golf Lesson. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Golf Lesson. Show all posts
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Golf Lesson #2: Technical Specs of Golf Club Heads, Shafts & Grips
What Should I Know About Golf Club Heads?
Golf club heads can be made from many materials. Zinc and Aluminum alloys are primarily used in beginner’s sets and putters. HST Aluminum is a much harder aluminum and is popular in very large drivers. 431 and 17-4ph stainless steel is commonly used in professional quality iron heads. You will also find 17-4 stainless steel in some wood heads. Maraging metal is a stainless steel put through a very special hardening process that makes it very, very, hard and is a popular material for faceplates in the highest performing woods. Titanium is the most expensive material used in building golf clubs heads and combines light weight and excellent strength. Titanium is used today in the highest end woods manufactured. Pinemeadow Golf carries a wide assortment of titanium woods.
Do not confuse Ti-Alloy with Titanium. Ti-Alloy products are Aluminum products with trace elements of Titanium that attempt to take advantage of the Titanium name. Ti-Alloy products are among the least expensive and are meant for beginners and junior golfers. Other materials include ceramics, graphite and plastics. We don’t see those much anymore, but they should begin to make a return in the next few years as manufacturing technologies improve.
To conclude our section on materials, we rank golf head materials as follows:
Beginner woods:
Aluminum, Titanium alloys
Good woods:
HST Aluminum
Better woods:
17-4ph stainless steel, 431 stainless steel
Best woods:
Titanium (usually in drivers only), maraging metal, bi-metal,tungsten insert
Beginner irons:
Zinc
Best irons:
431 stainless steel, 17-4ph stainless steel, bi-metal, tungsten insert
Putters:
Material choices are immaterial. The shape, weighting and type of inserts generally override materials in your decision.
Golf heads are made in a variety of shapes. Key design principles are weight distribution (perimeter, low center of gravity, etc.), size (traditional, oversize, super-oversize) and styling (keel sole, deep face, wide body, etc.). There are not very many utility patents in this area, so most club makers can use most shapes that they desire without violating another company’s rights.
Golf heads come in a variety of weights. Here there are some important factors. To achieve the desired swing weight there is an important dynamic between the weight of a golf head, the length of the club and the weight of the grip and shaft. Don’t worry too much about it because every decent club maker uses golf club casting foundries that cast golf heads with the correct weights. It would be pretty rare to find a golf head maker that messes up in this area.
Generally, if a club is made from the same materials, using the same shapes, with the same weight distributions and overall weight, it should perform the same as another club similarly constructed. This is a key concept to understanding why golf club clones perform as well as the name brands—it is just molten metal shaped into a form. If the metal is the same and the shape similar, the result should compare very well.
The trick is that many companies and retail stores do not explain or know what their clubs are made from. For example, an Aluminum driver that looks just like a club made from stainless steel will be inferior to that club and vice versa. We will do our best to tell you the straight truth about products and what they are made from so you will be educated to judge quality for yourself. Look at a product on our web site and you will see specifications for materials, size and weight.
Golf Club Shafts
We have been in the golf business for many years and have bought shafts from every significant steel and graphite shaft maker. We find much greater quality differences in graphite shafts versus steel shafts, but the good news is that the quality of graphite has improved significantly over the past ten years. In fact the quality of graphite shafts and their affordability is much better than just two or three years ago. So, here are our short thoughts on shafts and why we use whom we do as suppliers.
In our opinion, the shaft is as important as the head of a golf club. In fact, we often find greater performance differences in using different graphite shafts with the same head than we do using different heads (provided the heads are made from the same materials) with the same shaft. Did that make any sense to you? Well, it’s the truth. So, the bottom line: shafts are very important.
For information on golf club lengths, see the next lesson, Custom Fitting Golf Clubs.
Should I Use Graphite or Steel Shafts?
Strongly consider using graphite shafts in your woods if:
You are a woman
You are a senior
You are a baby boomer
You have joint problems
You want to play a longer driver
You have pretty good swing speed tempo and are younger
You are an average player who wants to play better
Strongly consider using graphite shafts in your irons if:
You are a woman
You are a senior
You are a baby boomer
You have joint problems
You love having graphite shafts in your woods?
You have a slower swing and want to add distance
So, what is the logic of our advice? Well, graphite shafts reduce the weight of your club (it is actually quite remarkable to feel the weight difference in an entire set of clubs made with steel versus graphite shafts)—this is good for all players, but especially women and seniors. Graphite shafts weigh from 50 grams to 85 grams, while steel shafts generally start at 120 grams. Graphite shafts reduce the shock at impact—this is good for women, seniors, aging baby boomers and those of us with joint problems. Graphite shafts allow for longer clubs—this is good for distance (but maybe not quite so good for control). Graphite shafts have greater construction alternatives so that they can be designed to affect the flight of the ball to a greater degree than steel shafts.
Who Makes Pinemeadow’s Graphite Shafts?
There is a much greater quality difference between graphite shaft makers than steel shaft makers. Aldila has been the #1 graphite shaft maker for as long as we have been in business. Why take any risk here? We know that with an Aldila graphite shaft we won’t have any breakage problems, whipping torques or other quality issues. And, their performance is superb. Enough said. We use Aldila graphite shafts for all our graphite shaft needs. However, for those of you who like to experiment and have your own favorites, we offer a variety of custom shaft upgrades.
What About Stainless Steel Shafts?
We use FM Precision, True Temper and Apollo for our steel shafts. The reasons are simple. They all make superior shafts, are long recognized as industry leaders, have very compatible steel shafts with each other and are extremely reliable. These shafts manufacturers are used by virtually every golf club manufacturer in the world today.
Golf Club Grips
Grips are the least expensive yet one of the most important parts of a golf club. Our most important advice is—change your golf grips often. Grips tend to oxidize, harden, get slick, and lose their grip over time. It is a two-edged sword—the grippier they are, the faster they lose that grip.
So, we have taken a position that attempts to cut it both ways. We buy the highest quality grips that have a greater than normal longevity, but not the absolute highest grip factor. This way, if you don’t re-grip when you are supposed to at least you will have good grips. But, we do recommend re-gripping often—it will have a positive effect on your game. It’s just like changing the oil in your car. Only every six months or 3,000 rounds. We also allow you to select from an excellent variety of custom upgrades for your grips.
Golf club heads can be made from many materials. Zinc and Aluminum alloys are primarily used in beginner’s sets and putters. HST Aluminum is a much harder aluminum and is popular in very large drivers. 431 and 17-4ph stainless steel is commonly used in professional quality iron heads. You will also find 17-4 stainless steel in some wood heads. Maraging metal is a stainless steel put through a very special hardening process that makes it very, very, hard and is a popular material for faceplates in the highest performing woods. Titanium is the most expensive material used in building golf clubs heads and combines light weight and excellent strength. Titanium is used today in the highest end woods manufactured. Pinemeadow Golf carries a wide assortment of titanium woods.
Do not confuse Ti-Alloy with Titanium. Ti-Alloy products are Aluminum products with trace elements of Titanium that attempt to take advantage of the Titanium name. Ti-Alloy products are among the least expensive and are meant for beginners and junior golfers. Other materials include ceramics, graphite and plastics. We don’t see those much anymore, but they should begin to make a return in the next few years as manufacturing technologies improve.
To conclude our section on materials, we rank golf head materials as follows:
Beginner woods:
Aluminum, Titanium alloys
Good woods:
HST Aluminum
Better woods:
17-4ph stainless steel, 431 stainless steel
Best woods:
Titanium (usually in drivers only), maraging metal, bi-metal,tungsten insert
Beginner irons:
Zinc
Best irons:
431 stainless steel, 17-4ph stainless steel, bi-metal, tungsten insert
Putters:
Material choices are immaterial. The shape, weighting and type of inserts generally override materials in your decision.
Golf heads are made in a variety of shapes. Key design principles are weight distribution (perimeter, low center of gravity, etc.), size (traditional, oversize, super-oversize) and styling (keel sole, deep face, wide body, etc.). There are not very many utility patents in this area, so most club makers can use most shapes that they desire without violating another company’s rights.
Golf heads come in a variety of weights. Here there are some important factors. To achieve the desired swing weight there is an important dynamic between the weight of a golf head, the length of the club and the weight of the grip and shaft. Don’t worry too much about it because every decent club maker uses golf club casting foundries that cast golf heads with the correct weights. It would be pretty rare to find a golf head maker that messes up in this area.
Generally, if a club is made from the same materials, using the same shapes, with the same weight distributions and overall weight, it should perform the same as another club similarly constructed. This is a key concept to understanding why golf club clones perform as well as the name brands—it is just molten metal shaped into a form. If the metal is the same and the shape similar, the result should compare very well.
The trick is that many companies and retail stores do not explain or know what their clubs are made from. For example, an Aluminum driver that looks just like a club made from stainless steel will be inferior to that club and vice versa. We will do our best to tell you the straight truth about products and what they are made from so you will be educated to judge quality for yourself. Look at a product on our web site and you will see specifications for materials, size and weight.
Golf Club Shafts
We have been in the golf business for many years and have bought shafts from every significant steel and graphite shaft maker. We find much greater quality differences in graphite shafts versus steel shafts, but the good news is that the quality of graphite has improved significantly over the past ten years. In fact the quality of graphite shafts and their affordability is much better than just two or three years ago. So, here are our short thoughts on shafts and why we use whom we do as suppliers.
In our opinion, the shaft is as important as the head of a golf club. In fact, we often find greater performance differences in using different graphite shafts with the same head than we do using different heads (provided the heads are made from the same materials) with the same shaft. Did that make any sense to you? Well, it’s the truth. So, the bottom line: shafts are very important.
For information on golf club lengths, see the next lesson, Custom Fitting Golf Clubs.
Should I Use Graphite or Steel Shafts?
Strongly consider using graphite shafts in your woods if:
You are a woman
You are a senior
You are a baby boomer
You have joint problems
You want to play a longer driver
You have pretty good swing speed tempo and are younger
You are an average player who wants to play better
Strongly consider using graphite shafts in your irons if:
You are a woman
You are a senior
You are a baby boomer
You have joint problems
You love having graphite shafts in your woods?
You have a slower swing and want to add distance
So, what is the logic of our advice? Well, graphite shafts reduce the weight of your club (it is actually quite remarkable to feel the weight difference in an entire set of clubs made with steel versus graphite shafts)—this is good for all players, but especially women and seniors. Graphite shafts weigh from 50 grams to 85 grams, while steel shafts generally start at 120 grams. Graphite shafts reduce the shock at impact—this is good for women, seniors, aging baby boomers and those of us with joint problems. Graphite shafts allow for longer clubs—this is good for distance (but maybe not quite so good for control). Graphite shafts have greater construction alternatives so that they can be designed to affect the flight of the ball to a greater degree than steel shafts.
Who Makes Pinemeadow’s Graphite Shafts?
There is a much greater quality difference between graphite shaft makers than steel shaft makers. Aldila has been the #1 graphite shaft maker for as long as we have been in business. Why take any risk here? We know that with an Aldila graphite shaft we won’t have any breakage problems, whipping torques or other quality issues. And, their performance is superb. Enough said. We use Aldila graphite shafts for all our graphite shaft needs. However, for those of you who like to experiment and have your own favorites, we offer a variety of custom shaft upgrades.
What About Stainless Steel Shafts?
We use FM Precision, True Temper and Apollo for our steel shafts. The reasons are simple. They all make superior shafts, are long recognized as industry leaders, have very compatible steel shafts with each other and are extremely reliable. These shafts manufacturers are used by virtually every golf club manufacturer in the world today.
Golf Club Grips
Grips are the least expensive yet one of the most important parts of a golf club. Our most important advice is—change your golf grips often. Grips tend to oxidize, harden, get slick, and lose their grip over time. It is a two-edged sword—the grippier they are, the faster they lose that grip.
So, we have taken a position that attempts to cut it both ways. We buy the highest quality grips that have a greater than normal longevity, but not the absolute highest grip factor. This way, if you don’t re-grip when you are supposed to at least you will have good grips. But, we do recommend re-gripping often—it will have a positive effect on your game. It’s just like changing the oil in your car. Only every six months or 3,000 rounds. We also allow you to select from an excellent variety of custom upgrades for your grips.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Golf Lesson #1: The Basics of Golf Clubs
Golf clubs are the tools we use to strike the golf ball. A golf club has three components — the Head, the Shaft and the Grip. The rules of golf constrain golf club designs, but the goal of clubmakers is to create golf clubs, within those rules of golf, that maximize the physics of the golfer's swing while allowing for a range of swing error to provide an accurate, long, yet forgiving shot. The better your swing, the less forgiving club you require.
A standard set of golf clubs consists of three woods (the 1-driver, 3, and 5), eight irons (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and PW), and a putter — twelve clubs. The rules of golf allow you to carry fourteen clubs in your bag, so many golfers add another iron or a specialty wood. After all, the more tools we have in our toolbox, the easier it is to do our job!
Woods
Woods are used to hit long shots. If a golf hole is 450 yards from tee to green, most golfers use a wood to hit off the tee. A wood is a hollow-bodied large headed golf club. Use your woods when you are 175 yards or more away from the green.
The Driver (also called the 1 wood) has the lowest loft of any golf club. Loft is the angle of the club face that controls trajectory and affects distance. A driver has a loft between 7 and 12 degrees. Experienced golfers have traditionally favored lower lofted drivers (less than 10 degrees of loft), which require much more skill to hit than higher lofted drivers.
A dramatic development has occurred over the past several years - professional golfers are throwing out their low lofted drivers and opting for large-headed, higher-lofted 10 and 11 degree drivers. Their argument is that the longest drives are achieved by combining a high launch angle with lower spin. The newer, higher-lofted designs for large-headed drivers provide the higher launch angle; the new solid core golf balls provide less spin on the golf ball. This results in the longest drives. So the professionals are increasingly moving to larger headed higher lofted drivers. They get more carry with less shot error. Just like you should do!
This change is a huge reversal from prior years. During the mid to late 1990's, the average loft on the PGA Tour was around 7 degrees. However, those were difficult shots for the pros to make and the ball flight from such a low loft created lots of spin. The experts in ball flight analysis showed that the longest golf drives are achieved with a high launch angle combined with low spin. The new solid core golf balls provide that low spin which was not available in the golf balls of yesterday. A higher lofted club gives the golfer the higher launch angle.
Most PGA pros now carry drivers with lofts of 8.5 to 10 degrees or more. Non-pros should probably play drivers with lifts 10 degrees or higher. So our recommendation is follow the advice of the PGA pros and increase the loft of your driver.
Most golfers also carry 3 and 5 woods in their bag. A 3 wood has a loft between 15 and 18 degrees, and a 5 wood has a loft between 20 and 22 degrees. The higher the golf club number, the higher the loft. In addition, the higher the golf club number, the shorter the club. A 3 wood is generally 1/2" shorter than a Driver and so on with each successive club. However, we build all our woods higher than a 5 wood the same length as the 5 wood. This is because the shorter the club, the smaller the arc of the swing. The smaller the arc of the swing, the less speed the golf club will have when it strikes the ball — ergo the less distance the ball will travel. We believe that a 5 wood is short enough and while the 7 and 9 woods provide more forgiveness, we also want longer distance in our shots. Arghh, the physics of golf!
Why aren't woods made of wood? They used to be, but since the 1980's woods have been made of metal. Metal has many advantages over wood — the most important to the beginning golfer being the ability to precisely mold metal to create a golf club that has perimeter weighting and low center of gravity (LCG). Both of these design technologies result in golf clubs that are much more forgiving than wooden woods. Perimeter weighting helps create a larger sweet spot — a larger area on the face of the club that will result in a good hit. Low center of gravity creates mass at the right place — increasing the height that the ball will launch off the club and reducing the likelihood of miss-hits into the ground.
What about 2 and 4 woods? These woods actually exist and were popular 20 or more years ago, but they have fallen out of favor as newer technologies have improved the performance of woods. Today, most golfers prefer 7 and 9 woods in their bag (which can only have fourteen clubs) than a 2 or 4 wood. In fact, there is now a trend to include higher numbered woods and eliminate the traditional low numbered irons in your set of golf clubs. That will be discussed in greater detail when we talk about irons. The 3 wood and 5 wood are commonly referred to as Fairway Woods, because they are most often used during the second shot of play, when you are supposed to be in the fairway of the golf hole (as opposed to in the woods!). All higher lofted woods (7, 9, 11, and so on) are commonly referred to as utility woods.
Irons
Irons are generally used when you are less than 200 yards away from the green. The closer you are to the green, the higher the iron you will use. A standard set of irons consists of 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 irons and the Pitching Wedge (PW). The 3 and 4 irons are harder to hit than the higher number irons. Many golfers, especially ladies, seniors and higher handicap golfers, are changing to a modified standard golf set that replaces the 3 and 4 iron with higher lofted woods like the 7 and 9 woods. We think this is a sensible trend and one that a beginning golfer should consider. Higher lofted woods, like the 7 and 9 wood are easier to hit than a 3 or 4 iron and result in comparable distances.
Wedges
Wedges are really just specialty irons. The first wedge is the Pitching Wedge (PW), which is usually about 48 degrees in loft. Wedges generally increase in 4 degree loft amounts. So wedges commonly come in 48, 52, 56, 60 and 64 degree lofts. We manufacture a very special wedge called the Last Wedge — which has a 68 degree loft. The PW is the highest lofted iron in a standard set and lowest loft of the wedges. Following the PW with higher lofts are the Approach Wedge (AW), Sand Wedge (SW), the Lob Wedge (LW), the High-Lob Wedge and, finally, our Pinemeadow Last Wedge at 68 degrees.
Wedges are extremely useful to your game and most golfers have a few of them. Wedges are generally designed as "blade clubs" because you are close enough to the green that the game improvement design elements (discussed below) are less important. The need for increased shot control and shot shaping, which blade design encourages, becomes the more important technology for a good wedge design.
Putters
A putter is a golf club with a special purpose: getting the ball into the hole. After you have slammed your drive 250 yards right into the middle of the fairway, hit your second shot 175 yards into the sand trap, and then wedged out onto the green, it is time to "putt for dough." The putter is used on the green and there are many style of putters: short, belly, long, bent, center-hosel, heel-toe, mallet, and so on. At Pinemeadow Golf, we provide you a huge selection of putters and we have a good reason for it, which we explain next.
The Psychology of What You Carry in Your Golf Bag
After decades of experience in the golf club manufacturing business, building millions of clubs for huge numbers of happy customers, we have noticed one thing. Most golfers have as their minimum arsenal one set of irons, multiple wedges, several drivers and a variety of putters. This is because your foursome all gets together at the tee where you use your driver. The pressure is high to perform well. Hopefully you end up in the fairway, spread out all over the golf course. As you work your way through the hole using your fairway woods and irons — eventually, you all come back together again on the green.
So, where do you need the most weapons at your disposal? It is where the stakes are highest and the pressure to perform reaches its zenith. That is at the tee and the green — they don't say "drive for show, putt for dough" casually. And that is why most golfers we know have multiple drivers and putters and one set of irons.
A standard set of golf clubs consists of three woods (the 1-driver, 3, and 5), eight irons (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and PW), and a putter — twelve clubs. The rules of golf allow you to carry fourteen clubs in your bag, so many golfers add another iron or a specialty wood. After all, the more tools we have in our toolbox, the easier it is to do our job!
Woods
Woods are used to hit long shots. If a golf hole is 450 yards from tee to green, most golfers use a wood to hit off the tee. A wood is a hollow-bodied large headed golf club. Use your woods when you are 175 yards or more away from the green.
The Driver (also called the 1 wood) has the lowest loft of any golf club. Loft is the angle of the club face that controls trajectory and affects distance. A driver has a loft between 7 and 12 degrees. Experienced golfers have traditionally favored lower lofted drivers (less than 10 degrees of loft), which require much more skill to hit than higher lofted drivers.
A dramatic development has occurred over the past several years - professional golfers are throwing out their low lofted drivers and opting for large-headed, higher-lofted 10 and 11 degree drivers. Their argument is that the longest drives are achieved by combining a high launch angle with lower spin. The newer, higher-lofted designs for large-headed drivers provide the higher launch angle; the new solid core golf balls provide less spin on the golf ball. This results in the longest drives. So the professionals are increasingly moving to larger headed higher lofted drivers. They get more carry with less shot error. Just like you should do!
This change is a huge reversal from prior years. During the mid to late 1990's, the average loft on the PGA Tour was around 7 degrees. However, those were difficult shots for the pros to make and the ball flight from such a low loft created lots of spin. The experts in ball flight analysis showed that the longest golf drives are achieved with a high launch angle combined with low spin. The new solid core golf balls provide that low spin which was not available in the golf balls of yesterday. A higher lofted club gives the golfer the higher launch angle.
Most PGA pros now carry drivers with lofts of 8.5 to 10 degrees or more. Non-pros should probably play drivers with lifts 10 degrees or higher. So our recommendation is follow the advice of the PGA pros and increase the loft of your driver.
Most golfers also carry 3 and 5 woods in their bag. A 3 wood has a loft between 15 and 18 degrees, and a 5 wood has a loft between 20 and 22 degrees. The higher the golf club number, the higher the loft. In addition, the higher the golf club number, the shorter the club. A 3 wood is generally 1/2" shorter than a Driver and so on with each successive club. However, we build all our woods higher than a 5 wood the same length as the 5 wood. This is because the shorter the club, the smaller the arc of the swing. The smaller the arc of the swing, the less speed the golf club will have when it strikes the ball — ergo the less distance the ball will travel. We believe that a 5 wood is short enough and while the 7 and 9 woods provide more forgiveness, we also want longer distance in our shots. Arghh, the physics of golf!
Why aren't woods made of wood? They used to be, but since the 1980's woods have been made of metal. Metal has many advantages over wood — the most important to the beginning golfer being the ability to precisely mold metal to create a golf club that has perimeter weighting and low center of gravity (LCG). Both of these design technologies result in golf clubs that are much more forgiving than wooden woods. Perimeter weighting helps create a larger sweet spot — a larger area on the face of the club that will result in a good hit. Low center of gravity creates mass at the right place — increasing the height that the ball will launch off the club and reducing the likelihood of miss-hits into the ground.
What about 2 and 4 woods? These woods actually exist and were popular 20 or more years ago, but they have fallen out of favor as newer technologies have improved the performance of woods. Today, most golfers prefer 7 and 9 woods in their bag (which can only have fourteen clubs) than a 2 or 4 wood. In fact, there is now a trend to include higher numbered woods and eliminate the traditional low numbered irons in your set of golf clubs. That will be discussed in greater detail when we talk about irons. The 3 wood and 5 wood are commonly referred to as Fairway Woods, because they are most often used during the second shot of play, when you are supposed to be in the fairway of the golf hole (as opposed to in the woods!). All higher lofted woods (7, 9, 11, and so on) are commonly referred to as utility woods.
Irons
Irons are generally used when you are less than 200 yards away from the green. The closer you are to the green, the higher the iron you will use. A standard set of irons consists of 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 irons and the Pitching Wedge (PW). The 3 and 4 irons are harder to hit than the higher number irons. Many golfers, especially ladies, seniors and higher handicap golfers, are changing to a modified standard golf set that replaces the 3 and 4 iron with higher lofted woods like the 7 and 9 woods. We think this is a sensible trend and one that a beginning golfer should consider. Higher lofted woods, like the 7 and 9 wood are easier to hit than a 3 or 4 iron and result in comparable distances.
Wedges
Wedges are really just specialty irons. The first wedge is the Pitching Wedge (PW), which is usually about 48 degrees in loft. Wedges generally increase in 4 degree loft amounts. So wedges commonly come in 48, 52, 56, 60 and 64 degree lofts. We manufacture a very special wedge called the Last Wedge — which has a 68 degree loft. The PW is the highest lofted iron in a standard set and lowest loft of the wedges. Following the PW with higher lofts are the Approach Wedge (AW), Sand Wedge (SW), the Lob Wedge (LW), the High-Lob Wedge and, finally, our Pinemeadow Last Wedge at 68 degrees.
Wedges are extremely useful to your game and most golfers have a few of them. Wedges are generally designed as "blade clubs" because you are close enough to the green that the game improvement design elements (discussed below) are less important. The need for increased shot control and shot shaping, which blade design encourages, becomes the more important technology for a good wedge design.
Putters
A putter is a golf club with a special purpose: getting the ball into the hole. After you have slammed your drive 250 yards right into the middle of the fairway, hit your second shot 175 yards into the sand trap, and then wedged out onto the green, it is time to "putt for dough." The putter is used on the green and there are many style of putters: short, belly, long, bent, center-hosel, heel-toe, mallet, and so on. At Pinemeadow Golf, we provide you a huge selection of putters and we have a good reason for it, which we explain next.
The Psychology of What You Carry in Your Golf Bag
After decades of experience in the golf club manufacturing business, building millions of clubs for huge numbers of happy customers, we have noticed one thing. Most golfers have as their minimum arsenal one set of irons, multiple wedges, several drivers and a variety of putters. This is because your foursome all gets together at the tee where you use your driver. The pressure is high to perform well. Hopefully you end up in the fairway, spread out all over the golf course. As you work your way through the hole using your fairway woods and irons — eventually, you all come back together again on the green.
So, where do you need the most weapons at your disposal? It is where the stakes are highest and the pressure to perform reaches its zenith. That is at the tee and the green — they don't say "drive for show, putt for dough" casually. And that is why most golfers we know have multiple drivers and putters and one set of irons.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Golf Swing Basics
If you want to produce better golf shots, you must first understand the concept of the basic swing. Watch this detailed overview of golf swing posture, positioning, and aim.
Golf Swing Basics
If you want to produce better golf shots, you must first understand the concept of the basic swing. First, let's discuss terminology. According to the rules of golf, the ball must be played as it lies on the ground-except for tee shots at the beginning of each hole. The ball rests on the target line-this is an imaginary line from the ball to the target-and the golfer must stand on one side of the line when hitting.
Golf Swing Shape
Since the ball is at your side, the swing will be circular in shape. Imagine your swing as a wheel. The spine or torso is the hub of the wheel, and your lead arm and the shaft of the club form the spokes. Since the ball is on the ground your swing path will follow an inclined plane as it tracks through the ball. This angle is not horizontal-like a merry-go-round-and not vertical-like a Ferris wheel. It is inclined, tilted somewhere in between.
Golf Swing Posture and Position
To send the ball to your target, you first aim the face of the club at the target. You then position your body parallel to the target line and bow at the hips so your torso tilts and faces the ball. This bending at the hips will help you direct the motion of the swing around and down at the correct angle through the impact zone.
Once you set up correctly, you simply make two turns. During the back swing, you turn your shoulders at a right angle to your spine until your back faces the target. To swing through and hit the ball you shift weight forward and turn you trunk until your belt buckle faces the target. This turning back and through is called the pivot and it serves as the motor for the golf swing.
Your arms and hands play the most important roll in hitting a golf ball. As you swing back, you hinge your wrists and form an L shaped lever between the lead arm and the club's shaft. On the down swing, once you have shifted toward the target and you have begun the second turn, this powerful L is released toward the target, accelerating club through impact.
To produce consistent, solid shots, you must stay in your posture while swinging and you must finish in balance. Remember, the key to success in golf is to focus on fundamentals. Understanding fundamental nature of the swing will help you become consistent.
Golf Swing Basics
If you want to produce better golf shots, you must first understand the concept of the basic swing. First, let's discuss terminology. According to the rules of golf, the ball must be played as it lies on the ground-except for tee shots at the beginning of each hole. The ball rests on the target line-this is an imaginary line from the ball to the target-and the golfer must stand on one side of the line when hitting.
Golf Swing Shape
Since the ball is at your side, the swing will be circular in shape. Imagine your swing as a wheel. The spine or torso is the hub of the wheel, and your lead arm and the shaft of the club form the spokes. Since the ball is on the ground your swing path will follow an inclined plane as it tracks through the ball. This angle is not horizontal-like a merry-go-round-and not vertical-like a Ferris wheel. It is inclined, tilted somewhere in between.
Golf Swing Posture and Position
To send the ball to your target, you first aim the face of the club at the target. You then position your body parallel to the target line and bow at the hips so your torso tilts and faces the ball. This bending at the hips will help you direct the motion of the swing around and down at the correct angle through the impact zone.
Once you set up correctly, you simply make two turns. During the back swing, you turn your shoulders at a right angle to your spine until your back faces the target. To swing through and hit the ball you shift weight forward and turn you trunk until your belt buckle faces the target. This turning back and through is called the pivot and it serves as the motor for the golf swing.
Your arms and hands play the most important roll in hitting a golf ball. As you swing back, you hinge your wrists and form an L shaped lever between the lead arm and the club's shaft. On the down swing, once you have shifted toward the target and you have begun the second turn, this powerful L is released toward the target, accelerating club through impact.
To produce consistent, solid shots, you must stay in your posture while swinging and you must finish in balance. Remember, the key to success in golf is to focus on fundamentals. Understanding fundamental nature of the swing will help you become consistent.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Correct Golf Posture
Correct posture plays a vital roll in golf. It puts you in position for balanced, powerful and consistent ball striking. With the correct posture, you can swing the club through impact with the little or no manipulation for consistent results.
The correct posture in golf puts you in an athletic setup which helps you create effortless power. It also creates the angle for you swing.
Correct Golf Posture
1. The right hand golfer should use the following setup:
Set your feet shoulder-width apart. The outside of your shoulders should fit inside your insteps.
2. Flex your knees only slightly for good balance. Your knees should be over the balls of your feet and your quads should be tension free.
3. Bend at the hips. Never allow your spine to slouch.
4. Your spine should be angled forward toward the ball, enough to create a right angle with the shaft of the club. Your spine will become the hub of your swing.
5. Make sure that your weight is centered on the balls of the feet. Never position too much weight on your heels or toes.
6. Tilt your spine slightly to the right. This side tilt keeps your head behind the ball, which is critical for power.
7. For driving, set 60% of your weight on the right foot and tilt behind the ball slightly more than irons.
Remember, the setup writes the script for the swing. Your posture forms the foundation for your swing and good posture will make the swing simple and easy to repeat.
The correct posture in golf puts you in an athletic setup which helps you create effortless power. It also creates the angle for you swing.
Correct Golf Posture
1. The right hand golfer should use the following setup:
Set your feet shoulder-width apart. The outside of your shoulders should fit inside your insteps.
2. Flex your knees only slightly for good balance. Your knees should be over the balls of your feet and your quads should be tension free.
3. Bend at the hips. Never allow your spine to slouch.
4. Your spine should be angled forward toward the ball, enough to create a right angle with the shaft of the club. Your spine will become the hub of your swing.
5. Make sure that your weight is centered on the balls of the feet. Never position too much weight on your heels or toes.
6. Tilt your spine slightly to the right. This side tilt keeps your head behind the ball, which is critical for power.
7. For driving, set 60% of your weight on the right foot and tilt behind the ball slightly more than irons.
Remember, the setup writes the script for the swing. Your posture forms the foundation for your swing and good posture will make the swing simple and easy to repeat.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
What do the Numbers on the "Handicap" Row of the Scorecard Represent?
Most golf scorecards contain several rows of information. For example, a scorecard will always have the "Hole" row, the numbers 1 through 18 corresponding to the holes being played.
Beneath that will likely be at least three more rows (let's say, for example, "Red," "White," and "Blue;" or "Forward," "Middle," and "Back") that identify the tees being played and the yardages for each hole on the course.
There is usually also a line identified as "Handicap," a row of numbers that appear to be in random order. What do those numbers mean? How are they used by the golfer?
The "Handicap" line of the scorecard rates the holes for use by golfers who carry a handicap index. The handicap index is used to produce a course handicap, and the course handicap tells golfers how many strokes they get to take off their gross scores to produce a net score.
Remember, the purpose of the handicap system is to allow golfers of different playing abilities to play fair matches against one another. If I have a handicap of 27 and you have a handicap of 4, you'll beat me every time if we are using our gross (actual) scores.
The handicap system produces a net score by allowing the weaker player to reduce his score - to "take a stroke" as it's called - on designated holes.
The "Handicap" line of the scorecard is how those holes are designated.
The hole identified as "1" on the handicap line has been rated the hole where a golfer is most likely to need a stroke in competition against a better golfer. The hole identified as "2" on the handicap line is the second-most likely hole where a stroke will be needed, and so on.
The number of strokes you are getting is compared to the handicap line. If you get 4 strokes, then you find the four highest-rated (1 being highest, 18 being lowest) holes on the handicap line, and take one stroke on each of those four holes. (Remember, by "taking a stroke" we mean that you get to reduce your score on that hole by one stroke.)
If you get to take 11 strokes, then you find the 11 highest-rated holes on the handicap line, and take one stroke on each of those holes. If you get to take 18 strokes, then you get one stroke on every hole.
What if you are taking more than 18 strokes? Then you get to take two strokes on some (possibly all, depending on your course handicap) holes, one on other holes.
Let's say you get to take 22 strokes. Obviously, you'll get at least one stroke on each of the 18 holes on the course; but you'll also get a second stroke on the four highest-rated holes on the handicap line of the scorecard. So on the holes designated 1, 2, 3 and 4 on the handicap line, you'll take 2 strokes each; on the other holes, you'll take 1 stroke each.
And if you get to take 36 strokes, you'll take 2 strokes per hole.
And that's how the "Handicap" line of the scorecard is used.
Now, how do you know how many total strokes you get to take in order to make use of the handicap line? That's simply a function of course handicap. If your course handicap is 18 and you're playing just to post a score for handicap purposes (you're not playing against someone in a match, in other words), then 18 is how many strokes you get to take.
If you are playing against someone in a match, then the golfers play off the low handicap of the group. For example, let's say there are three golfers in the group; one is a 10 handicapper, one is a 15, one is a 20. The 10-handicapper will play at scratch (no strokes), the 15-handicapper will get 5 strokes (15 minus 10) and the 20 handicapper will get 10 strokes (20 minus 10).
Beneath that will likely be at least three more rows (let's say, for example, "Red," "White," and "Blue;" or "Forward," "Middle," and "Back") that identify the tees being played and the yardages for each hole on the course.
There is usually also a line identified as "Handicap," a row of numbers that appear to be in random order. What do those numbers mean? How are they used by the golfer?
The "Handicap" line of the scorecard rates the holes for use by golfers who carry a handicap index. The handicap index is used to produce a course handicap, and the course handicap tells golfers how many strokes they get to take off their gross scores to produce a net score.
Remember, the purpose of the handicap system is to allow golfers of different playing abilities to play fair matches against one another. If I have a handicap of 27 and you have a handicap of 4, you'll beat me every time if we are using our gross (actual) scores.
The handicap system produces a net score by allowing the weaker player to reduce his score - to "take a stroke" as it's called - on designated holes.
The "Handicap" line of the scorecard is how those holes are designated.
The hole identified as "1" on the handicap line has been rated the hole where a golfer is most likely to need a stroke in competition against a better golfer. The hole identified as "2" on the handicap line is the second-most likely hole where a stroke will be needed, and so on.
The number of strokes you are getting is compared to the handicap line. If you get 4 strokes, then you find the four highest-rated (1 being highest, 18 being lowest) holes on the handicap line, and take one stroke on each of those four holes. (Remember, by "taking a stroke" we mean that you get to reduce your score on that hole by one stroke.)
If you get to take 11 strokes, then you find the 11 highest-rated holes on the handicap line, and take one stroke on each of those holes. If you get to take 18 strokes, then you get one stroke on every hole.
What if you are taking more than 18 strokes? Then you get to take two strokes on some (possibly all, depending on your course handicap) holes, one on other holes.
Let's say you get to take 22 strokes. Obviously, you'll get at least one stroke on each of the 18 holes on the course; but you'll also get a second stroke on the four highest-rated holes on the handicap line of the scorecard. So on the holes designated 1, 2, 3 and 4 on the handicap line, you'll take 2 strokes each; on the other holes, you'll take 1 stroke each.
And if you get to take 36 strokes, you'll take 2 strokes per hole.
And that's how the "Handicap" line of the scorecard is used.
Now, how do you know how many total strokes you get to take in order to make use of the handicap line? That's simply a function of course handicap. If your course handicap is 18 and you're playing just to post a score for handicap purposes (you're not playing against someone in a match, in other words), then 18 is how many strokes you get to take.
If you are playing against someone in a match, then the golfers play off the low handicap of the group. For example, let's say there are three golfers in the group; one is a 10 handicapper, one is a 15, one is a 20. The 10-handicapper will play at scratch (no strokes), the 15-handicapper will get 5 strokes (15 minus 10) and the 20 handicapper will get 10 strokes (20 minus 10).
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