Golf Teaching Pro Magazine

29 Oct 2019 admin

Harman, Team USA Win World Cup

It took 21 years, but Mark Harman is finally back in the winner’s circle at the World Golf Teachers Cup. Since capturing his second individual championship in 1998 at San Roque, Spain, Harman watched other outstanding golfers like Dave Belling, Christopher Richards, James Douris and Ken Butler hoist the trophy. But this past February at La Iguana Golf Club in Herradura, Costa Rica, Harman emerged victorious by shooting 71-75 – 146 to edge Costa Rica’s Alejandro Duque by two shots. Overcoming an opening-hole double bogey, a four-putt on the third hole and three-putting two of the final three holes during the final round, Harman played the other 14 holes in three-under-par. Belling, the 2003 individual champion, finished third for the overall title and earned the World Golf Senior Teachers Cup individual title in the process, shooting74-79 – 153. Ray Holder’s two-round total of172 on scores of 85-87 defeated runner-up Peter Louis. Mary Wolf captured the Ladies title with 87-84 – 171.

Employing a round-robin team match play format, Team USA swept all its matches to emerge victorious in the team competition, with Canada second and Asia third. Competitor Louis summed up the feelings of the participants when he said, “Fabulous golf course, unbelievable facilities. It was a pleasure to meet you all and to play with some of you. You are all exceptional and I cannot tell you how much I enjoyed it. Thanks to Mark and the rest of the team for organizing this treat.”

23 Oct 2019 admin

Teaching Golf In Today’s Power Era

Jack Nicklaus has been concerned about it for a longtime. Gary Player has weighed in, as has virtually every golf pundit. We’re talking about the power game today and how modern professionals hit the ball over 300 yards with regularity.

It’s not just the professionals and pundits who are interested in power, but also the average amateur. Those who work as club fitters and use launch monitor technology like TrackMan, FlightScope and GC Quad can all tell you tales of customers coming in to their stores and ranges who boast of distances that the monitors say they are not capable of. It’s almost comical, but also sad in a way, because golfers who are unrealistic about the distance they hit the ball are almost sure to come up short time after time.

We would be more than justified in telling our students, “No, you do not hit your driver 300 yards…or 250…or 200 (or whatever distance they’re claiming), and no, you do not hit your 7-iron 150.” Any teacher who has worked with a launch monitor is familiar with such unrealistic students. Why do some of our pupils believe they hit the ball distances that they clearly are not capable of hitting?

Much of it deals with ego. Besides ego, many golfers goby their maximum distance they’ve achieved with each club. They remember hitting a 5-iron 170yards, oblivious to the fact that the ball carried 145, hit a hard spot in front of the green and had a tailwind, to boot.

Many of us would like to think that we are hitting the ball farther than we actually do. We hear television commentators telling us the pros are hitting the ball 320 with their driver and it seems impossible that we are 100 or more yards behind that, refusing to believe that we are that weak. Some of the skepticism, though, is warranted, as television often exaggerates the distances players are capable of hitting.

At the PGA Championship a couple of years ago, Golf Channel had a shot tracer on Rory McIlroy as he warmed up for a practice round. On one drive, the tracer showed McIlroy carrying – repeat, carrying – the ball 365yards. This is completely absurd. Long-drive competitors with swing speeds of 140 mph carry the ball that far. McIlroy’s swing speed is an impressive 122 mph, but that’s nowhere in the ballpark of what a long-drive competitor can do. It doesn’t help our cause as teachers when television creates fictional numbers in order to create some sort of “wow” factor.

Older players have long been guilty of overestimating their distances. As age has robbed them of their strength and quickness, they seem to be denying reality and hope against hope that they can still hit their 7-ironthe 150 yards they did 20 years ago, only to see the ball time after time coming up short of the green. So, instead of adjusting for how far they now hit the ball, they rush to there tail store and buy the latest and greatest new irons with flexible faces and jacked-uplofts, complete with low tungsten weighting and lightweight graphite shafts. Now, don’t get us wrong – many players should be taking advantage of all the modern technology out there. But modern technology can only makeup for so much lost distance, and may result in a disappointed consumer.

How can we teach golf in today’s power era when most golfers are unrealistic about their distances or their expectations? We must emphasize that unless they’re going to compete at the highest levels on 7,400-yard courses, the first thing they should be doing is playing from the appropriate set of tees. If the average tour pro’s drive is 292 (at the time of this writing for the 2018-19 season) and our student’s average is 210, that comes out to 72 percent of the average tour pro, meaning our student should be playing from 5,328 yards to have an equivalent experience. Since most male golfers aren’t going to play from that distance, at the very least they should be playing no longer than 6,000 yards.

Another step we need to take is getting our students to have a realistic idea of how far they can actually carry the ball. We hear all the time that “I hit my 7-iron 150 yards,” when in reality it flies 135 and then rolls out another15 because they are using a low-spin ball. That 15-yard roll also represents a best-case scenario, usually when the ball hits a firm part of the course. There’s also a definite difference between a 150-yard distance to the hole when the pin is either up front or in the back. Knowing the carry distance to a reason able margin of error is important in these situations.

We can also ask our students to chart their rounds and keep track of one simple stat onpar-4s and par-5s: their scoring average when their drive found the fairway vs. when it didn’t. Most average golfers should see a difference of a full stroke. Charting this information should give them pause to consider whether distance or accuracy is more important to their personal game.

However, let’s suppose we have a student who insists on gaining distance. There are three ways to do this: through equipment, technique, or physical fitness. The first is easy enough and the second is realistic. But the third? That requires a real commitment that, frankly, most of our students are unwilling to undertake. And yet, it may be the most critical element in gaining distance.

Teaching golf in today’s power era requires a different skill set than in previous generations. If we can convince our students that they can still enjoy the game and play to a high level without hitting 300-, or even 250-yard drives, then it can be considered a job well done.

18 Oct 2019 admin

Why You Should Play In The U.S. CUP

By Mark Harman, USGTF Course Director Ridgeland, South Carolina

It’s hard for me to write this article without some of it sounding a little like I’m blowing my own horn, but I assure you that is not my intention. I am writing this to hopefully convince a few more people to enter this year’s (and future years’) United States Golf Teachers Cup.

I have the privilege of being the only person to have competed in every single one of the previous 23 versions of this event. From St. Augustine, Florida (where it all started), to California, Nevada, Texas, Pennsylvania, Louisiana and other states, I have seen every U.S. Cup played. What I can tell you is that it is not just the highlight of my competitive calendar every year, but it is the highlight of my golf experience every year.

Why is that? I have been fortunate to win the event seven times, so you might say it’s obvious why I look forward to it on that account. Yet, that would be untrue. There was a long spell where I never was in contention, and yes, it bugged me, but in the end that really didn’t matter. What mattered is every year I got to play with and see some of not only my best friends in golf, but best friends, period. If I start mentioning names, I’m sure to leave someone out that I didn’t mean to, so I’ll just say that I have yet to meet someone at the U.S. Cup who isn’t a friend of mine.

The memories that are also the most enduring are the wonderful courses and cities where we take the Cup. This year’s tournament is in Sedona, Arizona, at Oakcreek Country Club. If you haven’t been to Oakcreek, you frankly don’t know what you’ve been missing. It’s one of the most beautiful courses I’ve ever played, and I can say that as someone who has played Pebble Beach and have been to the Masters at Augusta National. Oakcreek’s stunning views of the incredible red rock formations, along with its well-manicured fairways and greens are just short of the equal of these two icons of American golf. The course itself is extremely fun to play, challenging while not beating you up And speaking of Pebble Beach, every year the AT&T National Pro-Am is played there, where one pro is teamed up with one amateur. This year’s U.S. Cup will also feature basically the same format, where a USGTF professional competitor can play with an amateur of his or her choosing. Yes, we will still be competing for individual honors as always, but the Pro-Am is sure to bring a boost of energy to our great national championship event. And if you don’t have an amateur partner you can bring, no worries. You can still play without one.

There is always something for every-one. We actually have two tournaments being contested, the U.S. Cup and the United States Senior Golf Teachers Cup for those 50 and over. The Senior Cup also has age divisions of 60-and-over (the Super Senior division) and 70-and-over (the Legends division). We also offer separate prizes for those in the Legends division who shoot the best score in relation to their age.

From the non-competitive aspects point of view, I earlier mentioned great friendships. But what also takes place is the energy of so many like-minded people getting together, the chance to support your organization and its showcase event. Sedona has quite a few off-course activities and tourist attractions, and is quite popular as a tourist destination. I encourage you to enter this tournament early as lodging accommodations are sure to fill up quickly. For those of you who are more budget-minded, we have arranged rates of just $74.99 per night at the Comfort Inn in Camp Verde, which is approximately a 25-minute drive from the course. If you’d like to stay closer in Sedona itself, there are accommodations that can be had for reasonable pricing. As most of you are internet savvy, you can find some good deals that are closer to the course.

We generally have three types of participants at the U.S. Cup: Those who play every year or almost every year; those who play some of the time, and those who play once or rarely. I realize that this is not an inexpensive trip for most of you, and I truly appreciate those who make the time and effort to join us whenever they can, whether it be regular competitors or those who compete sparingly. And I know I speak for other officers of the USGTF when I say that.

Why not join us this year in Sedona? I look forward to seeing you there.

4 Oct 2019 admin

Playing The Game: What Were You Thinking?

By David Vaught USGTF Teaching Professional, Bradenton, Florida

So often, average golfers struggle on the golf course after taking instruction. This can be frustrating for the student and the instructor alike. Therefore, how do we address this issue, understand it and eliminate some of the golf course struggles that arise when it comes time to hit the links?

Let’s set up a common scenario for the golf instructor and their student. An obvious change needs to be made for the golf swing or stroke to produce higher quality shots. The instructor uses his or her knowledge to identify an issue and attempts to implement the change to the student’s motion. So far, an easy situation. The challenge comes when the student plays the first few rounds after taking a couple of lessons. In our theoretical situation, the student understands the issue and can implement the change while working with the instructor. The student then goes out to play, and sure enough, informs the instructor they played horribly and had a miserable time. Aren’t lessons supposed to make the game more enjoyable?

Here is the issue: Focusing intently about movements, especially small muscle movements, interrupts the natural pathways, or flows, from the brain through the central nervous system. From the first movement away from the ball to the millisecond the clubhead strikes the ball, the total time is less than 1 second (.92) for good players and slightly more than 1 second (1.15) for the average golfer. The last 3 feet of clubhead movement just before impact takes only .03 to .04 seconds! Talk about quick thinking!

In a controlled learning environment, with the guidance of the teacher and with no pressure to perform, it is possible to hit good shots while focusing intently on a muscle movement. But out on course, everything changes, as most of us know all too well. The student that attempts to force or think their way through a motor-skill change will make poorly-timed, bad rhythmical swings, often resulting in a worse result than they were experiencing before the instruction. Can you imagine mechanically thinking your way through throwing a ball? The result would not be good!

Therefore, what is the remedy? Some swing changes take time and some changes can be implemented much quicker. The solution is to communicate well with your student. Train them to not think their way through the swing on the course and to allow time for the changes to take place naturally over time. Concepts like “think box/shot box” are very valuable to teach your student. A free flowing, non-thinking swing that is flawed will work better on the course than a mechanical, tied-in-knots swing. A simple think box/shot box concept can be practiced on the range. During a practice swing away from the ball, the student is permitted to think “mechanics,” but once set up to the ball (shot box), they will not allow themselves to think about specific movements or mechanics. The focus should just be the target or something simple like tempo or rhythm.

Some players can use a common concept referred to as a “swing key.” This is something very simple, involves only one thought and usually involves a “feeling,” not necessarily a very technical thought. A swing key is acceptable if the player can perform it without interrupting the natural flow of theirs wing. Some male and female tour players will make some very strange practice swings in the “think box,” but rarely will a successful tour player “think” their way through the swing while hitting a shot.

It is up to the instructor to monitor and teach their student the difference between a simple swing key and a robot swing that can make the round of golf miserable. Flawed swings have to be altered to produce better shots, but the process of change can take time. During that process, the student should be taught to play on the course with a clear mind. Save thinking for the practice sessions and play with a free mind. The game will be much more enjoyable.

26 Sep 2019 admin

The Rhythm of Golf

Rhythm is an often overlooked aspect to the golf swing. Since the invention of the camcorder, teachers have been enamored with positions in the swing. They want their students to be in certain positions at certain times, all in an effort to get the ball to finish somewhere near its intended target. But today, savvy teachers know that there is more to the swing than just positions. They realize that the overall movement is important, and that good rhythm is very much a part of that.

It’s not just the golf swing where rhythm is important. There is a certain rhythm playing the game that is completely different than practice. There are also certain rhythms playing the game present one day that are different than other days. Indeed, an individual round of golf might feature several rhythms.

In playing vs. practice, it is important that our students somewhat simulate the rhythm of playing as much as they can when they practice. This might include hitting one shot with one club, putting the club back into the bag, drawing out another and playing another shot. To better simulate the rhythm of the course, going through the same pre-shot routine used on the course is of paramount importance. It doesn’t have to be used for every shot, but it should be used often enough so that when the player gets on the course, it doesn’t feel like such a foreign experience in terms of rhythm.

The rhythm of a round might be dramatically changed, too. For example, a group of golfers may be sailing along without delay until they run into a logjam of players up ahead, drastically slowing their progress. This can lead to a change in play, often for the worse. However, it can be no less damaging to be playing slowly when the group ahead suddenly decides it’s time to let your group through. Players often rush their routines in an effort to be courteous to the yielding group, but most of the time they’re only saving a couple of seconds. Although, those couple of seconds seem like the routine is cut in half, and the result is usually a poor one. And playing out the round with the newfound “freedom” of not having to wait can mean taking several holes to once again find a comfortable rhythm.

Teaching has its own rhythm, as well. There are days when things seem to flow and our students are progressing well. Other days, it seems we just cannot find the rhythm of our teaching, and we struggle with our message, our presentation, our quality of instruction. Perhaps it’s best to slow down when we find ourselves in this position and take some time to simplify our approach. You might think this malady would affect only new teachers, as they are still trying to find their footing, but experienced teachers have their off days, too.

Those of us who run a golf course or who work in the pro shop will find that a workday will often have several rhythms, and very rarely will there be a consistent rhythm throughout the day. There might be an early-morning rush, followed by a lull, followed by a consistent flow of players after lunch, tailing off again until the after-work crowd appears. There might be unexpected problems cropping up which divert our attention.

Think about all the aspects of golf besides playing, teaching and running a golf course. There are equipment manufacturers who need to be keenly aware of the rhythm of the golf marketplace. Retail golf stores have a rhythm all their own, as do the employees who work there. Tournament administrators find that running a competition has ebbs and flows of rhythm.

Rhythm may be one of the most important aspects of not only golf, but life. Those who are best able to recognize these rhythms and are able to “go with the flow” usually find the most success and contentment.

18 Sep 2019 admin

The Demise of a Great Tournament

By Mike Stevens USGTF Teaching Professional, Tampa, Florida

Of the four majors, the U.S. Open was my second favorite, right behind the Open Championship. Unfortunately, that is no longer the case. For most of its history, it was a tough but fair test, especially when played on an historically classic old course. However, the USGA’s obsession that under par is bad has led to ridiculous setups that don’t challenge the best players in the world; they just tend to make them look foolish. Instead of leaving the course as it was designed, the blue jackets swoop in and change the character of the course as it is played daily and as it has played for most of its history. All to preserve sacred par.

A lot of it has to do with how far the pros are hitting the ball these days. If they feel a course is too short, they then add new tee boxes to lengthen it. Barring that, they grow the rough to unplayable lengths. Take Merion, for example. They could only add 500 yards to get it up to 7,000; nothing for today’s fellows. Answer: Grow the rough to knee-high in many places and have the greens rolling around 13. Afterwards, they bragged how the old steed held up because the winning score was +1. This was far from the Merion that David Graham won on at -7 with much inferior equipment.

This year they return to Pebble Beach, where Phil Mickelson won in February with a score of 19 under par. If the winning U.S. Open score is high due to iffy weather that can roll in on the Monterey Peninsula, fine. But if it is due to tricked up pin placements and 12-inch rough, then on my scale of importance, you can move this major behind the Players, Ryder Cup and even the Tour Championship as far as I’m concerned.

12 Sep 2019 admin

Why I Believed Tiger Would Be Tiger Again

By Mark Harman USGTF Course Director Ridgeland, South Carolina Brandel Chamblee said he couldn’t compete with today’s young guns. Greg Norman said he’d never return to his previous form. Woody Paige said he’d never win another tournament ever again. Jemele Hill said he should retire. Hank Haney said he had the chipping yips. Pundits everywhere had a field day doubting Tiger Woods the past few years. And yet here we are again as Tiger has returned to the winner’s circle in a major championship, capturing his fifth green jacket this past April at Augusta National. If nothing else, Tiger’s return to glory should remind all of us that prognosticating is often a worthless exercise, especially when it comes to what other people can and cannot do. How many times have we read stories about people who have suffered some serious injury and doctors telling them they would never again (pick one: walk, run, play golf, play tennis, go bowling…), only to see people defying what their own doctor, who’s supposed to be an expert, said. While Tiger’s tale isn’t as dramatic as perhaps someone being told they’d be in a wheelchair for the rest of their life only to run a marathon, it goes to show that the will of a strong-minded individual is often no match for what reality supposedly tells us. As Yogi Berra famously said, “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.” In the February 2017 edition of our monthly e-newsletter, I wrote the following of Tiger: “I think at minimum he will win two more majors before it’s all said and done, break Sam Snead’s Tour record of 82 victories, and become a top-ten player again…and I would not bet against him regaining the #1 spot at some time.” Unfortunately, in April of that year Tiger had spinal fusion surgery and made my own prediction look somewhat shaky. He even said himself later that year he was unsure if he would ever come back. But even then, I always thought he would come back and be a major factor again. Part of my reasoning was that Tiger is, well, somewhat of a drama king. I read about other pro golfers having the same surgery and they came back to play well, so I figured Tiger could, too. And with our modern medicine and fitness knowledge, I thought Tiger would be given a way to fully function again. Another factor in my belief that Tiger would become Tiger again is based on my own personal experience. In 2005 I won the United States Golf Teachers Cup for the fifth time at The Quarry in San Antonio, Texas, and in my victory speech, I said this might well be my last victory, as younger and better players were coming up through the ranks. Players like James Douris and Christopher Richards proved me right, as they captured multiple USGTF and WGTF titles the next few years. I was wrong on the younger part, though, as septuagenarian Bill Hardwick of Canada showed he was still capable of winning against the young bucks. However, I didn’t really believe what I said in San Antonio; I was merely trying to give credit where credit was due. Surely, I thought, I would win again. But year after year went by, and my old anxiety issues resurfaced around 2010 at the U.S. Cup in Primm Valley, Nevada. They stayed with me for the next five Cups after that, and I often was no factor in our national championship event. I really did start to believe I was done. And then in 2016 at Talking Stick in Scottsdale, Arizona, I teed off and my mind stayed surprisingly calm. I shot 71 the first round, and opened the second round with three straight birdies. When I learned I had a six-shot lead after 35 holes (I deliberately didn’t pay attention to what anyone else in my group was doing), I realized my own personal comeback was complete. Since then, I’ve been fortunate enough to win the U.S. Cup again, along with the World Cup and World Senior Cup. I say this not to brag, but to point out that we are capable of doing things we either used to be able to do or thought were impossible. So it was with all this that I thought Tiger, if he stayed healthy, would return to being a dominant force in professional golf again. The final piece to the puzzle of my belief system was that Tiger has been doubted over and over throughout the years, and yet always found a way to prove the doubters wrong. I realized that many people dislike Tiger for what he has done in his personal life, for his lack of decorum at times on the course, and for public acts like tipping servers poorly and being cold with the fans. I get that and cannot fault someone for not liking him for those reasons. But I also consider him an artist in the mold of Da Vinci and Michelangelo, and a generational athletic talent along with Babe Ruth, Muhammad Ali, Wayne Gretzky and Michael Jordan (and I’m sure Geoff Bryant would want me to add Tom Brady to the list, so I will). We should all feel fortunate to witness such greatness and to awe at what’s possible in human achievement. I know I am.      

6 Sep 2019 admin

Windows

You hear golf commentators and swing gurus mention it all the time: “He’s got the dreaded two-way miss going.” The two-way miss is a player’s tendency to miss shots both left and right with equal unpredictability.

Eliminating the two-way miss for a tour player means almost everything. Some will say, “I’ve taken the left side out of play so I didn’t have to worry about the water over there.” You might consider that eliminating the two-way miss is something that only a good or even a tour player can do, but in fact, it is also something that an average player is capable of.

A lot of amateurs are under the impression that if they didn’t hit a ball close to where they were aiming, the shot was automatically a poor one. To a certain extent, they may be right. And too many teachers may fall into the same trap of believing that a shot that did not end up close to where the student was aiming was a poor shot. One of the reasons for this is that any less-than-perfect contact is easily felt by anyone who is a bogey shooter or better. But was the shot really that poor?

Instead of striving for no misses – which is impossible, of course – or even fewer misses, it might be better to strive for the “one-way miss.” With a one-way miss, it is easy to plot course strategy and tactics.

Take our hypothetical tour player who doesn’t have to worry about water to the left of the fairway. Maybe he has honed a reliable fade so that the ball never goes left of its starting line. Or maybe he has a draw but knows how far left it will go in the worst-case scenario.

Jack Nicklaus was a wonderful example of the latter. He played a fade, and using the example of a fairway that is 40 yards wide, he said (paraphrasing), “When you play a fade or draw, you can aim down the edge of the fairway and have 40 yards to work with. When you play a straight ball and aim down the middle of the fairway, if it goes left or right you only have 20 yards to work with.”

Nicklaus makes a great point, and one that is often ignored by amateurs. A lot of slicers always seem to aim down the middle of the fairway, and how many times have we seen a right-handed slicer wind up in the right rough? Plenty. And yet, if they were to aim down the left side of the fairway, they can watch their ball curve back into the fairway most of the time. When you ask a slicer why they just don’t aim down the left side, some of them will actually say that the point is to hit a straight shot, and allowing for the slice is mentally allowing for failure!

This brings up the concept of knowing where your ball is going to wind up, not only if you hit a good shot but also a bad one. It’s called a “window,” and is really possible only if a one-way miss is happening. Slicers actually have a great advantage if they only would swallow their ego and allow for their natural curve to work to their advantage. For example, on an approach shot with the pin on the right side of the green, a slicer has a green light to curve the ball into the pin. But as with tee shots, too many of them might aim at the pin, hoping against hope that this time the ball will fly straight. Of course, more often than not it will wind up right of the green, short-sided, and now they face a difficult up-and-down.

What about our better students who can and do hit a straight ball most of the time? For them, it is imperative to know which way their predominant miss tendency is and plan accordingly. Many tour layers have a ball flight that is incredibly straight on a solid shot, but they also know which way the ball will go if they do not hit a perfect shot. Suppose one of our students, a good player who hits it relatively straight, faces a long approach shot with the pin on the left side of the green. His “window” should be from the pin to the right edge of the green. Let’s say he knows his miss tendency is to the left. In this case, it would be foolish to aim at the pin. The better play would be to aim between the pin and the right edge of the green. Conversely, if his tendency is to miss to the right, he can go ahead and aim at the flag stick with the confidence that the ball will not wind up left of the green.

All execution errors cannot be avoided, of course, but developing a reliable shot that rarely misses both ways is critical for players to play their best golf. At some point, players and teachers may need to abandon the quest to hit straight shots and realize that a reliable fade and draw, and sometimes even reliable slices and hooks, can be very playable.

26 Aug 2019 admin

I Tested It: Equipment Beliefs

By Mark Harman USGTF Course Director Ridgeland, South Carolina

We’ve all heard teaching pros and regular golfers alike expound on and repeat beliefs regarding golf equipment: “Regular shafts go longer than stiff shafts, but stiff shafts are straighter”…“Tour balls are shorter than ‘distance’ balls,” etc.

There are a number of equipment beliefs and sayings that are taken as gospel. Some are grounded in sound science, while others may be more anecdotal. Being naturally curious about this, I decided to test some of them out. Keeping in mind that I am not a robot, I tried to introduce some sort of consistency in each of the tests I did so that they, while not being perfectly scientifically precise, will allow some real-world insight into how equipment differences affect a real person.

Belief: Tour balls spin more than distance balls

Tour golf balls are made with softer urethane covers, while distance balls have firmer ionomer covers, usually consisting of Surlyn®. (As a side note, golf balls back in the day were often marketed as having Surlyn covers, but the material became associated with hardness, so the term “ionomer” is used today.) They may also differ in core construction and material. I tested the belief that tour balls spin more than distance balls. For this test, I hit balls with a 56° wedge and all balls landed between 51-55 yards, using a GC Quad launch monitor. Only solid strikes were recorded, three shots each.

Conclusion: The two tour balls, the Callaway Chrome Soft and Bridgestone BX, had the highest spins rates, which was to be expected. The Bridgestone e6 Speed and Callaway Superhot, the distance balls, had lower spin rates, but surprisingly, the Superhot had a spin rate very comparable to the premium tour balls. I hit the Superhot three more times to see if this was some sort of aberration, but came up with similar results. There are likely other balls considered “distance” balls that also offer good spin on wedges.

Belief: Clubs with regular shafts go farther than clubs with stiff shafts

For this test, I used a Titleist AP2 7-iron and a Ping G400 Max driver to test both iron and driver shafts. I used the stock True Temper AMT White shaft for the iron test and a Ping G400 Max 10.5° with the stock Alta shaft. Three solid shots with each shaft were recorded. Results of the iron test:

For the driver test, I made sure my clubhead speed was between 94-95 mph each time, again using three solid strikes for each shaft.

Conclusion: There were virtually no differences in performance between the iron shafts. The peak height of the balls for both shafts was identical, 31 yards. There was also no difference in dispersion, either. As for the driver test, my swing speed averaged 94.9 mph with the stiff shaft and 94.5 with the regular. The stiff shaft’s ability to lessen backspin was the main factor in increased distance. Why there was a difference here and not in the iron shafts is something on which I can only speculate.

Belief: Lower-kickpoint shafts launch the ball higher than higher-kickpoint shafts

Here, I used the same Titleist AP2 7-iron with an AMT Red shaft, which is the lowest kickpoint shaft in the AMT family, while the White (used in the previous test) is the highest.

Conclusion: Surprising! The shaft with the lower kickpoint actually launched lower and with less spin than the higher kickpoint shaft. But again, I am not a robot, although I felt like I made similar swings with each shaft. The shaft did produce a higher ball speed and lower backspin, and thus more distance.

Belief: Choking down on the grip reduces distance

Choking down on the grip lessens the swing radius and theoretically should result in lower clubhead speed and distance. Using the Ping driver with the stiff shaft, I choked down 1 ̋.

Conclusion: Choking down does indeed result in a loss of clubhead and ball speed, but if control is gained, this may be a good tactic in given situations.

Belief: Distance balls go farther than tour balls

The driver tests already mentioned were conducted using a Callaway Chrome Soft ball. Because the Bridgestone e6 Speed spun noticeably lower in the wedge test, I used that ball for this test. I used the stiff shaft, and I made sure the three swings I used had a similar clubhead speed as with the above test to make sure I was testing the ball and not the club. (Please refer to the driver shaft test for tour ball data.)

Conclusion: Given similar ball speed and launch angle, the lower backspin literally carried the day for the distance ball, producing four more yards of carry distance.

Belief: Iron lie angles influence left-right ball dispersion

Iron lie angles that are too upright will result in a clubface that is aimed more closed, while iron lie angles that are too flat will result in a clubface angle that is more open. I used three different lie angles in this test with that being the only variable. I was drawing the ball this particular day, but I did manage to record three good shots with each lie angle.

Conclusion: Iron lie angles definitely affect the direction the ball takes because this is a geometric fact. Although it is theoretically ideal to have a lie angle that produces a flat clubhead to the ground at impact, some players may need to deviate from this to produce the desired ball flight.

Summary

These tests produced some results that conformed to long-held beliefs and some that did not. It is always good to question these beliefs and better yet, test them in a real-world setting. As we are all individuals with different reactions to the equipment in our hands, these results will not necessarily apply to every golfer we come across. It is quite possible – indeed likely – that another golfer will obtain different results than I did. This experiment shows that our students must test equipment before they buy…and we should, too.