Did You Know?

Did You Know?

Did you know the importance of having the loft & lie checked on your clubs periodically?
And especially the importance of having a qualified clubfitter perform a lie board test for your swing?
Let's do a quick Q & A.

Q.- What exactly is the lie angle of a club?
A.- It is the angle that is created by the shaft and the bottom of the club.

Q.- What is the correct lie angle for my swing?
A.- At impact you should make contact at the center of the sole. This can only be determined by doing a dynamic lie test where you would put impact tape on the sole and hit balls from a lie board to determine how the lie angle should be set for your clubs.

Q.- What if the lie is too flat or too upright?
A.- If impact is made towards the heel, the lie is too upright. These shots will tend to fly left of the target.
Toward the toe means the lie is too flat and shots tend to go right.

Q.- Do the offline shots have anything to do with the heel or toe digging into the ground?
A.- No. More that the actual plane of the face of the club is tilted at impact if the lie is incorrect for your swing and causes misdirection of the shot.

Q.- How about loft. What do I look for?
A.- Check to see that they are set to the manufacturers specifications.

Q.- So if I bought new clubs does it mean I don't have to mess with all of this?
A.- Even from the manufacturer there is a + or - tolerance. They should be checked for verification. You could have one iron 2* weak and the next one 2* strong and have two clubs with the same loft!

Q.- How are lofts and lies changed on a club?
A.- A professional clubmaker will have specialized equipment designed to bend the clubs and a specification gauge to check for accuracy.

Q.- How often do I need to worry about all of this?
A.- Well initially be sure they are fit to you and then have them checked each year. They can easily be beaten out of whack especially if you have a forged set or a set made of a soft carbon metal.

So the bottom line is if you are serious about playing better golf, seek out a qualified clubmaker and have a dynamic lie board test done. This game is tough enough without playing equipment that doesn't fit!

Are Your Kids Playing the Right Club?

Do you have a child that has shown interest in playing golf?
Have you ever considered cutting down an old set of your irons for the little guy (gal)? Would you like to know what type of equipment would best suit this young person?

If you said yes to any of these questions please read on.
If it doesn't apply, check out the Wishon Interview. It's great!

First, if the child is under five feet tall, new to golf, and of normal athletic ability, you are probably best served by checking out a category called "junior" clubs. These clubs have generous lofts. The shafts are very whippy. They are built to lengths generally to fit kids up to five feet tall. These clubs are basically designed to very easily get the ball airborne even with very slow swing speeds.

As the child progresses and outgrows the junior clubs, the next step is to take him to a custom clubmaker. At some point they will outgrow the length of the clubs.
As they gain strength and obtain more athletic ability, the shafts will certainly become too soft for their swing. At this point they fall into an inbetween stage. They have definitely outgrown the junior stuff but adult clubs are still too much. A professional clubmaker will look at their swing speed, their physical build, and assess their athletic ability in general.
He will determine the best total weight for the youngster. He will choose a head style that is best suited for the child. Many times at this stage an adult head matched to a lady or senior flex shaft and the proper size grip may be the answer.

If you cut an adult set of clubs down here's what you've got. They're probably still not the right length. The total weight is much too heavy for the childs' strength. The shafts are so stiff the kid has little chance of consistently getting the ball airborne.

Airborne is what it's all about at this stage. Taking a stick and hitting a little white ball and watching it soar into the air is quite a rush. The anti-rush is hitting the ball time after time and watching it scoot across the ground. No faster way to make a kid lose interest at this point than to show him how difficult this game really is!

So do your child the favor of a lifetime. Expose them to golf at an early age and keep them in the proper equipment as they progress.

They will thank you again and again as they age!

Are Longer Shafts Better?

We've all heard that longer shafts in our drivers will give us added distance. But consider these facts:

• An increase in length of a 43" driver to a 46" driver will increase carry by about a yard with a 90 mph swing speed----and that's IF you hit it on the sweet spot.
• For every quarter inch you miss the sweet spot, you lost about 5 yards---miss by 1/2 inch and lose 10 yards----miss by 3/4 inches and lost 15 yards!!
• All major manufacturers produce drivers at 45 to 45 1/2 inches and yet the average driver length on the PGA Tour is 44.5".

Okay, so you get it. Many, no, most golfers are playing drivers with lengths that are detrimental to their control and probably their distance. So how do you know if you're playing a driver that is too long?

• A basic static measurement of wrist to floor is a starting point. If you measure less than 40 inches, you are a candidate for a shorter driver. It is a mistake to assume that taller people need longer clubs. It is more of a relationship of your arms to your height.
• If you have a steep swing plane a longer length driver will be more difficult to control.
• If you have an "over the top" slice swing, a longer driver will be more difficult to hit solidly.
• If you have an erratic shot pattern you are probably playing a driver that is too long. (Try impact labels on your driver next time you go to the range)
• How's your swing tempo? If you have a quick, aggressive tempo, a longer driver probably isn't in your best interest.

So what if you could get longer average drives and at the same time hit more fairways? The game would be a little more fun, huh? Find a qualified clubfitter and find out what the right length of driver is for you!!

*The main source of reference for this info was taken from the book "The Search for the Perfect Golf Club" written by Tom Wishon. Wishon is a 32 year veteran of the golf equipment industry. This book is a 'must read' for anyone about to buy golf clubs!!