3Jack Golf Blog

3Jack Golf PGA Tour Rundown - Week 4

2012-02-01T13:52:00.000-08:00

Here is how my picks for the Farmer’s finished:

Kyle Stanley: 2nd
Robert Garrigus: CUT
Dustin Johnson: T-43rd
Bubba Watson: T-13th
Charles Howell III: T-43rd

Value Pick: Charley Hoffman: T-52ND

It’s the 3rd tournament in a row that I have picked a 2nd place finisher. This time it was particularly cruel as Stanley was at 80 to 1 odds and was up by 3 shots going into the final hole.

Here’s the rankings for those who finished in the top-5 at Torrey Pines.

Player…………………..….ATD…….PG…….SG……BZ……SZ…….DZ
Brandt Snedeker ……..71…….35…….111…….9……70…….97
Kyle Stanley …………….12…….126……30……..3……78…….19
John Rollins ……………..16……..74…….37……..4……67…….85
Bill Haas ………............50…….127…..156…..31…..89……70
Cameron Tringale …….43……..29……108…..30….107……61

Stanley almost won the tournament based off his driving and Danger Zone play which was fantastic. Snedeker’s driving actually got much worse at Torrey, but he hit his irons extremely well and finished 12th in Putts Gained for the event. What’s ironic is that the top-5 have done very well in the Birdie Zone this year, but Kyle Stanley’s ‘Waterloo’ came on the 18th hole, from the Birdie Zone.

Here are my picks for Scottsdale:

Keegan Bradley: 28/1
John Rollins: 50/1
Kyle Stanley: 50/1
Bo Van Pelt: 50/1
JB Holmes: 66/1

Value Pick: Brendan Steele: 100/1

Here are the rankings:

ADVANCED TOTAL DRIVING

1. John Senden
2. Matt Kuchar
3. Jason Dufner
4. Ryan Palmer
5. Jamie Lovemark
6. Roberto Castro
7. Graham DeLaet
8. Joe Durant
9. Bo Van Pelt
10. Heath Slocum

168. Mathew Goggin
169. Stephen Gangluff
170. Steve Wheatcroft
171. Joe Ogilvie
172. Patrick Sheehan
173. Andres Romero
174. Corey Pavin
175. Marc Leishman
176. Daniel Chopra
177. Derek Lamely

PUTTS GAINED (VIA PGATOUR.COM)

1. Marc Turnesa
2. Scott McCarron
3. Hunter Haas
4. Johnson Wagner
5. Jeff Maggert
6. Briny Baird
7. Martin Flores
8. Rory Sabbatini
9. Ben Crane
10. Nick O'Hern

172. Scott Dunlap
173. Chad Campbell
174. Kyle Thompson
175. Anthony Kim
176. Scott Brown
177. Vaughn Taylor
178. Stuart Appleby
179. Dustin Johnson
180. Roland Thatcher
181. Heath Slocum

SHORT GAME PLAY

1. Joe Durant
2. Tadd Fujikawa
3. Chris Riley
4. Brett Quigley
5. Nick O'Hern
6. Steve Stricker
7. Lee Janzen
8. Mark D. Anderson
9. Chris Couch
10. Martin Laird

171. Graham DeLaet
172. Vijay Singh
173. Gary Woodland
174. Jason Kokrak
175. Hunter Mahan
176. Kyle Thompson
177. Bill Lunde
178. Billy Hurley III
179. J.J. Henry
180. Tommy Gainey

BIRDIE ZONE PLAY

1. Graham DeLaet
2. Ricky Barnes
3. Kyle Stanley
4. John Rollins
5. Trevor Immelman
6. Jeff Maggert
7. Paul Goydos
8. Troy Kelly
9. Brandt Snedeker
10. Phil Mickelson

112. Hunter Haas
113. Bubba Watson
114. Scott Stallings
115. Jhonattan Vegas
116. Tom Gillis
117. Ben Crane
118. Charlie Beljan
119. Mark D. Anderson
120. Jason Kokrak
121. Gavin Coles

SAFE ZONE PLAY

1. Alexandre Rocha
2. Troy Matteson
3. Chad Collins
4. Justin Leonard
5. Robert Allenby
6. Trevor Immelman
7. Nick O'Hern
8. Jeff Maggert
9. Brian Gay
10. Ricky Barnes

139. Scott Stallings
140. Billy Mayfair
141. Matt Bettencourt
142. Richard H. Lee
143. Mark D. Anderson
144. Derek Lamely
145. Billy Hurley III
146. Ryan Palmer
147. Gary Woodland
148. Briny Baird

DANGER ZONE PLAY

1. Carl Pettersson
2. Dustin Johnson
3. Ryo Ishikawa
4. Justin Rose
5. Kris Blanks
6. David Hearn
7. Webb Simpson
8. Jason Kokrak
9. Gary Woodland
10. Bubba Watson

144. Jeff Overton
145. Ryan Moore
146. Kyle Thompson
147. Steve Wheatcroft
148. Patrick Sheehan
149. Danny Lee
150. Jerry Kelly
151. Mark D. Anderson
152. Russell Knox
153. Richard H. Lee

3JACK

How Kyle Stanley Lost The Farmers

2012-01-31T15:51:00.000-08:00

On Sunday, Kyle Stanley had a lead of 3 strokes going into #18 at Torrey Pines.

#18 is a reachable par-5 with water short and left of the green, some bunkers right. The green actually slopes quite a bit towards the water.

Stanley hit a nice driver and left himself with 241 yards into the green from a good lie in the rough. He had 2 options:

1) Utilize the traditional golf strategy of 'laying up because you have the tournament won' and then putting it on the green and 2-putt for par and win the tournament.

or

2) Utilize 3Jack Golf's 'Metric Based Golf Strategy' which recommends that you go for the green in 2 shots unless you simply do not 'have the shot' to get there.

Stanley chose #1. Even announcer David Feherty stated to the effect that 'if he doesn't lay up here, I will have to cross check him.'

Stanley then:

- laid up nicely with an iron into the fairway.
- Hit a shot that landed about 10 feet past the pin and spun back into the water.
- Dropped into the 1st cut of rough to take the spin off.
- Hit one onto the green, about 30 feet away and downhill.
- 3 putted

He then proceeded to lose in a playoff against Brandt Snedeker.

Of course, people will label this as a 'choke.' In fact, that's what the YouTube member who posted the video said.

However, I contend that Kyle Stanley did NOT choke. Instead, he used an ill-conceived strategy that put him in a position to possibly choke.

Hey, nobody wants to be the next Jean Van de Velde:

However, there are extremely different circumstances here. Van de Velde is playing a tough par-4 and had to hit a tough tee shot while Stanley is playing a relatively easy par-5 and already hit a good tee shot (yes, Van de Velde's decision was stupid in epic proportions).

Stanley's situation was something I wrote about in 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis.

Essentially, there is an extremely high correlation to par-5 'Go For It' percentage and par-5 scoring average. Laying up so you 'have a full wedge into the green' is actually putting that AGAINST you on average compared to if you can go for it and get it closer to the green.

Part of what this amounts to is by laying up, Stanley actually increased his 'expected score' instead of 'lowering his expected score.' Obviously, nobody thought that he would hit it into the drink (and he did get screwed). However, because his expected score raised and he needed to make double bogey to win, he actually increased his chances of making a triple bogey.

The other part is this...

Had Stanley gone for it in 2 shots and hit it into the water, he could have dropped into the 1st cut of rough. Then knocked it on the green and 3-putt like he did...EXCEPT, he would have made a 7 and would have won the tournament. And they would have never said 'choke.'

3JACK

More PGA Merchandise Show Pics

2012-01-30T16:32:00.000-08:00

TRADITIONAL GOLF (www.traditionalgolf.com)

Great looking clubs. The irons have an ultra-thin topline. They use 1025 carbon steel in the irons.

ROYAL COLLECTION (http://www.rc-golf.com/main/)

I thought Royal Collection (who is now working with Mercedes-Benz on golf equipment), had the best looking driver head I saw at the entire show.

One of the new Bobby Grace putters

Here's the Miura MG hybrid

I felt Yonex's EZone Muscle backs were big winners at the show. The picture doesn't quite do it justices because the head looks different than most blades, but still beautiful in shape.

They also make some nice looking wedges.

Callaway Razr Fit driver. This comes with weight ports. Currently, they only have 2-gram and 12-gram ports, but they plan to add more. I thought the driver felt nice.

Here's the Exotics XCG5 3-wood. I could get the 13* 3-wood up nicely. The 11.5* 3-wood flew too low.

3JACK

3Jack Golf PGA Merchandise Show Journal - Day 2

2012-01-29T16:57:00.000-08:00

Thursday night was the 'Tweet Up' that John Graham and I put together at the Brick House Tavern. Roughly 40 people showed up in total. Professionals like:

- TJ Yeaton (www.tjyeaton)
- Dan Carraher (www.dancarrahergolf.com)
- Sara Dickson (www.saradickson.com)
- Bobby Siravo (www.ifitgolf.com)
- Dave Wedzik, Erik Barzeski, Michael McLoughlin (www.golfevolution.com)
- Stan Moore (http://www.thumbtack.com/ga/atlanta/golf-lessons/golf-instructors-stan-moore-performance-golf)
- Chris Como (www.chriscomo.com)
- Rob McGill (http://rm4golfblog.wordpress.com/)
- Jon Hardesty
- Jason Sutton (www.golfgurutv.com)
- Mark Sweeney (www.aimpointgolf.com)

And many more. If I forgot to add you, I apologize.

Everything went quite well and we had a good time discussing the game, state of the industry, problems that pros come across, jokes, etc. There were some that were interested in the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis and had more specific questions about it.

On Friday, I hit up the show at about noon and checked out a few places. To me, one of the big winners was Edel Golf. And since everybody has been asking about their wedges, we'll start off with some pics.

First, Edel wedges are custom fit wedges. So, they have a 'fitting cart', just like the ones you see for other OEM's.

Each cart has a boatload of different heads with different grinds and different bounce angles along with the bunch of different shafts to choose from.

One of the big facets of the Edel wedges is that the CoG is moved away from the heel and more towards the toe. If you have ever hit a wedge, invetibably you will have shots off the toe and it marks up the toe. Part of the problem is that when it goes off the toe, the ball doesn't make full contact with the grooves and you can hit some knuckleball shots. Here's a look at the wedges and you can see how they move the grooves (along with the CoG) more towards the toe.

Here's some pictures of some other wedges:

What's unique as well is that the Edel wedges are designed to have extra bounce so the golfer doesn't get scared of sticking it into the ground and winds up 'hanging back' on the downswing. But, the grinds are designed where the golfer can still hit off of tight lies and hit flops without any issue whatsoever.

Here's the irons prototype:

Edel plans on making 99 sets this year. The idea is similar to the wedges, more bounce without the giant sole and moving the CoG away from the heel.

Edel also has some belly and long putters available. The putters are 'torque balanced' which are designed so that the face doesn't open up thru impact. There should be more about this on the Web site.

I firmly believe that Edel makes the best putters on the market, so I'm confident that the rest of their equipment will meet that level of greatness.

I also got some pictures of the Tour Striker driver. These are available now and retail at $199. Excuse the pictures as I had difficulty getting the proper amount of light. I think the Tour Striker driver is excellent.

I then talked with 3Jack Golf Certified D-Plane Instructor Errol Helling on a new training aid that works in conjunction with AimPoint.

This training aid combines a lot of things into one. First, it serves as a bubble level than can measure the slope of a putt. It also serves as a 'putting gate' so the golfer can aim and hit the ball where they want it to initially roll. Furthermore, it's designed so you can aim it perfectly at your intended target with a protractor design. For instance, if you move it 6 degrees, that equates to 6 inches from the edge of the cup. Lastly, you can put a putting track onto it as well.

I plan on purchasing one of these myself from my AimPoint practice and they will be up on Aimpointgolf.com pretty soon.

I then went over to the Mizuno hitting booth. I hit their new MP driver and liked it. I think Mizuno makes underrated woods. They then put me on the Mizuno Shaft Optimizer, something I haven't tried in a couple of years.

The Mizuno Shaft Optimizer has been upgraded. You can now attach it to whatever clubhead you want instead of having to hit an model head. I asked about them updating their shaft database and they said they do that constantly, but they didn't add KBS' C-Taper shaft because they found that the C-Tapers were too heavy and didn't get the results they wanted. Anyway, I was fitted for the following:

- True Temper Dynalite XP X-100 (Soft Stepped once)
- Project X 6.0
- KBS Tour X-Stiff (soft stepped once)

I then headed over to Scratch Golf and was mostly interested in their putters. They did tell me that their deal with the forging house in Chicago fell thru and now they are considering a forging house in Michigan. However, they are looking to retail putters.

This picture is blurry, but it's a new finish that Scratch is experimenting with that is used for handguns. It creates a finish where no 2 finishes are alike.

Here's a wedge grind and a flatback custom iron.

Later, I checked out the Scor Wedges booth. Scor Wedges have a V-shaped Sole, so there's 2 different bounce angles to work with on shots.

I will have more pictures tomorrow.

3JACK

3Jack Golf PGA Merchandise Show Journal - Day 1

2012-01-28T06:53:00.000-08:00

The first day of the merchandise show is the 'Demo Day.' It's held at Orange County National which has this humongous driving range that is in the shape of a circle. This year, most of the companies are in between a 2-year product cycle, so I don't think there was a lot of hype going into this show. However, the weather was gorgeous today, 75-80* with a nice breeze throughout the day.

The first thing I came across is the Tour Striker driver.

The main idea of the Tour Striker driver is the face design creates a smaller 'center' to help train the golfer to hit that center.

I have been reading Tom Wishon's book 'In Search For The Perfect Driver.' One of the things he says is that the sweetspot is:

1. A very small point where the CoG of the club is. It's about the size of a needle point.

2. The 'sweetspot' of the driver is in the center of the club...NOT towards the crown and toe.

One of the reasons why it is misinterpreted as the 'hot spot' of the driver for golfers is that with the deeper face drivers, the roll of the driver actually causes the driver to have more loft located up by the crown. So, the center of the driver face may be at 9.5* of loft, but the top towards the crown may have 11* of loft.

Wishon's claim is that golfers usually have NOT ENOUGH loft on their driver and have to hit it up towards the crown in order to get that loft. But, in reality they are causing themselves to hit the driver *SHORTER* than if they had the proper loft and worked to hit the center of the face.

My first couple of strikes came off the heel and missed the face and were basically 'worm burners.' But after that I started hitting it quite well and I was surprised at just how good the club feels. The driver will retail for $199 and is currently being sold. I will have up close pictures of it on Friday.

After that and some mulling around I got to meet with the Edel Golf people and try their new wedges.

The idea behind the Edel Wedges is to give the golfer enough buonce angle in the wedge so the golfer does not have to worry about the club getting stuck in the ground.

One of the things I noticed when I moved to Florida was how easy it was to stick a wedge into the ground on the wirey bermuda. But, I purchased some wedges with more bounce angle and that helped.

However, Edel wants to give a LOT more bounce angle. I was fitted for a 52* 'Digger' grind and a 56* and 60* 'Driver' grind. I cannot remember what the bounce angle was at, but it was around 25* of bounce.

Yes, that's right...25* of bounce.

I was told that was quite common with the Tour players they work with.

The idea is to make it so the golfer can take their swing without the fear of sticking it into the ground. And what will happen is now when you swing the wedge, the divot decreases.

I think one of the important things this does is with distance control. One can now not have to worry about catching one thick and losing yardage and wedges are mainly about distance control. You can also hit low punches without worrying about the club sticking and causing your pivot to stall.

The other thing Edel did was the moved the CoG of the club further away from the heel. And to top it off, the grooves now go all the way out to the toe. So if you ever have those marks towards the toe, those shots will actually be by the CoG and it will make impact off the grooves and you don't have to worry about hitting a knuckleball shot. Also, if you have a chip shot and the club is more upright, now you don't have to worry about the uncertainty of how the ball will react off the toe.

Edel also has a special grip that is 1 inch longer than the typical grip. Edel has done this so the golfer can choke up on the club more in case they are in between yardages or want to hit a lower shot.

I was fitted for a KBS C-Taper shaft and I should get my wedges in March. I will take more pics of the Edel Wedges on Friday.

Also, Edel is looking to make 99 sets of irons for 2012 and see how they perform. The concept will be similar, more bounce without a huge sole. I got to hit the 9-iron and really liked it. Although it was a cavity back club.

I then went over to Oban shafts and saw Oren Geri from Big Break hitting balls there. I don't think Oban quite fits me as when it comes to the driver shaft, but I think they make a great shaft. I tried their Kiyoshi line and thought it was pretty good. Oban also has some new irons shafts (graphite). I thought those were pretty solid as far as graphite iron shafts go.

I also got to try the Matrix Program shaft. In fact, Matrix was giving the 95 gram iron shaft out for free and I brought one home with me. The problem with graphite iron shafts is that it's made so long that it just doesn't quite feel right. Although the shots I hit well with it really went well.

After that I was very impressed with Honma's new driver (S-02). This is a 7-piece design and it's extremely forgiving and it's very long. I was quite impressed with this driver.

One of the big winners for me was the new Yonex EZone Muscleback irons.

These clubs look fantastic, feel fanstastic and really perform. I hit the 4-iron, 8-iron and PW and all of them were spectacular. I also got to hit the EZone driver. Yonex offers their heads in 380, 420 and 460 cc sizes. I think they have a winner here.

I also started to fall in love with a 9* Black Tour Cleveland driver and the Miyazaki Kusula shaft. I did hit the new Cleveland Classic driver but came away unimpressed.

I did hit the new Taylor Made Rocketballz fairway wood. The 3-wood does come off the head well, but it's rather large in size. Some may not like that big of a clubhead.

Lastly, I was turned onto Ernest Sports new ES12 launch monitor. I didn't get the entire spiel on it, but I believe it measures clubhead speed, ball speed and it can record your swing.

Here's a video for that.

More to come on Friday.

3JACK

Understanding the 'Hot Spot' For the Driver

2012-01-27T19:04:00.000-08:00

Recently, I purchased Tom Wishon’s book ‘The Search For the Perfect Driver’ (www.wishongolf.com). I have only read the first few pages of it and I will have a review for it when I finish.

Anyway, one of the things that I came across that surprised me was Wishon discussing where the ‘hot spot’ or the ‘sweetpot’ of the driver is.

For the past 10 years or so, we have been

We have been told that the ‘hot spot’ of the driver is located towards the toe and up towards the crown of the club. We have been told when you hit there, that is where the golfer gets the most distance. However, Wishon essentially says that this is very very flawed in theory.

One of the things Wishon discusses if the ‘bulge’ and the ‘roll’ of the club. As most of us know, the driver face has a very slightly curved design. The face will curve horizontally to the ground from heel to toe.

This is called the ‘bulge.’ This helps the golfer with mis-hits. Thus, if a golfer misses the tee shot off the toe, the bulge and the gear effect will cause the ball to usually push and draw a bit.

Conversely, the head curves a little vertically from the bottom to the crown of the club. This is called the ‘roll.’ Wishon states in ‘The Search’ that he never really has found a function for the roll and for years it was not a factor for golfers in any way whatsoever.

However, that changed once the drivers got bigger. The loft of a driver is measured from the center of the clubface. Thus, if you have a 9* lofted driver on the stamp, that means that the loft was measured at 9* at the center of the face. But, as driver heads became larger, the roll started to become more pronounced and started to affect the loft of the clubface. So what happens is a driver with a 9* loft at the center of the face may have 11* of loft towards the crown and 7* of loft towards the sole.

So, where is this driver head sweet spot?

First, the ‘sweet spot’ is actually NOT an area. It’s actually a very fine point, about the size of a needle point. According to Wishon, when companies say they have ‘increased the sweet spot’, all they have done is increase the MOI of the clubhead around the actual sweet spot. I often get asked this with Trackman’s measurement of how far offline a ball can travel if it misses the sweetspot by 1 dimple. My answer is ‘no’, we really can’t feel a shot that misses the sweetspot by 1 dimple or probably even 3 dimples. However, that’s provided Trackman measured the sweetspot as a specific point about the size of a needle tip, not an area.

Anyway, the actual sweet spot of the driver is where we had it…at about the center of the clubhead. It’s where the clubs Center of Gravity is located.

Wishon surmises that the reason why people get into the myth of the ‘hot spot’ being located towards the crown of the club is that most golfers play with drivers with too low of a loft. So when they hit one towards the crown where the loft increases, that is more towards their optimal loft that they should be playing.

However, a golfer could hit the ball further by getting the proper amount of loft on their driver and hitting towards the center of the club instead of using a lower lofted driver and hitting towards the crown. They can also increase their accuracy. This is where fitting for loft based upon clubhead speed, attack angle and dynamic loft comes into play.

I recently spoke to a customer wanting a Wishon 919THI driver that he was surprised how far he hit it. He asked me what makes it go so far and I told him that at 11* of loft (what he purchased), the loft was much more optimal to what he had been playing at 9.5*. Personally, I think my optimum loft is more like 10*, although I’m currently using a 9* Wishon 919THI.

The other thing Wishon has done is he has made the ‘roll’ on the clubface as flat as one can possibly make it. This means that you won’t get the added loft if you hit it towards the crown or the lower loft if you hit the ball towards the sole. Thus, it encourages the golfer to hit the real ‘hot spot’ of the driver, right towards the center of the face.

3JACK

3Jack Golf PGA Tour Rundown - Week 3

2012-01-25T18:12:00.000-08:00

Here were my picks for the Humana and how they finished:

Ryan Palmer: CUT
Harrison Frazar: CUT
Kyle Stanley: CUT
Martin Laird: t-14th
Robert Garrigus: t-2nd

VALUE PICK: Kevin Chappell: t-30th

Here’s the current rankings of the players who finished in the top-5

Player…………………..….ATD…….PG…….SG……BZ……SZ…….DZ
Mark Wilson ……………...68…….51……139…..85……40…….56
Johnson Wagner ……….117…….5…….28……47……101…….71
John Mallinger …………..52…….53…….22……41……18…….108
Robert Garrigus ………...29……159…..105…..89……63…….N/A
Jeff Maggert ………………45…….11…….102….13……19……..27

Wilson’s rankings really don’t show it, but he excelled at driving, putting, and Birdie Zone play at the Humana. He also had a good tournament with his Short Game. His Safe Zone play was pretty average and his Danger Zone play was slightly above average.

Here are my picks for the Farmer’s:

Kyle Stanley: 80/1
Robert Garrigus: 50/1
Dustin Johnson: 28/1
Bubba Watson: 28/1
Charles Howell III: 33/1

Value Pick: Charley Hoffman: 100/1

Here’s the rankings:

ADVANCED TOTAL DRIVING

1. John Senden
2. Jamie Lovemark
3. Bo Van Pelt
4. Chez Reavie
5. Matt Kuchar
6. Bobby Gates
7. Jason Dufner
8. Charlie Wi
9. Camilo Villegas
10. Ryan Palmer

156. Tommy Biershenk
157. Anthony Kim
158. Alexandre Rocha
159. Stephen Gangluff
160. Gavin Coles
161. Joe Ogilvie
162. Steve Wheatcroft
163. Matt Bettencourt
164. Corey Pavin
165. Derek Lamely

PUTTS GAINED (VIA PGATOUR.COM)

1. Mathew Goggin
2. Scott McCarron
3. Hunter Haas
4. Chez Reavie
5. Johnson Wagner
6. Greg Chalmers
7. David Hearn
8. Bo Van Pelt
9. Brendon Todd
10. Steve Jones

163. Scott Brown
164. Stephen Gangluff
165. Charley Hoffman
166. Mike Miles
167. Chad Campbell
168. Ryan Moore
169. Mark Brooks
170. Rich Beem
171. Bill Lunde
172. Heath Slocum

ADJUSTED SHORT GAME

1. Joe Durant
2. Sam Saunders
3. Stuart Appleby
4. Nick O'Hern
5. Tadd Fujikawa
6. Brett Quigley
7. Mathew Goggin
8. Ryan Moore
9. Steve Stricker
10. Chris Couch

159. Ken Duke
160. Graham DeLaet
161. Richard H. Lee
162. Gary Christian
163. Tommy Gainey
164. Tom Gillis
165. Billy Hurley III
166. Gary Woodland
167. Kyle Thompson
168. Charley Hoffman

BIRDIE ZONE PLAY

1. Joe Durant
2. Colt Knost
3. Chez Reavie
4. Paul Goydos
5. Matt Kuchar
6. Brendon de Jonge
7. Gary Christian
8. Brett Quigley
9. Bob Estes
10. Phil Mickelson

118. Scott Stallings
119. Jason Kokrak
120. Ben Crane
121. Jhonattan Vegas
122. Charlie Beljan
123. Gavin Coles
124. Tadd Fujikawa
125. Chris DiMarco
126. Kevin Chappell
127. Doug LaBelle II

SAFE ZONE PLAY

1. Tom Gillis
2. James Driscoll
3. Matt Kuchar
4. Lee Janzen
5. Bo Van Pelt
6. Corey Pavin
7. Tadahiro Takayama
8. Justin Leonard
9. Blake Adams
10. Alexandre Rocha

144. Stewart Cink
145. Camilo Villegas
146. Billy Hurley III
147. John Huh
148. Matt Bettencourt
149. Jamie Lovemark
150. Derek Lamely
151. Ryan Palmer
152. Richard H. Lee
153. Gary Woodland

DANGER ZONE PLAY

1. Alex Aragon
2. Carl Pettersson
3. Pat Perez
4. Kris Blanks
5. Nick Watney
6. Matt Every
7. Webb Simpson
8. David Hearn
9. Jason Kokrak
10. Jonathan Byrd

129. James Driscoll
130. Troy Matteson
131. Troy Kelly
132. John Merrick
133. Bud Cauley
134. Duffy Waldorf
135. Ryan Moore
136. Jamie Lovemark
137. Chad Collins
138. Russell Knox

3JACK

2012 3Jack Prepares For Golf

2012-01-24T16:34:00.000-08:00

9TH HOLE AT METROWEST

This year I plan on trying to qualify for the Florida State Amateur Match Play championship. Last year I played in the Florida Mid-Am. My end goal is to make the match play portion of the US Amateur, but I project that my game will not quite be ready in time for me to seriously qualify for it this year.

I will likely forego qualifying for the Mid-Am this year because the qualifier is held at a private club (Legacy at Alacqua Lakes) and I don’t care to pay money and take time off from work to play a qualifier at a course that I will likely only get 1 practice round in. The Florida Amateur qualifier is at Metrowest, a well known public course in downtown Orlando. Furthermore, the actual championship will be held at the Country Club of Orlando. If I qualify, it would just be a short 15 minute drive from my home.

First, let me once again thank the Florida State Golf Association for the excellent work they do. They treated us tremendously last year and once again, their Web site is so efficient and user friendly and helps make things easy for us competitive golfers in Florida. They really go all out for us.

Here’s the scorecard from MetroWest.

Also, here’s a link of their ‘course tour.’

http://webcastcity.com/Go/MetroWestGolf_Interactive

I’ve only played MetroWest once, but I plan on playing there at least once a month up until the qualifier this year. It’s a Robert Trent Jones design (and pretty typical one). Even though it’s in downtown Orlando, from a central Florida perspective it’s probably one of the hilliest courses you’ll find in the area. Overall, I would recommend this course to vacationers. It’s not as good as say Shingle Creek, World Woods, Orange County National or Reunion, but it’s a slight step below those and probably above places like North Shore, Eagle Creek and Falcon’s Fire.

Anyway, one of the things that stands out about MetroWest is its long par-5’s. I believe that we will not play fully from the back tees (although I will practice from there).

#4 will likely be moved up to no further than 568 yards (probably more like 580 yards).

#10 will probably be moved up. And #17 will probably be moved to 198 yards. The committee usually moves up 2-4 of the tees to help keep the pace of play moving.

Still, when you see long par-5’s on a course that is only 7,050 yards I think the overall theme is that it will be tough to go real low here. Also, MetroWest clearly favors the bombers, in part because of the long par-5’s. The good news is that I’ve picked up distance switching back to a Wishon 919THI 9* driver with an Aldila RIP Beta shaft in part to better launch and spin conditions. I’ve also been hitting the Wishon 929HS 3-wood quite well and long (topping out at 270 yards off the deck, but more like 255-260 yards). In preparation for MetroWest, I will be practicing a lot more with the 3-wood.

Since I have only played there once, almost 2 years ago, my memory of the course is still a little fuzzy. However, I think the problem holes are:

#4 610 yard par-5 (pictured above)

If I recall, it’s an elevated tee and then the second shot will go around a bend. So the dilemma becomes how much the golfer can cut off on the 2nd shot without going in the water.

#6 429 yard par-4

IIRC, this goes uphill. So I believe a Danger Zone shot on the approach is likely.

#8 178 yard par-3

Danger Zone shot

#9 405 yard par-4 (first picture)

Another elevated tee with the hole going around water. This time the water is on the left. I believe to go in a straight line from the tee to the green is about 330 yards and John Daly actually drove the green with the driver. But, the ‘normal’ play is to hit down the right side. I don’t think you hit driver if playing down the fairway because you’ll likely hit it too long. Here’s where the 3-wood or hybrid off the tee play may be a factor.

#10 584 yard par-5

I just remember this hole being fairly tight off the tee with a lot of difficult downhill lies on the 2nd shot.

#15 – 196 yard par-3

Danger Zone shot.

#17 – 226 yard par-3

Very difficult shot. Particularly into the wind. I believe they will move up the tees to 200 yards and still a difficult shot into the par-3.

Other than that, for now I’m going to keep working on the swing. But, I will set aside 1 day a week for just putting practice (probably on Wednesday). From there, just keep tweaking equipment and keep the mental and course management sharp.

3JACK

Edel Wedge Fitting

2012-01-23T17:30:00.000-08:00

Here's a video of the Edel Wedge fitting process for the new line of wedges from Edel Golf.

3JACK

2012 PGA Merchandise Show Preview

2012-01-19T18:59:00.000-08:00

Next week, the PGA will be having their annual PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando from January 25th thru January 28th. 3Jack Golf will be attending the event.

We will be having a ‘Tweet Up’ at the Brickhouse Tavern and Tap, right on I-Drive, about a mile from the Orange County Convention Center. It will be on Thursday (Jan 26th) night at 8pm. For directions, go to:

http://brickhousetavernandtap.com/locations/orlando/

You can also e-mail me at Richie3Jack@yahoo.com

The first day will be the ‘Demo Day’ portion of the PGA Show. For those who have never been there, it’s held at Orange County National Golf Club’s driving range which was rated the Best Driving Range in the County by GOLF Magazine. It’s a giant, circular range and the every square inch of it has a tent where people can demo new equipment.

Last year, the highlights for me were the following:

- Graphite Design Tour AD-DI shafts
- Oban Devotion shafts
- Fourteen Golf Wedges
- Wilson Staff Wedges
- Bettinardi Putters
- Heavy Golf Wedges and Drivers
- Callaway Razr irons and driver
- KBS Hybrid Shaft
- Miura K-Grind Wedge (which I now own)
- Prazza Golf Ball
- Foresight Sports Launch Monitor
- TourStriker

After that I spent the entire day Thursday at the actual show. Then Friday I took off to play some golf instead (weather was beautiful that day). The weather this winter has been good in Florida, but they are predicting scattered showers on Demo Day. If so, I probably will not show up to Demo Day and schedule to be at the show on Friday instead.

Last year I talked with some people from Trackman and FlightScope at the show. I also found the HIRZL glove at the show and discussed some things with putting with David Edel (Edel Golf) and wound up buying a putter. After that I spoke to the AimPoint guys like John Graham, Jamie Donaldson and Mark Sweeney.

The actual show is like a smorgasbord of golf. They have every type of golf club one could want, along with training aids, universities with PGM programs, retailers for driving ranges, golf vacation packages, etc.

Here’s what I’m interested in this year:

1. Driver Shafts

I should be getting Wishon Golf’s Shaft Bend Profile software sometime this week along with his book ‘In Search of the Perfect Driver.’ I plan on going thru the software and making note of any companies who have a shaft that is not in the current version of the Shaft Bend Profile software.

2. Yonex

They were at the show last year, but they didn’t have their new E-Zone equipment there.

3. Other Equipment I Have Yet to Demo

Here are a few clubs I’m interested in:

Ping G20 driver
Titleist 712 blades
Bridgestone irons and woods
Taylor Made RBZ
Adams UL woods
Scratch Golf SB-1
Cobra S3 woods

4. Edel Wedges

Edel wedges are a very different design from the typical OEM designed wedges and due to that, they usually prescribe a much, much higher bounce angle for their wedges than people are used to. I’ll have to learn more about them.

5. Tour Striker

Rumor of a Tour Striker driver coming out at the show.

If you have any other things you may be interested in, please let me know.

3JACK

3Jack Golf 2012 PGA Tour Rundown - Week 2

2012-01-18T16:11:00.000-08:00

Here were my picks for the Sony and how they finished:

Brian Gay: t-6th
David Hearn: t-10th
Carl Pettersson: t-2nd
Scott Piercy: t-23rd
Jerry Kelly: t-29th
Blake Adams: MC

Here’s the top-5 finishers at the Hyundai and their current rankings:

ATD = Advanced Total Driving
PG = Putts Gained
SG = Short Game Play (0-20 yards)
BZ = Birdie Zone (75-125 yards)
SZ = Safe Zone (125-175 yards)
DZ = Danger Zone (175-225 yards)

……………………….......ATD……PG…...SG…..BZ……SZ….DZ
Johnson Wagner……111……..6……...41……33……69…..59
Carl Pettersson……...36……..33……86…….4……..28…...3
Sean O’Hair…………....72……..68……15……61…...116….117
Harrison Frazar………,24……..46…….99…...73…….30…..37
Charles Howell III…..94……..10……16…....22…….29…..58

And here’s my picks for the Humana in La Quinta, CA:

Ryan Palmer: 50/1
Harrison Frazar: 50/1
Kyle Stanley: 66/1
Martin Laird: 25/1
Robert Garrigus: 80/1

Value Pick: Kevin Chappell: 125/1

Since we only have 153 golfers who have qualified statistically so far, I will just give the top-10 and bottom-10 in each metric:

ADVANCED TOTAL DRIVING

1. John Senden
2. Graham DeLaet
3. Vijay Singh
4. David Hearn
5. Heath Slocum
6. Paul Goydos
7. Kyle Stanley
8. Roberto Castro
9. Roland Thatcher
10. Jason Kokrak

131. Patrick Sheehan
132. Chad Collins
133. Tommy Biershenk
134. Kevin Kisner
135. Matt Bettencourt
136. Daniel Chopra
137. Joe Ogilvie
138. Parker McLachlin
139. Edward Loar
140. Derek Lamely

PUTTS GAINED (VIA PGATOUR.COM)

1. David Hearn
2. Jesper Parnevik
3. Hunter Haas
4. Jeff Maggert
5. Brendon Todd
6. Johnson Wagner
7. Michael Thompson
8. J.J. Killeen
9. Danny Lee
10. Charles Howell III

144. Ricky Barnes
145. Miguel Tabuena
146. Jason Bohn
147. Ryo Ishikawa
148. WC Liang
149. Gary Christian
150. Jason Dufner
151. Stephen Gangluff
152. Heath Slocum
153. Roland Thatcher

ADJUSTED SHORT GAME PLAY

1. Miguel Tabuena
2. Jim Carter
3. Stephen Gangluff
4. William McGirt
5. Martin Laird
6. Tadd Fujikawa
7. Jason Dufner
8. John Merrick
9. Steve Stricker
10. Troy Kelly

144. Davis Love III
145. Martin Flores
146. Billy Hurley III
147. Gary Woodland
148. Kyle Thompson
149. Ken Duke
150. Tommy Gainey
151. Ricky Barnes
152. Richard H. Lee
153. Gary Christian

BIRDIE ZONE PLAY

1. Colt Knost
2. Ricky Barnes
3. Stephen Ames
4. Carl Pettersson
5. Shane Bertsch
6. Graham DeLaet
7. Paul Goydos
8. Greg Owen
9. Erik Compton
10. John Rollins

81. WC Liang
82. Tommy Biershenk
83. Tadd Fujikawa
84. Harris English
85. Sunghoon Kang
86. Jhonattan Vegas
87. Jason Bohn
88. Kevin Kisner
89. Ben Crane
90. Jason Kokrak

SAFE ZONE PLAY

1. John Mallinger
2. Michael Thompson
3. Russell Knox
4. Corey Pavin
5. Justin Leonard
6. Tadahiro Takayama
7. Alexandre Rocha
8. Jeff Maggert
9. Jim Carter
10. Troy Matteson

142. Seung-yul Noh
143. Kevin Kisner
144. Matt Bettencourt
145. Mark Anderson
146. Danny Lee
147. Ryan Palmer
148. Gary Woodland
149. Derek Lamely
150. Richard H. Lee
151. Gary Christian

DANGER ZONE PLAY

1. Brendan Steele
2. Bryce Molder
3. Carl Pettersson
4. Alex Aragon
5. Pat Perez
6. William McGirt
7. Zach Johnson
8. Tommy Gainey
9. Chris Stroud
10. Kris Blanks

144. Danny Lee
145. Bud Cauley
146. Troy Kelly
147. John Merrick
148. Patrick Sheehan
149. Shigeki Maruyama
150. Parker McLachlin
151. Richard H. Lee
152. Derek Lamely
153. Russell Knox

3JACK

Wishon 919THI Driver Video and New 2012 Products

2012-01-17T17:27:00.000-08:00

Here’s a video from Tom Wishon on his 919THI driver

Wishon Golf has come out with some new products for 2012 that just look fantastic. Like their new 575MMC model of irons.

Their new Micro Groove HM wedges

And their new 739 CCG driver

By itself, I’ve found Wishon Golf’s equipment to be top of the line products. I currently own their 919THI driver, the 929HS 3-wood (COR the same as a driver at .830, same thing the Taylor Made RBZ is doing) and their 555C and 555M irons. I will also be getting their 775HS hybrid (COR at .830) in the mail soon.

However, Wishon Golf’s equipment is actually designed with MOI Matching in mind. So when you combine its equipment with the MOI fitting and matching process, you are truly bagging superior equipment. The link below is to my Wishon clubmaking and MOI services:

3JACK GOLF CLUBFITTING AND CLUBMAKING SERVICES

3JACK

2011 Pro Golf Synopsis FAQ's

2012-01-16T16:37:00.000-08:00

I’ve received some questions about the strategy portion from the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis e-book. So, let me do some FAQ’s in this blog post.

Are you stating that golfers should play more conservatively?

No….hell no. The strategy of Pro Golf Synopsis is about playing for your ‘average swing.’ The problem that golfers suffer from is that they will do the exact opposite. They will either play for their ‘worst swing’ or their very ‘best swing.’

For example, I feel my ‘average swing’ with the driver will find an average size fairway about 80% of the time and will travel about 280-290 yards. An average swing with the driver for me will probably produce a very poor shot about 5% of the time and the ball usually fades.

Let’s say we have a par-4 like #3 at North Shore Golf Club:

What we want to do is play for the result of our average swing. The designer (Jeff Burton) made this hole long and has the green off to the right. So a golfer who hits a driver well and comes closer to the water will have a shorter shot into the green.

Most golfers play for their worst swing and aim well left. Some golfers play for their best swing and really try to hug the water. The problem with playing for the worst swing is even if you hit the drive well, you will likely be further away from the hole and you are effectively increasing your ‘expected score’ than if you had played for your ‘average swing.’ Even getting 15 yards closer to the cup lowers the golfer’s ‘expected score.’ All things being equal, I would rather hit an 8-iron into a green than a 7-iron or a 6-iron.

Conservative play is also a detriment to ‘going low’ and you can piss away those rounds where you are have your ‘A Game’ or even worse, when you are in the zone.

I don’t believe that the Danger Zone is my issue. I think I lose more shots with my driving or putter. Should I still work on Danger Zone play?

The strategy in Pro Golf Synopsis is not about labeling certain parts of the game as ‘important’ or ‘unimportant.’ If I can improve my fairway bunker play from average to ‘World Class’, that will improve my scores over time (provided everything else remains the same). However, fairway bunker play will not have as big of an impact on your scores than if I had gone from average to ‘World Class’ in driving the golf ball.

Furthermore, as the player metrics in PGS show, there are some great Danger Zone players who lost their Tour card. Boo Weekley was excellent in Danger Zone play and driving the golf ball. But, he was dead last in putting. I wouldn’t tell Boo Weekley he needs to improve his Danger Zone play.

The problem with amateurs is that they often misjudge the value of the shots they hit with the driver. If a golfer hits a poor driver on a hole and make a double bogey, they’ll claim that for the round, the driver cost them ‘2 strokes.’ In reality, the driver probably cost them 1 stroke and their shots following the driver were poor and those shots cost them 1 more stroke.

However, what they forget is that the good drives they hit in the round also have ‘value’ to them as well. That 300-yard drive that you piped down the middle of the fairway has a positive value to it compared to that 270 yard drive that went into the woods. The difference between drivers and Danger Zone play is that you have a chance to ‘make up’ for a bad drive with another 13 drivers in the round. Thus, you may hit your driver on the 1st hole into the woods and that may cost you 1-stroke. But then you can go and hit the next 13 drivers as well as you can hit them and that will more than make up for that lost stroke.

Conversely, you may only get 4 shots from the Danger Zone the entire round. If your first Danger Zone shot costs you 1-stroke, then you only have 3 more Danger Zone shots and it’s more likely that you will never ‘make up for’ that first Danger Zone shot that cost you 1-stroke.

I’ll leave it with this…

I believe that the practice I set forth in 2011 PGS is sound in theory. I do believe in practicing with your longest iron the most on the range because if a person can hit a 3-iron, they certainly can hit the rest of the irons well. Also, the practice set forth does include hitting the driver, but to really focus on the tough tee shots you may face and try to visualize those on the range so it becomes easier when y ou get on the course.

I have a problem where for whatever reason, I cannot take my ‘average swing’ on a particular hole on the course because it does not fit my eye. What should I do?

I believe that this is good that your recognize that a certain hole does not fit your eye. I think that since you are armed with this knowledge, there are a few things you can do. For starters, you can now go onto the range and visualize this shot and try to ‘simulate’ the shot so it becomes easier to hit on the course.

Secondly, we now have to adjust the result of our ‘average swing’ for THIS particular shot. Essentially, for this particular shot our ‘average swing’ has changed. Our ‘average swing’ for this particular shot is not nearly as good as our average swing elsewhere. If there’s water on the right side of the hole and we struggle with this tee shot, we now have to adjust our aim further away from the water because the average swing we produce on this tee shot is not nearly as good as our average swing elsewhere on the course.

Lastly, we need to gauge the risk and reward of the shot and plan our strategy from there. Take a look at #12 at North Shore.

There is a big oak tree where the 153 marker is at. IMO, the best play is to hit a 3-wood off the tee because the fairway is only about 12 yards wide right where that large oak tree is. If I hit a good 3-wood down the middle, I’ll be far enough behind the oak tree that I can take a full swing and the ball will fly below the oak tree.

The problem is that I do not hit the 3-wood well on this hole. I plan on working diligently on my 3-wood play this year so this shot is easier for me. But for now I just try to treat this hole with the mindset of it being a par-5 and using a driver off the tee. This way if I hit a driver well and down the middle, I’m now ‘playing for a birdie-4’ (technically it’s a par because it’s a par-4). If my driver winds up in the woods, then I’m ‘playing for a par-5.’

Before I started to theorize about course management, I would either stubbornly hit poor 3-woods off the tee or hit the driver in the woods and then ‘try to hard’ to make a par-4 instead of just punching out and taking my medicine and making a bogey-5. What would often wind up happening is I would make a double bogey-6 and double bogeys are KILLERS to good golf rounds.

I don’t see why you use ‘Proximity to the Cup’ to judge players from the Zones because often times players are just trying to hit the green safely instead of shooting for the flag.

The problem with a metric like ‘Greens In Regulation’ is that it is too vague and incomplete for our use. I have played better rounds of golf hitting few greens than the times that I have hit almost every green and vice versa. And in the end, GIR does not really help in explaining where strokes are lost or gained.

The thing with the PGA Tour is that over the course of a year, every player gets their fair share of shots where they have to seriously consider just aiming for the middle of the green instead of shooting at the flag. But, over the course of time, the players who can hit the ball closer to the cup will see their scores drop.

It’s like I mentioned in 2011 PGS, we are talking about probability, not certainty. That means there is no guarantee that a particular outcome will happen every time, but we do want to put the odds in our favor because over time, it will work out in our favor.

This is somewhat similar to the principle that the Blackjack ‘card counters’ use in casinos. The card counter knows that if they card count correctly every single time, they are shifting the odds in their favor. Now, those odds may be in their favor by only…say, 2%. Thus, they will often lose a lot of hands. But, if they keep at it…over time they will win money. And that’s why casinos kick skilled card counters out of their casinos.

Still, we use the GIR metric to some use. For instance, Shane Bertsch finished:

6th in Birdie Zone
6th in Safe Zone
44th in Danger Zone

But, he was 126th in Greens in Regulation (64.3%). He also finished 82nd in Putts Gained. Perhaps, Bertsch was firing at the flagstick a little too often and while he was hitting shots closer to the cup, they were off the green or he was leaving himself with a slick, downhill putt.

Brandel Chamblee says that the ‘Money Zone’ is from 50-125 yards and has some players that won multiple times in 2011 to prove it. Is he right?

Chamblee is wrong because statistically it does not correlate to Adjusted Scoring Average as strong as putting, driving the ball, Danger Zone play, Safe Zone play and even Short Game play.

It’s a mathematical FACT. Much like arguing against D-Plane when it comes to the physics of how the ball flies.

There are a few common flaws in Chamblee’s thinking. For starters, the sample size is not big enough. You can’t take one year and look at a few of the players in the top and then make the judgment of how important that area of the game is. David Duval finished 3rd in Birdie Zone play and was 174th in Adjusted Scoring Average. John Senden finished 184th in Birdie Zone play and was 25th in Adjusted Scoring Average.

Secondly, the flaw in using the 50-125 yard metric is that if a player has more shots closer to the cup, they are more likely to going to hit those shots closer. If all of Dustin Johnson’s shots are from 55 yards and all of Luke Donald’s shots are from 125 yards, Dustin Johnson will likely wind up with a closer Proximity to the Cup. That doesn’t make Dustin a better player from this range. With the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis, I utilize formulas that essentially ‘cancel out’ the differences in the yardages where the shot was taken from.

Lastly, just looking at the shots from 50-125 yards does not consider other parts of the player’s game. Luke Donald and Shane Bertsch are a good example.

Here’s a look at their rankings in each Zone and their driving of the ball:

DONALD

Safe Zone: 1st
Birdie Zone: 1st
Danger Zone: 46th

Adjusted Total Driving: 132nd

BERTSCH

Safe Zone: 6th
Birdie Zone: 6th
Danger Zone: 44th

Adjusted Total Driving: 97th

So why is Bertsch nowhere near as good as Donald?

In large part due to Bertsch finishing 82nd in Putts Gained and Donald finishing 1st in Putts Gained. Donald also hits the ball higher which I believe helps and is a better player from 225-275 yards. Combine that with dominating Birdie and Safe Zone play, that’s why Donald is such a great player.

3JACK

Shaft Bend Profiles

2012-01-13T16:29:00.000-08:00

One of the things I’m working on now with studying equipment and clubfitting is called ‘Shaft Bend Profile.’ In fact, I plan to purchase Wishon Golf’s Shaft Bend Profile software program sometime in February.

Now, I’m not quite familiar with all of the history of equipment and clubfitting. But, from my experience and knowledge shaft fitting did not get out of the archaic stages until about 15 years ago. And even then, it has still been flawed and imprecise.

Before the 1990’s, most shaft fitting was based on clubhead speed. Companies would assign shafts in either ‘regular flex’, ‘stiff flex’ or ‘X-Stiff flex’ and more often than not, golfers would just be fitted based upon how far they could hit the ball. Furthermore, the Quality Control of golf shaft companies was questionable during these times and often times their QC for the flex of the shaft came down to weighing the shaft. For instance, an X-stiff steel shaft may have been designed to weight 130 grams whereas the Stiff flex may have been designed to weigh 115 grams. Thus, if an employee is checking the shaft weights of supposedly X-Stiff shafts and gets one at 128 grams, they would often times just keep it as a ‘X-Stiff shaft.’

Eventually, Rifle golf shafts came out and they tested the frequency of golf shafts. They would measure the frequency of a shaft and then get each shaft in the set to have the same exact frequency. Here’s a video of explaining some of this:

This was certainly an advancement in shaft fitting because golfers had a much better idea of the type of shaft flex in their shafts and how it will perform for them. The problem was that other characteristics of the Rifle Shafts may not be well suited or liked by many golfers.

Eventually, the QC of shaft companies did greatly improve. In fact, Aldila now measures the frequency of some of their shafts and gives that CPM (cycles per minute) on their Web site.

Also, many clubfitters are frequency matching shafts themselves. However, I do believe some of these clubfitters are a little less than forthcoming on how they do this. What these clubfitters do is they trim the tip end and the butt end of the shaft until they get the club to the length you want and the frequency you want.

In order to do this, they use a parallel tip shaft because you really cannot tip trim a taper tip shaft.

Taper Tip shafts are 0.355 inches in diameter. They of course fit into Taper Tip clubhead hosels. Most OEM’s have taper tip hosels in their clubheads. Parallel tip shafts have 0.370 inch tip diameter. You can trim Parallel tip shafts from both the tip end and butt end of the shaft.

So, how do these clubfitters get the Parallel Tip (.370) shafts into a Taper Tip hosel (.355)? They simply use a drill into the clubhead and make the hosel .370 inches in diameter.

While that sounds simple, many golfers do not like Parallel Tip shafts for various reasons like the bigger tip generally making the shafts feel stiffer. I personally use parallel tip shafts in my own Wishon irons and I’m quite happy with them. However, if you get into the frequency matching game by using parallel tip shafts and trimming from the tip and butt end in order to get the frequency right…now you run the risk of dramatically changing the characteristics of the shaft.

The way most parallel tip shafts work is you’ll have specific trimming instructions. For instance, they’ll tell the user to trim 1-inch off the tip of the shaft and then trim the butt end to the length you want the club for your 5-iron. Then with your 9-iron the instructions say trim 2-1/4 inches off the tip and then trim the butt end to length.

However, if you are trying to use parallel tip shafts to frequency match, you may wind up trimming much more off the tip or the butt end. The more you trim off the tip…the lower the kick point of the shaft will be and that will make the ball fly higher and spin more. More from the butt end, the kick point of the shaft is higher which can make the ball fly lower with less spin. All of this can affect Swingweight and if you’re into MOI Matching…greatly affect the MOI as well.

WISHON ON SHAFTS

Recently, Tom Wishon made an interesting post titled ’10 Myths About Shafts.’ I would highly recommend reading it. Here’s the link: http://www.golfwrx.com/forums/topic/552963-10-myths-about-shafts/

Wishon discusses ‘shaft bend profile’ and its importance. As Wishon states, the SAME shaft equipment manufacturer can have different shaft models labeled the same flex, but the way those shafts perform and feel can be drastically different.

What a shaft bend profile does is it measures the shaft frequency throughout the entire shaft as the butt section of the shaft will have a higher frequency than the tip section. Here’s a sample chart showing a shaft and it’s frequency from the tip end (left side of the chart) to the butt end of the shaft (right side of the chart).

Here’s a Shaft Bend Profile chart showing 3 different shafts from Diamana.

DIAMANA SHAFT BEND PROFILE CHART

I think golfers (and clubfitters) can use these shaft bend profiles to their advantage in a couple of ways:

1. If you really love a very expensive golf shaft, you can start searching for a cheaper alternative that has the same bend profile. As Wishon says, he has yet to find a $300 shaft that cannot be ‘duplicated’ at a much lower price.

2. If you’re not quite in love with a shaft, you can search for shafts that have bend profiles more to what you are looking for. Let’s say you like the feel and the trajectory of a shaft, but want something with a lower spin…you may want to look for shafts that have the same bend profile, except with a stiffer tip section.

And that’s what Wishon’s Shaft Bend Profile Software is about. It has the shaft bend profiles of most of the major shaft manufacturer’s shaft models, so I can use that to compare shaft bend profiles and do a better job of reaching one of my 2012 Goals…doing a better job of having a driver that fits my swing.

As I mentioned with MOI fitting and matching, I *can* hit some great shots with a shaft that is too flexible for my swing. The problem is timing when the club kicks. I believe with MOI fitting, the weight suits the golfer’s swing and they don’t have to worry nearly as much about the shaft not kicking at the right time. And with understanding shaft bend profiles, one can stay away from shafts that don’t come close to fitting them and be able to better fine tune what type of shaft they are looking for.

3JACK

The Unknown Great Games on Tour

2012-01-12T17:33:00.000-08:00

A few of the readers of 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis asked me the best players at certain parts of the game over the years. Here's a list of some lesser known players for certain aspects of the game that I think are some of the very best on Tour. Otherwise, a lot of this would go to Luke Donald

Anyway, if you're at a Tour event or can catch these players practicing, I would recommend getting the camera to see greatness in action.

SHORT GAME PLAY - Chris Riley

Over the past 5 years the best Short Game play has belonged to either Briny Baird or Chris Riley, both of whom routinely finish in the top-5 in my Short Game play metric. However, Baird had an 'off year' for him, finishing 21st in Short Game play in 2011. Riley consistently ranks near the top.

3-WOOD PLAY - George McNeill

McNeill led the Tour in 2011 in shots from 250-275 yards. McNeill's overall metrics were not all that great in 2011. However, I believe his ability with the 3-wood probably helped him keep his card as he could use that to chew up par-5's and play par-4's where driver off the tee is not feasible well. Take a look at this amazing video of Gary Woodland.

Funny to hear the announcers say that the only other person to reach this green in two shots was...George McNeill.

PUTTING - Greg Chalmers

Last year, Chalmers commented on how he may not be a great ballstriker, but he was one of the world's best putters and he was right. In the last 3 years he has finished 8th, 5th and 5th in the Putts Gained metric. It's a good thing because he's a short hitter and doesn't strike the ball all that accurately. But, get him on the green and he becomes one of the greatest players in the world.

BIRDIE ZONE PLAY - Shane Bertsch

One of the things I have discovered is that Birdie Zone players (75-125 yards) on Tour tend to be very consistent. Meaning, if you're a great Birdie Zone player on Tour one year, you will probably be one of the better Birdie Zone players year-after-year. And somebody like John Senden (184th from the Birdie Zone) likely will never do that well in this Zone.

Over time though, Shane Bertsch is continually a top-5 player from this range.

SAFE ZONE PLAY - Alex Cejka

Cejka routinely finishes in the top-10 in shots from the Safe Zone (125-175 yards). He's not very long, but a very underrated ballstriker on Tour.

DANGER ZONE PLAY - Jason Bohn

Bohn is another underappreciated ballstriker on Tour and typically finishes very strong in the Danger Zone. In fact, his ballstriking metrics in 2009 were better than Tiger Woods and Sergio Garcia. Not many videos of Bohn's swing on YouTube, which is a shame.

ADVANCED TOTAL DRIVING - Charles Warren

I'm starting to believe that Charles Warren is some type of mythical figure whose golf swing does not actually exist. On YouTube, there's a video of him for EyeLine Golf discussing putting...although he's a terrible putter. Oh, there's also a video of him at a golf clinic talking about protecting your skin against the sun.

Well, there is this video...of Kyle Stanley...that relates to Warren's driving of the ball.

Warren is typically in the top-5 in my Advanced Total Driving metric. He does everything well with the driver. He hits it long, generaters a lot of clubhead speed (117 mph), he launches it nicely, has perfect amount of spin rate, hits fairways and doesn't miss too many drives 'off the grid.'

Yet, not one video of his swing on YouTube. Maybe he's the Sidd Finch of golf.

3JACK

2-Day Lynn Blake Golf School - Orlando - Jan 22 & Jan 23

2012-01-11T19:16:00.000-08:00

Where: The Faldo Golf Institute, Orlando
When: January 22-23,
Time: 9am to 5pm
Cost: $495 (PGA), $550 (non-PGA)...includes lunch
Teachers: Lynn Blake, Rick Murphy, Dan Malizia, David Graham (3Jack's personal putting instructor).

Lynn Blake, GSED, Director of Instruction, Lynn Blake Golf , LLC, will lead this event. Lynn was one of a handful of instructors trained personally and certified as Master Instructor by Homer Kelley, author of The Golfing Machine. Together with his staff instructors, he will open the door to a new understanding of the golf stroke, one that promises dramatic results in both your teaching and your game.

In a 61-page Workbook, here’s a sampling of what you’ll learn:

- A proven System – not Method -- for learning and teaching golf
- The Stroke Pattern concept – 24 components and ten trillion ways to get it right!
- 21 Principles that govern all golf strokes
- Hitters versus Swingers and the ten key differences in their stroke patterns
- Key alignments in each of the Three Zones (Body, Arms and Hands)
- The Twelve Sections of the stroke and how to translate precision mechanics to feel
- How to use the Flat Left Wrist and its three ‘feels’ to control the club face
- How to create and sustain Lag Pressure Point pressure -- The Secret of Golf –– to control the clubhead
- How to get on the Inclined Plane – and stay on it -- to control the clubshaft
- The Pivot Center concept – the key to Balance and Centered Arc
- Low point and why it matters
- Understanding the Delivery Line and the clubhead’s Arc and Angle of Approach
- Using the Delivery Line and Delivery Path concepts to guide the clubhead and hands from the top to the finish
- The Magic of the Right Forearm
- How to use the three basic Plane Lines and their nine different target line-stance line combinations for complete body and ball control
- Why open and closed stances really matter
- Educating your hands in their three planes of motion and nine wrist conditions
- The difference between Left Wrist ‘roll’ and ‘swivel’ and how each is used
- The Power Package – what it is and how to accumulate, load, store, deliver, and release it
- Achieving mechanical advantage using the Law of the Flail and the Endless Belt Effect
- The three kinds of lag and why two are never released
- The four sources of power, how to vary each from maximum to zero, and how to achieve maximum trigger delay
- Four ways to regulate power – clubhead mass and speed -- from drive to putt
- The six essentials of a correct pivot and how to use it to produce centrifugal force, on plane motion and a centered arc
- Foot and knee action controls for maximum balance and precision application of power
- The difference between hip action and hip turn and how to use it for maximum on plane right shoulder turn thrust
- The difference between grip pressure, pressure point pressure, and especially, lag pressure
- ‘Dragging the wet mop’ and why its feel is so important
- How to use the right arm to achieve width and structure in the golf stroke
- Three loading actions and five release triggers
- Two alignments that will radically and instantly improve almost anyone’s short game (including your student’s and probably your own)
- A 45-item checklist for all strokes, including four alignments for a perfect Start-up, seven alignments for a perfect Top, six alignments for a perfect Impact, and five alignments for a perfect Finish
- Why the myths of ‘preserve the triangle’, ‘swing towards the target’, and the ‘inside to along the line to inside’ clubhead path are so destructive (and what to do instead)
- The three procedures and three visualizations of an effective pre-shot routine
- A five-step process for a winning mental game

Click here to register: http://www.lynnblakegolf.com/faldo

How the Hyundai Was Won

2012-01-11T18:19:00.000-08:00

One of the main themes about 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis is that most parts of the game are important to some level. The question is more along the lines of the level of importance. For example, assuming everything stays the same, if I improve my fairway bunker play it will have a positive impact on my score over time. However, I would have a greater impact if I improved my Danger Zone play.

Let's take a look at Stricker's ranking in the metrics (based out of 27 players in the field)

Advanced Total Driving: 12th
Putts Gained: 11th
Short Game Play: 7th

Birdie Zone: 6th
Safe Zone: 9th
Danger Zone: 4th

While his metrics were not particularly mind blowing, he did have the lowest average ranking of the entire field. Furthermore, he had the lowest 'maximum' ranking (Advanced Total Driving).

It's funny in a sense because this week we had heard how important putting was and Stricker finished 11th in Putts Gained, which was more or less 'average' for the field. We also were told that essentially the Birdie Zone was the 'Money Zone' by pundits like Brandel Chamblee, yet Stricker finished 6th in that category.

Chamblee termed the proximity to the cup from 50-125 yards to be the 'Money Zone' or to that effect. However, there are a couple of major flaws:

A. It does not account for golfers who have more shots from a closer distance to the cup. For instance, if Gary Woodland and Scott Piercy each have 100 shots from the 50-125 yard range, Woodland may wind up with a closer proximity to the cup. However, if all of Woodland's shots were actually inside 80 yards while 50% of Piercy's shots were from 100-125 yards, Woodland is not necessarily better from 50-125 yards...he just had shorter distances to the cup. The metrics in the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis 'cancel out' that yardage discrepancy.

B. It still does not have as strong of a correlation to Adjusted Scoring Average as the Danger Zone play does.

The player who finished 2nd in average ranking was the 2nd place finisher, Martin Laird:

Here's Laird's rankings in the metrics at the Hyundai:

Advanced Total Driving: 2nd
Putts Gained: 10th
Short Game Play: 1st

Birdie Zone: 5th
Safe Zone: 16th
Danger Zone: 21st

The problem for Laird was Danger Zone play. However, I think he was able to finish 2nd, despite poor Danger Zone play..because he drove the ball so well and his Short Game was the best in the field. Thus, when he missed a green from the Danger Zone, he was getting up and down anyway.

Since there were only 27 players in the field, I will go thru the rankings of each metric for this week:

ADVANCED TOTAL DRIVING

1. Bill Haas
2. Martin Laird
3. Keegan Bradley
4. Scott Piercy
5. Jonathan Byrd
6. Ben Crane
7. Bubba Watson
8. David Toms
9. Nick Watney
10. Michael Bradley
11. Chris Kirk
12. Steve Stricker
13. Harrison Frazar
14. D.A. Points
15. Jhonattan Vegas
16. Mark Wilson
17. Brendan Steele
18. Aaron Baddeley
19. Bryce Molder
20. Kevin Na
21. Sean O'Hair
22. Johnson Wagner
23. K.J. Choi
24. Rory Sabbatini
25. Scott Stallings
26. Webb Simpson
27. Gary Woodland

PUTTS GAINED (VIA PGATOUR.COM)

1…Jonathan Byrd
2…Johnson Wagner
3…Nick Watney
4…Rory Sabbatini
5…Bryce Molder
6…Kevin Na
7…Harrison Frazar
8…Webb Simpson
9…Ben Crane
10…Martin Laird
11…Steve Stricker
12…Sean O'Hair
13…Chris Kirk
14…Aaron Baddeley
15…Mark Wilson
16…D.A. Points
17…K.J. Choi
18…Scott Piercy
19…Gary Woodland
20…Bubba Watson
21…Bill Haas
22…Keegan Bradley
23…Michael Bradley
24…Scott Stallings
25…Brendan Steele
26…Jhonattan Vegas
27…David Toms

ADJUSTED SHORT GAME PLAY

1. Martin Laird
2. Keegan Bradley
3. D.A. Points
4. Scott Piercy
5. K.J. Choi
6. Ben Crane
7. Steve Stricker
8. David Toms
9. Sean O'Hair
10. Scott Stallings
11. Harrison Frazar
12. Chris Kirk
13. Aaron Baddeley
14. Johnson Wagner
15. Brendan Steele
16. Rory Sabbatini
17. Kevin Na
18. Bryce Molder
19. Bubba Watson
20. Michael Bradley
21. Nick Watney
22. Bill Haas
23. Jonathan Byrd
24. Jhonattan Vegas
25. Webb Simpson
26. Mark Wilson
27. Gary Woodland

BIRDIE ZONE PLAY (75-125 YDS)

1. Rory Sabbatini
2. Bryce Molder
3. Bill Haas
4. Keegan Bradley
5. Martin Laird
6. Steve Stricker
7. Johnson Wagner
8. K.J. Choi
9. David Toms
10. Sean O'Hair
11. Kevin Na
12. Brendan Steele
13. Chris Kirk
14. Jonathan Byrd
15. Webb Simpson
16. Gary Woodland
17. D.A. Points
18. Bubba Watson
19. Michael Bradley
20. Nick Watney
21. Harrison Frazar
22. Scott Piercy
23. Aaron Baddeley
24. Scott Stallings
25. Mark Wilson
26. Jhonattan Vegas
27. Ben Crane

SAFE ZONE PLAY (125-175 YARDS)

1. Jhonattan Vegas
2. Webb Simpson
3. Scott Piercy
4. K.J. Choi
5. Mark Wilson
6. Nick Watney
7. Chris Kirk
8. Aaron Baddeley
9. Steve Stricker
10. Bubba Watson
11. Ben Crane
12. Brendan Steele
13. Johnson Wagner
14. Keegan Bradley
15. Rory Sabbatini
16. Martin Laird
17. D.A. Points
18. Bill Haas
19. Kevin Na
20. Harrison Frazar
21. Michael Bradley
22. Bryce Molder
23. Scott Stallings
24. David Toms
25. Sean O'Hair
26. Jonathan Byrd
27. Gary Woodland

DANGER ZONE PLAY (175-225 YARDS)

1. Brendan Steele
2. Bryce Molder
3. Webb Simpson
4. Steve Stricker
5. Chris Kirk
6. Harrison Frazar
7. Kevin Na
8. Nick Watney
9. Rory Sabbatini
10. D.A. Points
11. Mark Wilson
12. Jonathan Byrd
13. Aaron Baddeley
14. Bubba Watson
15. Keegan Bradley
16. Gary Woodland
17. Johnson Wagner
18. Scott Piercy
19. Michael Bradley
20. Bill Haas
21. Martin Laird
22. Jhonattan Vegas
23. David Toms
24. K.J. Choi
25. Ben Crane
26. Scott Stallings
27. Sean O'Hair

AVERAGE RANKING

Steve Stricker (8.2)
Martin Laird (9.2)
Keegan Bradley (10)
Chris Kirk (10.2)
Nick Watney (11.2)
Bryce Molder (11.3)
Rory Sabbatini (11.5)
Scott Piercy (11.5)
Johnson Wagner (12.5)
D.A. Points (12.8)
Harrison Frazar (13)
Webb Simpson (13.2)
Kevin Na (13.3)
Jonathan Byrd (13.5)
K.J. Choi (13.5)
Brendan Steele (13.7)
Ben Crane (14)
Bill Haas (14.2)
Bubba Watson (14.7)
Aaron Baddeley (14.8)
Mark Wilson (16.3)
David Toms (16.5)
Sean O'Hair (17.3)
Michael Bradley (18.7)
Jhonattan Vegas (19)
Gary Woodland (22)
Scott Stallings (22)

3JACK

The 3Jack Golf 2012 U.S. Ryder Cup Team - Jan. 2012

2012-01-10T16:48:00.000-08:00

For starters, here are my 'not so obvious picks' for the Sony:

Jerry Kelly (40 to 1)
Carl Pettersson (50 to 1)
Brian Gay (66 to 1)
David Hearn (80 to 1)
Scott Piercy (100 to 1)
Blake Adams (125 to 1)

Throughout this year, I will go thru a list of the top 12 players I would like to see on the U.S. Ryder Cup team. As the year progresses, the list will change. I will base these picks on the use of advanced metrics, much of which was discussed in the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis.

Here are some basic guidelines:

1. Favor players with a good track record in the Ryder Cup.

2. Favor young, unknown players over veterans with a poor Ryder Cup record.

3. Look for Good Putters

4. Favor players who are better at avoiding bogeys than those players who are good at making birdies.

So, for right now…based upon the 2011 metrics, here is what I have.

WEBB SIMPSON

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 2
Money Rank: 2

Clubhead Speed: 113.9 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 28

Birdie Zone: 48
Safe Zone: 62
Danger Zone: 38

Overall Zone Play: 35

Putts Gained: 57

Short Game: 37

I would like even better putters than Simpson and I would watch out for his Putts Gained metric throughout the season. But, I feel he is too good of an overall player to not have on the team at this moment.

NICK WATNEY

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 5
Money Rank: 3

Clubhead Speed: 117.9 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 31

Birdie Zone: 23
Safe Zone: 125
Danger Zone: 5

Overall Zone Play: 16

Putts Gained: 12

Short Game: 6

I think a lot of people forget how good of a season Watney had. His weak performance in the majors in 2011 would worry me a little. But, that may have been due to some collapses in majors before last year.

MATT KUCHAR

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 4
Money Rank: 6

Clubhead Speed: 110.2 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 67

Birdie Zone: 20
Safe Zone: 11
Danger Zone: 56

Overall Zone Play: 11

Putts Gained: 37

Short Game: 54

One of the more impressive things about Kuchar is that he has continued to increase his clubhead speed over the past 3 years. Furthermore, his 37th in Putts Gained was an ‘off year’ with the putter by his standards.

STEVE STRICKER

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 3
Money Rank: 8

Clubhead Speed: 110.2 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 80

Birdie Zone: 4
Safe Zone: 55
Danger Zone: 95

Overall Zone Play: 25

Putts Gained: 2

Short Game: 24

A great putter and sound ballstriker and already a good Ryder Cupper and Presidents Cup player. His age is a little bit of a concern since you have to pick and choose your spots when to use him. But, his game provides a captain with a lot of flexibility from a strategic standpoint.

DAVID TOMS

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 9
Money Rank: 10

Clubhead Speed: 106.2 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 12

Birdie Zone: 91
Safe Zone: 12
Danger Zone: 1

Overall Zone Play: 2
ATD & Zone Play: 4

Putts Gained: 18

Short Game: 48

Another excellent ballstriker and typically a great putter. He doesn’t hit it long, but in alternate shot he may work very well with a longer hitter who is pretty decent from the Birdie Zone, like JB Holmes or Dustin Johnson.

BRANDT SNEDEKER

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 13
Money Rank: 14

Clubhead Speed: 110.5 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 49

Birdie Zone: 75
Safe Zone: 61
Danger Zone: 59

Overall Zone Play: 53

Putts Gained: 10

Short Game: 140

Another consistently excellent putter. So far he’s the worst on the team in avoiding bogeys, but still finished 35th in that category. If I were to use him in alternate shot, I would probably try to stick him with a golfer who does not miss a lot of greens, so we don’t have to worry about his Short Game. David Toms (70.2%) or Webb Simpson (69.8%) would be good partners. Nick Watney doesn’t hit as many greens (66.9%), but his Short Game could make up for any missed greens Snedeker has.

ZACH JOHNSON

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 18
Money Rank: 44

Clubhead Speed: 106.7 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 53

Birdie Zone: 10
Safe Zone: 30
Danger Zone: 39

Overall Zone Play: 10

Putts Gained: 11

Short Game: 40

Another good Ryder Cup player and consistently a great putter. Gives the captain a lot of flexibility because he can play with ballstrikers who can’t putt, bombers and short but accurate and good putter players.

RICKIE FOWLER

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 20
Money Rank: 36

Clubhead Speed: 114.5 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 93

Birdie Zone: 68
Safe Zone: 100
Danger Zone: 10

Overall Zone Play: 33

Putts Gained: 31

Short Game: 125

The only problem for him is that he makes a lot of bogeys (144th). So in best ball format, I would stick him with a golfer who doesn’t make many bogeys and hits a lot of greens. I think Matt Kuchar would be a great fit here because Kuchar finished 5th in Bogey Avoidance and 44th in Birdie rate. In alternate shot format, I would probably find a player who can hit greens, like a Chad Campbell type.

BRYCE MOLDER

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 45
Money Rank: 40

Clubhead Speed: 109.4 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 129

Birdie Zone: 19
Safe Zone: 48
Danger Zone: 137

Overall Zone Play: 69

Putts Gained: 3

Short Game: 38

I’m not overly nutty about his Danger Zone play and driving of the golf ball. But, he’s arguably the 2nd best putter on Tour behind Luke Donald over the years. I think in alternate shot, I would put him with a bomber who can keep him out of the Danger Zone. But, I think he’s probably best suited for the Best Ball format.

GARY WOODLAND

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 15
Money Rank: 17

Clubhead Speed: 121.8 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 17

Birdie Zone: 173
Safe Zone: 95
Danger Zone: 29

Overall Zone Play: 101

Putts Gained: 142

Short Game: 120

I don’t think it’s bad to have at least 1 bomber in the group and we probably need at least 2 bombers. Out of the main guys, Woodland, Bubba, Holmes and Mickelson…I trust Woodland the most purely on the metrics. I think he also gives us the best flexibility because he played well on par-3’s, par-4’s and par-5’s and was 48th in Bogey Avoidance. He could make an excellent pairing with Molder on alternate shots.

HUNTER MAHAN

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 17
Money Rank: 15

Clubhead Speed: 111.6 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 41

Birdie Zone: 103
Safe Zone: 84
Danger Zone: 116

Overall Zone Play: 100

Putts Gained: 13

Short Game: 116

His iron play concerns me, but he improved quite a bit with the flatstick and I think he may have been focusing more on the greens in 2011 and that took a bit away from his ballstriking. He may be in store for his best season as a pro.

DUSTIN JOHNSON

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 51
Money Rank: 5

Clubhead Speed: 121.0 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 7

Birdie Zone: 83
Safe Zone: 83
Danger Zone: 2

Overall Zone Play: 17

Putts Gained: 171

Short Game: 156

He’s too long and too good of a ballstriker to pass up on. He’s also an excellent wind player. His putting was terrible in 2011, but he had shown that he can putt in previous years. His Bogey Avoidance was poor last year (145th), but he had the 3rd highest rate of birdies made in 2011. Thus, he’s a much better fit in the Best Ball format. In the Alternate Shot format, I like him with Watney, Toms, Snedeker and Kuchar because each of them are good from the rough, putt well, hit greens and avoid bogeys.

HONORABLE MENTION

Bubba Watson
J.B. Holmes
Charles Howell III
Brian Gay
Bill Haas
Spencer Levin
Ben Crane
Ryan Moore
Kyle Stanley
Phil Mickelson
Jerry Kelly
Chad Campbell

3JACK

3Jack's 2012 Goals

2012-01-09T17:55:00.000-08:00

This is a typically popular topic about this time of year. I also feel that it’s a good topic to broach for serious golfers and the better thought out the goals are, the better the chance that the golfer will play better because will have accomplished these well thought goals. For me, I will not place them in order or importance, but rather try to go from tee-to-green.

1. Get my driver clubhead speed to ‘match’ my irons clubhead speed.

The last time I got onto Trackman, my 5-iron clubhead speed was 94-96 mph and my 7-iron clubhead speed was 90-92 mph. That’s roughly 0-2 mph more than the PGA Tour average.

(CLICK TO ENLARGE)

The problem was the driver clubhead speed was at about 108 mph. Thus, I would like to get the clubhead speed more in the 112-114 mph range.

2. Get the attack angle on the driver at -1.5* or shallower.

As you can see from the data, the PGA Tour average is at -1.3*. My current AoA is about -2 to -3*. As I wrote in the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis, I do believe one can benefit greatly if they can hit the ball of the tee with the driver, by hitting up or down on the ball on command. But for now, I’ll take baby steps with the attack angle.

3. Become an excellent 3-wood player.

In 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis, I discussed my feelings on the importance of 3-wood play. My belief is that with the driver, distance is a good thing as long as you don’t leave yourself with an impeded shot. However, since we typically lose distance using a 3-wood off the tee and leaving the driver in the bag, we should expect more from the tee shot accuracy using a 3-wood off the tee. My goal is to increase my usage of the 3-wood in comparison to the hybrid (20*). And I want to hit 80% of my fairways when I use a 3-wood off the tee. I have not factored in a goal for getting an official ‘Go For It’ on par-5’s where the ball is within 30 yards of the edge of the green after the 2nd shot. But, it’s something I want to investigate and then establish a goal to achieve.

4. Investigate best method of tee shots on par-4’s and par-5’s.

Another topic in Pro Golf Synopsis is the type of tee shot one should favor on long par-4’s and par-5’s. I believe I’ve become too aggressive on par-5 tee shots and it has hurt my expected score over time. I also believe I’ve tried to hit long par-4 tees into the Safe Zone and have hit too many errant tee shots, which have also increased my expected score.

5. Find the best driver that fits my swing over the course of the year.

As my swing progresses, I believe that will change the dynamics of the swing and the type of equipment that fits me. I think the MOI fitting has helped tremendously, but now I need to improve the fitting for the shaft profile and my swing along with the characteristics of the clubhead. I slacked off a bit here in 2011 and wound up with drivers that were too light for me then too heavy and spun too much. I would like to keep on top of this throughout the entire year.

6. Goals for Danger Zone Play

I figure the PGA Tour average GIR % from the Danger Zone is about 50%. Obviously, they are playing more difficult courses than I play, so I would like to set the goal at 55%. I believe this takes good swing mechanics, practice, and good club fitting. I recently changed the MOI of my irons and found it to be a dramatic help, but also discovered that the lie angles with my Danger Zone clubs were about 1-2* too upright.

7. Get My Average Impeded Shots per Round to under 3.0.

Simple, lower your average amount of Impeded Shots per round, your scores will lower as well.

8. Get AimPoint Calculation Errors to 75%

What I mean is that if I read a putt and calculate the break at 10 inches right of the cup, I’ll ‘accept’ a mis-calculation that is 25% off (7.5 inches to 12.5 inches). The difficulty when doing AimPoint becomes when the percentage of slope changes and it gets even more difficult when the slope changes direction. On a planar slope that does not have any noticeable change in the percentage of slope, the reads are pretty easy and I usually get them correct.

9. Get Most of the AimPoint Errors Down to Speed and/or Mis-Aim error

As I have stated in previous posts, I count the errors with AimPoint as:

a. General Mis-Read Error (putt breaks one way, but mis-read it to break the other way).

b. 'Gross' calculation errors (putt breaks 10 inches left, user had it breaking 4 inches left).

c. Aim Perception Errors (user thinks they are aiming 10 inches right of the cup and are instead 15 inches right of the cup).

d. Aiming Errors (user thinks they are aiming at target, but are not aimed at the target).

e. Speed/Touch errors

I think if the majority of my errors wind up being 'd' and 'e', I think I can become an excellent putter.

3JACK

Possible Declining Players in 2012

2012-01-08T05:57:00.000-08:00

Here’s my list of projected players on Tour whose performance will decline in 2012.

ROBERT ALLENBY

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 32
Money Rank: 60

Clubhead Speed: 111.7 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 79

Birdie Zone: 104
Safe Zone: 72
Danger Zone: 7

Overall Zone Play: 26

Putts Gained: 148

Short Game: 131

Allenby’s ballstriking was still very, very good. However, his Birdie Zone, Safe Zone and Advanced Total Driving dipped quite a bit. He’s never been a good putter or Short Game player. I think his struggles with ballstriking stemmed primarily from his rapid loss in clubhead speed over the years as back in 2007, he was averaging 116.3 mph of clubhead speed. It appears that his clubhead speed will only continue to drop and that will make life even more difficult for him on the golf course.

KEEGAN BRADLEY

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 30
Money Rank: 13

Clubhead Speed: 116.7 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 22

Birdie Zone: 165
Safe Zone: 140
Danger Zone: 140

Overall Zone Play: 169

Putts Gained: 97

Short Game: 158

Bradley’s play in the Zones was poor last year, but he made it up with great Advanced Total Driving and generating clubhead speed while hitting the ball quite high. As I stated in Pro Golf Synopsis, there’s no real evidence that belly putters work for Tour golfers while the Long Putter seems to work for Tour golfers who have used it for at least 5 years. Bradley uses the belly putter and if he goes to the Long Putter, it will likely take him a few years to get good with it.

I believe that Bradley’s swing is designed more for driving the ball well than playing well from the Zones and Danger Zone play is far more important to success on Tour than driving.

PHIL MICKELSON

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 16
Money Rank: 12

Clubhead Speed: 117.0 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 155

Birdie Zone: 117
Safe Zone: 56
Danger Zone: 3

Overall Zone Play: 19

Putts Gained: 134

Short Game: 75

One of the things I would like to do in the 2012 Pro Golf Synopsis is to figure out from a statistical standpoint, where a golfer’s ‘prime years’ tend to be. While that is still being researched, I would imagine that Phil is at the end of his rope. I think Phil will still probably pull a victory out this year and still have a good year financially, but I really question if he can contend in Majors that are not at Augusta National at this point. His Short Game play suffered last year and his clubhead speed has gradually dipped over the years. Furthermore, it appears that his putting has not improved.

DAVIS LOVE III

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 58
Money Rank: 88

Clubhead Speed: 114.5 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 65

Birdie Zone: 33
Safe Zone: 36
Danger Zone: 43

Overall Zone Play: 22

Putts Gained: 155

Short Game: 59

The biggest obstacle for DLIII is that he is now the Ryder Cup captain and almost every Ryder Cup captain I can think of has fallen off the earth the year they become captain. Speaking of which, I’m not too crazy about DLIII being the captain given his Ryder Cup record and by looking at some of his own course strategy metrics. Hopefully, he’ll entrust good friend Paul Azinger for advice.

CHARLES HOWELL III

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 8
Money Rank: 25

Clubhead Speed: 116.0 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 131

Birdie Zone: 65
Safe Zone: 155
Danger Zone: 119

Overall Zone Play: 122

Putts Gained: 33

Short Game: 30

The past few years Howell has gotten by with his putting and Short Game play. One of the issues I see is that his clubhead speed is on the decline (120 mph in 2007). I just don’t know how much longer he can keep it up with his weak driving and iron play. He also hits the ball very low, sometimes the lowest on Tour. I think that tends to work against golfers on Tour given the modern day designs of Tour courses.

3JACK

Players To Watch For in 2012

2012-01-07T15:50:00.000-08:00

With the PGA Tour season starting this week, here are my players returning to the Tour who I think may have a big year in 2012.

BEN CURTIS

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 94
Money Rank: 149

Clubhead Speed: 107.7 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 40

Birdie Zone: 64
Safe Zone: 25
Danger Zone: 35

Overall Zone Play: 24
ATD & Zone Play: 21

Putts Gained: 57

Short Game: 64

Curtis was a streaky player as he started off the year hitting the ball very well and putting very poorly by his standards. Then as he started to get his putting back, his ballstiking dipped. I think he’s a player that turns it on and off, like a faucet. And I think he’ll likely put it all together for stretches at a time this year. I could see perhaps him playing the role that Mark Wilson played last year, the Tour veteran who comes out and gets a couple of early wins and becomes the talk of the Tour and then comes back down to reality, with a good finish or two in the Majors.

IAN POULTER

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 91
Money Rank: 115

Clubhead Speed: 109.7 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 153

Birdie Zone: 143
Safe Zone: 40
Danger Zone: 14

Overall Zone Play: 41
ATD & Zone Play: 112

Putts Gained: 40

Short Game: 35

Poulter’s game is a bit like a poor man’s Luke Donald. He has never hit the driver well, but generally hits the irons very well and has a good short game and putter. He claimed he was not focused last year due to construction of his home in Orlando. Perhaps that is the case, but I can’t imagine Eli Manning claiming he had a poor year due to house construction. Still, I think he has the tools to return to his old form and he’s a player who is a fringe Major Championship winner.

BRENDON DE JONGE

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 44
Money Rank: 76

Clubhead Speed: 114.2 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 86

Birdie Zone: 116
Safe Zone: 15
Danger Zone: 73

Overall Zone Play: 49
ATD & Zone Play: 62

Putts Gained: 42

Short Game: 94

De Jonge is a very underrated player who should finally start getting into more big events and has the game for success on Tour as he really doesn’t do anything poorly. I would like to see him improve his fairway wood play and be a little more aggressive on par-5’s.

JOHN MERRICK

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 43
Money Rank: 119

Clubhead Speed: 110.5 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 2

Birdie Zone: 59
Safe Zone: 156
Danger Zone: 142

Overall Zone Play: 136
ATD & Zone Play: 13

Putts Gained: 89

Short Game: 119

Merrick actually putted better for most of the year than what his Putts Gained ranking wound up being at the end of the year. He led the Tour in Advanced Total Driving for a long period of time in 2011. He hits it a good ways and hits it high. If he can straighten out his Safe And Danger Zone play, I could see a victory coming from hin in 2012.

KYLE STANLEY

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 35th
Money Rank: 55th

Clubhead Speed: 117.6 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 26th

Birdie Zone: 53th
Safe Zone: 70th
Danger Zone: 21st

Overall Zone Play: 27th
ATD & Zone Play: 17th

Putts Gained: 129th

Short Game: 107th

I think Stanley has gone very unnoticed for a young player with his skills. His putting held him back last year, but he started off the year as one of the worst putters on Tour and made a significant climb in that area as the season progressed. If he can putt, then I think he has all of the tools to become a superstar.

SCOTT STALLINGS

Adjusted Scoring Avg: 118
Money Rank: 41

Clubhead Speed: 119.3 mph
Advanced Total Driving: 72

Birdie Zone: 158
Safe Zone: 98
Danger Zone: 11

Overall Zone Play: 71
ATD & Zone Play: 66

Putts Gained: 136

Short Game: 173

I could see Stalling makings a big splash early because he’s a powerful player who is still accurate and precise with his irons. Get him on some of the more wide open courses early in the year and he could make a big splash in 2012.

3JACK

Aim Affects Distance Variability.

2012-01-06T16:36:00.000-08:00

Nice video from 3Jack Golf Certified D-Plane Instructor, Errol Helling (www.errolgolf.com), on how aim affects distance.

The main point of the video is that a 20 foot putt that does not have any break will be...20 feet long.

But, when you have a 20 foot putt with a 1-foot break, the length of the putt has effectively become longer than 20 feet.

3JACK

MOI Matching Experience - Part II

2012-01-05T18:51:00.000-08:00

Back in October, I discussed MOI matching and my experience with it.

Here's the link to part I: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2011/10/moi-matching-experience-part-i.html

And here's the link to some MOI Matching FAQ's: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2011/11/moi-matching-faqs.html

I discussed this in part I, but here is my MOI numbers for my clubs without any weight added to the clubs:

Driver (Adams 9064LS): 2,845
3-wood (Wishon 929HS): 2,742
Hybrid (Mizuno CLK): 2,750
3-iron 555C: 2,625
4-iron 555C: 2,702
5-iron 555M: 2,670
6-iron 555M: 2,680
7-iron 555M: 2,694
8-iron 555M: 2,658
9-iron 555M: 2,639
PW 555M: 2,653
SW Miura K-Grind: 2,688
LW Ping Tour-S: 2,655

First, I fiddled around with the MOI Machine and discovered a few things:

One thing I noticed is that you should calibrate the machine if you have not used it in awhile or stored it away and bringing it out to use again. I found this video helpful on how to calibrate the machine:

I have found that the readings will not come out exactly the same. For instance, I had my 4-iron at 2,702 one time. A few weeks later it measured in at 2,692. Then another time it was at 2,699. However, the machine does say that there is a margin of error and I think if the measurements are within 10 points, that is reasonably accurate. If not, you probably want to re-calibrate the machine.

There are some things that do affect the MOI readings. The instruction manual states the 'thumb screw' does *not* have to clamp on the shaft of the club when doing the reading.

However, I found this to be generally false. In particular, with the woods and hybrids because the clubface should hang down at about a 90* vertical angle. But, with the woods and hybrids, the face will be at about 70*, unless you position the face so it is vertical and have the thumb screw hold the club in place.

I also noticed the screw where that holds the butt end of the club is important.

I believe that you want this screw pushed outwards, away from the thumb screw end.

Back in October, I only MOI Matched my irons. I took all of the irons and added lead tape to them until each iron read 2,700. However, I did not *fit* myself for MOI, I just matched the MOI for now.

FITTING PROCESS

I discussed the fitting process with a bunch of MOI clubfitters. I got a lot of different responses as to what the best way was to do it.

In general, here is what I found:

1. Use a 6-iron or 7-iron when doing the iron MOI fitting. Of course, whatever MOI you find that is best for you, each iron should wind up with the same MOI as well.

2. Fit for hybrids, fairway woods and drivers separately. The hybrid MOI will be closer to the MOI for the irons. The fairway woods and driver will have an MOI closer to each other.

3. You want to use the lightest MOI club you have, so you can add weight when doing the fitting and determine what is the best MOI for you. So when using a driver, find a driver with a lower MOI .

I was also told that the MOI fitting should MAINLY consist of determining the dispersion clubface contact. Here is a before and after photo from another clubmaker in England (http://www.theclubdoctors.co.uk), showing a golfer not fitted for MOI and then eventually fitted for MOI.

I was going to get on Trackman and see if I could check out the clubhead speed progression as I added weight to the club, but I was told that it not all that common because the face contact dispersion more or less is the best indicator.

First, I started with my driver. I actually used my Wishon 919THI driver because that was much lighter than my Adams 9064 LS (2,775 MOI vs. 2,845 MOI = 70 MOI difference).

I was told that when fitting for woods and hybrids, add lead tape to the spot where you would add the weight. With the driver, I would add weight at the tip end of the shaft with a weight port that looks like this:

Before I went to the range, I cut up a bunch of 1 inch high density lead tape pieces. 1 inch of high density lead tape = 1 gram = about 10 MOI points.

I also used impact tape, but I did not use a lie board. Furthermore, the impact tape did not have to be on the clubface perfectly because I was looking for a tight dispersion with the clubface contact.

Eventually, I found that adding about 3.5 grams of lead tape to the driver was perfect for me. The 3-wood was at 2,742. I added 3 grams of lead tape. The hybrid was at 2,750 and I found that I hit that perfectly.

For the irons, I used a 7-iron. Eventually, I added 2 grams of lead tape and found that my before and after looked somewhat like the before and after in those photos above.

I was told that this would probably happen because with the irons, it's easier to be more precise. The dispersion was greater for the driver than it was for the 3-wood which was greater than the hybrid dispersion.

Still..the 7-iron fitting was quite interesting because the 1st shot I hit poor, but contact was in the same exact place as it was on the following shots I hit, all of which were good. I also found that my 7-iron was a little too flat of a lie angle for me.

Afterwards, I went home and changed the rest of the clubs. I then went and played 9-holes and hit the ball fantastic. I could not believe how much better the ballstriking was.

SAVE SOME MONEY

Before the MOI fitting I performed, I felt my Adams 9064LS driver had too high of a loft (10.5*), was too heavy (2,845 MOI) and the spin rate was too high.

In the 9-hole round after the fitting, I wanted to try the Wishon 919THI driver out. This driver is a 9* driver loft with a Wishon Black 65 gram stiff shaft in it.

However, up until today I had difficulty hitting the driver as it felt 'boardy' and I struggled to get the ball up in the air. But, what I found once I did the MOI fitting was that not only was I right about the Adams 9064LS driver (too much loft, too heavy, too much spin)...but, I started to not only make much better contact with the Wishon driver....I also started to hit the ball much HIGHER and produce a far better trajectory (and now with less spin).

I found that on average I was hitting the Wishon about 20 yards past the Adams driver. Furthermore, I was only about 5-10 yards shorter with the Wishon on mis-hits. And on the 9th hole at Eastwood, I hit the Wishon 45 yards past the Adams driver.

Before today, I was considering buying the new Ping G20 driver or perhaps installing a new graphite shaft in the Wishon driver, but I think the problem was the MOI all along. So, save yourself some money and check out the MOI of your clubs before you buy that new driver or set of irons.

As far as the irons go, they felt so much better with the MOI adjusted. The next step will be to adjust the lie angles for each club properly so now the clubface contact is precisely on the sweetspot.

THE NEW SPECS

Here are the new specs for each club with their swingweight figured in as well:

Driver (Wishon): 45.0" long, 2,820 MOI, D-3 swingweight
3-wood (Wishon): 43.0" long, 2,785 MOI, D-4 swingweight
Hybrid (Mizuno): 40.5" long, 2,747 MOI, D-4 swingweight

3-iron: 39.5" long, 2,728 MOI, D-3
4-iron: 39.0" long, 2,728 MOI, D-3
5-iron: 38.5" long, 2,728 MOI, D-5
6-iron: 38.0" long, 2,728 MOI, D-6
7-iron: 37.5" long, 2,728 MOI, D-6
8-iron: 37.0" long, 2,728 MOI, D-6
9-iron: 36.5" long, 2,728 MOI, D-7
PW: 36.25" long, 2,728 MOI, D-8
SW: 35.75" long, 2,728 MOI, D-9
LW: 35.5" long, 2,728 MOI, D-9

3JACK

Examination of Birdie Zone Play on Tour - Part II

2012-01-04T17:01:00.000-08:00

In part I, I showed players who had ‘big lag’ swings and their Birdie Zone rankings in 2011. I don’t have the resources to delve into every ‘non-big lag’ swing, but let’s take a look at some of the top Birdie Zone players in 2011 and their swings.

Luke Donald - #1 Birdie Zone play

Advanced Total Driving: 132nd

Safe Zone: 1st
Danger Zone: 46th

Camilo Villegas – 2nd in Birdies Zone Play

Advanced Total Driving: 130th

Safe Zone: 91st
Danger Zone: 173rd

Steve Stricker – 4th in Birdie Zone play

Advanced Total Driving: 80

Safe Zone: 55
Danger Zone: 95

Shane Bertsch – 6th in Birdie Zone Play

Advanced Total Driving: 97

Safe Zone: 6
Danger Zone: 44

Brian Davis - 7th in Birdie Zone play

Advanced Total Driving: 34

Safe Zone: 16
Danger Zone: 47

Justin Leonard – 9th in Birdie Zone play

Advanced Total Driving: 123

Safe Zone: 37
Danger Zone: 177

Brian Gay – 16th in Birdie Zone play

Advanced Total Driving: 124

Safe Zone: 28
Danger Zone: 126

Bryce Molder – 19th in Birdie Zone play

Advanced Total Driving: 129

Safe Zone: 48
Danger Zone: 137

While I discussed ‘Big Lag’ swings in part 1, the more important common denominator is shaft lean at impact. Out of the 7 players listed, each of them finished in the top-20 in Birdie Zone play in 2011. Furthermore, each of them do not have a lot of shaft lean at impact.

Examining their rankings in the 4 main ballstriking metrics, only Luke Donald and Shane Bertsch were as strong in another category as they were from the Birdie Zone. And that happened to be the ‘kissing cousin’ of the Birdie Zone, the Safe Zone (125-175 yards). In fact, each player ranked the best in Birdie Zone play and second best in Safe Zone play. Furthermore, the order of best category ranking to the worst category ranking, typically went like this:

1. Birdie Zone Play
2. Safe Zone Play
3. Advanced Total Driving
4. Danger Zone Play (Donald and Bertsch being the exceptions).

All that being said, let’s make a couple of things clear:

A. Each of these players have shaft lean at impact. However, the top players in the Birdie Zone tend to have much less shaft lean at impact than the worst players in the Birdie Zone.

B. Most amateurs do not have to worry about having too much shaft lean. In fact, more often than not amateurs do not have enough shaft lean at impact, even with shorter irons and wedges.

My feelings (currently) is that this goes to show that in the Birdie Zone, particularly on the PGA Tour, distance control rules the roost over directional control. And thus the best players from the Birdie Zone are not so much better at controlling the direction, but much better at controlling the distances over the worst players from the Birdie Zone. Thus, shaft lean tends to play a major influence on a golfer’s ability to control the distance with the wedges.

We will have to examine Safe Zone and Danger Zone play in the future. But my gut tells me that the further the distance from the cup on those Zones, the more of an influence compression and directional control play in a golfer’s efficiency from those Zones.

3JACK

Examination of Birdie Zone Play on Tour - Part I

2012-01-03T16:44:00.000-08:00

An interesting discussion we have had on the forum (http://richie3jack.proboards.com) is with regards to ‘lag.’ Recently, we have been discussing it with regards to wedge play.

One of the things I have been curious is ‘do golfers with a lot of lag in their swing play worse in the Birdie Zone?’ It sure seems like it. I believe the ‘big lag’ players have more issues with controlling their distance.

You can find the rankings of PGA Tour players this year in the Birdie Zone in the 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis e-book at http://issuu.com/richie3jack/docs/2011_progolfsynopsis

First, let’s take a look at the worst players in the Birdie Zone in 2011. I will only look at players whose swings I can find on YouTube, so we can determine how much lag they generate in their swing. I am also just seeking out the players with ‘big lag’ swings:

John Senden (Birdie Zone Play – 184th)

Advanced Total Driving: 14

Safe Zone: 58
Danger Zone: 18

Rod Pampling (Birdie Zone – 182nd)

Advanced Total Driving: 11

Safe Zone: 101
Danger Zone: 150

Sergio Garcia – (169th)

Advanced Total Driving: 82

Safe Zone: 52
Danger Zone: 9

Scott Stallings – (158th)

Advanced Total Driving: 72

Safe Zone: 98
Danger Zone: 11

Tommy Gainey – 151st

Advanced Total Driving: 77

Safe Zone: 71
Danger Zone: 64

Paul Stankowski – 109th

Advanced Total Driving: 178

Safe Zone: 105
Danger Zone: 99

Boo Weekley – 100th

Advanced Total Driving: 1

Safe Zone: 114
Danger Zone: 6

Rickie Fowler – 68th

Advanced Total Driving: 93

Birdie Zone: 68
Safe Zone: 100
Danger Zone: 10

Lucas Glover – 67th

Advanced Total Driving: 50

Safe Zone: 20
Danger Zone: 92

Webb Simpson – 48th

Advanced Total Driving: 28

Safe Zone: 62
Danger Zone: 38

What’s interesting is that we are looking at each player’s rankings in 4 different metrics. No player listed has Birdie Zone play as their best metric of the bunch. In fact, only 1 player has Birdie Zone play as their second best metric (Fowler).

3JACK

Greatest Putt Ever...

2012-01-02T15:17:00.000-08:00

A little fun for the holidays. This putt-putt course is actually down the road from where I live. I'm not sure what AimPoint says about this :)

3JACK

3Jack Golf Blog's 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis E-Book

2011-12-29T15:39:00.001-08:00

The 2011 Pro Golf Synopsis book is up and can be viewed at the following link, free of charge.

http://issuu.com/richie3jack/docs/2011_progolfsynopsis

I plan on doing a Pro Golf Synopsis on an annual basis. As I mentioned on the blog, I plan on developing the Pro Golf Synopsis in the future and estimate I will charge $12.95 for the e-book.

However, the inaugural Pro Golf Synopsis is free. If you would like to donate to the blog, my PayPal e-mail address is rhuntccu@yahoo.com. You can also go to the blog (http://3jack.blogspot.com) and click the donate button on the upper right corner of the page. Any donation would be greatly appreciated.

Lastly, I wanted to thank all of the people that helped me with information on the book and my readers for their great support.

3JACK

Stock Shaft vs. True After-Market Shaft

2011-12-28T15:21:00.000-08:00

Here's a video that I thought was interesting, discussing a stock shaft vs. a 'true' aftermarket shaft.

On another forum this was discussed and most of the clubmakers stated that they had never seen this happen with their shaft pulls before.

I actually tend to agree with this video as recently I removed a stock shaft in a Cleveland 3-wood, re-aligned the spine of the shaft and re-installed it. When I hit it, the shaft broke.

Now, I used a shaft puller and low heat from a heat gun. I've used this method on 'true' aftermarket shafts and not one of them has splintered, but the Cleveland 'stock' shaft (Fujikura) was different.

That doesn't mean that all graphite shafts are this way (contrary to the video). The reason why a $300 driver may have a legitimate $300 'true' aftermarket shaft is that the shaft company and the OEM may come to a deal where they may pay a little above cost for each shaft. Let's say Aldila does this with Adams Golf (according to clubmakers, Adams Golf does have 'true' aftermarket Aldila shafts as their stock shafts).

Anyway...Aldila knows that Adams will purchase hundreds of thousands of shafts from them, if the price is low enough. But, other OEM's may be happy with just a stock shaft that is not of the same quality, but only costs them $10 per shaft.

3JACK

4th Annual 3Jack Awards

2011-12-21T15:50:00.000-08:00

Here’s my annual statement in regards to these awards

I kind of do this with some caution. I am averse to taking myself too seriously. Years of playing golf will create that in a person because just as soon as you think you're hot stuff, the game will rear its ugly head right back at you. However, I thought it would be *fun* to go over the stuff I've reviewed this year and came up with my own "3Jack Awards." This is basically awards for things I watched, read or used during this year. Thus, it's not important as to when the product, video, book etc came out...it's whether or not I reviewed it this year. Anyway, you'll get the point soon enough.

Best Training Aid Device

Second Runner Up: Orange Whip

Runner Up: Compression Board

Winner: The Can’t Miss Putting Aid

(3JACK NOTES: The training aid market has slowed down a bit in the past couple of years, but the Can’t Miss Putting aid incorporates a lot of the same principles of the GyroSwing into the putting stroke and makes the stroke feel more natural than using an aid where the shaft of the putter head is being guided. It will also help with the rhythm of the stroke as well.)

BEST YOUTUBE VIDEO

Second Runner Up: Kelvin Miyahira ‘Zach and Dustin, A Tale of 2 Johnsons’

Runner Up: AimPoint Golf’s ‘How Wide is the hole?’

Winner: Martin Chuck’s ‘An Afternoon With Moe.’

(3JACK NOTES: All 3 are excellent videos from Miyahira’s analysis of the differences in swings that create different amounts of power between Zach and Dustin Johnson, to AimPoint Golf’s video showing the importance of delivery speed and its effect on capture width of the cup to Martin Chuck’s fantastic video of the time spent with the legendary Moe Norman.)

BEST PREMIUM INSTRUCTIONAL VIDEO

Second Runner Up: Pete Cowen Golf Academy DVD’s

Runner Up: Steve Elkington’s ‘Tour Quality Short Game’

Winner: Brian Manzella’s ‘Anti-Summit I’

(3Jack Notes: Like the training aids, instructional DVD’s have decreased over the past couple of years as well. I put a YouTube video of Elkington’s Short Game video because there was no trailer for Manzella’s Anti-Summit. I found Cowen’s DVD to have some interesting points to it, but also to be lacking. The Elkington video goes over a lot of basic TGM stuff and how it creates different shots. The Anti-Summit video is more informational than instructional.)

BEST EQUIPMENT

Second Runner Up: Tour Edge CB4 Tour Driver

Runner Up: Wishon 555C and 555M irons

Winner: Edel Putters

(3JACK NOTES: Tour Edge continues to impress with their ability to make top-caliber drivers and fairway woods. The CB4 Tour has a great look to it and performs very well. My personal choice of irons, the Wishon irons have far exceeded my expectations. They look, feel and perform great and are designed to prevent digging. Dollar for dollar, the best stuff on the market right now. Finally, Edel Golf continues to make the best putters on the market.)

BEST EQUIPMENT COMPONENT or CLUBMAKER TOOL

Second Runner Up: Talamonti Shafts (www.talamontishafts.com)

Runner Up: GolfMechanix Auditor MOI Machine (www.golfsmith.com)

Winner: Harrison ShotMaker Insert (www.harrison.com)

(3JACK NOTES: Talamonti Shafts are designed by Phil Talamonti, the co-founder of SST Pure. They are high caliber, affordable shafts that are worth trying. It was a coin flip on the winner, but I chose the Harrison ShotMaker because I find it to be such a revolutionary and important component for golf since graphite shafts are pretty much mandatory in woods these days and the stability and quality control factors often ruin how they perform for the golfer. I had been playing with the ShotMaker in my 3-wood and recently inserted one in my driver and my driving quickly improved. The main reason I took the ShotMaker over the MOI Machine is that the Shotmaker is cheaper and can be taken out and put into new club. But, the MOI Machine has been a fantastic piece of equipment, well worth the $500.)

BEST EQUIPMENT MANUFACTURER

Second Runner Up: Miura Golf (www.miuragolf.com)

Runner Up: Wishon Golf (www.wishongolf.com)

Winner: Titleist (www.titleist.com)

(3JACK NOTES: Titleist comes away with the award for the second year in a row. While I do not use Titleist equipment myself, it’s difficult to dethrone them when their entire range of offerings is top notch, from the drivers to the fairway woods to the hybrids to the muscleback irons to the game improvement irons to the Vokey wedges to the Cameron putters and the golf ball. I think Wishon makes a great line of equipment, particularly their irons, wedges and drivers. I plan on trying out their fairway woods (949MC and 929HS) which have the same high COR that Taylor Made is raving about with their Rocketballz line.)

BEST GOLF WEB SITE

Second Runner Up: Secret In The Dirt (www.dirters.com)

Runner Up: The Sand Trap (www.thesandtrap.com)

Winner: My Golf Spy (www.mygolfspy.com)

(3JACK NOTES: 3 excellent golf sites filled with information and fun for golfers. Again, it was a bit of a coin flip for the winner as The Sand Trap has great articles and reviews on the world of golf and equipment. I went with My Golf Spy because they continually amaze me how much inside information they can get on the equipment world and they actually have much more information than they publish, but legal issues prevent them from coming forward with that information.)

BEST GOLF BLOG

Second Runner Up: Sara Dickson PGA (http://saradickson.wordpress.com)

Runner Up: Top 100 Courses in the World (http://top100golf.blogspot.com)

Winner: Gotham Golf Blog (www.gothamgolfblog.com)

(3JACK NOTES: Before anybody says anything…thanks for the kind words, but I can’t vote for myself due to an obvious bias. Sara Dickson is a 3Jack Golf Blog Certified D-Plane Instructor. I think she’s just a great writer and I usually leave with something very insightful that makes me think about it further after reading her posts. She had one post in particular discussing her thoughts on caddying for a friend at the LPGA Q-School and saying that she realized that pretty much every player had talent, it was just a question of who trusted their talent more than anything. That’s far more intuitive than most stuff I read about golf, even by seasoned writers.

The Top 100 Courses Blog is one man’s quest to play each of the top 100 courses in the world. Currently, he has played all but Augusta National. He then reviews each course with great detail and excellent pictures as well. One of the things I’ve wanted to go over more in my own blog is with course design and architects. I’ve gotten some preliminary information on the subject, but this blog can teach you a lot about that aspect of the game.

I think most know about Ralph Perez’s ‘Gotham Golf Blog’ which is similar, but still different from my own blog. I think he does such a tremendous job of getting the opinions and theories of so many golf instructors.)

BEST LOOKING SWING (CURRENTLY) ON YOUTUBE

Second Runner Up: Gary Woodland

Runner Up: Robert Rock

Winner: Mike McNary (www.mcnarygolf.com)

(3JACK NOTES: Woodland is pretty obvious. He generates incredible power and does it rather effortlessly with nothing really goofy standing out. Oh, how I would love to see Rock come over from Europe to play on the PGA Tour full-time. And Mr. McNary continues to be tough to be for this title.)

3JACK

Important 3Jack E-Book Announcement

2011-12-20T15:45:00.000-08:00

I am pleased to announce that I am almost finished with my e-book, 2012 Pro Golf Synopsis, a look at using advanced statistical analysis towards the game and the PGA Tour.

Initially, I had planned to charge $12.95 for a purchase of the e-book, in a .pdf file. But after much consideration, I have decided that I will be giving the e-book away for free for this year.

While I'm quite pleased with the progress I've made so far, I would like to get the book finished before the first tournament of the PGA Tour season (January 6th - Hyundai Tournament of Champions).

Pro Golf Synopsis will be a bit lengthy and thus it will require a lot of editing and while I had offers for free editing services, I don't want to burden those people with so much editing work and wanting them to do it in such a short period of time.

Furthermore, I have some ideas as to how I want the Pro Golf Synopsis to look in the future and I cannot do it for this past season because I didn't start my statistical research until about May of this year.

All in all, I just feel that there is too large of a learning curve for the initial 'offering' of the e-book and I didn't want to charge readers for that.

What I will probably do is put a 'PayPal Donation' tag on the blog and those who would like to contribute money for my effort, can feel free to do so.

In the end, I feel this is the best route to take as I can make alterations to the e-book based on feedback and other ideas I have in mind and then charge a fee for the e-book.

In the meantime, if somebody has a Web site where I could host the 2012 Pro Golf Synopsis file for free downloads, please let me know. I can be PM'd on the forum or e-mailed at Richie3Jack@yahoo.com

In the meantime, enjoy this rare Ben Hogan swing video that I recently spotted on YouTube.

3JACK

Downhill Flop Shot Over a Bunker Video

2011-12-19T16:28:00.000-08:00

A nice video from 3Jack Golf Top 20 Putting/Short Game Instructor, Shawn Clement. If there was one thing that I liked from Hank Haney's 'The Haney Project', it was how he went over various difficult shots with each student (Barkley, Romano and Limbaugh). These are the shots that often kill good rounds and send rounds immediately into a tailspin for a golfer. You can wind up with a tricky short game shot on the 2nd hole, flub a couple into the bunker, take a 9 and pretty much ruin the rest of your day.

For more experienced and skilled golfers like myself, we have hit those difficult shots many times and have the ability to figure it out when we haven't. So, it's always good to learn these shots and if you can, practice them as well so you will be prepared if the situation occurs.

Shawn can be found at www.shawnclementgolf.com

3JACK

Wishon On MOI vs. Swingweight

2011-12-15T15:52:00.000-08:00

This comes from Tom Wishon (www.wishongolf.com) in his latest eTech Report with regards to MOI matching vs. Swingweight matching.

TWGT was the first company in 2003 to introduce the equipment and procedures for matching golf clubs by their moment of inertia (MOI) as an alternative to the traditional method of building clubs to a matched swingweight. Since that time, more than 700 clubmakers worldwide have invested in the MOI measurement and matching equipment with which to build golf clubs to offer golfers a means of matching clubs in a set based on an actual amount of force generated by golfers during their swing.

Invented in the 1920s, swingweight has been the predominant method used by all golf companies for assembling golf clubs to a form of weight distribution balance. Swingweight has been agreed by technical experts in the golf industry to be an arbitrary form of weight feel matching, based simply on the use of a specific scale and not related to an actual physical effort generated by golfers during the swing. TWGT’s MOI matching is based on building each club in the set to require the same amount of effort from the golfer to swing the club to unhinge the wrist-cock angle and release the club to hit the ball.

One of the common questions we hear about MOI matching is the subject of this month’s technical article, “how does swingweight compare to the MOI of an assembled golf club, and vice versa?” From this come other questions such as, “Does swingweight offer the same weight feel if it is duplicated for different lengths and different total weights in golf clubs?” In other words, “is D2 at one length and total weight the same as D2 at a different length and different total weight?” Or, “If D2 is a golfer’s best swingweight, will all clubs built for this same golfer need to be built to the same D2 swingweight?”

To come up with a means to answer the question in a technical manner and illustrate the relationship of swingweight and MOI, TWGT conducted a series of simple exercises to compare the swingweight and the MOI in a series of different drivers. Drivers were built with 4 different weight shafts at 3 different lengths with 3 different swingweights for each length, with the MOI for each measured. Below is a table that reveals the MOI for each different example driver.

CLICK TO ENLARGE

In this test, please understand we are operating on the basis that the MOI of the assembled clubs is a fair indicator of similar to identical swing feel among the clubs. We base this premise on not only our experience with golfers and clubs built to MOI, but from feedback we have received from many of the clubmakers who have built MOI matched clubs for many golfers. Therefore, the above chart information can be taken to show that when drivers of different length and different shaft weight are made to the same swingweight, because their MOI’s are different, the actual swing feel of the drivers will also be different. In other words, D2 at 46” with a 76 gram shaft will not swing and feel the same as D2 at 45” with a 68 gram shaft. The same is true for any other comparison of clubs of identical swingweight but different length and different shaft weight. As playing length and shaft weight both decrease, the MOI also decreases, which has the effect of changing the swing feel of the club as well as changing the force required by the golfer to release the club to impact with the ball.

Next in our test we tackled the question, “if we know that clubs of the same swingweight but different length and shaft weight do not have the same swing feel, what then could be done to the swingweight to allow these clubs of different length and shaft weight to feel closer to the same when they are swung?”

Again, for this answer we turn to the MOI of the test drivers for a possible answer. Note the data in the following chart

CLICK TO ENLARGE

What the above chart says is that as playing length and shaft weight decrease, to achieve the same swing feel in the club, the swingweight should be increased. In other words, if you build clubs to swingweight and you are decreasing the length of an existing driver for a golfer or building a new driver for the golfer, as length and shaft weight decrease in the club, the swingweight needs to increase slightly to restore the same swing feel at the longer length and heavier shaft weight.

Finally, as a result of all this work to test assemble drivers to a wide assortment of different lengths and shaft weights, we felt it might also be beneficial to simply share the information gathered for what a;; these different combinations of headweight, shaft weight, grip weight and length came out to be with respect to the swingweight, MOI and total weight. Or as one Clubmaker told us not too long ago, “there is no such thing as too much technical information about golf clubs!”

Have fun, and of course we welcome any comments or questions you may have either through our clubmaker forum or by email at contact@wishongolf.com

CLICK TO ENLARGE

3JACK

More AimPoint Musings...

2011-12-14T18:56:00.000-08:00

After my latest get-together with David Graham (david.graham@vacationclub.com) working on AimPoint, I had some new thoughts on the subject:

1. If you went to an AimPoint clinic awhile ago, you need to go to the Advanced clinic or to an AimPoint instructor who is up-to-date on AimPoint.

I won't get into it too much, but David calls it 'chunking' and I refer to it as 'fragmenting the read.' Mark Sweeney has come up with a new method to help calculate the read that is simpler, quicker and makes even more sense. Even if you are quite good at AimPoint, learn how to 'fragment the read' and you'll thank me later for pointing this out to you.

2. AimPoint is about more than learning how to read greens.

What I've realized is that AimPoint is really a system that helps the golfer understand putting as a whole.

Not only the read of the putt, but what does it take for this putt to go in?

What putts are the toughest to make?

What putts are the easiest to make?

Why is speed so important?

That and many other questions that can now be answered much more accurately.

So, teaching people where to aim and how to read greens is only part of the equation.

3. Practice, practice, practice.

This is really where it's at. You need to practice because:

A. It helps you develop better feel with your feet.

B. Helps with understanding how to calculate the read faster and more accurately.

C. Helps get your routine down quicker.

D. Helps you develop more trust with the reads and the speed required to make the putt.

E. Helps with the execution of the putt.

4. 3Jack's way of figuring out the perceived read

Part of the issue one will face with AimPoint is being able to figure out what the read looks like. Let's say I have a putt that says 6 inches outside the right edge of the cup. That 6 inches will look different from 20 feet away than it would 5 feet away or 50 feet away.

One thing I do is I will walk up to the cup and stand nearly over the cup. I will then try to figure out what the distance looks like at the edge of the cup. In this instance, I may see that 6 inches from the right edge of the cup is where this lighter green colored spot is.

Then, I will focus on that spot as I walk back to my ball and that is the point where I will aim at.

5. Classifying User Errors

Here's how I classify my errors on putts missed (provided that they are a physically makeable putt).

General Read Error - This the worst of the errors to make because you are giving yourself almost no chance of making the putt. A good example is if I have a putt that I read to break to the right and it breaks left...that's an error.

After awhile, those type of errors will become less and less. But, you might still find these errors if you read a break to the right and it is straight or if you read a 1-way break and it has a double break to it.

For instance, Sunday on #13 at Eastwood Golf Club, I read a 10 inch break to the right and what it did was it broke to the right and about 3 feet to the cup it broke slightly left and then straightened out. That's a 'general read error' in my book. I didn't notice the slope going the other way the last 3-feet to the cup. But, that's more acceptable than a reading a putt to break one way and then it breaks the other way.

Calculation Error - This is when you make the general read correct, but your calculations are a bit off. You might read the putt at 6 inches, but mis-calculated the amount of slope and it actually breaks 10 inches. Or you might think you are at 4 o'clock on the fall line, but you are actually at 5 o'clock, and thus your read of 36 inches is actually at 10 inches.

For those who understand the fragmenting concept, sometimes I find that I screw up the math because I forget the numbers. But again, practice makes perfect.

Execution Errors - When the general read and calculation is correct, now it comes down to execution. There are a bunch of execution errors...here are some of them:

Perception Error - your perception of 6 inches outside the left edge is actually 10 inches outside the left edge.

Aiming Error- Perception is correct, but you aimed left or right of the target.

Speed Error - Putt hit too hard or too soft.

Mis-Hit Error - Putt hit off the toe or heel moves the ball off-line.

However, one of the great aspects of AimPoint is that it is designed for the putt to go to the middle of the cup. So even if you are off on any of these aspects of execution, you can still have a shot at making the putt. I just like to classify the errors to help with my AimPoint skills.

#makeeverything

3JACK

Quick On Course AimPoint Lesson

2011-12-13T18:30:00.000-08:00

Nice little video.

3JACK

Force and Golf - Part III

2011-12-12T17:00:00.000-08:00

In part III, I will discuss the role that force plays in equipment and clubfitting.

Again, let's go back to our golfers I have used as examples of a 'full sweep' release (Shane Bertsch).

And here's our 'snap' release in John Senden.

SHAFT FLEX

I feel Tom Wishon has a pretty good tool to help figure out what type of shaft a golfer needs. You can check this out at:

http://forums.wishongolf.com/shaftfit/ShaftFit.asp

The components that they ask for are:

- Clubhead Speed
- Downswing Transition
- Wrist-cock release position

The only thing about this is that it recommends Wishon's own type of shafts, but he does have a variety of them in different characteristics.

The other thing we have to remember is that when we 'tip trim', it makes the shaft stiffer and will make the ball launch higher with more spin.

But, what we'll see is that the faster the clubhead speed or the harder the transition or the later the wrist cock, the stiffer the shaft tends to become. The only thing that has a bit of variance to it is the tip trimming.

I tell people this:

I can hit some tremendous shots with a shaft that is too weak of a flex for my golf swing. But, the issue is the consistency of being able to to hit those shots. That's because it becomes more difficult for me to time when that shaft is going to kick. IIRC, Dr. Sasho Mackenzie (http://people.stfx.ca/smackenz/publications.html) states for every 1 cm of that shaft kicking, it will close the face by 0.7* and add to the dynamic loft. That's in part why we tend to hit it higher and hook shafts that are too weak for us. The shaft kicks too much, too soon for us to handle.

Thus, somebody like Senden with the snap release, that club is accelerating much quicker than Bertsch'es full sweep release. Even if they were swinging the same clubhead speed, the difference in acceleration has to be accounted for. Thus, somebody like Senden needs a stiffer flex shaft to help the club not kick too much, too soon. And Bertsch needs a weaker flex so he can get the proper amount of kick.

WEIGHT

In the past, we've generally seen Tour golfers with more of a snap release have heavier swingweights. And that's typically what clubfitters do for golfers.

While the principle was somewhat logical, what we now know about MOI matching, I think we have a far superior alternative.

Swingweight of course...is a measurement of the dynamic weight of the club when we are swinging it.

MOI (for these purposes) measures the amount of force required to swing the club.

So swingweight is measuring the gravitational pull of the club as we swing it. But, MOI (for these purposes) is measuring the force required which is Mass x Acceleration.

Since I purchased my MOI machine, I am simply amazed at the accuracy of readings it gives. For instance, I hit my Wishon 555C 4-iron extremely well, but stuggled with the 3-iron. Finding out, the MOI for the 4-iron was 2,702. The 3-iron was 2,625 (they should be +/- 5 from the base MOI). I put some lead tape on the 3-iron and started hitting the 3-iron instantaneously better.

I also have a set of Mizuno TN-87 irons. I always struggled with the 8 thru PW, but hit the 3 thru 7-irons quite well. When I measured them on the machine, the 3 thru 7-iron were all in the range between 2,727 - 2,740. When I measured the 8 thru PW, they were in the range fo 2,655 - 2,670.

The concept of using swingweight was a good attempt as well as making the swingweight heavier for 'snap' release swings. If the club is too light for a snap release swing, the club could be accelerating too quickly for that light of a weight and then the golfer may wind up making a drastic adjustment to their swing.

But, since we have ways to measure the MOI, we can get a more accurate and important measurement.

We also have to remember this...I can have 2 different Mizuno MP-68 6-irons. I can make them the the same length and the same exact swingweight. But, they can have very different MOI readings.

I could simply put a heavier shaft in one of the 6-irons and backweight it enough until the swingweight matches the other 6-iron with the lighter shaft in it. But, the mass in both clubs is different and it could possibly affect the acceleration quite a bit as well.

MOI matching does make you hit the ball great. But, what it does is it helps get rid of those clubs you always seem to not hit as well as the rest of the clubs in the bag. Why? Because you don't have to alter your swing to get the right amount of force required to swing the club.

3JACK
\

3Jack Golf Blog Updated Certified D-Plane Instructor List

2011-12-10T18:02:00.000-08:00

Here's an updated list of the Certified D-Plane instructors. I've recently added the following instructors:

Sam Quirke (United Kingdom)
Chris Lutes (Canada)
Josh Boggs (Ohio)
Tim Cooke (South Carolina)
Justin Blazer (Florida)
Matt Diedrichs (Canada)
Tony Trace (Ohio)
Stephan Kostelecky (Oklahoma)
Rob McGill (Tennessee)
Dennis Sales (Rhode Island)
Matthew Wilson (Canada)

Alabama

Mark Blackburn
Guntersville, AL
www.blackburngolf.com

Alaska

Arizona

Denny Alberts
Tuscon, AZ
www.dennyalbertsgolf.com

Steve Bishop
Scottsdale, AZ
contact info not available

Chuck Evans
Mesa, AZ
www.chuckevansgolf.com

Arkansas

Australia

Steve Khatib
Carlton, Sydney and Melbourne, Australia
www.golfdynamics.com.au

California

Dana Dahlquist
Long Beach, CA
www.dahlquistgolf.net

Paul Gorman
Fairfax, CA
Phone: 415-699-9117

Chris Gustin
San Juan Capistrano, CA
www.axisonball.com

Andrew Marr
San Diego, CA
www.andrewmarrgolf.wordpress.com

Bill McKinney
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA
Phone: (949) 702-2022

Michael McLoughlin
San Diego, CA
Phone: (858) 602-8608

Mike McNary
Santa Ana, CA
www.mcnarygolf.com

Mac.O.Grady
Palm Springs, CA
www.macogradygolfschools.com

Canada

Matt Diederichs
Victoria, BC
mattd@highlandpacificgolf.com

Chris Lutes
Coquitlam, BC
778-968-4653

John Randle
Victoria, BC
www.randlegolf.com

Nick Starchuk
Toronto, ON
www.nrsgolf.com

Matthew Wilson
Toronto, ON
mattwilsongolf@gmail.com

Colorado

Connecticut

Dave Bove
Trumbull, CT
www.davebovegolf.com

Matt Noel
Norwalk, CT
mattnoel@silverminegolf.com

Delaware

Florida

Mario Bevilacqua
Destin, FL
Phone: (484) 995-1629

Justin Blazer
Orlando, FL
http://www.gofaldo.com/faldo-golf-instructors.html

Robert Campbell
Miami, FL
www.robertcampbellgolf.com

Dan Carraher
Winter Garden, FL
http://dancarrahergolf.com

Sara Dickson
Naples, FL
http://saradickson.wordpress.com

Sean Foley
Orlando, FL
www.coregolfacademy.com

David Graham
Orlando, FL
(407) 238-7677

Keith Handler
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
www.wix.com/keithhandler/keith-handler-golf#!

George Hunt
Orlando, FL
www.moradgolfgeorgehunt.com

Steve Sieracki
West Palm Beach, FL
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

TJ Yeaton
St. Augustine, FL
www.tjyeaton.com

Georgia

Jeff Evans
Macon, GA
www.pureballstriker.com

Tom Losinger
Woodstock, GA
Phone: (770) 345-5557

Brian McGrew
Dalton, GA
Phone: (706) 299-0013

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Nick Clearwater
Chicago, IL
Clearwater@PGA.com

Ronnie Martin
Addison, IL
www.ronniemartingolf.com

Indiana

John Dal Corobbo
Carmel, IN
www.johndalcorobbo.com

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Mike Finney
Anchorage, KY
www.brianmanzella.com

Chris Hamburger
Simpsonville, KY
Phone: (502) 722-2227

Jon Hardesty
Anchorage, KY
www.brianmanzella.com

Louisiana

James Leitz
Slidell, LA
http://www.pinewoodcc.net/instruction.html

Brian Manzella
New Orleans, LA
www.brianmanzella.com

Rob Noel
Abita Springs, LA
www.robnoelgolfacademy.com

Brad Pullin
Choudrant, LA
bradpullin@squirecreek.com

Maine

Maryland

Damon Lucas
Upper Marlboro, MD
www.lakepresidential.com/institute/team.cfm

Phil Rosenbaum
Hunt Valley, MD
(410) 527-4653 ext. 115

Massachusetts

Billy Bondaruk
South Dennis, MA
www.billybondaruk.com

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Netherlands

Meindert Jan Boekel
Rijswijk, Netherlands
www.mjboekel.nl

Nevada

Joseph Mayo
Las Vegas, NV
www.radargolfacademy.com

Tom Sheely
Las Vegas, NV
www.radargolfacademy.com

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

John Graham
Webster, NY
www.johngrahamgolf.com

Mike Jacobs
Manor Hill, NY
www.nygolfworld.com

North Carolina

Bill DeVore
Charlotte, NC
billdevoregolf@gmail.com

Spencer Huggins
Buies Creek, NC
www.hugginsgolf.com

David Orr
Buies Creek, NC
www.orrgolf.com

Jason Sutton
Charlotte, NC
www.golfgurutv.com

North Dakota

Ohio

Josh Boggs
Canal Westchester, OH
(614) 596-1057

Tony Trace
Columbus, OH
(614) 507-8963

Oklahoma

Stephan Kostelecky
Oklahoma City, OK
(405) 749-0000

Oregon

Martin Chuck
Bend, OR
www.tourstriker.com

Pennsylvania

Erik Barzeski
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Mike Bennett
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

John Dunigan
Newton Square, PA
www.johndunigan.com

James Hirshfield
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Andy Plummer
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

Kevin Shields
Sewickley Heights, PA
www.brianmanzella.com

Dave Wedzik
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Audrey Ziff
Warminster, PA
(215) 517-7452

Rhode Island

Dennis Sales
Providence, RI
www.dennissalesgolf.com

South Carolina

Tim Cooke
Hilton Head, SC
www.mygolfprep.com

Andrew Rice
Bluffton, SC
www.andrewricegolf.com

South Dakota

Switzerland

Jaacob Bowden
Zurich, Switzerland
http://www.jaacobbowden.com

Tennessee

John Dochety
Tullahoma, TN
http://www.lakewoodgcctullahoma.com/

Errol Helling
Franklin, TN
www.errolgolf.com

Rob McGill
Murfreesboro, TN
www.rm4golf.com

Texas

United Kingdom

Phillipe Bonfanti
Swanage, UK
www.philippebonfantigolf.co.uk

Ian Clark
Surrey, UK
www.ianclarkgolf.co.uk

Sam Quirke
Surrey, UK
http://www.samquirke.co.uk

Simon Williams
Grantham, Lincolnshire, UK
www.simonwilliamsgolf.co.uk

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

3JACK

Force And Golf - Part II

2011-12-07T15:28:00.000-08:00

In part II, we will discuss force and putting.

One of the questions I received from readers on my putting stroke mechanics series was 'why do heavier putters work better on faster greens and lighter putters work better on slower greens?'

The main point behind that concept is this: we want to make it so the golfer does not have to adjust their stroke too much going from one green speed to another.

This is a concept that companies like Edel Golf, who have interchangeable weight system in their Vari-Weight putter line, utilize.

So, let's go over some brief putting stroke concepts:

Tempo - The rate at which the putterhead swings in the stroke. Tempo can be fast, slow or somewhere in-between.

Rhythm - Keeping the tempo of the putter the same going back as it does thru. Not being able to do that is 'poor rhythm.'

Stroke Length - The length that the golfer swings the putterhead back. Typically, the longer the putt the longer the stroke length.

Now remember, we really want to keep the rhythm in tact. It doesn't quite matter what type of stroke you utilize or grip you use or if it's a fast tempo or a slow tempo, we want to have 'good' rhythm in our putting stroke.

Thus, what tends to alter as the green speed changes is the tempo and the stroke length. And that's where chaning putter weight can play a big role.

But, we have to go back to 'force.'

Force = Mass x Acceleration

Now, what do we know about green speeds and putting?

Faster Greens = less force required to get the ball to the cup.

Slower Greens = more force required to get the ball to the cup.

So, when we are on a faster putting surface, we increase the weight because that slows down our acceleration, which creates less force for a putt that requires less force.

Conversely, on slow greens we make the putter lighter because that increases our acceleration. This creates more force for a putt that requires more force.

AN EXAMPLE

Let's say you have a 30 foot putt. Your first time putting it's an 8 on the stimpmeter. The second time you putt, it's the same putt except the speed has been alterd to a 10 on the stimpmeter.

If you appropriately change the weights, and make the putter heavier with the faster stimp, you will have to make less of an adjustment to your putting stroke length and tempo. Your tempo will more naturally slow down because the putter is heavier, so will your acceleration.

So let's say you take that 30 foot putt on an 8 stimp and your backswing is 15 inches long. With the same putt on a 10 stimp, with the weight changed, that backswing may be 13 inches long.

But, if you didn't change the weights, you may go from a backstroke of 15 inches long on the 8 stimp to a backstroke of 7 inches long on the 10 stimp.

Thus, the change in weight allows the golfer to do less alteration of their putting stroke and that tends to make it easier for them.

FORCE AND PUTTING STROKE TECHNIQUE

We'll go back to part I where I discussed more of a 'full sweep' release versus 'snap' release in the golf swing.

Here's John Senden with the 'snap' release.

Here's Shane Bertsch with a 'full sweep' release.

There's a similar type of concept in putting. Somebody with a wristy stroke, like Arnold Palmer, is more like John Senden (snap). Somebody with a swinging/pendulum-esque stroke, like Ben Crenshaw, is more like Bertsch (full sweep).

The acceleration is different as well. Arnie's wristy stroke is more likely to accelerate more than Crenshaw's swinging, pendulum-esque stroke.

That's why most good wristy putters employ shorter and faster tempo strokes. While one could use a wristy stroke that is long and slow in tempo, it's a bit difficult to do since the wrists really want create more acceleration. Conversely, the swinging stroke usually creates less acceleration and the golfer has to find a way to get the ball to the cup, so they create a larger stroke.

In the end, the idea is that one can putt well with a wristy or swinging stroke, but they should probably try to find the compatible stroke length and tempo with that stroke action, otherwise they will fight consistently applying the right amount of force on the ball.

3JACK

Force And Golf - Part I

2011-12-06T16:52:00.000-08:00

First up, I wanted to direct some readers over to Ralph Perez’s Gotham Golf Blog with reference to a new technology called ‘4D Swing.’ I am a big fan of Ralph’s blog, but I try to keep the topics different because I think that allows readers to get more information for them. I would check out these links on 4dswing:

http://www.gothamgolfblog.com/2011/12/4dswing.html

http://www.gothamgolfblog.com/2011/12/tapio-santala-cto-of-4dswing.html

One more note, for those instructors looking to become D-Plane certified, please be patient as I’ve been very busy with the holidays. I will get everybody up to date in the next week or two.

In this series I will be discussing ‘Force’ in the golf swing. I was discussing this with a friend of mine and we agreed that not only is force crucial in the golf swing, but golfers could benefit from learning about force and then understand how to apply it in their game. But, force actually goes beyond the golf swing, which is what I will discuss in parts II and III.

So, what is force?

Force = Mass x Acceleration

First, let’s start with Mass.

What is mass?

Mass is the amount of matter in an object. This is different from weight because weight is the amount of gravitational pull an object has. Thus, if an object weight 200 pounds on earth, it will have much more gravitational pull than if the object is placed on the Moon. However, it’s mass will still be the same.

What is acceleration?

Acceleration is the increase in the rate of speed. If we are driving a car that is going 60 mph and then we press on the gas to make it go 80 mph, the velocity of the car is 80 mph, but the acceleration is 20 mph.

IMPORTANT TO NOTE: I’m probably not phrasing this technically correct…but, acceleration has more influence on force than mass. That’s why we can’t just make our drivers super heavy in order to increase power off the tee. While the mass increases, the acceleration will likely be less and that dip in acceleration dampens the amount of force we can deliver to the club.

FORCE IN THE GOLF SWING

A big part of this I will get into in part III. But, let’s take a look at a golfer with more of a ‘full sweep release’ versus a golfer with more of a ‘snap release.’

Here’s a ‘full sweep release’ executed by Shane Bertsch.

As you can see, Bertsch ‘releases’ the clubHEAD, downward pretty early. To the layman golfer, they would probably think that Bertsch was bordering on ‘casting’ the club.

Now, let’s take a look at a ‘snap’ release by John Senden.

With Senden’s swing, he waits until the very last second to release the clubHEAD. To the layman golfer, it would appear that he has a lot of lag and is ‘driving the butt of the club past the ball.’

Now, it’s not to say that one is better than the other (in fact, Bertsch’s ballstriking metrics came out better than Senden’s in 2011). But, it’s to say that they are different swings that produce very different amounts of acceleration. In fact, Bertsch generates about 107 mph of clubhead speed compared to Senden’s 116 mph of clubhead speed.

And that difference in clubhead speed is probably, in large part, due to the different style of releases between Bertsch (full sweep) and Senden (snap).

The Golfing Machine discussed this for a bit with its Endless Belt Concept (2-K in TGM). Let’s say you have a rock that is tied to a length of string. Let’s say you want to twirl the rock in a circle from the other end of the piece of string. If you twirl it around in a big circle, like somebody trying to use a lasso, the amount of acceleration will be less, than if you ‘tighten’ the circle. Essentially, Bertsch has a much larger circle than Senden. In TGM, they would say that Bertsch’s ‘pulley’ is larger than Senden’s ‘pulley.’

Let’s say Bertsch wanted to greatly increase his clubhead speed. One way he could achieve this is by developing more of a snap type release like Senden has. That would increase his acceleration and create more force.

The problem is that golf is not based solely upon clubhead speed and power, it also has to do with accuracy and precision. Thus, somebody like Bertsch who attempts to go to more of a snap release, could struggle to do so. Lastly, it’s not that a full sweep release player cannot hit the ball long, but they will require more from their body pivot to help with the acceleration of the club.

Part II – Force and Putting, tomorrow

3JACK

Underrated PGA Tour Swings - Part V

2011-12-05T17:34:00.000-08:00

Here we take a look at Alex Cejka:

Advanced Total Driving: 151st

Birdie Zone Ranking: 131st
Safe Zone Ranking: 7th
Danger Zone Ranking: 4th

Overall Zone Play Ranking: 9th
Total Ballstriking: 81st

Here are his radar stats:

Clubhead Speed: 107.4 mph
Launch Angle: 13.3* (5th highest on Tour)
Spin Rate: 2,495 rpm (33rd lowest on Tour)
Driving Distance Efficiency Ranking: 11th

Cejka's driving ranking is nothing to write home about, but it's more about his lack of clubhead speed than actual precision and accuracy. He actually finished 37th in fairway percentage, but 123rd in distance to the edge of the fairway on shots that wound up in the rough. This indicates that he was usually accurate off the tee, but when he missed he had a tendency to miss big. However, he was an elite mid to long iron player in 2011.

Here's a look at his swing.

Cejka is a Stack and Tilt player who utilizes a slightly more upright backswing than your typical S&T player uses. His swing is rather simplistic although he does appear to swing well out to the right with the driver, probably because if you look at his radar stats he appears to hit well up with the driver and by swinging out to the right (in this instance) it makes the path more square to the target.

Honorable Mention of Underrated Golf Swings:

Charles Warren - can't find a video of his swing, supreme ballstriking statistics.

Kyle Stanley - can't find a video of swing, young, but excellent ballstriking statistics

John Rollins - excellent driver of the ball and a solid iron player.

Robert Garrigus- More than just a bomber. Historically an *elite* mid to long iron player who also is a good short iron and wedge player.

Billy Mayfair - Probably the most underrated ballstriker and overrated putter of our generation.

3JACK

Underrated PGA Tour Swings - Part IV

2011-12-02T19:42:00.000-08:00

In part IV, let's look at the rather simplistic but effective golf swing of Brian Davis

Here are the rankings in my metrics:

Advanced Total Driving: 34th

Birdie Zone Play: 7th
Safe Zone Play: 16th
Danger Zone Play: 47th

Overall Zone Play: 6th
Total Ballstriking: 8th

Here's a look at his radar stats:

Clubhead speed: 106.1 mph
Launch Angle: 12.52* (13th highest)
Spin Rate: 2,335 rpm (9th lowest)
Driving Distance Efficiency Rank: 1st

3JACK

Underrated PGA Tour Golf Swings - Part III

2011-12-01T18:30:00.000-08:00

In part III we look at Chez Reavie. First, here are his rankings in my ballstriking metrics:

Advanced Total Driving: 5th

Birdie Zone Play: 129th
Safe Zone Play: 8th
Danger Zone Play: 12th

Overall Zone Play: 13th
Total Ballstriking: 5th

Here's a look at his radar stats:

Clubhead Speed: 110.3 mph
Launch Angle: 11.59* (44th highest)
Spin Rate: 2,632 rpm (71st lowest)
Driving Distance Efficiency: 2.65 (6th)

3JACK

Underrated PGA Tour Golf Swings - Part II

2011-11-30T16:26:00.000-08:00

Here's a look at Kevin Stadler's metrics from this year:

Advanced Total Driving Ranking: 52nd

Birdie Zone Ranking: 54th
Safe Zone Ranking: 26th
Danger Zone Ranking: 8th

Overall Zone Ranking: 7th
Total Ballstriking Ranking: 18th

Clubhead speed: 112.3 mph
Launch Angle: 11.7* (41st highest)
Spin Rate: 2,758 rpm (119th lowest)
Driving Distance Efficiency Ranking: 73rd

Similar to Jim Furyk, Stadler gets very upright in the backswing and then manages to flatten out the shaft tremendously in the downswing. I think Trackman and clubfitters would say that Stadler's driver is close to optimally fitting his swing becasue he's not generating too much or too little spin and the launch angle is not ridiculously high.

3JACK

Underrated PGA Tour Golf Swings - Part I

2011-11-29T16:14:00.000-08:00

For this week, I will be doing a 5 part series on 'Underrated Golf Swings on the PGA Tour.'

First, what makes a 'underrated golf swing?'

I believe that results matter. So, a golfer may have a very nice looking swing or something that appears mechanically sound, but if their results are poor, then it's not really a great swing. Stuart Appelby and Trevor Immelman are great examples of nice looking swings and 'name' players whose results do not match up with their swing cosmetics.

Anyway, one of the first players I discovered from the research in my e-book is Shane Bertsch.

Here's a look at Bertsch's stats:

Advanced Total Driving: 97th

Birdie Zone Ranking: 6th
Safe Zone Ranking: 6th
Danger Zone Ranking: 44th

Overall Zone Play: 3rd
Total Ballstriking: 26th

Clubhead speed: 107.9 mph
Launch Angle: 11.05*
Spin Rate: 2,284 rpm (3rd lowest)
Max Height: 67.3 feet (lowest on Tour)

Here's a couple of videos of his swing. I think from a body pivot perspective, his swing is exceptional.

3JACK

Putting Stroke Mechanics - Part V

2011-11-28T16:43:00.000-08:00

In the final part of the series, I will discuss how green reading can influence the putting stroke mechanics. As many of you may know, I am a big proponent of AimPoint Golf's green reading system (www.aimpointgolf.com).

First, let's go over the 'Geometry of a Putt.'

What many amateurs do is that they will aim at the apex of the curve instead of aiming above the apex of the curve. We essentially aim above the apex so when we make contact with the ball, it will roll on the intended line.

From a stroke mechanics perspective, this really plays into the first objective...obtain the optimal speed on the putt so we optimize the effective size of the cup. We WILL make more putts if the effective size of the cup is about 4 inches wide than if it is 3 inches wide or 2 inches wide or 1 inch wide.

What golfers tend to do (and I was guilty of this as well) is that they aim at the apex instead of above the apex.

You're probably asking 'how does that affect the stroke mechanics?'

Simple.

If you aim at the apex, the only way you are going to start making putts is if you stroke the ball harder to reduce the amount of break. Let's say the AimPoint chart says you need to aim 3 inches outside the right edge, but the apex is actually at 2 inches outside the right edge. If you aim at the apex (2 inches outside the right edge), you will need to stroke the ball harder to take off that 1 inch difference.

And what happens is that when you start missing putts by hitting them too hard, then you will probably counter that by hitting some putts too soft and then your brain goes a bit haywire on you and you start to lose confidence in your putting. You then start to blame it on other things like the putter, the stroke type (wristy, swinging, push/piston), jabbing at the ball instead of staying in rhythm, etc.

WHERE LEFTY GET IT WRONG

If you have watched Phil Mickelson struggle with the flatstick over the years, you will notice that his biggest struggles are from 3 to 10 feet. He will actually make a lot of long putts, but miss putts from short distance badly.

If you also watch Mickelson on those shorter putts, he usually has a tendency to miss with a hard lip-out or knock a 4-footer about 4-feet past the cup.

What happens with Mickelson on the shorter putts is that he has the philosophy of 'hit the putt harder so I can reduce the amount of break and that will make it easier for me to sink the putt.'

The problem is that Mickelson is actually shrinking the size of the cup he is putting to and actually making it MORE difficult to make that putt. He now has to be aimed more precisely, hit the sweetspot more precisely and hope that a small indentation or a spike mark does not knock the ball off that line at all.

If Mickelson understood optimal speed's impact on his putting and knew where to aim, he would make a lot more putts.

Good putting starts with good speed, not with a 'good line.'

TRUSTING AIMPOINT

One thing I've found is that many times I'll read a putt with AimPoint and I don't quite trust the read and then get penalized for that lack of trust.

For example, I may have a read of 12 inches outside the left edge. But, it may feel more like 7 inches.

Obviously, that can just be me being used to reading the apex of the putt and if I stroke the putt, I'll miss on the low side. But, it can also be a case of me mis-reading the *speed* of the putt as well. And often times I'll realize that I was prepared to hit the ball too hard for that putt and now I have to adjust my aim and adjust my stroke to hit the putt softer.

Over time, this will make an impact on the stroke mechanics you use to execute the proper amount of speed on putts.

ROLLING THE BALL OVER THE INTENDED TARGET

I find that if you use AimPoint and practice it, you can greatly improve this aspect if you are aware about it.

For instance, in the AimPoint clinic I attended, I would often see the other students get the read down and know *where* to aim, but they would mis-aim the putter and try to compensate with the stroke.

I mostly saw golfers aim too far left and then incorporate an inside-to-out stroke to get the ball at the target. And they would tend to miss putts breaking to the left too low and putts breaking to the right too high.

Here's the breakdown (for righties):

LEFT AIM BIAS = Miss left breaking putts on the low side, right breaking putts on the high side.

RIGHT AIM BIAS = Miss left breaking putts on the high side, right breaking putts on the low side.

Lastly, one can understand the physics imparted on putts better and use that to improve their stroke mechanics.

What a lot of people, even those who use AimPoint, don't understand is that the AimChart is just telling the golfer *where* to aim. It is NOT telling the golfer the line of the putt.

Essentially, it's telling you where to aim so you can roll the ball on the line needed to make the putt go dead center into the cup.

Where I find this extremely important is on putts that have more of an early break to them.

For example, I may read a 20-foot putt at 18 inches outside the right edge, but it feels like it will break more like 12 inches. That's because I don't see the break being as prononced.

However, what will happen is that after impact, the ball will IMMEDIATELY take off to the left in the first 3-feet. Then the next 17-feet of the putt the putt may roll relatively straight. But, if I didn't aim to the right of the cup enough, I would have never made the putt because I didn't correctly account for that break immediately after impact.

Those putts are putts that often confuse golfers. If they miss the putt badly left, they may incorrectly assume that they pulled the putt when they actually just mis-aimed the putt at address. So they start working on their putting stroke mechanics instead of working on their green reading skills and knowing where to aim.

3JACK

Putting Stroke Mechanics - Part IV

2011-11-23T19:45:00.000-08:00

In part III, I discussed the stroke mechanics that most closely relate to speed/touch. Now I will go over the stroke mechanics that relate most closely to getting the ball to initially roll at the intended target.

GIANT MYTH IN STROKE MECHANICS

Perhaps the greatest myth in putting stroke mechanics takes place at address. This is the myth that the golfer should have the 'eyes over the ball at address.'

There is no scientific evidence that this is required or it will make somebody a better putter.

Instead, I tend to agree with Geoff Mangum in that the eyes should be looking in the same direction as the person's face.

For instance, in the FULL golf swing, we see a lot of golfers being told to have their 'chin up' at address with their eyes looking down at the ball. Thus, their face is directed one way while their eyes are looking in a completely different direction.

Essentially, we are better off looking at the ball at address, whether it be a full swing or the putting stroke, just like we would look at a book to read a book. We would not have our chin up and look down to read a book. The same applies for putting or the full swing.

By 'looking at the ball as if you were reading a book', you'll start to aim a bit better and your stroke path will fit you a bit better.

HEAD SWIVEL

There is a series of free YouTube videos on the stroke by Geoff Mangum that start with this video (6 part series) that I highly recommend.

One of the important and overlooked factors that helps with aim at address is the head swivel *before* the golfer strokes the putt. Mangum discusses it in one of the videos.

Essentially, we look at the intended target one last time before we putt. Golfers can do themselves a lot of good by having a simple head swivel to look at the target.

Since I'm right handed, the head swivel would look at the intended target by moving my chin (from my perspective) in a clockwise position. The chin would move from 6 o'clock to about 9 o'clock.

As Mangum shows in the videos, it is best to swivel the head so if the golfer were to afix something in the center of the top of their cranium...it would *not* actually move. It would just rotate as your head swivels to look at the intended target.

When the top of the cranium moves, it messes with the aim.

The head swivel not only helps with aim, but also with the golfer getting a sense of feel for the speed required on the putt. It's really a 'bang-bang motion.' You want to head swivel, aim and get the feel, return the eyes to the ball and stroke the putt. If you take too long it can disrupt your speed.

Put it this way, it's amazing when watching amateurs who have a crucial putt and they concentrate on the read and line of the putt. They will often read it quite well and have the putt online...but leave it short. They focused on everything but the speed/touch.

All that being said, the head swivel probably helps more with aim than with speed, but it's important to note both.

STROKE PATHS

Here are the 'traditional' stroke paths that golfers have been taught.

1. Straight Back - Straight Thru

2. Symmetrical Arc

Here are some paths that golfers make despite not being taught them (and can still putt well with these strokes).

1. 'Cut Across' Stroke

2. Inverted Symmetrical Arc (looks like a 'U' shape to the golfer)

3. 'Inside-to-Out' stroke

Like I stated, there are golfers who have putted well with each type of stroke. They have a good sense of touch/speed on putts and one way or the other, they can get the putter face square to the target at impact to allow the ball to initially roll at the intended target.

FILMALTER / MANGUM RECOMMENDED STROKE PATH

Marius Filmalter is a former co-founder of the SAM Puttlab and TOMI putting system. He has a Web site at www.mariusgolf.com

He along with Mangum recommend a stroke that arcs in the backstroke, arcs back to impact and then goes straight thru, down the line in the follow thru.

The reason being is that what really matters is at impact we get the face square to the intended target. In putting, the stroke path tends to influence what the face does.

With a Straight Back Straight thru stroke, the golfer has to manipulate the putter face and their arms and shoulders in the backstroke. This can throw off the thru stroke.

With the symmetrical arc stroke, the follow thru has to arc inward. This can cause the golfer to manipulate the pivot action...albeit minute...of their shoulders and hips.

With the Filmalter and Mangum recommended stroke, we don't have to manipulate the back stroke or the follow thru. It takes a lot of the timing required in the Straight Back-Straight Thru and the Symmetrical Arc stroke.

Mangum's video 'Reality of Putting' has a part called the 'Hansel and Gretal' technique that will allow the golfer to easily achieve this type of stroke.

I've found that for me, my tendency is to open the putter face right before impact. The Hansel and Gretal technique does a great job of preventing the putter head from opening up at impact.

STROKE ACTIONS & STROKE PATHS & STROKE LENGTHS & STROKE TEMPOS & BALL POSITION

This is more about 'compatibility' than 'mandatory.' So it's more 'recommended' by me, than 'you must do this.'

It should be noted that if a golfer wants to use the Filmalter/Mangum stroke (arc back, straight thru) that they can have a bigger arc in the backstroke or a smaller arc in the backstroke. Also remember, we want the *rhythm* of the stroke to be the same back as it is thru. The *tempo* (pace the putterhead is moving) may be different.

Wristy Action

- bigger or smaller arc in backstroke

- shorter stroke length

- quicker tempo

- back or forward ball position

Swinging Action

- bigger or smaller arc in backstroke

- longer stroke length

- slower tempo

- back or forward ball position

Push/Piston Action

- smaller arc backstroke

- longer or shorter stroke length

- slower or quicker rhythm

- forward ball position

STROKE RHYTHM

As I discussed in part III, we want the pace of the putterhead to be the same in the backstroke as it is in the thru stroke.

What higher handicappers tend to do is that they have a pace that is either too slow or too fast.

Higher handicappers tend to start out by decelerating the putterhead in the thru-stroke. Then they either struggle with that OR they try to counter it by accelerating the putterhead. We want the pace to be in rhythm....same pace back as the same pace thru.

I find that those who decelerate, their 'bad' strokes almost always leave the putter face open at impact. Those who accelerate will have 'bad' strokes that will either push or pull.

According to the Karlsen and Nilssen study, the good players, including European PGA Tour players, almost always had a thru stroke that was too slow. Again, I believe this is because the good players tend to be more careful.

A question was posed by David Orr (www.orrgolf.com) as to why it seems like golfers made a lot more long putts when they were junior golfers and my belief is junior golfers had very good rhythm in their putting stroke even if the rest of the mechanics are sloppy. But, once they get better and gain experience, that experience works against them as they try to be more 'careful' and in turn, their thru stroke is moving too slow.

GRIP PRESSURE AND NECKLINE

One of the things I found interesting in Mangum's videos is how grip pressure plays such an important role in putting and how most people fix issues with putting by incorrectly adjusting their grip pressure.

With the way putters are designed, if the grip pressure is TOO LIGHT, the golfer is now more apt to have the putter face OPEN at impact and miss the putt to the right.

Thus, golfers tend to grip the putter TOO LIGHTLY and need to grip the putter MORE FIRMLY. Of course, gripping it too tight can be problematic as well. But, too many golfers grip the putter too lightly.

I believe it's simple. Golfer are taught to grip the putter lightly. And when they have some yips, they are told that they are need to grip the club even lighter. But, the reality is that they cannot afford to grip it lighter. There *might* be other issues with their poor putting than grip pressure, but the prescription of gripping the putter lighter is typically not a good one.

Lastly, Mangum shows the importance of the neckline and how that can affect what the putterface is doing at impact.

Part V tomorrow.

3JACK

Putting Stroke Mechanics - Part III

2011-11-22T19:17:00.000-08:00

In part I, I discussed that when it comes to mechanics, I believe golfers are better off at executing the process instead of focusing on the ultimate result (making the putt).

Meaning...when it comes to mechanics golfers should focus more on having the optimal speed/touch on a putt and rolling the ball initially at their intended target. If they do that...they will start making more putts.

Parts I and II went over the influence that the putter has on the mechanics and touch along with getting the ball to initially roll at the target.

Now we can discuss the actual mechanics. And in part III we will discuss the mechanics and their influence on the touch/speed.

But once again, let me reiterate that there is no one way to putt well.

THE IMPORTANCE OF SPEED/TOUCH

Here's the Mangum video on 'optimal speed.'

I'll go over the key points:

1. Speed of the ball influences the effective size of the cup.

2. We want to have the optimal speed in order to make the effective size of the cup the largest we can make it.

3. The larger the effective size of the cup, the more likely we will make the putt.

4. Optimal speed will be a speed where the ball hits the back plastic of the cup.

5. If the ball hits the back dirt, it can still go in...but it's NOT optimal speed. Same with if the ball lands on the middle of the cup.

6. Optimal speed is about 2-3 revolutions per/second

7. Pelz's 17 inches past the cup is factually incorrect.

8. Also, Pelz's 17 inches past the cup is not a 'speed', it's a distance.

From what I've been told, if you have optimal speed on a putt (2-3 revolutions per second) it will roll about 6 to 12 inches past the cup in most instances.

BUT, it will be closer to 6 inches past the cup on slower putts (slow stimp and/or uphill putts). And it will be closer to 12 inches on downhill putts (fast stimp and/or downhill putts).

TYPES OF STROKE ACTIONS

I'm going to classify the stroke actions as follows:

1. Pendulum Swinging (i.e. Crenshaw)

2. Wristy (i.e. Casper)

3. Push/piston with trail hand (i.e. DiMarco with 'Gator Grip')

Any one of these types of actions can achieve a good, consistent speed on putts. There is no 'bias' towards hitting them too hard or too soft with these types of actions.

GRIP

We have our basic grips in putting like the overlap, interlock, reverse overlap grips, etc. Those grips can be used in conjunction with swinging and wristy strokes. I don't recommend the push/piston action because of the position of the trail arm.

Lead Hand Low Grip - Ala Jim Furyk. Probably best for a swinging motion. So, if you like a wristy motion or a push/piston motion, lead hand low is a poor idea.

Corey Pavin Grip - Pavin had a grip where he put his right palm under the grip so the fingernails of the right hand would be on top of the pistol grip. This is more compatible swinging or push-piston grips. Not good with wristy strokes.

Split Grips - Hands split apart like Hubert Green. More compatilble with swinging or push/piston grips.

Hands bunched together - grip is more compatible with a wristy action.

Claw Type grips - this is a push/piston action grip. Avoid using swinging or wristy actions with this grip. If you use these type of grips, understand that it's for those who putt best with a push-piston action

ADDRESS POSITION

There's a lot of people who believe that Tiger putts so well (or at least did) because of his posture at address and want to employ a flat spine type of posture. To me, this is ridiculous since we have such a minimal amount of pivot in the putting stroke that posture does not play a role in our touch/speed on the green. I will get to the other part of this in part IV.

Furthermore, the 'flat spine' posture can actually hur tthe back since the spine is not designed as flat.

BALL POSITION - the ball can be moved forward or back, depending on one's stroke and the putter. If one has the ball back towards the middle of the stance and does not hit much down on the ball, they will probalby need a higher loft than somebody who has the ball position up in their stance and hits up on the ball.

Crenshaw played the ball forward and hit up more and putted best with a low lofted (2*) Wilson 8802 putter. Padraig Harrington played the ball back in his stance and did not hit as much up on the ball and putted best with a higher lofted Odyssey putter (4*).

I would recommend not playing the ball further back than the middle of your stance. I think any type of stroke action (wristy, swinging or push/piston) can utilize an upward or further back ball position, depending on how the golfer executes those strokes and what type of putter they have.

GRIP PRESSURE

A major fallacy in putting is that the grip should be loose. However, according to Mangum the grip should be 'firm.' Unfortunately, it's difficult to judge what is 'firm' and what is 'loose.' But, the way the putters are designed, a loose grip has a tendency to lead the putter blade open at impact.

What often happens is a golfer that has the 'yips' and leaves the blade open at impact will then tell themselves to loosen the grip and that just makes them yip it even worse. Thus, it hurts both their ability to hit the ball over the intended target and their speed.

STROKE RHYTHM AND LENGTH

For more on this, I highly recommend watching Geoff Mangum's 'Reality of Putting' video.

For these purposes, when I say 'rhythm' with the putting stroke, we want the putter head to be traveling at virtually the same pace going back as it does going thru.

It doesn't matter if the pace is fast or very slow, we just want the pace to be the same. Here's some good rules of thumb:

Swinging stroke = slower pace, longer stroke

Wristy stroke = faster pace, shorter stroke

Push/Piston stroke = faster pace, shorter stroke

Obviously, we run into 2 issues with rhythm:

1. Thru-stroke is at a faster pace than backstroke

2. Thru-stroke is at a slower pace than the backstroke.

What I've found usually happens is that when golfers first start to get into the game and struggle with their putting, it's because their thru-stroke slows down...mainly because they 'move their head.' Then, to counter that...they 'jab' at the ball by making their thru-stroke too fast.

But, according to the Karlsen and Nilssen study, they have found that low handicap golfers tend to make the mistake of having a thru stroke that is TOO SLOW. I believe that this is done because the golfer is trying to be 'too careful' in the thru stroke, particularly with the stroke mechanics, how well they hit the ball and their speed. But, by being 'too careful' they actually become WORSE with their stroke path, ball contact and speed.

Just remember, same pace back as the same pace thru.

TIP: When taking practice strokes, close your eyes and repeatedly make practice strokes focusing on your rhythm. Do NOT stop, just keep making the practice strokes. Say to yourself 'ONE (backstroke), TWO (thru-stroke) at the same pace.

STROKE LENGTH

One can have any sort of stroke length as long as it fits their stroke action.

Nicklaus' hybrid action of wristy and push-piston created a shorter stroke length. But, the rhythm was the same pace back as the same pace thru.

It's quite simple, the amount of distance once can hit the ball (provided it hits the sweetspot) is due to the speed of the stroke and the length of the stroke.

So, if I have Nicklaus and Crenshaw putting from 30 feet, with Nicklaus having a faster stroke, Crenshaw's stroke will need to be longer to get his slower paced stroke to the cup.

Golfers need to figure out if they are struggling with speed/touch, is it due to rhythm or is it due to the length of the putt. And then understand the basic principles of each type of stroke action (wristy, swinging or piston) and see what works for them the best.

MOVING THE HEAD

Obviously, moving the head is a bad thing. I find that it affects the line of the putt more than the speed, but it certainly affects the speed. It's not that the head cannot move, but it should not happen before or at impact. I recommend Mangum's 'Reality of Putting' video and check out the 'Hansel and Gretal' technique to avoid that head movement.

PRE-PUTT VISUALIZATION

Near the end of the 'optimal speed' video, Mangum states that the golfer should visualize the speed needed for the ball to go into the cup to where it hits the back plastic of the cup 'optimal speed.'

He also says that visualizing to hit a putt a certain length is NOT how the brain works best.

I agree. So when you're looking at the cup as you get to putt, I feel it's best to visualize the putt going into the cup at a certain speed than focusing on a length.

HOWEVER, if you happen to struggle with the speed, as a LAST RESORT I will aim to a certain distance. If the greens are playing slower than I thought, I may visualize 1 foot past the cup. If the greens are too fast, I may visualize front edge. But again, it's a LAST RESORT.

I highly recommend looking at Mangum's discussion of how the brain NATURALLY has touch and how to use stroke rhythm and tempo to use the brain's natural sense of touch to your advantage on the green.

part IV - NEXT

3JACK

Putting Stroke Mechanics - Part II

2011-11-21T16:14:00.000-08:00

In Part I, we discussed how the type of putter influences the stroke mechanics when it comes to speed/touch. Here, in part II, we will discuss how the type of putter influences our ability to get the ball to initially roll towards our target.

AIM AT ADDRESS

According to a study done by David Orr (www.orrgolf.com) which consisted of nearly 700 participants, ranging from the PGA Tour player to the 30 handicapper, here's what the results of their aim was from only 6 feet away (for right handed putters):

55% aimed left of the target
25% aimed right of the target
20% aimed at the target

Thus, 80% of the participants could not aim straight at the target from only 6-feet away.

THE IMPORTANCE OF AIM AT ADDRESS

I often get asked 'do you think all of the great putters aimed perfectly at the target at address?'

No.

In fact, Loren Roberts has been shown to aim 2* left of the target at address. He then gets the face pointing at the target at impact.

Essentially, what Roberts does is make the PROPER AMOUNT of COMPENSATION on a CONSISTENT basis.

The issue most golfers have, even if they are a PGA Tour pro, is that they cannot make that proper amount of compensation or cannot do it on a consistent basis.

That's why aim at address is important, it does not force the golfer to make a big compensation with their stroke to get the putter face pointing at the target at impact.

I'll put it this way, I think if one were to give Loren Roberts a putter that he could aim square at the target, he would have to make some adjustments to his putting stroke since he is used to a putter that aims left of the target. But, I think he could make that adjustment wherease I think a golfer who goes from a putter they aim square to a putter that they mis-aim could not make those adjustments.

PUTTER PROPERTIES THAT AFFECT AIM THE MOST

Here's what I believe are the main ones:

- Putter Head Design
- Alignment Lines & Sight Dots
- Hosel Design
- Loft

PUTTER HEAD, HOSEL AND LINES/DOTS DESIGN

The design and shape of the putter head, the hosel design and the lines/dots all can affect the way a golfer aims the putter.

This is something that Edel Golf focuses much of their effort on with their putters.

Since 80% of golfers cannot aim straight at the target, they idea is that when a golfer mis-aims, Edel fitters will try to fit them to a putter and gradually 'steer' their aim back towards the target.

For example, when I got fitted...I aimed right of the target. First, they worked to find a putter head shape that gets golfers to aim further left. Then they started to work on the hosel design that helps get golfers aiming left. Then they worked on the alignment lines and sight dots that gets golfers aiming more left. As the fitting went along, my aim gradually became less and less right of the target until they got me aiming at the cup.

REASONS FOR AIM BIAS TENDENCIES

From what I've been told, the reasons for aim bias has to do with where the golfer's eyes focus upon when they aim the putter.

A right handed golfer with a leftward aim bias (55% of golfers), tends to use the back part of the putter too much to aim the putter. This would be towards the cavity (for cavity back putters), away from the ball.

The rightwards aim bias golfers (25% of golfers), tend to use the front edge of the putter to aim.

Once again, I am a rightward aim bias golfer (25%). I am also left eye dominant, despite being right handed. There is a tendency for left eye dominant, right handed players to aim to the right. That's because their left eye is more over the leading edge of the putter and using that to aim the putter. The majority of right handed people are also right eye dominant. Which explains why the majority of right handed golfers have a left aim bias.

PUTTER DESIGN AND AIM BIAS

Here's some basics:

Head Design - Wider heads = more left. Thinner heads = more right. Thus, a Ping B60 model = more left, Ping Zing 2 model = more right. There are also factors like the topline and the shape of the edges of the putter head. But again, attributes that get the golfer looking more at the back of the putter head means the golfer will aim more left. Conversely, looking more at the front edge will get the golfer to aim more to the right.

Hosel - More offest = more left. Less offset = more right. Center shaft = more right. Same principles with where the golfer looks at the putter head to aim the putter apply.

Alignment Lines/Dots - On the cavity = more left. On the top line = more right. No dots or lines = more to the right.

Again, one does not *have* to have an Edel putter to aim correctly (or to putt well). But, I have 2 major issues with a lot of OEM Puters.

1. They have 'conflicting aim properties.'

Meaning, they'll have properties that tend to aim golfers very far to the right and other properties that will aim the golfer to the left. Like a Ping B60 model (aim left), with a center shafted design (aim right).

2. The wacky designs shapes

This is VERY important to understand.

According to the Karlsen and Nilssen study, what they found was that golfers who used mallet and high MOI putters actually THOUGHT that they aimed BETTER. But, in REALITY they were aiming it WORSE and they had more DISPERSION in their aim.

OEM's have created putters that are the perfect marketing product for them. They can create a high MOI putter and market it as a putter that rolls the ball better on mis-hits and that appears to the golfer to aim better, when it actually aims WORSE. Then when the golfer struggles with it, they wind up buying a new high MOI putter because they THINK they aim it better.

As one reader responded in Part I about how he feels he doesn't aim belly and long putters as well...I think it has more to do with the design of the putter head than length of the putter.

As Geoff Mangum has said, you want the shapes and lines to be relatively simple. The reason why I praise Edel putters is that the fitting focuses on your aim and you don't get those 'conflicting aim properties.' But, if you don't want to go the Edel route...figure out your aim bias and find a putter that has those type of aim attributes.

LOFT AND AIM

Simple enough:

More Loft = aim bias more towards the left.

Less Loft = aim bias more towards the right.

However, this brings up another instance of 'conflicting aim properties' of a putter. Many OEM's may have a putter that has properties to aim the golfer more to the right, but then has a high amount of loft which forces the golfer to aim to the left.

Thus, if you play on slower greens and want more loft, remember that the extra loft will tend to move your aim left. So, you might want a putter with 'aim properties' that promote rightward aim bias enough so the extra loft just offsets it.

LIE ANGLE AND PUTTER LENGTH

I've gone over the facets that affect aim at address. Now I want to discuss the additional factors that influence the ball initially rolling at the intended target.

I feel the 2 main properties that we have not discussed are lie angle and putter length.

LIE ANGLE

Here are 3 big influences that lie angle can have on the mechanics:

1. Where on the face the ball is struck

If the lie angle is too flat, the heel will stick up in the air. This will promote the golfer hitting the ball more towards the heel. Steve Stricker is one of the greatest putters in the world who employes this method.

Isao Aoki did the opposite, with the lie angle too upright and his toe would stick straight up.

Even if you miss the sweetspot by 1 dimple (0.14 inches), it will influence the initial direction. As far as mechanics go...

Toe up = wristy stroke, rightward aim bias

Heel up= swinging pendulum stroke, leftward aim bias

Of course, if the lie angle fits you...then you don't have to make a compensation.

LIE ANGLE AND STROKE PATH

Lie angle also tends to influence what type of stroke path the golfer will employ. The more upright the lie angle, the straighter the path will be. The flatter the lie angle, the more of an arc the path will be.

Thus, if you want to employ more of a straight back and straight thru stroke, you should want a more upright lie angle. If you are more comfortable with an arc in the stroke, go with a flatter lie angle.

SHAFT LENGTH

I feel shaft length influences the type of stroke (wristy, swinging or push) and the stroke path (SBST, Arc, Inverted Arc). As far as 'getting the ball to initially roll towards your intended target', the type of stroke path influences your ability to hit the ball square on the sweetspot and to get the face to point at the target at impact.

I think with non-belly and non-long putters, the stroke path can vary. But, with the belly putter, the stroke path almost HAS to be an arcing path. That's because the putter is anchored against he belly.

With the long putter, the path almost has to be close to Straight Back and Straight Thru as one can possibly get it. This is due to the upright lie angle that goes with the shaft length.

Again, it's something to remember. If you feel comfortable with a SBST stroke, I wouldn't advise buying a belly putter that is compatible with an arcing stroke.

REVIEW

1. Getting the aim at address right allows us to get the face square at impact with less compensations in our stroke. Mis-aim at address, golfer has to make a compensation to get the face square at impact.

2. Wider putter heads = promote left aim bias. Thinner putter heads = promote right aim bias.

3. More offset = promote left aim biase. Less Offset = promote right aim bias.

4. Alignment lines in cavity = promote left aim biase. Alignment lines on top line = promote right aim bias.

5. Keep shapes and lines simple for best aim.

6. Mallet/High MOI putters fool golfers into thinking they aim better, but typically they aim them worse when the aim is measured with a laser.

7. More Loft = Left aim bias. Less Loft = right aim bias.

8. Upright Lie Angle = more SBST and swinging stroke.

9. Flatter Lie Angle = more ARC and wristy stroke.

10. Belly Putter promotes a noticeably arcing stroke

11. Long Putter promotes more of a SBST stroke.

12. A 'push' stroke with the trail hand is best at SBST.

PART III tomorrow

3JACK

Updated 3Jack Certified D-Plane Instructors List

2011-11-20T17:21:00.000-08:00

If you are a professional instructor and would like to become certified, please e-mail me at Richie3Jack@yahoo.com

I've added the following instructors to the list:

Audrey Ziff (Pennsylvania)
Andrew Marr (California)
Bill Devore (North Carolina)
Jaacob Bowden (Switzerland)
Brian McGrew (Georgia)

So, here's the list updated:

Alabama

Mark Blackburn
Guntersville, AL
www.blackburngolf.com

Alaska

Arizona

Denny Alberts
Tuscon, AZ
www.dennyalbertsgolf.com

Steve Bishop
Scottsdale, AZ
contact info not available

Chuck Evans
Mesa, AZ
www.chuckevansgolf.com

Arkansas

Australia

Steve Khatib
Carlton, Sydney and Melbourne, Australia
www.golfdynamics.com.au

California

Dana Dahlquist
Long Beach, CA
www.dahlquistgolf.net

Paul Gorman
Fairfax, CA
Phone: 415-699-9117

Chris Gustin
San Juan Capistrano, CA
www.axisonball.com

Andrew Marr
San Diego, CA
www.andrewmarrgolf.wordpress.com

Bill McKinney
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA
Phone: (949) 702-2022

Michael McLoughlin
San Diego, CA
Phone: (858) 602-8608

Mike McNary
Santa Ana, CA
www.mcnarygolf.com

Mac.O.Grady
Palm Springs, CA
www.macogradygolfschools.com

Canada

John Randle
Victoria, BC
www.randlegolf.com

Nick Starchuk
Toronto, ON
www.nrsgolf.com

Colorado

Connecticut

Dave Bove
Trumbull, CT
www.davebovegolf.com

Matt Noel
Norwalk, CT
mattnoel@silverminegolf.com

Delaware

Florida

Mario Bevilacqua
Destin, FL
Phone: (484) 995-1629

Robert Campbell
Miami, FL
www.robertcampbellgolf.com

Dan Carraher
Winter Garden, FL
http://dancarrahergolf.com

Sara Dickson
Naples, FL
http://saradickson.wordpress.com

Sean Foley
Orlando, FL
www.coregolfacademy.com

David Graham
Orlando, FL
(407) 238-7677

Keith Handler
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
www.wix.com/keithhandler/keith-handler-golf#!

George Hunt
Orlando, FL
www.moradgolfgeorgehunt.com

Steve Sieracki
West Palm Beach, FL
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

TJ Yeaton
St. Augustine, FL
www.tjyeaton.com

Georgia

Jeff Evans
Macon, GA
www.pureballstriker.com

Tom Losinger
Woodstock, GA
Phone: (770) 345-5557

Brian McGrew
Dalton, GA
Phone: (706) 299-0013

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Nick Clearwater
Chicago, IL
Clearwater@PGA.com

Ronnie Martin
Addison, IL
www.ronniemartingolf.com

Indiana

John Dal Corobbo
Carmel, IN
www.johndalcorobbo.com

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Mike Finney
Anchorage, KY
www.brianmanzella.com

Chris Hamburger
Simpsonville, KY
Phone: (502) 722-2227

Jon Hardesty
Anchorage, KY
www.brianmanzella.com

Louisiana

James Leitz
Slidell, LA
http://www.pinewoodcc.net/instruction.html

Brian Manzella
New Orleans, LA
www.brianmanzella.com

Rob Noel
Abita Springs, LA
www.robnoelgolfacademy.com

Brad Pullin
Choudrant, LA
bradpullin@squirecreek.com

Maine

Maryland

Damon Lucas
Upper Marlboro, MD
www.lakepresidential.com/institute/team.cfm

Phil Rosenbaum
Hunt Valley, MD
(410) 527-4653 ext. 115

Massachusetts

Billy Bondaruk
South Dennis, MA
www.billybondaruk.com

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Netherlands

Meindert Jan Boekel
Rijswijk, Netherlands
www.mjboekel.nl

Nevada

Joseph Mayo
Las Vegas, NV
www.radargolfacademy.com

Tom Sheely
Las Vegas, NV
www.radargolfacademy.com

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

John Graham
Webster, NY
www.johngrahamgolf.com

Mike Jacobs
Manor Hill, NY
www.nygolfworld.com

North Carolina

Bill DeVore
Charlotte, NC
billdevoregolf@gmail.com

Spencer Huggins
Buies Creek, NC
www.hugginsgolf.com

David Orr
Buies Creek, NC
www.orrgolf.com

Jason Sutton
Charlotte, NC
www.golfgurutv.com

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Martin Chuck
Bend, OR
www.tourstriker.com

Pennsylvania

Erik Barzeski
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Mike Bennett
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

John Dunigan
Newton Square, PA
www.johndunigan.com

James Hirshfield
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Andy Plummer
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

Kevin Shields
Sewickley Heights, PA
www.brianmanzella.com

Dave Wedzik
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Audrey Ziff
Warminster, PA
(215) 517-7452

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Andrew Rice
Bluffton, SC
www.andrewricegolf.com

South Dakota

Switzerland

Jaacob Bowden
Zurich, Switzerland
http://www.jaacobbowden.com

Tennessee

John Dochety
Tullahoma, TN
http://www.lakewoodgcctullahoma.com/

Errol Helling
Franklin, TN
www.errolgolf.com

Texas

United Kingdom

Ian Clark
Surrey, UK
www.ianclarkgolf.co.uk

Phillipe Bonfanti
Swanage, UK
www.philippebonfantigolf.co.uk

Simon Williams
Grantham, Lincolnshire, UK
www.simonwilliamsgolf.co.uk

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Putting Stroke Mechanics - Part I

2011-11-17T16:33:00.000-08:00

Recently, I had a reader e-mail me with questions in regards to putting stroke mechanics. There was also thread in the forum with regards to Jack Kuykendall's 'Top Spin Putter.' Here's a video for that product.

I wanted to go over my thoughts on the Putting Stroke Mechanics in a 5-part series.

Homer Kelley famously stated that there is no one way to swing a golf club. I believe the same is true for the putting stroke. Here's ten great putters off the top of my head:

Ben Crenshaw
Bobby Locke
Jack Nicklaus
Loren Roberts
Bill Casper
Brad Faxon
Luke Donald
Payne Stewart
Seve Ballesteros
Greg Chalmers

Each of them have different stroke mechanics. Some of them with extremely different stroke mechanics. Thus, I don't make any attempt to convince people to utilize the same stroke mechanics as say Luke Donald (who led the Tour in Putts Gained the past 3 seasons). Instead, I hope to have readers understand some basic concepts of stroke mechanics and better understand how to execute those mechanics...whichever they choose.

First, I like to get the objectives of stroke mechanics down. Let's NOT worry about hitting the ball into the cup. Why? Because ANYBODY can make 1 putt into a cup. The real key is to consistently make a lot of putts. And I believe when we focus more on the PROCESS than the final end result, it will allow us to improve our final end results over time.

To put it simply, the main objectives of stroke mechanics are:

1. Optimize the speed/touch put on the ball.

2. To get the ball to initially roll towards our intended target.

If we can do those 2 things consistently, I GUARANTEE you will improve your putting. And if we can do those 2 things consistently, I think it's likely we can be a great putter by ANY standard (amateur, Tour pro, competitive putting competitions, etc).

For this part in the series, I want to discuss the equipment and how it plays a part in stroke mechanics.

As some of you may know, I am a huge proponent and owner of an Edel Putter.

Now, that does not mean one cannot putt great with another putter. In fact, here's a look at the players that finished in the top 10 in Putts Gained in 2011 and the putter OEM that they use:

1. Luke Donald (Odyssey)
2. Steve Stricker (Odyssey)
3. Bryce Molder (Scotty Cameron)
4. Charlie Wi (Scotty Cameron)
5. Greg Chalmers (Bobby Grace)
6. Fredrik Jacobsen (Odyssey)
7. Jason Day (Taylor Made)
8. Kevin Na (Scotty Cameron)
9. Scott McCarron (Taylor Made)
10. Brandt Snedeker (Odyssey)

As we can see, there are a variety of different putters used by the players in the top-10 in putting. However, those players have great access to these putters and can find a putter that they aim very well. Whereas the average amateur golfer does not have the access to go out and try different putters.

With the putter itself, we have the following factors that can influence the stroke mechanics:

1. Putter head design
2. Hosel design
3. Length
4. Shaft flex
5. Grip
6. Lie angle
7. Loft
8. Weight
9. Aiming lines and sight dots

Now...so we don't forget...let's go back to the 2 basic objectives of stroke mechanics.

A. Speed/Touch
B. Initial roll of the ball at the target.

THE PUTTER AND SPEED/TOUCH

Weight - The general rule of thumb, which was backed up by the Karlsen and Nilssen study, is that lighter putters work better on SLOWER greens.

Yes, lighter works better on slower. It has to do with the amount of force required to swing the lighter putter and the amount of force to hit the putt on a slower green.

Conversely, HEAVIER works better on FASTER greens.

One of the nice features of Edel Putters is their Vari-Weight option. Zebra putters had this option as well. If you were playing faster greens, you can simply add some additional weight.

SHAFT FLEX - One thing the Edel Golf line of putters offers that I haven't seen in other putters is that you are fitted for the actual putter shafts. If I recall correctly, the more wrist action, the stiffer the shaft.

Thus, if you are more like Billy Casper, the shaft flex will be stiffer than say more of a pendulum looking stroke like Ben Crenshaw. This runs along the same line for golf club shaft fitting. Somebody with a 'snap release' ala Sergio will need a stiffer flex shaft than somebody with a 'full sweep release' like David Toms. It's because the acceleration profile of their swing is different. So, somebody with a wristy stroke like Casper would accelerate the putter more than Crenshaw.

HOWEVER, we do need to note what 'acceleration' is. Acceleration is the increase in speed. Thus, somebody can have a slower paced stroke, but actually accelerate it more.

I will get into acceleration with the putting stroke in part II.

SHAFT LENGTH

Obviously, there have been some great putters with different length shafts. Andy North's putter looked pretty short. I'm 6'4" tall myself and only carry a 34 inch putter. Raymond Floyd carried a putter at 37 inches. Then there are the belly and long putters.

I think the general point about the shaft length of a putter is that in putting, we want to have the putterhead moving moving back and thru at the same pace. We just need to understand that depending on what type of stroke we employ, what that pace will be. We can have a very quick pace as long as it's the same quick pace back and thru. And we can have a very slow pace as long as it's the same slow pace back and thru. We do NOT want fast back, slow thru or slow back and fast thru.

The general point to keep in mind is:

wristy = faster stroke tempo = shorter stroke length

swinging pendulum = slower stroke tempo = longer stroke length

If you are not using a belly or long putter, I feel the principles are simple. The longer the putter, particularly for a person's own height...the more wristy the stroke will become.

Mainly because the elbows are forced to bend more. If the arms are straight, then it constitutes less wrist action in the stroke.

Of course, some of this will depend on the golfer's posture. I don't believe Nicklaus had a longer putter, he just bent over more. That causes his elbows to be bent more and he used more wrist in his stroke.

I feel it's good to keep the principle of the shaft length in mind because if you have a wristy stroke, you probably don't want a 32 inch putter since it's not really compatible to your wrist action. You're essentially using a putter (32 inches long) that is more compatible with a swinging, slower tempo stroke.

Either that or you need to crouch over more like Nicklaus did or be very short in physical height.

BELLY AND LONG PUTTERS

I'm not very experienced with belly and long putters. I feel the belly putters are more designed for a swinging, pendulum action because the belly is used as a pivot point. So, if you feel comfortable with a wristy stroke with a 35 inch putter, going to a belly putter may not suit you.

With the long putters, I think it's how you grip the club with the trail hand. If it's gripped more like a 'claw' grip with the trail hand, now the stroke is more of a 'push' motion than a swinging motion. If you grip with the trail hand so the hand is somewhat like a normal putting grip, then it's more like a swinging motion...kinda like the belly putter.

I think the reason why many golfers don't see a lot of improvement in their putting when they go to the belly or long putter is that they often don't realize that the stroke is more of a swinging pendulum type stroke or a push stroke and they putt best with more of a wristy stroke.

LOFT

Loft is a bit more simple to understand when it comes to the stroke mechanics and speed/touch. A golfer generally wants more loft on slower greens and less loft on faster greens. This has to do with the ball rolling onto the grass blades of the green. With slower greens, the grass blades are longer. Therefore, we need more loft to launch the ball initially above the grass blades enough. Loft is probably not considered enough by people buying putters. And some popular putter companies have 4 to 5* of loft on their putters, which may be entirely too much.

Loft also plays an impact on the stroke mechanics. Typically, one wants more loft on the putter if they have a lot of shaft lean in their stroke or utilize a forward press. It's also good to have more loft if the ball position is further back in the golfer's stance.

Somebody like Crenshaw used a low lofted putter (2* Wilson 8802) with a lot of forward press.

However, at impact Crenshaw 'loses' some of that forward press he had at address.

Still, the course that Crenshaw played great at was Augusta, the fastest greens on Tour. And he did that despite being a short hitter off the tee and a sub-standard ballstriker.

I believe that Crenshaw, in his prime, probably struggled much more on slower Tour greens than he did on faster greens because of his putting stroke and putter he used.

OVERVIEW FOR PUTTER AND SPEED/TOUCH

Let's go over the basic synopsis of what has been discussed in Part I:

1. We want to find what type of putting stroke we are comfortable with: A) Wristy B) Swinging C) Push with Trail hand

2. Wristy = longer putter length so the elbows are noticeably bent. Stiffer shaft flex, slightly heavier putter. Avoid belly and long putters.

3. Swinging = shorter putter lengths or belly/long putters. Weaker shaft flex, slightly lighter putter.

4. Slow Greens = More loft, lighter putter.

5. Fast Greens = Less loft, heavier putter.

For somebody like myself, who uses a swinging-pendulum type stroke and plays on slow greens...I use a 34 inch Edel Putter with 3* loft and slightly lighter putter. This is more compatible with the slow greens and my slower, pendulum-swing type stroke.

part II tomorrow

3JACK

Dr. Gary Wiren Response to 3Jack Post on Wiren & Ball Flight

2011-11-16T16:22:00.000-08:00

Back in March of this year, I wrote up a blog post on Dr. Gary Wiren's speech at the PGA Teaching Summit in conjunction with Trackman discussing the new ball flight laws.

That post can be found here:

3Jack Blog Post on Dr. Wiren And Ball Flight Laws

Dr. Wiren recently replied to me via e-mail with regards to that blog post. With his permission, below is his e-mail to me. I will let the readers decide for themselves.

**********************

Richie,

In case you haven't gotten around to reading what you are criticizing let me print it out for you.

Page 34, PGA Teaching Manual... "The direction in which the ball starts will always be the result of a combination of swing path direction and clubface position. Where the ball starts will also be influenced by the velocity of the clubhead. The slower the clubhead is traveling, say in a putt of chip, the more precisely the ball will come off in the direction the clubface is presented. With greater cluhead speed, the ball's starting path will move somewhat closer to the swing path line than before, but will always fall in between the face and path direction favoring the face angle. It is sometimes incorrectly stated that the ball starts on the swing path line. This is true only when the face is at right angles to that line. So remember, the face has a greater influence than path..."

Also on that page is a diagram of a wood clubhead that indicates the path, the face, and where the ball starts. The picture indicates very clearly that around 80% of the starting direction is influenced by the angle of where the clubface is pointing. Does it need to be anymore clear? The caption reads; "Although the path of the swing does influence the ball's starting direction it is of less influence than the face."

Now you are obviously a bright guy, but I find it difficult to understand how you can criticize something you haven't taken an effort to read. All I saw was that you bemoaned the fact that the book wasn't available to you. But it would have been if you walked into any golf shop and asked the pro for his copy. That is sloppy scholarship. After giving up 2 1/2 years of my life, plus the chance to compete in senior golf, as I had just turned fifty when I started writing, I get testy when I find a critic who hasn't read the book...and by the way the whole book was quite good. The comments that the PGA Teaching Manual is wrong, sheds a negative light on the entire work. (Note: The book now needs updating with current pictures, new technology, recent research, etc. and I have lobbied to get that done. But not because the Ball Flight Laws were WRONG!)

Trackman has done a good scientific job of measurement. But they promoted their product by denigrating my work. I do not criticize them although they certainly supported the criticism of the Manual. This is even though we came to the conclusion of FACE being more important then PATH for the ball's starting point 20 years before they started talking about it.

Don't say we didn't consider ANGLE OF ATTACK. I created that term (originally I called it angle of approach) as one of the factors in ball flight. I did not have access to the technology that showed the spin influence from that angle but we acknowledged it as a LAW. Now tell me, which of these factors,
PATH, FACE, CENTEREDNESS, ANGLE OF ATTACK, and SPEED does not influence a golf ball's flight? They all do so why are those five BALL FLIGHT LAWS wrong and why are they labled "Old" as if they were wrong?

I recognize that using the title LAWS from a scientific standpoint my be incorrect. SPEED, for example, in scientific terms would be called velocity. But this was not a text book for scientists...the golf world talks about clubhead speed,(not clubhead velocity), so I wrote it in the language of golf.

Respectfully, (not always what I got) Gary

Gary Woodland Swing Sequence

2011-11-14T18:11:00.000-08:00

Here's a video where Gary Woodland discusses his swing with the driver.

3JACK

Updated 3Jack Golf Blog Certified D-Plane Instructor List

2011-11-13T17:56:00.000-08:00

If you are a professional instructor and would like to become certified, please e-mail me at Richie3Jack@yahoo.com

I've added the following instructors to the list:

Robert Campbell (Florida)
David Graham (Florida)
Sara Dickson (Florida & Illinois)

So, here's the list updated:

Alabama

Mark Blackburn
Guntersville, AL
www.blackburngolf.com

Alaska

Arizona

Denny Alberts
Tuscon, AZ
www.dennyalbertsgolf.com

Steve Bishop
Scottsdale, AZ
contact info not available

Chuck Evans
Mesa, AZ
www.chuckevansgolf.com

Arkansas

Australia

Steve Khatib
Carlton, Sydney and Melbourne, Australia
www.golfdynamics.com.au

California

Dana Dahlquist
Long Beach, CA
www.dahlquistgolf.net

Paul Gorman
Fairfax, CA
Phone: 415-699-9117

Chris Gustin
San Juan Capistrano, CA
www.axisonball.com

Bill McKinney
Rancho Santa Margarita, CA
Phone: (949) 702-2022

Michael McLoughlin
San Diego, CA
Phone: (858) 602-8608

Mike McNary
Santa Ana, CA
www.mcnarygolf.com

Mac.O.Grady
Palm Springs, CA
www.macogradygolfschools.com

Canada

John Randle
Victoria, BC
www.randlegolf.com

Nick Starchuk
Toronto, ON
www.nrsgolf.com

Colorado

Connecticut

Dave Bove
Trumbull, CT
www.davebovegolf.com

Matt Noel
Norwalk, CT
mattnoel@silverminegolf.com

Delaware

Florida

Mario Bevilacqua
Destin, FL
Phone: (484) 995-1629

Robert Campbell
Miami, FL
www.robertcampbellgolf.com

Dan Carraher
Winter Garden, FL
http://dancarrahergolf.com

Sara Dickson
Naples, FL
http://saradickson.wordpress.com

Sean Foley
Orlando, FL
www.coregolfacademy.com

David Graham
Orlando, FL
(407) 238-7677

Keith Handler
Palm Beach Gardens, FL
www.wix.com/keithhandler/keith-handler-golf#!

George Hunt
Orlando, FL
www.moradgolfgeorgehunt.com

Steve Sieracki
West Palm Beach, FL
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

TJ Yeaton
St. Augustine, FL
www.tjyeaton.com

Georgia

Jeff Evans
Macon, GA
www.pureballstriker.com

Tom Losinger
Woodstock, GA
Phone: (770) 345-5557

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

Nick Clearwater
Chicago, IL
Clearwater@PGA.com

Ronnie Martin
Addison, IL
www.ronniemartingolf.com

Indiana

John Dal Corobbo
Carmel, IN
www.johndalcorobbo.com

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Mike Finney
Anchorage, KY
www.brianmanzella.com

Chris Hamburger
Simpsonville, KY
Phone: (502) 722-2227

Jon Hardesty
Anchorage, KY
www.brianmanzella.com

Louisiana

James Leitz
Slidell, LA
http://www.pinewoodcc.net/instruction.html

Brian Manzella
New Orleans, LA
www.brianmanzella.com

Rob Noel
Abita Springs, LA
www.robnoelgolfacademy.com

Brad Pullin
Choudrant, LA
bradpullin@squirecreek.com

Maine

Maryland

Damon Lucas
Upper Marlboro, MD
www.lakepresidential.com/institute/team.cfm

Phil Rosenbaum
Hunt Valley, MD
(410) 527-4653 ext. 115

Massachusetts

Billy Bondaruk
South Dennis, MA
www.billybondaruk.com

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Netherlands

Meindert Jan Boekel
Rijswijk, Netherlands
www.mjboekel.nl

Nevada

Joseph Mayo
Las Vegas, NV
www.radargolfacademy.com

Tom Sheely
Las Vegas, NV
www.radargolfacademy.com

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

New York

John Graham
Webster, NY
www.johngrahamgolf.com

Mike Jacobs
Manor Hill, NY
www.nygolfworld.com

North Carolina

Spencer Huggins
Buies Creek, NC
www.hugginsgolf.com

David Orr
Buies Creek, NC
www.orrgolf.com

Jason Sutton
Charlotte, NC
www.golfgurutv.com

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Martin Chuck
Bend, OR
www.tourstriker.com

Pennsylvania

Erik Barzeski
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Mike Bennett
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

John Dunigan
Newton Square, PA
www.johndunigan.com

James Hirshfield
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Andy Plummer
www.stackandtiltgolfswing.com

Kevin Shields
Sewickley Heights, PA
www.brianmanzella.com

Dave Wedzik
Erie, PA
www.golfevolution.com

Rhode Island

South Carolina

Andrew Rice
Bluffton, SC
www.andrewricegolf.com

South Dakota

Tennessee

John Dochety
Tullahoma, TN
http://www.lakewoodgcctullahoma.com/

Errol Helling
Franklin, TN
www.errolgolf.com

Texas

United Kingdom

Ian Clark
Surrey, UK
www.ianclarkgolf.co.uk

Phillipe Bonfanti
Swanage, UK
www.philippebonfantigolf.co.uk

Simon Williams
Grantham, Lincolnshire, UK
www.simonwilliamsgolf.co.uk

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

How a Persimmon Wood Is Made

2011-11-10T16:53:00.001-08:00

Here's an interesting video on how the old persimmon woods were made.

3JACK

The Influence of Point of Impact

2011-11-09T19:24:00.000-08:00

Here's a diagram from 3Jack Top 50 instructor, James Marshall. It is showing how the launch angle will change with regards to where the ball is struck on the face of a driver.

Here's another diagram showing the impact point and how it affects the ball speed.

What's interesting is just how much the results change if one hits below the sweetspot. The issue is finding the sweetspot. I have been personally told that the sweet spot was more up towards the crown and a little towards the toe. Perhaps that was a bit of an erroneous concept because one could hit 1/2" above the center of the club and only lose 1 mph of ball speed, but add 2.5* of launch angle and perhaps that adds a little more distance to the shots.

For more of James Marshall's work, check out his Web site at www.jamesmarshallgolf.com.

3JACK

iswingbox.com

2011-11-08T19:44:00.000-08:00

Here's a new golf 'net' invention that I thought some golfers would be interested in for the upcoming winter season.

3JACK

The Release by David Graham

2011-11-07T16:37:00.001-08:00

Here's Faldo Golf Institute's, David Graham, on the 'golfer's flail' and the release of the club. Some great TGM basics.

3JACK

Best and Worst of Driving

2011-11-04T19:00:00.000-07:00

The best driver on Tour at the end of the year wound up being Boo Weekley. Here’s a look at Weekley’s metrics:

Driving Distance (296.9 yards – 49th)
Fairway Percentage (66.7% - 31st)
Avg. Distance to Edge of Fairway (20.1 feet – 7th)

Here’s a look at Weekley’s swing:

Here are some of Weekley’s radar stats:

Clubhead Speed: 114.7 mph (57th)
Attack Angle: -3.3* (from recent Trackman data)
Launch Angle: 8.9* (11th lowest)
Max Height: 82.1 feet (24th lowest)
Spin Rate: 2,807 RPM (136th lowest)

The worst driver on the PGA Tour in 2011 was Anthony Kim.

Driving Distance (294.2 yards – 69th)
Fairway Percentage (47.0% - 186th)
Avg. Distance to Edge of Fairway (38.2 feet – 186th)

Here’s a look at Kim’s swing:

Here’s a look at Kim’s radar stats:

Clubhead Speed: 114.7 mph (56th)
Launch Angle: 11.1* (81st highest)
Max Height: 94.3 feet (93rd highest)
Spin Rate: 2,407 RPM (15th lowest)

3JACK

The Best and Worst of Iron Play

2011-11-03T20:28:00.000-07:00

I've tallied up the metrics and I've found that Luke Donald was the best iron player on Tour in 2011.

Here's a look at his golf swing.

Surprisingly, the worst iron player on Tour in 2011 was Scott McCarron. McCarron is typically known as a great ballstriker, but hit the irons poorly this year.

3JACK

Wishon 555C & 555M Irons

2011-11-02T16:42:00.000-07:00

Here's a video from Tom Wishon (www.wishongolf.com) on the 555C (cavity back) and 555M (muscle back) irons.

I currently use the 555C 3 & 4-irons along with the 555M 5-PW and I'm extremely pleased with them. I also thought this would be a good video to understand what the forging process of clubs is like.

3JACK

MOI Matching FAQ's

2011-11-01T17:57:00.000-07:00

Recently, I’ve received a ton of questions from readers on MOI Matching. I’m at the ‘more knowledgeable than a novice, but far from an expert’ stage at the moment. But, I will try to answer the questions I’ve been getting here.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MOI MATCHING AND SWINGWEIGHT MATCHING?

First, let’s understand some basic terms:

Static Weight– This is the weight of the club when it’s at rest. I could have a 5-iron weighing in at 15.6 ounces when I lay it down on a standard scale.

Swingweight – This is the effective weight of the club when I am swinging the club. There are many factors that affect the swingweight like the weight of the components (clubhead, shaft, grip, etc), balance point of the club, club length, etc.

MOI – For the purposes of MOI matching, we are measuring the MOI to be the amount of force required to swing the club.

Force – The scientific formula for force is Mass x Acceleration

The thing with swingweight is I can have 2 clubs with the same exact swingweight, but have very different characteristics. One can have a much heavier shaft, but I could backweight it (add weight to the butt end of the club) to keep it at the same swingweight as the other club with a lighter shaft. The balance point of the shaft could be different. In fact, back in 2009 I had some grips put on a set of old Hogan irons that weight 15 grams more than the old grips and that made the swingweight go down by 2 points.

With that, you can have 2 clubs with the same swingweight, but very different MOI (aka requiring very different amounts of force to swing the club).

Remember, Force = Mass x Acceleration. Thus, if the amount of Force required to swing a club is different from another club, that means the mass of the club and or the acceleration has changed.

HOW IS THE PROCESS DONE?

First, the golfer needs to be fitted for MOI. We can do that one of two ways.

1. The ‘Best Club’ Method – Find the best club in your bag, measure the MOI

2. Add weight method – Get fitted for everything for a 6-iron *first*. Then the *last* thing you do is get fitted for MOI. Take a 6-iron with the shaft, grip, lie angle, loft, etc, all fitted for you. Then hit some shots. Add some weight (via lead tape or magnets), hit some more shots. Add more weight, hit some more shots. Experiment with the weight until you find what you hit the best and feels the best.

Method #2 has a lot of factors involved. Many believe that one can improve their sweetspot contact thru MOI Matching. Here’s a picture from UK MOI Fitter (www.theclubdoctors.co.uk) showing the before and after of a golfer they fitted for MOI

Again, being a little more advanced than a novice, I would think fitting somebody for MOI would be determined by things like ball flight, feel, and sweetspot contact. I would also think the process could be made a little easier with Trackman and looking at things like spin rate, smash factor, etc.

I think method #1 (best club) has some holes in it. For instance, your best club that you hit may not be the actual optimal MOI for your swing. And the shorter irons are generally easier to hit, so a golfer may favor the shorter irons even though they may not be the best MOI. Also, if you practice with one particular iron more than the others, you may start to favor that particular club over the others.

My feeling is that I would probably ask what the best club in your bag is and see if I can use that as a starting point, then use method #2.

HOW DO YOU GET THE CLUBS TO MATCH MOI?

This is done by adding weight. One can add weight either in the clubhead or in the shaft. I do NOT think lead tape is a favored method. I think MOI fitters prefer hosel weights, which go right into the tip end of the club shaft.

I’m still looking to see why lead tape is not liked other than cosmetics. My guess is that it doesn’t take much time for lead tape to wither away and that does affect the MOI. Believe me, the MOI machine is super-duper sensitive and the very slightest addition or subtraction of weight will cause the MOI to change quite a bit.

CAN YOU REALLY TELL THE DIFFERENCE?

I believe so. Furthermore, I believe that a lot of golfers can already tell the difference in their own set.

Do you have a particular iron in your set, that has all of the uniform specs and the same shaft, but you don’t hit well? Chances are that the MOI is off.

For instance, the irons that I struggled a bit with are the 3-iron and the 9-iron. The 9-iron was a little less noticeable because it’s a higher lofted club. But, I did notice that I hit my 8-iron and my PW far better than my 9-iron. And the 3-iron I hit the worst. In fact, I hit my 4-iron great.

When I measured my clubs, the 3-iron and the 9-iron has the lowest MOI of all of my clubs and the 4-iron (and 7-iron) had the highest MOI of all of my irons. In fact, my 3-iron measured in at 2625 MOI while my 4-iron measured in at 2702 MOI. We want to get the MOI within +/- 5 and these clubs with the same swingweight had a difference of 77 MOI.

DO ANY CLUB MANUFACTURERS HAVE MOI MATCHED MODELS?

Not anymore. Tommy Armour had a model of irons called EQL. What they did was they made each iron the same length shaft, about the length of a 6-iron. Thus, the 3-iron would measure in at about 37.5 inches and so would the 4-iron, 5-iron, PW, etc. This created the same MOI. The problem is that the MOI may not be the optimal MOI for every golfer. And the single length iron concept is pretty radical.

The problem with MOI matching clubs is that:

A) That particular MOI may not fit golfers.

B) It’s too costly for OEM’s to do so.

That being said, I still think that MOI Matched clubs, even if you were not fitted for them, is probably better than clubs that are not MOI Matched because the consistency between the set for MOI Matched is there. You don’t have to worry about being able to adjust to one club that requires much more force than another club. Still, it’s not *optimal*, but I think it’s better than nothing.

CAN I HAVE BOTH THE SWINGWEIGHT AND MOI MATCH?

No. What will happen is that if you MOI Match the set, the lower lofted irons will have a lighter swingweight and the higher lofted irons will have a heavier swingweight. Let’s say you find a 6-iron perfect for you and the MOI is at 2,750. You measure the swingweight and that 6-iron has a swingweight of D-4. If you match up the MOI of the rest of the set to 2,750, the swingweight with the 3-iron will be about D-2 and the 9-iron will be about D-6.

But, they will actually feel the same when you swing the club because of the difference in club length.

WHAT HAPPENS IF I NEED A LOWER MOI?

If this happens, you will need a lighter shaft and/or a lighter clubhead. For the most part, if you fit yourself for everything (club, shaft, grip, lie, loft, etc) and then fit yourself for MOI *last*, you shouldn’t have to worry about needing to take off weight to find the right MOI.

CAN YOU DO THIS FOR WOODS?

Absolutely. But the fairway woods, hybrids and driver will have a different MOI. Let’s say you have a 3-wood, 5-wood, 3-hybrid and 4-hybrid…then 5-PW. Let’s say the irons are matched to 2,700. Then the rest of the set would look something like this:

Irons: 2,700
4-hybrid: 2,775
3-hybrid: 2,775
5-wood: 2,800
3-wood: 2,800
Driver: 2,850

So you still match the MOI, you just have different MOI from the irons and from each other.

CAN YOU DO THIS FOR A PUTTER?

There’s no real reason to since you are not taking a full swing with a putter.

ANY DRAWBACKS?

From what I’ve been told, there are no real drawbacks unless the person was not fitted properly or they made drastic swing changes. I have read some stuff, particularly from the Tutelman Web site (www.tutelman.com) about how it works best with having the same ball position. I don’t think I even change my ball position in the swing or at least I don’t change it very much with my irons. I think I just widen or narrow my stance depending on the club and that makes it look like my ball position has changed.

I have been told that it is *recommended* to use 3/8” clublength increments instead of ½” increments to make it easier to MOI match (for irons). You start at fitting yourself for a 6-iron length, then go in 3/8” increments from there.

It’s not all THAT radical. I use a 38 inch 6-iron. Under the 3/8” increments, I would still use a 38 inch 6-iron. But, I would have a 39-1/8” long 3-iron instead of my current 39-1/2” long 3-iron. And my 9-iron would be 36-7/8” long instead of my current 9-iron which is 36-1/2” long.

Now, it is NOT mandatory to use 3/8” increments. But, some MOI certified fitters may actually do that so I would question them about that.

ARE YOU GOING TO OFFER THIS SERVICE?

Yes, but I’m going to hold off on that now until I actually MOI my own set and see what I think of it. If I don’t think it’s good, then I won’t bother. I also need some practice to get good at it.

I’m currently awaiting a KBS C-Taper shaft and I will install it in a Wishon 555M 6-iron head. I will then fit myself for MOI using lead tape, impact tape and Trackman to measure results. From there, I will experiment to see what the 3/8” increments feel like in my Wishon 555C 3-iron and my Wishon 555M 9-iron. If I like them, I will get the rest of the set done. If not, I’ll stick with the ½ increments.

From there, I will look at MOI matching the hybrid, 3-wood and driver.

3JACK