Graeme McDowell wins at Harbour Town:
Here is how my picks finished:
Brandt Snedeker: 14/1 (t-59th)
Jim Furyk: 16/1 (t-42nd)
Matt Kuchar: 16/1 (t-35th)
Luke Donald: 16/1 (t-3rd)
Jason Dufner: 25/1 (t-35th)
Boo Weekley: 33/1 (t-42nd)
Tim Clark: 50/1 (t-24th)
Brian Davis: 50/1 (t-30th)
Brian Stuard: 125/1 (MC)
Value Pick: Colt Knost: 200/1 (MC)
Here are my picks for the Zurich Classic
Justin Rose: 12/1
Jason Dufner: 16/1
Billy Horschel: 28/1
Jordan Spieth: 50/1
Boo Weekley: 66/1
D.A. Points: 100/1
Ken Duke: 125/1
Justin Hicks: 200/1
Chez Reavie: 250/1
Value Pick: Peter Tomasulo 350/1
Here are the latest rankings:
DRIVING EFFECTIVENESS
1. Mahan, Hunter
2. Stenson, Henrik
3. Weekley, Boo
4. Spieth, Jordan
5. Bradley, Keegan
6. Rose, Justin
7. Potter, Jr., Ted
8. Streelman, Kevin
9. Maggert, Jeff
10. Clark, Tim
176. Marino, Steve
177. Noh, Seung-Yul
178. Williams, Lee
179. Curtis, Ben
180. Wittenberg, Casey
181. Kelly, Troy
182. Herron, Tim
183. Baddeley, Aaron
184. Na, Kevin
185. Weir, Mike
BIRDIE ZONE
1. Chappell, Kevin
2. Wi, Charlie
3. Noh, Seung-Yul
4. Haley II, Paul
5. Molder, Bryce
6. Clark, Tim
7. Choi, K.J.
8. Castro, Roberto
9. Na, Kevin
10. Klauk, Jeff
176. Gomez, Fabian
177. Jobe, Brandt
178. Poulter, Ian
179. Romero, Andres
180. Potter, Jr., Ted
181. Marino, Steve
182. Thompson, Michael
183. Gardiner, Scott
184. Blixt, Jonas
185. Kaymer, Martin
SAFE ZONE
1. Van Pelt, Bo
2. Schwartzel, Charl
3. Mickelson, Phil
4. Curtis, Ben
5. Stadler, Kevin
6. Fisher, Ross
7. Harrington, Padraig
8. Rollins, John
9. Cauley, Bud
10. Kirk, Chris
176. Presnell, Alistair
177. Klauk, Jeff
178. Parnevik, Jesper
179. Day, Jason
180. Senden, John
181. Marino, Steve
182. Coetzee, George
183. Gove, Jeff
184. Jobe, Brandt
185. Herman, Jim
DANGER ZONE
1. Garrigus, Robert
2. McIlroy, Rory
3. Kohles, Ben
4. Watney, Nick
5. Weekley, Boo
6. Harrington, Padraig
7. Spieth, Jordan
8. Beljan, Charlie
9. Leishman, Marc
10. Furyk, Jim
176. Noh, Seung-Yul
177. Potter, Jr., Ted
178. Klauk, Jeff
179. Weir, Mike
180. Kelly, Troy
181. Claxton, Will
182. Marino, Steve
183. Hanson, Peter
184. Na, Kevin
185. Meierdierks, Eric
SHORT GAME PLAY
1. Stenson, Henrik
2. McDowell, Graeme
3. Kelly, Jerry
4. Furyk, Jim
5. Leonard, Justin
6. Els, Ernie
7. Mickelson, Phil
8. Curtis, Ben
9. Hoffmann, Morgan
10. Jones, Matt
176. Meierdierks, Eric
177. Sabbatini, Rory
178. Hoffman, Charley
179. LaBelle II, Doug
180. Fisher, Ross
181. Lee, Richard
182. Garrigus, Robert
183. McNeill, George
184. Norlander, Henrik
185. Short, Jr., Wes
PUTTS GAINED
1. Woods, Tiger
2. Ames, Stephen
3. Molder, Bryce
4. Kirk, Chris
5. Chalmers, Greg
6. Baddeley, Aaron
7. Coetzee, George
8. Jacobson, Freddie
9. McDowell, Graeme
10. Na, Kevin
176. Claxton, Will
177. Ishikawa, Ryo
178. Maggert, Jeff
179. Fisher, Ross
180. Tomasulo, Peter
181. Mathis, David
182. Glover, Lucas
183. Meierdierks, Eric
184. Stanley, Kyle
185. Daly, John
3JACK
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Tuesday, April 23, 2013
The Road To Golf Club Fitting Nirvana - Part V
Part I: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-road-to-golf-club-fitting-nirvana.html
Part II: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-road-to-golf-club-fitting-nirvana_3.html
Part III: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4180
Part IV: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-road-to-golf-club-fitting-nirvana_16.html
In part IV, I disassembled my 4, 5 and 6-irons. I hit my 4 and 6-irons the best and if they were graded as a ‘10’ on a scale of 1-10, my 5-iron would be an 8. When I measured the MOI Balance Index, I found that the 4-iron was at 39.6 and the 6-iron was at 40.5. So, I split the difference and made my target MBI as 40.0. However, I found that my 5-iron was at 44.66 MBI. While this is not way off, it would explain why I don’t hit it quite as well as the other 2 clubs.
For now, I’m planning to take the MBI process slowly since I’m a novice. In this part of the series, I will go over my MBI matching of my new Wishon 575MMC 7-iron (never before assembled).
I will be building myself an entire set of 575MMC’s, 3-iron thru A-Wedge. I will also be buying a new Wishon 919THI driver head and a Wishon 929HS 3-wood. I plan on doing MBI matching to all my clubs, including the standard length Edel Putter that I have.
Here are the weight measurements of my components:
Club Head: 266.9 grams
Shaft (Trimmed): 107.1 grams
Grip: 48.3 grams
Here are the initial measurements of the dry assemble:
Total Club Weight: 426.4 grams
Total Club MOI: 2,680 kg/cm^2
While the goal is to get the MOI Balance Index to match (or within 38-42 MBI); it’s more important to match the Total Club MOI and have the right shaft bend profile. I am using the Wishon Stepless Steel shafts in these irons because the bend profile works very well for me.
The software that comes with the MOI Auditor machine calculates that I will need about 5 grams of weight added to the head in order to match the MOI to my optimal MOI of 2,725 kg/cm^2. That’s fine. I have a 4-gram hosel weight. Combine that with about 1-gram for the epoxy when it cures, I should be close to being right on the money.
When I measure the club with the 4-gram hosel weight, here’s the measurements I receive:
Total Club Weight: 430.4 grams
Total Club MOI: 2,724 kg/cm^2
With Total Club MOI, there’s a range of +/- 5 kg/cm^2 that we can work with.
However, the MOI Balance Index comes out to 45.92.
That’s a bit too high as we want it under 42.0. According to the MBI spreadsheet creator, too high of a MBI will usually produce more of an inside-to-out path. Too low of a MBI will create more of a inside-to-out path.
What we know from Doppler Radar Launch Monitors like FlightScope and Trackman is that path angles tend to be very consistent. From discussing this with other clubmakers who have these launch monitors and are very knowledgable about the swing, it does not completely alter the path.
A golfer will not likely go from a rightward path to a leftward path. But, correct MBI helps produce more consistent clubface angles and if can alter the degree of the path direction. For the latter, let’s use the example of a golfer with an outside-to-in path of usually around -5°. A change in a lower MBI will not produce an inside-to-out path, but it can help them go from -5° to -3°. And with a more consistent face angle that can explain why the ball flight changes and the performance improves when the golfer is closer to their optimal MBI.
In order to get the club’s MBI from 45.92 to under 42.0; I would have to either:
1) Have a heavier shaft weight
or
2) Alter the balance point of the club
Or a little bit of both would happen.
This would require either a new shaft or as one clubmaker suggested; add lead tape to the shaft of the club.
The problem is that by adding lead tape you MUST account for the changes in the:
Grip + Shaft Weight
Grip + Shaft MOI
Assembled Club Balance Point
Total Club MOI
Total Club Weight
Some of those factors WILL change as you add lead tape to the shaft. The key is getting the right factors to change in order to get the MBI where you want it.
I estimated that I needed to add 2.8 gram of weight to the shaft.
FIRST, I thought that the best idea was to add the lead tape to the balance point of the club (on the shaft). My initial take was that this would essentially take care of the problem as it would not affect the balance point and would just add weight to the shaft and it would be all set.
But, there was one problem.
After I added the lead tape to the balance point section on the shaft, it increased the Total Club MOI by 10 kg/cm^2. While not a lot, I know I can feel a difference of 10 kg/cm^2 on a club having done MOI matching for almost 18 months now.
However, all is not lost. In fact, I think that since we now know that adding weight to the balance point on the shaft will add a bit of MOI to the entire club, we can utilize that information for other clubs.
Instead, I decided to put the lead tape on the shaft up near the shaft label. I was a bit skeptical of this altering the balance point.
However, it did NOT alter the balance point. My guess is that there simply was not enough weight (2.8 grams) to change the balance point. And when I re-measured the Total Club MOI it came out to 2,726 kg/cm^2; only a change of 2 kg/cm^2 and only 1 off my target MOI (2,725).
Furthermore, the MOI Balance Index changed to 41.42 which is within the range I wanted it to be:
The real test was to take it out on the range as see how it performed. I didn’t have a radar launch monitor on hand to test the differences. But, I was extremely pleased with how it performed on the range. I know I hit my 575MMC 3-iron further than my 555C 3-iron. The CoG on the clubhead is lower and the lofts are stronger and I hit it about ½ club to a full club further. I’ll have to see how the distance compares between my 7-irons.
That being said, the club felt perfect and I was amazed as to how straight I was hitting the ball. I have been working on my swing lately and seen some nice progression.
But, I don’t think I hit a shot that had more than a 2-yard draw or fade and most of them went dead straight. The trajectory was perfect. And the 575MMC’s feel of impact is exactly like Mizuno’s, so Tom Wishon came up with another great design.
And as far as the feel of the heft of the club, they just felt spot on to what works for me with the 555C 4-iron and 555M 6-iron.
I’m assuming that the 8-iron thru Attack Wedge will need more weight in the shaft. Part of this worries me because it may alter the balance point.
However, I believe that given we know that putting lead tape on the balance point will raise the MOI of the club, we can use this to find the right combination of lead tape on the balance point and adding hosel weight to match both the MOI and MBI.
That still leaves me a bit worried about the 3-iron and 4-iron when I assemble those clubs together as the Wishon Stepless Steel shaft may be too heavy. But, I can always go to the Dynamic Gold SL shaft which virtually the same profile, but is lighter.
3JACK
Part II: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-road-to-golf-club-fitting-nirvana_3.html
Part III: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4180
Part IV: http://3jack.blogspot.com/2013/04/the-road-to-golf-club-fitting-nirvana_16.html
In part IV, I disassembled my 4, 5 and 6-irons. I hit my 4 and 6-irons the best and if they were graded as a ‘10’ on a scale of 1-10, my 5-iron would be an 8. When I measured the MOI Balance Index, I found that the 4-iron was at 39.6 and the 6-iron was at 40.5. So, I split the difference and made my target MBI as 40.0. However, I found that my 5-iron was at 44.66 MBI. While this is not way off, it would explain why I don’t hit it quite as well as the other 2 clubs.
For now, I’m planning to take the MBI process slowly since I’m a novice. In this part of the series, I will go over my MBI matching of my new Wishon 575MMC 7-iron (never before assembled).
I will be building myself an entire set of 575MMC’s, 3-iron thru A-Wedge. I will also be buying a new Wishon 919THI driver head and a Wishon 929HS 3-wood. I plan on doing MBI matching to all my clubs, including the standard length Edel Putter that I have.
***
Here are the weight measurements of my components:
Club Head: 266.9 grams
Shaft (Trimmed): 107.1 grams
Grip: 48.3 grams
Here are the initial measurements of the dry assemble:
Total Club Weight: 426.4 grams
Total Club MOI: 2,680 kg/cm^2
While the goal is to get the MOI Balance Index to match (or within 38-42 MBI); it’s more important to match the Total Club MOI and have the right shaft bend profile. I am using the Wishon Stepless Steel shafts in these irons because the bend profile works very well for me.
The software that comes with the MOI Auditor machine calculates that I will need about 5 grams of weight added to the head in order to match the MOI to my optimal MOI of 2,725 kg/cm^2. That’s fine. I have a 4-gram hosel weight. Combine that with about 1-gram for the epoxy when it cures, I should be close to being right on the money.
When I measure the club with the 4-gram hosel weight, here’s the measurements I receive:
Total Club Weight: 430.4 grams
Total Club MOI: 2,724 kg/cm^2
With Total Club MOI, there’s a range of +/- 5 kg/cm^2 that we can work with.
However, the MOI Balance Index comes out to 45.92.
That’s a bit too high as we want it under 42.0. According to the MBI spreadsheet creator, too high of a MBI will usually produce more of an inside-to-out path. Too low of a MBI will create more of a inside-to-out path.
What we know from Doppler Radar Launch Monitors like FlightScope and Trackman is that path angles tend to be very consistent. From discussing this with other clubmakers who have these launch monitors and are very knowledgable about the swing, it does not completely alter the path.
A golfer will not likely go from a rightward path to a leftward path. But, correct MBI helps produce more consistent clubface angles and if can alter the degree of the path direction. For the latter, let’s use the example of a golfer with an outside-to-in path of usually around -5°. A change in a lower MBI will not produce an inside-to-out path, but it can help them go from -5° to -3°. And with a more consistent face angle that can explain why the ball flight changes and the performance improves when the golfer is closer to their optimal MBI.
***
In order to get the club’s MBI from 45.92 to under 42.0; I would have to either:
1) Have a heavier shaft weight
or
2) Alter the balance point of the club
Or a little bit of both would happen.
This would require either a new shaft or as one clubmaker suggested; add lead tape to the shaft of the club.
The problem is that by adding lead tape you MUST account for the changes in the:
Grip + Shaft Weight
Grip + Shaft MOI
Assembled Club Balance Point
Total Club MOI
Total Club Weight
Some of those factors WILL change as you add lead tape to the shaft. The key is getting the right factors to change in order to get the MBI where you want it.
I estimated that I needed to add 2.8 gram of weight to the shaft.
FIRST, I thought that the best idea was to add the lead tape to the balance point of the club (on the shaft). My initial take was that this would essentially take care of the problem as it would not affect the balance point and would just add weight to the shaft and it would be all set.
But, there was one problem.
After I added the lead tape to the balance point section on the shaft, it increased the Total Club MOI by 10 kg/cm^2. While not a lot, I know I can feel a difference of 10 kg/cm^2 on a club having done MOI matching for almost 18 months now.
However, all is not lost. In fact, I think that since we now know that adding weight to the balance point on the shaft will add a bit of MOI to the entire club, we can utilize that information for other clubs.
Instead, I decided to put the lead tape on the shaft up near the shaft label. I was a bit skeptical of this altering the balance point.
However, it did NOT alter the balance point. My guess is that there simply was not enough weight (2.8 grams) to change the balance point. And when I re-measured the Total Club MOI it came out to 2,726 kg/cm^2; only a change of 2 kg/cm^2 and only 1 off my target MOI (2,725).
Furthermore, the MOI Balance Index changed to 41.42 which is within the range I wanted it to be:
***
The real test was to take it out on the range as see how it performed. I didn’t have a radar launch monitor on hand to test the differences. But, I was extremely pleased with how it performed on the range. I know I hit my 575MMC 3-iron further than my 555C 3-iron. The CoG on the clubhead is lower and the lofts are stronger and I hit it about ½ club to a full club further. I’ll have to see how the distance compares between my 7-irons.
That being said, the club felt perfect and I was amazed as to how straight I was hitting the ball. I have been working on my swing lately and seen some nice progression.
But, I don’t think I hit a shot that had more than a 2-yard draw or fade and most of them went dead straight. The trajectory was perfect. And the 575MMC’s feel of impact is exactly like Mizuno’s, so Tom Wishon came up with another great design.
And as far as the feel of the heft of the club, they just felt spot on to what works for me with the 555C 4-iron and 555M 6-iron.
I’m assuming that the 8-iron thru Attack Wedge will need more weight in the shaft. Part of this worries me because it may alter the balance point.
However, I believe that given we know that putting lead tape on the balance point will raise the MOI of the club, we can use this to find the right combination of lead tape on the balance point and adding hosel weight to match both the MOI and MBI.
That still leaves me a bit worried about the 3-iron and 4-iron when I assemble those clubs together as the Wishon Stepless Steel shaft may be too heavy. But, I can always go to the Dynamic Gold SL shaft which virtually the same profile, but is lighter.
3JACK
Monday, April 22, 2013
![[image]](https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/blogger_img_proxy/AEn0k_t7aaLjt1dKk9X3kHAVakI-So3LxUWd3r4s0Xp4lCMRYh0vV5x9bsKt5NdWB0ayWChWA-Z9OPaI1A3jHuJI7YfZmahlrKF3P4NozXZfApiFeB0quY5lIzvxWJtq03TrUw=s0-d "[image]")
Thursday, April 18, 2013
The Problems w/Rory and Traditional Golf Statistics
Mark Twain was once said “There are lies, damned lies and statistics.”
This is often a popular adage from critics of an advanced metrics point of view. Normally this tends to occur with people who utilize anecdotal evidence to formulate their opinions and when the numbers tell them something they don’t like. The reality is that statistics do not lie, but incomplete and flawed statistics can lead to faulty analysis and conclusions derived from that analysis.
A prime example of this right now is the “fall” of Rory McIlroy’s play. People are stating that his dip in his performance is due to switching equipment. Johnny Miller thinks it is a giant mistake for Rory to switch his irons, as he did the same thing in his prime and he could never quite adjust to the change. Let’s take a look at his “traditional” golf metrics:
Read More: http://www.golfwrx.com/85027/the-problems-with-rory-and-traditional-golf-statistics/
Wednesday, April 17, 2013
3Jack Golf's PGA Tour Rundown - Week 15
Adam Scott wins the Masters:
I thought this was one of the better Masters in history as it was filled with the top contenders playing very good golf. The golfer who was playing the worst down the stretch, Jason Day (who needed 3 remarkable sand shots to stay in contention on Sunday); didn’t win. Meanwhile Cabrera hit a bit of a lull midway thru his round and then came roaring back. Generally, I don’t think that highly of Cabrera’s game as his metrics have been awful for the most part since his ’09 victory at Augusta. But, when he’s on he’s as fun of a player to watch as anybody out there. And then there was Adam Scott who struck it brilliantly on Sunday. While the popular notion is that the long putter is the reason for his success, he’s been a mediocre putter with the long stick as evidenced on Sunday. It’s his change of instructors and the changing of his swing mechanics that have greatly improved his ballstriking as the real reason for his recent success.
Of course, this is the Masters known for rules violations. I watched the live coverage on the internet of the 14-year old Guan on Thursday and he was painfully slow out there. Before each shot was a lengthy conversation between him and his caddie. And if he hit a shot that was not up to his standards, he would carefully re-examine what happened. Part of me doesn’t care too much about slow play on Tour because I generally don’t think that is why there is slow play out on golf courses in general. But, all it takes is 1 slow player on any course and it can back up the entire course and then you have to worry about getting the rounds in before daylight.
As far as the Tiger situation goes, I have thought about this long and hard and have studied the photos. I believe he absolutely took an illegal drop. But, taking a drop is a unique rules situation because often times we are left with the option of dropping in a few different places and obviously the golfer takes the drop that will benefit them the most. But when a golfer like Tiger has the same intent, but does it illegally it’s now very harshly judged. That being said, I am puzzled how Tiger didn’t know that was an illegal drop. I’m far from a rules expert and I understand the rules are way too complicated. But, that’s not a complicated rule.
After thinking about this some more, I think the Masters rules committee HAD to make the ruling.
Why?
Because if they didn’t they would go from ‘protecting’ Tiger to ‘targeting’ Tiger. Neither is the right thing to do and they basically had to enforce the rule that was in place.
As far as Tiger withdrawing from the tournament goes; I think that is solely up to the person and their belief system. I do not believe anybody is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ as far as what they thought Tiger should do. Personally, I would have withdrawn from the tournament if I was Tiger. Basically it was such an egregious error on his part and the other big part of it is out of respect for Bobby Jones who once called a penalty on himself for a ball he thought *might* have moved. And when given praise for calling the penalty on himself, Jones replied ‘you might as well praise me for not robbing banks.’
In a sports world filled with other sports having issues with athletes illegally using performance enhancing drugs, teams illegally videotaping other teams communications signals, massive recruiting scandals and coverups…if there was one thing that I believe separates golf from the rest is the outstanding integrity of the game and I believe as a golfer, I’m supposed to uphold that integrity.
Again, that’s not to say that I’m right (or wrong). But I feel that there is an essence of the game that it is unfair sometimes, whether it’s hitting a shot that hits the flagstick and goes in the water or making an honest mistake with the rules and getting disqualified over it. That makes me a proud member of this game. I just wish Tiger would have respectfully declined to play on the weekend.
Anyway, here’s how my picks did at the Masters:
Phil Mickelson (10/1) t-54th
Justin Rose (20/1) – t-25th
Dustin Johnson (25/1) t-13th
Lee Westwood (25/1) t-8th
Louis Oosthuizen (25/1) MC
Keegan Bradley (28/1) t-54th
Rickie Fowler (45/1) t-38th
Henrik Stenson (50/1) t-18th
Nick Watney (50/1) t-13th
Value Pick: Bill Haas (75/1) t-20th
Here are my picks for Harbour Town:
Brandt Snedeker: 14/1
Jim Furyk: 16/1
Matt Kuchar: 16/1
Luke Donald: 16/1
Jason Dufner: 25/1
Boo Weekley: 33/1
Tim Clark: 50/1
Brian Davis: 50/1
Brian Stuard: 125/1
Value Pick: Colt Knost: 200/1
DRIVING EFFECTIVENESS
1. Weekley, Boo
2. Spieth, Jordan
3. Mahan, Hunter
4. Stenson, Henrik
5. Bradley, Keegan
6. Rose, Justin
7. Streelman, Kevin
8. Potter, Jr., Ted
9. Palmer, Ryan
10. Maggert, Jeff
181. Wagner, Johnson
182. Marino, Steve
183. Wittenberg, Casey
184. Bradley, Michael
185. Curtis, Ben
186. Kelly, Troy
187. Herron, Tim
188. Baddeley, Aaron
189. Na, Kevin
190. Weir, Mike
BIRDIE ZONE
1. Chappell, Kevin
2. Wi, Charlie
3. Taylor, Vaughn
4. Noh, Seung-Yul
5. Molder, Bryce
6. Haley II, Paul
7. Clark, Tim
8. Choi, K.J.
9. Cink, Stewart
10. Bradley, Michael
181. Gomez, Fabian
182. Stanley, Kyle
183. Poulter, Ian
184. Romero, Andres
185. Gardiner, Scott
186. Marino, Steve
187. Potter, Jr., Ted
188. Thompson, Michael
189. Blixt, Jonas
190. Kaymer, Martin
SAFE ZONE
1. Sabbatini, Rory
2. Scott, Adam
3. Van Pelt, Bo
4. Reavie, Chez
5. Schwartzel, Charl
6. Mickelson, Phil
7. Curtis, Ben
8. Donald, Luke
9. Kirk, Chris
10. Fisher, Ross
181. Presnell, Alistair
182. Grace, Branden
183. Jobe, Brandt
184. Marino, Steve
185. Ridings, Tag
186. Senden, John
187. Coetzee, George
188. Gove, Jeff
189. Klauk, Jeff
190. Herman, Jim
DANGER ZONE
1. Garrigus, Robert
2. Palmer, Ryan
3. Maggert, Jeff
4. Kohles, Ben
5. McIlroy, Rory
6. Leishman, Marc
7. Watney, Nick
8. Simpson, Webb
9. Summerhays, Daniel
10. Harrington, Padraig
181. Marino, Steve
182. Klauk, Jeff
183. Kelly, Troy
184. Potter, Jr., Ted
185. Noh, Seung-Yul
186. Weir, Mike
187. Hanson, Peter
188. Na, Kevin
189. Meierdierks, Eric
190. Taylor, Vaughn
SHORT GAME PLAY
1. Stenson, Henrik
2. Donald, Luke
3. Cauley, Bud
4. Leonard, Justin
5. McDowell, Graeme
6. Kelly, Jerry
7. Mickelson, Phil
8. Curtis, Ben
9. Els, Ernie
10. Furyk, Jim
181. Potter, Jr., Ted
182. Meierdierks, Eric
183. LaBelle II, Doug
184. Hoffman, Charley
185. Sabbatini, Rory
186. McNeill, George
187. Lee, Richard
188. Norlander, Henrik
189. Short, Jr., Wes
190. Garrigus, Robert
PUTTS GAINED
1. Woods, Tiger
2. Ames, Stephen
3. Chalmers, Greg
4. Baddeley, Aaron
5. Molder, Bryce
6. Kirk, Chris
7. Coetzee, George
8. Jacobson, Freddie
9. Na, Kevin
10. Stricker, Steve
181. Mathis, David
182. Fisher, Ross
183. Tomasulo, Peter
184. Meierdierks, Eric
185. Sabbatini, Rory
186. Claxton, Will
187. Colsaerts, Nicolas
188. Ishikawa, Ryo
189. Daly, John
190. Stanley, Kyle
3JACK
I thought this was one of the better Masters in history as it was filled with the top contenders playing very good golf. The golfer who was playing the worst down the stretch, Jason Day (who needed 3 remarkable sand shots to stay in contention on Sunday); didn’t win. Meanwhile Cabrera hit a bit of a lull midway thru his round and then came roaring back. Generally, I don’t think that highly of Cabrera’s game as his metrics have been awful for the most part since his ’09 victory at Augusta. But, when he’s on he’s as fun of a player to watch as anybody out there. And then there was Adam Scott who struck it brilliantly on Sunday. While the popular notion is that the long putter is the reason for his success, he’s been a mediocre putter with the long stick as evidenced on Sunday. It’s his change of instructors and the changing of his swing mechanics that have greatly improved his ballstriking as the real reason for his recent success.
Of course, this is the Masters known for rules violations. I watched the live coverage on the internet of the 14-year old Guan on Thursday and he was painfully slow out there. Before each shot was a lengthy conversation between him and his caddie. And if he hit a shot that was not up to his standards, he would carefully re-examine what happened. Part of me doesn’t care too much about slow play on Tour because I generally don’t think that is why there is slow play out on golf courses in general. But, all it takes is 1 slow player on any course and it can back up the entire course and then you have to worry about getting the rounds in before daylight.
As far as the Tiger situation goes, I have thought about this long and hard and have studied the photos. I believe he absolutely took an illegal drop. But, taking a drop is a unique rules situation because often times we are left with the option of dropping in a few different places and obviously the golfer takes the drop that will benefit them the most. But when a golfer like Tiger has the same intent, but does it illegally it’s now very harshly judged. That being said, I am puzzled how Tiger didn’t know that was an illegal drop. I’m far from a rules expert and I understand the rules are way too complicated. But, that’s not a complicated rule.
After thinking about this some more, I think the Masters rules committee HAD to make the ruling.
Why?
Because if they didn’t they would go from ‘protecting’ Tiger to ‘targeting’ Tiger. Neither is the right thing to do and they basically had to enforce the rule that was in place.
As far as Tiger withdrawing from the tournament goes; I think that is solely up to the person and their belief system. I do not believe anybody is ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ as far as what they thought Tiger should do. Personally, I would have withdrawn from the tournament if I was Tiger. Basically it was such an egregious error on his part and the other big part of it is out of respect for Bobby Jones who once called a penalty on himself for a ball he thought *might* have moved. And when given praise for calling the penalty on himself, Jones replied ‘you might as well praise me for not robbing banks.’
In a sports world filled with other sports having issues with athletes illegally using performance enhancing drugs, teams illegally videotaping other teams communications signals, massive recruiting scandals and coverups…if there was one thing that I believe separates golf from the rest is the outstanding integrity of the game and I believe as a golfer, I’m supposed to uphold that integrity.
Again, that’s not to say that I’m right (or wrong). But I feel that there is an essence of the game that it is unfair sometimes, whether it’s hitting a shot that hits the flagstick and goes in the water or making an honest mistake with the rules and getting disqualified over it. That makes me a proud member of this game. I just wish Tiger would have respectfully declined to play on the weekend.
Anyway, here’s how my picks did at the Masters:
Phil Mickelson (10/1) t-54th
Justin Rose (20/1) – t-25th
Dustin Johnson (25/1) t-13th
Lee Westwood (25/1) t-8th
Louis Oosthuizen (25/1) MC
Keegan Bradley (28/1) t-54th
Rickie Fowler (45/1) t-38th
Henrik Stenson (50/1) t-18th
Nick Watney (50/1) t-13th
Value Pick: Bill Haas (75/1) t-20th
Here are my picks for Harbour Town:
Brandt Snedeker: 14/1
Jim Furyk: 16/1
Matt Kuchar: 16/1
Luke Donald: 16/1
Jason Dufner: 25/1
Boo Weekley: 33/1
Tim Clark: 50/1
Brian Davis: 50/1
Brian Stuard: 125/1
Value Pick: Colt Knost: 200/1
DRIVING EFFECTIVENESS
1. Weekley, Boo
2. Spieth, Jordan
3. Mahan, Hunter
4. Stenson, Henrik
5. Bradley, Keegan
6. Rose, Justin
7. Streelman, Kevin
8. Potter, Jr., Ted
9. Palmer, Ryan
10. Maggert, Jeff
181. Wagner, Johnson
182. Marino, Steve
183. Wittenberg, Casey
184. Bradley, Michael
185. Curtis, Ben
186. Kelly, Troy
187. Herron, Tim
188. Baddeley, Aaron
189. Na, Kevin
190. Weir, Mike
BIRDIE ZONE
1. Chappell, Kevin
2. Wi, Charlie
3. Taylor, Vaughn
4. Noh, Seung-Yul
5. Molder, Bryce
6. Haley II, Paul
7. Clark, Tim
8. Choi, K.J.
9. Cink, Stewart
10. Bradley, Michael
181. Gomez, Fabian
182. Stanley, Kyle
183. Poulter, Ian
184. Romero, Andres
185. Gardiner, Scott
186. Marino, Steve
187. Potter, Jr., Ted
188. Thompson, Michael
189. Blixt, Jonas
190. Kaymer, Martin
SAFE ZONE
1. Sabbatini, Rory
2. Scott, Adam
3. Van Pelt, Bo
4. Reavie, Chez
5. Schwartzel, Charl
6. Mickelson, Phil
7. Curtis, Ben
8. Donald, Luke
9. Kirk, Chris
10. Fisher, Ross
181. Presnell, Alistair
182. Grace, Branden
183. Jobe, Brandt
184. Marino, Steve
185. Ridings, Tag
186. Senden, John
187. Coetzee, George
188. Gove, Jeff
189. Klauk, Jeff
190. Herman, Jim
DANGER ZONE
1. Garrigus, Robert
2. Palmer, Ryan
3. Maggert, Jeff
4. Kohles, Ben
5. McIlroy, Rory
6. Leishman, Marc
7. Watney, Nick
8. Simpson, Webb
9. Summerhays, Daniel
10. Harrington, Padraig
181. Marino, Steve
182. Klauk, Jeff
183. Kelly, Troy
184. Potter, Jr., Ted
185. Noh, Seung-Yul
186. Weir, Mike
187. Hanson, Peter
188. Na, Kevin
189. Meierdierks, Eric
190. Taylor, Vaughn
SHORT GAME PLAY
1. Stenson, Henrik
2. Donald, Luke
3. Cauley, Bud
4. Leonard, Justin
5. McDowell, Graeme
6. Kelly, Jerry
7. Mickelson, Phil
8. Curtis, Ben
9. Els, Ernie
10. Furyk, Jim
181. Potter, Jr., Ted
182. Meierdierks, Eric
183. LaBelle II, Doug
184. Hoffman, Charley
185. Sabbatini, Rory
186. McNeill, George
187. Lee, Richard
188. Norlander, Henrik
189. Short, Jr., Wes
190. Garrigus, Robert
PUTTS GAINED
1. Woods, Tiger
2. Ames, Stephen
3. Chalmers, Greg
4. Baddeley, Aaron
5. Molder, Bryce
6. Kirk, Chris
7. Coetzee, George
8. Jacobson, Freddie
9. Na, Kevin
10. Stricker, Steve
181. Mathis, David
182. Fisher, Ross
183. Tomasulo, Peter
184. Meierdierks, Eric
185. Sabbatini, Rory
186. Claxton, Will
187. Colsaerts, Nicolas
188. Ishikawa, Ryo
189. Daly, John
190. Stanley, Kyle
3JACK
Tuesday, April 16, 2013
The Road to Golf Club Fitting Nirvana - Part IV
Part I: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4167
Part II: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4175
Part III: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4180
In part 3, I analyzed Monte Doherty’s worksheet a little more and discussed the ‘Ascending Weight Shaft’ theory. First, here’s a video going over the tools I’ve used for the MOI Balance Index.
I also use an Air Compressor for my grip installations. This means that I can remove the grip and measure it and then re-install it.
I decided to measure 3 of my clubs.
555C 4-iron
555M 5-iron
555M 6-iron
Each club has a matching MOI of 2,725 kg/cm^2 according to my MOI Auditor machine from GolfMechanix.
It’s really a toss-up between which club I hit the best in my bag…the 4-iron or 6-iron. I generally feel I hit the 6-iron superbly as judging by the wear mark on the face contact
However, I hit the 4-iron extremely well, too. The 4-iron feels a tad light in the head which is a common complaint with MOI matching and one of the reasons for MOI Balance Index.
First, I have to remove the shafts, the grips and the heads and then measure the components and input the data on the spreadsheets.
You can ‘check’ your work with the spreadsheet as well.
Simply get a digital scale and measure the weight of the *entire* club. Then when you input all of the data in the spreadsheet, it will total up the entire weight of the club. The weight in the spreadsheet should match (or come close) to what you measure on the scale. I use 2 different digital scales. One of them measures to nearest gram, the other measures to the nearest 0.1 grams. This allows me to triple check my work.
When I measured the 4-iron and 6-iron, I found that the MOI Balance Index were roughly the same. The 4-iron was at 39.6 and the 6-iron at 40.5. Thus, I split the difference and set a ‘target’ MOI Balance Index of 40.0. And the tolerance is +/- 2 from the target. However, I would rather keep it a little above the target MBI because the 4-iron feels a touch ‘head-light.’
If the 4-iron and 6-iron were graded as a ’10’ on a scale of 1-10; I would grade the 5-iron as an 8 out of 10. When I measured the 5-iron components, it came out with a MBI of 44.42.
This is not terribly off from the tolerance of the MBI (42.0). But it explains why the 5-iron’s performance is not quite up to snuff to the 4-iron and 6-iron’s performance.
The reason for this is that the trimmed shaft in the 5-iron came to about 1-gram lighter than the trimmed shaft in the 4-iron and 6-iron. I tend to think this is a bit of a QC tolerance issue in the shaft. However, it is a parallel tip (0.370) shaft that requires trimming from both the tip and butt end of the shaft and perhaps I made a slight error in trimming the shaft.
3JACK
Part II: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4175
Part III: http://richie3jack.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=blog&action=display&thread=4180
In part 3, I analyzed Monte Doherty’s worksheet a little more and discussed the ‘Ascending Weight Shaft’ theory. First, here’s a video going over the tools I’ve used for the MOI Balance Index.
I also use an Air Compressor for my grip installations. This means that I can remove the grip and measure it and then re-install it.
I decided to measure 3 of my clubs.
555C 4-iron
555M 5-iron
555M 6-iron
Each club has a matching MOI of 2,725 kg/cm^2 according to my MOI Auditor machine from GolfMechanix.
It’s really a toss-up between which club I hit the best in my bag…the 4-iron or 6-iron. I generally feel I hit the 6-iron superbly as judging by the wear mark on the face contact
However, I hit the 4-iron extremely well, too. The 4-iron feels a tad light in the head which is a common complaint with MOI matching and one of the reasons for MOI Balance Index.
First, I have to remove the shafts, the grips and the heads and then measure the components and input the data on the spreadsheets.
You can ‘check’ your work with the spreadsheet as well.
Simply get a digital scale and measure the weight of the *entire* club. Then when you input all of the data in the spreadsheet, it will total up the entire weight of the club. The weight in the spreadsheet should match (or come close) to what you measure on the scale. I use 2 different digital scales. One of them measures to nearest gram, the other measures to the nearest 0.1 grams. This allows me to triple check my work.
When I measured the 4-iron and 6-iron, I found that the MOI Balance Index were roughly the same. The 4-iron was at 39.6 and the 6-iron at 40.5. Thus, I split the difference and set a ‘target’ MOI Balance Index of 40.0. And the tolerance is +/- 2 from the target. However, I would rather keep it a little above the target MBI because the 4-iron feels a touch ‘head-light.’
If the 4-iron and 6-iron were graded as a ’10’ on a scale of 1-10; I would grade the 5-iron as an 8 out of 10. When I measured the 5-iron components, it came out with a MBI of 44.42.
This is not terribly off from the tolerance of the MBI (42.0). But it explains why the 5-iron’s performance is not quite up to snuff to the 4-iron and 6-iron’s performance.
The reason for this is that the trimmed shaft in the 5-iron came to about 1-gram lighter than the trimmed shaft in the 4-iron and 6-iron. I tend to think this is a bit of a QC tolerance issue in the shaft. However, it is a parallel tip (0.370) shaft that requires trimming from both the tip and butt end of the shaft and perhaps I made a slight error in trimming the shaft.
3JACK
Sunday, April 14, 2013
Swing Update 4.9.13
I had some readers ask about my swing. Here's a couple of swing views
Still making some progress as 2 weeks off from the game and recovering from the stomach ulcer didn't help. For more information, check out my swing instructor, George Hunt at www.moradgolfgeorgehunt.com
3JACK
Still making some progress as 2 weeks off from the game and recovering from the stomach ulcer didn't help. For more information, check out my swing instructor, George Hunt at www.moradgolfgeorgehunt.com
3JACK
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