Welcome to another edition of our newsletter, in this week’s mail we dissect the swings from the Drive In, we talk lie angle for club fitting, Mike is off to South Africa for some sunshine, and there are some bargains to be had in the shop. Enjoy the read!
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The Drive in… Well done to everyone for braving the windy, cold elements on Sunday for the Captain and Presidents Drive-In competition. There was a stunning winning score of 52 points by Niall McPhee and Wayne Cooper - Steve and I just hope they don’t qualify for the Captain & Pro matches at the end of March! Here’s a look at the drive-in swings and there’s a pattern here, which has nothing to do with age or physique or handicap or anything else for that matter.
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 | | Peter Bright Vice President, Steve Metcalfe Captain, Ian Graham President and Mark Newman Vice Captain. |
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 | Captain - Steve Metcalfe playing side-on golf using the right arm to swing through impact and finishing more 'around'.
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 | | Vice Captain - Mark Newman employing a 'Merry-go-round' style swing with the club lining up with the right arm at impact and body tipped over at the finish with a more horizontal club. |
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 | | Vice President - Peter Bright employing a 'Ferris wheel' style swing with the club lining up with the left arm at impact and body and club finishing upright. |
 | | President - Ian Graham playing down the target line, using the left arm to swing down and finish more 'up and down'. |
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All styles subscribe to John Jacobs quote - 'The method employed is of no consequence as long as it produces a correct and repetitive impact' |
The Captain and Vice-Captain, Steve Metcalfe and Mark Newman, both play golf by swinging the club flatter around them, like a merry-go-round. Throwing and whipping the club around them, they freely generate clubhead speed using centrifugal force and play more of a side-on game. Many of the best players on tour of this style swing play with a left to right fade, a retro model being Lee Trevino and a modern example being Sergio Garcia. Golfers of this style when playing poorly tend to get too shallow and wide through impact and balls often fly left of target. The President and Vice-President, Ian Graham and Peter Bright, both play golf by swinging the club more up and down, like a ferris wheel. They pull the club down and then rotate the shaft through impact, generating power using a leveraging force, playing more of a down-the-line game. Many of the best players on tour of this style swing play with a right to left draw, a retro model being Tom Watson and a modern example being Justin Thomas. Golfers of this style when playing poorly tend to get too steep and narrow through impact and balls often fly right. I would liken these two styles of play to being either right or left-handed, you are what you are and can’t change it. Every style has different rules of what will work and what won’t work - a fix for a ferris wheel swing with a hook isn’t going to be the same for a merry-go-round swing with a slice. I see lots of tall players, like myself, who swing flat and around and need flatter lie angle clubs to play. Whilst many shorter golfers who swing upright and up and down need more upright clubs to play. You need to know what style of golf you play to know how to fix your mis-hits and a lot of coaching involves letting golfers know what fix NOT to use for their own game. You can’t have a ‘Rule’ that works for every golf style - i.e. ‘get your weight onto your left side and swing towards the target’ will make one style better but completely ruin the other one. If you’re interested in attending a clinic at the club where we’ll show you some examples and shed some light on what to look out for in your gown game and what to be aware of - click here and I’ll get back in touch with some dates.
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Fitting lie angle… One of the club-fitting aspects which is starting to become a theme from the main manufacturers is the lie angle of woods. I’ve used some of Tom Wishon’s drivers for a few years as we are able to bend the lie angle of them (mine is bent 4 degrees flat). Previously the lie angle was just about the same for each manufacturer, but this year in particular the angles are being pre-set to vastly different degrees PLUS they can be adjusted a lot. We’re seeing some drivers with a standard lie angle of 56 degrees and others with 60 degrees. When you consider that one degree of lie angle can create 20 to 30 feet change of shot direction, it becomes apparent why there aren’t any offset drivers on the market any more. Remember them?, most manufacturers would make an offset driver, designed to reduce slice, but nowadays they’ll make the more forgiving models with a more upright lie angle and a closed face angle instead. The bonus here is that with all the adjustability, the lie angle can be altered whilst the view of the club at address looks very much the same. As the price of drivers escalates (and the quality of the components also increases, which is the good news), it’s more important than ever to get your equipment optimised to you, whether it’s new or already in your bag. Click here to book a fitting.
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Winter practice for Mike… Mike Dewsbury has ‘done a runner’ from the current snowy conditions and departed on Wednesday for two weeks of practice in Johannesburg, South Africa. Great timing for a trip like this as it’s 30 degrees out there currently and he’s scheduled to play a couple of professional events on the mini-tour as well. He’ll have a unique experience as he’s staying with a friend of mine from school and junior golf, Mick Balderstone, who has been in South Africa for 20 years and hosts full time schooling for promising athletes at his Balderstone Sports Institute. Mick is the son of famous professional cricketer and footballer Chris Balderstone and I know his Dad would be so proud to see the empire that Mick's created, all in the aid of creating better golf and better futures for his students. It should be an inspiring experience for Mike and he'll be staying on site with the other athletes, get to see their comprehensive training facilities and I bet he’ll be planning his return visit before he’s left. The idea first came about after another pro who comes to see me for club-fittings mentioned he was off to South Africa for 2 months practice as it was such great value, spending as much for 2 months in a villa out there as he would for 2 weeks in Europe. Looks like a good venue for a mixed trip or a men’s trip in the near future?!? We have many items which have gone on sale this week as we make space for new items due into stock soon. There are plenty of shoes, we have many styles and sizes available. The remaining autumn & winter clothing items for men and ladies have gone on sale at 30% off and we have a selection of leather and all-weather gloves which are now half price as well.
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| The moment you've been waiting for... |
Last week, we revealed some of the best irons on the market for 2019. Well, this time we're bringing out the big guns for you; it's time to take a look at one of the hottest, fastest drivers on the market in 2019 that'll have you hitting the ball further than ever off the tee. |
Mizuno's ST190 and ST190G drivers It's safe to say that Mizuno is a brand that is synonymous with beautiful forged irons that offer amazing performance to the golfer. Well, new for 2019 are two drivers - ST190 and ST190G - that are set to make Mizuno a frontrunner in the woods market, too. Come and speak to a member of the team about a custom fitting so we can make sure you walk away with the best option for you. |
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