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Dear friends, It has been awhile since we wrote. It had been a busy period for us looking at the Edel fitting system, AimPoint green reading technology and getting ourselves as Certified Putter Fitter and AimPoint instructor. We are so glad that AimPoint has finally been "discovered" by the mainstream media. The October 2010 issue of Golf Digest - the "Why You Can't Putt" issue - includes a feature article by David Owen about AimPoint. I am sure Golf Digest Singapore will have that article in the November issue too. We will briefly discuss Edel and AimPoint later in this newsletter. We are still waiting for a couple of testers to revert on their feedback for the ball fitting project. We really hope to close this by end the month and published the result then. Meanwhile, we are starting a new project! To understand local golfers better, we are collecting data to understand how we aim and our ability to control the speed of our putts with our current putters. If you are interested to help, please give us a call or email. The test will take only 5-10 mins. Now, let us get on with factors in the golf club that affects "Feel".
Factors that affect "Feel" - Shaft's primary flex and bend profile Shaft's primary flex is the shaft's overall resistance to bending in the longitudinal plan. As most of us will know, the industry basically designate them as L, A, R, S, X, and each manufacturer is free to define the longitudinal stiffness for each letter flex code. Bend profile is the distribution of stiffness over the length of the shaft. In the past, we used to the term "bend point" to loosely express this. Today we represent the bend profile through a series of frequency measurements at various sections of the shaft. In studies done by Wishon, it shows that the primary flex and bend profile of the shaft are important with respect to accounting for the bending feel some golfers are able to perceive from the shaft. Bending feel is a very important aspect of feedback from the shaft because it affects the golfer's psychological perception of the club. If the shaft feels good to the golfer, their swing will be more fluid and consistent (thus more on-centre hits). If the shaft feels poor, the golfer may react by changing their swing as if in an effort to make the shaft feel good, and in the process make more swing errors which will contribute to poor shotmaking results. Is it possible that a golfer can experience a distance increase after changing shaft? Wishon think it is possible and here is why. It is as a result of the shaft's ability to change the launch angle or the total weight and/or overall balance of the club, and not what we normally think as some form of kick or spring that increases the club head speed. And this makes a lot of sense. Optimal distance is a product of ball speed, vertical launch angle and spin. Other than feel, the overall flex and bend profile brings its effect to the distance of the shots chiefly in the form of its influence on the launch angle and resulting trajectory of the shot. However, it is worthwhile to note that shaft cannot change the launch angle of the shot by more than 2.5 degrees, the shaft cannot significantly affect the final launch angle, trajectory and chance for optimizing the launch angle for maximum distance. Thus shaft's primary flex and bend profile are important to some golfers (especially for drivers), but their overall effect are considered secondary specification on distance and trajectory. We will discuss other primary factors, e.g. loft, length, total/shaft weight and swingweight/MOI, and their effect on distance in subsequent issue. How do we determine and recommend shafts that are likely to give the golfer a good feel? In profiling a shaft, we divide the shaft into 7 zones. These zones are measured from the tip of the shaft at 11", 16", 21", 26", 31", 36" and 41" and the frequency readings at these points are measured. To describe the bend profile, we combine these 7 zones into 3 sections. The Butt section uses the average frequecies at 36" and 41", the Mid section uses the average frequencies at 21", 26" and 31", and finally the Tip section uses the average fequencies at 11" and 16". The swing is broken into 3 sections as well. The backswing, transition downswing and the downswing release. To match your swing with a shaft, we match the swing speed to the Butt section frequency, the tempo (transition downswing) to the Mid section frequency and the release to the Tip section frequency. Together with a recommended weight, shafts with the same profile will be a good match to your swing within a set tolerance. On Spine effect (the lateral bending) The 'spine" in club shafts has become a popular subject of discussion. The spine idea apparently started with the observation that the near-undetectable weld seam up the side of a shaft may cause it to bend easier in one direction than in another and this is very easy to be demonstrated with a simple device like a vice. Further study has showed that slight non-uniformities cause unequal bending for all typical shafts, regardless of the material or technique used in the construction. In a study done by Frank D. Werner and Richard C. Greig, they measured bending characteristics of serveral graphite and steel shafts. Study of the structural loading on the shaft during a swing shows that the central part of the shaft may bow out towards toe or heel, but only very slightly, and that centrifugal force on the clubhead nearly eliminates corresponding movement of the clubhead itself. Lateral movement of the clubhead is only a fraction of the thickness of a paper match. They analyzed the effects where the ball stops on the fairway for drivers with various combinations of the spine effect. They found that under the worst conditions, the spine effect they measured would move the stop points only a negligible amount, and would not increase their scatter appreciably. Testing more shafts is unlikely to change this conclusion.
Edel and AimPoint It is always great to hear from customers and friends. Here is one from Ching on Edel. "The edel putter fitting system shows instant results. For someone whose putting has never been consistent, the customized edel putter (after 3 hours) allowed me to really putt where I always wanted it. My putting stroke corrected itself to a simple basic stroke and putting never felt better … money well spent…thanks guys!" - Ching
Edel's putter address the "how" of aiming your putt, while AimPoint address the "where" to aiming your putt. David Owen's conclusion (read Golf Digest Oct 2010), after favorably describing the science behind AimPoint and declaring that he immediately felt more comfortable on the green: "I'm not sure I'll ever take the time to master Sweeney's system. In fact, I'm sure I won't." but that is the point... he got good payback. He feels comfortable on the green and knows which way every putt is going to break. That's all he should expect from day one. Introducing Mark Sweeney is not difficult. If you watch Golf Channel, he's the brains behind the blue line that predicts the path of the player's putt. How many times have you seen that wrong? Bet on the blue line. Mark calls AimPoint a "putt simulation engine" and has spent the last few years perfecting his system and earning his credential on the PGA Tour. Mark is now releasing his green reading system and the "Magic Book" - the AimCharts, that comes with it. Here's what you do. Read greens based on finding the "Zero Lines". Once you can do that, you locate your ball in relation to the "clock face" with the upstream Zero Line at 12 o'clock. 90 degrees from 12 o'clock is 3 o'clock. Imagine your ball positioned at 3 o'clock 10 feet from the hole. You will have tested the green earlier to get an accurate stimp rating with a simple technique developed by Mark. You pull out your AimCharts - locate your ball on the chart and the chart says that the putt breaks right to left. The AimChart also tells you that the putt breaks 3 inches. Yes, the AimChart tells you how many inches your putt will break. It is all totally legal, nothing different than a yardage book.	PGA Tour players who have studied AimPoint: Padraig Harrington, Scott McCarron, D.A. Points, Henrik Stenson Bo Van Pelt, Grant Waite and Charlie Wi...
Having gone through the AimPoint Instructor training, we are sure everyone will see greens differently. In fact, we are so confident that the combination of Edel and AimPoint is so powerful that we are working on a "guaranteed" programme to improve your putting statistic. More details will be available soon!
Akang Datang (coming soon) We will start to offer AimPoint one-to-one training soon. What you will learn - The 3 primary green shapes and how they affect the break of the putt. - Exactly how much break to play for any putt within 20 feet of the hole. - How break changes as green speed changes. - How to estimate break very accurately using fall lines and drainage areas. - How to find the Zero Lines. - Eye and putter face alignment. - Understanding green architecture and its implications on putting. - Aiming and alignment. - Optical illusions and slope perception. - Common green-reading misconceptions and mistakes.
Let us hear from you Please help with a response. We'll answer any questions promptly by email. It would be very helpful to understand reader reaction. Our goal is to help the most players drop the most strokes and have more fun in the game. Thanks for reading.
Wiz Golf Performance Centre | 7030 Ang Mo Kio Ave 5 #08-97 | Northstar@AMK | Singapore | 569880 65701786 | enquiry@wizgolf.com.sg