12 MYTHS THAT COULD WRECK YOUR GOLF GAME

1. by Tom Wishon (with Tom Grundner) (Click to continue) 12 MYTHS THAT COULD WRECK YOUR GOLF GAME

2. Introduction OH, THE HUMANITY... Each year golfers spend over $3 BILLION on equipment. Unfortunately, much of it is spent on equipment that will not—and cannot possibly—meet most golfer's needs. This not only results in wasted money, but it can lead to the kind of frustration that causes many people to leave the game. Much of the waste and frustration, however, could be eliminated if only golfers knew more about the equipment in their hands (Click to continue)

3. Introduction This presentation will introduce you to 12 Myths—twelve beliefs about equipment—that most golfers hold, yet are untrue. Go through them one at a time and see how many you agree with. After each myth will be a brief screen to explain why the statement is wrong. If you want further information, please feel free to ask ANY PROFESSIONAL GOLF CLUBMAKER, or see one of our books: The Search for the Perfect Golf Club, or 12 Myths that Could Wreck Your Golf Game. (Click to continue)

4. MYTH #1. Modern golf clubs hit farther than clubs of even a few years ago. Now, this makes perfect sense doesn't it? I mean, the march of progress and all that. What with all the new technology—the new metals and new designs—these clubs would HAVE to be better! (Click to continue)

5. Wrong! Most of what you are seeing is a marketing gimmick I call the "Vanishing Loft Disease." Each year, in order to say their clubs hit farther, the club companies have been lowering the loft and increasing the length of their clubs without telling you. This year's 6-iron will hit as far as your old 5-iron because, if you measure the loft, it IS a 5-iron—or used to be, anyway. (Click to continue)

6. MYTH #2. The longer my driver is, the farther I'll be able to hit it. Logic would tell you that the longer the club, the longer the swing arc will be, and the faster the head will travel. And the faster the head travels, the farther the ball will go, right? (Click to continue)

7. Wrong! Testing has shown that the average gain in distance between a 43 and a 45-inch driver is a whopping ONE-YARD. The real problem is that the longer the driver is, the harder it is to control. So, with today’s standard drivers bought “off the rack,” you’re also buying a higher percentage of off-center hits, which will get you 10 additional yards of misdirection. The average PGA Tour player uses a driver that is 44.5” long. If they could swing a 45-inch, they would. They can't, so what are the chances YOU can. TIP: The biggest single factor in driver accuracy is the length of the club. Get your driver checked out to make sure it's the right length for you. Most golfers have drivers that are WAY too long. (Click to continue)

8. MYTH #3. The lower the loft on my driver, the farther the ball will go. Most amateur golfers believe that if you're hitting a nice long, low screamer, the ball is going to go farther than if it's some kind of "pop-up.” But is that true? (Click to continue)

9. Wrong! The distance a driver can be hit is a function of the loft of the club head and the speed with which the head is traveling. The lower the swing speed, the higher the loft needs to be. Imagine you are squirting a garden hose and someone cuts back on the water pressure. What's the first thing you do to get increased distance? Exactly. You RAISE the angle. If you have a nice new 9- or 10-degree driver, you'd better have a 115 mph swing speed (with control) to go with it. Otherwise, you'll need more loft to hit the ball YOUR maximum distance. TIP: Go see a professional clubmaker who can measure your swing speed. He or she will be able to tell you what driver loft is right for you. (Click to continue)

10. MYTH #4. The bigger the head, the better They're everywhere—driver heads that are approaching the size of your car's oil filter. Bigger MUST be better, right? Or else why would everyone be making them that way? (Click to continue)

11. Wrong! Club companies can make all the oversized heads they want, but when they do they also have to make the faces thicker so they don't violate the USGA rules. This washes out any real advantage of the larger head. Now, the larger head MIGHT allow you to hit the ball a little higher, and MIGHT provide some additional resistance to twisting, and MIGHT give a person more "confidence." And it MIGHT be... that it's all a marketing gimmick again. TIP: When you chose a driver, go to a professional clubmaker who can offer you a wide variety of heads, of all different sizes, from which to choose. (Click to continue)

12. MYTH #5. I play a stiff shaft; it says so right on it. When I buy a bottle of pop that says it has 16 ounces in it; it better have 16 ounces. When I buy a car that says it has a 2-liter engine; it better have a 2-liter engine. Why would golf club shafts be any different? (Click to continue)

13. Wrong! The "S" (or R, or X, or L) you see on your shaft is completely meaningless. The problem is that there is no agreement in the industry as to what constitutes an "S" (or R, or X, or L) flex. One company's "S" is another company's "R," which is another company's "X." There is not even agreement WITHIN any given company's various lines of shafts. TIP: If you want to know the true "flex" of your shaft go see a professional clubmaker who can measure its "frequency" or, better yet, its "shaft profile." He or she can also measure YOU to see what stiffness is correct for your swing and which shafts have that actual stiffness. (Click to continue)

14. MYTH #6. The newer clubs have larger "sweetspots." This only stands to reason, doesn't it? If the clubhead is larger, the sweetspot must be larger. Besides, isn't that what they tell you in just about every ad you read or see? (Click to continue)

15. Wrong! The "sweetspot" (officially known as the Center of Gravity) is a point that is about the size of the sharp end of a pin. It can't get larger. It can't get smaller. It just... is. The "larger sweetspot" you see advertised is (once again) a marketing term and has no basis in reality. Now, what they MIGHT be talking about is that the head, because of its size, might have a greater resistance to twisting if/when you hit the ball off-center. That could be true, but it has nothing to do with the "sweetspot" being larger. TIP: There are dozens if not hundreds of clubhead designs. Some of the advertising is true; some is not. Let your professional clubmaker help you sort out which is which. (Click to continue)

16. MYTH #7. Women's clubs are designed for women. I just bought a set of Lady Shazam 3000's for my wife. How could they be anything BUT ladies clubs? I mean, even the lettering was pink! (Click to continue)

17. Wrong! It pains me to say this but, by and large; women get a raw deal when it comes to clubs. Take a look at the loft, head weight and design of the clubheads on the ladies set you just bought. Now compare them to the men's set from the same company. Do you see any difference (besides the pink lettering)? Now, it's possible you might; but in far too many cases you won't. Many if not most club companies do not feel there is a large enough ladies market to justify a separate design and casting process. The results are clubs that will not work properly with most women's swings. TIP: Come on! Have your wife properly fitted by a professional clubmaker. (Click to continue)

18. MYTH #8. I'll just cut down a set for my kid. That's good enough. My dad cut down one of his old sets and that was good enough for me to learn. If it was good enough for me, it's good enough for my son or daughter. (Click to continue)

19. Wrong! A cut down set will almost assuredly be too heavy, too stiff, the wrong loft, the wrong lie and probably the wrong length. Other than that, it will be just fine. Sure, it makes sense to locate an old (preferably junior) club to see if the interest is really there. But as soon as he or she starts asking for another bucket at the driving range, or complains because you are leaving the range "too soon," it's time to get him or her fitted. TIP: Most professional clubmakers can custom make a set of junior clubs for far less than the cost of an "off the shelf" set. (Click to continue)

20. MYTH #9. My club is just like the one Tiger uses. Hey, I see the ball caps and shirts the pros are wearing. I can see what they are taking out of their bags. That's the reason I bought my current set. If those clubs are good enough for Tiger, they're certainly good enough for me (Click to continue)

21. Wrong! Despite what you think you see on TV, you will probably never get within a country mile of owning a set of clubs that are "just like" the ones the pros use. (Nor, frankly, would you want to.) Their clubs are to your clubs, as a NASCAR racer is to the Chevy that's in your driveway. They might have the same general shape, but all comparison ends there. I have built sets of clubs for several PGA pros. In fact, I did Payne Stewart's last set, which took me over 300 HOURS to build. And you want to compare THAT with what you just grabbed off the shelf? TIP: Forget the advertising hype. Find a professional clubmaker that can fit a set of clubs to YOUR specific needs. (Click to continue)

22. MYTH #10. Any club that's not a "brand name" is junk. There are all sorts of "knock-offs" and "clones" out there. I've read enough to know to stay away from them and stick to the "brand names." (Click to continue)

23. Wrong! (Probably) If you are talking about exact copies of existing clubs, then you're right. Besides being illegal, from a quality standpoint, they're usually junk. If you are referring to anything that is not a "brand name" as a "knock-off to be avoided," then you are wrong. Some of those "non-brand name" companies produce some of the finest, most innovative, highest quality clubs in the world! TIP: Be sure to look for a professional clubmaker who carries my Wishon Golf Technology clubheads. I'll tell you straight up. I'll stack my clubheads against any brand name you care to mention—any day, any time, anywhere, and measured by any criteria. (Click to continue)

24. MYTH #11. I was "custom fitted" at the driving range (or retail store, or pro shop). I've already been custom fitted. I mean, there was all this fancy computerized equipment and the guy seemed to know what he was talking about. (Click to continue)

25. MAYBE YOU WERE AND MAYBE YOU WEREN'T There are all sorts of people out there claiming to do "custom fitted" golf clubs, and maybe you were tested on some very impressive equipment. But, you are making two assumptions. First, you are assuming that the person who was looking at the output of all that equipment actually knew what the heck he was looking at. Second, even if he did, did he sell you clubs that were built from the ground up for your swing, or were they simply chosen from among the sets he happened to have with him in the store at that moment? TIP: A professional clubmaker is not limited to a handful of options that his store happens to be carrying. He or she has access to literally thousands of clubhead, shaft and grip designs from all over the world. (Click to continue)

26. MYTH #12. Custom fit golf clubs are only for really good golfers. Okay, I understand why professional golfers have to be perfectly fitted. I can even understand why some of my low handicap friends would want to do so. But I am just a weekend hacker. My game doesn't justify having a set that is that fancy. (Click to continue)

27. Wrong! As a matter of fact, you have it exactly backwards. Pros and low handicappers could play golf with just about anything. Over the years they have grooved their swings to the point where they can almost instantly adjust to almost any equipment problem or difference. YOU, however, DO NOT have that ability, which is why YOU need custom clubs even MORE than they do. TIP: Take a few minutes to locate a qualified professional clubmaker in your area. I honestly believe you (and your golf game) will be very happy with the results. (Click to continue)

28. 12 Myths That Could Wreck Your Golf game Complements of TOM WISHON GOLF TECHNOLOGY and YOUR LOCAL PROFESSIONAL GOLF CLUBMAKER Copyright  2006 Tom Grundner