Weighted club

Do you struggle with hitting all your clubs the same distance? This generally happens with women and older golfers who let their muscles get out of shape. They generally don't hit the ball hard enough for the loft to make any difference. That's why the 4 iron goes as far as the 8 iron.

To stretch the muscles, for more distance you should practice swinging with a weighted club 5 minutes a day, in a couple of weeks you will see a big difference in your club head speed. There are lots of training aids on the market to add weight to the golf club. Contact me if you need help.

The Powersleeve weighted training aid is perfect for this purpose and is available at my Pro Shop to buy where I will give a demonstration of how to use it effectively.

In just 15 minutes I can improve the dynamics of your golf swing.

THE VALUE OF TUITION

Improving your golf game cannot be underestimated, yet the percentage of golfers who have regular lessons is extremely low. Instead many players try to work out their faults themselves, take advice from playing partners, or look at the latest instruction from magazines and tips from You Tube.

All golfers are trying continually, striving for improvement but are ignoring the single most effective way of solving a re occurring problem. Unlike other sports golf has such a tiny margin of error that even the slightest change in the grip, posture, alignment feels awkward. These are fundamentals that never change. Often awkward is right when instructed by a pro!

Every top player has a coach they can turn to. Club golfers tend to look elsewhere always hoping for something better from someone else. They also look upon lessons as just for beginners which is why most only get to a certain level and stay there with little improvement. You are not just paying for tuition, you are paying for RESULTS! Experience and knowledge from your PGA Professional. It is important you find a Professional you can gel with and is a good communicator, this will always bring great achievement to your game. Elite amateurs and all Professionals are continually striving for improvement and recognise the benefits as they realise it is holistic, mind , body and swing.

If you can afford golf tuition, one or two lessons a month is ideal and can transform your game, just to keep you topped up without falling into those natural tendencies and having a good practice plan in between. Even when you are playing well it is important to go back to your Professional for the feed back and the confidence aspect. This is not a lot to ask for if you want improvement. At the end of the day, you want to enjoy the game don't you?

The quickest way to improve your scores is to work on your short game. I see so many golfers heading for the range with their driver's, beating balls but never do I see as many on the short game area and they wonder why they are not scoring.

I learnt golf from the green backwards and have always enjoyed the short game. It requires the most feel, touch and tests your skills ultimately. If I could teach everybody that way first, what a bonus it would be!

Custom Fit Testimonial

Here is a testimonial from a very happy customer who has just been custom fitted for a full set of Tom Wishon golf clubs. He was very pleased with the fitting experience and particularly with his new clubs. As a professional I can see that the Tom Wishon Your Fit Programme benefits players of all ages and abilities.

David's new Wishon clubs have improved his game in a number of ways. I would say the benefits to David are:

His distances have increased
His accuracy has improved
His clubs are more suited to him and therefore they feel easier to use
He is enjoying his game more.


Read his testimonial below:

A Golfing Problem Solved

I wonder how many older players are finding the last few holes of each round hard work! Osteo-arthritis of neck, stiff shoulder joints and a jerky swing result in a feeling that one is swinging lead weights by the end of the round. In my case, a condition of the hands called Dupuytren’s syndrome is gradually stiffening the finger joints. It is painful, though for others this is not always so. I felt in simple terms, I needed clubs that were lighter in weight and which transmitted less “reaction” through the Regular shaft to my painful hands, forearms and shoulders.

I went to discuss these problems with Carla White, WPGA professional at the Sycamore Golf Centre at Golborne. She recommended that I study the Tom Wishon Golf technology web site to gain some knowledge of golf club design and technology. Impressed I returned to Carla to be “measured” using the latest technology. This includes swing speed, ball flight and direction and spin. As important, the professional can assess or in my case knows after a number of years, the type of game I play.

The details were sent to Tom Wishon and his recommendations were received within a week. In my case these were for a driver, two fairway woods (5 & 7), two hybrids (5 & 6) and 8& 9 irons and three wedges. I was able to choose and try three of these clubs on the course before purchase. The whole process took about four weeks from start to finish.

Was it worth it? The significant reduction in club weight and the almost zero reaction to my painful hands and shoulders is very real. I have no doubt that that my playing lifetime will be increased! Of greater interest to all golfers are the greater distances that I am achieving with all clubs and with greater “feel” with the wedges.

Why buy clubs “off the peg” when you can be” fitted” by a professional who will assess your game and use modern technology to design a set of clubs especially for you. These clubs will be designed to suit the characteristics of your physique and game. A little more expensive probably: it may not turn you into the club champion but it will help the development of your golfing skills and certainly increase your enjoyment of this wonderful game.

David Bowden

PGA GRADUATION DAY

I finally finished my PGA Advanced Diploma to be awarded as an Advanced Professional at Birmingham University on Friday, 19th, April. I was very honoured and it was worth all the hard work. It was a great sense of  personal achievement and it just goes to show that you should never stop learning.

G.O.L.F. - Great Opportunities Lifelong Friends  

Me with Beverley Lewis, the first and only  Female Captain of the PGA.

All graduates, I'm in there somewhere!

Me with Sandy Jones, Chief Executive of the PGA

Me with guest speaker Naga Munchetty, a very keen 11 handicap golfer herself

TOM WISHON TECHNOLOGY

Tom Wishon is a world leader in custom club fitting. He has 33 years experience in golf research and has 44 "1sts" in original clubhead design and technology.

He has created custom designed golf clubs that have been used to win tournaments on the PGA tour and Ryder Cup competitions.

Five books written about clubmaking and fitting

Over 400 golf equipment magazine articles

Technical adviser for the PGA of America

On the panel for Golf Digest magazine since 1994.

IT'S ABOUT THE FIT NOT THE BRAND

If Tom Wishon Technology designed a fully customised set of golf clubs for you there are about 20 + characteristics of your golf swing tailored to you, which on their own or in combination with each other could change the way you hit the golf ball without you ever changing your swing.

YOUR FIT PROGRAM

This club fitting program is unique and will give all golfers the best equipment to suit their game. The  golf club will be built to your specifications and you will be able to test it. Once tested we can establish if it suits you, or there needs to be some tweeks or any changes you desire. This service does not come with any major brand, which makes this a very personal touch.

As an Advanced Professional and swing coach, I know that all golfers come in different shapes and sizes, there are many different swing characteristics, strength and athletic ability. 

The golf club loft, lie, face angle, length, swingweight, kick point in the shaft, total weight, launch angle, club head speed, bounce of the club and grip size are all measured to give you the best fit. So what chance have you got buying off the shelf and the internet where brands are mass produced.

This club fitting session will take around 45 minutes.

I am very lucky to be a fitter for Tom Wishon and feel very priviledged to be working with one of the best in the buisiness of custom fitting so DON'T DELAY, BOOK AN APPOINTMENT AND GET THE EQUIPMENT THAT SUITS YOUR GAME.

KEEP A QUIET MIND

If you get frustrated on the range or on the course you are facing a losing battle to shoot lower scores. Try your best to feel 'quiet' in your mind and not bother where the ball goes. The idea is to feel calm and composed, trying to find a deeper 'quiet' feeling and  you will notice changes in your rhythm and tempo. You will have more time, your mind will have more space and you won't judge or analyse every shot. You will hopefully gain 'awareness'.

So many times I see people dashing onto the range hitting a quick bucket of balls and dashing off. They don't seem aware that they are rushing and getting very little feedback from their practice.  They have no plan to their practice or pre shot routine. This is likely to form a habit of not thinking quietly about what they are trying to achieve. It is likely that this is also the way they play on the golf course!


                                   

What is launch angle?

Launch angle is the angle at which the golf ball immediately takes off after leaving the club face. It can vary for different ball speeds. The two main factors are the type of shaft and how you attack the ball. For example, when you swing your driver, you are hopefully hitting the ball on the upswing, but you could be hitting it on the down which will alter the launch angle considerably and impart more spin and you won't get much roll out after landing.

BALL SPEED

Ball speed is one and a half times faster than club head speed  - more club head speed - more ball speed.
You can only achieve this if you are hitting the ball out of the sweetspot of the club. Swinging yourself and your club faster does not guarantee distance, you are after a slower, well timed swing for precise ball striking. This will produce more ball speed than a fast mishit! Go out and give it a try!