Golf Monthly: Equipment Guide 2008

■ ADVERTISING FEATURE
Custom-ﬁ tting begins with swing analysis
Join the fit club
Clubs can be adjusted in so many more ways than was once the case, so getting a perfect
fit for your swing and playing needs is now even easier. So why not take advantage?
F
or many years golfers have asked had a choice of shaft flex and clubface loft. order to make sure that your hard-earned cash
themselves (and magazines such as Golf There were notable exceptions – Ping, for is most effectively spent.
Monthly) whether they could buy better example, has always been at the forefront of Ian Wookey is the manager of one of
golf scores, and the traditional response was: custom-fitting – but for most manufacturers american golf’s biggest stores, in Brighton, and
“Yes, if you spend the money on lessons with a it was a bolted-on afterthought. says: “Whenever a customer is looking for new
PGA pro.” And while that remains true, it is also clubs we look at five basic physical elements of
the case that now, as never before, you can also CLOSE TO PERFECT the club – loft, lie, shaft flex, thickness of grip
purchase improvement by getting the right set But all of that has changed, because the way and overall length. If any one of those is not
of clubs – although there’s a minor catch. in which golf clubs are made has changed. suited to you, it can have a profound effect
The proviso is, you should allow yourself to Manufacturers now use sophisticated on the results you get with that club.
be custom-fit – after all, why buy off-the-peg equipment to measure launch angle, spin “Some of these elements can be tailored
when you can get something at exactly the rate, clubhead speed, swing path and much according to simple measurements. For
same price that is specifically tailored to your else besides, and a significant amount of example, a standard industry measure is wrist,
build and swing? that technology is now available to you, the or fingertip, to floor, and we would use this to
It’s a question that, until a few years ago, consumer, to ensure that the next set of clubs help gauge the overall length of club required.
was largely academic. Not many retail outlets you buy is as near to perfect for you as possible. We can also put tape on the bottom of a club
had the facilities to properly assess your american golf has been at the forefront of and ask the customer to swing it onto a strike
physical and swing characteristics, and golf this movement, so if you go to your nearest board, which shows which part of the sole of
club development and manufacture was still store for new clubs you can opt, in addition to the club is striking the ground first – if it’s the
fairly crude by today’s standards. When a new the standard measurements for loft, lie and so toe, for example, then we can adjust the lie so
club or range was introduced, you effectively on, to spend a little time on a swing analyser, in that it becomes more upright.”
46 GOLF MONTHLY EQUIPMENT GUIDE 2008 IN ASSOCIATION WITH AMERICAN GOLF
46-47/Supp/MAY/Advert_sc.indd 46 18/3/08 16:15:54
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