|
|
|
 |
| Buying
Guide |
Woods
Buying a wood is not as
complicated as many people
think. You must consider
4 main variables and apply
them to your own golf
game:
a. Shaft: Graphite shafts
tend to be lighter than
steel shafts. The basic
rule is this: If you are
looking for more distance,
graphite is probably the
way to go. Tiger Woods
uses a steel shaft in
his driver, but most of
us can only dream of hitting
the ball that far. For
most players, graphite
is the best option in
the driver and fairway
woods, simply because
distance is your most
important concern. Steel
is better for players
who are looking for specific
distance control.
b. Loft: The higher the
loft on the club, the
higher the ball will travel,
and the less roll you
will get. Loft also relates
to forgiveness – the higher
lofted the club, the less
likely you are to hook
and slice the ball because
the ball has more backspin
than sidespin. So, while
lower lofted clubs may
give you more distance,
they should only be considered
by better players who
can afford to give up
the accuracy.
c. Head Material: The
harder the material in
the head, the more forgiving
and longer the club will
be. This is the reason
that Titanium has become
so popular – because it
is hard and lightweight.
When a material is lighter,
it allows the manufacturer
to move the weight around
the club and position
it more effectively. The
idea here is similar to
an oversized tennis racket
made of lightweight composite
materials.
d. Head size: The larger
the size in the head,
the more forgiving the
club is, but players must
consider what they are
using the club for. Fairway
woods will often have
smaller, lower profile
heads to allow them to
be used in ‘less than
perfect’ lies more easily.
Drivers should be larger
and lighter, while fairway
and utility woods should
be smaller and heavier,
especially if they are
not going to be used off
of the tee.
Irons
When purchasing an iron
set, you should first
ask yourself what your
priorities are. Do you
want more forgiveness?
Do you want feel? Do you
want to be able to work
your shots easier? These
questions will help you
decide which set is best
for your game.
a. Shafts: As with woods,
graphite shafts are best
suited to people who are
looking for more distance,
or who have an injury
that is aggravated when
they mis-hit a shot. There
is a common misconception
that steel shafts are
more consistent, but the
technology in graphite
shafts has made them very
consistent as well. Stronger
players who are looking
for more feedback from
their shots, and who like
the feel of a heavier
golf club should use steel
shafts.
b. The head material in
irons is also very important.
Most clubs today are cast
forms of carbon steel.
This casting allows manufacturers
to make the clubs more
forgiving through perimeter
weighting. Cast and stainless
steel clubs are best suited
for mid to high handicap
players. Forged clubs
are typically more difficult
to hit because they are
softer than their cast
counterparts. Softer means
the ball will spin more,
and you therefore lose
some forgiveness. Forged
irons are best for players
who value feel more than
forgiveness (low to mid
handicaps).
c. Head size is another
consideration when buying
an iron set. The larger
heads will tend to be
more forgiving, but you
will sacrifice some feel
and shot working ability.
Smaller heads will give
you plenty of feel and
workability, but off-center
hit performance will be
dramatically reduced.
Wedges
The fact that wedges are
used primarily for shorter
shots and touch shots
around the green means
that the considerations
with a wedge should be
slightly different than
considerations with irons.
a. Lofts: Wedge lofts
can get very confusing
since there are so many
to choose from, and since
we can only carry 14 clubs
in the bag (only supposed
to, anyway). As a general
rule, you should space
your lofts out to cover
the most area. For example,
many players will carry
3 wedges in addition to
their pitching wedge –
a gap wedge for fairway
shots (50 to 54 degrees),
a sand wedge (55-58 degrees),
and a lob wedge (58-64
degrees). The spacing
is dependent on your game,
so have an idea of what
yardages you are trying
to cover before you start
looking into wedges. 4
to 5 degrees of spacing
between clubs is usually
optimal.
b. Bounce: This is one
of the least understood
aspects of golf clubs.
Bounce is the angle on
a wedge from the leading
edge to the back portion
of the sole. What does
this mean to you? Sand
wedges typically have
more bounce so that the
club ‘bounces’ into the
ball rather than digging
into the sand. The softer
the area you are hitting
from, the more bounce
becomes useful because
it makes it harder to
hit ‘fat’ shots. When
the majority of your shots
are played from firmer
lies, bounce actually
becomes a problem. So,
if you are considering
2 clubs with equal lofts
and different bounce angles,
decide when you will be
using the club and use
that to help you with
your selection. If you
will be using a sand wedge
for sand play only, you
may want to go with a
higher bounce, but if
you will be using the
club for both sand and
fairway play, a lower
bounce angle works better.
c. Head Material: Today’s
wedges are made from a
variety of materials.
Keep in mind that the
harder the material, the
less spin (and therefore
more forgiveness) you
will get from the club.
The softer wedges will
bring more feel and spin
to your shots, but may
be more difficult to hit.
This means that the softer
wedges are better suited
to shots that require
more touch and feel (for
example, a delicate lob
shot over a bunker onto
the green), and the harder
wedges are more suited
to full fairway approach
shots.
Putters
Deciding on a putter is
more a matter of feel
than it is anything else,
but there are certain
attributes that can make
a putter more suited to
your game.
a. Insert Material: Most
of today’s putters have
some sort of softer insert
material in the face of
the putter. The softer
the face, the more aggressive
you can be with your putting
stroke without the ball
jumping off of the face
and past or through the
hole. When you can be
more aggressive with your
putting stroke, you can
usually hold the putt
on-line much easier. The
softer inserts can also
be useful on very fast
putting surfaces, as well.
Putters without inserts
to deaden the impact of
the ball can be preferable
on slower putting surfaces,
and for players who prefer
the feel of a harder putter.
b. Face Balancing: This
is a property of about
50% of today’s putters.
When a putter is face-balanced,
the weight of the toe
and the heel offset one
another so that the natural
tendency of the putter
is to remain square at
impact. This is especially
helpful for short putts,
when our hands are not
quite as firm through
impact, so that the putt
will stay on-line. Many
players however will prefer
a putter with more ‘toe
weight’ because they like
the feel of the toe of
the club helping the putter’s
face close. Examples of
face-balanced putters
are the Odyssey Rossie
putters, and most ‘mallet’
style putters. Examples
of the more traditional
‘toe-weighted’ putters
are the Ping Anser series,
and the Wilson 8802 blade.
We recommend having at
least one putter of each
type that can be switched
when you lose the feel
with the other.
c. Offset: The offset
in a putter sets the hands
ahead of the blade without
the player having to adjust
his putting position.
The more offset the putter,
the further your hands
are ahead of the ball
at impact. An offset putter
can be a good fix for
someone who consistently
‘pushes’ putts out to
the right (or to the left
for left-handers). For
players who ‘forward press,’
or keep their hands slightly
ahead of the ball anyway
at impact, an offset putter
might cause them to pull
putts.
Shoes
Golf shoes are designed
for stability and performance
on the course. Purchasing
them is very different
from buying a tennis shoe
or a dress shoe. Golf
shoes should fit tighter
in the saddle (middle
portion of the foot) than
most shoes, especially
at first. This is where
the shoe will do its stretching
and offer the most support
in the golf swing.
It is a very good idea
to consider a waterproof
shoe. It is worth the
added expense to keep
your feet dry, especially
if you play early in the
morning.
Many of the most expensive
shoes have leather outsoles.
These shoes conform to
the shape of your foot
over time and offer maximum
stability and long wear.
Leather uppers are the
best for providing support
and waterproofing. Synthetic
leather uppers, while
cheaper, will not be waterproof
or breathable.
Gloves
The materials used in
a glove are the most important.
Synthetic gloves are cheaper
and last a little longer,
while leather gloves offer
more feel. Many of the
newer gloves have a mesh-like
material on the backside
of the hand to let the
glove breath and to keep
it from stretching and
losing its shape.
Bags
Golf bags come in a variety
of shapes and sizes. Lighter
weight stand and carry
bags are best for those
players that walk, but
can also be used on a
cart when needed. As a
general rule, if you never
walk, there is no need
to purchase a bag with
a stand. Staff and cart
bags will last longer,
and provide much more
pocket space for golfers
that carry rain suits,
extra shoes, etc. with
them.
When buying a travel bag,
you should consider how
easy it would be to navigate
through the airport, how
much space you will have
in the rental car, etc.
The travel bags with wheels
are much easier to use
in airports, and the soft
cases fit easily into
rental car trunks and
storage areas. The hard
plastic cases offer the
best protection against
careless baggage handlers,
and the lightweight canvas
bags are best for occasional
travelers.
Balls
Matching a golf ball to
your game can be just
as important as buying
golf clubs. Follow these
recommendations based
on player ability:
a. High handicappers and
players who need more
distance want to go with
harder, lower spin golf
balls. The low spin helps
prevent the ball from
hooking or slicing, and
gives more roll when it
hits the ground. The good
news is that these balls
are typically less expensive
than other balls. Examples:
Top Flite XL & Pinnacle.
b. Middle handicappers
need a little more feel
than the distance balls
provide, but too much
spin will keep them from
hitting fairways and greens.
Most of the balls in this
category will be longer
than the softest ball
used by tour professionals,
but will have enough feel
and spin that the average
player can still stop
the ball on greens and
execute tricky touch shots.
Examples: Maxfli Tour
Patriot, Titleist Tour
Distance SF, Taylor Made
InerGel Pro, Callaway
Rule 35, Precept MC Series,
Strata Distance
c. Low handicappers and
professionals require
more feel and spin than
they do distance. These
balls are designed to
provide maximum stopping
power, workability, and
feel. Examples: Titleist
Tour Prestige, Taylor
Made InerGel Tour, Strata
Tour, Maxfli Elite, and
Precept Tour Premium.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
