All Posts - Page 57 of 200 - United States Golf Teachers Federation

6 Sep 2019 admin

The New Major Championship Schedule

By Mike Stevens

Justin Rose and Rory McIlroy recently complained that there was not enough time between the major championships to adequately prepare. They were also critical that the season that used to carry into August was now over in July. I guess they forgot about the $15 million that players were chasing in the playoffs that concluded on August 25th. Rory could not understand how football could cause such a dramatic change in scheduling. Quite understandable, since Europeans have no idea how passionate we colonists are about the most popular sport in America. The NFL and NCAA take no back seat once the training camps and practice sessions begin.

Is the time between major championships really an issue? I think that depends on whether you consider the Players a major tournament. Many do, but yes or no, it is one of five huge tournaments each year. The only difference in 2018 versus 2019 was when the Players was conducted. In 2018 it was 31 days after the Masters. In 2019 it was 30 days before the Masters. In reality, the length of time between the “Big 5” this year was more consistent than in 2018, about 29 days. In the previous year, the PGA was held only 17 days after the Open Championship. So, in my opinion, the new schedule is just right. Golfers will adjust; they always do.

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usgtf, golf teaching professional, regional championship, teaching golf, pga

1 Sep 2019 admin

Huang Wins Central Region Title

A “southern invasion” intruded upon the recent USGTF Central Region Championship at Pheasant Run Golf Course in Canton, Michigan. Hunter Huang of Atlanta, Georgia, held off Mark Harman of Ridgeland, South Carolina, by two strokes to claim the title. Defending champion Matt Smith of Columbus, Ohio, finished third.

Huang opened the first round with a 72, good for a one-shot lead over Smith and Ron Cox from Nashville, Tennessee. Smith was at 73, and Harman was another stroke back at 74, along with new USGTF member Mike Chism of Farmington Hills, Michigan. Huang continued his fine play with an opening nine of 35 to start the final round, with Smith hanging in there at 36. Cox was still a factor after a 37, and Harman carded a 34 to close the gap to one. Harman birdied #10 to forge a tie, which lasted through the 15th hole. Huang then went birdie-par to Harman’s par-bogey, sealing the deal.

Region director Brent Davies hosted the event, and all competitors agreed it was a great tournament.

(Pictured: Hunter Huang and Brent Davies)

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1 Sep 2019 admin

USGTF Member Benefits

USGTF membership comes with many benefits beyond the ability to identify oneself as a USGTF member in good standing. Among them are:

– Discounted golf equipment from major manufacturers

– Group liability insurance at greatly reduced rates

– Continuing education opportunities

– Regional, national and international competitions

– Subscription to Golf Teaching Pro magazine

– USGTF logoed merchandise, books and videos

– Industry recognition

To remain a USGTF member in good standing for the coming calendar year, dues must be paid on an annual basis. USGTF dues allow your organization to continue to operate at a high level and provide the member benefits listed above. Compared to other professional organizations, USGTF dues cost less and more than pay for themselves when purchasing discounted golf equipment and liability insurance. Those of us at the USGTF National Office would like to thank you for being a member, and as always, if there is anything we can do for you, please call us at (888) 346-3290 or email Membership Services at info@usgtf.com.

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1 Sep 2019 admin

Editorial: Don’t Forget the Ball

USGTF professionals are expected to be knowledgeable not only in teaching the game, but in being able to analyze a student’s equipment to determine if it is the right fit. An overlooked aspect of equipment fitting is the golf ball itself.

Generally, balls come in two broad categories: tour-caliber balls and recreation-caliber balls. Tour-caliber balls have high spin rates off the short irons and low spin rates with the longer clubs, while recreation-caliber balls tend to have lower spin rates with all clubs. When fitting a ball to a student’s game, the first thing they should be asked is if they want more control into the greens and more spin on chips and pitches, or more accuracy. Since recreation-caliber balls spin less, they will also have less sidespin on hooks and slices. However, there are some balls in the recreation category that spin almost as much as urethane-covered tour-caliber balls, so testing on a launch monitor should be done to check specific models. If a launch monitor isn’t available, testing golf balls around the green on chips and pitches can suffice, as well as testing them during a casual round of golf.

Tour-caliber balls generally come in softer and firmer feels, the latter usually designated by an “X,” as in Titleist’s ProV1 and ProV1x, Callaway’s Chrome Soft and Chrome Soft X, and Bridgestone’s B and BX. The X balls generally fly higher and have slightly more spin with the irons. For recreation-caliber balls, they generally come in “distance” or “soft” designations. Distance balls are often the least expensive on the market and are good for players who can’t break 100 which, believe it or not, constitute the majority of golfers. Despite the fact that distance balls are the firmest and are designed mainly for distance, the fact is today they are not appreciably longer than any other ball on the market, including tour-caliber balls, although they will in most cases be noticeably longer with the irons due to their lower spin rates.

The next time you analyze a student’s equipment, check out the ball they’re playing and make the appropriate recommendations.

By Mark Harman, USGTF National Course Director

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26 Aug 2019 admin

I Tested It: Equipment Beliefs

By Mark Harman USGTF Course Director Ridgeland, South Carolina

We’ve all heard teaching pros and regular golfers alike expound on and repeat beliefs regarding golf equipment: “Regular shafts go longer than stiff shafts, but stiff shafts are straighter”…“Tour balls are shorter than ‘distance’ balls,” etc.

There are a number of equipment beliefs and sayings that are taken as gospel. Some are grounded in sound science, while others may be more anecdotal. Being naturally curious about this, I decided to test some of them out. Keeping in mind that I am not a robot, I tried to introduce some sort of consistency in each of the tests I did so that they, while not being perfectly scientifically precise, will allow some real-world insight into how equipment differences affect a real person.

Belief: Tour balls spin more than distance balls

Tour golf balls are made with softer urethane covers, while distance balls have firmer ionomer covers, usually consisting of Surlyn®. (As a side note, golf balls back in the day were often marketed as having Surlyn covers, but the material became associated with hardness, so the term “ionomer” is used today.) They may also differ in core construction and material. I tested the belief that tour balls spin more than distance balls. For this test, I hit balls with a 56° wedge and all balls landed between 51-55 yards, using a GC Quad launch monitor. Only solid strikes were recorded, three shots each.

Conclusion: The two tour balls, the Callaway Chrome Soft and Bridgestone BX, had the highest spins rates, which was to be expected. The Bridgestone e6 Speed and Callaway Superhot, the distance balls, had lower spin rates, but surprisingly, the Superhot had a spin rate very comparable to the premium tour balls. I hit the Superhot three more times to see if this was some sort of aberration, but came up with similar results. There are likely other balls considered “distance” balls that also offer good spin on wedges.

Belief: Clubs with regular shafts go farther than clubs with stiff shafts

For this test, I used a Titleist AP2 7-iron and a Ping G400 Max driver to test both iron and driver shafts. I used the stock True Temper AMT White shaft for the iron test and a Ping G400 Max 10.5° with the stock Alta shaft. Three solid shots with each shaft were recorded. Results of the iron test:

For the driver test, I made sure my clubhead speed was between 94-95 mph each time, again using three solid strikes for each shaft.

Conclusion: There were virtually no differences in performance between the iron shafts. The peak height of the balls for both shafts was identical, 31 yards. There was also no difference in dispersion, either. As for the driver test, my swing speed averaged 94.9 mph with the stiff shaft and 94.5 with the regular. The stiff shaft’s ability to lessen backspin was the main factor in increased distance. Why there was a difference here and not in the iron shafts is something on which I can only speculate.

Belief: Lower-kickpoint shafts launch the ball higher than higher-kickpoint shafts

Here, I used the same Titleist AP2 7-iron with an AMT Red shaft, which is the lowest kickpoint shaft in the AMT family, while the White (used in the previous test) is the highest.

Conclusion: Surprising! The shaft with the lower kickpoint actually launched lower and with less spin than the higher kickpoint shaft. But again, I am not a robot, although I felt like I made similar swings with each shaft. The shaft did produce a higher ball speed and lower backspin, and thus more distance.

Belief: Choking down on the grip reduces distance

Choking down on the grip lessens the swing radius and theoretically should result in lower clubhead speed and distance. Using the Ping driver with the stiff shaft, I choked down 1 ̋.

Conclusion: Choking down does indeed result in a loss of clubhead and ball speed, but if control is gained, this may be a good tactic in given situations.

Belief: Distance balls go farther than tour balls

The driver tests already mentioned were conducted using a Callaway Chrome Soft ball. Because the Bridgestone e6 Speed spun noticeably lower in the wedge test, I used that ball for this test. I used the stiff shaft, and I made sure the three swings I used had a similar clubhead speed as with the above test to make sure I was testing the ball and not the club. (Please refer to the driver shaft test for tour ball data.)

Conclusion: Given similar ball speed and launch angle, the lower backspin literally carried the day for the distance ball, producing four more yards of carry distance.

Belief: Iron lie angles influence left-right ball dispersion

Iron lie angles that are too upright will result in a clubface that is aimed more closed, while iron lie angles that are too flat will result in a clubface angle that is more open. I used three different lie angles in this test with that being the only variable. I was drawing the ball this particular day, but I did manage to record three good shots with each lie angle.

Conclusion: Iron lie angles definitely affect the direction the ball takes because this is a geometric fact. Although it is theoretically ideal to have a lie angle that produces a flat clubhead to the ground at impact, some players may need to deviate from this to produce the desired ball flight.

Summary

These tests produced some results that conformed to long-held beliefs and some that did not. It is always good to question these beliefs and better yet, test them in a real-world setting. As we are all individuals with different reactions to the equipment in our hands, these results will not necessarily apply to every golfer we come across. It is quite possible – indeed likely – that another golfer will obtain different results than I did. This experiment shows that our students must test equipment before they buy…and we should, too.

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Juniors on the golf driving range, taking golf clinic.

26 Aug 2019 admin

Daily Junior Golf Clinics: Discover These New All-The-Rage Tactics To Teach Golf To Kids

By Jordan Fuller, USGTF Contributing Writer

It’s important to the growth and continued success of golf to introduce children to the game in a way that allows them to enjoy it and succeed quickly. Golf can be a very difficult game to learn at any age, but kids are actually uniquely suited to understand and develop good swing habits. So, it’s incredibly important to make sure they’re having fun while learning the building blocks that will translate into a lifetime of fun and success on the golf course.

Here are a few tactics to make sure your junior clinics keep everyone entertained while teaching them important golf lessons!

Putting contests

The classic putting contest is still one of the best ways to foster friendly competition and teach kids the importance of getting the ball close to the hole on their first putts. However, a traditional method of simply pitting children head-to-head is best reserved for the last day of a clinic. Prior to that, the contests should be more individually focused, so kids can set a baseline of performance and improve on it through the week.

I like to use large rings to create a 2-3 foot circle around the hole, and set up “tees” for them to start from. You can also use strings on tees to guide them around the putting green on a specific “course.”

They’ll receive a point for getting the first putt inside the big circle, then three more points for making their second putt. If they actually hole the first putt, they get ten points. If they take three putts, they’ll get a single additional point. This scoring system where they accumulate points is easier to explain than trying to have them make a “par” of two or three on each hole. It also gives them a high number to shoot for the next time, and drives them to try the course again and again to achieve more points.

It’s also important to reward each child for their performance. While you can have a cool prize for the single highest point total, you can also give a reward (maybe a sleeve of balls or a towel) for improving their score, or making the most one-putts.

While “everyone gets a trophy” is often ridiculed, golf is a game that most of us play for fun. Sure, some of the kids may grow up to be tournament winners, but for most of them you’re trying to develop a lifelong love affair with the game. It’s important to reward improvement as much as achievement.

Individual instruction

When demonstrating a basic skill, such as a bump-and-run chip, it’s tempting to simply explain it and demonstrate it a few times before letting the kids loose to try it themselves. But while they’re out there working on it, take a few minutes with each child individually to lightly direct and heavily praise the job they’re doing.

With very young kids, too much technical input will just muddy the issue; it’s best to give them minimal direction (just enough to make sure they’re making half-decent contact) and praise their good instincts. For older kids (8 and up), you can start drilling down on fundamentals (such as how to hit the ball properly) to make sure they’re not developing any bad habits that will take years to undo.

This extra level of individual instruction and praise is what the kids will tell their parents about: “Coach Jones helped me with my chipping grip, and I won this sleeve of balls when I chipped one into the hole!” is much better feedback than “Billy and I got to play a lot of Fortnite.” One-on-one time is key to keeping kids engaged and letting their parents know that you’re really interested in developing their kids’ skills.

Once kids have been to a few clinics and are ready to hit the links, the PGA Junior League has great programs for innovative competitions and tournaments that appeal to particular ages and skill levels. Rather than sticking to traditional 18-hole stroke play formats, PGA Junior League tournaments have different scoring systems and are played on fewer holes. Kids learn about golf, but also teamwork and self-reliance. It’s a great program to move them from beginner clinics to championship golf.

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20 Aug 2019 admin

The Vision Telescope

By Norm Crerar, USGTF Contributing Writer Vernon, British Columbia

I have been in the recreation business for over 50 years, both actively and lately as a consultant. Most of my time was spent in the ski industry as an active player and the golf industry a participant and consultant. I ski recreationally – and still do some teaching – and golf recreationally. As a result of my unique background, I have trouble just going out there with a clear mind just skiing or golfing. I am constantly looking around at what is out of place, asking myself why doesn’t someone fix this or adjust that, make a subtle change here or there that would give the visitors a better experience, or save the company some money. I love it! I am concerned, though, as both the ski industry and the golf industry are suffering from the same thing, declining numbers of participants. Some of this was due to the economy, but most is due to the Baby Boomers getting older or disappearing for health reasons. Shockingly, there are very few programs designed to get more people skiing and/or golfing more often.

Back in the 1970s, skiing had a program called GLM (Graduated Length Method). The clients started on very short skis on very gentle terrain, and as soon as they could turn the skis easily, they graduated to slightly longer skis and were taken to the top of the mountain, where they skied down a specially-tailored run that got them to the bottom quickly and safely. This was instant success for almost everyone. These thousands of people were the ones who bought the first condos at Vail and Whistler and allowed the ski industry to really take off. This same age group took up golf and found the time and money to take lessons, buy memberships, rent carts, hit thousands of range balls, find new and better equipment and buy resort properties. Both industries are now struggling to find new members and new markets.

Most of the early golf and ski resorts were started with a person or a few persons with a vision and little money. As the Baby Boomers passed through, both industries matured, the ski lift systems and grooming got better, and the golf courses were greener and opened earlier and closed later. Both were able to employ and train professionals, run things more efficiently, buy bigger and better equipment, add services, etc., but the prices started to rise and have continued to do so.

Now both the summer and winter resorts are heading in a difficult direction. Look at this as a triangle: The very few at the top do not care what the cost is; they pay their money and are off to play. The ones in the middle can afford to pay and play but decision time is around the corner; the many at the bottom will drop off at the next price rise, leaving the triangle smaller and with fewer people. Enter the accountants. Their training is to count beans. When the beans are black, they are happy. When the beans are red, they know only two things, raise prices and cut expenses (which means cutting services). People drop off the bottom line of the triangle. The triangle is now smaller. Cut expenses again. Smaller triangle, and on it goes. Sadly, this is where the “telescope” comes into the equation. For some reason, the accountant types have only been trained to look from the big end to the small end of a telescope and only see the very small picture, usually only the bottom line.

The USGTF was started with a vision born from necessity and opportunity. Looking from the other end of the telescope, your current president could only see the big picture, found a few like-minded people, offered some courses on learning how to teach golf, and the rest is history.

But the challenge remains. Both the golf industry and the ski industry need the same thing. They desperately need people to look out of the right end of the telescope and see the big picture and need to find ways of getting more people skiing and golfing more often. Doing nothing is hard, because you never know when you are finished.

What end of the telescope are you looking through?

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