Tech tips: Golf Digest's technical panel offers stroke-saving advice

Golf Digest, Jan, 2003

bounce

If you bend your irons stronger, watch out for bounce angle. Today's softer, lusher fairways require irons with a good bounce angle to avoid digging into the turf. Bending your irons stronger to reduce loft decreases the bounce angle and increases the likelihood of your club digging into the turf before impact. Hitting the turf even a microsecond before the ball reduces the energy the club can impart on the ball. Proper bounce angle can prevent this energy loss.

TOM STITES
Chief of Design,
Nike Golf

weather

A head wind hurts distance more than a tailwind helps. With typical launch conditions for a driver, for every 10 miles of wind speed, you lose approximately 18 yards of carry and roll into the wind but gain only 10 yards downwind. (If you launch it high with a lot of spin, you lose even more distance.) Temperature affects your golf ball's performance, too. There is a 1-percent increase in distance for every 10-degree temperature increase. Why? The density of the air is lighter and the molecules in the ball have more energy. Of course, your swing is a little more free when it's warmer, too.

JOHN CALABRIA
Vice President Research
and Development,
Dunlop Slazenger Group Americas

tee shots

If you tend to miss your shots with the driver in a variety of directions (left, right, high and low) and you also tend to make a very aggressive swing, a stiffer shaft than normal could reduce shaft deflection at impact and improve your consistency. Generally, it's easier to control the clubhead if it's moving around less during the downswing. Furthermore, if it's moving around less, the clubhead's position at impact improves, causing a more repeatable trajectory and tighter dispersion. In short, you could find more tee shots.

HOWARD LINDSAY
President, CE0,
Vyatek Sports

distance

Need more distance? Try more loft. Golfers with slower swing speeds (less than 80-85 miles per hour) often can't take advantage of the aerodynamic benefits of modern golf balls. They can't create enough ball velocity and backspin to generate aerodynamic lift. Increased loft creates more hang time, and more hang time means more distance. If you swing between 75-85 mph, go with a driver loft of no less than 13 degrees. If you swing slower than 75 mph, your tee-shot club should have 15 degrees loft.

TOM WISHON
President,
Tom Wishon Golf Technology

shafts

The common advice has always been to play with the most flexible shaft you can control. That's a good starting point, because distance, trajectory and improved feel are likely benefits compared to playing with too stiff a shaft. Here's another idea: Find out the ratio of tip-to-butt stiffness in the shaft. A good clubmaker or the manufacturer can tell you which shafts may be more tip flexible than others. More tip flexibility will improve trajectory for many players.

GRAEME HORWOOD
Vice President, Engineering,
Research and Design,
True Temper

mis-hits

Putts hit off-center rotate the clubhead around its center of gravity and absorb energy--causing short and off-line putts. Because sidehill breakers can be played on a variety of lines based on speed (a higher, slower line or a lower, faster line), play those putts toward the uphill end of the clubface, and your putts will end up closer to the hole, many of them in it.

Bob Renegar

RADARgolf