Kingdom of Golf

A Good Score Would Have Solved Everything

2008-08-01T21:45:00.000-07:00

Nothing could do more to get me back to my blog than the non-surprise of Michelle Wie accepting another sponsor's exemption to Reno-Tahoe. She may be unrealistic but Wie does know how to pick an event. With the real tour players at the WGC event in Akron, Ohio Wie faced a field that gave her some kind of shot of making her first cut in 8 attempts on the PGA Tour. Alas, Wie fell short. Happily, though, she said that she learned alot so I guess it was all worth it.

Where Tiger Woods succeeded in bringing fans of other sports to golf Michelle Wie succeeds largely in bringing fans of no sports to the golf events where she shows up. Think about it. Every Wie-Fan at Reno-Tahoe was not at home watching the Women's British Open. They choose to cheer for one young woman rather than women's golf as a whole.

I think that fact says more about Michelle Wie than it does even about her fans. Rather than suffer the potential ignominy of failing to qualify for the Women's British, she choose the road to easy adulation. She is the only player on the planet who thinks that the PGA Tour is a great place to work on your game while going to college. The problem is that there are just enough decidedly minor events on the tour calender to assure that this dubious path will continue for as long as she cares to walk it.

Perhaps Wie would be wise to create a Michelle Wie Tour to showcase her now stagnating talents to her rapt audience? That would get her off the pesky hook of qualifying for whatever tour she most aspires to and would even put her in the Ka-Ching Friendly position to accept some fat appearance fees to augment her meager earnings (from playing, at least).

The real question is just what is Wie's point? Is she into learning to play at the highest level possible? If that were the case, she would have been wise to maintain her amateur status and do a couple years of college golf before taking the LPGA Tour by storm. A guy named Woods followed that plan and it has worked out fairly well for him. If she wants to play against the men, she's free to head to Q-School and take her shot. If she's already truly a professional in her head, why not give up the Stanford pretense and head to the LPGA Q-School?

For a person who said that a good score will solve everything, Michelle Wie would appear to be distinctly uninterested in doing the work to post a good score on any tour.

My Two Minutes with Monty

2008-06-14T15:57:00.001-07:00

Of course, I have to start out by saying that I have always wanted to heckle Colin Montgomery. I am almost embarrassed to admit that, but not quite. The man who has been called Mrs Doubtfire by a fellow member of the European Tour is simply the perfect target of derision and sarcasm. Now that he and I are both getting a little older I became concerned that I might never get the chance or, worse, that he would suddenly become a mature adult.

I needn't have worried.

I went to the US Open on Friday and once the course started to get crowded I set out in search of interesting groups, but ones that may not be around for the weekend. Monty, David Toms and Rory Sabbatini were together and Rory was putting a nice round together. I saw them tee off on a par 4 and Sabbatini put the ball in the deep rough with his 3 wood. It was a nasty lie and the marshalls had to drop the yellow gallery rope to give him a free swipe at it. All the while, Monty stood with a borderline glare on his always less than sanguine face. Once Sabbatini hit, the marshall made the mistake of taking no more than 20 seconds getting the steel rods that support the yellow rope back in place. Monty's semi-glare bloomed into the full Montyesque glare that we have always hoped he reserved for the most vociferous and inebriated hecklers.

The marshall was just about done when Monty finally shakes his head ruefully and then calls out, "OK, laddie. That's fine. You've done enough. You're done." The guy looked up, and knowing that the rod was still not in place, meekly held it up while Monty addressed his approach. Once he a hit, I could not help but say, "Wow, only two minutes with Monty and he's already been an asshole to a volunteer. Is that a record?" With that, another guy calls out, "Hey Monty. Have a safe trip home."

Now, this was really pretty funny. It really made the trip to Torrey worth it al by itself. But after a while I began to reflect on a professional athlete who needed to behave this way despite his talent, wealth and age. The man simply cannot be all there. His expression was one that shifted from bemusement to outright annoyance. He would talk to Toms and Sabbatini, but would never look at anyone in the decidedly laid back SoCal gallery.

Golf has always had its share of jerks and surely not all of them have been found inside the ropes. The problem is that Monty pretty much seems to have given up. He's definitely given up on being the kind of player that the golf lovers of the world would like him to be. But, it seems that he has also given up on his physical condition and the best parts of his game. Sure, he was 10 over but so was most of the field. It was no excuse for his attitude or his uninspired, John Daly After a Bender style of play.

In the end, I was almost sorry to have seen Monty. I would have rather lived having never watched him play in person than to have my darkest suspicions about his character confirmed so quickly and so totally.

You almost have to pity the guy, but not quite.

Complacency & Slow Play: The PGA Tour's Biggest Challenges

2008-05-30T19:11:00.001-07:00

The recent LPGA policy combating slow play is the latest illustration that the great challenge facing the PGA Tour is complacency. The massive purses help make players complacent and the other side of that coin, huge television contracts, have the tour resting on its laurels. Both of these issues have been touched upon by the mainstream golf press (most notably by Golf World's John Hawkins) there will be a lot of talk before there's any action.

The tour is understandably dedicated to big television contracts. After all, who walks away from big checks? But the tour seems engaged in a naked cash grab and I think I know why. I believe that the tour is looking ahead to a time when Tiger Woods is more interested in bouncing his daughter, Sam, on his thrice surgically repaired knee than he is in winning more majors. It is a simple matter to check the television ratings of events where Woods is not in the field to get a sense of just what the price tag of this day will be to the tour, and its players. The precise figure is lots...

Right now, both the tour and the players have decided that inaction is the best action. The tour is creating more and ever more lucrative elite field events and making run of the mill tour stops look a lot like Nationwide Tour events. Those elite field events give the tour more chances to lure Tiger into the field but they also create a haves and have not effect that is not lost on the rank and file tour player.

The players get some of the blame, too. They cannot possibly avoid being complacent when they've seen the purses increase the way they have. There is now real money in the business of simply making cuts and unless you're John Daly it is just not that easy to spend a million a year which is what number 43 on the money list, Pat Perez, has made so far. Now, I ask you: When was the last time you saw Pat Perez on a leader board, let alone near the lead? Do you think that anyone is looking to watch him on television?

Worse than this is the player's recalcitrance when it comes to the issue of slow play. For them, the deal is done, the money's in the bank, so why pick up the pace? The tour has shown them by deed if not word that playing slowly is not a big deal. The tour's policy is irrelevant when its sanctions are both rare and inconsequential. Fines of a few thousand dollars, which are never levied, will do nothing to motivate players making a couple million dollars a year for living on the cut line.

Want to create a litmus test for which tour is taking slow play seriously? Consider the fact that an LPGA Tour player never gets the luxury of being put on the clock, which is the first non-penalty on the PGA Tour. The first thing that happens to an LPGA player is a two-stroke penalty. Two strokes, especially with the much smaller purses on the LPGA Tour, is a significant hit. Add to this the fact that the LPGA player is held to a higher standard of playing speed than those on the PGA Tour and it's pretty clear which tour is doing more than simply talk about slow play.

The LPGA Tour is a better and leaner product under the helm of Carolyn Blevins. Perhaps a similar infusion of new blood is just what the PGA Tour needs to keep its edge in the post-Tiger era. That era, and all of its financial ramifications, is much closer than any of us might realize.

The Triumph of the Ball-Striker

2008-05-12T09:58:00.000-07:00

I just hate it when significant golf tournaments are won by the players who putt the best over four days. Hot putters come and go but great ball-striking is the true stuff of golf legend. As Hogan said, "There are two games: Putting is playing the ball on the ground but golf is controlling the ball in the air." Though not usually metioned in the same breath as Hogan (yet, anyway), I have seen no better ball-striker than Sergio Garcia. Nick Price comes close but I am not sure that he ever had quite the combination of length and control with the driver that Garcia has owned since he was 19. If Sergio Garcia could have Tiger Woods putt for him the rest of the field would do well to stay home and enjoy the action on television.

Now, I have nothing against Paul Goydos (he's a good California boy) but the idea of him winning The Players by being first in putting and 46th in GIR makes me queasy. If all the talk of The Players being the 5th major have merit it will have to be something more than a putting contest. And, that brings me to the 18th. The boys of Ponte Vedra have got to fix that hole. Having an 18th hole that has evolved into one that few in the field can hit with two shots is just silly.

Can you imagine Hal Sutton exulting, "Be the right club today!" while laying up to 50 yards? The water has become a non-issue with far too many players hitting 3-wood so far right that they leave themselves little or no chance to hit the green. I would say they have two choices. The first is simply to move the tee up 10-20 yards on Sunday. That would present the players with an opportunity they would find hard to resist with the results being more birdies, more tee shots in the water and more approach shots in the water.

The other option is to take the rough out of the right side. That would open the option of playing for the green while still keeping the threat of the water left or the mounds right but still keeping some chance for a birdie.

It's time to seriously talk about The Players replacing the PGA as the fourth major. Let's face it, the PGA of today isn't the PGA of Hagen's day anyway. The Players brings a fantastic course and the deepest field in golf together in a way that the PGA will never achieve with the combination of its nepotostic tendencies toward choosing a venue and qualifying a field. We can save that debate for another day, but that day is coming.

The Olympics & Why Golf Shouldn't Chase Growth

2008-04-16T11:30:00.000-07:00

PGA Tour Commissioner, Tim Finchem has made it known that he'd like golf to be an Olympic sport as soon as possible. Even Phil Mickelson is worried that golf is on its way to being as widely played as, I don't know, badminton. Lefty was quoted as saying, "We seem to be stagnant in growth. We lose as many golfers as we gain each year in the United States. If we could make this an Olympic sport, I think golf could really grow." It took about a minute before this really sunk in. The head honcho of a professional sports organization, and the number 2 professional on the planet think that golf needs the Olympics. The rally word is always the same, growth. Growth is what golf needs to do and it needs to do it now.

But does it really?

Since when is it the goal of the Olympics to help a sport grow? In fact, the summer games are clogged with sports that likely haven't and won't be growing appreciably anytime soon such as handball, the modern pentathalon and archery. But, the real question is why does the PGA Tour think it's OK to use the Olympics to advance their goals, and what are their actual goals for this gambit?

Golf has been a minor sport for a lot longer than it's been a major one. Very recently, it was a game for non-athletes, geeks and country club clowns. Check out pictures of high school golf teams from anytime before 1997 to see how cool it was just a decade ago.

Though ultimately geeky, golf is still a great game and it has endured. Endurance is a far more significant goal than growth, especially in an individual sport. People will continue to take up and give up on golf because it is so devinely humiliating and unrelentingly difficult, but that's OK. That's the way our game works best.

Even in the pre-Tiger, post-Jack days from the late 80s until 1997, golf was OK though far from booming. I believe that provocateurs like Finchem are really desperately trying to get their ducks in a row before Tiger says his effective farewell, but that's a subject for another article.

The most disingenuous part of Finchem's plea is the time honored idea of the glory of competing for one's country. Gee, isn't that what happens in the Ryder, Presidents, Solheim, Walker and Curtis Cups along with a bunch of other cups I've never heard of? Are tour players really grousing among themselves about never having the chance to go mano a mano with the national team from the Republic of Uzbekistan?

When it comes to organizations like the PGA Tour all you have to remember is follow the money but, hopefully, not to the Olympics.

The Relevance of Balance

2008-03-26T01:37:00.000-07:00

It is no secret that the greatest concentration in the mass of a golf club is found in the club head, as little as 200 grams or so in a driver to well over 300 grams in a putter. With shafts ranging anywhere from 30 to 40" or longer it is easy to see where the image of golf club as pendulum came from.

But, what about control? What has been done to enhance the player's control over the swinging club head? Of course, with longer clubs the player is looking for speed. Can a club's balance point affect a player's ability to create speed? And if so, how? And has the effect be studied or quantified?

Before 3D video, before launch monitors and even before the swing weight scale there were real club makers. They were professionals who made money from building and maintaining golf clubs. This was the work of artisans, men who could understand a club's usefulness and create exclusively by feel. Oh sure, there were scales to weigh clubs with but for the most part clubs were matched by this largely subjective method.

The clubs of Bobby Jones had been selected by him, one at a time, by hand. Only years after he stopped playing competitively did he find that he had assembled a set that was nearly perfectly matched, all but one. Upon learning this, he confided that the mismatched clubs had always felt a bit off.

As interesting as this story is, there is yet another question. What is a matched set of clubs? Most people know that, through the set, there is generally a one half inch difference in length from one club to the next in the series. So, it is logical that the club head of each longer clubs will be lighter than the shorter club but some X-Factor value. But, before we consider that question we need to talk about how a club's feeling of heft (different than its static mass) is measured.

We all owe thanks to a now long forgotten inventor named, R.W. Adams who patented the first, and still widely used, Swing Weight Scale in the early 1930s. The Adams Scale, along with the advent of steel shafts, brought about a quiet revolution in golf clubs. Adams' scale allowed club builders to assign an alphanumeric designation that conveys the club's swing weight, which is essentially its comparative heft as derived from a fulcrum set 14" from the end of the grip. So, now it was quite simple to create complete sets of clubs that all shared a matched swing weight, or feeling of heft.

Now, I have no quarrel with the swing weight scale and in fact I am pretty much of a stickler for my irons to be well matched in that regard. The question for me is whether there is any relevance to swing weight for clubs outside of the sequenced irons? I am coming to believe that the answer is a resounding no and I may have found an ally in Balance Certified Golf. They have created a weighting system that is designed to optimize the weight balance of golf clubs.

The BC system is very easy to use. Just cut a hole in the end of the club's grip using their handy-dandy tool and drop in the appropriate weight. But, wait a second; How do you know which weight to use? OK, this is where things get a little bit more tricky. At the BC web site they say, "Positioning mass above the hands counter-balances the head of the putter. This balance gives golfers the ultimate feel while putting. The best balance requires the correct amount of weight in exactly the right places. Optimizing these weights to achieve the proper feel and balance is what balancing putters is all about."

Now, that may sound simple enough but it is not. Since there is apparently no formula to rely on, BC believes in fitting players to determine this most elusive balance point. It would be an relatively easy matter to totally top load a club, situating nearly all of its mass in the grip, or even above. There is a longstanding presumption that there's an advantage to having a sense of mass in the club head (a pendulum ceases to be a pendulum if all of its mass were to be found at its pivot). I am not questioning the efficacy of the BC products but their lack of a stated criteria for determining specific weight values is a bit vague. I am hoping that they will expound on this in their reply to this article.

Swing weight, while relevant, becomes far less so when you're talking about clubs like the putter and the driver, and maybe even the short game wedges. Why? In the case of the putter swing weight is totally meaningless. Really, I cannot imagine anything that could matter less. Putting is an alchemy and the more that some try to make it into a science the more mysterious it becomes. One of my colleagues recently worked with Jim Furyk and found that he aimed no less than 5" right on a 10' putt. Do you truly think that he will act to correct his faulty aim if he believes that he'll make putts with it?

The reality is that the weight of the putter, the swing weight of the putter and even the weight of the golfer are all swamped by the myriad of variables that are quite simply beyond us. How about the fact that the ball is rolling on living grass? How about the fact that the grass is seldom level, or even cut at a consistent height? How about the fact that the golfer had an extra cup of coffee, missed his coffee or went to bed late the night before?

Putting is an odd blend of optics, balance, confidence and control of one's nerves. Nothing can change any of that, but I have found that BC inserts can serve to almost balance the sense of mass in my putters that may be slightly longer or shorter, lighter or heavier and this is a critical advantage to me. It allows me to move from putter to putter and to maintain a continuity of feeling that makes me more likely to make putts. Best of all, I can change the change, if you will. My hands don't feel the same on my clubs from day to day so the BC inserts let me adapt more readily but then again, I know my stroke and not everyone does.

I have yet to evaluate the other products from Balance Certified but I am very much looking forward trying their inserts in my strong sand and lob wedge since those are very much feel clubs like the putter. Anything that enhances feel has the potential to enhance results. Balance Certified has enabled me to improve the most feel-centric club in my bag. It's an improvement that only takes a minute and last forever. Do yourself a favor and visit the BC website, or give them a call, to learn more.

Manufacturer's Comment:

My intent for blogging on this subject is to add clarity to the information presented about Balance-Certified and its back weighting system. My 9 years in the golf business has taught me at least a few things and one of them being to clarify definitions. What the golf industry in general says about technical things is often steeped in golf folklore, opinions of golfers, and lots of “sizzle” but little “steak” not scientific experimentation and results. Our goal at Balance-Certified Golf is to use the laws of physics and quality manufacturing to the golf swing and equipment.

John Cranston
Balance Certified Golf

Nickent ARC Wedges: Ready to Play with the Big Boys

2008-03-12T10:22:00.000-07:00

Until now, the wedge market has been dominated by two wedge makers. Sure, both companies make a solid product but let's just say that there hasn't been the same spirit of innovation in wedge design as there has been with drivers or putters.

Nickent Golf is doing their best to bring innovation to short game clubs with their new ARC technology. ARC, short for Accelerated Rebound Core®, is a technology consisting of an internal core that positions a high-rebound elastomer directly behind the strike zone, delivering a lively, solid reaction from the face to the ball and eliminating vibration.

Since the elastomer is much lighter (one seventh the weight!) than the surrounding steel, the technology creates the playability of a cavity back with the look and feel of a traditional blade wedge.

When it comes to wedges and putters look and feel are everything. Short game shots require the player to blnd their sense of feel with their vision for the shot that's needed, and a clean, elegant wedge can help with the process.

Now, when I requested these wedges I wasn't really sure what to expect. I knew that Nickent had taken the professional tours by storm with their standard setting rescue clubs, but who knew what they could do with a wedge?

The Nickent ARC wedges are very impressive. Their lines are pure and clean and the wedges sole beautifully behind the ball whether set up square or open to the line. As you can see from the picture, the wedges are ground along the length of the sole's trailing edge to allow them to open a bit more readily.

I worked quite a bit with the ARC wedges and can tell you that they feel and sound fantastic. They are silky smooth on pitches and chips and have a great impact sound that minimizes the clackiness that we sometimes must endure with modern golf balls.

One great design detail of the ARC is the presence of the designer's (John B. Hoeflich) initials discretely engraved into the back of the hosel. It is just a subtle touch of class to an already fine product.

It pleases me no end to see companies like Nickent challenge the Big Boys of golf and do them one better. With their new ARC wedges, Nickent shows that they have more to offer than just rescue clubs. In fact, I have just received one of their latest drivers and am anxious to see if it measures up to their ARC wedges. Based on the quality of the ARC wedges I am getting ready to be impressed.

The golf season is just getting started in most of the country, so check your wedges; Are the grooves looking a little tired? If they are do yourself a favor and check out the ARC wedges from Nickent. Just don't be surprised if they knock your made by the Big Boys wedges out of your bag. Hey, it's all about scoring!

Ernie Els and the Dumbing Effect of the World Rankings

2008-03-02T16:49:00.000-08:00

The golf world is lucky that the supremacy of Tiger Woods is so unquestionable. If the world rankings really mattered, people would be seriously dismayed. Let's consider Ernie Els. Sure, the networks and the Golf Channel know it makes good copy to hype The Big Easy as a genuine Tiger Challenger. But, the reality is that his place in the world rankings is simply more proof of just how worthless the system truly is.

Els' win at the Honda Classic over Luke Donald (#18) and Mark Calcavecchia (#37) reminds us that Els has been trespassing in Jim Furyk's spot; Furyk has won four times on the PGA Tour over the same span that found Els coming up short again and sgain. Or, let's talk about K.J. Choi way down at #9. Choi has also won four times during Els' PGA Tour victory-free era in addition to winning already this year's Sony Open.

Of course, some will point to Els' wins on the European Tour but counting them would be like counting Nationwide Tour wins. Let's face it, the fact that Els said his Honda win was a "relief" proves that even he see the undeniable disparity between a PGA and a European Tour victory.

Since the battle for the next decade or so is pretty much going to be for second place, I figure the powers that be have about that much time to figure out a world ranking system that makes sense and awards the most relevant period of a player's record; What has he done lately and where has he done it?

The Three Ghosts of Aaron Baddeley

2008-02-24T22:34:00.000-08:00

I have enjoyed watching Aaron Baddeley since he first hit the PGA Tour in 2003. His swing is quick, short and purposeful and reminds me of Nick Price. On the greens, he leaves Nicky behind with a superb putting stroke. To this day I am amazed at just how quickly Baddeley pulls the trigger on putts once he is over the ball. But, as much as I enjoy his play, Aaron has yet to fully exorcise three golfing ghosts from his memory.

The first occurred with the slamming of a Porta-Potty door in the middle of his back-stroke while dueling it out with Ernie Els at the 2003 Sony Open. It was a really lousy break and Baddeley never fully recovered, losing to Els in a playoff. Some players would have been pleased with the second place check and moved on but the loss seemed to knocked Baddeley slightly off course for the next year or so.

The next haunting came at the 2007 US Open when he was famously paired with Tiger Woods in the final round. Now, Woods has done plenty of haunting all by himself but adding a dose of classic US Open pressure had Baddeley looking ashen on the first tee and he didn't look much better after shooting 80.

Never let it be said that Aaron Baddeley is anything less than a superb player. He is long enough, good enough with his irons and has a nifty short game to complement his oft' magic putter. But, during his third round match against Tiger Woods Baddeley was again visited by a ghost that he must expel, and soon.

From the 5th hole on Baddeley flat outplayed Woods. And, this was not a Tiger Woods who was wild off the tee or lipping out putt and after putt. This was a Tiger Woods who was as on his game as I have seen of late. Baddeley had makable putts that would have won him the match on the 18th and 19th holes. He hit great putts both times, but it sometimes takes more than great putt to find the bottom of the hole. This most recent ghost may have been the very same one to haunt Steve Scott when he had a chance to finish Woods in the 1996 US Amateur.

The lesson is that you had better beat Woods in regulation. Back in 1997 when Tom Lehmann became one of Wood's first professional match play, extra holes victims at the Mercedes Championships Lehmann said after the match that there was a sense of inevitability about Woods eventually slamming the door with an amazing shot.

Aaron Baddeley was still in high school when Woods kick-in tee shot kicked Lehmann into second place, but you know he was paying attention. And, he was paying attention during the Accenture.

Baddeley doesn't need to beat Woods head to head to get rid of those ghosts. They will purge themselves from his being the very second that he wins something big, a major, and elite field event, whatever. Until then, you'll see those ghosts sitting on his shoulder whispering doubts that he shouldn't be hearing at this stage of his career.

I think he's going to do it. Aaron Baddeley will win a big one and he'll do it this year. There will come a day when the lessons of today's painful loss become a source of resolve that makes him able to win that kind of event. Here's hoping that day comes soon.

Is Lorena Ochoa Hearing Footsteps?

2008-02-17T10:32:00.000-08:00

She better be, because it's pretty clear that Annika Sorenstam is back. I'm sure Ochoa is ready and that points out one of the most significant differences between the PGA and the LPGA tours. You can rejoice in the fact that 17 of the top 20 players in the world teed it up at this week's Northern Trsut Open, but which other top player is chasing Phil Mickelson? The answer is none. He's chased by the likes of Jeff Quinney, D.J. Trahan and Scott Verplank. I'm not sure but I don't think that a Quinney/Michelson duel is what the average PGA tour fan is wanting to see.

But, this piece is about just how compelling the LPGA tour is by comparison. This year, we have Annika back at full strength. We'll get to see her face off with Ochoa, but you cannot forget about Suzann Pettersen. She is not likely to shrink from the challenge that Sorenstam and Ochoa present. But wait; What about the Americans?

Surely young guns Morgan Pressel, Paula Creamer and Natalie Gulbis will continue to improve. You also have to believe that battle hardened players like Cristie Kerr aren't just going to take their clubs and go home.

Why do the LPGA player play harder, and play to win? I believe it's because they have to. Their endorsement money is less, the number of tournaments are fewer so they simply have to go for it when they have the opportunity.

But, the real story is Sorenstam. Ochoa will have to step it up to maintain her hold on the number one spot. Not taking anything away from Ochoa's play in 2007, but she did what she did without having to deal with the most complete player in the history of their tour. Comparing the two head to head comes out this way: Off the tee, it's pretty much of a tie. Ochoa may be a tad longer but she is not as straight. Sorenstam's irons are better than Ochoas from virtually every distance. Neither player has a great short game but Sorenstam is able to see and play more shots around the greens. Ochoa has the edge in putting but if Sorenstam sees a few more fall like the one at 17 at the SBS she may be off to a different kind of putting year than we have seen in quite a while.

It's going to be a heck of a ride this year on the LPGA circuit and my guess is that it will be Annika Sorenstam who once again reigns supreme. There was something about that 70th victory that makes me believe that she'll be gunning for Kathy Whitworth's mark of 88 titles with renewed energy. When Annika wins, she wins in bunches. No matter what it's going to be a great season.

A Golf Time Capsule: Ernest & Caryn

2008-02-11T19:10:00.001-08:00

On Sunday afternoon, my brother and I played one of our favorite courses, El Cariso in Sylmar, California. This is a course of last resort for most but not for the usual reasons. It is one of the toughest yet most playable short courses I have ever played. Even better, you can usually get on without a starting time, which is why we found ourselves there on such a glorious afternoon.

We arrived about 1:30 and were on the 1st tee a few minutes later. About the time we were ready to hit our drives, a twosome approached. Knowing it would likely be a slow round (many of El Cariso's faithful play the game at a somewhat leisurely pace) I figured I'd invite them to play along with us.

They were an obvious husband and wife team in their 40s. As they accepted my invitation the woman said that she was sure they had played with me before. I said that was a distinct possibility as I used to play the course quite a bit.

My brother and I immersed ourselves into our usual 18 hole match and I really didn't think much about the couple. They seemed like pleasant folk and treated each other well. It was clear that they played a lot of golf together and enjoyed both the game and each other's company. That was good to see given my own checkered history of playing golf with my wife back when I was married.

Up two after 9 holes (I would squander the lead later, don’t worry), I suddenly remembered Caryn and Ernest distinctly. I had played with them, one round, maybe 5 or 6 years before. At the time, they had just started to play and were pretty clueless but they were obviously intent on learning to play the game properly. Back then, they had the wrong clothes, both in jeans and tee shirts. Worse, they each towed geeky pull carts, one of the most basic giveaways of being painfully new to golf. Even then, it was clear that Caryn was the better athlete. She must have played softball because she stood to the ball with what I like to call evil intent. Ernest, like most husband golfers, was quick to offer an ill-founded bit of advice. Even so, then as now they just seemed to enjoy being on the course and with each other.

Time and countless rounds had transformed them both into grizzled veterans of the links. They both had carry bags and decent clubs (though they still used club covers on their irons). They also dressed the part with Ernest in standard issue golf shorts and golf shirt and Caryn respledent in dark blue golf skort and light blue top.

Late in the round Ernest confided to me that Caryn simply adored golf and was constantly buying him the most stylist golf togs. He said that he would protest, just a little, saying, "Sweetie, I suck. I'm not supposed to look too good on the golf course." It was easy to see that her passion for golf meant a great deal to Ernest and that he would stop short of doing or saying anything that might take any of the fun out of Caryn’s golf experience.

It was easy to see that Caryn had worked on her game, and just as easy to see that she'd gotten some strange ideas in her head. She stood far too tall to the ball, likely in response to someone telling her that she was too crouched. To paraphrase Harvey Pennick, she had taken the hole bottle of aspirin when all she needed was two.

This position created an odd and inefficient motion to her swing. The verticality of her stance led her to lift the club immediately as it moved away from the ball and to keep on lifting after that. Since she has the kind of flexibility that only women and PGA tour players seem to possess, she could actually stay in her swing throughout her long and tall move away from the ball and make fairly solid contact. The problem was that the resulting downswing took her club on a descending path into virtually every short costing her at least 30-40 yeards on her drives. Even still, she could hit the ball easily as far as her faithful beloved.

Ernest was another story. He had traded his old armsy swing for an abbreviated swing that I am sure he hoped was tight and compact. In contrast to his wife, Ernest never hit the ball squarely. He bailed out of every swing and the resulting ball flight was way too high and pretty weak.

Ernest and Caryn are almost like a golf time capsule. In so may ways they are still the people and players they were years ago. But, they are also very different. They have learned some lessons though not all of them good. They play the game seriously but are of admirably good humor about their shortcomings. They play the game for all of the right reasons and you can clearly see that it has come to mean the world to them. As I strode off the 18th green into the quickly darkening skies, I realized that I had learned a great lesson from Caryn and Ernest: Golf is a game and none of us are its master. The sooner we learn this most elusive lesson the sooner we can really start to enjoy ourselves and honor the spirit of the game. I hope it’s a lesson that sticks.

What Do Golf Fans Want to Read?

2008-02-01T12:03:00.001-08:00

After the Presidents Cup, Golf World took what I though to be a cheap shot at Woody Austin.

The direct quote was, "His mental fragility is frightening." Now, I found this offensive for a number of reasons and wrote the following letter which Golf World published:

"His mental fragility is frightening." No, the media's ceaseless characterizations of Woody Austin as man on the brink is what's scary. No one who plays professional sports for a living, let alone one who has made well over $2,000,000 just this year, is anything like fragile. Why not let Woody Austin revel in his great play at the Presidents Cup? Real lovers of the game just aren't that interested in whether he fell in the water or not. Sometimes I think that Golf World's staff would be better suited to covering Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.
--Paul Cervantes

This week, I stumbled upon this reply to my letter by a Golf World Online Editor.

Paul, while I tend to agree that Woody is mentally sturdier than he leads us to believe, your "no one who plays professional sports...is anything like fragile" got me thinking: Jimmy Piersall, Bill Lee, Dennis Rodman, Mark Fydrich, Steve Sax, Chuck Knoblauch, Rick Ankiel....and I'm not even into placekickers yet. Readers, I'm sure you can add to the list....
--Bob Carney

Of course, there's no way that I could leave well enough alone, or let that comment be the last word, so I replied:

First of all, Jimmy Piersall suffered from bipolar disorder which makes his inclusion on your list a really dubious choice. The other guys you mention may (or may not) have been less mentally robust than you'd like them to be, but did it really affect their ability to perform? If it didn't, why would it be relevant to you as a reporter?

That is the very same point that I was making about Austin. What aspect of his personal psychology is relevant to his play at the Presidents Cup? Setting that aside, how much do you really know about his mental state? I stand by my view that the golf press would serve its readers better by sticking to what they know.

Now, beyond enjoying a good written back and forth, there are more important issues here. Specifically, the question of what golf fans want to read about? Of course, we all want some sense of the humanity of the players who hit those amazing shots.

At the same time, I think that what Golf World did was to perpetuate an unfounded myth about a successful tour player. Beyond this, their brand of armchair psychiatry put the game and the Presidents Cup onto the back burner.

It's hard for me to believe that's what the average golf fan cares about, but I've been wrong before.

The Luxury of Leather: The Tour Laced from GripMaster USA

2008-01-31T20:26:00.001-08:00

A while back I picked up an old putter. OK, it wasn't really old in terms of years but it was old in terms of design. It's a classic Bullseye and for some funny reason I really hit the ball solidly with it, and it feels like butter. It just looks so very clean behind the ball that it has actually found its way into my bag. Thing is, that there's just something not right about having a common rubber grip on a club like this.

Fortunately, I know a lot of very hard core collectors and one whom I trust a great deal told me about GripMaster. After looking at all of the many versions of leather grips at their web site I decided to try a Tour Laced in Redwood. Now, I don't get easily excited by golf equipment. Too much of it goes into and out of my hands, but I really found myself looking forward to the arrival of this grip.

It was worth the wait. The leather is smooth and the lacing on the back of the grip is precise and unobtrusive. The leather rides on an rubber underlay which makes installation pretty much as easy as with a conventional rubber grip. That said, you do have to be just a bit careful. Leather is far less forgiving than rubber and you'll only get one chance to get it right and you'll be very unhappy if you stain the leather or manage to dissolve the GripMaster logo with spilled grip solvent.

Of course, I have put on more grips than I care to remember so mine went on with no problem. You? Be careful and don't come crying to me if you foul it up (if you're careful it will go on just fine). Ah, the feel! It only took me one ball to feel the difference. Leather not only feels good on the hands it feels good on impact. Smooth, soft, yet solid.

This grip is really something of a revelation. I knew it would look the part but I really never figured that it would work so well. Who knows, maybe leather is the rubber of the future? I'm sure the folks at GripMaster USA would like that and maybe you will too.

Pro-Align: Spend the Off-Season Improving your Putting

2008-01-25T09:28:00.000-08:00

Most golfers think they'll do something over the off-season to improve their games. Maybe they'll do some work at the gym, or perhaps they'll work on some swing changes in the garage. Most likely, they'll just sit around the house thinking about what they should be doing to get better. I know, I've been there...

When looking to get better, virtually every golfer I know will focus on the full-swing. But, what about that crazy place where we spend most of our extra strokes?

Getting better at putting doesn't have to be boring, or even all that time consuming. About 10 years ago, I decided that I was simply missing too many putts and that there was no reason for my confidence level on the greens to be so much lower than it was on the rest of a golf course. For me, better putting was found in a couple basic rules that I was breaking without knowing it. Once I followed those rules, my putting improved immediately and has been fair to good ever since.

The Pro-Align is a very clever tool that can help you to follow the most basic rule of putting, to aim the putter at the intended line of roll. It comes in a handy carrying case that has now found a comfy home in my golf bag. It is made from injection molded plastic so its very lightweight and durable. The Pro-Align is easy to assemble and once you get it together you'll very likely figure out how to use it for its basic function without reading the instructions.

Still, I think you'd be wise to read the excellent instructions provided at the Pro-Align web site. Suffice it to say that there is more than one use for the Pro-Align. For me, it is an invaluable indoor tool that allows me to keep my ability to aim the putter on my intended path. Really, it's that simple. Over time, as my stance or posture varies, or as I use a shorter or longer putter, I find that my abaility to aim the putter degrades. It helps a little to stand behind the ball and to see the line but the Pro-Align retrains me in mere minutes.

Beyond helping with aim, the Pro-Align helps me to stay-in my putts. It does this when I use the orange dot at the end of the beam as an instant line-check. If I keep the orange dot as the secondary focus as I'm over the putt and then make it the primary focus as I (hopefully) watch the ball roll directly beneath it, I can keep from being too intent on the hole while I should be concentrating on my stroke. This may sound complicated but it's really just about trusting your stroke and letting the Pro-Align help you do it.

About the only aspect of the Pro-Align that I'm not too sure about is the laser. The funny thing is that it's the one feature that I thought I would like the most. First of all, it's only for indoor use (for obvious reasons). Second, once it's mounted on the Pro-Align it's hard not to gently tweak the aim while pushing the laser's button, thereby skewing the aim slightly. Since the whole point to the laser is accuracy, that's a rather ironic problem.

That nick-pick aside, the Pro-Align is a very inexpensive and easy to use device that will help you to make more putts. So what if you don't get to the gym as often as you'd hoped this winter? Buy a Pro-Align and spend your winter in the comfort of the great indoors working on your putting. Come golf season, you'll be making a making a lot more putts.

First the Noose, Next the Muzzle?

2008-01-18T15:41:00.000-08:00

2008 is the year that drug testing comes to golf, something unimaginable only a few years ago. It also seems that this will be the year when rampant political correctness will finally take hold in this most civil of games. First, we have The Golf Channel's Kelly Tilghman hit with a two week suspension for joking that young players may have to resort to lynching Tiger Woods in an alley. Now, Golfweek has gotten a taste of PC for depicting a noose on the cover of the very issue that contains their report on the Tilghman/ Golf Channel Affair.

Lost in all of this is the question of judgment. Last week I wrote about the fact that given time to deliberate and act fairly The Golf Channel instead opted to pander to the partisans and pundits rather than stand by one of their most respected commentators. This week shows that Golfweek's judgment is a little dodgy as well. One has to assume that there were more than two heads in the room when they chose the Noose motif for the January 19th issue.

I judge Golfweek less harshly than The Golf Channel for some of the same reasons that I think has made Tilghman a scapegoat. The folks at Golfweek had no ill intent when they chose the noose. Their mistake was to see themselves as above the fray as reporters. While I am not sure they were correct, I can understand their thinking. By contrast, The Golf Channel's actions were self-preserving, nothing more.

The fact is that only Tilghman's actions are wholly understandable. As a human being who is paid to talk she made a poor choice of words. I can only hope that the bold fraternity of golf writers don't find it all too easy to reach for the muzzle next.

The Golf Channel Fails Us All

2008-01-09T21:05:00.000-08:00

The Golf Channel has suspended Kelly Tilghman for a slip of the tongue comment about players lynching Tiger Woods in an alley. Of course, neither the golf world at large, or the Golf Channel, are exactly paragons of courage so I guess I really shouldn't be surprised. Still, this new low for the Golf Channel is truly reprehensible. Remember when The King saw fit to can Peter Kessler? That was downright noble behavior compared with this...

The Golf Channel is treating one of their most even handed announcers as if she had engaged in a Michael Richards-like N-Word laced tirade. Whom did she harm? Who took offense? Not Woods, that's for sure. His camp was quoted as saying, "This story is a non-issue. Tiger and Kelly are friends and Tiger has a great deal of respect for Kelly. Regardless of the choice of words used we know unequivocally that there was no ill-intent in her comments. This story is a non-issue in our eyes. Case closed." Were there any calls of complaint from actual Golf Channel viewers or just the hack pundits who come out of the woodwork at times like this?

Worst of all, the Golf Channel is caving in to pressure from the likes of Al Sharpton, a man whose sole reason for living is to get himself on TV as often as possible, while adding nothing valid to the debate. Being an actual reverend with an actual congregation would be far too much like work for Sharpton.

Instead of standing behind Tilghman the Golf Channel has sold their soul and sent her to the back of the bus with a two week suspension. Their actions are nakedly self-protecting, nothing more, and should be repudiated.

I am sure that Tilgman wishes that she'd simply substituted the word mugged for lynched, but things happen when you're on the air and making a split second choice of words. The Golf Channel has no such defense for their mistake. They had the time to judge and to deliberate but, in the end, they chose the easy way out and failed us all.

Worshipping the Anser: The Edel Golf Umpqua

2007-12-06T10:25:00.000-08:00

I can always tell a hack putter maker. Of course, he makes an Anser style head but he never pays homage to its creater, Karsten Solheim. Few are old enough to know that when Solheim first came out with the Anser it was nearly universally decried as being ugly. Perhaps it was. Perhaps its beauty lies only in its functionality.

On the other hand, I do think that its shape is elegant, if not beautiful. As the years move on, the Anser head has evolved and not always to a better feeling or better looking putter. Even Ping's modern incarnations of the classic have become a bit spare and square looking.

Some makers really drop the ball by building a single Anser style which attempts to marry an Anser with an Anser2. I always wonder if they don't see the difference or if they just don't care? With the exception of a few oddball designs today's putter makers are largely consigned to merely refine the work of a departed master. It's rather sad, hardly the font of innovation that most ascribe to the golf industry.

But, take heart: God is in the details. I just received an Anser variant from Edel Golf and it is a marvelous refinement of an Anser head. Take a look at the pictures while you read my descriptions and I think you'll see what I mean.

First, though, let's talk about just how innovative the original Anser was when Karsten Solheim brought it to market. He had already designed the Model 1a (based upon his design mock-up which employed two sugar cubes sandwiched between two popsickle sticks to create heel and toe weighting. The Anser did at least two things better than the 1a. First, it put more mass into the putter's sole and second it kept the heel and toe mass lower in the putter.

In some respects, the 1a would have been seen as a better looking, or at least more conventional, putter than the Anser, especially at the time. But, the Anser was also much easier to make than the 1a and Solheim was an engineer who could appreciate ease of manufacture. Believe me when I tell you that most do not.

All of this said, the Anser could not have been a tougher sell. It came during an era when only white men could play on the PGA Tour. It came when the very best way to sell clubs was to sell them under the name of a famous pro. And, it came during a time when most putters looked like a Wilson 8802 or a funny looking Scottish mallet called a Hammerhead.

The Anser showed that most golfers didn't truly care about performance but rather about conformity. Are things all that different today? Even tour players tend to use the putters they see others using, sometimes for good reasons but sometimes not. Still, a better mousetrap cannot be denied forever and the Ping Anser was the very best single putter design ever, and surely the most imitated.

But, how well has it been imitated? Sometimes an Anser variant will pretty much copy the original, radius for radius and dimension for dimension. I am thinking, here, of the early replicas made by Bobby Grace. Others get the basic shape right but make the curves more simple and fewer to lessen casting or milling issues. Remember that every casting has to be based upon an exact positive and negative model and every milled putter is first a very complicated series of instructions. Rarely does a putter maker improve on what Solheim accomplished from either a functional or aesthetic perspective, let alone both.

David Edel is a very sophisticated putter maker. When I saw the small picture of his Anser variant, the Umpqua, on the Edel Golf site I was prepared to be underwhelmed. I assumed that it was probably just a generic Anser with very little justification for its existence. I could not have been more mistaken. Little more than a week after I provided Edel with my Specs, a black Edel putter box arrived at my post office box.

When I got the box home I took it out of the box and pulled the cover off. My habit is to feel a milled putter before I look at it searching for its feel and also feeling for the level of finish. The Edel was very well milled, very likely the best that I have seen. The only other putter than might have been its rival were putters from Kevin Burns back in his hey-day.

The Umpqua feels like a well made instrument and looks very business like. I especially like what Edel did with the putter's cavity. Rather than do a Scotty Cameronesque redo of the original, Edel made the cavity look cleaner yet still curvy enough to be easy on the eyes.

The top line is quite thick giving the Umpqua a substantial feel while the length of the blade keeps its overall look crisp and compact. The face is smooth, devoid of any meaningless mill marks. I often wonder if the Cameron devotees realize that the mill marks they lust after so heartily are merely evidence of a milling head that has moved across a surface too rapidly. A good machinist would be embarrassed by their presence.

The face on the Umpqua is smooth, but not glassy. It has an almost satiny quality. The sole is polished to a high gloss. Per my instructions the putter has a single black site line in the cavity.

Interestingly, the Umpqua eschews a traditional hosel in favor of a shaft-over design that retains a full-shaft offset while making the shaft's intersection with the putter head almost seemless.

Best of all, the Umpqua strokes very smoothly with a meaningful sense of heft. Well struck balls come off the face with a nice, tight roll and the putter has a muted sound at impact. This, gentle readers, is a player's putter.

Unless you truly care about the game, don't waste your time even thinking about an Edel. The same goes if you're the kind of player who seeks to impress his playing partners with what you have in your bag instead of the kind of game you possess. The Edel Umpqua is a putter for those who have tried some of the best and now want to play the best because their games demand it. It does my heart good to know that there are guys like David Edel out there who are devoted to making the very best products they can to improve people's game. He honors the past by building upon it.

Frank Did It!

2007-12-03T23:05:00.000-08:00

Well, we can all breathe easier knowing that Frank Lickliter has secured his place on the PGA Tour for 2008. We can rest easy knowing that his well known and beloved scowl will be delighting galleries for yet another season. Now, I've never met the guy and there's no reason to believe that he is not, in fact, a wonderful human being.

That said, he is a golfer who makes it all too easy to dislike the game. He always seems either emotionless or irritable. Lickliter is the kind of player who seems to revel in his ability to be either anonymous or unpleasant all while making a heck of a lot of money not winning (or even contending in) significant tournaments.

But, there could be something positive that might come of all this. The tour can initiate a move toward reducing the number of exempt players from the now ridiculous 125 to 100 or, better yet, 75.

An exempt field of 75 would either weed out guys like Frank or motivate them to elevate their games during the season when it is supposed to count. Now, I have no expectations of this really happening, at least while the Tiger Gravy Train rolls on. Until then, we can look forward to have Frank's glaring face beaming down on us.

Edel Golf: A Master Putter Maker in the Wooded Wilds of Oregon

2007-11-04T14:45:00.000-08:00

You are forgiven if you have yet to hear of Edel Golf. Until a week or so ago, I had never heard of them either. Their web site is very impressive and the services they offer are truly unique. This is clearly not a case of a 15 minute fitting followed by a loft and lie adjustment.

David Edel is a very different breed than the average teaching pro, club fitter or putter maker. Our initial correspondence hit on a lot of subjects that won’t be brought into this article, but suffice it to say that Edel is one of the most interesting and forward thinking men that I have come across in the golf industry.

In a world of copycats, of the both subtle and overt persuasions, Edel is the kind of guy who is always on the prowl for a better way of doing things and is willing to travel some hard roads to reach his distinations.

The golf industry needs guys like him to maintain its vitality. Let’s hope his work is well rewarded...

KogBlog: What are some common mistakes that golfers make when they buy putters off the rack?

David Edel: First off, the most common mistake buying a putter off the rack is not knowing where it aims. All putters aim differently. Some vary more than others, but none are equal. The buyer should first know how their current putter aims. Based on this knowledge they can look for something that either cures their aim bias, or matches it. Matching it, as the stroke is biased to that aim. If you do not want to change your stroke, then find a putter that matches it. For example, if you aim eight inches left, then don’t buy a putter that aims dead center, because your stroke will not match your aim. It would not seem logical to play with something that aimed you crooked, but most do. Our studies have concluded that only four in a hundred can aim their putters dead on, while fifteen out of hundred can only manage to aim within the hole (two inches off center) and with loft issues. Dead on meaning for average speed greens the laser at 6 feet is center cut and six inches off the ground (2.5 deg loft)

When someone buys a putter that they want, it may not be what they need. Grabbing a putter off the rack without understanding how the putter aims is harmful. With simple lasers and a mirror, you could check and see “Does this putter aim well?” I have people in the fitting process say, “ I aim this putter really well.” or “That line helps me aim.” and I evaluate them and they aim a foot left. So what people want to believe and what they do are often very different.

KogBlog: As a follow-up, can these buying mistakes lead players to develop poor putting technique?

David Edel: Yes, poor putting technique is related to many factors. Some are directly related to the putter and some not. Putting can be broken down to what we call the Triad: Aim, Path, & Speed. What you do with those three things relates to ready greens and execution. If your putter aims a foot left, then you better make compensation a foot right. Sometimes this is done with path, or speed. Path pushing to the right, or speed –hitting it harder to take a higher line. The player starts to get multiple factors compensating for erroneous aim. This can set into sub routines like: If I forward press my hands, take it inside, or I go to a short back stroke and accelerate.

Compensation is the only honest thing that we do, and many try to go against what they know they need to do. Like, if you aim right, you better take is outside on the backstroke, have a long backstroke short finish, or close the face manually. But our friends or teachers say, “We better fix that outside move.”, yet they don’t fix the aim or even understand were they aim. Many say, “So what if you aim at address, you may not be there at impact.” My thought is...no kidding Sherlock.

But, our studies have shown that a reduction in the standard deviation of a putter stoke reduced by 38% in 19 of 22 categories. With areas improving up to 63% immediately after the fit. If you start from a better place then chances are you will return to that place. Putting is similar to the full swing, yet much less dynamic. The inclined plane is the boss. It is possible to move the putter during the stroke to the same place it started. If the putter does not aim correctly or has other factors like poor weight, length, lie, loft, then the mind will work away from those issues.

KogBlog: What do you think most players understand better, their full swing or their putting stroke?

David Edel: I am not sure players understand the swing. I think they have an understanding of what they need to do to get the job done, but understanding the full swing or putter motion, I am not sure. I have been a PGA member since 1994 and a pro since 1990, and have worked with some of the best teachers in the world. I think I have a really good understanding of full swing motion, but I still think I don’t know anything.

We’re talking about people and that is the issue. Every person processes information differently than others. I think the missing link in most people’s games stems from lack of basics. Understanding the laws of physics of how the base golf motion works and other basics like how the mind works and processes information. People get so caught up in methods like One Plane or Stack and Tilt etc. Not that those are wrong, but if you work for a while on a concept and jump to the next, that’s sure to cause confusion. Like if you play a putter for two months and switch again and again, each has multiple distinctions in playing characteristics, and the players develops a habit of grabbing for something when it hits the fan.

KogBlog: What affects the player more, the putter design or how well (or poorly) he has been fit for the putter?

David Edel: I think it is important to understand the word fitting as it relates to putters. There are three forms of fitting as I see it:

Static
Dynamic
Effective

Static fitting is measuring a persons lie angle, length, loft to name a few. It deals manly without motion, figuring out general variables that influence set up. Many companies have offered a system that deals with this form of fitting.

Dynamic fitting evaluates via monitoring systems the movement of the putter,body, and makes changes in the putter to alter impact. Systems like SAM, Tomi, and Icub have complex systems designed to evaluate the motion of the putter and give great data. Video based systems are also used during dynamic fitting. My perception of this form of fitting is to change variables so they produce the correct impact position. Often instruction is involved and it can be difficult to distinguish a fitting from a lesson.

Effective fitting is a process that is more interactive with player. Effective meaning true angles like 4 degrees loft, processed and changed to an effective angle like 2 degrees. Effective angles are terms used by fitters to describe what the player does with the club to change the true angle. Effective fitting is a process and or system that allow the fitter to accommodate the player’s personal perceptions during the fitting. If I put a mallet in their hands and they aim it more right and I combine it with another variable and it elicits a different response, then that’s effective fitting.

We also incorporate dynamic variables like length, head weight, loft, counter weight, shaft flex, and grip type to their value to speed control. So if you aim in correctly, and can control speed more precisely, then your probably going to have much cleaner path. Also, being able to feel your path better.

That is what I call effective fitting, and that is what we do at Edel Golf. So my answer to your question is yes. Design or shape of a putter can be a preference, but is more an obligation as it relates to aim. Some people want an Anser style head, but aim it totally left. What they want and need are totally opposite. Depending on the style of the fitting process, getting fitted may not apply to desired result. Education is paramount for people to make informed decisions.

KogBlog: What led you to build your putters in a workshop where you live?

David Edel: What led me to build putters where I live is simple. There are huge stores of German stainless here. No, seriously, I grew up here. I have family businesses here. I left teaching the full swing to dedicate to making putters. Getting started was a slow process. I started making my first putter in late 1996. Everyone told me not to do it, that it was too difficult. I obviously did not listen. I built a small workshop next to my home here on the river. I ran my family business during the day, and when I had free time or made time, I made putters.

It could be the worst place to have a putter business, and for this reason I am trying to move to Ft. Worth, Texas. We have done a lot of good work here, mostly developing and prototyping products etc., but for people to come directly and get a fitting is very complex. I am looking to develop a large facility that incorporates manufacture and has a large inside putter studio with a monster putting green. A place to do schools and educational seminars, etc. Someday...hopefully soon.

KogBlog: How do the professional players you work with putt differently than amateurs?

David Edel: Professionals do not putt all that differently than good amateurs. Some amateurs putt better than pros. Tour players are a different animal. The difference lies manly with speed control. Professionals have more time to practice speed control. Most professionals aim left. I think this is predisposed to the putters they choose. Most professionals and good amateurs select the same styles of putters, mainly Anser or blade style putters. A lot of high handicap amateurs aim right, mostly to do with poor set up fundamentals. Lack of routine. I believe the full swing and the putter swing is governed by the same laws, so if the putter and fear set is “don’t go left”, then the motions are often the same.

KogBlog: Which other putter makers do you respect?

David Edel: I think I respect anyone that can make a living at making golf clubs. It is hard to do. There are so many variables to contend with, namely money. Big companies have the advantage, because they have clout. Small guys like me are using your own finances to make world-class product. My advantage is the willing to do what the big dogs do not. I think what Mr. Cameron has done is incredible. The machine he has developed deserves respect. Karsten Solheim is the man. That guy did it all. We are all posers. T.P. Mills was the father of making tour quality unique custom putters. I remember the waiting list times were 6 to 8 months for a putter. That is great. Tom Slighter has a nice following. He is making really nice custom putters like how you want it. Curt Curry started the custom fitting/Aim process so I have to say he is in there. Kevin Burns has come up with some nice designs. He sure had a nice run.

I have to say that I think what we are doing is a continuation of a lot of past knowledge. I don’t make the best putter in the world. That is hard to quantify. I think we configure the best putter in the world. When you can get past the Circle T hand stamping stuff, or this tour player uses this or that, and get into “it’s different, but I can aim it.” then hands down I think I offer more to people than any other maker past or present.

Besides, we hand make every putter for each player. We have over 50 million combinations to manufacture on a daily basis. That is custom. There is big difference between custom and handmade. Nothing is hand made. I hand machine putters, but they can take two days to make. Everything is CNC with lots of handwork involved. hope that does not sound cocky, that is not the intention. The fact is I do not know anyone who is doing what we do.

KogBlog: I gotta tell you how refreshing it is that you recognize Karsten Solheim. It’s getting to be that people are all to willing to believe their own press releases. Everyone is so quick to tell you about their designs but all too often their designs are Solheim’s. It is the design equivalence of plagiarism so it doesn’t sit well with me at all. Which other putter designs (either modern or classic) do you admire?

David Edel: I really like the Karsten Anser style head. I can’t use it, but I think it has a great profile. I liked Kevin Burns and T.P. Mills/Anser style heads. Those looked clean. I think less is more. There is too much shit on putters these days. Between colors, funky shapes, lines, and weight ports it is total confusion. That stuff should aim, right? People get lost in all that geometry and most of the time cannot hit a barn with their aim. The Bullseye is hands down the best aimer. Pretty simple design. Rueter did a great job with that one. The Two Ball works for some, but is not for everyone. I wish I came up with that one from a financial standpoint.

KogBlog: Are you working on anything new right now or working to refine your fitting technique?

David Edel: We are always working on something new. Since I have been developing new fitting systems and methods for the last 11 years, our focus has been very different than much of the industry. This focus has enabled us to think about a new box. I have had relative ease getting some patents, because the line of thinking opens different doors. We are working on redefining the fitting model and fitter education. Creating school formats for people to get all three sides of the Triad (Aim, Path, Speed = Reading Greens) going. People do not want putters. They want results. I think the group that we have working together is going to change the face of putter fitting and instruction.

We have come out with a new putter called Variable loft Vari-loft. It has removable face technology with weight ports. Combined with aim value, this is a huge asset to the refined player. These putters take a combined machine/hand effort of over 11 hours to manufacture. When a player is educated on how to use it, it is hands down most versatile putter out there. Since few know about the value of what we do, our attention is focused towards education. Making new designs to keep up with large manufactures is not the solution. Figuring out how to inform players of other options, getting past bias, and overcoming objections from the current power structure is objective #1.

KogBlog: David, I’d like to thank you for taking the time to talk to me. I must say that your candor is refreshing and I hope this interview helps a few more people to find you and take advantage of your amazing ability to help their games. Is there anything we haven’t covered, or anything you’d like to add in closing?

David Edel: We are very proud of our product and process that we have developed. My head styles are very basic and classic. The fact is we offer so many variables not because it sounds big, but people need them. Our fitting process allows for us to individually analyze each variable as it relates to the next. When the total package is put together, then it’s yours and yours only. We seldom make the same variation twice, something is always different. 95% of your thought happens at a subconscious level, and we build a putter that aims using the 5% of your conscious and its interface with the other 95%.

Aim is the one solid tangible that you can triangulate your game from. From aim you can evaluate your path, speed, and the combination of all three is your technique. If you’re confused get fit. If you’re happy, stay away. One saying that I have always loved is, “I you don’t need a haircut, then don’t go to the barber.” If you’re reading this, then you’re probably looking for help. We’re here if you need it.

A Truly Elite Putter: The Dead On...

2007-10-21T05:52:00.000-07:00

Like any red blooded golfer, I am always on the prowl for a putter that will help me find the bottom of the cup a tad more often. More than any other aspect of the game, putting is a sometimes elusive combination of optics, technique and confidence (in that order): If you cannot see the line your technique will not accomplish anything and any confidence you have will be totally misplaced.

Elite Sports Products has enjoyed great deal of success on all of the professional tours this season. Over the last few weeks alone, Dead On putters have been seen in the hands of many players high up on the leaderboard.

Elite’s Dead On putter is designed to help the player optically with the use of accelerating arrows that enhance alignment and encourage a proper follow through. The Dead On also employs a high center of gravity coupled with 4 degrees of loft in an effort to get the ball rolling, and not hopping, as quickly as possible.

A Dean On putter has been built for me and is currently en route. Of course, you’ll read my take about what the putter is like as soon as I have had a chance to check it out.

In the meantime, I have asked Elite’s head-honcho, Phil Vinton (BSME University of Michigan), to sit down with me and answer a few questions about his company and his putters:

Kog Blog: How long has Elite been making putters?

Elite: We started manufacturing our first prototypes in the summer of 2004. We got surprisingly close to what we were looking for after the first three, and started working on the overall balance and feel of the club that we were after. Our first production club, the Dead On Series I, was declared to conform to USGA rules the following year and we went into our first production run of product shortly after that. In 2006 we introduced our Dead On Series II and Series III Putters and have been at it ever since.

Kog Blog: What manufacturing challenges did you face while you were getting started?

Elite: There were a number of challenges that we faced along the way. Once we finalized the overall design we looked at the most accurate and cost effective manufacturing techniques that were available, including multi-axis CNC machining, wire EDM, abrasive blast waterjet cutting, and product finishing.

Because we machine each component our of a solid block of material, holding close tolerances while machining intricate shapes on virtually all of the surfaces proved a challenge. We found that by using a 5 axis CNC machining center we didn’t have to re-locate the part as often and were able to hold our tolerances well within the tight envelope.

Kog Blog: What advantages do you enjoy by building your putters in the US?

Elite:There are several. A great advantage is the quality control of the product due to the competence and knowledge of the machinists and assemblers that manufacture the product. We have such high quality control of our processes that I can’t remember scrapping a part. Another advantage is in the communications between design, manufacturing, quality control, and assembly.

There are no language barriers here, and all of the workers have all been in the industry for a number of years. Any potential problems in the line are easily and quickly solved so the manufacturing cost impact is minimized. One other major advantage is in time to market and quick turnaround. In going overseas one many times faces a long product production and development process.

We are able to quickly react to our market, run a more lean shop, keep only the necessary inventory on hand, and be able to react to quickly changing market trends in an efficient manner.

Kog Blog: How, specifically, do the design elements of your Dead On putter help players make more putts?

Elite: This is really the key to our success. There are many features of our product that combine to produce the best feeling club on the market including the materials, a high MOI, a superior alignment system, the balance of the club, and our putting surface.

The materials are important because we chose solid blocks of a stainless steel grade that can be heat treated and hardened, as well as aircraft grade aluminum for our main putter head components. All castings contain interstitials or small air pockets in the metal that cause less overall strength and a softened feel in putters. Our Dead On Putters have a unique very solid feel. The high MOI (moment of inertia) reduces the error on off center hits. There is a large cavity that we machine out of our putter head that provides an enhanced sweet spot and greatly improves our MOI.

When one intentionally hits a ball off center, the result is amazingly predictable. The superior alignment system of the Dead On Putter is immediately apparent the first time you set the club down. The accelerating arrows alignment system seems to air the putter automatically toward your intended target.

We believe that this is the most accurate method of aligning a putter head on the market. The balance of our club speaks for itself; it provides an easy and effortless swing regardless of what style of swing you currently use. And, the True Grip putting surface, which resembles smooth sandpaper when viewed through a microscope, grips the ball for a fraction of a second upon impact without sending it off-course.

Kog Blog: Have you found that players have to make adjustments in their set-up or stroke to get the most out of your putters?

Elite:This really depends on the golfer. We use a set up dot on our putter head which assists in proper set up of your putt. There are many amateurs that hold the club out too far from their body, or position the ball in a location in which is difficult to complete a proper putting stroke. For these individuals, it would be advantageous to change their swing regardless. Tour pros and low handicap avid golfers who have developed the proper putting stroke don’t need to change a thing.

Kog Blog: How do the tour players you work with putt differently than amateurs?

Elite: I could write a book on this topic. But basically the PGA Tour Professionals have worked countless hours developing a pure putting stroke that allows them to consistently hit the ball toward their designated path. They continually work each and every day on proper technique, they use putting aids and training tools to promote and fortify the proper stroke, they have instructors on the practice greens to reinforce their technique, and they have help from their caddies and other players when things seem to go off course.

Most amateurs are concerned more about hitting the driving range before their tee time, and may only putt on the practice green if they have extra time. Very seldom does one see a country club player spend any real practice time on the putting green. For the amateurs, I mostly assist in the basics of a good putting stroke to get them started. The Tour pros don’t need my help.

Kog Blog: What can amateurs learn from tour pros when it comes to putting?

Elite: One of the best resources all golfers have is the practice days before a PGA event. The Monday through Wednesday (or Thursday for the Champions Tour) before a PGA Tournament are for the most part free to the public, and they can not only watch the Tour players practice on the putting greens, but they can also see the tools they use, the putting drills they have developed,, the amount of time and concentration they spend on their technique, and the methods they go through to learn the specific course conditions they will be playing. It’s also a good time to obtain an autograph of your favorite golfer.

Kog Blog: Which other putter makers do you respect & which other putter designs (either modern or classic) do you enjoy the most?

Elite: I respect the designers that strive mostly to produce a putter that in actuality provides a better tool for job at hand. Scotty Cameron I feel has done the best job with traditional style putters to date (and his head covers for Vegas were outstanding). I like a lot of the features that Ray Cook brought to the table a number of years ago with his mallets. I also like the balance and feel of a couple of the Heavy Putters, and the craftsmanship of the Kramski line, and some of the older Odysseys. I don’t like any knock offs.

Kog Blog: Are you working on anything new right now?

Elite: We have three new designs that we will introduce before the end of the year. Our newest line is another mallet design that incorporates the same overall features of the Dead On Series, but has a new and distinctive look to it. This putter already conforms to USGA Rules and we are starting production this week. The second prototype, almost complete, is another mallet style that will include adjustable weights. The third prototype we are currently working on will be a long handled mallet style that has been requested by a number of individuals.

Kog Blog: Phil, I’d like to thank you for taking the time for this interview and I really look forward to rolling some putts with the Dead On.

The Way Back for Michelle Wie

2007-10-15T18:33:00.000-07:00

I must admit that it took me a long time to fully discern B.J. Wie's mindset regarding the management of his would-be prodigy daughter, Michelle. At first, I believed that he was simply a greedy guy in a hurry, to borrow a phrase from one of my favorite colleagues. But now I can see the tortured yet failed logic of his actions.

B.J. saw and knew that others could readily see Michelle's seemingly limitless potential. She was a marketeer's dream. At the same time, there was something at his core that didn't quite let him believe the press clipping that he himself was helping to pen. He really didn't buy that Michelle could dominate the amateur and college ranks in a way that he wanted the world to believe she would, so he kept her away from it as much as possible. B.J. either saw the competition and feared how Michelle would measure up or he simply wasn't prepared to confront the possibilty that there really might be legitimate competitors out there who could beat Michelle on any given day.

This is where B.J. and Michelle are so different from Tiger and Earl Woods. The Woods team sought out the best of the competition at every level but Team Wie has proven to be hesitant to engage her peers beyond a point. It is very much as if B.J. doesn't want to see Michelle fail to win when he should be interested in making sure that she is battle tested and improving as a player. While she has wasted herself playing against the men and accepting dubious sponsor's exemptions, her competition has grown even further into their potentials. While their games have flourished her game has been robbed of its joy and rhythm.

B.J.'s path has taken Michelle directly to her current position in the game. She has become the very image of a self-entitled pariah. In my view, there is only one way back for Michelle Wie, and I very much doubt that she has the courage to that road.

Quite simply, Wie should regain her amateur standing and play whatever USGA and college events that she can. Were she to walk away from the cash, for now, she just may find herself in the process.

Here's hoping that she does the first genuinely remarkable thing she's done in a very long time.

The Tour's Big Shell Game

2007-10-01T00:34:00.000-07:00

Forgive me for noticing that the PGA Tour Championship is the only sports championship that takes place prior to the end of the season. The FedEx Cup merely culminates the PGA Tour's big shell game. The real end of the PGA Tour season remains a meaningless cash grab for second and third tier players. So much for ending with a bang. The final events of 2007 are barely a whimper.

My guess is that the tour is purposefully moving towards a shorter season, and will eventually have a Tour Championship that actually marks the end of the season. There are lots of reasons. A big one is the admission that it is simply impossible to motivate the top tier players to play in events that don't appear on their radar (think of any event that has the name Walmart in it).

I also believe that the tour's powers that be are wise enough to see toward a day when Tiger Woods will have his 19 majors. When that days comes, the tour will experience a compression effect that will be unmistakable. The men's tour is not like the LPGA, where the tour's success is largely the result of a solid ensemble cast supporting a diverse group of leading players.

The PGA tour starts and stops with Tiger Woods. Now, more than a decade into his career, he is still the only true draw on tour, especially when it comes to the almighty television dollar. It is astounding that no other player has emerged to add standalone appeal to the tour. As Woods' draws closer to his lofty goals the tour moves towards a time sans Tiger and I believe that scares them to death.