Golf equipment

Golf Equipment

When it comes to golf equipment, you have a lot of choices. There are multiple brands and styles of golf equipment that you can use, but it can be confusing as to what you really need to play a good game of golf. Let?s take a look at some of the equipment that most golfers consider essential.

Of course, your most important pieces of golf equipment are your clubs. You will want to take care to choose clubs that are suited to your style of golf. They should be easy to handle and designed toward your height. Beginners and experts alike should lean towards the lighter graphite shafts and titanium heads so that you have maximum forgiveness in the event of a bad shot.

You will want to have a full set of clubs. That means you?ll need a driver, a 3 wood, a 5 wood, a full set of irons (from 3 to 9), a sand wedge, and a putter. That?s the minimum. You can also add other clubs to your arsenal as you become more proficient at the game. You can include a 1 iron for fairway shots as well as a lob wedge for getting out of the deep rough.

The golf ball really can be a very important piece of golf equipment. Depending on what you are looking for, you can find balls that will improve your distance, your spin, or your performance. Look for balls that are a bit softer ? like a balata. Also find a ball with lower compression ? especially if you are a beginner.

If you?ve never given thought to your golf tees as part of your golf equipment, now?s the time to start. There are actually many types of tees that you can choose from ? each with their own advantages. There are long tees when you need to have the ball teed up high, short tees for those tee box iron shots, and even three-pronged tees for stability. In fact, the three-pronged tee was the first type of golf tee that was used in the early years of golf.

If you like the idea of carrying your clubs around in one bundle, I guess you can just go ahead. However, a golf bag sure makes carrying your clubs around much easier. Plus, with a good golf bag, you can also carry your tees, your balls, some hand sanitizer, snacks, your cell phone, and anything else you think is necessary.

Because the golf swing requires a certain amount of stability, you will also want to add some golf shoes to your golf equipment list. Golf shoes have cleats on the bottom that allow you to maintain your footing while swinging. This can be so very important as you are moving your body to hit the ball. Golf shoes help you stay balanced and keep your feet ?grounded? if you will.

There are definitely all sorts of golf equipment that you can buy and use when playing the wonderful game of golf. Just don?t go overboard and concentrate on the basics to begin with. Then when you get better, you can add all of the newest gadgets to your bag and see if that golf equipment will help you lower your score!

Gunnar Berglund, Online marketer since 2000
owner of golf-for-junior.com golf-for-junior.co.uk
and fredsgolfshop.com

Ping Golf

For over forty years, the Ping Company has been manufacturing golf equipment that is both innovative and practical for both the casual and professional golfer. Since 1959, Ping Golf has been dedicated to one idea: innovation and design can produce a set of golf clubs that maximize the enjoyment of the game for all.

Karsten Solheim invented his 1-A putter, manufactured in his garage. He named it Ping for the sound it makes when it hits the ball. Thus, a company was born. Solheim was frustrated with his putting game as the putters of the era didn?t give him what he felt he needed in his short game. Once the 1-A putter hit the general market, they became so popular, Solheim quit his job at General Electric and began Ping Golf.

Solheim decided not to stop at putters and developed a set of irons dubbed ?69? which he considered to be a good golf score. Solheim continued to experiment with the effects of good heel-toe weighting in his irons and also milled a cavity into the steel back of the irons for added forgiveness. Ping golf was growing by leaps and bound in the golf industry.

In 1966, Ping golf experienced possibly the greatest even of their company?s history. Solheim had an idea for a new putter. After he finalized the design ? originally sketched on the dust cover of a 78 rpm record, he needed a name for the club. His wife suggested ?answer? since it would give golfers an answer to their putting problems. It was shortened to ?Anser? to fit on the club itself.

The Ping Anser would go on to be the most influential putter in golf while setting the standard for what is considered to be the conventional putter. It has racked up 500 professional golf wins making it the ?winningest? putter in golf history. The Anser had a cavity back low center of gravity that provided superior feel for golfers of all abilities.

Ping golf faced a major obstacle at the end of 1966 as the USGA outlawed all Ping putters other than the Answer for tournament and handicapped play. This decision was made because the USGA felt the other Ping models had a special bend in the shaft under the grip that was thought to give players a special advantage in the putting stroke.

Of course, Ping survived and went on to become a premier manufacturer of golf equipment that is widely used on the professional tours as well as by amateurs all over the world. Ping golf has proven to be one of the powerhouses when it comes to golf equipment and it will probably remain so for a long time.

Gunnar Berglund, Online marketer since 2000
owner of golf-for-junior.com golf-for-junior.co.uk
and fredsgolfshop.com

Golf Course

The game of golf is played on a golf course ? obviously. But have you ever thought what goes into making a good golf course? I mean, what makes a good golf course, and what makes a not-so-good golf course? While we don?t have the space to go through specific design layouts, we can touch on some of the aspects of a golf course that makes it fun to play yet challenging too.

Like the miniature golf course, a regular golf course should be fun. You really can?t add the fun windmills or other hazards on a regular golf course, but you can use the natural elements of the land to help build challenges into the layout.

Obviously, the first thing you?re going to need is land. I mean, you?re going to need A LOT of land! The golf course must have some long yardage holes as well as some shorter yardage holes. However, most golfers will agree that having mostly longer holes is a great challenge. But they also need those short par 3s for a little ego boost!

Having several sand bunkers is a great way to present challenge on the golf course. Most bunkers are located around the hole, but they can also be placed in the fairway for added headaches! Having to hit out of the sand provides for all sorts of stroke modifications, and golfers love to have the challenge at hand!

Water hazards are another great way to give golfers a challenge on the golf course. Natural lakes and rivers can be found all over the place, but you can also create man-made water hazards by digging out a large area and filling it with water ? obviously! Water hazards make a player have to use finesse to avoid them and make a golf course fun to navigate.

The golf course that we play most often used to be a cow pasture. The rolling hills that used to have Holstein?s instead of golf carts make this particular golf course a lot of fun to try and get ?up and down? on. Rolling hills cause a golf ball to ? take a guess here ? roll! You may have a great drive, but if your ball lands on the side of a hill, it will either stick there making your shot hard or it will roll off the side. Either way, this is another way to make a golf course challenging.

Natural trees and woods are also part of the golf course environment. There?s nothing worse to hear on a golf course than the sound of your ball hitting a tree. Then you have the fun task of trying to find out where the ball landed. Did it go further in or did the tree propel it out into the fairway? Either way, you have another great way to challenge yourself with natural elements.

Designing a golf course can be great fun ? for both the designer as well as the player. Take in the natural elements of your favorite golf course and then navigate through those hazards with a positive attitude. Then you?ll be having fun!

Gunnar Berglund, Online marketer since 2000
owner of golf-for-junior.com golf-for-junior.co.uk
and fredsgolfshop.com

Clubhead Speed or Power, Which Comes First in the Golf Swing?

A question for the ages in relation to the golf swing. Golfers around the world are familiar with the term clubhead speed. It is the rate at which the golf club is traveling at impact with the golf ball. Golfers are also familiar with the term power. They know that power is directly related to clubhead speed. Knowing the connection between the two, which comes first?

Clubhead Speed and Power in the Golf Swing

Take a moment to answer the question; which comes first, clubhead speed or power?

Write down your answer and continue reading. Before we answer this question, let us do a quick review of both clubhead speed and power.

Clubhead Speed

Again, we understand that clubhead speed is the rate at which the clubhead is moving at impact with the golf ball. The development of clubhead speed is a resultant of your golf swing mechanics. It is essentially a summation of the entire process of the golf swing, beginning with address, moving through the backswing, into transition, onto the downswing, and completing with impact.

The paragraph above should answer the question of which comes first; clubhead speed or power? Clubhead speed is the resultant of power development with the mechanics of the golf swing.

The next question we want to ask is about power:

How is Power Developed in the Golf Swing?

Power is a combination of two entities:

1. Golf Swing Mechanics

2. Body

Your golf swing mechanics is the efficiency at which you perform the golf swing. Essentially, the golf swing can be broken down into the stages. These stages are;

Address, Backswing, Transition, Downswing, Impact, and Follow Through

Each of these stages within the golf swing can be performed efficiently or inefficiently. PGA Tour players tend to perform the mechanics of the golf swing very efficiently, where as the 30 handicapper performs them very inefficiently.

If the mechanics within each stage of the golf swing are efficient. The creation of power and transfer of this power into clubhead speed is at a greater percentage.

On the flip side, if each stage is performed inefficiently. The amount of power developed and transferred into clubhead speed becomes a low percentage.

The first key in power development and the generation of clubhead speed is golf mechanics.

Efficient Golf Swing Mechanics = Greater Power Development and Clubhead Speed

Once we understand that efficient golf swing mechanics equals more power and clubhead speed. We can turn our attention to the “support structure” of your golf swing.

The Body

The body is what drives the golf swing. It is your skeleton, muscles, and nerves performing the mechanics of the golf swing. As a result, your body has a direct affect on how much power you generate in your golf swing.

The mechanics of golf swing requires certain levels of:

Flexibility

Balance

Strength

Endurance

Power

Optimal levels within these body categories allow for the possibility of performing the mechanics of the golf swing at their most efficient levels.

For example, a full shoulder in the backswing is necessary for optimal power development. In order to perform a full shoulder turn, you must have a high level of flexibility.

If you are lacking the flexibility to perform a shoulder turn it will affect the amount of power you can generate.

Bottom line the body is the foundation on which the golf swing is developed.

If you have a weak foundation, you will have a weak golf swing.

Efficient Golf Swing Mechanics A Strong, Flexible, and Powerful Body = Clubhead Speed

We now know clubhead speed is a product of power development in the golf swing. Power development within your golf swing is contingent upon two entities. The first entity is your golf swing mechanics. Performing the mechanics of the golf swing efficiently elicits more power. Secondly, it is the body. Optimal power development requires certain levels of flexibility, balance, strength, endurance, and power within the body. Put these two entities together and you have the ability to generate high levels of clubhead speed within your golf swing.

Sean

About the author:

Sean Cochran is one of the most recognized golf fitness instructors in the world today. He travels the PGA Tour regularly with 2005 PGA

Core Flexibility Training Improves Golf Swing Power And Distance

Core flexibility training is critical if you want to improve your golf swing power and driving distance. Your core is the engine to your swing. If your core is inflexible you will not be able to make a full backswing with minimal tension.

Picture your core being the middle of your body. That’s as simple as you can get it. It is mainly your abdominals, but can also include glutes and lower back. This area of your body is the most susceptible to injury.

That’s why the majority of amateur golfers have a low back injury at some point in their golfing career. They have never focused on core flexibility training, as well as core strength training for more power.

To produce more power and distance in your swing does not mean swinging harder with your arms. Haven’t you tried that before? If so, did you hit it farther? I’ll bet not.

Just like hitting a baseball, tennis ball are even throwing the discus in track and field, you use your core for most of your power. You rotate with your core to create torque, then you unleash that stored up energy into the hit, whether it be a baseball, tennis ball or golf ball.

The more efficient you become with using your core, arms, shoulders and hands in a sequenced motion, the added distance will come quite easy. You’ll be shocked at how quickly your driving distance goes up.

Core flexibility training incorporates “rotation”. Golf stretching in this manner warrants the best results in the shortest amount of time!

Every core flexibility stretch you do should involve some form of rotating. This is very important since the golf swing is a rotate (turn) back and a rotate (turn) forward. The more range of motion you can achieve in your core area the more power you will produce.

Here’s a little test you can do while your sitting there reading this article!

Put your arms across your chest, keep your eyes focused straight ahead. Now rotate as far as you can to the right and make a not of how far it is. Did you get to a 90 degree shoulder turn (that’s where you need to be). Then rotate as far as you can to the left. How far did you get.

This will be a “wake-up” call for many of you. If you find you can’t rotate at least 70 degrees of center, you’ll have no chance at maximizing your power and driving distance.

We do this simple core flexibility test seated to remove cheating of the lower body. If you were standing, it would be very easy to rotate your hips and get a bigger shoulder rotation.

Being seated removes this compensation!

A seated rotation is “true” core flexibility and range of motion.

I hope I’ve educated you on the importance of core flexibility training to improve golf swing power and distance.

About the author:

Mike Pedersen is one of the top golf performance trainers in the country, author and founder of several cutting-edge online golf improvement sites. Take a look at his just released golf fitness dvds and golf training book at his improve golf swing site.

Written By: Mike Pedersen, CPT