Year: 2014

EGTF Pro Am, Kent, 28 September 2014

The EGTF Pro Am was held at the lovely Darenth Valley Golf Course on Ryder Cup Sunday, so we had the benefit of playing in the tournament and watching the important action from the singles, as Europe crushed the American Team once more !

The weather was glorious and the company excellent, which all made for a great day of golf for the EGTF members and their guests, with some fine scoring all the way.

The Amateur Competition was won by Mira Lee , playing off 5 handicap scoring 34 points.

1st – Mira Lee – 34 points
2nd – Dave Leach – 33 points
3rd – Tommy Barnes – 32 points  

The Team Competition was captured by my team, including Mira Lee and Jeff Barnes with a score of 82 points (best 2 scores from 3 on each hole)

1st – Bill Abbott – Pro – Mira Lee – Jeff Barnes – 82 points
2nd Pete Stopford – Pro – Dave Leach – Peter Wilmour – 79 points
3rd John Blatch – Pro – Alan Blatch – Chris Ablitt – 74 points

The EGTF Pro Competition was won by Tom Roberts, a fairly new  member to the EGTF, with some excellent play to finish with a one under par 71.

1st Tom Roberts – 71
2nd Bill Abbott – 72
3rd Pete Stopford – 73
 
Big thanks go to the people who sponsored the event :
ORKA GOLF
TAYLORMADE GOLF
GEL PUTTERS
FOOTPAL WEDGES
DARENTH VALLEY GOLF COURSE

The information for the EGTF Spanish Pro Am from 23 – 27 February 2015 is now available through the website and the office, so if you are looking for some competitive golf in February next year, come and join the gang down in Murcia for an excellent week.

Thanks again to everyone who came and supported the EGTF.

Bill Abbott

PRO WINNER TOM ROBERTS

PRO WINNER TOM ROBERTS

AMATEUR WINNER MIRA LEE
AMATEUR WINNER MIRA LEE

BILL ABBOTT TEAM WINNERS
BILL ABBOTT TEAM WINNERSPRIZE TABLE (640x480)

TEAM STOPFORD
TEAM STOPFORD

 

TEAM ROBERTS

TEAM ROBERTS

 

TEAM HASTIE

TEAM HASTIE

 

TEAM BLATCH

TEAM BLATCH

TEAM BARNES

TEAM BARNES

 

TEAM ABBOTT

TEAM ABBOTT

 

 

Swing Plane Perfector

I have just had the opportunity to test the new Swing Plane Perfector, and I was impressed by the quality of the product.  It is endorsed by Michael Bannon, Rory McIlroy’s coach, and also used by a number of the top coaches in the world when teaching swing plane and alignment to their students.

The benefits of this system are that you can find the optimum swing plane for your students for a variety of clubs and then have that number dialled in every time for an excellent consistency of set up for  that particular person.  No more guessing with tour sticks to see if you have set it correctly each time.

It can be used in a number of teaching situations, from full swing to short game and for a number of different purposes, from plane to alignment to movement.  Made from sturdy aluminium in the UK, it comes with a lifetime guarantee and should help any good coach improve their students.  It can be used indoors or outdoors.

Retail cost will be £116 +vat, but as EGTF members you will receive a 30% discount off the retail price bringing the cost down to £81+ vat.

If you would like to order one please go to the website – www.swingplaneperfector.com and put in the code – SPP01 into the apply coupon box when ordering.

Michael Bannon, Coach to Rory McIlroy – “The Swing Plane Perfector has allowed me and my students an accuracy and ease of consistent set-up with alignment sticks, that previously has been unavailable. It’s a real bonus that it works on the indoor range as good as it does on grass. The unit is light and compact and is easily carried in a student’s golf bag.”

 

Golf Teaching Books

Stuart Gavaghan, EGTF Professional and PGA of Belgium Member, would like to let EGTF members know that in the last 7 years he has completed two Teaching Books for Beginners and Juniors.  He is also just finishing the third, Golf for Seniors, which will be ready in June.

The books are in German, but if you would like to contact Stuart about them, please email pgaprogolf@yahoo.co.uk

The Best Coaches Understand Equipment Too!

Written by Jeff Hatton, EGTF Master Teaching Professional and Master Club Maker

Are you a good coach?  Want to be a great coach?

If you really don’t understand the role equipment plays in executing golf shots you should definitely try to gain this knowledge to enable you to become a better  golf coach?  Having a sound knowledge of equipment and how it influences ball flight is vital to becoming a great coach.  If the equipment is wrong for the player you can be doing more harm than good in your lessons!

Some basic examples of equipment related issues:

Scenario 1:  Player came along for an equipment MOT.  He had been working with a local coach trying to improve his ball trajectory as he was hitting it too high.  He’d had three lessons all with a 7 iron (wrong) trying to get the trajectory down as his coach said he was scooping the ball in the air.  One strike on a lie check board showed that the impact position was if fact reasonable and not scooping, but the ball was still carrying too much back spin and launching too high.   His coach however had failed to spot something very obvious that would make their objective very difficult to achieve!

The player was using a very large game improver cavity backed iron, a very soft superlite shaft with a low kick point.  This club’s sole purpose is to get the ball high in the air and yet his coach was trying to get him to hit it lower.  The net effect of this 7 iron coaching is that the player now hits down on his driver too, creating very high back spin and launch angles and is also trying to fight the design of his irons.

egtf club making picture 1

Scenario 2:  Player was having difficulty with his wedge play, he couldn’t find the greens but the rest of his game was OK.  Again he’d had lessons to try and correct the fault but was still struggling.  One swing on a lie check board showed the lie angle to be around four degree out.  If the lie angle is out on any lofted club the player will struggle to hit it straight!

egtf club making picture 7

If the lie angle is out, change the club before attempting any swing corrections.  Lie check boards, essential tools for any teaching professional.

Scenario 3:  Player was struggling for consistency when driving.  Most shots were a push fade with the occasional snap hook.  However, he was more consistent with his 3 wood.   Both clubs had regular shafts fitted.

 As a coach we know there are several likely swing causes for this problem but what equipment issues could also contribute?  In this instance the flex of both clubs were measured for CPM using a frequency meter, the 3 wood came up as a mid regular, the driver registered a soft senior flex and was particularly soft in the tip section.  The soft shaft in the driver was undoubtedly the cause of the players club face timing issues. 

egtf club making picture 6

As a coach how do you correct this in the swing?  The simple answer is, you cannot!  Whilst the equipment is not fit for purpose giving a lesson is a pointless exercise and likely to make you look less than competent.

What is written on a shaft is unlikely to represent what flex the shaft really is.  All shafts should carry the label BS and we all know what that stands for.  Most but not all premium shafts usual do ‘what it says on the tin’.

Scenario 4:   A mid handicapper was having trouble finding the middle of his driver clubface.  A simple solution would be to shorten the driver as most off-the-shelf clubs measure up at 46 inches long.   Firstly long clubs inhibit swing speed and they also encourage off centre hits.  Cutting the driver length will help but be mindful of the swing-weight it may be too light afterwards.  What if after cutting the driver down the problem persists?  Oscillation, this is a swear word amongst the OEM fraternity and they will not admit it exists.  Watch the video link below, as club maker we correct these problems all the time, as a coach it’s important to know it exists.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x-xYq9etlEo&feature=youtube_gdata_player

This is my pet subject; I see it on a daily basis with off the shelf clubs.  Sometimes I’m able to pull the head turn the shaft and re-glue, the club is transformed.  Most often a new shaft is required but it will still be pured and flowed before assembly.

Scenario 5:  Do you know the difference between a Tour spec driver head and a standard one apart from the price?  One such example is the Taylor made RBZ driver.  The tour head version will produce up to 1000 RPM less back spin than the standard head.  Trying to teach a strong player how to improve their flight trajectory (less back spin) with a game improver head is going to be a long and painful exercise!

 egtf club making picture 5

 Scenario 6:  Balls.  As a coach we know that all balls are round and they have dimples on them and that is where the similarity ends.   Different balls will benefit different players.

egtf club making picture 4 

egtf club making picture 3

egtf club making picture 2   egtf clubfitting 1

Do we understand compression and what is the difference between a two piece ball and a four piece ball apart from the price?

One Piece balls are typically used on driving ranges.  They are more durable offer lower spin rates and reduced distance. 

Two Piece balls are typically your game improvement or distance balls. The large core provides a lot of velocity when struck.  Mid compression ball

3/4 Piece premium balls are for low handicap and professional golfers with high swing speeds who need a ball with low initial spin and a softer feel around the greens.  High Compression ball

Golf balls are designed for different swing speeds. A higher compression ball requires a higher swing speed to compress the ball a certain amount. And, for drives to get the maximum distance out the ball, you want to be able to compress the ball enough that the core of the ball is compressed.

Changing golf ball for a client can lead to improved distance!

These are just a few examples, understanding them is vital to offering a good service!

 

We don’t all have the benefit of launch monitors and workshop measuring equipment, but if we can see potential issues with equipment that might be holding back our student then you can offer the advice to help improve their chances of success thereby making your customer service even better to your clients.   Giving lessons to students  using unsuitable equipment will  make the end we are looking for more difficult to achieve, they need to understand these ideas so they are not wasting their own time and money .  Get their clubs corrected first then fix their swing!

As coaches we all want to help our students, understanding the role equipment plays will make you a better coach.  Offer your students the complete lesson package; know your equipment as well as the golf swing.

Hatton Golf offer 1-2-1 CPD training courses to all EGTF members.  Become a better coach.

www.hattongolf.co.uk

 

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