Tiger Virtues -- Why is he so good??
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I'm sure you're aware of many of Tiger Woods' accomplishments. Currently, for this year, he's number one for the FedExCup, Money Earned, Official World Golf Ranking, and Scoring Average. Oh, and he's number two in Greens in Regulation. He's quite amazing.
I picked up a copy of "Tiger Virtues" the other day in my local bookstore. It's a very well written book by Alex Tresniowski that lays out some of the reasons Tiger is such a dominant force in golf. He attributes much of Tiger's success to a 18 virtues that parallel Buddhism. These virtues include humility, preparedness, positive thinking, fearlessness, vision and balance. He also ties in how we can all use these virtues to improve our games and our own personal lives.
I'd strongly recommend you give this book a read. It's less than 200 pages and has a great history of some of Tiger's great moments so far as well. If you can't find it at your local bookstore, you can get it from Amazon.
Measuring Your Golf Ball Speed
I continue to play with my new set of 1 Iron Golf clubs am thoroughly impressed. I believe my iron game is now more consistent as a result of the shafts all being the same length. My scoring has been excellent shooting in the low 70s. I even shot a 68 one Men's Night (my second lowest round in recent years).
I used my Swing
Speed Radar Detector to do some testing of my club head speed and golf ball speed. If you lay the radar down on it's back about 3 feet in front of the ball, it will measure the ball speed as the ball soars over it on take off. Of course, if you topped the ball and the ball hit the radar, it could be damaged. I placed the radar at the front of the hitting mat (I was testing at a driving range) which is raised about an inch or two so the radar was slightly protected. You can also get a protector shield that will deflect any topped balls.
I hit my One Iron 5-iron gripping it at full length and then choking down 2-inches on the shaft. Here are my results from hitting 16 shots.
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Aver |
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| Full 5-iron Club Speed |
79 |
81 |
76 |
77 |
81 |
78 |
81 |
77 |
78.8 |
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| Full 5-iron Ball Speed |
106 |
112 |
106 |
106 |
102 |
104 |
109 |
100 |
105.6 |
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| Short 5-iron Club Speed |
78 |
77 |
77 |
78 |
77 |
76 |
77 |
77 |
77.1 |
98 |
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| Short 5-iron Ball Speed |
106 |
104 |
103 |
102 |
101 |
107 |
100 |
103 |
103.3 |
98 |
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The second to last column includes the averages of the speeds. The last column includes the percentage difference between the full 5-iron and the short, 2 inch choked down 5-iron. Choking down on the 5-iron by 2 inches only decreases the club head speed and resulting ball speed by 2%. The result would be a corresponding decrease in distance by 2%. On a 170 yard 5-iron, that would be about 3 yards shorter or 167 yards.
This validates the fact that a difference in club shaft length does not significantly affect distance. It is the loft of the club that has the major influence. Thus, the One Iron concept of equal length shafts makes perfect sense. Swinging clubs that are the same length and the same weight can only improve consistency of shots. Let the loft control the distance.
You might be asking the question why we wouldn't want a Driver the same length as our irons, then. Well, longer clubs do result in longer golf swings (swing with a choked down pitching wedge and then with a full length Driver). Lengthening your golf swing can lead to greater club head speed and thus greater distance. Of course, a Driver which is the same length as your irons would be more accurate, it wouldn't go as far. How far would a Driver fly if it's length were the same as your 5-iron? I'll explore that in my next newsletter.
1 Iron Golf has a 30-day Money Back Playing Guarantee. That's right, you can play with your new clubs and return them if not satisfied that they've improved your game.
Write down your special code, 10504, and ......
Visit 1 Iron Golf right now.
For a limited time, they're offering free shipping within the continental USA and Canada. The code, 10504, will get you a free set of iron head covers and provide me with a small commission.
Putting Tips
Since we're on the topic, how about a few tips on putting in general? Of course, alignment is critically important. Using the Pro V1 A.I.M. idea can really help. A Laser Putting Alignment System. can also greatly assist teaching you whether you are actually aimed where you think you are.
Once you are good at aligning your putter properly, then you need to be able to read the green to determine what line to roll the ball along. I advocate using the Plumb Bob method to assist. What also helps is to understand some basic principles about breaking putts:
1. On fast, downhill putts, it's very difficult to put a smooth stroke on the ball because so much less speed is required.
I always play the ball out on the toe of the putter (about a half inch to an inch) and take my normal stroke for the distance. The off center hit decreases the ball speed. You're able to take a smooth stroke with distance control. Experiment with this; you'll find it really helps you putt the slick ones better.
2. Putts break most during the final half of their journey.
3. Uphill putts break less; downhill putts break more.
4. Fast greens yield more break; slow greens yield less break.
5. To maximize the number of putts that drop, the speed should be such that it the ball does miss the hole, it would end up about 17 inches past the hole (Dave Pelz's Putting Bible )
6. Hitting putts with greater speed reduces the amount of break (that's why putts break less on slower greens; the ball is moving faster). So, you should putt your short putts firmly to minimize break (17 inches past hole is best).
Take a look at The BreakMaster for
measuring green break.
Trying to find answers on my website? Here's how.
1. Go to my Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page. There's a link to it on my pages from the left hand menu near the top of the page, just below the Search icon. It's called "FAQs." You then click on the graphic icon and you'll be taken to my database page. For your convenience, here it is:
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I've answered hundreds of questions over the past 6 years and have created a fairly large database. You can search it out. If you can't find the answer you're looking for, submit a question and I'll answer it.
2. On all of my web pages, there is a search feature in the top left section, right underneath my LOGO. Just place your search keywords in the search box, select "This Site" below it, and then press "Search." What will come up is a Google search of the pages on my site with relevance. You can also search the entire internet by selecting "Web" instead.
Go to my main page now: Home or just check the top left menu of this page.
3. Also, directly under the Google Search area, you'll find a pop down menu called "Your Topic." Select the topic of interest and press "Go."
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Hope I provided some useful ways for you to
become better prepared for you best golf season
ever.
Ken Tannar
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