Accenture Match Play Championship

The WGC Accenture Championship went from Stroke Play to Match Play and the top 64 players in the world will be teeing up in Marana, Arizona. According to Golf.com, some players aren’t excited about the switch to Match Play. In a GolfTEC Momentum  newsletter article last October, we outlined the types of play – both well known and obscure.

No longer is it man vs. course – golf gets personal. Unfortunately, most players don’t know the difference between Foursomes and Four-ball, so we’re here to clear things up. If you’re looking for a new way to see who will be paying for the 19^th hole, consider these great formats for competition.

Stroke Play: Stroke play is the most common form of golf competition and is used at most professional golf tournaments. In this simple, popular type of play, every player competes on all 18 holes and counts the total number of strokes. The person or team with the lowest total net number (or gross score minus handicap) takes home the bragging rights.

Match Play: Match play is the intense type of play used at the Ryder Cup. Two players or two teams play every hole as a separate contest against each other.  Match play is also very common at the club level. The party with the lower score wins the hole no matter how many shots they won by. If the score is equal, the hole is a draw. The match is won by the party that wins more holes than the other.

Foursome: A Foursome is played with four players on two teams of two. Each time has one ball and the first player in the team of two tees off on the even numbered holes and the second player tees off on the odd numbered holes. After that they alternate shots and are in competition with the other team of two in their Foursome. Foursome rounds can be played on either Stroke Play or Match Play rules.

Four-ball (aka Best Ball): Ever wish you could use your playing partner’s score instead? Pick the better score in Four-ball! Four-ball is also two versus two but each player plays with his own ball and the better score of the team counts.

Greensome: A variation of Foursome play where each person on the team makes a tee shot and the team selects the shot they would like to play from.  The player whose ball was not selected then takes the next shot and all future even numbered shots.

Patsome: A combination of a few types of play where the first six holes are played in Four-ball, the next six in Greensome and the last six in Foursome. The final count and winner is determined as in Foursome.

Skins: If you like to wager on your golf game, Skins is for you. The “prize” can be won only by winning the hole outright. If the best score is achieved by more than one player, the prize is carried over to the next hole, making the following holes worth more. Each year professional players participate in Skins tournaments for the benefit of a charity. After the end of the official PGA TOUR season, four golfers are invited to a Skins tournament sponsored by LG. The 2010 tournament was held November 23-25 in Indian Wells, California.

Flag Tournament: In this tournament style, each player is given a flag and receives a number of strokes equal to par plus 2/3 of their handicap. When the player runs out of strokes, they place their flag where the ball lands and the player who gets the farthest is the winner.

Chapman: Chapman is a slight variation of Four-ball where each player hits a tee shot then swaps positions to hit the second ball. Then it is decided which of the two balls they will play for the remainder of the hole. Once the ball is selected, the two teammates rotate play of the ball until it is holed out.

String: Did you bring your ball of twine today? A unique form of golf where each player gets a length of string they can use to improve a bad lie. The length of the string depends on the player’s handicap and usually 20 inches is allotted per handicap point.  If the player wants to improve a lie, they cut off the amount of string they would like to use. This can be repeated until the string is gone.

We’re excited to announce…

GolfTEC Named to Golf Digest’s Top 100 Club Fitter List

GolfTEC’s “Precision Matching” approach becomes the new gold standard in club fitting

Five GolfTEC Improvement Centers were recently named to Golf Digest’s list of America’s 100 Best Club Fitters.  The prestigious list, published annually, recognizes outstanding performance in improvement through equipment.  To make the list, locations must be open to the public, have access to clubs made by the top manufacturers and be nominated by a Golf Digest golf course rater, a golf association executive or top golf instructor.  The list of America’s Best Club Fitters was narrowed down from more than 700 nominees and then published in the February Hot List issue of Golf Digest.

The five GolfTEC Improvement Centers named were: GolfTEC Main Line (Rosemont, PA), GolfTEC Omaha, GolfTEC Cleveland West, GolfTEC Denver Tech Center (Denver, CO) and GolfTEC Honolulu.

“In the last few years there has been a surge of new golf club technology and today’s clubs are amazing, but all of that sophistication only works if the club matches your swing,” said Ty Walker, GolfTEC Denver Tech Center Director of Instruction.  “The better the match, the more benefit you will receive.  Our precision matching system lets us maximize both distance and accuracy in a way that was not possible with just a launch monitor.”

GolfTEC recently developed the third generation of club fitting technology, a Precision Matching system that is now the gold standard of fitting.  Precision matching involves matching a golfer’s swing to a database of laboratory tested clubs and takes in to account many performance variables.  This approach represents a quantum leap past the lie boards and launch monitor systems of the past that have several built-in biases.  GolfTEC’s approach utilizes objective computer analysis to filter through thousands of club options and recommend a few clubs specifically matched to the golfer’s swing. After discussing personal preferences and price points, the GolfTEC Coach narrows the options to a couple of options, which are tested in the GolfTEC bay.  The clubs are ordered and delivered in about week.

GolfTEC’s approach to equipment performance also includes a proprietary Set Analysis Session, which is usually recommended before a club fitting session.  In it they review all of the clubs in a golfer’s set and check for the 10 most common equipment performance problem areas.  Then a software program calculates and flags any concerns.

“Many of our clients have a club they hate to swing, or complain about being between clubs.  Our Set Analysis helps us pinpoint the problem areas and prioritize the best correction,” said Nick Paez, GolfTEC Cleveland Franchisee.  “At GolfTEC, we like to say ‘Don’t just get new clubs, get new results, and our fact-based approach makes it easier to accomplish that, even with thousands of options available.”

For more information about GolfTEC services or locations, visit www.golftec.com.

Tiger says golf is a process…we couldn’t agree more

Chances are that you’ve heard GolfTEC is the Proven Path to Proven Results. That’s because golf lessons aren’t a “one and done” experience. Instead, through the five factor approach, GolfTEC golf lessons build a swing that will stick with you for a lifetime of better golf. And with 95% of clients experiencing improvement, the “proven results” speak for themselves.

Watching Tour Pros hit shots most of us can only dream of, it’s easy to forget that golf is a process for them as well. In a recent Associated Press article, Tiger explained that his golf improvement is sometimes a struggle but always a process.

“Obviously I still have to pay attention to the short game and my techniques there, all the different shots, as well as the putting stroke,” Woods said. “It’s progressing. I’m putting pieces together and working on the same things.

“Sean and I, we are sticking with the game plan and just trying to get better each and every week,” he added. “Good things happened in the last event I played in, and it’s nice to have some things that showed up that I had not had in practice. So we were able to identify that, work on it and I feel a lot more comfortable coming into this week.”

There are a lot of quick fixes out there but the results don’t last. Upon reading the article about Tiger’s improvement, Tony Consolino, Director of Instruction at GolfTEC Altamonte Springs, said, “It is great to see the former #1 player speak of the things we at GolfTEC so greatly believe in ourselves.”

White Out in New York!

Just in case the city hasn’t had quite enough snow…Golfsmith is planning a white out on February 15! The event will honor the launch of TaylorMade’s white R11 Driver. Ten drivers will be given away as well as R11 hats and other gear.

To show the capability of the new driver, Golfsmith constructed an 120-foot hitting range on the street between 54th avenue and Lex in Manhattan, NY. At the event’s morning kick off, Sergio Garcia and Martin Kaymer, both dressed in white, will demo the driver and then sign autographs for the crowd. The event is also a fundraiser for Operation Game On, a non-profit helping wounded troops with their rehabilitation through golf.

If you’re in the Manhattan area, don’t miss this exciting event! To find a GolfTEC Improvement Center near you and demo the latest clubs in 2011, view our list of Centers. You can read more about the event by clicking here.

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Tiger’s New Swing Part II

After Andy’s thoughts last week, Steve Atherton follows up with his thoughts on the changes Sean Foley has made to Tiger’s golf swing.

Steve Atherton

GolfTEC VP of Research and Development

Looking at the changes Tiger Woods is making with his new swing coach, Sean Foley, I am not 100% convinced that they are moving down the right track.  Tiger is an incredibly talented and motivated player.  He can play really good golf with a number of different swing types as he has proven throughout his career.  However, he has not played with the confidence or the skill that he showed in 2000 when he won 10 tournaments including 3 majors and a record-shattering 15-stroke victory at the US Open.  That year Tiger’s swing was shorter, with less wrist hinge and lag at the top, and less upper body dive to start the downswing .  Those moves, which he built into his swing while working with Hank Haney, appear to be something he and Foley are working on a little, but their focus seems to be elsewhere.

Foley, who is an advocate of the Stack and Tilt method introduced by Mike Bennett and Andy Plummer, seems to be getting Tiger’s hands a bit more inside during the takeaway with the clubhead more outside of the hands – which is no doubt a good thing for him.  However, Tiger also appears to be working on a much more centered pivot around his spine, which I don’t believe is the best move for him.  I think Tiger needs to work back toward the swing he made in 2000, with a standard shot shape so that he doesn’t feel the need to “work” the ball so much.  A more shut-faced, reduced lag swing with less upper body dive would serve him very well.

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