Do You Need an Adjustable Driver? #golf

Several months ago I participated in a custom golf club fitting courtesy of PGA Tour Superstore. The driver I selected, a Callaway X2 Hot, was an adjustable driver, complete with wrench and instructions. My driver came with a neutral setting and I have not changed the specific settings until this blog.

Below are my thoughts on adjustable drivers, both how they work and if you really need one in your golf bag.

Have you visited a golf store lately only to find yourself strolling through the club section? You probably feel like a kid in a candy store with the bevy of irons, wedges and drivers available on display and all you can think of is grabbing one of the latest adjustable drivers and heading over to the hitting booth. You are not alone.

Before you decide to purchase a new adjustable driver, learn how and what this golf club can do to maximize your performance on the course.

How Adjustable Drivers Work

Adjustable drivers, depending on the type of golf club you select, can enhance everything from loft to lie angle...even weight distribution, in order to get just the right fit.

Each driver should come with a torque wrench to loosen the head and allow you to spin the hozel/rotate the shaft to the desired notch.

Gently place the wrench onto the screw, loosen the screw at the bottom of the shaft and rotate according to the instructions provided by the club manufacturer.

Most adjustable drivers come ready in the "S" position for loft (as an example) - minus 1 should lower the loft and the trajectory if "S" is in a standard 10.5 degree position, -1 will be 9.5 degrees and will lower the ball flight. It is said that most good amateurs underestimate the loft they need on their clubs.

If you are fading the ball and would like to help minimize a slice, try changing the lie position. Most clubs are set in the "N" or neutral position.

As for golf clubs with the ability to lighten or add weight, Cleveland Golf found that a 10-gram reduction in weight led to an average increase of 1 mph of swing speed.

Do I really need an adjustable driver?

The jury is out on the above question. If you are a beginner golfer, chances are you need a driver that will do what you want it to do right out of the box, that is, feel light and comfortable to you, get your ball airborne and moving in a forward direction. 

An adjustable driver might help you to gain loft but, if every swing you take is inconsistent, changing your lie from neutral to draw in order to "work the ball" may not be right for you.

If you are a more seasoned amateur who regularly practices at the driving range heading out for a round of golf and can tell when you are hitting the ball too high or have too much fade or draw, the ability to adjust your golf club can very well improve your round.

One suggestion? Visit golf stores that have hitting booths and test the golf club in varying degrees of loft, lie and weight. For the perfect golf club, you might also want to try golf course demo days. 

I found demo days to be essential to learning about golf clubs currently on the market. The ability to talk to onsite club manufacturing representatives also gave me invaluable information.

Have you ever adjusted your adjustable driver? What were the results? Voice your opinion on our Golf for Beginners blog and on Twitter @Golf4Beginners.

photos courtesy of Stacy Solomon

What Women Can Learn From Men About #Golf - Guest Blog

Golf for Beginners kicks off the New Year with an article from guest blogger and golf instructor Maria Palozola (see bio below). Although I asked Maria if, when she was writing this blog, to offer a bit of golf advice as to what men could learn from the fairer sex, she chose to stick with the title theme.

I think male golfers can learn patience, how to swing easier and how to play safe to hit more fairways and greens. What are your thoughts?

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What Women Can Learn from Men When it Comes to Golf - by Maria Palozola

When people ask me if I teach men I often reply that if I didn't, I wouldn't be in business. The bulk of my business is, and always has been, male clients. It's men that keep this great game going, because they not only play more, they do what they can to better their games.

Do Men Really Do It Better?

Through my twenty years of teaching both sexes, I have been able to decipher quite a few differences in how men and women approach game improvement and I truly believe there are several things that men do better:


1. Men Tinker - This is a blessing and a curse.  Men try new things with their swing and experiment with different clubs in search of "the secret."  This can make consistency difficult to develop, but it also opens their minds to change and the possibility of hitting on something that works.

2. Men Spend Money on Themselves - Men reading this are going "yeah right, all my wife does is spend money", but it's really not true in golf.  I see more women with outdated clubs than I can count and I hardly ever see them with things such as training aids, the latest and greatest driver, nice rain gear or range finders.

3. Men Get Custom Fit Equipment - It's rare if I get a female that comes out for a lesson and has a custom fit clubs.  The  majority are playing hand me downs or just picked up a set off the rack.  Most think they aren't good enough for or don't deserve a nice custom fit set.

4. Men Practice More - If there are twenty people on the driving range at a given time, eighteen or nineteen of them are men.  They are putting in the time because they know it's important and want to get better.  They are also confident that they will figure it out somehow.

5. Men Play More - I have played many rounds in my life where I looked across the golf course and saw that I was the only female in sight.  Quite often it's on a Friday afternoon where men have skipped out after lunch to play.  Women should learn from this.

6. Men Take Lessons - Men aren't hesitant about spending money on something they know will help them improve their games quickly. They are also used to being coached from youth sports.

7. Men Gamble - There's no better way to put pressure on yourself than to put some money on the line.  Women can learn to improve their focus and control their nerves by having a little fun and placing some side bets.

8. Men Track Stats - I have never had a woman come to a first lesson and tell me that she tracks her stats.  I know from MyGolfInstructor.com and our Game Tracker, that tracking stats is not only easy once you get the hang of it, but that it is a necessity if you want to really know your game, pinpoint your weaknesses and knock strokes off your score the fastest way possible.

What's Your Golf Game Plan? 

For women, it's not rocket science, you just need a game plan. You don't have to tackle everything on the list at once and I understand time and money may be an issue.  I recommend that you put the list in the order that is most feasible for you and work your way down checking off one item at a time.  After you have covered all 8 you can rest assure you are doing what you can to lower your scores and enjoy the game.  Now man up and get busy!

Maria Palozola Bio:

Maria Palozola has been a leading golf instructor for over twenty years.

She has been a Top-50 Instructor with the LPGA since 2008 and is currently listed as a Golf Digest Top-Five Teacher in the State. Maria offers private golf lessons in the St. Louis area at http://www.stlouisgolflessons.com and offers online instruction at http://www.mygolfinstructor.com.

Ask Maria questions about golf on Twitter @MariaPalozola and on her Facebook page. As always, voice your opinions on our Golf for Beginners blog and on Twitter @Golf4Beginners!

Does #Golf Need Modernizing? A New Year Viewpoint

Golf for Beginners welcomes commentary and opinion. The guest blog below was sent to us by Gamola Golf (see bio below).

While the death of golf may not be immediately imminent, there is an increasing decline in the number of amateur golfers in both the US and the UK, with clubs in England losing twenty percent of its members between 2004 and 2013 and Scotland losing fourteen percent of its membership.

This decline is mainly down to disinterest in golf among young people, particularly those born after the millennium: the number of young people regularly playing golf has almost halved between 2010 and 2013. The reasons cited tend to be the cost of playing, the time it takes to play and the perception that golf is for ‘snobs’ or the elite.

Unlike other sports, golf does not necessarily reflect children of the millennial’s values, such as diversity, instant gratification, affordability and inclusion. The high cost of playing prevents those in low incomes, such as students or lower-middle-class families, from playing on both a casual and permanent basis and women have historically been excluded from golf clubs, meaning it is now an extremely male-oriented sport.

On top of this, the smart attire demanded by golf courses are stereotypically upper class, with few teenagers or individuals on a lower income owning smart wear outside of school. Golf specific clothing can be expensive, as can golf equipment which is required to play the game.

When taking all this into account, isn't it reasonable to suggest that the future of golf depends on the need to modernize it's somewhat traditional and upper-class values?

Here are a few ways we believe golf can be modernized to create a more friendly experience for all:

By changing golf traditions, such as relaxing the dress code, the sport’s reputation may be less ‘stuffy’ and therefore more enticing to younger generations and individuals from a less privileged background. 

Reducing prices will open up the game as a possibility for more families and individuals while allowing those who already enjoy golf to play more often. 

While some might argue that golf is so great because of its classic heritage and traditions, it is surely more beneficial to adopt modern values and avoid the further decline of the golfing industry.

Another way of increasing the popularity of golf could be to shorten the playing time of a round. 

In comparison to sports such as football, golf is much more time consuming, both in the time it takes to play one game and the time it takes to master the skill. An 18-hole course can take as long as six hours to play, which is a very long time in modern times. Golf requires a lot of attention and does not normally have the adrenalin-causing excitement of other sports except of course, for that very motivating hole-in-one or eagle from the fairway...which is why we keep coming back, isn't it?

Speeding up the game would prevent younger players from getting bored whilst playing a course.

Rory McIlroy recently suggested that the grassroots level of golf needs speeding up in order to keep young golfers interest. One way which this could be done without causing significant changes to the structure of the game is by widening the holes used on golf courses.

Whether you agree with these suggestions or not, one thing is for certain: golf, and all sport for that matter, needs to evolve with the changing values of the younger generation if it is to stay as prestigious and majestic as it has historically been.

What are your thoughts? Speak out on this GFB blog, on Twitter @GamolaGolf, @Golf4Beginners or on our Facebook page.

Bio:  

Gamola Golf is the leading discounted online golf store. It stocks the leading brands, products and golf accessories required for golfers of every ability, all at the best UK prices.