Hello Golfers,
I trust this finds you well. So Tiger is taking an extended break from golf! Well I guess you can understand why with the way he has been playing. By Tiger's own high standards, his golf has been somewhat suspect to say the least. The only trouble with taking a break to try and get his game in shape is the amount of pressure and hype that will be built up surrounding his comeback. I often get asked what I feel is wrong with Tiger and although lots of people lay blame with his driving, it really is his short game where the major change has taken place. I've never seen him duff so many chip shots or little pitches, it really is sad to watch especially when he resorts to chip and runs through the fringe with a 4-iron. The one thing you know Tiger will not shirk on however is the hard work and desire needed to regain his form. I for one will be really pleased to see the Tiger of old prowl the course again.
One of my main goals this season is to help golfers understand the importance of good wedge play. It's incredible how many shots you could save by being more in control over your wedge play. For me one of the biggest issues is understanding how far you hit your wedges and having the right wedges in your bag to execute these shots. So much importance is put on driving the ball that wedge play can be easily forgotten. My team and I are here to help you improve your golf and, in turn, your enjoyment. I would like to ask you 2 questions:
- Do you know how far your wedges go?
- When was the last time you practised your wedge play?
I think if you are honest with yourself then the answers will be mainly:
No
I can't remember
This is a fundamental reason behind your wedge game not being as good as it could be. Many golfers do not carry the correct wedges either. One of the key wedges that should be in everyone's bag is the gap wedge. This sits nicely in between your pitching wedge and your sand wedge. A gap wedge would normally be something in the region of 50, 52 or 54 degrees in loft and adds lots of variations to pitching and chipping. We have a great selection of demo wedges that you can take out on to the course and try. Pop in to the pro shop and let us help you decide which would be the right wedge for your game.
Here's an interesting question - Have you ever had the lofts and lies checked on your irons?
I suspect that the high majority of you would answer no. Believe it or not, the lofts and lies on your irons can move through playing. Not over one or two rounds, but over a longer period of time. It is not uncommon to check someone's lies and lofts and see the readings are a few degrees out from what they should be.
So how does this affect your golf?
Well a few degrees out on either lofts or lies can result in up to 10 yards distance change and 10-15 yards in direction. Now you start to see how important it is to have these checked! Arriving this week is a new loft and lie machine so we will be able to accurately measure the loft and lies on any irons and adjust them where needed. There will be more details in next week's newsletter. Click here to register your interest.
We are giving some of you the opportunity to take part in a new initiative called the Power Hour! The concept is that you team up with a partner to play myself and James around a chosen course over 6 holes on our GC2 Simulator. The format will be betterball pairs Stableford and we will be putting dates and times forward imminently. The idea is that as well as trying to beat us, you will receive helps and tips throughout your round which you can take away and hopefully benefit from. The best 3 pairs scores after all matches have been played will then qualify for a grand final where the best score will win some great prizes.
The cost per person will be £10 but you will automatically receive a sleeve of three balls for taking part. We have some dates free THIS SATURDAY! To register your interest please contact the pro shop here.
This week we look at the brilliant new range of PING Glide wedges. Visually, they look stunning and with a range of sole and loft options there is a wedge to suit everyone. Fitted with unique Dyla Wedge Grip, which is designed longer than normal grips to allow the player to grip gown the club more for shorter shots ,and complete with the superb Gorge grooves for exceptional feel and control; these are a delight to play with. Click here to learn more.
We have a selection of these wedges as demos so please pop in to the pro shop and ask to try one, you'll be impressed at the performance.
Pitching - A key part of the game that can be influenced by so many factors.
Technique - When playing the pitch shot, 60% of weight should be on the left side (for a left hander this reverses) with hands slightly in front of the clubface. Sternum should be nicely over the ball and a measured 3/4 action used. The blow should be slightly descending helped by the above points. Weight should never neutralise, or go backwards. This would lead to varying distances created and the bounce of the club being relied upon heavily. We will talk about bounce but not yet.
Pitching seems to be a discipline many people get confused over - Is it more like chipping? Is it a full swing? Should I use a different technique completely? Look at it this way...ideal dynamic loft when chipping is between 40-45 degrees - this means choosing a swing length, wedge loft and swing tempo to create that number is crucial. As a side note, no real spin will be produced unless it is over 8000rpm. The last two factors can be practiced, worked on and fine tuned in our simulator with me guiding you.
One key tip is go out there and practice. If you have three wedges in your bag, you have three main distances right? Wrong! You could vary the ball position to front, middle and back to give more yardages; you could grip up, in the middle and at the bottom of your grip to give more yardages. Done properly this would give you around 8 confident separate shots you could play - hopefully mean a half committed badly struck wedge shot is a thing of the past.
To talk to me about this concept or to book a lesson come in at anytime.
Playing lesson special - 4 holes for £20.00 including detailed report pictures/videos if wanted.
Dates for your diary
Saturday, 21 February - 10.00am-11.00am - Junior Coaching
Sunday, 22 February - 10.00am-11.00am - Junior Squad Coaching
Medal and Four Seasons - Last Saturday saw the rearranged men's Medal and first round of the Four Seasons take place. With conditions quite tricky it was likely that the scoring would be quite bunched. And so it proved apart from two scores. Simon Cole set the early pace as his nett 65 looked like it would be the score of the day. That was however until Paul Lock signed for a blistering nett 61! This was simply superb and gives him pole position in the Four Seasons trophy.
Ladies Scotch Foursomes - The ladies teed up in a Scotch Foursomes competition on Tuesday. On a gorgeous day of weather the winning score was recorded by the pair of Vivienne Masterson and Serena Skinner. Runners Up were Linda Kingdon and Judith Saxby.
Men's Daily Mail - The club's Daily Mail team played their first round match on Sunday at home to Exeter and recorded a resounding 5-0 victory to march in to the next round. Their next round opponents will be Crediton, again at Home. Congratulations to Pat Masterson and his team.
Help! We are trying to update the Hole-in-One honours board. We are asking anyone who has had a hole-in-one in a qualifying event since 2010 to come forward and tell us so we can get the board updated. Get in touch here. Thank you for your help.
Club Shirts
As the new season steadily approaches now is a great time to think about purchasing a Teign Valley logoed club shirt. In stock we have the men's team shirt that is a superb Callaway Tour shirt in a breathable performance fabric. The ladies are currently putting together an order for their team shirt so if you would like one please speak to the Lady Captain Maggie Thomson.
Our best stock year ever
Exciting times are ahead in the pro shop as this year we will be holding our best ever selection of golfing goods. Our aim is to give our customers a great choice in quality product helping to ensure that you get exactly what you need or want. With our first class service and knowledge and a brilliant range of golfing goods, your very own pro shop here at The Valley is the only place to go for your golfing needs. We offer the following first class services:
Golf Lessons
Custom Fitting
Ball Fitting
Gap Testing
Club Repair Service
Re-Spiking Service
Corporate Day Prizes
Society Day Prizes
Our stock this year includes:
Hardware - Nike, TaylorMade, PING, Mizuno, Cobra and Titleist
Shoes - Nike, FootJoy, adidas and Puma. (Men's and ladies)
Clothing - Nike, Under Armour, FootJoy, adidas, PING and Puma
Bags - Nike, Titleist, PING, Cobra, Sun Mountain, TaylorMade and Motocaddy
This year's initiatives
I have been working hard the last few weeks on a number of initiatives for the coming year. Here is a little taster of what we are going to be offering:
Nike Club Fitting Day
Nike Experience Day
Cobra Club Fitting Day
TaylorMade Demo Day
PING Club Fitting Day
10 yard challenge
Skills challenge
Putting clinic
Wedge clinic
Game and equipment MOT
