 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS What is MOI(Moment of Inertia)? "Moment of intertia" is the term applied to a clubhead's resistance to twisting when the ball is struck. For example, your swing is a little off and you hit the ball on the toe of the clubhead. A clubhead with a higher MOI will twist less as a result of the mis-hit, creating a better chance that the ball will still go where you intended and with less loss of distance. Moment of Intertia is a physical property that can be expressed as a numerical measurement. That's not a number that is common to see (yet) in golf clubs. However, the term "moment of inertia" or "MOI" is becoming much more common in advertising and marketing by the golf club companies. The growth in popularity of term is directly related to the growth in popularity of ever-larger clubheads, both for drivers and putters. The size and weighting properties of a clubhead can be manipulated to add a greater MOI. High-MOI is an important component in clubs that are described as "forgiving" or "game improvement."
What is COR(Coefficient Of Restitution)? An example of a COR of 0.000 would be one piece of very sticky chewing gum colliding with another similar piece. In such a collision, the two pieces of gum would stick together and not move forward, thus indicating that all of the energy of the impact was absorbed and lost. The closest example in the sports world to a COR of 1.000 would be in pool or billiards, when the cue ball collides squarely with a target ball of the same size and weight (mass). When the cue ball hits the target ball, the cue ball stops dead and the target ball takes off at almost the same, exact speed that the cue ball had when it made contact with the target ball. This indicates that virtually all of the energy of the cue ball was transferred to the target ball to propel it onward. It is impossible for the collision of the golf club and golf ball to produce a perfectly elastic collision (COR of 1.000) in which all energy is transferred, for two reasons:
1. The clubface and the ball are made from completely different materials; The current USGA rule limiting the coefficient of restitution of a clubhead states that the COR cannot be higher than a measurement of 0.830. This means that when the clubhead impacts the ball, there cannot be more than an 83-percent transfer of the energy of the head to the ball. To give a frame of reference for performance, with a driver the difference in carry distance between a head with a COR of 0.820 and another head with a COR of 0.830 would be 4.2 yards for a swing speed of 100 mph. It is true that as swing speed increases, the distance difference is greater. And likewise, as swing speed decreases the distance difference for each increment of the COR measurement is less. This is one of the reasons why the USGA rule which limits the COR of a clubhead has the effect of penalizing the slower swing speed golfer much more than the high swing speed players. What is Frequency Matching? Special devices, available to clubmakers, can measure the stiffness of shafts through what is called "shaft frequency measurement." These types of electronic devices allow the shaft to be clamped, usually at the grip end, with either a weight attached to the head end (when testing a raw shaft) or the clubhead attached at the head end. The clubmaker pulls the shaft down, lets it go, and the shaft begins to oscillate up and down. The stiffer the shaft, the faster the rate of oscillation; the more flexible the shaft, the slower the rate of oscillation. The frequency analyzer is designed to count the oscillation rate of the shaft and display the reading in the form of "cycles per minute" (a numerical value) on the LED display on the machine. In a set of woods or irons, the frequency reading of the shafts in the clubs will normally increase from longest to shortest club in the set. However, due to many factors, the amount of increase from shaft to shaft is not normally in the same increment. Some custom clubmakers offer the service of fine tuning the shafts when installed in the clubheads so that the increment of frequency increase from longest to shortest clubs in the set will be exactly the same from club to club. This is "frequency matching." Backspin
The backward rotation of the golf ball in flight along its horizontal axis (the top of the ball is rotating back towards the player), or the measured rate of that rotation. Most golfers think of backspin more in relation to wedges - backspin is what causes some wedge shots to "back up" on the green, or roll backwards after hitting the green. But all clubs produce backspin. When the clubface makes contact with the ball, the ball slides up the clubface and is "gripped" by the club's grooves, which imparts backspin. The more lofted a club is, the more backspin it will produce. Aerodynamically, backspin produces lift which creates greater carry. The "bump and run" is an approach shot to the green usually played from roughly the same distance you might play a pitch shot. A pitch shot, however, is struck with a high-lofted club such as a pitching wedge, producing a high trajectory and a ball that typically hits the green and quickly stops. A bump and run, on the other hand, is played with a lower-lofted club relative to a wedge (an 8-, 7- or 6-iron, for example), and with very little airtime for the ball. With a bump and run shot, the ball is typically played from the back of the stance, producing a very shallow trajectory, with the ball mostly scooting along the ground and running up to the green. The bump and run is played more along the ground; the pitch shot is played in the air. Why would a golfer prefer a bump and run to a pitch? The front of the green might be open, with a hard fairway and hard green, making an approach that lands on the green tough to stop. Or the wind might be howling, with the bump and run making it possible to keep the ball from getting up into - and blown around by - that wind. Bump and run shots are very common on links courses and on golf courses in dry and/or windy locations, where greens and fairways may be be harder.
Carry 1. As a verb, "carry" means to clear an obstacle on the golf course. 2. As a noun, "carry" refers to the distance your shots travel from the point of contact with the club to the point they hit the ground. All shots have a little roll to them, which along with carry makes up the full distance. Knowing your carry is important in order to decide whether to attempt to clear a water hazard, for example.
Cavity Back An iron on which the clubhead features a thin face with a hollowed-out area on back, distributing the weight around the perimeter (contrast with "blade" or "muscleback"). The weighting of cavity back (which can be forged, but are usually cast) clubs allows for a larger sweet spot, which provides help on mis-hits. Cavity back irons are preferred by mid- to high-handicap players, but many low-handicappers and touring pros use cavity backs, too, for their forgiving properties. Cavity backs fall into the category of "game improvement clubs."
Center of Gravity The point within the head of a golf club at which it would be perfectly balanced. The position of the center of gravity within a clubhead can affect the trajectory of shots. A CG position that is low and toward the back of a clubhead will, for example, encourage a higher trajectory.
Cut Shot A "cut shot" is a type of controlled golf shot in which a golfer induces a fade ball flight. For a right-handed golfer, that means the ball moves from left-to-right in flight; for left-handers, the ball moves from right-to-left. A cut shot is usually played in order to get the ball around some obstruction in its flight path. For example, your drive lands on the right side of the fairway, where overhanging branches pose a problem. A cut shot will start the ball out to the left - going around the problem - before moving the ball back to the right. Cut shots are frequently played on approaches to the green, as well, as a way of avoiding greenside hazards. For example, a right-handed player facing a green that is well-protected on the right but open on the left might to play a cut shot, bringing the ball into the green from left-to-right. Cut shots are played either by opening the club at impact, or by swinging on an outside-to-inside swing path. A more severe cut shot might involve both maneuvers.
Divot Most shots from the fairway with an iron will scrape off the top of the turf where the ball was resting. "Divot" refers to both the turf that is scraped up, and the scarred area in the fairway where the turf had been. A good divot will start just in front of where the ball was at rest - meaning that your club struck the ball first, then the ground. If the divot starts behind the ball, you have mis-hit the shot (this type of mis-hit is often called hitting the ball "heavy" or "fat").
Draw A flight path of the ball in which the ball curves gently right-to-left for a right-handed player, or left-to-right for a left-handed player. At impact, the ball starts out slight to the right of the target (for a right-handed golfer), before gently curving back to the left arrive at its target. A draw has the same right-to-left curvature of a hook; however, a hook is much more severe and is rarely played intentionally. A draw, on the other hand, is considered a very good shot to have and is often the shot of choice for better golfers. A draw can also cause the ball to roll out farther in the fairway, adding a few extra yards.
Face Angle The angle of the face of the clubhead relative to the target. If the clubhead is "square," the clubface will be directly facing the target on address. If it it "closed," it will be aligned to the left of the target. If it is "open," it will be aligned to the right of the target (for right-handed players). It is not unusual for game-improvement clubs (those marketed to higher handicappers), particularly drivers, to have a face angle several degrees as a way to help the golfer fight a slice Fade "Fade" describes a trajectory or ball flight in which the golf ball comes off the clubface moving to the left of the target before curving gently back to the right (for a right-handed golfer; reverse directions for a left-hander). The shape of a fade is the same as that of a slice, however, a slice is much more severe in its left-to-right (for right-handers) movement. A slice is the most common problem for recreational golfers. A fade, however, is often a shot played intentionally and is even the preferred ball flight for some of the best golfers in the world (Jack Nicklaus and Ben Hogan, among others, preferred to play a fade).
Hook "Hook" describes a trajectory or ball flight in which the golf ball starts out to the right (for a right-handed golfer) before curving severely back to the left and missing its target to the left. (Reverse those directions for left-handed golfers.) A hook is the opposite of the slice. Hooks are often the bane of amateur golfers and, for amateurs, can be tough to straighten out. A popular golf saying is, "You can talk to a slice but a hook won't listen."
Kickpoint Kickpoint, also called flex point or bend point, is the point along a shaft's length at which it exhibits the greatest amount of bend when the tip is pulled down. Ball flight is affected by the location of the kickpoint, although to what extent is a subject of some contention. A general consensus is beginning to emerge that kickpoint has only a very modest effect on ball flight. A high kickpoint may help lower the trajectory of most golfer's shots; a low kickpoint may result in a slightly higher trajectory for most golfers.
Lie Angle The lie angle of any golf club is the angle formed between the center of the shaft and the ground line of the club when the club is soled in its proper playing position (as in at address). Lie angles almost always range from the mid-50 degrees to the mid-60 degrees. Long irons have lower lie angles (referred to as "flatter"), while short irons have larger lie angles (referred to as more "upright"). Finding the proper lie angle to fit a golfer's swing is an important part of the clubfitting process. Taller golfers tend to require larger lie angles while shorter golfers tend to require lower lie angles in order to make the best contact with the ball. What happens if the lie angle of your clubs is ill-fitted for your swing? The clubface will wind up in an improper position at contact, resulting in poorer shots. If a club is in a toe-down position at impact (the toe scraping the ground with the heel up off the ground), it is sign that your clubs have a lie angle that is too flat (meaning, too low of an angle). If a club is in a toe-up position at impact (heel on the ground but toe up off the ground), it is a sign that your have a lie angle that is too upright (meaning too great of a lie angle).
Loft A measurement, in degrees, of the angle at which the face of the club lies relative to a perfectly vertical face. Technically, iron loft and wood loft are measured slightly differently, but the effective result is the same. Loft gives you an idea of how far and how high the ball will go. Drivers are the least-lofted clubs (not counting putters), while wedges are the most-lofted. Driver lofts for most players run between 7.5 and 12.5 degrees. Clubs increase in loft through the set until reaching the lob wedge, which is usually lofted around 60 to 64 degrees.
Maltby Playability Factor The Maltby Playability Factor (or MPF) is a rating system developed by renowned golf club designer Ralph Maltby that attempts to rank golf clubs on the basis of how easy or difficult they are to play for golfers of different skill levels. We all know, for example, that a cavity back iron with significant perimeter weighting will be easier for most golfers to use than a muscleback blade. The Maltby Playability Factor charts golf clubs along that curve, from easiest to master to most difficult to master. The Maltby Playability Factor fits clubs into six different categories, ranging from most-forgiving to least-forgiving: Ultra Game Improvement, Super Game Improvement, Game Improvement, Conventional, Classic and Player Classic. Better players will excel with a club from any category; weaker players will have a better chance of success with clubs from the game-improvement end of the scale. The latest MPF ratings can be downloaded on Mr. Malty's Web site at www.ralphmaltby.com.
Offset The distance from the frontmost part of the hosel to the frontmost part of the clubhead. At address, the shaft of an offset club will appear to be in front of the clubhead. Because it is. Offset may be found in any club. Many putters have offset to help the golfer have his or her hands ahead of the ball at impact. Offset drivers and irons can be helpful to players who slice.
Slice A type of shot in which the ball curves in the shape of a banana - starting out to the left of the target and then bending dramatically back to the right of the target (for a right-handed golfer; reverse for left-handed golfers). Because of the shape of the slice trajectory, the slice is sometimes colloquially called the "banana ball." A slice is rarely played intentionally, and is the most common mis-hit of amateur golfers.
Snap Hook Term for a very severe hook. A snap hook might start curving hard from right to left (for a right-handed player) almost as soon as it leaves the clubface.Also known as Duck hook.
Text
|
Product Catagories
Shopping Basket
Note: All prices in US Dollars
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
stambito1967@yahoo.com |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
