I have recently been toying around with the idea of buying a new driver, possibly the Taylor Made R9. It got me to thinking about all of the money golfers spend on clubs, balls, and bags. Wouldn’t it be better off for a higher handicap player to focus on their swing and learn a little more about the game?

1. Hitting the ball straight doesn’t mean you have a good swing – Getting that new driver and setting up the weights to straighten out your slice sounds like a great idea but what about later in your career when you want to work the ball for a certain shot shape. The flaw that causes your slice might make that impossible. I would rather know my swing is sound than wonder whether my new driver is going to perform the same as the old one.
2. Tiger wouldn’t be Tiger without sound fundamentals – Without understanding what makes a good swing Woods wouldn’t be able to make the small tweaks necessary on each of his shots. For example changing his spin rate or ball flight. His flawless basic swing makes all of that possible.
3. No substitute for good execution – This basically sums up the first two reasons. If you can put the ball where you want to without all the technology, you’ll be able to get every last shot shaving advantage out of the new technology on the market.

I’m not trying to say that anyone who is just out to have fun on the course shouldn’t buy equipment that allows them to shoot better and have a better time. I am just trying to say that if you take the sport seriously you might be better off not buying into equipment hype and working on your own physical abilities. The price tag might include limiting your abilities later on when old habits are much harder to break. Let me know what you think, leave some comments!

Tags: Equipment // Add Comment »