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News

Every iron the same length – is that the secret?

The full story behind Bryson DeChambeau’s single-length iron revolution

One of the most important developments in the recent history of golf club technology began with a single sentence buried in a cryptic tome. Homer Kelley’s 1969 book, The Golfing Machine—its pages bursting with insightful and highly technical swing treatises—has long thrilled and baffled readers. When he was 15, Bryson DeChambeau borrowed a well-thumbed copy from his swing coach Mike Schy. “Mind blown,” says DeChambeau. Chapter 10, section 7 covers what Kelley termed “customized” swing planes. With his idiosyncratic punctuation, Kelley wrote about a Zero Shift swing: “…one Basic Plane Angle is to be used throughout the stroke without ‘a Variation’—that is, No Shift.” Those 18 words raced through young Bryson’s mind for days. Was it really possible to be on the same plane with clubs as different as a sand wedge and a 3-iron?

DeChambeau spent a summer experimenting and glumly concluded that, in fact, he had 13 different planes, owing to the varying length of each club. Having been raised as a golfer to think untraditionally, DeChambeau came up with a solution that seemed blindingly obvious to him: Make every iron the same length with the same weight, the same shaft flex and the same lie angle (72°), allowing the exact same swing plane to be repeated over and over. (Woods and hybrids would largely be left alone, at least for the time being.)

Schy was supportive of the experiment, so a set of old clubs was chopped up in the name of science. Into some old Nike VR heads they inserted 37.5-inch shafts, which is the length of a traditional 6-iron. In any set, the heads of the wedges are heavier than those of the slender long irons. After running a series of calculations in the supercomputer that doubles as his brain, DeChambeau determined that an ideal uniform weight for the heads in a single-length set would be 282 grams. Lead tape was used to make the heads on the longer irons heavier; the extra mass made up for a shorter swing arc. To shed weight on the wedges, holes were drilled in the back of the head and metal was gouged out of the backline of the sole; losing that mass was counteracted by the increased swing speed that came with the longer shaft.

When the work was complete, DeChambeau raced to the first fairway at Dragonfly Golf Course, the humble public track he grew up haunting in Madera, Calif. From 160 yards, he selected an 8-iron. The club felt a little long and light but not overly so. He hit a lovely draw pin-high. On the second hole he dropped a ball 210 yards from the flag and reached for his reconstituted 5-iron. This was the moment of truth: If the shorter, heavier long irons worked, his underlying theory of a single-length set was sound.

DeChambeau flushed the shot. “It was in the air for what felt like forever,” he says. The suspense was awful. Was the ball going to be 20 yards short? Twenty yards long? It landed three feet from the flag.

Less than a decade later, single-length irons are a rapidly growing part of the equipment market. DeChambeau didn’t invent the concept—Tommy Armour Golf tried (and failed spectacularly) to sell a version in the 1980s—but he is now the public face of a fundamentally different way of playing the game. He has had some help along the way. While an undergrad at SMU, DeChambeau became close to David Edel, a fellow obsessive whose Texas-based boutique company has long turned out some of the most gorgeous (and expensive) putters and irons on the market. Edel spent years perfecting the single-length clubs that DeChambeau used to win the 2015 U.S. Amateur and NCAA title, going through three dozen handcrafted sets. From the beginning, Edel could feel a revolution brewing that transcended DeChambeau’s idiosyncrasies.

Schy was supportive of the experiment, so a set of old clubs was chopped up in the name of science. Into some old Nike VR heads they inserted 37.5-inch shafts, which is the length of a traditional 6-iron. In any set, the heads of the wedges are heavier than those of the slender long irons. After running a series of calculations in the supercomputer that doubles as his brain, DeChambeau determined that an ideal uniform weight for the heads in a single-length set would be 282 grams. Lead tape was used to make the heads on the longer irons heavier; the extra mass made up for a shorter swing arc. To shed weight on the wedges, holes were drilled in the back of the head and metal was gouged out of the backline of the sole; losing that mass was counteracted by the increased swing speed that came with the longer shaft.

When the work was complete, DeChambeau raced to the first fairway at Dragonfly Golf Course, the humble public track he grew up haunting in Madera, Calif. From 160 yards, he selected an 8-iron. The club felt a little long and light but not overly so. He hit a lovely draw pin-high. On the second hole he dropped a ball 210 yards from the flag and reached for his reconstituted 5-iron. This was the moment of truth: If the shorter, heavier long irons worked, his underlying theory of a single-length set was sound.

DeChambeau flushed the shot. “It was in the air for what felt like forever,” he says. The suspense was awful. Was the ball going to be 20 yards short? Twenty yards long? It landed three feet from the flag.

Less than a decade later, single-length irons are a rapidly growing part of the equipment market. DeChambeau didn’t invent the concept—Tommy Armour Golf tried (and failed spectacularly) to sell a version in the 1980s—but he is now the public face of a fundamentally different way of playing the game. He has had some help along the way. While an undergrad at SMU, DeChambeau became close to David Edel, a fellow obsessive whose Texas-based boutique company has long turned out some of the most gorgeous (and expensive) putters and irons on the market. Edel spent years perfecting the single-length clubs that DeChambeau used to win the 2015 U.S. Amateur and NCAA title, going through three dozen handcrafted sets. From the beginning, Edel could feel a revolution brewing that transcended DeChambeau’s idiosyncrasies.

“One of the hardest things for amateurs is to consistently produce a good strike with their irons,” says Edel. “On every swing the club feels different, because it is. With a wedge you have to squat down and stand close to the ball, and it’s a short, heavy club. With a long iron you’re more upright, the ball is farther away, and the club is long and light. No wonder people struggle! Eliminating all of those variables automatically makes the game easier. That is the holy grail of golf equipment, and we found it.”

DeChambeau turned pro after a stellar showing at the 2016 Masters. Cobra Golf had won what its vice president of R & D, Tom Olsavsky, calls “the Bryson recruiting lottery,” but at the outset of his pro career DeChambeau still had Edel irons in his bag. DeChambeau and Edel are both strident and headstrong, and that spring they suffered a falling out that neither cares to discuss. The engineers at Cobra had already been fooling around with single-length sets, but suddenly they had a mandate to build one for their new star, who, naturally, was intimately involved in every detail. “Bryson brought so much knowledge to the process,” says Mike Yagley, Cobra’s senior director of innovation and AI. “We learned along with him.”

When DeChambeau claimed his first Tour win, at the John Deere Classic, in July 2017, he was wielding Cobra irons. A year and a half (and four more DeChambeau victories) later, Cobra has sold some 40,000 single-length sets worldwide, helping a small-scale company gain two more percentage points of market share in 2017 and move up to fourth in overall iron sales. Now Cobra is going all-in on its One Length line, with three different head designs and hybrids on the same shaft. (“They look like a toy, but they’re as long as all of our other hybrids,” says Olsavsky.) Importantly, Cobra has also rolled out an extensive fitting system and introduced a trial program in which consumers can test out a set of One Length clubs for two weeks for a mere $20. All of this is designed to help educate and entice golfers to think different, to borrow a handy marketing phrase.

Even without DeChambeau in the fold, Edel Golf remains committed to the single-length concept. It has over 100 fitting accounts across the country and a bespoke fitting system through Club Champion, and has also introduced a demo program in which the open-minded can have three irons at a time delivered to them to test, for $150. If Cobra is trying to reach every kind of golfer, Edel is more of a high-end niche product—its irons feature a smaller head with a thinner topline and unique Paderson shafts made of Kevlar. Each club sells for $245, more than double the most expensive Cobra model. “As the market gets bigger, there’s room for more variety,” says Edel.

It remains to be seen if an industry behemoth like Callaway will take the plunge. The biggest barrier to entry might be the simple fact that there is not enough Bryson to go around. Every Tour player endorses some kind of gear. They’re paid mercenaries, peddling hyperbole. DeChambeau is offering something much more rare: authentic enthusiasm. “I have zero doubt this is the best way to play golf,” he says. “Not just for me, but for everybody.”

The larger golf world is catching on.

SOURCE:  golf.com

August 27, 2019/by Teesnap Developer
https://makefieldhighlandsgolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/2018-09-11_1144.png 300 500 Teesnap Developer http://makefieldhighlandsgolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/logomakefield.png Teesnap Developer2019-08-27 16:39:182019-08-27 16:48:12Every iron the same length - is that the secret?
News

The final event of the 2018-19 season has arrived

New format for 2019 FedExCup Playoffs

Welcome to a brand-new era in the FedExCup.

One less week of Playoffs action made it imperative for players to perform well in the postseason. Now a debut format for the TOUR Championship will determine this year’s winner of the PGA TOUR’s Ultimate Prize.

Here’s everything you need to know for this week’s TOUR Championship, the grand finale of the FedExCup season.

Starting Strokes

Gone are the confusing projections and days when two players had to share the trophy ceremony on East Lake’s 18th green.

This year, the TOUR Championship’s final leaderboard will also represent the final FedExCup standings for the top 30 players. Stroke play will be used to determine the champion of the PGA TOUR’s season-long points race. To recognize players for their regular-season performance, there will be an unprecedented staggered start to the TOUR Championship utilizing a concept called Starting Strokes.

The FedExCup leaders will begin the event with a head-start on the competition. The player who finishes the four rounds at Atlanta’s East Lake Golf Club with the lowest score in relation to par will win the FedExCup.

“As soon as the TOUR Championship begins, any fan – no matter if they’ve followed the PGA TOUR all season or are just tuning in for the final event – can immediately understand what’s going on and what’s at stake for every single player in the field,” PGA TOUR Commissioner Jay Monahan said when the changes were announced last year. “And, of course, players will know exactly where they stand at all times while in play, which will ratchet up the drama, consequence and volatility of the competition down the stretch.”

Bigger Payout

The entire bonus pool for this year’s FedExCup race is a record $70 million. That includes $10 million for the Wyndham Rewards Top 10, which was rewarded to the top players in the FedExCup standings at the end of the regular season. Brooks Koepka earned $2 million for taking first place in that competition.

First place in the FedExCup has increased from $10 million to $15 million. The runner-up will earn $5 million. Every player who makes it to East Lake will earn at least $395,000. Eight players will earn at least $1 million in FedExCup bonus money.

Every player who qualified for the FedExCup Playoffs will earn at least $100,000, while Nos. 126-150 in the final FedExCup standings all earn $70,000.

The FedExCup bonus money is the only money given for a player’s finish at East Lake. There is no longer a purse for the TOUR Championship. FedExCup bonus money is not considered part of a player’s official earnings for the season.

Questions and Answers

Answers to a few questions you may have.

HOW DRASTIC ARE THESE CHANGES?

The changes are, in Commissioner Monahan’s words, “significant and exciting.” Based solely on previous FedExCup outcomes, however, it’s difficult to label them as drastic. If the Starting Strokes system had been in place for each of the previous 12 FedExCup Playoffs, only one FedExCup winner would be different. Brooks Koepka, who entered this year’s Playoffs as the FedExCup points leader, was asked about the changes. “That’s fine with me,” Koepka replied. “I’d love a two-shot lead.”

WILL THIS BE AN OFFICIAL WIN?

The man who finishes atop the leaderboard after 72 holes at East Lake won’t just be credited with a win in the FedExCup. He’ll also be named the winner of the TOUR Championship. It will count as an official PGA TOUR victory and earn the player a spot in the 2020 Sentry Tournament of Champions. A win in the TOUR Championship also comes with a five-year exemption.

WHAT HAPPENS IF THERE’S A TIE?

In the event of a tie for first place following the TOUR Championship, the FedExCup winner will be decided in a sudden-death playoff immediately following completion of competition. The sudden-death playoff will follow the same format that would be used in the event of a tie for first place at a PGA TOUR cosponsored stroke play tournament.

In the event of a tie for positions below first place following the TOUR Championship, the FedExCup bonus distribution will be allocated using the same method currently used to distribute prize money when there is a tie. That is, the total money for each tying position will be averaged and that average will be distributed to each player in the tying position.

WHAT ABOUT STATISTICS?

Beyond the final leaderboard, most statistics will not be impacted by the Starting Strokes. For instance, Strokes Gained statistics and course records will remain based on how a player performs from his first swing in the first round to his final stroke on the 72nd hole.

WHAT IF A PLAYER CAN’T COMPETE IN THE TOUR CHAMPIONSHIP?

Any professional who is qualified for the TOUR Championship but unable to participate and/or any professional who is disqualified or withdraws for any reason will finish in last position for the TOUR Championship.

SOURCE:  pgatour

 

 

 

August 20, 2019/by Teesnap Developer
https://makefieldhighlandsgolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/2018-07-11_1217.png 354 591 Teesnap Developer http://makefieldhighlandsgolf.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/logomakefield.png Teesnap Developer2019-08-20 13:20:442019-08-20 13:20:44The final event of the 2018-19 season has arrived

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