TIPS & TRICKS

by Tony Pullano - GCA Accredited Clubmaker

			Printable View
Cleaning	Storing	Offset
Blades vs. Cavity	Forged vs. Cast	Grip Size

Cleaning
To me, this is a very important task that shouldn't be overlooked. Look in your bag. Are your clubs dirty? If so, you are probably cheating yourself every time you play. How? When there is dirt in the grooves or caked on the face of your irons, you reduce the chances of imparting backspin on shots. It's the same as hitting out of the rough and catching a flyer because grass got trapped between the clubface and the ball. And as for your grips, if they are slick with dirt and oil from your hands, you're taking a chance of having the club slip during your swing.

Golf is hard enough without your equipment working against you. Give yourself every opportunity to hit a good shot by taking care of those things you can control. Remember what Arnold Palmer said in the old Pennzoil commercial? "Take care of your equipment, and your equipment will take care of you." That might sound a little corny, but it's true.

Use some warm, soapy water and a good, stiff, plastic bristled brush to clean the faces of your irons. Make certain that you get all the dirt out of the grooves.

Do the same with the grips. After a few rounds, dip them in the soapy water and scrub them by hand, then rinse thoroughly and dry (Winn Grips should not be submerged in water...just clean thoroughly with a damp cloth or towel). In doing so, you'll eliminate the dirt and oil. Chances are, once you clean your grips, you'll find they feel tacky and secure again. If not, that means the grips are too worn and it's time to replace them. In fact, you should replace your grips at least once a year, more if you play often.
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Storing
Never leave your clubs outside, in the trunk of your car (the humidity will cause harm!), or any where else the elements can harm your clubs for an extended period of time. Golf clubs are sensitive, and by doing the above, you cut short the life of your clubs. The grips will become brittle, irons can possibly rust, and the finish on wood heads can be affected. So please, store your clubs in a climate controlled area of your house.
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Offset
Offset is the distance from the front most part of the hosel to the front most part of the clubhead. At address, the shaft of an offset club will appear to be in front of the clubhead...and, it actually 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. A clubhead's design affects the direction (right or left) and the height of the golf balls flight trajectory. An offset head will tend to make the ball go to the left and possibly higher. A non-offset head will tend to make the ball fly to the right and possibly lower.

Offset promotes solid contact and improved ball trajectory by positioning your hands ahead of the ball. Offset is usually greater in the long irons to allow additional time to square the club the clubface before impact. Offset gives you that extra moment to square your hands and clubface to the target, since your hands are just a little ahead of the ball. Those with slower swingspeeds (Seniors, Ladies, Juniors) or chronic slicers will benefit the most.

If you find yourself drawing or hooking the ball (when your not even trying) or getting a higher than normal ball flight, you probably have too much offset.

So check the specs of the heads you are ordering and get the right amount of offset!
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Blades Vs. Cavity Backs
Blade iron heads are usually not a very forgiving club. For the most part they have thin top-lines, do not have much weight near the heel or toe, and require a solid on-center hit to achieve the appropriate distances and ball flight. They are very workable though in terms of being able to produce shaped shots like a draw or fade. They are used by the more accomplished player, usually scratch golfers or those with single digit handicaps.

Cavity back clubs, on the other hand, tend to have thicker top-lines, have the back of the club carved out (the cavity) which enables more weight to be located at the heel and toe, therefore producing a more forgiving club, one that can still give good distances even on an off-center hit. They tend to have more offset (see above) and therefore shaped shots are more difficult to produce.

So when choosing an iron head, take into account how often you're able to produce an on-center hit, or are you accomplished enough to shape shots...pick the right head for your game and see your scores improve!
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Forged Vs. Investment Cast
These are actually processes for forming golf club heads. Though they apply to woods heads also, I'll discuss them here as they relate to irons.

All golf clubs are made by the cast or the forged method. If clubs are cast, the metal is poured into a mold to form the club, whereas a forged club is handmade or "stamped" from a single piece of metal. Investment cast clubs have a much larger "sweet spot", while a forged club requires precise shot-making skills. Because of the process to create forged clubs, they tend to have a smaller head size, have a softer "feel" (because a softer metal is used to manufacture the head) and tend to be more expensive.

One last point, and this is for the majority of forged or cast clubs...forged clubs tend to be blades and investment cast clubs tend to be cavity backs. There are exceptions though, as we have been seeing in the last couple of years where some forged heads are produced with cavities, an example being the combo iron heads.
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Grip Size
A very important part of the club that is mostly overlooked is the grip, and specifically its size in relation to your hand size.

By most accounts, when you grip with your left hand (right hand if you are lefty), the fingers should be a bit separated or just touching the palm of your hand. When there is a large space between the fingers and hand, your grip is too big. And the opposite, when the fingers are digging into your hand, your grip is too small. This difference could cause tension in your wrists, and therefore lead to slicing or hooking the ball.

A grip that's too big will block the release, causing shots to go right. Conversely, a grip that's too small will encourage excess hand action, resulting in shots that drift left. At TCG, we can also customize the size and of your grip by adding extra wraps of tape underneath.

Some general points to remember:

A larger grip would benefit...

• A player who consistently draws or hooks the ball off-line because of a strong hand position or excessive hand action.
• A player with a physical limitation, such as arthritis, who cannot hold a smaller grip securely without discomfort.
• A player whose thin fingers wrap around the grip and dig into his or her palm.

A smaller grip would benefit...

• A player who consistently slices or fades the ball due to an improper release, a weak hand position, or excessive grip pressure.
• A player who complains about limited clubhead feel.
• A player whose thick fingers do not fully encircle the grip.

So before you are ready to order, fill out our fitting form which includes a section for your hand and finger measurements...and remember, the grip is also an integral part of the club.
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