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Endicott, N.Y. – Proving you can teach seasoned golfers new tricks, ZenoLink was a hot topic at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open.
The Champions Tour event at En-Joie Golf Club was the first professional golf event to offer contestants and pro-am participants complimentary testing by ZenoLink™, a 3-D Motion Analysis Technology that’s the cutting edge in golf swing evaluation and injury prevention.
“People just ate it up,” said Chris Welch, founder and CEO of ZenoLink.
More than 70 pros and 300-plus amateur golfers were tested, a process that began with players being videotaped from two angles hitting their tee shots on the 11th hole at En-Joie, a 441-yard par 4.
But this wasn’t your standard video analysis of a golf swing. Rather, ZenoLink’s experts in functional movement used the video images to make highly sophisticated, research level biomechanical measurements and turned that data into digital models of each player’s motion. The models were used to assess exactly how each player performed his or her golf swing, their risk of possible injury, and the possibilities for improved performance.
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Posted 1 month, 2 weeks ago at 11:41 am. Add a comment
The Merchandise Show is where the rubber meets the road. You will see anything and everything that has to do with golf equipment. Some of it will delight, some of it will disappoint and some of it will knock your socks off.
Like a $50,000 set of clubs for the golfer who has everything, including probably a Boeing 747 in the backyard hangar.
No, I’m serious. I know what you’re thinking. That’s impossible. Who would pay $50,000 for golf clubs? Well, the Prince of Bahrain bought two sets. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months ago at 9:03 am. Add a comment
It’s true. Even when it comes to golf equipment, beauty is often in the eyes of the beholder.
The annual PGA Merchandise Show is a beauty pageant as much as anything else. The original equipment manufacturers march out their latest beauties and the attendees – PGA professionals, retailers, vendors and media – all drool at the assembled glamour. Make no mistake, it is very glamorous.
Everybody in attendance has a hot list or a best bet for success. Here’s what I liked best and, please remember, these aren’t the only category leaders that struck a chord in this man’s symphony.
Here, then, are my four category leaders after the feely, touchy tests that define the Merchandise Show for most of the attendees: Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months ago at 12:08 pm. Add a comment
ORLANDO – The fun at the PGA Merchandise Show often is in finding the biggest buzz – the product(s) that create the biggest wow factor among show-goers.
Here are three products getting plenty of attention at the Orange County Convention Center on the show’s opening day:
DAWGS – The brand’s motto is “a foot’s best friend.” Dawgs is a new line of extremely lightweight golf shoes that, based on the number of ladies exploring the new product, could be a nice hit for the company based in Las Vegas and Saskatoon. Add Gen X’ers as potential big customers of the non-traditional look.
Some of the features of the shoe include a high stabilizing heel cup to protect the foot and ankles from injury and strain, supportive uppers to stabilize the foot and help reduce pronation and supination during the swing, shock absorbing cushioned heels, integrated molded arch support and massaging foot bed. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months, 1 week ago at 6:23 pm. Add a comment
ORLANDO – It’s here. The 2010 PGA Merchandise Show begins Wednesday with the popular Demo Days at Orange County National Golf Center & Lodge.
The 42-acre circular range and practice area will be teeming with new sticks and stones from the original equipment manufacturers and I’ll be there first thing in the morning to bring you a preview of all that’s sweet and sure.
Hey, this isn’t a Hot List. Nobody is paying me to tell you what’s good. The ratings won’t be based on who paid for the most advertising pages. The thoughts will be straight from me, no strings attached. But if you know me you know that’s always what you get.
Be sure to come back over the next few days while I’m at the show for a look at the new equipment you’ll be hearing, reading and talking about for the rest of the year. And there will be plenty left over to review and write about for weeks to come.
And, remember, if you’ve got any questions about the new clubs you’re hearing about and anticipating, don’t hesitate to drop me a line at Ask Vartan. If I don’t have the answer, I’ll find somebody who does.
Posted 7 months, 1 week ago at 7:13 pm. Add a comment
ORLANDO, Fla. – Etonic’s two new shoe models, Dri-Tech and Sport-Tech, feature the company’s PowerUp technology outsole for superior traction, balance and power. Both models will be on display this week at the PGA Merchandise Show at the Orange County Convention Center.
(I’ll have live updates daily about the new equipment on display at the show).
Etonic introduced the PowerUp technology last year in two of its high performance shoes — Stabilizer and Sof-Tech. Since the launch, those models have been embraced by consumers. The PowerUp technology outsole is designed to work with the foot’s natural anatomy to promote traction, flexibility, stability and the range of motion required to execute proper footwork and optimize balance in the swing. According to the company, the result is improved ball-striking while maximizing power transfer to the ball. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months, 1 week ago at 7:50 am. Add a comment
Golf equipment terms shouldn’t be difficult to understand. Here is a glossary of five ‘C’ words that can help you navigate through the confusion. We’ll go through the alphabet, eventually getting to every letter, with the goal of helping you avoid confusion.
The ‘C’ words and phases:
Coefficient of Restitution – The technical term for the spring-like effect of a metal driver. COR has become an integral part of the golf equipment vernacular since thin-face drivers appeared. The governing bodies have established a maximum spring-like effect, or coefficient of restitution. Another term frequently used is trampoline effect. The maximum COR allowed by the USGA is .830. In simple terms, the modern driver faces are so thin that they depress measurable when the ball is struck. How much they rebound is the COR. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months, 2 weeks ago at 10:13 am. Add a comment
Premium shaft manufacturer Graphite Design will unveil the new Tour AD DI – Deep Impact model at the 2010 PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando, January 27 – 30.
The Deep Impact is designed to provide more power and stability. The shaft has been integrated with Toray Company’s new Nanotechnology material in the tip section. This tip technology creates optimal launch and spin conditions to produce increased accuracy and distance. The shaft made its debut on the major tours last fall.
The new Tour AD DI shaft is available in four models: 50 gram Tour AD DI 5 (R2, R1, and S flexes); 60 gram Tour AD DI 6 (SR, S, and X flexes); 70 gram Tour AD DI 7 (S and X flexes); and 80 gram Tour AD DI 8 (S and X flexes).
Golfers have taken the first steps toward improving their games with help from zenoLINK™, a cutting-edge technology in sports performance. ZenoLINK™ is a proprietary biomechanics analysis tool that uses 3-D motion assessment to capture Ph.D.-level data related to functional movement. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months, 3 weeks ago at 7:02 pm. Add a comment
Club Source is the place to come if you’re looking for updates on everything relating to equipment: new products, innovations, updates and reviews of the leading clubs and balls. Vartan Kupelian has been monitoring and reporting the equipment side of the golf industry for more than two decades.
Tour Edge Golf is the little company that could. The folks in Batavia, Illinois, keep launching new products that in every instance are worth a serious look by serious golfers. Not only does Dave Glod’s company produce top quality equipment, it comes with attractive pricing.
Tour Edge has so much confidence in its new driver, the Exotics XCG-3 driver, that it comes with a guarantee of more distance off the tee. If you are not completely satisfied, the club can be returned under the company’s 30-day play guarantee for a store credit or refund depending on the retailer’s policy. The XCG-3 driver ($349 SRP) has a Fujikura Motore Exotics 65 graphite shaft. All Tour Edge clubs come with lifetime warranty. Visit www.exoticsgolf.com for more information. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months, 3 weeks ago at 10:31 am. Add a comment
Don’t sweat it. Unless you are playing the PGA Tour, you don’t have to worry for a very long time about all the hub-bub relating to the new groove rule adopted by the USGA & the Royal & Ancient.
Here’s the skinny: The new rules deal with groove volume, or size. The grooves, without getting into specifics and fractions, are smaller. They are shallower and narrower, and the sharpness of the edges will also be more closely regulated on clubs with lofts of 25 degrees or more. Basically, that means the 5- or 6-iron down through the wedges.
The purpose of the new rule is to limit how much a golf ball spins coming off the short irons, especially the wedges, and grabs on the greens. You’ve heard the debate on whether the modern groove applies too much spin and, therefore, makes playing out of the rough easier. The answer is: Sure it does. Continue Reading…
Posted 7 months, 4 weeks ago at 2:08 pm. Add a comment
