The mechanics of putting has many factors that influence the outcome of your putt: stroke type, impact angle, and tempo. If you want to get those measured, you could go and get a putter fitting with your local golf professional or club fitter. This is the traditional approach and may not be an option for some golfers, who don’t have time or the means to do so.

Wouldn’t it be great if a golfer could analyze his/her stroke type, impact angle, and tempo without getting a putter fitting? That’s what the Ping is trying to do with its free iPING app for the iPhone 4 and iPod Touch (4th generation). The iPING app works in conjunction with a Ping cradle ($30 MSRP), which holds the iPhone or iPod Touch onto the putter shaft, below the grip. Watch this video of Ping’s PGA Tour Manager Matt Rollins walk Hunter Mahan through using the iPING app.

About the iPING App

The iPING app analyzes and displays you consistency onscreen using the three criteria: stroke type (determined by how much the putter face rotates during the forward stroke); impact angle (the putter’s face angle at impact, relative to address); and tempo (a measure of the duration of the backswing relative to the forward swing).

The app works by computing consistency over a series of five putts where your stroke type, impact angle and tempo are measured, displayed and stored for every putt in that session. Your consistency scores are averaged over time to build a Putting Handicap (PHcp). As you improve your consistency, you’ll see your PHcp come down.

iPING Fit

The iPING Fit feature matches you with the PING putter models that fit your stroke type. Matching your putter to your stroke type is the key to greater consistency and lower scores.

Download the iPING app

Last year TaylorMade introduced three new sets of Tour Preferred Forged Irons (CB, MC, and MB). Each set is designed for the varying levels of player ability: the Cavity Back (CB) for the mid-handicap golfer, the Muscle Cavity (MC) for the better player, and the Muscle Back (MB) for the scratch golfer.

Last month at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii, Dustin Johnson was spotted with Tour Preferred Forged MB irons in his bag. Watch this video of Mike Ferris, Global Vice President of Product Marketing talk about the technical features of the TaylorMade TP MB irons and the backstory on how they ended up in Dustin Johnson’s bag.

Special thanks to Mike Ferris and TaylorMade Golf!

www.taylormadegolf.com

If you’re like most golfers who want the driving power of Dustin Johnson, but lack the swing speed to generate the clubhead speed to bomb your drives down the fairway. What can you do to make up for the lack of physical ability? Help has arrived with the next generation of Burner SuperFast 2.0 drivers from TaylorMade, with its ultra-large face (the largest of any TaylorMade driver) and low-drag aerodynamics for more distance off the tee.

Brad Syslo of the TaylorMade Performance Lab at Olympia Fields Country Club walk us through all the core features of the Burner SuperFast 2.0 in under  60 seconds.

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Mini-Lightning Review

Like the TaylorMade R11 driver you’ll notice that the Burner SuperFast 2.0 has the same white matte no glare finish, which is absolutely gorgeous. The head shape is a little larger than the R11, but is still very pleasing to the eye at address. It will give you a ton of confidence. The face on the Burner SuperFast 2.0 is the largest of any TaylorMade driver-4,550 square millimeters. A larger face makes it super easy to hit the ball, especially when you consider the driver measures 46.5″ which can make it challenging for us mortals to make square contact consistently.

I found that the combination of no glare white crown and black high contrast clubface, made the Burner SuperFast 2.0 very easy to aim at address. I also liked how driver felt at impact and the plushness of the Matrix Ozik XCon 4.8 shaft. The Matrix Ozik XCon 4.8, is ultralight and not too soft in the tip.  I can only imagine the type of shot the Burner SuperFast 2.0 produces.

I only was able to hit the driver indoors, so I can’t comment on the performance aspect of the driver. I’ll be covering that in a full review at a later date. In case you’re wondering, the Burner SuperFast 2.0 TP is the same driver that Camilo Villegas had in the bag at Hyundai Tournament of Champions.

Special thanks to TaylorMade Golf and Brad Syslo from the TaylorMade Performance Lab at Olympia Fields Country Club.

TaylorMade Burner SuperFast 2.0 and Burner SuperFast 2.0 TP, will be available February 4, 2010.

A couple of days ago, TaylorMade Golf introduced the next generation of adjustable face drivers with the R11 and R11 TP. One of the big differences in the R11 from the R9 is the Adjustable Sole Plate Technology(ASP)- that allows you to adjust the face angle independent of loft.  But what makes the R11 so unique from all the other drivers is it’s white matte finish.

In this video, Brad Syslo from TaylorMade Performance Lab at Olympia Fields Country Club walks through all the features of the new R11 driver.

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Mini-Lightning Review of the R11 Driver

I have to be honest, I thought aesthetically a white driver is cool, but not very practical and just some marketing gimmick to sell more golf clubs.  But after seeing the TaylorMade R11 driver in person, I was blown away how the white matte finish provides zero glare. When you address the ball (watch the video or look at the photos) you’ll notice how easy it is to tell at address if the clubface is open or closed. The black clubface also provides a lot of contrast making it super easy to aim the R11 at your intended target.

The shape of the driver of address is very pleasing to the eye, and looks more like a 460cc head, but is only 440cc clubhead. The white color crown tricks your eyes into thinking it is larger. Adjusting the sole plate or ASP is really simple with the torque wrench, which can also be used to adjust the moveable weights and Flight Control Technology. The Fujikura Blur shaft is truly a work of art with its contrasting matte black triangle pattern and provides just the right amount of flex and feel.

I can’t speak to performance aspects of the R11 driver, because I was only able to hit it indoors at the TaylorMade Performance Lab. What I can tell you, is it produces a great sound at impact and feels great. I’ll have an in-depth review of the R11 driver at a later date, when I can play it in real world playing conditions. So check back soon!

Special thanks to TaylorMade Golf and Brad Syslo from the TaylorMade Performance Lab at Olympia Fields Country Club.

The TaylorMade R11 and R11 TP driver hit stores February 4, 2011.

The “New” CG1 Tour irons unveiled at the 2010 PGA Merchandise Show  are designed for consistent ball striking, distance control, and new level of forgiveness never before seen in a blade.

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What makes the CG1 Tour irons unique?
The CG1 Tour irons are a split set design, inspired by PGA Tour players, features cavity back long irons and short iron blades to create the perfect combination of workability and forgiveness.

The split cavity back long irons and muscle back mid/short irons maintain a traditional look while providing extra forgiveness and the workability of a blade.  You get the best of both worlds in a nice looking set of irons.

Tour Zip Grooves
The CG1 tour irons feature Cleveland Golf’s Tour Zip Grooves, which is their milling process that creates pristine edges, increasing “Zip” and shot consistency that conforms to the 2010 USGA groove rule.

Laser Milled
Other features of the CG1 Tour irons is the breakthrough surface roughness technology called Laser Milled. Laser Milling is a process of using a laser to rough up the surface of the irons with with calibrated texture lines milled between each groove. This helps with optimizing ball-to-face friction and maximizes spin within the Rules of Golf.

The CG1 Tour Irons are great looking set of irons and I can’t wait to hit them!

Would you buy a split set of cavity back and blade irons, like the Cleveland CG1 Tour?

Cleveland Golf CG1 Tour Irons MSRP $799, available April 1, 2010

At the outdoor demo day at the 2009 PGA Merchandise Show, I had the opportunity to try out the Plane Perfect Golf Training System and I was quite impressed by how easy it is to use this revolutionary golf training system. What makes the Plane Perfect stand apart from other similar concepts, is that you can actually hit golf balls while ingraining proper swing plane with all of the clubs in your golf bag, from your wedge through driver. While the Plane Perfect is ideal for teaching professionals, it can be purchased by consumers looking to have the ultimate swing plane training system in their home.

The Plane Perfect Golf Machine is the most complete training system ever developed for golf! Using your own clubs it guides you on a perfect swing plane and path every single swing and will engrain muscle memory quicker than any form of practice available.

A big trend at the 2009 PGA Merchandise Show had to be the number of companies offering a GPS for golf. One company in particular, OnPar stood apart from the others because it was the first touchscreen GPS, similar to that found on an iPhone. I had to go checkout what was being dubbed as the iPhone of Golf GPS, with its easy intuitive touchscreen.  

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The OnPar has your standard GPS Rangefinder features, like distance to the targets, hole overview, etc. But none of them offer you the ability touch anywhere on the screen get your layup distance from anywhere on the course, zoom in on the target, track your location, distance, club used and stroke, and give you personalized club suggestions based on your average distances.  

A feature that isn’t talked to much about, is the Statistics Screen and Golf Bag Screen. These two features are in my opinion the coolest and biggest differentiators.  The Statistics screen can keep track of up to 18 rounds of golf, it can track how well you play each hole at that course, and it can give you a cumulative average over 18 rounds. The Golf Bag screen allows you to pick and choose the clubs in your bag, with a simple touch of the screen. What cool about this is that when you use your 5 Wood on your home course it will track how far you hit that club on a particular hole in the Statistics screen, but it will recommend your next club you should hit based on the data it collects as you play each round of golf.  So if your on the 9th Hole and you have 160 yards to the green, OnPar will recommend the club in your bag that will get you on the green based on the statistics it has tracked. It’s like having a caddy play with you all the time and get the advice the pros get on Tour.

To load up your courses there is no software to download just connect the OnPar GPS to your computer with the supplied USB cable and sync the unit. And there are no membership fees or course map fees. Also included is a protective sleeve for the OnPar GPS.

I can’t wait for the weather to warm up in Chicago, IL so I can test out the OnPar GPS. 

The OnPar GPS retails for $ 479 http://www.onpargps.com/index.php

Nike SQ Dymo and Dymo2 STR8-Fit drivers unique is the fact you can adjust the head of the club in eight different positions, which result in eight different shot shapes-all in a single driver. Watch the video to see James Thomas from Nike Golf R&D talk to me about the features of the Nike SQ Dymo STR8-Fit Driver.

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The most innovative golf club I hit at the outdoor demo day at the 2009 PGA Merchandise was the Nike SQ Dymo an Dymo2 STR8-Fit drivers from Nike. The soon to be released drivers are hands down my top pick for best driver at the PGA Merchandise Show. What makes the Nike SQ Dymo and Dymo2 STR8-Fit drivers unique is the fact you can adjust the head of the club in eight different positions, which result in eight different shot shapes-all in a single driver. 

To adjust the head position, just attach the supplied torque wrench to the STR8-Fit shaft to the driver head and easily loosen the club head to adjust it to the position you desire. Then all you do is simply tighten the hosel with the torque wrench and a red LED light and sound indicator on the wrench will signal when the club head is locked and ready for use. The both models of the Nike SQ Dymo and Dymo2 STR8-Fit drivers feature, Dynamic Moment of Inertia (Dymo) which gives you optimized launch and spin. The SQ Dymo STR8-Fit has the new folded round geometry which repositions the square mass in a round format for workability and distance control. While the SQ Dymo2 has a larger square shaped geometry for straight and long drives, with optimal launch and great looks. UST PRoforce AXIV Core Shafts make the STR8-Fit drivers extremely stable and easy to swing very fast.

I initially tried the HT version of the Nike SQ Dymo STR8-Fit and hit my first drive perfectly straight with the face set at neutral. I then adjusted the clubface 2 degrees closed to try and produce a draw. The result, I hit a nice draw. For a second I thought I was channeling Trevor Immelman at Augusta.  Even when I switched to the SQ Dymo2 STR8-Fit I continued to hit the ball straight and easily shape my shots by adjusting the face. I couldn’t believe the results I was seeing. 

I’m so impressed by the Nike SQ Dymo STR8-Fit that I cannot wait to test them again soon. That’s why it’s my pick for best driver at the 2009 PGA Merchandise Show. 

Available April 1, 2009 MSRP $545

For more information visit http://www.nike.com/nikegolf/dymo/