Customer Reviews

How Golf Clubs Really Work and How to Optimize Their Design

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This is a terrific book for those who have been searching for truth about golf clubs. The authors have developed a mathematical model of the golf club and have used computers to analyze innumerable combinations of head speed, center or gravity, club loft, club length, etc. They have come up with an analysis of what is important and what doesn't matter in golf club design. Here's what works for a driver: long (46 inches), low center of gravity, huge club face, unique bulge and roll, and very stiff light shaft. All the other stuff is of no importance, so forget about it. Outstanding.

Werner and Greig have written an excellent book on club design that is suprisingly practical. Each chapter is short and readable.The subject matter is directly applicable to playing golf. Golfers who have read Pelz and Hogan will enjoy the combination of analysis and golfing tips. The graphs and technical information can be difficult to interpert, but aren't essential to understanding the key points.

Well, it certainly seems that the authors put a LOT of time and effort into this work. They seem to have done a tremendous amount of testing, of clubs in particular. And, then they developed a mathematical model to introduce variables that would take a lifetime to replicate by actual imperical testing with (exhausted) golfers. The result is this work, with lots of experimentation and documentation, and quite a few conclusions. However, I don't think this is the book you want to labor through if you are looking for clear and concise explanations and recommendations for your personal club selection or modification. They say you can learn something from every experience. I have to say I learned quite a few things while reading. But it was a little tough going.

The authors have a newer, and perhaps more concise book on nearly the same topic, which I have not read.

Golf club components have changed considerably since this book was published. Many of the conclusions are arrived at through small sample testing (three different lengths of ideal shafts and concluding one of them is ideal) and are inaccurate for today's components. I would recommend anything by Dave Pelz or Tom Wishon rather than this book.