Golf Launch Monitor

Golf: This 'Swing Doctor' could help you cure your ailing golf game

DRAPER — Mike Lewis is no doctor. But he may just have the cure for your ailing golf game.

Lewis, who has been regarded as one of Utah's top golf teachers for the past decade, is convinced that the right clubs can make all the difference in a person's performance on the golf course. Not just any clubs, but custom-fit clubs meticulously suited to your particular game.

You may have heard the old golf saying, "It's the Indian, not the arrow." Lewis believes it is the arrow.

"Most people think the mental part of your game is the most important," he said. "But I believe good shots create a better mental attitude. The first step is having your equipment optimized."

Lewis has brought the first Motion Analysis Technology by Taylor Made system to the state. He has a room at the South Mountain Golf Club in Draper with thousands of dollars worth of gadgets that analyze you and your swing.

"It's an MRI for your golf swing," he says, using a medical analogy.

Lewis grew up in Salt Lake and became a golf professional soon after completing his collegiate career at Utah State. He worked for Mulligans, Entrada, East Bay and Glen Eagle before leaving for the Pronghorn Nicklaus Golf Academy in Oregon. He still teaches in Bend, Ore., where a supportive wife and three daughters live, but he comes to Utah for two or three weeks of the month, while he gets his MAT-T business going.

Lewis spends upwards of two hours with his clients getting them properly fit for the correct clubs. He can order new clubs if needed, but if he finds your old driver goes farther than a new one might, he won't give you a hard sell for a new club.

When you get "fit" you'll have 22 sensors attached to your body, around your shoulders, hips, knees, ankles and wrists, as well as one on a hat. The sensors are light enough that they don't impinge your swing.

The MAT-T system uses several high-speed cameras and a launch monitor to gather the vital swing information to correctly fit a golfer's swing to the proper clubs. It has been used on touring professionals since 2003 and has gradually been moving to different parts of the country for the average golfer.

"This used to be offered only for PGA Tour players, but it does more good for your average player than it does for your Tour player," Lewis said, noting that the increments of improvement for Tour players are very small, while it is most helpful to amateurs with a 10 handicap or above.

Golf Launch Monitor Systems | Chip R Jones

Im confused regarding the effect of lie angle on ball flight. Nike Str8-fit implies that changing lie angle from flat to upright will lower trajectory. Titleist implies that changing lie angle from flat to upright will promote a right to left ball flight. Am I missing something? Is there a study done using a robot and launch monitor for these adjustable systems.

The lie angle will influence the ball flight.

If you are right handed. A flatter lie angle will make the ball fly right of your aim. An upright lie will make the ball fly left of your aim. That is why it is so important to get custom fitted clubs. If clubs are not properly fitted, a good shot will miss the target left or right causing you to compensate to correct the aim and cause bad swing habits. A properly fitted iron will impact the ground flush with both the toe and heel of the club impacting the ground at the same time.

Here is a neat trick to show you what I mean. Grab one of your irons, 7 or 8 should do the trick. Place the flat head side of a nail against the center face of your iron so the pointy end is pointing where the face would be aiming. Sole the club head on the floor so it is flush meaning both the toe and heel are on the ground. You will notice the nail points directly toward where the club is aiming. Now rock the club head so that the toe is in the air and the heel is on the ground. That would simulate a club that is too upright and notice the nail now points left of where the club is aiming. Then rock the club so the heel is in the air and the toe is on the ground (Flat Lie) and notice the nail is pointing right of where the club is aiming. It’s a pretty interesting trick that lets you understand how important club fitting is.

I hope it helped. Hit em far and straight!

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