Ferrules - keep an eye on them

If you don't even know what a 'ferrule' is and I am not talking about a cat, it's that plastic thing (usually black) at the bottom of the shaft, where the shaft of the club meets the head on your golf clubs. These are often overlooked but ferrules have an important job to do. They absorb shock at a club's weakest point, where the shaft meets the head! If your ferrules are damaged, missing or have moved up the shaft they aren't doing their job properly so you can expect shafts to break off at the neck in due course, and sooner with graphite shafts.

If your ferrules look like they are coming loose then bring them in to be glued back into place. It's cheaper to glue your ferrules correctly than to re-shaft something that could have been prevented. You would be surprised how many people lose club heads which break off and disappear!

It's another Swing Room day…

Rather than VAT returns, paperwork, merchandising or catching up with repairs, on days like today which is just a washout; I will be teaching as usual in the new Swing Room! Since its creation, no lessons have been cancelled due to bad weather, and the room has also been hired out by members and visitors practicing, checking their yardages and playing golf.

Don't miss out on your golf because of the weather!

You can hit any clubs including drivers in there until your heart is content. For example you can experiment with different heads, loft settings and shaft flexes, you can compare the distances to the yard and of course the accuracy - book your time in the Swing Room now. Get in touch here.

Golf in a room?

At first it seems slightly strange hitting balls into a screen, and until you have been there and experienced it for yourself it is hard to imagine just how realistic and truly amazing the technology is. I have noticed that players who are new to the experience tend to hold back on the first couple of shots, but it doesn't take them long to realize you can't fool the machine, it knows exactly where your shots are going, and within a few strokes players are fully committing to the shots!

Nearly…

Every shot you play inside the room is recorded. If you play a good shot and want to watch a replay of it you can. If you want to keep the moment and watch it over and over again you can save it and email it to yourself! I hit the pin with my tee shot on a par three the other day, and I have only watched it on my phone another 25 times! You can choose from around 100 of some of the world's best par threes to practice on, you can choose what tees you play off and even what the weather is like! We can also set up a nearest the pin competition so you always have a target to beat.

Trion:Z

Experience the benefits of the latest Trion:Z wrist bands. The new 'acti-loop' model provides a magnetic force 50% stronger than the previous model, meaning more relief from aches and pains when playing golf. Numerous sportsmen and women are wearing them including James Anderson, Charley Hull, Edoardo Molinari, Matteo Manassero and Abbie Cowlard. These have a new stronger wrist band and are in stock now.

Bunker trouble?

When the bunkers are solid like ours, the most obvious benefit is a golf lesson which will dramatically improve your knowledge, understanding and technique.

But in addition, you could also benefit from using wedges better designed for the task in hand, such as those with a lower bounce angle on their sole. These bounce off the hard surface less easily than those with a greater bounce angle (as the name would suggest) and your miss-hits, and particularly thin strikes, shall reduce. You may also benefit from a wedge with more loft than a standard sand-iron which is about 55 or 56 degrees, such as a lob wedge which is about 60 degrees, so you don't need to open the face as much, which further increases the bounce angle.

If your sand-iron has a bounce angle of 12 degrees or more you will probably benefit from one with a lower bounce angle. If you are not sure what lofts or sole type your wedges are, don't know what these numbers mean or wish to try some demo wedges with a lower bounce angle to see what difference they make, please come into the pro shop and see us. The current range of Titleist Vokey SM5 wedges has the greatest range of loft options and sole types to date - a wedge for every situation! Learn more here.

Sat 23 May - John Schofield was the winne of the Past Captain's Trophy, with 74-8=66, one ahead of both Andy Covell and Alan Finney. You will all be pleased to know that John has had his hanidcap reduced to six! There was 17 twos each worth £7.70.

Sun/Mon 24/25 May - Dave Hamilton won the Pro's Running Stableford with 40 points, Dave commented that this was his best round to date and included two 2s on his scorecard. Dave thanked a new rhythm for his improved play as he has recently 'slowed everything down'. John Brown finished second on 39 points beating Paul Donohue on countback. Prizes went down to 6th this week. Twos were worth £8.44 each. Click here to see the full results.

Sun 24 May - Also on Sunday, the play-off for the Founders Trophy was played, with Ryan Swift, Ivan Kennedy, Chris Eager, Alan Jones, Dave Flanagan and Tom Beirne all tied on 1 up. But the eventually winner was Tom Beirne who finished ahead of Dave Flanagan.

Wed 27 May - This week's Wednesday Section Medal had 47 entries. Division One was won by Craig Davies with 75-6=69, Steve Brown won Division Two with 86-13=73 and Graham Taylor won Division Three with 95-17=78. The twos were worth £5.87 each.

The next Presentation is tomorrow (Saturday, 30 May) at 6pm. If you have won a prize please turn up in your jacket and tie to collect your prize from the Captain. Click here to see the full list of prize winners and click here to view all of the unclaimed vouchers.