Re: ShopTalk: Golf Digest Higher loft articles

[Bernie Baymiller]

Tom,   >Now my next project with GD is to convince them they need to publish a booklet and side article on top clubmakers just like they do for top teachers of the golf swing every year.  The initial response on this idea from Mike is positive, but now it has to go to the higher ups, which is always tough in the face of remembering where their ad dollars come from.  But I’ll keep plugging because this side of the industry deserves a lot more respect and things like that could help a lot.    You may or may not remember, but my dad was tech editor for GD from mid-60s to mid-70s and wrote an equipment article or two for them over the years. In the July 1965 issue, his article "Why curved clubfaces produce straighter shots" even made the cover. But, his main job was editing. At first, they sent him a lot of articles with questionable  "truths", and they followed through on most of his recommendations. But when his changes conflicted with an advertiser's claims, his changes were usually ignored. Eventually, they just ignored him when an advertiser was involved, and so many untruths and half-truths were printed that he resigned. I've had a very low opinion of GD ever since. But, that was some years ago...maybe they've changed.   There were some moments in his work with GD which I remember very fondly. Once they sent him an article from a Northwestern University professor who had mathematically proven that 22° was the ideal loft for a driver. Well, that was 1964 and dad's driving machine research in the late 1930s had shown the ideal loft for the Spalding drivers to be 11°. So, I guess he figured he had just better check what launch angle the pros were hitting by 1964 and got both of us some tickets from GD for the US Open at Congressional just two hours from our house. We spent two days rudimentally marking ball height and pacing off distances to figure out approximate launch angles..and every one was about 11° to 12°. That was the first time I watched Arnie play...and remember watching Venturi stagger in the 18th a winner in spite of the heat. What a great experience that was for me! Dad never said how he answered the article, but I noticed that GD never printed it.   Wish you luck with GD. Custom components and clubmaking sure deserve more attention from the golf media than they are getting. But, the OEMs seem to be fighting it every way they can. Someone needs to start a golf publication that's industry wide and totally custom club oriented...cutting into some of the traditional media's business might get their attention. Maybe publish it on the internet. Would a lot of component companies, PCS and pro clubmakers support such a venture?   Bernie Writeto: [EMAIL PROTECTED]