Sweet Stuff by Terry Ross

As golf facilities open-up around the nation in the wake of the loosening of restrictions due to the Covid-19 outbreak, instructional and club-fitting operations are also on track to join the ranks of affiliated businesses that are back serving golfers.

Breakthrough Golf Technology, the revolutionary putting shaft company founded by Barney Adams, has now re-opened its Dallasarea BGT Putting Lab that offers state- of-the-art analysis of putters and putting strokes using some of the latest technology—based on 100 years of experience in club building.

The BGT Putting Lab features private sessions that are not lessons but rather an evaluation of all aspects of one’s putter. The fitting will start with a complete putting analysis including measurement of over 45 different parameters. Your putter will be fine-tuned and customized for you on site just like on the PGA Tour. Also, each appointment includes a Stability Shaft of your choice (up to $250 value). After the experience, you will have a better putter fit and a solid understanding how to achieve more consistency and performance from your putting.

The BGT Putt Lab includes a full Quintic Ball Roll analysis, putter compatibility assessment, optimization of your putter specs, alignment evaluation, loft, length, lie and even grip size/shape recommendations. Breakthrough Golf offers two fitting options-- Master & Pro. The Master Fit includes a revolutionary new device exclusive to the BGT Putt Lab. The Flatstick™ helps golfers understand their stroke timing by providing instant feedback using an array of magnetic field sensors that track the putter’s acceleration, stroke tempo and rhythm.

“It’s great to be back open. Fittings are something I truly enjoy; especially seeing how much clients improve over the course of the evaluation and beyond,” said Blair Philip, Master Fitter and head of R&D for Breakthrough Golf.

Adams, who has always had the unique ability to see what is truly missing in golf equipment and was the founder of Adams Golf and the Tight Lies club line, decided to focus on the putter shafts since there had been no significant innovation for decades. A team of award-winning engineers was assembled, an“I’ve played the game for some 70 years and studied it for 40 working in the industry. I strongly recommend that golfers take advantage of all technology available to them,” he said. “After all, golf is a hard game; that element is what brings us joy no matter how small our victories, which definitely includes becoming a better putter”.

The company recommends that all clients use their best judgement during these uncertain times. BGT will provide face masks hand sanitizer and each club is thoroughly cleaned and disinfected after the fitting.

To learn more visit www.breakthroughgolftech.com/puttlab 32 Golf Vacations • June 2020

Bridgestone Golf is enabling players to get fit to the proper golf ball for their swing speed, skill level and other factors with its virtual tool called the VFIT video ball fitting service that provides consumers with the ability to receive an expert person-to-person golf ball analysis anytime, anywhere--with a 98% accuracy rate.

Bridgestone began its ball fitting service in 2006 when it introduced expert recommendations to players based on personal performance data. Their new VFIT service builds on that capability by giving more players access to Bridgestone’s ball fitting experts than ever before with the new virtual service that was introduced this year. It allows players to be fit for the golf ball best suited to their swings by using their smart phone.

By following simple set-up instructions provided by Bridgestone, any golfer can record, submit and get fit. Using a cellphone video camera to record a “swing video” in slow motion, the video can then be uploaded to Bridgestone’s ball fitting technicians for a detailed analysis of what ball is right for them. Within 24 hours, each golfer will receive a ball fitting report by email, detailing their launch conditions (swing speed, ball velocity, launch angle, spin rate, carry distance and total distance) and providing an analysis of what ball fits them best.

“Working with Tour Pros is a big source of information and inspiration for us in product development. That’s true too for VFIT. Tour Pros and elite amateurs are often on the road and away from their swing coaches,” said Adam Rehberg, Golf Ball Fitting Manager for Bridgestone Golf. “We noticed how often they use swing video to maintain personto-person contact with their coach and get needed advice. With VFIT we are doing the same thing – empowering all players to make personto-person connections with experienced ball fitting technicians that can help them improve their game. It’s simple and effective – we are excited to bring this complimentary service to players.”

VFIT is free, easy-to-use and ensures that nearly every one of the 24 million golfers in the United States has the opportunity to receive two pieces of information critical to improving their games--a detailed analysis of swing data and a golf ball that corresponds to those results.

More information is available at: www.bridgestonegolf.com/vfit www.golfvacationsmag.com

SWEETSTUFF by Terry Ross V1 Video App for some of the most respected coaches, instructors, athletes, and training facilities around the world. A new mobile app by one of the oldest swing analysis companies offers some new ways to get instruction and get better with virtual lessons.

The V1 Golf Plus Mobile App enables golfers to take and upload videos of their golf swings and send them to an instructor who uses the V1 Pro platform. The instructor then takes the video, adds telestration lines to show key points in the swing that need improvement, and can voice over step-by-step lessons which can immediately be sent back to the student.

Golfers can also put their video side-by-side with a curated library of hundreds of Tour Player model swings, seek out monthly instructional content, and get premium support by using the app as well.

V1 Sports is one of the veteran companies specializing in video analysis software and mobile apps, revolutionizing the way coaches and athletes improve. Founded in 1995, V1 Sports offers tools to capture, review, and analyze athletic movement and is a pioneer in delivering seamless voice-over video lessons with integrated telestration. With more than 10,000 coaches and 3 million athletes, V1 Sports has become one of the largest video analysis solutions

With the V1 Golf Plus Mobile App, it is easy to find and receive an instant golf lesson from anywhere in the world with one of the 10,000+ teaching pros who use the V1 Pro teaching platform. Available for IOS in the Apple Store or for Android in the Google Play store, this platform can be purchased on a monthly or annual basis.

With the V1 Game app, a mobile phone or Apple Watch becomes a golfer’s personal caddie and shot tracker. V1 Game’s powerful GPS data provides accurate yardages to greens, hazards and landing zones to help you navigate the course like a professional. After a round is completed, V1 Game’s intuitive performance analysis technology provides statistics that show the user’s strengths, weaknesses and paths to improvement. Subscriptions can be purchased in-app with both auto-renewing and non-renewing options.

For the “ultimate” home golf training center there is the Home Golf Studio and game-improvement center. Capture and analyze golf swings with high-frame-rate high-definition cameras and the world’s most powerful video analysis software for golfers. Whether it’s a basic installation in a garage or a custom-designed and built indoor golf studio, V1 has several options for those looking to go all in on their home golf experience.

For more information on the V1, visit www.v1sports.com