Impact Spray or other ideas

Do you use any help in figuring out how you hit the ball? I have seen ads on impact spray like http://www.break90golftrainingaids.co...m/onmark2.html

Are thise any good? Or should I just get the feedback from the feel of the swing and fly of the ball?

Any homemade tricks for this one?

br. Hannu
Jyväskylä, Finland

I hear Vijay Singh is fond of putting a little water on the clubface, to see where he impacts the ball. If you're going to use it at the range, I can't see a problem with it, but a spray or gel will probably be deemed to enhance the club, making it non-conforming.

I tried water. I dipped my club in a cup full of water and then made my swing. After hitting the ball it was very difficult to see the impact mark. Maybe it works better outdoors, if the ball are a little dirty?

I tried it at our indoor practicing range.

Hi,

If you ask the local pro for some face tapes, i am sure he will give you a couple, these are self adhesive carbon tapes to stick on the clubface.

Home idea would be to sprinkle the face or the ball with talc.

Ian.

Spray-on foot powder.

I use impact tape we get from a golf equipment supplier and it really works well. Most club fitters use them and we use them quite a bit to judge impact position on the club face.

If you can't hold of them or they're too expensive, any masking tape or insulation/duck tape works well too.

Okey,

I have made some experiments to see the Impact mark.
1. Water was not visible
2. powder from kitchen was white and not very easy to see
3. Pro did not have tape and my tape was too hard. (The one builders use to protect areas - "white paper".) It needs to be softer.

I also taped a red arrow (30 cm long) on top of my 5 wood. ( Idea was to "see" the path of the swing. (Makes a tale for the clubhead) This almost worked. Arrow just would have needed to be plastique - or stiff - not to swiggle during swinging.

Thanks for all your input. Best thing about trying to see the impact mark has been that it has motivated me to look at the ball. I think I am hitting it better even though the project is not finnished yet:-)

Hannu
Jyväskylä,
Finland

HI,
Yesterday I tested alumine tape that I bought from a hardware store. I cut a piece that covered my club face. After hitting the ball the mark of an impact was very clear. I used the same tape for about ten shots.

Alumine tape is strong - it does not tear easily. This helps to remove it from the club. The tape cost 2 € a roll. I think that I might get about 100 impact tapes from it.

This worked for me. Idea has from Timo Ristikivi - our junior coach.

Looks like I am hitting the ball with a little too much on the toe of the club and a little too down.

Hannu,
Jyväskylä

Buy a dry-erase marker, and colour in the face of your club.

I got this idea from hitting freshly marked balls (dry erase will wipe off. I'm still scrubbing Sharpie off the face of my club!)

Sounds a good idea but I think we are being divided by a common language here LP (or I'm just being slow); what's a "dry erase marker" in UK English? - feel free to mention brand names!

http://www.keysan.com/ksu0558.htm

I think it is a white board marker? ( I googled "dry-erase marker")

I will ask a teacher to lend one for testing... Sound like a good and easy to use solution.

Yes, dry-erase and white board markers are one and the same.

Next up: whiffle balls.

If you have a Michael's craft store:

1. Go down and look for pieces of suede leather. Normally cheap.
2. Look for a nice thin piece
3. Trace and cut a pattern of your club head
4. Rubber cement (I used contact cement, and now I have to scrub it off)
5. Nice impression, and you can wipe it off with your thumb or a stiff toothbrush is even better. Hit hundreds of balls and it only wears out if your balls are wet.

Find your impact point is incredibly important, and was one of the first things I did based on reading I did a year ago. I'm sure it took off at least 5 strokes, but then again, I was around 130!

Theo "Proving That Being Cheap Is Genetic" Deffenbaugh

Theo

i just take lessons, i dont feel like spending money on gadgets

Hi Theo and dnm,

I think it does not take a lot of money to get to know your impact point. (Alumni tape was 2 euros and a dry eraser might be about the same price. It will last for many seasons.)

For me it was and still is important to get to know the impact point. I feel that I need visual feedback on where I hit the ball. I did not feel it before. I felt a hit in my fingers, but I did not know that it meant that I was hitting the toe in my club face.

After using an impact marker I learned to evaluate my contact and now I don't need it. I might refresh my memory once a while. It also helps my swing to think of different things. When checking my impact point, I am more aware of hitting the ball.

Normally I just think of the path of the club face:-)

For me it is very important to learn to get feed back from my swing - to listen to what I am doing - and then just let it happen.

Hannu