Misleading Golf Statements and Marketing

Golf is a sport around which some pretty big claims are made, many of which are misleading at best and untrue at worst. Nobody is suggesting that club manufacturers deliberately go out of their way to lead us down the garden path, but you have to imagine that when some press releases are written, the men and women responsible for them either produce them with their fingers firmly crossed behind their backs or with tongues firmly in cheek.

We have rooted out a few genuine statements that can be found on websites, YouTube and other sources and have applied our own take to them. We believe they are slightly nearer the mark than the material you will actually find attached to them. 

"Hit it like Justin Thomas"

Thomas is one of the longest hitters on the PGA Tour, which also makes him one of the longest on the planet. His average clubhead speed is about 117mph. Trust us when we tell you that if you attempted to swing the club at that sort of speed the chances are that you would do yourself a permanent back injury. He is also a young man. He works out, he is strong and he is flexible. You are NEVER going to hit it like Justin Thomas! For the record, somebody called Ryan Brehm AVERAGES 127.71mph. He should be given a speeding ticket.

"Eliminate your slice for good" 

If it was really possible to eliminate a slice for good, don't you think that the top professionals would have worked it out by now? Every player in the game slices the ball. OK, so the best of them don't slice it every time, and there are definitely things you can do to reduce it. But eliminate it for good? No way.

"How to cure the putting yips"

If there really was a cure for the yips, do you not think that Bernhard Langer would have found it by now? We see so many weird and wonderful ways of holding a putter precisely because there is no cure for the yips. When you've got them, you've got them - and they are not going away.

"How to hit out of long fescue"

Have you ever seen the effort it takes the best players in the world to escape from thick rough? Some of you may have seen a video Kevin Na posted ahead of the 2017 US Open when he dropped a ball in the fescue and was unable to move the ball. During the tournament itself, several players had the same problem in real play. How to hit it out of the long fescue? Get your sand wedge and hit the ball as hard as you can - and hope the ball moves. Alternatively, don't go in there in the first place.

"How to hit the brakes on downhill putts"

Erm, don't hit it too hard! It's not rocket science.

"Make your swing like Bubba Watson's"

The first question to ask is: why would you want to? Bubba has a swing that is all his own and breaks all the rules. And there is no way under the sun that anybody out there should be trying to copy it. Mind you, if you are a 28-handicapper, the chances are that you already swing it like Bubba. There's a reason you play off 28 though - erm, because you swing it like Bubba. And don't let anybody convince you that having a pink shaft on your driver will help you. It will not.

"What can you learn from Bryson DeChambeau?"

DeChambeau is the self-style Scientist, so-called because he has devised a way of playing that is all his own. Every iron in his bag measures 37.5 inches, which is the same as the normal length of a six iron, and every clubhead weighs just under 10 ounces. He also has extra-thick grips on his clubs because he uses his palms rather than fingers to hold the club, and they also counterbalance the clubhead weight. He stands upright and close to the ball and the ball position is the same for every shot. It all sounds fair enough, but before you rush out and buy those Cobra clubs he uses you might want to consider one thing - he has yet to win or even prove that his method is good enough to keep him on the PGA Tour. What can you learn from Bryson DeChambeau? At this moment in time, precisely nothing.

"What we can learn about staying in shape from Tiger Woods"

Sadly, the answer may well be: nothing. He may have won 14 majors and, for a time, he threatened to leave Jack Nicklaus' record of 18 majors trailing in the dust, but Tiger is now a physical wreck. He attributed much of his success to his punishing workouts, but what a terrible toll it took on his body. It all started in 2002 when he had surgery to remove fluid from around the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) of his left knee. In 2008 he had arthroscopic surgery to repair cartilage damage to his left knee. Later that year, after playing through pain to claim the U.S. Open title at Torrey Pines, he had reconstructive surgery on the ACL in his left knee. It is largely forgotten that he also suffered from neck problems and in 2011 he was back on the sidelines for three months, this time with a sprain to the left knee and a strain to the left Achilles' tendon. In 2012 he withdrew from the WGC Cadillac Championship, citing further Achilles problems, and the following year an elbow strain kept him out of the AT&T National. In March 2014 he fell to his knees in agony during the Honda Classic and was out of the game for several months. He played in the WGC Bridgestone Invitational in August that year but withdrew, citing back pain. Woods tried to return in February 2015 but had to quit after 11 holes of the Farmers Insurance Open. In September that year it was revealed that he had undergone a second microdisectomy surgery two days prior to remove a disc fragment that was pinching his nerve. He didn't play again until this year but in just his second comeback event, the Dubai Desert Classic,he withdrew before the start of his second round. Woods' agent, Mark Steinberg, cited back spasms. In April he underwent further back surgery and in May he was arrested after driving his car while under the influence of "drugs or alcohol". It turned out that he had become addicted to painkillers and was later taken into rehab. It is a tragic tale.

"Get out and get up and down"

A leading club manufacturer has just launched a sand wedge which it claims is guaranteed to get you out of bunkers, describing it as a "miracle wedge". Hmmm...we don't think that such a golf club exists. No matter how good the club is, no matter how well designed it might be and no matter how expensive it is, if you cannot use it properly then you are staying in the sand. Period!

"How to develop a perfect takeaway"

A well-known golf website offers a "genius training aid" for golfers of all skill levels that "really works". It goes on to say: "Let's be honest, many of the training aids on the market today are useless. We buy them, try 'em out, see zero results and then throw them into the garage to collect dust" Our tip is that if you want the perfect takeaway you should head to McDonald's or your nearest Chinese or Indian restaurant.