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The Quest for the Magic Driver
Every golfer is searching for the "Magic Driver". This feature series has been running for five years in Golf Today. This series goes well beyond the customary "feel" and "fit and finish" observations to focus on determining measurable performance differences.

Evaluations are continuing and include name brand products as well as component heads, shafts, and performance enhancements. Attention is also focused on effective fitting techniques based on comparative data. Tests were performed at the Golf Lab in Palo Alto. Product reviews are managed by the author.

Subjects covered to date include:

1. August 2009: “Real Tour Fitting” and the “Amateur Alternative” Text
2. July 2009: Fitting Women, Seniors and Juniors - Create Your Own Magic Driver Text
3. June 2009: Adjustable Heads, Exchangeable Shafts Here to Stay... And, a “Harebrained New Driver?” Text
4. May 2009: The Search is Still On.Text
5. April 2009: Which Phil? .Text
6. April 2009: A Brief History of Balancing Golf Clubs.Text
7. March 2009: Does He or Doesn’t He?.Text
8. February 2009: The Best Driver in the World.Text
9. January 2009: Recession strategies.Text
10. December 2008: Re-thinking Club Length, Balance and Other Mysteries.Text
11. November 2008: The Newest Crazy Idea. Text
12. October 2008: So Many Shafts – So Little Time. Text
13. September 2008: Maxed Out Custom Clubs. Text
14. August 2008: Counter Weighting Coming of Age. “Donate Your Swing to Science”. Text
15. July 2008: “Hot List” for Underdogs. Text
16. June 2008: Letter to Emily. Text
17. May 2008: Top Ten “Tweaks” for Your Bag – and your Brain. Text
18. April 2008: New Driver Ideas - Summer 2008. Text
19. March 2008: AT&T Adventures and Best of the PGA Show 2008. Text
20. February 2008: PGA Show Week—2008. Text
21. February 2008: Choosing the Right Iron Head Design for Your Game. Text
22. January 2008: New Clubs for Your Bag this Summer? Text
23. December 2007: Are You Too Smart for Your Own Good?. Text
24. November 2007: New Technology - Transforming the Golf Equipment Industry. Text
25. October 2007: Sneak Peak at 2008. Text
26. September 2007: The Longest Ball? Equipment performance news from the bleeding edge. Text
27. August 2007: Dog Days of Summer: Getting Acquainted with Stulz Nano Arrow Shafts Text
28. July 2007: What Are You Reading? Finding the "Best" Clubs for Your Game Text
29. June 2007: OEM Custom or True Custom? Text
30. May 2007: Why All the Rules? And, All about Hybrids Text
31. April 2007: Why Your Driver is Obsolete Text
32. March 2007: The SUMO and High MOI Drivers Text
33. Febuary 2007: New Year, First Tournament, New Bag Text
34. January 2007: A Season to Improve - Dreams don’t get it done. Text
35. December 2006: The Best Products and Ideas of 2006 Including Honorable Mentions Text
36. November 2006: The Fear Factor - Choosing the “Right” Irons Text
37. October 2006: Magic Driver Success Stories - 2006 Text
38. September 2006: Driver and Shaft Discoveries Summer 2006 – Part Two Text
39. August 2006: Driver Discoveries - Summer 2006 -- Updating the “Search for the Magic Driver" Text
40. July 2006: How Heavy Is Too Heavy, How Stiff Is Too Stiff, How Long Is Too Long? Text
41. June 2006: Walking Wet and Wounded Text
42. May 2006: Competition Begins – Early Season Equipment Suggestions Text
43. April 2006: Searching for Magic Irons--New Product Radar Screen Text
44. March 2006: 2006 PGA Merchandise Show -- Behind the Ropes Text
45. February 2006: Support the Underdog--an American Tradition Text
46. January 2006: A Brief History of Shaft Fitting (including Recent Discoveries) Text
47. December 2005: Tournament Triumphs, Clubmaker Breakthroughs Text
48. November 2005: PGA Fall Expo Wrap-up--2006 Preview Text
49. October 2005: Will You Find Your Own Magic Clubs? Text
50. September 2005: Buy Your Game or Practice to Improve? Text
51. August 2005: The Tournament Bag Flames Out Text
52. July 2005: Game Improvement Clubs, MOI Followup Text
53. June 2005: Moment of Inertia Matching & Ireland Bag Surprises Text
54. May 2005: Total Rehab, Nike Blades & Customizing Wedges Text
55. April 2005: Do You Really Want to Get Better? Try Something Different. Text
56. March 2005: Cognitive Dissonance--”Whatever Works”. Text
57. February 2005: Tiger’s Driver, PX Update & New Shafts for 2005. Text
58. January 2005: Is the TaylorMade R 7 Worth the Money? Text
59. December 2004: Japanese Quality & Top Ten Drivers. Text
60. November 2004: The Lure of Links Golf. Text
61. October 2004: Why Do Wrong Clubs Work Right? Text
62. September 2004: Face Angle Fixation while Contemplating My Belly (Putter). Text
63. August 2004: Face Angle in Drivers, PX Shafts & Belly Putters. Text
64. July 2004: Radical Ideas about Set Makeup. Text
65. June 2004: Zone Frequency Analysis: a new way to look at flex. Text
66. May 2004: A New Dimension in Drivers and More on the Lowbrow Saga. Text
67. April 2004: Lowbrow versus Highbrow - Confessions of a Golf Snob. Text
68. March 2004: Utility & Hybrid Clubs. Text
69. February 2004: The New Quest for the Magic Driver. Text
70. January 2004: About Drivers & Testing Premium Iron Shafts . Text
71. December 2003: Back to Bobby Jones: Customizing Shafts for Specific Clubs & New Drivers. Text
72. November 2003: Overall Weight, Swingweight, Balance & Feel. Text
73. October 2003: Searching for the Magic Irons. Text
74. September 2003: Premium Graphite Shafts for Irons. Text
75. August 2003: Long Drivers, Graphite Shafts & the Trail of the Magic Driver. Text
76. July 2003: Don’t Forget to Check the `Little Things’. Text
77. June 2003: Should Amateur Golfers Play 48-inch Drivers? Text
78. May 2003: We take a look at the Speeder 757 & Rifle Spinners. Text
79. April 2003: The top four candidates for the new Magic Driver based on carry distance, clubhead speed, ball speed, launch angle, spin rate and several indicators of accuracy . Text or PDF.
80. March 2003: Launch angle, spin rate, and how to find the right ball. Text or PDF.
81. February 2003: More than you ever wanted to know about flex. Text or PDF.
82. January 2003: Improving performance from your problem clubs. Text or PDF.
83. December 2002: The death of the clones and emergence of quality components. Text or PDF.
84. November 2002: The "Power Plug" increases ball speed by 2 - 4 mph. Text or PDF.
85. October 2002: We discover the first "Magic Driver" - a Nicklaus Airmax 360. Text or PDF.
86. August 2002: The effect of shaft flex on increasing distance. Text or PDF.
87. July 2002: Six steps you can take to make sure you choose a driver that fits your swing. Text or PDF.
    

The SSTPure Newsletter

• July 16, 2007 (PDF)
• July 9 , 2007 (PDF)
• July 2, 2007 (PDF)
• June 25, 2007 (PDF)
• June 4, 2007 (PDF)
• May 28, 2007 (PDF)
• March 26, 2007 (PDF)

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