Technological Evolutions an
Industry, Game-Changer
With new advancements, more information is available
to golfers with a simple click or the touch of a finger
by TOM MACKIN
CAROL AND MIKE WERNER/GETTY IMAGES
M
ake an appointment at The Golf
Fitting Studios at Westfields
Golf Club in Clifton, Va., and
clubfitter Todd Tschantz will be
able to identify your carry distance to within
a foot, club angle to an exact degree and
angle of attack in minute detail.
While his expert eye has been honed
after 15 years in the business, the abilities
of he and his team are enhanced by modern
launch monitor technology, which has only
scratched the surface of data collection so far.
“It’s evolving faster than I can think,” he says.
You could say the same for the everdeepening relationship between golf and
technology. Not only has it transformed
clubfitting, but it is now changing the way
golf, a relatively untapped newcomer to hightech gadgets and gizmos, is played. Consider
that distance measuring equipment can now
help you determine exact yardages, handheld
GPS devices have high-definition quality
graphics and wearable technology, notably
Game Golf and Google Glass, will soon
be an estimated billion dollar market. And
for some the increasing onslaught of those
enhancements comes not a minute too soon.
Just listen to John McGuire, CEO of
Game Golf and its development firm Active
Mind Technology.
“Golf was the sport that, no matter who
I talked to, the message was loud and clear,”
he says. “The sport needs to grow, be more
fun and be brought into the 21st century,
and its traditions need to be respected while
doing that.”
EXPANDING THE APPEAL OF GADGETS
His attempt at doing just that, called
Game Golf, debuted earlier this year at the
PGA Merchandise Show in Florida. The
product relies on sensors inserted into the
w w w. v s g a . o r g
grip end of each club, which when tapped
against another sensor on a golfer’s belt,
collect shot information such as tee shot
and approach shot dispersions indicating
particular tendencies. In turn, the data
can be downloaded after each round. The
sleek design and intuitive format has been
generating largely positive reviews.
“People now want everything in real
time,” McGuire says. “They don’t want
to read instructions or understand how it
works. That’s the trick with design. It has to
be as simple as possible.”
Pete Bevacqua, CEO of the PGA of
America, says embracing technology is
critical for his organization and for the
growth of the game, so much so that he has
built a partnership with Game Golf.
“We liked it because it allows you to play
golf and then come back and download your
experience, map it out on the course, and see
your statistics in an aesthetically pleasing way,”
he says. “Then you have the social experience.
You can talk about your round and share
information. I can play nine holes against a
friend somewhere else in the country. It’s a
Facebook-type experience for golf.
“For a healthy segment of our members
it can also expand the overall experience of a
golf lesson. You can e-mail a PGA professional
your last five rounds and see if what you
worked on is actually working. It gives PGA
Tour-caliber data to the social golfer.”
In terms of the single biggest technological
change of recent years, Bevacqua believes
that would be yardage measuring devices.
“It’s one thing to shoot something and
learn you are 145 yards from the flagstick,
which is great and can help with the pace of
the game,” he says. “Now we have the next
generation of technology, which lets me
know how far I hit a 6-iron and how I can
track that distance over the course of the golf
season. It’s taking that kernel and going in a
million different directions with it and really
using data to add to the golf experience.”
In fact, it was at the 2006 Ryder Cup
Matches in Ireland when McGuire received
some advice that would change his life.
“The tournament director said to me, ‘You
know, John, if you collected a golfer’s round
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