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Swingbyte Ambassadors Rank Among Nation’s Best Instructors

At Swingbyte, we take great pride in the work we do. We also take great pride in the Ambassadors who endorse our product, a group comprised of some of the finest instructors in the United States. 

After looking at Golf Digest’s 2015-2016 State and National Rankings of instructors, we felt compelled to share the results. Our Ambassadors did quite well.

Starting with the National Rankings, three Swingbyte Ambassadors made Golf Digest’s Top 50:

Jim Hardy - Houston, TX

National Ranking - #7 

State Ranking (TX) - #2

Jim Hardy is best known for his original thoughts on the golf swing, theories born from nearly 50 years of golf teaching experience. He was named National PGA Teacher of the Year in 2007, inducted into the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 2011 and World Golf Teachers Hall of Fame in 2015. He has been on the Golf Magazine Top 100 Teachers and Golf Digest Top 50 (currently #7) lists for more than 25 years.

Jim is the co-founder of Plane Truth Golf, an instructor-certification program that has been completed by more than 300 teachers worldwide. He has authored several books and is a contributor for Golf Magazine, Golf Digest and The Golf Channel. He lives in Houston, TX where he works with several PGA and Champions Tour professionals. The Plane Truth instruction methodology serves as the knowledge base that powers the Virtual Coach feature in our app. 

Jim “Doc” Suttie - Lake Forest, IL

National Ranking - #19

State Ranking (IL) - #1

Dr. Jim Suttie is one of the world's best-known golf instructors. In 2000, he was named the PGA of America's National Teacher of the Year. He's also included among GOLF Magazine's Top 100 Teachers and is ranked as one of the Top 20 teachers in America on Golf Digest's 50 Greatest Teachers list. These days, Doc Suttie splits his time between Twin Eagles Golf Club in Naples, FL and Conway Farms in Lake Forest, IL. Click here to read out interview with Doc!

Kevin Weeks - Lemont, IL 

National Ranking - #48 

State Ranking (IL) - #2

Kevin is the PGA Director of Instruction at Cog Hill in Lemont, Ill. A three-time Illinois PGA Teacher of the Year (2005, ’07, ’09), Kevin has been teaching for more than 20 years, including 16 at Cog Hill. He is considered one of the premier instructors in America today, part of an elite group of coaches to be named to both Golf Digest’s 50 Best Teachers and Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers lists.

In 2013, Kevin was named U.S. Kids Golf Master Instructor for his commitment to developing junior players. More than 60 of his students have gone on to play college golf at such noteworthy programs as Stanford, Notre Dame and the University of Illinois. Kevin has taught eight NCAA All-Americans, one NCAA Division II Player of the Year and more than 100 Illinois State High School qualifiers. His professional players have accumulated nine PGA Tour wins and more than 25 combined Top 10 finishes on the PGA and Web.com (formerly Nationwide) Tours.

Weeks is a regular contributor to Golf Digest magazine and PGA.com, and specializes in low-handicap players, juniors, and the short game.

Trent Wearner - Denver, CO

State Ranking (CO) - #1 

Trent is owner of the Trent Wearner Golf Academy at Meridian Golf Club in Englewood, CO and a two-time Colorado PGA Section Teacher of the Year (2004, ’14).  Prior to opening up his own facility, he worked alongside two Golf Magazine Top 100 Teachers—Mike McGetrick and Keith Lyford—serving as a Lead Instructor at the McGetrick Golf Academy just outside of Denver, and as a Golf Teaching Professional at the Lyford Scottsdale Golf School.

A graduate of the University of Colorado, Wearner specializes in all aspects of the game, including the mental side, on-course management, technique, and practice. He is the author of the book, Golf Scrimmages: Realistic Practice Games Under Pressure, which consists of nearly 100 games that the golfer can practice to help simulate the same pressures they’ll be facing on the course. Additionally, Wearner has a newly developed interactive practice website, golfscrimmages.com, which places a heavy emphasis on random practice.

Wearner has helped more than 70 players achieve their goal of playing college golf, but coaches just as many adults as juniors. Along the way he has been recognized as a U.S. Kids Golf Top 50 Instructor and a Golf Magazine Top Teacher in the Southwestern U.S.

Brad Redding - Myrtle Beach, SC

State Ranking (SC) - #7

Brad Redding is a PGA Master Professional in Instruction, Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher and seven-time PGA Section Teacher of the Year. Brad has worked with players of all abilities, from beginners to PGA Tour Players and is a contributor to Golf Magazine, Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, USA Today and PGA Magazine. His trademark “Staying on Plane” philosophy attracts golfers from across the United States and abroad. Brad currently owns and operates Brad Redding Golf at The International Club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Click here to read our interview with Brad!

Chris O'Connell - Plano, TX

State Ranking (TX) - #9

Chris is a Golf Magazine Top 100 instructor, a Golf Digest Best Young Teacher since 2010, and, along with Jim Hardy, is the Co-Founder of Plane Truth Golf, a business dedicated to training golf instructors and providing instruction to golfers worldwide through innovative teaching tools. In addition to being an accomplished player, Chris is an experienced and passionate instructor who thrives on helping golfers of all abilities to enjoy the game and to reach their maximum potential. Chris is based in Dallas, Texas, at Watters Creek Golf Course and is the personal instructor to PGA Tour player Matt Kuchar. The Plane Truth instruction methodology, developed by Chris and Jim Hardy, serves as the knowledge base that powers the Virtual Coach feature in our app.

Brad Brewer - Orlando, FL

State Ranking (FL) - #31 

Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher, PGA of America Class A Instructor, and “Mentored by the King” author, Brad Brewer, established a place for himself in Player Development when he co-founded the Arnold Palmer Golf Academies in 1984. In 2000, Brad was involved in the startup of a golf technology company focused on distance learning through the Internet. Brad began consulting Saddlebrook Prep’s aspiring juniors from across the globe in 2002. In 2004 Brad was honored to open the doors to the Brad Brewer Golf Academy at Rosen Shingle Creek Luxury Hotel and Golf Club, Orlando.  Flagler College in St. Augustine inducted him into their Sport Hall of Fame in 2010.  During that same year, Brad developed the High Performance Instruction for Club Med Academies Golf with the first location opening in 2011 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. Brad is also an author, speaker and artist. The Brad Brewer Golf Academy is a Golf Magazine Top 25 Golf School.

We are very pleased that that the Swingbyte ambassadors are getting the recognition they deserve for their hard work on and off the course to improve players they work with and grow the game.  If you’ve been thinking about getting a lesson, take a look at the list above! Tell them Swingbyte sent you! To learn more about how Swingbyte can help improve your golf game visit www.swingbyte.com. 

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Diving into the Data: What Part of Your Game Should You Work on Most Often?

Over the last few years, we’ve collected millions of swings from thousands of golfers around the world. The skill level of Swingbyte users ranges from PGA professional to beginner but the common thread uniting our user base is their desire to improve.

With this in mind, we asked ourselves, “What can mid-high handicap golfers learn from the practice habits of low handicap golfers?”

If you asked a group of golf instructors this question, you’d likely get several answers. Many would tell you, as we’ve heard from our Swingbyte Ambassadors, that a planned and intentional practice routine is key (we agree!) but if we looked at our data, what would that tell us? 

Turns out we weren’t the only ones interested in this question. The folks from up-start golf blog, Practical Golf, recently reached out to us asking if we had data that could shine some light on the claims that short-game practice is best route to improving your game. They were working on an article with My Golf Spy and wanted some data to support their article. 

We felt this would be a great application for our data, so we pulled some data on user handicap, number of swings taken and club usage to see what trends would we might see. Here’s what we found - 

Pretty interesting, right?.  After you’ve taken a moment to let this sink in, check out the article featured on My Golf Spy for some helpful insights and concrete take aways on how you can use this data to improve your game.  After all, knowledge isn’t power until it’s applied. 

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Meet Swingbyte’s Virtual Coach

Since 2012, Swingbyte has been helping golfers gain insight and track progress, but the biggest question we always get is “what is this data telling me and what do I DO with it?” 

The Swingbyte app excels as a training tool for the knowledgeable golfer, but many need help understanding the data and identifying their swing faults. Providing data is only half of the equation.

That is where Virtual Coach comes in. With Virtual Coach (currently in Beta testing), Swingbyte can now provide on-demand lessons from some of golf’s leading instructors. With just 5 swings, Virtual coach can diagnose your most dominant swing faults and give you drills to help remedy the factors in your swing that are keeping you from playing your best round ever. 

During the beta test, Virtual Coach will only be available for iPhone users. We look forward to extending these to all platforms in the future. 

Today, Virtual Coach  features the methodology and instructional content of Plane Truth Golf, an instructor training program founded by top golf instructors Jim Hardy and Chris O’Connell. Plane Truth Golf boasts over 250 instructors from more than 15 countries, many of whom work with high-level players. A half dozen Plane Truth instructors are ranked in Golf Magazine's Top 100 Teachers list and numerous others are listed as best in their respective states. 

Jim Hardy discussing swing plane on the Golf Channel with Martin Hall. Photo source: thegolfchannel.com

During product development, Plane Truth Instructors trained Virtual Coach’s artificial intelligence by reviewing thousands of golf swings, tagging and classifying the faults that occurred in each swing. Virtual Coach uses this knowledge base in conjunction with Swingbyte data to recognize faults and infer body movement based on the motion of the swing.

Prior to release, during our private beta test, we gave Swingbyte regulars a chance to test Virtual Coach and we got some pretty positive results: 

I shot a 71 today - my best round by three strokes and my first under par round ever. I have been working a lot in my backyard hitting into the net using the lessons from the VC. All of the lessons have been helpful but the latest lesson that popped up for me to allow my right elbow to move behind my body to the seam of my shirt seemed to be a real key for me  - it really keeps me on plane looking at the "laser lines" from the overhead view on Swingbyte. If you want to look at my last two Swingbyte sessions I hit about 300 balls working on this thought.     - Russ, 5.9 handicap

Really enjoying the new improvements and how easy the new Swingbyte is to use...All in all it’s really great to use and with its help I've gone from a 20 handicapper to 11.4 in 5 months, thank you.  - Trent, 11.4 handicap. 

The diagnosis video describing my fault (raising spine & thrusting hips) and the ball flights consequences were EXACTLY what I am struggling with right now on the range (push to the right and snap hooks)...In conclusion, I just want to say that I am very impressed with the great work you guys are doing. - Harry, 25 handicap 

During our public beta the Virtual Coach content will be free to use—you just need a Swingbyte and an iPhone! 

To learn more about Virtual Coach, visit our FAQ page.  If you you’re an iPhone and Swingbyte owner, just download the latest iPhone app and select Virtual Coach from the left menu. Reference our Quick Start Guide for a preview of your Virtual Coach experience. 

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Getting to know Plane Truth Golf’s Jim Hardy & Chris O’Connell  - The Instructors Behind Virtual Coach.

While the artificial intelligence technology behind Virtual Coach is impressive, it wouldn’t be complete without a systemized instruction methodology to inform its operations. 

That’s where Jim and Chris come in...

About Plane Truth Golf? 

Plane Truth Golf is an instructor training program that boasts over 250 instructors from more than 15 countries, many of whom work with high level players. A half dozen Plane Truth instructors are ranked in Golf Magazine's Top 100 Teachers list and numerous others are listed as best in their respective states.

Plane Truth Founder, co-founder Jim Hardy, might be the only instructor who has successfully been able to compile and clearly communicate his life’s work in an easy to understand system of faults and corresponding drills. The Plane Truth system of faults and fixes, created in conjunction with Plane Truth co-founder and PGA Tour instructor Chris O’Connell serves as the foundation of their certified instructor program and the knowledge base for Swingbyte Virtual Coach.

About Jim Hardy

Jim Hardy is best known for his original thoughts on the golf swing, theories born from nearly 50 years of golf teaching experience. He was named National PGA Teacher of the Year in 2007, inducted into the Texas Golf Hall of Fame in 2011 and World Teachers Hall of Fame in 2015. He has been on the Golf Magazine Top 100 Teachers list and the Golf Digest top 50 (currently ranked #7) for more than 25 years.

Michael Breed interviews Jim Hardy on the Golf Channel

Jim has authored several books including his best-selling instruction book The Plane Truth for Golfers which spawned a hugely popular DVD series. He has presented as a featured instructor five different times at the annual PGA Teaching Coaching Summit and is a frequent contributor for Golf Magazine, Golf Digest, and has served as color analyst for NBC and ESPN. He currently teaches PGA and Champions Tour professionals Peter Jacobsen, Olin Browne, Stan Utley, Darren Clarke, David Duval and Scott Piercy, among others.

About Chris O’Connell

Chris O’Connell is one of Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers and has been named Golf Digest’s Best Young Teachers since 2010. He’s the Vice President and Co-Founder of The Plane Truth Golf Institute (along with his mentor, Jim Hardy), a business dedicated to training golf instructors and providing instruction to golfers worldwide through innovative teaching tools. He currently coaches PGA Tour player Matt Kuchar and serves as the Director of Instruction for The Plane Truth at The Courses at Watters Creek in Plano, Texas. Chris is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame. For more, check out some of Chris' instruction recently featured on the Golf Channel.

If you're interested in learning more about Plane Truth Golf or finding an instructor in your area please visit www.planetruthgolf.com to learn more.

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Improve your Putting with Swingbyte and PGA Instructor, Bill Schmedes III

Putting practice with Swingbyte might be one of the most useful training features our product offers. From the putting green to your office at work, you can use Swingbyte to improve your stroke just about anywhere-- the trick is knowing what to do. For that we turned instructor and putting instruction expert, Bill Schmedes III.

If you want to sink more putts, you need to get the ball rolling off the face at impact as intended. Once you do this, you can work on developing consistency so your ball ends up where you want a greater percentage of the time.  

In this article, we’re going to focus on two key things: Setup and Ball Striking  

While putting can be more of an art than the science of full swing (there is no “one size fits all” approach to any part of the golf swing!), the information below will help you understand the factors that contribute to accurate putting and give you a good starting point for improving the consistency of your putts. 

1. The Setup:

Having the correct setup is key. Just like a strong foundation for a house, the proper setup will help provide stability and consistency for your putting game.  

Posture: Use a mirror to make sure you’re bending properly from the ball joints: you shouldn’t be too hunched or bent over and your arms should hang naturally.  Lower body stability is very important because it can affect where you strike the ball on the face of the putter.

Shoulder Alignment:  Shoulder alignment has a huge affect on where the face is aligned at address and subsequently at impact. Shoulders should to be aligned with where the ball needs to start.

Grip: There are several ways to grip a putter but it’s important to take your wrists, fingers and hands out of the stroke.  Gripping the club in the life lines so both palms face each other is a good way to take the smaller muscles out and reduce moving parts.

Eye-line:  If you have a mallet style putter and your natural stroke is pretty straight back and through, your eyes should be lined up with the top of the ball. If you have a heel-toe balanced putter and an arc to your stroke, the eye-line should be slightly inside the ball. Work with the natural movement of your stroke and focus on consistency.

Ball Position: This will vary with the golfer and the width of stance but generally speaking you want it slightly forward of center. For most players, that will help them hit slightly up on the ball, which will help that ball roll better.

2. Ball Striking:

A) Hit Slightly Up on the Ball:

Key Swingbyte data points: Shaft Lean and Attack Angle

When you’re putting, the ball is actually slightly depressed on the green (sitting down a bit), so you need to hit slightly up on the ball to get it rolling end over end on the intended start line instead of it jumping out of that depression before it rolls. When the ball bounces before it starts rolling, it has a tendency to get off line.

Shaft Lean and Attack Angle should be close to neutral (0°) or slightly back (shaft lean) and up (attack angle) at impact so you’re catching the ball on the up stroke. Once you’re set up correctly, try to return your handle at impact as close to your starting address position as possible.

Practice Tip: When using Swingbyte, don’t too caught up on the numbers and trying to achieve specific parameters, but notice how the changes you make affect the data directionally. Use Swingbyte 3D compare your shaft’s position at address (green dotted line) and impact!

B) Square the Face at Impact: 

Key Swingbyte data points: Face to Address and Face to Path

Face angle at impact is king. Generally speaking, you want to get your Face to Address and Face to Path to be as close to 0 as possible to ensure that your ball is rolling off your club face as intended.

Practice Tip: Grab a ruler and place the ball on one end so you can clearly see if the face is square to the edge of that ruler at address. The goal is to putt the ball and keep it on the ruler for the entirety of the roll. If it falls off the ruler it typically means that you’ve delivered the face poorly or it was a poor strike (toe or heel hit). This drill will force the player to concentrate on correct shoulder alignment (face related), ball position (face & path related), and lower body stability (strike related). If you can do these two things properly they will have a great chance of keeping the ball on the ruler.

C) Keep the Path Neutral:  

Key Swingbyte data point: Path 

For most people, I try to get the putter’s Path as close to 0 as possible, especially if they’re a straight back, straight through putter. I’ve found that if there’s too much in-out or out-in, it requires too much manipulation to get the putter back to square and then can be tricky. A slight arc is fine (a few degrees) but when the path gets too severe it can also affect where the ball hits the face and create a toe or heel hit.

Practice Tip: Training aids like putting tracks and alignment sticks can be can help keep your path closer to neutral. If you’re at home, I like to use the grout lines of a tile floor to help square the face, they can work on getting the leading edge square to that grout line and then from there depending on their stroke, they can use the grout to stay straight back and through - they can almost trace the grout line. If they’ve got an arc in their swing, they can get the putter to move slightly inside the grout on the backswing, square at impact and then slightly inside through stroke.

You don’t have to get all 0′s but if you do, it’s pretty cool too. 

Bonus Drill for Home Practice:

I like to do things to help with Tempo. If you’ve got a putter where you have a line on the back and a little cut out or space where they could put a quarter or dime on the back.  I’ll have my students try to keep that quarter on their putter as they bring the club back and swing through the ball. This can help develop consistent tempo and stability in the stroke. It helps to reduce any moving parts.

About Bill:

Bill Schmedes III is a PGA Class A member and the Director of Instruction at Fiddler’s Elbow CCin Bedminster, NJ. He has spent time learning under many of the greats in the game including Gary Gilchrist and Patti McGowan.

Bill has been fortunate enough to be able to work with all ages and abilities. He loves working with the beginner golfer just as much as he does a tour player! His players have won on the local, state, junior, and national levels. www.bs3golf.com

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Three Shots to Practice Before You Play Whistling Straits.

Whistling Straits is the home of this year’s PGA Championship. Set on the shores of Lake Michigan in Kohler, Wisconsin, The Straights course is known both for its unique beauty and challenging hazards. Most notable are the plentiful and punishing bunkers (they say there’s over 1000!), fescue, swirling winds and winding fairways. When you put these together, you’ve got a course that demands accuracy and punishes errant shots.

In order to prepare, players need to make sure they’re striking the ball well but also practice their recovery shots so they can escape trouble with minimal damage.

If we were getting ready to play Whistling Straits this weekend, here are the three shots we’d be working on before tee off:  

NOTE: The data points in the examples are NOT suggested targets, they are simply there to illustrate the principles described below and provide a frame of reference for golfers to work from.

1. Practice your deep fairway bunker shot:

The only thing more frustrating than getting caught in a deep fairway bunker after hitting a solid drive is not getting out of that bunker on your second shot. Hitting a wedge out is a safe bet, but if you’d like to get some distance on the ball you’ve got to take a club with less loft.

Key Instructions:

Move ball up in your stance

Focus on keeping your lower body still.

Make sure you get the club head through at impact and reduce the amount of forward shaft lean (you don’t want to deloft the club when you’re trying to get it up and out!).

Don’t think about the sand!

Key Swingbyte data (example below):

View: Face-On

Shaft Lean - watch the position of the handle at impact. Measure progress with the data.

Attack Angle - you can’t be too steep if you want to quickly get the ball up in the air.

Club Loft- make sure you’re not de-lofting too much.

Practicing with 30° lofted 6 iron. Watch your Club Loft to make sure you’re not de-lofting too much. 

2. Practice your punch and knock down shots:

There are a number of scenarios where this shot will be useful: hitting out of fescue, running the ball up, keeping your shot out of the swirling winds. Depending on your distance and conditions you might use anything from a 4 iron to a wedge. When practicing, start with the short irons and work your way up from there.

Key Instructions:

Set the ball a few inches back in your stance. Your hands will be slightly forward.

Place a little more weight on the front foot.

Take a ½ or ¾ back swing but a full, strong follow through - careful not to decelerate at impact!

Key Swingbyte data (example below):

View: Face-On

Club Head Speed - use slider on the play back bar to look at your clubhead speed (not shown) just before impact and at impact. 

Club Loft- if you’re going to keep it low, you’ll be removing some of the club’s loft at impact.

Attack Angle - should be steeper than normal since the ball is back in your stance.

Shaft Lean - like AA should be greater than normal because of your hand position at impact. 

Using Face On view you can view initial shaft angle (green dotted line) and shaft position at impact. More forward shaft lean at impact can help keep the ball  low and reduce spin. Practicing with a 9 iron. Club loft is 42°, loft at impact is 35°. 

3. Dial in Your Short Irons: Pitching and Distance Control:

Ok, so this isn’t really a shot as much as it is an area to focus on but Swingbyte Ambassador, Chris O’Connell recommended it, so we went with it. Course designer Pete Dye always has some shorter, scorable holes, but in order to take advantage of these holes, you must hit your approach shot the correct distance with plenty of spin to stop the ball in the smallish receptive area. This is always important but even more so on a course where you don’t get a lot of scoring opportunities.  

Keys Instruction:

Practice different shots with your short irons:  ½, ¾ swing, etc, you never know when you’ll need to hit a knock-down.

Focus on developing consistent tempo and shot shape you know you can rely on.

For pitch shots, make sure you’re not pulling the handle through at impact. Instead, you want to swing the head of the club through so you use the club’s bounce and loft to create spin. For more on how to do this, see Chris’ post here.

Key Swingbyte data (example below):

View: Down the line and Face-on

Tempo: Tempo is very relative but you’ll start to see that your best shots all have a similar Tempo number.

Face to path: a key metric for determining the shot shape. generally speaking you want it to be pretty close to 0. If you’re working on a draw, it should be closed. A fade, it can be a little open.

Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down: When dialing in your short irons, the name of the game is consistency. As you hit shots at the range, use Swingbyte “Thumbs Up/Thumbs Down” feature to identify the good shots. Then work to replicate that data and ingrain the feel.  

Shaft lean: don’t get it too far foward on your pitch shots otherwise you won’t be using the clubs bounce and loft to your advantage!

There is no right or wrong swing but there are basic principles to follow. For example, if you’re working on developing a consistent draw shot, you should identify the optimal and most consistent Tempo and Face to Path numbers for your best shots. 

You might not be playing The Straits Course this weekend, but practicing these shots will help you on just about any course you play. And when you do get out to Whistling Straits, you’ll be ready. 

Got Swingbyte tips you’d like to share? Please let us know by emailing [email protected]

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A Quick 9 with PGA Instructor, Bill Schmedes III

1. What do you like the most about using Swingbyte?

BS3: I love the feedback it offers. The simple animation and different angles are very helpful for both me and the average golfer who’s going to use Swingbyte on their phone or tablet.

2. How do you typically use Swingbyte when you’re teaching a student?

BS3: I mostly use it with putting.

3. From an instructor’s perspective, why do you like using Swingbyte?

BS3:  It makes my life easier because I can give a player a putting drill and the Swingbyte data will let them know if they’re doing the drill correctly. It validates what I’m saying and helps the student understand the process. When they see the data change as they work on the drill, they get excited to go use it at home.

4. Which data points do you usually focus on?

BS3: For putting, shaft lean, face to address and attack angle are my three key metrics. Then I look at the path the putter is moving on as the fourth key metric. I try to relate everything back to how changes in the student’s setup, forward bend, posture, grip and eye-line will effect the data we’re looking at and ultimately, how the ball rolls on the green.

5. What type of drills do you do with Swingbyte?

BS3: For the average golfer who wants help with putting, I’ll use training aids like a putting track to give them a feel what it’s like to move the putter head through and keep it square. Using a training aid helps to ingrain the feeling of bringing it through square. Then I’ll remove the track, put down a couple alignment sticks and have them make some strokes to see how close they can get to the numbers they were getting with the training aid. It doesn't have to be perfect, just closer. When a golfer can get the face to address close 0 and their shaft lean at impact back to where it started at address, they’re getting better.

6. Which Swingbyte features do you find most helpful in your teaching?

BS3: The data points I mentioned above [shaft lean, face to address and attack angle] and the 3D animation-- being able to view the swing from any angle is very helpful. I also really like the fact that it’s affordable and easy to use. It allows my students to continue to practice at home.

7. What is the most common challenge amateur golfers face?

BS3: Most people don’t have a lot of time to work on their game. So if I can help them understand what they need to do and assign them the proper drills, Swingbyte can help back it up and give them ability to work on their own. All this helps them improve faster. 

8. What advice do you have for anyone looking to take his or her golf game to the next level?

BS3: The first thing I’ll do with a new student is talk with them about their game and where they want to improve. 90% of people I talk to say, “I’m a pretty good putter and chipper but i need to work on my ball striking.”  What I see is that the average golfer needs a lot of help improving around the greens but they often don’t want to put the time into practicing because it seems easier when compared to full swing. If the hole’s only a few yards away from you, it may seem less intimidating but in reality, if you’re not doing something correctly, there’s a lot that can go wrong and that’s where you waste a lot of strokes. I like to put a lot of emphasis on practicing the short game and putting.

9. Any parting thoughts for our readers?

BS3: Work on short game and putting. And if you’re on the fence about Swingbyte, get one. It’s a simple, affordable way to make sure you’re working on the correct things, whether it’s full swing or putting. You’re going to get immediate feedback right there on your phone-- with the data and 3D angles Swingbyte gives you I think it can help any golfer looking to improve.

About Bill: 

Bill Schmedes III is a PGA Class A member and the Director of Instruction at Fiddler's Elbow CC in Bedminster, NJ. He has spent time learning under many of the greats in the game including Gary Gilchrist and Patti McGowan.

Bill has been fortunate enough to be able to work with all ages and abilities. He loves working with the beginner golfer just as much as he does a tour player! His players have won on the local, state, junior, and national levels. www.bs3golf.com 

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Are you Changing Your Swing Enough to Improve?

If you play golf, chances are good that you’ve heard more than your fair share of “quick fixes” from coaches and other players. This advice, while sometimes helpful, can often leave you more confused and potentially worse off then you were before you heard it.

The reality is, if you’ve struggled with a certain part of your game for years, you’re most likely going to have to try something that seems very different in order to make a meaningful and lasting swing change. 

Adding to this dynamic, is the fact that we’ve become accustomed to getting the things we want faster and with less effort than ever before. Yes, there are some great training resources out there, but all the technology and training aids in the world won’t help unless you have the right mindset, dedication, and information to go along with it.

With all the information out there, how do we develop a realistic understanding of what’s required to actually improve? 

For help, we asked a few Plane Truth Golf Instructors, “When working on a swing change, what’s important for a golfer keep in mind?”

Here’s what they had to say: 

Chris O’Connell, Director of Instruction, The Plane Truth at The Courses at Watters Creek: In order to make a significant swing change and really improve your golf game, you need to get out of the box. Most golfers plateau because they think they’re making a swing change but they’re really not. They get to a point hitting thin hooks and they die 30 years later hitting thin hooks. You either need a device like Swingbyte or an instructor giving you factual information vs. what you think you are doing.

Jake Sandusky, Lead Instructor, The Plane Truth at The Courses at Watters Creek: When making a change in your swing you should expect an improvement in your hitting relatively quickly, you should never expect to get worse before you get better. If you are fixing the proper element of your swing your most predominant miss will begin disappearing and your ball flight will improve. If your ball fight begins to get worse you are unfortunately working on the wrong element and/or in the wrong segment of your swing. The Swingbyte device can help you identify the most important elements to focus on in order to begin seeing an improvement in your ball flight sooner rather than later.

Shane LeBaron, Director of Instruction, Knollwood Golf Club:  What's correct for you may be disaster for someone else and vice versa. Instead of trying to swing like the pros, look at your impact and ball flight for feedback as to where the issue is. Swingbyte can help you identify and track your good and bad swings. With the help of an outstanding instructor and technology like Swingbyte, your improvement will not be accidental. 

John King, Director of Instruction, Golf Performance Studio of Auburn: Two things that help a player improve are confirmation and commitment. A good instructor and Swingbyte will give the player solid information that confirms what is going on in his or her swing. They also help prioritize areas that need improvement and track progress over time. Players who understand the diagnosis and game plan, become more mentally committed to the process which helps them reach their goals in a shorter period of time. 

Mike Crisanti, Plane Truth Golf When making a swing change, an inch feels like a mile. This is very common. If it doesn't feel dramatically different, you probably aren't making the change you need to make. You need to have the courage to make a significant change. Swingbyte allows people to see the change and track progress, but trusting the process is hard on your own. This is where a good golf instructor can really help.

So do some research, spend some time at the range and figure out the method that works best for you. If you have a story about how you’ve used Swingbyte to improve your swing, please share it with us by emailing [email protected]! 

*Image above from the hit movie Caddyshack. Na-na-na-na-na. 

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Demo Day at Diversey Driving Range in Chicago - Friday, June 19th!

Kick off the weekend with us at Chicago’s Diversey Driving Range! Demo Swingbyte, chat with instructors and stay for a beer!  

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Swingbyte and the Chicago Innovation Awards to Ring The Nasdaq Stock Market Closing Bell

Swingbyte will join the Chicago Innovation Awards, the Chicago region’s foremost annual celebration of innovation, in New York City on Monday, March 23rd to ring the Closing Bell at The Nasdaq Stock Market. The event, arranged by the Chicago Innovation Awards, will emphasize the surge of innovation that is occurring in the Chicago region, and shine a spotlight on the organizations that make up its vibrant economy.

Joining Swingbyte will be other winners of the 2014 Chicago Innovation Awards, including: 640 Labs, alligatortek, Auctions By Cellular, Beltone, Caremerge, dough, Horizon Pharma, Keeper Security, KENTECH, LMK Technologies, LuminAID, Mattersight, Options Away, Packback, Pangea, Radio Flyer, Rippleshot, Rise Interactive, Shiftgig, Strata Decision Technology, Swingbyte and ThinkCERCA.

To learn more about the Chicago Innovation Award winners, watch their video testimonials. 

About The Chicago Innovation Awards The Chicago Innovation Awards, established in 2002, have grown from a single awards ceremony to a year-long series of events and activities designed to celebrate innovation in the Chicago region, educate people and organizations about the principles of innovation, and connect the corners of the economy by building relationships that strengthen companies, grow the economy and create jobs. www.chicagoinnovationawards.com.

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Swingbyte Partners with Cleveland Golf to Create New Wedge Fitting System

Swingbyte is proud to join Cleveland® Golf in announcing the introduction of the Cleveland Golf Wedge Analyzer™ fitting system powered by Swingbyte™ technology. Cleveland Golf, an industry leader in wedges and equipment innovation, partnered with Swingbyte to create a wedge fitting system that provides a simple, quick and accurate way to fit golfers of all levels into the proper bounce and sole grind for their wedges.

The Cleveland Golf Wedge Analyzer is a Cleveland Fitting Wedge with a Swingbyte motion analysis sensor permanently affixed just below the grip. During the fitting process, the sensor transmits swing data to a computer or iPad, which then generates a 3-D rendering of the swing and calculates key metrics like attack angle and shaft lean at impact, in conjunction with typical turf conditions, to recommend the optimum bounce and sole grind for any golfer.  Swingbyte’s patented motion sensor captures and sends thousands of "snapshots" per second to the Wedge Analyzer App, where proprietary algorithms immediately translate motion data into useful swing information and 3D animation. The Wedge Analyzer fitting system helps fitters to visually explain why golfers need the recommended bounce and sole grind.  It also includes a database of iron set pitching wedge lofts to help fitters recommend the proper wedge lofts to complement the golfer’s irons.  

“At Swingbyte, our goal is to create ground-breaking technology that has a meaningful impact on traditionally challenging endeavors”, said Swingbyte CEO, Alex Pedenko.“When Cleveland came to us with this idea we were thrilled to have the opportunity to combine our expertise in motion technology with that of the best wedge maker in golf. Together, we created a powerful, yet easy to use tool that will help thousands of golfers confidently select the right wedge for their swing.”    

“There has always been a lot of confusion in the marketplace about bounce and sole grinds on wedges”, said Adam Sheldon, Brand Manager for Cleveland Golf.  “This new Cleveland Wedge Analyzer fitting system enables fitters and consumers alike to determine which bounce and sole grind is right for each wedge in a golfer’s bag, especially indoors at large retailers where a large number of fittings take place.”

To locate an authorized dealer with the Cleveland Golf Wedge Analyzer fitting system with Swingbyte™ technology in your area, please visit: www.clevelandgolf.com.  

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Practice Like a Golf MacGyver...

We recently came across a story of golf coach who used Swingbyte to give an "emergency” swing lesson to a distressed golfer somewhere along the highway near the Kentucky/Tennessee border. Yep, that’s right. Last June, The Republic Newspaper (Columbus, IN) wrote an article about golf technology and a local teaching pro named Jeff Smith. The article discussed Smith’s passion for teaching and offered the following anecdote as evidence:

  As proof I offer an incident that happened not long ago at a rest stop along the highway near the border of Kentucky and Tennessee. A guy exiting the restroom at the same time as Smith noticed a golf logo on his shirt and started to talk to him about his own miserable game. A normal reaction might have been to run, but Smith instead told the guy he had some golf clubs with him. So he grabbed a 7-iron, attached a Swingbyte, then looked around for something to hit. A Swingbyte, by the way, is a device that analyzes a swing with the use of accelerometers, gyroscopes and magnetometers. All right, then. Gathering a pile of acorns, Smith was ready to go. The guy started slicing acorns into the parking lot, and the Swingbyte sent information, such as club head speed, club face angle, etc., to Smith’s smartphone. Smith did a quick fix, shook hands and headed down the highway. Now that’s real relief at a rest stop.

We love this story! In addition to revealing that Jeff Smith is apparently the golf coach MacGyver, it demonstrates just how easy it is to use Swingbyte anywhere you want. Carry it in your bag or your pocket, connect to your phone (when are you ever without your phone?) and find something to hit. In Jeff’s case...acorns.

Yes, Swingbyte gives you a ton of great swing data but maybe more importantly, it gives you the freedom to practice or teach whenever and wherever you like.

For most of us that aren’t getting paid to play, there’s not nearly enough time to practice. How many times have heard someone say “If I played 5 times a week, I’m sure I’d could ______ (you fill in the blank)." In places like Chicago (Swingbyte HQ) where the cold weather limits you from playing and practicing, it becomes ever easier to make excuses for not working on your game. 

However, if you’ve got a Swingbyte, productive practice can be putting in your office, chipping foam balls in your living room or giving full swing lessons with acorns at rest stops (just to be clear, we’re not advocating that you hang around highway rest stops with a Swingbyte and a 7 iron offering golf lessons to people exiting the bathroom).

Hopefully this story serves as reminder to take advantage of the convenience that Swingbyte offers and figure out a way to continue practicing and improving, regardless of where you are.  The next time you get a new swing thought or the urge to work on your game, just think, what would golf MacGyver do?  

If you've got stories like this or helpful drills that you'd like to share, please comment below or email us at [email protected]. We'd love to hear from you!

Angus MacGyver photo source: Wikipedia

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A Quick 9 with Swingbyte Ambassador, Brad Redding

1. What do like the most about using Swingbyte?

BR: Instant feedback and accessibility. When you’re working on your swing, your time is valuable and you don’t want to have to wait.  My students can work on the instruction I gave them and immediately see how that is changing their swing instead of having to feel it or go back later and look at it on tape.

2. How do you typically use Swingbyte when you’re teaching a student? 

BR: Mostly at the range. To start out, I’ll just have my student download the app onto their phone or tablet device and let them use my Swingbyte. I’ll have them take a few swings (let’s say we're working on adjusting an over-the-top move) and I’ll show them the fix or change so they see it during that lesson. Students can see the fault and change they're trying to make which is encouraging for them and validates what I’m saying. Often, they’ll end up buying their own Swingbyte so they can work on the fault and drills we went over in the lesson on their own time.

3. Which data points do you usually focus on? 

BR: I look at the data but I don’t want students to get too hung up on or confused by the numbers. As far as the path being in-out or out-in, I’ll use that, but I mostly use the 3D image of the swing because I really want them to see the shape of the swing and what the change they're working on looks like. For example, you can see whether you’re on or underneath the swing plane. It makes for a more productive lesson because they can see what’s going wrong and they can see the improvement.

4. What type of drills do you do with Swingbyte? 

BR: I use alignment sticks to help students understand the shape of their swing but I don’t generally use a lot of teaching tools other than my two hands. Those are the best teaching tools because I can correct the student's position throughout their swing. It’s really case-by-case, depending on what a student is doing in their swing. The best thing to do is attach a Swingbyte to their club so I can show them what the golf club is doing.

5. Which Swingbyte features do you find most helpful in your teaching? 

BR: For me, the instant feedback and various angles that the 3D imagery provide are great. Instead of having to take the time to set up a camera, where you have to have really good camera angles to make sure you get the right information, my students can take a few swings with Swingbyte and look at their phone to see if they’re making the change or not. It’s great feedback, right away, without a lot of fuss or trouble. A lot of people are visual learners and Swingbyte helps them understand the concept.

6. What clubs do you typically have students swing with?

BR: I like to have them start with some wedges to get loosened up. Then I’ll have them hit some short irons, mid irons, long irons and I’ll always have them hit the driver. Some people think their swing changes from club to club but it doesn’t. Their ball flight may get worse or more dramatic with the driver and long irons but that’s because there’s less loft on those clubs. When I tell people this they usually don’t believe me, so I use Swingbyte show them that it's the same swing but they have worse ball flight off their driver because of the club’s length, and lie and loft. The lesser the loft of the club the more it will magnify their swing faults. 

7. What is the most common challenge amateur golfers face?

BR: Probably time - and that is the beauty of Swingbyte. If you don’t have time to get to the range, go to your backyard or garage and hit whiffle or foam balls with Swingbyte! You won’t get much feedback from the ball flight but you will get impact feedback from Swingbyte. You can practice the changes you worked on in a lesson and take that to the range or the course the next time you do have time. Just hitting whiffle balls is worthless but with Swingbyte you can measure the stuff you know you need to be doing. It’s a huge time saver. You can go out to the backyard and get some good practice.

8. What advice do you have for anyone looking to take his or her golf game to the next level?

BR: Since time is the biggest challenge, people really need to be disciplined and strategic about how they spend their time practicing. I think people often don’t know what to work on, so they just go out to the range and start hitting balls. Having a planned and intentional practice routine really helps. A big part of what I do is as coach is tell students how to practice. I give them drills and things to do which is what a good coach in any sport will do: help their students organize their practice time so it’s most effective for their game.

Using Swingbyte is obviously very helpful in this endeavor because students can take what we were working on in the lesson to their own practice time and use the information from Swingbyte to track their progress. 

9. How can a golfer figure what he or she needs to work on?

BR: Generally speaking, you’ve got to start by assessing the weak spots of your game or looking for the areas where you can improve. This depends on your personal stats. Once we break down your game, then we know what you need work on. For example, if you’re hitting 13-14 greens in regulation per round that’s great but if you’re leaving yourself 30 foot puts, you’re not going to make many of those so you've got to dial it in and get you closer to the hole. On tour, the average distance to the hole from 150 yards out is about 20ft, so there’s some improvement we can make there.

If you’re 3 putting those 30 footers, then we need to work on your putting, so you can start two putting those. 

Think about the strengths and weaknesses of your game, establish your plan and practice with purpose! 

About Brad:

Brad Redding is a Swingbyte Ambassador, Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher and a PGA Master Professional in Instruction. He is was voted the #1 Teacher in South Carolina by Golf Digest, is a seven-time PGA Section Teacher of the Year and a Golf Range Association of America Top 50 Teacher. Brad has worked with players of all abilities, from beginners to PGA Tour Players and is a contributor to Golf Magazine, Sports Illustrated, Golf Digest, USA Today and PGA Magazine. His trademark “Staying on Plane” philosophy attracts golfers from across the United States and abroad.

Brad currently owns and operates Brad Redding Golf at The International Club in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

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Understanding the Difference Between "Feel and Real" in your Golf Swing

When working on a swing change, instructors often tell us there's a big difference between what we feel and what's real.

One of our Swingbyte users, Tom from Minnesota, recently shared his experience with this dynamic via the Plane Truth Golf forum and we felt compelled to share it with you: 

...A couple of additional things jumped out at me the past week or so. These both have to do with the profound difference between real and feel.

Working on chipping and short pitches with my lob wedge and my forward shaft lean is much more than it felt. To get the lean down inside of five degrees, the feel was almost as if I was leaning the handle backwards. I NEVER would have gotten my shaft more upright on my own, because the feel was so extreme I wouldn't have ever gotten there.

I did find a way, though not ideal, to take some swings with my driver in the small indoor space I have. What struck me the most is the Swingbyte telling me my swing was still inside out when it felt like I was swinging outside in and over the top. If it was accurate, and of course my setup might skew it if not done right, then I have a long ways to go before getting a more in to in path with my driver. Going well with hybrids and irons, but not with driver. Again, the feel was so dramatically different than what the data told me that I would be stuck without the Swingbyte...unless I had access to a teacher, of course...In any event, I thought you guys might appreciate a few more Swingbyte "notes from the underground" from the resident duffer. :-)

I will warn you, if Swingbyte does what I hope for during the winter months, namely, to help me retain the in to in path I learned at the very end of the golfing season, then I may well begin to work my way out of duffer status. That would be nice!

Tom's story is a great example of how we can use Swingbyte to challenge ourselves to break out of bad swing habits and finally improve some of the weak areas of our game. 

As Swingbyte Ambassador, Chris O'Connell, bluntly put it, "Most golfers plateau because they won't get out of the box. They get to a point hitting thin hooks and they die 30 years later hitting thin hooks. You either need a device like Swingbyte or an instructor giving you factual information vs. what you think you are doing."

We laughed when we heard this but also realized that it was true. Too often, golfers get to a point where their game ceases to improve because they fail to make the necessary, often significant changes required to improve their game. This isn't because they're not trying, it's because they think they're making a change but they're really not. You can go out and beat balls at the range once a week but without the proper insight or feedback, you could just be spinning your wheels. 

As we move into the golf season, we're challenging all golfers to act on the insight they get from Swingbyte (or their instructor) and commit to improving a part of their game where they feel they've plateaued. Whether it's working on a new training drill or chipping foam balls at home, there are productive ways to break out of old habits so you can finally start getting out of the box. 

Let us know how it goes. We'd love to hear from you so we can share your story with the other golfers out there! 

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Swingbyte Spotlight: Short Game With Chris O'Connell - Part 2: Full Swing vs. Short Game Swing

We recently had a chance to ask Swingbyte Ambassador and Golf Magazine Top 100 Teacher, Chris O’Connell about his favorite way to use Swingbyte with his students (when your students are guys like Matt Kuchar and Scott Piercy, we tend to listen).

Chris loves using Swingbyte for short game analysis. In Part 1 of this lesson, Chris talked about a common mistake he sees golfer making: placing the hands too far forward at address on short shots and/or then bringing the handle through at impact well before the club head. Chris encourages his students to bring their hands back so the club shaft sets up more perpendicular to the ground. If you can return the club to this angle at impact, the club head will slide into the ball instead of digging into the ground. 

For Chris, this is important because, "Bringing the hands back at impact allows you to use the club’s bounce, which gives you a larger margin for error; and golf is really about your misses still being acceptable shots."

In part 2, Chris discusses the differences between the short game swing and the full swing.  

Short Game Swing vs. Full Swing

I believe short game and full swing are completely opposite games. In full swing, I want the clubhead arc to go back wide and come back narrower or closer to the golfer than it went back. In the short game, I want the clubhead to come back on the downswing just as wide as it did on the backswing or even for it to “feel” wider. I’m not looking to create lag, de-lofting, forward shaft lean, and compression on chip or pitch shots. In full swings, I want to I want to achieve those characteristics.

To see this, use Swingbyte to look at your swing with the “face on” view, so you can see the swing’s width. On short shots, I want to see the club moving along the ground like a U shape vs. the club coming down in a V shape. I want the bottom of the swing to be wide vs. narrow. You can see that with Swingbyte. I want short game and full shot swings to be very different. See the examples below.

Narrower full swing: Notice shaft lean, club loft and attack angle numbers

Wider short game swing: Note the difference in shaft lean, club loft and attack angle.

Your best short game player on tour, statistically, is a guy named Steve Stricker. Steve has a very wide bottom to his swing because he uses almost no hand action. His technique causes the club to stay low on both sides of the ball. There’s a reason he’s the best, his technique is better than everyone else’s. In essence, he’s letting the club slide across the ground and the loft puts the ball in the air.

If you work on keeping the bottom of your swing wide and your shaft angle vertical at impact, you’ll get rid of the chunked and bladed shots and greatly increase your margin for error, which will translate into fewer strokes taken around the greens. If bringing your hands back at address and creating a wider swing bottom feels strange to you, practice some chips shots before you take it to the course.  If you live in a colder climate and are restricted to a smaller practice space during the winter, this may very well be the perfect time to implement this change in your technique.  I hope the information here helps you turn three shots into two.

Click here to read Part 1 of Chris' short game lesson.

About the author:

Chris O’Connell is one of Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers in America and has been named Golf Digest’s Best Young Teachers from 2010 - 2013 (he’s also Swingbyte Ambassador). He’s Vice President and Co-Founder of The Plane Truth Golf Institute (along with his mentor, Jim Hardy), a business dedicated to training golf instructors and providing instruction to golfers worldwide through innovative teaching tools. He currently coaches PGA tour pros Matt Kuchar and Scott Piercy and serves as the Director of Instruction for The Plane Truth at The Courses at Watters Creek in Plano, Texas. Chris is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame.

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Swingbyte Spotlight: Short Game with Chris O'Connell - Part 1

We recently had a chance to ask Swingbyte Ambassador and Golf Magazine's Top 100 golf coach, Chris O’Connell about his favorite way to use Swingbyte with his students (when your students are guys like Matt Kuchar and Scott Piercy, we tend to listen). Chris loves using Swingbyte for short game analysis, here’s what he had to say…

Part 1 of 2: I really like to use Swingbyte with short game. Many golfers don’t understand how we are trying to utilize the club in the short game. When it comes to short game, there are a lot beliefs we hold onto that keep us from improving.

The most common mistake I see people make is bringing the handle through at impact well forward of the club head. Swingbyte calls this shaft lean. See example below: compare the shaft lean at address and impact data.

When a golfer does this, two things happen: one, it takes loft off the golf club (as you can see in the initial loft v.club loft at impact data above), which is usually not helpful since you’re trying to get the ball in the air. And two, it turns your wedge into a digging club, so even if you hit a half inch behind the ball, the leading edge will dig into the turf which abruptly stops the momentum of the club head and sends the ball about 2 feet in front of you. Sound familiar? When I chip the ball, I don’t lean the shaft forward because I don’t want a club that digs; I want one that can bounce or slide into the ball. That’s the key difference.

A lot of people try to “leverage” the club in their short game. In transition, they try to swing the handle, not the club head, which moves the handle and the club head the same amount. I call this “leveraging” the club, rather than swinging the club. In short game, the club head needs to swing further than the handle swings. When people try to swing the handle, perhaps in an effort to accelerate through impact, they end up accelerating the end they’re holding on to instead of the end that hits the ball.

If you start with the shaft straight up, perpendicular to the ground and return it there at impact, the head will pass the handle and you’ll gain loft and bounce.

Loft and Bounce: Keys to Short Game Success

If you make the mistake I described above there are basically three types of bad short game shots that will happen: you chunk it, you blade it or you de-loft it so much that it comes in low and hot. All three of those occur when you have the handle coming through too far forward. At address, I want to see the handle pointed at your zipper or fly, the ball in the middle of your stance. In the down swing, simply try to return the shaft back to that angle.

This helps you utilize the club’s loft but more importantly, its bounce too. A club’s bounce is the angle between the trailing edge and the leading edge (bounce angles vary based on manufacturer and wedge model). If you bring the club through at impact with your shaft perpendicular to the ground, you’ll contact ground with the trailing edge so it slides or skims through to impact. This allows you get away with  hitting behind the ball, whereas if you hit behind the ball with the leading edge, you are playing with little margin for error.

Bounce Angles

I think every golfer would be well served to utilize the bounce of the golf club. When you bring your hands back and use the club’s loft and bounce, it gives you a larger margin for error; and golf is really about your misses still being acceptable shots.

Practicing with the Right Mindset Successfully implementing this into your short game will require some practice, so here’s one thought to keep in mind: the closer you get to your goal the better off you are. A lot of golfers think if they’re not 100% right, they’re doing it wrong. I say, no, you’re doing it more right than you were and more right is how you get better at golf! Every time you see a measured improvement with Swingbyte you’re getting better than you were before.

Getting the Club Head to Work for You To work on getting your club back to the original angle, get your Swingbyte out and look at the “face-on” view so you can see where your original shaft lean is (depicted by the green dotted line and data point Shaft Lean at Address). When you swing, you want feel like the head of the club is going to beat the handle to the ball. Try to bring the handle through further back from where it started and look at the Swingbyte. I doubt you’ll actually do what you feel. But this is where you improve in your golf game.

Example of bringing it back to the original position. Still slightly forward but that's OK.

The key to progress is getting out of the box (out of your traditional way of thinking about your golf swing). People don’t get out of the box enough because they think they’re making a change but they’re really not. This is where Swingbyte is powerful because I’ll say to a student “you think your shaft is leaning backwards, you had it at 22° forward and now its 12° forward but its still too far forward. They can’t believe it, they’ll say, “I feel like I’m just scooping and my hands are way behind the ball.” It’s better than what they were doing but it’s still not where they need to be.

If you work on keeping the bottom of your swing wide and your shaft angle vertical at impact, you’ll get rid of the chunked and bladed shots and greatly increase your margin for error, which will translate into fewer strokes taken around the greens.

Swingbyte Training Tip: In addition to what Chris mentioned above, use the “Dial it in” feature on your phone to focus on creating the proper shaft lean at impact. Remember, it doesn’t have to be perfect, just better than you were doing. A few degrees forward at impact is acceptable as long as it isn’t more than the degrees of bounce on your wedge, so just work to get it close!

Click here to read Part 2: Working on your Short Game Swing vs. Full Swing 

About the author: 

Chris O’Connell is one of Golf Magazine’s Top 100 Teachers in America and has been named Golf Digest’s Best Young Teachers from 2010 - 2013 (he’s also Swingbyte Ambassador). He’s Vice President and Co-Founder of The Plane Truth Golf Institute (along with his mentor, Jim Hardy), a business dedicated to training golf instructors and providing instruction to golfers worldwide through innovative teaching tools. He currently coaches PGA tour pros Matt Kuchar and Scott Piercy and serves as the Director of Instruction for The Plane Truth at The Courses at Watters Creek in Plano, Texas. Chris is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame.

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Swingbyte Data Definitions

Club Head Speed:

The speed of the head of the club at the point of impact, accounting for flex and rotation.

Tempo (Ratio): 

The duration of your backswing, in seconds, divided by the duration of your downswing, in seconds. 

Club Face to Address (Face Angle at Impact): 

Face to address measures how much your club face has closed or opened relative to your club face at address.

Club Face to Path: 

The face to path angle is the angle between your club face, and a club face that is square to the path that is traveling on at the point of impact. It can be open, closed or 0.

Club Path: 

The club path is the angle of target line and the line tangent to your swing arc at impact, when viewed from overhead. Generally an in-out path will promote a draw or hook while an out-in path will promote a fade or slice.

Club Lie Angle: 

Lie angle is the angle between the shaft of the club and the ground, when the leading edge of the club is square to the ground. Swingbyte reports the amount of lie added or removed compared to your position at address.

Club Loft Angle: 

Swingbyte accounts for the loft angle of the club selected and gives you the absolute loft angle at impact. This metric can tell you if you’re adding or de-lofting your club at impact.

Attack Angle: 

The angle of attack, much like the club path, is the angle of the target line and the line tangent to your swing arc at impact, when viewed from face on. We measure in terms of “up” or ascending impact or “down” descending impact on the ball.

Shaft lean (at impact): 

Measures the number of degrees your club shaft is leaning towards or away from your target at impact relative to zero (an imaginary line perpendicular to the ground).

Shaft Lean at Address: 

Measures the number of degrees your club shaft is leaning towards or away from your target at address relative to zero (an imaginary line perpendicular to the ground).

Club Loft at Address: 

The loft of your club at address, accounting for shaft lean.

Initial Lie Angle: 

The lie angle of your club at address, based on how you are holding the club.

Plane Angle:

Dynamic Swingbyte data point. The swing plane, at its most basic, is the path your golf club’s shaft follows when you swing. The plane is an imaginary flat surface used to describe the path and angle on which the club swings. The golf swing consists of the backswing plane and the downswing plane, and can be on plane, upright (above the plane) or flat (below the plane). Ben Hogan popularized the swing plane in his 1957 book "Five Lessons; The Modern Fundamentals of Golf. He depicted a golfer standing in a pane of glass to represent the swing plane.

Face to Plane Angle: 

Dynamic Swingbyte data point. The relation of your club face angle relative to the plane angle.