Q: Do test results really prove that I’ll hit the ball significantly farther and straighter with newer golf clubs?

A: No.

By Palm Springs Guides Golf Guide Phil Moore

Some manufacturers like to test golf clubs on mechanical swing machines and then advertise the results as a proven fact — inferring that golfers will experience the same results as the machine.

The fact is that under test conditions, golfers will often experience results exactly opposite of those from a mechanical swing machine.

For example, when a machine is used to test and compare two identical driver heads, one with a 44-inch graphite shaft and the other with a similar 48-inch graphite shaft, the driver with the longer shaft will hit the ball on the average slightly farther. The results will always be the same.

But when the same test is given to golfers, not all of them will hit the driver with the longer shaft farther. Many will be unable to handle the extra 4 inches of length. Their average drive will actually be longer with the shorter shafted driver because they’re able to make square and centered contact more often. For these golfers, the results were exactly opposite of those from the mechanical swing machine.

The machine, unlike a golfer, can be mechanically adjusted so the clubface makes consistent square-and-centered contact with the ball regardless of the shaft length. The better machines can also be adjusted to produce a specific angle of approach that will optimize the performance of a particular clubhead. In other words, through extending the shaft length and altering the angle of approach, a mechanical swing machine can make almost any clubhead appear to be more than it is.

Unfortunately technicians can’t simply adjust the swing of a real golfer to perfectly complement the specifications of a golf club. No matter how great the test results were from the swing machine, there’s no telling how a golfer will respond to the look, feel and specifications of a particular golf club.

I was once approached by a right-handed weekend golfer who continually sliced his driver. He never practiced and had no interest in taking lessons. He just wanted to know if there was a driver that might help reduce his slice. I noticed his driver had a slightly open face angle (at address, the face of the driver was actually aimed to the right of the target), so I had him try a demo driver with a similar shaft and a two-degree closed face angle (at address, the face of the driver was aimed well left of the target). Amazingly he said his slice got worse. From a physics standpoint, there is absolutely no reason for this to happen. On a mechanical swing machine, it would never happen. When I had him hit a few balls on the range I noticed that he opened the face of the demo driver at address. When I asked why he did this, he responded, “I can’t stand looking at the face aiming toward left field. I’m afraid I’m going to hook it!”

That’s the difference between a golfer and a swing machine. A swing machine doesn’t think and it has no fears. It also doesn’t care how long a golf club is, what a golf club feels like or what a golf club looks like.

Palm Springs Guides Golf Guide Phil Moore can be reached through his Web site, MadScienceGolf.com. His book, "The Mad Science of Golf," is currently available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble and through his Web site. To contact Phil, click here.

NEXT MONTH: Is the modern equipment the real reason today’s professional golfers hit the ball farther and score lower?