Warning: all photos are in spoilers at end of thread. It's a long read but hope you enjoy it!!!
Yesterday was the big day that I had been looking forward to for several weeks. I had an appointment for 2:30PM at the TaylorMade Performance Lab located on the premises of Glen Eagles Country Club in Plano, TX with TaylorMade Lab Manager/Master Club Fitting Professional Ryan Tolentino. Ryan has been with TaylorMade for 6 years and has been at this location for 1 year after previously doing fitting for special events across the country. From the first handshake, I felt very welcome and that Ryan enjoyed having me there.
I arrived around 2:10 and headed into the building where quickly I met Ryan and we got started. He had asked me to bring my own clubs for a baseline and we headed over to the range for me to warm up. He let me take my time where I warmed up with a 9i and 6i. Ryan then wanted to know about my game and we discussed everything from current handicap to strengths/weaknesses to what clubs I had played over the last few years. He put a focus on what my current miss was with my irons which right now is a push block right. After I warmed up nicely we headed inside for some MATT action.
From the get go outside, we had started to not only discuss clubs and my game but also Hackers Paradise and all of the events that we have going on, spent several minutes talking about the TM TP weekend in Florida and how TaylorMade has partnered with THP for various events including the Tour Preferred program which included the locker and irons, etc. Once hooked up to the MATT, we went through the motion analysis program and got some great numbers to work off of based on speeds/angle of attack, etc (pics will be at end of thread with numbers/info). After the MATT session, Ryan showed me something that I had no idea I was doing. He said that I have a really high hand speed (19 MPH) which is 4-5 MPH higher than most people BUT that I was flipping through the impact zone which was causing me to cast a little bit. He showed me 2 different drills to work on and suggested I pick up a smash bag as well (which I ordered last night). Can’t tell you how happy I was to be getting a “mini lesson” essentially from Ryan – absolutely made my day!
The MATT session concluded and Ryan had me hit some shots with my current 7i (J40 DPC w/PX 5.5 flighted shaft). I was striking the ball well but Ryan saw that my launch was a little bit high and he feared that while the shots looked good that they would hit the apex and just drop straight down and that this could pose issues especially into the wind not to mention I was leaving some distance on the table. Launch was around 22.5* on average with a carry of 145 with another 4-7 yards of roll.
Based on all of this data, Ryan had 2 shafts he wanted me to try in the CB 7i head: PXi 5.5 and SteelFiber i95’s. He wanted me in a slightly lighter shaft than I had in addition to something stable that would bring the flight down. Ultimately, I would proceed to hit great shot after great shot with both of these with little to no difference in feel for me. And then it was time to move outside.
We headed to the opposite end of the range away from all the other golfers. It was in an open area, temps around 50* and a nice chilly north breeze moving in on us. And then my struggles began……fat shot after fat shot regardless of what club/shaft combo was in my hands. Ryan knew I was getting frustrated so it was time for lesson #2 – my POSTURE. I have a habit of maintaining a lot of bend in my knees but this makes timing extremely difficult. Ryan wanted me MUCH more upright than I was so we worked on that for a bit (he even snapped before/after photos for me to reference). While I still had some struggles, I also hit some beautiful shots when the changes clicked. Temps continued to drop, it got even chillier but Ryan did not rush me at all – he wanted to see me hit good shots in a better posture.
We headed back inside and discussed everything. We mutually agreed that the CB’s with PXi 5.5 and 1* up would be best for me as they had better dispersion both side to side and length of shot. I also expect to pickup around 5-8 yards with this change and the 1* up should help with my push blocks. I will be calling today to place the order for the 4-AW.
Closing thoughts: In no way do I see how the fitting could’ve been any better, Ryan was absolutely fantastic to work with and I highly recommend him for anyone in the DFW area needing a fitting – I would pay to visit him again without question. The fact that I had struggles outside was a good thing for me because Ryan saw what was happening and wanted to help me fix it and for that I can’t thank him enough!!
Random thoughts: as mentioned, we talked THP and the golf industry quite a bit. He mentioned TO (Tom Olavsky) being a BIG loss for TM when he moved to Cobra. He asked if I knew Harry Arnett (which I am lucky enough to have met) and said he is one of the funniest but also smartest guys that he has ever known. Said that Harry has respect in the industry beyond belief and is one guy you never want to speak after at a conference as you will be a “letdown” after Harry.
Onto some photos!!
Yesterday was the big day that I had been looking forward to for several weeks. I had an appointment for 2:30PM at the TaylorMade Performance Lab located on the premises of Glen Eagles Country Club in Plano, TX with TaylorMade Lab Manager/Master Club Fitting Professional Ryan Tolentino. Ryan has been with TaylorMade for 6 years and has been at this location for 1 year after previously doing fitting for special events across the country. From the first handshake, I felt very welcome and that Ryan enjoyed having me there.
I arrived around 2:10 and headed into the building where quickly I met Ryan and we got started. He had asked me to bring my own clubs for a baseline and we headed over to the range for me to warm up. He let me take my time where I warmed up with a 9i and 6i. Ryan then wanted to know about my game and we discussed everything from current handicap to strengths/weaknesses to what clubs I had played over the last few years. He put a focus on what my current miss was with my irons which right now is a push block right. After I warmed up nicely we headed inside for some MATT action.
From the get go outside, we had started to not only discuss clubs and my game but also Hackers Paradise and all of the events that we have going on, spent several minutes talking about the TM TP weekend in Florida and how TaylorMade has partnered with THP for various events including the Tour Preferred program which included the locker and irons, etc. Once hooked up to the MATT, we went through the motion analysis program and got some great numbers to work off of based on speeds/angle of attack, etc (pics will be at end of thread with numbers/info). After the MATT session, Ryan showed me something that I had no idea I was doing. He said that I have a really high hand speed (19 MPH) which is 4-5 MPH higher than most people BUT that I was flipping through the impact zone which was causing me to cast a little bit. He showed me 2 different drills to work on and suggested I pick up a smash bag as well (which I ordered last night). Can’t tell you how happy I was to be getting a “mini lesson” essentially from Ryan – absolutely made my day!
The MATT session concluded and Ryan had me hit some shots with my current 7i (J40 DPC w/PX 5.5 flighted shaft). I was striking the ball well but Ryan saw that my launch was a little bit high and he feared that while the shots looked good that they would hit the apex and just drop straight down and that this could pose issues especially into the wind not to mention I was leaving some distance on the table. Launch was around 22.5* on average with a carry of 145 with another 4-7 yards of roll.
Based on all of this data, Ryan had 2 shafts he wanted me to try in the CB 7i head: PXi 5.5 and SteelFiber i95’s. He wanted me in a slightly lighter shaft than I had in addition to something stable that would bring the flight down. Ultimately, I would proceed to hit great shot after great shot with both of these with little to no difference in feel for me. And then it was time to move outside.
We headed to the opposite end of the range away from all the other golfers. It was in an open area, temps around 50* and a nice chilly north breeze moving in on us. And then my struggles began……fat shot after fat shot regardless of what club/shaft combo was in my hands. Ryan knew I was getting frustrated so it was time for lesson #2 – my POSTURE. I have a habit of maintaining a lot of bend in my knees but this makes timing extremely difficult. Ryan wanted me MUCH more upright than I was so we worked on that for a bit (he even snapped before/after photos for me to reference). While I still had some struggles, I also hit some beautiful shots when the changes clicked. Temps continued to drop, it got even chillier but Ryan did not rush me at all – he wanted to see me hit good shots in a better posture.
We headed back inside and discussed everything. We mutually agreed that the CB’s with PXi 5.5 and 1* up would be best for me as they had better dispersion both side to side and length of shot. I also expect to pickup around 5-8 yards with this change and the 1* up should help with my push blocks. I will be calling today to place the order for the 4-AW.
Closing thoughts: In no way do I see how the fitting could’ve been any better, Ryan was absolutely fantastic to work with and I highly recommend him for anyone in the DFW area needing a fitting – I would pay to visit him again without question. The fact that I had struggles outside was a good thing for me because Ryan saw what was happening and wanted to help me fix it and for that I can’t thank him enough!!
Random thoughts: as mentioned, we talked THP and the golf industry quite a bit. He mentioned TO (Tom Olavsky) being a BIG loss for TM when he moved to Cobra. He asked if I knew Harry Arnett (which I am lucky enough to have met) and said he is one of the funniest but also smartest guys that he has ever known. Said that Harry has respect in the industry beyond belief and is one guy you never want to speak after at a conference as you will be a “letdown” after Harry.
Onto some photos!!
Spoiler
