Don Bonrud January 29th, 2012
The 2011 golf season saw the introduction of the color white in golf clubs and 
golf grips and it was an immediate hit. Well, the 2012 golf season is under way and the color white is still red hot and getting hotter. Birdieman Custom Clubs has added the new Turner T13 Adjustable Weight Driver. Long and accurate, the T13 incorporates adjustable weight technology that allows golfers to adjust the driver’s flight pattern. The aerodynamic design promotes increased club head speed for maximum distance. The titanium face is pushed to the USGA legal limit for spring like 
effect. The white crown and black club face improves confidence at address and also looks good in the bag. The T13 comes with two 1 gram weights pre-installed, one in the heel and one in the toe. It comes with two additonal weights, one eight gram and one two gram and also a wrench to change out the weights. Add the heavier weight to the heel to create a draw bias or to the toe to create a fade bias. Custom made, adjustable, long and good looking, the Turner T13 will help you find the fairways more often this golf season.
Don Bonrud December 31st, 2011
Whether you are new to the game of golf or just someone who plays a few times a season in that work outing or fund raising event, it is important to make the right choice when it comes to selecting irons.
Game improvement irons can offer help with some of the more common problems new or inexperienced golfers face when playing.
Here a some features that make an iron a “Game Improvement Iron“
Oversized Head. Has a larger sweet spot on the face which makes the club more forgiving on mis- hit shots.
Wider Sole. Helps prevent the club from digging into the turf at impact.
More offset between the club face and hosel. Helps square up the club face at impact and reduce the chance of pushed or sliced shots.
Thicker top line when looking down over the ball, which increases confidence. Confidence standing over the ball is very important. Think positive thoughts.
Increased lofts will help get the ball in the air.
Keep these features in mind when selecting a set of irons and you will make the game a little bit easier and a whole lot more enjoyable.
Don Bonrud November 30th, 2011
“Nothing can help my game.” “I’m such a bad golfer that it doesn’t matter if I get custom fit golf clubs.” In some respects what they are saying is true. Without a golf swing that is consistent and repeating, it is difficult to fit some of the finer golf club details. Having said that, there are some areas that can and should be addressed.
Driver and fairway woods need to be the correct length. Hitting a driver that is the proper length will increase the percentage of on center or at least near center hits on the club face. The goal should be to swing the longest club length that can be controlled. Driver loft is another area to focus on. A higher loft in the longer clubs such as the driver makes them easier to hit.
Having the right golf club set is a very important area to be addressed. This is true for all golfers but especially for beginners. The beginning golfer should not hit an iron longer than a 5 iron and even that could be replaced by a much easier to hit hybrid club. A suggested set could be a 3 and 4 hybrid, irons 5 through PW, driver and possibly a fairway wood such as a 5 wood.
Golf club weight is an area to focus on too. Lighter, flexible shafts make it easier to hit and control the golf club.
Grips that are sized correctly and are comfortable make a difference as well.
Don Bonrud October 27th, 2011
Two things most golfers have in common when using a hybrid golf club for the first time is that they don’t know where to position the ball in their stance or how to swing the club. There are a couple of ways to look at this. If the hybrid was built with the intention of replacing a long iron and was custom built to irons specifications the ball should be played more in the middle of your stance and swing into the ball with a descending blow just like you would an iron. If the hybrid was built more closely to the specifications of a fairway wood then the ball should be played a little forward of center in your stance and hit the ball at the bottom of your swing with more of a sweeping motion.
Give these tips a try. I think you will agree that hybrids are easy to hit and will help lower your golf scores.
Don Bonrud September 20th, 2011
The hottest fashion trend in golf clubs this season is the color white. Everywhere you look on the course you see golfers playing these hot, new, white clubs. Birdieman Custom Clubs has joined the party with the Snake Eyes 695 series white hybrid. But there’s a lot more to the new 695 series hybrid than the attractive white head. The 695 series hybrid combines a variable cup face that makes the sweet spot on the face of the golf club larger making it more forgiving on miss hit shots. It also has a removable rear sole weight to give you maximum trajectory, which adds up to more distance. We could all use a little more distance, right?
The Snake Eyes 695 hybrid is available for right hand players in lofts of 18, 21 and 24 degrees.
Don Bonrud July 22nd, 2011
So your favorite driver has developed an annoying rattle in the club head. What causes this sound? It is usually caused by a piece of epoxy that has broken loose inside the club head. There are a few options to fix this problem.
One option is to pull the shaft and drill down through the hosel into the head, once this is done shoot a small amount of Rattle Stop into the club head, shake the club head until the loose piece gets caught in the rattle stop goo, reshaft the golf club and you should be good to go.
The other option to fixing the rattle is to drill a small hole in the sole of the metal wood, insert the small plastic tube from the Rattle Stop and shoot some goo in the club head just like option number one. Once the rattle is gone epoxy a small shaft tip plug in the hole, snip off the excess plug, allow epoxy to set and sand down the plug smooth with the sole of the club head.
If you find this all a bit too much to try, you can always call an accredited clubmaker. That should take care of the rattle problem.
Don Bonrud May 29th, 2011
Founded in 1901 with only seven golfclubs, the
Minnesota Golf Association’s membership has grown to more than 400 clubs and 82,000 individual members throughout the state. Their mission is to uphold and promote the game of golf and its values for all golfers in Minnesota.
During the last one hundred years, the
MGA has held true to its beliefs and greatly enhanced the golfers, the courses and the game itself. During the early years, the
MGA’s primary function was to conduct the golf championshipss within the state. However, in the last several decades, the MGA has expanded its scope to include administering the
USGA Handicap System for Minnesota, publishing the Minnesota Golfer magazine six times a year, measuring and rating the golf courses in Minnesota, monitoring the state legislature to make sure the best interests of golf are served and supporting the game of golf in general.
Don Bonrud April 17th, 2011
The lie of a golf club is measured as the angle between the shaft and the ground while in the playing position. Golf clubs that are made longer will be more upright, which means that the toe of the golf club is off the ground with the heel of the club head on the ground. So then, a club that is shorter will be flatter, which means that the heel of the club head will be off the ground with the toe touching the ground. Therefore, longer clubs will usually need to be bent flatter and shorter clubs will usually need to be bent more upright. For every half-inch that a club is made longer the lie angle will become one degree more upright and for every half inch that a club is made shorter the lie angle will become one degree flatter.
Lie angle has an effect on the direction of the golf ball off of the clubface. A lie angle that is too upright will cause the shot to be pulled left of the intended target. A lie angle that is too flat will cause the shot to be pushed right of the intended target.
Lie angles can vary between manufacturers so a 5 iron from one company may be different then a 5 iron from another company.
Lie angles can typically be changed three degrees in either direction .
Custom club makers have special bending machines that are used to bend club heads.
A word of caution, club heads can break during the bending process so it is very important to have an experienced club maker handle this task.
Don Bonrud March 15th, 2011
The putter accounts for roughly 43% of the strokes in an average round of golf and is one of the most important clubs to fit. The average player will have in excess of 30 putting strokes per 18 hole round. Putting is the most individual part of the game with each and every player having his or her own putting style.
The most common type of putter is heel toe weighted with the other being face balanced. A player with a straight back and straight through stroke would benefit from a face balanced putter while a player with an in to in stroke would benefit from a heal balanced putter.
Blade, semi mallet and mallet putters are just a matter of personal preference.
Ideal putter fitting has the player’s eyes directly over the ball. If the putter is too short the eyes will be outside the putting line and if the putter is too long the eyes will be inside the putting line.
Weight is also a key factor in the performance of a putter. If you have a problem getting the ball to the hole, play on slow greens or have a quick putter stroke then you would benefit from a heavier putter. If you consistently hit past the hole or play on very fast greens then a lighter putter would be best for you.
The grip is also an important consideration. If you have a tendency to use your wrists in your putting stroke then a larger grip would work best for you.
Don Bonrud February 14th, 2011
Good question. While there are no golf industry standards for club length, there are averages used by club makers. Average driver lengths have increased through the years with the average length in the 1950’s being 43 inches; today it is 45 inches with ladies club lengths generally 1 inch shorter than men’s lengths. The maximum driver length allowed by the USGA is 48 inches.
Driver heads and graphite shafts are considerably lighter today which makes swinging a longer driver a little easier. It’s all about swing speed and control.
The first measurement to find is your wrist to floor measurement. This will give you your recommended club length, from there take an assessment of your swing characteristics, do you hit a straight ball or do you have a slice that you can’t control? The idea here is to be able to control the longest club possible. The longer the club the faster the swing speed and that translates into more distance, but uncontrollable distance is not a good thing. A shorter club is much easier to control and its a lot more fun playing from the fairway. So put away that ego and play a driver length that you can handle.
golf grips and it was an immediate hit. Well, the 2012 golf season is under way and the color white is still red hot and getting hotter. Birdieman Custom Clubs has added the new Turner T13 Adjustable Weight Driver. Long and accurate, the T13 incorporates adjustable weight technology that allows golfers to adjust the driver’s flight pattern. The aerodynamic design promotes increased club head speed for maximum distance. The titanium face is pushed to the USGA legal limit for spring like 
effect. The white crown and black club face improves confidence at address and also looks good in the bag. The T13 comes with two 1 gram weights pre-installed, one in the heel and one in the toe. It comes with two additonal weights, one eight gram and one two gram and also a wrench to change out the weights. Add the heavier weight to the heel to create a draw bias or to the toe to create a fade bias. Custom made, adjustable, long and good looking, the Turner T13 will help you find the fairways more often this golf season.
