Technology is still not all-inclusive in golf. Today, players still swing the club by themselves, but advances in equipment design and materials or monitoring devices have had a great impact on the sport in recent decades, helping to understand the game since the ages. data to enhance performance and correct deficiencies.
In 1997 Tiger Woods recorded 268 meters of average distance with the driver, while, until February 2021, Bryson DeChambeau it averaged 300 meters. In 2020 the highest average of a season of the PGA Tour registered with 271 meters.
“Technology is helping the sport these days, not only athletes, but also fine-tuning everything, TrackMan devices, Quads, Foresight, Flightscope, things like that that tell you and give you all the information without having to sit down. try to decipher it with your eyes, you have a machine and devices that tell you what to work on ”, he told The Economist, Patrick Reed, a 31-year-old golfer with more than 10 years of experience as a professional who is participating in the World Wide Technology de Mayakoba.
The American adds: “Everything is progressing, evolving and making the game easier to understand. Although it is a very difficult game no matter what device you use to make swings, but it is easier to understand what is causing certain things, I think that is why it is allowing golf to continue striving and continue to improve.
DeChambeau it is one of the quintessential examples of modern golf. Unlike the golfers of yesteryear, whose use of the gym was a paradigm and did not stand out for their physical conditions, the 26-year-old American finds a strong relationship between his strength and muscle mass with his swing. During the period of confinement due to the pandemic, the number 6 of the PGA Tour ranking showed that he was working at home with an HD golf simulator, a Flightscope launch monitor (used to diagnose the player’s swing) and a gym.
In addition to data software, the team has evolved alongside the approaches of the new generation of golfers. For example, the clubs introduce factors such as aerodynamics, component weight, and better graphite shafts to allow golfers to hit the ball further and straighter.
“Now it is very clear that it is about hitting as far as possible (…) This is how it is taught now. When I was little what I tried was to hit as hard as possible because I was very young and I needed that, but once I grew and became stronger, I evolved from how hard and far I hit him to hit him relatively far, it is a way of teaching young people. I also have to say that all the science and math of hitting the ball and different techniques was not necessary when I was growing up and that has changed, ”added Justin Thomas, the top ranked golfer in Mayakoba 2021.
No matter what country it is played in, all PGA golfers equip themselves with equipment to improve their chances. Nevertheless, Reed finds a deficiency in the use of technology, which has to do with access to it, making it an increasingly expensive sport to practice. The TrackMan device alone, which uses radar technology to provide a range of data about the club at the moment of impact and the flight of the ball, has prices that start at around $ 20,000, according to different websites.
“I think the most important thing is to have access, I think it’s one thing that everyone could do a little better. Golf is a very expensive and very isolated game, it is difficult for children or for people who cannot afford it, to go practice and improve at it. I think there could be more academies and accessibility to golf courses for kids and others to help them grow the game and use the technology, or not use it, but allow them to go practice and get into the sport, ”Reed said.
According to Golf.com, the annual expenses of a professional golfer can rise up to two million dollars and do not include elements such as technology, but rather lists aspects such as private chefs, trainers, physiotherapy massages, trainers, accommodations, trips and caddy.
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Reference-www.eleconomista.com.mx