GB72
Money List Winner
Sorry that my report on my day with Adams Golf is a bit late but I needed to wait until I was on a proper PC as I did not fancy trying to write this on my phone.
Firstly a massive thanks to GM, to Adams and to David Howell for what was an excellent day.
I did take a little while deciding whether to apply for this day. Having previously got my handicap down to 14, I spent much of last year thinking about moving away from Game Improvement kit but a succession of .1s made me reassess my position. I read a lot about what Adams was looking to achieve with the new range and realised that, actually, it probably suits me better than trying to move in the other direction. I do little practice and play with whatever swing I happen to have on any given day. Most importantly, however, I play for fun. On that basis, the idea of a set of clubs that were designed to take on the course and hit, designed to make the game as easy as possible seemed to fit my profile better than I thought. At my level, with a changeable swing, I also began to think how much difference and all singing, all dancing after market shaft in a fully adjustable club would make to me and I had to conclude it was not very much. I was very honest in my thoughts when I submitted my application to Mike and admitted that what I had to say could very much write me out of the running but it appears that Mike must have agreed with my thinking as I was lucky enough to get picked.
So, on the day I turned up far too early, I left a couple of hours for traffic on the M25 and there was none and so I turned up at 8.20 for a 10.20 start. Luckily the GM and Adams lads were already there and so after a chat with everyone I watched them film some swing videos with David Howell whilst I waited for the others to turn up. At this stage I should mention what others have said, that David Howell is about the nicest bloke you could meet and such a consummate professional. He chatted away, showed a total interest in my golf game and seemed to nail all of his videos first go.
Once everyone had arrived, we had a brief talk on what the new Blue range was aiming to achieve and I honestly felt it was a breath of fresh air against a background of custom fit this and adjustable that which can make the game more complicated than it needs to be. It was them upstairs to the top level of the range for some photos and then a chance to test the new range.
After a few slightly worrying duffs, I was soon hitting the Adams clubs as well as my own ones. They really are that forgiving and every shot had a high and long ball flight. The hybrids, as you would expect with Adams, were standout clubs for me but all of the range filled me with confidence, looked good and would find a place in my bag.
It was then on to a lesson with David Howell. I was last to go and, admittedly, nervous as hell. He put me at ease pretty quickly before describing my back swing as being so quick it was like an axe murderer and was quite scary. Needless to say we worked on temp, aim and also changing the position of my hands at the top of my backswing as this was causing my occasional hook. By the end of the lesson I was hitting the ball far better and this has already translated well on the course.
After the lesson it was time for a Q&A session with David Howell. He was willing to answer pretty much everything and gave some good replies to my questions about the withdrawals from the BMW at Wentworth (a tournament he seems particularly fond of) and also my questions on whether 72 hole strokeplay was the best format to attract a larger viewing audience to golf on TV.
After the Q&A lunch was on offer but being a bank holiday weekend I sadly took the sensible option and headed for the M25 to beat the traffic (I failed and it took 4 hours to get back).
It was a superb day. Forget the new clubs (which I cannot wait for them to arrive), the unforgettable part was having that close access to a Tour Pro, to chat away as if you had known him for years and to have him show an honest interest in my swing and how to improve it. GM and Adams were superb hosts and this will be one experience that I will not forget.
Firstly a massive thanks to GM, to Adams and to David Howell for what was an excellent day.
I did take a little while deciding whether to apply for this day. Having previously got my handicap down to 14, I spent much of last year thinking about moving away from Game Improvement kit but a succession of .1s made me reassess my position. I read a lot about what Adams was looking to achieve with the new range and realised that, actually, it probably suits me better than trying to move in the other direction. I do little practice and play with whatever swing I happen to have on any given day. Most importantly, however, I play for fun. On that basis, the idea of a set of clubs that were designed to take on the course and hit, designed to make the game as easy as possible seemed to fit my profile better than I thought. At my level, with a changeable swing, I also began to think how much difference and all singing, all dancing after market shaft in a fully adjustable club would make to me and I had to conclude it was not very much. I was very honest in my thoughts when I submitted my application to Mike and admitted that what I had to say could very much write me out of the running but it appears that Mike must have agreed with my thinking as I was lucky enough to get picked.
So, on the day I turned up far too early, I left a couple of hours for traffic on the M25 and there was none and so I turned up at 8.20 for a 10.20 start. Luckily the GM and Adams lads were already there and so after a chat with everyone I watched them film some swing videos with David Howell whilst I waited for the others to turn up. At this stage I should mention what others have said, that David Howell is about the nicest bloke you could meet and such a consummate professional. He chatted away, showed a total interest in my golf game and seemed to nail all of his videos first go.
Once everyone had arrived, we had a brief talk on what the new Blue range was aiming to achieve and I honestly felt it was a breath of fresh air against a background of custom fit this and adjustable that which can make the game more complicated than it needs to be. It was them upstairs to the top level of the range for some photos and then a chance to test the new range.
After a few slightly worrying duffs, I was soon hitting the Adams clubs as well as my own ones. They really are that forgiving and every shot had a high and long ball flight. The hybrids, as you would expect with Adams, were standout clubs for me but all of the range filled me with confidence, looked good and would find a place in my bag.
It was then on to a lesson with David Howell. I was last to go and, admittedly, nervous as hell. He put me at ease pretty quickly before describing my back swing as being so quick it was like an axe murderer and was quite scary. Needless to say we worked on temp, aim and also changing the position of my hands at the top of my backswing as this was causing my occasional hook. By the end of the lesson I was hitting the ball far better and this has already translated well on the course.
After the lesson it was time for a Q&A session with David Howell. He was willing to answer pretty much everything and gave some good replies to my questions about the withdrawals from the BMW at Wentworth (a tournament he seems particularly fond of) and also my questions on whether 72 hole strokeplay was the best format to attract a larger viewing audience to golf on TV.
After the Q&A lunch was on offer but being a bank holiday weekend I sadly took the sensible option and headed for the M25 to beat the traffic (I failed and it took 4 hours to get back).
It was a superb day. Forget the new clubs (which I cannot wait for them to arrive), the unforgettable part was having that close access to a Tour Pro, to chat away as if you had known him for years and to have him show an honest interest in my swing and how to improve it. GM and Adams were superb hosts and this will be one experience that I will not forget.
