The first year of golf, if anything else, is a quest for shortcuts. You begin that first year believing that "it can't be *that* hard once you have at it with any sort of consistency," and quickly realize that, yes, it is that hard. This inevitably prompts one to look for something to "speed up" (shortcut is such an ugly word) the process. Invariably, we look everywhere (informercials, sporting good stores, etc) we probably shouldn't when the best way to speed up that process is undoubtedly a package of lessons. But that requires the swallowing of pride, more than an hour and greatly more than 100 bucks in most instances. And this mindset is precisely what makers of golf training devices the world over prey on.
Still, lost amongst that deluge of contraptions, some pieces of equipment deliver. And the Tour Striker, as far as I'm concerned, is one of the better amongst those pieces. In the picture above you'll see a normal 8-iron to the left and the Tour Striker (mean to resemble the 8-iron in length, loft and lie) to its right. You'll immediately notice the stark difference in shape, particularly the "bulbous" lower portion of the clubface on the Tour Striker. Given that there is in effect no "lower" portion of the clubface, if you so much as catch the ball even slightly on the upswing, you'll hit a low, screaming worm-burner at best, or more likely a dribbling ground ball. Yes, this club makes you look foolish at the range.
Why, you ask, would a manufacturer do such a thing? Or why would a beginning golfer, already hiding in shadowy corners of the range to avoid looking foolish intentionally exacerbate that potential? The purpose is to provide instant and unmistakable feedback: if you try to catch the ball on the upswing as opposed to hitting down on the ball, with the hands ahead of the ball at impact, you'll catch it on the bulbous portion of the clubface, with the results pointed out above the inevitable result. Hit down on the ball correctly, however, and the ball flies just as well as your standard 8-iron.
What makes this so valuable in my opinion is that most beginner golfers don't have the slightest clue A) that you should be hitting down on the ball (i.e., the bottom of your swing plane/circle is actually ahead of the ball and not *at* that ball) or B) that they subconsciously continue to engage in attempts at scooping the ball even after learning "A." In "I'm a highly technical golfer with a highly polished golf vocabulary" circles, that's known as "flipping" at the ball. In short, flipping at the ball is the act of 'flicking' your wrists in the last millisecond of the swing because - whether you're consciously thinking this or not - your mind can not accept that the ball will get airborne unless you scoop it off the ground. While they may blame a multitude of different reasons, this is more often than not THE main culprit behind those shots that dig in to the ground well behind the ball and take more turf than titleist - when attempting to time a delicate wrist movement while the clubhead is traveling anywhere from 75 to 105 MPH you'll get away with it on occasion, but only on occasion.
The Tour Striker won't even allow you to get away with those occasions. If you flip in any way, shape or form, it lets you know right then and there. No video analysis, no feedback from an instructor (NOT that I'm advocating this as a substitute for an instructor) - just affirmation of a solid impact position (or lack thereof).
Now, all this is predicated on one caveat - though you'll hear me bemoan "mat" ranges all over this blog and encourage beginner golfers to get on turf as soon as possible, this is an absolute exception to that. The more firm of a surface you can hit off, the better. If you have a lie board, use that - otherwise, use the most worn, flat, "non-fluffy" range mat you can find. The reason should be evident in looking at the picture of the Tour Striker; if you can get away with letting that feedback-laden bulb slide under the ball because of soft, artificial mat grass, you've immediately mitigated - if not eliminated altogether - the merits of this club.
On my list of equipment that's worth it, this one is right at the very top. I highly recommend you give it a try. It's very reasonably priced given that it can provide weekly or even daily lessons ongoing in perpetuity once you've made the investment.
http://tourstriker.com/
Of course, I must caution you that clicking that link will lead you to a picture of Gary McCord, beaming that "there's candy in the van" smile. But if I can still recommend you click that link, then that should further support how much faith I have in this product to be of value to a golfer trying to cross from beginner to intermediate.
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