Looking for the Perfect Driver? 

BY LARRY JONES

 You already own a $350 driver, but your golf game most of the time is only worth about 10 cents. Getting the latest big, big or bigger Bertha or a Titleist or TaylorMade driver with the head the size of a small headstone may or may not help your game, so what’s a player to do?

A wise choice would be to check out the latest in technology — and no we’re not talking specific clubs or balls. It’s called a Vector Launch System, and the one acquired by brothers Rob and Rick Stitzer of Tee to Green in Apex this spring is getting plenty of play.

“Customers are amazed at what this system can do,” said Rob Stitzer, the teacher pro at the practice facility off Highway 64. “It amazed Rick and I when we first saw it demonstrated — right then we knew it would be an effective tool to help a golfer improve his game.”

The Vector Launch System isn’t a teaching tool but rather a club-fitting, shaft-fitting and ball-fitting tool. The system’s exact measurements can scientifically evaluate the consistency of a golfer’s swing or the effect of spin rate on carry distance or rollout. It detects the effect of the slightest changes in grip, stance or swing.  

“Accurate club and ball fitting will give any golfer a competitive edge,” said Stitzer, “and what we’ve found thus far in just a couple of months is that we can learn enough about your game to increase your distance off the tee, for example, by up to 25 yards.”

Touted as the most precise instrument in ball-launch technology available, Vector gauges the speed, backspin, sidespin, vertical angle and side angle of every shot. Measurements are recorded from a machine stationed inches from where the ball is struck and displayed on a computer screen several feet away, providing results in seconds.

“Vector takes two pictures of the golf ball as it’s being hit,” Stitzer said. “It’s a process that usually takes about an hour to work effectively, depending on the skill of the player. We have you hit a shot, and we ask you if it was a solid hit — if it’s not a solid hit it won’t tell us much. Generally it takes about 10 or 15 balls to get a good feel for what the data is showing us.”

>From the readings, the Tee to Green staff can determine the best fit in clubs, shafts and even balls for the particular player. “For example,” Stitzer said, “if your ball speed is 130 — which is a little low — you’d want a higher launch angle and less spin to optimize your distance. Tiger Woods, to take one player, has real low ball spin because he has real high ball speed. It’s different for every golfer.”

Stitzer cites two examples of where the Vector system has helped players increased their driving distance by more than 20 yards. “I don’t want to use company names, but we had one golfer where all we had to do was put a heavier shaft in his driver,” he said. “His spin went from 3,800 RPMs to 3,100 RPMs, and you wouldn’t believe the difference on the back end of the ball (as it descends to the ground and begins to roll).

“Another guy, we fitted him with a different ball — one not that different from what he had been playing, but the ball he had been playing didn’t spin and launch correctly for him. He was amazed.”

Tee to Green charges $50 for a club fit and $25 for a ball fit. Reservations are encouraged and can be made by calling 919-362-1233. And on the happenstance that you end up buying a new driver that betters your game from the Tee to Green shop, the Stitzers will take $25 off.