In this podcast excerpt, Henrik Jentsch analyzes the evolution of driving distance on the PGA Tour and questions its true impact on scoring and dominance. While modern professionals hit the ball farther than ever before, distance alone has not become a guarantee for success. By contrasting elite power hitters such as Rory McIlroy with more balanced, consistency-driven players like Scottie Scheffler, the core message becomes clear: precision, decision-making, and strategy remain the foundations of elite performance.

Since the mid-1990s, average driving distance on the PGA Tour has risen dramatically—from roughly 260 meters (285 yards) to just under 303 meters (331 yards) today. The first major jump came with the introduction of titanium drivers and multi-layer golf balls, which replaced wooden heads and older ball constructions. However, the most recent gains, particularly since around 2015, are not tied to a single innovation. Instead, they result from a synergy of several developments.

Modern equipment is now highly optimized, with refined shaft profiles, advanced head geometry, and improved ball aerodynamics. At the same time, launch monitors and AI-based analysis tools provide precise, individualized feedback, allowing players to fine-tune their swings with measurable accuracy. Sports science and biomechanics have also transformed coaching. Rather than simply encouraging players to swing harder, modern training helps athletes understand their bodies and identify their most efficient movement patterns.

Despite these gains, the comparison between McIlroy and Scheffler underlines an important truth. McIlroy is one of the longest hitters on Tour and succeeds because he combines power with precision and a strong short game. Scheffler, on the other hand, ranks well below the Tour’s longest drivers yet has become the most dominant and consistent player due to elite ball-striking, control, and scoring efficiency. Distance, therefore, is only one piece of a much larger performance puzzle.

The discussion also extends to course design. Simply lengthening golf courses tends to favor long hitters even more, widening the gap between player types. Smarter architecture—featuring strategic landing zones, narrower fairways, and meaningful risk-reward decisions—places a premium on accuracy and intelligence rather than raw power.

Ultimately, the modern distance boom is best understood not as a power race, but as the result of integrated technology, data, and biomechanics. The future of competitive balance in golf lies not in swinging faster, but in playing smarter.

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Consistent and powerful ball striking depends primarily on precise clubface control. This control is largely determined by the lead hand and wrist, as the back of the left hand directly mirrors the orientation of the clubface. The key difference between professionals and amateurs is not strength, but the timing and sequence of three specific wrist movements.

The Professional SequenceElite players execute these movements in a clear and deliberate order:

• Flexion: During the transition from the backswing to the downswing, the left wrist is flexed to establish the correct clubface angle early.

• Ulnar Deviation (Unhinging): This is followed by a controlled downward hinging of the wrist, which begins to release stored energy.

• Supination: Only very late does the wrist rotate, squaring the clubface precisely at impact.

This sequence—flexion, unhinging, supination—ensures efficient energy transfer and delivers the clubface square to the ball.

The Typical Amateur SequenceMany amateurs reverse this order:

• Casting: The wrist hinge is released too early.

• Early Opening: The clubface opens during the downswing.

• Late Correction: Attempts to square the face occur too late to be effective.

The result is an open clubface, glancing contact, and shots that drift to the right.

Core PrincipleThe back of the left hand acts as the “navigation system” for the clubface. Every movement of the hand directly changes the clubface orientation. Mastering the correct sequence automatically leads to better clubface control.

AnalogyLike snapping a whip or cracking a towel, the “snap” only occurs when tension is maintained until the final moment and then released with precision. Releasing too early destroys both energy and direction.

Modern motion analysis tools make this sequence measurable and allow it to be trained with precision.

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Understanding Rule 19.3b – When a Bogey is a Victory

Golf is a game of decisions, and sometimes the smartest one is knowing when not to play the hero shot.

Imagine this: you've just hit a firm putt from the green, but the ball runs past the hole, catches the slope, and rolls off into a deep greenside bunker. Welcome to Pinehurst No. 2 – or any course with slick, crowned greens.

Now what?

Most golfers instinctively reach for the sand wedge and prepare for a high-tension bunker shot. But there’s a better way — and it’s perfectly legal.

Rule 19.3b of the Rules of Golf allows you to declare the ball unplayable and return to your previous spot — in this case, back on the putting green — with a one-stroke penalty.

This rarely used option offers two massive advantages:

1. Risk Mitigation

Bunker shots from just off the green are notoriously difficult. You often have a steep lip, little green to work with, and soft sand that punishes even slight errors.

• Hit it fat? You’re still in the bunker.
• Hit it thin? The ball sails over the green.
• Try to be perfect? You might compound the error.

By invoking Rule 19.3b, you eliminate these high-risk variables completely. You remove the chance of turning a three-putt into a triple bogey.

2. Restoration of Control

Going back to your original spot on the green lets you reset the situation. Yes, you're now putting for bogey — but you’re doing it from a familiar position with no bunkers, no slopes, no drama.

This isn’t giving up — it's gaining control. And in golf, control is everything.

Think of it like paying a small insurance fee to avoid the risk of disaster. You trade one stroke to avoid the chaos that often follows a high-tension recovery shot. It’s a decision rooted in course management, self-awareness, and emotional intelligence.

As one coach put it:

“It’s like a video game undo button. You rewind to just before the mistake — but you pay a small price to do it.”

How It Works – Quick Summary of Rule 19.3b

• Ball rolls off the green into a bunker
• Your previous stroke was from the putting green
• You declare the ball unplayable
• You place the ball back at your original putting spot
• You add one penalty stroke

You’re now putting again, with full control — and likely walking away with bogey, not double or worse.

In the End...

Strategic players aren’t always the ones who take the boldest shots — they’re the ones who know when not to. Rule 19.3b gives you the power to take back control, avoid disaster, and protect your scorecard from spiraling out of control.

Because sometimes, the smartest bogey is the one you choose.

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Modern golf club fitting often relies on a convenient shortcut: testing a single club—typically a 7-iron—and extrapolating its results to an entire iron set. From a scientific and performance perspective, this approach is fundamentally flawed.

Iron sets are not collections of identical tools. Each club is engineered for a distinct functional role. Long irons are designed to maximize launch and carry with lower lofts and longer shafts. Mid-irons balance distance and control. Wedges prioritize spin, trajectory control, and precision. Because design elements such as loft, shaft length, center of mass, face construction, sole geometry, and offset change progressively through the set, a 4-iron is structurally and functionally different from a pitching wedge. Testing one club cannot verify whether critical performance elements are missing or compromised elsewhere in the set.

Biomechanics further invalidate single-club fitting. A golfer’s motion adapts naturally to different clubs. A 7-iron swing is not a 4-iron swing. Ball position shifts, swing length and tempo change, and key impact variables—angle of attack, dynamic loft, spin rate, and launch window—vary throughout the bag. Expecting one data point to represent these changing interactions ignores basic physics and human movement patterns.

The most significant consequence is poor distance gapping. When only one iron is tested, gaps across the set are assumed rather than verified. Golfers may never realize that their long irons launch too low, spin too little, or fall out of the air prematurely, or that short irons overlap in distance. These issues often remain hidden until real-world play exposes them.

Single-club fitting persists not because it is optimal, but because it is efficient, scalable, and easy to explain. Visual uniformity in modern iron sets reinforces the illusion that all clubs behave similarly, masking critical internal differences. Manufacturers and fitters are aware that this approach is a compromise rather than best practice, yet it remains the standard because consumers rarely challenge it.

True iron optimization requires evaluating the set as a complete system. Precision is not achieved by estimation. It is achieved by verifying how every club performs and how all clubs work together.

The future of fitting will not change because technology improves.
It will change when golfers stop accepting shortcuts—and start demanding proof.

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This Podcast describes how controlling the nervous system is central to consistent performance in precision sports like golf. High arousal—caused by fear, anger, excitement, or future-focused thinking—disrupts coordination, tempo, and concentration. The key to peak performance lies in balancing the two branches of the autonomic nervous system: the sympathetic (arousal) and the parasympathetic (relaxation).

The sympathetic system acts as the body’s accelerator. When activated, it increases heart rate, blood pressure, muscle tension, and breathing speed. Mentally, it leads to sensory overload: the brain processes too much information at once, making it difficult to focus on a single task. In golf, this results in rushed swings, loss of fine motor control, blurred vision, and racing thoughts. Common triggers include worrying about scores, reacting to mistakes, fear of judgment, and even positive excitement after good shots.

The parasympathetic system is the counterbalance. It slows the body down, relaxes muscles, restores normal breathing, and quiets the mind. This state enables selective attention—blocking out distractions like hazards or leaderboards—and supports a calm, “one-shot-at-a-time” focus. Most players perform best in this controlled, relaxed state, although a small group of naturally under-aroused athletes may need mild stimulation.

Breathing is the main switch between these systems. Fast, shallow breathing activates arousal, while deep diaphragmatic breathing—especially with an exhale twice as long as the inhale—interrupts the stress chain and restores calm. Because physiological reactions form a chain, changing breathing alone can stabilize the entire system.

The Podcast identifies four primary causes of arousal:

1. Future thinking (scores, results, outcomes)

2. Anger from blocked goals or mistakes

3. Fear of failure or judgment

4. Excitement, which creates the same physiological response as fear

All four press the “gas pedal” of the nervous system, increasing speed but reducing control.

To manage arousal, nine practical strategies are outlined: deep breathing, slowing physical movement, mindfulness, visualization, consistent routines, stretching, upright posture, biofeedback awareness, and confidence built through preparation. Together, these habits replace “hit and hope” reactions with calm, intentional execution. Peak performance emerges not from intensity, but from composure under pressure.

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In this instructional guide, Henrik Jentsch explains that successful golf shots depend far more on mental visualization than on focusing on a specific spot on the ball. Instead of fixating on mechanics or ball contact, golfers should mentally rehearse the entire shot before swinging.

Effective visualization means creating a complete mental “movie” of the shot: the starting line, trajectory, height, curvature (draw, fade, or straight), and landing point. This process reduces uncertainty and physical tension, replacing rushed or forced swings with a clear objective. Visualization also engages multiple senses—seeing the flight, hearing the sound of impact, feeling the club move through the ball, and sensing the contact on the clubface.

Visualization also serves as feedback from the body. If a player intends to hit a draw but can only visualize a fade, this indicates what movement feels most natural at that moment. Rather than forcing the original plan, performance improves when the golfer adjusts strategy to match the visualized shot. On the course, the priority is to work with what feels available that day; technical changes can be practiced later on the range.

Once the visual picture is clear, execution becomes reactive rather than mechanical. The golfer stops consciously manipulating the swing and instead reacts to the mental image. This alignment between mind and body leads to better contact, improved decision-making, and more consistent results.

For players who prefer a visual reference at address, visualization can guide where to focus. To hit a draw, one might visualize the divot moving slightly to the right and focus on the inside of the ball. For a fade, the image shifts to the outside of the ball with the divot moving left. The key is that the focus supports the intended picture, not replaces it.

Mental visualization works like entering a destination into a GPS before driving. Without a route, decisions are hesitant and erratic. With a clear route, movement becomes smooth and confident. Likewise, a golfer should never swing until the picture is clear. When the mind knows exactly what it wants to see, the body can simply respond.

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Professional golf is entering the 2026 season in a phase of rapid evolution, driven by ranking alignment, roster movement, and new competition formats. The biggest structural shifts are happening inside LIV Golf, while relations between tours appear to be gradually softening.

LIV Golf: Alignment and Expansion
LIV is making a clear pivot toward traditional tour standards. The headline change is the move from 54 holes to a full 72-hole format starting in 2026. This is widely viewed as an attempt to better match Official World Golf Ranking (OWGR) expectations, especially after OWGR introduced a policy where accredited 54-hole events receive reduced points compared with 72-hole tournaments. By adopting the standard format, LIV aims to strengthen its case for broader ranking legitimacy and improve players’ long-term access to major qualification pathways.

Alongside the format change, LIV is expanding its competitive structure. The regular-season field will increase from 48 to 57 players, spread across 13 teams, creating more roster spots. To fill them, LIV has upgraded its qualifying pathway. The LIV Golf Promotions event (January 8–11, 2026) will now award three wild-card places for the 2026 season (previously two), reinforcing a more performance-based entry route. This system also allows relegated LIV players and contenders from other tours to compete directly for status.

Cross-tour integration and cooperation
A key theme for 2026 is increased connectivity between tours. The DP World Tour has signaled a more flexible stance by confirming it will not penalize members for playing the LIV Promotions event, and it deliberately avoided scheduling a conflict that week. LIV’s partnership link with the Asian Tour remains important as well, with top finishers in Promotions earning exemptions into International Series events, strengthening the “global pathway” model. While official PGA Tour policies still stand, public comments from major figures suggest the tone is becoming more pragmatic regarding possible returns under defined conditions.

Player movement and emerging talent
The offseason is also marked by major career decisions. Brooks Koepka is leaving LIV at the end of 2025, citing family priorities, and Talor Gooch will take over as captain of Smash GC in 2026. On the women’s side, veteran Pernilla Lindberg is stepping away from full-time competition as she prepares for motherhood. At the same time, new talent continues to rise through development systems worldwide. A clear example is Zhou Yanhan, who earned a full DP World Tour card via the China Tour after a dominant season that included seven victories and the Order of Merit title.

New formats: TGL
Beyond outdoor tours, the calendar is expanding with tech-driven products. TGL, backed by Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy, adds an arena-style, media-friendly indoor league running alongside the traditional season—offering a distinct entertainment format and a new commercial lane for the sport.

Overall, 2026 looks like a shift toward standardization, clearer merit-based entry, and a broader ecosystem where tours compete, collaborate, and innovate at the same time.

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This podcast explores the concept of swingweight in golf and clarifies a common misconception: swingweight is not a measure of how heavy a club is, but how its weight is distributed. More accurately, swingweight describes club balance rather than total mass.

In the traditional Lorythmic system, swingweight is measured around a fixed fulcrum point located 14 inches from the butt end of the grip. The result is expressed on an alphanumeric scale from A0 to G0. The higher the letter and number, the more weight is distributed toward the clubhead relative to that fulcrum. Because the system is based on leverage, two clubs can share the same swingweight while having completely different total weights and very different feels.

This distinction is critical. Swingweight tells you where the weight is, not how much weight there is. A modern lightweight iron can have a higher swingweight than a heavier traditional iron if more mass is positioned toward the head. This is why total weight, swingweight, and balance point must always be evaluated together.

Swingweight is influenced by several variables:

• Head weight: Every 2 grams added to the head equal 1 swingweight point.

• Shaft weight: Every 7 grams equal 1 point.

• Grip weight: Every 4–5 grams lower the swingweight by 1 point.

• Club length: Every ½ inch change alters swingweight by approximately 3 points.

• Lie angle: 3° flatter adds 1 point; 3° upright subtracts 1 point.

Among these, club length and head weight have the greatest impact because they change leverage around the fulcrum. Lengthening a club dramatically increases swingweight even without adding mass, which is why blindly chasing a “standard” swingweight (such as D0) often leads to poor results.

Swingweight also affects feel and performance. Higher swingweights generally make the shaft feel more flexible and the club feel heavier at the top of the swing. Aggressive or hand-dominant players often benefit from higher swingweights, while lighter swingweights can help less-skilled golfers generate more clubhead speed. However, identical swingweight numbers do not guarantee identical feel or performance.

This leads to one of the biggest misconceptions in golf equipment: the idea of a universal “standard” swingweight. These standards were created when club lengths were uniform. In modern fitting, forcing a club back to a target swingweight after changing length often disrupts total weight balance and reduces performance.

The key takeaway is simple: swingweight is a balance metric, not a performance guarantee. Proper clubfitting must prioritize the individual golfer’s movement pattern, strength, and tempo—integrating swingweight with total weight, MOI, and balance point—to achieve consistent ball striking and optimal speed.

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