OPA

Optimal Performance for Elite Juniors

Getting junior golfers the right golf set has always been a difficult and demanding task. There is virtually no common knowledge base to begin with, and it is even more difficult when it comes to finding the right club-components for aspiring and improving junior golfers.

In most cases, parents have to rely on ready-made (or off-the-shelf) sets, which are meant for the mass market. Or they could be literally cut down from any ladies’ set in order to obtain some form of clubs for their children.

I started fitting juniors more than a decade ago and have found nothing suitable in the beginning. Heads and shafts were too heavy, and even getting the right length club was rarely possible. This was because the available measurements for children’s sets that existed then were generally incorrect. This was because such measurements were compiled by people who did not really understand the relevance and applicability of a child’s height, weight, physical abilities, swing types and inherent strength of any junior golfer to his/her overall swing mechanics and capabilities. In the last 13 years, we have improved on our knowledge, data set and video analysis of junior golfers’ swings. Therefore we have successfully fitted juniors across the USA, Europe and predominately Asia.

Our Mission

Fitting for Performance

Enabling the junior golfer to play better and compete with a better chance of winning has been the mission of how we started. That has always been our mantra and the driving force of how we want the child to grow into a competitive golfer.

Our approach for optimized performance takes an integrated approach for golf fitness, swing, short-game, mental training and clubs. Unlike sales-motivated fitting, our concept of fitting is not about finding solutions around the best three shots out of ten, but rather focused on finding where the weaknesses are and finding better and mid to long-term solutions.

Our players have gone on to win at the highest level on the word stage and these include IMG World, FCG, Callaway-FCG, US Kids International. Some of those who started earlier have gone on to pursue highly successful professional golfing careers.

Fitting for Continuous Development & Improvement

Junior golfers grow at an unpredictable rate and coupled with diet and growth spurts, it makes keeping up a tough act for parents. Hence it is only natural that a lot of junior golfers out there are not properly fitted.

It has always been a Catch-22 situation with us but if we look at this objectively, it might be best to fit elite junior golfers for up to 3 inches of growth initially, instead of giving them longer clubs and hope they will grow into them.

Getting the right length clubs will enable your child to adopt the best position for impact, and thus optimizing their performance. Too many parents, players and even coaches I have met in the last decade have insisted that longer clubs means longer distance. This singularly, and in context, cannot be further from the truth.

In reality and proven scientifically, the best striking position is a result of the right AOA (angle of attack), smash factor, use of ground force, and getting the club head square at impact. To do so, the clubs have to be built correctly to length, weight and flex so that optimal performance can be achieved.

We have built a 40-inch 7 iron (the standard length is 37 inches) that weights 485g in total. It is meant to give parents a taste of what your child is experiencing and why they cannot achieve the basic perimeters for getting into the right striking position.

Finally, we would also like to highlight that most fitting charts for junior branded clubs are a scaled-down version of adult club measurements and these are flawed. Junior golfers below 15 years of age do not have the body proportions of adults. Their head, torso and legs develop at different rates and these factors have a big impact on how clubs need to be optimized for juniors. It should not be scaled-down from a standard adult measurement chart.

Our Process

How and Where Do We Begin

Fitting your child starts from us getting an insight into his game, and his attitude towards the game, and even wider aspects related to other aspects of his/her life. Besides information such as physical and club data, we like to know why he or she wants to compete, their attitude on working towards their goals, and their tolerance towards training and other physical fitness and games.We will start with connecting preferably on quick messenger platforms such as WhatsApp or Messenger. You will be asked for physical and club data, as well as provide video recordings of your child’s swing. It is also important to assess your child’s current golf set and we would need those data as we work on comparing what he/she has in the bag versus what should be in that bag.

From the information provided, we can map out a detailed club configuration that’s customized to optimize your child performance. It will take into consideration their range of swing mobility, physical build and abilities as well as their current set of clubs.

It’s the first step in determining if the player is playing with the right weight, length, and type of clubs Success or failure can be established and we can work towards optimal performance.

Gathering and Using Data


Physical

  • Height (in inches)
  • Floor to wrist (in inches)
  • Floor to elbow (in inches)
  • Weight (in pounds or kgs)

Clubs

  • Driver, Fairway wood and 7 iron length (in inches)
  • Total weight of Driver, Fairway wood, 7 iron and Swingweight (in grams)

Videos

  • Driver or Fairway wood (at least two shots each)
  • 7 iron (at least two shots each)

You are welcome to send us more videos and it does not have to be perfect shots with the best results. If we can see both good and bad results, it will help us gather more information.

An additional video of your child telling us about who he or she is, why they want to be a golfer and why they like to compete in this game will be great. It’s not mandatory but it would provide us with a bigger insight into his or her game.

Due Diligence

Testing the Water

We are not your typical sales person at the golf store who will jump at every opportunity to sell you a set of clubs. We want to collect as much information as we can before we actually provide a clear, honest and unbiased opinion about your son or daughter’s equipment. We will also want you to do your due diligence, so that we can explore ways to work together towards better performance, and deliver a set of clubs that’s geared towards making your child’s game better.

Hence the fitting process can vary from days to weeks and even months before a decision is made. Before that decision is made to invest in a set of clubs that’s going to help your child’s performance, we will recommend that we build a test club for your child to trial for a short period. Your child can test the club, and you can assess its suitability. We also encourage having his or her coach take an objective view on the clubs.

It may take a longer time, but you will have a better idea towards optimal performance. By the same token, if we feel that your child is not ready to get new clubs, or are doing fine with their existing sets, we will be the first to tell you that.

Building the Clubs and Delivery

It usually takes a few days for us to gather the information and then create a configured set of clubs that based on your child’s desired specifications. We might ask for additional information if we need more clarity. All the specs should be ready for you in under a week.

It takes no more than two days for us to build the test club and have it ready for shipping to you.

Worldwide shipping is capped at US$60 per club.

Key Considerations

Keeping Pace with Growth and Development

As we are working with Elite Junior Golfers, they will develop physically and improve on their range of movements. Hence, we do not believe in building clubs longer than necessary so that your child will grow into them eventually. An inch over our recommended length is within tolerance but we will need to seek your supervision to ensure that your child is choking down the grip to the right length. Our charts have already factored in half to three quarters of an inch additional length so there is no need to be too ambitious in building and offering a longer club.

A longer club does not always produce longer distances, but optimal impact will always result in better control, trajectory and distance in golf. Optimal impact starts with the right weight, length, flex and lie angle and that is the recipe for optimal performance.

We have a programme to help you reduce your costs when your child needs to progress to longer clubs. In its current state, the shaft can be extended by 1½ inches without any issues. This can be adjusted at your local club fitter. If your child has outgrown the shaft length, weight and flex, within the year from optimization of their equipment, we have their club specifications on record. We can offer you a 35% discount for the next level of shaft, so you are price protected for such growth spurts within a period of optimization.

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