Fitting Experience at New York Golf Center

There's not a single golf course on the island of Manhattan, but that doesn't mean golfers have to jump on a train to get expert help with equipment.  In fact, those who live outside the city might want to head in for a fitting session at New York Golf Centers (NYGC).  The company this year joined with club-fitting giant Cool Clubs to provide state-of-the-art club fitting with spectacular technology and proprietary software.

I recently went through a driver fitting with Josh Chervokas, COO of NYGC and director of their custom shop. I knew it was time, given the fact that it's been three years since my last fitting and not only has club technology advanced in that time, my body has changed (not necessarily for the better). Not to worry, Josh said as we started, "Our goal is to create a club that fits your body, not make your body perform to your club's specifications."  Made sense to me, especially when he measured the driver I've been using and pointed out that the shaft is stiff-plus and the swing weight a hefty D6.  That worked fine in my youth, but given the health problems I experienced before this season started, it wasn't surprising I've lost a lot of yardage off the tee using that sledge hammer.

Using Trackman and Cool Club's technology, Josh found that my "smash factor" (the ratio of ball speed to swing speed) was excellent and my ball spin was acceptable. Where I would get lower scores was with a higher ball flight and less dispersion off the target line.  I might not pick up much total distance, but I'd spend a heck of a lot more time in the fairway.  Needless to say, that worked for me.

New York Golf Center has more than 12,000 demo combinations of club heads and shafts to try. Josh's expert eye narrowed those choices down to a select few for me and I tried a half-dozen combinations until he found one that produced the desired result. Once the correct fitting files were created, order fulfillment will take place at Cool Clubs' Scottsdale, AZ headquarters factory.  The system is a perfect fit for both companies--and for me.

"We are excited to be working with a true partner in Cool Clubs," Josh said. "Our company philosophies really meld well in that we are both always striving to be the best. And to this end, we have each achieved great individual success. Cool Clubs CEO Mark Timms and I are always exploring ways to improve, so I'm not just excited about the capabilities we have added now but also about the future innovations we can develop together. This partnership is great for us and for the industry as a whole, and it will be the driving force in custom fitting as we look to the future of the game."

Club fitting really isn't something you should think about--it's something you should do.  Properly-fitted clubs can erase strokes more quickly from your game like almost nothing else.  It's not an expensive luxury, either. A driver fitting at NYGC is only $125, which is pretty reasonable when you consider what you'd spend on the driver in the first place. Doesn't it make sense to buy one that sends the ball where and as far as you want it to go?

New York Golf Center is an eight-time winner of Golfworld's Top 100 award and the only Golf Digest Top 100 fitting center in New York City. There are two convenient locations and a third pro shop at Chelsea Piers.

Among many other books, Dave Donelson is the author of Weird Golf: 18 tales of fantastic, horrific, scientifically impossible, and morally reprehensible golf