Face progression on a persimmon driver

[KevCarter]

[quote name='Arafel' timestamp='1359307446' post='6308665']
[quote name='kevcarter' timestamp='1359036686' post='6288247']
RALPH Maltby = Club repair author extraordinaire
ROGER [b]Maltby[/b] = Michelob beer and telecasting

I alway get Ralph's first name wrong too... :-)
[/quote]

If we're taking the time to get everything right here, it's Roger [i][b]MALTBIE[/b][/i] not Maltby.
[/quote]

LOL. Good catch!!!

[majic]

I feel that there are many factors in head shape. If you look at the Long Nose woods of the feather era you will a lot have some concave look to the face and as they got to the gutty era they became a little flatter. Not much face progression as the feather ball launches high. The gutty being harder and much more lively the heads had more loft. As the socket head woods came into play most were pretty flat as Bella said and this was with the gutty. Some heads exhibit large face progression around 1900-1910. As the wound "bouncy" ball came into play you see less face progression and start of the bulge and roll. Some of the Spalding models in the early 30's are great shapes and were designed by J Victor East.
I have always felt that face progression had a lot to do with ball launch. This is true with woods and irons. This design feature of course has a lot to do with the ball played at the time.

[fluffy265]

Just bumping this old thread, some good info here. Been looking into the " how's & why's" concerning onset with persimmons.

Looking at my Penna TP1X I instantly noticed that it's shaft is more centred than anything else in my small collection.

 

J

[xgolfx]

I was told to think of a baseball bat when discussing bulge and roll. Do not confuse face progression with bulge and roll. When properly installed on a driver,the result will look like the driver I posted earlier on this site.

 

Do not confuse persimmon and metal wood stats and specs. Technique of the swing gives an entirely different result for each material.

 

Major League Baseball ( by luck or design) was fortunate to keep round wooden bats . If they allowed metal bats, the ballparks would have been made obsolete, In my opinion, the speed of the ball off a metal bat would cause injuries, possibly deaths.

 

I have discussed driving a golf ball versus hitting a baseball with hall of fame players. Ernie Banks hit over 500 home runs. When I played with him, he hit a tee shot over 275 yards with a persimmon Toney Penna model 65 driver. He was 76 years old at that time! He told me he controlled the flight of a baseball with the speed and release of his hands. He hit a golf ball with the same technique. The drives I saw him hit with a Tour Edge 10 degree driver that day were about the same length as the persimmon shots. He told me he tried to hit it in the heel to fade ,(toe side to hook) with metal.

 

John Daly hit the ball in the neck to fade his Wilson Whale driver when he won the Open playoff against Rocca.

 

I had Paul Azinger hit persimmon shots the year before he was Ryder Cup captain. He hit a MacGregor persimmon. Charley Penna 4 wood with a true temper dynamic s shaft about 230. When he hit drives with a Toney Penna model 65 with a TTW shaft 13 1/2 ounces, he hit low fades about 250. Zinger told me that he used persimmon drivers with 12 or 13 degree lofts because of his strong grip.

 

CHARLEY PENNA