Click on the following links to recent articles regarding Lovett Golf Company!
The Detroit News: Wedge reduces drag, twisting
PGA.com: Dentist's wish to help his son leads to the creation of the Lovett Wedge
Golfbiz.net: June 09, 2003 issue; Beauty is in the eye of the beholder
Wednesday, May 14, 2003
Equipment corner
Wedge reduces drag, twistingBy Vartan Kupelian / The Detroit News
Dr. Bill Lovett, a practicing Florida dentist, is the inventor of the Lovett Wedge, which is designed to get out of deep rough or sand without the difficulties that plague many golfers -- shanks, skulls, flyers and smothered shots.
The leading edge of the Lovett Wedge is curved ahead of the hosel to reduce drag and prevent the opening or closing of the clubface. The wedge is designed to allow a player to make cleaner contact from rough or sand without having to modify the swing.
The various radiuses of the sole were created to permit only the center of the sole to contact the surface, minimizing drag and keeping the club traveling toward the target. The club's mass behind the sole helps drive through sand and rough, and a higher center of gravity causes the ball to roll up the clubface for better loft and more backspin control.
The Tour Standard wedge has 59 degrees of loft, the Tour Lob 63 degrees -- each with 4 degrees bounce, 64-degree lie and D4 swing weight. Suggested retail prices are $100 with steel shaft and $120 with graphite shaft.
Special
to The Detroit News
The Lovett Wedge has
a suggested retail price of $100 with steel shaft.
Dentist's wish to help his son leads to
the creation of the Lovett Wedge
Lovett hand-carved a piece of dental stone into the shape he wanted
and took it to a master mold maker, who made samples.
Dentist's wish to help his son leads to the creation of the Lovett Wedge
Lovett hand-carved a piece of dental stone into the shape he wanted and took it to a master mold maker, who made samples.
By Steve Pike, PGA.com Senior Writer
06.24.2003 05:56 pm (EST)It's not unusual that some of the best ideas and innovations come from individuals who are simply looking for a better way to perform or a better performing product. With that in mind, we bring you the Lovett Wedge, brainchild of Naples, Fla., dentist Dr. Bill Lovett.
A scratch player and former captain of the Auburn golf team, Lovett designed the wedge to help his son Preston, who has a debilitating muscle disease, play with greater comfort, particularly out of the rough and bunkers.
Lovett hand-carved a piece of dental stone into the shape he wanted and took it to a master mold maker, who made several samples. Preston Lovett, the story goes, began playing so well with the club that it created a demand.
A little more tweaking produced the Lovett Wedge as it exists today -- a club with a leading edge that is curved ahead of the hosel to reduce drag and prevent the opening or closing of the clubface when impacting any surface.
The various radiuses of the sole, according to Lovett, were created to permit only the center of the sole to contact the ground or sand, thereby minimizing drag and keeping the club traveling on line through any medium.
This permits the club to travel through the shot after impact, eliminating any need to open the face, Lovett said. Opening the face, according to Lovett, diminishes the effectiveness of the shot.
In addition, much of the weight in the Lovett Wedge is in the top center portion of the face, which Lovett said allows it to propel through any resistant surface, such as grass and sand, with half the effort.
"When you hit through the rough or the sand, you play (the club) square," said Jim Stewart, Senior Vice President of Lovett Golf Company. "That negates through the rough any of the grass grabbing the hosel because the hosel is on the center line almost to the face.
"As the radius sole starts to go through the grass, the best analogy I can give is like an old cow catcher moving the grass aside. Clearing the grass so the ball gets on the face. You can walk in the bunker and hit the same shot."
Lovett Wedges (suggested retail price ($99 steel and $119 graphite) have showed up in the bags of players on the Champions Tour and LPGA Tour. And several weeks ago, the company kicked off an infomercial campaign to help take the product national.
BEAUTY IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER:
Often times in designing golf equipment aesthetics plays more of a role than companies are willing to admit on the record. Lovett Golf has developed a wedge that may not be as pleasing to the eye as some but it will make a difference on the scorecard. “If you take 20 minutes and practice with our wedge, it will improve your short game 100 percent,” said Jim Stewart, president of Lovett Golf. “There is nothing new to learn with the club. It is built to accommodate the shot that has already been learned. On bunker shots, you don’t have to point your body to the right. Just aim at the pin and it will go there. You don’t have to open the face of the wedge either. Just hit the ball as you normally would and the club will do the rest.”
The leading edge of the wedge’s face, described, as face progression is part of the dual patented design to create consistent contact with the ball in the rough and sand. This design also clears the rough and allowing the ball to contact the face for a clean shot without the hosel being caught in the rough and turning the face closed. The radius sole minimizes the drag found with traditional wedges. Less drag means less effort and a smoother swing, which allows the average player to be more consistent and develop confidence to hit these often frustrating shots. “We have found that it takes half the effort with our club to get the same distance as a traditional wedge,” Steward remarked. According to Stewart, the product has enjoyed success through word of mouth and it is especially popular with women and senior players. The majority of people that own a Lovett wedge have a double-digit handicap, however professionals in competition have employed it too. “Brian Barnes and Tommy Aaron, before he retired, used it as well as a number of LPGA professionals like Wendy Ward. Jackie Gallagher-Smith won a tournament using it.”
Golf has been described as a game of misses since many believe that only pure shots occur maybe three or four times in a round. Those who manage their misses the best often times are the ones that are the most successful. For the average player looking to improve and enjoy the game, managing their misses is definitely a priority. Confidence comes from knowing that bunker shots as well as one played from the rough are no longer as difficult to execute. Lovett Golf believes it has something that will put a smile on players’ faces especially when they look down at their scorecards.
