Dave Pelz
Encyclopedia
Dave Pelz is a United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....

 coach, known for his expertise and published writing on the art of the short game, particularly putting.

Pelz's Short Game Bible was a New York Times “national best-seller” in 1999. Pelz was named by Golf Digest
Golf Digest
Golf Digest is a monthly golf magazine published by Condé Nast Publications in the United States. It is a generalist golf publication covering recreational golf and men's and women's competitive golf. Condé Nast Publications also publishes the more specialized , and Golf World Business. The...

 magazine as one of the 25 most influential instructors of the 20th Century. Pelz continues his research at the Pelz Golf Institute in Spicewood, Texas
Spicewood, Texas
Spicewood is an unincorporated community in Burnet County, Texas, United States. According to the Texas Almanac, the community had an estimated population of 2,000 in 2000....

.

Biography

After studying at Indiana University
Indiana University
Indiana University is a multi-campus public university system in the state of Indiana, United States. Indiana University has a combined student body of more than 100,000 students, including approximately 42,000 students enrolled at the Indiana University Bloomington campus and approximately 37,000...

 on a four year golf scholarship where he majored in physics
Physics
Physics is a natural science that involves the study of matter and its motion through spacetime, along with related concepts such as energy and force. More broadly, it is the general analysis of nature, conducted in order to understand how the universe behaves.Physics is one of the oldest academic...

. In 1957 he joined the Big Ten Conference
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference is the United States' oldest Division I college athletic conference. Its twelve member institutions are located primarily in the Midwestern United States, stretching from Nebraska in the west to Pennsylvania in the east...

, where in four years he played, and lost to, Jack Nicklaus
Jack Nicklaus
Jack William Nicklaus , nicknamed "The Golden Bear", is an American professional golfer. He won 18 career major championships on the PGA Tour over a span of 25 years and is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional golfers of all time. In addition to his 18 Majors, he was runner-up a...

 on twenty-two occasions.

NASA

In 1961, Pelz joined NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...

, working at the Goddard Space Flight Center doing research on the upper atmospheres of the earth and other planets in the solar system. Pelz became a senior scientist with responsibilities for several satellite programs, including Explorer
Explorer program
The Explorer program is a United States space exploration program that provides flight opportunities for physics, heliophysics, and astrophysics investigations from space. Over 90 space missions have been launched from 1958 to 2011, and it is still active...

.

Initial research

Pelz, still disappointed at his own inability to make the grade for the PGA Tour
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...

, decided to apply his knowledge of physics to the game. Pelz's own weakness was his short game, so in 1970 he began measuring what happens when the putter head strikes the ball, and how the mechanics of player and club swing through the putter. His research led to the development of the "Teacher Putter" patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....

. Pelz improved his putting enough to qualify for, and play in, the U.S. Amateur, though he lost in the second round, and he finished as a medalist in the Maryland State Amateur. His experiences convinced him that good putting, far from being solely a natural ability, could be learned.

In 1975, Pelz took a leave of absence
Leave of absence
Leave of absence is a term used to describe a period of time that one is to be away from his/her primary job, while maintaining the status of employee...

 from NASA and started Preceptor Golf, formed to manufacture and market the Teacher Putter. At first, the USGA ruled against the Teacher Putter, saying it was "designed to be adjustable during play." They later ruled if two separate inserts were used, it would conform to the rules. In 1996, the USGA again banned the Teacher Putter on the grounds that it is not "plain in shape."

Preceptor Golf

Pelz resigned from NASA on January 1, 1976 to concentrate on his golfing endeavours. Preceptor Golf began to offer custom-fitted clubs, and developed a method of engraving a player's signature on each head in a set of stainless steel clubs. Pelz also launched his "Teacher Clips", a development which turns any putter into a "Teacher Putter"-like club; and developed "The True Roller", a device that rolls a perfect putt and was integral to his later research into putting.

In 1977, Pelz began an analysis of every shot in golf. Using caddies, tour players and amateur golfers, he spent more than three years entering the data from thousands of rounds (shot distance, where each shot landed, relation to target, and so forth), coming to the conclusion that more than 60% of golf shots are part of the 'short game' - those made from within around 100 yards of the hole. He discovered that players with the best short games win the most money, and that while touring professionals miss shots from further than 100 yards from the hole by an average 7% of the total shot distance, that percentage rises to 16–20% on shots from within 100 yards. This research formed the basis for many of his future efforts in golf, and led to Preceptor launching "Frequency Analyzers", becoming the first club manufacturer to offer frequency-matched sets of clubs.

Using this analysis, Pelz began teaching and coaching PGA Tour players one-on-one in their short and putting games. Andy North
Andy North
Andrew Stewart North is an American professional golfer who is best known for winning the U.S. Open twice.- Early years :North was born in Thorp, Wisconsin, and raised in Monona, Wisconsin...

 becomes first Pelz student to win a major championship, winning the U.S. Open Golf Championship
U.S. Open (golf)
The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

 at Cherry Hills Country Club
Cherry Hills Country Club
Cherry Hills Country Club is a private country club in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado, a suburb of Denver. The club was founded in 1922 and designed by William Flynn. The club features a championship 18-hole golf course, a 9-hole par three course, eight tennis courts, and a lap pool...

.

In 1982, Preceptor launched the "Quick Change Hosel", which allows players to easily interchange shafts and clubs. This becomes the basis for their new custom club-fitting system, which concentrated on ball performance instead of players' heights, weights and similar factors. In 1984, after Pelz had tested clubs on 500 golfers, Preceptor launched the "FeatherLite" line of clubs, the first golf clubs with lighter heads on more flexible shafts.

In 1983, Barney Adams
Barney Adams
Byron H. Adams , is an entrepreneur, the founder of Adams Golf, inventor of the Tight Lies fairway wood, holder of several patents on golf products, and author of The WOW Factor.-Biography:...

 had joined Dave Pelz Golf Inc., which included Preceptor. When Preceptor went bankrupt in 1986, Adams bought the assets and started Adams Golf
Adams Golf
Adams Golf Inc. is a NASDAQ listed golf club manufacturer based in Plano, Texas.In 1983 Barney Adams joined Dave Pelz Golf in Abilene, Texas. When Pelz's Preceptor Golf went bankrupt in 1988, Adams bought the assets and started Adams Golf...

, which he moved to Dallas, Texas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...

 in 1991.

Dave Pelz Golf

Following the collapse of Preceptor Golf, Pelz has continued to focus on golf research and tuition, while also undertaking more writing and broadcasting to bring his theories to a wider audience.

While teaching at the "Short Game School" in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...

, Pelz felt his theories to be partially vindicated when one of his pupils, an amateur from Midland-Odessa, defeated Ben Crenshaw
Ben Crenshaw
Ben Daniel Crenshaw is an American professional golfer.Crenshaw was born in Austin, Texas. He attended and played golf at Austin High School and the University of Texas, where he won three NCAA Championships from 1971 to 1973...

 in the Texas State Putting Championship. In 1996 Pelz staged his first World Putting Championship at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...

, with 17,000 participants competing for a $250,000 top prize. The winner was PGA Tour
PGA Tour
The PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...

 player Len Mattiace
Len Mattiace
Leonard Earl "Len" Mattiace is an American professional golfer on the PGA Tour.Mattiace was born in Mineola, New York. He attended Nease High School in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. He graduated from Wake Forest University in 1990 with a degree in Sociology. While at Wake Forest, he played on the...

.

Having started writing for Golf Magazine
Golf Magazine
Golf Magazine is a monthly golf magazine owned by Time Inc.. It was started in 1960 by Universal Publishing and Distributing, who sold it to Times Mirror in 1972. Time Inc. acquired it in 2000. It was the world's most widely read golf publication from August 2006 to January 2007. The magazine is...

in 1983, from 1995 to 2005 Pelz wrote and appeared in thirteen half-hour shows per year on the Golf Channel. He also appears on their Live from the Majors telecasts, and continues to contribute monthly instructional articles in GOLF Magazine.

Pelz's Short Game Bible was a New York Times national best-seller in 1999. He has since published Dave Pelz's 10 Minutes a Day to Better Putting, Putt Like the Pros, Dave Pelz's Putting Bible and Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible. Pelz also has produced four videos, “Dave Pelz's 10 Minutes a Day to Better Putting”, “Fundamentals of Wedge Play”, “Developing Great Touch”, and “The Amazing Truth About Putting.”

Pelz's research has resulted in patented product developments, many of which are now licensed to major manufacturers. The patented two- and three-ball putters were licensed to Callaway Golf
Callaway Golf
Callaway Golf Company is a global sporting goods company that designs, manufactures, markets and sells golf equipment, golf accessories and golf lifestyle-related products in more than 70 countries worldwide...

, becoming the Odyssey Golf Two-Ball putter. Pelz offers two wedge lines, each with aggressive groove designs.

In 2004, while filming a TV segment for the Golf Channel during PGA Championship week at Whistling Straits in Kohler, Wisconsin
Kohler, Wisconsin
Kohler is a village in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, United States, along the Sheboygan River. The population was 1,926 at the 2000 census. It is included in the Sheboygan, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...

, Pelz holed a 206-foot putt. A check with Ripley’s determines putt is “longest golf putt ever holed on TV.”

The scoring game

Pelz began teaching PGA professionals on an individual basis in 1978, and in 1982 designed his first Short Game and Putting training facility, located in Abilene, Texas
Abilene, Texas
Abilene is a city in Taylor and Jones counties in west central Texas. The population was 117,063 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Abilene Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had a 2006 estimated population of 158,063. It is the county seat of Taylor County...

.

Today, Dave Pelz Scoring Game Schools include an analysis of each individuals game, classroom theory sessions and outdoor execution sessions. The program is designed to produce long term improvement in golfers’ ability to score. Schools are located:
  • The Boca Raton Resort and Club (Boca Raton, FL)
  • Cimarron Golf Resort (Palm Springs, CA)
  • The Club at Cordillera (Edwards, CO)
  • The Homestead (Glen Arbor, MI)
  • PGA National Resort & Spa (Palm Beach Gardens, FL)
  • Chateau Elan Winery & Resort (Atlanta, GA)
  • Killeen Castle
    Killeen Castle, Dunsany
    Killeen Castle , located in Dunsany, near Killeen, County Meath, Ireland, is the current construction on a site occupied by a castle since around 1180. The current building, in the process of renovation as a luxury hotel, is a restoration of a largely 19th century construction, burnt out in 1981...

     (Dunsany, County Meath, Ireland) - opened 2008, first school outside North America
  • Turning Stone Resort & Casino (Verona, NY)
  • Vineyard Knolls (Napa, CA)

Students

Name Major Championships won Notes
Mark Brooks
Mark Brooks (golfer)
Mark David Brooks is an American professional golfer.Brooks was born in Fort Worth, Texas. He attended the University of Texas at Austin, where he was a three-time All-American as a member of the golf team. He turned professional in 1983.Brooks has seven wins on the PGA Tour, including one major,...

1996 PGA Championship
1996 PGA Championship
The 1996 PGA Championship was the 78th PGA Championship held from August 8-11 at Valhalla Golf Club in Louisville, Kentucky. Mark Brooks won his first major championship with a birdie in a sudden death playoff over Kentucky native Kenny Perry.-First round:...

Steve Elkington
Steve Elkington
Stephen John Elkington is an Australian professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour. He spent over 50 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Rankings from 1995 to 1998.-Early years and education:...

1995 PGA Championship
1995 PGA Championship
The 1995 PGA Championship was the 77th PGA Championship held from August 10-13 at Riviera Country Club in Los Angeles, California. Steve Elkington won his first major championship with a birdie in a sudden death playoff over Colin Montgomerie....

Lee Janzen
Lee Janzen
Lee McLeod Janzen is an American golfer who is best known for twice winning the U.S. Open, in 1993 and 1998.-Early years and amateur career:...

1998 U.S. Open
1998 U.S. Open Golf Championship
The 1998 United States Open Championship was the 98th U.S. Open. The event was held from June 18-21 at the Olympic Club, Lake Course in San Francisco, California. Lee Janzen won his second U.S. Open and major championship by defeating Payne Stewart by one stroke. Janzen became the second golfer at...

Tom Kite
Tom Kite
Thomas Oliver Kite, Jr. is an American professional golfer and golf course architect. He spent 175 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Rankings between 1989 and 1994....

1992 U.S. Open
1992 U.S. Open Golf Championship
The 1992 United States Open Championship was the 92nd U.S. Open. The event was held from June 18-21 at Pebble Beach Golf Links in Pebble Beach, California...

Phil Mickelson
Phil Mickelson
Philip Alfred Mickelson is an American professional golfer. He has won four major championships and a total of 39 events on the PGA Tour. He has reached a career high world ranking of 2nd in multiple years. He is nicknamed "Lefty" for his left-handed swing, even though he is otherwise right-handed...

2004 Masters Tournament
2004 Masters Tournament
The 2004 Masters Tournament was the 68th Masters Tournament held from April 8-11 at Augusta National Golf Club. Phil Mickelson won his first, long awaited major championship with a birdie on the 18th hole to defeat Ernie Els by one stroke...


2005 PGA Championship
2005 PGA Championship
The 2005 PGA Championship was the 87th PGA Championship, played from August 11 to August 15 at the Baltusrol Golf Club Lower Course in Springfield Township, Union County, New Jersey. It was the first PGA Championship held at Baltusrol, which had hosted the U.S. Open seven times, and was the first...


2006 Masters Tournament
2006 Masters Tournament
The 2006 Masters Tournament was the 70th Masters Tournament, played April 6–9 at Augusta National Golf Club. The course was lengthened significantly before the tournament, making the course play 7,445 yards . Phil Mickelson won his second Masters and second consecutive major, winning by two with a...


2010 Masters Tournament
2010 Masters Tournament
The 2010 Masters Tournament, played April 8–11 at Augusta National Golf Club, was the 74th Masters Tournament. This was the first major championship of the 2010 season.Phil Mickelson won his third Masters title by three shots over runner-up Lee Westwood....

Colin Montgomerie
Colin Montgomerie
Colin Stuart Montgomerie, OBE is a Scottish professional golfer, often referred to by one of his nicknames 'Monty'. He has had one of the finest careers in European Tour history, having won a record eight Order of Merit titles, including a streak of seven consecutively from 1993 to 1999, and 31...

Six Order of Merit titles on the European Tour
PGA European Tour
The PGA European Tour is an organization which operates the three leading men's professional golf tours in Europe: the elite European Tour, the European Seniors Tour and the developmental Challenge Tour. Its headquarters are at Wentworth Club in Virginia Water, Surrey, England...

Andy North
Andy North
Andrew Stewart North is an American professional golfer who is best known for winning the U.S. Open twice.- Early years :North was born in Thorp, Wisconsin, and raised in Monona, Wisconsin...

1978 U.S. Open
1978 U.S. Open Golf Championship
The 1978 U.S. Open Championship was the 78th U.S. Open played June 15-18 at Cherry Hills Country Club in Cherry Hills Village, Colorado. Andy North won the championship by one shot. J. C...

First Pelz student to win a major championship
Vijay Singh
Vijay Singh
Vijay Singh, CF , nicknamed "The Big Fijian", is a Fijian professional golfer who was Number 1 in the Official World Golf Rankings for 32 weeks in 2004 and 2005. He has won three major championships and was the leading PGA Tour money winner in 2003, 2004 and 2008...

1998 PGA Championship
1998 PGA Championship
The 1998 PGA Championship was the 80th PGA Championship held from August 13-16 at the Sahalee Country Club in Redmond, Washington. Vijay Singh won his first major championship by two strokes over Steve Stricker.-First round:-Second round:-Third round:...


2000 Masters Tournament
2000 Masters Tournament
The 2000 Masters Tournament was the 64th Masters Tournament held from April 6-9 at Augusta National Golf Club. Vijay Singh won his second major championship and first Masters by three strokes over Ernie Els.-First round:-Second round:...

Payne Stewart
Payne Stewart
William Payne Stewart was an American professional golfer who won three majors in his career, the last of which occurred only months before he died in an airplane accident at the age of 42....

1999 U.S. Open
1999 U.S. Open Golf Championship
The 1999 United States Open Championship was the 99th U.S. Open. The event was held from June 17-20 at Pinehurst Resort, Course No. 2 in Pinehurst, North Carolina. Payne Stewart won his second U.S. Open and third major championship with a 15-foot par putt on the final hole to defeat Phil Mickelson...

Mike Weir
Mike Weir
Michael Richard Weir, CM, O.Ont is a Canadian professional golfer on the PGA Tour. He spent over 110 weeks in the top-10 of the Official World Golf Rankings between 2001 and 2005. He is best known for winning the Masters in 2003....

2003 Masters Tournament
2003 Masters Tournament
The 2003 Masters Tournament was the 67th Masters Tournament held from April 10-13 at Augusta National Golf Club. Mike Weir won his first title in a one-hole playoff over Len Mattiace...


Developments and patents

Pelz holds 17 patents on golf equipment, and has developed numerous other products:
  • 1975 - Teacher Putter
  • 1979 - Teacher Alignment Computer (TAC)
  • 1984 - FeatherLite line of clubs
  • 1984 - Blind Glasses incorporate an LCD screen that an applied voltage makes opaque. During custom fitting sessions, players can see their ball until the moment of impact, and then the glasses turn opaque
  • 1986 - 2-Ball and 3-Ball Putters, which were licensed to Callaway Golf
    Callaway Golf
    Callaway Golf Company is a global sporting goods company that designs, manufactures, markets and sells golf equipment, golf accessories and golf lifestyle-related products in more than 70 countries worldwide...

     and became the Odyssey Golf range
  • 1987 - Truth Board training device to help golfers learn the feel of (and remove fear from) a well-struck three-foot putt
  • 1988 - PGA Tour groove test, which proved how much more backspin and stopping power was produced by box grooves, as compared to standard V-grooves in wedges and high-lofted irons
  • 1990 - LazrAimer voice-activated putting alignment trainer
  • 2001 - Tee Square, Cup Collar and Dave Pelz’s Putting Tutor
  • 2002 - PelzMeter green-speed measurement device, developed by son Eddie Pelz, debuts at the US Open
    U.S. Open (golf)
    The United States Open Championship, commonly known as the U.S. Open, is the annual open golf tournament of the United States. It is the second of the four major championships in golf, and is on the official schedule of both the PGA Tour and the European Tour...

     at Bethpage Black
  • 2003 - O-Balls with innovative cover markings, the first regulation golf ball to provide feedback to golfers after putting, to actually improve their putting strokes
  • 2005 - Position Mat practice aid, enabling golfers to practice sand, wedge and chip shots from the proper stance (feet) and ball positions

Innovations

  • 3 X 4 System - controlling distance in wedge play
  • The Pendulum - putting method
  • Pure-In-Line-Stroke - putting methods
  • Dead Hands Pitching - showed the value of higher lofted wedges (he developed the first 60 and 64-degree lofted wedges)
  • Optimum Putting Speed - the speed putts should be rolled for holing the most putts possible

Publications

  • Putt Like the Pros
  • Dave Pelz’s Short Game Bible - New York Times No.1 best seller
  • Scoring Game Series - published by Broadway Books, the first of which is 1998's “Dave Pelz’s Short Game Bible”
    • Dave Pelz’s Putting Bible
  • Fundamentals of Wedge Play - instructional video, Spring 2003
  • 10 Minutes a Day to Better Putting
  • Dave Pelz's Damage Control

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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