Former pilot Theo Erben believes the sky’s the limit after investing in Foresight Sports technology for his golf business.
Erben, 67, has been a professional clubfitter since 1995 after leaving his job as a captain with Dutch national airline KLM, for whom he had worked for 34 years. And, in that time, he has built something of a reputation in his home country, the Netherlands, as one of the top clubfitters – especially through his work with two-time European Tour winner Robert-Jan Derksen and the nation’s Tour pros.
Profits at Erben’s Utrecht-based business, FATco Clubfitting, have soared since he invested in Foresight Sports Game Changer 2 (GC2) and Head Measurement Technology (HMT) in 2013, after he saw the technology in action at the PGA Merchandise Show in Orlando.
He explained: “I was really impressed with Foresight Sports technology when I first witnessed it in Orlando. The analytical data provided by sophisticated launch monitors is the biggest advancement in golf in recent years – and GC2/HMT is the most accurate of all.
“Customers realise that the service – and product – they receive, either in coaching or club-fitting, has been taken to the next level and they are prepared to pay more for it, which is good news for the golf professional.
“The GC2/HMT is very easy to use and very easy for the client to understand. Its data is reliable and displayed in a simple way which makes it simple to explain the information to the golfer, whether I am coaching or club-fitting or even playing a round indoors using it as a simulator.”
He added: “It’s nonsense for people to say that club-fitting will not benefit them because they are not a good enough golfer. Correctly fitted clubs will benefit a golfer whether a complete beginner or if they’ve been playing for years and are a low handicapper.
“For example, the majority of amateur golfers will be playing with a driver which is too long, as the manufacturers ship them with a standard dimension. As a professional club-fitter, it is my responsibility to listen, observe and analyse the needs of the individual golfer, whether they are a single-figure handicapper or complete beginner.”
The portability and flexibility of the GC2/HMT means Erben can take it out on to the range, where it’s self-levelling capability means it’s ready to use within 40 seconds, and, once he’s done there, he can take it inside to the fitting room where it can be ready, again, within a minute, to be used as the hardware driving his simulator.
He added: “I recommend Foresight Sports technology wholeheartedly to my fellow professionals. It’s so easy to use and the lie-fitting is superior to other options out there – reliable and without the requirement to hit off of a hard board.”
The GC2 – which directly measures ball-flight data at launch using ultra-high-speed cameras – and HMT – which directly and independently measures all critical club data – is the most in-demand technology in golf, having revolutionised club fitting and analysis since its launch in 2010. It was swiftly approved and recommended by many of the world’s leading club manufacturers including Titleist, Cleveland/Srixon, Cobra/Puma, PING and TaylorMade and dozens of other leading brands within the golf industry.
The GC2 is the only technology to directly measure critical ball flight data at launch and is now accepted as the golf industry’s most accurate tool for club fitters, retailers, and teaching professionals alike. Leading High St golf retailer American Golf has installed GC2 in 35 of its stores – including its newest outlets in Oxford and the recently opened flagship store in Monument, London.
Foresight’s revolutionary use of ultra-high-speed cameras, to image the exact movement of the dimple patterns on the golf ball, ensures pure, accurate, reliable data, which in turn means theirs is the only technology suitable for all seasons and conditions – whether indoors or on the range – and is the only launch monitor able to provide trusted data for every club, every shot, every player and every swing, all to the highest accuracy levels in the industry.
It’s now accepted, even by advocates of previous-generation radar equipment, that if you intend to work indoors, even for a proportion of your coaching or fitting hours, the technology choice has to be Foresight. It is the only technology designed from the ground up to work perfectly indoors or out, as it requires only 18 inches of ball flight to have accurately measured all launch parameters.
Furthermore, the industry is also now accepting that Foresight is the best technology choice for measuring ball and club data when outside on the range, where it remains unaffected by wind or any down-range conditions which can affect the results provided by older radar systems.
Foresight Sports www.foresightsports.eu