EDGA has reached out to MIA Sports Technology (MIAST) to support a pilot project helping golfers with disability to reach their potential, by creating measurement data insights into how they strike a golf ball.
EDGA is the international body that encourages people with disability to thrive through golf, supporting 30 National Golf Federations and their players around the world.
The project came from a desire to learn more about how golfers with different types of impairment strike the golf ball (including launch angle, ball speed, spin rate etc), and how comparable learnings from such research can help players and their coaches to improve their game.
Iain and Malcolm Mackenzie, co-owners of MIA Sports Technology, were contacted to see if MIAST would support such a pilot research project. MIAST is the exclusive UK & Ireland distributor of FlightScope and official European distributor of Science & Motion, MySwing, Focusband, TruGolf E6 Software & Hack Motion.
An agreement has now been made for MIAST to supply FlightScope Xi Tour launch monitor and BodiTrak pressure measuring technology, together with initiation training for the systems, so that EDGA can start initial research with a selected group of players. This pilot will be carried out first with single-leg golfers (featuring players who have a prosthesis and those who do not) and will focus on comparing playing from the lead leg or trail leg.
The research will start on January 1 and is due to be completed by September 30 next year. It is hoped that this can then lead to further research into the data of players across a range of impairments. EDGA believes the outcomes will be of interest to players, coaches, federations, national PGAs, key golf organisations and golf equipment manufacturers.
EDGA Head of Development and PGA Fellow Professional Mark Taylor, who will lead the project, said: “We are very excited to link up with MIA Sports Technology as Project Partner. The essential question here is what can we learn from lead leg and trail leg players? There is little information available on the launch conditions presented by single-leg players. Establishing quantitative data will help identify any specific elements that may reveal difference or commonality.
“With the support of the MIAST team, and by using our extensive database, we will compare lead and trail leg players, record pressure patterns and the subsequent launch conditions. This research will provide detailed data and a collection of commonalities to assist the knowledge of coaches working with lead and trail leg players, and thus help these players to reach their potential as golfers. Once the project protocols are established we plan to carry out further testing on the motion patterns of players with other impairments and build up a detailed bank of knowledge to support our coach education programmes and players everywhere.”
MIAST owners Iain and Malcolm Mackenzie share more than 50 years experience in providing golf coaching technology at the highest level, and were keen from the start to support the EDGA project.
Iain Mackenzie said: “We are really pleased that we have been able to support EDGA and the team in what can be some fascinating and important research. FlightScope® is a world leader in golf ball tracking monitors, and we are confident that we can help EDGA to create some valuable results; including insights that can be shared between coaches, to the benefit of EDGA players.
“Malcolm and I are also delighted that we can contribute in this way to help golfers with a disability to better understand their swings, how they strike a golf ball and how they can improve. It’s exciting to be able to assist the players involved to reach their potential, using our established technology with some of the best coaches.”
EDGA is a not for profit volunteer-based association which is made up of the National Golf Federations from 30 countries around the world. The EDGA team provides advice, guidance and standards to all the leading golfing bodies; The IGF, The R&A, The USGA, The EGA, and works closely with the European Tour on the delivery of showcase events that involve golfers with disability.
EDGA also offers a range of training to coaches, therapists, volunteers, clubs, and golfers who wish to be more active in the disability space.