Get Better, Faster

By Matt Kilgariff • PGA Director of Player Development The Bridges at Rancho Santa Fe • Rancho Santa Fe, Calif.

WHAT IS IT ABOUT YOUR BACKGROUND THAT HELPS YOU IN THIS ARENA?

As mentioned, my experience in designing sports medicine products like knee braces and continuous cold therapy devices really translates well to the golf industry. With both products, we are working with myriad sizes, shapes, athletic abilities, and motivations of individual people. For training aids to work well, they must be designed with these factors in mind, plus the fundamentals of the golf swing and a dedication to simplicity.

One of my concerns about modern technology in golf is that people often get overwhelmed with information and products that do not really help them. In fact, in most cases it makes things more confusing and difficult.

My experience is that complicated products are much easier to design than simple products.

Steve Jobs was the poster child for his relentless commitment to keeping things simple for the user. With that in mind, our goal with each product is to make the game easier and less confusing, while addressing the common faults that people have.

HOW DID YOU COME UP WITH YOUR COMPANY NAME?

This game can be infuriating. It is just as infuriating for a pro who shoots 63 one day and a 72 the next as it is for the average golfer who shoots their best round one day and loses eight balls the next.

In terms of our messaging to the market, our goal has been to commiserate and share that we as golfers all have frustrations in common regardless of our ability or handicap.

With that in mind, we named our company WhyGolf. It is really short for “Why the Hell Do We Golf!”

We do know why we golf. It is for the challenge and the comradery. If it were easy, we wouldn’t do it. We endure all the frustration and lows just to get a few highs here and there. One high is better than 10 lows. We’re addicted. Otherwise, WhyGolf?

TELL ME ABOUT A FEW OF YOUR TRAINING AIDS?

To date, our top-selling product is our Pressure Plate. It helps golfers learn to shift their pressure properly and in the right sequence in the swing. Without this, the golfer loses power and has inconsistent contact.

Our Bunker Mate, which simulates a bunker shot at home or in a simulator, has also been exceedingly popular. The instructions on the back of the package are incredibly helpful for the average golfer.

Our latest product, which I believe is a real game-changer, is the ArmAlarm. Ben Hogan said, when you keep your arms together to operate as one unit, it will pull the rest of the swing together. When the arms lose the connection to each other and the body, all hell breaks loose. ArmAlarm addresses this specific problem and includes an accessory to alert the player when they flip their wrists or scoop the ball.

These are just a few examples of our products. We have many others that can be very helpful in many ways.

For more information or to purchase training aids, visit https://whygolf.com/. To get 15% off use code: Thrivegolf.