Frequently Asked Questions FAQ

Q: Why don't tour pros play persimmon?

A: Major manufacturers spend huge amounts of money getting their equipment into the hands of the top tour pros. Metal woods are much cheaper to produce than handcrafted persimmon ones leaving a large margin for promotion, advertising and sponsorship. To take maximum advantage of a high COR metal driver (conforming to USGA standards) you have to have a very high swing speed and hit the club in the centre of the face. There are not many golfers who can generate this speed with the necessary control. We believe there are many positive reasons for the majority of golfers to play persimmon - they should hit the ball just as far but with greater accuracy.

Q: What is the difference in loft between persimmon and metal drivers?

A: Due to its Centre of Gravity being very close to the face, a metal driver launches the ball at a steeper trajectory at impact. With the COG of a persimmon driver deeper in the head, the ball flight of a persimmon driver tends to be lower than metal in the same loft. Our drivers are therefore available in three lofts to suit all swings.

Q: How do the weight of persimmon driver heads compare to titanium or other materials?

A: Most driver heads are of similar weight regardless of what material they are made from. The typical weight of a driver head is 195 - 200 grams.

Q: Is it true that the lower the loft on my driver, the further I hit the ball?

A: Many drivers have too little loft or shafts that are too long for the average golfer. Actually, a golfer with a clubhead speed less than 85 mph will lose distance with a driver that has too low a loft. At lower clubhead speeds you need a greater launch angle to gain carry distance. Also, for every degree of loft you remove from a clubface you add 5 to 6 yards of sidespin. A shot that fades 10 yards with a 15-degree 3-wood, can slice an additional 25 yards if hit with a 10 degree driver. Hitting a higher lofted driver or 3-wood off the tee can result in longer, straighter shots for golfers with slower swing speeds.

Q: How high should I tee the ball with my persimmon driver?

A: You need to experiment, but a good rule of thumb is tee so no more than one half of the ball is above the top of the insert. When using our fairway woods it is advisable to tee it low like you would on a par 3 with an iron. The soleplate of our fairway woods allow for easy

launches, and too high a tee can produce a skied ball.

Q: Do higher COR drivers really hit the ball further?

A: The COR of persimmon is .78 against a current USGA ceiling of .83. When the club face hits the golf ball, the ball isflattened and there is a loss of energy. If the face of the club gives a little, then the ball doesn't flatten as much and retains more energy. To take full advantage of the slightly higher COR of the Titanium driver a couple of things have to happen;

The swing speed of the head has to be fast enough to allow the face of the titanium driver to "give" a little. If the swing speed is not high enough, there is minimal give in the face and no real advantage.
The ball has to be struck in a very small area of the face for the face to "give". Hit it off centre and you lose the advantage. In most real life situations, the clubhead speed and the dead centre hit seldom occur.

Q: What is horizontal face bulge?

A: The purpose of bulge is to start the ball further to the right on toe shots and further to the left on heel shots to compensate for the unwanted slicing or hooking sidespin created by off-centre shots. When a shot is hit off the toe, the head rotates around its centre of gravity and hook spin is imparted to the ball. A shot hit off the heel rotates the opposite way around its centre of gravity and slicing spin is imparted to the ball. Bulge starts the off-centre shot further to the right or left and encourages the ball to spin back towards the target line.

Q: Do metal woods have gear effect?

A: Gear effect is the rotation of the head around it's centre of gravity, which imparts corrective spin to the ball. You can experience it with a metal club, but the effect is less than that of a persimmon wood. Since the centre of gravity is closer to the face there is less gear effect with a metal wood.

The centre of gravity on a persimmon head is deeper in the head.
This deeper centre of gravity creates more gear effect and you are better able to work the ball.
This also allows for greater correction on a mis-hit shot with a persimmon driver.

Q: Can I use a graphite shaft in one of your persimmon golf clubs?

A: Yes. Graphite is a lighter material than steel, so it gives us the ability to increase the finished length of the club. Our standard specification is one inch longer in graphite than steel. When graphite shafts were first introduced the average head size of a driver was about 190cc which appeared disproportionate and metal heads began to increase in size so that they would appear more proportionate at the end of a long shaft. In relation to the earlier persimmon drivers our heads are oversized at some 240 cc but look great with the longer shaft.

Q: What is kick point and does it matter when choosing a shaft for a persimmon club?

A: Kick point is a flex point in the shaft that helps determine the trajectory of the ball after impact. Persimmon launches the ball a little lower than a standard metal club, so one should generally choose a graphite shaft with a lower kick point. Kick points are inversely proportionate so that a low kick point has a higher launch and a high kick point has a lower launch.

Q: Do longer shafts produce longer shots?

A: Club length is a trade-off between distance and accuracy. Playing with a longer club usually results in more off-centre shots and less accuracy. Longer shafts will only produce longer shots if you can control them to hit the ball in the centre of the face.

Q: What is it about your 'V' Classic Fairway wood design that makes it so effective?

A: We feel the most important features of our V Classic persimmon fairway woods are getting the ball airborne and keeping it in play whilst getting the distance you need . We designed characteristics in the V Classic to accomplish these goals. You never know what kind of lie you're going to get off the tee - there could be no grass or high grass.
In order to be able to deal with these conditions, the centre of gravity in a fairway wood needs to be low. If the centre of gravity of the head is lower than the centre of the ball, the club will launch the ball easily. The V Classic has a deep centre of gravity due to its persimmon construction. This allows the head to have more gear effect which is the natural corrective action a persimmon head puts on the ball; when a shot is mis-hit off the toe, the ball spins counter clockwise and curves back into the fairway. The reverse happens on balls hit off the heel. Distance with the club is dependent on the shaft length and the loft. A persimmon head with the same loft and shaft configuration will propel the ball as far as a head made from any other material.

Q: How are your clubs unique?

A: Persimmon is a product of nature, resulting in each of our clubs being similar yet unique. A natural variation occurs in both the grain pattern and absorption properties of the sourced wood, which in turn produces minor differences in the finished appearance of the grain and shade of stain. They all look superb, and these qualities only add to the character of a true persimmon club. One of our persimmon heads takes several weeks to craft, in complete contrast to the mass-produced clubs on the market. Performance with soul.

Q: Why don't you see more golfers playing with persimmon clubs?

A: Awareness and availability. Until Persimmon Golf it was virtually impossible to acquire a new persimmon driver or fairway wood in UK or Europe. The production of our heads involve craftsmen who walk every head through more than 100 hand operations, and no major golf club manufacturer would want to invest in the skills and materials needed to manufacture persimmon woods on a mass scale. Persimmon is a great choice for most golfers.

Q: What is the function of the grubscrew located at the back of the driver heads, and in the baseplate on the fairway woods?

A: This is known as a weight port, and enables our clubmaker access to the head in order to fine tune the swing weight of the finished club.

Q: What is the purpose of the visible weight in the back of the driver head?

A: The 3/8" diameter disk is a small lead plug. Since persimmon is a natural product not every tree or block of wood has the same density/weight. When the persimmon blocks are turned on the lathe to the same model size, they vary in weight by 10 to 15 grams. The finished weight of the head is targeted at 200 grams. The amount of lead added is so small it really has no effect on changing the centre of gravity but just to make sure, we put the weight to the back and heel area.

Q: Is there a difference in playability if my persimmon club has close or wide grain patterns?

A: No, the difference between a head with close grain and wide grain is the growing conditions of the tree from which the heads were cut. A head with close grain was cut from a slow growth tree that may have grown on a hillside or some area where water/moisture was sparse. A head with wide grain was cut from a faster growing tree that was located in better growing conditions, where water/moisture was more prevalent. There is no difference in the performance or durability of the two heads. The only difference in the heads is cosmetic, where one will show the close grain (growth rings) and the other will have the wider grain.

Q: What type of golf ball would I use with your persimmon woods? Is there one type of ball that is better to use than another?

A: Choose a ball that will optimise what is important for you. A persimmon driver traditionally launches the ball lower than a metal driver with the same loft, so you might want to play a ball with a higher spin rate, especially if you find your trajectory is lower than what you want. If the reverse is true and you are hitting the ball higher than you would like, play a ball with a lower spin rate to get the trajectory down.

Q: How do I look after my persimmon golf club?

A: Our persimmon heads have a very durable coating of industrial grade polyurethane applied to them in four separate operations. This coating is very mark resistant and provides an excellent moisture barrier. Simply wipe the heads with a damp cloth when they get dirty and ensure the headcover is dry before placing on the club. Persimmon woods are durable and last for years, although as with any club, they are liable to get scuffed if you hit under the ball and the point of impact is on the head. Try to ensure that there is no grit between impact surfaces as this can mark the face, insert or sealant - this is particularly relevant at practice ranges. Whether metal or wood, all clubs will show signs of usage but this should in no way affect their playability.