Reader's Responses:

1. The Old Codger says:

   June 11, 2010 at 10:11 pm

   Review by The Old Codger for Newton on the Tee: A Good Walk Through the Science of Golf
   Rating:
   Zumerchik knows what he is talking about. Clearly he took decades building up this knowledge of the underlying factors that determine performance and healthy practice at golfing. *** “Getting the Ball from Here to There” (Ch. 4) has a section on aerodynamics that clarifies choices for a variety of wind shots. The Bernoulli principle, the Magnus effect, and other more subtle factors are presented with diagrams and in terms that the average technically competent golfer will understand. *** You could see this as a way to get an edge over nontechnical opponents. Same for avoiding serious injuries. *** Eventually you get to “Injuries and Aging.” Short chapter. Worth about 5 times the new price of the book. You’ll get right up front why sinovial fluid, the prestress action of back muscles prior to impact (preparing for deceleration in follow through), elastic energy, and other factors are important. Includes keys to understand where injuries are risky for becoming serious problems. *** Highly recommended. Overall as good as Harvey Pennick’s Little Red Book. Where you might want technical papers and books for more, there’s a top level fully technical bibliography.
2. Jeremy Singer says:

   June 11, 2010 at 10:55 pm

   Review by Jeremy Singer for Newton on the Tee: A Good Walk Through the Science of Golf
   Rating:
   I invested in this book in hope of improving my mathematical models of golf (and possibly other “ball” games). I don’t even play golf and doubt that Newton did either. However, if he were to examine the game he would surely be more concerned about impact and flight dynamic’s in relation to the “law of conservation of energy” than what/why professional players do or don’t do one thing or another.

   While interesting at times, the book seems more like 7 magazine articles geared for casual sports enthusiasts. There is discussion of gravity variance, coefficient of restitution, loft angle, angular velocity (or ’spin’ if you prefer Zum’s scientific terminology), but no models, formulas or proofs (and typically not even an explanation) of a scientific nature. When golf equipment is tested robotic parts are commonly used for consistency. However, the author spends a great portion of the text discussion physical and psychological factors of the game, as well as historical players.

   Suffice to say, do not buy this book if you’re shopping for a scientific view of golf. However, it is a short read and does make some interesting analogies.
3. T. Enst says:

   June 11, 2010 at 10:57 pm

   Review by T. Enst for Newton on the Tee: A Good Walk Through the Science of Golf
   Rating:
   This is a truely engaging book on the technical aspects of golf. Technical, that is, outside of swing mechanics. Too many people get caught up in what makes for a good swing according to this teacher and that without really knowing the why behind it all. Not just with the swing, though. Ball aerodynamics, physical conditioning, even probability as it relates to scoring are all things we just seem to forget about, even though they can have just as much an effect on our play as anything else.

   All of this, plus a bit more, is handled in Newton on the Tee. It is overall pretty layman-friendly, and many of the more technical explanations can be skipped without losing too much of the intent. For someone who has only just had lessons or read books on swing theory, this will probably help give you a broader perspective on what works and why.

   One note about the title. When I read the word Newton, I expect plenty of physics. I may not be able to handle all the technical information, but I would love to know why musclebacks perform differently than cavity backs with the science to back it up, not just a general explanation of perimeter weighting. It makes me wish I had run into The Physics of Golf (used as a reference in this book) sooner. I still got pleanty out of Netwon, however.
4. John M. Kell says:

   June 11, 2010 at 11:19 pm

   Review by John M. Kell for Newton on the Tee: A Good Walk Through the Science of Golf
   Rating:
   Golf is a game of tradition and legend. On the equipment side the marketing is filled with overhype, half truths and black magic. This book will give you the facts and research data that has been done over 400 years of this great game. Amaze your golf buddies with your knowledge after reading this book.
5. J. Dye says:

   June 11, 2010 at 11:37 pm

   Review by J. Dye for Newton on the Tee: A Good Walk Through the Science of Golf
   Rating:
   My biggest disappointment with this book is that it is represented as “a good walk through the science of golf”. The author is very comfortable citing other works but gives no data to support his own conclusions. He statement that the hands should be substantially ahead at impact is not supported at all. Don’t mind that he has an opinion but if he states it as fact he should be able to back it up.

   There are many other books for me to spend my money on, wish I had done so in this case.