When I first started playing golf, I was a typical slicer. As I improved and eventually turned pro at 27, even though cuts and slices are perfectly usable shots, I was so traumatized by slicing that I made my stock shot a slight draw. However, it was a tight enough draw that it looked straight to me, even though it was technically drawing.
Lately, I've been having fun experimenting with getting my stock shot to average out as a perfectly straight shot with zero feet of curve, utilizing a sweet spot strike and 0-degree angle of attack, swing path, face angle, a face-to-path.
Playing Sterling Irons single length irons makes that a bit easier because those are all designed to be played from a single ball position, which I place directly in the middle of my stance to help achieve a zero path. Since I sweep or pick the ball for more consistent overall contact and try to avoid taking divots, that center ball position also helps me maintain a zero angle of attack. From there, it was just a matter of getting the face angle and face-to-path to be zero, which I achieved by weakening my grip.
It's been a tricky transition because I was so accustomed to seeing that tight draw as straight. When I used launch monitors to confirm I was hitting truly straight shots, the ball flight looked like a slight fade to my eye. Plus, my history with slicing made me hesitant about anything that felt like swinging across the ball and fanning the face open—even when the result was a straight shot.
I’m starting to get more comfortable with it now. So far, my longest zero-curve shot, verified with technology, is 160.9 yards, which isn't too surprising because I practice a lot with my 8-iron.
Yesterday, I holed one out on the TopTracer range with a sand wedge. It was only a 40-yard shot, but seeing that proximity at zero feet was really cool.
Then today, while playing with a friend who operates Belle Isle Golf Detroit, I got my 10th hole-in-one, all spread across Pebble Beach's Peter Hay Golf Course and Belle Isle Golf Detroit.
Here’s the list:
1st - Saturday, November 6th, 2004, 9th hole at Pebble Beach’s Peter Hay Golf Course with a 9-iron from 74 yards
2nd - Sunday, October 9th, 2005, 8th hole at Pebble Beach’s Peter Hay Golf Course
3rd - Tuesday, October 10th, 2006, 3rd hole at Pebble Beach’s Peter Hay Golf Course
4th - Friday, September 22nd, 2023, 6th hole at Belle Isle Golf with a SW from 45 yards
5th - Tuesday, September 26th, 2023, 4th hole at Belle Isle Golf from 35 yards (on video)
6th - Wednesday, September 27th, 2023, 3rd hole at Belle Isle Golf from 35 yards (on video)
7th - Wednesday, September 27th, 2023, 3rd hole again at Belle Isle Golf from 35 yards (on video)
8th - Tuesday, October 3rd, 2023, 5th hole at Belle Isle Golf from 35 yards (have reaction camera video footage but green side camera failed)
9th - Tuesday, October 3rd, 2023, 5th hole again at Belle Isle Golf from 35 yards (have reaction camera video footage but green side camera failed)
10th - Tuesday, October 8th, 2024, 4th hole at Belle Isle Golf with a sand wedge, temperature 67 degrees, 11mph WNW wind
Interestingly, Tuesday is by far my most popular day to get a hole-in-one. I guess I just need to play more on Monday and Thursday to see if I can get one every day of the week!.
Thanks to host Fred Greene of the Golf Smarter podcast for having me on as a guest for the 5th time!
Description:
"Episode 888: Jaacob Bowden of swingmangolf.com and jaacobbowden.com was convinced that someday he would be a competitive Tour level golfer. He’s now been around the game for 20 years and his quest has brought him to the Speed Golf World Championships, World Long Drive Championships, and becoming an excellent golf instructor. In this episode we discuss his journey and how golfers at any age or skill level can increase their swing speeds which results in greater distance."
Chapter Markers:
0:00 Intro 1:31 First time we met 2:41 Making the PGA TOUR 6:27 Being a starving artist 12:50 Mindset in long drive 17:18 Losing the ego 18:47 Swing speed training 20:16 Benefit of swing speed training 25:04 How to increase swing speed 28:56 Speedgolf 31:26 What clubs do you carry in Speedgolf 34:19 Running on a golf course 38:38 Tour experience 40:47 PGA TOUR experience 43:52 Plans for 20th anniversary 47:55 Swing Man Golf
Finished T-183th out of 208 players at the Maryland Open held on the Gold Course at The Cannon Club and the Country Club of Woodmore on August 24-25th.
Finished T-106th at the MAPGA Section Professional Championship Presented by Club Car and Omega held on the Gold Course at the Golden Horseshoe Golf Club in Williamsburg, Virginia.
Thanks to Tony of Game Improvement Golf for having me back on his podcast for the 3rd time. Show Notes:
• Jaacob provides a personal update on things he has been involved with in the past 2 years. • He shares his thoughts on how the single-length iron concept has progressed in the golf world. • Jaacob talks about the major benefits of single-length irons for golfers – and any specific classes of golfers who can benefit the most from playing them. • He discusses the benefits of single-length – in particular – for beginner and high-handicap golfers. • His website has guidelines for single-length iron setups that work best for different classes of golfers. Jaacob shares his thoughts about these criteria. • He shares a few of his favorite single-length iron success stories. • Finally, Jaacob shares some final thoughts on the future of single-length irons for golfers, and when they should consider playing them.
4:26 – “I think that flew the exact same yardage. No, we did not press replay!”
7:24 - “Feeling good so far. Sound good. They really sound nice. Yeah, it’s not like you’re going to pick these up and they feel different than what you’d be expecting from a Titleist or something like that. They feel quite nice.”
8:14 – “It’s gotta be a massive value to literally anyone.”
12:35 – “You know one thing I’m definitely aware of here is these irons are not short. In terms of how far they go, they are quick.”
18:39 – “I really hate to admit it, I’m hitting these 1000 times better than my own irons.”
18:48 – “That’s flowing right on the number, 198 on the fly.”
18:58 –
“I wasn’t really expecting to hit really good shots, if I’m honest. I was a little worried about this test.”
“Is that right?”
“I kinda thought I would get to 7 and 6-iron and just be hitting like crap.”
“Well, the opposite has happened. You’re flushing these. You’re hitting them really really nice.”
19:46 – “I don’t see anyone that shouldn’t try them.”
20:29 – “Performance speaks for itself. If it works, then it’s worth a shot.”
20:40 – “If your ball striking is a weakness and striking and being inconsistent is the reason for that, this really is one solution you could look at.”
20:51 – “I think I’m making better contact for sure.”
20:52 – “I would 100% say that this is the cleanest full set test we’ve done.”
20:41 – “That’s as good as I can hit it.”
23:00 – “I think mission accomplished.”
23:11 – “Really good yardage gaps.”
23:44 – “I think it helped me be more consistent.”
23:50 - “That is about as consistent as I’ve gone through in a set of irons.”
24:04 – “I think there’s so much good engineering that went in to the head with what each club is engineered to do .”
25:28 – “I’m pleasantly surprised.”
25:46 - “It’s a true validation for the technology.”
26:24 - “I could tell you my own irons aren’t gapped that well.”
26:39 – “I think this was done properly.”
26:59 - “They are very competitive on price, obviously made of good materials, and clearly can be fit properly.”
Thanks to Bobby Lopez and Darren DeMaille for having me on their Open Mic Night to talk swing speed training, single length irons, and much more! Have a listen below!
After Bryson DeChambeau's win at The Memorial, Danielle Tucker invited me back for the 4th time as a guest on The Golf Club Radio Show. Of course, we chatted single length irons and Sterling Irons®. We also briefly talked about swing speed training and Swing Man Golf.
The designer of my Sterling Irons® single length irons, Tom Wishon, got invited back on Golf Smarter Podcasts as a 12-time guest of host Fred Greene for Episode #624. Tom, of course, is a legend in the world of club design and custom club fitting.
This is a follow-up to the episode I was on…#623 posted on February 6th.
Show Notes:
"There’s no greater authority on fitting, creating, and golf club technology than Tom Wishon. This week Tom provides his State of the Industry on golf clubs and goes into detail on why the Sterling Irons® single length clubs can help middle to high handicap golfers, and how he improved on an old, bad idea. You’ll also find out why Tom now has single length irons in his bag. If you’re interested in more consistency and lowering your anxiety over every shot, check out Sterling Irons® today."
Got invited to go back for the 4th time on Golf Smarter Podcasts as a guest of host Fred Greene for Episode #623.
Show Notes:
"Consider yourself using the same posture, and the same swing every time, which could lead to more consistent contact. This week our guest is Jaacob Bowden who has teamed up with legendary club maker (and frequent Golf Smarter guest) Tom Wishon to create a new generation of single length irons. If you’re interested in more consistency and lowering your anxiety over every shot, check out Sterling Irons® today."
Spent a the last few days (October 28th-30th) in Durango, CO with my good friend Tom Wishon of Wishon Golf to discuss collaborating on a single length irons project.
There are some really cool pics from the visit here.
Andrew Tursky of GolfWRX.com has just published a cover story on the single length set of irons called “Sterling Irons®” that Tom Wishon and I collaborated on creating and will be launching soon.
Many thanks to Dude Spellings and Scott Dawley for having me on Episode 8 of the Pace of Change golf podcast.
Show Notes:
Welcome to Episode 8. Today we’re talking with Jaacob Bowden. It was actually hard to nail down an appropriate title for exactly what it is he does. Let’s just say, in the world of golf, he’s pretty much done it all. Jaacob is someone who understands the value of writing down his goals and plans, and then pursuing them step by step until achieved.
Take for example, his goal of becoming a professional golfer. You’d probably guess this was his childhood dream, something he fantasized about since he was a kid. Not exactly. Jaacob was 27 when he got started on this dream. And he was by no means a scratch golfer either. A 14 handicap, someone who admired the single digit player in his foursome. He was quite literally the average golfer. An average golfer with a superhuman belief system and a powerhouse work ethic.
His story blossoms from there into a beautiful picture of a late bloomer who falls in love with golf, and turns his love of the game into a budding entrepreneurial career. He’s an out of the box thinker, a swing speed teacher, an accomplished Speedgolfer, a senior writer for GolfWRX.com, and finally, with the recent release of Sterling Irons®, a golf club innovator. Alright, I’ve said enough. Let’s catch up with Professional Golf Entrepreneur, (hopefully that sums it up), Jaacob Bowden.
I hope you enjoy our conversation with Jaacob Bowden. Definitely want to encourage you to check out his swing speed training program. Like he mentioned, most golfers have never done any swing speed training, and therefore can see massive gains in just a few weeks time. For his unique view on current topics and events in the world of golf, follow him on your social media platforms of choice: he’s on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube.
Be sure to check out Mark Crossfield’s review of Tom Wishon’s and my Sterling Irons® single length irons at GolfWRX here.
The video description, as per Mark:
"Single Length Irons Like Bryson Dechambeau. Mark Crossfield tests the Sterling Irons® from Jaacob Bowden and Tom Wishon to show you what Bryson's idea with iron lengths could do for your golf game. This is a review of these golf clubs as well as a test of the idea of single length golf clubs."
Happy to have been a guest on Episode 57 of Tony Wright’s Golf Improvement Podcast to talk about Sterling Irons® single length irons.
Show Notes:
Jaacob tells His Story – how he became a Professional Golfer, and how he initially became interested in developing what have become the Sterling Irons® Single Length irons.
He talks about the initial requirements for the development of the Sterling Irons®, and why these requirements are important.
Jaacob discusses some of the interesting stories and challenges from the 2-1/2 year development of these irons.
He (and in fact Tom Wishon) play the Sterling Irons®. Jaacob discusses some of the surprises he has had related to how these irons perform for him.
Jaacob talks about a few of the very satisfying success stories from golfers who play the Sterling Irons®.
Finally, Jaacob provides some Final Words to golfers who might consider playing the Sterling Irons®.
For those living in Jefferson County, Missouri, keep an eye out in The Leader for Gordon Bess’ “The Inside Track” article called “Bowden stoking revolution in tradition-bound game of golf”…and article about Jaacob's Sterling Irons® single length irons.
#1 Most Popular Golf Instructor Mark Crossfield has just published “Cobra One Length or Sterling Irons® One Length” - Part 1.
Video notes: Mark Crossfield and Coach Lockey take on the single length iron challenge with the Cobra One Length irons and the Sterling Irons® single length irons. See what their on-course in-match ideas are of the single length push in the golf industry.
Continuing on from yesterday, Mark Crossfield has published Part 2 of “Cobra One Length or Sterling Irons® One Length”. See what Mark and Coach Lockey think about single length irons on the course and during their match.
As fellow equipment junkies, I’m sure many of you have already heard about Sterling Irons® single length irons.
Usually, with golf clubs, you only get to see the end-product that comes with all the marketing hype and fancy words meant to get you to buy the product. But it’s not too often that you get to hear an in-depth firsthand experience from one of the co-creators of a club design about what went into making the clubs you see on the shelves.
Distance gapping and trajectories have historically been a common problem and concern with single length irons. In this video, Tom Wishon and I discuss how we fixed those things in our Sterling Irons® single length irons design.
Rick Shiels & Peter Finch (Team North) take on Seb on Golf & James Pickard (Team South) around The Shire London in four mini matches featuring single length irons (including Sterling Irons®).
Thanks to Tony of Game Improvement Golf for having me back on his podcast.. Show Notes:
Jaacob talks about some of the most interesting things that have happened in the last year related to the introduction of the Sterling Irons® Single Length Irons.
The Sterling Irons® Lob Wedge was recently introduced – Jaacob talks about how the design of this lob wedge came about.
The second recent new Sterling Irons product is the Sterling Irons® 4 iron – most often used by strong players who can launch the golf ball easily. He discusses design efforts that lead to the release of the 4 iron.
Finally – Sterling Irons® left handed single length irons are now available. Jaacob talks about how glad he is that there was enough demand for these to be created.
Jaacob talks about some interesting suggestions for how golfers can practice to effectively adapt to using single length irons.
In closing – he shares a few Final Words for golfers who want to start playing effectively with Single Length Irons.