TaylorMade: Your questions answered

You can just spot the [lighter coloured] grind which Garcia has personalised on the sole of his wedge.

TaylorMade/adidas is making great strides on Tour and with the products they bring to the market place in their burgeoning efforts to provide every golfer with the chance to knock shots off their handicap and get even more enjoyment from the game.

We asked Chris Tott from TaylorMade's Tour department and Jason Howarth from the product division to answer some questions to give Golfmagic.com visitors an insight into top players' club demands and what goes on behind the scenes as the Basingstoke-based equipment suppliers move forward in 2009.

From the latest research, it appears that Sergio Garcia uses 54, 58 and 60-degree TaylorMade rac wedges in his bag. What kind of bounce does he prefer and why?

CHRIS TOTT: While I haven't personally been involved directly in Sergio's golf equipment I can give you an insight as to what he will be trying to achieve. In the US the guys have even given Sergio his own apron [to protect his clothing from flying metal] and he tends to do a lot of the work himself. But he won't be grinding to a specific number (degree) of bounce but more towards what he's trying to achieve that specific week or series of weeks.

For example when playing on lush fairways in the US Sergio is looking to keep the bounce on the back part of the flange so that the club won't stick in the turf or dig in on full shots and chip shots.

Alternatively when playing on firmer fairways around the time of the Open Championship at Turnberry in July, he will be taking bounce out of the back of the flange and pronouncing the leading edge. This makes the club more aggressive and allows him to accelerate through the turf with confidence that the club will not bounce off it.

The latest ZTP wedges from TaylorMade have variable loft and bounce options

Overall, there's is no specific number of degrees of bounce he's looking to obtain. His grinds are dependent more on the conditions or any particular shot he is trying to master that requires bounce in certain parts of the sole. Grinding can also take place on the top edge or toe to alter the look of the club at address. This rarely affects the physical playing characteristics; it's more a visual appeal and I know that Sergio has been known to round edges or top lines in the past.

What should amateur golfers know about the bounce on a wedge and whether it suits them or the conditions they regularly face?

JASON HOWARTH:The bounce on a wedge is very important and is there to help golfers execute the shot perfectly. Too much bounce on a firm, links-style course can often be problematic and can typically result in a higher percentage of thinned or skulled shots. Conversely, a wedge with too little bounce in more lush conditions (soft/wet) can result in more 'heavy' or 'fat' shots, where the sharp leading edge digs into the ground too soon.

Whom among the TaylorMade pros are the tinkerers on Tour with their equipment. Whom are the most pedantic and specific in their requests?

CHRIS: Every player can be demanding at times. So nailing their requests is a must for our engineers on Tour and as relationships grow between players and manufacturers, we tend to realise what niggles each player.

Bradley Dredge, prefers face to looks square on his driver

Swing Weights are crucial to other players; some can feel half a point swingweight difference between one club and another and more often than not, they are correct. Darren Clarke appears to be quite particular in relation to shaft tipping and club head sound (he prefers a dead sound off the face). He can also feel the centre of gravity (CG) location within the head. He likes to draw the ball, so an opposite face angle to Rahpael Jacquelin is preferred, while Paul Lawrie must have grips stretched to 10.5 inches.

The list goes on and varies from player to player. But our main request is face angle. If the player is happy with this, it's always a good start!

TaylorMade heads the driver count on the European Tour. How often do players tend to change and tweak their drivers?

CHRIS: Driver counts vary dependent on where the Tour is currently playing, anywhere in the world as does a player's requirements. When in Asia softer tips are preferred by the majority of Tour players to give the guys a bit more flight and make it easier to turn the ball over, with a draw and therefore obtain more distance.

In South Africa, players tend to be physically stronger and firmer tipped shafts are preferred. It's much the same on the Australasian Tour. On the European Tour players tend to only change when a new model is released. In Europe, players will see us week in week out and it's generally more maintenance on their current clubs rather than trying different shafts/head combinations.

At certain times during the year if a player is struggling to hit a certain flight or their driving statistics have been poor, they will look to make a change but generally once they're happy with the right combination in the early stages of a new model being released, they will tend to play with this and build their confidence. From there it is more a case of back up drivers and re-grips. It's just like good putters, once they have found one, they rarely change.

*We'll have more fascinating answers to questions submitted to TaylorMade later this week. Tell us on the forum if you have any technical questions for the TaylorMade team and we'll try to get them answered.