Training aids are funny things.
For every one that’s actually useful, there are 20 or 30…or 300 that are, to be kind, ineffective.
Seriously, there’s a lot of junk out there.
But what if I told you there’s a training aid used by over 240 PGA and European Tour professionals? And that those professionals claimed 34 victories since it launched in January 2015?
And how about this: the list includes 27 Majors winners, and 5 of the current top 10 players in the world.
One of whom is Jason Freaking Day.
Oh and these guys use it too.
Oh ya and remember we mentioned those world top 10? Rose, Stenson, Furyk, Johnson and we’ll just throw in world number 11 Branden Grace for the hell of it.
What is this device, and where do I learn more about its wonders?
It’s the DST Compressor, and if you want to learn more about it, you have to go back in time almost 9 months. That’s because you read about it first right here on MyGolfSpy, last May. We were singing this thing’s praises when most people still thought it was little more than a wedge some guy wrapped around a tree.
The DST Compressor is finally getting its due. It was one of the hits of the 2016 PGA show. Everywhere you looked you’d see people walking around with funny looking bent wedges and 8-irons. No longer an oddity; it’s now a must-have tool for the serious seeker of better.
Word has been getting out over the past 9 months. MyGolfSpy’s own Tony Covey says it’s making the big boys sit up and pay attention.
DST tells us their bent little stick is starting to explode. Dig these stats:
- Used by more than 420 Touring Pros globally
- Only training club ever approved by the PGA of Europe
- Used by 61% of the field at the FedEx Tour Championship
- Used by more than half the competitors at the 2015 President’s Cup
- Used by more than 65 of the Top 100 Swing Coaches in the US
- The #1 training club on 6 Professional tours
PGA tour journeyman Fabian Gomez has been very vocal on social media about his success since he began training with the DST Compressor in May. The four weeks following the adoption of the DST Compressor were a stark contrast in performance compared the his previous ten years on tour. In just eight months, he’s already won twice at the FedEx St. Jude Classic and the Sony Open, respectively.
Working with my @DSTGolf wedge. / Trabajando con mi DST wedge previo a la ronda del torneo Caddie Patron pic.twitter.com/Nsm5xkkWJI
— Fabián Gómez (@FabianGomezGolf) December 6, 2015
Not bad for what most people thought was, until recently, a design accident.
The thing is deceptively simple to use, it gets you into the right position for powerful ball striking, and feedback is instantaneous and obvious. And it works.
And you heard about it here first.
The primary point here isn’t to pat ourselves on the back (although we gotta admit, it does feel nice), but it’s to point out that the entire MyGolfSpy staff works every day to give you the latest info on what works and what doesn’t in golf, with no hidden agenda or bias. The success of the DST compressor says, in this case anyway, that we got this one right.
We wouldn’t tell our friends to buy something that’s crap, and we sincerely consider every reader a friend and we only want you to spend your hard earned cash on something that will legitimately help your game.
Leo
7 years agoWant to try this out take an old 8 iron, i did it with a 7 iron that had a bent shaft,and bend the top part of the shaft so your hands are ahead of the ball and the top hand appears to be in line with your lead thigh while the club head remains square the objective is to hit straight shots the tendency will be to hit hooks.Hit several shots with the training club then several with your normal club alternating to achieve the same feeling with both.
Mark Evershed
7 years agoLove this device . Great if distance is what your looking for .
Vince
7 years agoOkay, I bought the club and looked at the “how to use video” on their website. What I don’t specifically understand is where the line on the hosel is supposed to point. In the video it says it should point to your eyes, but when you do that the face looks wide open.
Does anyone know where there is a better explanation of how to use this line??
Bertie
7 years agoHi Vince, Here is a link to Bertie’s recently launched free ebook, entitled “THE SECRET OF GOLF” in it you will see a photo with graphics that clearly show how the Hand Position Alignment Marker should be aligned. I hope you enjoy it. http://www.dstgolf.com/uploads/Ebook/The_Secret_of_Golf_Ebook_v3_Compressed.pdf
Troy
7 years agoAny training aid that helps get the weight shift correct and hands ahead of the ball at impact can only be a good thing.
This is the number fault of most golfers I see and if this training aid helps then more golfers need to be using it.
ParHunter
7 years agoI was able to test both the wedge and the iron on the range. I normally have only little shaft lean and I am hitting my irons quite high so I was expecting to struggle with the DST but I hit them clean and straight. So can the DST be cheated as well (I do have the TourStriker and I can cheat it)? I can’t be that I can suddenly achieve plenty of shaft lean just by hitting it a few times (not a single mishit), can it?
I am wondering how the DST transfers to the real swing. There are lots of training aids out there that force you to do a certain movement but it doesn’t transfer to the real swing.
Bertie
7 years agoHello ParHunter
In order to learn how to transfer the movements and feelings developed with the DST compressor, simply align your own clubs with your lead shoulder at address and attempt to return the handle of the club to the same position through impact. Here is a link to Bertie’s recently launched free ebook, tons of insightful images and graphics that explain this exact topic. http://www.dstgolf.com/uploads/Ebook/The_Secret_of_Golf_Ebook_v3_Compressed.pdf
Chal
7 years agoI want to purchase only one of the the clubs. Which is more beneficial, the wedge or the 8 iron. I have no idea if golf ability matters in this decision. I currently am a scratch player. Thank you for any feedback.
Jamie
7 years agoI have a question for Mygolfspy staff. In order to get the full effect from the clubs, do you need to buy one with the curved shaft and then a non-curved shaft of the “transition” club. I am really just wondering if the “transition” clubs are offering anything more than just a regular straight shafted iron.
GolfSpy MBP
7 years agoI haven’t personally used the straight shafted CR10 club yet, but it does serve a purpose. The Straight club incorporates DST’s “hand position alignment marker” technology which allows golfers to preset their impact position improving the odds of success at impact. From what I’ve read It looks like more accomplished successful ball strikers would benefit from the straight club, as it’s visually training position ahead of the line of tension.
Pretty much the compressor trains all the feel and motion and the CR10 reinforces. From what I can tell it must be doing something since Fabian Gomez attributes his Sony success to incorporating the straight version CR10
Sang
7 years agoWhat indexes are the PW and 8-iron aimed at?
Matthew Blackbourn
7 years agoif they found out you were trying it they would have used your name in the article mate
ComeOnSense
7 years agoHow about a discount price for MGS readers for limited time only,etc ? I would like to get DST club.
Bertie
7 years agoUse coupon code DST10 for a 10% discount on your order.
Brian K
7 years ago(Sorry for my English)
I have both, ts and dst.
I have been curious about my swing whether good enough. Even though I have no problem hitting TS for few years, my ball striking is not good and consistent.
When I got a DST and tried in range and I found out my swing is good. lol. I have no problem hitting it at all. But As practise going on, I noticed my swing fault and the difference with TS.
TS does not need hand position like DST when impact and still ball is on the air But DST, when my body did not turn enough through impact , then it is just HOOK.
DST definitely shows me right body motion and release through impact. Right now I am trying to hold club square through impact and ball always flies to my target. My ball striking is way way better in two weeks, I think.
Adam Hubbard
7 years agoI’ve hit with it and it’s a neat trainer. I’m a big fan of training devices that you can hit with. So much easier to ingrain the right feeling.
Eddie Montone
7 years agolooks like you know your stuff
Jonathan Evans
7 years agoI use the Tour Striker training clubs which work nicely for me. But I’m always after ways to improve…
Will these clubs produce any better results than the TS? Seems to be providing a similar service/feedback.
Brian K
7 years agoI have been using TS for few years and DST for 2 weeks and the difference is simply not comparable. TS does not need hand position like DST and still hit flush shot . Without proper body turn and release, you are making just hook or shank. I think my ball striking is way way better than few weeks ago.
Jonathan Evans
7 years agoNice one. Thanks Brian
I may well invest.
(Although I shudder to think how much money I’ve spent on trying to get better at this game…)
Rogdog
7 years agoI have the tour striker and dst wedge. After one session starting with the dst wedge I picked up the tour striker. What I felt and saw was a better ball flight with the tour striker. I like both clubs, but I think the dst is a good aid.
Steve
7 years agoI wish you folks would look at the Tour Striker. It does the same thing for a lower (street price) cost. It is impossible to get the ball airborne with out a correct downward strike. I use the 7 iron version at the range and to warm up.
http://www.tourstriker.com/
Dave S
7 years agoMGS has compared the TS with the DST and the DST is a better product. Look it up; I don’t feel like finding the link for you.
Tony Covey
7 years agoSteve – Big fan of the Tour Striker, and I’ve known Martin Chuck for years…great dude. The one potential issue with the Tour Striker is you can learn to cheat it in ways that aren’t necessarily beneficial to your golf swing. So in some cases it’s possible to make it work without making a decent swing.
Prefaced with ‘I haven’t personally used it, but I’d sure like to’, the guys I’ve spoken with who have tell me that the greatness of the DST is that there’s basically no margin for error. Everything has to be right, and it’s difficult, if not impossible, to generate solid contact without making a solid golf swing.
mark
7 years agoTony, you are exactly right. I have had the tour striker for years and have found that you can hit what appears to be a good shot without having to swing through the shot completely. I only ended up using it when my swing was totally out of whack. The DST requires that you make a good swing THROUGH the ball with your body (getting to the hands forward position) to hit a good shot. If you flip with hands at impact to square the club face that ball is going left. No training aid works for everyone but I haven’t found a person get who didn’t try it that didn’t say WOW that’s a great training tool. I use it to warmup before every round and during practice sessions now and believe it’s worth every penny.
dwayne
7 years agoI remember this discussion. The were a few of us who had Tour Strikers who were happy with it and were confused about the claims of others that the Tour Striker could be cheated.
How exactly do you cheat the Tour Striker?
Steve
7 years agoThe only way I know to “cheat” the Tour striker is to play it from a “fluffy” lie like what you might find on some driving range mats. With those mats and some real grass you can get the equator of the club below the ball center without a downward strike(because the ball sits up). I always hit it off the “hard” part of the mat like hitting off hardpan. I’ve never been able to hit a good shot with out a downward strike. That being said I’d like to try the DST; just not sure I’d like to pay for it. If there are others ways to cheat the tour striker I’d like to know them.
dwayne
7 years agoYes, a fluffy lie allows one to get under it, the shot is very high, weak. Thanks.
There was a comment made above about going back to normal club after using the bent shaft training club, they sell a transition club? This is from their website
“The DST CR-10 8-iron is a transition club that has been designed with a straight shaft but comprises the DST patent pending technology in the club head. The CR-10 includes the Hand Position Alignment Marker (HPAM) and amended sole angle. After you have developed the feeling and sensation of a delayed strike using the scientifically curved shafted DST Compressor, the CR-10 is designed to enable you to locate, train and perfect the optimal impact position with a straight shafted club. This enables you to take the feeling that you developed with the Compressor and apply the same feelings to your game.”
Dwayne
7 years agoYes, that is very true, one can get under it with a fluffy lie, the ball goes very high, kind of a weak shot.
They do offer a “transition” model, this is from the website..
“The DST CR-10 8-iron is a transition club that has been designed with a straight shaft but comprises the DST patent pending technology in the club head. The CR-10 includes the Hand Position Alignment Marker (HPAM) and amended sole angle. After you have developed the feeling and sensation of a delayed strike using the scientifically curved shafted DST Compressor, the CR-10 is designed to enable you to locate, train and perfect the optimal impact position with a straight shafted club. This enables you to take the feeling that you developed with the Compressor and apply the same feelings to your game.”
Steve
7 years agoWow. What a brilliant marketing campaign. To get the full benefit you have to buy TWO training clubs. I’d love to be able to test drive the DST against the Pro striker but no one around me has the DST, yet. The Pro Striker has helped me hit my irons better, so if all the hype is true about the DST being better at training your swing it should take me to the next level. It would be neat if my divots were well past the ball like the pros.
Dave S
7 years agoAll I’d say is that there must be a reason tour pros are using the DST as a training aid and not Tour Striker. It certainly isn’t b/c of $$ or sponsorships. I would trust those whose livelihoods depend on being good at golf.
r cohn
6 years agoThe goal of both training clubs is to train the golfer to maximize the “smash factor” or compression at impact or to be technical to minimize spin loft .Spin loft can be simply summarized as containing two components
A. The amount of loft of the clubface at impact -also called dynamic loft
B. The amount of spin imparted on the golf ball.
By creating shaft lean at impact ,pros deloft the clubface,thus turning a 7 iron into a 5.5 or 6 iron.To do so requires that the hands be ahead of the clubface at impact.
In order to hit the Tour striker ,you must have the hands ahead of the clubface at impact.
The second component ,the amount of spin,is determined by the attack angle at impact
It is possible to “CHEAT” with the Tour Striker if a golfer shifts his entire body laterally toward the target during the downswing.This will steepen the angle of attack similar to the effect that playing the ball back in your stance .Then even if the golfer creates shaft lean and delofts the clubface at impact ,he also will impart too much spin to the ball ,resulting in loss of distance and too high a ball flight
RICH
7 years agoMatt,
good question. The DST club actually trains the motion that will get you into the optimum impact position. It also trains you how to properly pivot through impact, keeping your arms on plan. The transition to your straight shafted clubs is seamless because you are training a feel and not a mechanical position. Your body will easily remember the feels that you created while using the DST Compressor. The Tour players usually hit balls wit the DST club for 5-10 minutes and then go right to their own clubs. they then bounce back and forth to easily work the feel they create with the DST clubs into their own clubs. Please feel free to visit the DST website for more information.
McaseyM
7 years agoSimple is almost always better. I haven’t used this, but am interested. I use the SKLZ Gold Flex trainer for warm up, tempo and lag ( thing Orange Whip, but muuuuuuuch cheaper) and it’s been great. I’d like to swing one of these, but i’d have to find time to actaully get to the shop/course to do it
RL
7 years agoDST looks like my 9i after meeting a FL Oak root hidden under winter leaves. I haven’t reshafted b/c I it’s fun hitting it, bonus for DST reasons! I noticed your hiring though for writers it requires a bachelors minimum. ;_(
MyGolfSpy
7 years agoDid you apply? We’re hiring.
http://www.mygolfspy.com/now-hiring-mygolfspy-writers-industry-experts/
Chris Peyton
7 years agoA I’m buying it
B I want to work for MyGof Spy … I live in Va Beach w in 10
Minutes of 5 course !!!!!!
MyGolfSpy
7 years agoDid you apply? We’re hiring.
http://www.mygolfspy.com/now-hiring-mygolfspy-writers-industry-experts/
Mark
7 years agoHello fellow Virginia Beach golfer!
Also, living here in Virginia Beach, it’s not hard to live less than 5 minutes from a golf course. I actually live in between 2 of them myself.