Wireless motion capture technology unveiled at 157 training centers worldwide
ENGLEWOOD, Colorado (July 20, 2021) – At more than 157 locations worldwide, GOLFTEC has rolled out OptiMotion, a groundbreaking motion tracking innovation that sets a new standard for how golf swings are measured and the way golf instruction is delivered.
The first and only motion capture and measurement system of its kind in golf, OptiMotion uses custom-built, high-speed, HD cameras to measure the swing in 3D and leverages a proprietary artificial intelligence model to unprecedentedly collect more than 4,000 data points in every swing.
The entire dataset is captured in a wireless, sensorless environment and in the comfort of a GOLFTEC training bay. A GOLFTEC coach guides the entire experience to provide instant feedback for easy understanding and basis to play better golf.
This revolutionary technology, combined with the expertise of GOLFTEC coaches, provides golfers around the world with a better way to improve their game.
Unlike other instruction technology, OptiMotion neither requires golfers to wear cumbersome, restrictive cords and harnesses nor rely on single-camera devices. Instead, OptiMotion features two cameras – one positioned face-on and the other behind golfers looking “down the target line” – which instantly track how students’ bodies move throughout various points in their swings.
“GOLFTEC committed several years of research, development and testing to bring OptiMotion to life and deliver the greatest motion-measurement advancement in the history of golf instruction,” says Joe Assell, Founder and CEO of GOLFTEC. “Early adopters serious about improving their games praise OptiMotion as high-tech yet practical with accurate, data-driven evaluations and outcomes like no other.”
With a digital library of more than 14 million golf swings, including motion tracking and ball flight data, GOLFTEC owns more raw information about the biomechanics of a golf swing than any company in the world. Its R&D team worked closely with hundreds of its coaches and thousands of students to curate an extensive inventory of swing variables – including abilities, body types and even clothing – to hone and refine algorithms for personalized instruction.
With the addition of OptiMotion – and the efficacy of world-class coaches, launch monitors and custom club fitting – GOLFTEC continues to provide the world’s most complete golf training experience at scale.
“GOLFTEC is recognized for lowering golfers’ scores by an average of seven strokes,” says Nick Clearwater, Vice President of Instruction of GOLFTEC and GOLF Magazine Top 100 Teacher. “Backed by substantial, indisputable data, OptiMotion prompts golfers to practice motions which produce better shots; therefore, we believe shaving additional strokes in an accelerated time frame will become the norm.”
In relentless pursuit to improve golf swings globally, GOLFTEC collaborated on OptiMotion with Uplift Labs in Silicon Valley and the sport science team at the University of Denver. The partnership integrated cutting-edge artificial intelligence, biomechanics data and GOLFTEC’s library of tens of millions of golf swings to output real-time analysis identifying key areas for improvement.
The launch of OptiMotion aligns with a 44% YOY surge in U.S. rounds played through April 2021, and golf industry experts forecast continued momentum year-long. Golf rounds grew by 14% in 2020, over 60 million more than 2019, with similar upticks internationally.