The golf season is well and truly in full swing, and if, like me, you have a busy diary of competitive golf on the horizon, then you’ll want to ensure your ball striking is as sharp as it can be. Eyeline Golf is known for producing some of the best training aids on the market, specifically putting training aids, but it was the Speed Trap 2.0 that caught my eye when scanning through its website. So I took it out for a practice session to see if it could have a positive impact on my ball striking.
As is the case with all Eyline Golf products, the Speed Trap 2.0 feels sturdy and is very self-explanatory when it comes to setting up. In the handy travel case, you’re given the detailed plastic base, as well as four foam rods and four plastic ties to hold the rods down. The only qualm I had when setting the Speed Trap 2.0 up was that the plastic ties are very tight on the foam rods, and so it was a little bit of a struggle slotting them on. While this was a little annoying, I’d rather deal with this struggle as opposed to the ties not being tight enough and having the embarrassment of having to go and fetch one of the foam rods down on the range should you make a poor swing.
One of the things I loved the most about the Speed Trap training aid was the fact that you have set ball positions marked out for different shots, such as chipping, pitching, and full swings. The marker for chipping is placed further back towards the plastic base to encourage a more downward strike, therefore improving contact and generating more spin. These markers also act as great indicators of firstly setting your clubface up square to your target at address, but then ensuring you’re returning it squarely through impact.
As someone who has recently been swinging too far to the left and wants to get my natural draw shape back, I instantly set the foam rods up to deliver an in-to-out swing path. However, if you regularly hook the ball, it’s easy enough to set the rods up to promote a path that moves more from out-to-in by removing two of the rods from the opposite corners. While you can adjust how close these are to your shaft and the ball to make the drill harder, but just the visual indication in the widest setting should be enough for most golfers.
After about an hour of hitting balls into a net using the Speed Trap 2.0, I gained a really good understanding of how I needed the club to move to produce a smooth draw. I then went onto the course to put my practice to the test and the results were exactly as I had hoped. I had brought back a smooth baby draw and had eradicated the push-slice out of the heel. If I incorporate one practice session with the Speed Trap 2.0 every couple of weeks, then I believe I could be on for my best ball-striking golf season in years!
Coming to retail at $119, I understand this training aid is somewhat of an investment but if you’re serious about making changes to your swing and want to improve your ball striking, then this is without doubt one of the best training aids on the market.
