SUMMER PLEASURES SWINGING LIKE A PRO Ready to throw your go( fdubs into the water? Check out a new computerized teaching methodfirst and you might start hitting like Norman and Nicklaus. MEGAN SWOYER SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS magine your spouse telling the beautiful, money-making you that he or she would swings and programmed a com- trade you and the kids for puter-screen-sized golfer which anything that could help is manipulated by a keyboard. The computer golfer is a com- improve his or her golf game. Dr. Ralph Mann says, somewhat jok- pilation of all the expert swingers. Smacking the ball as smooth ingly, those types are prevalent all over the world. "Golfers will and effortless as Tiger Woods, trade their spouses and kids to the computer image acts as a take 10 strokes off their game," base for the student. Once the student's height and other per- he laughs. That addictive affection for golf sonal characteristics are entered is one of the main reasons why into the computer, the program Mann developed a new teaching develops a customized perfect swing. Then the student, who's tool called CompuSport. Sounding more like a sports- videotaped on the computer, injury, high-tech rehabilitation takes a couple swings over its center than a way to polish your master computer-imaged swing. golf swing, Compusport is avail- The Compusport teacher now can able until June 29 at Grand Tra- point specifically to the student's verse Resort in Traverse City. It's problem areas. For example, the student's also available at five other loca- tions in the United States. Com- right shoulder may be too high puSport is up and running on a and his knee may be too stiff. trial basis at Grand Traverse Re- Generally, the image claims that sort and may return next golf sea- right-handed students should, when addressing the ball, point son. "Those who want to learn the their left foot out slightly and game or fine-tune the game will place it a little bit back as com- likely go to the pros. One teacher pared to the right foot. The right tells you one thing. Another tells knee should be cocked in some- you something else. That's a what, explains Mann. And the right shoulder should be tilted problem," says Mann. And that's where Compusport down. "You'll see a rounded comes into play. During Com- hunch on the back of a lot of the puSport's development phase, professional golfers," he says. Mann and others photographed "Jack Nicklaus has a natural one more than 70 players from the now." Lee Houtteman, a teaching major tours (PGA, LPGA and Se- nior PGA). Then they combined professional at Grand Traverse I - Dr. Ralph Mann, a former Olympic athlete. designs the perfect golf swing for Grand Traverse Resort students.