Ladies and Gentlemen, An Interview With Gurbaaz Mann, the world’s greatest club-fitter:
JW: Mr. Mann, we spoke at-length last year at The Bridgestone Invitational, where you impressed me with your intelligence and comprehensive knowledge of club-fitting. Suffice it to say, I came away with the opinion that the world needs to know who you are and what makes you the world’s greatest club-fitter. So today, if you please, I want to sort of lay the foundation for further talks by going backward in your golfing history. Do you mind?
GM: “Fire away at will.”
JW: Okay. First, Lets talk about what led you to your current career. I’d start with academics first. But, since schooling and golf for us began about the same time, Ill start with golf. So… Baaz, tell us about your playing resume. Are there highlights that stand out in your memory?
GM: Sure, I was No 1 Junior in India in 1999-2000. Then, I earned a partial scholarship from Arizona State to play on their golf team. I turned pro after school and played on the Indian Tour, where I was Rookie of The Year. I won twice and earned Asian Tour Status. Then, I played on the Asian Tour for six years and earned a world-ranking.
JW: Your upward playing trajectory sort of flattened off. What was behind that?
GM: In 2010, I suffered a Labrum Tear injury in my hip that ended my playing for two years. I did recover from the injury in 2012 and my best finish on the Indian Tour thereafter was 2nd in 2013.
JW: Tell us about your schooling. I would guess you were an excellent scholar. What were your favorite subjects?
GM: I attended High School at St. John’s High School, Chandigarh, India before attending ASU. My strongest schooling subjects were Economics, Math, Physics and English.
JW: Those subjects certainly make sense considering your command of physical concepts with regard to the golf ball and club interactions. I’ll ask more pointed questions about the empirical data you, alone, possess later. For now, and on the lighter side, who were your golfing heroes?
GM: My Father starting out as a 10 year old. He was a three-time Club Champion and a scratch handicap. He represented India for the Senior Championships. After him, I like Jeev Milkha Singh, David Duval, Ernie Els, Tiger Woods, Colin Montgomery, Seve Ballesteros, Jack Nicklaus, Davis Love… not necessarily in that order.
JW: That’s an extensive list.
GM: I couldn’t ever pick one as a favourite as I enjoyed each of their games for different skills.
JW: Yes, I certainly understand that. They each had a specialized skill in their skill-set, which leads me to my next question. What were your strengths on the golf course?
GM: I was the longest hitter on the Indian and Asian Tour, which contributed to my high rank on the eagles and birdies list. My wedge play around the greens was also very strong.
JW: And your weakness was…?
GM: My putting was probably the weakest part of my game until 2014 where I re-learned it all in a fresh way, and I dare say it has become a stronger part of my game. I took time off from pro golf and doing research into golf technologies and protocols in manufacturing etc. to understand this. Also when I was able to apply this to more players in my academy and see immediate results I knew I was on to something.
JW: I sense we are headed toward another interview about what you do on the other side of the ropes. So, Baaz, let me ask one more question for this episode. Do you still play/competitively?
GM: Yes. I have recently been able to qualify for the Indian Tour as I have been positioned here for a while. I finished 16th in the Q school to earn a full playing card status. Otherwise, I only play as I am a mentor to some players on the tour and it helps me to keep applying my process to myself, which has yielded good results. Considering I have not played actively for four years and only eight competitive rounds last year, it was good to finish 16th on a really tough scoring track.
JW: Thank you for your time, Gurbaaz Mann. Talk soon.
Open your stance, and play golf.
John Wright – Founder
The Open Stance Academy
