Local inventor aims to help your golf swing

A UW-Green Bay student is taking a swing with his patented invention.

It's a golf teaching aid called PrecisionLAG.

Growing up in New Zealand and playing golf for his country's national team, Sam Hunt arrived in the United States to play college golf at UNLV.

"Tried playing professionally but I lost more money than I ever won so that didn't work out, but I ended up caddying at Oakmont Country Club, so I caddied there for 4 years, I got to observe thousands of players, and from my understanding of golf mechanics and observing what everybody was doing wrong, I had the idea for how I could help them," says Hunt.

Five years ago, Hunt moved to Green Bay with his wife.

Last July, with the help of the Wisconsin System Technology Foundation, he applied to patent his invention.

"Most important principle in golf is the relationship between the shaft and your arm at impact. This is really a feedback source that helps people see when their arm and their club remain in line. As long as you feel it on your arm then you've maintained that proper relationship," explains Hunt.

"What good is your idea if you're just sitting on it and not doing anything with it?" UWGB entrepreneurship lecturer Ryan Kauth says. "So I think Sam's story is someone who did it himself, figured it out, thought maybe this is good for everyone else, maybe somebody would buy this and use it, and started talking about it."

In recent months, Hunt has won several thousand dollars in prize money for pitching his new invention in competitions.

He's now starting to share it with golf professionals around the country, with the goal of mass production within the next year.

"I've given a few beginner lessons with it, and it's really helped them with their chipping. So it's given me a lot of hope it can help all golf levels. There's a lot of potential for it to grow quickly," says Hunt.

You can

for updates on the PrecisionLAG and find out when it's for sale.