Our Mission

We are golfers first. We know what that seemingly endless pursuit to improve your golf game is like. That’s why we have harnessed the latest technology to help make players of all skill levels better golfers. It’s our mission. SwingSmart exists to provide every player with the accurate and important feedback they need to improve their game and lower their scores—with no distractions or gimmicks.  

The SwingSmart Story

NewSpin Sports was founded with a very simple idea: Make a golf swing analyzer that will give INSTANT feedback on every golf swing. Angelo Papadourakis wanted the device to be small, portable, and able to give feedback quickly out on the range or on the course. "It was originally going to be just a device for me, but I realized that all golfers could use a swing trainer device like this to help them get better at golf, " he said. It all began in 2006 at the PGA Championship at Medinah (Ill.) Country Club when Angelo went to the range to watch the players work with their coaches. After watching some of the other players, he noticed one player getting instruction from his coach like it was the first time he had ever played the game. The coach was literally grabbing the player’s club and moving it to each position in the swing and telling him, "Look, it needs to go HERE. " Angelo looked at that and said to himself, "If a professional golfer still needs basic instruction on his club positions, how can we amateurs go to the range, hit some golf balls with no feedback, and somehow think we are going to get better—without anyone or anything providing accurate FEEDBACK about our swings? " After doing some research on micro electrical mechanical systems (MEMS) and their use in measuring motion, Angelo knew that the device could be made. In early 2007, Angelo began working with (now NewSpin Chief Executive Officer) Tom McClaughry to begin development of the swing trainer. The partners, together with a dedicated group of engineers based in Illinois and California, designed and implemented the technology that became the SwingSmart Golf Analyzer.  

Our Team

Our team is dedicated to revolutionizing golf swing training for both the casual and committed player.

Angelo Papadourakis

Founder & President Angelo’s many hobbies include playing golf, watching golf, studying golf, reading golf publications, training for golf, and creating golf inventions. Angelo started his business career as an attorney specializing in litigation and criminal defense and later transitioned from practicing law to trading stock index futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME).   Angelo received a B.A. in Economics from the University of Illinois at Urbana and a Juris Doctor from DePaul University. Angelo is currently a member of the Illinois Bar.  But mostly, he’s on a golf course somewhere trying to get better at this great game.  

Tom McClaughry

Founder & Chief Executive Officer Tom has 30 years of experience developing and bringing to market advanced technology products, initially with Motorola, Inc., followed by his own company, Future Vision Technologies, Inc. His teams have created wireless communication systems for Federal and State government, physician notification and drug distribution systems for the Healthcare marketplace, and applications and services for the consumer mobile device industry. Tom received a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Illinois at Urbana, a B.S. in Applied Physics from DePaul University, and an M.S. in Electrical Engineering & Computer Science from the University of Illinois at Chicago.  

Mike McClaughry

Vice President—Hardware Development Mike has over 30 years of experience in research, product development and competitive analysis in the semiconductor, communications and automotive industries.  While at Motorola, his R&D team developed semiconductors that led to the launch of numerous breakthrough products, including the original DynaTAC cell phone.  Mike received BSEE and MSEE degrees from the Illinois Institute of Technology.  

Ted Mazurkiewicz

Vice President—Research & Development Ted has 25 years of experience developing software systems at companies including Northrop, Motorola, and Continental Automotive. His responsibilities within various R&D organizations have consisted of innovating core technologies spanning diverse areas and deploying them on embedded product platforms. Ted received a B.S. in Computer Engineering and an M.S. in Computer Science, both from the University of Illinois at Urbana.  

Protected under one or more of the following U.S. Patents: 8,589,114; 8,831,905; 9,656,122 and other U.S. patents pending.

 

Protected under one or more of the following U.S. Patents: 8,589,114; 8,831,905; 9,656,122 and other U.S. patents pending.