Tom Mase, Ph.D.

Associate Chair of Mechanical Engineering, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Tom Mase received a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from Michigan State University in 1980. He obtained M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of California, Berkeley, in 1982 and 1987, respectively.

The majority of his 30-year career has been in academia using his mechanics background to work on applied problems in golf (and sports). Specific areas have been measuring constitutive responses of materials (golf ball covers and cores), impact modeling using finite elements, and composite materials. Representative publications include: Third Edition of Continuum Mechanics for Engineers (CRC Press); “Modelling the Sound of a Golf Club Impact,” Proc IMechE, Part P, Journal of Sports Engineering Technology, Sage Publishing, 226(2), 107-113, c 2012 with Volkoff-Shoemaker, Sharpe, and Moriera; several papers on determining hyperelastic, rate-dependent properties of golf balls

Tom stepped out of academia a couple of times for a total just over 3 years to work full-time in the golf industry. He is named on five golf-related patents. Tom played competitive golf in his youth, and he currently plays at a good level. Golf equipment fitting has been, and continues to be, an interest.