Play year round here in Tennessee (four times last week). Club wise went to the Stealth driver last fall and added the Stealth 15 degree three wood about two months ago, happy with both. Could use an iron refresh and hoping the new Costco irons show out and show up soon at a great Costco price. https://drivingrangeheroes.com/the-costco-irons-are-coming/
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Mostly just starting a strength training program. We booked a trip to Bandon Dunes in spring 2024 and my back is not gonna survive 5+ rounds in 4 days if it stays like it is right now.
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I want a new set of game improvement irons so bad. Either the Taylormade Stealths or the Mizuno JPX923 Hot Metals or dare I say the new Callaway Paradym X's.
But I have an engagement ring to pay off and a wedding to plan so that's not happening any time soon lol. I have a buddy that just got the Taylormade P790s, so he's gonna give me his old Aeroburner irons. I'm hoping that scratches the itch 😁
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I've had several sets in the past. Then went away from them for a bit, including the beginning of last year. Handicap was at 6.7 with a Titleist set, even shooting 72 with them in June. Then got a set of Mizuno Pro 225's. Cap at the end of the year was 5.2, dropping 1.5 strokes in 3 months. MIZUNO. ALWAYS MIZUNO
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I keep hearing that people love Mizuno, dropping 1.5 strokes when you're already shooting in the low 70s would do it! They are very high on my list for whenever I get fitted, and I can only dream of shooting a score that low. But *anything* has to be better than the 20+ year old King Cobra IIs I currently have that I can't hit the broad side of a barn with 😂
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I've had Mizuno many years ago, but recently got fit for Srixon ZX7's. I'd give those a look too. The guy fitting me said most Mizuno people that he's fit lately have been switching to Srixon. Could've been full of it, but I love them. Picked up 8-10 yards on my 6-iron (that was with a upcharge shaft though).
Once we landed on a shaft, I was down to the ZX7's and Taylormade P790's My ball speed was 2-3mph higher with the P790's but my distance and dispersion was better with the ZX7's. Plus they felt so much better.
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One thing I will offer up....screw popularity when it comes to club selection. If you hit a snoopy club past their Taylormade and score better with it, you better put the snoopy in the bag. When you actually hit the Srixons, you'll forget what name is on the back of it.
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Yeah, for what its worth I said "Mizuno, Always Mizuno" But am playing the ZX7s right now. Cant say I like them any more than the Mizunos, but they are great clubs. Cant go wrong with Japanese Irons right now.
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I think one of the on-line reviewing folks suggested waiting for the second edition of new line of clubs; that was probably very good advice given what Srixon seems to be doing...going after the Mizuno market.
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When you say game improvement - if you want to hit in further, less crocked, and less mis hits- look at the Ping G series. They are super game improvement. Don't make any swing adjustments and you will hit these clubs further- no question. Of course ping is not for everyone- heavy offset, wide top line, etc. But if you want to hit it longer, higher, etc. Take a serious look.
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I absolutely have a huge problem getting any flight on the ball. I left the range yesterday in a foul mood because I cannot hit a 5 to save my life and I feel like I have no power behind my swing whatsoever.
I tend to hook my irons so I should probably avoid anything already draw biased but similar to what I said about Mizuno, I have definitely heard that PINGs are about as forgiving as clubs get. I will also give the G series a closer look
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If you are hitting the ball somewhat squarely, height largely depends on shaft. Get fitted and tell the guy you want a higher ball flight. Another thing about Ping- they will fit you and put it in their global database- so any store can pull up your fitting if they sell ping.
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That's great to know on both counts! My current clubs have graphite shafts, regular flex as far as I can recall. It'll be very interesting if steel is more suited to my swing
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Without going too far down the rabbit hole, could be the flex is too light for you. A stiffer shaft won't lag behind, effectively shutting the face down and delofting the club. Maybe. And not every regular or stiff are the same. I've swung reg KBS shafts that would be almost xtra-stiff for some graphites. They vary greatly across the board. There are ways to manipulate as well, like tip trimming and such...but that's why the fitter should have "certified" in front of their name.
(If anyone in the Annapolis/B'more area runs into a Callaway fitting, James is top top notch. One of the best in the country for Cally and that's why they send him to the top locales. If you see him tell him nerf says hi!)
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Like the magpie I am, I impulse bought a Tsi2 driver off eBay even though I said I wouldn't buy another club without getting fit for it. Of course that was around Thanksgiving and I've yet to even swing it, let alone play a round with it. Thought I might get out this weekend and ended up hurting my foot bad enough that I went to get x-rays. Luckily nothing broken, but still pretty sore to walk on.
Edit: Forgot, I did get these for Christmas. I've tried just about every ball on the market and keep coming back to the Tours. I did like the Pro-Zero and I do like Taylormade TP5 Pix, but for the price, these are hard to beat.
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First round of 23 in the books. 95 at Hanging Rock after not swinging a club since early November. Felt good to be out there and finally got to hit my new driver. Still have a nasty duck hook in my locker and lost some strokes to hitting ob otherwise, could have broke 90.
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Added a Taylormade UDI 2 iron last fall and it's kicked the 23* hybrid out of the bag. Good off the tee and getting out of tree trouble, and will be perfect for Scotland this summer.
We've got a solid itinerary for August in St Andrews.
Day 1. New course
Day 2. Hoping for ballot for old or 36 on jubilee
Day 3. Castle am. Then our tour guy thinks he can get us on at dark time w some buddies of his
Day 4. Dumbarnie
Day 5. Kingsbarns
Day 6. Carnoutie
Day 7. Jubilee
There's some time in there for extras as well as we see fit. Also going to have reservations for Rusaks on 18.
Other club tinkering, I've got 3 black vokey wedges that I'm swapping the stock shafts out for the true temper black onyx shafts, and black grips. Gonna Darth Vader them all.
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Scottish Golf Experiences
Kevin Fogarty. He's actually a caddie on the old (caddied in the Open last year for a Soph from UNLV.) and created this business. He knows the locals, the ins and outs, and had the best price by a mile. (all those rounds plus hotel double occupancy and breakfast in the morning plus transport from airport and to the courses included) Under $3k us dollars. Granted, we don't have the old guaranteed, but he thinks he can get us on Sat at dark time...
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Hidden Links and Perry Golf are top notch for staying at one of the 5 star hotels in St. Andrews, or if you are jumping from west side (Turnberry/Troon) to east (St. Andrews/Edinburgh)
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Played a round on January 2 and haven't been out since. Hoping for some more opportunities to get some practice in the off-season. I'd like to get a new set of irons but I need to play a bit better before I can justify the cost.
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Went to Scottsdake to see son, daughter in law and new grand daughter just before thankgiving. Had to work while there and #1 priority was seeing said grand daughter. So golf was a lower priority, but got to play a few rounds.
Drove there n back from christiansburg so took my own clubs. Played Paradise Valley par 3, Biltmore Adobe, and The Raven. Was only playong average for 1st 2, but game came together for The Raven, shooting an 89. All courses were nice, especially The Raven.
Been working on simplifying my swing, its working, just gotta keep hitting range or getting a round at least once per week.
I really want a simulator, but man they're expensive.
Keep playing everyone!
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Which neighborhood do they live in? Do they like it? I'm going house hunting there in Feb. Playing We Ko Pa- I've played a lot of golf out there, but never at what the locals call the "best course here bar none"- I'm excited!
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I mentioned in the last thread that I played Gainey Ranch in Scottsdale on 12/26. Very nice resort course with three 9-hole tracks. Good food & great wine list.
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DC: My son lives in the Arcadia area, which is technically in Phoenix, but very close to Scottsdale border. He's a few miles South of the Biltmore courses.
They do like the area. Their townhouse is a small set of units with Secure entry/exit.
The restaurant scene in that area is insane. So many good choices. But its funny that gas is almost $1 higher/gal in Scottsdale area than say Mesa. There is definitely a "live in Scottsdale, pay more for everything" theme in place.
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Biggest thing I took away from this that I should keep as a reminder, the kid in the video is by no means trying to kill the ball with everything he has. Form over power. I have defintely been neglecting this. I love the explanation on the form of gripping the club
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Damn, this is awesome. Y'all are playing some great places. I started a new job, a PhD program, and have a 3 year old and 2 month old, so my clubs are mostly staying in the closet these days. But I'm enjoying living vicariously through all of you!
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A colleague of mine took me to Eagle Point here in Wilmington today for a business meeting. Would love to play that course! He told me it was a $200K initiation fee to join. I'll need to make a bit more $$ before I can pull that off...
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I've snuck in a few rounds at Burke Lake a week ago when the temperatures rose; it's fairly close to my house and easy to get to when the weather allows. We moved to Springfield this past summer and should be here for a good while; it's nice living close to so many Hokies, for once!
I recently bought a club through a kickstarter, called the Q Club. It has 11 settings (a few hybrids, 5-9, P, S, W and Putter settings). It's not a club intended to replace my bag, but I'll say that walking a par-3 course with just 1 club, a couple golf balls and my glove was quite relaxing. There's already a few youtube reviews coming out from folks that know a lot more than I do (I usually golf in the 90s), but overall, it does exactly what it advertises: a decent club to have in your car, to play a quick 9 without all the hassle of your full set-up (I got many crazy looks at the course, hitting the hybrid ~180'ish on one hole, and then ~120 on the very next hole, with the same club).
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I play most of my rounds at East Potomac, hit me up if you ever want to get out for a game. Burke Lake is a fun par 3 too. It's been a while since I've played it.
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That'd be awesome. I managed to play a few rounds with my brother that lives in the area before the weather started getting nippy. Wanted to play East Potomac but didn't get the chance.
I've played at Belvoir, Quantico and Andrews from the courses at bases and Glendale and Burke Lake from the public courses.
Need me to post my email here or do you go all meta-matrix and message me directly from the code? 😅
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I joined a course just south of Richmond last month and have gotten out to hit balls and play weekly since then. I haven't played more than a handful of times a year since starting at VT 12-13 years ago so my plan is to get a couple three lessons and really just get out there and work on my game and play a ton this year. I really lack consistency in my swingso will be nice to hopefully get into a groove and start seeing the scores drop.
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Meadowbrook. It made the most sense due to location and where I live being still in the city. I like the course as it is enjoyable and not to punishing, but you've still got to keep it near the fairway to have opportunities to score. I'm looking forward to seeing how the course shapes up in the warmer months, but they just hosted the women's state amateur last year so I think it'll look great. Plus my partner has full use of everything at no additional costs so she can pool it up during the summer while I play.
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Olllllldddddd school Richmond. Cool course with some players that have come out of there!!!! Even a couple of brothers that played on tour for quite some time. Heck of a junior program as well. It will tighten up nicely in the spring. (My roommate from VT was the assistant there for a bit.)
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Yeah I'm digging it so far. Like I said the location and ability to get to the course in 10-15mins from home was a huge factor. Really looking forward to getting a lesson in the next month. I like that it is very walkable and I can start on several different holes from the parking lot or play various combination of holes depending on how much time I have based on how the front/back 9 line up with each other.
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I'm at the age/swing speed where I find myself inching my way toward playing fairway woods and hybrids thru the mid irons (just to get the necessary loft for carry distance and limit rollout). I'm now looking for/considering "player's" cavity backs (what I played for years) to cover whatever yardages are left between them and my wedges. Why the player's clubs? Because I also find offsets over about 3mm to be terrifying; it kills my confidence and my consistency. I bought my first set of GI clubs last year (ZX 4's; 5-PW). They are nice clubs and I love the distance, but accuracy and consistency have gone to hell and I still don't have the swing speed and decent angle to maximize the performance of the mid irons...the lofts are too strong.
So the Qs? What are consequences of say putting a 7 iron head on a 6 iron shaft, keeping the 6 iron length with no additional trimming? Obviously swing weight increases. Lie angle? Flex? Is this just a dumb idea? Are there other solutions? Should I do the opposite...put a 6 iron head on a 7 iron shaft? Do I go with a senior flex but shorten the clubs and adjust the lie angle more upright?
Help!
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Like you said, the swing weight will be off. Example...Scotty Cameron putters. 35" putters have 10gram weights in them. 33" putter have 20 gram weights in them. That's to keep the balance point/swing weight/feel the exact same so the shaft functions as deigned. (Yes, it's a putter but translate that to the full swing and longer clubs.) Messing with the lengths will throw off the feel and the real function of the club.
What you are looking for are Taylormades or Callaways, where the lofts are jacked to some extent. And the flex can be matched for your swing.
Don't go messing with lie angle unless you know that you need it to be different.
Take a minute and visit a local demo day or make an appointment to get fitted. Some think it's bad practice to go to a fitting and not buy anything, but they charge for them knowing many people do just that. And at the end of the day, if you can improve your game, or at least enjoyment of playing the game, that means you're around longer and will spend more on the industry.
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I would suggest the line test for lie, and generally a perfect lie is overrated (if you consistently miss right, but your clubs show you are upright, I would not suggest flattening the lie angle). I also don't think the swing weight is that big of a deal. They don't make different heads based on how long your shafts are (I play 1/2" long shafts anyway). If it bacame a big deal after changing the length by a half inch, a little lead tape or a weight would fix that no problem. I do agree that setting the right shaft might be the best solution.
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All you are doing here is soft stepping your clubs. This isn't that uncommon but is usually only done by pro's or tinkerers (pros usually hard step). You can certainly look up soft and hard stepping for more info, but this would probably lead to a slightly less stiff shaft with higher launch. Here is a very basic article on this, but there are plenty of other articles on this: http://www.golfclubshaftreview.com/hard-stepping--soft-stepping.html
Also you lie angle would become a little more upright, I forgot the conversion, but I think its like for every 1/2" its 1 degree, but i might be off a little. Its been a while since I fit someone.
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(edit: oops see below that you have clubs ordered... )
OK, I'm like a 15, but hit it consistently and have a neutral/ slightly strong grip/ swing path that does not need offset to square the face at impact.... I HATE offset clubs. Hook the shit out of them and can't shape them at all.
Check these out... I swapped my Rifle 5.0 shafts in to these and they are AWESOME. I am half club longer, there is no offset and I can play with my set up to draw or fade. I have these through 52 degree GW (they call it a AW). The AW is great around green for chips.
They were out of stock for a while but look like they have complete set now.
If nothing else changes, the offsets have to be less than what I have now...I have no confidence when I look at the ball at address and that is hard to overcome. And right now I'm more consistent and accurate with a 5 wood than a 7 iron.
I've never really considered the brand before...ever...but Cobra has some very appealing specs regarding offsets/lofts in their "Forged Tec" iron and the new more economical Aerojet (GI) irons. There may need to be a visit to the cage at the PGA Superstore.
edit: also like the specs on the P 790
edit 2: spent an hour+ in their simulator today hitting irons. hit the Cobra "Forged Tec X" better than their "Forged Tec". Also the P790, another TM GI offering (hated it), and the new MK II ZX4 (which looks better than my current ZX 4 but plays the same).
And it really wasn't close. Not wild about the low spin rate (P 790 was great) but it's noticeably better than the ZX 4 and most importantly, I hit a pretty tight group. Been awhile since I did that.
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Nice weather Wednesday. Took advantage and walked VT course for 9 holes (all I had time for). Simplified swing is working. 4 pars and a 41 (Par 36). Missed 2 putts (that I should have made) that would have resulted in a 39. Slope rating is low, but nice to get out walking and swinging. Look forward to more.
One thing - its REALLY wet out there. A couple plugged balls in the middle of the fairway.
PS: Practice greens at VT course are destroyed by Snow Geese. Course greens are in pretty good shape.
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New sticks should be here in a couple weeks. After another hour in the cage today, I actually wound up ordering the Mizuno 923 Hot Metal Pro with the same shafts as my current ZX 4.
I hit the Cobra Forged Tec X a little further and with a consistent draw (it is a nice club!). But the spin rate was VERY low (and I have a slow swing speed anyway), as was angle of descent especially with the draw. I visualized a rollout nightmare. The 923 pro is easy to hit, had the best/most consistent result (better than the P 790) hitting my preferred fade, felt/sounded good, and got much better spin...at least on the monitor.
Fingers crossed.
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I think I now know why they felt comfortable to me. Just pulled up the specs on my old MX 300's...offset is the same; HMP has one more degree of bounce, lol. I'm really looking forward to getting them.
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This is the early leader for favorite / best holes I played this year:
It was about a 30-yard headwind / crosswind to the right (water). I was disappointed I pulled my 3h as much as I did, but then stuck, absolutely stuck, the chip which was a couple of inches from dropping in itself.
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I average about 265 with my driver and that was a SOLID hit but into a 30 yard wind. I hit my 3h as good as I could with a strong, bullet pull. So to answer you, no. Haha.
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There's a lot of factors w driver. Especially spin. Into a headwind, it will fly higher (off a tee) and spin more, causing it to balloon. The 3h was prob a more pentrating trajectory and hopped a few times. Calm day, Joe's not gonna have a 7 yard gap. The joys of wind and winter golf.
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A driver should never spin more than a hybrid. If it does you need to get fit for a different driver lol. Height yes, more air time into the wind sure, but driver spin should be between 2-3k rpm while a hybrid should never go below 3.5k really.
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For on-center hits, yes. Winter swing, into the wind the spin could be up. And the wind will accentuate the spin making shots balloon. Joe's drive is fine (see his other Arccos screenshot) but for ball flight after leaving the clubface into the wind, it gets ramped up.
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I know what you are trying to say here, and I agree his drive was fine, into the wind things can get up. But wind does not affect spin rate is kind of my point.
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Side bar, I'm in a fantasy golf league. On Fantrax. We have 11 teams, with 15 players each. Play 5 each week. Sometimes you have 8 or so active and have to play the bench just right. Well, last year I think I had 6 top 5's (including 2 wins) on the bench that week. Ouch. I had Chris Kirk on the bench this week. But not all is lost...I'm in the lead since I had Si Woo last week. The Masters is the oddball. Sometimes NOT having 5 can be decent since bogeys and double take away a LOT of points. And if someone WD's, you get zero that week. Even if it happens on Sunday's back nine.
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We do the one pick thing in the office. Can't choose the same player twice in a year. Total money winner at the end of the season wins. It's fun and a little easier. I've tried to do the fantasy golf, but I eventually end up forgetting a week and then lose interest. Always do a Masters pool though, and try do something for each Major.
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I ended up playing Burke Lake yesterday and can confirm the wind was naughty. Flushed a 7 iron against head wind that landed short of a 130 yard green. Then followed with an 8 iron that went 165-170 a few holes later with tail wind. (for reference my 8i = 150, 7i = 160)
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Towards the end of last year I started to play more again. Slowly finding my swing again this year, long irons-driver is set, still losing a million strokes when I get within 100 and my putting is abysmal. I did find a way around that my last round. Hit the ball hard and don't lay up it works sometimes gave myself two eagle attempts off of 290+ drives both of which I blew into birdies...and still was north of 100 on the round.
Probably need to get a lesson on my short game to fix it, any non-full swing has been a disaster but my distance is better than its been ever. I'm sure I'll fix my short game and lose 40 yards off the tee and miss every fairway as is the golf gods way.
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I'm no short game expert but I used to just duff half my shots on anything within 100 yards. I was taught growing up to never break your wrists or use your lower body near the green (100% arms like a glorified putt) which always felt uncomfortable. Then my father in law showed me a video on pitching (sorry I don't know where it is and I think it was a paid subscription) a couple years ago. It immediately shaved multiple strokes off per round. Someone else can likely explain this better than me but basically keep your left arm locked on your chest and rotate your body to make the swing so you finish with your chest facing your target. Also narrow your stance but slightly open. Like I said I'm no expert but it helped me so much I figured I'd share.
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I suck at less than full swings and lob shots, but one technique I use around the green that works very well (for me) is chip with the clubface closed and strike the ball toward the toe. It provides great touch/feedback to judge speed and roll out and it is very easy to consistently pick the ball clean and get it rolling. I carry high bounce 47 and 54 degree wedges (11 and 13 degrees of bounce respectively) and select between the two based on desired spin and distance.
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Has anyone done Pinehurst recently? Considering doing a night down there in the fall with my dad and playing Tobacco Road, The Cradle, and either No. 2 or No. 4.
I have never played anywhere down there but heard great things about the redesigned No. 4
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And you can bet after Doak is done with it that it will be on the top shelf with #2 and #4 in terms of fees and availability.
Prices are getting crazy. Even with the "lowered maintenance" approach they are taking in upkeep, the prices are going up. We are headed to Milwaukee in June, so I poked around at a few nearby. Erin Hills is near $400. Blackwolf Run is $440. Whistling Straits is $555. #2 at Pinehurst is nearly $500.
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I wish more places would take the Bandon Dunes approach. Even though they creep up every year you can still play a lot of golf for $500, especially outside peak season. We are going in April 2024 and the first 18 each day is $210 and the second is $105. We can play all 5 courses for under $1000.
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Blackwolf Run is the hardest course I have ever played, and I've played Straights, PH2, Erin Hills, and several TPC courses. It's relentless. Incredible test of golf.
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PH is my favorite place to go. #4 is awesome. Not as hard as #2 and more variety of holes. Unless you are staying at the resort, I think you can only book #2 or #4 24 or 48hrs in advance. Check on that.
Get on the Cradle even if it means slipping a $50 to the guy at the tee shack. Walk it as many times as you can.
TR is polarizing. I like it. I think it has great par 3s. Great opening hole.
I haven't played mid-pines but it is one of the gems in that area. Holds up to any of the Pinehurst courses.
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Haven't managed to get out since a round over Christmas back home with family in Newport News. Got fitted for a new set during the summer for the first time and still trying to work out distances/gaps between all my clubs.
Highly recommend getting fit if you can spare the expense - I'm a big stats/numbers nerd and hearing about how to optimize launch, spin, etc. was mind-blowing. Added a lot of distance to my game since I've always struggled with a high launch, even on straight shots and draws.
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If you are a stats numbers nerd, I'd highly recommend a shot tracking system like Arccos (although there are others). I think Joe uses it too, based his phone screen shots posted.
Lots of nerdy data to pour through to help you figure out what you need to work on to improve your game.
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Yep I use Arccos now. They ran some promotion where you could go on their site and get a free set of sensors with a club purchase, but I don't even think I had to enter any information beyond email and mailing address.
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Any course recommendations around Las Vegas? I'll be out there for 5 days in March on vacation and planning to bring my own clubs. I'll have a car, so I can get off-strip easily.
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I played Spanish Trail 10 years ago. It was July, and 117 degrees in the shade that day. I remember it being a decent course. I think they had three 9 hole courses. I believe they may be private or semi-private now.
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Yes- do not play TPC vegas- over rated. Very. Meh course, not worth the cost. Summerlin is much better if you have a way to get on. Paiute is super- fantastic course. Bali Hai- overpriced.
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I received my 923 Hot Metal Pros a week ago and have hit them several times on the range. Love them but have been striking the ball consistently toward the toe (still get a decent result). I hit my wedges, hybrid and fairway woods in the center so I took the HMPs back in today to check loft and lie (they were ordered standard). Walked out with the store having just ordered a replacement set, 1 degree flat (their "playability guarantee"). And it was their idea. I thought they could just bend them a degree but they said these are harder than advertised and didn't want to risk weakening/breaking the clubhead. Fine with me!
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It really was, I was surprised. They let me hit the hot metal demo head they had that was 2 degrees flat ( I don't think the original fitter knew they had it) and I hit it flush and a teeny bit right. But we went with 1 degree to make it easier for me turn it over if needed...that's not my natural swing and I think that would be pretty tough for me to do at 2 flat. The HMP's are surprisingly forgiving for a smaller clubhead...my spin and carry numbers were decent even hitting the ball toward the toe. One flat should make results more consistent and better than the original standards
[pro tip: unless you are a knockout 25 year old female, go when they aren't very busy...like a Wednesday mid morning...you can get all of the help you want]
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I will be hitting the PGA Store in Myrtle when I go down the first week of March.
I think it's about time to start looking into new drivers and I want to test my current TaylorMade Jet Sweep Driver (purchased in 2014/2015) vs some of the newer tech in the simulator. I've always been a long hitter, but I get the sense I can add 20 yards by having something that's not over 7 years old.
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Side note: anyone have any recommendations or insight?
I've always been brand loyal to TaylorMade since they were my first new set as my graduating gift out of high school. I'm sort of OCD where I like all my clubs to match brand wise, but I can be convinced to venture out of TM if there's a far superior driver lurking out there. Doesn't even need to be a 2023 model.
My 3w and 5w will likely be upgraded later as well to match whatever I buy.
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edit: Historically (thru 2012) I played TM (R series) drivers with TM and Ping fairway woods. But since I started playing again in the last couple years, I've gone to a Callaway driver, fairway woods, and hybrid; I just find them really easy to hit to get a good, consistent result.
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I was always a TM guy but had trouble finding the right fit. Switched to Callaway a few years ago and can't imagine switching back. My dad moved from TM to Titleist recently and definitely picked up some yards too.
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TM has always been straight for me, but I hit Cally's and Titleists further. Mid year last year I was 14 clubs Titleist. But now have Mizuno irons and a TM driving iron. Hit a dicks or golf Galaxy and hit em all. Some will sound better, some will look better, some will feel better, and some will just turn you off for whatever reason. There's so much tech in them now, including the shafts, that the right fit for you is out there.
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Upgrading from 8 year old technology you should see a significant gain in yardage. As far as brand loyalty, throw that out because it all comes down to what gets the ball where you want it the most often. If you are a consistent driver than TM might be the brand for you as the stealth 2 is definitely the hottest as far as ball speed but forgiveness is still lacking. If you value being in play over distance than ping and Callaway might be the answer.
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I'd caution against the "Moar Yards" claim. What you will see is more forgiveness. (Or fargiveness, depending on which brand you chose.) The sweet spots have gotten bigger, and the off-center hits fly straighter and longer than previous models. But on-center hits, well, you prob won't gain a substantial amount.... https://golfible.com/are-new-golf-drivers-really-better/
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I'm not overly concerned with distance because over the last 10 years I've learned accuracy trumps distance. Usually I'm fairly accurate with the occasional episode of prison shanks and lapses in concentration which results in me duck hooking drives off the tee.
But if I can be confident in striking the ball harder knowing I've got some extra forgiveness and can get closer to a 290-300 average I'd be content.
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The temp hit 50 in Michigan on Sunday, so a couple of buddies and I hit our country club for 9 holes. The course is actually "closed" for the winter. It was good to hit the ball outside, even if I didn't hit it well.
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absolutely loving the hot metal pros...consistent, forgiving, workable...really nice height and spin even with the strong lofts...hit a hop and stop (4') 6 iron on a par 3...unheard of for me and my slow swing speed
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When Mizuno gets it right, there is no better feeling golf club out there.
Makes the game enjoyable and makes you want to play more often. Glad they are working for you.
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Finally made it out this past Saturday. Weather at 9am wasn't ideal, but I NEEDED to get out. 3 straight 50 hour weeks, general craziness of the rat race, issues with my father's health over the past 2 months, and a new driver that was an oops purchase...I needed some grass therapy.
Let me say that if you are in the market for a new driver, anything Titleist in the past 3 cycles is a solid choice. The TS, TSi, and the TSr are all great. Put a TSr in the bag for this past weekend. Not ideal conditions to see how it worked with not playing for 3.5 months, but enough of an indicator to know it's in the bag! It's a different feel and sound from the TSi, more thump than thwack, and feels different. And it's a little longer for me. Granted it's a different shaft, and time will tell if the new, lighter one is the one that stays, but added a few yards.
Made a couple of birds too. Always nice to see the ball go in the hole. Speak of...we typically have 2 tee times alost all year around. Will fill up both through the summer without blinking. We had 7 this weekend, so went 4 and 3. Group in front had a hole in one! First time having one in the group on Saturdays. There have been guys get them, but at other times. (In fact, the guy I was playing with had one at #17 Oyster Bay last Monday on their way out of Myrtle. And was 2 inches from having another Saturday on #17 at our course.)
Also, given it's 40-45 minutes to the course down there, it's getting tougher and tougher to make it work. 9am tee times are great, but in the summer months, we have it around 720. That distance makes it tough to get up way early and make the tee time ready to go. There's another course 10 minutes from me that is in an over 55 community. As such, they have their mens golf tournaments on Tuesdays and Fridays. I can't make that work with familial and work obligations, but they do have a "locals card". Costs $300, which includes $150 in range credit, but gets you $55 rounds on the weekends, and $25 rounds after 2pm during the week. I can close the laptop, get up there, and cruise around the course in 3 hours on Tuesdays on my own schedule. I'll miss playing with my boys, and will still do that occasionally, just can't manage it for an entire season any more.
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Sometimes it really is about convenience. I had to give up a golf league several years ago when my work location, which was 5 minutes from the course, move across town which made it over an hour trip.
We are anxiously awaiting the ground to completely thaw in Michigan which should happen with 50° temps and rain this week but then the weekends don't look great (cold and rainy).
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If any locals want to get their ass handed to them on the golf course, head on over to Auburn Hills in Riner.. Played Sat afternoon, wind 20, temp in high 30's, greens lightning fast and ridiculous pin placements. Its a hard course with the terrain and grade fall-offs in the best of conditions, but this was another level. Borderline unfair how impossible how its set up with green speed and pin placement. Its at 134 slope from whites, but I'd say it's playing right now in the Bethpage Black level.
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We just don't typically get that high a slope rating with flat courses. There are exceptions (Bayside, but it's 7600 from the tips with a slope of 148...) but typically they don't creep that high around here. Especially at 6,000 yards. And having a slope that high under 6,000 yards means it's still pretty difficult for the bogey golfer.
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Interesting. The club I belong to has a slope of 138 and it's pretty flat. There are plenty of man made contours, though, and the greens are well protected on the sides. Length is about 6300.
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Slope (as in slope of the graph) is an index of the increased difficulty for the bogey golfer. For men, a 138 slope turns the average 21 handicapper into a 25+
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I would guess since we are in a touristy spot (in general) for golf, and they want golf trips and packages to visit year after year, they've kept things fairly pedestrian in the difficulty slot. Keep it fun and playable for all...
Rum Pointe from the tips (7001 yards) is 122.
Eagles Landing tips (7003) is 131
Ocean City Newport tips (6657 with tons of carries) is 133
Man 'O War tips (7196) is 138
Ocean Pines (7074) is 135
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I think there is a lot of confusion about what slope means. An average slope simply means that the difficulty is proportional to ability of the golfer. An above average slope means it is disproportionally more difficult for the less skilled player.
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I get it, just don't get to play many course with an extreme slop is my point. The ones that I've played that have been higher aren't at sea level...Tobacco Road 144 @ 6532, Worthington Manor 145 @ 7034, Primland 150 @ 7053.
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The River Course (owned by VT) in Fairlawn (near Radford) has a slope of 135 from the Orange (same as white) at 6500 yds and its pretty flat (adjacent to river on a fairly flat area). But, its a Pete Dye course, so that has a LOT to do with the slope rating.
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Yeah we were discussing during the round with those conditions had to be playing like a 140 plus slope course which is just really hard. What's crazy is how many shots you give up around the greens. Felt like I hit the ball pretty well and just got slaughtered
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Luckily when people post, the GHIN now has a differential adjustment for conditions causing abnormal scores that day. both high and low. Although I think I've only seen one score of mine that had a PCC.
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I think there is a certain minimum amount of play that day that is required before that can kick in. I only saw it affect one of my rounds (of 50+) last year.
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Played club golf there when I was at tech. Once had 7 Birdies in a round out there. Still shot 76! Short course with Birdie opportunities everywhere, but 1 bad shot can lead to a double or worse in a heartbeat
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Can't get enough bracketology? Head over to https://fantasybracket.pgatour.com/#/picks/mine and fill out a bracket for the Dell Technologies Match Play. League is TheKeyPlay and password is Hokies2023.
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I did about as well as I do in the basketball brackets. At least there was some good golf and I watched most of it besides the finals. I'd love to play that course, just don't know I'd ever go to Texas. Hopefully they land another tournament, because it is a great looking track.
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Woa, over 1,000 members and a 17 year waiting list for a $100,000 initiation. Definitely some money down in Texas. (Dallas has several courses that have 6 figure initiations too.) Cool course and Austin is a unique place. Just don't go in July like I did. Sheesh. That was HOT.
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Just returned from a three round weekend in North Myrtle Beach.
Round One: Eagles Nest Golf Club. There were six of us and we were all traveling in from different places so we met at the golf course and had two threesome tee times, 2:30 and 2:38. They were so busy they paired a single with each of our groups. Pace of play was so slow they blew the horn for dark as one group preparing to tee off on 17 and the other on 16. Consensus of the group was the course may get two stars. Don't waste your time.
Round Two: Tidewater Resort and Golf Club. 8:27 & 8:35 tee times. Running 30 to 45 minutes late because of frost. Again was paired with a single. The guy playing with my group was a retired New Yorker who owned one of the condos on the course. Super nice guy who helped us with things like where to try to drive the ball, hazards you couldn't see etc. Did I mention we were all seniors and hitting from the senior tees! Course was in really good shape but it put a premium on shot making. Greens are well guarded with bunkers, water, or waste areas. Virtually no run up areas to the green. If your approach shot was a worm-burner, you were in a hazard. Group consensus: Well maintained and a four + star course. Greens were large and fast. A challenge for average to above average golfers. Tough for a below average duffer like me. I would still go back, however.
Round Three: Crow Creek Golf Club in Calabash, NC. We had called a few days earlier and changed tee times from morning to afternoon because of rain threat. We were down to five players and were going to play a twosome and threesome. 1:50 & 1:58 tee times. By the second tee we were caught up with the group in front of us, so we just played a fivesome the rest of the way. By far the groups favorite course. Nice and green, wide for the slicers but still with some challenging holes, but fair. Most all the greens were multi-level. You needed to be on the level with the hole or a three-putt was most likely in your future. This is definitely a must play again course.
Oh by the way... I don't keep score!
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First I want to apologize to Nerf and Zilla for getting preachy on the "slope" discussion. I was reading into their posts things that weren't there; and it wasn't my business anyway. My bad.
Now golf...played recently renovated St Johns in a brisk wind yesterday. Course has not noticeably greened up (wasn't overseeded) and it remains rock hard. Still my usual game; 15 holes where I appear somewhat competent and three "what the hell was that?"
Most unusual shot was on a par 3 into a 2 club wind; water down the left and then in front with residential homes on the right. I hit a rocket off the toe of a fairway wood straight at a house. As I screamed "fore", the ball hit the house where it did a near 180, came back into play on the fly, then rolled across about 40 feet of grass, then down the bank and into the hazard. So started out OB way right and ended up in the water to the left.
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With the wind, the homeowner may have just thought it was something rattling around. There are times where you have to scratch your head about houses THAT close to in play. Especially down the right side.
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I think it hit the 2 x 8 header on a lattice covered deck.
It's also a new hole. The course was originally a 27 hole private course that the county subsequently bought and switched to 18...so there was some extra space lying around when they did the remodel. This was one of three or 4 brand new holes and some houses that weren't in play, suddenly are.
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Spark Golf: anyone heard of it? Participating in Northern Va? Recently had some back problems keeping me off the ice hockey rink and devoting more time to Golf. Signed up for the Bull Run league in spark golf. Multiple courses around but this was the best available course. Just curious what I'm getting into if anyone has info. Thanks!
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My mom plays in a spark golf league. I've been wanting to join but the only hosting courses around Charleston are in Summerville at 5 on weekdays which would be like a solid 2 hour sit in traffic for me to get to.
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Our course opened semi-officially yesterday. Walking only, mostly due to not wanting to staff the pro shop/cart barn till dark (and partly to minimize damage to soggier areas f the course.)
Played nine after work. It was about 50° and cloudy with a bit of a breeze. Nothing has greened up yet so the fairways were running and the rough was low. Greens were slow and a little bumpy. Didn't play that well. Things I have been working on this winter in the simulator didn't completely transfer to my outdoor game. It didn't help that I was a little stiff from spending 4 hours in a car and 6 hours on a plant floor earlier in the day.
Also, I splurged on a new VT Golf Bag this year (the Caddie Carry Hybrid bag from Fanatics). It was waiting for me when I got home from the course. It's replacing the Ping Hoofer VT bag I got 23 years ago.
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Golfed Dogwood Trace in Petersburg, VA on Saturday with my old Hokie roomies. One of them just got a set of Taylormade P790s, so he gave me his old set of Taylormade Aeroburners. Wow, what a difference. I'm only right at a year of playing golf so I'm still really bad, but I shot a 112 and I was jacked about it! The new irons and the Cobra LTDx 3 wood I added to the bag made a world of difference.
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Winter is officially over with the MASTERS!!!!!!!!!!!!
Good day off tomorrow to watch whatever they get in with the bad weather incoming. Looks like a Monday finish potentially.
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Heads up to those who live near a PGA Superstore, they have begun selling off last year's demos at discounted prices. Was able to pick up a tsi2 7-wood with premium shaft for $140 and it looked like it had never been used.
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I'm one of the idiots that thinks carrying a 2 iron is cool. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it hurts, literally. (Trying to get ready for Scotland...but the jury is still out.)
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I started playing with one a month ago. Been tinkering with some swing changes so very inconsistent right now but when I hit it well it is a weapon. I have a 3 hybrid that I can hit really well but it has such a higher launch that the misses can be off the map. Hoping the 2 iron has a little tighter dispersion with the lower flight.
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Hey everybody- I go camping in Cape Henlopen delaware for a week every year. Last year, me, VTnerf, and MasScott got together that week and played a round in Ocean City MD. We are planning on doing the same this year at a southern DE or Ocean City MD area course (yet to be determined) during the week betwwen 7/22 to 7/29. VT nerf thinks he might have a VT fourth person, but I was thinking if there were 4 more of you guys that are in that area and are interested we could put together a little 8-person team tourney type of event-
Are any of you guys also in that area and possibly interested?
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Think I finally found my swing again. Proceeded to hit a billion balls Saturday trying to get it engrained which was a bit of a mistake as I also tweaked my back. Tee time tomorrow and I feel like an 80 year old man, don't think I'll have to worry about over swinging.
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Had Friday and today off (Good Friday and Better Monday.). Weather was just starting to turn this past week in Michigan. Got 9 in Thursday and 18 each Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Even with time in the sim this winter, still a lot of inconsistency with my swing. I did manage to break 90 (89) today after a 94, 104 and 101 the previous 3 days (and a 49 Thursday).
Weather is getting into the 70s this week so some good opportunities to play.
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Comments
Has anyone been playing some winter golf or making changes to their bag?
Have gotten a few rounds in when the windchill has been above 40. Had to stick to the sim this past weekend.
Went to PGA Superstore messing around with putters and am sad to admit I'm intrigued by the broomstick style but the cost seems insane.
I just recently got a white hot OG two ball putter from Callaway pre-owned that I am pretty sure is brand new for $98 so I am excited about that.
I just got the Odyssey White Hot OG #7 and I love it! Good find, I'm thrilled for you.
New set PXG irons for Christmas. Great time of the year for golf in SC low country.
KABOOM
Play year round here in Tennessee (four times last week). Club wise went to the Stealth driver last fall and added the Stealth 15 degree three wood about two months ago, happy with both. Could use an iron refresh and hoping the new Costco irons show out and show up soon at a great Costco price.
https://drivingrangeheroes.com/the-costco-irons-are-coming/
it's prime time here (other than the occasional cold front). down side is very slow play with all the snowbirds.
replaced a couple mid irons with hybrids just after Thanksgiving, mostly to get more loft on my shots.
Mostly just starting a strength training program. We booked a trip to Bandon Dunes in spring 2024 and my back is not gonna survive 5+ rounds in 4 days if it stays like it is right now.
I'm heading there in the spring too, of 2023. 🏌️
Nice! Care to share your itinerary? Or maybe a review post after you do the trip?
Day 1 Bandon Dunes
Day 2 Pacific Dunes
Day 2 Old Mac
Day 3 Sheep Ranch
Day 4 (departing) Bandon Preserve
That's as it stands right now, but we might audible.
Nice! Skipping Bandon Trails due to time?
We're going to try to move some stuff around to get it in the itinerary.
Trying to organize one for June 2024. Also have Streamsong this April.
I want a new set of game improvement irons so bad. Either the Taylormade Stealths or the Mizuno JPX923 Hot Metals or dare I say the new Callaway Paradym X's.
But I have an engagement ring to pay off and a wedding to plan so that's not happening any time soon lol. I have a buddy that just got the Taylormade P790s, so he's gonna give me his old Aeroburner irons. I'm hoping that scratches the itch 😁
Mizuno, always Mizuno
I've had several sets in the past. Then went away from them for a bit, including the beginning of last year. Handicap was at 6.7 with a Titleist set, even shooting 72 with them in June. Then got a set of Mizuno Pro 225's. Cap at the end of the year was 5.2, dropping 1.5 strokes in 3 months. MIZUNO. ALWAYS MIZUNO
I keep hearing that people love Mizuno, dropping 1.5 strokes when you're already shooting in the low 70s would do it! They are very high on my list for whenever I get fitted, and I can only dream of shooting a score that low. But *anything* has to be better than the 20+ year old King Cobra IIs I currently have that I can't hit the broad side of a barn with 😂
I've had Mizuno many years ago, but recently got fit for Srixon ZX7's. I'd give those a look too. The guy fitting me said most Mizuno people that he's fit lately have been switching to Srixon. Could've been full of it, but I love them. Picked up 8-10 yards on my 6-iron (that was with a upcharge shaft though).
Once we landed on a shaft, I was down to the ZX7's and Taylormade P790's My ball speed was 2-3mph higher with the P790's but my distance and dispersion was better with the ZX7's. Plus they felt so much better.
The ZX7's are a great iron!!!
Mizuno did go through a dark period where they were meh. And some others jumped up to take market share from them.
I was honestly intrigued by the Srixons! They just didn't seem as popular as Taylormade or Mizuno so I have been hesitant to consider them.
There's just so many options
One thing I will offer up....screw popularity when it comes to club selection. If you hit a snoopy club past their Taylormade and score better with it, you better put the snoopy in the bag. When you actually hit the Srixons, you'll forget what name is on the back of it.
I'm definitely with you. Player, not equipment. I just want to shoot sub 110, screw what brand gets me there 😅
Yeah, for what its worth I said "Mizuno, Always Mizuno" But am playing the ZX7s right now. Cant say I like them any more than the Mizunos, but they are great clubs. Cant go wrong with Japanese Irons right now.
I was fitted for ZX5's, I really liked hitting them, but I haven't bought them yet.
MK II's or originals?
Sorry, the MK II's.
They look amazing!
I think one of the on-line reviewing folks suggested waiting for the second edition of new line of clubs; that was probably very good advice given what Srixon seems to be doing...going after the Mizuno market.
Yeah, they look sick for a game improvement iron.
Those are great too. I went in thinking I may get those but ended up on the ZX7s.
When you say game improvement - if you want to hit in further, less crocked, and less mis hits- look at the Ping G series. They are super game improvement. Don't make any swing adjustments and you will hit these clubs further- no question. Of course ping is not for everyone- heavy offset, wide top line, etc. But if you want to hit it longer, higher, etc. Take a serious look.
I absolutely have a huge problem getting any flight on the ball. I left the range yesterday in a foul mood because I cannot hit a 5 to save my life and I feel like I have no power behind my swing whatsoever.
I tend to hook my irons so I should probably avoid anything already draw biased but similar to what I said about Mizuno, I have definitely heard that PINGs are about as forgiving as clubs get. I will also give the G series a closer look
If you are hitting the ball somewhat squarely, height largely depends on shaft. Get fitted and tell the guy you want a higher ball flight. Another thing about Ping- they will fit you and put it in their global database- so any store can pull up your fitting if they sell ping.
That's great to know on both counts! My current clubs have graphite shafts, regular flex as far as I can recall. It'll be very interesting if steel is more suited to my swing
Without going too far down the rabbit hole, could be the flex is too light for you. A stiffer shaft won't lag behind, effectively shutting the face down and delofting the club. Maybe. And not every regular or stiff are the same. I've swung reg KBS shafts that would be almost xtra-stiff for some graphites. They vary greatly across the board. There are ways to manipulate as well, like tip trimming and such...but that's why the fitter should have "certified" in front of their name.
(If anyone in the Annapolis/B'more area runs into a Callaway fitting, James is top top notch. One of the best in the country for Cally and that's why they send him to the top locales. If you see him tell him nerf says hi!)
I'm trusting the used, unfitted set I currently have less and less haha
Will attest. Played ping game improvement for years and they are some of the most forgiving clubs out there.
I game T200s now but still hold a special place for my old pings
Like the magpie I am, I impulse bought a Tsi2 driver off eBay even though I said I wouldn't buy another club without getting fit for it. Of course that was around Thanksgiving and I've yet to even swing it, let alone play a round with it. Thought I might get out this weekend and ended up hurting my foot bad enough that I went to get x-rays. Luckily nothing broken, but still pretty sore to walk on.
Edit: Forgot, I did get these for Christmas. I've tried just about every ball on the market and keep coming back to the Tours. I did like the Pro-Zero and I do like Taylormade TP5 Pix, but for the price, these are hard to beat.
First round of 23 in the books. 95 at Hanging Rock after not swinging a club since early November. Felt good to be out there and finally got to hit my new driver. Still have a nasty duck hook in my locker and lost some strokes to hitting ob otherwise, could have broke 90.
Off-season in Michigan. No new clubs but I grabbed a push-cart in November as an early Christmas present.
Buddies and I are planning a golf/bourbon trail trip to Lexington, KY in June.
Otherwise, it simulator golf to scratch the itch for now.
Added a Taylormade UDI 2 iron last fall and it's kicked the 23* hybrid out of the bag. Good off the tee and getting out of tree trouble, and will be perfect for Scotland this summer.
We've got a solid itinerary for August in St Andrews.
Day 1. New course
Day 2. Hoping for ballot for old or 36 on jubilee
Day 3. Castle am. Then our tour guy thinks he can get us on at dark time w some buddies of his
Day 4. Dumbarnie
Day 5. Kingsbarns
Day 6. Carnoutie
Day 7. Jubilee
There's some time in there for extras as well as we see fit. Also going to have reservations for Rusaks on 18.
Other club tinkering, I've got 3 black vokey wedges that I'm swapping the stock shafts out for the true temper black onyx shafts, and black grips. Gonna Darth Vader them all.
Who did you book that scotland package with?
Scottish Golf Experiences
Kevin Fogarty. He's actually a caddie on the old (caddied in the Open last year for a Soph from UNLV.) and created this business. He knows the locals, the ins and outs, and had the best price by a mile. (all those rounds plus hotel double occupancy and breakfast in the morning plus transport from airport and to the courses included) Under $3k us dollars. Granted, we don't have the old guaranteed, but he thinks he can get us on Sat at dark time...
Hidden Links and Perry Golf are top notch for staying at one of the 5 star hotels in St. Andrews, or if you are jumping from west side (Turnberry/Troon) to east (St. Andrews/Edinburgh)
This sounds amazing. Definitely post a report after the trip.
Played a round on January 2 and haven't been out since. Hoping for some more opportunities to get some practice in the off-season. I'd like to get a new set of irons but I need to play a bit better before I can justify the cost.
Went to Scottsdake to see son, daughter in law and new grand daughter just before thankgiving. Had to work while there and #1 priority was seeing said grand daughter. So golf was a lower priority, but got to play a few rounds.
Drove there n back from christiansburg so took my own clubs. Played Paradise Valley par 3, Biltmore Adobe, and The Raven. Was only playong average for 1st 2, but game came together for The Raven, shooting an 89. All courses were nice, especially The Raven.
Been working on simplifying my swing, its working, just gotta keep hitting range or getting a round at least once per week.
I really want a simulator, but man they're expensive.
Keep playing everyone!
Which neighborhood do they live in? Do they like it? I'm going house hunting there in Feb. Playing We Ko Pa- I've played a lot of golf out there, but never at what the locals call the "best course here bar none"- I'm excited!
I mentioned in the last thread that I played Gainey Ranch in Scottsdale on 12/26. Very nice resort course with three 9-hole tracks. Good food & great wine list.
DC: My son lives in the Arcadia area, which is technically in Phoenix, but very close to Scottsdale border. He's a few miles South of the Biltmore courses.
They do like the area. Their townhouse is a small set of units with Secure entry/exit.
The restaurant scene in that area is insane. So many good choices. But its funny that gas is almost $1 higher/gal in Scottsdale area than say Mesa. There is definitely a "live in Scottsdale, pay more for everything" theme in place.
Thank You! - yes scottsdale - home of the 40K "millionare"
Doing the simplify swing thing myself...
If you are in to Youtube 'lessons' check out this guy. Adam Porzak. Dude is awesome. All about simplifying the swing- grip, setup, takeaway, delivery.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5e6aPNMKFcg
Biggest thing I took away from this that I should keep as a reminder, the kid in the video is by no means trying to kill the ball with everything he has. Form over power. I have defintely been neglecting this. I love the explanation on the form of gripping the club
Damn, this is awesome. Y'all are playing some great places. I started a new job, a PhD program, and have a 3 year old and 2 month old, so my clubs are mostly staying in the closet these days. But I'm enjoying living vicariously through all of you!
A colleague of mine took me to Eagle Point here in Wilmington today for a business meeting. Would love to play that course! He told me it was a $200K initiation fee to join. I'll need to make a bit more $$ before I can pull that off...
Looks like a killer place. 18 holes plus a bonus 19th AND a par 3 track. Nice.
I've snuck in a few rounds at Burke Lake a week ago when the temperatures rose; it's fairly close to my house and easy to get to when the weather allows. We moved to Springfield this past summer and should be here for a good while; it's nice living close to so many Hokies, for once!
I recently bought a club through a kickstarter, called the Q Club. It has 11 settings (a few hybrids, 5-9, P, S, W and Putter settings). It's not a club intended to replace my bag, but I'll say that walking a par-3 course with just 1 club, a couple golf balls and my glove was quite relaxing. There's already a few youtube reviews coming out from folks that know a lot more than I do (I usually golf in the 90s), but overall, it does exactly what it advertises: a decent club to have in your car, to play a quick 9 without all the hassle of your full set-up (I got many crazy looks at the course, hitting the hybrid ~180'ish on one hole, and then ~120 on the very next hole, with the same club).
I play most of my rounds at East Potomac, hit me up if you ever want to get out for a game. Burke Lake is a fun par 3 too. It's been a while since I've played it.
That'd be awesome. I managed to play a few rounds with my brother that lives in the area before the weather started getting nippy. Wanted to play East Potomac but didn't get the chance.
I've played at Belvoir, Quantico and Andrews from the courses at bases and Glendale and Burke Lake from the public courses.
Need me to post my email here or do you go all meta-matrix and message me directly from the code? 😅
I'll send an email to the one associated with your TKP account.
Awesome.
Belvoir has 28 great holes and 8 horrendous holes. However they are still fun rounds and can't beat the availability/price.
Recommend checking out penderbrook. It doesn't require you to be long off the tee but more of a 2nd shot player.
I joined a course just south of Richmond last month and have gotten out to hit balls and play weekly since then. I haven't played more than a handful of times a year since starting at VT 12-13 years ago so my plan is to get a couple three lessons and really just get out there and work on my game and play a ton this year. I really lack consistency in my swingso will be nice to hopefully get into a groove and start seeing the scores drop.
What course did you join? We joined and live on Brandermill since 2020, but I grew up playing Stonehenge.
Meadowbrook. It made the most sense due to location and where I live being still in the city. I like the course as it is enjoyable and not to punishing, but you've still got to keep it near the fairway to have opportunities to score. I'm looking forward to seeing how the course shapes up in the warmer months, but they just hosted the women's state amateur last year so I think it'll look great. Plus my partner has full use of everything at no additional costs so she can pool it up during the summer while I play.
Olllllldddddd school Richmond. Cool course with some players that have come out of there!!!! Even a couple of brothers that played on tour for quite some time. Heck of a junior program as well. It will tighten up nicely in the spring. (My roommate from VT was the assistant there for a bit.)
Oh nice. Where the Wadkins brothers grew up. I haven't played it in years but it was a really good course.
Yeah I'm digging it so far. Like I said the location and ability to get to the course in 10-15mins from home was a huge factor. Really looking forward to getting a lesson in the next month. I like that it is very walkable and I can start on several different holes from the parking lot or play various combination of holes depending on how much time I have based on how the front/back 9 line up with each other.
Q's for you gurus on here
I'm at the age/swing speed where I find myself inching my way toward playing fairway woods and hybrids thru the mid irons (just to get the necessary loft for carry distance and limit rollout). I'm now looking for/considering "player's" cavity backs (what I played for years) to cover whatever yardages are left between them and my wedges. Why the player's clubs? Because I also find offsets over about 3mm to be terrifying; it kills my confidence and my consistency. I bought my first set of GI clubs last year (ZX 4's; 5-PW). They are nice clubs and I love the distance, but accuracy and consistency have gone to hell and I still don't have the swing speed and decent angle to maximize the performance of the mid irons...the lofts are too strong.
So the Qs? What are consequences of say putting a 7 iron head on a 6 iron shaft, keeping the 6 iron length with no additional trimming? Obviously swing weight increases. Lie angle? Flex? Is this just a dumb idea? Are there other solutions? Should I do the opposite...put a 6 iron head on a 7 iron shaft? Do I go with a senior flex but shorten the clubs and adjust the lie angle more upright?
Help!
Like you said, the swing weight will be off. Example...Scotty Cameron putters. 35" putters have 10gram weights in them. 33" putter have 20 gram weights in them. That's to keep the balance point/swing weight/feel the exact same so the shaft functions as deigned. (Yes, it's a putter but translate that to the full swing and longer clubs.) Messing with the lengths will throw off the feel and the real function of the club.
What you are looking for are Taylormades or Callaways, where the lofts are jacked to some extent. And the flex can be matched for your swing.
Don't go messing with lie angle unless you know that you need it to be different.
Take a minute and visit a local demo day or make an appointment to get fitted. Some think it's bad practice to go to a fitting and not buy anything, but they charge for them knowing many people do just that. And at the end of the day, if you can improve your game, or at least enjoyment of playing the game, that means you're around longer and will spend more on the industry.
I would suggest the line test for lie, and generally a perfect lie is overrated (if you consistently miss right, but your clubs show you are upright, I would not suggest flattening the lie angle). I also don't think the swing weight is that big of a deal. They don't make different heads based on how long your shafts are (I play 1/2" long shafts anyway). If it bacame a big deal after changing the length by a half inch, a little lead tape or a weight would fix that no problem. I do agree that setting the right shaft might be the best solution.
All you are doing here is soft stepping your clubs. This isn't that uncommon but is usually only done by pro's or tinkerers (pros usually hard step). You can certainly look up soft and hard stepping for more info, but this would probably lead to a slightly less stiff shaft with higher launch. Here is a very basic article on this, but there are plenty of other articles on this: http://www.golfclubshaftreview.com/hard-stepping--soft-stepping.html
Also you lie angle would become a little more upright, I forgot the conversion, but I think its like for every 1/2" its 1 degree, but i might be off a little. Its been a while since I fit someone.
(edit: oops see below that you have clubs ordered... )
OK, I'm like a 15, but hit it consistently and have a neutral/ slightly strong grip/ swing path that does not need offset to square the face at impact.... I HATE offset clubs. Hook the shit out of them and can't shape them at all.
Check these out... I swapped my Rifle 5.0 shafts in to these and they are AWESOME. I am half club longer, there is no offset and I can play with my set up to draw or fade. I have these through 52 degree GW (they call it a AW). The AW is great around green for chips.
They were out of stock for a while but look like they have complete set now.
https://www.hirekogolf.com/acer-xds-react-hybrid-clubhead.html
One other item is grip size. I went to a Golf Pride Tour Wrap 2G midsize based on hand measurement and its so much more comfortable
thanks all for the insights.
If nothing else changes, the offsets have to be less than what I have now...I have no confidence when I look at the ball at address and that is hard to overcome. And right now I'm more consistent and accurate with a 5 wood than a 7 iron.
I've never really considered the brand before...ever...but Cobra has some very appealing specs regarding offsets/lofts in their "Forged Tec" iron and the new more economical Aerojet (GI) irons. There may need to be a visit to the cage at the PGA Superstore.
edit: also like the specs on the P 790
edit 2: spent an hour+ in their simulator today hitting irons. hit the Cobra "Forged Tec X" better than their "Forged Tec". Also the P790, another TM GI offering (hated it), and the new MK II ZX4 (which looks better than my current ZX 4 but plays the same).
And it really wasn't close. Not wild about the low spin rate (P 790 was great) but it's noticeably better than the ZX 4 and most importantly, I hit a pretty tight group. Been awhile since I did that.
Nice weather Wednesday. Took advantage and walked VT course for 9 holes (all I had time for). Simplified swing is working. 4 pars and a 41 (Par 36). Missed 2 putts (that I should have made) that would have resulted in a 39. Slope rating is low, but nice to get out walking and swinging. Look forward to more.
One thing - its REALLY wet out there. A couple plugged balls in the middle of the fairway.
PS: Practice greens at VT course are destroyed by Snow Geese. Course greens are in pretty good shape.
New sticks should be here in a couple weeks. After another hour in the cage today, I actually wound up ordering the Mizuno 923 Hot Metal Pro with the same shafts as my current ZX 4.
I hit the Cobra Forged Tec X a little further and with a consistent draw (it is a nice club!). But the spin rate was VERY low (and I have a slow swing speed anyway), as was angle of descent especially with the draw. I visualized a rollout nightmare. The 923 pro is easy to hit, had the best/most consistent result (better than the P 790) hitting my preferred fade, felt/sounded good, and got much better spin...at least on the monitor.
Fingers crossed.
And they sure are pretty too. Feel good looking at them, pulling them, looking down at them, and knock it tight.
I think I now know why they felt comfortable to me. Just pulled up the specs on my old MX 300's...offset is the same; HMP has one more degree of bounce, lol. I'm really looking forward to getting them.
Wow, super nice. Love the look at address
This is the early leader for favorite / best holes I played this year:
It was about a 30-yard headwind / crosswind to the right (water). I was disappointed I pulled my 3h as much as I did, but then stuck, absolutely stuck, the chip which was a couple of inches from dropping in itself.
Weird that your driver only went 7 yards farther than your hybrid. Is that normal?
I average about 265 with my driver and that was a SOLID hit but into a 30 yard wind. I hit my 3h as good as I could with a strong, bullet pull. So to answer you, no. Haha.
There's a lot of factors w driver. Especially spin. Into a headwind, it will fly higher (off a tee) and spin more, causing it to balloon. The 3h was prob a more pentrating trajectory and hopped a few times. Calm day, Joe's not gonna have a 7 yard gap. The joys of wind and winter golf.
That was downwind, not quite as bad, in the summer.
A driver should never spin more than a hybrid. If it does you need to get fit for a different driver lol. Height yes, more air time into the wind sure, but driver spin should be between 2-3k rpm while a hybrid should never go below 3.5k really.
For on-center hits, yes. Winter swing, into the wind the spin could be up. And the wind will accentuate the spin making shots balloon. Joe's drive is fine (see his other Arccos screenshot) but for ball flight after leaving the clubface into the wind, it gets ramped up.
I know what you are trying to say here, and I agree his drive was fine, into the wind things can get up. But wind does not affect spin rate is kind of my point.
We good.
Side bar, I'm in a fantasy golf league. On Fantrax. We have 11 teams, with 15 players each. Play 5 each week. Sometimes you have 8 or so active and have to play the bench just right. Well, last year I think I had 6 top 5's (including 2 wins) on the bench that week. Ouch. I had Chris Kirk on the bench this week. But not all is lost...I'm in the lead since I had Si Woo last week. The Masters is the oddball. Sometimes NOT having 5 can be decent since bogeys and double take away a LOT of points. And if someone WD's, you get zero that week. Even if it happens on Sunday's back nine.
We do the one pick thing in the office. Can't choose the same player twice in a year. Total money winner at the end of the season wins. It's fun and a little easier. I've tried to do the fantasy golf, but I eventually end up forgetting a week and then lose interest. Always do a Masters pool though, and try do something for each Major.
Very nice!
I ended up playing Burke Lake yesterday and can confirm the wind was naughty. Flushed a 7 iron against head wind that landed short of a 130 yard green. Then followed with an 8 iron that went 165-170 a few holes later with tail wind. (for reference my 8i = 150, 7i = 160)
Towards the end of last year I started to play more again. Slowly finding my swing again this year, long irons-driver is set, still losing a million strokes when I get within 100 and my putting is abysmal. I did find a way around that my last round. Hit the ball hard and don't lay up it works sometimes gave myself two eagle attempts off of 290+ drives both of which I blew into birdies...and still was north of 100 on the round.
Probably need to get a lesson on my short game to fix it, any non-full swing has been a disaster but my distance is better than its been ever. I'm sure I'll fix my short game and lose 40 yards off the tee and miss every fairway as is the golf gods way.
I'm no short game expert but I used to just duff half my shots on anything within 100 yards. I was taught growing up to never break your wrists or use your lower body near the green (100% arms like a glorified putt) which always felt uncomfortable. Then my father in law showed me a video on pitching (sorry I don't know where it is and I think it was a paid subscription) a couple years ago. It immediately shaved multiple strokes off per round. Someone else can likely explain this better than me but basically keep your left arm locked on your chest and rotate your body to make the swing so you finish with your chest facing your target. Also narrow your stance but slightly open. Like I said I'm no expert but it helped me so much I figured I'd share.
I think opening stance slightly, avoid wrist flipping and tempo are key.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaMaA10TFk0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xS0yGmRts-8
I suck at less than full swings and lob shots, but one technique I use around the green that works very well (for me) is chip with the clubface closed and strike the ball toward the toe. It provides great touch/feedback to judge speed and roll out and it is very easy to consistently pick the ball clean and get it rolling. I carry high bounce 47 and 54 degree wedges (11 and 13 degrees of bounce respectively) and select between the two based on desired spin and distance.
Has anyone done Pinehurst recently? Considering doing a night down there in the fall with my dad and playing Tobacco Road, The Cradle, and either No. 2 or No. 4.
I have never played anywhere down there but heard great things about the redesigned No. 4
Tobacco Road is AWESOME. Be sure to get a range book. Lot of target shots to landing areas and you need to know yardages.
Still bummed The Pit closed down.
The Pit is being redone by Doak for Pinehurst!
https://golfweek.usatoday.com/2023/01/04/pinehurst-resort-tom-doak-new-course-pit/
Cool- although I wish they'd just rehab the original .
And you can bet after Doak is done with it that it will be on the top shelf with #2 and #4 in terms of fees and availability.
Prices are getting crazy. Even with the "lowered maintenance" approach they are taking in upkeep, the prices are going up. We are headed to Milwaukee in June, so I poked around at a few nearby. Erin Hills is near $400. Blackwolf Run is $440. Whistling Straits is $555. #2 at Pinehurst is nearly $500.
I wish more places would take the Bandon Dunes approach. Even though they creep up every year you can still play a lot of golf for $500, especially outside peak season. We are going in April 2024 and the first 18 each day is $210 and the second is $105. We can play all 5 courses for under $1000.
Blackwolf Run is the hardest course I have ever played, and I've played Straights, PH2, Erin Hills, and several TPC courses. It's relentless. Incredible test of golf.
PH is my favorite place to go. #4 is awesome. Not as hard as #2 and more variety of holes. Unless you are staying at the resort, I think you can only book #2 or #4 24 or 48hrs in advance. Check on that.
Get on the Cradle even if it means slipping a $50 to the guy at the tee shack. Walk it as many times as you can.
TR is polarizing. I like it. I think it has great par 3s. Great opening hole.
I haven't played mid-pines but it is one of the gems in that area. Holds up to any of the Pinehurst courses.
# 8 is the second best course there, IMHO. if it was on another property its top 50 in the US easily.
Haven't managed to get out since a round over Christmas back home with family in Newport News. Got fitted for a new set during the summer for the first time and still trying to work out distances/gaps between all my clubs.
Highly recommend getting fit if you can spare the expense - I'm a big stats/numbers nerd and hearing about how to optimize launch, spin, etc. was mind-blowing. Added a lot of distance to my game since I've always struggled with a high launch, even on straight shots and draws.
If you are a stats numbers nerd, I'd highly recommend a shot tracking system like Arccos (although there are others). I think Joe uses it too, based his phone screen shots posted.
Lots of nerdy data to pour through to help you figure out what you need to work on to improve your game.
Yep I use Arccos now. They ran some promotion where you could go on their site and get a free set of sensors with a club purchase, but I don't even think I had to enter any information beyond email and mailing address.
I got mine when I bought new clubs last year. Same deal, free sensors and half off the link detector.
Any course recommendations around Las Vegas? I'll be out there for 5 days in March on vacation and planning to bring my own clubs. I'll have a car, so I can get off-strip easily.
I played Spanish Trail 10 years ago. It was July, and 117 degrees in the shade that day. I remember it being a decent course. I think they had three 9 hole courses. I believe they may be private or semi-private now.
Yes- do not play TPC vegas- over rated. Very. Meh course, not worth the cost. Summerlin is much better if you have a way to get on. Paiute is super- fantastic course. Bali Hai- overpriced.
Kudos to PGA Superstore
I received my 923 Hot Metal Pros a week ago and have hit them several times on the range. Love them but have been striking the ball consistently toward the toe (still get a decent result). I hit my wedges, hybrid and fairway woods in the center so I took the HMPs back in today to check loft and lie (they were ordered standard). Walked out with the store having just ordered a replacement set, 1 degree flat (their "playability guarantee"). And it was their idea. I thought they could just bend them a degree but they said these are harder than advertised and didn't want to risk weakening/breaking the clubhead. Fine with me!
The hot metals are harder to bend than the pros and previous forged offerings. That's solid customer service though. Good on them and great for you.
It really was, I was surprised. They let me hit the hot metal demo head they had that was 2 degrees flat ( I don't think the original fitter knew they had it) and I hit it flush and a teeny bit right. But we went with 1 degree to make it easier for me turn it over if needed...that's not my natural swing and I think that would be pretty tough for me to do at 2 flat. The HMP's are surprisingly forgiving for a smaller clubhead...my spin and carry numbers were decent even hitting the ball toward the toe. One flat should make results more consistent and better than the original standards
[pro tip: unless you are a knockout 25 year old female, go when they aren't very busy...like a Wednesday mid morning...you can get all of the help you want]
I will be hitting the PGA Store in Myrtle when I go down the first week of March.
I think it's about time to start looking into new drivers and I want to test my current TaylorMade Jet Sweep Driver (purchased in 2014/2015) vs some of the newer tech in the simulator. I've always been a long hitter, but I get the sense I can add 20 yards by having something that's not over 7 years old.
Side note: anyone have any recommendations or insight?
I've always been brand loyal to TaylorMade since they were my first new set as my graduating gift out of high school. I'm sort of OCD where I like all my clubs to match brand wise, but I can be convinced to venture out of TM if there's a far superior driver lurking out there. Doesn't even need to be a 2023 model.
My 3w and 5w will likely be upgraded later as well to match whatever I buy.
https://www.pgaclubtracker.com/clubhead_types/most-popular-golf-drivers-...
edit: Historically (thru 2012) I played TM (R series) drivers with TM and Ping fairway woods. But since I started playing again in the last couple years, I've gone to a Callaway driver, fairway woods, and hybrid; I just find them really easy to hit to get a good, consistent result.
The spread of the types of drivers and years they were released is shocking to me
I was always a TM guy but had trouble finding the right fit. Switched to Callaway a few years ago and can't imagine switching back. My dad moved from TM to Titleist recently and definitely picked up some yards too.
TM has always been straight for me, but I hit Cally's and Titleists further. Mid year last year I was 14 clubs Titleist. But now have Mizuno irons and a TM driving iron. Hit a dicks or golf Galaxy and hit em all. Some will sound better, some will look better, some will feel better, and some will just turn you off for whatever reason. There's so much tech in them now, including the shafts, that the right fit for you is out there.
Upgrading from 8 year old technology you should see a significant gain in yardage. As far as brand loyalty, throw that out because it all comes down to what gets the ball where you want it the most often. If you are a consistent driver than TM might be the brand for you as the stealth 2 is definitely the hottest as far as ball speed but forgiveness is still lacking. If you value being in play over distance than ping and Callaway might be the answer.
I'd caution against the "Moar Yards" claim. What you will see is more forgiveness. (Or fargiveness, depending on which brand you chose.) The sweet spots have gotten bigger, and the off-center hits fly straighter and longer than previous models. But on-center hits, well, you prob won't gain a substantial amount....
https://golfible.com/are-new-golf-drivers-really-better/
I'm not overly concerned with distance because over the last 10 years I've learned accuracy trumps distance. Usually I'm fairly accurate with the occasional episode of prison shanks and lapses in concentration which results in me duck hooking drives off the tee.
But if I can be confident in striking the ball harder knowing I've got some extra forgiveness and can get closer to a 290-300 average I'd be content.
The temp hit 50 in Michigan on Sunday, so a couple of buddies and I hit our country club for 9 holes. The course is actually "closed" for the winter. It was good to hit the ball outside, even if I didn't hit it well.
absolutely loving the hot metal pros...consistent, forgiving, workable...really nice height and spin even with the strong lofts...hit a hop and stop (4') 6 iron on a par 3...unheard of for me and my slow swing speed
When Mizuno gets it right, there is no better feeling golf club out there.
Makes the game enjoyable and makes you want to play more often. Glad they are working for you.
Finally made it out this past Saturday. Weather at 9am wasn't ideal, but I NEEDED to get out. 3 straight 50 hour weeks, general craziness of the rat race, issues with my father's health over the past 2 months, and a new driver that was an oops purchase...I needed some grass therapy.
Let me say that if you are in the market for a new driver, anything Titleist in the past 3 cycles is a solid choice. The TS, TSi, and the TSr are all great. Put a TSr in the bag for this past weekend. Not ideal conditions to see how it worked with not playing for 3.5 months, but enough of an indicator to know it's in the bag! It's a different feel and sound from the TSi, more thump than thwack, and feels different. And it's a little longer for me. Granted it's a different shaft, and time will tell if the new, lighter one is the one that stays, but added a few yards.
Made a couple of birds too. Always nice to see the ball go in the hole. Speak of...we typically have 2 tee times alost all year around. Will fill up both through the summer without blinking. We had 7 this weekend, so went 4 and 3. Group in front had a hole in one! First time having one in the group on Saturdays. There have been guys get them, but at other times. (In fact, the guy I was playing with had one at #17 Oyster Bay last Monday on their way out of Myrtle. And was 2 inches from having another Saturday on #17 at our course.)
Also, given it's 40-45 minutes to the course down there, it's getting tougher and tougher to make it work. 9am tee times are great, but in the summer months, we have it around 720. That distance makes it tough to get up way early and make the tee time ready to go. There's another course 10 minutes from me that is in an over 55 community. As such, they have their mens golf tournaments on Tuesdays and Fridays. I can't make that work with familial and work obligations, but they do have a "locals card". Costs $300, which includes $150 in range credit, but gets you $55 rounds on the weekends, and $25 rounds after 2pm during the week. I can close the laptop, get up there, and cruise around the course in 3 hours on Tuesdays on my own schedule. I'll miss playing with my boys, and will still do that occasionally, just can't manage it for an entire season any more.
Sometimes it really is about convenience. I had to give up a golf league several years ago when my work location, which was 5 minutes from the course, move across town which made it over an hour trip.
We are anxiously awaiting the ground to completely thaw in Michigan which should happen with 50° temps and rain this week but then the weekends don't look great (cold and rainy).
If any locals want to get their ass handed to them on the golf course, head on over to Auburn Hills in Riner.. Played Sat afternoon, wind 20, temp in high 30's, greens lightning fast and ridiculous pin placements. Its a hard course with the terrain and grade fall-offs in the best of conditions, but this was another level. Borderline unfair how impossible how its set up with green speed and pin placement. Its at 134 slope from whites, but I'd say it's playing right now in the Bethpage Black level.
Whoa, 134 slope at 6,000 yards? Man, it's completely different than playing at sea level around here for sure.
I am not sure what slope has to do with sea level.
We just don't typically get that high a slope rating with flat courses. There are exceptions (Bayside, but it's 7600 from the tips with a slope of 148...) but typically they don't creep that high around here. Especially at 6,000 yards. And having a slope that high under 6,000 yards means it's still pretty difficult for the bogey golfer.
Interesting. The club I belong to has a slope of 138 and it's pretty flat. There are plenty of man made contours, though, and the greens are well protected on the sides. Length is about 6300.
Slope (as in slope of the graph) is an index of the increased difficulty for the bogey golfer. For men, a 138 slope turns the average 21 handicapper into a 25+
Yep, I am aware of that and it's why I asked the question in the first place.
I would guess since we are in a touristy spot (in general) for golf, and they want golf trips and packages to visit year after year, they've kept things fairly pedestrian in the difficulty slot. Keep it fun and playable for all...
Rum Pointe from the tips (7001 yards) is 122.
Eagles Landing tips (7003) is 131
Ocean City Newport tips (6657 with tons of carries) is 133
Man 'O War tips (7196) is 138
Ocean Pines (7074) is 135
"average" is 113. 120-130 is typical in NE FL
I think there is a lot of confusion about what slope means. An average slope simply means that the difficulty is proportional to ability of the golfer. An above average slope means it is disproportionally more difficult for the less skilled player.
I get it, just don't get to play many course with an extreme slop is my point. The ones that I've played that have been higher aren't at sea level...Tobacco Road 144 @ 6532, Worthington Manor 145 @ 7034, Primland 150 @ 7053.
The River Course (owned by VT) in Fairlawn (near Radford) has a slope of 135 from the Orange (same as white) at 6500 yds and its pretty flat (adjacent to river on a fairly flat area). But, its a Pete Dye course, so that has a LOT to do with the slope rating.
Yeah we were discussing during the round with those conditions had to be playing like a 140 plus slope course which is just really hard. What's crazy is how many shots you give up around the greens. Felt like I hit the ball pretty well and just got slaughtered
Luckily when people post, the GHIN now has a differential adjustment for conditions causing abnormal scores that day. both high and low. Although I think I've only seen one score of mine that had a PCC.
I think there is a certain minimum amount of play that day that is required before that can kick in. I only saw it affect one of my rounds (of 50+) last year.
Played club golf there when I was at tech. Once had 7 Birdies in a round out there. Still shot 76! Short course with Birdie opportunities everywhere, but 1 bad shot can lead to a double or worse in a heartbeat
Can't get enough bracketology? Head over to https://fantasybracket.pgatour.com/#/picks/mine and fill out a bracket for the Dell Technologies Match Play. League is TheKeyPlay and password is Hokies2023.
Was soooooo close to having the final correct...this bracket is one of the toughest.
I did about as well as I do in the basketball brackets. At least there was some good golf and I watched most of it besides the finals. I'd love to play that course, just don't know I'd ever go to Texas. Hopefully they land another tournament, because it is a great looking track.
Woa, over 1,000 members and a 17 year waiting list for a $100,000 initiation. Definitely some money down in Texas. (Dallas has several courses that have 6 figure initiations too.) Cool course and Austin is a unique place. Just don't go in July like I did. Sheesh. That was HOT.
Just returned from a three round weekend in North Myrtle Beach.
Round One: Eagles Nest Golf Club. There were six of us and we were all traveling in from different places so we met at the golf course and had two threesome tee times, 2:30 and 2:38. They were so busy they paired a single with each of our groups. Pace of play was so slow they blew the horn for dark as one group preparing to tee off on 17 and the other on 16. Consensus of the group was the course may get two stars. Don't waste your time.
Round Two: Tidewater Resort and Golf Club. 8:27 & 8:35 tee times. Running 30 to 45 minutes late because of frost. Again was paired with a single. The guy playing with my group was a retired New Yorker who owned one of the condos on the course. Super nice guy who helped us with things like where to try to drive the ball, hazards you couldn't see etc. Did I mention we were all seniors and hitting from the senior tees! Course was in really good shape but it put a premium on shot making. Greens are well guarded with bunkers, water, or waste areas. Virtually no run up areas to the green. If your approach shot was a worm-burner, you were in a hazard. Group consensus: Well maintained and a four + star course. Greens were large and fast. A challenge for average to above average golfers. Tough for a below average duffer like me. I would still go back, however.
Round Three: Crow Creek Golf Club in Calabash, NC. We had called a few days earlier and changed tee times from morning to afternoon because of rain threat. We were down to five players and were going to play a twosome and threesome. 1:50 & 1:58 tee times. By the second tee we were caught up with the group in front of us, so we just played a fivesome the rest of the way. By far the groups favorite course. Nice and green, wide for the slicers but still with some challenging holes, but fair. Most all the greens were multi-level. You needed to be on the level with the hole or a three-putt was most likely in your future. This is definitely a must play again course.
Oh by the way... I don't keep score!
First I want to apologize to Nerf and Zilla for getting preachy on the "slope" discussion. I was reading into their posts things that weren't there; and it wasn't my business anyway. My bad.
Now golf...played recently renovated St Johns in a brisk wind yesterday. Course has not noticeably greened up (wasn't overseeded) and it remains rock hard. Still my usual game; 15 holes where I appear somewhat competent and three "what the hell was that?"
Most unusual shot was on a par 3 into a 2 club wind; water down the left and then in front with residential homes on the right. I hit a rocket off the toe of a fairway wood straight at a house. As I screamed "fore", the ball hit the house where it did a near 180, came back into play on the fly, then rolled across about 40 feet of grass, then down the bank and into the hazard. So started out OB way right and ended up in the water to the left.
With the wind, the homeowner may have just thought it was something rattling around. There are times where you have to scratch your head about houses THAT close to in play. Especially down the right side.
I think it hit the 2 x 8 header on a lattice covered deck.
It's also a new hole. The course was originally a 27 hole private course that the county subsequently bought and switched to 18...so there was some extra space lying around when they did the remodel. This was one of three or 4 brand new holes and some houses that weren't in play, suddenly are.
Spark Golf: anyone heard of it? Participating in Northern Va? Recently had some back problems keeping me off the ice hockey rink and devoting more time to Golf. Signed up for the Bull Run league in spark golf. Multiple courses around but this was the best available course. Just curious what I'm getting into if anyone has info. Thanks!
My mom plays in a spark golf league. I've been wanting to join but the only hosting courses around Charleston are in Summerville at 5 on weekdays which would be like a solid 2 hour sit in traffic for me to get to.
Played in it last year. It's basically a tee time, and you report a score to a database - league is a very loose term.
Our course opened semi-officially yesterday. Walking only, mostly due to not wanting to staff the pro shop/cart barn till dark (and partly to minimize damage to soggier areas f the course.)
Played nine after work. It was about 50° and cloudy with a bit of a breeze. Nothing has greened up yet so the fairways were running and the rough was low. Greens were slow and a little bumpy. Didn't play that well. Things I have been working on this winter in the simulator didn't completely transfer to my outdoor game. It didn't help that I was a little stiff from spending 4 hours in a car and 6 hours on a plant floor earlier in the day.
Also, I splurged on a new VT Golf Bag this year (the Caddie Carry Hybrid bag from Fanatics). It was waiting for me when I got home from the course. It's replacing the Ping Hoofer VT bag I got 23 years ago.
Golfed Dogwood Trace in Petersburg, VA on Saturday with my old Hokie roomies. One of them just got a set of Taylormade P790s, so he gave me his old set of Taylormade Aeroburners. Wow, what a difference. I'm only right at a year of playing golf so I'm still really bad, but I shot a 112 and I was jacked about it! The new irons and the Cobra LTDx 3 wood I added to the bag made a world of difference.
I've been playing the P790s the last few years, I like them a lot.
He seems to like them a lot too. I think they're beautiful but they are a little too thin and intimidating for my skill level 😅
Winter is officially over with the MASTERS!!!!!!!!!!!!
Good day off tomorrow to watch whatever they get in with the bad weather incoming. Looks like a Monday finish potentially.
Heads up to those who live near a PGA Superstore, they have begun selling off last year's demos at discounted prices. Was able to pick up a tsi2 7-wood with premium shaft for $140 and it looked like it had never been used.
Play with a guy that got a 7 wood and he smashes it. best club in his bag.
I carry one; it's like cheating
I'm one of the idiots that thinks carrying a 2 iron is cool. Sometimes it is. Sometimes it hurts, literally. (Trying to get ready for Scotland...but the jury is still out.)
I started playing with one a month ago. Been tinkering with some swing changes so very inconsistent right now but when I hit it well it is a weapon. I have a 3 hybrid that I can hit really well but it has such a higher launch that the misses can be off the map. Hoping the 2 iron has a little tighter dispersion with the lower flight.
Hey everybody- I go camping in Cape Henlopen delaware for a week every year. Last year, me, VTnerf, and MasScott got together that week and played a round in Ocean City MD. We are planning on doing the same this year at a southern DE or Ocean City MD area course (yet to be determined) during the week betwwen 7/22 to 7/29. VT nerf thinks he might have a VT fourth person, but I was thinking if there were 4 more of you guys that are in that area and are interested we could put together a little 8-person team tourney type of event-
Are any of you guys also in that area and possibly interested?
I could get us set up at Heritage Shores in Bridgeville, not far from where 404 crosses if anyone wants to come east for a day!
post in the new thread. we can get interest there and plan off that.
Think I finally found my swing again. Proceeded to hit a billion balls Saturday trying to get it engrained which was a bit of a mistake as I also tweaked my back. Tee time tomorrow and I feel like an 80 year old man, don't think I'll have to worry about over swinging.
Had Friday and today off (Good Friday and Better Monday.). Weather was just starting to turn this past week in Michigan. Got 9 in Thursday and 18 each Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Even with time in the sim this winter, still a lot of inconsistency with my swing. I did manage to break 90 (89) today after a 94, 104 and 101 the previous 3 days (and a 49 Thursday).
Weather is getting into the 70s this week so some good opportunities to play.