Club set upgrade thoughts for 2014

[Jakester23]

Well I'm guessing you mean 3-w as the 8 irons. I'd leave the 3 iron out. Get a hybrid that's close to your 3 iron loft then you won't need it.

[treebound]

Got the 4-9, PW, & GW for the eight irons, no 3 iron yet but will pick one up if I come across one for a deal. People keep talking about the hybrids so I'll be looking for one of those as well. Thanks for the suggestion, I appreciate it.

[Jakester23]

You probably don't need a gw and a 52 wedge. They are basically the same. I go with a gw a 54 & a 58. Im not saying that you have to do what I did but you probably don't need 5 wedges. I don't even think Phil carries that many.

[LuciusWooding]

You probably don't need a gw and a 52 wedge. They are basically the same. I go with a gw a 54 & a 58. Im not saying that you have to do what I did but you probably don't need 5 wedges. I don't even think Phil carries that many.

With the Ci9s, I believe the GW is 48 degrees, effectively giving it a 3-PW loft for the set.

As for the hybrid, I suggest you spend the time until you find one you really like, since there are a lot of different styles out there.

[treebound]

Yep, per the specs the GW is 48*. I rummaged around in the basement tonight and found a Hogan Riviera 52* and my old Hogan Special 60 sandwedge. So pulling out the TC29 wedges and putting in the two Hogans and the 56* Vokey, I've got 4 degree spacing from 32* to 60*. Way wedge heavy but it will give me plenty of options to work with and track while I re-establish my swing and work out my distances.

[treebound]

Lately I've been haunting some of the local stores looking at the clearance and used clubs. Was looking at (still am) at hybrids and fairway woods and some drivers. Woods and such have never been good for me but long irons have treated me well. Well, today I think I found the first 3wood I could hit off a tee and off a mat. I've gone back and forth, and today I grabbed a few off the used rack during lunch, rescue, hybrid, and 3wood, and hit the 3wood the best. Rocketbalz (series 2?) Tour high launch that was set up a bit for loft. Almost got it but it was just beyond my budget. Then on the way home from work I stopped at a Dicks and the Cobra Biocells caught my eye as well. Might go back to the other store again tomorrow and test hit the Cobras. Might also have to rimmage around to see what I have for tradein that is still on the PGA Value Guide site since that seems to be what the store refers to for trade values. Rambling thoughts while shopping, and still frozen in Wisconsin.

[treebound]

Mods: feel free to delete this thread, I should have just tagged onto my previous thread noted below, sorry, and thank you:

http://thesandtrap.com/t/72179/club-set-upgrade-thoughts-for-2014/36

[treebound]

--- begin quote from my other post/thread ---

Lately I've been haunting some of the local stores looking at the clearance and used clubs. Was looking at (still am) at hybrids and fairway woods and some drivers. Woods and such have never been good for me but long irons have treated me well.

Well, today I think I found the first 3wood I could hit off a tee and off a mat. I've gone back and forth, and today I grabbed a few off the used rack during lunch, rescue, hybrid, and 3wood, and hit the 3wood the best. Rocketbalz (series 2?) Tour high launch that was set up a bit for loft. Almost got it but it was just beyond my budget.

Then on the way home from work I stopped at a Dicks and the Cobra Biocells caught my eye as well. Might go back to the other store again tomorrow and test hit the Cobras. Might also have to rummage around to see what I have for trade-in that is still on the PGA Value Guide site since that seems to be what the store refers to for trade values.

Rambling thoughts while shopping, and still frozen in Wisconsin.

--- end quote of self ---

Well, I went and done did it, I picked up the used RBZ Stage 2 Tour 3HL fairway wood at lunch today.  Managed to sell two irons and some bicycle stuff locally and generated close enough funds to get it. I already had the wrench to adjust it (found one at a thrift shop), so now I just need to find the instructions on how to adjust this club so I don't mess it up.  Probably simple to do but I'd rather be sure of the proper way to adjust it.

I know some people are put off by the graphics on the top of the club head, but that doesn't bother me at all.

So now I just have to get in some more range time and get my swing back a bit and sort out my new distances, and to fine tune the short end of the bag.

[treebound]

Well, as of lunchtime today I think my bag upgrade is about done:

TaylorMade R11S, 9* currently set one click up (will tune it more later on)

TaylorMade RBZ Stage 2 Tour 3HL 16.5*
Cobra Amp 4H 22*
Wilson_Staff Ci9 4-9/PW/GW (covers 23*-48*) (the GW may get swapped out once I begin to tune in my wedges)
Vokey 56.10 (older, will get replaced in the next month or three)
Hogan Special 60 sand wedge (I really like this club from bunkers, but will probably replace it also this summer at some point)

TaylorMade TC.1 putter (older, but I sort of like it so far)

Now I just need to get some more range time in and get my distances sorted out, then can begin to tweak or swap out things from there.

I've still got the TM 320 driver that I might hang onto for a bit just in case the R11S gives me fits once the honeymoon is over.  I was thinking of picking up a TM R1 after work today but the local shop had this R11S for about half the cost of the used R1 so that tipped the deal.

I'm also going to find it interesting to see how the 4H compares to the 4iron, but I suspect they will happily work well together, each with their own uses and strengths.

Anyway, that's where I'm at as of today.

[treebound]

Wedge day coming up. I've been trying to sort out the utility/short end of the bag, so I've gathered up my current assortment of wedges and am planning on taking all of them to the range and trying to sort out what sort of lofts and bounces and distances I want. The W/S iron set is lofted a bit strong (I'm guessing the 9iron is about what a 7iron was 20 years ago), the PW is 44* and the GW is 48*. So here's the list of what I'm hauling to the range: W/S PW @ 44* W/S GW @ 48* Mizuno TC29 P(u) @ 47* TC29 F @ 51* TC29 S @ 55* Hogan Riviera @ 52* Hogan Special 60 @ 60* Vokey @ 56* (SM56.10) Delta "Rite On" sand wedge @ 56* Venture TC64 "Claw" @ 64* So lofts run from 44 to 64 which should give me some feel for where I want to end up. I figure I have room for four clubs in this range, allowing that the PW at 44* probably hits like my older 9 or 8 iron used to go (I'll figure this out at the range). Ignoring the club names/numbers and only looking at the lofts I was thinking sort of eventually going with clubs of 44*, 50*, 56*, 60*. Or maybe 44*, 48*, 52*, 56*. Or maybe 44*, 48*, 54*, 58-60*. Or something else which hopefully will get sorted out once I get these current wedges figured out. I'm open to opinions and thoughts. I've got no real functional idea of how far I'm hitting clubs these days which will also be getting sorted out during the next few weeks while the local courses are just starting to get ready to open up. Fun stuff sorting all this out. And that 64* wedge I just picked up at a thrift shop for $2 so I just couldn't resist getting it. Most likely won't make it to the bag, but should be fun to mess around with. Anyway, time to sleep, and then tomorrow or Friday will be wedge day at the range.

[LuciusWooding]

I thought I had too many wedges today because I had 48, 51, 54, and 60. Clearly you have me beat. I really want to put the 3 wood back in the bag but I played so nice with all the wedges that I don't know what to take out. Probably the 54, but it's really tempting to change things around. May go to 48, 52, 58 or something.

[treebound]

I see a lot of people using a 56 for sand so I'm leaning towards updating the Vokey. A lot of others seem to have a low bounce 60 and a 52. But with those three I'm thinking I'd have a huge gap up to the 44. Backing the 52 up to a 50 would even things out but then maybe that's not relevant. Then again maybe I'm overthinking all of this. As to having an abundance of wedges, I think I only bought one of those new, and once I get this all sorted out then most of the extras will be going away. Except for maybe that 64, I want to learn how to do one of those backwards over the head shots.

[treebound]

[IMG]http://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h292/treebound/Golf/20140402_210313_zps01110b00.jpg[/IMG]

[LuciusWooding]

I see a lot of people using a 56 for sand so I'm leaning towards updating the Vokey. A lot of others seem to have a low bounce 60 and a 52. But with those three I'm thinking I'd have a huge gap up to the 44. Backing the 52 up to a 50 would even things out but then maybe that's not relevant. Then again maybe I'm overthinking all of this.

As to having an abundance of wedges, I think I only bought one of those new, and once I get this all sorted out then most of the extras will be going away. Except for maybe that 64, I want to learn how to do one of those backwards over the head shots.

I think I need to find the lofts that I can string together to cover my distances, and not worry about the math. Some lofts I notice I get better control over my distance than others, like my 48 and 51. It's possible that a 58 might be something I can hit full more easily than my 60, so that would make it a bit more versatile.

Gap wedge is nice, but I can hit most of the same shots with my 48 degree. It's just annoying being in the 90-115 range right now because I don't have a club I can hit full. The LW may be swapped for a 58 for this reason, but if I get lots of wedge practice in I can generally find those yardages. Everything in the 56 and 58 lofts usually is set up as a sand club instead of something like an iron from my set, which is a shame. That sort of sole sucks for me on a tight lie, I realize the bounce will help me if I dig, but I don't like to hit wedges that way unless I'm taking loft off for a low chip or there's something to hit through. There's too much sand displacement from most sand wedges for my course's firm bunkers, I usually use my 60 opened up to expose a bit more bounce and slip it under the ball. Maybe learning to spin the ball back a couple yards in that 100 yard range could help, it's not a shot I usually attempt though.

A spec check isn't a bad idea for me either, since some of my set isn't bent upright yet. My irons are definitely at least half incorrect and I'm starting to get my swing together again so I should do that soon.

[treebound]

I looked in my copy of Watson's Getting Up and Down book, and in there he mentions that a PW is 51*-52*. Argh, my PW is 44* and the GW is 48*, ack.  I think I'm going to get out a permanent marker or paint pen and subtract two from each club's number just so I can keep my brain from flipping out. He mentions using a 3 wedge setup, so if I don't count my PW and GW as "wedges" then if I count my 4 iron as really a 2 iron, then my mind seems more clear on the subject of what to do.

After having slept on it, I think I'm going to maybe drop my 4 iron, and then maybe go with a 52* low-med bounce, a 56* sandwedge, and a 60* lower bounce club. Then I'll just hang a translation tag on my bag (sort of like French to English, only for New Lofts to Old Lofts), then if anyone asks "why do you have 5 wedges in your bag I can just point to the translation tag and say "really there are only three wedges in my bag".

Anyway, got all the wedges in the car with me today, will be stopping at the range on the way home to ultimately make a decision.

I still have an old, ancient, Furnquest & Johnson (Farquest maybe?) wedge from the 60's that I've probably hit more flag sticks with than all my other clubs combined.  Short club, somewhat flexy shaft, stubby square'd toe on it, sharp leading edge with little to no bounce, grip dried out and splitting, but deadly on approach shots for me.  If I can find a modern club that works that well for me then I'd be happy.  I am tempted to take it in to a shop and get it measured just to see what it equates to dimensionally.

[treebound]

Well that was fun. I think my plan is to put the W/S 44* and 48* along with the three TC29 wedges in the bag as well, then once at a course I will pull the W/S 48* or TC29 47* out of the bag and see how that works. That 64* is going into a very dark corner somewhere because it be wicked. The Hogans will be kept because I still like them, just won't use them this year ( at least for now). The Vokey will sit out until I can either find a mate for it, or until I start having issues with the TC29s. I've decided that I really need to get more practice in and play a few rounds of golf before I can really know where things are for me as I settle into the new to me bag of clubs this year. Man has this been a long winter. Sorry if I've rambled but it has helped me sort things out. And I really appreciate everyone's input, thank you.

[dwade247]

I actually like what you are doing here. The number of the club doesn't matter, all that really matters is the distance you hit it and that you hit it that distance consistently. And that you have clubs you can score with.

[treebound]

Wedge update: I went to a couple local stores over the weekend thinking I was shopping for maybe a set of conforming wedges since one of my goals this year was to end up with a fully conforming set of clubs. I wasn't really finding anything that I really liked so I became set on looking for a putter instead and I'd just be mostly conforming with wedges. I almost bit on a putter late Sunday but the one I liked was an inch too short. So, today, I ran out at lunch to another golf store to see if that store had the inch longer putter. Had to use the bathroom so I passed by the putters and on the way to the head I passed by the rack of used clubs, and there on the rack two clubs caught my eye. Did my business and went to check out the pair. Turns out they were a pair of Vokeys, an oil can finish SM4 at 60-07, and a black nickle SM4 at 54-11. The 60* had a bit of bag chatter, but the faces on both looked like they each only had light use. I tried them out in the store's monitor/test room and both felt good to me. So, long story short, I added two conforming wedges to my bag today. Out go the Mizuno TC29 wedges, my Hogan is retired, the non-conforming 56* Vokey I have will sit in reserve, and apart from the putter the short end of my bag is complete for now. Part of my push was being able to finally get an 18 hole round of golf in last Friday. I'm still adapting to the Wilsons as the core of my bag, but they should survive the season (or five). Back to the range this week to work more on my swing and the driver, but for now I'm very happy.