Would You Rather…?

[WillieT]

Maybe I've made it too obvious as certainly lowest score wins....as @iacas said, "

1 hour ago, iacas said:

I'm not sure why anyone would choose the latter? Maybe if they really LOVE hitting driver?

likewise the same is echoed by @ncates00, "

 

13 minutes ago, ncates00 said:

Given your hypo, it seems that the answer is self-evident given golf is about having the least amount of scores.

Still what I like is seeing the hypothetical bag set-up that we, the SandTrap folks, deem would give us said scores....

[iacas]

13 minutes ago, WillieT said:

Still what I like is seeing the hypothetical bag set-up that we, the SandTrap folks, deem would give us said scores....

Good place for that right here:

[WillieT]

6 minutes ago, iacas said:

Good place for that right here:

Thanks Erik - I should've know it had been discussed in times past.  Funny thing is in '07, golf was no where on the brain - just motorcycles and music. These days, still dream of maybe riding again, still play music pretty regularly, but golf has become that sport I have learned to love.  Thinking next round at the home course will be a 5 club round.  Just to see how well or not so well I do.  

[ncates00]

1 hour ago, WillieT said:

Maybe I've made it too obvious as certainly lowest score wins....as @iacas said, "

likewise the same is echoed by @ncates00, "

 

Still what I like is seeing the hypothetical bag set-up that we, the SandTrap folks, deem would give us said scores....

The set up is whatever gives you the best results.  The rules allow for 14 clubs.  Each club should serve a purpose.  Mine do.  I have a dr, 3w, 5w, 7w, 4h, 5-PW, 54, 60, and a putter.  Each club is individual and gives me what I need out of it.

[WillieT]

4 minutes ago, ncates00 said:

The set up is whatever gives you the best results.  The rules allow for 14 clubs.  Each club should serve a purpose.  Mine do.  I have a dr, 3w, 5w, 7w, 4h, 5-PW, 54, 60, and a putter.  Each club is individual and gives me what I need out of it.

Agreed on that, "the setup that gets the best results is key"!  But "if" you were to be limited and knew you would play better with those five, what would they be?  

[ncates00]

24 minutes ago, WillieT said:

Agreed on that, "the setup that gets the best results is key"!  But "if" you were to be limited and knew you would play better with those five, what would they be?  

It depends on what course I'm playing, i.e., a longer course or a shorter course, what kind of trouble is there, are there forced carries (if so, at what yardages), what are the greens and bunkers like, etc.  There's too many variables to give a general rule for your hypothetical situation.  Give us more facts.

[ChetlovesMer]

19 hours ago, WillieT said:

Would you rather #29....Play only a total of five (5) clubs (incl putter) in the bag, the strongest being no more than 15* (i.e. 3w) and the weakest no more than 60* (LW) and lowering your avg score by five (5) strokes OR keeping your bag as is with the current number of clubs and your avg score lowers by two (2) strokes.  Also if you choose the former - what would be the clubs of choice?  

Am I missing something? Is the question would you rather shoot 5 strokes fewer or 2 strokes fewer? 
If so, why is that a question?

Oh, and for the other part of the question. I guess I'd pick driver. hybrid. 8 iron, sand wedge, and putter. 

[billchao]

23 hours ago, WillieT said:

Would you rather #29....Play only a total of five (5) clubs (incl putter) in the bag, the strongest being no more than 15* (i.e. 3w) and the weakest no more than 60* (LW) and lowering your avg score by five (5) strokes OR keeping your bag as is with the current number of clubs and your avg score lowers by two (2) strokes.  Also if you choose the former - what would be the clubs of choice?  

I’m going to be that guy and point out that the loft rule means nobody can carry a putter 😜

First one, no doubt. I’ll play five wedges if I’m guaranteed to lower my average score by five.

[WillieT]

3 hours ago, billchao said:

I’m going to be that guy and point out that the loft rule means nobody can carry a putter 😜

First one, no doubt. I’ll play five wedges if I’m guaranteed to lower my average score by five.

@billchao - you are definitely correct in that the "loft rule" that I laid down does preclude a putter.  By the way - that is interesting that it would be a five wedge bag.  Definitely not me!  Can't hit the ball that well😀

[WillieT]

7 hours ago, ChetlovesMer said:

Am I missing something? Is the question would you rather shoot 5 strokes fewer or 2 strokes fewer? 
If so, why is that a question?

Oh, and for the other part of the question. I guess I'd pick driver. hybrid. 8 iron, sand wedge, and putter. 

Well, the premise was to load the question in that the only way you can shoot five (5) shots fewer is with only five (5) clubs in the bag and what do you envision those clubs to be?  I get it that that the obvious answer seems to be the first option as everyone wants a lower score - it was meant to be more a mental exercise of what 5 clubs would be in the bag to give you five strokes fewer.   

21 hours ago, ncates00 said:

It depends on what course I'm playing, i.e., a longer course or a shorter course, what kind of trouble is there, are there forced carries (if so, at what yardages), what are the greens and bunkers like, etc.  There's too many variables to give a general rule for your hypothetical situation.  Give us more facts.

Good points on the course questions, stuff I did not consider as the course conditions are as diverse as the members who post.  For the sake of this exercise, maybe have in mind your "home" course or "favorite" course when thinking the clubs you would use.  

[billchao]

7 hours ago, WillieT said:

By the way - that is interesting that it would be a five wedge bag.  Definitely not me!  Can't hit the ball that well😀

I can’t either, that’s why it’s all wedges. You guaranteed me five less strokes, figured it didn’t matter what clubs I was using! 😃

[WillieT]

6 minutes ago, billchao said:

I can’t either, that’s why it’s all wedges. You guaranteed me five less strokes, figured it didn’t matter what clubs I was using! 😃

Love the response man!  Great reasoning, and yes the guarantee is five fewer strokes no matter the club type as long as the lofts are between 15 and 60 deg.    

[RFKFREAK]

On 9/18/2020 at 2:31 PM, RFKFREAK said:

The former

Whereas I do love hitting my driver, it's also because I'm so inconsistent with my 3W I just think it would make golf not fun for me. 

I'm amending this response.

I believe I've actually started to make solid contact with my 3W on a more regular basis, so, the latter. 

[ncates00]

19 hours ago, WillieT said:

Well, the premise was to load the question in that the only way you can shoot five (5) shots fewer is with only five (5) clubs in the bag and what do you envision those clubs to be?  I get it that that the obvious answer seems to be the first option as everyone wants a lower score - it was meant to be more a mental exercise of what 5 clubs would be in the bag to give you five strokes fewer.   

Good points on the course questions, stuff I did not consider as the course conditions are as diverse as the members who post.  For the sake of this exercise, maybe have in mind your "home" course or "favorite" course when thinking the clubs you would use.  

On my home course, my 5-club set up would include: driver, 3w or 5w, 4h, 7i, and PW.  I can putt with my PW.

[WillieT]

4 minutes ago, ncates00 said:

On my home course, my 5-club set up would include: driver, 3w or 5w, 4h, 7i, and PW.  I can putt with my PW.

Makes sense - putting w/PW is pretty cool.

[Pretzel]

On 9/18/2020 at 10:58 AM, WillieT said:

Would you rather #29....Play only a total of five (5) clubs (incl putter) in the bag, the strongest being no more than 15* (i.e. 3w) and the weakest no more than 60* (LW) and lowering your avg score by five (5) strokes OR keeping your bag as is with the current number of clubs and your avg score lowers by two (2) strokes.  Also if you choose the former - what would be the clubs of choice?  

Obviously I'd take the former since I'd have an average score three shots lower than in the latter scenario, but I think that's not quite what you meant. Here's a more specific rendering of what I think you meant:

Would you rather #29.5 - Play with only 5 clubs (including putter), between 15* and 60* of loft, and remove 5 strokes at the end of your round OR play with all of your usual 14 clubs and remove 2 strokes at the end of your round.

In this scenario I would still go with the former option, at least at most courses. I'd take my putter, 60* wedge (110yd max), PW(150yd max), 7i(200yd max) and 3-wood. Realistically most of my approach shots on an average course would be in the 100-200 yard range, and this setup would give me the best gapping for those approach shots. My "105%" lob wedge goes 110, while my 3/4 pitching wedge goes 120. My "105%" pitching wedge is 150, but the 3/4 7-iron is 160. Super long par 4's could give me a bit of an issue, and I might need 3-shots to reach longer par 5's, but I don't believe I'd lose 3 shots per round or more on average compared to having a full set of clubs in my bag. 3 shots per round is a big difference to overcome, and if you have practiced your partial swings and know their distances you shouldn't be losing that many shots per round by using partial swings more often.

[Double Mocha Man]

1 minute ago, Pretzel said:

Obviously I'd take the former since I'd have an average score three shots lower than in the latter scenario, but I think that's not quite what you meant. Here's a more specific rendering of what I think you meant:

Would you rather #29.5 - Play with only 5 clubs (including putter), between 15* and 60* of loft, and remove 5 strokes at the end of your round OR play with all of your usual 14 clubs and remove 2 strokes at the end of your round.

In this scenario I would still go with the former option, at least at most courses. I'd take my putter, 60* wedge (110yd max), PW(150yd max), 7i(200yd max) and 3-wood. Realistically most of my approach shots on an average course would be in the 100-200 yard range, and this setup would give me the best gapping for those approach shots. My "105%" lob wedge goes 110, while my 3/4 pitching wedge goes 120. My "105%" pitching wedge is 150, but the 3/4 7-iron is 160. Super long par 4's could give me a bit of an issue, and I might need 3-shots to reach longer par 5's, but I don't believe I'd lose 3 shots per round or more on average compared to having a full set of clubs in my bag. 3 shots per round is a big difference to overcome, and if you have practiced your partial swings and know their distances you shouldn't be losing that many shots per round by using partial swings more often.

Here's my rendering:  Would you rather score better or carry a heavier bag.

[Billy Z]

I have  holed out from the fairway many times for eagle, and also eagled a par 4  for a 2 one time. The eagle on the par 4 occurred during a solar eclipse so I will never forget that one. With all this being said, I would 'definitely' rather eagle every year once or twice over a hole in one, btw, in which I never have had one. A friend of mine who got a hoi a few years ago said it wasn't the dramatic experience he thought it would be getting a hoi, just 'lets play on' sort of feeling.