Buying New 5W and 3W... Suggestions?

[prutkows]

My bag:

Driver: 9.5 degree Titleist 905R
5w/3w: Taylormade 200 steel
3-pw: Titleist 690.CB
SW: 56/14 Vokey
putter: Newport 2


I've recently corrected my grip and made some changes to my swing which have changed (improved imo) my ball flight and distance control on all of my clubs except my 5w and 3w. I've also isolated almost all my misses to about a <15 yard fade (driver) and overall have much more consistent ball striking.

While the changes have improved my play with the majority of the clubs in my bag, they've also for whatever reason caused shots with my 5w and 3w to "balloon" and I don't know how to solve the problem. I know that most times the problem is with the golfer and not the club(s) but as many of you will notice, the production of TM 200 steel woods has long been discontinued and I guess I'd like to update my bag a little and hopefully find clubs that will help correct my "ballooning" problem. Could it be that the shafts on the 5w/3w are Regular flex + "lite"? Shaft on the driver is a Stiff flex Fujikura speeder. Irons/SW have S200 steel shafts.

I'm looking to spend no more than $120 on each of the clubs (so $240 total i guess) and have no preference of brand. I have no problem with buying used clubs and I don't really care if its the newest model or not.

Also maybe looking to replace my 3 iron with a hybrid of some sort but I have no knowledge of hybrids/rescue clubs or what #hybrid typically replaces a 3iron.

I know that ultimately i'll have to go out and see how I perform with each club, but do any of you know what I could do to possibly prevent ballooning so much?

Thanks

[mhodar13]

I have the Taylormade 2007 Burner driver and fairway woods. They rock. Period. You can find them for $130.00 or less at most places.

[prutkows]

have you noticed if the 5w/3w promote a draw or any specific ball flight?

[Jesh]

I think you should look at the Callaway Hyper X series. Very good, I hit my 5 wood around 210 pretty consistent ball flight. If I miss, it'll usually come off as a draw.

[mhodar13]

I haven't noticed any specific ball flight. I belive the face is slightly closed, but It doesn't matter IMHO.

[prutkows]

^btw thanks to both of you for the advice :)

Although I said brand was not an issue for me, i'm a bit of a titleist fanboy and I just noticed this baby on 3balls for pretty cheap. Does anyone use it or have any past experience with it?

http://www.3balls.com/product-produc...TIFF-GOLF-CLUB

[Jesh]

Never played that, I think I have a friend on the golf team who has, I'll ask him about them when I next see him.


Also, if you buy the X '08 series, go to rockbottomgolf, because on 3balls, it's $130 used, and on rockbottomgolf it's $80 new.

[prutkows]

^thanks for the tip. What i'll probably do is look online for all the cheap clubs and then find a local store that will let me demo the same club.

The last time I used any callaway club was when I first started golfing and had a set of x-14 irons.

[prutkows]

Does anyone use steel shaft fairway woods?

[Titleist Man]

Does anyone use steel shaft fairway woods?

i dont know anyone who does

have you noticed if the 5w/3w promote a draw or any specific ball flight?

I had them and they were HOOK MACHINES. I didnt like how easy they were to snap hook JMHO.

[prutkows]

i dont know anyone who does

did you use 906's before you picked up your 909's? If so, what did you think about them?

[chilly]

I've found that I like the x series Callaway, Ping G10, and Cleveland Launcher '09s all quite a bit. I just bought a very nice used condition x Callaway 15* with stiff Fujikura for $45 (which I think is a steal). I also have a Ping G10 18.5* with the UST V2 Stiff, picked it up recently for $85 in good shape. I really like the '09 Launchers and have seen them for $105 used, so you could get any of these under your price requirement. As stated above, rockbottom has the x Callaways brand new for $80, incredible deal.

[ControlJunkie]

While the changes have improved my play with the majority of the clubs in my bag, they've also for whatever reason caused shots with my 5w and 3w to "balloon" and I don't know how to solve the problem. I know that most times the problem is with the golfer and not the club(s) but as many of you will notice, the production of TM 200 steel woods has long been discontinued and I guess I'd like to update my bag a little and hopefully find clubs that will help correct my "ballooning" problem. Could it be that the shafts on the 5w/3w are Regular flex + "lite"? Shaft on the driver is a Stiff flex Fujikura speeder. Irons/SW have S200 steel shafts.

So your 3W and 5W both have R flex, while your driver has is an S flex? If that's the case, I'd say it's the shaft flex causing the ballooning. There are stiffer regular flexes out there you can try though, that may be a better option. It's always best to play the softest flex that you can possibly get away with, and a mid-launch, heavier regular flex shaft may be better than a stiff.

As far as recommendation, I LOVE my Dymo 3W. I recently swapped out the stock shaft in favor of the UST ProForce V2 Stiff (in my signature). I also liked the Ping G10 3W when I hit it. I've heard of a lot of people really liking the older Callaway Steelhead as well, but I've never hit it, so take that for what it's worth. I know the Dymo just dropped to $150 pretty much everywhere, so that's even more reason to at least check it out and see if you like it.

[wolverine_man]

I am slowly updating my equipment and I am also looking to replace my 3 wood. I have heard great things about the Bobby Jones Players Series and I will have to check them out.

[prutkows]

I've found that I like the x series Callaway, Ping G10, and Cleveland Launcher '09s all quite a bit. I just bought a very nice used condition x Callaway 15* with stiff Fujikura for $45 (which I think is a steal). I also have a Ping G10 18.5* with the UST V2 Stiff, picked it up recently for $85 in good shape. I really like the '09 Launchers and have seen them for $105 used, so you could get any of these under your price requirement. As stated above, rockbottom has the x Callaways brand new for $80, incredible deal.

I've had my eye on those X callaways as well :) Just trying to compile a list of clubs to demo before i actually pull the trigger.

So your 3W and 5W both have R flex, while your driver has is an S flex? I

Thats exactly what i was thinking, but i was a little hesitant to "blame" the ballooning on the shafts because I didn't want to get flamed here.

I am slowly updating my equipment and I am also looking to replace my 3 wood. I have heard great things about the Bobby Jones Players Series and I will have to check them out.

Let me know how that works out :) I may end up checking them out as well.

Thanks for the tips guys.

[ControlJunkie]

Thats exactly what i was thinking, but i was a little hesitant to "blame" the ballooning on the shafts because I didn't want to get flamed here.

Yeah, it's kinda a tough call. Once I switched from reg flex to stiff, the ballooning was gone. There's a world of difference between the stock R-flex shaft in my Sumo 5000, and the stiff AXIVCore though. The AXIVCore feels so much more stable throughout my swing. I guess what I'm saying is that it could very well be the shaft flex, especially since the shaft in your driver is stiff flex. It's just going to be a matter of what feels the best to you, and what produces the ballflight you want, without sacrificing distance or accuracy. Do you primarily take the 3W and the 5W off the deck, or off the tee, or a good mixture of both? BTW, enis750 dropped

a link to a great article that might help in your decision. Check that out, it was very informative to me. And dont sweat getting flamed. The only times I've seen people get flamed is when they're acting like absolute jackasses. Besides that, most everyone on here is extremely friendly, so if you have a legitimate question, and you dont find the answer from searching, definitely put it out there. Oh, and make sure to post back and let us know what you end up with!

[fryfly]

the best way to find a new set of clubs is to hit as many demo days as possible until you find the right combination.

[hippyboy]

Does anyone use steel shaft fairway woods?

I have a steel shaft on my Taylormade V-steel ii 3 wood, it was not a consious decision to get one, it was purely a cost reason at the time. I had a V-steel 7 wood (graphite) & really liked it, I could only find a 3 wood with steel shaft (ebay) in my price range.

Does it make a difference? It's hard to say as I have not hit a V-steel 3 wood with a graphite shaft, what I will say though is, after a course of lessons my swing has improved & I have the same high trajectory problem with driver & fairways. I posted a thread about it & the general feeling was it was a shaft problem, my driver has a stiff shaft but has a soft tip (which promotes a high ball flight) I'm not sure whether to get it reshafted or not as I have never hit so many fairways than I have in my last few rounds.