Good and bad buy golf stuff

[paininthenuts]

I have had endless amounts of golf bargains, and most through ebay. A brand new £140 bag for £11.50, a £200 waterproof suit suit, barely used for £15, and a set of Ping irons for £80. Unfortunately there is a slight twist in the tail. I am unlucky enough to have both gout and osteoarthritis in my right foot, which means that it is now somewhat wider than the average foot. I have a total of 4 pairs of golf shoes, but only one is a wide fit, and to be honest they are on their last legs. The other three are now of little use. I have been looking on ebay for months for a reasonably priced pair of winter golf shoes in a wide fit. Eventually I managed to get a pair of Callaway shoes for £50, which were originally £80. I also got the retailer to throw in some balls and tees. I am a great bargain hunter, and have never paid anything like that for golf shoes. They are great shoes, and after playing a round with them my feet felt great. Well, all sounds well up to now. This afternoon I visited my local pub for a few pints, whereupon I met my good friend Derek. Through bad health Derek had to give up golf two years ago. He offered me 5 gloves and a pair of wide fit golf shoes in my size, all brand new for a total of £20. The shoes fit brilliantly, and the gloves are now on ebay because they are to large for me. Of course, there is an element fortuity, but I would never have spent the £50 in the first place if I had bumped into him a few days ago.

Your stories of bargains and bad luck please. 

[JxQx]

Was able to pick up a set of Titleist 714 MBs for $400 which were only hit a handful of times as well as a Callaway Apex UT 2 iron for $100 in pretty much like new condition. No where near the deals you got but still pretty cheap. I also have some gout issues, definitely no fun.

Edited October 19, 2016 by JxQx

[Kalnoky]

There are deals to be had on eBay if you are tenacious enough. I never got any deals near as good as you have. I was just looking at a wedge SM5 56.10M in great condition for a very good price ($24.99+shipping) from a private person, but naturally it sold very quick. 

Last winter when I couldn't play I bought all kinds of golf gadgets and clubs that never worked out. Most of these treasures I put right back on eBay at a loss. I think this winter when I'm going crazy I'm just going to resolve to take more lessons. Even though I loathe hitting off of mats.

[Duffer Waldorf]

The best buy I've ever made was a mid-60s Ping Anser for $2 at a flea market.  I later picked up half a set of Cobra SS-i irons (4, 7, 8, PW) at the same place for $10.

I've since spent more on a Ping PP58 grip ($8.50) and a headcover ($20 for a Stitch bonesman, which may qualify as 'bad' ) for that putter, but it all looks nice in the bag. 

[DaveP043]

This isn't specific to golf, but the best money I've spent is on medication to control gout.  My doc told me that high uric acid has been statistically linked to coronary health issues, so it was worth prescribing something to maintain my uric acid levels.  Freedom from gout attacks has made every penny spent worth it.

[Valleygolfer]

1 hour ago, DaveP043 said:

This isn't specific to golf, but the best money I've spent is on medication to control gout.  My doc told me that high uric acid has been statistically linked to coronary health issues, so it was worth prescribing something to maintain my uric acid levels.  Freedom from gout attacks has made every penny spent worth it.

I told a guy I was playing with last year that was suffering from gout, to cut out the cheese, red wine and red meat. He hunted me down this year ecstatic and thanking me for helping him get rid of the gout he was experiencing. Didn't cost him a thing...that was a golf deal.

[DaveP043]

I tried all that, painful as it was, and was still having episodes.  For some people, maybe many, it's a genetic predisposition. Thank God for modern medicine.

[Pretzel]

The best deal I've heard of wasn't one that I personally got, but one that my friend got and then proceeded to brag about for a while. He found a Scotty Cameron at a garage sale, minor rust on the sole but no dings and otherwise in perfect condition, for $4. With a little gun oil and scotch brite he got it looking as though it were brand new off the rack, all for only the $4 at a garage sale.

[Valleygolfer]

13 minutes ago, Pretzel said:

The best deal I've heard of wasn't one that I personally got, but one that my friend got and then proceeded to brag about for a while. He found a Scotty Cameron at a garage sale, minor rust on the sole but no dings and otherwise in perfect condition, for $4. With a little gun oil and scotch brite he got it looking as though it were brand new off the rack, all for only the $4 at a garage sale.

Deal still isn't worth me stopping at a garbage sale...

[Hardspoon]

9 minutes ago, Valleygolfer said:

Deal still isn't worth me stopping at a garbage sale...

Haha, agreed.

Best single deal for me was my Nike 14-way stand bag for $40. Best ongoing is buying recycled golf balls.

[BamaWade]

13 hours ago, Hardspoon said:

Best ongoing is buying recycled golf balls.

Absolutely this!  Only bad recycles I got were a couple of boxes of ProV1s from Academy a few years ago.  They looked great, but played a full club+ short.  Every ball from both boxes were dead; the covers had slight separation from the core.  I get them online now (KNet) and have been very pleased.

Best club deal I ever got was in 1992.  A retired rich fella at my dad's work had bought a full set (3i-LW) of Callaway S2H2 irons for ~$1800.  Within 2-3 rounds, he decided he didn't like 'em...offered 'em to my dad for $250!  Dad got them for me and I worked the $$ off.  I played them up until I bought my Mizunos ~2.5 years ago.  I still have 'em, and I think they are still great irons.  Definitely long, and much more workable than my JPX825s, just not quite as forgiving.  IMO, the best Callaway irons I ever hit, and it isn't close.

BamaWade

Edited October 21, 2016 by BamaWade

[TourSpoon]

I bought a professionally framed photo of Ben Hogan's Merion one iron shot, 18x24 for 25 bucks. The title on eBay was a little off so no one really saw it. That or someone decided to go on a weekend golf trip and forget to tell his wife! I saw the same item in a store for $300. 

[RussUK]

I have to start by advising i have not bought this but it has to be the worst idea in the world. May i present (drumroll please).... The Uroclub

How many times has this happened to you? You’re playing 18 holes with your best buddies, drinking water, beer, sports drinks, etc . You’re coming up to the 3rd hole with no rest room in sight. There are no trees or bushes around and you just have to go, what are you going to do?

The UroClub™ is the discrete, sanitary way for your urgent relief. Created by a Board Certified Urologist, it looks like an ordinary golf club, but contains a reservoir built into the grip to relieve yourself. The UroClub™ is leak proof, easy to clean and no more embarrassing moments.

As you can see from the above its very "discrete". Brings a whole new meaning to "taking the piss out of your game"

[paininthenuts]

19 hours ago, DaveP043 said:

This isn't specific to golf, but the best money I've spent is on medication to control gout.  My doc told me that high uric acid has been statistically linked to coronary health issues, so it was worth prescribing something to maintain my uric acid levels.  Freedom from gout attacks has made every penny spent worth it.

I am also a gout sufferer. I take Alluparinol  on a daily basis. Until this disease has been experienced nobody can understand it's pain 

[Vinny Cap]

I got a $700 staff bag on a trade for a sleeve of Pro V 1s.

Edited October 21, 2016 by Vinny Cap

[Pretzel]

21 hours ago, Valleygolfer said:

Deal still isn't worth me stopping at a garbage sale...

Ha ha, I would agree. He was only there because he was dragged along by someone else, despite his protests. He was a bit happier after his find though.

[Liko81]

On 10/19/2016 at 1:14 PM, paininthenuts said:

I have had endless amounts of golf bargains, and most through ebay. A brand new £140 bag for £11.50, a £200 waterproof suit suit, barely used for £15, and a set of Ping irons for £80. Unfortunately there is a slight twist in the tail. I am unlucky enough to have both gout and osteoarthritis in my right foot, which means that it is now somewhat wider than the average foot. I have a total of 4 pairs of golf shoes, but only one is a wide fit, and to be honest they are on their last legs. The other three are now of little use. I have been looking on ebay for months for a reasonably priced pair of winter golf shoes in a wide fit. Eventually I managed to get a pair of Callaway shoes for £50, which were originally £80. I also got the retailer to throw in some balls and tees. I am a great bargain hunter, and have never paid anything like that for golf shoes. They are great shoes, and after playing a round with them my feet felt great. Well, all sounds well up to now. This afternoon I visited my local pub for a few pints, whereupon I met my good friend Derek. Through bad health Derek had to give up golf two years ago. He offered me 5 gloves and a pair of wide fit golf shoes in my size, all brand new for a total of £20. The shoes fit brilliantly, and the gloves are now on ebay because they are to large for me. Of course, there is an element fortuity, but I would never have spent the £50 in the first place if I had bumped into him a few days ago.

Your stories of bargains and bad luck please. 

Best? Probably my new 3-wood; Taylormade AeroBurner 3HL. Something about it just works for me, when I couldn't dial in my 2009 Burner to save my life. $129 for basically new (it had been swung, but the clubhead was cherry).

Worst? Probably the first set of clubs I ever bought, which turned out to be ladies' blades from the '80s. Still, $25 for a full set for a guy who'd never swung a club before, and I still own and play the Warrior wedges that came with them (though those are probably my next replacement; I A/Bed them next to the SM6 in Tour Chrome and the feel of the Vokeys is just so more balanced and clean).