muskegman

Yeah, gas_can is always on the money with clubfitting stuff. As far as swingweight goes, the guy who does my club repair put lead tape on the sole of the club. I didn't mind it in the least. It brought the swingweight back up to D2. It is considerably easier to hit the sweet-spot and keep the ball between the trees with a shorter club. The 45" you are talking about isn't overly short. FYI, my 905T is 45.25 inches, originally it was 45.75 inches.

I like your idea. The only thing you'll need to watch for, which I'm sure you're already aware of, is swingweight. One inch will require either a fair amount of lead tape or a competent club-fitter to properly weight the shorter club. I don't think cutting the shaft will affect the playability of the shaft. I didn't find that to be true when I had my 905T cut down a half inch.

Rafi, thats about the best and simplest explanation I've ever heard for hitting draws and fades. You da man.

Welcome. I play as much golf as possible and it hasn't been enough lately. Way too busy this fall.

They wouldn't be a Sand Trap partner if they weren't reputable. We have a great working relationship with them and they are trustworthy.

Excellent.

That is a beautiful Cammy. Please let us know how its working for you. I've developed a mild interest in center-shafted blades so I'll wait to hear how it goes for you.

Great topic. It is becoming way more common for players to replace their 3- and 4-irons with hybrids. I do think that integrated hybrid sets like we're seeing from Adam's Golf are going to become way more common in the next few years as players realize they can score better with these sets. I don't believe that they can replace traditional iron sets for lower handicappers because the shot shaping ability is lost with hybrids. I'll probably be keeping a traditional 4-iron down in the bag for a long time. As it is I still have a 3-iron in the bag. Quigley is a bit of an anomaly in the professional ranks but replacing irons with hybrids is a great idea for amateurs.

Agree with what you've come up with. FedEx Cup, distance regulation, and TGC's long contract are at the top for me.

Sorry to thread-jack, but I have some property on the moon I'm selling real cheap. Two acres of prime real estate. Kind of dusty, commute sucks, no air, vast temperature changes, but the view is great.

I'm not sure I've said this before, but I think you have a fantastic set of irons. I don't think you have anything to worry about (assuming they are legit). Enjoy them. I use a set very similar to yours and I'm a high handicapper. I like the feedback and setup of a smaller headed iron. Look at the True Temper shaft band. Does it say S300 or something similar? That would indicate what kind of shafts they are.

The main thing, with any equipment is finding clubs that you are comfortable with. If you're happier and shoot better scores with game-improvement irons then, by all means, play them! Enjoying the game is the most important goal and if a certain club helps you do that then play them.

Tiger was good on Leno. I think that he's a fun loving guy but knows how much the media could eat him up if he lets them get too close. Jay is funny and has a knack for loosening people up so that they can talk.

I use Golf Pride Tour Velvet grips and like them. I don't generally wear a glove and I find them easy to hold on to, durable, good in wet conditions, and inexpensive. I don't have big hands, or I should say I don't have really long fingers so grip size is important to me. I use whatever the standard size is and that seems to fit my had well.

I'm not going to bit my lip when someone gets bent out of shape for nothing. This is a public forum after all. What Erik said likely did not come from a book but from his brain as what he said is common knowledge. Who cares if it came out of a book if its true anyway!

I wish they'd stick with the grey. It looks a lot better than the candy orange IMO. Having said that, I'll give it a swing.

I think most pros have the same integrity. Thankfully, golf has retained the value of honesty and self-accountability. Too bad other sports don't do the same.

It may come down to a feel thing for you. When swung more like long iron hybrids are money. I can't believe how much I've enjoyed mine. But if they don't work for you, they don't work. Perhaps as you get more comfortable with your fairway woods you'll find hybrids easier as well. Don't force it.

What? Who are you? I didn't hear Erik say, "I'm better than you." What I did hear him say was that an inside-to-out swing path imparts draw spin and hitting down on a golf ball with sufficient clubhead speed creates spin. Pretty basic stuff.

You have a nice set of clubs there. I wouldn't worry about the forgiveness of those Clevelands. They have ample perimeter weighting for forgiveness. I would think you will become a more precise ballstriker with those sticks anyway. The driver can be my nemisis as well. Hit that three wood and watch your scores drop. Looks like you have room for a 5-wood or hybrid and another wedge.

I tend to feel, as a high handicapper that more demanding irons require more precise ball-striking which improve my swing. The ability to feel the shot and see results (good or bad) gives me an understanding of what I'm doing right or wrong. I also enjoy the look of a slim topline and compact iron. Not only that they feel so incredible even when I pull hook one deep into the bushes. Having said that, I wouldn't play a true blade because they are truly over my head. Both arguments have merit. I think it comes down to knowing which clubs allow you to enjoy the game the most and what you are most comfortable with.

SI Golf reports that Nicklaus worries about a possible rules infraction at the 1974 British Open at Royal Lytham. Apparently something hit him in the back following an ugly bunker shot. Nicklaus feels it may have been the ball which would have cost him two strokes. A rules official assured him that it was not the ball. I think Nicklaus is worrying over nothing, especially with an official standing by. Thoughts?

As far as irons go, I'd probably be better served using a more forgiving iron but I think that they force me to swing better than a more forgiving iron would. My ball-striking has improved since picking them up. I love that forged feel too. Yeah, winter is good because it provides a change in pace but its so easy to forget those critical things I've been working on when I'm not swinging the club as much. Having said that I think golf is somewhat like riding a bike. Once you learn basic swing mechanics you have an ongoing understanding of what makes a swing work.

Welcome Colin. I'm assuming that your golf season is shorter because of the winter. If so, that leaves plenty of time to pine away in the winter. I've been fortunate in the Pacific Northwest to be able to golf most of the year. Sometimes we'll have long rainy stretches where you can't play but for the most part its pretty nice. Much better than where I moved from: Ketchikan, Alaska. Enough about the weather, I'm 34 and have been playing for just over two years now. Learning golf in our 30's presents some interesting challenges. Tough too when we're raising two kids (4 and 1 year old). Look forward to seeing you around. Things will be kinda quite this week as the Sand Trap Staff is off to the Newport Cup on the weekend.

I thought I'd show you the lofts of my clubs which might help you understand what you need. Driver: 9.5° 3-wood: 15° Hybrid: 20° 3-iron: 22° 4-iron: 25° 5-iron: 28° 6-iron: 32° 7-iron: 36° 8-iron: 40° 9-iron: 44° PW: 48° GW: 54° LW: 58° As your swing improves you'll find it easier to hit a fairway wood off the deck. It is something that I have struggled with. Often I've elected to hit my hybrid off the deck as it is pretty long. I wouldn't advocate getting a 13° fairway wood as they can be difficult to get up in the air off the deck unless you have a high swing speed. The main thing about selecting lofts is choosing clubs that will fill in appropriate distance gaps. You can see how lofts gaps decrease as the clubs get longer, especially in the irons.