cart7

You haven't played in 10 years? I hadn't played in 25. The advances in golf ball construction are simply amazing. Like you, back then you had the choice of the "tour" balls, Balata covered but would barely last a few holes before the cover got damaged or the Surlyn covered rocks of the day, which was just about everything else. My suggestion would either be pick a selection up from a yard/garage sale or go golf ball picking the next time you're out and try a variety of them. There are quite a few budget golf balls, under $25 a dozen, that will provide very nice results.

Yep, I'll stick in the basket behind the seats. Usually the person will wind up back tracking and claim his/her club. Otherwise I turn it into the marshal if ones comes by or the clubhouse after the round ends.

If I'm playing a tournament, which is rare or playing for a true score, I play by the rules. Otherwise, I will improve my lie if the ball sits on ground that would normally be GUR. That said, I've got problems with my hands and wrists, attempting to play out of some lies risks not only my club but damage to my arms, wrists and hands, I'll fluff in those instances. Honestly, the average once a week golfer has a hard enough time mastering the game, if he's out for fun, why make it any harder than it needs to be by insisting the rules of golf be followed to the T?

When I played last some 25 years ago I was scaring upper 70's rounds most of the time. What got me there? 36-45 holes a week along with at least an hour on the range each week. 1. Driving. I was long, 275 + with a wood! But it was my accuracy along with a predictable ball flight that made the difference. Distance does help but accuracy and keeping the ball in play in the fairway along with properly playing each hole is the key. Not every hole requires you to haul off and crush a drivers. 2. Short game. In a nutshell, your short game is what saves your skin. 3. Putting. This goes without saying. 3 putts are a no-no and the more 1 putts you have will get you to 70 quick. Part of that comes from #2 above.

To be fair to the seller, they were patient with you. You indicated in an above post that you were going to request additional pictures before you made up your mind. I can tell you now that if that set of clubs appeared on my local Craigslist they'd be gone... FAST. Somebody would be more than willing to drive over, with nothing more than the info given and pay cash on the barrel head, no additional info or pictures needed.. That's how craigslist works. It's first come first serve.

At a 20 handicap, you'd be better off spending club money on a decent set of lessons. Those Cobra clubs should easily be good enough to get you into the 6-10 handicap range. Only after you've gotten to that level should you consider changing clubs IMO.

A few ideas. go ball hunting the next time you're on the course and experiment with some you've found. Hit yard or garage sales, especially in subdivisions adjoining golf courses. Those often have golf balls for sale they've found in their yards that you can get for as little as a dime apiece. Buy several different brands and try them out. You could also buy them from the used ball bins at your local courses pro shop. You pay more for them but there is usually a good selection.

Womens golf balls just won't work unless you properly accessorize the rest of your attire.

No difference between the performance of yellow or white. I play Pinnacle Golds. both colors. In late winter/early spring the sun sets low in the sky and you often get a lot of UV haze. The yellow ball is easier to pickup, especially off the tee. With most area fairways utilizing bermuda, they're browned out. The yellow ball just pops out and is easier to find. As spring comes around and the courses start greening up, I switch to white. Then summer, lots of haze in the sky and I get the yellows out again, easier to track in flight. Fairways are often browning, again, makes finding the ball easier. Fall, back to white. As the leaves fall, a yellow ball can actually be very difficult to find if there are leaves on the course.

The albatros was 50/50 luck and skill. Aim the ball at the green in a precise area, (which he did perfectly) and then luck took the ball the rest of the way across the green into the hole. Bubba's shot was pure skill and given the pressure he was under, pretty amazing. Even Faldo said he'd be lucky to get the ball into a position in front of the green. Bubba did that one better and then some.

From Yorktowns website Yorktown Was the First Course Designed by Pete Dye Mr. Dye is considered one of the most influential golf course architects in the world. His design for the Brickyard Crossing golf course at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway utilized the dismantled outer retaining wall from the race track. He’s known for designing the “World's Most Terrifying Tee Shot,” aka The Island Green — the 17th hole at The TPC at Sawgrass.

I'll be Playing at Sugar Creek Country Club in High Ridge, MO> Got gifted a membership http://sugarcreekstl.com/golf/proto/playsugarcreekgc/

I've signed up to play 2 hours next week at my courses new simulator. I've played around with it a couple times. Seems like it's better at helping you see what's happening with your swing, as far as speed, how the clubface positioned at impact vs. actually simulating a real golf game. I'm looking forward to it.

I'll take one.

IMO, the field Jack played up against during his career way outshines the players Tiger has had to compete with. Heck, Tigers presence in a major tournament had 3/4 or more of the field psyched out before they hit the first tee. Tiger will definitely need to win more majors than Jack and still, if you could through a time machine pit them against one another, Jack would still be the guy to win between the two. He had the mental side way figured out and wouldn't have allowed the Tiger factor to intimidate him or his game.

I can tell you one thing. When I was in my late teens/early 20's in the late 70's, early 80's, I was an 8 handicapper. A couple scratch golfer buddies of mine were pushing me to move to the next level with some lessons. After putting the game down in 1985 and picking it back up again last year, I can clearly see where I've lost a tremendous amount of flexibility in my joints and body. Even with todays equipment I'd be pushing it really hard to drive a ball as far as I used to with those "real" woods. I've changed my swing to compensate for that lack of flexibility. I've lost distance but I'll make up for it with better accuracy. I'm now down to about a 13 - 14 handicap and am expecting to hit single digits by next spring. Don't be afraid to get the advice of a pro.

Besides Banderas I'd also suggest this guy Sergi Lopez. After Arni, Seve probably brought as much attention to the game as anybody I can think of. I know he was a strong presence on the course right when I was in my late teen/early 20's years and definitely caused my interest in the game to increase. He had a very strong personality and intensity, choosing an actor that can pull that off will be a tough choice.

Long story short. Cut my index finger badly at work a couple weeks ago so I'm out of action for a few weeks. Decided to go look for balls at the local muni. Was waiting for a two some on the tee to hit before I walked across a fairway back to my truck. A 310 yd par 4, these guys were playing off the back markers. There was a foursome on the green putting out but these guys were waiting like they might actually drive the green. (Tour bags, Ping G15, Titleist 910 drivers, etc.) 4 some clears the green. 1st guy tees off and promptly hits a worm burner about 75 yards. 2nd guy hits a vicious slice into the woods I was just ball searching in. That drive barely went 200 yds Plain and simple. A lot of the slow play I see is golfers clearly over-estimating their abilities and playing off of tees way over-matched for those abilities. Having $2-3k worth of golf equipment in your bag doesn't increase your ability. Spending a few minutes in pre-shot routine rarely helps either. Some of the best golfers I've seen or played with were already thinking of the shot as they pulled up to the ball, saw the shot as they approached it and then had a very repeatable swing that allowed them to basically step up to the ball and hit a good golf shot. Not much of that I see these days. Way too much trying to act like pro's but getting hacker results.

I probably play around 4 - 7 rounds a month on average. I got a deal-deal on a membership at a course that's 20 miles from my house. It's not even a good course (very rough around the edges). That said, I still tend to stay there, the more I play the lower my average cost over the year works out to. As it looks now, by the end of the year that deal will wind up costing me around $14 a round, cart included.

I've only played Tamarack and Yorktown, both in Illinois. Both are much older Dye courses. Yorktown is a par 3 course. Both are nicer courses that are interesting and challenging but hardly what I'd call unfair or overly difficult.

I like these

As someone who picked the game back up after 25 years, I was really having problems making consistent ball strikes with woods or irons. As someone who was formerly an 8 handicapper, I felt like I was overpowering this new equipment with an old swing style. Attempting to learn the newer swing styles with quieter feet and less left to right weight shift has been difficult. My old swing style, BTW, was very similar to Nicklaus's that Jack worked with Grout with in the early 80's. See latest Sept 2011 issue of Golf Digest, page 36, to see the swing I emulated. With completely inconsistent results from one shot to the next, I looked up the S & T method on You tube. This is probably one of the easiest swing methods to learn. I picked up on this on the range the very first day and saw positive results immediately. Consistent ball striking with a much more predictable ball flight direction on every shot. My biggest complaint though is a loss of distance. 10 - 15 yards per club through the bag. Now granted, because I'm in the fairway more often the distance loss is offset by the fact I'm faced with far easier shots from the middle of the fairway vs. out of the rough and out or under trees or anything else that comes with a poorly hit shot. I find myself going with a S & T swing, especially on a critical shot on narrower fairways or approach shots with a narrow opening into the green. Kudo's to the guys that came up with this. Since this is a game about having fun first and foremost, implying that everyone must swing a club this way or that is ridiculous. Whatever brings the best positive results for a golfer should always be encouraged. This swing style is certainly capable of putting most guys back into the middle of the fairway or onto the green in the least number of shots.

A day in the life of Steve Williams, Super Caddie RICHARD HINDS 7am: Knock on Adam's hotel room door and prepare to pull him from beneath a pile of hookers and cocktail waitresses. But he is showered, dressed and ready to go. Strange behaviour for a top-flight player, but it's not up to a humble servant like me to judge. 7.30am: Stuck in heavy traffic on our way to the course. Leap out of courtesy car and, after some flexing of the old Kiwi muscles, the paramedics finally agree to pull the ambulance to the side of the road and let us through. Honestly, don't people know professional caddies and their golfers work to strict deadlines? 8am: Great session on the practice tee. Clubs coming out of the bag smoothly, towel work good. Now just hope Adam can play his part. 8.30am: Spot Tiger. Later he tells the press I made a throat-slitting gesture. Just another of the things people don't know about Tiger. Absolutely no respect for great traditions like the haka. 8.45am: Catch a bit of the telecast in the locker room. Really enjoy Nick Faldo's analysis. Knows a bit about the game, having won six majors - almost half as many as me! 9am: Caddies are a close-knit bunch and never let petty feuds destroy our camaraderie. So it's nice to welcome Tiger's new man, Byron Bell, with the traditional ''brick in the bottom of the bag'' initiation. Naturally, I get blamed for planting the exploding golf balls when Tiger tees off. People just won't accept that I have moved on. First tee: Adam asks for his driver, but I tell him he should go with a one wood. He gives me an uncertain look, but agrees. You have to establish who's boss in a new relationship. Fifth fairway: Adam has hoiked his drive way left, the type of tense situation where you earn your pay. Adam wants a four-iron but I hand him a banana. Just a little reminder not to make a monkey out of me by hitting the ball into a place where I haven't got a yardage. Eighth tee: Darren Clarke pulls out his matches and prepares to light a cigar. I grab the fire hydrant from the bottom of the bag and spray him with foam. It's those little things, like having the umbrella up when the first drop falls, always packing two of everything and saving your client from potentially harmful passive smoking that set the truly great caddie apart. Eleventh fairway: Adam's long putter keeps rubbing against my ear. But, in this game, hardship and suffering are part of the deal. So I snap the thing over my knee, tell Adam only those dodderers on the Seniors Tour and Tiger's old girlfriends need broomsticks. He says Tony Navarro never spoke to him like that. The boy clearly needs some tough love! Sixteenth green: Uh, oh! The media pack has arrived. Well, some old lady in the gallery has pulled out a camera and there is a real danger she will snap Adam's backswing. So, before you can say ''cheese'', I jump the rope, pin her to the ground and throw the offending item into a water hazard. When she gets up, she claims she was taking a picture of her husband and Adam had already putted out, anyway. This is the type of media distortion you have to live with on tour. 2.30pm: Back in the locker room. Adam has shot a 73, but I reassure him I'm not too upset - even the greatest caddie has to accept that his player can let him down. Now it's the press conference, sign some autographs and a meeting with a biographer back at the hotel. Adam? Not sure what he's up to. Bloke's bloody lucky to avoid the trappings of stardom. - Sydney Morning Herald

Having a round where I'm dropping putts in one or two but taking 2 + shots over the greens in regulation or Soundly striking the ball, hitting greens in regulation or maybe one extra shot only to be completely unable to find the hole with my putter.

Nothing in the pockets but a marker and divot tool. I started using a glove for the first time last year. I'm not sold on them. Full hats, forget it. Visors are OK. No sunglasses. I will tee a ball on a par 3 but only if it's a tee laying in the box already, I won't use a perfectly good tee if none are available. I'd rather just lay the ball down and make the best lie possible. When I pull the flag, I always put the pin end down first with the flag staff in the crook of my putter and then lower it accordingly. I find it annoying to see others pull the flag and then drop it from 2-3 feet off the ground.