arduous1

Back Story: started playing golf 14 months back. got fitted for clubs april 2011. at the time i was a hack, 120's and up. since then got a few lessons, and handicap around 20-25ish. still a hack, but not as bad as before. best rounds 87, 89 At the start when i got fitted my miss was a wicked slice, heavy fade, or even topping the ball. as i've gotten better, it seems that the ball straightened out. and now, its consistently hit as a draw. starts straight then pulls left (i'm a right handed golfer). I am currently gaming a Ping K15 12 degree with the regular flex 149 ping shaft smooth swing, not an abrupt transition from the top. swing speed 95ish, up to maybe 105 mph tops. mostly carry, very little roll, but not balloning flight. probabyl 230 or so with roll. maybe carry 215-220. So the Title says it all, should i be switching to a G15 or maybe G20. will that straighten me out? I'm guessing yes, but would like some confirmation, as i'm not going to be able to outright buy a new driver without selling my old one. Additionally, i'm thinking i should maybe try out a 10.5 degree, but keep the regular shaft. thanks, any comments/thoughts appreciated. ard1

agreed, i may not have been clear. knetgolf has refinished and recycled balls. i would definitely stay away from the refinished versions, ymmv ard1

this brings up another question i have. if you increase swing weight with even club gapping lofts, will this mess up your club distances or not? curious ard1

Many sets are D0 for 3-9 irons, then d2 for PW and gap and d5 or whatever for sand/ lob, Why is this, what kind of difference are we talking about, and would it be better if they were all the same swing weight? Thx, Ard 1

inthehole, 5 AAAAA balls look practically brand spanking new right outta the sleave. I've showed some buddies, and they were sold immediately, just upon inspection. 4 AAAA balls may have some very minor markings. (ie sharpie dots that didn't wash off all the way or something else quite minor) i have done blind tests with buddies and noone has been able to reliably tell me the difference between how a brand new ball and a 5 AAAAA ball from lostgolfballs.com plays. and often times they can't even tell me the difference upon inspection. frequently, they even smell new/the same. i haven't tried lower than the top 2 grades, but if you go by their grading system, it seems they are all very playable, and by no means water logged. knetgolf has refinished balls, which i would be wary of. in my eyes, this could change playability. lostgolfballs are recycled, meaning simply washed and thats it, so there should be virtually no change in playability. I have absolutely no qualms spending money on things when I deem it quality and worth it, but with recycled balls of this quality, i have no need to buy new, especially since i am a high handicapper and will lose a minimum of 2 balls in a round. i'm a lostgolfballs.com customer, and will be for the fore seeable future. ard1

I know what it is, but whats the plusses and minuses to having it? Thx, Ard 1

Well, since i got some better sticks, i guess i'll be storing them inside when possible. I always thought the trunk probably wasn't the best idea. jostling around and the extreme heat. having said that, i park under covered parking the vast majority of days. so its not sitting there under the brutal heat. I wanted to keep em handy so that if i wanted to goto the range or got an early day out, could do it without having to make a special trip home etc. thanks for the input, ard1 ps Fgiord, i sent u a pm

Have been keeping bag in the trunk since august in Houston, its about to get very hot. Where do you guys keep your sticks, is extreme heat ie 100+ F okay? Curious, ard1

Typically shorts, but just bought a pair of UA white pants, gonna give it a shot in the near future. FYI I live in Houston too. I don't tend to sweat a lot so I'm predicting pants will be fine. ard1

shirts, pants, shirts, shoes, etc. title says it all. looking to increase my wardrobe, mostly major brands like: nike, adidas, j lindberg, footjoy, ecco, under armour, puma, etc. online, store front, discount resellers vs ebay. i'm primarily looking for places to get good deals, as i'm not super picky about brand and i am in no hurry to buy a complete wardrobe or anything. thx, ard1

The title says it all. Assuming I know Where and with who, 30 minutes vs 60 minutes Once a week or more often? How do I know when I've had enough? Goal being go from 36 handicap to less than 18 handicap. Thx, Ard1

Turns out the G15s have a 1 degree lower/stronger loft in equal clubs. So that pretty much explains the extra distance. Newtogolf if you goto the ping site you can find their list of fitters. I recommend staying away from retail centers if possible, seems the PGA pros would be a better bet. Ard1

newtogolf: in terms of where to go, i would say it is primarily restricted by your geographic location, and how far you are willing to travel for this sorta thing. i was suprised as well by the i15 suggestion, i thought for sure it was g15, though at the store i secretly wanted something more player like. to my shock, he offered it as an option, to which i jumped on it. not sure if this was driven by a financial gain perhaps? honestly, he said i was basically hitting them the same and it was personal preference as to which i would wanna get; i'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say no. itching4scratch: to answer your question, while the lofts are similar, the lengths are quite different between wood and hybrid, so the distance gap was actually one of the largest in the set, 15-25 yards. the longer wood even with same loft as hybrid would go farther. WUTiger: great reply. i enjoyed the read. ard1

WUTiger, appreciate the advice. just as a caveat, i maybe play max 2 rounds of golf/month and hit the range maybe 1x/month. having said that, i do swing the club a lot at home. intend to get a net to hit actual balls into, but that hasn't happened yet. so given that, i don't think i have put in the time to get that "good" yet, as in to break 100. but i have managed to drop 20 or so strokes off my game in the last 6 months with minimal actual play. which i hope is at least reasonable. with all that said, by ur handicap, u seem to be about 10-15 strokes better than i am. how long did it take u to get there, how many lessons did u take, and where did u start? i'm just curious, b/c i wanna gauge my progress against some sort of measuring stick. i've asked various people about the fitting/lessons thing, and i think you are correct. universally, people tell me to get lessons asap, before i develop and groove in "bad" habits, b/c once that happens it is often difficult or at least more difficult to correct. on the other hand, people have told me that club fitting early is nice as well, as then you can at least eliminate that factor from hindering your game and move forward from there. in fact, Tom Wishon has several videos stating that it is more beneficial to a high handicapper than a low handicapper. b/c as you can imagine, small gains can equal big changes in score for a neophyte like myself. anyhow, given my equipment is by all accounts rather old, and the fact that i'm not that happy with it anyhow, i figured, some more modern and properly fitted equipment would be a good idea. thanks again, and always interested in hearing folks opinions and advice. ard1 p.s. anyone with comments about my recommended club combination? or with questions or comments about my reported process?