ochmude

I very recently upgraded to new irons (Wilson Staff Di11's), and as a result of the crazy strong lofts used these days I carry a bunch of wedges now. I used to just carry a 60* Cleveland CG15, no sand wedge, and the 48* PW from my Snake Eyes set. Now I carry a 42.5* club that Wilson claims is a PW and a 46* club that they claim is a GW. So since the new GW has less loft than my old PW, I now have to carry a legit 52* GW. I also finally got around to getting a 56* SW with more bounce, as the 60* wasn't cutting it since it was low bounce. So my current set of wedges would be as follows: 42.5* "PW", W/S Di11 46* "GW", W/S Di11 52* GW, Adams 56* SW, Adams 60* LW, Cleveland

It definitely takes practice. I think I developed the ability from doing competitive pistol shooting. Run to a position, then stop, control your breathing, relax, aim, squeeze off a shot, then run like hell to the next position and repeat the process.

My Cleveland CG15 60*, low bounce.

I purposefully try to feel rushed between shots. For some reason, if I rush like a madman between shots it allows me to feel more comfortable slowing down and focusing when I'm actually standing over my ball.

I was demoing random clubs awhile back while waiting for some work that was being done on some new clubs, and I found the Nike VR Pro hybrids to be absolutely amazing. I arrived wanting to try out the Ping G15, but I left really wanting to add that Nike hybrid to my bag.

Quick question that comes to mind regarding the above bold statements. Are you required to declare the provisional and attempt to find the 1st ball, or can you immediately put the 2nd ball in play and take the penalty? I often do so as, when my ball slices into the darkest depths of Mirkwood, it's quite obvious that it will never be found.

Option 2 is an EXTREMELY common misconception as to how to handle a lost ball. Your only choice is option 1. The process would be as follows: 1. Hit tee shot into woods and lose it (1st stroke) 2. Drop from where the 1st stroke was made, so re-tee in this case (2nd stroke) 3. Hit 2nd tee shot hopefully in play (3rd) stroke When I'm just farting around on the course for practice I will often use option 2 as you described because, well, I'm lazy and it's easier. But treating OB or lost balls as lateral hazards is not legal for posting legitimate scores.

I bought The Art of the Shortgame and really couldn't take anything at all from it. I sincerely tried, but I just couldn't grasp the concepts being expressed in the book and translate those concepts into physical movements on my part. I ordered Phil's DVD a couple months later and the short game is the absolute most enjoyable part of my rounds now. If you want a preview of the DVD your library probably has a couple copies somewhere in their network and you could go that route to check it out. However, the DVD is really wonderful.

Listen, jshots, I completely understand how contrary to the spirit of the game it seems to actually be allowed to give or receive advice while standing on the first tee. When Sean posted this; my initial though was "Damn, good point. You got me on that one." However, I then actually looked through the rules and decisions, and it turns out that you absolutely can do that. It seems wrong, but it's allowed, at least it's currently allowed. Perhaps this might be addressed in a future rules revision.

Yes, he can, without penalty. As Decision 8-1/18 states, Rule 8-1 only applies during the play of a round. Decisions 2/2 and 3/3 define the precise starting point of that round. As odd and incorrect as it may seem, there is absolutely no rule in existence which would penalize a player for giving or receiving advice prior to making a stroke on the first hole of the round. A clearly defined starting point is essential otherwise a golf lesson that you take 24 hours before a round would be against the rules. The USGA has chosen to define that starting point as the 1st stroke on the 1st hole. If the USGA changed it's mind at some point in the future and defined the start of a stipulated round as the point at which a player initially sets foot on the teeing surface, then this discussion would take a completely different turn.

I'm leaning toward that opinion as well. For myself, lifelong friends are far more important than playing to scratch. I'm sure everyone on this forum understands that you want to improve your game (it is a golf forum after all), but definitely weigh your decisions very carefully before you do something that might seriously jeopardize your friendship. Coming clean with him and honestly explaining how you feel is definitely the best next action. If I were in your shoes, though, I would try very hard to work out some sort of compromise before I start giving my friend the cold shoulder on the golf course. Does he have anyone else that he can group with to continue to play?

I think I may have posted my opinion on this already, but I'll repost since the question has now been directly asked. I see no need for such a declaration. If you're playing a casual round, do whatever you and your playing partners agree on. If you're playing in a formal event such as a club tournament, count your clubs before you walk away from your car. It takes less than 14 seconds unless you count very slowly. If you can't be bothered to do that, you deserve whatever penalty you get.

Absolutely. Again, I don't work for the USGA and am not a rules official, so this is just my opinion. But as I see it, you can tee up in the middle of the fairway with a Polara ball and a Hammer driver, start your backswing, whisper an incantation like Harry Potter as you begin your downswing, instantaneously transform your ball and driver into conformance while simultaneously teleporting yourself into the tee box, and as long as you pull all that off before your clubface makes contact with the ball, you are golden.

I would say yes, you can.

Disclaimer: This is just my interpretation of the rules, and I'm just some random guy on the internet, so take it with a grain of salt. No, that doesn't count either. You're free to tee the ball up 2 inches off the green if you'd like. However, the moment the first stroke is made, as defined by the Rules, all things must be in compliance with the Rules and all things prior to that moment are irrelevant to the round.

Aren't most forms of recreation frivolous activities?

I really don't even see why such a possible declaration might even exist. If you're playing a casual round, declare away. DQ's don't really have any affect on casual rounds anyway, so just make the declaration and save yourself the time of walking back to the locker room or your car or whatever. If you're playing in a competition, you probably didn't decide on a whim to compete, so you had time to check your bag the evening before, or even right when you pulled your clubs out of your trunk. If you failed to do so, you deserve the penalty.

If you're such close friends, as it really seems that you are, then just tell him. I have a friend similar to yours. We've been friends since 5th grade and might as well be brothers. If I was faced with such a predicament I'd just say "Dude, you golf like old people f***. I love getting out on the course with you, but if you don't speed it up I'm going to slash your tires when we get back to the parking lot." Now obviously your choice of words doesn't need to be the same as mine, but when you've been such close friends with someone for so long, through thick and thin and sharing all kinds of crap together, you're friendship is clearly strong enough to survive such a truly minor hiccup in the grand scheme of things.

That right there directly supports Paradox's statement. As you state, it is clear that playing from longer tees will add some time to a round. But if you are already a fast player, then it's very unlikely that some added time will translate into "slow play". In fact, if you are already a fast player, you likely have established behaviors and habits which will prompt you to compensate for the extra play time caused by playing from longer tees, so it's probable that you will break even or nearly break even with regard to the total time of your round. If, on the other hand, you are already guilty of "slow play" from forward tees, then you will be guilty of slow play from any tees. You could tee up in the middle of the fairway 100 yards out from the green and still take 5 hours to move around the course. "Slow Play", as an affliction so to speak, is independent of yardage.

$130 for a brand new performance carry bag? That's a darn good deal!

And it doesn't matter how many times you get up and down if it's always to save double bogey.

Just found another bag. Nike Xtreme Sport III, which appears to be similar to the Sasquatch/Performance Carry except it is an 8-way divider, only 3 of which are full length. Still looks like a pretty nice bag, though. Price is $89.99, and Fedex Ground shipping to Exton, PA would be $10.72, so you're looking at $100.71 shipped. Again, to stress, I'm not a salesman for Nike. Like I said earlier, I've been searching for a new bag myself, and Amazon.com thinks I'm still in the market for one so it keeps suggesting them to me, lol. Anyway, the link is below if you want to check it out. http://www.gppgolf.com/products2.cfm/ID/7084/name/nike-nike-xtreme-sport-iii-stand-bag

You lost me. Okay, just to make sure I'm understanding you, you're saying that if I'm not afraid to miss greens I'll hit them more often. Is that correct?

On the range I will tee up my ball then place a broke tee in front of the ball on my target line. On the course I will find a broken tee (or clump of grass or whatever) and tee up my ball behind it on my target line. I just started doing this a couple weeks ago and it really helps with my aiming. This guy does the same thing. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/media/83293/There-are-a-number-of-variables-to-consider-when-teeing