EGS

Best towel is a clean one. Buying a golf towel= waste of money.

I had a similar problem a few years ago. The solution was to open my stance slightly and tee the ball up off my left big toe. Keep the driver pointed straight, while your stance is slightly open. Make sure you are comfortable over the ball and not reaching. Make sure only about 1/4 or 1/2 of the ball is showing above the top of the driver head. Take a normal swing and you should completely eliminate the left side of the course. If you want some dramatic effect, hold on a little longer after impact and do not break down your left wrist. This is likely just as much a mental issue as a swing issue. If you have hit good drives before, you are certainly capable of doing so now. Confidence is everything in this game. Good luck, let me know how it works out.

Imagine your swing in terms of a clock. Your normal address has your hands at 6 (straight down). Your hands at the top of your backswing should be at about 12. A 50% shot is at about 9, or where your left arm becomes parallel with the ground. The drill I mentioned has you taking a swing to only about 7 or 8 o'clock, in other words, less than 50%. Your shaft is not likely the problem as you have stiff shafts on your irons (according to your signature) and you did not mention a slice problem there. I doubt you will even need to get to the clock drill. If you hit ten dead hooks, as I mentioned before, and then take a normal swing and still slice I would be really surprised.

Next time you go to the range, try hitting a hook. I dont mean like a draw, I mean like a dead snap hook. Hit ten of those in a row. Then take your normal setup and a nice easy swing and see what happens. If this does not work, try chocking down on your driver and take a 50% swing. Just take your hands back to six or seven o'clock, maybe eight at the most. If you cannot hit little straight bullets this way, you may have a problem.

The yardage marker is always to the middle, not to the hole. The numbers on your friend's GPS and the markers is correct because a green can be at least 20-30 yards deep.

Hate to tell you, sounds like your swing is the problem. Perform this experiment: take painters tape and put it on your favorite iron and try and hit the same shot in the same spot twice (obviously hard to do). If you hit close to the same spot, and have drastically different results, then its the clubs. I have a feeling this is not the case. Usually clubs dont do what you want them to do because your swing will not allow them to. My guess is that if you are a 20 handicap, its not the clubs. However, investing in a new set of clubs can help your problem. If you want to SOLVE the problem, fix your swing.

I think you have answered your own question. Golf is just like any other sport. Practice does not translate to game day unless you are mentally prepared. Execution is everything in this sport. My best advice is to create mental consequences for your bad hits on the range. Create mini games and tests for yourself when practicing and if you fail, you should be upset with your performance. Good luck.

Upgrading to a "players" iron like the AP2 is a great investment. You may take a step back for the first month or so because your mishits, which you did not notice before, will become frustratingly obvious. However, if you commit to practicing, you will improve and your scores will improve. If you are looking to change your ball flight I would highly recommend getting fitted by someone knowledgeable who can recommend the shaft and flex which best fit you. Getting new irons is without question an investment. Personally, if better and more expensive equipment can help me accomplish my goals as an athlete, than that is an investment. Conquering your goals and succedding is more tangible than money in my opinion.

To the poster that said JD and Lefty are not athletes, you are a moron. Athletic bodies, maybe not. But those guys are both world class athletes.

How are you crushing a PW 130 and a sand wedge only 60!?

No shorts? Good golfers are good athletes. Good athletes have athletic builds. Maybe shorts are no good for your chicken legs, but shorts are not something a serious golfer would object to.

I notice that tour caddies always clean the player's club with a wet towel and never see them use a brush. Anyone know why this is? Do brushes harm the clubs in any way?

Pretty sure the ball flight has more to do with the shaft than the head.

http://golf.about.com/od/faqs/f/bounce.htm . I am pretty sure there are threads on this site's forum as well which discuss bounce. Generally, sand wedges have the highest degrees of bounce usually between 12-16. Gap wedges and 60* wedges can vary from 6-10 degrees.

It would be a dream come true to play on tour and to seriously consider it as you have is admirable. That being said, there are harsh realities to this game at that level. There are great professional athletes, such as Ben Rothelsberger, who play some competitive golf and look great out there. Ben Rothelsberger is a phenomenal athlete, and his game is solid, but I don't think he would even be a decent player on the Nationwide Tour. Point being is great athletes dont always translate into great golfers. One poster really made a great point about competitive playing too. Its something that you really have to be used to from a young age. Despite all that, I am sure the reason you were successful as an athlete and in your career is somewhere along the line someone told you that you could not do something. I am sure it motivated you. Hopefully we can see your story in a few years as one of those dream come true moments. Best of luck!

I had Cleveland wedges for a long time and still have a CG14 but recently got the TM TPz's and they are so sweet. Smaller head and much better feel in my opinion. The grooves are just as good, if not better than the zip grooves and the surface has the same design as the vokeys. Thought the TM's do not have as many degree/bounce options as the big two (Vokey and Cleveland) they are a great buy. Probably can't go wrong with any of these as long as the bounce is right.

I recently downloaded this app and will give it the free test run tomorrow. Does anyone use this app and if so how is it?

A groove sharpener will sharpen the lines, but if the groove is deformed or cracked in spots I am not sure how much difference it will make. Worth a shot to spend the money to get the sharpener because you can use it for all of your clubs to keep them sharp.

Seems to me that for the mid to high handicapper, this club is a huge benefit. This makes sense since the reason their scores are that way is because their GIR is low and they find themselves in situations where this club can do its thing. For a lower handicap, the thought of using this club as one of fourteen in the bag is hard to fathom because you really cannot use it for that many shots outside of 40 yards. Giving up that 56* or 60* that you can also hit great full shots with to replace it with this chipper is not a pleasant thought. Bottom line is this club, like everything else in golf, comes down to preference. There is no right and wrong, just what works for you to lower scores. Have to give a shout out to Steve with the vagina smack, still laughing from that one.

Played with a guy the other day who had these x-outs. They are brand new and often have minor, un-noticable imperfections and are stamped with "x-out." I picked some up today and am very pleased with them. My question is do you think there is a stigma about playing an x-out ball?

I know this is a little off topic, but my eyesight is not great so I wear prescription sunglasses when I play. They are polarized and I have found that I can see the ball MUCH better during the day in all conditions because of the polarization. If you can get some legit polarized glasses they are a huge benefit!

First year of law school left little time for golf during the academic year. I was able to get to the range once a week in the fall up until October when the work load picked up. In the spring, I was able to get out to play at 3 or 4 during the late winter when virtrually no one was out on the course which was excellent practice. If the law school you attend, or hope to attend, does not have a student organization like this, start it yourself. That's what I did!

I am a law student at Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware and I am starting a student organization to combine golf and networking. The goal will be for current law students to meet and play with attorneys in order to gain a better understanding of how life is as a practicing attorney. At the same time, attorneys will be able to interact with bright up and coming law students who could be their next new associate. The backdrop of golf is a perfect environment for networking. I am open to any suggestions as to how to make this process as efficient as possible. If you are interested in pairing up with current law students or playing in one of our outings please let me know!! Thanks in advance.

Many of you have discussed the moral aspect of this situation. Personally, I agree with the poster that discussed America's moral consumer compass in general, which is pretty poor. However, I believe the bigger issue here is the legal side of this discussion. If you recieve goods which are illegal in THIS country, you may find yourself in some trouble. I am not sure what the law is regarding receipt of counterfit material, but why take the risk. I know you cannot get arrested for going to China Town in New York and buying knock off goods, but if why even take the risk in this situation? Additionally, intellectual property laws are one of the best protections of capitalism. While competition for lower prices is great and drives the market, protecting the replecation of the same exact good provides a level playing field for manufacturers. If not for a level playing field there would be no incentive to introduce new products into the markert which would be devestating to the economy. How would you feel if you built a company based on selling goods and had someone come along and literally copy everything about your good and sell it for half of the price?

Good eye. Also the cut of the outline in the cavity is different.