Hairy Feet

If it works for you, go for it. Personally, For every Hollywood shot I've hit with a lob wedge, there's been plenty that would make horror movies. Its a high reward if hit well but its too high a risk for me. The most loft I have in the bag is 56*.

Ditto... Once upon a time, many years ago, I could only play if I found some golf balls to play with. The bag was a mismatch of secondhand clubs, and the bag itself wasn't pretty. What I couldn't afford was to play at the top courses. Once I'd scraped enough to join a club, it was then scraping enough each week for competition fees. Never really experienced much in the way of snobbishness.

I started the year on 6.3. Had a fantastic year, shot under par twice and level par several times and beat my handicap several times more. End result 4.4. Can you get to scratch? Possibly, but you are going to have to shoot phenominal rounds pretty much every time out.

Tom Watson. He has genuine grace to go with superb skills. When he was at his prime, competing for Majors, he had serious competition from some of the best players the game has ever seen, and he still knocked it around with ease. The best Major I ever saw, and one which I don't think will ever be bettered, was the 1977 British Open. The last two rounds by Tom & Jack... WOW!

2012 wasn't a great year for me, and saw my handicap rise from 5.2 to 6.3. During that time, and well into spring this year I couldn't hit a cow's ass with a banjo. I posted rounds the like of which I hadn't seen for over 30 years - I game totally deserted me. I changed the bag, bar my old faithful putter. I've had a great year... two rounds spring to mind. One was a level par round on a wet and windy day in a competition at a course I'd never played before. The round included 7 birdies, the last one being on the 18th and I won the competition by one shot. The second round of distinction saw me play the front nine in one under gross, inc a bogey and two birdies, then playing the back nine exactly the same, i.e. with one bogey and two birdies. A gross score of 2 under, and winning the competition by 4 clear shots. This also saw my handicap reduced to the lowest its been for a long long time, 4.4.

I've played approx 50 competitive rounds this year, so yes my h'cap is accurate and managed by my club.

Thankfully, never more than a few bounces and a nudge on the leg. I've been hit on the back about 35yrs ago, on the head about 25yrs ago. And the cruncher, hit in the mouth last August. The ambulance paramedics weren't happy, so called in the helicopter ambulance.

A couple of swings to loosen up before a round, and maybe a few putts on the practice green.

For me, each of those numbers was a milestone till it was broken. Broke par a number of times but the stick out round is a level par with no bogeys or birdies - the tension on the last few holes was immense.

I occasionally sneak one past 260yds but my average is 245yds according to Google Earth. Why don't I work at hitting it further? There's no need to. The course I play most of my golf at is 6800yds and I can hit all the greens in regulation. The longest par 4 is 460yds, and a reasonable drive will see me going in with a hybrid or 4 iron. 95% of my practice is spent chipping and putting. So why WON'T I practice the long game? The score card doesn't come with pictures. My par, off a 245yd drive is just as good as the par off someone else's 270yd drive. And for the willy wavers and pissing contestants, my best round of the year included 7 birdies and my putting average is just a point over 29. Here's one 54yr old that is very happy with the way he plays the game.

Shat flex and blades/cavities are very different issues. You could be swinging it at 110mph, i.e. a stiff flex, but still need GI irons. (Obviously) match your shaft to your swing speed but after that go with what you fancy. Have a look at what the top 10 on the world rankings play. Last time I looked it was a 50:50 split between blades and cavities.

I couldn't careless if the guys I'm playing against uses a belly putter or not BUT I do care if I'm going to continue to endure 5 hour rounds. That, added to rising costs of a game as many players drift away is of far greater concern to me than someone with a belly putter. Look at the putting stats of top 5 belly putters 'v' the top 5 'traditional' putters. There's little to choose between them, so why worry? There is no advantage.

Is Rory overrated? Is he a match for Tiger? If you compare their careers to date you will see many records set by Tiger have since fallen to Rory, youngest to do x, youngest to achieve y. More recently Rory's World number 1 status also bears up similarly, including the gap he's building between himself and the current world #2. To date I'd say Rory shades it BUT will he match Tiger's achievements over the next few years? Who knows but if I was having a bet on it I'd say "no." Tiger was awesome when at his very best, although I don't subscribe to the hype that he had no competition. He had several very good golfers chasing him. I also believe that there is still life in Tiger's game, and that Tiger and Rory may well have some serious battles in the next few years.

This thread brings back some fantastic memories, and I hope there will still be some to add to the memory banks for later years. I didn't push my boys into the game, but when they were old enough they wanted to play anyway. We played most evenings through the summers, and quite often in competitions at weekends. We've had Dads and lads golf trip with other father and son combinations to all sorts of courses, including Carnoustie and St Andrews. They've both long since flown the nest, and as a result we don't get the chance very often - maybe a couple of times a year. One only plays occasionally but the other one is a pro. This year I had the tremendous honour and pleasure of caddying for him in Final Qualifying for the British Open. I probably cost him a couple of shots, definitely one for a misread putt, but he said before and after that that those two rounds were for me whatever the outcome - sadly he didn't qualify. They've both filled me with pride, from how they behave on the course to the many times I've applauded when they've been picking up prizes. Fantastic memories!