zipazoid

Bounce. Sand wedges have them. 56-degree 'rack' wedges don't - they're basically weak pitching wedges.

Well, you only quoted the first part of my post. Perhaps you don't agree with all of it, I don't know. But I do think you missed my point. There was reference to how difficult it is for established players to totally play by the rules. And beginners may actually be scared off by this, making the assumption that golf is some kind of chinese water torture exercise. An easy way around this is to just let them basically do what they want - roll the ball, hit a mulligan, whatever. There will always be time to learn the rules...after the bug has bit them.

Holy crap! Nice shot, Bubba.

The ball goes the farthest when it is struck in the center of the club. That rarely occurs when you are swinging at 100%. So the first step is to swing at a speed that gives you this consistent contact. Now, once you are consistently hitting it in the center of the club, start increasing clubhead speed. But that's not done by brute force - it's done by having the club moving at its fastest point at impact, which is done not by swinging fast, but through proper coordination of upper & lower body through impact. My suggestion would be to get with someone that can measure your clubhead speed (a lot of golf supply stores has these) by hitting balls into a net. Go ahead and swing as hard as you can, then dial it back a bit. You will be surprised - the club will actually move faster with less physical effort. The key is a light grip pressure & relaxed arms. Allows the wrists to power the club. In fact, I think it was Davis Love that said, when asked how he hits the ball farther, he said he swings easier.

Can't disagree with you there, saevel, especially since I eagled 15 the last time I played it by holing out a 7-wood from 182 - I hit my drive to the corner, had 240 uphill & topped it. Then I holed it. And I went to Kent State, so Windmill is a special place for me. In 1979 I tried out for the golf team there as a walk-on. I shot 77-78 and Herb Page told me to go home. My challenge to anyone playing Windmill is go 18 holes without a three-putt. HUGE undulating greens.

^^ Excellent post. It was stated earlier in this thread that golf really needs to be more 'friendly' as to entice new players. If a new player that can't break 120 is also saddled with playing it down & enforcing every rule in the book, it's too much. It's like asking a third grader to know calculus. And they'll quit. I'm not saying that rules should be optional...well, actually, I guess I am. To beginners or poor players, let them do whatever they want within reason - roll the ball, drop one at the OB stake, whatever. As they progress & play the game more, they'll learn the rules. But in the beginning, keep it as fun and enjoyable as possible. To me, the 'greater good' is being addressed if new players come away with their experience being fun as opposed to draconian.

...and there's your answer. Look, the only way a 20-plus handicap golfer will have any chance to have a taste of competition is a net tournament. And this is a private club competition, right? Most members probably are the aforementioned 20-plus players. Ergo, you have a net tournament. Sure it may not be fair to the +2 player, but look at it this way - that +2 player probably already has a few shelves of his home stocked with trophies due to being an excellent player. If he was here in America, I'm sure he would have played in his State Amateur, qualified for the US Amateur, won a variety of gross tournaments. A player of his caliber has a myriad of opportunities for competition. The 25-handicapper has one: His home club's net tournament. The good player chose to play in one where the setup skewed to the poorer players. He knows he shot 66, and so does everyone else. He lost due to math, not skill level.

I've played North Shore. Good course. Front is 'old Florida' with a lot of oaks. Back is 'new Florida' with lots of water. Agree on OC National & the Disney courses. Shingle Creek is pretty nice too. Southern Dunes out in Haines City is good - LOTS of sand, no water. And here's a good, affordable course that's in great condition - Dubsdread. It's in the city, just north of downtown. I live about 10 minutes from it & play it often. $20 after 3p, only like $32 in the morning.

I played The Quarry a couple of years back. Great track. Winds thru a rock quarry. 17th hole is the signature - 235 from the back, downhill par 3 water left & front third of green. I grew up outside of Akron, and there are a lot of puzzlers not on that list, most already mentioned - Firestone North, Stonewater...how about Windmill Lakes in Ravenna? And while Manakiki is a pretty good course, I don't think it's even the best Cleveland Metropark course...that would be Sleepy Hollow in Brecksville.

80. Unlike the other day where I needed par for 79 on the last hole & made double, this time I needed par on the last & made bogey. Had a simple up & down from the fringe & couldn't do it.

I never hit a low percentage shot, just doesn't make sense. So how often do I 'go for it?' When I determine the risk is worth the reward & I have a decent chance of pulling the shot off, I do it. But if I got 240 of water to clear & I know the only way it's getting across is skipping it across, I'll never do it. Never. That's just stupid golf.

Since I am new to the site, I wasn't able to put in my 2011 goal, so here it is: Get my game back. A year ago (Oct 2010) I was in the middle of a lot of personal turmoil that distanced me from the game. I had probably played 5 times over the previous two years. I was depressed and, frankly, dying. But as has been the recurring thread in my life, golf was my salvation. I made a commitment to start playing again, with the help of a dear friend. I wrote a blog story about it - http://zipsclips.blogspot.com/2011/05/mike.html So how have I done? Well, got my handicap down to 6.9, which isn't as good as I once was, but I will take it. When I stand over a shot I have a decent idea where it's going to go. I got my game back, got my life back. Was a great year.

Okay, but what if I'm a Trevino that gabs? What if, as I posted earlier, I say something like 'Can't believe a 7 wasn't enough'...? I get it if I turn to you and say 'Hey Rick, I just hit a 7 iron...you might want to hit a 6'...that's giving advice. Ever notice during broadcasts that the Maltbies & Peppers know what the pros hit on a given shot? That's cuz the caddies use hand signals to communicate what their man is hitting. And that's very prevalent between the players too. For that matter, they can just look at the player's caddy & see the hand signal - 1 finger is a 1 or 6 iron, 2 fingers is a 2 or 7 iron & so on. So 'advice' is being 'communicated' already. You just can't verbalize it. That's why I think it's a silly rule - a rule that is routinely broken really isn't much of a rule, is it?

You mean to tell me, that let's say after I hit my shot I say "Man, I can't believe I couldn't get a 7-iron there', that I'm penalized 2 shots? That's why you see a lot of competitors just make eye contact & the nod of the head approach. Like I said, I've even seen Nicklaus do this. Just don't verbalize...which is why I think it's a silly rule.

I'm happy being single, but I don't mind playing golf with others either.

Ok, jumping in with my first thread. We have the one thread going on whether you play by the rules, so how about this - what's the dumbest rule of golf? Lord knows we got plenty to choose from. Mine is the advice rule. You can't ask what club a competitor hit, but he can tell you. You can look in his bag. You can give him the 'high sign' and if he's cool he'll show you the sole of the club so you can read the number (I've seen Nicklaus do this). But you can't verbally ask. Silly.

Ninth hole at Rolling Hills in Longwood, Fl, On the second shot I had 115 downhill to a front pin - perfect wedge distance. Soon as I hit it I said to my partner 'That could be a two'. Landed 3 feet right of the pin, kicked left, lipped out. Two-inch birdie putt. Yes, I made it. :)

Matt, work on your short game. Good chippers & putters don't make 9's.

I can pretty confidently say I've never broken a rule in competition. At least not knowingly, meaning that maybe I teed a half inch in front of the markers & didn't realize it, that kind of thing. Casual rounds, totally different story. And if we aren't playing for any stakes, I really don't care what you do, nor should you care what I do. My business. Now, the situation described in the initial post? I say good for you. You gave them the strokes they wanted with the simple proviso of playing by the rules. It may have cost a friendship, but I think you did the right thing - you showed them just how difficult it is to strictly adhere to the rules. And further, I bet their usual 98 turned into a 110. A bet's a bet. If they can't hang with that, you're not the one to be ashamed.

So I was doing a Google search earlier tonite on putting vaseline on the face of a driver for added distance (I tried it today to experiment), and came across a thread on this site on the subject. I started reading and poof I'm now a registered user. Name's Jerry, currently living in Orlando. Have played for 43 years now, having played my first round at age 10 on July 20, 1969. If that date rings a bell, that's when Apollo 11 landed on the moon...it was a memorable day. Currently have a 7 handicap, have been as low as a 2. It's been a lifelong love affair that has not lost its magic. I am a golfer. Put it on my headstone. I wrote a book last year based loosely on my blog; stories about golf. I don't now if the mods will allow, but here's the link to it if anyone is interested in perusing/purchasing - http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1835120 But my intent is not commercial in nature. Just want to be part of the hive. Nice to be here!

Nah. I just try to groove what I got. I hit it about 240 off the tee & relatively straight. I'm on or around the green in reg. I work painstakingly on my short game cuz that's where the strokes are saved or wasted. So as long as I'm around the green in reg, I don't see the need to put the time needed in to add 10 yards off the tee or make my iron shots crisper. I'll go to the putting green instead. :)

81. Needed par on 18 for 79 & rinsed two balls. Was lucky to make double. Ugh.

Depends how the swing feels that day. But I usually try to play to my strength, which is wedge & putter. So 9 out of 10 times I'm hitting iron off the tee.

I've had 3 aces, broken 70 in competition. I'm now 53, so my serious competitive days are behind me, but I still have this one goal - I want to play one round where I leave no shots on the course. In other words, one round that is the absolute lowest I can shoot. If I hit a green in regulation inside 10 feet I make the putt. Outside 10 feet, no more than a 2-putt. 100% up & down on missed greens. If I ever do that I'll be thrilled. :)