rudygu

I could not agree more. I honestly think I would feel very uncomfortable at most of the courses that have been mentioned. This was a really great post, one of the best I've read in a long time.

Same here. I think it's pretty impressive how grounded in fundamentals his advice is, given the number of topics he addresses in such a short time. Pretty much the opposite of the tips that litter the pages of Golf Magazine and Golf Digest .

A grip that's too large can hinder your release and leave the face open a bit. Trying a thinner grip can't really hurt anything and if nothing else, may give you some peace of mind and a little confidence boost.

What headphones do you use? I've been thinking of using Bluetooth with my iPhone while practicing.

I believe flex depends more on tempo than swing speed. If you have a shorter backswing with a quick transition to the downswing, you may need a stiffer shaft than someone who has a longer, more smooth swing that is faster.

My experience as well. But, I just take them for what they are and enjoy playing in them occasionally.

I really enjoyed watching this all weekend. Now I'm just left wondering if this is a turning point for Michelle Wie or if she is going to be the Sergio of the LPGA. Based on her singles performance today, I tend to think it's a turning point. If she keeps playing this well, how long before the LPGA starts "Wie-proofing" courses?

I know he used to wear a Ping logo on his hat - http://images.google.com/imgres?imgu...US324%26um%3D1 - but is not on their staff list anymore. I have no idea whether it was he or Ping that severed their relationship

For me it's far and away the U.S. Open. Followed by the Open Championship, Masters, and PGA - in that order.

I'm no bio-mechanics expert, but I don't think the biceps play any significant role in the golf swing. I would swing from the side you find most natural and comfortable.

$30 seems like a bargain to me - and I'm cheap . I will almost certainly pick one of these up. One of those things I wish I had thought of myself. Thanks for pointing it out!

Why not replace the 60* if you have no confidence in it? As far as your current distance gaps go, you have a larger gap from the AW to the 60*. A lot of players opt for a 58* as it is a bit easier to hit with no huge loss in loft. I use 3 wedges - 47, 52, and 56, but if I had it to do over I would go with 47, 54, 60 or 47, 52, 58. I just don't find that 4 degrees offers enough of a gap for my game. Eventually I will adjust my wedges to fit that, but in the meantime I do just fine by opening the 52 and 56 up a degree or two when needed.

I just don't think the official had any real choice. His job was to enforce the rules, not bend them for better television ratings. If I were in his position I would have done exactly the same thing. I would rather do the job I was there to do correctly than take it upon myself to alter the rules for a more dramatic finish. I'm not truly convinced that being put on the clock really caused Paddy's problems anyway. He hit a series of bad shots on that hole. Couple that with the phenomenal shot Tiger hit and suddenly he felt like he had to hit the hero flop shot. Obviously, being on the clock didn't make it any easier, but it's not really fair to blame the entire meltdown on the referee.

How did the official "clearly screw up"? He enforced the rule as it is written and did not show preferential treatment. He did the right thing. I'm a big fan of Harrington and was very disappointed to see the tourney end the way it did, but the only person to fault here is the guy that swung the club. Tiger's 8 iron put more pressure on Paddy than anything else.

I figured they were close to being discontinued with the $27 price tag. The markdown makes them the absolute best ball for the money imo.

Par for the course...no major sporting association (in the U.S.) allows it's athletes to publicly criticise the officials. At least they're not giving Tiger preferential treatment. Calling the referee out by name the way he did really left the PGA no choice. He was just enforcing the rules, after all. I'm sure Tiger knew he would probably be fined and just didn't care - no big deal really.

I'll have my WS Pi5's until someone pries them from my cold, dead hands. A few months ago my ballstriking went downhill and I suffered a bit of gear envy and bought a set of Ping i10's with px shafts off eBay. They were very nice clubs and fit me perfectly, but I could not get used to the comparative lack of feel or the increased offset - so back to the 'bay they went. I will eventually replace my Pi5's with something that has less cavity (when my ballstriking deserves it) but I'm in no hurry. But, even then I will keep them around and play the odd round with them.

I use a level to make sure the face of the club is square in the vise. After that I just eyeball the grip (but I do use a ruler to make sure the top of the grip is aligned with the bottom of the grip). I then remove the club from the vise and view the club at address and make any adjustments I need. Using this technique I am able to line it up precisely enough to not bother me (and I'm pretty picky about it). Putter grips are easier, assuming you are installing a flat-front putter grip. for those, I do the same as above, but also use a small level across several spots of the flat portion from top to bottom. If a grip that I am about to replace is on the club square, I will sometimes use a sharpie to mark the shaft just below the grip - aligned with the mark on the center of the grip. Having the sharpie mark as a guide can speed up the process and it cleans off of the shaft easily enough.

Most of the courses I play are bent, but every now and then I'll play on a course with bermuda. I'm no expert, but it is not hard to see if it is there. Once I see that the greens are grainy, I just follow the old rule of thumb that the putt will run much faster if the grass is shiny between the ball and the cup. It really does make a huge difference. If you are not confident in your stroke, 3 foot downhill putts against the grain can be wreak havoc with your score.

I judge new plateaus to be real if my swing holds up and the scores stay consistent under pressure. Have you scored low in any high pressure rounds? Have you gotten really nervous over the ball for any reason? If so, did your iron play hold up?

I can not really speak to this other than to say that I have personally been unable to discern a difference with my level of ballstriking. I have compared them side-by-side during rounds and consistently seen similar results from the new and used balls, but keep in mind I'm a 14 index. I can say that a used urethane ball still easily outperforms a new surlyn ball around the greens and my scores are lower as a result. Also, lostgolfballs.com offers a money-back guarantee for 30 days if the condition is not as advertised...so if you were to notice a difference you could get a refund.

That'd be a shame if they totally abandon the movable weights. I really like the Mizuno MP-600 implementation...nothing to buy and the wrench is easy to replace if lost (standard allen wrench). They work very well too - they won't change the ball flight by 35 yards left or right like the latest r7's, but they will take the edge off a hook or slice and I've found them to be especially useful for altering spin and trajectory. All with a really solid sound at impact and square face at address. It's a lot of driver for $199.

You can get them used for next to nothing at lostgolfballs.com. They are great to deal with and their grading scale is very accurate...if anything the balls are better than the grade indicates. I think I've seen an ad for them on this forum. I find just the opposite. I like the Pro V1 for chipping and the putter feel can't be beat, but it balloons like crazy for me with the driver. The V1x does sometimes, but nothing like the V1. Anyway, congratulations on finding a ball that really works for you. There really is a big difference between premium balls and two piece, surlyn-covered balls when it comes to scoring shots...for all handicaps. If you don't want to go the used Pro V1 route, there are a plethora of decent mid-range balls to choose from. My favorite for the price is the Top Flite Gamer, but the Callaway HX Hot Bite, Titleist NXT Tour, Taylor Made Burner TP and Bridgestone E5+ are all great performers for $30 or less per dozen.

Why would he lie about it?

I think that an arc stroke is inherently more consistent as it does not require manipulation of the wrists. The key is to find the spot in your arc where the clubhead is moving along the target line (see the graphic posted by iacas) and consistently setup with the ball at that point.