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Actually, I don't think mymizunosrock is far off base. As minibluedragon pointed out, it's hard to know for sure without seeing someone's swing but, in general most beginners slice because they come over the top and cut across the ball. The golf swing is not exactly the most natural motion in the world. Your natural tendency is to want to hit the ball from the top of the swing which causes you to get everything out of sequence. Instead of starting the downswing from the ground up most beginners do it the other way around. My only disagreement is with the rolling your wrists part. Not that it's necessarily wrong but for most of us it's nearly impossible to pull off. The golf swing happens too fast. If you're trying to roll your wrists to square the clubface at impact you'll end up releasing too early and hitting a snap hook. At least that's the way it works for me. Generally speaking though, what he said is correct. If you make sure your takeaway is not inside or outside, make a full shoulder turn away from the ball and start the downswing with your hips you will be much less likely to come over the top. GENERALLY SPEAKING, that is.

My new wedges (Mizuno MP T-11) have conforming grooves. The DG Spinner shafts seem to compensate very nicely.

Sounds like a good strategy. The best advice I could give is take your medicine and don't try to be a hero. Hit an iron that has enough loft to advance the ball out of the rough and put it back in play. Speaking for myself, if I have a long iron approach from deep rough my chances of reaching the green are pretty slim. I'm better off to hit a short iron layup and try to pitch it close from there. At least I know a short iron will get the ball airborne and put it back in the fairway where it belongs.

I'm wearing mine right now and my feet feel great. I walked 18 in them this morning on a hilly course. Teed off at 8:15 while the course was still pretty soggy from last night's rain and this morning's dew. My feet stayed nice and dry and I did not slip at all. I haven't even come close to getting blisters from them but I can see where that would be possible. I tried on several pairs at the store and noticed that some of them tended to slip at the heel. I almost gave up on buying a pair for that reason but the last pair I tried on did not slip so I bought them. They seem to be getting more comfortable the more I wear them. I've had them two weeks and have played several rounds in them. I think they're fantastic. Also, I have big feet. I wear a 13W in most shoes. That's what my Dry Joys are. The Streets come in 12-12.5 (45) and 13-13.5 (46). I had a little trouble finding a pair that fit me just right. All the 46's were just a little too big and some of the 45's were just a little too snug. The ones I bought are size 45 and they're just right. I guess you just have to try on a bunch of them until you find a pair that fits right.

Wow! This is great. Maybe I'm not such a short hitter after all. These are my exact distances. BTW: According to the latest issue of Golf magazine Ian Poulter hits his 7i 174 yds. Yes, that's 29 yds longer than us but he's on the PGA Tour.

Make it your goal to emerge from this layoff the best putter in the whole world. I should think you'd also be able to practice chipping. Who knows? Not being able to use your lower body might actually help in that dept. Next spring your full swing will come back pretty quick and you'll have fun taking all your buddys' money with your awesome short game.

Welcome. What part of Atlanta do you live in? I'm from Forest Park but haven't lived down there since 1990. I used to play the Atlanta city courses a good bit, especially Browns Mill and Chastain. The other courses I played a lot were Sugar Creek, Lake Spivey and Little Mountain. Little Mountain was my favorite. I'd love to go back down there and play it again sometime. I moved away just after they opened the second 9. Back then I couldn't break 100. I owe that course a think or two.

The closest thing to a Balata in a modern ball is the new Wilson Staff FG Tour. At least that's what "they" say. I've been playing them for a couple of weeks now and they really are soft. Best feeling ball I've hit in a long time.

I've been fighting a hook off and on lately myself. I usually happens when I don't get turned which causes my swing to get to armsy. Today I knew I was getting turned but I was still hooking sometimes until I realized I was not keeping my arms connected to my torso (chicken wing?). Anyway, as soon as I started making sure I stayed connected the hook went away and I started hitting it nice and straight with the prettiest little draw you ever did see. Here's hoping I learned something that will stick with me for awhile.

If you're carrying 2 wedges in addition to your 2-pw, your 3W, driver and putter, I count 14 clubs, not 13. Am I missing something in the translation? Anyway, how often do you need to hit a ball more than 205 but less than 240? On those rare occasions when you do need that exact distance could you not just choke down on your 3w? As for your question, I've had a real love-hate relationship with hybrids. Sometimes I hit them real well and sometimes not worth a crap. I finally gave up trying as I hit my 3 and 4 irons better and more consistently than any hybrid I've ever tried. I don't carry a 2i (or a hybrid) because I hit my 4w better and with more consistency. I only hit it 210-220 but that's O.K. There are only two situations I can think of where I need more distance than that. One is off the tee on really long par 3 holes, in which case I can just choke down on my driver. The other is trying to reach in 2 on a short par 5. If I ever need that kind of distance on a par 4 it's because I hit a really bad shot with my driver. Better to just take my medicine, lay up and try to hit it to one putt distance with a wedge. The only way I could make room in my bag for a hybrid would be to either drop the 4W or drop one of my wedges, neither of which option I would ever consider. I'd rather have more options inside 100 yds. (hence, my 52, 56 and 60 degree wedge setup) than to carry a club that I would almost never need.

100 yds. to 300 yds and dead straight in 25 minutes? Nothing to this game. You either need to turn pro or find a more challenging hobby.

Don't worry. If the economy doesn't turn around soon there will be a lot of golf courses converted to other uses in the not too distant future. In the meantime, I'm going to see how many of them I can play while they're still in business. Call me obnoxious but I LOVE GOLF!!! I'm hooked and I don't care if it's irresponsible. By the way, just think how many people we could feed if the liquor industry didn't use so much grain to make hooch.

Sounds mental to me. Golf is all about confidence and nowhere is that more important than on the green. I watched Colin Montgomerie on "Playing Lessons From the Pros" and he said pace is by far the most important factor in putting. I agree. The other thing he said that I agree with is that you should never be thinking about what could go wrong when you address the ball. No negative thoughts allowed. After you've planned out your shot and chosen what you think is the proper club you need to tell yourself you're going to make the shot. Not, "I think I can hit this shot" or "I hope I can hit this shot" but "I am going to hit this shot." Picture the shot in your mind, block everything else out and hit the shot. This is especially true when it comes to putting. If you're standing over a putt hoping you won't miss it you'll yip it for sure. Montgomerie's advice on putting was affirmation to me because I already do it the way he said you should. He said to walk around the green and look at the putt from both sides not only to get a feel for the break but to get a feel for the pace. Once you address the ball, visualize the putt going to the hole, take one last look down the line and then don't hesitate. Don't think about it any more. Relax and stroke the putt. You won't make all of them but you'll be surprised how many tap in two putts you'll make. And, even if and when you miss a putt you won't beat yourself up over it because you'll know you did your best. You'll make the next one for sure (at least that's the plan).

Yep. I fully intend to take your advice. No more used balls for me. And, yes, there are lots of fake ProVs out there. I found one on the course last year and played a few holes with it before I realized it was fake. My wedges were literally tearing the cover off it which is not normal for a ProV. When I looked at the ball closely I could see a seam all the way around the ball where the dimples didn't line up. Not only was it a fake, it wasn't even close to the real thing.

I have been playing reclaimed ProV1s for some time now. I get them from my local Play It Again Sports and they're in like new condition for about $12 a dozen. After what happened yesterday I may have to rethink that policy. I was on my 3rd 18 hole round with the same ball. The first couple of rounds it seemed to perform like any other ProV. Yesterday my distances seemed short and I just chalked it up to poor ball striking although I felt like I was striking the ball well. I figured maybe my tempo was a little off or something. Then, on the 15th hole I hit a 5i that felt like I really pured it. It was a blind shot into the green but I expected it to be on. When I got there the ball had come up short and was in the bunker, which was full of standing water. The weird thing was that my ball was floating on top of the standing water. I have hit ProVs into water hazards enough to know they're not supposed to do that. In fact, that was the first time I've ever seen a ProV float. I put that ball in my shag ball compartment and replaced it with a fresh one and, lo and behold, my distances instantly went back up to where I thought they should be. So, here is my question. What causes a golf ball to float anyway? Could it have been a defective ball, maybe a counterfeit ProV or could something have happened to the ball over the course of 50+ holes that caused it do that?

+1. I'm struggling with the same thing but am making significant progress toward getting it fixed. My biggest problem is between my ears. I'm really fighting the hitting impulse from the top of the swing which causes me to come OTT and throw away my lag. I can solve that by taking the club back low and slow and then turning my hips toward the target and letting everything else follow. Problem is I can't do that with any consistency because time my tendency to want to start my downswing with my hands and arms and not with my hip turn. Like I said, I am making progress and I know for a fact that when I can overcome the hitting impulse and swing with good tempo I hit some really great iron shots. When I swing my 5i with good tempo it goes 180, nice and straight. Otherwise it goes about 150-160 and tends to go left.

It depends on the condition of the bunker. If the sand is shallow or hard packed I prefer my 60 because it has less bounce. Conversely, the 56 works better in fluffy sand. If the sand is hard packed or shallow and the bunker is a long way from the center of the green I might use my 50. It also has low bounce. Of course, there is also the question of ball location. Is it against the front lip, side lip, back lip? Is it in the center of the bunker? And what about the lie? Is it a fried egg? And don't get me started on fairway bunkers.

Can you hit your 4i? If so, there might be something wrong with your 5i. More likely though the problem is with your swing. As you say, you only hit the 6i good part of the time. It's probably right on the threshold of your ability. You have a swing flaw that doesn't hurt you that bad with short irons because, well, they're short, which makes them easier to hit than the longer clubs. The chances are that by the time you get to the 5i you're overswinging and/or casting the club from the top. Trying to lift the ball into the air instead of hitting down on it with a forward leaning clubshaft. Can you make good contact with your 5i with a half swing? Have you tried the 9 to 3 drill? If you can hit the 5i well with the 9 to 3 drill then it's a pretty good bet you need to work on your tempo (which will also improve your ball striking with the short irons and wedges, BTW). Personally, I would not give up on the 5i and trade it in on a hybrid. That might help you a little in the short haul but it won't fix your swing flaws. I don't want my clubs to reward me for being a poor ball striker. I want to be a good ball striker regardless of which club I happen to be swinging at the time.

Right now, I love 'em all. I guess the one that's working best for me at the moment is my driver. My putter's running a close second. I'm driving for show and putting for dough. Yeah, baby. Yeah!

I've been struggling with the same thing of late and, at least in my case, Shaggie's right on the money. I also have a bad tendency to pick the club up, which contributes to my casting problem. My problem is I'm struggling to overcome the hitting impulse from the top. When I can manage to take the club back on plane and make a nice smooth swing with good tempo and a full body rotation I make center contact and the ball goes long and straight. Otherwise I overswing, let my hands get ahead of my body, cut across the ball and hit it off the toe. Maddening I tell ya! Maddening!

One of the primary causes of this is casting. Don't know if this is your problem but if you cast it from the top and throw away your lag you end up decelerating and flipping your hands through impact. Instead of hitting down on the ball with a forward leaning shaft you end up doing the exact opposite which effectively increases the loft of the club and imparts way too much spin on the ball. The problem is worse with the longer clubs which explains why all your irons go the same distance.

First off, do as I say and not as I do. I still have blow up holes on occasion but not that many. The most important thing I've done to eliminate those ugly holes is concentrate on keeping the ball in play. Off the tee I hit the longest club I know I can hit straight, which is rarely my driver. The only time I hit my driver is on long par 4 holes with wide fairways and wide open par 5s when I might have a chance of reaching in 2. I tee off with my 5 iron a lot. I can hit it straight 180 yds if I get all of it. If I'm really grooving my swing and want a little extra distance I might hit my 3i. It'll go 200. 180 - 200 in the fairway beats OB every time. The other way to minimize blow up holes is by taking my medicine if I do happen to hit it into trouble. If I hit the ball into the trees I'll usually chip it back into the fairway instead of what I used to do which was try to hit some kind of heroic shot like Tiger or Phil might try. It works for them most of them time but it ends up getting me in more trouble. Phil might be able to hit the stinger off the pine needles, thread it between all the branches and stuff it 5 ft. from the cup. I'm more likely to bounce it off a tree trunk and end up in more trouble than I was in to begin with. Just concede a stroke, put it back in play and move on. Finally, if you hit a bad shot shake it off. Take a couple of deep breaths and regain your composure before you address your next shot. I used to let one bad shot lead to another. I try not to do that anymore.

Yep. Yesterday I played 18 with a buddy who is usually a better golfer than me. He regularly scores in the 70s and I have yet to break 80. He had a horrendous day and shot 94. I shot 89. He was humiliated and said, "Man, you gave me an old fashioned butt whippin' today." I said, "Nope. You whipped yourself." I knew he was in trouble on the front 9 when he made a triple on the 3rd hole and grumbled because he had just given me 3 strokes. I wasn't looking at it as a competition. We weren't playing for anything and I was just trying to play well regardless of what he did. I still wasn't content with my 89. I thought I could've played a whole lot better but at least it was an improvement. He would've played a lot better if he had paid more attention to his own swing instead of worrying about keeping up with me.

What a weird game golf is. I feel your pain. I was shooting low to mid 80s consistently back in the fall. Worked really hard at the indoor driving range during the winter and, naturally, had trouble staying out of the 90s when the weather first warmed up. I got back into the mid 80s for a brief time and then my scores started shooting back into the 90s. Right now I'm a bogey golfer who shoots a low score once in a while but struggles to keep it under 90. Today, I played 9 holes and shot 46. Played real solid for 7 holes and then doubled the last 2 for a variety of reasons. Just couldn't keep it together, which is weird because I struck the ball really well, especially with my 5 iron. Went to the range with the wife tonight and all of a sudden, out of nowhere I got the shanks. Strangely enough though, I was only shanking it with the 5 iron. Just a few hours earlier that was my best club. Now all of a sudden it's the only club in my bag I can't hit. Go figure.