amac

If I were starting out and wanted to make my first golf club investment, I'd buy the IRONS. Sure, you will grab your putter on every hole. But, you're going to swing an iron on every hole too. There are lots of deals available on last years models. Do take the time to get fit at a local golf store. That doesn't obligate you to purchase anything, but find out if your swing requires an upright or toe-down lie angle. If you are standard, then you can get away with "off the rack" clubs. At that point, hit everything and expand your considerations to ALL the club manufacturers. Also, choose a make-up of clubs that fits your skill level. Trying to hit 3 & 4 irons as a 33 handicap will make for a long day. Consider driving irons and or hybrid's for the longer clubs. Adam's may be a good club choice. Also, think about your wedges. Another personal item. Will you add matching wedges to your new irons? Do you like the wedges you currently have? You probably pull out your wedges on every hole too, so think about getting wedges that you feel extremely comfortable with. Not to place the putter at the bottom of the list, but any putter will knock the ball in the hole. For the money you will spend on an Edel, you can get several swing lessons that will go farther in improving your score than a custom fit putter. Before I had an Edel, I thought I was a good putter and made lots of putts per round. It was threads here that got Edel into my head. I'm poorer for it! There is science behind the fitting process, but players were getting it done before this was introduced. Get a putter you like and master it before taking the leap to an Edel. Hope this helps. Happy shopping! amac

Not sure it would be appropriate to mention this pros name, but he did win the PGA Championship. I think he is on the level. Or maybe he's just FOS! : )

Read this last week and went out and practiced looong putts on Sunday. Question about increasing the length of the back swing on long putts... What affect, if any, will the increased, upward arc have when descending on the ball? Or, am I supposed to keep my stroke long and low? Just wondering, as I tried both ways with mixed results. To rephrase my question, what type of putting stroke do you advocate on long - 30 ft or more - putts? Thanks

The next time I see my buddy with the sleeve, I'll see if he still has the them in his bag. If so, I'll take a picture and post it. The sleeve has a black dot under the Pro V1 labeling. Again, according to the pro that gave him this sleeve of balls, these are not the same as what we buy from retail outlets. They are provided to pros only. If they are the same, why mark the box differently?

This is the pair of Oakley's I just received for my birthday. I've never worn sunglasses to play until now and I can't believe I've played all these years without them! They really cut the glare on bright days. It's easy to look up and see your ball fly and they don't distort my depth perception when over the ball. The G30 lens is Oakley's golf specific lens. Give these a look.

Not sure if your timeline is accurate. The Cup was played Oct. 1-4 in 2010 and Sept. 28-30 in 2012. Sure, he w/d in May, but had FIVE months to recover from an inflamed disc. And I don't think "lingering soreness" or personal problems is a good excuse. He is a professional athlete and has access to the best physical therapist, message therapist, psychologist and drugs money can buy. If Woods didn't feel he was in the right physical and mental condition to play, he should have manned up and backed out for the team's sake. He played because he was good to go. But, I yield. You are right. The decision Watson is facing - evaluating TW's physical condition to play - is exactly the same / or not that different from Pavin's in 2010. You can verify the timeline of TW's injuries here . A chronology of Tiger Woods' injuries: April 26, 2011 — Reveals that he has a minor sprain of medial collateral ligaments in left knee and minor strain of his left Achilles', and that he will miss the Wells Fargo Championship. Dec. 11, 2010 — Has cortisone shot in his right ankle because of lingering soreness in his Achilles'. May 9, 2010 — Withdraws on the seventh hole of the final round at The Players Championship with what he fears is a bulging disk. He later says it was inflammation of a joint in his neck. He doesn't miss a start, returning a month later at the Memorial. December 2008 — Ruptures the Achilles' tendon in his right leg.

He wasn't coming off major back surgery and unable to play. Slump is a slump, but not swinging for 8 weeks is a major set back.

No comparison to Pavin's decision in 2010 - 2011. This isn't the same Tiger Woods. Personally, I think he disrupts the team with his individual persona taking the spotlight. He's not a team leader, just an outstanding individual talent. What's more, his Ryder Cup record isn't that good. For the #1 player in the world, it's downright bad. To say that if he's playing, he should be a lock to make the team is a mistake. He should have to earn his spot like everyone else and each week he's out, he's loosing ground. However, the game of golf has been riding on Tiger's back for quite a while. The game needs fans and according to TV, viewers are most interested in seeing TW on Sunday. If he's healthy, i'm sure there will be plenty of pressure to include him on the team.

Anyone else aware of this... Titleist produces a ProV1 that is made available to touring Pro's only. There is a black dot on the box indicating their difference. A buddy of mine was given a sleeve and told me the story. There was no story about what Titleist has done differently with this ball, but there must be something different on the inside, right? My friend hasn't played the ball yet, so no feedback from him. Just wondering if anyone out there can comment.

My Tony Pena persimmon driver. I wouldn't play it today, but it was a beauty. Nothing can match the sound the "old" woods made. My first set of Ping Eye2's. They changed my game forever. I loved the old school ballata golf balls. Before the Professional, the Titleist Ballata ball would spin 30' out of the fairway on a bad shot. : ) They didn't last long, but were the softest thing on the market. Then, there was Slazenger ballata balls that were longer than Titleist and spun every bit as much. And you can't leave out Maxfli ballata 100's. I came across a few in my old shag bag. So soft, they've warped over time. They look like eggs! However, give me a new ProV1 over those any day. As mentioned, the sound of spikes at the clubhouse made you realize where you were. But, the old spikes aren't as comfortable for all day wear like today's golf shoes. It's amazing how much the game has changed and how quickly it's happened.

I should have my had examined for buying another putter! But, I feel like I'm not getting any punch out of my blade. I hope the mallet provides what I'm looking for.

....so that's why I'm hitting it on the toe end?

Yeah. There was no video monitoring at this location. But I'm curious, what's your theory about my accelerating stroke? I do tend to be slow back and firm through.

I have no idea what you mean. My stroke is gate style - slightly in then back to square.

The results are in. Officially, there is nothing wrong with my putter fitting. Everything checked out. Further, there is no glaring issue with my putting stroke. Ultimately, it's all in my head! I did experiment with a mallet fitting. Same lie, loft, length, alignment aides and tad heavier. I produced the exact same results with aim and distance control. So, I ordered it. This Indian wanted a different arrow. :)) What we did notice is I favor contact on the toe side of center. No readily available explanations, but going for a more face balanced set up with the mallet. Also, I'm adding the insert on the mallet. My fitter suggested the insert may help with off center hits. In all, I got the outcome I expected. It's all in my head and practice, practice, practice my putting stroke.

I'm all set for my appointment with the Edel fitter. I've fully explained my thoughts and concerns regarding my putting. The plan is to evaluate my stroke and reassess my fitting. I've also expressed my interest in mallet style putters. So, we will discuss the differences and experiment with a fitting. He sounded a bit skeptical that a new putter would make a difference. Looking forward to tomorrow. I will update here after my lesson.

Agreed. I plan to find out if I can aim as good with more than one putter - my blade and possibly, a mallet. If aiming is equal, then which one gives me better distance control. If both are equal in my hands , which one is going to be most forgiving on off center hits? I can try all day long to hit the center of the putter face and to have my putter face on line to target, but I know my stroke isn't 100% correct 100% of the time. If a mallet is more forgiving, wouldn't that be reason enough to choose a mallet over a blade? In the end, I will end up with what feels the best in my hands and delivers the best results, most consistently. I am looking for feedback from people that use mallets and possbily from people that have switched from blade to mallet with success and can share their enthusiasm. I didn't intend to critique the Edel fitting process and or my bad putting stroke. FWIW, my last round produced 10 one putts, 6 two putts and 2 three putts = 28 putts total. I shot 79.

Mostly coming up short due to what feels like off center hits. As far as getting the line right, that's another discussion. LOL. It could be my read, my stroke, the putter or a combination of everything!!! Basically, I'm going back to my Edel guy for another evaluation. I'm expecting a more thorough putter/putting lesson to determine if a fitting is necessary.

No, I was fit for and bought the Edel from the same guy I'm going to visit Friday. The original fitting didn't get into my stroke style or long putts. I distance tested from about 10 ft. I expressed my preference for blade style putters when I arrived. Perhaps he shied away from suggesting a mallet as a result. I am opening myself up to mallets because of what I've read about the weighting and forgiveness on off center hits. I am deadly accurate with my putter from 10ft and in. The setup of the putter is excellent. It's the longer putts and longer strokes (backswings) that I struggle. I'm just wondering what advantages/disadvantages a mallet would offer?

Breaking into the low 80's, high 70's is not easy to do consistently if your skill level isn't there. I play with a group of guys that range from 8 - 18. I've seen the 13 and up handicap's shoot low 80's every now and then, but not on any consistent basis. They simply don't have the swing that can produce the same shot over and over. So my first piect of advice is to self assess your swing skill level. If it's not where you want it, take lessons. You can practice all you want on that 150 yard and in shot, but if your swing isn't fundamentally correct, you're not improving. Check out the 5 Simple Keys as a starting point. Once you have your swing in order, then practice your short game. I can cover 550 yards in two shots, but can take 3 to get in from 20 ft! LOL. My personal opinion is that golf is a game of misses. How bad your misses will depend how bad you score. The better my misses are, the better my score is because I haven't put myself in jail. My escape shot and or short game takes over and I'm able to turn bogey into par or double into bogey. Hope this helps.

I've been reading articles on the benefits - pros and cons - of mallet style putters. From what I've read, I put them in the game improvement category offering a larger sweet spot to assist on off center hits. I've also read that they are slightly better suited for people with straight back-straight through strokes. Not sure if that is 100% accurate. I stand somewhat upright and have more of a gate stroke. I've always used a blade style putter, but really struggle on puts longer than 20'. My stroke feels somewhat wobbly in the backswing and I know I'm not making good contact. Obviously I will be working on my putting stroke, but would a mallet's weight design assist me? Looking for thoughts from people who use and or have tried mallets. I currently use an Edel putter and plan to visit my Edel fitter for a lesson/fitting this Friday. Thoughts...

Noted. The thing that bothers me most is that golf shops are pushing product based on this information and consumers are buying it up as fast as they can. Problem is, the data may be inaccurate and thus what you thought was a low spin, high launch driver is the same high spin, mid launch you traded in. A simple warning to those on this forum, get multiple fittings to compare numbers for consistency and or find someone using Trackman.

I decided to see if either the Callaway Alpha or SLDR could/would outperform in spin, launch, ball speed and carry versus my R1. I don't know what launch monitor system they use, but the numbers were pretty similar across the board for all clubs. I did some minor adjusting with the other two and left my club settings the same. What's most concerning is the ball spin numbers. I've mentioned in another thread about attending a TM demo day and producing extremely low spin numbers with my R1 (low meaning 1900). Only to get in front of Trackman later the same day and post whopping high spin rates up to 3600! So, Dick's posted my spin rate at an average of 2400, launch angle of 16.5 and club head speed of 95. The launch angle and chs are identical to Trackman, but I just don't trust the spin rate. What's more, all three clubs tested produced the same results, so I didn't make any club changes. I am letting go of the idea a new club will change my results. I am also growing more cynical of my local shops ability to properly fit me. YMMV

If you're so bothered with anxiety, how did you get your index to a 4.3? Clearly you are capable of playing good golf and block the nerves out. Figure out what you thought and how you felt the days your scores are good and try to reproduce that situation every time you play. If that doesn't work, train for stress. Make practice sessions more stressful - visualize specific tee shots and approach shots. Never play unless you're playing for something - money, lunch, dinner, etc... Play more tournaments. The more you do it, the easier it will be. I've come to realize that a tournament weekend is the same as any other. My last piece of advice, chew gum. I find this helps me release some stress. I feel your pain with this. If my range swing where my game swing, I'd be scratch! I've said it before and got chastized - golf is 90% mental and 10% physical. Good luck.

I love this question. I started playing over 25 years ago and after 2 years, made my high school golf team. As a beginner, you should lay out some goals for your game. How far to you want to take it? How much time can you devote to it? The golf bug is a disease that can/will consume you! Once you have a path in mind, find a professional source to teach you the game. Build a sound swing and develop a great short game. Finding the right instructor is critical. I've had lesson from several different professionals, and they all taught me something different, they all relate their teachings differently, but they all are teaching "the swing". You need to decide which one you communicate best with. Once you figure that out, practice, practice, practice the lessons you receive. Third, learn the art of putting. If you can 2 putt every hole, you've only added 36 strokes to your score. How many 3 putts do you have? Find a putter you really like. Find one that makes you feel like a pro golfer. Spend as much money as you can on a putter. If that helps you make more putts, then your score will go down. Lastly, have fun. Learn to stay relaxed and not get overwhelmed by the moment. The sooner you can control your emotions, the more relaxed you'll play and your scores will improve. Hope this helps and let us know how your journey goes!