mdaugherty24

I played the Golf Weekly Amateur Tour in North Carolina for 2 seasons. It was alot of fun, I enjoyed it. Ours always ran very smooth. Some tournaments took longer than others depending on how hard the courses were. The Majors always took 5+ hours to play because people took it way too serious. I played mostly in the A flight, but there were a few weeks my handicap would go below a 4 and i would have to play that week in the Championship flight. Overall its alot of fun competing against people the same skill level as you. I won 3 tournaments and had a ton of top 10's. Our member fee was like $100 and every tournament you entered was like $75. Got to play a bunch of private courses so the $$$ wasnt that big of a deal. Overall it was pretty cool, I would def sign up for it if you like playing in tournaments.

Here is the leader board from the Junior North and South Amateur from a week ago just to give you an idea of the scoring conditions. 15-18 year old boys, Rounds 1 and 3 were played on played on #8. The girl that just won the US OPEN won the North and South in 2003. http://tpp.ghin.com/Club/Scoring/ResultsStroke.aspx?mode=alpha&id=126855

I play Pinehurst every weekend. You shouldn't have any problems getting your wedges to hold the greens. But its a different story when it comes to your long irons unless you have a really high ball flight. Best advice I can give you is get your yardage to the flag and play 5 yards shorter to compensate for the firmness and roll out. Don't be too aggressive going after flags, missing greens on #8 will get you into big trouble no matter how good you are at chipping. Best thing to do is play at the center of the greens and score with your putter. Don't expect your chip shots to check up either, they will roll out as well.

Go buy a yardage book it will come in handy for tee shots. Spend a lot of time with short game. Greens are Championship Bermuda and they are gonna be fast and firm. Practice lag putting and like Dave said get a good feel for putting from off the greens. Practice chipping from tight lies, chipping up to elevated greens and bunker shots up to elevated greens. Short siding yourself around the greens on #8 = DEATH!!! Good luck

Myrtle Beach sounds like the perfect fit for your criteria. Pinehurst has over 40 courses in the Sandhills area. There are a ton of awesome tracks for around $40.

I live in Pinehurst, NC. Let me know if anyone is in the area and wants to play. I can get us on all the Pinehurst Resort courses and Im a member at Seven Lakes Country Club.

If your shot shape is already a draw with a neutral grip, changing to a strong grip might turn that into a hook. I would reconsider changing your grip and just learn to play a straight ball with the grip you are already use too. Instead of aiming right to play the draw (in to out swing), just line up straight to the target and swing down the line. It will be more consistent and you will not make that block shot to the right as much. One of the worst things I ever did to my swing was trying to make a grip change. It messed me up for months!!!! You will have to spend a lot of time on the range to get confident with the change. But if you have the time to put in on the range, go for it. I have always played with a very strong grip and use to have the same misses as you. Either it was a block to the right or a ball that starts down the line and draws 15 yards left of target. I became way more consistent when I started to play the straight ball instead of playing the draw on every shot. I now slightly open the face at address, Aim straight at the target and swing down the line. I will take a slight block to the right all day over the dreaded pull hook!

Here is a quick fix. Address the ball like u normally would but put ur weight on ur heels. Make a few practice swings that way.

I play the AP2 3-W with DG High Launch shafts. Use to hit low stingers with my 3 and 4 irons until I put the High Launch shafts on them. I would keep your 4 iron and maybe try out some different shaft options, it worked for me. Then go get the Titleist 21 or 19 degree hybrid and 15 degree fairway wood.

Matt Every said he's been blacking out when standing over the ball lately....I doubt he wins this week.

I got the 54-14 F Grind and 58-11 K Grind last week. Awesome clubs as expected.

I don't use a glove either and my favorite by far are the Golf Pride Z grips.

My Favorite Pinehurst Top 10 1. Dormie Club 2. Pinehurst Resort #2,8,7,6,4,9 3. Pine Needles 4. Mid Pines 5. Pinewild 6. Mid South 7. Southern Pines CC (Elks) 8. Legacy 9. Anderson Creek 10. Seven Lakes CC

Pinehurst meets all your criteria!!!!