NI4NI

Short term, it's always a good plan to limit the crooked score...knowing your tendencies with course management is smart. Longer term, gaining confidence that comes with a focus on development is the right idea...switch from minimizing loss to maximizing gain (play and mindset).

Nice clubs. MX-23's were my entry irons to the Mizuno family, and I have stayed in the stable with MP-52's, and just late last year, bought my second new set of irons in my lifetime - JPX 921 Forged. I also added the ST-200 Driver and 3W to the bag last season, and have been happy with them. Mizunos feel good, give great response / feedback, and will be a huge improvement over the T Flites. Enjoy.

Boog, is either the 14-way Kabuki™ Top Cuff in the Mizuno Aerolite full length, or does your wife's sticks get hung up in the bag? I have been eyeing this bag for a while on the "auction" site as a cost effective lightweight cart bag. Thanks for the feedback.

Granite Links (Quincy MA) The Pinehills - Jones and Nicklaus Courses (Plymouth MA) The International - Pine and Oak Courses (Bolton MA) Highfields (Grafton MA) Shining Rock (Northbridge MA) Butter Brook (Westford MA)

Good job, Strick. Glad to see him pull through and go birdie-birdie to get the threepeat. He seems like a good guy; he's on my "hope he wins" list.

You said that the twilight covers Apr-May, which is only two months. You get four days per week, so that equates to ~32 days to golf within the two months for ~$9.38 per round (best case playing every day). Even if you played 50% of the available time, it would cost you $18.76 per round (given the after 6 PM limitation, that would for 9-holes). Now, if it is somehow for four months as you stated, then the cost per round is a lot cheaper. If the course is half-way decent, and you enjoy paying it, then it is an oppty to consider. Again, the after 6 PM condition means that playing 9-hole rounds will be the most likely scenario, making it $37 for 18-holes (not a tremendous bargain unless it is a great course in your area). Does the membership include use of the practice facility, or cart, or other benefits? Twilight memberships can be great deals, but it depends on whether the course hosts a lot of leagues, tournies, etc. which will impact your available playing days. My primary course has such a membership, but until mgmt made a slew of changes this season, it was not a great deal because leagues got in the way almost every day (unless you enjoy three hour 9-hole rounds).

Golf life is too short to deal with this buffoonery. Also, for the most part, you get what you pay for (to quote an over-used axiom). Let ownership / pro shop / ranger deal with it, and if they don't, find a better place to play. A friggin' 7-some? Must have looked like a chinese fire drill on the tee box.

Congrats; an eagle's an eagle - you didn't design the course. You mentioned that it was a 310 yard Par 3 - assuming that it's a Par 4 to justify the Eagle (a 310-yard Par 3 would be difficult for the average golfer to Par let alone Birdie). Based on the stats you provided, looks like a putting lesson and more practice would benefit your scoring (join the club).

For me, I mainly golf early in the morning during the weekday (~5:30 AM). I can get in 9 holes (carrying or with a push cart), and be home before my son's bus picks him up for school. I also take a few weekdays during summer to play in the late morning or early afternoon. My weekends are busy either coaching or working on the "honey do" list, but I will be golfing a few times during the weekend with friends / family. There is a very nice nearby course which has a "Nine and Ride" promo for the second year which is pretty cool. $22 for 9 holes with a cart, and a junior golfer under 14 years old plays for free. My son and I will do this a few times during his summer school vacation - it's a blast. As long as I obey the married man's golden rule, I can stay pretty much out of the dog house. "If Momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy". As my boys get older, I plan on golfing more with them - I am very much looking forward to quality time with my boys on the golf course.

Jack's first Major win was in 1962, so five years from now is what I used (not based on years being a pro) to make it more comparable.

It's hard for someone on an internet forum to provide any accurate feedback as there is no visual data. The best bet would be for a local PGA instructor to have a look to see if these are the right fit for you. You could also go to a retail store (Golf Town,...), and get a swing fitting (swing speed, launch angles, spin rates, ball speed,...) with these clubs (usually for a fee). Otherwise, it's hard to know with certainty. The more you play, the more you will begin to understand how they feel, and how your game is responding to them. Good luck.

Welcome to the Trap. Good to see the MA membership increase.

Finding time to pursue a recreational golf hobby can be a very time-consuming endeavor, especially when juggling the various life "balls" that each of us has on a daily basis (family, career, domestic duties, volunteer work, et al). Some of us most likely have found more success than others in juggling the golf pursuit, whether due to having a more understanding significant other, being able to successfully link a few of the "balls" together to allow for the pursuit (getting the kids involved with golf), or by simply stealing or begging time away from the family or other obligations in order to have time for golf (vacations during the day while the kids are in school,...). What has been your plan of attack to satisfy your golf addiction without dropping the other "balls"?

His parents must have been prodigenous breeders since golf courses around the world are littered with same-minded +HC players

True. I'm sure even Jack had a few detractors in 1961. It's nearly impossible to project a player's legacy at the onset of one's career. Resurrect this thread in 2015 to check in on his Majors win total - let's see if his trending towards Jack's 6 Majors win total at the 5-year mark.

I enjoyed a pre-Father's Day round on Saturday, and spent Sunday with the extended family at the traditional Father's Day cookout. I played at Blackstone National (http://www.bngc.net/) for the first time in ~5 years (got hooked up with a threesome going off the first hole). I don't play with strangers too often, so this was an experience (5+ hour round which is way too slow for me). The company was good, overall, and I shot 92 which is very good for me (73.5 / 134). This is a very nice course, and is slowly recovering from last year's drought situation.

The funniest part to all this is that each of us has probably played with someone who was under the spell of the "300" yard benchmark drive. So,when you out-drive this person, there only response is that you are also long hitter, capable of crushing monster 300+ yard bombs. I played with one such guy at my primary course last season. Even though I had played the course 35+ times at this point, AND had a SG5 GPS in addition to the GPS in each cart, this guy would constantly boast that his drives were 285 - 310 yards. My GPS would mark my drive at 235 yards, and he was 10 yards behind me - show him the cart GPS when we got to his ball,and he was convinced that the GPS was broken. Showed him the SG5 marked distance on two holes after his drives - said that the satellite must be out of position or something. The guy was clearly delusional, and apparently very comfortable living in the world he created in his mind. But, he bought me two beers during the round, so he was not a bad person,.

How expensive is a round of golf, on average, in Germany (18 holes with or without a cart, public versus private)?

BOSTON BRUINS - STANLEY CUP CHAMPS!!!!

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=6663863 This guy would be a riot to have in a foursome. And, he loves the tweet-tweet.

Good luck with your test. Since I never heard of Platzreife, I did a little web research, and read a bunch of mixed reviews. A 54 HCP is ridiculous. How expensive is a round of golf, on average, in Germany? Having a basic understanding of golf (swing and terminology), and knowing golf etiquette are both great things that I wish more people had before venturing onto a course, but being forced through a test/license process seems a bit much, IMO. Golf is supposed to be relaxing - taking tests runs counter to that, even if it is an easy process to pass. Tell us how you did.

Best line from last night's show was Russell on Justin. "He needs a check up from the neck up". Classic.

This year, I have played at Maple Gate and Red Tail. MG is a nice layout; it needs a major maintenance boost and some better course rules (with regards to carts, play...). I have played Red Tail twice over the past two weeks, and really enjoy that course. Greens each time were around 10.5 feet (stimp meter) which is akin to putting on hardwoods after playing MG so many times (with the shag greens). I know a few members at Hopedale, and will be playing there in a few weeks. Also, have Shining Rock and Highfields on the list to play this month (hopefully).

Keeping stats does not distract me. Rather, it's which ones to focus on which will lead to the most significant improvement that can be frustrating. Fairways hit, GIR, up and down, scrambling, sand saves,... there are so many different stats to track, I need to spend more time focusing on those stats which mean the most to my game. Keeping stats without further analysis and incorporating into practice sessions for improvement is non-value add, IMO.