PeteK

I mostly just want the yardage to the pin info and maybe the occasional "how far to clear that hazard" distance. I also like using it as a scorecard. Maybe I'll try a different app.

So I've been using the Swing by Swing golf GPS app on my android phone. I was totally loving it. Seemed to be accurate GPS yardage and worked great as a digital scorecard and has functions to distance clubs by marking each shot on the course. But yesterday it seemed like it went all phooey on me. The GPS was off by several hundred yards. On a 160 yard par 3, it was reading 375 yards from the tee box. On another hole, about 50 yards from the green, it was reading 120 yards. I've used it probably 10 times before with no issues. Maybe I'm expecting too much out of a phone app that was free? IDK. Anyone use this app or have any alternative suggestions?

I have been playing Srixon Q Star tour yellow balls. I lose far less since they are easier to find. I also like the Nike PD Soft orange balls. The orange seems easier to see in the air. Yellow and orange seem to be about the same for me in the rough as far as visibility.

I don't mark my ball with a sharpie. I found the additional weight of the ink caused a lopsided weight issue resulting in me hitting more trees. But I play Srixon Q Star or Nike PD Soft balls. Usually yellow or orange so it's easier to find and there usually is no confusion as to which ball is mine.

Maybe the "Madden" curse is what happened to Tiger? He was on the cover of an EA game for a lot of years. Now he must spend that many years "cursed".

Yesterday I hit a fairway, but bounced into a sand trap. About 150 yards from the green. Normally I just grab a SW and try my best to just get out of the hole, but I decided to try a different approach. I had a pretty good lie in hard packed sand. No lip in the way or anything. I grabbed a 6 iron and managed to hit the green from the bunker 150 yards out! Then I couldn't capitalize on it. 3 putt for a bogey.

Shot a 48 for 9 holes yesterday. One of my better rounds. My last score on that same course over 9 holes was 60.

I upgraded from a cheapie set of Wilson clubs to a set of Mizuno JPX-EZ's a few months ago. Much bigger sweet spot and they are just all around way easier to hit.

I pretty much just grip it and rip it. If I were to hit it within 2' of the pin and someone said "great shot", I'd just say thanks and act like I did it on purpose. But my handicap is like 1000, so......

I've played quite a few solo 9 hole rounds lately. I enjoy it. It's quiet and if I play in the twilight hours, there usually isn't anyone else out there. I usually play 2 balls from the tee. Also been making a point to drop a ball at the 150 marker and hit my 7 iron to get my distance zeroed in.

If I'm playing solo, I walk/carry. If the cart is included in the green fee, I'll ride. One of my local courses requires a cart, so I ride there. Am I the only one who doesn't like the backpack style carry/stand bags? I end up one strapping with it and I find it annoying.

I don't like having to pay in advance, even for a solo round. I'm kind of a cash transaction type of guy. But I use GolfNow for cheap deals and am forced to use a credit card when I do.

A few days ago I walked 9 holes solo. There was 2 guys in front of me in a cart, playing the black tees. I waited on several holes while watching them search through the rough trying to find a ball and they both took forever on every green. I'm not real sure on the etiquette in that situation. Is it on me to approach them and request they let me play through or should they have noticed I was waiting on them on pretty much every hole? There was an older couple behind me that was held up as well. More than once, I was waiting at the tee box while the guys ahead searched for a ball. The older couple behind me, who were also walking, met me at the tee and waited for me to tee off. I haven't really encountered these situations much since I've only played for the last 2 years. Very irritating though. I think I'll go back to playing in the afternoon when I have the course to myself and can walk 18 in 3 hours.

I seem to be getting rapidly worse. My last few rounds I think I've sliced just about every drive, very rarely hitting the fairway and I keep having trouble staying out of the rough once I'm already in it. My 9 hole scores have been in the low 60's. On the plus side, my shots within 100 yards seem to be improving and my putting is getting better. I think if I can figure out my driver problems, I could lose quite a few strokes.

I will be playing a round this coming Thursday, late in the day so it won't be busy. I like the suggestion of dropping a ball at the 150 marker and hitting my 7 iron from there for the practice and distance data. I spent some time at the range today, mostly because I got a new FW (Adams Tight Lies, 16 deg) and was hitting my irons a lot more consistently. I think when I originally started this thread, I was flustered because the range I had gone to the previous few times, you are hitting off a cliff and it's really hard to tell how far a ball actually went. Today at a different range that is nice and flat, it was much easier to see, at least up to 150 yards. I'm still consistently carrying around 160 yards with my 6 iron, which is about where I was with my old clubs. I think I'll play the new ones like I played the old ones. I think I'm also trying to break some bad habits I learned swinging the old clubs, since the lie angle wasn't right for a guy as tall as me. These new Mizunos are a much better fit, but my position at address is different than it's been since the lie angle is different. I think it will take some getting used to but be better for me in the long run. On a somewhat side note, the new Adams FW is pretty easy to hit! Plays more like an iron, which is exactly how they advertise it. I was happy with the distance I was getting from it as well as well. The FW that I had before was my hardest club to hit, but this one has a much more compact head and was easy to hit.

I had a pretty good feel for the old set. I was 160 with my 6 iron and -10 yards per club 7-PW. Well my last few rounds have been with the new clubs. On one hole I'm in the fairway 10 yards short of the 150 marker. I pull out the new 6 iron. I hit it 10 yards past the green. 175 yards at least. Then a few holes later, I'm right at 150 yards. Pull out the 7 iron. I'm short by 10 yards! It's really the 7 iron that baffles me. I expected to get a little more distance with these new clubs and it appears I am with the 6 iron. The 7 appears to be consistently short though. The gap between those 2 clubs seems to be around 20 yards, most times more. I haven't really had too many chances on the course to hit the 8 or 9. My PW seems to be similar to the old one. I'll add that I am still pretty bad at golf. Pretty much a beginner still. It could very well be that my swing is just inconsistent with the new clubs and I need to spend more time playing them.

The traps are a bit deep, but yeah. It does look nice!

So trying to figure out my average distances with each club. I'm at the driving range and I realize this is far from accurate. Sure they have flags marking 100, 150, 200 etc. But am I the only one who can't really look 150 yards out and tell exactly how many yards my ball is from the flag? Maybe it's poor vision. I'm 20/20 with contact lenses, but depth perception isn't always great. I'm basically guessing. I can tell it landed between 2 flags, but that's about it. That leaves a 50 yard margin of error! Am I better off going to a simulator? The new irons I bought, I tested out at a simulator when I bought them and I found it to read pretty short compared to what I'm actually seeing on the course. Like a good 30-40 yards different. So, any tips? How do you guys learn your distances?

Tee 'em high and let 'em fly! I had that problem and pretty much resolved it by teeing the ball higher. I think as a beginner I was nervous to hit the ground with the longer clubs, so I would tend to swing higher on the ball. Especially with my driver.

I'm booking a tee time now. This may very well be my only chance at a hole in one!

Bought a set of Mizuno JPX-EZ irons, 5-PW. Got some promotional coupons that I then used to get an Adams Tight Lies FW for $20.

Well, as a new golfer in the internet age, I tend to Google lots of golf questions. Hybrid irons included. I constantly see articles, threads and comments about how hybrids are "easy to hit". I have a 5h in my bag and it is hands down my hardest club to hit. When I do connect, I get a higher launch and more distance. But I'm so much more consistent with my 5 iron, I'll take the less distance every time since it's less than a coin flips chance I will actually hit the hybrid well. But apparently that's not the norm.

I played 9 holes solo yesterday late morning. Practically had the entire course to myself. It was my first round by myself and I rather enjoyed it.

I enjoyed it quite a bit actually. Beautiful day. Played solo and pretty much had the entire course to myself. I'm not too worried about my horrible scores. I see improvements the more I play. I hit enough good shots to keep me addicted.

Played 9 holes yesterday. Lots of double bogeys. But there were 2 total blowouts. Lost one ball on a sliced drive out of bounds and another lost to a water hazard. I don't know if it was frustration on those two particular holes, but my putting was especially bad for the same holes. Shot a 64 total for 9. I usually don't keep score, but I would say, embarrassingly, this was one of my better scores.