toaster83

+1, but don't pay full retail at golfsmith. If you look around, you should be able to find it discounted. Got mine for $125 and I love it.

When I looked for a new bag, I had some similar requirements -- specifically 14-way top with full-length dividers and a stand. I looked at an incredible number of bags just to find that practically mythical combination. Sun Mountain makes ones as does Nike (the one in my sig), but that's about it. If you don't need full-length dividers for every club, that opens up your selection a bit, including the Ogio bags you describe. In my search, there wasn't one stand bag I remember seeing that only had a shoulder strap. However, some of the double straps are designed such that you can use the top strap as a shoulder strap and the other one stays out of the way. I do this with my bag quite a bit, but I personally have grown fond of having the other strap for those longer walks. If you can live without the stand, then there are bags that will meet your other criteria. The Ogio Spry is one such bag, but there are definitely other cart bags with a 14-way top and only a shoulder strap, though they do weigh a bit more. HTH

Until I was fitted for irons, I just used standard size grips. When I was fitted, they did a couple of measurements of my hand that I didn't pay too much attention to, but resulted in getting a grip size of +1/32" -- halfway between standard and midsize. I don't think I'd say I had to make an adjustment, but with the right size grips, gripping the club correctly became natural. With standard size grips, I'd usually have to give it a quick thought to make sure everything was lined up correctly. Having one less thing to think about in my golf swing definitely helps. There are a lot of charts that approximate grip size based on glove-size, but they all seem to be slightly different, so I'm not sure how reliable they are. I wear an ML glove, which the charts say is a standard grip, but alas I need a couple of wraps. YMMV

When ordering my new irons from TM, I had the chance to choose from a wide selection of grips. Ended up choosing GP's New Decade grips and I absolutely love them. After playing with them a little, I switched to New Decade on the rest of clubs (sans putter). Made a big difference to me. I'll repeat what others have said. You should definitely try before you buy. For me, trying them made my decision easy since I felt that the New Decades stood above the rest. It's a good idea to clean them first to make sure, but I agree with BonoVox: if you have to ask, the answer is probably yes. And I bet that you'll feel better about getting new grips than stretching the life on your current ones.

Those look great! Hope you enjoy them as much as I do mine.

Rife putters have a similar technology -- called RollGroove -- on the faces of their blades to make the ball roll better, very similar to Yes putters. The main difference is that RollGroove is on the entire putter face and not just the middle of it. Unfortunately, I don't believe they make any forged blades, but I'd give them a try. Also, Nike Method putters have a multi-material face that is supposed to improve ball roll. Again though, I believe they are all milled.

Picked up a sleeve of Penta TPs to try out, a new TM cap, and a FJ SPIDR2 glove (which I'm switching to because it's better and cheaper than my current glove).

Grips are a more personal preference thing; but I have Golf Price New Decade grips on all of my clubs and absolutely love them.

The e6 is the 2010 model; Bridgestone dropped the plus from the e-series naming this year, but it's an update of the 2009 e+-series. And AFAIK, all the 2009 and 2010 e+/e-series are 3-piece balls. I actually bought a sleeve of Pentas to try out, just because I've been hearing so many great things about them. I could use some more spin in my short game, so I'm hoping these do that without accentuating any sidespin I put on errant shots.

I started playing in the summer of 2008 and picked up a set of Zevo irons, a 5 wood, and hybrid for super cheap (Zevo is one of Golfsmith's in-house brands). Started learning from a friend who's a scratch player. I'm an equipment junkie, so about six months in, I was already itching for better equipment. He told me to wait since my swing would probably still change a lot. Sure enough, my swing did keep changing. Another six months later, I'm itching again and thought my swing had settled down. I ask him the same question, and he tells me the exact same thing. Started taking lessons from an instructor last August, and my swing changed a lot again. About four or five months of taking weekly lessons got me to the point of having a consistent swing, so I got a set of 2009 burner irons and a couple of rescue tps custom fit for me at the beginning of this year. And I couldn't be happier with them. I have lots more confidence with them, and I know they'll still be right for me in the long term as well. Moral of the story: Will fitted clubs help you now? Probably. Will they still be helping you in six months? Probably not. Wait until your swing gets more consistent -- both swing to swing and over time -- before taking the plunge. Having videos of your swing seriously helps here as well as an instructor who can tell you if they think your swing is really consistent enough to get fitted.

If you look in the official rules, it spells out those requirements to get a free iron "while supplies last" along with a bunch of releases and such.

Axis1 Eagle - http://www.axis1golf.com/ Outrageous and maybe even effective. I would love to try one of these out.

I got my 5W pretty recently from gppgolf.com for 109$, which is reduced off of the normal 129$ I had seen most sites discount it to. They have the 3W as well. http://www.gppgolf.com/gppg/content/...productId=1997

I just got a new Nike Sasquatch Tour bag on Super Bowl Sunday. The Pro Shop was discounting it 25% on top of an already discounted sticker (small pro shop and lots of bags), and I've been drooling over that bag for months now. Got to love a 14-way top stand bag will full dividers and all the bells and whistles. It's black with yellow trim. I almost went with the yellow/gray one, but for whatever reason the way the two colors looked on the bag didn't work for me. As far as next addition to my golf bag, it won't be until my birthday in April. I still have my first set of beginner's iron from July, so I'm going to aim to replace those. I've got about a half-dozen options in mind, some of which I've hit and some that I haven't, so I can't really say which one I'll go for yet. I also wouldn't mind replacing my hybrid at the same time, but we'll see what happens.

This is a combination of both what's in my bag, and what I'd like to be in my bag in the near future... Driver: Cleveland Hibore XLS Driver 9.5*. After I started being able to hit my long clubs well, I was itching to get a driver and start practicing with it on the range. I tried a couple in the shop before hitting this one, and the ones I tried launched the ball at too high a trajectory and felt like swinging air. This club felt nice when I hit it and gave me a better trajectory. 5 Wood: Cobra 2008 Speed LD F. The guy who sold me my initial set of clubs was right in selling all of my other clubs with stiff shafts, but not the 5W. After practicing with my driver for awhile, my SS started to shoot up and my old 5W began flexing too much. I really liked what I heard about this club, so I tried one in-store along with a couple others. My friend (who is a scratch golfer and teaches me) said my swing was smoothest with that club. It felt a little better than the other clubs I tried, so I got this one. As soon as I started hitting it outside, though, I fell in love with it. My favorite club right now. 4 Hybrid: Zevo ZV3H 4H 23*. My first and only hybrid from when I first bought my clubs. Nothing to say except it feels like nothing when I swing it now. A definite candidate to be replaced next. I'd like to get a Cobra or Cleveland. Irons: Zevo ZVI 3-PW. My first iron set. I need to get a new one that's better and fits me. I'm 5'10" but have arms that are a couple inches shorter than average, so I need my clubs bent a bit upright and probably with slightly longer shafts as I much prefer a more upright stance. Based on what I've read and hit, I'm considering Ping G10, Cleveland CG Gold/CG7, Cobra S9 II/SZ, Nike Slingshot, and Mizuno MX-200, but my mind is definitely open right now. Wedge: Cleveland CG14 Black Pearl 56*. Very simply, I needed a SW, heard good things about this one, was able to get a good deal on it, and it didn't feel any worse than the other wedges I tried (since I couldn't hit any of them all that well). Putter: Cleveland VP1. I hit at least two dozen putters before deciding on this one. I loved my friend's White Hot #1, but this one felt a little better to me and was 60% of the price. However, I've done myself the (dis?)service of hitting some milled putters more recently and am currently lusting over a Rife Cayman. Future clubs... I mentioned potentially replacing the 4H in the very near future, and I might get a matching 3H to go with it. I'm not playing that many long holes right now where I really need to fill the gap between the 4H and 5W though. On the same note, I don't feel a huge need right now to get a 3W. At some point, I know I'll want to get those clubs (3W and 3H), but I can always get the same clubs cheaper later, and they wouldn't do much for me right now besides look good in my bag. One gap I do need to fill is that between my PW and SW (some pun intended) as I've got a healthy 25 yard spread between those two clubs right now. I'm thinking about getting the matching 52* CG14 to fill it. I really want to get a new iron set that fits me and performs better than my current one, but I'm hesitant to plunk down the coin for it until I'm sure I'm ready for it and will use it well. The Rife putter would be completely unnecessary, but completely awesome at the same time.

Thanks for the input guys! I'm not too interested in the 2 bar putters since I like the basic blade with no weight behind it. With any mallet or blade with weight behind it, my stroke immediately becomes much less consistent and reliable. After doing some research online, I went back and tried the Cayman today and loved it as well. The toe weighting felt great, my stroke felt solid, and the feel was just as last time. However, I don't think I can bring myself to pull the trigger on a $180 putter right now since I already have a pretty nice one that I didn't get too long ago. As my game improves, and I plan on improving it a lot this year, I'll definitely be keeping that Rife Cayman in mind (since I doubt I'll be able to find the Martinique new later on and I don't get used clubs as a rule). Out of curiosity and since I didn't know it was possible, how does a shaft extension work? Does it have any negative effects to the shaft? I definitely use that last inch on my putter shaft, so I wouldn't want to do that if it would feel different or otherwise impact the shaft.

So I was in a local golf shop today that I go to once in a while because it's a bit farther away, but has a different selection of clubs, balls, etc. than other places. While trying some other putters out, I noticed in the putting area a stand with some Rife putters, which I had never heard of before that point. I hit some balls with one, a 34" Martinique, and it felt amazing. Despite the fact that I generally don't like straight shafts, it didn't bother me on this putter, although the 34" shaft was noticeable. I definitely need a 35". It has grooves to promote a forward rolling ball (like Yes putters except the grooves go straight across), and I just got the best feel from it compared to everything else I tried today, including a couple Camerons, some Odysseys, and a few Yes putters (my favorite being the Callie-f). Does anybody own a Rife putter and has for a period of time who can attest to them? It felt great in a store on an indoor mat, but how does it feel on real grass? Also, it doesn't seem to be a current model as its relatively difficult to find online. Amazon is the only reputable place I've found one in stock. Does anybody know anywhere else I could find one since I need a 35".

The Teron looks pretty nice. Kind of a better looking version of the Sabretooth. Being a huge Star Trek nerd, it looks like the Teron was designed by Klingons. For that reason alone, I'll probably give it a try, even though I'm a blade guy. On the other hand, the 2 ball F7 looks like a hideous cousin of other Odyssey putters. And really, that's being *very* generous.

I've had my Powerband Sports for a few months now and absolutely love them. They fit around my feet very well, which can be difficult for me to find with athletic shoes in general. They provide great stability and support when swinging the club and are comfortable to walk in as well. I've walked 18 holes in them without an issue. I also liked the colors; I had a tough time choosing between the bumble bea (yellow & black) pair and the orange and gray pair. I ultimately got the latter since they match my golf bag quite nicely.

As others have said, I think it's a matter of personal taste and what makes you feel confident on the course. I'm sure that some people putt better with a Cameron solely because they have more confidence by using it and not from any superior design, which is perfectly fine. And I'm sure others get the best feel from a Cameron than any other putters they have used. In any case, do what works best for you. Also, if you want to make comparisons, I think Scotty Cameron putters are somewhat analogous to Apple MP3 players. You pay a lot for the design, R&D;, and novelty of the product both because it raises costs and they can charge higher markup for the brand name and novelty of their products. A premium product from a premium name garners a premium price.

My friend has a White Hot blade that I really liked. When I went into Golfsmith to buy my putter, I hit about two dozen different ones, and the only one I liked better was the Cleveland VP1. I went with the VP1 since it felt a little better, was about 50$ cheaper, and was otherwise the same as the White Hot. This was before Cleveland came out with the VP Forged putters, which I've never hit, so I can't attest to those unfortunately.

I'm a software engineeer at an Internet company.

I got a Muningswear pom-pom head cover that I currently have on my hybrid when I vacationed in Tokyo. The store I went to didn't have any bigger ones, otherwise I would have got them for my driver and wood as well. And I much prefer the long headcovers as well. They provide some protection to the shafts in my bag, especially since I have a stand bag with only seven pockets for clubs (Callaway Warbird). It gets a bit crowded in there sometimes.