nk4787

Thanks for the advice so far. Unfortunately, I'm not financially able to afford hybrids. And plus, I have my long irons so I want to fix my errors to be able to hit them =/

Hey guys, Firstly, thanks for all the advice on my previous issues. My game has come a long way and I've managed to break 100. I played 18 yesterday with the sole intent to figure out what was my next focus point. It has become my approach shot to the green which is bringing me down. During the round, my drives were fine (averaging at 220 yards) and most of them were fairways/light roughs. My putts were fine, averaging to exactly 2 putts per hole. Where I was losing a stroke or two was my shot TO the green--my long irons to be exact. Whenever I would be on a par 4...my driver would land me about 160-200yds from the green...at this point I'd take out my 3-5 irons. The problem is, I either hit it too thin (blading it practically) which doesn't take the ball as far as I want or I hit it too fat which takes a huge divot and hooks the ball like crazy. As a result, I end up having to do a small short pitch with my 58* which ends up costing me a stroke per hole. At this point I'm not concerned about my distance with my irons...I'm concerned about the accuracy. I've hit approach shots (170yd approach shot with a 3-iron) going the perfect distance but landing in the rough about 1-3 yards from the fringe. I'm going to try and take a camera with me to the range next time I go (if I can find a camera) to tape my swing but I was wandering if there were any preliminary steps I could take to get a nice clean iron shot which goes relatively straight (I'm after that 'light brush' of the grass swing). This way I can--actually--cut down my score by 16-20 strokes. Thanks in advance, -N

Hey guys, These are the only numbers I remember (sorry). I'll see if I can go back to get more numbers with more hits. Swing speed: ~80mph Launch: 18-20 degrees Distance: ~200 yards The one thing...the launch 'pad' (area where I hit from) was a little confined so I felt like I wasn't swinging as fast as I would on the course...I was a little afraid of hitting something with my complete swing. So really these numbers are probably very inaccurate...only 5 tries and probably not 100% swing speed. But nonetheless, I'd love to see the input based on these numbers. Thanks!

I happened to find a golf store here in Dubai which had a launch monitor. I got on and took a few shots with a Ping G5 10.5 Regular. Sliced and in the 160-180 yards range. The trajectory was a few degrees over 20. I then tried the G5 9 Stiff. 200-210 yards straight with 19-20 degrees launch. What I want to know is....should I go with the 9 degree stiff or the 9 degree regular and then work on my swing to get that slice away? So basically, does one gain alot of distance by using a regular shaft instead of stiff? If not then I'll just go with the 9* stiff. Also, what's the ideal launch? Is my launch of 19-20 good? Ideally I want to hit a 250+ yard drive because I'm hitting 180-200 yards with my 3-iron. Hopefully I'll find a bigger store to go to tomorrow to try the launch monitor out again with more clubs/shots to get a more accurate measure. Thanks in advance, -N

I'm slicing all my iron shots (except for my PW). Basically, what is happening is--during my backswing--my wrists twist/turn so the club face opens up and then in the downswing I'm not closing the face (or bringing it back to the original state) so that--upon impact--the ball launches with the club face open...either going right immediately or slicing during flight. Is there a drill/technique to prevent this problem? I don't have a clip of my swing, but I'll try listing it out for you: 1. Address position: ball is in the center of stance (maybe a little more towards front foot for 3/4/5 irons) with feet 1 ft apart from each other. I stand relatively far from the ball because--I find--when I stand closer/regular distance I tend to hit down early instead of a clean hit. 2. Weight transfer to right side. 3. Upper body twisting. 4. Arms move to 8 o'clock before right arm bends and pulls left arm up to the 'coil' position. 5. Weight starts transfer to left 6. Lower body starts to uncoil the upper body as arms come down 7. Arms come down with--what I'm seeing as--not enough counter wrist twisting. 8. Ball slices. Not sure if this helps but I was hoping maybe someone with a similar problem who managed to solve it could give some insight. Thanks in advance. -N

That is actually a very valid point. In fact...(being an econ major)...I'm surprised I overlooked the economics behind golf clubs. That's that then, I'll use the money to fix the flaws in my swing (especially after the terrible round I played today). -N

Thanks alot for the input guys. At the end of the day, I'm only considering buying a driver right now rather than working on my swing first because of the great offers that are on from the three brands. At this point, I am a high handicapper such that I doubt the brand of club will make a substantial difference to my game so it will all come down to what is the better value. That being said, I will definitely get fitted before purchasing. In terms of the hybrid club I'll choose--again I'll get fitted first--but it'll probably either be the #3 or the #2. The primary purpose is for the long fairway/light-rough shots...I know the fairway woods might get me more yardage but they will probably be harder to hit from my usual not-so-perfect lie ;). Thanks again for the help and I'll be sure to let you guys know which path I went with (by spending my university spending money). -N

Are fairway woods a better club choice over hybrids?

Hi, I've been playing golf for a good portion of my life but just recently started taking it seriously. About a month ago I bought my first set of irons (Wilson Di5's 3-PW) and haven't bought any woods/drivers as of yet. With TaylorMade and Callaway offering a free hybrid with a driver, I'm tempted to buy a driver (probably the Callaway X460 because of its value). My main question is...which hybrid number should I get? I already have a 3 iron which I use to tee off with right now and I can get about 200 yards with it (with a slight slice) so I don't think I want to get the #3 hybrid because it would basically a duplicate (same with the #4). So what do you guys think I should do? I'm a very high handicaper at this point...shooting in the 100-115 range. Oh and also- what loft should I get on the driver if I want to get great distance with decent loft (I don't want it to be low but I want to get about 250 yards off the drive to begin with). Thanks in advance, -N