IndianaDundee

No that 12 volt compressor is not what you want. The pancake compressors will work well for this application. You can find them in pawn shops all day long and Harbor Freight has some low end compressors also that would work for this. You don't need the tool that Pure sales, a regular air nozzle with a barbed nipple will work just fine. Also you don't have to use Pure grips as I have put on Karma, Golf Pride, Super Stroke, and a few other no name grips using this method as well. I have found that it doesn't work well with Winn grips though. You also have the benefits of taking your grip back off to straighten it or to put another layer of tape or four on if you want to experiment with different grip sizes or tapering. Watch some You Tube videos before you try and use a piece of pipe or a cut off section of golf bag tube when pulling one off with air so you don't explode one and hurt yourself.

As others have mentioned the label on the shaft means little to nothing. Some companies will label a senior flex shaft as stiff flex so some poor fool can think he is stronger than the average person. You have to go with what feels right and gives you the most consistent results, regardless of the flex or name on label. Then learn to ignore the guy in your group that hits his PW 150 yards with a drop and stop shot into the green, and accept that you need a 5 iron shot that lands short and rolls up onto the green.

I know I am the oddball here because I don't carry irons. After I got injured I found that I was having trouble hitting my 19 and 17 woods consistently. So to cover the gap between my 49 degree wedge and my 15 wood I put together a 46 degree wedge and 42 degree wedge. So now I carry 5 wedges from 42 to 59 degree.

Here is a different thought. I carry a 2 wood. I can't hit my big headed driver off the fairway, and my 4 wood gets me around 230 yards. I won't lie to you; it isn't an easy club to hit, kinda like a 1 iron. But a well struck ball will carry out around 200 yards and on a dry level (or downgrade) fairway will roll out to 250. It is also a great punch tool as you just swing normal and the ball won't get more than 5 feet of the ground.

Have to play a little one-ups-man-ship on this one. Hit by a golf ball, Yes. Hit by your own golf ball, Yes. Knocked yourself out with your own golf ball while practicing...... Yes. Good luck topping this one. I was just learning how to play and was hitting my cousins clubs into a pasture at my house. I hit a 7 iron into a fence post 10 yards in front of me (with my dad watching) and it came right back at me. I had just enough time to start to dodge as it was heading dead center between my eyes, so I dunked to the left just enough to catch the ball right above the right eye socket. Next thing I know I am on my hands and knees looking at a puddle of blood in the grass. I still have the scar on my eyelid to prove it.

Interesting experiment, but I think my results would be the opposite. My chipping shots (bump and run) with a putting stroke, can get close (sometimes in the hole) but I find that many times my putter will do just as good of a job. If I have a fluffier lie than I trust my putter in, I tend to overswing, making a putting style chip run off the back of the green or a pitching swing fly past the hole and sometimes fly over the whole green. With a high lofted pitch or even flop shot my ball tends to land close to the pin but not have enough spin to stop there. Still putting but at least on the green as opposed to facing another chip sounds like a good trade off to me. I base my shot type on the lie of the ball. A fluffy uphill lie my lob wedge will go right under the ball and leave it in the rough where my PW will fly the green and die. But a downhill tight lie my lobber is the only way to get enough spin to stop. I am also curious if there is an optimal trajectory for more common chipping situations. But how can you call an 8 iron the right club since I have seen an 44 degree 8 iron and a 35 degree 8 iron. I own a 42 degree PW so if your 8 iron is from an old set my new PW has the same loft. On the other hand if your 8 iron that is ideal for chipping is of the newer 35 degree type, then I have an old 6 iron with a 36 degree loft that my leave you a few feet short.

I find that baseball and golf, do not compare the two. Not only are the balls on completely different trajectories, but the club is on a completely different plane and your body set up is totally different. Now if you can break the golf is baseball swing idea, then set your body up with a golf swing instead of a modified baseball swing, you will have something to work with. Once you achieve an actual golf swing, you can start adjusting you stance and grip to achieve different flight paths. You can close your stance to get a draw, open it for a fade, put the ball in the front for a high trajectory or in the back for penetrating flight. From there you can strike down on the ball for more spin with your irons, and up on the ball for driving. Adjust your grip for fat or thin shots, and learn to shift your weight depending on the lie. The real trick with golf is to know which shot to play at the right time to give you you right spin, on the right trajectory, to feed the ball at the hole. Now if you found that hard to read, then you might just have a chance to get a good golf swing and learn how to shape your shot to fit your situation.

Kinda an old thread here but I have a solution. At 100 yards I carry a 52 degree Sand Blaster wedge that at a full swing will carry 105 yards and depending on green slope and cut will back up 5 yards to 5 ft. At 80 yards my 59 degree wedge is my drop and spin back a few feet club. Now if I have a 90 yard shot where a bump and run will work I take a 15 wood at 1/2 swing, or if I need a fly and die I go with a 49 degree wedge at 3/4 swing. Same thinking about any shot between 100 and 40 yards. Under 40 I go to a flop if I need a fly and die, pitch if I need a bounce and stop, or chip if I need a bump and run. Inside of 150 yards I can go with a punch with a 9 wood to stay low or fly and die with a full shot. Your real answer is to dial in your distance with less than full shots, punch shots, pitch shots, chip shots, and knowing your green conditions. If you are inside 100 yards you need to know how the green feeds assuming you're accurate with your wedges to know if you need a drop and stop, bounce and stop, or bump and run, then pick the club and shot that matches your need.

A lot of this has been said (no video so just guessing, shaft might be wrong, timing gets off, gripping too tight, 250 and straight is great) but there are a few other things to look at. Is the 250 yards correct. Most ranges miss label yardage so you think you are hitting further. Even the courses in my area are guilty of this. One hole for example is labeled 330 yards on the card and I have drove that green. But my Swing by Swing app GPS says it is 287. I really got a hold of that ball to drive the green, but I certainly don't claim that I drive the ball 330. I saw someone mention starting the downswing with your right knee. I start my swing by pointing my left knee to the target. It is a small move but it gets my lower body moving forcing my hips to turn and helps my timing for swing out of my shoes Bubba Watson type swing.

I'm assuming that tool would work just fine since it is designed for that propose. I use a basic blow gun with a barbed nipple attachment to do mine. They sell them at any hardware store for $5-20. I also dip the first inch or so of the grip in mineral spirits to get it started easy. Without the mineral spirits you run the risk of the grip folding under, building pressure quickly and blowing a bubble in the grip that will not go away. I have used this method on Winn, Super Stroke, Karma, And Golf Pride. The Golf Pride MCC +4 is a half cord/ half soft rubber compound that I have done many times with the air compressor method with great success. I would also add that you can used the air compressor method to take off grips that were put on the traditional way. It depends on the condition of the grip and the type of tape used, but I have saved grips this way to use later. If you inject mineral spirits (grip tape solvent) in the butt of the grip, then slide a tube over the grip(to catch a blowout), and while wearing safety glasses, give it a blast of air the a twist, then a blast and twist the other way. Inject some more solvent and repeat until the grip comes off or explodes under pressure. If it explodes well that is what the tube was there for and you would have destroyed the grip cutting it off anyway so you only lost a few drops of mineral spirits and got an exciting little jump when it went off like a tiny rubber grenade.

Air is definitely the way to go. I regripped mine with 6 different tape layers, took them to the range and then decided what worked best. Back to the bench to blow them off rewrap them to the ideal fit and with only the cost of tape and time, dialed my perfect grip in less than a days work.

Just a think outside the box moment. Do you have a buddy that is a backyard mechanic? Air compressor and blow gun with a bench vice are pretty basic tools for anyone who does more than change their own oil. Mineral spirits and masking tape are as cheap as grip tape and solvent, and if you build it up too much or not enough it is just a quick blast of air, cut or put another wrap on, blow the same grip back on, with less cost or fuss. Since I switched to this method I have regripped 6 different clubs with different layers of tape, went to the driving range and hit balls till I found the ideal grip build. Then blow off all my grips, rewrap them all to spec, and put them all back on at only the cost of tape and time.

My game really improved when I went to a midsize Winn Excel and later Winn DSI. But I was really disappointed in their durability and I tried out some Karma Ultra light that never felt right. I then found GolfPride MCC plus 4 on Amazon for a deal and added a few more wraps of take under the lower hand to take out almost all of the taper. I probably should pick up some more of these next time I find a deal as they are both comfortable and secure in my hand, and so far seem pretty durable.

I think in order to truly understand the change of loft on your distance you must be comparing apples to apples. It can be easy to pick up a different driver in a different loft and blame the loft for the change in accuracy and distance when the more forgiving face, shorter shaft with less torque and lower kick point that is making the desired change. If you have an adjustable driver that you hit well then you can truly dial in the correct loft. Now with all that said, with a higher loft and a fast swing speed you lose little yardage, gain more backline, and reduce sidespin. All of these changes are small in the 4 degree range between a 8 degree and 12 degree driver. As my swing has changed over the years I went from a 10 degree driver to a 9 then a 9.5 and currently have a 12. Each time was a different brand, design, and shaft but the first three changes brought both more distance and accuracy. When I got injured and lost a great deal of swing speed I found more accuracy and distance from my 12 degree.

Pretty sure I hit my longest drive ever with that ball as it sprouted wings and started flapping all the way past 400 yards.

If it ain't cut it will play. I keep better balls for playing when my game is on, cheaper balls for when my game is off, junk balls for when I am losing more balls than I tee up, all in my playing bag. Then when one gets really scuffed, cut or I find one slightly deformed it goes in the practice bag for chipping around the yard. In a typical round I generally find more balls than I lose especially on a couple of courses where there are some woods between two fairways. I can't actually remember the last time I bought balls.

Interesting thoughts on the 3 wood drill to flatten the swing path. I struggle with the other issue of sweeping all my clubs including iron so I never had to work on flattering my swing. I would disagree with you on the loft vs club head speed though. Sure angle of attack is important but in order to gain yardage with a lower lofted driver you must have the speed. I don't have the numbers right in front of me but if memory serves you need 100 mph to take advantage of a 10 degree, 115 to gain with a 9, and 130 for an 8. Even at the 130 mph swing the differences between a 12 degree and a 8 degree driver is only a few yards. If you make the mistake of going the other way and playing a 8 degree driver with a 80 mph swing you give up so much carry that your 5 iron will go farther.

Been there, done that. Only lists the cover hardness and compression on the top 7 balls in the Olympic competition.

I have been looking for a chart with all the different golf balls on it, listed by compression, spin rate, cover durability, and price. I would like for it to be searchable and to reorder so you can look at it in order of highest to lowest or lowest to highest on each category. I know "if wishes were horses" right? I know it is unrealistic to think that ever ball ever made would be listed but I would like to see something other than the 5 most popular balls on tour. Any search I have done either gives me dead links or is an advertisement for one type of ball. Even found an article claiming that it was a myth that softer compression balls were for cold weather, then a graph showing that softer balls lose less distance as the temperature drops, disproving their own point. I have been playing Pro V1s that I was given but I generally go to a Precept Laddie in the winter, but my wedges eat the cover off the Laddie in a few shots. I want to find something similar but more durable but I can't find a place to start looking.

I totally disagree with a 7 wood being a specialized club. It can definitely help you out of the rough or a fairway bunker but off the fairway it is a 200-215 yard club that can be worked left, right, high, low, or straight. The only time it guarantees to fade is if the ball is below my feet on a downhill lie. It is even my go too club when my driver isn't working, my 2 wood would give me too low a shot, and my 4 wood has been fading on me. As a side note I don't carry a hybrid, nor would I want one. Those tiny faces go right under the ball in thick rough, and if it actually takes flight it is 20 to 60 yards left of where I was aiming.

That sounds a bit more realistic than the 81 mph in the commercial but I bet it is mostly the better players that are taking the time to get a Trackman number.

I'm not asking about the Speed Stick or if it works. I am only curious about the fact they claim 81mph average speed when I was in the worst shape of my life (literally 3 months after almost dying) my swing speed was greater than the average they claim. I'm sure this brings averages down but I know seniors with 90 mph swing speeds, my wife also swings 85-95 mph, and my son is the only 8 year old I have ever seen on the course. He has only played 4 rounds and hits his 25 degree hybrid 90 yards. While I know he is well under that speed I have no doubt in a couple of years he too will be well over that 80 mph mark.

I was watching the golf channel and a commercial came on for the Swing Stick. Now I know most of these things are gimmicks and do I in no way think the average golfer can add 30 yards to their driver. I was struck by a fact that they claimed the average PGA player swings at 109 mph and the average amateur is 81 mph. I am assuming they are talking driver head speed. Now using my self as an example 8 years ago I figured my driver out and started smashing drives between 250 and 300 yards. I got fitted for a new driver at Edwin Watts and my swing was between 110 and 120 mph. Now I am not a very good golfer and due to lack of practice and short game struggles I am around a 20 handicap. I was in a bad accident a few months ago and started swinging a golf club again as soon as I could walk without a cane. Swing speed measured at 85-90 mph. Checked it again after some shoulder rehab at 105 mph. Now I know that my situation is unusual but those average numbers in the commercial seem quite low to me. As my numbers are around what PGA players hit and my scores are nowhere near Pro scores I know there is much more than speed to get scores. But how can 81 mph be average for amateur? I am not the longest driver of the guys I play with but definitely in the upper quarter. But as beat up and barely able to walk as I am I am left to wonder how bad of shape the guys bringing the average speed down must be. I am not making fun of the 90 year old guys that score better than me. But how can the swing speeds really average that low?

There is no standards for iron lofts. I have measured lofts on my old irons, my son's used irons, my new irons and a few oddball clubs I have picked up thru the years. Just PWs range from 50, 48, 45, 42 degrees. So my 42 degree PW from one set hits longer than the 44 degree 9 iron from my son's set. Now days irons may be more forgiving but the lofts are so strong you need more wedges to fill the gaps. Then at the other end your 3 iron is as hard to hit as an old 1 iron. Even your 4 and 5 irons may be hard to hit. But you can't just add 3,4,5 hybrids to the bag because a 5 hybrid hits as long as a 4 iron. Then you can't find a 47 degree wedge as most gap wedges are 50 degree or more. So now you need to carry 16 clubs to cover the distances that you used to have. So am I saying you shouldn't buy new clubs? No, just cautioning you that it may end up costing you a lot of time and money to figure out what clubs fill the distances.