Par Fore

Another vote for Snell MTB Black....love them, stands up to any premium ball IMHO.

Haven't done it in a while, but last time I played 3-club.....3 iron, 7, and 52.....I shot 84, which is actually a pretty good round for me regardless....putted with the 3 iron.....it was fun......in a typical round with a full bag of 14, usually have 2 or 3 that are spotless/unused at the end of the round.

Used to do this when I had to sneak a small carry bag in the back of my soft top jeep wrangler, I'd play at least once a week after work - with one of those tiny carry bags, I could only fit like 8 clubs, and the longest was a 3 wood.....that, a putter, and then just skipped over every other iron through the rest of the set. You get creative and I always had a good time. Also had a lot of fun playing 3 club, did that a couple of times - 3 iron, which is your driver and putter, 7 iron, and 56.....or some variation of that......play a draw for more yardage when needed or a fade to cut off some yards, choke down or take half swings, all sorts of options. Do what makes you happy. I still prefer all 14, but it's a fun change of pace, and when I had the jeep, it was a necessity to fit them in the back and hide them to play right after work....and it worked just fine.

Been struggling with limited gains the last couple of years. Between my back and work, it's been less golf than I would have hoped.....frustrating, a struggle. Went to the range for a rare practice session a week or so ago, it was brutal.....a third of my shots were really bad....a third ok.....a third were solid. I had decided it was time to put up my Ben Hogan Ft Worth 15's and get some shovels......I had read the reviews and sold myself on the Mizuno JPX 900 Hot Metals, everyone seemed to like them. Additionally, I did a little rare reading, went back and read Freddy Couples "Total Shotmaking" - to hell with my draw, it was time for a fade. I literally looked at his setup, watched some Freddy youtube, and decided that I would set up with an open stance, swing along the target line, and hit 5 yard fades. Saturday, went to the range with two objectives: try the 900's versus my Ben Hogans, and also start hitting fades. It wasn't all that warm, and we had a 20 mph wind, not the best conditions but typical for this time of year. The Hot Metals are are a great looking club, although a bit big, and put it side by side with the Hogans. To my surprise, hitting 5 balls with each club and switching back, I consistently hit the Hogans much better, better ball flight, and with more control. And, with a 5 yard fade......unreal. So, the good news......no dropping a bunch of cash on new irons. I hit the forgiving irons worse than the players irons, dispersion was much greater and ball flight too high. Great range session, headed home to enjoy date night. Next day, noon.....get to the golf course in perfect time to hit a small bucket, pick up my 28 degree and start hitting 5 yard fades to warm up......hit about 20 balls, go hit about 20 pitches, and then putting green for about 20 putts. Getting close to my tee time with the regular foursome and some Wolf. Decided to just own it, stick with the game plan, and play fades all day - the distance loss was less than expected. I also took an extra club on each shot and was on or around the green often (see Erik's book/icacas, I was essentially running with the advice of Freddy and Eric all day). Threw ego out of the equation - even into the wind, stuck with that fade and played the percentages. Winter grass meant tight lies......I even putted twice from 30 yards off the green, playing the percentages. Tried to play smart on every shot, avoided sneaking back to my draw and also trying anything high risk......punched out a few times and took my medicine. On winter grass, on a windy day where the wind continued to blow and got colder/worse on the back 9, shot an 81.....and I am a poor wind player. Long story short, recommendations: Played a draw almost all of my life - just a few days with a fade, it was more consistent. An old friend of mine who was scratch used to always say, "you can talk to a fade, but a hook won't listen". He was right. Books - Freddy's Total Shotmaking has some good info, but I would especially read Erik's/Iacas book......it talks simple concepts and playing the percentages. Ego - leave it at home.....true, my drives were 20 yards shorter on average with a fade, but I didn't have the couple of duck hooks that always show up, hit more fairways, more GIR, and generally hit the ball in the general direction intended. Hope this is a good read.......I went from buying new clubs, realized the problem was me, changed my strategy, and shot a legit 81 in strong winds....and I hate wind. Looking forward to 2018. Anything is possible

Respectfully disagree. Some days watching the PGA Tour, it seems like one of the players can walk between the raindrops. One player hits what appears to be the perfect tee shot, and it rolls just 4 inches off the fairway into the deepest rough in the course. His playing partner launches it 40 yards off the fairway into Marlboro Country and has a perfect lie in a trampled area, just 5 feet short of OB. Another event, one player literally hits it so bad it goes across a 20 yard waterway, hits the bank and bounces back across the water and into the center of the fairway.....his partners ball is barely leaked out to the right center of the fairway, just releases a little far and rolls right in. I see it all the time watching tour events - best players playing the best players, 5 yards from one another in the rough - one is sitting up like it's on a tee, the other so deep it's almost a lost ball, immediate examples of good and back luck.....the same that we all have in our weekend games. All these players at the highest level, luck is in every tournament. Pros hit trees and end up in the middle of the fairway....I believe some even have hole in ones that hit a tree. Same thing for me.......this weekend, I played in some decent wind and played really, really well.....but any shot that I hit in the rough nestled up close to a tree and I was punching out, it was uncanny. Some days, I play much worse but bad shots somehow magically work out. I think luck plays a role even at the highest levels, and if you look for it, it's there a lot more often than you might think.

Ron, I'm in DFW.....even in the winter, the weather usually supports golf at least 3 days a week, if not more......we played yesterday/Sunday, at 1pm it was 60 degrees, sunny, and beautiful.....a little windy but we had a blast., although it was a little chilly coming in the last few holes when the northern starting coming in....and we played for $20 with cart. I work 50-60 hours a week and can only play on Sundays.....and I almost always get to play at least twice a month in the winter. Stay strong.....when March gets here, you can play almost every day all the way through November.

Anything over a constant 30 mph is brutal.....prefer under 30 mph whenever possible.....have played in worse, but it's not fun when you have to hover your putter and hope the ball doesn't move in your backswing.

First 460 CC driver......Mizuno MP001.....went from a driver about half it's size. Felt like I was cheating the game.....but I was easily hitting it 20 yards futher than my other driver.......and it helped me catch up to the pack. Now it's just common place, but I remember fighting every step of the way at the time. Also, the massive pricetag was by far the most I had ever spent on a club.

Is the Red a competitor to the Vice Pro Plus - always liked the V1X and have been hoping Snell would come out with something that matches up, heard a lot of good feedback here. Curious to see reviews on these.

Aeroburner TP Mini Driver - 12 degree....I used one for a while, good club......great off the tee, excellent off the deck on a perfect lie for long par 5's. I think it is around 300 or so, basically a large, strong 3 wood, fun club.

POW

Looks in mirror. Sees truth in this statement. Realizes the truth stings a bit. FYI, speaking for myself, not for anyone else above and here......this makes sense. Played as a single today, was partnered up with a twosome....one of them played to scratch, or at least his skillset did. His miss off the tee was the wrong side of the fairway, or just a little short, or barely in the rough. I hit like 3 fairways the entire day (yes, rough day off the box). A missed approach shot for him left him with a 30-40 foot putt, my miss was anywhere from just off the green to 50 yards short. His par putts were almost all within 3 feet, most being tap-ins, my par and bogey putts were 3-10 feet. I hit in the drink 3 times, and twice on the same hole. He didn't have a single penalty shot. Unfortunately, lots of truth to what Erik says. It hit me today. Hurts a bit, but if you want to get better, recommend you take a good look.

Try to hit all 3, multiple times on different days.....just posted a recent thread, hit a crazy number of different clubs over the last few months, and the S55s, I, and Apex Pro were within that sample group. See which feels best, and use a monitor to see if the numbers support how they feel to you. My experience - couldn't hit the 55's with any real consistency, the I's were better, and 16 Apex Pros were amazing (look like a players club, but very easy to hit and in my top 3). All 3 are quality clubs, can't go wrong IMHO. Good luck.

Along with getting back into golf, working on getting back in shape. Right now about 20 pounds heavy, clothes barely fit, yada yada.... Today's workout, legs followed by accidental basketball. 4 sets of leg presses, 4 sets of calves, 3 sets of quads, and 3 sets of hams....was shooting around afterwards to loosen up before heading home, ended up playing 20 minutes of 2 on 2. Good sweat, good workout. 200 pounds today, goal is 180.