inthecup

I currently play Callaway Apex CF16 irons. What I have noticed through Arccos is that the bulk of my misses on approach shots are short. On the courses I play on being above the hole is a bad thing so I do try and stay below the hole which adds to this miss. I have easy access to a launch monitor and a thing to note on the Apex irons for me is that they are low spinning. I am seeing low spin numbers on a monitor so perfect lie, dry club and ball, no grass between the club and the ball. On the course the numbers are probably lower. Typical 7 iron spin is 4200 rpm. The manufacturers do this for a reason, it boosts distance. My fear is that if the spin drops too much you lose distance. I don't have a problem sticking on greens I hit a high ball and the greens I play on tend to be soft. This got me thinking (which is usually not a good thing) that the lack of spin could be hurting my distance control. I had a discussion with my fitter and he sent me a Ping I200 7 iron to try. It was very interesting. With the Ping I lose 8 yards but pick up some spin (1,000 rpm) but the consistency and accuracy seemed to go up quite a bit in all categories. The fitter is really good. The test club was set to the same swing weight with the same shaft. The Ping felt really good on centered strikes, really good. I just don't know if I am chasing shadows here. I think there is something to the spin theory. The alternate course of action is to pull more club on every approach. That flies in the face of logic because I pull clubs based on Arccos distances. Does anyone have any experience with this scenario?

I bought the claw tee for my indoor hitting area. It works well. I like that I can control tee height. I do not like that the tee flies all over the place.

In my experience all quality balls are the same for the average player. Where they vary is spin around the green. For maximum spin get a urethane cover. I have a launch monitor, I did the ball fitting thing on the monitor and on the course. What I concluded is that my swing is not consistent enough for the subtleties of different balls to matter on full swings. It does matter for me around the green. I concluded I like urethane covers. From there I found the cheapest ball with a urethane cover. That is a Srixon Star Z. I can get them on sale buying 4 dozen at a time for $23 a dozen all year long. If I find a Pro V I give it to one of the guys I am playing with.

I hit my 5 iron pretty well. I still swapped in a 5H because it is easier to hit. It goes high and stops. It delivers a heavy blow and is easier to hit out of the rough. My driver swing speed is around 100 to put it in perspective. Some people are saying "graphite shaft" like that defines its characteristics? Modern graphite shafts can have the same characteristics as steel. I can get tendonitis in my elbow/forearm and my fitter put me in Steel Fiber graphite shafts. They are stiff and they make stiffer. I really like the shafts by the way and my tendonitis has not flared up since I got them. The downside it they are pricey.

I am afraid it is not much to look at. I'll snap a photo when I get a chance. That is pretty pricey. If you are looking for information an hour is a long time. Bring a couple buddies and it's pretty cheap. Questions like am I hitting up on the driver? What does it feel like to hit up on the driver can be answered then practiced somewhere else. You could then revisit and see if you achieved what you set out to.

I am a very lucky guy. Years ago I bought a Foresight GC2 launch monitor. It will give you very accurate ball numbers, launch angle, spin, ball speed distance and direction/curve. It is helpful when hitting balls into a net in the winter. It displayed the results on an ipad. Recently I added a HMT head to the launch monitor. What this means is that you add some reflective dots to the clubface and it provides an amazing amount of accurate data on what the clubhead is doing. The club face data is very helpful in determining why the ball is doing what it is doing. Last year I set this whole thing up with Foresights simulation software. I did not go with a hitting screen, I continue to use my return net and I have a big TV on the wall to display the course and the results of the shot or practice shot. This setup and software is the same thing Mark Crossfield and Rick Shiels use on youtube (to name a couple). This whole thing is not inexpensive but it is a ton of fun and I use it all year long. I play in a Wednesday golf league and it never ends. When it get to cold my teammates and I continue to play. It is an absolute blast. I keep the setup in a building I own and it is like playing in a bar except the owner (me) let you smoke cigars inside. The heckling and drama is too much fun. I'd rather play outside but this is the next best thing in the middle of the winter for sure. Beyond hitting a lot of shots on the monitor and "playing" golf league night and some afternoon and weekend rounds I will take lessons. My Pro sticks around during the winter and is happy to come over and give lessons. I am going to try and get my hips more active and improve my weight transfer to hit down on the ball more. This year was the first year with the HMT head and it really helped. My handicap dropped 2 points and if the season continued I am pretty sure I could shave a couple more off. I think I am going to take a golf fitness course also . Another pro I have worked with does a Titleist Performance institute class that is 16 weeks 32 sessions. It's mostly legs and core focused. FInally I putt in my office. Not a lot but it keeps my stroke smooth. Like 5 -10 putts a day.

I play a 44.5" driver. I feel it gives me better control and hitting the center of the clubface over time is more important than a potential mile per hour in club head speed.

When I bought my set I got 3 iron on up and played just irons for a while. I tend to hook hybrids. I think I have figured out how not to hook them. Right now I have 2 through 5 hybrid (Callaway Apex) and 6-PW Callaway Apex CF16 irons. My bag looks like I am going to put on a puppet show but I don't care, the hybrids are easier to hit. I count on my 5 for 180-195 yards. I can hit the iron about the same. I just feel over time I get a better result with hybrids. With the Apex hybrid I get what feels like a heavy blow. I can get better results out of the rough. The 5 hybrid is hard to hit low but I can hit my 6 iron 180 if I have to. I don't understand the comments about needing an iron to hit out from under trees. I can certainly punch out with a hybrid and I can hit a low punch with my 4 or three hybrid for sure.

I second taking an aimpoint class. It takes a lot of mystery out of green reading. I am still using the book (pre-express) which I am comfortable with. After you have a read it becomes line and speed. Those two are easier. One putting tip. I see a lot of people swinging their arms, it is not swinging the arms but rocking the shoulders. That's what works for me anyway. Keep it up! There is nothing like standing over a 10 footer and feeling you are going to make it.

Erik, I would love to see a test where a ball mark was fixed and photos were taken every day to see the repair result. It would have to be someone that was at the course every day. Wink wink. Then the toss the flap theory could be tested both ways. A little late in the season for this test but being the anal guy I am I'd like to see it.

I can hear the beep beep beep of the construction equipment being backed in to fill the hole. "Bringing in soil" is over the top.

A minute? Do you snap on surgical gloves and wear a magnifier headset? What could possibly take a minute?

I can't speak for you but for me pull hook means one thing. I am getting fast, my arms outrace my body (not "connected") and the club face closes. I agree with previous posters that tempo has a great deal to do with consistency. I can get amped up on the course and give it just a little more ooomph. Or what feels like a little more and is actually a lot more. I can't tell I am doing it. Ask one of your buddies that knows your game to tell you when/if you get fast on the course. Figure out how to control that and things will change. I am playing some of my best golf in recent history. Sunday I was out on an unfamiliar course and I was expecting good things. First nine I was all over the place tee to green, short game and putting were on. Into the second nine my buddy says you are trying to kill it. I try to dial things down a notch and my score drops by 5 strokes. I had no idea I was fast. Mark Crossfield did a good video on taking it from the course to the range and why it is not that simple. I searched for it but could not find it. The essence of it was there are a lot more decisions and variables on the course, you also only get one swing at each shot. On the range you grab a club and hit to a target from a flat good lie and repeat. On the course, you judge the wind, the lie, the slope, the hazards, the consequences, the last shot like this you hit, where the pin is..... It is not the range. At a certain point you have to go out and play. Good luck! Happens to everyone, well it happens to me anyway.

I like to think I leave the course better than I found it. This includes ball marks, divots and trap raking (not that I am ever in traps). I fix lots of ball marks on almost every hole. I play mostly private and they are not a lot better than the public courses I play on. I use a single tine tool or a tee. FWIW at a country club that I play regularly they give out the single tine tool and their "how to" specifically says do not twist a forked tool it breaks the roots.

I have the regular Ping G400 and I agree I love that driver. My story is the opposite. I was hitting a G25 very well with low spin so I swapped to a G30 LS thinking drop a few hundred RPS less spin and it will be better (because I am a genius)! That was not a good plan for me. My miss hits on a G30 LS were high on the face the the spin would drop to nothing. My good shots would spin in the 1700-1900 range which is dangerously low but OK. Miss hits instead of ballooning would spin 1,000, 1300 and the ball would drop from the sky. Something that felt relatively well hit would drop 20-30 yards short. I had to get out of that so I got a G400 head weighted correctly for my current shaft which I was fit for. It has been a pleasure. My spin numbers are from 1700 - 2200 (obviously I am all over the face) and it is the most forgiving driver. I am driving the ball better than ever. Good luck with the head, I'd love to hear some monitor numbers.

I agree that not all people should use a 10.5 degree driver. I am playing a 9.5 degree G400 turned down to 9 or maybe 8.5 I'd have to look. I hit up on the ball and my spin numbers are between 1700 and 2200. My launch angle is between 15 and 17 degrees and my angle of attack is between 5 and 8 degrees up. For my swing speed these numbers are near optimal. My miss is high on the face which will make the spin drop below optimal and the ball falls from the sky. Everyone is different you really need to get on a monitor.

I play partial swing from 130 yards in. Any further out and the spin drops too much and the ball does not hold.

I can't speak for Game Golf I use Arccos and I feel like the information is valuable. If you need reading glasses I think Arccos on the course would be a problem. I edit as I go and there is some editing for sure. If you can remember every shot and edit after Arccos may work. I use a Garmin watch on the course and over time I have compared it to lasers and it is very accurate. Arccos does not always give the same yardage as the watch. Good luck

This year I will approach 100 rounds. That does not include simulator rounds. I think I'll have 50 of those by the end of the year. Overall a great year for golf!

I hope this works on my indoor mat. I have a matt and net at work. The biggest problem is not being able to control tee height. If this fixes that problem it will be a relief. I ordered a set today.

I agree those vivid matt balls on the green look bigger then a normal call, like they glow!

I will visit the practice bunker and experiment. All the things you say I can’t do with my technique I can, but I will move the ball forward and see what happens.

I'll stick with what I am doing. I use the bounce, I can't see how putting the ball forward would help me get better results. I have done it in the past and got erratic results. There is more than one way to be successful.

I used to play the ball off my front foot. That can work but I think it is a more difficult approach. If you think about it that produces the opportunity to thin it which is the biggest risk to a big score.

Really hard sand is difficult. It takes commitment to swing hard and go deep! Sometime "bad things happen". My home course had a period where the sand got thin. So I thin layer on top of clay. That was difficult. Bad things happened regularly as the club skipped off the clay.