Sean_D

Keep two score cards. On the first score card, record your actual score. On the second card, keep your score for your competition with him. If he shaves two strokes off his score, shave two off yours. Repeat for each hole. and at the end give him your "adjusted" score. Turnabout is fair play.

To me a "D" wedge is when I pop my driver straight up.

Looking at the specs of the i500 and the i210, they don’t look like they are designed to be directly blended. The i500s have a loft that is 2* stronger throughout the set. Fortunately, PING offer the set in “retro lofts” which brings them back in line with the i210s. Also, it’s not just distance control I’m looking for, but more control over launch and spin, which is something I believe the i210 would offer above the G400 or i500. I agree that modern sets have a “blending” already incorporated in the design. In my G400s even the shaft weight gets lighter as the club gets longer (PING AWT 2.0).

This is what makes golf a great game, multiple solutions to every problem. I just switched from my set GW to an RTX Zipcore 50* to be better able to flight shots lower, have better spin control, and to have better control around the green. I also switched from the CBX to the RTX-4 54 & 60* for similar reasons. I still think the CBX is better in the sand than pretty much anything else. I use my wedges for so much more than bunker shots.

It is not about overall distance, it is about reducing the delta between the longest shot and the shortest shot on similarly struck balls. Using Shot scope tracking every shot I have taken on a golf course this season, I have learned that the shot consistency between my G400 set wedge and my Cleveland blade wedge in heavily in favor of the blade wedge. Empirically, I have noticed the G400s are far more likely to take off "flier" like a 145 yard PW when i normally hit my PW 130 yds. Once I started hitting the RTX wedge the distance became much more consistent. That is what I am looking for.

I am thinking about replacing my irons. I currently use PING G400s for which I was fitted. In the last two years, I have gone from a 20 to a 9 and I am looking for a bit more distance control than the G400s offer. In my mind, I have created a theoretical set which contains a Cleveland RTX Zipcore PW @ 45*, PING i210 (or equivalent) at the 9,8,7, and 6 irons, and PING i500 (or equivalent) in the 5 and 4 irons. Does anyone have a similar iron set-up? Do you notice a bigger/smaller gap when transitioning between iron types? Does the difference in spin characteristic have a big effect on the shot you attempt to hit? Would you recommend including the 6i in i500 category? Or any other though you may have on the subject. Is there a question I am not asking, which I should be?

To me this question revolves around how you use your GW. If your GW is a full swing club and you never use it for finesse shots around the green, then go CBX or set wedge. If you use you GW for a lot of bump and runs and other short shots around the green, then go RTX.

My Goals for 2021: Lower Index to 7.5 or lower (Currently 9.6) This goal will be meet by achieving the following goals. Increase Fairways hit percentage to >53% (Currently 48%) Working with my coach to continue my ball striking. Better understanding of shot shapes and shot zones Increase tee P.Avg to >260yds. (Currently 255 yds.) Focus on ball striking, ball speed, and launch angle Increase GIR to >37% (Currently 32%) Range practice with alignment aids Ball striking (Different trajectories and shot shapes) Better understanding of shot zones Decrease approach proximity to hole to <40 feet (Currently 47.62') More target oriented practice on range especially within 150 yards. Increase Scramble Percentage to >40% (Currently 34%) Practice from varying lies and distances in the short game area. Decrease short game (<50 yds.) proximity to <15 feet (Currently 18.38') Reduce 3-putt percentage to 8% or less. (Currently 10%) practice lag putting. In 2020, I set my supporting goals too aggressively and missed most of them while still achieving my larger goal or reducing my index. This season I hope I have set those goals more realistically. I have also included goals pertaining to distance and accuracy (which relate more closely to strokes gained) and included more mental aspects of course management into my training.

Lower index to <11 Achieved. My current index is 9.6. Increase fairways hit to >50% (currently at 42%) Failed. My fairways hit is now 48%, but my P.Ave for distance went from 232 yds to 255 yds. Increase GIR to >45% (currently at 28.52%) Failed. My GIR for the season is 32%. Increased 3.48% Increase Scramble (<50 yds.) percentage to >35% (currently at 26.6%) Failed. My current Scramble % is 34%.Increased 7.4%. Reduce 3-putts to <10% Achieved. Current 3-putt percentage is 10%, but for most of the year it hovered in the high 9%. I have had a rash of three putts in recent rounds. Probably from hitting more greens and being further away from the hole. Participate in at least five tournaments Failed. I have played in 1 tournament this year. COVID killed this one. And I didn't finish in the money. Repeat as champion of my Monday night league. Achieved. Finished with most weekly points (and $) for finishes in the top three. Also won most improved award and my index went from 13 to 9. Repeat as top money winner of my Thursday night league Achieved. Mostly because I won most of the long-drive holes throughout the season. My partner and I also did very well in the weekly scoring. Complete 54-hole challenge on the summer solstice. Failed. Again, COVID. Golf courses got stupid crowded and expensive this summer. I was planning on completing this challenge at three courses located within about 8 miles of each other for about $125. This final cost would have been about $200 and the people who had agreed to participate with me backed out as well. So I pretty much failed all my supporting goals, but achieved my main goal and my competitive goals. I guess my supporting goals were a little too lofty, although I improved in all of those areas. I would love to see what my index would have been had I achieved all of them. All things considered. I am deeming this a successful season.

Twilight are already discounted rates, and weekends are the most in demand. From a business perspective, it makes little sense to further discount a discounted rate and no sense to discount high demand tee times.

Tinnitus. I've been a rock guitarist for 35+years. Always tinnitus.

This.... When one is able to write off a vehicle lease as a business expense, it makes sense to lease.

I will use a combination or yardage, rating/slope, and then the par 3s if I am caught between tees. I like to play between 6000 and 6500 with a slope in the mid to upper 120s. Most of the tournaments I play are around 6250. If I have never played a course before, I play shorter tees. Also, if all my buddies want to play a different set of tees, I'll go there as well (sometimes forward, sometimes back).

When I play with people whom I have never played with before, I always tell them on the 1st tee, "I plan on posting this score for my index and I need to finish each hole. I don't give putts and I don't take them." I stared doing this because people would "ship my ball back", and wait for me to give them a putt. I really don't care what they do, they can give themselves a 50-footer if they want. If we're competing, we're playing by the rules. If were not competing, I'm playing by the rules and they can do whatever they want.

From all accounts I have heard, yes. They are adding strokes gained in the near future.

I have had both V2 and V3 and recorded several rounds with both. The shot tracking has greatly improved with V3. With V2 I would regularly have to ad 5-6 shots per round and putting from the fairway/fringe was either no tracked or tracked as being on the green. V3 is much more accurate. The GPS location on the green for both putts and pin is still not perfect, but much better than V2. I am finding I only have to add one or two shots per round with V3. I wish the mobile app had the same detail as the online dashboard. However editing the round on the app is now much easier than before and I am starting to prefer it to editing online. Overall, I highly recommend Shot Scope. The data is invaluable, and once they release strokes gained, it will be significantly greater value.

Lots of hard work. Lessons, practice, data analysis, and determination. My most recent score, 77, was shot on a course I have only played 3-4 times and from a set of tees I have never played. There is really no secret sauce. Know the distance each club goes, minimize the misses, recover from bad shots with minimal damage. I wish I had a secret tip to give everyone, but alas it all came down to practicing a lot, learning everything I can, and then practicing those things I am not very good at.

My index is dropping like a stone. In the last two weeks my index has gone from 14.5 to 9.9. I broke 80 (+5 76) for the first time which triggered an ESR and then followed that up with with a +6 77 on a much longer and more difficult course. My differentials have been hovering between 5 and 8 for the last few rounds I have shot and the 12 - 14 differentials are getting replaced rapidly. I must say... It feels good to be a single digit handicap especially since I was in the 30s in 2018.

77 today at Castle Oaks in N. California. 70.5/124/6356. A lot of back pins today so several holes played longer than listed. 12 pars, 6 bogies and several missed birdie chances. Only 4 fairways, but 10 GIR and 4 up and downs. 2, 3-putt GIR. I broke 80 for the second consecutive time, the previous was my first. My index is down to 11 from 14.2 and this 5.6 differential replaces a 14.5 differential. I think my index is going into single digits tomorrow, which satisfies my main goal for 2020.

I broke 80 for the first time, and it happened at the same course I broke 90. Bartley Cavanaugh in Sacramento, CA. I played from the Blue tees and shot 9 bogies, 5 pars, and 4 birdies for 5 over 76. The score triggered and Exceptional Score Revision and all my differentials were lowered by one. My index went from 14.5 to 12.2. If I didn't 3-putt two GIRs (two stupid decisions to try to putt while twistering my way around other player's lines) it could/should have been a +3 round.

Check out Operation 36. It aims to teach the game from the green to the tee. A golfer starts at 25 yards and once they shoot 36 or better over 9 holes they move back to 50 yds., then 100, then 150, then 200 all the way back to full tee length. My wife is considering playing golf, and I will use this approach with her.

I'll share my empirical evidence from when I was in the same place as you. I played the Kirkland 3-piece and discovered it is probably the spiny-est ball on the market. I lost yardage on every shot and spun balls back off most greens I hit, all due to spin. I found a happy space between the 2-piece balls and the tour level balls and that is the 3-piece surlyn cover balls. Examples are Srixon Q-Star tour, Callaway SuperHot, Callaway Diablo Tour (Dick's exclusive), Callaway Hex Tour (Costco exclusive), Wilson Duo, Volvik, and Bridgestone e12 to name a few. I found they somewhat help mitigate the effect of off axis spin (most incorrectly known as "side-spin") on lower lofted clubs but promote higher spin on higher lofted clubs when compared to their 2-piece counterparts. They do not spin as much as urethane covered golf balls, but do spin more than 2-piece balls. I found them to be an integral step in my development. I used the Top-Flite "Gamer" (this ball is no longer in production but has the same specs as the ones listed above) for about a season and a half. I chose the Gamer because I could get large quantities cheaply and their performance was every bit equal to the other offerings. Anyway. Good luck on your journey. Ultimately, you will have to correct the swing flaws (I'm sure you're aware of this). In the interim, using the 3-piece surlyn cover balls are a great stepping stone and gateway to tour caliber golf balls.

I found an app called GolfMetrics, which calculates strokes gained for all shots, drives, approach, short game, and putting. It assigns a handicap level for each area. Since I have been using this app, I have learned I need to work on my 20-60 yard short game, and my driving (I already knew I need to work on my tee shots). It was a huge revelation to me when I saw that, according to strokes gained, I am a single digit index in approach, recovery, putting and other short game shots, but a high teens in 20-60 yards and a 20 in driving. The difficult part in using this app is you need to know the exact distance to the hole for each shot you take on the course. I use Shot Scope to get this information. The app costs $70 per year. I have been using a 5-day trial and I am seriously considering purchasing.

I am also in Northern California, and I have seen rate increases. Several courses which used to charge ~$20 for twilight are now charging as much as $35 for the same tee times. The courses are all packed. I think it is simply supply and demand.

Finished Day-9. I really liked this drill. I discovered I have been too lazy at the top of my backswing, and it was costing me yards. Today I only hit into a net, and was making much better contact and being much more aggressive and confident. I am playing tomorrow, so I’ll see if it translates to the course. I plan on doing this drill as part of my warm-up.