Callie in MI

Entered. Thx!

My husband and I are playing on the 4th. First tee time is 6:32am at the Auburn HIlls, MI Arthur Hills design Fieldstone (early early wake-up call tomorrow, as the course is 1 hour away from our house). After that, 12.10pm tee time a little further south in a residential community golf course. (The groupgolfer certificate I have expires like on the 15th of this month.) For those of you playing tomorrow - play well and hit 'em long and straight! Cindy

Bolded portion - yes, you're right. However, ALL bets are off if there's water involved. ANYWHERE where I can see it. Because as we all know, those darn balls are magnetically attracted to the water and will find their way into it. (Maybe it's because I play the girlie pink balls.) Cindy

Yes, I know, a 9W!!!! I also have a 7W, but don't actually keep it my bag (that was my $35 ebay find). But keep in mind, I'm a girl. And I do have hybrids - 2 of those currently in my bag. I use those out of the long rough. (Believe me, I'm one of the biggest "women" club ho's you will find - so equipment is not the issue. I think it's my swing - no, I KNOW it's my swing. ) I think the problem for me is my swing speed is so much lower than you guys - those clubs with the longer shaft take more precision to hit properly. I seem to have the 9W down. It's easier for me with the 5W off the tee (but forget it trying to hit that sucker flush in the fairway). My driver, even though it has a long shaft, it also has a huge head (Callaway FT9, 13 deg) and I get to tee up the ball - which makes striking it easier. I guess my point was play what you are confident in and comfortable with. I'd rather have a half-way decent or good shot than a bad/horrible one (I think every golfer feels like that.) And if it means that bench the driver and go with the 3w, why not? For me, there is no 3w. It's just my driver. I've actually used my driver (choked down a little) on par 3's. (I know - insert funny comment here.) However, that choked down driver got me closest to and $50! So, I'll take that! Cindy

The experiences noted here are different from my personal experience - I'm wondering if it's gender-physical thing? (I've only been golfing for over six years now, FYI.) When I first started golfing, I used a very light-weight Ping driver that my husband had (an extra one, of course). I really liked that driver and quite honestly, it was one of the few clubs that I could hit consistently. Eventually (like the next golf season), I got my own "ladies" driver (Callaway high trajectory loft) and to this day, the driver is one of my favorite clubs in the bag. (Now granted, I don't hit the ball as far you guys, but I'm long enough off the tee and usually somewhere in the fairway .) The 3W, on the other hand - HATED IT!!! I finally sold the darn thing - after coming to the realization that I couldn't hit it AT ALL (let alone consistently). I was told by one instructor that my swing speed would never be fast enough to hit the 3W well. Before I sold it, I would pull out my 5W, thinking, ok, I'd rather have a good 5W shot than a crappy 3w shot. I don't think I really lost that much distance. (Funny thing is, now that I don't have a 3W, my 5W has become the "new" 3W - find I can't hit that very consistenly in the fairway, short rough. So now, I just use my 9W in the fairway and only use the 5W off the tee on the long-ish par 3's). Cindy

Sorry Jonnyy, I didn't see your post later on down the line there. So, I guess you can disregard my earlier post. My husband has the Four 5 from a couple of years ago. He almost always carries his bag when he golfs. And, he carries alot of stuff. He really likes the bag. I'll let you know the amount of pockets and the details later on (once I leave work and have a chance to check out his bag). Cindy

Hey Jonnyy - Golf Galaxy seems to have your red nike bag. Here's the link (I hope, not very good with this stuff sometimes). http://www.golfgalaxy.com/Nike-Golf-Sasquatch-Tour-Stand-Bag/PAPMICABIIONACDP/product I have the Nike bag and I find it holds most of my stuff. My husband had to slightly modify if for me, because, shock, shock, I have too much stuff that I carry on my bag. Good luck in your search! Cindy

I live in MI as well and am also curious to know the golf course. The first thing I thought when I read this was Bay Harbor in northern MI. That has been the only course that actually asked handicap and assigned players to a tee box based on that. However, that has NEVER worked in making the round shorter on that course because every time I've played Bay Harbor (Links/Quarry or the Preserve/Quarry), we're backed up like a bad sewer. 5+ hour for 18 (WITH a cart). Goodness - it tries my patience. I don't know whether handicap should be the ONLY criteria for playing the backs or the tips. My husband drives the ball at least 280 on pretty much every drive. His handicap isn't lower because his short game sucks! (Please don't tell him I said that! ) He most always plays from the back tees. And when we play with his boss, his boss usually plays from those tees as well, when in reality, his boss should be playing with me from the forward tees! Just my 2 cents' worth.