erock9174

See post #29 above. Yes it's replacing the AD333 according to Srixon reps however they improved the short game spin and feel.

I did the free 30 min swing evaluation today and was trying to access the web based content. The user name and password logged me in, however where do you click to view your swing analysis? As to my visit and thoughts..... I also met with Carl at the North Olmsted, OH location today. From the get go, he was very pleasant to work with and asked a bunch of questions. Hongman's post above is spot on regarding the technology they use to record your swing so I won't bore anyone with a recap of how they do their analysis. He asked me what I wanted out of today's session. I replied with: First I want to know the proper way to grip a club - I told him I have heard conflicting stories on which type of grip I should use. Last week a clubfitter I went to said I had to play a full 10 finger grip versus my normal interlocking grip. Thankfully Carl said to go back to the interlocking grip as 9 out of every 10 full fingered players tend to allow their hands to separate during the swing at some point which can be very bad for a swing. I was much obliged to go back to the interlock as this is what I am comfortable with. He said my grip was a little strong but shouldn't hurt me as I was getting the clubhead back to square at impact. Next I told him, that I have developed a fade to slice with my driver that I can't seem to cure. He had me take 5 practice swings with my 7i. He had me come over to the monitor. He showed me the Pro's swing plane versus my swing plane. I was taking the club back severely steep and returning it on the same plane. He drew the proper plane lines on my video and I had to be 8-12" outside those lines. I wasn't even dropping down to the upper swing plane on my downswing, my swing was so steep. It was embarrassing. He then brought out the SKLZ slice eliminator device. Basically it has a couple foam pads that stick out and is adjustable up and down. He placed this behind my ball and said to take a couple swings at 50% whereby I had to draw the club straight back to avoid the foam, then go up and over (almost looping the club) and then on the downswing make sure to come inside the foam without hitting any foam. He then removed the device and put 3 tees down. One directly behind the ball and each of the others on a 45* angle on the inside path in front of the ball and outside path beyond the ball. He said to make sure my club travels over the tees. I hit 5 more balls and immediately my swing was now on plane. This was really eye opening. He asked, when I was making those corrected swings what I was thinking of and he logged those in to my profile page as a drill tip. He then had me take out my driver and try and replicate the on plane, inside out swing. Sure enough it translated over to the driver and I was now on plane with the driver as well. On their monitor it was showing I was actually hitting a slight draw. Something I used to do but had eluded me for quite some time. Finally upon leaving I asked if he could tell me which driver I should be playing as I have been torn between the last 2 I purchased. He asked if I had a few minutes. I of course said yes and he took me over to another room where they had a launch monitor set up. It took a couple minutes for him to calibrate it. Then he had me take 5 swings with Driver #1 and then by the time I got to 2 swings with Driver #2 he immediately said Driver #2 is the ticket for me. Much better spin, impact and launch numbers. Granted I haven't taken this to the range or course yet, but it's probably the first time I have ever received instruction and the tips provided actually feel good. Most of the time when I get a tip, the new move feels so foreign to me. I just felt like I had so much more pop with the driver on my practice swings there. Can't wait to hit the range tomorrow and try the new changes out. Another refreshing thing was Carl was in no way trying to push further lessons or instructions. He merely told me what they had to offer and some future goals that he would focus on for me (increase shoulder/hips turn to generate more clubhead speed) should I choose to return. He also told me there is a center much closer to my house and gave me a contact there if I ever wanted to call them. All and all I thought this was a great experience and like I told Carl, a picture/video is worth a thousand words.

I did today after seeing that when gripping the driver (std size grip) with interlocking grip my grip was very weak. When I gripped a ladies club my right hand naturally goes more over the top. So I had the driver re-gripped with a KZG undersized grip. Also tried out the 10 finger today at the range. I thought the undersized grip change and trying the 10 finger grip (concentrating on the right hand being stronger) would cure my fade. No dice. So something else must be causing me to fade/slice. My guess is I must be coming outside in across the ball. I am going to video tape my swing and see what I am really doing.

Wanted to resurrect an old thread because I have a question about the 10 finger grip. Does the type of grip you use (i.e. how you hold the club / not the brand of grip) depend on the size of hand you have? Some background on why I have the question: I'm right handed and currently use what I think is an interlocking grip (i.e my left index finger goes inbetween my right pinky and ring finger). I went to a fitter today for some questions I had about a driver and the first thing he asked was, Wait what kind of grip are you using? I said interlocking. He then had me put my hand up against his hand and said that my hand is not big enough (6 1/4" from wrist to top of middle finger) for an interlocking grip and that it makes my grip very weak (I can see alot of my right palm when at address). So he sounds like he knows what he is talking about. Ever since I began golf I've always used this grip. He told me to use the 10 finger grip with my left thumb straight down the shaft and my top thumb pointed slightly to the left (this creates a "V" where the thumb and index finger meet which he said should point down the middle of the shaft. This is a much more closed grip than what I was used to and even though I learned to play baseball before golf, the 10 finger feels so foreign to me

Just a follow-up to my earlier posts. I had to finally give up on the 17* hybrid. After 4 range sessions and a few rounds with a couple hits I couldn't muster up even one flush shot. I handed it to my brother who is a better ball striker and he duffed it on 3 straight attempts. I emailed Ping last week and told them I thought perhaps something was wrong on the head or perhaps the 2* flat head might be causing my issues. Figured I wouldn't even get an email reply, but low and behold within an hour I got a call back from a rep at Ping. The rep said he was doubtful anything was wrong with the head and proceeded to ask me where I was fitted (Golf Galaxy), about my measurements as well as the club specs. He wrote everything down and handed it off to one of their fitters. The rep gets back on the phone and says "Golf Galaxy did everything correct at your fitting except for one thing". I said, oh yeah, what is that. The rep said "would you ever play an 8.5* degree driver?" I said, nope that would never work me since I don't swing hard enough". He says "Exactly". In a nutshell my swing speed does is not high enough to properly hit a 17* hybrid. They told me I probably max out around a 20* and that the 17*'s should be left in the hands of better handicap players. At first he said to send back the club and he would see what he could do. I told him I don't really want to send the club back for them to find nothing wrong with the club. Told him the club is not even in my bag anymore because it's useless to me and told him I had to buy a K15 FW in the meantime but that it left me too much of a distance between it and my 4i. He then emailed me a fedex prepaid shipping label and said to send it back that he would make it right. Club arrived there yesterday, got a call from the rep and Ping plans to send out a new 20* tomorrow. Now that is customer service !!!! The only thing I was out was the Wynn grip I had installed on the club but I could care less. Like I said, I was happy as a fat kid with cake to even get a call back from somebody, let alone get a new club out of the deal. I have emailed Taylormade several times with questions and never get a call, let alone an email back from them. Once I get enough cash I plan on putting some Ping irons in play.

Theory question here: I was planning on buying the Tour Striker in order to increase lag and to learn how to hit down and compress the ball. Say I accomplish this and my swing changes and becomes better. I currently game TM Burner Plus irons that have a large sole which makes them more forgiving. and Currently I rarely take a divot (have more a sweeping swing). A Buddy of mine said, if you learn how to hit down on the ball with more lag won't you need more of a players iron (aka blades). I said good question. So that is my question to you guys. Will my Game Improvement clubs still work with a better more descending swing?

A bit off topic but still Golf Tec related. I read on the Golftec site that whenever you are fitted for a club there, they sell every brand offered at Golfsmith stores and therefore bias of the fitter is removed. Also their database attempts to match your swing, etc to a brand/club that fits you bets. Does anybody know how this database knows what will work best for you? I know computers are great but just makes me wonder how a computer knows that a Ping G15 might be better for me than a Cobra S3. Has anybody used Golftec for a Driver fitting? Was thinking about trying out the North Olmsted store mentioned above.

Props to you for your handicap and age. Wish I would have taken up golf sooner than the age of 19. ughhh.

I didn't think Ping drivers had removable heads on them, (unless the shaft was pulled and reglued). Or did the place have a ping fitting cart?

My question is where are you finding these places that where you can try out different manuf heads with various shafts? The local fitter in my area only sells KZG equipment including their shafts, no other manufacturers shafts which scares me a bit. The local Golf Galaxy has one person that is reputable for fittings (their pro) and to be honest, being that he is sponsored by Taylormade, every time I see somebody going for a driver fitting the only clubs in their hands are Superfast 2.0 or r11's. So I fear the bias will set in there. Does anybody know if Golftec centers has the flexibility of doing a proper fitting? I've never been to one but I know there is one about 45 minutes from me

That was always my thought. They have a chart at Golf Galaxy that told me I needed to be around that 13-14* loft mark with my swing speed. Granted other factors like bend point, tourqe of shaft, all play in though I guess. As somebody mentioned above, a fitting with multiple combos is probably the best idea. I really like the Fubuki shaft. Feels like the perfect amount of whip for me. Since I am on the border of Reg and Senior flex its tough to find the right shaft. I have tried some seniors which are way too whippy and I spray the ball everywhere. Also have tried regular flexes that felt like a board and I knew I wasnt loading it properly. The fubuki's regular flex is a little whippier than most regulars I have tried yet I don't spray the ball everywhere with it.

Thanks for the recommendations. Currently I play the yellow ("4 yards longer" tees). Since it had a stopper its always at an equal height. Ball is typically about 1/4" above the head. So not too high. I was never a fan of putting 1/2 to a full ball above the tee. Since they make a 10* and 11* head for the FT-IQ, I guess I will have to decide between those two. I almost feel like 2 degrees down to 11* might not be that much of a difference. Maybe I will go with the 10* and see how that works.

Thanks to anyone who provides some help. I currently game a Callaway FT-IQ I-mix 13* driver with Fubuki 60 Reg flex shaft. I like the driver and its helps me to hit straighter drives. I did notice this weekend while playing in a 4 man scramble that my ball flight is much higher than my teammates and in turn I think I am losing some distance. Possibly up to 20-30 yards. My driver swing speed is 82-84 mph on average. I really dont try to swing any harder as the shot usually ends up bad. So the more controlled approach works better for me. With the current setup I see maybe 210 yards on average off the tee which is mostly carry distance. Longest with roll ever was 240 with it so far but that is few and far between. I got to thinking, since the I-mix has other available lofts should I go down to say a 9, 10 or 11*? And if so what loft would you recommend? they are all roughly the same price on Callaway Preowned.

Glad you like them. I have been gaming them this season. Granted everything else in my bag has changed too for 2011, but my scoring average went from about 96 in 2010 to right around 90/91 this season. The irons are definately helping me. What I find best about them is their forgiveness. I will skull a shot every now and then and you can feel the mishit, yet the ball will still fly straight and have a respectable outcome for as bad as the ball was struck. With my old irons, any mishit was pretty much a flubbed 15 yd shot. My only knock on them, was I thought they looked cheap compared to the Cobra S2 max that I was comparing them too when I bought them. But I went with the results and how they felt on the simulator. So far not regretting the decision.

whoops, sorry meant Callaway

Picked some up for a scramble tomorrow. Can't wait to try it out. To be honest I don't know if I would have even tried it had it not been offered in tour yellow. I am sold on yellow ever since trying a yellow e6 and Trispeed Tour. The e6's just don't do anything for me as far as approach spin. The Trispeeds were better but I really don't want to pay $35 for a dozen balls. This seems to be a great compromise of performance and price, now let's see how they perform on the course. Oh and I saw on another forum where somebody asked if Srixon planned to replace anything with the Q-Star. I asked the guy at my local shop if he knew anything and he said their rep told them that Srixon is using it to replace the AD-333. That it was designed to be just as long and straight off the tee as the AD-333 but with increased green-side spin and a softer feel. He said if it lives up to their hype they have a winner on their hands at that price point. I agree.

I've been using the Swami 1500 unit for over a year now and love it. Yardage is always accurate with course markings and other more expensive GPS and rangefinders that my buddy's game. I even got mine wet the past couple of rounds as it rained pretty good. No issues there (disclaimer...I am not claiming this unit is waterproof), just saying mine got a little wet with no ill effects. Battery life is great too. They claim it lasts 3 rounds. I have played 3 rounds before without charging and the battery indicator never dropped a bar. I still however give it a charge after 2 or 3 rounds typically just to be safe. All I wanted with my unit was yardage (to front, center and back) and that is what I got. Every course I ever needed is in their database as well. Even so really rural po-dunk courses. I just wished they came out with their new Swami 3000 unit a year earlier. The new unit does not require a subscription fee, displays the course name on the screen and is preloaded with 19,000+ maps. I am putting off renewing my subscription and might just pick up the 3000 for next season. I can't update my unit at work and sometimes we leave straight from there to play a new course that is not loaded in my 1500 unit. I have become so reliant on the gps that golfing without it makes me 2nd guess every club selection. 2 thumbs up for Izzo and their GPS units !! Glad you are liking yours. The only negative experience I had with the unit, was I played a round and turned the unit on and we had to wait like 20 minutes before we tee'd off. The unit locked up and would not turn off, or reset it itself. I tried every button combo and nothing helped. I had to take it home after the round and hook it up to the computer which corrected it. So now I make sure I do not turn the unit on until right before I hit my tee shot or as I ride down the first fairway. No issues since.

Was all set to buy a dozen of the tour yellow Q star's at Dicks today and they only had white. Not a huge setback as my local shop has the yellows. But nonetheless strange that Dicks wouldn't sell the tour yellow version.

I am 5 4" and I have the same exact clubs. After my fitting at Golf Galaxy, using their Ping fitting cart, I was measured as needing a shaft that played 1/2" shorter. Since the Burner Plus irons are 1/4" longer than Ping irons, they ended up shortening the shaft 3/4" and flattened the lie 2*. The actually said I probably needed 3 or 4* flat but 2* was their limit for fear of breaking the club. Even at 3/4" shorter, I still grip down a decent amount on the 4, 5, and 6 irons to feel comfortable with the longer irons. The 7 and 8 irons maybe grip down about a 1/4" and the 9, PW and AW I play at full length.

Q-STAR (Question Everything) While the evolution of golf ball technology has provided a variety of options for players from a novice to a tour level, finding a ball that's just right can be challenging. The Srixon Q-STAR is an all ability ball, designed with STAR Performance in mind (Spin, Trajectory, Acceleration, and Responsiveness), enhancing total playability on every shot and increasing your ability to shoot lower scores. This ball is for mid to high handicappers and responds most effectively to driver swing speeds greater than 80 mph. The large core enables greater distance and at the same time its soft feel ensures excellent spin and control on approach shots. Additionally, the visual performance of Pure White and Tour Yellow enables a greater visibility. Highly resilient and soft RABALON® HR+ and PANA-TETRA® blended thin cover Proprietary, large, highly resilient, and soft Energetic Gradient Growth™ core Strong and high trajectory 324-dimple pattern with advanced aerodynamics At $24.99, seems like a lot of technology for the price. Also comes in Tour Yellow....nice !!! Love me some yellow balls. Question is, has anybody played it yet?

I think for the time being I am going to stick with the current setup. Maybe next year when funds are better I'll try the K15 3w or the new G20 3w. Or perhaps try out a 3 or 4 hybrid as I need something to hit on longer higher rough shots. I never really gave Adams hybrids a chance. Probably try out those.

Never said I got to par 5's in 2. I typically hit driver, then 5w or 4i to advance the ball, and that leaves me typically 60-100 yards on my 3rd shot. The courses I play usually don't have any par 5's over 500 yds. Normally high 400's low 500's. Hopefully I am on in 3 and make a putt or at least lag close and make par.

No, I haven't been fitted. The closest was when I bought the r9, Golf Galaxy told me I needed a regular flex which was bad information. They purely went off of swing speed and normal numbers (i.e, typically +80mph swings require "R" flex). The reax reg flex shaft requires a 90mph swing minimum (per Aldila) which I avg around 82 while hitting on the simulator. I could never properly load the club. The reason I went with the Fubuki reg flex on the FT-IQ was I read reviews online where it said it played slightly softer compared to other shafts in the same flex. The "R" flex on that shaft feels really good to me. Not saying thought that a proper fitting wouldn't do me good. My concern is, are the numbers that Golf Galaxy gives me going to be accurate. Their simulator always seems inconsistent yardage wise. When you get a ball fitting, what all numbers do they provide? I think Bridgestone is showing up at GG in early August for free ball fittings. Perhaps I could try that approach and see what kinda numbers they give me. I wouldn't be opposed to paying $20-30 for accurate numbers either.

Interesting, I've never thought to try anything Titleist as I always thought their clubs were designed more as a "players" club than game improvement. Next time at GG I will have to try hitting their hybrids. The strange thing is when I hit the Ping 17* I was hitting it very well on the monitor (it was a standard lie, full length) version. I got fitted at 2 deg flat and 1/2" shorter and ordered it from Ping. It comes in and I can't hit the thing. I've tried everything on the range from steepening my swing, Sweeping my swing, Holding the clubhead closed at address, moving closer to the ball, moving away from it, you name it. Same result. Mishit. Not once have I flushed it after hitting probably 75+ balls at the range with it.

Yes, actually I prefer using the 5w off the deck vs the rough as the head on that club is pretty thin. If in higher rough I swap in the 4i over the 5w. If I ever use the 5w off the tee, I pretty much have to set the ball on the tee, flush with the ground. If I tee it up at all I can't hit the club