DCCarpenter

Third and final update on the slice fix results. I played 14 holes today , I had 6 green in regulation and missed 3 others by less than 10 yards total between the three. I duffed a wedge in when I drove to within 70 yards on a 210 so I can't fault the driving on that one either, also got distracted and duffed a hybrid approach 5 feet, nailed the green on the 2nd try so it should have been a GIR. I only had 2 sliced tee shots, and one of them was plenty playable. I didn't slice a single fairway wood or hybrid approach shot. I wish Mr. Haney would come out with a similarly effective how to stop 3 putting video , I'd really be on to something then. I also had another ad for his slice fix pop-up on YouTube, I watched the ad all the way through and he was doing some different drills than just the one in the 2 minute YouTube clip. So if someone is struggling with a slice ordering the whole thing vs. just the free clip and magazine article might be worth it. I'm making enough progress in just these 3 rounds so far that I'm going to hold off for now. So even though the thread was originally making fun of the commercial and it's dubious claims I'm really glad I came across the thread, the magazine article and YouTube clip made a big difference for me.

I played 16 holes today, 2 were closed due to a tree falling on the walkway, using Hank Haney's slice fix technique on my tee shots for a second round. I had a couple slices thrown in but probably the least I've ever had over a round. Distance hasn't really picked up much , I'm just in the middle of the fairway instead of off to the right. I was topping the ball some today on tee shots, not sure exactly why, maybe over eager because I was getting better results on my drives. The course was empty so I had time to take multiple tee shots so I shot my 3 hybrid off of the tee a bunch of times as well , used the same Haney practice swing drill with it a few times and path strategy. I am definitely going to need to adjust it to take out the draw bias, previously it would slice on occasion like my 3 wood. Now it definitely hooks, great distance I was close to 190yards with it 3 different times with it set to 20.5 degree loft. I have it set to the 'max draw position' I'm going to dial it back to neutral or medium draw for tomorrow. I had no problem elevating it off the deck for a couple similar length shots so I am going to drop the loft down to 19 and see if I can pick up any additional distance.

I asked a similar question here a few months ago and got some good feedback, which was basically that a newer 3 wood wouldn't be a magic bullet. I play an older 2004 Wilson Deep Red 15 degree 3 wood and I was thinking of trying something new in the hopes of some more distance / reliability. My miss is to the right like yours. I ended up not replacing it and I've seen enough good 230-240 yard shots out of it that based on my swing speed I just don't think a new club would get me anything more. Mostly I just need to get better, the club is fine. I bought a Ping G425 5 wood and I was never able to consistently get along with the shallow face, I had days I hit it just as far as the 3 wood. There was one afternoon I smoked it 240 straight down the fairway on a 390 yard uphill par 4. I had the draw biased one and it still all came down to my swing, I don't think the draw bias kept it left. One other thing I didn't like about it was it had a very high trajectory compared to other fairway woods I tried, I could launch it with ease off the fairway but the distance often wasn't there or was inconsistent for me. I traded it to someone for a Titleist ts2 4 wood (16.5 loft), I haven't tried it out yet but I can update this thread when I do if you were considering that one.

As promised, I have a report on the Hank Haney slice fix. I'll start with a couple considerations in Coach Haney's favor, I went into my round of golf after playing quarterback in backyard football with my daughter and the dogs and threw a few too many passes considering my dodgy shoulder. Secondly , I was running late so I had no lunch or warmup before the round. To end the suspense on the 'fixed in one shot', alas my first shot did slice. It was playable , about 10 yards from the fairway but was not dead straight. Overall I still sliced several drives, but my good shots were straighter than the comparable good ones the last two times I played this course. I had a stretch of 4 straight middle of the fairway 220 yard to 228yard 3 wood drives(15 degree 3 wood), these were carry numbers and the distance is from my Arccos which measures it pretty accurately. The ground was wetter than I thought it would be so I got zero roll-out on most holes, with the shots being straighter I do wonder what my total numbers would look like on a different day/course. I saw enough to keep doing the drill in my yard the next few days and repeating it on the tee before I shoot the next 2 times I play. I did have the Hank Haney driver/slice quick fix ad pop-up on Youtube this morning while watching the free video, I saw where it also claimed gaining 30 yards. I don't see how that's possible unless there is a lot more in the program than what I did. I've had days with a couple 240 yard carries on my 3 wood and there is no way I swing fast enough now or anytime in the near future to carry it 270.

That is the one, good to see the video. Article was pretty easy to follow but the video is even better.

So I printed out the Golf Digest article today, I am going to do the drills tomorrow and am scheduled for 18 tomorrow. I have my Arccos data for my last 3 rounds at this course and other notes so I know where I had bad drives and/or sliced. I will carefully follow the exercise outlined and do it before each round. I have rounds scheduled Tuesday and Wednesday as well same place. This is a short course but actually has a decent slope rating because it is very narrow with no parallel fairways and every dogleg favors a draw. I will update back here as I go. I've been bouncing between 3 wood, even 9 wood and 3 hybrid off the tee. For these rounds I'll stick to 3 wood exclusively for every non par 3 off the tee to be consistent. I'll start clearing my calendar for next year's US Open as well as this should set me firmly on the path to qualify.

The commercials are terrible and snake oil, but I found an old Golf Digest article (mid 2000's) that basically goes through his clockwise and counter clockwise practice swing method that seems to be basically what the video is. I saw people in the background of the ad doing the circular swing exercise. Has anyone actually tried his sequence out ? Is it worth spending some time with the exercises from the free article , and obviously more than 15 shots, with?

I shot an 89 from the white tees today (men's) at Walden Country Club. Course was a 69.1/122 based on winter tees. 7 greens in regulation but some 3 putts killed my chances for par on those. Had my first ever streak of 3 pars in a row. I had no one in front of or behind me so I got a chance to play 2 balls on some holes and do a bunch of practice chipping and putting as well. Started to run out of gas after walking 30 holes yesterday and 18 today by the last 5 holes or so otherwise I might have been able to beat the 89 which is my personal best. Tying my personal best was still cool and at a different course than where I set it.

Thanks for the feedback, you are right about the weight of the driver being insignificant. Right now I'm carrying 3 wood/9 wood/11 wood/7 iron/wedge/putter and a rotating cast of 3iron/chipper/5wood/7wood/extra wedge in the other slot. I can definitely drop a wedge and the chipper as I improve with whichever wedge becomes my go to. The 3 iron (or my utility driving iron) only get called out on really windy days or when I play a course right on the water so I could probably lose driver or 3 wood those days. I think a fitting is a great idea when I am ready to buy a driver and 3 wood, I have no idea what shaft I should be in and it is an opportunity to try a bunch of different brands. I'll keep working with what I have for awhile and then see about upgrading driver and/or 3 wood in one shot. Going to play at least 18 this afternoon so another opportunity to work on that short game, I am taking multiple wedge shots and putts each time in order to practice since the course is pretty slow once it gets to the end of the day.

Thanks for the info I appreciate it, I just got this 3 wood a few weeks ago and I've improved with it each time I've taken it out so sounds like I'm best off playing it a bit more and see what else I can get out of it.

I'm trying to simultaneously shoot better scores while improving my short game. If I can spend a couple hundred bucks or less on a club that improves my on course performance right now it's worth it to me, my 3 wood cost me $20 I hardly have a lot tied up in it. Working on my driver and short game as time allows as well, I enjoy playing more than going to the driving range so it'll get there when it gets there. It's not as if having a better 3 wood in 10 weeks when I'm more consistent with the driver will somehow be a disadvantage. I guess I should have phrased the question as 'Does newer 3 wood tech add distance with moderate swing speed over 15+ year old 3 wood tech' . As far as distances , the 3 courses I play most are ranging from 5900 to 6200 yards from the white (men's tees). Par 4 distances today on the back 9 were 388/309/325/363/366. Not long but not a par 3, at least not for a newer player. It's also a very narrow course, no parallel fairways. I took my game 'on the road' to Charleston National on vacation and played a round with a few members, longer course but wider fairways. Shot a lot of doubles but hit a few pars as well, kept up just fine and had fun.

Reasoning for no driver is that there isn't a huge distance difference between it and the 3 wood right now, I'm slightly more accurate with the 3 wood, and since I tend to walk the course and am trying not to carry too many clubs the 3 wood does double duty vs. the driver being mostly single purpose. The driver is a Wilson Launchpad 13 degree driver , I might see some more distance with a 10 or 11 though perhaps at the cost of accuracy. It being 13 I have actually used it from the grass a few times and with the right lie it works but not nearly as useful at the 3 wood for that. The 3 wood is a 15 degree. I just started playing this summer so still working on adding distance, I hit my best 3 wood shot so far this past weekend I got 260 from it with a bit of rollout so I was pretty happy about that one.

What type of things did you have them focusing on to make the change? Was their a conscious effort made to turn the hips more during the downswing?

Howdy, I've been playing a lot and steadily improving. My first post here back in September I could barely hit anything over 135 yards and today I hit a whole bunch of greens in regulation on par 4s and just missed either short or to the side on many others. As I'm not a very good wedge player or putter yet I'm going to need to hit more greens in regulation to keep my scoring on a downward trajectory. Even a small increase , 10 or 15 yards, from my 3 wood would get me on more greens as I am using it off the tee and from the deck. I walk the course and carry my clubs so I am trying to stick to 7 clubs if I can. So long way of saying I have a 2004 Wilson Deep Red 3 wood with a regular flex shaft, tee shots today carried 210 to 235 with it, wet course so no rollout really. The new Tour Edge 3 woods look nice, would consider any others as well. Needs to be something I can play off the deck and tee as with so few clubs carried I need dual purpose use out of it. Extra bonus if you have something nice to say about Titleist as my mom got me a Titleist hat for Christmas and as of now I'm not playing any of their clubs. I'm ok sticking with what I have if the consensus is I won't get anything out of a new one. I try and play 18 at least twice a week but the ranges around here only have super high driver tees and are mats so not the best venue for practicing with a fairway wood. I mostly work on contact type drills with the irons and wedges when I go (from this site's COVID training videos).

I don't have a Thomas hybrid but I did recently buy a Thomas 21 wood from them directly, was struggling with the wedge I had and hit my fairway woods well so figured I would give it a try. It has a traditional pitching wedge loft(46 or 47 I believe). It came quickly (less than a week) and I have been pleased with it. Not a long hitting wedge but it is almost impossible to hit fat or skull...my miss with it might end up short but it has not caused any blowups around the greens.

I tried hitting an old steel shafted 2 iron that was laying on the ground at the course a few weeks ago, it went all of 5 feet off the ground and 50 yards straight into the woods. I do have a traditional lofted 3 iron that I can hit ok when the moon is right, I've launched a few great looking low 200 yard drives with it. Today I used it off the tee on 3 holes and it got me in the fairway, 175 to 200 carry maybe. Wet ground so no rollout today. I don't have great swing speed and was just messing around on a solo practice round.

I play with a Ping Anser 3 , it is brass I believe. Came out in 1981. I liked it better than any of the mallet style putters I tried, I have a wristy pop kind of putting stroke so it works for me.

I started playing with a hand me down set of clubs, I had a Bullseye putter and an older Taylormade with a frayed grip. Both had been fit for the gentleman who gave them to me who was 5'9 while I am 6'3. I struggled really badly with them, even while doing some putting practice. I went to 2nd Swing golf ,a used club store ,and they had an area where you could try out hundreds of putters. Not wanting to spend much I tried a few less expensive ones , I had good results there with a Ping Anser 3 bronze putter and bought it for $45 or so. It made a big difference right away over what I was using. I am a wrist putter so a blade style putter works better for me. You might want to read up or watch some videos to see who your putting style looks like to see if a mallet or blade is a better choice for you.

That was pretty cool, it was short and had a narrative to it. Every other Gears video I've seen the commentary was long winded and the video featured too many slo-motions and replays of a motion to hold my interest.

If I hit a few good shots to start a day with a club I tend to play well with that club the rest of the day, if my first few shots with a given club are poor I tend to lose confidence in it and struggle with it the remainder of the round. So for me confidence level is very important to play well.

Thanks! Much appreciated. Golf has been a great new hobby , seeing progress is encouraging.

Broke 90 for the first time today with an 89 ! Had been under 45 at Walden , Mellomar, and Hawthorne each of my last 9 hole rounds so was working my way to it. Bought an 11 wood after work Thursday and it has been a nice addition, getting more comfortable with the old $4 Wilson chipper from eBay as well and keeping away from the pitch shots that have been inconsistent. Been teeing up almost exclusively with the 9 wood recently, mixed in the 5 wood today some off the tee and deck. I was racing the sun as I teed off at 3:00PM solo with no one behind me, I think not having any time to overthink or anyone on my tail helped.

I shot a 45 over 9 at Walden Country Club this morning. I have never hit so many greens in regulation , the 9 wood I got 2 weeks ago is getting me on the green from 150 or so really nicely. With better putting I could have hit 41 , a couple close putts didn’t go my way. I haven’t been putting well the last 2 days , going to spend more time practicing, I’ve been using my practice time on wedges and the 9 wood , I need to put some time into my off the tee clubs to get better consistency.

The shafts are regular flex graphite like my other clubs. You might be on to something with head size , my 9 wood has a bigger head than my 7 wood and I hit it much better. Neither are modern and super forgiving I think I just have more confidence and swing better with the bigger head possibly. The Cobra 3 hybrid has a quite small head , a good bit smaller than the Titleist 5 hybrid even. Maybe I just need to commit to hitting 1 or 2 full buckets with it until I feel comfortable that I can make good contact.

I’ve posted a few times and gotten good advice , I worked like heck at tight lie shots after my last post and had great approaches all day today. Newest struggle is hybrids, I can hit my 5wood and 9 wood. Driver is decent too. I have a 27 degree 5 hybrid and a 19 degree 3 hybrid and can’t seem to do anything but slice them. Occasionally I have a run of 3 or 4 shots with the 5 that are ok, the 3 is occasionally ok off the deck but is also a tee slice. Any drills or techniques I should look into with them? I’d like to have them as a option for hillside lies and short tee shots where the woods aren’t ideal.