gauchogolfer

I think this is a crazy statement. If you're putting from more than about 15 feet away your chance of making the first putt is very low. Wouldn't you want your 2nd putt to be a tap-in from 10 inches, rather than another long putt you'll likely miss? I like to putt to an area when I'm working on long putts, rather than putting to a hole. From 30 feet the target to get within 3 feet, not focus on being past the hole. For shorter putts I like the ladder approach, where you putt going back on a line in one foot intervals until you make a ten footer. You'll be amazed how long this takes!

Hi all, I've been working on some things in my swing since the last time I posted (several weeks ago now) and I thought I'd post an update. I'd like to get some thoughts on my swing before I say what I've been working on, just to get an unbiased point of view. Thanks for looking!

Thanks for the recs. I've got a 9:06 time for Sunday at National, and I'll also be making a time for Friday after lunch someplace else. Looks like I've got some good options. Cheers.

Hi everyone, I'll be in Newport RI next week on a business trip, and I'm thinking of trying to play while I'm there. I'd get the chance to play twice, next Sunday and the following Friday. Top of my list is Newport National, based on looking at the nearby courses. Next on the list from what I can tell is Exeter CC, though I don't have any real info to go on. Any suggestions? Thanks.

My wedges (normal bag setup) PW: 48°/7 (part of DCI 962 set): 110-120 yards GW: 51°/10 (Snake Eyes): 105-115 yards, but more bounce than PW SW: 56°/11 (Vokey SM): max 105 LW: 60°/4 (Cleveland BeCu): max 85 I waffle between carrying the GW and not, there are a couple of shots at my local club that are just dialed in for that particular club and I'm very confident as a result, which helps out. I might bend it up to 52° to give me a bit more of a classic 4° spacing, though it's obviously more about the actual distance gaps than it is the number on the sole. I need to re-establish those gaps at a suitable location here in the near future, given that my distances have changed lately thanks to working on my swing.

I'm not sure where exactly P2 is in the backswing, but I get your drift. I guess what I'm calling shut is what feels like a lack of rotation of my forearms going back, as I tend to feel like my arms are too stiff, and they are initiating the backswing rather than following along the rotation of my torso. I certainly don't try and actively 'release' the clubhead, but I can tell when it's releasing down the line, and when it's off-line. That's more what I meant. Thanks for taking a look, it's good to have a more experienced set of eyes keeping me on track. :) This is something I've definitely been working on, improving my flexibility so that I can turn like you describe while maintaining flex in my legs. The first move I've been making is to stand up a bit on my backswing and get flat, which leads to all kinds of issues, and requiring my timing to be perfect to strike the ball solidly. Thanks again for taking a look!

Hi all, This is the first time I've tried to post a video here, so please bear with me if I'm sorting out technical difficulties along the way. As far as my swing goes, I'm battling my nemesis, the takeaway. My bad swings (like this one) are often rooted in shoving the club away from my body and getting the clubface shut as it goes back, rather than keeping arms soft and letting my torso do the work. Coupled with that (and something I'm working on by flexibility exercises) is a tendency to lose my posture and stand up during my swing. This is a 6-iron down the line, which ended up being my usual miss (a high shot to the right, generally (I think) attributed to getting steep on the downswing and not releasing the club. Next time I post I'll try and find a good one to show you that I'm not really that bad.

Just replaced my old Titleist carry bag with a TaylorMade Micro-Lite. It arrived today and I took it to the course this afternoon. What a pleasure! It only weighs 3.5 pounds empty, and still has lots of room/pockets for the stuff I like to carry. Two thumbs way up.

I've been focusing on conditioning/stability/balance with a TPI program set up for my by a local pro. It's been very challenging (particularly some of the balance/stability exercises) but I think it'll pay off in the long run. From a swing perspective, really focusing on the first move away from the ball, letting it be driven by my torso rotation and not my hands/arms. Once I get in a good spot there I'm generally good to go.

I just bought a Vokey SM 56/11 to replace a Cleveland RTG 56/14 that I got back in 1998. Boy is it nice to have fresh grooves!

I'm a bit of a mix... Driver - 2009 3W - 2007 Hybrid - 2009 Irons - DCI 962 Black - 1998 SW - Cleveland 485 RTG - 1999 LW - Cleveland Byron Nelson 50th Ann. (BeCu) - 1998 TM Rossa Tour Indy - 2003?

I just picked up an R7 (9.5° S shaft) from Golfsmith last weekend, and hit it in the simulator to compare to my old TM r540XD (also 9.5° S). With the 540 my launch conditions were: * SS ~ 86mph * Ball Speed ~ 125mph * Launch Angle ~ 12° * Spin ~ 4000rpm With the R7 launch conditions are: * SS ~ 94mph * Ball Speed ~ 146mph * Launch Angle ~ 12° * Spin ~ 3000rpm I've noticed that the shaft is much better on this in terms of tip stiffness and resistance to twisting on off-center hits. For me a good drive is normally in the 265-yard range, but my first round (yesterday) featured several 280+ drives, and a much better dispersion pattern. I'm very pleased with the results, and think it was a very good investment (especially at $199).

I've really been working on solid contact, feeling like I'm 'dragging' the club through impact rather than flipping with the hands, which is my tendency. I had a sidehill lie (ball below feet) from about 135 yards, and decided to hit 9 iron (not trying to kill it) and concentrate on posture and contact. As the ball went flying over the back of the green (about 150 yards) I was both pleased and mad! It was probably the most solid short iron feel I've had in a long time.

Hi all, New person to the forums here, just joined today. I play in the Santa Barbara area, and my last round was a squirrely 36 in our afternoon Thursday league. Just picked up a new R7 LTD from the shop this weekend, so I'm excited to get back at it. It's replacing an R540XD from 2003...my how technology has changed.

Hi all, Just joined the forums after reading some reviews on the main site. I'm a systems engineer in California.