customdusty

Thanks for the feedback everybody. As far as future clubs, I have hit and liked the Ping S57 and of the forged cb's, I really liked the Cobra S2 forged. I also really liked the heavy feel of the TaylorMade MB, but they were difficult for me to hit well. I also hit nearly the whole line of Mizunos, and unfortunately none of them really stood out for me after hitting these after everything else. I have not had an opportunity to hit the Titleist AP2s, but have checked them out and they look outstanding. I actually was leaning towards finding a used forged cavity back set, so I'll see what I find. I likewise have a friend who has a set of Titleist 775 CB that I might get my hands on easily, and for little or no money. That might be the opportunity to explore this further and before I make an investment in a new set.

This was a thought that crossed my mind. I guess my underlying question is, fundamentally does using more difficult to hit clubs help to improve/refine ones game?

I currently play a set of 2008 Taylor Made Burner Plus irons, which I have played for 2 seasons now. Over the course of these two seasons, I have taken some lessons and brought my handicap down from somewhere well above 30, down to a 17 at present and probably lower when my handicap gets updated in a couple of weeks. I have found that the Burner irons play too long in general, and often times on solid strikes (especially on short irons) the ball may carry too long resulting in missed greens. As an improving player, I have appreciate the forgiveness that these clubs offer, but the short irons are really huge and don't offer much control. Being a relatively long hitter and with as long as the irons play, it leaves a lot of ground for "feel" shots at closer distances, but unfortunatly the huge bulky club heads don't offer much feel other than 1) I hit the ball, 2) I missed or nearly missed the ball. I also perceive the lack of feedback as an inability to refine and improve my swing, while almost feeling sloppy or that focus isn't all that important. (I compare these clubs to when I used to play baseball as a kid with a tennis racket and ball.) My main goal is to continue to improve my game, and I regularly get video swing analysis to target a couple of recurring swing faults. At this point, my common misses are fat shots (due to a little bit of casting), hooks (closed clubface), and an occasional block with the driver. That all being said, I have been out several times to demo some new irons. I hit almost everything out there, MBs, CBs, cast, forged, etc. During the demos I found that hitting some of the "player" type irons was more demanding of my swing and I hit some lousy shots, but with a refined swing I was able to get into a bit of a groove and hit some real nice shots. I've been told that these types of clubs are much less forgiving, and require a consistent swing which I first hand experienced. The advice I am seeking now is whether or not going into a more advanced club that provides better feedback and requires a more precise swing will help me improve in the long term, and what may happen in the short.

For real. You think somebody would take advantage of this niche market and develop lessons or whatever for adapting baseball swing mechanics to golf.

I'm in a similar situation. As a former baseball player and competitive athelete, I've not struggled with distance, but accuracy - hooking drives (and irons) with a stiff shaft and 105-110 mph SS. I tried a couple of different flex shafts before ultimately getting a video swing diagnosis and lesson. Ultimately I found out that I was far too handsy (and armsy) and was "flipping" my hands through impact, closing the clubface early and putting that excessive hook-spin on the ball. I've worked on swing mechanics and although it feels as if I swing less violently now (less arms) and more controlled (using the body), my swing speed has more or less stayed the same although it is far more effortless. I'm not there just yet, but to make a long story short it didn't matter what shaft was in my hands, I eventually hooked it due to my swing. Find the time to get a video diagnosis, it shouldn't even take an hour.

Exactly my point. So should I change the shaft on the driver or try something else?

With the right conditions I quite often hit 300yd tee shots with the 3 wood. I hit all of my clubs long except the driver - which leads me to believe I don't have the right fit. The only distances I base anything off of are the distances on the course. The launch monitor I have have been on typically shows all of my clubs to play shorter than they do.

The lofts are 15 degrees on the 3 wood and 9.5 deg. on the driver. All of my distances are those that are taken on the course. I feel like my swing is identical with the two, but like was mentioned that I'm a 22 handicap and not as consistent as I'd like and although I hit quite long, I do struggle with accuracy. I am more accurate with the 3 wood than the driver and as a result I think that I just swing the 3 wood harder because I'm more confident with it and feel like I strike it better than the driver most of the time. I typically don't have the need to hit driver, but I certainly would if I were able to control it as well as gain yardage. Unfortunately, I just don't have the right club in the bag.

As I'm still learning the game and working on my swing, I've been through club fitting and launch monitors several times now and did a few lessons at Golf Tec. Each time I'm told I should be using stiff flex shafts and I do, but with an exception that I'm confused about. Typically I tee off with my Callaway XSteel 3 wood with regular flex shaft, which I hit straight or with a very slight draw, about 270 yds. I also own a TaylorMade R5 driver with a stiff shaft that I typically hit 270-275 yds. Because of the little difference in distance and the better control with the 3 wood, I really never hit the driver. My swing speed is typically in the 105-106 mph range with these clubs, and closer the 96-97 with a 6 iron. Is it just the difference in shafts that is causing this?

I was a bit disappointed that I missed a par 5 green in two and left myself in a nearly impossible situation in the green side rough. Having several challenges to negotiate, I thought through the shot and talked myself through what I needed to do, where I wanted to land, how much speed, where the green breaks, where I wanted to end up, etc. I executed the shot perfectly and nearly holed it, while gladly taking the birdie. After the missed approach I could have been convinced that a par would have been difficult and perhaps a bogey more likely, but a well thought game plan and walkthrough of the shot helped me take a confident swing and execute the shot. That is why I felt that it was is my best shot of the week.

Mechanical engineer.

I shot a 41 in my 9 hole league this week which is my low 9 for the year.