Golf general chat

Good thread ! I started playing June 1st, have played nearly nearly ever Saturday since then, all 18-hole courses, plus 9-holes on Wednesday at a local course 3 minutes from my house. I hired a PGA rated golf swing coach, and have 4+ lessons done with pre-paid 4 more.

I have improved quite a bit, recent best of best was a 90 - and I know that's not great, but going from knowing nothing before June 1st to that - I felt okay about it.

Serious question - I bought a nice set of irons and drivers from a local golf pro who had many old extra sets he wanted to sell. They are 'ok' - but what I need advice on is - what are the top two best drivers that you guys recommend ?

Oh, and I keep buying so many random golf accessories too - from towels, boxes of balls, gloves, rangefinders, etc. - it's fun though

Cheers,
Merlin

NorCalAthlete wrote

Played Black Horse in Monterey on Sunday. Beautiful course - absolutely MURDEROUS greens.

They will humble you. Those greens are divided into 4 quadrants, and if you don't hit into the correct one you are looking at a very difficult 2-putt. On every hole. Bayo is easier in that regard, but it has it's share of other challenges; bunkers, trees, elevation changes, etc.

Both are fantastic courses and I'm lucky to live < 1 hour from them and the other Monterey Peninsula courses. Old Del Monte, Pacific Grove, Poppy Hills, all are worth the trip.

Merlin_83 wrote

Serious question - I bought a nice set of irons and drivers from a local golf pro who had many old extra sets he wanted to sell. They are 'ok' - but what I need advice on is - what are the top two best drivers that you guys recommend ?

Cheers,
Merlin

Everyone has their brand bias when it comes to clubs, especially drivers.
You really can’t go wrong with any of the top brands flagship drivers - I’d recommend hitting all of them and see which one ‘feels right’ for you.

I’m partial to TaylorMade Drivers, had one in the bag for over 30 years. Currently have a M1, but almost pulled the trigger on a SIM Max2 this summer, but after hitting it on the course, didn’t really see any ‘improvement’ over the M1.

I’ve hit Callaway, Ping, Titleist, Cobra, Cleveland over the years, and owned Ping and Titleist a couple times, but keep coming back to TaylorMade.

Bongoxxx wrote

Everyone has their brand bias when it comes to clubs, especially drivers.
You really can’t go wrong with any of the top brands flagship drivers - I’d recommend hitting all of them and see which one ‘feels right’ for you.

I’m partial to TaylorMade Drivers, had one in the bag for over 30 years. Currently have a M1, but almost pulled the trigger on a SIM Max2 this summer, but after hitting it on the course, didn’t really see any ‘improvement’ over the M1.

I’ve hit Callaway, Ping, Titleist, Cobra, Cleveland over the years, and owned Ping and Titleist a couple times, but keep coming back to TaylorMade.

Another TaylorMade fan here...though I just replaced my well-loved R7 quad with a PXG 0811 X Prototype this year. Picked up damn near 40 yards on average with my drives. I hit the newer TaylorMades too but liked the PXG just a tiny bit better and hit it a tiny bit further so that's what I went with.

Novice here. I simply can't hit with the driver.

Played Mariner's Point today (9 hole par 3 short course). I try to play there about once a month to work on the short game and whatnot.

I took a lesson a few days ago, first formal lesson, and the instructor had me tweak a few things that felt new / slightly unnatural on the range, but I said what the hell I'll try it on the course.

Ended up shooting a personal best 28. I guess she knew what she was talking about .

Go get lessons if you haven't - it's worth it. My best score there previously was a 30. I'm a 9 handicap currently. Shooting dang near even par is my goal for the year - get my handicap down to a 3-4 so I can start qualifying for actual money tournaments.

So far this year I've played:

Bayonet
Mariner's Point (2x)
Los Lagos
Spring Valley
Pruneridge (2x)
Half Moon Bay (Old Course)
Cinnabar

9 rounds down in January and I'm still playing a couple more this weekend and next.

Side note: Cinnabar is fucking BRUTAL. Right up there with Wente Vineyards as one of the most difficult courses I've ever played. I did better at We Ko Pa in AZ than I did at Cinnabar.

Haven't played in almost a year, shoulder issues...

Excited to be working the BMW Championship next month. It's being played at the course I worked at as a younger man in Delaware. I'll be working hole number 1. I think the course will hold up and show well for this championship.

BMW Hole #1 Shift Schedules

Dear Ross:
Hello Hole #1 Gallery Management Ambassadors,

Welcome again to the 2022 BMW Championship! You are receiving this email because you have been assigned to Hole #1 Gallery Management for the tournament. Once again, we’re happy to have you on our team.

I picked up a new set of Ping G425's last spring to go with some Ping g series fairways woods and driver already in the bag. I usually play about 5 to 10 rounds per season on real courses, then a few on simulators. Wish I golfed more but we get busy during the summer with other hobbies and kids stuff.

Northeast Florida golfer here! Gaming modern technology but have a slew of classic MacGregor persimmon woods in an oversized display PowerBilt staff bag in my home office. Golf is certainly a passion!

Shot a personal best 76 last Monday!

LOL, I have a similar collection of old wooden Cobra bafflers.

RobotDoctor wrote

Northeast Florida golfer here! Gaming modern technology but have a slew of classic MacGregor persimmon woods in an oversized display PowerBilt staff bag in my home office. Golf is certainly a passion!

Looks like PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and LIV are going to unify. Interesting turn of events. Wonder how this will all pan out in the end?

https://www.golfchannel.com/news/pga-tour-dp-world-tour-merge-saudis-and-end-liv-golf-litigation

The PGA Tour is just as greedy & corrupt as other sports orgs, I am kinda neutral on LIV, but think its ridiculous how the PGA & big stars (especially Rory) that stayed acted during the process. Knew eventually the PGA would lose somehow, they can not compete with PIF money. Was actually glad when LIV guy won the PGA and that was the turning point. PGA hypocrites had no choice and who knows how much $ the board of the PGA is getting, greed and $ always wins. Part I supported was LIV was never going to have the long season with so many required events. Still think most athletes and golfers are grossly overpaid, complaining about millions, sure the PGA may not pay out a fair share of their billions, but making the cut in one tournament still nets someone more than the average person makes in a year.

GERMAN M3 wrote

Looks like PGA Tour, DP World Tour, and LIV are going to unify. Interesting turn of events. Wonder how this will all pan out in the end?

https://www.golfchannel.com/news/pga-tour-dp-world-tour-merge-saudis-and-end-liv-golf-litigation

bagekko wrote

The PGA Tour is just as greedy & corrupt as other sports orgs, I am kinda neutral on LIV, but think its ridiculous how the PGA & big stars (especially Rory) that stayed acted during the process. Knew eventually the PGA would lose somehow, they can not compete with PIF money. Was actually glad when LIV guy won the PGA and that was the turning point. PGA hypocrites had no choice and who knows how much $ the board of the PGA is getting, greed and $ always wins. Part I supported was LIV was never going to have the long season with so many required events. Still think most athletes and golfers are grossly overpaid, complaining about millions, sure the PGA may not pay out a fair share of their billions, but making the cut in one tournament still nets someone more than the average person makes in a year.

This isn't about sports and how much players are over paid...The PGA merged with a foreign entity. They rolled the 911 victims and first responders - Shameful

Yeah some super rich corrupt entity from a country we wasted so much $ defending in wars is buying up the world. Its so secretive of a deal but it seems the PIF might have a controlling stake in the PGA, crazy how the PGA fought against LIV to only sell out and maybe taking orders from them in the future.

I really need to get back to playing golf this year, used to play a ton, life changes. Though I haven't cared about pro-golf in a long time. Stupid they are considering rigging the ball to make it go less, modify the course to compensate. Its like the NBA moving back the 3pt line, which they need to do again but will also have to widen the court.

Gritty wrote

This isn't about sports and how much players are over paid...The PGA merged with a foreign entity. They rolled the 911 victims and first responders - Shameful

So...golf attire. Tomorrow I am making my fourth (!) trip to a well-known golf store in the area to find shorts and a shirt that: a. fit and b. don't look stupid.

What I have learned is:

- Size designations S, M, and L mean nothing
- quality, solid color (golf/polo) shirts are as rare as hen's teeth
- stupid patterned shirts that make a person look ridiculous are popular

There are several companies which make good, solid-color short sleeve polos specifically designed for golfers - Nike, Puma, Under Armour, etc, and many of them have shorts to match. They can definitely be tougher to find at local stores, depending.

Also, it generally costs more, but you can often find passable (and sometimes even nice!) polos at the course in the pro shop. I like a good solid-color logo shirt, though it does feel a little silly sometimes to wear the shirt from the course you're playing right that second.

chassis wrote

So...golf attire. Tomorrow I am making my fourth (!) trip to a well-known golf store in the area to find shorts and a shirt that: a. fit and b. don't look stupid.

What I have learned is:

- Size designations S, M, and L mean nothing
- quality, solid color (golf/polo) shirts are as rare as hen's teeth
- stupid patterned shirts that make a person look ridiculous are popular

Fantastipotamus wrote

There are several companies which make good, solid-color short sleeve polos specifically designed for golfers - Nike, Puma, Under Armour, etc, and many of them have shorts to match. They can definitely be tougher to find at local stores, depending.

Also, it generally costs more, but you can often find passable (and sometimes even nice!) polos at the course in the pro shop. I like a good solid-color logo shirt, though it does feel a little silly sometimes to wear the shirt from the course you're playing right that second.

PGA Superstore has plenty of options that generally fit close to size. Specifically look for the Pebble Beach brand, they're made of that stretchy breathable fabric stuff, super comfy, not terribly expensive, and come in plain mono color options. I have several. They also pop up at Costco from time to time. I'm usually right in between a medium / large, depending on brand and fit, so I tend to go with the large size and deal with it being a tiny bit baggier than I'd like. IMO that's better than feeling restricted / constrained when playing.

NorCalAthlete wrote

So far this year I've played:

Bayonet
Mariner's Point (2x)
Los Lagos
Spring Valley
Pruneridge (2x)
Half Moon Bay (Old Course)
Cinnabar

9 rounds down in January and I'm still playing a couple more this weekend and next.

Side note: Cinnabar is fucking BRUTAL. Right up there with Wente Vineyards as one of the most difficult courses I've ever played. I did better at We Ko Pa in AZ than I did at Cinnabar.

Bayonet is great. Half Moon Bay OK, never been to Cinnabar but live 20 minutes from We Ko Pa and play both courses there every year. Great tracks and always in good condition.

Played in my works golf league last night. We play every Wednesday night. It was a 3 club round. Shot better with only three clubs than with my whole set over the course of a few previous rounds.

I have my new Bombtech wedges being delivered today. Went with the 52, 56 and 60 degree wedges. 5 star reviews everywhere I looked and very good prices! Will report back after this weekend as I am playing 9 holes on Friday and 9 holes on Saturday.


https://www.bombtechgolf.com/collections/home-page/products/limited-edition-grenade-52-56-and-60-wedge-set