Clubhouse Grille (*** NO LIV DISCUSSIONS ***) (*** NO POLITICS/RELIGION ***)

[SixtySomePing]

NCAA Championship game is on April 8th, a Monday, which is not unusual any more for championship type games. Now that I'm retired, I called in (to myself), in advance and asked for the following Tuesday off so I could watch it. I told myself no problem, as long as I slept in the next day... ah, retirement

[Fellaheen51]

If you want to be the Man, you gotta beat the Man. Beyond ecstatic!! Let's finish this!! Go Green!!

 

 

 

 

 

[Conrad1953]

> @SixtySomePing said:

> NCAA Championship game is on April 8th, a Monday, which is not unusual any more for championship type games. Now that I'm retired, I called in (to myself), in advance and asked for the following Tuesday off so I could watch it. I told myself no problem, as long as I slept in the next day... ah, retirement

 

LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!!!!!!

 

You've been on a roll since you retired Six.

[Conrad1953]

> @SixtySomePing said:

> > @Reasonability said:

> > Typing with 3 min to go in M St./Duke. Fella knows I'm very impressed with team Izzo. No clue which way this one will finish. I do know this has been one of 3 or 4 very memorable games. Auburn dancing! Stepping up for their fallen teammate. Wow! The old guard showing up in numbers this week to support. Charles Barkley in tears. Ralph Sampson, Magic Johnson, and so many others in the house.

> >

> > 1:33 left. Now 43.6 seconds - one-point game. Duke on the line down 2. Team Izzo wins!!! What a great win, Fella!

> >

> > OK... you and Radro go get this thing done. Congrats to you both.

> >

> >

>

> Here's to MSU, hope they take it all the way!

 

I should be for Auburn regardless...............BUT.............I'm not a big hoops fan and.......well, I'm willing to

pull for MSU cause it will mean so much more to Fella than me...........now, with football.....no way!

[Conrad1953]

800 PAGES!!!!

[SixtySomePing]

> @Fellaheen51 said:

> If you want to be the Man, you gotta beat the Man. Beyond ecstatic!! Let's finish this!! Go Green!!

>

>

>

>

>

>

 

Now you're talkin', go Green, bring it home for the B1G, we're proud of you...

[SixtySomePing]

> @Conrad1953 said:

> 800 PAGES!!!!

 

Yeah, amazing! I looked up 'Gone With the Wind', the hardback version was 1,040 pages long , but the paperback version on Amazon is 960 pages. We are closing in on that. When we pass the length of that book, we are going to have to line up who's going to play our characters in the movie version of 'Down at the Grille', kinda like GWTW... with famous lines such as "Par, par, par, that's all you men ever think about"... "As golf is my witness, I'll never go bogey again"... and "Frankly my dear, I don't give a stroke"...

[tolmij]

> @SixtySomePing said:

> > @Conrad1953 said:

> > 800 PAGES!!!!

>

> Yeah, amazing! I looked up 'Gone With the Wind', the hardback version was 1,040 pages long , but the paperback version on Amazon is 960 pages. We are closing in on that. When we pass the length of that book, we are going to have to line up who's going to play our characters in the movie version of 'Down at the Grille', kinda like GWTW... with famous lines such as "Par, par, par, that's all you men ever think about"... "As golf is my witness, I'll never go bogey again"... and "Frankly my dear, I don't give a stroke"...

 

Retirement suits your sense of humour.

[tolmij]

Has anyone else noticed, make a post and next time you go in there are other posts appeared between your last post and the original one it was next to. The post fairies are at work.?‍♀️?‍♂️?‍♂️

[Reasonability]

 

 

> @tolmij said:

> Has anyone else noticed, make a post and next time you go in there are other posts appeared between your last post and the original one it was next to. The post fairies are at work.?‍♀️?‍♂️?‍♂️

 

My friend, I don't what's going on anymore. LMAO. Away for two days and come back to no "LOL" and no "agree" function. Pretty sure much is continuing to morph here. Like all of you, I'm trusting it will all shake out eventually.

 

One thing remains the same. Good souls continue to favor us by sharing in the spirit of good fellowship. From my seat, whatever scores, activity ranking and rating, badges, or whatever happens... that stuff is all an output. It's all one big blob that constitutes a result. The actual input is that intent to be a good soul. THAT much (IMO) is what we've proven to each other via 800 pages worth. Input ------> common decency. Output -------> scores.

 

Now, if I recall correctly, your bride is going through surgery right about now??? All good thoughts and prayers assuming my memory is correct.

[tolmij]

> @Reasonability said:

>

>

> > @tolmij said:

> > Has anyone else noticed, make a post and next time you go in there are other posts appeared between your last post and the original one it was next to. The post fairies are at work.?‍♀️?‍♂️?‍♂️

>

> My friend, I don't what's going on anymore. LMAO. Away for two days and come back to no "LOL" and no "agree" function. Pretty sure much is continuing to morph here. Like all of you, I'm trusting it will all shake out eventually.

>

> One thing remains the same. Good souls continue to favor us by sharing in the spirit of good fellowship. From my seat, whatever scores, activity ranking and rating, badges, or whatever happens... that stuff is all an output. It's all one big blob that constitutes a result. The actual input is that intent to be a good soul. THAT much (IMO) is what we've proven to each other via 800 pages worth. Input ------> common decency. Output -------> scores.

>

> Now, if I recall correctly, your bride is going through surgery right about now??? All good thoughts and prayers assuming my memory is correct.

 

Correct, in surgery in around 1hours time, having several nodules removed from the gut. Thanks for your kind thoughts.

 

Hope your time away went well, pictures please, preferably of a sober reason.

 

800 pages of chit chat, no mean feat and no ill feelings or bad words towards each other.

 

 

[Fellaheen51]

@tolmij. Hoping all went well with the DW surgery. And a speedy 'rebound' is already underway.

 

Congrats to us for 800 pages of mirth, sharing, advice, and enjoyable reading. A surprise? Perhaps. In this day and age of virtual rancor. However, over time we've come to know a little bit about one another. Have had communication here, via PM and for a few, face to face. And a certain bond has been formed. Each individual bringing their observations to the table. Should not come as a surprise, if folks generally like one another, that they can engage in conversation without discord. I'd like to think it was how we were taught, what was expected, in our interactions with others. The original premise is still valid, just a bunch of regular guys sitting around shooting the breeze. Anyhow, good show. On to 1000.

[scomac2002]

So, I decided to see what sort of 'fight " song my alma matter might have; spurned on by the posting above of MSU's song in tribute to their victory last night. I don't remember any such 'fight" song when I was student, but that doesn't mean there wasn't one it just means that I wasn't paying attention -- FWIW I never went to any of the games, we weren't a noted athletics campus back in the day -- or I was to pickled to remember.

 

Turns out that when you enter the search criteria in the Google machine and the following hit shows up. Now I can assure you that this little ditty wasn't around when I was prowling Winegard Walk or washing all my worries away in The Bull Ring.

[youtu.be/ixojoTXoYBQ](http://youtu.be/ixojoTXoYBQ "youtu.be/ixojoTXoYBQ")

[Added] So what's the trick to getting a video to embed? the old work around doesn't work on this new system.

[Wriggles]

> @tolmij said:

> > @Wriggles said:

> > > @"BIG STU" said:

> > > > @tolmij said:

> > > > Good idea scotee we should start our own agree file, I already have a badge, wonder if they are going to take those from us.

> > >

> > > Don't know----- Sorta did not care one way or another------ On the other hand growing up I never had time for the Cub Scouts or Boy Scouts--- Sorta liked the uniforms with the achievement badges but never had time to pursue those activities---- My old man said that the Scouts were for kids that did not have anything else to do. I had plenty to do around the golf course growing up just like the kids that grew up on farms. Nothing wrong with the Scouts mind you I just did not have time for it

> >

> > My mother wouldn't let me join the Scouts. Ten years or so later, I wish she could have kept me from getting drafted. Camping,, guns, and military life doesn't look so appealing at 19 years old. However, I did not go to war, and did my time reluctantly, but relatively without incidents, except for the pneumonia in basic. The Army probably did me more good than harm.

> > Looked a bit rainy yesterday, so I spent some time in my garage washing my ATS, then spray wax. The car wasn't really dirty, but very dusty. Funny, even years ago, I became the old guy I admired as a young pup. Driving around in a pristine car, due to very little use. I hope I live long enough for the ATS to be old, like 15-20 years old, even older.

> >

> > The missus made us a great pork chop dinner (lunch). Browned in a pan, then moist cooked for an hour and a half. With mashed potatoes and green beans, it was a good meal. After the repast, I drove to the course, where I walked 12 holes, hitting the ball pretty well. The Callaway X hot irons I bought in late 2017 are good clubs. Had a few pars.

> > Watched a bit of golf when I got home. Tiger's looking pretty fit.

> > A good day, all in all.

> >

> >

>

> I missed the draft in the UK by one year. I was an apprentice and would have been deferred untill 21 but when I did 17 they cancelled the draft and relied on those opting for a military life. I was happy to miss it as I saw what it did to my uncle who was 12 years older than me. He was not in the heavy fighting but did have to serve his time, two years, in a conflict zone. Then they put you in the reserves for five years and you had to do two weeks basic training every year, seemed a waste of time to me as the reserves rarely were called in to fight, all it did was take your annual holidays and make you march up and down a parade ground.

 

After active duty separation, I had the four years reserve duty. A weekend a month, and a two week summer camp. Somehow, the timing entitled me to five summer camps, four of which was served in a place called AP Hill, Virginia. Primitive living at its finest. We lived in big tents, cooked with field equipment, and the only running water consisted of a spigot on a concrete slab, near the kitchen tent.

Latrines were the outside, hole in the ground variety. Portable showers were about a par 5 hole away, on a dirt road. By the time you walked back to the tent area, you were as dirty as you were before you bathed.

Rumor had it the division general tried repeatedly to volunteer us for Vietnam duty. I guess he was disappointed when the war ended in 1975. Imagine, missing the war for regular duty, and getting activated in the reserves. One combat veteran jerk lieutenant, wished we did get activated. He loved the war, by his own admission. At least, we didn't get activated.

If you look at your discharge, it's implied that you could be called back any time. I used to have a recurring dream, that I was awaiting induction again. Haven't had that dream in years, though.

Cold with snow flurries. An April Fool joke?

 

[Wriggles]

> @tolmij said:

> > @Wriggles said:

> > > @"BIG STU" said:

> > > > @tolmij said:

> > > > Good idea scotee we should start our own agree file, I already have a badge, wonder if they are going to take those from us.

> > >

> > > Don't know----- Sorta did not care one way or another------ On the other hand growing up I never had time for the Cub Scouts or Boy Scouts--- Sorta liked the uniforms with the achievement badges but never had time to pursue those activities---- My old man said that the Scouts were for kids that did not have anything else to do. I had plenty to do around the golf course growing up just like the kids that grew up on farms. Nothing wrong with the Scouts mind you I just did not have time for it

> >

> > My mother wouldn't let me join the Scouts. Ten years or so later, I wish she could have kept me from getting drafted. Camping,, guns, and military life doesn't look so appealing at 19 years old. However, I did not go to war, and did my time reluctantly, but relatively without incidents, except for the pneumonia in basic. The Army probably did me more good than harm.

> > Looked a bit rainy yesterday, so I spent some time in my garage washing my ATS, then spray wax. The car wasn't really dirty, but very dusty. Funny, even years ago, I became the old guy I admired as a young pup. Driving around in a pristine car, due to very little use. I hope I live long enough for the ATS to be old, like 15-20 years old, even older.

> >

> > The missus made us a great pork chop dinner (lunch). Browned in a pan, then moist cooked for an hour and a half. With mashed potatoes and green beans, it was a good meal. After the repast, I drove to the course, where I walked 12 holes, hitting the ball pretty well. The Callaway X hot irons I bought in late 2017 are good clubs. Had a few pars.

> > Watched a bit of golf when I got home. Tiger's looking pretty fit.

> > A good day, all in all.

> >

> >

>

> Exactly the same clubs as I have, find them easier to hit and keep the shots straight.

 

The Hots are like night and day, compared to the various sets I own. Probably the best irons I've ever played.

[Wriggles]

> @tolmij said:

> > @billh17 said:

> > Guys have a lot of funny stories from time in military. My most enlightening one was the first hour at boot camp. We were all off the bus,and finally got us into lines,two deep.the DI's were doing their thing,up and down the lines,and we here this voice,obviously from NYC..saying " You cant talk to me like that"

> > and the next thing we heard was SMACK..thud..he was flat out...it was a learning time for 18 year olds

> > who thought they were lean and mean !

>

> There is always someone bigger stronger and meaner, they are also usually in charge.

 

As Dragline in "Cool Hand Luke" said, "You have to do more work with your ears, than with your mouth.

The basic portion of "Full Metal Jacket" is spot on. The Gunny (or the Army Drill Sergeants) are not ones to mess with.

[Wriggles]

> @Fellaheen51 said:

> > @tolmij said:

> > > @Wriggles said:

> > > > @"BIG STU" said:

> > > > > @tolmij said:

> > > > > Good idea scotee we should start our own agree file, I already have a badge, wonder if they are going to take those from us.

> > > >

> > > > Don't know----- Sorta did not care one way or another------ On the other hand growing up I never had time for the Cub Scouts or Boy Scouts--- Sorta liked the uniforms with the achievement badges but never had time to pursue those activities---- My old man said that the Scouts were for kids that did not have anything else to do. I had plenty to do around the golf course growing up just like the kids that grew up on farms. Nothing wrong with the Scouts mind you I just did not have time for it

> > >

> > > My mother wouldn't let me join the Scouts. Ten years or so later, I wish she could have kept me from getting drafted. Camping,, guns, and military life doesn't look so appealing at 19 years old. However, I did not go to war, and did my time reluctantly, but relatively without incidents, except for the pneumonia in basic. The Army probably did me more good than harm.

> > > Looked a bit rainy yesterday, so I spent some time in my garage washing my ATS, then spray wax. The car wasn't really dirty, but very dusty. Funny, even years ago, I became the old guy I admired as a young pup. Driving around in a pristine car, due to very little use. I hope I live long enough for the ATS to be old, like 15-20 years old, even older.

> > >

> > > The missus made us a great pork chop dinner (lunch). Browned in a pan, then moist cooked for an hour and a half. With mashed potatoes and green beans, it was a good meal. After the repast, I drove to the course, where I walked 12 holes, hitting the ball pretty well. The Callaway X hot irons I bought in late 2017 are good clubs. Had a few pars.

> > > Watched a bit of golf when I got home. Tiger's looking pretty fit.

> > > A good day, all in all.

> > >

> > >

> >

> > I missed the draft in the UK by one year. I was an apprentice and would have been deferred untill 21 but when I did 17 they cancelled the draft and relied on those opting for a military life. I was happy to miss it as I saw what it did to my uncle who was 12 years older than me. He was not in the heavy fighting but did have to serve his time, two years, in a conflict zone. Then they put you in the reserves for five years and you had to do two weeks basic training every year, seemed a waste of time to me as the reserves rarely were called in to fight, all it did was take your annual holidays and make you march up and down a parade ground.

> Remember the Vietnam draft lottery. Think everyone of a certain age does. The first one held sometime in the fall of my freshman year at school (Googling: 12/1/1969). Guy in the dorm room next to mine got #1. Recall him being plastered by the time I returned back to the wing. Bit of a hubbub outside in the hallway. My draw (1969) was held the following summer. Drew #156, right on the cusp of whether it would be called or not. Didn't know for sure, Selective Service went higher then that the prior year IIRC. The draft served as extra motivation to maintain my grades in order to keep the 2S deferment intact.

>

> With no disrespect to Bill, Wrigs, Stu, (anyone else that I may be forgetting) that honorably served in our Armed Forces. However, being drafted was not an event that I wanted to occur during that particular time and place. A half century in hindsight, was a crazy period of time.

>

 

No disrespect taken.

[tolmij]

> @Fellaheen51 said:

> @tolmij. Hoping all went well with the DW surgery. And a speedy 'rebound' is already underway.

>

> Congrats to us for 800 pages of mirth, sharing, advice, and enjoyable reading. A surprise? Perhaps. In this day and age of virtual rancor. However, over time we've come to know a little bit about one another. Have had communication here, via PM and for a few, face to face. And a certain bond has been formed. Each individual bringing their observations to the table. Should not come as a surprise, if folks generally like one another, that they can engage in conversation without discord. I'd like to think it was how we were taught, what was expected, in our interactions with others. The original premise is still valid, just a bunch of regular guys sitting around shooting the breeze. Anyhow, good show. On to 1000.

 

The good news is it was all OK, this is the fourth time in three years and there was always a doubt even though the lab tests after gave the all clear. This time it all looks good and DW will not be required for a follow up for three years, there is now a non invasive method which we have to pay for privately so we are saving up to make sure that one is used in future ?‍⚕️

[Fellaheen51]

> @scomac2002 said:

> So, I decided to see what sort of 'fight " song my alma matter might have; spurned on by the posting above of MSU's song in tribute to their victory last night. I don't remember any such 'fight" song when I was student, but that doesn't mean there wasn't one it just means that I wasn't paying attention -- FWIW I never went to any of the games, we weren't a noted athletics campus back in the day -- or I was to pickled to remember.

>

> Turns out that when you enter the search criteria in the Google machine and the following hit shows up. Now I can assure you that this little ditty wasn't around when I was prowling Winegard Walk or washing all my worries away in The Bull Ring.

> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ixojoTXoYBQ

> [Added] So what's the trick to getting a video to embed? the old work around doesn't work on this new system.

 

FIFY. Looked like the https:// didn't get transferred in the copy/paste of the vid. Embedding no longer requires deleting the 's'.

 

[SixtySomePing]

Sunny today here! Should help anyone with SAD. Nothing like a little sunshine to bring one out of the gloom of winter's hibernation.

[Fellaheen51]

A tidbit of information of interest to no one here. "Victory for MSU" didn't become the official fight song until 2015. On the 100 anniversary of its creation. Prior, it was simply named the more mundane "MSU Fight Song". Even though absolutely no one called it that.

 

 

[SixtySomePing]

> @tolmij said:

> > @SixtySomePing said:

> > > @Conrad1953 said:

> > > 800 PAGES!!!!

> >

> > Yeah, amazing! I looked up 'Gone With the Wind', the hardback version was 1,040 pages long , but the paperback version on Amazon is 960 pages. We are closing in on that. When we pass the length of that book, we are going to have to line up who's going to play our characters in the movie version of 'Down at the Grille', kinda like GWTW... with famous lines such as "Par, par, par, that's all you men ever think about"... "As golf is my witness, I'll never go bogey again"... and "Frankly my dear, I don't give a stroke"...

>

> Retirement suits your sense of humour.

Guess I forgot these two... "Of Rhett, Rhett, you have oily wrists" and "Scarlett, you need to be kissed, often, and by somebody that can make a word out of **pl**...

 

[scomac2002]

So, I've been watching some YouTube videos this morning. Golf stuff mostly. There's a pretty good one on GolfVlogs UK featuring the boys playing Killer Golf. Every time you lose a hole you give up two clubs that the victor gets to choose. After three holes OMP is calling the proshop asking for someone to send out an empty bag to hold the clubs he has won; 6 each from Liam and eBay Pete. Pretty entertaining really...

 

Why do we bother to get custom fit? You hear these words being spoken all the time; Get custom fit. So this morning I'm watching a video that just came along randomly as they often do in the right hand menu. It's featuring two well known YouTube personalities testing out a couple of different drivers. You get the usual commentary about the test clubs as the swings are being taken. Then, the numbers are looked at. There wasn't a lot to be chosen from between the two. I suspect it's that way for most drivers now provided that you're starting with an appropriate setting and an appropriate shaft which would have been the case in this instance. You can tell from the commentary that both testers are favouring one club over the other, but the numbers don't really stand up to scrutiny. The favoured club has one strike in five that is quite a bit longer. An outlier really, whereas the other club is consistently straighter.

 

When asked how the first tester selects a driver he says that he would pick the one that went the furthest and then he would figure out how to hit it(?) If there isn't much to choose from then the decision is driven by sensory perceptions -- looks, feel, sound. Even though the one club hit on feel and sound it was looks that drove the day. That and a single outlier hit that was a 1 in 5 occurrence for a scratch player. I would submit that his mind was made up when he looked at the clubs before he ever even hit one. I bet a lot of people have the same thought process; far more subjective than objective. That would account for so many late model drivers being for sale on eBay/BST. They get bought in spite of the data and then ultimately prove out to be less than expected when being played out on the course. This more or less confirms what I've seen on the golf course. People get sold stuff that really doesn't help them at all, but hey, they were fit for it!

[tolmij]

Never had a fit for clubs, my Callaway were a present from my son, he contacted a golf shop, told them age, swing speed, height, handicap etc and they built a club they said should be good for me, spot on from the first day

[billh17]

Disregard all

[Reasonability]

 

 

> @scomac2002 said:

> So, I've been watching some YouTube videos this morning. Golf stuff mostly. There's a pretty good one on GolfVlogs UK featuring the boys playing Killer Golf. Every time you lose a hole you give up two clubs that the victor gets to choose. After three holes OMP is calling the proshop asking for someone to send out an empty bag to hold the clubs he has won; 6 each from Liam and eBay Pete. Pretty entertaining really...

>

> Why do we bother to get custom fit? You hear these words being spoken all the time; Get custom fit. So this morning I'm watching a video that just came along randomly as they often do in the right hand menu. It's featuring two well known YouTube personalities testing out a couple of different drivers. You get the usual commentary about the test clubs as the swings are being taken. Then, the numbers are looked at. There wasn't a lot to be chosen from between the two. I suspect it's that way for most drivers now provided that you're starting with an appropriate setting and an appropriate shaft which would have been the case in this instance. You can tell from the commentary that both testers are favouring one club over the other, but the numbers don't really stand up to scrutiny. The favoured club has one strike in five that is quite a bit longer. An outlier really, whereas the other club is consistently straighter.

>

> When asked how the first tester selects a driver he says that he would pick the one that went the furthest and then he would figure out how to hit it(?) If there isn't much to choose from then the decision is driven by sensory perceptions -- looks, feel, sound. Even though the one club hit on feel and sound it was looks that drove the day. That and a single outlier hit that was a 1 in 5 occurrence for a scratch player. I would submit that his mind was made up when he looked at the clubs before he ever even hit one. I bet a lot of people have the same thought process; far more subjective than objective. That would account for so many late model drivers being for sale on eBay/BST. They get bought in spite of the data and then ultimately prove out to be less than expected when being played out on the course. This more or less confirms what I've seen on the golf course. People get sold stuff that really doesn't help them at all, but hey, they were fit for it!

 

You've cranked out many-o good posts Scomacer but this one is absolutely primo.

 

Went on a fitting journey a couple of years ago. Parts of it were very illuminating. Parts were frustrating beyond belief.

 

You made mention of something I've come to learn is referred to as "confirmation bias". It's basically the process of validating what a person believes before any sort of club testing or fitting even begins. Oh there's a variety of equipment "tested" and there are probably any number of combos of shaft and clubhead style examined. BUT - because there's a prexisting bias for or against something (be it brand name, look, sound, beliefs about game improvement heads, or virtually anything about a club)... the data examined repeatedly gets twisted away from objectivity. Both the golfer AND the fitter quite easily slip into confirmation bias during a fitting.

 

The last time I looked, a true fitting should result in SPECS. Those specs should be fact based and data driven. But bias creeps in and suddenly trackman information gets tangled up with subjective ideas about look, feel, brand name, or whatever. A golfer's confidence soars when he's swinging what may well be sub-optimal equipment for him. But because he believes it so deeply, he relaxes and makes a better swing holding what may well be less than optimal equipment. In the end it's not so fact-based and data-driven after all.

 

On the frustrating side of my own journey: I had more than one "fitter" take one look at me and grab for forgiveness heads and soft shafts. Mind you, these "fitters" had not even seen my swing yet!!!! They ASSUMED because I'm not 20 years old and not built like gym rat, I MUST therefore require a baseline of forgiveness equipment to start and end a search for what is "optimal" for me.

 

I learned the hard way I had to be assertive with such ya-hoos from the get-go. No fitter - not one - who got off his own confirmation bias horse long enough to to at least try a stiffer shaft and VARIETY of specs ever failed to realize my swing is my swing, my specs are my specs, and one glimpse at me has nothing to do with what is optimal.

 

A second frustration came from the brand-specific "cart" fitter. Did they sometimes do a reasonably good job on me? YES. But again, we were always limited to the shafts, flex-points, heads, yadda availbe on their one and only one brand name "cart".

 

Thirdly, I found very hard to get anyone to give me detailed specs. Yes, I walked away knowing what head, degree of flat vs upright lie-angle, and shaft stiffness pretty much each time up. But the whole smash? Could I get these guys to hand me a read-out stating Static weight, swing weight, shaft length, flex point, and other deeper details? NO!

 

Golf-Tec probably comes the closest around here to avoiding confirmation bias issues. Or so I believe at this point. You pay dearly for it, and they steer you hard to let them build you a set based on their analysis of what your specs are. But you "can" (if you pay for it) get yourself a detailed spec report for you and your swing, then decide for yourself what to buy or chance inside your existing sticks.

 

Can't lay all blame on fitters. There are good ones, better, and best ones. But you have to keep in mind golfers, are very much guilty of confirmation bias, too.

 

"It's GOT to be this brand or that."

"I wouldn't be caught dead playing cb heads."

"I need a nice thick topline."

 

The list never ends. Golfers "believe" things so deeply they become true. Once they've slipped over the edge on these fronts, it's VERY real. They simply lose confidence and therefore can't execute well because they're absolutely certain of their beliefs. So in that sense it IS real. But these things are a fitter's nightmare. Imagine trying to optimize a golfer's equipment and he keeps stopping you at every turn saying he hates what you just handed him.

 

Last point. For me at least (YMMV), I don't think I'll ever know with 100% certainty what my "specs" are. I get older ervry year. I work on my swing religiously. I'm not the same golfer from one time window to the next. But what I have managed to do is get a reasonable idea of what tends to narrow the dispersion of misses for me. May not be perfect in ever little detail, but she's close and that much gives me peace of mind. I'm not playing inside the ropes. It's been fun to experiment a little and learn a lot. I owe my buds here for opening my eyes up to do some exploring on this front.

 

And THAT has been the not-so-frustrating part. It's good fun to watch the dispersion of misses tighten up a good bit. I'm fully capable of launching that unguided missile. Lol. But it's fun to trust the sticks a little bit more and see a miss turn out to still be serviceable a little more often. Perfect? Nope! Fun and a little better? Absolutely!

 

[Fellaheen51]

@scomac2002. Liam and his cast of characters are indeed entertaining viewing. Always end up watching several. Although the thick accent makes the dialog difficult to follow at times. At least for these ears. Did watch the Killer Golf one you mentioned. OMP!!!! Was watching another recent one, playing winter rules in the "match". Liam mentioned, "Lift, Clean and Cheat" were the rules of the day. Got a chuckle out of that one. "Greatest comeback of all time, or was it?" with The (D)ick was hilarious.

_______________

 

Agree with your take on fittings. As that's seemingly has become the mantra for everything relative to the implements we wield. As if the entirety of what works (or doesn't) can be determined in the lab. Ultimately, it comes down to trying implements out on the course over several rounds of play to figure out if they'll be long term keepers. Last time I checked, no one was willing to lend me a set of clubs to test for a couple of months. Glad I'm not good enough to get overly caught up in the cycle of newness.

 

And I like changing up clubs as much as the next. However, the cost of (new) equipment is a major impediment for acting to impulsively.

[Reasonability]

Wedges were invented to tempt me. They're golf's own version of prostitutes. Don't even go down that aisle anymore, lol. Sitting there all fresh, clean, new, shiny, grooves all sharp. They beg me to party with them. They all promise me a good time. If I touch them even once, I want more. They know I'm weak and an easy target.

 

No trips down that aisle for old Reason. ?

[scomac2002]

It appears that there's more than one wedge aficionado in these parts @Reasonability . Yourself and @"BIG STU" of course plus myself. Do not mess with my wedges!

 

The first set I had were Cleveland 588 DSG's bought NOS for $70 a piece. Used them very successfully for many years. Following those came a set of Nike SV+ that were reissue with legal grooves and they cost me $75 a piece. Loved those even more as they were more versatile with a run-of-the-mill standard full sole grind at 10° bounce. Last year I picked up a pair of Vokey SM6's on clearance. Now those cost a bit more, maybe $130 each. Haven't really had much of an opportunity to use them, but they're very similar to the Nike's spec wise and grind wise. Gonna save those until I figure out what I can and cannot do.

 

It's funny though, I remember when I was shopping wedges last year at the LGS that I got a rather distinct impression from each make and model just seeing them sit behind the ball and taking a few swings off the carpet to get an idea of turf interaction. Sure didn't care for the "V" grind on the new Clevelands. It wasn't too bad on the RTX, but those CBX were just kinda huge and overly chunky. Hated the Callaways as they looked to have about a million degrees of bounce. Man those things were like dancing with a woman in stilettos! it really came down to Pings or Titleist with price sealing the deal as those Glides were $200 a pop!

[scomac2002]

@Reasonability ; I know exactly what you mean when they take one look at you and decided that they're going to sell you some ultra forgiving club because you fit the description of the target market rather than your swing necessarily. I would never have ended up with the i25's I've got because being an old fart with modest swing speed meant that i should be playing Karsten's or G25's, not a players iron. Perhaps it was fate when he handed me that i25 to try because all the other yellow dots were out on other fittings at that moment. It was a match right from the start as they just worked for me. When he came back to me about 10 minutes or so later with a G25 I told him I didn't need to hit anymore, I was ordering the i25's. "Well, they're a bit of a stretch for you!" "You should fit better into the G25's." I indulged him even though I knew I was right with my conclusion it was so obvious. After he saw me hit the i25's on the lie board he kinda decided that maybe I wasn't off my rocker...