MD/DC/VA Golfers - Twelve Monkeys Mental Divergence

[HighBoomingDraws]

Believe it or not, the app functioned very well for the purposes of text posts and gifs. This mobile version jumps around the screen too much and doesn’t fit things well. I guess this will be a desktop activity for the most part until some updates happen. 

[davechen]

dcmidnight said:

ceejay81 said:

Apps are the present and future in this day and age of everyone being glued to their phone.  It would only make sense to cater to an app over a web browser.  But I guess I'm not shocked.

I guess the argument is that instead of websites every "site" should have an app instead?

 

If every website I visited had their own app instead - I would have hundreds of apps on my phone.

 

If a mobile site is done well, it should be fast and efficient and almost indistinguishable from a separate app.

That's what Steve Jobs tried to sell back when the iPhone first came out and there was no public API for outside developers.  

[TheCityGame]

 

[dcmidnight]

I have an icon on my phone home screen that says WRX. Whats the functional difference if its a Chrome bookmark icon that links right to the main forum home page vs having a separate app that takes you to the main forum home page? I still "tap the (icon) and bring everything up". It works the same.

 

Ten years ago an app made sense, no argument. Smartphones weren't as advanced as they are now. Mobile browsers/skins were barely even a thing. You couldn't post pics on your phone to the site - the app was great at that. But having a separate app for a message board forum these days just makes no practical sense in terms of functionality - or what I imagine is the cost of maintaining two platforms. I dont know about super dismissive but for a site like this they just arent practical.

 

Adding pics from my phone last night was way easier than it used to be, when you had to switch to the full site and do it that way. I have no doubt the mobile site will get better - as will this one.

 

[dcmidnight]

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

[therealsneek]

Did anyone watch the new Wild World of Golf from last night?  It brought a huge smile to my face to watch my boy Trust Fund Tron top one off of the 2nd tee. 

[ceejay81]

Oh, forgot to mention.

HAPPY BOSS BUTTON DAY!!

[SullGolf]

I'm a big fan of a mobile web site over an app unless it needs some special level of interactivity.  There are a couple apps I use where I'd prefer a website, but they force me in to the app (e.g. Instagram not having direct messages on the web for some reason).  Having a website be the main entry point also drastically increases your discoverability.  No one goes looking on the App Stores for a golf forum app.  They find the website, then maybe some time in the future they use the app.

City, I worked on #1 in some of my lessons last year.  Joy B has a device that goes on the butt of the club and works with the trackman to measure backswing and downswing time.  And she said the same thing, that the pros have already hit the ball by the time most ams start their transition.  From takeaway to impact, she wanted it to be 0.6 seconds for a half wedge.  I was at something like 0.8, and it was really hard to get it down at first.  IIRC a full 7-iron should be more like 0.7.  I wish I had a device to measure that when I'm at the range to work on that.  It's very much a feel thing as to what is "fast" and "slow".

[XHoop24]

dcmidnight said:

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

We're gonna need more here.......

[FAbb]

I've watched some of the AMG stuff as well, City.  It wasn't so much that I didn't make the left move at all, or early enough.  I start moving left before I get to the top.  It was more putting myself in a position where I had to make too much of that move.  So if you looked at me from face on, I was too tilted away from the target.  My head and torso moved away from the target too much.  I have to feel like I'm reverse pivoting (head towards target going back), just to keep my head from moving away too much.

 

[TheCityGame]

dcmidnight said:

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

That's great. Doesn't surprise me at all -- that goes for ANY of us, especially the further you get from scratch and the less speed you have. 

 

I think most people don't know what their drive is even supposed to look like. Too many people love like a mid-traj "piercing" flight and think that a high ball indicates that it's spinny and doesn't go anywhere. 

 

Also, most people suck. 

 

Also, I'm being very general, but I'm just saying for most people I play with I think "higher loft on the D" would be an immediate improvment. 

 

 

 

[XHoop24]

XHoop24 said:

dcmidnight said:

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

We're gonna need more here.......

And I'm mostly just talking about what you hit, what you liked, etc. 

[2moreTerps]

i regret my sergio pick. i didn't put time into my pick this week. cabrera-bello is equally likely to win and was onviously going to be picked by miles fewer people. and in  a pinch you can take sergio at so many different tournaments. i wouldn't feel awful if i needed to make up ground taking him and crossing my fingers at either of the Opens. complacency is no bueno. now i just hope for the best. if sergio wins i'll be happy i was on him! so much luck in these things.

[TheCityGame]

For hivers. . .announcement went out for the totally open-ended, finish your match whenever you want, play whatever format you want bracket style event, timed perfectly to coincide with the first day of March Madness, TYVM.

 

The graphic. . .

 

 

 

[FAbb]

SullGolf said:

I wish I had a device to measure that when I'm at the range to work on that.  It's very much a feel thing as to what is "fast" and "slow".

I'd be shocked if at least one of those consumer swing analyzer tools didn't offer that functionality.  Domes had one at some point, though I can't recall exactly which model.

 

[SullGolf]

Sergio is not good enough player where I feel bad about "wasting" him on a tournament where other people use him.  We have 32 (I think) tournaments and he's barely cracking the top 30 OWGR.  If I burned DJ and everyone picked him, I'd feel a bit differently about it.

 

[davechen]

dcmidnight said:

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

I think Tex is trying to fit me into senior flex graphite shafts.   :'(

[FAbb]

Going back to the OB rule thing.

 

I agree your pro's argument is weak at best, bordering on absurd, City.

 

I don't agree with your assessment that the rule is an alternative to going back to the the tee, and not an alternative to hitting a provisional.  Is it not explicitly an alternative to hitting a provisional, as written?  You have to make a choice on the tee, right?  I think once you fire that provisional, you give up your chance to use the local rule for dropping.  That first ball is lost/OB, you've got to play the provisional.  How many golfers, particularly as skill level gets worse are really going to take the gamble on hitting a provisional right after hitting a foul ball, when they know they've got an option to put themselves in play with their 4th by taking a drop?

 

[Ocgolfrick]

davechen said:

dcmidnight said:

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

I think Tex is trying to fit me into senior flex graphite shafts.   :'(

Dave Chen at Tex's Trackman fitting:

 

Dave Chen:  "How's my swing speed looking there Tex!"

Tex:  "Ah...Great! Just great!  I had a demo day at Atria Senior Living just a couple days ago and you're right there with some of those guys!  Not the highest I saw out of them, but right there!"

[endlesswinterco]

I’m one of the five that took Reed...not sure why, as I can’t  stand him and already +2 thru 3...

[SullGolf]

endlesswinterco said:

I’m one of the five that took Reed...not sure why, as I can’t  stand him and already +2 thru 3...

I've used up Reed and Bubba so far, which makes me feel better that I don't have to do it again for at least a year.

The good part about picking guys you don't like is that you don't regret when they don't perform.  It's a built in emotional hedge.  If they win, great.  If they lose, great.

[dcmidnight]

BLUF - Rounding the numbers I gained 12 yards of carry but zero yards total distance. Height increased from 74 to 95 feet, launch angle from 9* to 12*.

So I knew going into the fitting that there was not going to be a *ton* of potential gains, if any. Think I posted as much. But it was a xmas gift and I'm never going to argue with hitting shots for an hour and a half. I also know my problem is hitting a lot of low/mid trajectory drives and when you have a year like last year, I lost a lot of distance off the tee because my total drive distance relies on a lot of roll.

Their Fairfax location is right on 50 - couldnt be easier to get to and park at. So basically the opposite of their Rockville store.

Hit a ton of drivers after getting warmed up. Did not like the shape of the Flash or the T3 so we tossed those immediately. Liked the G410. Loved the feel of the Cobra but we just could not get it to behave that well. Finally settled in on a 12* M5 head with an Aldila Green 65x shaft. Total distances were not going up at all, even down 1-2 yards, but everything else was great. 

Not only was carry distance up but the dispersion was much tighter. In fact he overlayed the dispersion circle from my wedge warmups and my driver circle was smaller. That either says I'm a terrible wedge player or was really hitting the D well.

I knew I could pretty easily get my hands on a cheap 12* M3 head too and the first thing he suggested was trying my current Ad-di shaft on the 12* head with both the weights forward. 

Overall I like the location, the setup and the two fitters were great, I wouldnt hesitate to recommend them. I just think their financial model is asinine.

This table wont post well but I'm going to try it anyway.

		Club Speed	Ball Speed	Smash Fac.	Launch Ang.	Spin Rate	Carry	Total	Land. Ang.	Attack Ang.	Height
M5 12*	Avg	106.6	157.3	1.48	12.1	2588	264.7	287.9	37.5	1.5	95
M3 Gamer	Avg	108	158.8	1.47	9.8	2190	252.1	289.9	29.5	0.1	74

[ceejay81]

FAbb said:

Going back to the OB rule thing.

 

I agree your pro's argument is weak at best, bordering on absurd, City.

 

I don't agree with your assessment that the rule is an alternative to going back to the the tee, and not an alternative to hitting a provisional.  Is it not explicitly an alternative to hitting a provisional, as written?  You have to make a choice on the tee, right?  I think once you fire that provisional, you give up your chance to use the local rule for dropping.  That first ball is lost/OB, you've got to play the provisional.  How many golfers, particularly as skill level gets worse are really going to take the gamble on hitting a provisional right after hitting a foul ball, when they know they've got an option to put themselves in play with their 4th by taking a drop?

So, more than likely I'd usually want to always use the new drop rule.  The only time I'd consider hitting a provisional, moving forward, is if it went OB/got lost super early in the ball flight.  Like after 75 yards, if it's already crossing the line, then I'm going to want to poke one out there a littler further so I'm not hitting my 4th from before the fairway starts.

 

If a ball has normal distance and barely trickles OB, using that new drop rule should be a no brainer for everyone.  If allowed, obviously.

[SullGolf]

Tex would know better than me, but I don't quite trust the trackman "total" numbers, and just look at carry.  Carry is dependable.  It transfers location to location, conditions to conditions (minus wind/cold changes), course to course.  I'm sure the trackman calculation for roll is legit and based on some real data (e.g. the landing angle and ball speed info), but even ignoring the wetness I'm sure it's not set up for our kind of normal conditions.

I've also never played with anyone who hit driver too high.  About 20 years ago when I was in high school, I did play with some guys who hit spinny balloon balls that rise with a weird traj.  But I haven't seen anyone hit one like that in a long time unless it was dead in to the wind.  The equipment just doesn't let it happen. 

I'd bet most amateurs have a pretty good correlation between driver height and distance.

[FAbb]

Something I left out the lesson recap was just picking my buddy's brain about practice a bit.  I've really never learned how to practice efficiently.  As a junior, I had such sheer volume of reps, that it didn't matter much how efficient I was.  Now that my reps are at a bare minimum, I need to be as efficient as possible.  So I wanted to address and get his thoughts on it.

 

The number one thing he wanted me to start any range work with was to either put a stick in the ground on my target line like 10-15ft away, or to lay one on the ground in front of the ball, pointing down my target line.  Make sure I'm working on starting the ball to a desired side, and curving it back.  Then we talked a bit about practice games to simulate pressure and mimic more on course situations.  One was to treat a flag/pole on the range as if it were a flag on a particular side of the green.  Give myself a defined area on the fat side of the flag as a target, and score myself on whether I hit it there, missed it too far on the fat side, or short sided myself.  Then switch sides of the flag, and repeat changing clubs and targets for each set of 2 shots.  There was another he told me their club champ plays, where he hits to each target, not moving to the next until he's got 5 shots in a row on the green.

 

[XHoop24]

dcmidnight said:

BLUF - Rounding the numbers I gained 12 yards of carry but zero yards total distance. Height increased from 74 to 95 feet, launch angle from 9* to 12*.

So I knew going into the fitting that there was not going to be a *ton* of potential gains, if any. Think I posted as much. But it was a xmas gift and I'm never going to argue with hitting shots for an hour and a half. I also know my problem is hitting a lot of low/mid trajectory drives and when you have a year like last year, I lost a lot of distance off the tee because my total drive distance relies on a lot of roll.

Their Fairfax location is right on 50 - couldnt be easier to get to and park at. So basically the opposite of their Rockville store.

Hit a ton of drivers after getting warmed up. Did not like the shape of the Flash or the T3 so we tossed those immediately. Liked the G410. Loved the feel of the Cobra but we just could not get it to behave that well. Finally settled in on a 12* M5 head with an Aldila Green 65x shaft. Total distances were not going up at all, even down 1-2 yards, but everything else was great. 

Not only was carry distance up but the dispersion was much tighter. In fact he overlayed the dispersion circle from my wedge warmups and my driver circle was smaller. That either says I'm a terrible wedge player or was really hitting the D well.

I knew I could pretty easily get my hands on a cheap 12* M3 head too and the first thing he suggested was trying my current Ad-di shaft on the 12* head with both the weights forward. 

Overall I like the location, the setup and the two fitters were great, I wouldnt hesitate to recommend them. I just think their financial model is asinine.

This table wont post well but I'm going to try it anyway.

 

		Club Speed	Ball Speed	Smash Fac.	Launch Ang.	Spin Rate	Carry	Total	Land. Ang.	Attack Ang.	Height
M5 12*	Avg	106.6	157.3	1.48	12.1	2588	264.7	287.9	37.5	1.5	95
M3 Gamer	Avg	108	158.8	1.47	9.8	2190	252.1	289.9	29.5	0.1	74

Nice write up - I really enjoy reading about peeps on the thread messing with equipment, especially when doing a fitting. I like the new numbers (based on my amateur understanding) as the launch is in the range the formulas would say will result in more yards. 

[TheCityGame]

A drill my guy gave me was when playing curves to pick a flag and go, "I'm hitting a draw into that flag, but I can't go left of it". 

 

Then, pick a starting line maybe 30 yards right of it, and move the starting line closer and closer to the target while still hitting draws and not missing left. 

 

It's not a "scored" drill, but a pretty good drill for learning feels and learning to hit shots. 

[t4t3r]

dcmidnight said:

BLUF - Rounding the numbers I gained 12 yards of carry but zero yards total distance. Height increased from 74 to 95 feet, launch angle from 9* to 12*.

So I knew going into the fitting that there was not going to be a *ton* of potential gains, if any. Think I posted as much. But it was a xmas gift and I'm never going to argue with hitting shots for an hour and a half. I also know my problem is hitting a lot of low/mid trajectory drives and when you have a year like last year, I lost a lot of distance off the tee because my total drive distance relies on a lot of roll.

Their Fairfax location is right on 50 - couldnt be easier to get to and park at. So basically the opposite of their Rockville store.

Hit a ton of drivers after getting warmed up. Did not like the shape of the Flash or the T3 so we tossed those immediately. Liked the G410. Loved the feel of the Cobra but we just could not get it to behave that well. Finally settled in on a 12* M5 head with an Aldila Green 65x shaft. Total distances were not going up at all, even down 1-2 yards, but everything else was great. 

Not only was carry distance up but the dispersion was much tighter. In fact he overlayed the dispersion circle from my wedge warmups and my driver circle was smaller. That either says I'm a terrible wedge player or was really hitting the D well.

I knew I could pretty easily get my hands on a cheap 12* M3 head too and the first thing he suggested was trying my current Ad-di shaft on the 12* head with both the weights forward. 

Overall I like the location, the setup and the two fitters were great, I wouldnt hesitate to recommend them. I just think their financial model is asinine.

This table wont post well but I'm going to try it anyway.

 

		Club Speed	Ball Speed	Smash Fac.	Launch Ang.	Spin Rate	Carry	Total	Land. Ang.	Attack Ang.	Height
M5 12*	Avg	106.6	157.3	1.48	12.1	2588	264.7	287.9	37.5	1.5	95
M3 Gamer	Avg	108	158.8	1.47	9.8	2190	252.1	289.9	29.5	0.1	74

Good stuff. Similar numbers and experience for me when I did this a couple years ago at CC.  Give me all the space in the world but I just have never gotten comfortable swinging a driver indoors. I toyed with a 12* 2016 M1 head back when those were the current model but didn't give it enough time to really get everything out of it.  What loft is your M3? Ball speed difference is likely just due to the difference in loft, but maybe a softer-tip shaft than the DI in the M3 could get the launch and spin up? Would help get the landing angle up to something more reasonable and increase carry too.

 

Went to The Players on Sunday during our Florida trip. Cold and windy and TV coverage still doesn't do 17 justice. That front right pin is basically invisible.  Was surprised at how flat the course is though, most of the undulation is around the greens, but tee-to-green it's quite even. Got some good f-bomb sound bites from JT and a few others. 

 

Any chance that the venue for Solstice will be known soon? Had so much fun last year but don't want to skip TRU for Solstice if it's going to be too far of a drive.

[davechen]

Updated my signature because ITS TOURNEY TIME!

[baddomes]

Ocgolfrick said:

davechen said:

dcmidnight said:

Wait, when can we stop talking about serious stuff like website technology and forum apps and talk about the fact I was fit into a 12* driver at Club Champion on Monday...

I think Tex is trying to fit me into senior flex graphite shafts.   :'(

Dave Chen at Tex's Trackman fitting:

 

Dave Chen:  "How's my swing speed looking there Tex!"

Tex:  "Ah...Great! Just great!  I had a demo day at Atria Senior Living just a couple days ago and you're right there with some of those guys!  Not the highest I saw out of them, but right there!"Leisure World.  They have a golf course.