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Best ball strikers by era


Jtgavigan

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47 minutes ago, TheDeanAbides said:

Um, what does temperament have to do with ball striking? If you ever seen Sergio hit balls in person you'll reassess that position. Is he a guy with emotional outburst problems? Hell yeah, but his ball striking is top draw. 

Absolutely nothing, I’m just an a** that can’t stand watching the guy play. I just don’t see him as a great ball striker like other make him out to be. But that’s just me. 

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I'll stick with Boo Weekley as the best ball striker of the 2000s.  Never misses.  Even in his older age, this year he is .655 strokes gained off the tee and 1.25 strokes gained into the green.  1.75+ strokes gained ball striking.

 

He can't putt for s**t though.  Loses 2 strokes a round putting.

 

Not sure the public even knows who he is.  Dude can flat out hit it solid.

 

Not sure it is still true, but as of a couple of years ago he never had a season outside the top 20 on PGA Tour in ball striking.  That's insane.  Year after year, not one ever outside the top 20.  Most people wake up and it's different every day.  For him it's been awesome for about 20 years.

Edited by Oliver Klozoff
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Mostly "ball striking" is overrated. If one can consistently strike reasonably solid- straight shots he can shoot under par scores.

The reality is that no matter how good a player's swing and, or, the quality of impact strikes, the reality is that wind, bounces, lies etc.. will cause him to miss some greens.

 

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Annika Sorenstam might be the best pure ball striker in the last 30 years.

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Callaway 2007 X-Forged 5-PW/ PXG Gen 6 XP's 7-SW

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Life is like riding a bicycle, to keep your balance you must keep moving

 

 

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  • 3 months later...
On 8/8/2020 at 1:33 PM, Jtgavigan said:

I disagree. He was long and straight and maybe the best long iron player ever. He wasnt just a clutch putter. You can't win that much not being a good ball striker.

I left him off my list just because he was so good at everything, but there were better ball strikers in his era. He thought his way around the course better than anyone. He was a tremendous putter in the clutch. He drove it well and was awesome with that 1 iron.

Nicklaus was kind of a crappy wedge player...

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11 minutes ago, cavemeister said:

Nicklaus was kind of a crappy wedge player...

 

I reckon Nicklaus' wedge game was average compared to the rest of his game.

 

But his wedge game was that poor compared to the rest of the tour. Maybe just tour average.

 

How does one win 18 majors being a poor wedge player?!!!

 

Relaxing Jack Nicklaus GIF by Reynolds Lake Oconee

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3 minutes ago, iBanesto said:

 

I reckon Nicklaus' wedge game was average compared to the rest of his game.

 

But his wedge game was that poor compared to the rest of the tour. Maybe just tour average.

 

How does one win 18 majors being a poor wedge player?!!!

 

Relaxing Jack Nicklaus GIF by Reynolds Lake Oconee

You could do it in those days, Jack said he could of been a better wedge player but he didn't need to be to win...Most players have a weakness--Young Tiger was a rarity--did not have a weakness--and he was a great driver when he used a steel shaft...

stealth 2 plus, 10.5 Titleist 6x tr blue

Cobra 4 iron 
G425 5 and 7 woods red ventus 90x

Tsi2 3 wood RDX black x

PXG 0311xp 5-gw, 0211 G,SW,LW  Wilson ci11 w/ ctaper 130x

Titleist sm9 s400 56,60
2ball blade
Titleist v1x

(Just had a shoulder replaced and I am buying clubs for my fantasy bag).

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On 11/16/2020 at 4:43 PM, Arn said:

Can’t believe how many people have Tiger on their list. He was a great iron player, but a great ball striker can use every club in the bag. Tiger’s had the yips with his driver for 20 years. Amazing what he’s accomplished all things considered

Good post that got me started a little. A ball striker, for me,  is a guy that shot after shot produces beauties. Saw Tiger innumerable times on TV during the years, but my memory of him wasnt really like that of a ballstriker. He produced super shots when he needed to. He had that extra gear. 
Not until 2018. When he made his comeback, tour championship, Masters, His swing was that of a true ballstriker. Beautiful and wth constant beautiful results. I never enjoyed seeing him play more than in that period. 
 

Otherwise, the ballstriker of this era - Westy.

 

younger guys, many mention JT, and its kind of hard to argue with that, even if I’m not really a fan of the guy. 

Edited by Hankshank
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A sleeper pick that I would put up against anyone else on this list is Gary Woodland. Absolutely unbelievable.

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  • 1 year later...
On 3/19/2021 at 3:21 PM, m d g said:

So related to this...why doesn't anyone teach/copy Jack's swing?

 

I seems very simple. Bring the club up (forget about the elbow) and bring it back down again.

 

Doesn't seem to be much going on, and it was obviously repeatable under pressure.

Great swing for a stocky guy with powerful legs.  Jack Grout taught that swing, as he was a friend of Byron Nelson.

But that swing wouldn't have worked for Ben Hogan, or other slightly built players who used rotation.

Unseen, in the background, Fate was quietly slipping the lead into the boxing-glove.  P.G. Wodehouse
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On 3/19/2021 at 4:18 AM, iBanesto said:

 

I reckon Nicklaus' wedge game was average compared to the rest of his game.

 

But his wedge game was that poor compared to the rest of the tour. Maybe just tour average.

 

How does one win 18 majors being a poor wedge player?!!!

 

Relaxing Jack Nicklaus GIF by Reynolds Lake Oconee

Jack didn’t miss a lot of greens and didn’t short side himself often.

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there is one other name that seems to be left on everyone's list.....Gary Player...just like Jack its probably because most on this board never saw Gary or Jack in their prime, but you dont win what they did all around the globe without being a good ball striker, and JN did it all those years hitting the MacGregor VIP or Muirfield grinds , and also hitting that M85 driver...Gary was playing Dunlop or possibly Slazenger in Europe

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"If I hit 10 3 irons, 6 will be hit very well, 3 acceptably well and on exceptionally well."  Frank Beard, regarded as one of the good ballstrikers of the mid-60's-early 70's.  That's what we're talking about for every guy playing on tour.  Poor-you ain't there.  Average-you ain't there.  Every guy on tour hits it better than anyone not on tour you've ever played with, or seen.  That's how good you have to be.  Oh, and Frank played old school blades with uneven shafts and strictly an educated guess about what would play and what would not.

Edited by farmer
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3 hours ago, farmer said:

"If I hit 10 3 irons, 6 will be hit very well, 3 acceptably well and on exceptionally well."  Frank Beard, regarded as one of the good ballstrikers of the mid-60's-early 70's.  That's what we're talking about for every guy playing on tour.  Poor-you ain't there.  Average-you ain't there.  Every guy on tour hits it better than anyone not on tour you've ever played with, or seen.  That's how good you have to be.  Oh, and Frank played old school blades with uneven shafts and strictly an educated guess about what would play and what would not.

Beard was by all accounts a phenomenal player, heard stories about him from some old timers that he could play with the best of them

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On 11/16/2020 at 9:43 AM, Arn said:

Can’t believe how many people have Tiger on their list. He was a great iron player, but a great ball striker can use every club in the bag. Tiger’s had the yips with his driver for 20 years. Amazing what he’s accomplished all things considered


2006 Hoylake was the single greatest example of pure ball striking planet earth has ever seen.

as witnessed by faldo who was paired with him and corroborated by Tom Watson who said he had never seen the like….

Tiger hit a driver once on Thursday.

 

-chris

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1 hour ago, Christosterone said:


2006 Hoylake was the single greatest example of pure ball striking planet earth has ever seen.

as witnessed by faldo who was paired with him and corroborated by Tom Watson who said he had never seen the like….

Tiger hit a driver once on Thursday.

 

-chris

You can’t disagree with facts!

 

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On 4/18/2022 at 12:12 PM, farmer said:

 Every guy on tour hits it better than anyone not on tour you've ever played with, or seen.  

For a few decades I have been a spectator at dozens of Tour events, including Majors.  Brad Faxon, Billy Mayfair, and Jose Maria Olazabal are three players come to mind who did not hit the ball as consistently solid as several amateurs and club pros I've known.

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1 hour ago, Big Cat 3 said:

Not a Nicklaus fan and never will be .... but his 2 iron off the stick on #17 at Pebble during the 1972 US Open begs the differ

Jack obviously was a great player….that said no one shot makes a guy a great ballstriker.  I have five hole in ones and am not that good at this game.

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Titleist TS3 19°  hybrid Tensei Blue/Titleist TSR3 24° Diamana Ahina

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Vokey SM8 50° F & 56° M SM9 60°M

Cameron Newport w/ flow neck by Lamont/ Cameron Del Mar

 



 

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