Be Better, Brad! (Update 4-11-2024 with new swing videos)

[betarhoalphadelta]

19 minutes ago, bortass said:

Do you have a bunker you can practice out of? Maybe this is a stupid question but in Maine, my home course didn't have a practice bunker. I think that's an area you can improve very quickly, if you keep the goal as getting out in 1. Refinement past that will just take time and reps, some of which will happen as you just play. Of course the condition of the bunkers will make a big difference too. 

 

 

That little pitch & putt that I joined the player's club has a range, a putting green, and a short game practice area with several bunkers... I haven't used the bunkers and I need to. Been trying to focus on the long game more because I know it was an area that I've struggled massively. 

 

I don't want to blame bunker condition for my poor play, but the bunker conditions were terrible on Sunday. Obviously I need to adjust to that, but it's not fluffy sand. That's one of my concerns with the bunkers at the practice facility--if they're anything like the bunkers on that 9 hole course, they're only useful for teaching me to play out of the worst-maintained sand imaginable lol...

 

But yeah, it's an area I need to practice. I'm pretty sure my strategy can't be "never go in the bunker"... 😉 

[BigTerp1524]

Solid round!! Obviously you wanted the back to go a little better, but PLENTY of positives to take away. Looking forward to hearing how you make out at your iron fitting on Thursday.

[bortass]

24 minutes ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

That little pitch & putt that I joined the player's club has a range, a putting green, and a short game practice area with several bunkers... I haven't used the bunkers and I need to. Been trying to focus on the long game more because I know it was an area that I've struggled massively. 

 

I don't want to blame bunker condition for my poor play, but the bunker conditions were terrible on Sunday. Obviously I need to adjust to that, but it's not fluffy sand. That's one of my concerns with the bunkers at the practice facility--if they're anything like the bunkers on that 9 hole course, they're only useful for teaching me to play out of the worst-maintained sand imaginable lol...

 

But yeah, it's an area I need to practice. I'm pretty sure my strategy can't be "never go in the bunker"... 😉 

That may be fine.  The bunkers at my course are bad. Not much sand and for some reason I'm running into more hard pan than in the past. Digression aside, what I practiced out of the bunker was what Monte mentioned for firm bunkers, a square face. So I have a sand shot that works reasonably well for the crappy bunkers I normally am in but I suffer when I go to the sister course that redid their bunkers last year. They have fluffy sand and I don't hit out of it a lot, so I struggle a bit. So it's still worth it if the bunkers at the range are somewhat similar to what you see on the short course that you seem to play the most. 

 

Also, my guess is it'll only take 20 - 30 minutes to start to get the hang of a basic bunker shot to just get out in one w/o skulling it every time. Sand shots being a fairly simple swing don't take as much work to maintain a serviceable level either and that's all you need, serviceable. I completely understand the long game being the biggest issue since I'm in the same boat, I'm just thinking that shoring up the sand game may be a small investment is all. 

 

One possible side effect, is bunkers can be something that are no longer feared/to be avoided. For a while, I was fine with being in a bunker since I could get out reasonably well. It's different now but that's because conditions have worsened and it's turning into a crapshoot with the hardpan.

 

As always, take everything I type with a grain of salt because I would never be surprised if I'm wrong, lol.

Edited June 15, 2021 by bortass

[betarhoalphadelta]

I had my fitting today and pulled the trigger on a set of Wishon EQ1-NX single length.

 

Got 4h and 5i-GW. All at 37.5", with the Modus 3 120g in stiff, and the Golf Pride MCC +4 grip in midsize. 

 

He started having me warm up, for which I used my 8i, then he switched me over to my 6i. On the 6i he put impact tape on the face and had me hit some, and there were a lot of toe strikes. He put a piece of electrical tape covering 1/2" down as "choke down" marker and did so again, and then did it one more time, and I started finding the center of the face a little more. He added a little lead tape to the club as I remarked it was feeling a bit light, and I was striking pretty well. From there we mostly stuck at that 37" length.

 

They do most fittings at 6i, but for the single-length, they use 5i as a lot of players have trouble launching the lower loft irons. So my entire fitting was based on the 5i. 

 

I know we went through a number of shafts. I tried not to pay too close attention to what he was typing on the Trackman to keep track of the shots I was hitting. These were all actually 37.5" shafts but he was putting tape down to give me a point to choke down to 37. I do know he had the Modus 105, 120, a Project X shaft (unsure of which one), at least one and maybe two KBS in there, and the Steelfiber 110i. 

 

There were a number I just didn't like, and some I did, so he kept the ones I liked. Those ended up being the KBS (I believe in 120g), the Modus 120, and the Steelfiber 110i. Going back to hit them a second time the KBS just didn't agree with me. Both the Modus and the Steelfiber felt nice, and I was hitting both well. The Steelfiber felt really stable and felt faster, while the Modus felt more natural. 

 

I ended up suggesting to hit them at the original 37.5" shaft length, as I really didn't want to force myself into a shorter length unnecessarily. I did so, and despite being tired and sweaty from whacking a TON of balls in a short period of time, the extra swing weight didn't bother me at all at the extra weight. I felt a little more natural at that length and I was still finding the center of the face just fine. 

 

Looking at the numbers, launch-spin-height were pretty much a wash between the Modus and the Steelfiber, but I had MUCH more tendency to shut the face and hook the Steelfiber, and the dispersion was better on the Modus. So that's where I ended up. 

 

The big takeaway to me was that in all that, I was making SUCH better contact with a 5i than I've ever made with my clubs--likely because my 5i is 2" longer than I'm going to end up with. And I am not giving much up for that contact. My current 5i is my 200-205 club, and the Wishon 5i was typically carry of 190 and roll-out to 205--and that was while I was tired at the end of the session, and I was still making consistent contact and making that distance. Granted--the lofts on the Wishon clubs aren't "jacked" but they're stronger than my current lofts, so at the top of the set I might give up a little bit. But if I trade that for more consistent face contact and thus consistent distances, it's MORE than worth it. If the 4h can be a 220 yard club, it's basically equivalent to my current 3i which I can hit 220-230y but is MUCH more likely to go 50-180y.

 

Now comes the hard part... Figuring out wedges.

 

I have two ideas:

1. Order the Cobra one-length wedges at 56* and 60*, which are designed to be played at 37.25" with standard grips. The problem might be a swing weight TOO low. They're D4 stock with a 125g shaft and standard grips. If I were to push up to the Modus3 130 and add 1/4" I'd maybe add 1-2 SW points, but then the midsize MCC+4 would negate that. 
2. Order some Sub70 wedges in 52/56/60 at 36.75". These are 300g+ heads, so there's a swing weight problem the other way. The reduction of 3/4" will reduce about 4-5 points, and if I can get them to put a Modus 105 in it that'll drop another 2 points, but of course the head weight weight adds 14-15 points. Wedges are often higher than other irons, so maybe that's ok. I realize there's not a huge loft gap between my 50* GW and a 52* Sub70, but I think the GW will more often be a full swing club, whereas the 52 would be my typical chipping/pitching club. 

That said, I've got time to think on that. The Cobra wedges are having huge stocking problems with shafts and grips, and I can always use my current sand wedge and 60* for now. I think I may just wait until these irons are ready and figure it out from there...

[TKS]

2 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

I had my fitting today and pulled the trigger on a set of Wishon EQ1-NX single length.

 

Got 4h and 5i-GW. All at 37.5", with the Modus 3 120g in stiff, and the Golf Pride MCC +4 grip in midsize. 

 

He started having me warm up, for which I used my 8i, then he switched me over to my 6i. On the 6i he put impact tape on the face and had me hit some, and there were a lot of toe strikes. He put a piece of electrical tape covering 1/2" down as "choke down" marker and did so again, and then did it one more time, and I started finding the center of the face a little more. He added a little lead tape to the club as I remarked it was feeling a bit light, and I was striking pretty well. From there we mostly stuck at that 37" length.

 

They do most fittings at 6i, but for the single-length, they use 5i as a lot of players have trouble launching the lower loft irons. So my entire fitting was based on the 5i. 

 

I know we went through a number of shafts. I tried not to pay too close attention to what he was typing on the Trackman to keep track of the shots I was hitting. These were all actually 37.5" shafts but he was putting tape down to give me a point to choke down to 37. I do know he had the Modus 105, 120, a Project X shaft (unsure of which one), at least one and maybe two KBS in there, and the Steelfiber 110i. 

 

There were a number I just didn't like, and some I did, so he kept the ones I liked. Those ended up being the KBS (I believe in 120g), the Modus 120, and the Steelfiber 110i. Going back to hit them a second time the KBS just didn't agree with me. Both the Modus and the Steelfiber felt nice, and I was hitting both well. The Steelfiber felt really stable and felt faster, while the Modus felt more natural. 

 

I ended up suggesting to hit them at the original 37.5" shaft length, as I really didn't want to force myself into a shorter length unnecessarily. I did so, and despite being tired and sweaty from whacking a TON of balls in a short period of time, the extra swing weight didn't bother me at all at the extra weight. I felt a little more natural at that length and I was still finding the center of the face just fine. 

 

Looking at the numbers, launch-spin-height were pretty much a wash between the Modus and the Steelfiber, but I had MUCH more tendency to shut the face and hook the Steelfiber, and the dispersion was better on the Modus. So that's where I ended up. 

 

The big takeaway to me was that in all that, I was making SUCH better contact with a 5i than I've ever made with my clubs--likely because my 5i is 2" longer than I'm going to end up with. And I am not giving much up for that contact. My current 5i is my 200-205 club, and the Wishon 5i was typically carry of 190 and roll-out to 205--and that was while I was tired at the end of the session, and I was still making consistent contact and making that distance. Granted--the lofts on the Wishon clubs aren't "jacked" but they're stronger than my current lofts, so at the top of the set I might give up a little bit. But if I trade that for more consistent face contact and thus consistent distances, it's MORE than worth it. If the 4h can be a 220 yard club, it's basically equivalent to my current 3i which I can hit 220-230y but is MUCH more likely to go 50-180y.

 

Now comes the hard part... Figuring out wedges.

 

I have two ideas:

1. Order the Cobra one-length wedges at 56* and 60*, which are designed to be played at 37.25" with standard grips. The problem might be a swing weight TOO low. They're D4 stock with a 125g shaft and standard grips. If I were to push up to the Modus3 130 and add 1/4" I'd maybe add 1-2 SW points, but then the midsize MCC+4 would negate that. 
2. Order some Sub70 wedges in 52/56/60 at 36.75". These are 300g+ heads, so there's a swing weight problem the other way. The reduction of 3/4" will reduce about 4-5 points, and if I can get them to put a Modus 105 in it that'll drop another 2 points, but of course the head weight weight adds 14-15 points. Wedges are often higher than other irons, so maybe that's ok. I realize there's not a huge loft gap between my 50* GW and a 52* Sub70, but I think the GW will more often be a full swing club, whereas the 52 would be my typical chipping/pitching club. 

That said, I've got time to think on that. The Cobra wedges are having huge stocking problems with shafts and grips, and I can always use my current sand wedge and 60* for now. I think I may just wait until these irons are ready and figure it out from there...

I love the EQ1-NX wedges. Give them a look if you can.

I get the concept of having different wedges than the set, but I learnt very quick that ego has no bearing.

[BigTerp1524]

18 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

I had my fitting today and pulled the trigger on a set of Wishon EQ1-NX single length.

 

Got 4h and 5i-GW. All at 37.5", with the Modus 3 120g in stiff, and the Golf Pride MCC +4 grip in midsize. 

 

He started having me warm up, for which I used my 8i, then he switched me over to my 6i. On the 6i he put impact tape on the face and had me hit some, and there were a lot of toe strikes. He put a piece of electrical tape covering 1/2" down as "choke down" marker and did so again, and then did it one more time, and I started finding the center of the face a little more. He added a little lead tape to the club as I remarked it was feeling a bit light, and I was striking pretty well. From there we mostly stuck at that 37" length.

 

They do most fittings at 6i, but for the single-length, they use 5i as a lot of players have trouble launching the lower loft irons. So my entire fitting was based on the 5i. 

 

I know we went through a number of shafts. I tried not to pay too close attention to what he was typing on the Trackman to keep track of the shots I was hitting. These were all actually 37.5" shafts but he was putting tape down to give me a point to choke down to 37. I do know he had the Modus 105, 120, a Project X shaft (unsure of which one), at least one and maybe two KBS in there, and the Steelfiber 110i. 

 

There were a number I just didn't like, and some I did, so he kept the ones I liked. Those ended up being the KBS (I believe in 120g), the Modus 120, and the Steelfiber 110i. Going back to hit them a second time the KBS just didn't agree with me. Both the Modus and the Steelfiber felt nice, and I was hitting both well. The Steelfiber felt really stable and felt faster, while the Modus felt more natural. 

 

I ended up suggesting to hit them at the original 37.5" shaft length, as I really didn't want to force myself into a shorter length unnecessarily. I did so, and despite being tired and sweaty from whacking a TON of balls in a short period of time, the extra swing weight didn't bother me at all at the extra weight. I felt a little more natural at that length and I was still finding the center of the face just fine. 

 

Looking at the numbers, launch-spin-height were pretty much a wash between the Modus and the Steelfiber, but I had MUCH more tendency to shut the face and hook the Steelfiber, and the dispersion was better on the Modus. So that's where I ended up. 

 

The big takeaway to me was that in all that, I was making SUCH better contact with a 5i than I've ever made with my clubs--likely because my 5i is 2" longer than I'm going to end up with. And I am not giving much up for that contact. My current 5i is my 200-205 club, and the Wishon 5i was typically carry of 190 and roll-out to 205--and that was while I was tired at the end of the session, and I was still making consistent contact and making that distance. Granted--the lofts on the Wishon clubs aren't "jacked" but they're stronger than my current lofts, so at the top of the set I might give up a little bit. But if I trade that for more consistent face contact and thus consistent distances, it's MORE than worth it. If the 4h can be a 220 yard club, it's basically equivalent to my current 3i which I can hit 220-230y but is MUCH more likely to go 50-180y.

 

Now comes the hard part... Figuring out wedges.

 

I have two ideas:

1. Order the Cobra one-length wedges at 56* and 60*, which are designed to be played at 37.25" with standard grips. The problem might be a swing weight TOO low. They're D4 stock with a 125g shaft and standard grips. If I were to push up to the Modus3 130 and add 1/4" I'd maybe add 1-2 SW points, but then the midsize MCC+4 would negate that. 
2. Order some Sub70 wedges in 52/56/60 at 36.75". These are 300g+ heads, so there's a swing weight problem the other way. The reduction of 3/4" will reduce about 4-5 points, and if I can get them to put a Modus 105 in it that'll drop another 2 points, but of course the head weight weight adds 14-15 points. Wedges are often higher than other irons, so maybe that's ok. I realize there's not a huge loft gap between my 50* GW and a 52* Sub70, but I think the GW will more often be a full swing club, whereas the 52 would be my typical chipping/pitching club. 

That said, I've got time to think on that. The Cobra wedges are having huge stocking problems with shafts and grips, and I can always use my current sand wedge and 60* for now. I think I may just wait until these irons are ready and figure it out from there...

Happy to hear you found a combo you like. Obviously you liked the MCC Plus 4's. Were you sold on them as quickly as I was? I freakin LOVE mine. Gripped every club in my bag with them minus my driver and putter.

 

I was advised on here to not get caught up in SW's. I heeded that advice and instead of trying to get matched up or "reasonable" SW's, I focused on what felt comfortable for me. That ended up being length, grip and overall club weight. You and I discussed the lower length limit, and I feel that was extremely important in my decision as well. The SW's for my irons go from D1 at the 4i up to E0 with my PW. Then my 50 is at D9, 54 is D6 and my 58 is D9. They got a little wonky with the progressions I went and my lower length limit for my wedges, but I do not notice it one bit. I'm sure the overall mass of my clubs play a part in that, but I can honestly swing my 4i and then grab my PW and not feel a noticeable difference in SW. What I can feel a difference in, and in a very negative way, is when I swing one of my significantly lighter old irons. This is all just me, yourself and I'm sure many others, may be way more sensitive to SW's. 

 

FWIW, I have the same grips (MCC Plus 4 midsize) and shafts (FST Pro 125) in all my irons, wedges and hybrid and couldn't be happier. The consistent feel across all those clubs has, so far, been perfect for me. I'll be honest that I was rather concerned about SW being an issue. But I didn't have much choice if I wanted to get the length I needed to get things comfortable. 

[bortass]

Sounds like the fitting went very well. How long do they think it'll be until the new irons are in your hands?

 

I've heard good things about the Sub 70 wedges, mainly from @Myherobobhope. I kept it simple and just went with the set wedges, though if I look for a 60* in the future, I'll be heading down the path of a one off club. So I'll be curious about what you eventually get and how you like them.

[betarhoalphadelta]

@BigTerp1524 Yeah, I agree in many ways regarding swing weight. Especially with your athletic background coupled with your size, what feels acceptable to a normal golfer will not be the same as someone of your strength. I think I'm a bit older than you, and farther away from my own strength I had a decade or more ago, but I'm still WAY outside the mainstream compared to the average golfer my age. 

 

I'm also not NEARLY as concerned about swing weight on my wedges as on my irons. They're not going to be primarily full swing clubs. So I don't mind them being higher than my irons--and wedges at higher swing weight is common--but I worry if they're MUCH higher it'll throw me off. 

 

I'm tempted to just call up Sub70, tell them what I ordered from Wishon and see what they recommend regarding matching the set of wedges to the irons... Especially since I just accepted a new position in my company that will give me the title "Director" for the first time and a nice bump in pay lol... But I think I'm going to noodle over this one a while more. 

 

BTW when I got all my clubs regripped last year (necessary as they were 20 year old grips) I went with the GP MCC in standard. I didn't realize at the time but the fitter told me yesterday that they're actually the MCC+4. So I guess I do like the grips 😉

 

Excited to have them in midsize. 

 

@bortass I'm hoping to hear soon. Wishon distributes via Diamond Golf in the UK, and so my fitter said he was going to put in the PO yesterday and hopefully would have an update today. Wishon just got more product to Diamond this month, so as long as it hasn't ALL been sold out, there should still be club heads for me. 

 

If that's the case, I might have them in my hands inside 2 weeks. If not? Well, hopefully not 3 months...

[BigTerp1524]

22 minutes ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

@BigTerp1524 Yeah, I agree in many ways regarding swing weight. Especially with your athletic background coupled with your size, what feels acceptable to a normal golfer will not be the same as someone of your strength. I think I'm a bit older than you, and farther away from my own strength I had a decade or more ago, but I'm still WAY outside the mainstream compared to the average golfer my age. 

 

I'm also not NEARLY as concerned about swing weight on my wedges as on my irons. They're not going to be primarily full swing clubs. So I don't mind them being higher than my irons--and wedges at higher swing weight is common--but I worry if they're MUCH higher it'll throw me off. 

 

I'm tempted to just call up Sub70, tell them what I ordered from Wishon and see what they recommend regarding matching the set of wedges to the irons... Especially since I just accepted a new position in my company that will give me the title "Director" for the first time and a nice bump in pay lol... But I think I'm going to noodle over this one a while more. 

 

BTW when I got all my clubs regripped last year (necessary as they were 20 year old grips) I went with the GP MCC in standard. I didn't realize at the time but the fitter told me yesterday that they're actually the MCC+4. So I guess I do like the grips 😉

 

Excited to have them in midsize. 

 

 

Yeah, I understand I'm pretty far out of the norm of the average golfer in terms of height, not so sure about strength though, HA!! It REALLY frustrated me at first when I was looking around trying to find something that fit me. Once I gave in and decided the three most important things for me was length, grip and club weight I realized the possibilities where pretty much endless. You're thinking along the same lines though, I was just sharing my experience being tall. I may have asked you this before, but how tall are you and what's your WTF? IIRC, you're a pretty tall dude as well. So forgetting the norms, or at least not letting them hold you back too much, opens up a lot of options.

[betarhoalphadelta]

Yeah, I'm 6'5" with a WTF of about 39.5-40". So my arms are comparatively slightly short for my height. 

 

Didn't you say you played baseball at UMD? If so, I'd say you're several standard deviations in strength beyond the average golfer lol...

 

 

[BigTerp1524]

3 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

Yeah, I'm 6'5" with a WTF of about 39.5-40". So my arms are comparatively slightly short for my height. 

 

Didn't you say you played baseball at UMD? If so, I'd say you're several standard deviations in strength beyond the average golfer lol...

 

 

Gotcha. I'm 6'8" with pretty much the same WTF. Certainly makes it tough for guys like us to not just figure out what is ideal but then to be able to find it or have it built. Maltby was great to work with, but even they were kind of scratching their heads at my varying length requests. They even had to call me before final assemble to verify a few things. I still can't say enough good things about them. They were very accommodating.

 

I did play baseball at Maryland. But I'll be 40 this year. I still try to stay in decent shape, but it's getting tough. Not to mention the aches and pains that started creeping up out of nowhere. HA!! 

 

Curious if you guys discussed lie angle at all during your fitting? We didn't at mine, but I was hitting the ball unbelievably bad. Like REAL bad!! I can't imagine we could've gotten anything worth while anyway. @TheDeanAbidessuggested I keep it at least standard or even a degree or two flat. He said it'll would help encourage me to shallow the club better. Static fitting charts have me at 2 or 3 degrees upright. I kept everything at standard lie. Did the sharpie test with my 7i and it was pretty much spot on. My swing has improved a lot since my fitting though, so probably a good thing we didn't discuss lie angles. But I'm always interested in what other tall guys play for lie angles.

[Myherobobhope]

6 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

@BigTerp1524 Yeah, I agree in many ways regarding swing weight. Especially with your athletic background coupled with your size, what feels acceptable to a normal golfer will not be the same as someone of your strength. I think I'm a bit older than you, and farther away from my own strength I had a decade or more ago, but I'm still WAY outside the mainstream compared to the average golfer my age. 

 

I'm also not NEARLY as concerned about swing weight on my wedges as on my irons. They're not going to be primarily full swing clubs. So I don't mind them being higher than my irons--and wedges at higher swing weight is common--but I worry if they're MUCH higher it'll throw me off. 

 

I'm tempted to just call up Sub70, tell them what I ordered from Wishon and see what they recommend regarding matching the set of wedges to the irons... Especially since I just accepted a new position in my company that will give me the title "Director" for the first time and a nice bump in pay lol... But I think I'm going to noodle over this one a while more. 

 

BTW when I got all my clubs regripped last year (necessary as they were 20 year old grips) I went with the GP MCC in standard. I didn't realize at the time but the fitter told me yesterday that they're actually the MCC+4. So I guess I do like the grips 😉

 

Excited to have them in midsize. 

 

@bortass I'm hoping to hear soon. Wishon distributes via Diamond Golf in the UK, and so my fitter said he was going to put in the PO yesterday and hopefully would have an update today. Wishon just got more product to Diamond this month, so as long as it hasn't ALL been sold out, there should still be club heads for me. 

 

If that's the case, I might have them in my hands inside 2 weeks. If not? Well, hopefully not 3 months...

Talk to Jason at sub70, he will get you sorted out. @Sub70Golf they are super helpful and their products are great. I also like my wedges heavier, especially for the chipping side of things. 
 

I’m very happy with my wedges. I have the 286 54 and the jb 58. 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Should get the clubs next week sometime. I'm *hoping* they can turn them by Tuesday as the fitter is >50 miles away and I happen to be driving right past there next Tuesday afternoon for work. But if not I'll find a way lol.

 

I also put in my order for wedges today. Went with the Sub70 286 wedges in 52/56, and the JB in low-bounce 60, all in black finish because it seemed like fun. Went with the same Modus 120 stiff and MCC+4 midsize grips, and had them all built to 36.75" length. I also had them make a note to cherry-pick the lightest heads they had in stock to help keep the swing weight down at that length, but I'm not going to sweat it either way. 

 

I was hoping to hit the range today while running a few quick errands, but everything just kept running slow and slower and decided I'd better call it. Playing 18 Sunday at the short course.

[bortass]

What's the ETA on the wedges? I'm curious to hear how you like them. How was yesterday's round?

[betarhoalphadelta]

Strap in, folks, this is going to be a fun one! Played 18 yesterday.

 

The course is Oso Creek in Mission Viejo, CA. It's 3670 yards, par 60. The Grint says it’s a course rating is 58.2, slope of 99. Course has no driving range. Got out at 7:40 AM, so it was before the heat set in, with an expected high in the low 80s and sunny. Day started cool and cloudy though.

 

Hole 1, 285 yard par 4, HDCP 11: Straight hole with little trouble. Creek crossing the fairway short and shouldn't be in play. Left-side fairway bunker and green protected in front right by a bunker. Without a warmup I just take 5i here. I aim right to play for my draw, make pretty good contact, and it starts right-center and draws to the left side of the fairway short of the bunker. Suspect it was a little short (maybe 190) but for my first swing of the day I’ll take it. Pin is back and I’m now ~75 out, and I choke down and make a ¾ swing with the SW. Great contact and a little right, and I feel like I’m just hoping it’s not long… Which it is. I don’t know where it landed but the ground slopes away behind the green, and I’m 10 yards past the back edge in some decently thick rough. And because it was back pin, I’m now short-sided. I pitch with the SW, and hit it just about how I’d like, catching it on the green between the back edge and the pin… But it rolls and rolls almost to the front of the green. Four worst words in golf? “It’s still your turn”. I pace it at 16 paces, so I’ve got an almost 50’ putt coming back up the hill to save par. I run that about 5’ past the hole, fail to make the bogey putt coming back, and so I’ve three-putted for a 6. Double, +2.

 

Not a good start. Especially when I had such a perfect tee shot.

 

Hole 2, 171 yard par 3, HDCP 9: Straight downhill par 3 with no trouble short, but a bunker right and a bunker behind the green, which slopes back to front. Playing short today, about 162 to a front pin. I plan for an easy 7i, and can feel the impact immediately as a toe strike. Not horrible, as it went straight, but it puts me 20y short of the green in the fairway. Pop a little pitch with the SW from there, and hit it about as perfectly as I can expect, and it rolls up about pin high, 5’ right of the flag. It’s a tricky putt due to the break, and lips out on me. I make the little clean-up putt. Bogey, +3.

 

Hole 3, 146 yard par 3, HDCP 15: Slightly uphill, with a bunker short left and long right. It should be playing about 150 to a center pin. I have a tendency to miss this one short, so I plan for an easy 8i rather than hitting a full 9i. I hit it PERFECTLY off the sweet spot, but it’s a push… Beyond the bunker and beyond the green. I’ve now got a long pitch and not a ton of green to work with and I like the 60 for this one. I can tell my lie is a little tight for that club with 14* of bounce, but I figure if I can play it slightly back in my stance and focus on a descending blow, I might be able to pop it up with loft AND spin. Which I do… I land it on the green short of the pin, but it catches a downslope so it doesn’t stop as quickly as I’d like. It rolls out about 10’ past the pin. All in all I’m happy with that shot though. I barely miss the par putt and tap in. Bogey, +4.

 

Hole 4, 266 yard par 4, HDCP 13: This hole has trees all down the right side, and the fairway slopes pretty strongly right-to-left. The trees can catch errant balls to the right, dropping them on the slope where they often roll right to the middle. There's a fairway bunker to the left and the only protection for the green is a bunker behind and a pond to the FAR left. I take 5i off the tee and aim down the right to play for the draw, and I hit a very nice draw. It’s curving towards the left side of the fairway, and hits something to make it kick hard left, but I’m past the fairway bunker so I’m safe. I find it in light rough with a good lie, and I’m about 75y out to a back pin. I focus this time on taking an appropriately shortened swing, and pop the ball up and it lands pin-high, 6’ left of the pin, and stops an inch from its ball mark. Great shot, and a pretty makeable birdie putt! Unfortunately, I *just* miss the birdie putt and tap in. Par, +4.

 

Okay, after that double on 1 I’m at least back to bogey golf. The fog that we started with has cleared and the sun is out, so I put the sun umbrella on my push cart because I’m stylish like that.

 

Hole 5, 168 yard par 3, HDCP 5: This is an uphill hole, plays long to a blind green. Bunker to the left and anything farther left is a steep slope down to the creek. Front pin and the tees were up… Don’t remember yardage or club, but it doesn’t matter as it’s a VERY low draw—enough loft that it wasn’t necessarily a “top”, but definitely a worm-burner. Ball stops short of the left bunker in light rough. I get up there and it’s a fluffy lie but I’m not going to get club cleanly on ball due to the grass, and I’m short-sided to that front pin. Only real choice here is a flop shot, right? So I use the 60, open my stance and the face, and swing. I proceed to completely lose the ball flight as I’m staring directly into the sun looking for it, so I just drop my head and look at the green and hope it lands somewhere remotely near the pin… It does. It’s just right of the pin and stops about 4’ from the cup. I make the short putt for once. Par, +4.

 

Hole 6, 296 yard par 4, HDCP 7: Elevated tee, creek across the hole that shouldn't be in play, which continues up the left side and becomes a greenside pond. Fairway bunker down the right side about 200 yds and the green is protected on the right by a bunker and the left by the pond. Tees are up today, and I take out the driver. I make a pretty solid strike, which starts down the right side and is curving left. It catches the fairway beyond the bunker, and rolls up—almost to the green. I track it with my phone. 266 yards. I’m left with a short pitch to a middle flag, which I do with my SW. It lands about where I want and stops short of the pin by about 5’. Another makeable birdie putt! Which… I miss. And tap in. Par, +4.

 

Damn. Two legit birdie tries and I can’t make either drop. Oh well. I’m not a good enough golfer to complain about par, and not 3 in a row.

 

Hole 7, 148 yard par 3, HDCP 17: Straight hole, protected right and behind by bunkers. Front tees and back pin, so it’s playing about 155. I pull 9i because I *don’t* want to be long here. I make solid contact and it starts at the flag and it’s turning slightly left. It hits the left fringe and kicks to the right, rolling about 4’ onto the green, center depth. Definitely glad I didn’t hit the 8i, or I’d be in the back bunker with that strike. Now I’ve got a long uphill putt for birdie—I don’t recall the paces, but marked first putt distance in The Grint as 30 feet. I lag this putt really well, leaving myself within two feet if I remember it correctly, and make the par putt. Par, +4.

 
Hole 8, 174 yard par 3, HDCP 3: Tough hole, always seems to play longer than its distance. Narrow, long green, protected right and left by bunkers, and a creek across the "fairway" that shouldn't be in play. Pin is in front today and the tees are short, so it should be a little over 160. I pull 8i, and make so-so contact, leaving it short and left. This hole always plays long and I should have taken 7i, but I still might not have reached with that strike. I pitch with the 60, land it short of the pin, and it rolls out to about 7’ past. Not bad. Despite the length, it’s not an easy putt—downhill and breaking left. But I stroke it well and it trickles down and drops! Par, +4.

 

Hole 9, 317 yard par 4, HDCP 1: I hate this hole. I really, really do. There's a creek running along the left side and then crossing the fairway right at the 220-230 mark, particularly when the tees are back like they are today. So I can pull driver and have a 230+ yd forced carry, or I can pull PW because with the way the fairway feeds down to the water, anything longer than PW could leave me wet. I pull the driver. I hit a low-ish draw that’s heading left—only hope is that I stay dry. I see it hit just shy of the creek and bounce over, landing in the rough underneath the first tee. Not a great drive, but I’ll take it. The ball is in GUR, so I take relief and I’m left with about a 105-110y shot uphill to the elevated green. In this case I make a bad decision and try to hit a hard SW. Without thinking of the uphill lie, I’m not realizing that even a good strike won’t reach. I make perfect contact though, and it’s a little right of target, and I end up in the bunker protecting the front right of the green. I’m assuming based on the trajectory that I’m going to be plugged 3” down in its own mark, but I walk up to a VERY clean lie. I can tell the sand is firm and wet, so I line up with the SW and plan to play the shot like it’s in the fairway instead of blasting it. So I line up square and just hope to hit ball first and pick it clean. The ball pops out nicely, hits the green, and stops 4’ right of the pin. I can’t do much better from there! Facing an easy par putt… It lips out. Ugh. Bogey, +5.

 

So that brings my par streak to an end at 5. I’m mad about how it happened, but the pars on #5 and #8 took scrambling to get there so I guess I can’t be mad about being +5 at the turn. Overall I’m striking the ball well, scrambling well, and all I need to do is not implode on the back 9, right? Sounds easy enough anyway!

 

Hole 10, 242 yard par 4, HDCP 16: Another hole that almost always screws me. It's so short and easy, and playing ~225 today, with a bunker short left but otherwise pretty benign. But it's never a good hole for me. If I go for it it’s usually ugly, but somehow I manage to usually screw up my conservative lay-ups too. But today I just hit a 6i, hit a perfect high draw which ends up on the left side of the fairway. Playing to a back center pin, I don’t recall the yardage but I know I’ve got plenty of green to work with so I pitch with the SW. I hit it on line and feel like it’s good but I’m worried about distance, it feels long. I see one bounce and that’s it as it’s a blind green. I get up there and I’m on the green, 15’ past the hole. Now I’ve got a putt that’s slightly downhill and slight break. I hit it, it’s looking on line and the right speed… And it drops! Birdie, +4!

 

Makes up for the putt on 9 and those missed birdie putts on 4 and 6. Maybe I can’t make the easy ones, but sometimes the hard ones fall, eh?

 

Hole 11, 172-yard par 4, HDCP 6: It's slightly uphill, to a blind green. Protected in the back by a bunker but otherwise pretty straightforward. Tees are up and center pin, so I take 7i. I make good contact, but over-draw it as I’m known to do. I end up a little past pin high, 20y off the left edge of the green, in some pretty difficult rough. I know I’m getting no spin on this ball. I pitch out, and actually pitch it about as perfectly as I planned, landing it well short of the hole on the green—but it rolls out past the hole and turns down the hill, stopping 6” off the fringe. I have about 20’ coming back for par, and leave myself within tap-in distance. Bogey, +5.

 

Hole 12, 118 yard par 3, HDCP 18: This is a downhill hole, protected short left by a bunker with a pretty severe back to front sloping green. Tees are a little back and the pin is in the center today, so it’s about 125. Too much for the SW, too short for a full PW, so I choke down and plan an easy swing with the PW. I swing and the strike is perfect, and I’m just sitting there hoping I haven’t launched this thing over the green, but it hits the back fringe and spins back down the green about 6-8 feet, so I’m VERY happy with that outcome. Now I’ve got a VERY tricky downhill right-to-left breaking putt of about 15 feet. The sort of putt that screams “just don’t screw this up so badly that you can’t still make par”. I hit it, and it’s looking like a good line and speed… And it drops! Birdie, +4!

 

In all my memories of golf, I cannot recall a single round where I’ve made more than one birdie. So this is a milestone round for me. I think the beer cart girl must have had a premonition that I’d want to celebrate because she was waiting between the 12^th green and 13^th tee for us lol…

 

Hole 13, 288 yard par 4, HDCP 8: Straight hole, with a bunker protecting the left side of the green and some boulders out on the right rough in the fairway, but overall pretty tame. How do I celebrate my two birdies in a row? I top a 6i about 75 yards, into the rough not even making it to the fairway. Oh well, at least it was straight. Now I’m 205 out and so I grab 5i, which I top another 80 yards into the fairway. Yeah, not fun. I’m now about 125 out, and hit a PW that puts me on the green, about 40’ from the pin. I don’t even recall the putts, but I know I two-putted, so at least I saved bogey on a hole that was looking like it might turn horrible. Bogey, +5.

 

Yeah… My ballstriking has been mostly decent all day, so two tops in a row aren’t fun. Oh well… Still playing okay.

 

Hole 14, 163 yard par 3, HDCP 10: Another uphill par 3 to a blind green. Protected on the right by a bunker, and on the left by a severe slope down to the creek. Tees and pins are both short, so it’s playing about 145. I *think* I hit 9i here. I’m aiming right to play the draw (left miss is bad), and the ball starts headed directly at that bunker without as much turn as I’d like… But as it continues out, it turns left JUST enough and hits the fringe right of the green. It kicks left and spins back nicely onto the putting surface. I’m left with about 20’ for birdie, and I get myself to within 6” with my lag, and tap in. Par, +5.

 

Hole 15, 162 yard par 3, HDCP 12: Round back-to-front sloped green, with a bunker left and pond more left. Center pin and tees up a little, playing about 155. I plan to hit an easy 8i. I hit it, starting right and curving back left, and I’m hoping it curves enough to make it back to the green. It does, and somehow kicks left pretty hard and it rolls near the pin. I get up to the ball and I’m dead on pin high, 3’ right of the cup. Putting for my 3^rd birdie of the day, on a green with a fair bit of slope, and hoping I just don’t screw this up… And I make it! Birdie, +4!

 

Definitely a milestone round with three birdies. Pretty sure all three of my playing partners are wondering what’s going on at this point. I had been talking about the new clubs and one of them asks “so why’d you buy new clubs anyway?” lol…

 

Hole 16, 136 yard par 3, HDCP 14: Bunkers left and right, but a pretty easy back-to-front sloped round green to hit to. Tees back and center pin, so this is playing over 150 today. I take 9i and make an average strike, but it’s left, and lands and stops on the left fringe. I then flub a chip about 18 inches. On the fringe, I decide to put the next one instead, to about 5’. Lip out that putt and make the recovery. Double, +6.

 

Oof. Hate making double taking 4 strokes to get into the hole from the fringe. Ouch. I make the remark to my buddies “well I guess I should just tank the last few holes for my handicap at this point right?”

 

Hole 17, 193 yard par 3, HDCP 4: Pretty straightforward hole but long for a par 3, with a bunker behind the green but not much other trouble. This one is playing short today, with a front pin and front-ish tees, so I take 7i. I overcook the draw and I’m about pin-high but well off the green in the left rough. I pitch and make good contact with my SW, and fly it RIGHT over the damn green. Ugh. Buddy calls out “I thought you were joking about tanking!” I replied “I thought I was too!” So now I’m pitching back at the green, and make a GOOD pitch this time leaving myself 3’ and just hoping I don’t make another double. I sink the putt. Bogey, +7.

 

Hole 18, 225 yard par 3, HDCP 2: Tough hole, due to length as a par 3, and that it's a long narrow green protected left and right by bunkers, and a pond more left. There's also a creek across the fairway that shouldn't be in play. I feel like this may be the last 3i swing I’ll ever take, so I figure why not go for it with the 3i? And I proceed to hit one low and short that hits JUST on the opposite bank of the creek and stops—another 5 yards of carry would have given me 20 yards of roll. So now I’m 60y out to a center pin. Pull SW, and I chunk it 25 yards. Ugh. Walk up and hit it again, and knock that pitch to 7’ right of the flag. Wish I’d done that the first time! Now I’m putting for bogey, and yet again I lip one out. Make the next. Double, +9.

 

Stats:

Strokes from <100 yards: 48, average of 2.67/hole

Putts: 31

GIR: 7/18

 

Birdies: 3

Pars: 6

Bogeys: 6
Doubles: 3

Triples+: 0

 

Out 36 (+5), in 33 (+4), for a smooth 69. I broke 70 woooooooooo!!!!!! Sure, par is 60, but I’ll take it! 😉

 

All in all, obviously tons to be happy about in this round. No blow up holes of triple+. Three birdies, which is a HUGE milestone for me. I know at my skill level, making birdie is more luck than anything else, but I’ve never had multiple in a round and I got three. Generally I was REALLY happy with my scrambling, which saved scores on multiple holes. Getting down to a 2.67 average from <100 yards is significant, and it’s what you need to be able to do to save pars (or even bogeys) when you don’t make GIR. My short putting was pretty weak, but in a lot of ways I made up for that with some really good lags and making a couple of difficult putts… Ballstriking on the whole was good, and for the most part I was keeping my draw within manageable range without it being a nasty hook. Longer irons are still difficult, but hopefully the new single-length clubs will help with that.

 

That makes three rounds in a row which count towards my handicap. Speaking of handicap, it was 24.3 before the round, and 20.4 afterwards. This differential (10.3) shaved almost 4 strokes off my cap.

 

This will likely be my last 18-hole round for 4 weeks until ~July 24/25, as I’m heading on vacation with my wife two weeks from now. I have the kids the two other weekends so I might try to get my son out for 9 once or twice. He’ll actually be doing a 4-day summer golf camp too, so if he can start getting a little more comfortable and hitting with a little more distance, I can take him out to this shorter course to play 18 sometime.

 

But hopefully those 4 weeks off will give me time to get comfortable with the new clubs, learn my distances, so that when I get back out for 18 I can hopefully make a seamless transition to those clubs.

[betarhoalphadelta]

52 minutes ago, bortass said:

What's the ETA on the wedges? I'm curious to hear how you like them. How was yesterday's round?

 

Wedges were an estimated ~3 weeks build time, so I should get them mid-July. 

 

Just posted my round summary above. It went well 🙂 

[bortass]

Awesome job out there! I was very excited to read the recap. You broke 70 a heck of a lot faster than I will, lol. This is the type of round that shows you what you can do. So 3 birdies will be ho hum next time 😉

 

🍻 and ☂️ because you're stylish that way...

[BigTerp1524]

Dude!!! Very nice!!! I need to take the time to sift through everything you posted, but quickly looked at your final score and just wanted to say congrats!!!

[betarhoalphadelta]

Clubs are in! Well, the EQ1-NX anyway. The wedges are probably 2 weeks out.

 

Had them bend the PW to 44* and the GW to 48* as my incoming wedges are 52/56/60. I figure I might need a loft/lie fitting at some point but this will be a better starting point.

 

 

[bortass]

Very nice looking! When are you going to be able to try them?

[betarhoalphadelta]

Playing Monday, but just 9 holes with my son. Only ~4 shots on that course require more than SW. 

 

Maybe a range session next Thurs...

[BigTerp1524]

Nice!! So exciting to get your hands on a new set of clubs.

[betarhoalphadelta]

Played 9 today with my son and my FIL. I actually got the date right this time lol...

 

1115 yard course, par 29. 

 

Bear in mind that although I've got the new clubs, I stopped the set at GW. So anything hit with SW or 60 is my previous set.

 

Hole 1 - 85 yards, par 3, HDCP 9: Green is protected in the front right by a bunker. There's a creek running down the left side of the hole, so anything left or long/left is dangerous. Tees in the middle, blue flag, and my watch tells me it's 100 to the back edge, so I'm estimating about 95. I take a nice easy 3/4 SW and pop it a little past pin high, 8 feet from the pin. Definitely a nice start! Putt is downhill with a slight right-to-left break. I stroke it and it's on line, and I'm seriously worried it's going to stop 1" from the hole... But it drops. Birdie, -1.

 

That's a good way to start 😉

 

Hole 2 - 100 yards, par 3, HDCP 3: Long but narrow green. There's a pond between the tee and the green that's not in play unless you chunk it, or hit short and right, as the pond extends a little up to the right. The green is protected on the left by a bunker, and if you go long/left here, you can very easily lose a ball as the creek winds around back there. Tee is middle, but pin is way up, so it's playing about 85. I take a choked down SW and easy swing. I chunk the crap out of it, and it falls into the pond WAY short of the other side. This hole has a drop area, so I drop there. I pitch to the green and it's a pretty good pitch for me, but it rolls out to about 12 feet. My bogey putt misses by about 2". Double, +1.

 

Not a good way to respond to a birdie though!

 

Hole 3 - 95 yards, par 3, HDCP 6: Back to front sloped green with bunkers on both sides. Tee is in the back to at a center pin, so I'm estimating a little around 105ish. Take a full-swing SW. I strike it well but it's a bit left, and it lands almost pin-high on the left fringe. I'm left with about 24 feet for birdie, and I hit a nice lag putt, which is pretty perfect distance but broke to ~1 foot low of the hole. Make the par. Par, +1.

 

Hole 4 - 88 yards, par 3, HDCP 7: Despite the lack of length, and this being considered the 3rd-easiest hole on the course, I disagree. The green is very narrow and long. Anything left of the green rolls off into the creek. Anything long will likely be in the creek. The green is flat to sloped away from the tee, so it's not going to hold shots without spin. Tees are WAY up front but the pin is in the back, so maybe 55 yards. I hit a half-SW, basically a pitch. It's perfectly on line, right of the pin, planning for it to roll down to the left. It lands about middle of the green, but without much spin, so it rolls out to just shy of the back edge. Left with a 20 footer for birdie. I hit a good lag, and tap in. Par, +1.

 

Hole 5 - 210 yards, par 4, HDCP 2: Water all the way down the left, and the hole plays dogleg left if played as a par 4. Again the tees are back and left, so there's not even an angle to the green. Which is fine, I like to play this hole conservatively. I finally get to break out one of the new clubs! I pull 8i. I hit a beautiful high draw right into the center of the fairway. Can't really estimate distance that well, but it was a perfect strike. I get up to the ball and I've got a short (45-50) pitch to a front pin. I like the fluffy lie in this grass, so I grab the 60/14 for a pitch. I strike it well but a little bit of a push, and it lands dead in the fringe right of the green and a little long. Not great but not terrible. I leave my lag putt to about 2 1/2 feet, so I mark it... I drain the putt. Par, +1. 

 

Hole 6 - 66 yards, par 3, HDCP 9: Very short hole, with a decent side bunker protecting the front right of the green, and safety everywhere else. Tees are way up front and pin is dead center, about 55 yards. I plan to take a simple half-SW pitch shot much like #4... But I don't commit and decelerate into it and chunk it. Oof. Pitch from about 25-30 out onto the green, pin-high, about 12' right. Leave my par save inches past the hole but a little on the low side. Bogey, +2. 

 

Sidebar: My son plays a partial PW here, strikes it really nicely, and it lands on the green and (due to little spin at his speed) rolls just onto the back fringe. He is left with a tricky downhill 20-footer for birdie. I remind him to take his time, read the green, and plan his putt. He putts it to PERFECT length 1' right of the hole, which he then makes... For the first par of his life! Only the 4th round we've played together, and he's finally made a par.

 

Hole 7 - 116 yards, par 3, HDCP 4: Narrow and long green, VERY narrow in the front as it's protected on both sides by bunkers. Pin is way back and it should be about 130-135 to the pin. I figure this is a perfect time to try the new GW. And I chunk it. Oh well... Not used to this club yet. I'm now about 55y from the pin, and pitch up with my SW. I hit it about exactly how I want, and it flies off the face nicely, and I'm yelling at it to BITE! --- which it does and stops 30 feet short... Ooops. Now I'm stuck with a really nasty putt--over a crest in the green uphill 2/3 of the way and downhill the rest, breaking right to left. I hit the putt and immediately know it's long. I hit it about 8 feet past. My putt back up the hill I hit to exactly perfect distance, but it stops 1" left of the cup. Double, +4. 

 

I hate three-putts...

 

Hole 8 - 85 yards, par 3, HDCP 8: Pretty generous round green for this course, with bunkers left and right. Tees are back but pin is front, so it should be playing 85. I choke down the SW and take a nice easy swing, and hit a nice high shot that lands and stops just past pin-high, about 20 feet right of the pin. Now I'm faced with a pretty severe right-to-left breaker that will be going quite downhill by the point I get to the pin. My FIL's ball is about 3 feet uphill of the hole and that's my aim point (after he marks). I stroke the putt and it's looking good, looking good, looking good... And drops! Birdie, +3. 

 

Sidebar: Two players had already holed out by the time I putted. The single we were paired with was first. He had hit his tee shot about 12-15' left of the hole to match mine, and made his birdie. Then there's my son. We're starting to understand his distances so PW from 85 is basically his standard distance. Off the tee he hit a beautiful baby draw that hit pin-high a little right and rolled up and left to maybe 15 feet above the pin. Not sure how that kid hit a baby draw lol! But then he's got a birdie putt and he tells me "I'm going to take my time and make sure I read and plan this one!"

 

I'm not going to call his putt perfect execution--because if he had missed about a centimeter left or right it would have caromed off the flagstick and rolled out to the point where he'd be lucky to save his par... But he didn't miss a centimeter left or right, and the putt struck the center of the flagstick and dropped. 

 

So not only did our group put down three birdies on this hole, my son followed up the first par of his life two holes prior with the first birdie of his life... This kid is improving fast!

 

(We're not going to talk about the 11 he made on the next hole though...)

 

Hole 9 - 275 yard, par 4, HDCP 1: Again, this is a strategy hole where you lay up short of fairway bunkers, and then have to carry over a creek on the left to the green. It's creek all the way down the left side off the tee. So again I can pull a new club, and I choose 7i because the tees are back and I want to make sure I stay short of the fairway bunkers. I make great contact, but we ALL know by now what my miss is... And the ball turns left and left and into the nasty stuff. Okay then. I take a drop farther down on the left side, and figure I'm 130ish out. I pull out the new GW and hit a beautiful strike, dead straight on the line I intended. Since it's completely blind from where I'm at the single acts as my spotter, and it stops in the rough about 2y shy of the green. From there I try to chip with my SW, and catch a little too much ground, and it only makes it about halfway to the pin. I'm now left with an 18-footer or so, which I get very close, and tap in. Double, +5.

 

Not going to bother with stats/etc, as this is a pitch&putt practice course anyway. I don't even log these rounds for handicap. 

 

So I make it around in 34 on a par 29 course. Not bad, and I'm pretty psyched that I've yet again passed the "never more than one birdie in a round" milestone, two rounds in a row. Granted, I know it's basically luck at this point, but it still feels good. Definitely things I could clean up here. Two penalty strokes, chunked tee shots on two other holes, etc... But two birdies and three pars in 9 holes, even on a super-easy course, makes me happy. Just gotta clean up those mistakes. 

 

My son made it around in his own personal best, a 40. I've been playing golf for MANY years and I know I'm capable of scoring (and have scored) worse than 40 on this course, so that's pretty darn good for the 4th round of his life. His swing is starting to look really good and natural too. Next time we have the kids in two weeks, I've got him enrolled in a 4-day Jr golf camp at that same course as his 14th birthday present. So he'll not only have professional swing instruction, but he'll get time to really learn about short game, sand, golf course etiquette, etc. 

 

I think he's getting almost to the point where he's ready to play 18 at Oso Creek. He needs to get a little more comfortable with driver and long clubs to be able to put himself in play on a couple of the holes, but in general he's starting to strike the ball well enough to get around. Looking forward to being able to share this game with him...

[betarhoalphadelta]

My son's par and birdie putts... I forgot to turn the phone into video on the par putt so all I got was the set up lol...

 

 

[BigTerp1524]

Good read and sounds like a fun course to play. Your son seemed to have a great time as well. Nice reaction to the birdie putt dropping!!

[rondo01]

You know you're a proud dad when: you get brand new clubs, and forget to mention them in your post-first-round write up 😛 

[betarhoalphadelta]

2 hours ago, rondo01 said:

You know you're a proud dad when: you get brand new clubs, and forget to mention them in your post-first-round write up 😛 

 

LOL... I was very excited for him...

 

...because we're not playing for money [yet]! 😉 

 

[bortass]

Great stuff!

 

Things are going pretty good for you on the course. The short course may be ‘easy’ but you’re hitting a number of shots that will help your game in the long run. 
 

Your son is off to a good start too! It was awesome to read about his par and birdie.

[betarhoalphadelta]

Got out to the range today to play around with the new clubs. 

 

Overall it went well. Trying to get used to the grips, the feel, everything. But when I focus on just a nice easy swing, the contact is great and overall it's nice to be confident over the 5i/6i in a way that I'm not usually. 

 

The 4h threw me for a MAJOR loop though. Something about looking down on that head made me swing too hard, and swing too shallow and sweeping like a fairway wood. Full disclosure--my 4w is about my worst club in the bag at this point... When I mentally reset and tried to make sure I swung it like an iron, with an easier swing and downward angle of attack, suddenly it started to work. But mentally it's going to take some work to keep my mental place right.

 

I did a little "sharpie test" work and it appears they are a little flat. I'm going to give it more time and a few more range sessions and test again. Overall I'm happy with the flight so far, so maybe it's not something to worry about.

[BigTerp1524]

On 7/8/2021 at 2:50 PM, betarhoalphadelta said:

The 4h threw me for a MAJOR loop though. Something about looking down on that head made me swing too hard, and swing too shallow and sweeping like a fairway wood.

I had/have this exact same problem with my new 4h. The last hybrid I swung was the original Adams Tight Lies 20+ years ago. So it's pretty much a foreign club to me. It's getting a lot better and what I try to do is think 6i and divot before I swing. Helps me from sweeping it as much and the feel when struck properly is just like an iron. I'm getting to the point now where it's more consistent (swing wise) but those sweeping wood type swings still creep in too frequently. I think we both just need more time/reps with our new hybrids.