Return to the game...

[mcnealstash]

Took a 7+ year hiatus from golf and am getting back into the sport at 33 y.o. (now hooked again).  Never played competitively but at my best when I was in my early 20s I was a 15 handicap.. Had an ace when I was 22 y.o. with my dad and cousin watching on a 160 yard par 3- this is about the biggest highlight of my golfing career.  I was casual about the sport in the past but am looking to try to improve my game going forward.  My swing has come back quicker than I expected and my stock yardages are better now than when I was younger (likely because I gained some weight) and I think I could get into the mid to high single digits if I put some time and practice in.  My club situation coming into this year was bleak- had an old R9 driver, set of 2009 burner irons, random 20+ year old fairway/hybrids, rusted wedges, and the only thing that did age well- a scotty cameron studio design 2.5 from ~2003. 

 

I've gone and gotten fitted now for new clubs and a few pieces have started rolling in- although I think I may have made a mistake by going for a 3 hybrid instead of a 4...  My irons and 2 of the wedges aren't in yet- I'll post a few more photos when they arrive.  Here's a list of everything ordered so far

 

Driver- Titleist TSR2, 9*, Mitsubishi Tensei AV Blue 55S

3 & 5 Wood- Taylor Made Stealth 2, 15 & 18*, Fujikura Ventus TR Red 6S

3 Hybrid- Taylor Made Stealth 2, 19*, Fujikura Ventus TR Red 7S

5-PW Irons- Mizuno Pro 223, DG S300 105g

GW- SM9 50.08F, DG S200

SW- SM9 54.10S, DG S200

LW- SM9 58.08M, DG S200

Putter- Scotty Studio Design 2.5

 

 

[mcnealstash]

I haven't received my irons yet, but I am aware that I do have 15 clubs here.  I wanted to order the 223 4 iron just to see if it's a possibility for me to be able to hit it consistently.  Right now here are my yardages at the top of the bag- I hit all of them quite well and with similar consistency:

 

Driver- 233 carry, 272 total

3 Wood- 220 carry, 254 total

5 Wood-224 carry, 243 total

3 Hybrid- 212 carry, 232 total

 

Driver and 3 wood are locked in clubs- many courses near me are 7000+ yards from the tips, and the distance is needed.  The biggest problem with my bag's configuration is which 2 clubs should I carry to bridge the gap to my 5 iron.  I'm partial to keeping my 5 wood in the bag- it has the loft and stopping power I'm looking for if I'm able to be aggressive going for greens on shorter par 5s.  If I'm able to hit my 4 iron well out of the rough, then I could see those two staying in the bag.   the 3 Hybrid has pretty good stopping power as well- and I could just keep these 4 and go straight into 5 iron- I'm guessing this will leave a gap though in the 210 yard range.  When I was testing clubs the fitter and I thought that the 5 wood and the 3 hybrid offered good gapping- and decided to go that route.  Maybe the 4 hybrid would have been a better call after all...  Or a utility iron with a graphite shaft? 

 

What are your guys' preferred clubs at the top of the bag getting into the 5 iron?  

Edited August 7, 2023 by mcnealstash

[BallerNate]

Welcome back to Golf and welcome to WRX man!

 

Sweet setup for sure!

 

I think everyone’s top end and bottom end setup is very much about personal preference, and what type of course you play regularly.

 

For me I go Driver, 3W, 4 Hybrid, then 4 Driving Iron to have different options off the Tee.

 

The club I use the least is the 3W though and I could easily drop that club. I only play 13 clubs though, so no real advantage to dropping another one.

[AlohaPineapple]

nice return, can def recognize a fellow club junkie with taste

 

yeah on paper the loft of that 5 wood and 3 hybrid are pretty close, but in play the differences could be much larger.  i'm also on the hunt to figure out that gap above the 5-iron, currently trying out a game improvement 4-iron (T200) as sort of a half step between the hybrid and irons.

[slytown]

Your hybrid should be adjustable. You could turn it into more of a 3h to get the flight down.

 

I love you got the old-school Scotty. I also tend to like older putters versus the new high MOI ones. 

[mcnealstash]

4 hours ago, AlohaPineapple said:

nice return, can def recognize a fellow club junkie with taste

 

yeah on paper the loft of that 5 wood and 3 hybrid are pretty close, but in play the differences could be much larger.  i'm also on the hunt to figure out that gap above the 5-iron, currently trying out a game improvement 4-iron (T200) as sort of a half step between the hybrid and irons.

 

Are you playing the standard T200 4 iron or the utility T200 with a graphite shaft?  I see a lot of these now and they weren't as prevalent when I stepped away from the game.  Rescues had just kind of come onto the scene back then.

[mcnealstash]

 

 

Edited August 18, 2023 by mcnealstash