Does the equipment you use dictate how you play the game?

[ggbrands]

When playing non distance or GI irons, do you play more imaginative shots involving knowdowns/cuts/punches vs merely choose the club that corresponds to the yardage to the target?

Edited March 5 by ggbrands

[phizzy30]

Not really.  I play blades and don't try to get too creative unless I'm forced to.  I play a draw 90%+ of the time anyways and I'm not gonna go the other way unless absolutely necessary.  Punch/knock downs are only reserved for head wind or if I need to keep it under trees.  Golf is hard enough as it is already.  Now with shots around the green, I can get creative and play an assortment of pitches and chips.  However, I'm not nearly as skilled as a tour pro so I still play the percentage game and pick the relatively safe shot that gives me the best chance at getting up and down, not necessarily the crazy risk/reward shot that could get me closest to the hole.  Driver is dictated by wind and flight is manipulated by tee height.  Altering my swing to try and hit a fade is too risky in most cases and I won't do it unless I absolutely have to cut it around the corner on a dogleg where otherwise I would run outta room on the left and hit it OB. 

Edited March 5 by phizzy30

[goaliedad30]

I think that's backwards - the way I play the game dictates the equipment I choose to use.

[bobfoster]

Chicken/egg sort of thing IMO. It is a continual, ongoing conversation. For instance...

 

There's some precision shots I'll try with my current wedges that I wouldn't have tried with the last ones I gamed, but I picked my current ones (in part) because I wanted those sorts of shots in my bag.

 

I find my current driver gives me more control over draw/cut and trajectory than any I've previously played, with a surprising amount of forgiveness if I'm slightly off-center (the TSR3 is punishing off the heel or toe, but quite tolerant of a centimeter either side of center, and my contact is usually within that). Can visualize shots I probably wouldn't have in the past, so yes, the club does (sometimes) determine what sort of shot choices I make. But I also picked the club because it gives me access to those sorts of choices. 

 

So am I adjusting my game to my clubs, or my clubs to my game?

 

Actually, the answer is ... yes. Both.

[roundersmitty]

My equipment dictates I should be playing the game better than what I do….

[subrew]

I have a LOT of iron sets, and some play very different than others.  I often play a set for a week or two, then switch out.  I change my game based on what irons I'm using.  But I also will choose what irons I'm playing, based on conditions.  This week it has been cold and windy, so I grabbed a short-set I've built using Callaway CB21 and MB18 irons specifically because I can keep ball flights down a little, and for whatever reason I can hit nice low punchy draws.  Likewise in the middle of summer when greens are firmer, I'll grab some low CoG cavities with light weight/flex shafts that go high and spin more, like some Yamaha Inpress Forged.  Those tend to be clubs I hit "normal" i.e. just straight at it.  I'm rarely trying to sling a set of chunky cavities like I would a set of MP-14s.  

 

 

[Pepperturbo]

16 hours ago, ggbrands said:

When playing non distance or GI irons, do you play more imaginative shots involving knowdowns/cuts/punches vs merely choose the club that corresponds to the yardage to the target?

My new Titleist T100 irons are 1° stronger in short irons than my 620 MB irons, still traditional when compared to strong lofted Titleist 150 or 200 series irons. 

 

Remember, before strong lofted irons came into view, most ALL irons had the same lofts.  Lofts were not discussed back in the fifties and sixties, yet some professionals bent certain irons strong or weak.  Most amateurs didn't know that could be done.

 

To answer your question, NO.   I've been an instinctual-feel person all my life.  Using those attributes while hunting, 600 meter shooting or golf are just different applications.  

 

Also, yardage to a target doesn't necessarily correspond to a given club.  Recently in a game, playing a dog-leg left par 4, I yanked my ball left off the tee in rough.  Right in front of my ball was a stand of trees with low-hanging branches and too close to go over.  I had 160yds to back pin, on the other side of the trees was rough then the fairway running uphill to the green.  My three playing partners figured (learned later) my only option was to punch out to the fairway, looking for a bogie.  I pulled 3i, (21°= 195yd), put ball back in my stance, and hit a 3/4 punch 3' off the deck, above rough, but under branches; my ball bounced though rough, found the fairway and ran up to the apron, hit about 140yds, then chipped to 4' tap-in par.  I saw a shot that, I felt, was doable, they didn't see that shot as an option.

Edited March 5 by Pepperturbo

[TheShark1]

My gear dictates how hard I concentrate. If I’m playing something that is very easy to hit, I’ll lose concentration from time to time. If I’m playing something more like a blade, I focus more. Either way, I still end up shooting the same crappy score, just get there two different ways!

[ChipNRun]

My MAX irons have variously been described at GI or SGI. Whatever, I hit them well and the short irons do not balloon! And, I can get a slight draw or fade trajectory when needed.

 

In two separate iron test sessions, I compared the stock Mavs vs. the MAXs. Both times, the MAX higher-lofted 7i (30*) gave me an extra 10 yards over the std Marvik 7i (27*).

 

Anyway, I would say on-course conditions determine which shot I hit. For irons, I usually go with a fade for approach shots.

 

When it comes to tee shots, I may be more adventurous. On the tee, you're on flat ground, and can determine how high to tee the ball. Normally I take a driver, unless the landing area can't handle it (short holes). Then, I either drop a dart with a 7W, or a stinger with a 4H.

 

Back to approaches: If I'm 150 yds. and in the fairway, probably go with a fade into the green. If I'm in the rough, it depends. If hole is surrounded with trouble and rough is thick, I may lay up to in front of green and wedge for up-and-down.

 

Main question: If something other than fade, can I commit to the shot? If not, play it safe.

[JAM01]

My main adjustment is not trying to crush a fairway wood into a par 5. After driver I have a 4 wood. Nice smooth swing to get it close enough. 

[North Butte]

There's nothing in my game can be affected by anything other than clubs working well or not working well. I'm not going to try anything "creative" unless I'm forced to punch a shot under tree limbs or something. Every shot from driver to putter I'm simply trying to make solid contact and have a clear target in my mind. Not trying to paint pretty pictures with curving, swooping shots or "flight" the ball in some "window" or another. 

 

If I tried to do that with tiny little irons I'd do the same thing, just hit more worse shots. So I stay away from tiny little irons and just use shovels to give myself some kind of chance.

 

If my handicap were 1.4 instead of 14 then maybe I'd think about "creativity"...

[lefthack]

Not really.

[kamaaina1]

My equipment far exceeds my ability, but I look damn good trying! 😉

[RSLP]

Nope.  I hook the ball full spectrum from a pull draw to a push draw.  Same when I play my Sunday bag of forged heads.

[Kai Slater]

Nah, I suck no matter the equipment I use.

[mogc60]

My equipment fits my game not the other way around. The ballflight needs to be in the window I prefer. Turf interaction needs to be what I want. I have hit 7 iron 167-170 my whole life. That’s how far I want it to go. The clubs I play go the yardages I want. I don’t want longer or shorter.  I don’t want to change my game every time I change clubs. If they don’t fit me I don’t play them 

[byoshio82]

My equipment is all setup to eliminate the left side of the course so flatter lie angles open face angle and stouter shaft profile. I play my best with a 3-5 yard fade and a low to mid ball flight historically.