Playing Hickory Golf

[GolfNutRiblick]

My first foray into hickory. Five bucks. Anyone know anything about this?

[jonnygrouville]

I think it's a Spalding, but can be corrected. I know you should go and use it.

 

[oldschoolrocker]

Woke up to a crisp, clear day, the kind that begs a golfing man to burst into song. The kind, I suspect, the Man above decreed should be a hickory day, if one has access to the hickory.

Have been feeling the aftermath of home demolition in the form of overworked back and hips. Sciatica raised its ugly head, so I didn’t know if I would be able to answer the golfing bell today.

I don’t believe I would have, except for the hickory. What a timeless lesson I teach myself each round I take them out. Knowing their torque factor I pay particular attention to not unleashing the golfing Mr. Hyde that resides in most all of us, instead I try to play a more patient and precise game.

What splendid strikes can be had when one knows an attempt to overpower will only result in error.

Something about these darn hickory sticks that calm my body and mind on the course.

[knuckleballer71]

Just got some new clubs from Tad Moore and they are AMAZING!! Excellent quality and craftsmanship!! Tad was so helpful ,a pleasure to deal with,beyond patient with all my questions......these are from his 1890s series, a playclub(12'),30' general iron,40' lofter, 50' lofter,rut iron, and wooden putter.....been hitting them in the side yard,can't wait to get them out on the course this week! Very different from my other Hickories,a lot of fun to hit!

[oldschoolrocker]

Just got some new clubs from Tad Moore and they are AMAZING!! Excellent quality and craftsmanship!! Tad was so helpful ,a pleasure to deal with,beyond patient with all my questions......these are from his 1890s series, a playclub(12'),30' general iron,40' lofter, 50' lofter,rut iron, and wooden putter.....been hitting them in the side yard,can't wait to get them out on the course this week! Very different from my other Hickories,a lot of fun to hit!

Knuckle, +1 on Tad, and his clubs. He showed the patience of Job when dealing with me. And the finished products are absolutely “magical.”

[Bella Woods]

Woke up to a crisp, clear day, the kind that begs a golfing man to burst into song. The kind, I suspect, the Man above decreed should be a hickory day, if one has access to the hickory.

Have been feeling the aftermath of home demolition in the form of overworked back and hips. Sciatica raised its ugly head, so I didn't know if I would be able to answer the golfing bell today.

I don't believe I would have, except for the hickory. What a timeless lesson I teach myself each round I take them out. Knowing their torque factor I pay particular attention to not unleashing the golfing Mr. Hyde that resides in most all of us, instead I try to play a more patient and precise game.

What splendid strikes can be had when one knows an attempt to overpower will only result in error.

Something about these darn hickory sticks that calm my body and mind on the course.

 

Well put old school...........

[HoldenCornfield]

Anyone have a report from Mid-Pines? I missed it this year but heard Otey Crisman III did big things in the senior division. Way to go, Otey!

[rwc356]

Anyone have a report from Mid-Pines? I missed it this year but heard Otey Crisman III did big things in the senior division. Way to go, Otey!

 

SoHG Facebook page has a screenshot of the final score sheets from Mid-Pines

[Bella Woods]

Kevin:

 

Photos of the results are on the Facebook page of the SOHG as rwc356 indicated. I played with Otey

in the practice round, he was playing well. He won the senior gross by 3 strokes I believe. Cold this year,

first day we teed off it was about 37 degrees with some wind, never got to 50. Second day teed off in

40 degrees with the temp never getting above 46. Greens were tough as usual.

[HoldenCornfield]

SoHG Facebook page has a screenshot of the final score sheets from Mid-Pines

 

Kevin:

 

Photos of the results are on the Facebook page of the SOHG as rwc356 indicated. I played with Otey

in the practice round, he was playing well. He won the senior gross by 3 strokes I believe. Cold this year,

first day we teed off it was about 37 degrees with some wind, never got to 50. Second day teed off in

40 degrees with the temp never getting above 46. Greens were tough as usual.

 

Thanks!

[rwc356]

Kevin:

 

Photos of the results are on the Facebook page of the SOHG as rwc356 indicated. I played with Otey

in the practice round, he was playing well. He won the senior gross by 3 strokes I believe. Cold this year,

first day we teed off it was about 37 degrees with some wind, never got to 50. Second day teed off in

40 degrees with the temp never getting above 46. Greens were tough as usual.

 

Sorry I missed Mid-Pines this year - but not sure those temperatures would have been fun. Guess the Mid-Pines / Pinehurst group weren't too excited to have Michigan or Illinois weather.

[majic]

Rex got your first TM Hickory. I just made the masters for my left hand MILLS clubs. Here is First fasting

[oldschoolrocker]

I am having a real pickle with regards to my iron swings with steel versus hickory shafts.

Without getting into the back storyline, do you use the same swing with your hickory irons as you do with your steel shafted irons?

 

[Jiggered]

Assuming that you're referring to original clubs, I find I swing smoother with the hickorys but I'd also say it depends a lot on the club in hand.

 

The woods in particular tended to have much more "senior" flex shafts than today's clubs so you can easily overpower them.

 

Irons will have greater variety but again the longer clubs will tend more to have more flex while the short irons can be pretty stiff.

 

The thickness of the shaft is your first clue and then giving it a swish.

 

Not a very technical answer but hope it helps!

[HoldenCornfield]

I am having a real pickle with regards to my iron swings with steel versus hickory shafts.

Without getting into the back storyline, do you use the same swing with your hickory irons as you do with your steel shafted irons?

 

With the irons I would definitely say, "Yes."

 

With the woods I lean more towards, "Absolutely no idea because I still haven't figured out how to hit them with any consistency." And its the main reason why I don't play more hickory golf.

 

This past weekend I played a round of golf with my daughter's friend, a young man who is a freshman on the golf team at her college. He's one of those tall, whispy types that hits the ball a mile. I asked him what his swing speed was with the driver and he told me 116 mph on average.

 

Anyway, I had put my hickory driver in my bag just to see what he could do with it. After he got warmed up on the range with his regular driver I pulled out Ol Hickory and handed it to him. He hit it a few times and handed it back to me. He was perplexed -- at least I think that's the best word for it.

 

I asked him, "How much distance do you think you lost? 50 yards?" BTW, I had to ask because when he hit drives with his modern driver they quickly traveled beyond my visual acuity. They started off as high draws before disappearing into the troposphere. The hickory driver, on the other hand, were weak fades that easily stayed within the planetary boundary level. :)

 

His reply was, "At least that much, maybe more."

 

***

 

Getting back to your original question, I guessed you've check the loft/lie angles already? Aside from their slightly higher weights I don't see any significant difference in feel or performance between my hickory irons and my steel shafted vintage irons.

[Bella Woods]

Well I think Jiggered touched on it, the shaft makes all the difference in the world (along with proper lie angles).

 

If you fine tune your clubs to your specs/swing - I don't think the swing is much different between the steel and

hickory clubs, "smoother" maybe. Whether it is finding original ones or purchasing new replacements, the shaft

is the key......

 

I posted in the summer about a young kid in Monterey California that hit my Jigger and Driver on the range, 126

MPH driver swing speed - he hit the s''''t out of both of them with nice hard high draws (Jigger about 200 on the fly

and the driver probably 250 to 260 yard carry). They were shafts that were "tweeked" and he could not believe

what he had just done, especially with the Jigger because of the low face profile.

 

You can count on the fact that the better players in the hickory era were fine tuning their clubs for themselves, but

for some reason modern hickory players play the "off the rack" clubs with unknown specs/flexes/angles and wonder

why they can't hit them........

[oldschoolrocker]

Thanks all for the replies.

In all honesty, with the woods, it’s same same, with respect to how I approach the shot, hickory, steel, or graphite, but, the iron swing is differently looser, and more hands with the hickory when compared to steel.

My own belief is due to the torque factor of the hickory shaft, and it’s need to be massaged and caressed, almost lovingly to perform at optimum.

Full body release with steel, where more arm and hand roll with the hickory.

Just some thoughts that had me on the brink of madness during yesterday’s round.

[Kirasdad]

I haven’t changed a thing. Swing with my Pings (or whatever else I play from time to time) is the same, tempo, plane, everything. Same with woods. Now I have a Tad driver, great club, it’s a repro with obviously a new shaft in it so there is that factor to consider, but I take the same swing with it as I do my newish 460cc Callaway modern driver.

 

What I have noticed in all the tournaments that I have played, watching many Hickory players over the last few years is you don’t see many people really swinging hard like you do with modern clubs. The action is smoother certainly. This would be explained in the 19th hole by many as a result of allowing for the shaft, increased torque, etc., and this is probably technically true. I also suspect though that psychologically lots of guys don’t completely trust what they have in their hands. Almost like they’re holding a bomb that might go off at any moment. I have seen some truly awful shots from guys who have good golf swings. Hickory clubs can be well...temperamental, especially authentics.

[ebeer]

Hickory has shortened my back swing and slowed my tempo a bit....something I keep when transitioning back to steel shafted clubs (which rarely actually happens). Kirasdad is right, I don't think slow is as critical as smooth. Provided you eliminate that late Sergio lag, I think there is more range for swing speed than many realize....just little room for torque.

[rex235]

Rex got your first TM Hickory. I just made the masters for my left hand MILLS clubs. Here is First fasting

 

Tad-

 

Wow...

 

Looks GREAT!

 

Thanks again.

[jbucher]

The NW Hickory Players started out 2018 with a clear cold 29* day at Willows Run G.C. in Redmond,WA. 23 players played the Coyote Creek course,5796 yards for the gentlemen and 5400 for the ladies. Willows tarps the greens overnight so they don't have any frost delays. We tee'd off about 10:00 am and after the first several holes the fairways were melted and clear. A big thanks goes out to Martin Pool for organizing the event.

Happy New Year and hope 18 is well played by all!!!!

Jimmy B

[Jiggered]

Not actually playing hickory yet and I doubt I will be for a couple of months still but I had to post about the holiday just booked which has got the hickory juices flowing in anticipation.

 

A week on the Isle of Arran in the summer with 7 courses to play, a mix of 9 and 18 holes plus the 12 hole Shiskine. The courses look perfect for hickory and vintage clubs so I'll be taking a bag of each, plenty of time to mull over club selection.

 

Can't wait!

[scomac2002]

I recall reading about a 12 hole course once. Don't remember if it was Shiskine or another, but it sounded like it would be a delight to play and relive an earlier age of golf. I wish there were more courses like that, but it's just too out of the ordinary to suit the majority.

 

[Added] Turns out there are more of these than I realized with one not too far from where I live nestled in a suburban setting. The course I was thinking about originally was in NZ I think and they had the greens fenced off to keep the sheep out as it was essentially a large pasture that had been set up to play golf on so many years ago.

[stixman]

Not actually playing hickory yet and I doubt I will be for a couple of months still but I had to post about the holiday just booked which has got the hickory juices flowing in anticipation.

 

A week on the Isle of Arran in the summer with 7 courses to play, a mix of 9 and 18 holes plus the 12 hole Shiskine. The courses look perfect for hickory and vintage clubs so I'll be taking a bag of each, plenty of time to mull over club selection.

 

Can't wait!

 

Classic!

Quick play,

Keeps the midges at bay!

[Jiggered]

Classic!

Quick play,

Keeps the midges at bay!

 

Quick play and hopefully the sea breezes will keep the bloodthirsty little critters away.

[stixman]

The secret anti-midge formula used to be an Avon product called 'Skin so Soft' or a similar sounding name. It was an in-joke amongst West Coast Scots but it worked better than any proprietory formula. Can you get it now? I don't think so.

[oldschoolrocker]

+1 on the “Skin So Soft.” We use it here as well, for what we call “no see ums.” “Bounce,” an anti static laundry sheet is another option.

[majic]

AVON product. Still available. Made even with sunscreen. Good stuff

[stixman]

What do you make of this, anyone?

 

First up is the use of the term 'Wedge'. Also, the hosel length is shortish compared to similar period niblicks.

The rest of the set look genuine hickory. This is a first for me

 

 

[Jiggered]

Could it have been stamped "wedge" later in its history?

 

The stamping doesn't look very even.