I've seen a bunch of videos on this topic and many of them talk about "this club should go this distance and that club should go that distance". I think people are barking up the wrong tree here and creating worthless and destructive expectations.

Look, I'd love it if my 9 iron whent 154 yards ... but it doesn't and probably never will. So why should I care if my 9 Iron goes 154 yards or 110 yards? Sure I'd like to be pumping my driver out there with a 280 carry but that's just not going to happen for the vast majority of us.

My view (for nearly all of us amateur golfers):

- Short or long who cares as long as you're consistent and know your yardages with each club.

- Certainly hitting farther will lower your scores but an amateurs attention is MUCH better spent on (see the above point).

.... and that's all I have to say about that. :-)

Added: Yes, I don't hit the ball very far. Still, I was able to pull out an 85 on a par 73 course from the 2nd to the farthest tees on my last round which for me is acceptable. Also, yes, I normally play from the front tees.

Loving my new 56* sm11 raw…

I’m starting to think we should all start playing for money on the first tee if we truly want to get better.

I’m not kidding. Within the past 12 months, my friends have slowly and consistently proven the biggest weakness in my golf game: mentality.

I played in college but would consider myself slightly above average at best. I give my friends who have only played a few years at lot of strokes to say the least, but not too many where is seems legitimately unfair if that makes sense.

I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve become a different golfer with money on the line.

I’ll hit shots I haven’t hit in weeks/months. I’ll swear like a sailor. I’ll sweat over shots that are routine with other randoms.

My friends on the other hand can lock in. They will channel things I’ve never seen before and hit shots that would put a tour pro to shame.

They’ll become a recovery shot wizard, get as lucky as a leprechaun, and become focused and determined. Full of self belief.

They don’t think about what could happen…they think about what can happen.

And man…I’ve seen some amazing golf shots this year. Which brings me to my point:

After gambling with friends, I have a new respect for the players on tour.

They’re not just filthy at golf…they’re filthy under pressure. And we’re not talking 100-250 bucks on the line…

We’re talking tens of thousands. With mouths to feed, bills to pay, and demons to conquer.

Over the decades, I’ve played with a hand full of guys who on their best day ever might be able to keep up with a tour pro for 14-16 holes.

But I’d love to see how they’d play if there was 5-6 million on the line

Mentality is so underrated. We all nonchalantly say “golf is mental” but I don’t think we truly dive deep into what that truly means.

I need to get better mentally. And if you’ve made it to the end…chances are you do too.

Good luck out there homie.

Best,

Scorecard on the fridge? The ball in a drawer? A screenshot from the app? Or just a text to the
group chat and on to the next round?
Curious what people actually hang on to from a milestone round, and whether it survives a few
moves and a few years.

Mine: playing Pro V1s.
I’m probably going to get killed for this one, but I don’t think most amateur golfers would notice much difference in their scores playing a ball that costs half as much.
What’s yours?

So I sh*nked my approach to #17 today. Then, in a moment of madness, helicoptered the 8-iron responsible for this travesty in the general direction of play. It took me a good 5 or 10 minutes to locate the rascal before pitching the next shot long with a sand wedge. The reason for the delay was because I had overestimated my chucking power - the club was a good 20 yards behind where I thought it should have been. Players, remember - keep your eyes on the club's flight the whole way, and pick out a background feature to help in its location. HTH

4 Man Best ball / Scramble

Glynlea country club, Port St Lucie, Florida

A few months ago, I was in the market for a gap wedge (only a gap wedge) and was struggling to find something. I was intrigued by the Vice clubs, but couldn't find a lot of info on them. I ended up purchasing one, so I figured I'd drop a quick review with some thoughts.

I ended up buying the VGW01 Lime wedge. Why? Because it was fully customizable. I used to play a set of Wilson-Staff clubs and loved my GW, when I got rid of them and upgraded to the Callaway Elytes, I found that their GW was significantly different - shorter, different weight, different angle.

With the VGW01, I was able to select their 50 degree GW, change the angle to 47 degrees and slightly lengthen the shaft to match my old Wilson-Staff exactly. I went with the standard steel shaft and basic lime grip. You can change to a graphite shift and/or different grips for an upcharge.

The club I purchased was $119, though they are on sale now for $99. They are made in Germany, I received mine 9 or 10 days after I placed my order.

When you buy individual clubs from Vice, you get 30 days to test them on the course, and if you don't like it you can return it for a full refund. I don't think this policy applies to full sets, just individual clubs. I decided to keep mine so I have no idea how an actual return works.

As for the club itself, it's...nice. Forged head, seems well put together and designed. When I strike it well, I get more spin on it than I do from my other wedges, and I get almost the exact same distance I used to get with Wilson-Staff.

There are a couple of cons for me. For some reason I tend to pull this club left more than every other club in my bag combined. I get the right distance, it's just 10-15 yards left of my target. I don't use this club on the course a ton and I don't do it as often on the range. I'm sure my own bad golf game is at fault, but it strange that I don't do that with my other wedges, only this one.

Not sure if related to that or not, but these are full-face wedges. None of my other clubs are full-face, so it was (is?) hard for me to get used to it, visually, at address.

Finally, this is more of a me thing than anything wrong with the club but since I bought the 50 degree wedge, it has a 50 stamped on it even though mine has been bumped to 47. So I have a 58 degree that says 58, a 52 that says 52 and a 47 that says 50. It bothers the OCD in me.

Hello! I recently aquired my first set of clubs. I’ve only played 1 round of golf in my life (a company outing I needed to attend). I have another upcoming event I need to attend and decide maybe I should learn how to play a bit just so I don’t embarrass myself and can have something in common with folks in my field.

There is a ton of information out there about where to start. But with what you know now, what would be the best advice you would have given yourself when starting out?

Any and everything would be helpful! I’m wrestling on if I should go to the range? Get on the course? Can I play by myself if I don’t know anyone to go out with? Any traps beginners usually fall in I should be aware of? Do I really need to buy golf pants? lol

Decent swing. Hours of lessons, solid take away and follow through. But always always bobbling the head and when it goes bad constantly hanging back. I’m almost read to just accept the fact it will never improve. I can stripe it 320 off the tee for 3 holes and then shank into the woods. I want to give up

Took the day off yesterday to play golf on my birthday, an annual tradition. Chose to play the up tees at Rock Creek (5,500 yards) to keep the day low pressure and enjoyable.

Ended up breaking par on the back 9 firing off a 35 for the first time ever! Shot 40 on the front for a solid 75.

While it might not be as sexy as doing it from the whites or blues, I’m still pumped. Might find me playing the up tees more often 😂

My friend said I look like I swing faster than him, but my ball ends up about the same, if not shorter than his ball. This is on center contact.

What could be the reasoning behind this? He said I might need switch to a different ball. I think I’m just not swinging hard enough.

A lady my MIL cleans for gave her these. She passed them on to us. My kids all play. Coolest part is 3-SW Ping ISTs and a vintage Fresh Prince looking Bennington bag. The head size on these ISTs are like dinner plates!

Need help figuring out that this putter is/brand. Buddy of mine got it at a sale but nothing has turned up on google images/ai search. Any help appreciated!

Is it possible to move my handicap from a 14 to a 9 by the end of next season?

I just signed up for lessons, and I have a simulator to practice through the winter.

I'm hoping for 2-3 hours of practice each week.

Also, any tips on putting drills/practice during the snowy season?

Just a simple question for those who have golfed in Savannah, GA. Me and my buddy are starting a yearly golf trip to hopefully get more people in time of course but the issue is. We’ve seen some courses to go to but no course stands out. We’ll be in Savannah for just a weekend this year mid November. Any recommendations send them my way, Please and Thank You!

Edit:

Saturday morning: The Club at Savannah Harbor has been selected!

What do you spend on a lesson?

Headed to San Diego in November to play Torrey Pines (both courses). I've got a free Friday morning, and wanted to see what the best recommendations are. Private is ok. Thanks!

Been playing since February of this year and I’ve gotten completely addicted. I've played around 3-4 times per week from the month of May till now with a golf membership I purchased. I’m definitely not the most consistent ball striker yet. I’ll have days where I’m hitting my irons really well and then other days where I’m catching it thin or chunking it. My absolute best round so far was recently an 87 on a pretty easy city course, par 72, but I’m definitely not shooting that every time. I tend to hover around 92-100.

Right now I game Callaway Paradym Ai Smoke HL 6-AW with Elevate 85 regular shafts. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with them, I just don’t love them. I want something a little cleaner looking that I can hopefully keep for a while as I get better. Meanwhile the rest of my bag, I am gaming Cobra DS driver, Taylormade Stealth 3W, Callaway Elyte 7W and those all have stiff shafts.

My biggest concern is forgiveness. I want something that looks a little more like a players iron but still manages to help on mishits. Any suggestions? Really like the look of P790s or Mizuno irons.

I started golfing at the start of this year and bought a used set of clubs. Currently at a higher handicap and trending downwards. My set came with a 20yr old Titleist 3W that I can't hit well at all to the point that it doesn't even live in my bag.

Driver swing speed is ~105mph and typical carry on a good hit is around 260yds. Do I need to suck it up and learn to hit a 3W that would go 240yds on a good strike or should I just go straight to a 5W and have a club I can hit more reliably but might only carry 220yds? Or maybe start with 5W and then decide from there once I get better consistency if I add a 3W?

"These players are no longer bound by their contracts and are free to leave the league or sign new agreements with LIV 2.0."

Full story here: https://www.essentiallysports.com/golf-news-bryson-dechambeau-cam-smith-17-others-no-longer-bound-by-liv-golf-contracts-reports/

Are we finally getting Bryson back on the PGA Tour or is this the end of his pro career and he becomes the most talented golf influencer?

Just want to get some opinions on cobra drivers. I’ve been playing a TaylorMade M4 for the last four years or so. I like it quite a bit and hit it pretty well. Lately I’ve been thinking about upgrading to get a little more forgiveness when I mishit. I would be buying used.

As I’m looking at used drivers, one they’re stupid expensive. However, it seems like cobra is much more affordable. For example, I’m looking at the DS adapt x and can find a head in good condition for less than $200. Meanwhile a ping that’s a few years old is still $300+. Is there a catch? I’ve read reviews and they seem to be good, but I guess I’m a little skeptical.

I guess some info on my driving if it matters. I play a stock fade. Swing about 110 mph. Miss is either a straight pull or a slice if I leave the face open. I would say driving is one of the stronger parts of my game. 10 handicap.

Thanks!

Driving up to Scranton next weekend and looking to play a round on Friday somewhere in PA close to my route. Which course would you recommend as a MUST PLAY?

I don't mind spending the cash if the course is worth it. Also, I'm about a 13 handicap.