The Golf Thread - 2017!

[HaplessBoyLard]

Blue62 said:

It's a topic that isn't often discussed as most of us focus on clubs when it comes to equipment and your post highlights the range of opinion, but there's one point that I think it would be helpful to clarify. Your +1 friend with a slow swing is obviously not bothered about distance and my guess would be that it's because he is consistent with yardages and has a very good short game, I would guess that his choice of ball is probably more to do with how a ProV feels and behaves around the green.

For a humble 9 handicapper like myself distance matters because I don't have a great short game to fall back on and I can be inconsistent with long irons, for years I have been playing with ProV's probably because that's what my other single figure mates play with and I will probably continue to use them in warmer weather (I've got about 6 boxes of the bloody things to get rid of), but I've noticed a definite improvement in my scoring since I moved to a softer ball. I reckon I've gained a club through the bag which has really helped and it's noticeable that a couple of guys I play with regularly (off 6 and 8) are now giving it a go. There's a lot of snobbery and as you say we all get sucked in by the advertising, but I reckon club golfers of all standards can see an improvement in their game if they make an effort to find a ball that suits their swing speed.

I wouldn’t ever try and tell you that what you say you’ve noticed in your own game isn’t true, but having used almost all of the top end balls over the last few years it’s not something that I buy into at all.

There are definitely balls that go further than others at certain times. Wilson DX2 soft for example. I’m not sure it’s any longer for with a driver; if I spun the ball any lower off the tee I’d start to get balls dropping out of the air too quickly and I don’t get that. It’s towards the other end of the bag that I’ve noticed it. I’ve hit shorter clubs way past measured flags and been shocked by it. I’m talking 15 yards further than my normal distance with those clubs. Some of that might be the clubs I’m using (AP1) but a 15 yard flyer with a 9i from the fairway? No way. That ball spins less.

When I said I was past a +1 hcp with my 3W I meant I was sneaking it past him. Not a big gap. If I’d been hitting driver that day (I’d snapped the shaft on mine!) I’d have been 20-25 past him if we both struck it well. I simply don’t buy it that he’d have been closer to me playing a softer premium ball.

You’re absolutely right that people should use a ball that suits them, but I think they should worry about what they feel rather than spin rates and perceived distance gains. I’d love to see them blind test a range of balls as I’m pretty sure they’d find that the differences between them all are tiny.

[Juanco20]

Simple tip for anyone struggling with Driver. It's an absolute basic fundamental of the setup but something I've been getting wrong

Because your head/eyes are quite far behind the ball at address, it can make it appear that the hands are in the correct position. Mine have actually been pointing somewhere close to the belt buckle. From this position I've been getting contact all over the face. A simple move of the hands forward so that the butt end of the club is pointing toward the inside of the left leg (shaft now much more vertical instead of angled backwards) has suddenly seen my contact be consistently out of the middle. I swing quite quick, around 115mph, and the ball flight I'm getting now I'm hitting out of the middle of the face has been a bit of a shock. The ball doesn't just go up and back down on a normal arc, it seems to rise flatten out a bit and then rise again. Consistently getting past 300 yards on trackman with Callaway Epic

[HaplessBoyLard]

Juanco20 said:

Simple tip for anyone struggling with Driver. It's an absolute basic fundamental of the setup but something I've been getting wrong

Because your head/eyes are quite far behind the ball at address, it can make it appear that the hands are in the correct position. Mine have actually been pointing somewhere close to the belt buckle. From this position I've been getting contact all over the face. A simple move of the hands forward so that the butt end of the club is pointing toward the inside of the left leg (shaft now much more vertical instead of angled backwards) has suddenly seen my contact be consistently out of the middle. I swing quite quick, around 115mph, and the ball flight I'm getting now I'm hitting out of the middle of the face has been a bit of a shock. The ball doesn't just go up and back down on a normal arc, it seems to rise flatten out a bit and then rise again. Consistently getting past 300 yards on trackman with Callaway Epic

“Quite” quick?

Average on tour is 113mph I think.

[Juanco20]

HaplessBoyLard said:

“Quite” quick?

Average on tour is 113mph I think.

I think it was a couple of years back, I'm sure it's edging toward 120mph now with improved technology and players spending too much time in the gym

I'm nowhere near as consistent speed wise as them though. I can hit one shot and it'll be 108mph and then next shot will be 115mph without the swing feeling any different.

[Blue62]

Sorry Hapless but I do think there's a point in folk trying to understand a wee bit more about ball tech, you dismiss it if you want to. A ProV (and similar) has a harder core and to compress the ball properly requires a greater swing speed, a player with a slower swing speed won't get the bounce effect off the club face because they won't achieve the same compression and therefore lose distance, especially in cold temps.

[HaplessBoyLard]

Juanco20 said:

I think it was a couple of years back, I'm sure it's edging toward 120mph now with improved technology and players spending too much time in the gym

I'm nowhere near as consistent speed wise as them though. I can hit one shot and it'll be 108mph and then next shot will be 115mph without the swing feeling any different.

My curiosity got the better of me, so I looked it up.



Yep. 113mph.

Even 108 is damn fast compared to most amateurs. The LPGA players average 95mph with 218 carry. That’s much more like your normal bloke on a Sunday morning who claims he hits driver 260yds.

[thebraketester]

Downwards driver attack on average? Or am I reading that wrong

[HaplessBoyLard]

thebraketester said:

Downwards driver attack on average? Or am I reading that wrong

Yeah. That’s what it says. A lot of players hit down on driver on tour.

[HaplessBoyLard]

Blue62 said:

Sorry Hapless but I do think there's a point in folk trying to understand a wee bit more about ball tech, you dismiss it if you want to. A ProV (and similar) has a harder core and to compress the ball properly requires a greater swing speed, a player with a slower swing speed won't get the bounce effect off the club face because they won't achieve the same compression and therefore lose distance, especially in cold temps.

I’m not dismissing anything. I just think there’s a lot more to it than just stating one ball goes further than another for a certain swing speed. That’s what the manufacturers trot out but the testing I’ve seen tends to suggest the differences are tiny, and I’ve never noticed anything significant myself except super low compression balls flying too far with irons.

[Juanco20]

thebraketester said:

Downwards driver attack on average? Or am I reading that wrong

If you swing quick enough you can get away with a slight downward strike with driver

I'm usually about 1.5 to 2 degrees up but in the lessons I've had recently we've worked on trying to get that closer to atleast 3

I played a fair bit when I was younger but stopped at about 16 and I was only playing off about 14 at the time. I've had a few games a year since then but I'm 30 now and this is the first time I've got back in to it seriously and started having lessons and joined a club. Hoping to be under 5 by the end of the year

[JamesNotJim]

Tiger was clocked at 128.4mph in yesterdays round. That would lead PGA tour stats since 2007. The Goat still has some speed.

[DuncanM]

JamesNotJim said:

Tiger was clocked at 128.4mph in yesterdays round. That would lead PGA tour stats since 2007. The Goat still has some speed.

He really is the GOAT isn't he :O

I can't wait for Augusta!

[Juanco20]

He could quite easily win a major this year. He's showing that he's still got every part of the game needed to win, he just needs to piece them all together consistently over 4 days

[rsbmw]

Yeah pretty impressive this week. Driving the notable weakness, and a few signs of rust still but really not far off at all. No signs of pain which is the main thing.

[Juanco20]

Webb Simpson taking the piddle with his slow play.

I'd be bombing it down on to his head if I was the group behind

[bodhi]

Juanco20 said:

Webb Simpson taking the piddle with his slow play.

I'd be bombing it down on to his head if I was the group behind

I think someone just did....

[kentlad]

Juanco20 said:

He could quite easily win a major this year. He's showing that he's still got every part of the game needed to win, he just needs to piece them all together consistently over 4 days

Until something doesn't go his way or he gets a twinge. Then we'll see what he's really made of. Great respect for him though, coming back yet again. Hope he can add another Major to his list of trophies, but i just can't see it myself. Especially with all the talent out there at the moment. Great win for Eddie at the weekend too!

[thebraketester]

Juanco20 said:

Webb Simpson taking the piddle with his slow play.

I'd be bombing it down on to his head if I was the group behind

We got told off by a couple of old boys for dong this a few weeks ago. Ironically when they were in the fairways our balls flew straight and long(for us). When they eventually disappeared we couldn’t hit fairway to save our lives. :-)

[DuncanM]

thebraketester said:

Juanco20 said:

Webb Simpson taking the piddle with his slow play.

I'd be bombing it down on to his head if I was the group behind

We got told off by a couple of old boys for dong this a few weeks ago. Ironically when they were in the fairways our balls flew straight and long(for us). When they eventually disappeared we couldn’t hit fairway to save our lives. :-)

Hitting the ball at the group ahead is disgraceful behaviour, never justifiable.

Slow play will always be a thing in golf, for some reason people pride themselves on how fast they can get around a course, which I think is laughable.

Than gawd I've played most of my golf in the week, on nice quiet courses.

[thebraketester]

There were out of range (just).... and had multiple opportunities to let us play through but they wouldn’t.... I get your point and of course would never aim to hit anyone, but their obviously on purpose slow play was ridiculous.

Edited by thebraketester on Monday 26th February 21:04