Choosing Which Clubs To Carry

DJ is paired with Lucas Glover tomorrow. I'm guessing they'll actually get some TV time as the two bearded Clemson Boys!! Go DJ! Have a stong finish Sunday!!
They tee off at 11:26pm.
Here's a clip of DJ making a 45 foot putt on Saturday. http://www.pgatour.com/video/p...

Hi fellow Surgites.
Yesterday went try a couple of things on the practice hole. It was soooo wet that after hitting 2 balls, went onto the 9th hole, and without a warm up teed off. First shot hit tree on the left and kicked straight down [Driver].Beautifully struck but rubbish. The hole a long par 5 with lots of hazards to negiotate and a dogleg to boot. Took my 5W and smoked it. Then one of the things I was intent on trying. Took out the 4[HL]iron, to play a positional shot.Hit another beauty.Then thought, why not try it and have a go at the green. Bunkers and a ridge behind them close to the green. Hit it and thought well that will be short but was on the target. Couldn't see the flag so didn't see it finish.Thought it could have even run through, dependent on how much the wet fairway may have 'grabbed it'. Imagine my delight on seeing it 8feet to the right of the pin, pin high. Popped it in. It was only later I realized I had par'd the hole, even with a shot which only travelled a short distance from the tee : - )
On another long par 5 into a quite stiff breeze I decided to use just the 4HL off the tee and fairway. It never left the centre of the fairway. On my 4th shot I played a lay up shot, with the intent of bombing the pin with my SW. Alas, the ball went exactly where I wanted it to go,but too far and into the drain. Disappointed? Not for a nanosecond. Off the next hole, I hit it again, and had the best result off the tee I have had on it.
Spoke to another golfer out on a practice round. Told him about  PPGS dropped a ball on the fairway and took out my 24deg Rescue [not 23deg as I said the other day dumkopf] to show him the swing.Told him if it didn't go well, it would be me and not the PPGS concept.Well, I absolutely smoked it, high, handsome,straight and long. It is only a short club,but it will be staying in my bag. Hit some great 5W's and the wedges? Look out Phil Mickelson. I have gained such confidence in them and for chipping from around the green, my 8iron is performing brilliantly. Putting is not too ugly either.
Clubs in my  bag at present:Driver, 3W 5W 24deg 4HL 5HL 6 7 8 9 PW SW LW
Not used after first tee             X                [X]                    X X    X                X   Those with a cross under them I would quite happily leave out of the bag. As usual that is what my intention was BEFORE READING TODAY'S VIDEO!!! Scary heh heh heh. Had said to we started yesterday, to my wife: "I would happily play with only 4HL 8iron, Wedge and a putter.
So interesting days ahead guys.

RWC Semi-Final  Wales 8 v France 9. As I said the other day, I hoped that the game betwixt Aus/NZ would not be ruined by bad refereeing. Well IMHO opinion it happened last night in this match. Irish??? Ref with a French name, sent off one of Wales's top players for a tackle in the 18th minute.So Wales had to play with a man short for 62 mins of the 80mins. Stinks. Wonder how the bookies made out? : - ( Not sour grapes on my behalf. Good luck both teams tonight. May the best team win.

You're welcome Kim. It's going to be a great day today for the Surge Nation. Go DJ!!

it was pretty funny. They actually have a plaque in the clubs house with records set and club champions and they have it listed on there with the guys name.LOL

Suppose, for example, that you are keeping score, your are playing in tournaments, what clubs would you recommend for different types of golfers?  For example, I have a swing speed around 85, handicap at 15, 61 y.o.  I drive around 210-220/  I play hybrids 2-7. Have D,3w, 8,9;W,SW,LW, Putter.  Does this look appropriate?  Should I bring in a 5w for the 3w, for the 2H?
What do you think?
Tom

 I don't worry too much about the weight, I'm one of those soft cart guys. I use the Tee Time Golf Pass book and all the coupon discounts are cart inclusive. It does make for a more definite decision on which club to pull though, with only 3-HBs, 3-Irons and 3-Wedges. Sort of simplifies things.
http://www.teetimegolfpass.com...

Quality not Quantity, now that's something I check often. At the end of the day, just before I
go to sleep, I track back on the days game and mentally pick my "shot of the day".
This routine makes me visualise all of my shots which gives me good feed back on what
club/shot I'm doing well/poor. My "shot of the day" usually is the one that sets me up for
a birdie or par in terms of accuracy/length. Sometimes I'm already asleep before
I get to the 9/18th, LOL.       

Thanks for the facebook posting, Kim, first thing I saw this morning before checking the bama game stats on-line.

Neil, this may be the most important part of improvement that I only recently have gotten serious about. The mental state of mind concerning our game.
Boog and I got on this subject as we both have been reading "the 15th club" by Bob Rotella. Boog gave me a web site that will be right up your alley.http://golfstateofmind.com/
Very good stuff. Of course they ultimately have services to sell as does any business, however there is a ton of great free advice on multiple subjects concerning those 5 inches between our ears. I downloaded thier free golf state of mind audios on my mp3. Been listoning to it at the gym and on the way to work instead of music. Take a look and let me know what you think.
PMG

PS. What I've appreciated so far is that they encourage how to move from mechanical and physical swing thoughts to visualization and feel. This is in complete harmony with the "feel the swing and swing the feel" phylosophy.

I have 22 clubs and carry the maximum 14 at any one time depending upon course conditions. For the last three rounds that I have played, I carried Driver, 3-metal, 4-metal, 5-metal, 7-metal, 6-iron, 7-iron, 8-iron, 9-iron, PW, GW, SW, LW, and putter. On really hard fairways (I played one this year), I replace the 4-, 5-, and 7-metals with my 3-, 4- and 5-irons because they tend to run more. With thick bermuda rough, I replace the 3- through 7-metals with my 17*, 20*, 23*, and 26* hybrids, which are easier to hit out of the rough. Of the 23 rounds that I played this year, I only had one club that I did not use or used only once in a round - my 5-metal - and that only happened twice. My second least-used club is my LW, which I only get to use about three times per round. My approach shots are getting better, so I use it less and less.  I think that as I can more consistent, I will discover other clubs that I don't have to use as often.

p.s.: I'm using the term "metal" instead of "wood" because I still have a set of laminated maple woods that I use occasionally for the fun of it. I still hit the 3-wood as good as or better than my 3-metal, but rarely carry it because of the difference in looks between it and my other clubs.

Robert Thompson:

  We've got at least one of those here -- The Tilted Kilt I mean.

   Also, A golf school similar to the one you are attending.  Apparently the schedule is 4 or 5 hours of morning classes, followed by an afternoon golf tournament.  I really don't know a lot about it except that it is an 18 month program (I think) and that they tied up my favorite course for several hours from about 1:00 pm to nearly 4"00 pm.

   Keep hitting them STRAIGHT and LONG

   Amos

He will really have to make a move tomorrow. He needs a T10 or better to get under the 125 cut off.

Me too NeilofOZ. Before I go to sleep, I do just that. Today after leaving my early diatribe. I removed the Drv/6/7/9ironsand LW from my bag. The big dog will get some more practice off the course. The others? I am not using them, so why cart them around?
Have huge amount of confidence in my PingG2 4HL iron, 24degRescue club, 8iron, wedges and putter. The others apart from the driver I am just not using I will continue to keep up to speed with them.
Good luck tonight DragoneadNZ heh heh heh.

Hello Fellow Surge Citizens,

I felt that a quick update from PGCC was in order.  I took my midterms this past week, and guess who the top student is in my class:0)

I also broke out of a bad slump on the golf course and had four good rounds in a row.  My golf instructor was very pleased with my progress.  Yesterday, I started off our range session with four absolute 7 Iron bullets.  He was very impressed.  We spent the session working on alignment and hitting up on the ball.  That sneaky rotational swinger has been studying the PPGS and commented that it's all about up baby!

I got in an early round at the Legends today with my best friend, Tony.  He's a 26 year pro, and I beat him by one stroke. (He played the blues and I played the whites) Except for two holes, I drove with my three wood with extremely good results.  I dropped my four wood in exchange for another wedge and was happy I did it .  I am also thinking about putting my Doc Driver back into the bag.  I cracked the shaft several weeks ago, and never got around to repairing it.  A buddy of mine has a shaft that I like with a soft tip, and he said I could have it.  I'll get into the lab this week and get it back into action.

Guess what Bob learned how to do?  I can spin my wedges like a pro!  It's awesome to see the ball stick like it's caught in molasses on the green.  I hit a pitching wedge from 110 today and absolutely stuffed it 16 inches from the flag, and it only rolled about 3 inches from the pitch mark.

I missed DJ's round today, but I think I'll take tomorrow off and watch round 4 live.  I spent some time looking at the money list and the leader board, and if he stays where he's at, he'll move into the top 125.  A money finish next week, and he'll keep his card.

Hey Dick!  Time for a food network update.  I found a place called the Tilted Kilt, and the corned beef and cabbage knocked three strokes off of my game quicker than an eraser.  The serving girls were nice too.

Hit'em Long and Straight,
Bob

Looks like you are becoming one with nature on the golf course. Lie is good buddy :)

Hi Robert,

I thought I should share this with my friends here at Surge Central...

http://www.facebook.com/photo....

Hit'em Long and Straight,
Bob

The goal would be to properly gap your clubs so you have 10-15 yards difference in distance with each successive club, then make adjustments for conditions at the course you're playing. If you're planning to have clubs fit for you, then you can also go over all of those things with your fitter, part of whose job is to be sure that you have a set of clubs properly gapped for optimal course management. Without knowing your specific clubs and your game, it would be pretty hard for an outside person to just say "carry these clubs."

Bob,

Wtg on the midterms.  Sure looks like your game and school are looking good.  But, hey, with a Tilted Kilt and a praying mantis in your corner how can you miss. ;0)

I personally carry driver 11* ,17* fw , 3 - 5 hybrid , 6 - LW and putter. If I leave something out I end up needing it.

Tournament round report.

Long day. Wind gust to 30mph. No were to lose shots on any holes. The fastes greens I have ever played on I would guess they rolled 12 -13 or more and you could not keep a shot on them. I had a 10 foot put on one green that I moved the putter about a inch and a 1/2 back and through on a flat putt and ran it 5' past. I finished 3rd in my flight shot 96 and 94 won it. The lowest handicap flight which was 5 and below 86 won that flight scores were up for everybody. Now I can say that I played / putted on greens that were as fast as the pros play and can under stand some of the putting issues thay have.
They course that we played today claims that they keep there greens that fast all season. I would like to go back and play this course without 30 mph winds. You would have to watch when you put your ball down to putt they would shake a little from the wind.

   

RTR!!!!!!!!

Floyd could consider trying out a double sided blade putter like the Titleist Bullseye and use it ambidextrously as a get out of trouble club.   A friend of mine uses one and picked up a pre owned model fairly cheap.

I always hate when I have to take that two-stroke penalty for having clubs that don't match.

Oh, wait... ;-)

I am 74 years old and have shot my age or better 21 times since 2005. I walk and carry my bag. I carry 9 clubs. They are a driver, 5 wood, 7 wood, 5 iron, 6 iron, 8 iron, p. wedge, sand wedge and putter. I find I have less decisions to make. It's a hard 8 or a choked up 8 for a 9 iron distance. It also can be a draw or cut iron to compensate for the required distance. It is my belief that carrying or push, pulling a full 14 club bag creates too many options that adversely can impact your objective of getting the ball from tee to green to set up a 1 or 2 putt option. It's scoring not how far you can hit a club to compete with a playing partner.

Roger, I understand how different greens can be. Here we have everything from our muni where you normally have to "take agood backswing" to some PGA quality courses that you blow on the ball and they zip 5 feet by. I played some super slow and and bumpy greens at an executive course here the other  that was just re seeded, challenging indeed.
As for my clubs, I go driver,3 wood, 5 wood, 4 hybrid, 5 iron-pw, the a 53 and 58*.
Hmmmn.... what do I use the least? The hybrid. The most? My pw. Favorite club over all?
7 iron. Just love the feel and most comfortable with the reliability. New favorite wood? My Adams F11 5 wood. Hiy it as far as my 3 usually but higher and often straighter.
I'm learniing to love my driver and putter :)
Like Floyd (of todays video) I am learning to become less concerned about score and more about my targets and feeling the shot shape I want.

BTW Booger,
Thanks for the 'state of golf mind' idea. I down loaded the free audio to my mp3 and have been reading the many helpful articles. Learning to get out of my own way on the golf course.
http://golfstateofmind.com/201...

Robert, had a quick look at the site and must confess that the mental game is something
I don't follow much, my mates and family have labelled me a Cyborg LOL, so that must mean I don't let my emotions dominate me. Probably not good in a relationship, but
handy on the golf course. I'm always very focused when playing golf, I get a great feeling
when I hit good shots. last week I did learn something, after playing the first two holes
and getting easy pars, I got flippant on the 3rd and low & behold you know what,
a nine on a par 5, took a couple of holes until I got back to making pars again, so I do
believe in a proper mental attitude. After spending 15 years with a multitude of rotational
coaches, I'm now enjoying the game more than ever, thanks to Surge and the blog.

      

Quite understandable. If I hit as far as you do (only in my wildest dreams), I would probably use my 60* LW more as well. I only carry the ball 50-60 yards with my 60*. If I could consistently get it to 75-90 yards without more effort, I would use it a lot more. Instead I swing my 56* SW (60-75 yards) or my 52* GW (75-90 yards). I'm a short knocker :-(

Kevin McGarrahan:

  50-60 yards with a LW ? Not in my widlest dreams -- about 30 to 35 yards is my maximiun CONTROLLED distance with it, although I have hit a few "thin" shots that went aobut 70 yards total! :<((
    50 to 60 yards would be a GW for me -- but a dependable reliable repeatable shot -- goes high lands soft.
    I carry 4 wedges in the bag, but on most rounds on of them seems to be the "wedge de jeur" -- it is used on almost every hole. But which one of the four depends entirely on weather and pin placement.

     Keep hitting them STRAIGHT and LONG

     Amos

Great stuff Bob!! You still need to stop by Las Vegas and share your golf joy with Robert F and I. Thanks for sharing your progress pal. Glad to hear your game is coming along.
DJ is playing well this week and look for a strong finish tomorrow.
PMG

Your welcome, Robert, Lee should get the credit, he put me onto it some while back.

FYI:

DJ will be starting out any minute now playing with Ben Curtis. Follow him here with shot tracker.
http://www.pgatour.com/shottra...

Roger:

    I feel your pain regarding putting on "strange" greens.  On my houme course, I am a good to very good putter -- and I thought they were fast bermuda greens - probably around a 10 or 11.
    Then I had chance to play a few rounds in the Seattle area on bent greens -- for the first 5 or 6 holes I could not keep the ball from going 5 or 6 feet past the hole.  Finally began to make the asjustment  and putt fairly good. When I got home, the reverse happened - in spite of pre round paractice, I could get the ball to hole! Everything coming up short.

    Then on to Las Vegas for the Surge tourney -- Totally different greens at Paiute.  The most embarassing moment was a long uphill putt on a par 5.  I had about a 40 foot or longer putt, up a decent slope. I hit the putt, loooked up and thought . "Amos, You've done it -- this is going to be close!".  Then I looked on in horror as the ball rolled a good 15 to 20 feet past the hole!

    Keep hitting them STRAIGHT and LONG

    Amos

Actually, it is pretty easy - Carry these clubs ;-P

Of course, I didn't say they were the right clubs.

Living in Phoenix:

   Everyone has thier own cross to bear..  I can genrally hit any club striagnt --- but distance is my problem!!   I think possibly because I get so "wrapped up" in visuallizing the target line and set-up, etc that I "forget to swing".  I am convinced that there is no physical reason for me not swinging a driver in the 80 mph range -- yet I am consistently in the 70 mph area.

    Amos . 

I know just how you feel. At times it's just that simple.

Hi Amos,

The school you are referring to is the Golf Academy of America.  They also have campuses in San Diego and Florida.  From what I know, they have a good academic program, but their golf program isn't as active as PGCC.  We actually get to play golf, take lessons from PGA Professionals and practice five days per week.  All included in the tuition.  GAA doesn't provide as much golf.  We also pay a reduced rate at all of the local courses on the weekends.  I've even scored a couple of free rounds by showing my PGCC ID card :0)

I've met a couple of grads from GAA, and they were very knowledgeable, but being biased, I prefer PGCC.

I better finish up my laundry and go practice for an hour or so.

Hit'em Long and Straight,
Bob

If I can just find one club or iron that I could hit straight, I would be happy. :)

Well, I see a lot of posts on what we have in our bags, so I might as well add mine to the list. I carry 11 clubs, ocassionally 12 with an extra Driver.

Driver     
HBs,       16* 20* 26*
Irons       30* 36* 42*
Wedges  P48*,  G52* S56*
Putter     Centered shafted Nike Method

Dragonhead, I believe the allBlacks are playing the Wallabies this avo in the world cup,
I dont follow the game too much, we play a different game over here at the West called
AFL. I believe both teams are carrying hoodoos, but I've got a feeling the Allblacks
will kick theirs and win, good luck.

only if you can hit it better most of the time.  a 2 h is basicly a 5 w but with a smaller head.

Hi NeilofOZ,
                   Time for the Aussies to sack the Kiwi Coach methinks. Never had much time for him as a player. Being a reasonable player doesn't necessarily mean that they are good coaches. 20-6 to the AB's. Not up  to the usual tussle. On the golf scene. Found myself hitting at the ball a couple of times today [pratt that I am].On the whole had a good time and didn't miss the driver at all off the tee. Have a great week. DH in a wet Wellington NZ. It started as we put the clubs and trundler in the car. Timing is indeed everything ; - ]

Surge...maybe it's just me or my computer but lately,I've had a difficult time hearing your videos...my speakers are up to 100%.
 I was able to hear you well in the past but not the past 3 or 4 videos....perhaps your speaker phone is too low on your jacket?...just wondering if others are having the same problem?...great useful videos..... thank you so much!
Gordie

I played in a "tournament" about 30 years ago in the Army, which the guys who set it up call "The Lee Buck Challenge," based on a comment made by Lee Trevino about playing golf against other people with only a 5-iron, while they had a full set. Lee won every time. I, on the other hand, didn't have a chance because I was a wildly erratic 43-handicapper back then. I didn't even rating the compliment of "hacker" :-0