Merry Belated Christmas!

Been rather busy. Anyway here it goes! Merry Christmas to all! God Bless and may you have a good year ahead!

Tour Sticks? Why bother.... Go Daiso!

Tour Sticks aren't cheap in Singapore. Two sticks for about $30. Not sure about the exact price. Will go check it out. But know it's about $30. It's a very useful too especially for alignment. Laying your irons down is good, however I find the iron shaft tapers and occasionally lends to parallax errors. Minute things are magnified in golf.

So the next best thing if Daiso! Go to Daiso and head to the gardening section. You can find the in the Tree Planters/Supports sections, also in a set of two, Green Tour Sticks...LOL. It's about the same length 120cm cf Tour Sticks 46" (116cm) and the thickness is the same. Tour sticks are fiberglass rods, whereas I think the Plant supports are metal centre with a Plastic Coating. Tour sticks are pointed one end (to stick in the ground) and the other end with a rubber cap. The Daiso sticks are also meant to be poked into the ground, however the other end is just a flat end. Another point about the Planter Sticks is that it is meant to blend into the plants and so is a drab green. And this might make the stick less conspicuous especially when laid on the ground for alignment. To overcome it, got some tape from Daiso and wahlah. The colour is changed. I chose yellow. Daiso also has it in green, red and blue too. So $2 for the sticks and $2 for the tape and some manpower we have a nice personalised Tour Stick. Plan to add stickers and logos to it. Ha! Ha! Enjoy! Use the spare change for Beer.

(Don't mind my many gloves, still have a ton more. :-) )

Product Endorsement - Grips!

Okie! Time to shamelessly endorse products!

The Lamkin Crossline Full Cord grips. Love these guys. Got it on all my irons both the TP MCs and Burner 2.0 and wedges. The grip is great and it lasts. I tend to sweat a lot and in Singapore with the humidity, the cord grips helps to wick away the sweat and keep the grip dry. Further the cord lends to better grip and less slippage, really important when your swing speed increases. Some people complain that the cord is rough, but not a problem for me.

My Driver is set with the Golf Pride New Decade MulitCompound WhiteOut. The lower part is made of High-Perfomance Rubber and the upper part is made up new White MultiCompound Material that is mixed with black BCT Cord which helps to control moisture and gives improved traction to the upper hand. Thus due to the mixture of compounds its considered a hybrid grip. The cord is less then the Lamkin Crossline Full Cord and thus is more comfortable, however the lower rubber part of the grip tends to wear a bit. One thing to note is that the grip is not a 360 degree grip, so if you use adjustable drivers the Logo and design will be off centred if not set to standard setting.

Haven't needed to Regrip my putter. But the Hybrids/ Fairway I use an old model Golf Pride New Decade. Full rubber and non-corded. The choice was made because I needed to find a lightweight grip to complement the light weight set up of the Cleveland Ultralite system. The weight was about 36g-37g. This is because a heavier grip will upset the balance of the club and this is quite detrimental to your swing. The little things add up in golf.

So don't forget to Regrip! And choose either of these babies!
.

Golf Pride New Decade - the light one

Lamkin Crossline - Full Cord

Golf Pride New Decade MultiCompound Whiteout.

Choosing a Golf Pro.

Here is a good short article by Dr Bob Rotella, on choosing your instructor. He's a great sports psychologist and my Pro made me read his book, the Golfer's Mind.

A few personal notes of mine on the article:

The commitment level of the coach is really important. How focused is he during the lesson. Does he answer the phone during the lesson? His he watching you all the time or also looking down range at others? That will really tell you his work ethic.

And for point 3, I agree completely that it's really important to connect with and understand your coach if not it's no point and your progress will be really slow. Last coach wasn't really good in English and had problems  articulating the problem of my swing in depth.

I really agree with point 4. Introduced a work person to my coach, didn't work out. Found out from my coach the reason was that he was stubborn and kept bringing up what his old coach tells him and stuff and couldn't accept what was being taught now. Found out from my Pro that he went onto at least 4 other coaches at the club. And they also said the same thing about him. So you have to believe your coach if not don't waste your money.

I quite disagree with the 5th point. A good coach will be able to teach both ways, both technical and by feel and visualisation. A good coach is one who can understand you and will be to figure out the best way to bring the message across to you. 'Many ways to skin a chicken'. But what I find important is the use of video. My Pro really loved to use video, and I agree cause the swing is so fast that it's impossible to check multiple aspects of the swing. With video you can check alignment, hands, hips, spin angle and so forth. And in his words, you use video to back up what you say. He's got a great compilation of swings of various golfers which he uses to compare the swing with.

Two more points I must bring up:
1. The Pro's attitude to teaching and golf. He must really love golf. My Pro loves to play golf in addition to teaching. But really love his attitude to teaching, he really wants you to play your best. "you can hit further than that" and he doesn't mind teaching the driver. A lot of coaches don't really want to teach you the longer clubs especially the driver cause they really can't rip it themselves. Played with my coach and he gets a couple of one-ons on the short par fours. Not that he doesn't focus on swing tempo and all that stuff but distance is an important part of the game now that the courses are getting longer.

2. A lot of Golf Coaches are not teaching properly. "80% of the Golf Coaches are teaching rubbish". It's not difficult to become a golf Pro. Play decent, join the SGA or PGA. Pay your fee and go for the course, then get your certificate. Took me good 11+ years to find my current coach, but he's gone back to the USA already. I am on my own for now. Under him, I have improved tremendously with him, hitting further and sharper. Short game and putting sharper too. And he teaches me everything and how to correct my swing. Relates everything to fundamentals and explains how the swing fault comes about so I can do a self correction. Now that he's gone, I understand the statement 80% of coaches are not teaching properly. Am really apprehensive about going to another coach because I don't want to spoil my swing, don't want to lose the ability to hit the back net of the driving range.

So how does one know what swing or swing theory the golf coach is teaching and even if he cuts it at all? This is something you know if your low handicap/ good player friend has taken lessons from him and can recommend you to him. Was lucky as my friend went to him for a one lesson tune up, after that he twisted my arm to go see him. No looking back after that (think I have overtaken my friend..LOL) So how many good golfers do you know who still take lessons often? And here in Singapore, don't think we have many good coaches here either who are readily available.

So as a beginner how should one go about it? Find the best coach. But how would you know? Like retrospective I felt that I should have taken more essons earlier but who? (my other coaches were no where near him)

hmmmm......... More questions then answers.

6 Days!

Just realised I have gone 6 days without golf. Not even a range session. Anyway, hope no rain tomorrow and I get some time on the course. Such is Christmas time.

It's also 6 Days to Christmas! Merry Christmas and God Bless!

1. Joy to the world, the Lord is come!
   Let earth receive her King;
   Let every heart prepare Him room,
   And heav’n and nature sing,
   And heav’n and nature sing,
   And heav’n, and heav’n, and nature sing.
2. Joy to the earth, the Savior reigns!
   Let men their songs employ;
   While fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains
   Repeat the sounding joy,
   Repeat the sounding joy,
   Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.
3. No more let sins and sorrows grow,
   Nor thorns infest the ground;
   He comes to make His blessings flow
   Far as the curse is found,
   Far as the curse is found,
   Far as, far as, the curse is found.
4. He rules the world with truth and grace,
   And makes the nations prove
   The glories of His righteousness,
   And wonders of His love,
   And wonders of His love,
   And wonders, wonders, of His love.

Shaft Fatigue/Failure - I do believe!

There is no argument that shafts fatigue; be it graphite or steel. The main point is how soon. The expert opinion is that under usual loads the shafts shouldn't fatigue in our lifetime.

But I am of the other group, which thinks that it does so sooner not from just proper use but from other factors. I guess a lot of these test are just stress tests in one plane and don't take into consideration the human errors in the swing. We don't hit the ball on the sweet spot of the driver everytime and off centre hits causes a lot of rotational stress on the club head especially near the hosel. If you hit the ball near the heel or even on the hosel, it will definitely fatigue the club. For the driver that's where it's commonly broken. Happened to me. Mine was due to a combination of increased swing speed, swing change with the coach (slight erractic swing because I am grooving the new swing), the wrong flex and the Ultralite shaft. The Ultralite shafts are thinner/less dense and because of that I think more susceptible to failure. It is estimated that about 125000 clubs are returned a year in the USA(not including folks like me who just writes it off).My mom also broke her Big Bertha Hawk Eye Driver Shaft years ago within months of purchase.

Weather conditions aren't taken into consideration either. No long term tests of exposure to the elements. Continental cars never do well in Singapore as the humidity and heat all year round kills the car. Humidity is never good for steel shafts and if you put them away in a musty cupboard or don't use them often, it will start to rust and tarnish.Steel shafts are more resilient to the heat. The UV light and heat does nasty things to the graphite shaft. Let it cook in the sun, IR and UV, the epoxy and resin that holds the fiber together will weaken the 'glue'. The shafts are painted to protect is from UV. But over here the UV and IR are nasty.

The clinking and clunking of the shafts in golf bag also affects the shaft and chips the graphite paint. My friend uses a golf club rack for his clubs in the bag. But that mainly protects the club heads and the shafts are still rocked about. Further we are supposed to be hitting divots. And swinging the club into the hard ground especially playing of a bare hard lie or onto a worn out range mat mustn't be good for the shaft either. Think of Bobby Hull making a slapshot.

The quality of the shafts also should be taken in consideration. The manufacturing process is not 100% perfect and they still have faults, be it for steel or graphite. This would be more likely in OEM shafts rather then the high end original shafts where productions numbers are lower and less profit driven; "$400+ for a new shaft? I can buy a new driver and a wood at that price." Such is the case, that you hear people complain of shaft breaking after a few rounds on the golf course.

Also don't forget the times you drop the club on the ground after a lousy drive, banging the ground in frustration or the club dropping down after you leaned them against your golf bag.

But the grooves of the irons are more likely to wear out first and the driver head is more likely to crack or fatigue before the shaft fails.

So that's my take. So its more like manufacturing fault and golfers fault that the shaft gets affected. So you can get one bad shaft in a whole set of irons with the rest of the irons still working fine.

Golf irons conundrum

Really like the feel of the Project X shafts on my Burner 2.0. But the offset of the Burner 2.0 is giving me a higher launch and is exaggerating my hooks because of my hand action. In a way its good, because I spotted this mistake in my swing which wasn't too obvious on the TP MC.

Feel like replacing the DG S300 of the the TP MC and sticking in the Project X 6.0ss. Don't think will play with the DGs. My buddy thinks so too and additionally he feels (and I agree) that all shafts fatigue, especially with loads of range and play time. The face of the clubs/ grooves and also the sole are also showing a bit of wear because of the soft forged head.( I do diligently use club covers for my forged irons). But was thinking whether to get a new set of irons rather then reshaft. But the question is which one? And its it worth it?

It's about $75 per shaft including gripping and labour. Means $525 for 4i-P. Set of new TP MC is going for $599. Total is $1124. So far in Singapore, I have seen the Mizunos MP-59 with Project X 5.5 going for 1155 plus the usual freebies thrown in. Unless I custom order a set of Titleist AP2 (716) with the Project X (will cost about $1600).

But I am not sure about the Mizunos. Never played a Mizuno. AP2 are a bit overpriced. Have to pay a premium for the brand. Another option is to wait a while and see what Taylor Made has to offer for the TP series if they intend to come out with new ones. But definitely no Honmas for me.

Just put your comments below and let me know what you guys are thinking.

Product Review -Original Swing Setter

Today's product is a Training aid! 

It's David Leadbetter Original Swing Setter. Nothing new here. In fact he has a Swing Setter Pro that's out too.

But for me I got the Original Swing Setter. Had trouble finding it locally and shipping costs were expensive. So did the next best thing. Got my Golf Pro to bring back one for me when he got back from the states.

The Swing Setter trains a few things

1. The EZ-See Club Face which allows you to view the clubface through the back swing. However, you must know what the correct direction the clubface is for it to be useful. But nonetheless, it aids beginners faster. However, I didn't install it.

2. There is the antenna thing at the base of the club. It's extendable to sort of lengthen the club and point downwards to help you understand and check your plane. Good for beginners. Especially remembering to point at the belly during the takeaway, because a lot of beginners break the wrist too quickly in the backswing. The only thing I use the pointer is to bluff kids that my club doubles up as a Walkie Talkie.

3. It comes with a formed grip that teaches beginner's how to grip. It's really useful cause a fundamental thing like a wrong grip can kill your swing.

4. The Magnetic Balls are great for the back swing. It helps your tempo especially when you hear the click. The upper ball(nearer the grip) is meant for clicking in the back swing. Don't really practice this part with the swing setter, my  Pro recommends me to use the Orange Whip, he also recommmends me to get this next. (currently using his/shared whip when  no one is using it). Can understand the importance of this, because a lot of beginners have too flat a backswing.

5. What I mainly use the swing setter is to practice the lag and prevent early release of the wrists. It's great when you can hear the click after the ball/impact rather then before impact. Most of the average Joe's on the range release too soon, causing a loss of speed. Also good for strength training, using the swing setter one handed (left and right), and practicing the baseball swish with it. As you improve the clicking of the balls gets louder.

Verdict : I got one. Very Nice!

  

Driver Shafts - Personal feel

Enough of rants.

Was on the range the other day, trying the various permutations of the R11, RBZ and RBZ tour head with the Matrix Ozik HD6 X (TP stock shaft), Proforce V2 67g X, and the AXIVCore Tour Green 75g S. (Friend was supposed to be there but didn't turn up, if not more shafts and club heads to play with). Anyway just love the flexibility and adjustability of TM shafts. The Callaway and Titleist Adaptors aren't easily and widely available.

Nothing scientific, but just try to see what works for me and the observations that I make. (Maybe I should get the Flight Scope Xi personal edition. Heard its going to come out next year and retail at USD$3995).

In conclusion, RBZ head is not suitable for me. The head is light and slightly too high launch. Didn't hit it so well off a high tee but had better results off a low tee. Seems to me that the shallower heads are easier to hit of the low tee. And the light RBZ head somehow affected the feel of the club and the swing. The RBZ tour with HD6 was D4 swingweight. V2 and RBZ- D5 and the AXIVcore with R11 was D7.

The Matrix HD6 and the Proforce V2 performed similarly. But the V2 had a slightly lower torque compared to the HD6. The 5grams difference between the shafts was barely noticable but the 0.3 degree of torque could be easily appreciated. The V2 was slightly stiffer then the HD6. The Tour Green was definitely lower launch and lower torque. The 75 grams weight was very apparent and the flex of the shaft felt stiffer then the 

the HD6 and V2, even though the Tour green was a S flex. The HD6 was 45.75", the V2 45.25" and Tour Green 45". All not tip trimmed and only butt trimmed as per manufacturers recommendation.

The V2 and HD6 definitely went further then the Tour Green, with the confounding factors being the shaft stiffness amd shaft lengths. Tour Green did as specified lower launch, less dispersion with loss of distance due to the shaft weight. (Tour Players are really good as they are able to hit these heavy shafts with such high Swing speeds.)

R11 head was low launch with slightly higher back spin, whereas the RBZ tour head was high launch and low spin. The Aural tone of the R11 was nicer because it gave a nice crack. The RBZ Tour head was a bit too loud, but I guess its a good tool to irritate the uncles and aunties on the range.

In the end, all the shafts are great. But I will stick with the RBZ tour head / R11 head with the 75 gram shaft for the lower dispersion. Currently I need to get my fairways hit rate up. Also my swing causes a bit of a hit launch, so I prefer the lower launching shafts. ( I set the adaptor to lower loft. With the RBZ adaptor it is -1.5 degrees.) 

Golf Attire - Michael Jordan refuses to change at golf course

Michael Jordan refuses to change shorts at golf course.

This a a problem that happens all over the world. Most Golf Clubs/Courses have rules on attire especially with Private Clubs/ Courses. Even the PGA Tour has rules on clothing.

The rules are printed everywhere and there are signs everywhere about the dress code, yet people and members pretend not to see or choose to ignore. And enforcement is not consistent.

Guess basically the rules are just to maintain a level of decorum. If not you will get people dressed up like the Village People on the golf course. But it's a measure of one's consideration and respect for others and also a reflection on yourself. I don't mean you have dress with swag, but just look decent. On public ranges without any dress code, I do wear T-shirts and board shorts. But swinging in them feels totally different.

So what you do is up to you. Follow the dress code, loosely interpret the rules or clearly break the rules. No point on me judging others.

Just Ranting

Something I always read in Forums...Driver Reviews - Bought this driver, spent $X, lousy piece of S***, wasted my money, lousiest driver ever, Don't buy it, Never again.... and so forth.

What I say to these ppl- please do your research. And understand the shaft that comes with the driver you're about to buy and the club head characteristics of the driver too. This goes for all clubs too. When the Driver is crap for you, mean it doesn't suit you. If I bought the Cleveland CG Black Driver in Regular, it would do nothing for me but doesn't mean it's crap. Because the website says this "Optimized for the player that has lost swing speed and distance, the Black driver is designed to produce a higher, more draw-biased ball flight – similar to the Launcher Ultralite XL270 and SL290."

So far have been lucky fitting myself. The project x 6.0ss works for me and I knew it from knowing my swing and swing profile too. And driver shafts have performed as stated in the websites and those that I have work as expected as per manufacturers specification.In Singapore it's hard to get a good fitter. Only can think of Mark Higgs and Jeff Goh who can do a decent job.

So know yourself and your golf swing and you will know what type of equipment you'll need to help you. And don't be a douche and say stupid things because it reflects poorly on you. But in the age of anonymity and the internet, you can get away with anything.

Deep Face Drivers vs Shallow Face Drivers

Which do you like to play?

I prefer Deep Faced Drivers.

Firstly you must understand the physics behind the clubhead, then you can decide what you like.

Firstly the Driver is limited by volume 460cc. And most drivers are maxed to 460cc, unless you get some Tour /Players driver which are 440cc.

Things that we look for in a driver is back spin, side spin, forgiveness, launch angle and swing speed.

Back spin is affected by the Centre of Gravity of the club. A forward CG gives more Back Spin.

Launch angle is affected by the loft of the face and also the CG. A Higher CG gives a lower launch.

Forgiveness and Side spin are affected by Moment of inertia. Which is in turn affected by the broadness of the driver front to back, i.e. Square head drivers have higher MOI. Another factor is the parabolic club face and variable thinness. But the COR has to be limited. A lot of new technology/novelties come and go. But fundamentally a few things remained unchanged. For a deeper face, it forgives up-down mishits more than left right mishits like the shallower and broader drivers.

Swing Speed is affected by the weight of the clubhead, size of clubhead (smaller less wind resistance) and aerodynamic design of the clubhead.

What I need is mainly low back spin and low launch. Got enough swing speed so I need not worry too much about that. Newer Drivers have adequate MOI for my swing and occasionally need to work the ball.

A Deep face driver suits me, as it results in a nice lower launch due to the raised CG. But the forward CG brings the spin rate up. So what RBZ and Titleist does is to add weight to the bottom and back of the driver to bring the CG back to reduce backspin, more penetrating drives and longer distances. The weight at the back and bottom might lower the CG a bit as compared to the shallow face, so it still gives a higher launch. So I still play a 9 degrees loft and dial down and loft with the FCT.

Hope this clears things up. But there are many other things and technologies each ClubMaker has to throw things in the mix. (i.e. Crown thickness and weight, Crown design, Offset et al)

Golf and nature. Aka monkey eating durian.

Golf is a wonderful sport. You get to get to see all the wonderful flora and fauna.

You get to see the whole range, from the pretty stuff like herons, to the nasty stuff like humongous monitor lizards and snakes. Once we even saw a wild puppy who wasn't with its mum. It was sniffing around in a bunker and did a poo there (considered the ultimate hazard).

And even if you don't see them, they can see you. And get a taste of you. Gotten multiple nasty bites which swell up, itches and takes weeks to go down. Or the painful wasps stings by the hymenoptera that hurt like hell and causes the leg to swell.

And during durian season you can see the ubiquitous monkey eating the fallen durian. And in the evening you can see the rarely spotted flying lemur. Saw it once in the car park, didn't know what it was till I saw it in the papers.

Don't we all love to play golf!

More Shopping. Takashimaya additional 10%

Woohoo!

Early Christmas for me!

Got the RBZ Tour TP for Christmas (Wife paid for it)! Can open it early too and don't need to let it sit under the tree.

SGD $556. Know it's a really high price but that's the price in Singapore and South East Asia. Anyway, Taka card holders get additional 10% off. And 3% rebate in vouchers from the smart points. So it effectively works out to $486. And we get a free Players Weekend Tote thrown in, listed at SGD$123.75 and on discount at $99.On sale at the US TM website at USD99. But we know that actually, the cost price is very low because it's made in China. However, it is a good quality bag. Unlike my current bag(Callaway Diablo Octane bag) which I am using now. Also got it free, but after about 9 months of use and it's worse for wear. Previously used a Titleist Bag for 10+ years. That was money well spent.

Another buy was 2 TaylorMade Golf Caps at $8.90 each with a further 10% discount and Taka card points. Any cap under $10, I will buy. Not fussy about logo, however need to be a Golfing related logo because of Club dress code rules. One black and one white TM Tradition cap. Nice basic cap have one at home which I am using currently. Nice and comfortable too.

More on the stuff another day. Will try to hit the range this Sunday and follow up with reviews!

Golf and fitness.

Golf is a great sport. Good for muscular strength. It helps your cardio too. Especially if you carry your bag and walk, which I do when I play the executive course. No point tiring yourself out when actually playing nine or eighteen holes, cause you want to score well in golf. And all golfers know playing poorly is frustrating. I am a golf cart/buggy man. For overseas courses I am the buggy and caddy man.

My theory is get fit to play golf rather then use golf for fitness. But the by product of buckets and buckets on the range is a decent physique.

For me, one should train muscular strength and stretching in the gym. Run and swim for cardio. Play tennis too cause its one sport that's complementary to golf. Very similar swing mechanism. Hip turn, arm lag, stand up to get out of the way. Only thing you have to watch is that for tennis there's more knee flex then golf, so don't let that creep into your swing.

Get fit for golf and golf will get you fit too.

Disclaimer : results vary and must be accompanied by a sensible diet.

Ha!

Course Swing vs Range Swing

This is something that we all have. Our range swing defers from the course swing. And when you change your swing on the range, you need a couple of sessions on the golf course to groove that swing. That's why I am a strong advocate of walking your club's executive golf course and play a couple of balls and a couple of rounds between range sessions. Also not forgetting to work on your short game, especially pitching and chipping. These courses are always underutilised on weekdays and good place to focus on your swing and play off the grass. Especially, alignment, direction, different lies and ball positions.
Why do I say this? Because was on the course yesterday with my coach to see how my game is progressing and why I am hooking the ball. At the end of the day, he said to me I was doing certain things with my swing that he hasn't see me do on the range. Playing with your pro/ coach is great. You also get to experience playing with a good player and you really know where you stand. On the dog leg right Par 4,  off the front tee, he cuts the ball and it goes long over the green and near the next tee box. Well more adventures another time.
The 3 mistakes I made
1. Alignment is way off. I was standing with a close stance and that promoted a draw/hook.
2. My takeaway wasn't smooth and around enough. Too short and that lends to releasing the club head too soon that leads to grounding the club too soon, loss of lag and occasionally causes an out-to-in swing. This out-to-in causes a cut fade right or pull left. Mainly for me pull left, worsening the leftness of the shot.
3. Over supination/ external rotation of the left forearm. When at address I hinge the club up, it is square. But  after impact, returning the club back to address and hinging up the club was closed. Wasn't due to slippage of the grip, but rather the supination of the forearm. Have to resist flipping the arms and let the clubhead go through square at impact, extend the arms then let the club head go around the body and end with hands higher then the clubhead. (Not easy to visualise this)
Need to work on these 3 and my game will be coming together.

Shafts- Distance vs Control depends on the shaft weight

Hi ho everybody.
Today's topic is a simplified take on Shafts. The main factor we are talking about here is the weight.
If you have a quick tempo, spray the ball a lot with a wide dispersion or hit the ball too high, then a heavy shaft is good for you. Not talking about the flex but the weight of the shaft. But invariably a stiffer shaft tends to be heavier. (not going into torque, EI, GJ, stiffness profile). But the drawback of a heavy shaft is the distance is loss slightly. But this is only in a golfing robot. However with a human player, the heavier shaft will give you better feel and control and you will actually end up hitting further.This has happened for me. The asian specs of the clubs tend to be lighter and don't suit me.
Another point to note is how much you play. If you play often then a heavy set of clubs is ideal. I am with the school of thought of playing the stiffest flex and heaviest shaft that you can cope with. (i.e. before distance starts tapering off too much) Often you hear the sales person in the golf shop spewing nonsense, was once told to swing easy and play regular instead of stiff. That seems to be some peoples take on the game.
In contrast, if you swing with a slower tempo, have less dispersion, need help lifting the ball and don't play often, then a light shaft beckons you. (as is the case of my wife).
So for the Driver, a light weight for distance would be 50g -65g. Whereas, 70g-85g would be heavy for control, leaving the happy medium of 60g-75g for both distance and control.
For the irons, a nice and heavy shaft would be the True Temper Dynamic Gold, KBS Tour, C- Taper or the Project X. Play it stiff at 110+g. Light would be 50-70g graphite shafts.
So now you know.
But to throw a spanner in the works, Cleveland Ultralite system, uses a light shaft to gain swing speed. And this surprisingly works for me with the hybrid. It's a Miyazaki C Kua at 62g as opposed to heavier shafts which are in the 80+g range. This is how the torque and other characteristics complexifies the issue.

Latest Buy - Ping Golf Tour Umbrella

For all you golf umbrella aficionados, I recommend you the Ping Golf Tour Umbrella! 

1. It's nice and big - 68". Most umbrellas you get will be in the 60-62" diameter range.

2. The handle is nice and slim, and it can fit into the umbrella holder of your trolley.

3. The fabric is very nice and its a waterproof pongee fabric.

4,  It's a double canopy umbrella. It's a true double canopy. The inner layer is a full piece and the upper half is a mesh fabric to let the air through. Unlike some umbrellas where the fabric just overlaps a bit without any mesh or netting to the upper half of the inner sheath.

5. It's a cool square umbrella. I think it lasts longer. My Confidence Golf square umbrella(10+ years old) is still around, only that  it's a silver fabric umbrella and the silvery layer is flaking off.

Drawback

1. The point of the tip of the umbrella is rather large and looks very plasticky compared to the suave, cool, luxurious and sturdy material the rest of the umbrella is made of. So am worried it might get brittle in our climate and break off.

It's SRP is $80. Can get it at 15% off -$68. More if you arr with the shopkeep. 

PGA to Ban Anchored putting Methods

It just came out that the USGA and R&A have proposed to ban the use of anchored putting from 2016. This means the putter can no longer be anchored to any part of the body, be it belly, midriff or chin. I think it also bans the player from anchoring his forearms/ hands against the body too.

The USGA doesn't outlaw belly or broomhandle putters, but it has to be used in a free swinging manner.The claim is that it takes into consideration people who have back problems and need to use a long putter. The long putter is not favoured in Singapore. Haven't seen anybody use a long putter here, a rarity in the shops. The main problem is trying it to fit in a golf bag and trying to fly with it, especially with the Broomhandle putter.

BBC Sport article

The big guns of golf Tiger Woods and Rory McIlory are in support of this ban.

I don't use a long putter, so I am in the doesn't affect me camp. Don't play the medals or competition or for side bets. So I play against myself and the course only. But not to remain a hermit, I am in support of the ban. Because we swing the rest of the clubs and we should swing the putter too.

There is no strong evidence that a person with a belly putter as a true advantage. Looking at the stats from the PGA Tour and all, the only thing that gets the USGA / R&A worried is the recent Major wins by long belly putters.(Keegan Bradley, Webb Simpson and Ernie Els) Also another significant long putter is the 14 year amateur from China who is going to the Masters. This ruling is also going to screw players who only know how to putt with  long putters and will have to relearn putting. The golf industry is still pissed about the groove change which caused them a lot of money. This rule change raises a lot of grievances as opposed to the groove change, as it affects the style of play.

I agree with the ban because I think it's not a swing and it does give an advantage. But I really think its a little too late, belly putters have been around for a long time with Tour wins with it. Maybe because the long putter is being more accepted as a legit way of putting rather then previously when a player used it only when he was desperate and in a slump and needed a quick fix, that makes the rulemakers react.

Instruction - returning the club square at impact

Just found out why I was hooking and cutting the ball. My club head wasn't coming down square and was slightly open on the downswing. Thus had to do a quick flip to compensate, which results in a hook or opening the shoulder resulting in a cut.
How to know if the clubface is square? The grooves of the club should be pointing straight down as you approach from the three o clock position. Don't believe? Try it. You will notice if you held the lag and not break the wrist early. The club will return square.
pics not very good, but try to imagine the second photo shows how your club head should be at 3 o clock, and if you turn the hips and not release the club too early, it will get you to the first pix.

Golf - instruction - Ball Position

This is a great video to watch to understand about the ball position. Simplifies and explain how to place the ball in your stance. Clarify the two schools of thought. The thing about golf is that after a while you tend to forget your fundamentals. The setup in golf is the most important part of the swing, because with a bad setup you have to compensate to bring the golf club back in plane to the impact point.This causes errors in direction and also results in the inability to lag the club.So this is a fundamental aspect of the game.

One more thing to note when watching the video. That is you should note the position of the hand, just left of the zipper, stays the same throughout the various width of stance. And this controls the amount of 'forward press' or 'openness'.

Don't bother to read the comments on Youtube about the video. Haters gonna hate.

The video is by Kip Puterbaugh, Head of the Aviara Golf Academy.

Did up the blog a bit

Did up the blog a bit. Did a ridiculous favicon and nicen up the blog.

Enjoy!

Something Technical about Shafts today

There is more to the Golf Shaft then the Stiffness Rating, Weight and Torque. So I really need to go into this further. Why the sudden confusion? This is because of the many opinions said about things on the net. But usually one takes information found on the net and give it a 50% discount. But what really set this off was when I took my wife's driver and hit it on the range. And it gave surprising results. Hit it about 200-210 metres pure carry(range ball), but the ball was sky high with loads of backspin as her driver was 12 degree loft. And with a higher loft, lighter weight and Ladies flex, one gets more back spin. However, the shaft felt very stable and not much twisting. But looking at the shafts specs, I am supposed to be blowing it right. The weight of the shaft was 39g, the torque was 6.6 degrees. As opposed to the 75g and 2.6 degrees of torque which I use.

Oh, my wife's driver is the Ping Faith Driver 12 degrees with the Tour AD TFC 550.

  

So there are other things to consider:

1. EI - This is a product of the elasticity and moment of inertia of the shaft. Was listed as 13.497 average for the TFC 550. Basically it tells flex profile of the shaft. There usually is a curve to identify the flex at different points of the curve. The reason for being so technical is that one shaft's S or R flex is different from another shafts S or R flex. And if you had the EI curve and the flexural profile graph, you would have a better idea which shaft fits you.

Look at the oft compared KBS, Project X and Dynamic Gold shafts.(from GolfWrx.com/ Sandtrap.com - great forums)

2 GJ profile- Basically its like the EI profile but measures torque instead. For the TFC 550 it was 5.76 average

3 Stiffness Ratio 57% was listed on the shaft

4. Flex 5.92"

Not sure what 3 and 4 are about. Anybody care to fill me in?

So many things to consider. Fitting in Singapore isn't exactly wonderful either. So have to go do alot more research. Fitting and demo days are more like putting in various shafts which the fitting cart has till they find  the best fit in their cart. But then the options are limited. Sigh..... 

Product Endorsement Time! - GLOVES

After using many many gloves, there is only one glove to get in this Singapore weather.

The Rain Grip Glove by FootJoy.

It's made with this material SuedeMark which really wicks the moisture and sweat from you. And the grip is not affected when its moist with sweat. I sweat a ton, so these are great. The dorsal surface is made up of a tight mesh material called QwikDry Knit and it also helps to get rid of the water.

The palmar surface of the glove really lasts. Normally I run through the leather gloves quickly because of the how the sweat affects the leather and the wear down of the leather at the grip points. Further it grips as good as leather. Never liked the synthetic gloves because they start to slip when it gets moist.

Been using my current pair for a few months, but I usually rotate around a few pairs of gloves. And as the glove gets older I use it mainly for pitching and half swings, as the grip does start to get affected a bit with repeated use. Another sign of wear is the elastic bits of the QwikDry Knit starts to break and you can see some whitish/plasticky strings. But if it were any other pair of glove, it would be in the bin by now.

Tried the Fit 39ex glove too, the grip isn't very good. So I don't recommend.

The other glove which I would recommend is the FootJoy SciFlex. Great grip and comfort. But not durable in humid / Sunny Singapore. Good for the Course, but on the Range I sweat too much.

Another point to note. The glove only comes in Black, with a few Stitchings and logo to give it colour. Thinks the stitching comes in white,red, yellow, black, blue among other colours. But thankfully, unlike black leather gloves, the black pigment/dye doesn't come off onto your white shirt in the wet.

Currently the Price is SGD19+, with 20-25% discount, you can get it from $15-$15.80.

Overall Rating.
Comfort 5/5
Durability 5/5
Performance with Sweaty Persons 5/5
Looks 5/5
Value for Money 5/5

Christmas round the corner.

What to get for yourself? Wife? or Golfing buddy?

Can't reveal the wife bit in case she's reading this. LOL.

Anyone got any thoughts?

Polo Shirts and golf balls are always a good good bet. Still more then a month away.(Famous last words)

How to properly repair pitch marks

This can be done using the pitch mark repair tool or a tee. Basically a pitch mark is a displacement of the turf. So you have to push the turf back into place. So you work from the back / distal end of the mark i.e. the end with the higher mound of turf and ease the turf back. So when you put the tines of the tool into the ground, you push from the top towards the centre of the mark. Don't push down on the top of the tool to leverage the tines up because it just pushes the soil up and tears the roots resulting into delayed healing.

So now you know. Hopefully you repair your pitch marks. I do.

Importance of quick roll of the putter face

When you putt the ball needs to bounce a bit to overcome the blades of grass then lands and skids before starting to roll. That's why putters are lofted. The normal stock loft is 3 to 4 degrees. During the bounce and the skidding phase, it leads to alot of inconsistencies in speed and with the line.

To prevent the or control the bounce, a few things you need to watch for or do.
1. Deloft the club by a forward press of the arms, as taught by Dave Stockton.
2. Avoid hinging or using to much wrists when you putt, as this results in a ascending blow. Longer Bounce of the club face.
3. Don't hit too much on the upswing of the stroke. And not too much of an ascending blow. Keep the putterhead low past impact.

And when you get the ball rolling quickly you get truer putts. Good Luck!

Finally tested out the putter

Read a couple of reviews of people missing it long with this putter. I noticed this too. The reason for this is because the club is great and the ball starts rolling as soon as it leaves the putter face. This is the most important feature of a putter. In fact I think the most important feature in a putter is the ability to start the ball rolling to get truer putts and more consistent putts. This feature is also one that cannot be discovered from the specifications and is not obvious when you practice/ try the putter on the astro/artifical grass in the shops or at home.
Further,due to the quick rolling the ball tends to go further (when the ball is skidding the friction is higher). So we can putt softer to achieve the same distance, and with a soft putt, the chance of error is less.
This reason for this to the Tungsten Flange which lowers and Deepens the CG of the putter and allows for better,quicker and truer roll. Its called the A.R.T. (Advanced Roll Technique) and it really does seem to work.

So in all this putter is really good. Works well with the Penta balls too. Doesn't feel as soft as the Suzuka Rossa but is still soft and doesn't give a clunk. One concern though is there is a urethane-dampening layer between the putter head and the tungsten flange, its supposed to give a softer feel. But I just hope the urethane material lasts....

More about the quick roll the next post.

Putters

I find it very hard to change my putter because I think I can adapt to most putters. I don't really find much difference with each new model. Even with new technology and all, the Putter hasn't changed much, even the old Pings Putter's and Scotty's are still excellent putters.

So if I get a new putter, it must really value add to my game. And to this we have to add in the factor of benefit to dollar cost ratio. $129 for the Odyssey Black Series Tour Design 4 is a very good price.(not preowned).

In my 13 years of Golf, I have only used 2 Putters before this new one.

1. Never Compromise ZI Alpha
2. TaylorMade Rossa Suzuka 08.

Looked at many others especially Scotty Camerons. But the Scotty's Benefit to Dollar cost ratio was too low. So the reason I changed the Putter was because the Odyssey Black was a good putter and at good price.

It seems like I am rambling to justify or enhance my purchase. But my point is watch how much you spend  on the putter, finding one the suits you is much more important. There are so many factors to consider when you choose the putter and so many factors to confuse you too.

But the counter argument to this is
1. The Putter is the most used and most important club in the bag, used on every hole, so you should spend top dollar on your putter.
2. Spend top dollar cause you want the best putter cause you won't change it often if not at all.
Very valid points which I don't disagree with, but I am with the other school of thought. (although my wife encourages me to spend more given the amount of golf I play.)

Hah! I was right.

Went to Golf Bargains instead of Affordable Art Fair, didn't waste my time.

Bought the Odyssey Black Series Tour Design 4 (SGD 129) and the Cleveland Mashie+ Fairway 3W 15.5 degree loft (SGD 159).

Few things about the putter

1. Milled Face- better feel, distance control and smoother roll. My previous putter the TM Rossa Suzuka 2008 is a grooved putter which gives great roll and distance control too. But the grooves and the inserts are aging and showing signs of age and wear. Scotty Cameron Putters are milled. Another Putter brand which has a milled face is the TP Mills. Both are really great putters. Although I feel that Mills early putters are better. The current series not so wonderful. Groove vs Milled that's a whole post.

2. PVD -Just like the Pro-Hunter Rolexes, the Putter is PVDed. (Physical Vapor Deposition). Cool and anti glare. But have to watch the scratches.

3. The putter is a Scalloped out, rounded heel-toe Flanged Blade with a crank neck hosel and full shaft offset. Type of putter is up to you. But I am used to mid-mallet putters, although the TM Rossa Suzuka is listed as classic mallet, but with the size of the other mallets I consider this a mid mallet. But this scalloped out, round flanged Blade putter looks in between. Surprisingly the putter is heavier then the Rossa Suzuka and feels very stable.

4. Got the 34" Putter. Another interesting point is that at address the hands are more forward then my previous putter. The forward press of the hands is in a way good as it makes me hold the forward press and tends to deloft the putter and encourages forward roll. Something that Michael Breed and Faldo talked about.

5. One thing about Odyssey Putter Grips they don't last and get sticky quite quickly. So need to regrip sooner.

Things about the Putter. Whats there to say...
1. Cleveland Rocks. Cleveland is one of the more under-rated brands in Singapore. I still really dig Cleveland Clubs. Really good value for money too. Was really happy when Keegan Bradley won. Though I use more Taylor Made Clubs because they are the best at the moment, But for the Hybrid and the Fairway I use the Cleveland, really good price. But I think in an earlier post I mentioned that one should spend the money to get the best performing equipment suited for you (not waste money on Honma clubs or gold plated clubs). At this stage, I haven't found a fairway or hybrid that outperforms the Cleveland Mashie series(been to many Demo days at the club), so will stick to value for money clubs like Cleveland and Odyssey. Haven't been really convinced to spend the money on a Scotty Cameron yet. But it's also the marketing strategy in Singapore. TMAG (Taylor Made asia) and Acushnet Singapore (esp Acushnet) won't slash the prices or do blow out sales on their old clubs. Save the TP irons, TPMC SGD599 and TPMB 599, but the R11's price is still holding up. Whereas, Cleveland and Odyssey prices drop by quite a bit such that one would bite.

2. The Miyazaki Shaft is great. The shaft is the Miyazaki C Kua 59 Shaft which is made in Japan. The torque of the shaft I think is lower which suits me well. Previously owned the Ultralite Launcher FL Fairway, but the shaft was too whippy (although Stiff flex), but the torque was too high. The Driver shaft had a torque of 6.4 ( now I play a shaft of torque 2.6, less dispersion). The C Kua 59  has a torque of 3.6. more stable.

3. The Glider Rail is also a feature that helps to cut through the rough.

Well, all in all, a good day shopping. No impulse buy today, because have been looking at the Black putter since it first came out. Was previously 500+ and own the Mashie Hybrid already which works really well for me.

PSA (public service announcement)

Golf Bargains at Suntec City having sale. If you're itchy and you're free you can always pop over to see.

Not bothering to go for the Affordable Art Fair this year, waste of time, go Golf Shopping better. Or can always pop over to Tanglin Shopping Centre and check out Sun Craft or Li Fine Arts Gallery.

Matteo Manassero - Won the Barclays last week - thanks to the a change in the driver shaft

A bit slow on the results. But today's post isn't to talk about his win, but what he did to allow him to win.

http://www.titleist.com.sg/teamtitleist/sea/b/blog/archive/2012/11/14/an-inside-look-at-matteo-manassero-s-winning-titleist-913d2-driver-fitting.aspx

"The team went right to work starting with a quick look at Matteo’s original 9.5º gamer and then a brief chat to talk about the flight characteristics that he was looking to achieve.

The initial assessment was that Matteo’s gamer was very accurate and he was hitting a lot of fairways but the spin was a little high. While he was hitting his driver solid and seeing good performance, the team agreed that he wasn’t getting the max out of the current configuration.

From there, it was time to send some Pro V1x golf balls flying on the range.

“Matteo asked me to bring over something I thought would help produce a stronger, lower spinning flight. I went straight in with 913D2 8.5º with a Graphite Design DI6 X with the SureFit Tour hosel setting in B•1,” explained Dimmock.

A few swings later, it was clear that this combination was looking like a winner. Bringing down the loft helped drop the spin off the driver and the shaft change helped to maintain a good strong launch."

He basically switch to the Graphite Design Tour AD DI-6 which is low spin and high launch. But to compensate for the high launch, the driver loft was reduced to 8.5 degrees(which also reduced spin). But something mentioned later was that it was tip trimmed 1.5" which is quite alot but still within specs for the Tour AD shafts(For Graphite design, one must always leave a minimum of 0.5" of the parallel tip section of the shaft above the hosel.). For UST Mamiya shafts they don't recommend trimming, because trimming changes the specs completely so UST shafts comes in many many formats.

The specs for the shaft was initially, 3.3 torque and 66.5g, but after trimming, no idea what the specs are, unless you test it. So if you don't have access to the Tour Van, I don't recommend trimming. Most likely the tip trimming lowered the kick point, bringing the trajectory down, made the shaft tip stiffer and the torque less, making it feel more one piece and more stable. The other option is playng the DI-8 for similar specs, but then it would be too heavy 80+ grams, too much for the mere mortal.

The other shafts Matteo played before this would be UST AVIXCore,Adila Gamer and Project X.

So the change in Shaft gave him an extra 30 yards. 300 yards average, up from 270 yards. This would be in Asia where the air is more humid and the ground softer. So my point for the post is play the proper shaft, because the Driver head is already optimised, maximum size 460cc and maximum COR 0.830. 

Will talk about how to select shafts and Fitters later. (Sadly no really good fitters and limited options even with the fitters here in SG).

Offset in the Club.

Offset in the club means the leading edge/club face is set behind from the hosel/shaft of the club.

It does two things.

1. Because the clubface is set behind the hosel, it gives the player a fraction more time to square the club at impact. Thus it helps to combat the fade and slice should the player not square the club at impact.

2. The CG of the club is set further back when the club is offset. Due to this, the trajectory of the ball is higher for the offset club, compared to a non-offset club with the same loft.

So it seems that its meant more for the Game Improvement club.

But if you are a better player you'll be able to use the offset and adapt to it. 

North East Monsoon Season

Now is the start of the NE monsoon season, rain most days. Golf and tennis affected. Only Indoor courts for tennis and Days on the driving range aren't really affected by the weather.

But it's the start of the good weather in Hua Hin and Phuket! Time to travel for golf.

More on this when I go.

Browsing the golf shop.

As an avid golfer, the next best thing to playing and practicing is getting golf equipment.

Saw the Rocketballz Tour TP Driver in X-stiff flex in the shop today. SGD559. Not often you come across something in X flex. It comes with the Matrix Ozik HD6 Shaft. TMAG website in USA sells for USD349 about SGD428. But if you find that elusive perfect club, money should be the least of your concern.

What I am more concern about is the specifications of the shaft. Is it an OEM HD6 for TaylorMade or an actual HD6? (like the blur 65 for the R11 TP is different from the actual one you get from Fujikura.)

The TaylorMade website gives that shaft as 69g,Torque of 3.2, Low/Mid Launch and Firm tip. As for the Matrix Website I couldn't find anything useful. The Titleist website lists it at 68g for the 913. The other thing that is not stated is the amount of backspin the shaft gives. For me I prefer a low launch and low spin driver.

Didn't try it. But after thinking long and hard. I'll give it a miss. Suspect the HD6 gets too much backspin. HD6 M3 is the low spinner. And it might be even cheaper to buy the RBZ non TP and reshaft. Given the fact the UST Mamiya shafts are very good and very affordable. A V2 would set you back about $170-180 , AXIV Tour Green $210-220 and throw in $45 for the adaptor. Got to try my AXIV shaft on the RBZ one day.

Another advice is to wait for next year's TM new R series driver, heard its gonna be good.

Something Technical Today -COR

COR - Coefficient of Restitution

To put it simply its the amount of energy transfer between the club and the ball. I can range from 0 (nothing transfered)  to 1 (all the energy). For golf clubs, the legal limit for the COR is 0.830.

This is just good to know, because most of the drivers/ clubs have been maximised for COR and is rarely stated in the driver specs. If its above 0.830, it would be listed as non conforming.

Day on the range.

Took a break from the range for a week because of wrist pain due to tennis. Too much spinning it to win it. LOL. Took out my TM Burner 2.0 Iron (global specs), but reshafted with the Project X 6.0 soft stepped, standard length unlike the stock shafts. Hit it really far. A break from sports definitely allows your muscles to rest. But the Project X 6.0 which is stiffer and the Burner 2.0 also helps. The Burners plays with a stronger loft, but I suspect the COR of the Burner iron needs to be checked.

The shaft felt really good. Very one piece. Interesting this non-stepped shaft. Wouldn't say it was better then the Dynamic Gold S300, which I play on my Taylor Made TP MC. Both shafts are great. Another shaft to try would be the KBS Tour/C-taper. But currently the Project X/Burner 2.0 combo is wicked. The acid test would be on the course. (on yes I have only just reshafted the Burner)

Showed it too my Golf Pro, who tried it out. He hit it close to 200m on a down sloping range with the hard range balls! Dunno whether to be depressed because you realise how much you have to improve with your golf or to be happy because my clubs have that potential to be realised.

Happy Weekend!

Golf Tees

Many many options for this little thing.

For the driver I use Zero Friction 3-Prong Tees. I like to tee it up high, so I use the 3 1/4" tees. The length of tee is really up to you. But with the big head 460 CC drivers, it's better to tee it up high. Why I selected this tee is the 3 prone reduces resistance between ball and driver and between ball and tee = more distance. Less resistance between tee and driver also results in less chance of getting dings on the driver. (but this seems inevitable if you play a lot.)

The Zero Friction is made of biodegradable/ bio-composite material, so its softer then usual plastic tees and lasts longer then the wood tees. But without concern for costs, wood tees are the great, break when resistance it too high, good for driver distances and the driver face.

However, with the price of tees going up, its cost-effective to get a tee that can be reused for a bit. But I really need to tee it up high, so I don't use the free tees supplied by the club. (they are the standard length wood tees).

Teeing up for the wood or hybrid, I usually use the broken remnants of the 3-Prong Tees. When Teeing up for the iron, the type of tee doesn't really matter to me and I usually scavenge of the tee box for broken tee tips. You'll be able to find decent tips of at least 1 to 1 1/2" in length.

To put it shortly----->>>> No need to buy Short tees. LOL.

Golf Stroke Counters

This is one item of equipment that I found totally unnecessary. In fact I don't bother to fill up my score till the end of the 9 holes because I can remember every stroke I played for that nine and which clubs I used. This only applies when I play the home courses. For away courses, I need to record my score and I usually do it myself. Sometimes the caddy does it, but they are always a bit too generous.

Anyway back to golf stroke counters, I have picked up a lot in my time. But the two nicest ones are: a Pink Mickey Mouse one with a nice chain, returned it to the Japanese lady in the flight in front. She was really grateful. The other one was a blue one with teeth on the side for you to flip the numbers and  a centre button resets it back to zero with nice quick click. It counted to 12 strokes. LOL.

Anyway don't think I will be getting one soon.

Driver Shafts- IMPORTANT

Just put in the order for a UST shaft. Almost ordered the wrong shaft. Remember if you plan to shaft onto an adaptor , ie Taylormade adaptor, you need to order the one with the 0.335 inch tip OD for the TP adaptor. If you plan to shaft into a fixed driver/ non-adjustable one or the standard TM non-TP adaptor then you need a shaft with a tip that is 0.350 inch in diameter.

Now you know! Ha!

http://www.ustmamiya.com/golf-shafts/woods/proforce-v2

The Driver - the most important club in the bag?

The Driver is the most important club for me in the bag at the moment. It's the club that keeps my score down and is also responsible for bringing my score up. If I can hit the ball off the driver onto the fairway, ie get my driving accuracy up it will definitely improve my game. My short game and approach in with the mid and short irons are up to standard.

So don't neglect the driver. In recent times, you read magazines and the emphasize a lot on the short game, which is not wrong. But the short game is easier to master then the driver. The driver is a longer club and per practice session you can only hit so many balls with the driver. Short game can be practiced hours on end without fatigue.

If you go onto the range and people watch, you will realise that golfer's with a lousy swing can hit anything up to 7 iron well, but when they reach the longer clubs they struggle with distance and when they hit the driver their inadequacies of the swing shows as they don't hit any much further then their irons.

So the driver is the most important club in the bag at the moment. (3rd November, LOL)