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This is post 3000. What a great forum. While I've only met a handful of you in person, it feels like I know many more of you as if we saw each other regularly. Thanks for putting up with me! .

Kirke started playing nine hole rounds with me (carting) when he was 3. That's something I have no advice for you: I get absolutely zero credit that Kirke had the attention span at 3 to play nine holes of golf. That kind of extended focus is something that is innate with him, and he has it for all sorts of tasks (reading, crafts, etc.). As for the rules: I suppose I just taught as they came up. Obviously, to begin, he would get to improve his lies on occasion or take free drops from ill-placed ditches. We have really stressed golf etiquette; learning to be happy when other people hit good shots was a huge hurdle for him, because he's psychotically competitive (at 4, he'd literally cry and get angry if I hit a good shot; the kid is not normal). As for learning to gauge distances: again, this isn't any deep insight, but Kirke just played. He spends hours chipping balls around our yard to targets. I've just started giving him yardages on the course, but I'm discouraging him (at least for now) from any kind of "55 yards is a 3/4 8-iron" mindset; for now, I just want him to see the target and feel the swing. We can make it technical later, if needed, but not now. The vast majority of any coaching I give him is results-based: "Kirke, see if you can make your ball do X," rather than, "Kirke, try doing X with your lead wrist." Every so often, I suggest something of the latter, but I keep it to the language of experimenting: "Kirke, see what happens if you move your ball position back in your stance." I tend to agree with coaches that say, whatever you do, keep it fun. That's going to mean different things for different kids. Kirke wants to spend all day at our course, using the practice green and the 9th and 18th greens, hitting all kinds of wedge shots. He'd literally do that for hours. For him, that's fun. For other kids, that's torture. Since it's nearly impossible to become a professional golfer for a living, our goal is to (first, obviously) build our relationship, develop a love for a game he can play his whole life, and then to increase his skill. I wouldn't want to imperil the first two goals chasing the third. Bonus: here's a nice shot from Kirke messing around with a wedge following our round this morning:

I need out of NY for a bit so the Tuesday after my kids are done we are headed to the mountains of West Virginia to golf, ride ATVs, shoot skeet and just enjoy not being in NY. Got a nice deal on a cottage at the Greenbrier for some time away to clear our heads. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Hey all, been struggling lately with social media and have really debated getting rid of it. I have deleted some of the apps but maintained profile because I just do not want to log into them right now and today was that tipping point for me. Not going to get political I just wanted to say: Thank you to MGS and all those folks on here. This site over the past few months has been a great escape to come and just talk about golf and has distracted me from these other accounts. Shout out to @B.Bostonfor getting me involved, love coming on here!

Speaking of fishing. I figured it was time to take up a new hobby. Apparently the Rockfish and Perch are right down the street from me. Like 600-800 yards away. Spent my unused golf budget on a cheap salt water rod combo. Side note... I spent $114 on strawberries today. Son of a biskit! Wife swears she’s making jam and pie and all that. 30lbs of strawberries is nearly a ton... [emoji57]

I shot my best round of the year today with a 39 + 37 = 76. I'm playing again tomorrow so hopefully my ball striking will resemble what I had going today. I had the ole what could it have been if only the flat stick was on fire. My driver and irons were money while I missed a few really close putts.

Beautiful 19 degree driving iron from @chisag. One particular hole in mind with this purchase, but after swinging it a bit in the backyard this might be a great addition to my bag for several holes on the course.

Another new hobby, what happened to skateboarding?

Today marks my third year here wow has time gone by fast.

... 95* and a 20-25 mph wind so it was gonna be a fun round. I never mind a hot wind as it keeps ya cool or at least cooler than no wind at all. Did not drive as well as my last round but hit some really nice drives yet was shocked to see that again, I only hit 6 fairways... sigh. Drove 2 down the middle but into rough with a hot helping wind so no complaints about those. Hit several more just barely into the rough and considering the wind, not complaining about those either. But I had 2 bogies from sloppy swings that were both pushed into a wind, losing a ton of distance and in deep rough. One other bad drive was a pull hook, but I hit a 205 yd shot from light rough to about 10 feet using my F6 I just put back in the bag this morning. ... Started off well hitting a big drive on #1 and a knockdown to 25 feet and 2 putted. Really nice drive on #2 and a knockdown pw to 4 feet and birdie. Hit a sweet 4 iron off #3 tee, a par 5 and then a good fw to 145 and another knockdown to 12 feet and made another birdie. #4 was playing 189 and I wanted to start the ball over the bunker and let it drift back with the dead sideways wind, but chickened out subconsciously and started it over the green, only to watch it drift right leaving a 30 footer to a pin tucked on the downside of a camelback. I had no choice but to get it over the hump leaving a 15 foot comeback as there was no way to stop it once it started down the other side. Nothing I hate more than 3 putts, especially when I knew enough to start the ball far left but just didn't execute. I finished the front 1 under with 2 birdies and 1 bogie. ... Then brain cramped the start of the back 9. Hit a very poor 4 iron off the tee on #10, an easy 317 yd par 4. Deep rough and my approach found the bunker so up and down for par. #11 was one of those pushed, weak fades that left me in the rough and 155 in on a 359 yd par 4. Yup, that is a 205 yd drive. Went from rough to rough with the thick grass into me, so gouged out a 58* that didn't make the green. This grass is so think and growing into the shot makes it a guess as to how hard to hit it, how much grass is under the ball and how much will the nasty stuff growing almost sideway stop the club. Bogie. Then the excellence of the T100-S showed itself and I hit a 7 iron to a tap in on the 151 yd par 3. This time I did trust my swing and started the ball off the green to the right and let the sideways wind bring it back to the hole. ... Fast forward to #14 a 543 yd par 5. Hit another good drive and the F6 to 149 and with the same wind as the par 3, I choked down a little on my T100-S 7 iron and hit it to another tap in. #16 is a great hole, slight dogleg left with water right and 4 bunkers guarding the turn. Wind howling left to right so I wanted to start a drive over the bunkers with a slight cut and let the wind bring it back to the fairway. But like Brian Skatel from The Big Break, I hit it "too pure" and it never moved landing in the 2nd bunker. The lip stopped me from going at the flag so I ended up in a green side bunker with a fried egg right under another tall lip and no stance, I could just barely get the ball out sideways. Another reckless bogie. So an up and down round in 95* heat that was actually fun. Other than only hitting 6 fairways. And a pathetic 205 yd drive. And going from bunker to bunker. And the poor 4 iron off the 10th tee. And that @%*#@ 3 putt.

I was in the lineup for this weeks golf league match; handicap for the course is a 1. Unfortunately it was an I should quit golf kind of evening. 3 FW, 1 GIR, 16 putts, and lots of terrible iron shots resulting in a 15 over 51.

Think I got it. He startled us, we were looking for one of the guys ball and didn’t notice him at 1st. Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

Sometimes I feel like I'm lucky to hit the face at all, but I'll have to give that a shot.

Thanks Rick that is greatly appreciated, I may not be the best spoken but you will get my opinion! I might have to check WITB and ping some picture requests before @tony@CIC beats me to it!

I ordered a Women's F9 Speedback 7i customized from Cobragolf.com for my wife. It was the only place I could find those where you could still pick shaft length, grip, loft adjustment etc. If she likes it, I'll get her the 8-SW. I got a little greedy and also included the F9 Speedback driver for her. Same deal: these are available elsewhere, maybe a couple dollars less, but not customizable like direct from Cobra thanks to @TCUFrog who stated he had just purchased F9 irons for his wife vs speedzones, they're about $25-30 less per club

My massage parlor opened up this week after shutting down for COVID-19. I got a massage today!! My usual therapist has not returned yet, and they are limited to one hour sessions, but it's my first massage since February.

Had some extra time in the shop the other day and some scrap metals so I made these. Made from copper and hand stamped. Never done anything like these before, what do you guys think?

The man can even act through a forum post! The first paragraph was class. On behalf of us high cappers, I want to personally thank you for testing all of the club. Performance from a hosel-rocket is a must when I am looking at irons. On a more serious note, what does the soft step accomplish in terms of performance for you? Is it higher ball flight/more spin?

[emoji106] You’ve been a great addition to the site. Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

Yeah... skateboarding. Fishing is a lot easier on my body. I still ride it at least once a week, just going to cruise around on the thing. My days of big air and landing on my head are over. Still working on the hardflip... on carpet.

My daughter is visiting from Indiana so I took her BF to my club. Yesterday I played my regular gold tees and shot 88. Today I played the white tees with him and shot 88. Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

Yeah, Kirke is deeply attached to his big lead heel lift on his backswing and his ten-finger grip. More power to him (literally and metaphorically):

Are they having fun? Do they want to keep playing? If the answer is yes then you are doing great.

Additional cooler testing being conducted this afternoon. Going to add ice to see if the outer cooler sweats or leaks at all.

I once got reamed here for having the audacity to write that I needed a cleansing moment after hitting a bad shot. It was a Bob Rotelks fanboy. Well I’m not a doctor but i do have two MAs and i counsel lots of people, have for 25 plus years. I’ve learned that we are all wound differently and I think some perhaps many of us need that moment! That was the hardest adjustment when I moved to Florida - prior to living here I had always been a walker - walkers have that time, by themselves, to reflect, reject and move onto the shot at hand. Suddenly I was on the ball and it’s bad spot in a moment. It taught me the value of the post shot routine. You need to let that last one go, good or bad it’s done,fixed in ink and stone. Just do the little things necessary to lessen the damage - for example, one crap shot plus three pretty good ones make par just as much as a great drive, nice iron and putt that singed the edge does. Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

Mine is delayed at least one more day due to trying to get Penny qualified for SSDI. They don’t believe she’s disabled. Yeah I’m pretty sure she’s faking it. :( Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

Tiny cottage? Near the water? Would that be one of those little houses that sit on the ice in the middle of a lake??

You mean you are just now letting him use a driver off the tee. C'mon man!!

... I have a similar weakness and have had so much success with my Tensei Orange in stiff flex I ordered a Tensei Pro Orange in regular flex as the tip is very stiff. Pretty sure it is too much shaft for me but as Albert Popwell said in the opening scene of Dirty Harry "I got's ta know!" Looking forward to hearing how the Nemesys works for you.

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Instead of specifically trying to increase the number of posts, trying to get "likes", why not just post in topics that interest you? Write with some detail, use more than the minimum number of words required, engage in some back and forth, and let your personality show. In a way, this is like playing golf. You can't hit individual shots while thinking about shooting 78. You just have to hit each shot, and count 'em up at the end.

Stage 2 is now posted below after Stage 1 Stage 1 … Well, well, well I received my irons a week after THEZIPR23, blackngold_blood and DavePO43, yet am the first to Stage 1. What a bunch of slackers! A quick intro for those that don't already know me. chisag stands for CHIcago Screen Actors Guild. I have been a member of SAG for 42 years. Being an actor meant I was either very busy or had a ton of free time. The free time can work very well with a sport I am passionate about that takes a good 5+ hours to play considering the round and travel. As an actor gets older, roles are not as plentiful and free time is much more the norm than being busy. Obviously great for golf and I can take an entire winter off, which I did in 2019 playing 4 months in Phoenix. 107 out of 117 days playing golf can really fine tune your game. That said, this year due to a herniated disc, rehab and Covid closures, I did not play a single round of golf for 5 months. That is by far the longest break I have ever had from playing. … While the short game is my bread and butter for scoring, iron play is certainly a strength of my game. Loving equipment, I have owned way too many iron sets to mention. I currently play and rotate some Taylor Made P760’s & P790’s, Cobra Forged Tours and some Srixon Z Forged MB’s. Needless to say, the last thing I needed was a new set of irons. But of course I always look and the irons that caught my attention in 2020 were the Titleist T100-S. When MGS offered a set for review, I threw my hat into the ring and was very pleasantly surprised to be picked. Thank you MGS. All of my current irons have strengths and weaknesses but I will concentrate on comparisons with my P760’s, the irons I played most. I love everything about them other than their surprisingly thick top line. One of my biggest questions going forward is will the T100-S mid/long irons be as long and forgiving as my foam filled P760’s. … Right out of the box, the T100-S looked like irons I had a hand in designing. Head size, shape, hosel transition, sole camber and a thin top line is just about perfect to my eye and they immediately jumped to my favorite irons aesthetically. I dated a Playboy Bunny back in the late 70’s for a very short time and know all too well that looks don’t always match up with perfoprmance. So as beautiful to my eye as the T100-S are, they will have to outperform what I am playing now. That is a tall order. … About 15 years ago I spent an entire fall playing only knockdown shots determined to master that shot in Chicago’s winds. Most courses here stop watering around October and the fairways can become rock hard. I am happy to say I now have that shot, but by pounding all my clubs straight down into the hard turf I developed a nasty case off elbow tendonitis. Per my Ortho’s orders (a serious golfer himself) I switched to heavy weight graphite in my irons to reduce the wear and tear on my elbow and my body. I am glad I did and I never went back to steel. My favorites are the Recoil Prototype 95’s and I was extremely interested in the Kuro Kage Tini 105 gm shafts that were available in the T100-S. I ordered them in Stiff Flex and soft stepped once. Specs and description looked really good and my only concern was feel. I found playing some Aerotech Steelfiber 95 shafts, the feel is a little closer to steel than graphite. Great for Pro’s that have been playing steel their entire lives, but I am used to the smoother, slightly dampened feel of Aldila VS Proto’s and Recoil Prototypes. With Tini wire in the tip section for stability, I was hoping they felt more like Recoils than Steelfibers. If not, I would just re-shaft with my Recoil Prototypes but after 3 rounds, the feel is exactly what I look for in a heavyweight graphite iron shaft. Stable, accurate and precise with a slightly dampened feel to absorb unwanted shock. They launch a little higher than I am used to, but adjusting should not be difficult. … Due to the Corona virus I was not able to schedule a fitting for my T100-S but I know my specs and what shafts work for me, so it really wasn’t a concern for me. That said, I would always choose a fitting if possible. Other than 2* upright, soft stepped once and 1/4” long, my specs are standard. With only 3 rounds played, I m still trying to figure out yardages for each iron, something I will have down for Phase 2. I will say as an old school golfer that played a 48* pw for most of my golfing life, I have reluctantly learned to navigate the 6* gap between my 46* pw and 52* sw. But the opportunity to play a 48* wedge that Titeist calls a W2 was a welcome surprise. And instead of a W1 and W2 on the sole, Titleist labels these 2 wedges as P and 48* so no confusion pulling a wedge without reading glasses LOL. A small thing but a nice touch. … While I can and have played MB’s, I see no advantage over a Players CB that gives me everything a MB provides with added forgiveness. Like many low index players, on my good days I can hit anything well, but on my off days and especially days when my back is tight I will use all the forgiveness I can get. I am very interested to see how forgiving the tungsten in the heel and toe of the mid and long irons will be on slight mishits. And would the slightly thinner face of the T100-S compared to the T100 produce a hair more distance. A myth is other than the longest hitters, a little more distance for a better player is not wanted in their irons. But a slight increase in distance is always a plus if that distance is accurate, repeatable and all your gaps are covered. Why would I not want to hit my 4 iron 205 instead of 200? While I have never experienced any fliers from a good lie with my P790’s, they can occasionally be a few yards longer, because with a 5* interval between irons they cover a larger gap than I would ideally prefer. My hope is going back to 4* gaps I will experience more precise yardages and gapping from my T100-S. (bottom left) … And lastly, these are not GI’s or posses any magic that can correct a bad swing. Unlike many GI and certainly SGI irons, you will definitely know if you hit one thin losing distance and your fingers stinging similar to a MB. But the T100 series is the most played iron on the PGA Tour for a reason, and that tells me they can be extremely accurate and repeatable for guys who make their living knowing exactly how far they hit every iron. And make no mistake, the vast majority of players on all tours, PGA /LPGA/Champions want all the forgiveness they can get when it comes with accuraccy, for both direction and distance. So all I am looking for is an iron that: 1. Feels great 2. Looks ideal at address 3. Allows me to be laser accurate with my good swings 4. Gives me a little forgiveness with my bad swings 5. Produces a few more yards … If there are any specific questions about the T100-S irons or Kuro Kage shaft you would like answered, or something you are just curious about, feel free to ask and I will do my best to answer as I play and become more familiar with their capabilities. I have not requested to be considered for irons and a MGS review until the T100-S so they clearly have an opportunity to not only make it into my bag, but became my primary irons. I look forward to sharing my progress with all of you. _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Stage 2 To quote The Grateful Dead when it comes to finding the perfect irons “What a long strange trip it’s been”. I loved my P790’s until a winter in Phoenix where hard fast desert greens demanded more spin to hold approach shots. So I picked up a set of P760’s hoping they would be a suitable replacement and I ended up liking them even better. So I was not in the market for new irons but like most of us, my trips down the aisle of any golf store always included a peek at new irons. But the only irons that drew me in like the Sirens in Oh Brother Where Art Thou were the Titleist T100. (I promise that was the last song reference). So when Titleist offered the T100-S irons to My Golf Spy members for testing, I was aaaall in. Looks While I love the shape and size of my P760’s, their too thick for a players iron top line was always a distraction for me. I think the transition from short iron to mid iron is crucial and Titleist really nailed it with the T100-S irons. The short irons and the mid/long irons need a solid transition with the 8 iron, and the T100-S do exactly that with an iron shape that isn’t a short iron or isn’t a mid iron, but a little of both. The size and shape of the heads as well as the beautiful thin top line look like I had a say in their design. An irons hosel transition should be something we don’t even need to talk about because it should blend seamlessly into the head and never even be noticed. The T100-S get it just right and the offset is also perfect. Just enough without too much, again harder to accomplish than many think. My only complaint, and I am really nit picking now, is the short irons have a slightly higher heel than I prefer. I appreciate a subtle yet technically advanced cavity as much as the next player. The T100-S are subtle enough to appeal to a more traditional player like myself, but have enough visual tech to appeal to younger players that have grown up in the bling era. The no upcharge Kuro Kage Tini 105 gm graphite shafts are an excellent match for the T100-S. I read where a golf psychologist said a two tone shaft creates an illusion that the shaft is shorter and therefore seems easier to hit. I think she was on to something. The light silver top of the Kuro Kage shafts extend for about 40% of the length and then transition into dark silver that looks like steel. I really love the look but of course Titleist offers quite a few no uncharge steel shafts as well. Score 9 Sound & Feel Titleist forgings have a crisper sound/feel compared to some other OEM forgings and it is one of their trademarks. I appreciate that feel, but when you flush them absolutely dead center they feel like absolutely nothing at all. Hogan once said he hit one, maybe two perfect shots in 18 holes of play, and the T100-S let you know exactly when you accomplish that feat. Slightly off and you get that really nice, crisp Titleist feel that lets you know you hit it really well, just not perfectly. The one area the T100-S can feel and sound pretty bad is high on the face, something that has happened to me when my ball is in deep rough above or below my feet and I am not quite sure where the ground is. Score 9 Practice Performance After 2 back surgeries I can play golf almost every day as long as I walk and keep moving. I have not been to the range in about 20 years because standing in one spot and swinging over and over again would take a toll on my back. But I like to play practice rounds late in the day. I can hit several different shots from the tee and fairway and actually find it more beneficial than hitting range balls. I don’t think I am over stating the capabilities of the T100-S irons by saying they can do anything you have the skill to execute. High-low, left-right, draw-fade. But very quickly I learned they don’t mask bad shots. There is a reason the T-100 series went into Tour players bags faster than any other iron Titleist has produced. They are very precise irons. With my P760’s and even more so my P790s, hitting 3/4 shots tended to fly a little farther or shorter than I would like. A slightly faster swing might produce a few extra yards. Certainly not the 20yd “fliers” some claim but when facing a 110 yd 3/4 pw to a pin in the back of the green an extra 4 yards can mean the difference between par and birdie. Score – 18 On-Course Performance After a few weeks of getting to know my T100-S irons, I played 5 rounds in a row under par, something I have never done before. That took “potential” out of the equation and I was able to shoot my age for the very first time. I was comfortable hitting these irons very quickly, sooner than any irons I have played and the number of iron sets is probably close to 50. That said, they are a completely different iron for me when it comes to loft and I am still trying to calibrate their distance in all conditions. We have had the windiest spring/summer I can remember in the Chicago suburbs so playing a “stock iron” shot has been pretty rare. The pitching wedge is 44* and I have never played a pw with a loft that strong. But my set also includes a 48* “wedge” that just has a 48 on the sole. The pitching wedge has a P and then 44 underneath. Printing 44 on the sole is one of the few errors Titleist made with these irons as a simple P would be much cleaner. After playing a 46* pw and a 52* sw for years I was used to manipulating swings to cover that 6* gap. It did not take me long to appreciate hitting shots with my wedges and the 4* gap with my 48* meant less swing calculations. I use it much more than my old 46* or my 52* sw and has become a go-to scoring club for me. The surprisingly forgiving 4 iron is one my favorite irons to hit. And while I am on the subject of forgiving, the high density tungsten in the heel and toe of the 7-4 irons make the T100-S pretty darned forgiving of shots hit a little on the toe side, which is my typical miss. Thin shots suffer more than heel/toe misses and as I said earlier, shots hit high on the face are pretty penal. The T100-S is not a Game Improvement iron so they do not mask mistakes. On my good ball striking days I still miss the center a little and the T100-S really shine when near the center, rewarding a slight mishit with a shot similar to a perfectly struck shot, just without that melt into the face feel. So I guess what I am trying to say is the misses with good contact are pretty good, while bigger misses would be better served with something more forgiving like the T200. I usually take a very shallow divot or just brush the turf after contact. But when I have taken a healthy divot the T100-S are excellent slicing through the ground, carving out a uniform and easily replaceable divot. This means a sharper leading edge that will not be much help with shots hit a little fat, although that kind of help is probably not an issue for most players contemplating T100-S irons. Now, the negative. I still am not quite sure how far I hit all of them because the lofts are so different than what I have normally played and I just have not had an opportunity to play them on many windless 70-90* days, so stock irons shots have been rare. And as much as I love the 48 and the 4 iron, I have had to remove a club from my bag to make room for both of them. I like to play a 3 wood, hybrid and a Driving Iron. The hybrid I use from the rough or when I need max carry and the DI I use from the tee or a 2nd shot into the wind. So I have to decide by course type/weather forecast if I want the hybrid or DI in my bag on any given day. Score - 28 Miscellaneous I have had more questions from players I have been paired up with than any other irons I have played, several playing earlier versions like AP2’s and AP1’s, along with a few questions about the Kuro Kage shafts. The one thing that is a constant is “Those just look soooo good” kinda comment. I almost had my first HIO with my T100-S. Score 9 Play it or Trade it The P760 mid and long irons are a bit longer than the T100-S for me and that is the only reason I hesitate to call the T100-S clear winners. I will do some head to head testing this fall. But for now the T100-S irons will stay in my bag. As I stated earlier, I was not looking at any irons other than the T100 series and if you put my feet to the fire I just might have preferred the T100 with weaker lofts so I could keep both my hybrid and DI in the bag. Yet I love the addition of a 4th wedge and it has improved my short iron play. Admittedly I am being a little greedy. Points – 18 Conclusion The T100-S irons are exactly what you think they are. Stronger lofted Players Irons that are an absolute joy to play but do not travel silly distances or cover up egregious miss hits. I think they provide the kind of look and performance you expect from a MB, with the added forgiveness you want in a Players Iron. With their thin top line and slightly smaller profile, they are perfect for MB players looking for something a little more forgiving. They can execute any shot you have the skill to play and enough forgiveness to help when you miss them a little. If you are a marginal ball striker, the T100-S are probably not for you. But the better player that hits the center and has command of trajectory and partial shots will absolutely love these irons. Considering new Forged Irons are selling for $1200-1400 it is difficult for me to say if the T100-S are worth the cost. But if you’re in the market for a Players Distance Iron or would like to transition from MB’s while keeping the look at address, I think the T100-S should be at the very top of your demo list. 5 rounds in a row under par is a record for me so there is no doubt they have improved my scores and I can certainly see why so many Pro’s have put the T100 series in their bags. Thanks again to Titleist and My Golf Spy as well as all of you that have followed this thread! Final Score – 91

Intro Once again, a very sincere thank you to MGS for allowing me to be a part of this testing experience! This will be my 4th MGS test in 3 years and I will say that it does not get easier. If anything, the weight of responsibility only gets heavier with experience and I welcome that! Thanks to Fujikura for looking to MGS for this partnership. You truly picked an amazing group to work with! About 2 ½ years ago, if asked to describe my game, my response would have gone something like this: I’d really like to break 90 someday but probably not in the foreseeable future. My driver is all over the place, but mostly in every neighborhood right of whatever hole I’m on. Swing speed.. What’s that? Forged clubs are for professionals only.. or at least I think. What ball do I use?: Whichever one I pull out of my bag next. Fast forward to today and my perspective on the game has changed a bit.. Any coincidence that it was almost exactly 2 ½ years ago that I joined MGS and my golf game has improved in a way that I didn’t think would be conceivable? Looking back at my very 1st post when I was digging for answers on Maltby golf clubs, I was welcomed to the fold by MGS staple figures such as @tommc23, @revkev, @MattF, @BIG STU, and many others who have played one part or another in my blossoming obsession with this game that we’re all gathered here to celebrate. Most days I find myself shooting in the mid to high 70’s with a handicap between 8-9. Driver swing speed is just a hair north of 110 mph. Back swing is slower and very deliberate with a pretty smooth transition and tempo. Prior to beginning the test, I would say my average driver carry distance is around 265 yds with a good 10-15 yds of roll out. To average around 280 yds total. Typical ball flight is lower than most but powerful with some decent roll out. Here in AZ where the ground is harder than most parts of the country, you have to use crappy conditions to your advantage and a lower spin, runner ball will get you much more distance than a pop fly. My typical miss would be the dreaded pull. The good thing about having spent countless obsessive hours working on swing mechanics is that when I start to see the pull, I know that I’m getting lazy with my swing and know how to fix things before it destroys my round. I try not to look at my game as having strengths and weaknesses to compare. I enjoy all aspects of the game and try to focus on each equally. Driving, Iron shots, wedge play, putting, course management, mental strength, etc all get equal attention. I feel better knowing that if one or 2 skills don’t show up on a given day, that I can usually balance them out by having the others sharpened and ready to go. I just love this driver! This one for me just checks all of the boxes. When it first came out with the carbon crown and milled face I just knew I had to have one. Took me a couple of years but I was finally able to get one in the bag and haven’t looked back. I’ve been playing it with a 67g UST ProForce V2 Black (S) for the past couple seasons and have had some good success with the combo. I’ll admit that the flex may be a tad light but the shaft in general is pretty stable and has produced some really great #’s for an aftermarket option. As far as what I’m looking to get out of any club in my hands, it’s all about consistency and reliability. I want to know that as long as I’m doing my part, the club will deliver. I don’t need crazy long yardage. I just expect that Distance, Spin, and Trajectory are (X, Y, Z) and that this is what I’ll get back. Is that too much to ask? On-course game, course management, etc, I’d say that I’m a calculated risk taker. There are some courses that I play regularly and am very familiar with the risk/reward shots. I’ll definitely play more aggressive lines if I know the rewards and if my abilities can outplay the risks. Otherwise, I’ll play more conservatively if I’m not familiar with the course layout. Most par 5’s I’m able to reach in 2. I didn’t say that I land on the green in 2 but am very capable of reaching the distances in 2 shots. As for par 4’s, I’ve recently changed my tone on using driver just because it says “par 4”. I’m going to be sticking to a new rule moving forward: less than 375 yds = less than driver. Whatever club leaves me with a full 100 – 125 yd approach shot, I seem to have a better outcome than a ¾ wedge shot. Hi, I’m MotoreX, it’s a pleasure to meet your acquaintance.. (first impressions) I’m a person who finds beauty in simplicity. I think it’s admirable when something can be created that has so much detail under the surface but doesn’t need an exterior that says “hey look at me!” to be noted as something extraordinary. I find that to be case with the MotoreX. Performance Specs: Fujikura has a very interesting claim with this particular shaft. Their marketing slogan “Multiply Your Speed” had a lot of us wondering how they were going to deliver those claims. By utilizing their proprietary, and very high-tech, High-Speed Motion Capture system (ENSO), which uses 8 motion capture cameras from various angles, they are able to detect every single bend and twist point throughout the shaft, throughout the entire swing. This allows Fujikura to manufacture an even more refined and fine-tuned shaft that retains the necessary bending qualities for load and release, while nearly eliminating the counter-productive twisting that can occur throughout the driver swing. Imagine a catapult, it has 2 primary directional movements. Backward to load and then forward to release sending all of its energy in the direction of the target in a straight line. Now imagine if you were to add a 30* twist just before its released. Probably not a very accurate outcome right? That’s essentially what’s happening a lot of the time when we swing a driver and the shaft has too much twist through the release and contact with the ball. With this ENSO technology, Fujikura claims to have that all but eliminated the counterproductive twisting while maintaining those sweet feelings that we all look for in a driver shaft. I’ll admit that while all of the techy stuff sounds very interesting and even plausible, I just didn’t know how it was possible to turn my 110 MPH swing into 113+. I was also very interested to see how the shaft chosen for me by Fujikura based on my swing characteristics was going to perform well for me when @goaliewales14 was recommended the same shaft and has what sounds like a more aggressive and even faster swing. Ultimately though, it was extremely cool to be talking directly with Fujikura and getting the opportunity to pick their brain about the different shaft offerings for the MotoreX. Ultimately my hopes throughout this testing were not even to increase speed or distance. I know.. sounds silly doesn’t it? But having a swing speed and distance slightly lower than the tour average doesn’t hurt my feelings one bit. My overall expectation is to find a new level of consistency with my driver while maintaining my distance and trajectory, and lowering spin a few hundred rev’s. Added distance would be the cherry on top. Looks (9 out of 10 points) Flat black is always a favorite when done correctly. What color there is, is not over done in the slightest and doesn’t look like a unicorn threw up its Halloween candy (like so many others). The 1 very minor gripe is that you aren’t really given a “logo down” option. With the logo facing down, you still have the graphics on the back side of the shaft. Again, very minor. Everything about the appearance just says “Premium” grade!. The icing on the cake was the added MGS logo laser etched into the paint. Knowing that this is 1 of 5 in the entire world just makes this all the more sentimental (sorry rest of the world). Feel (10 out of 10 points) I don’t know how Fujikura did it, but they nailed my fitting perfectly. The weight, balance, butt, middle, tip, and kick point are all just what I’m looking for. This is my first X flex shaft too and I was slightly hesitant to go stiffer. Ultimately I’m glad I did and it’s been a tremendous payoff. Basic Characteristics (18 out of 20 points) My testing consisted of both “dry” and “wet” ball data as Mark Crossfield would put it. I spent time collecting stats on the launch monitors as well as putting the shaft to the real test on the course. Ultimately it’s all about how the shaft performs in the elements on the battle field. While live course data won’t give spin and launch numbers, total distance and where the ball stops is as good as anything a launch monitor can show. During the course of testing, I spent probably a good 10 hours at my home away from home (PGATSS) and played a good 10 rounds at Springfield GC where I’m a member as well as another 5 or so rounds at other local tracks. The pictures shown are GPS tracking from the tee to where the ball stopped. Below: The first picture is with my original ProForce V2 shaft. You can see that the dispersion wasn’t great. The spin wasn’t horrible but the distance and ball speed were definitely lower than the MotoreX. I found these results to be very repetitive throughout the entire testing. UST ProForce V2 MotoreX F1 6X On-Course (28 out of 30 points) Something that I’ve noticed is that the shaft does it’s real work on the course (as it should). Launch monitor mumbo jumbo is nice and all, but take all the fancy numbers away and focus on the basics, in real-life scenarios, how does it perform when it really matters? Dispersion, Feel, Total Distance. I just need those 3 things to be consistent and I’ve got a winner. Here are just a few (of many) GPS tee to ball trackings that I was able to take during actual rounds. I would say that these are a good field sample of probably 80% of my shots. The course data tells the most important story IMO. To conclude the performance aspect of the shaft, it’s safe to say that Fujikura’s original claims of the MotoreX have been gift wrapped and hand delivered and I couldn’t be more impressed with my experience. Miscellaneous (10 out of 10 points) Not a whole lot to say here that hasn’t already been said. The personal experience with Fujikura, the craftsmanship and qualify of the product along with the cohesion of marketing and tech with actual performance delivery have left me with nothing but happy feelings. Play it or Trade it? (20 out of 20 points) No chance I’ll be trading, selling, or giving this away. This is what some of us would refer to as the “cold dead hands” classification of golf equipment. Conclusion Regardless of your swing profile, The MotoreX F1 is a shaft that will help you find YOUR best swing. It delivers on all claims and the tech under the hood is the real deal! Final Score: (95 out of 100 points) MotoreX.. Swing Faster, Hit Further, Play Better you will...

... My Stage 1 review is complete!

For what it’s worth my Social Media has also shrunk. MGS and a private Instagram is about it. Got tired of the negativity and fighting. Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

A little late to posting this... but I've got 2 rounds in the books with it...

Looking forward to getting this out on the course for the first time on Saturday. Really like the feel and sound going into the net so far...

Week 4 Day 2 got a bit better. I'm still experimenting with the best time to do this. This is probably hohum for some of you but I again got into the 91 mph - keep in mind I started at 75. I also attached a graph of my progress for each of the sticks by each week and day. I think the lower numbers for Week 3 Days 2&3 were the result of truckloads of mulch I had to spread.

I played 9 holes this morning, my first golf since October. This was my first round since shoulder surgery back before Thanksgiving. I limited it to 9 until I see how my shoulder feels tomorrow. I would have been happy to break 50 (I'm a 10), and started with an ugly double off a good drive. Three straight bogeys, but finished with 5 pars for a 41. Extremely happy, and right now I don't need any meds for my shoulder.

My daughter is almost 6 and takes lessons twice a week. I leave the fundamentals to the pro. I only focus on having a good time with her, hitting targets, play for candy, etc. I would love it if she ends up playing golf with me, but I also let her try other sports such as tennis and basketball. My focus is to create great memories with the kids.

Totally sounds like you've got the correct idea to me. Here's where I start: in the NFL, you've got 32 teams that each have 53 roster spots. That's almost 1,700 guys getting paid to play football at the highest level of that sport. On the PGA Tour, there are 125 guys with a full card. Playing golf for a living is nearly impossible. It's very likely that most of the guys in the OWGR top-500 could hang around at a PGA Tour event, and if everything breaks their way one week, grab a top-10 or a win. The book Tales From Q School is among the most emotional golf reads ever written, because you see these guys on the knife edge: one shot here or there totally changes the direction of their whole lives. So that's all to say: go have fun. My son is a remarkably talented 7-year-old golfer (I say this this way because I deserve no credit for it; he's a natural athlete and I'm certainly not!). The fact that he's good at 7 relative to kids his age in no way means that he'll be good at 20 relative to young men his age. So go out and have fun with your kids, just like you're doing. My inclination with Kirke is to give him very little technical instruction, but to focus on what the ball does. I challenge him to hit balls high and low, curving left and right. I'd rather have him figure the game out, thinking about targets, than to be like me always thinking about swing positions and technical fixes.

there is no such thing as a full/half/quarter/partial member. this is an egalitarian forum and all members are total and complete members; we pride ourselves on treating everyone equal and giving every single member of the forum the same level of respect and appreciation on day 1 as well as day 1000+. thanks for being a member and we hope you'll stick around and enjoy all that the site has to offer.

Good to see a lefty!!

You didn't get one of those 'happy endings' massages did you

I can relate to how you're feeling right now, I'm going through one of those "down" periods now also. It can be incredibly frustrating when something you should take joy from becomes stressful(?). I had to take 2 months off this year due to an elbow issue, and I just haven't played well since coming back. Today was bout as good a day as I've had since starting to play again, but still frustrating. Played the front in 40, par on 10, then 4 doubles in a row before finishing the last 4 holes 1 over. Shot 85, with the pattern of just losing my swing at some point in the round then getting it back, but not knowing why, continuing. Maybe you need to take a break, clear your head, then go hit some balls at the range a few times before going out again. There's nothing wrong with taking time to clear the gremlins out of your head. Good luck...

Happy Anniversary!! Glad you joined up... even if you do like Brussel Sprouts!

League was a bit of a grind tonight - I made the decision to hit driver as much as I could, just to see if results from yesterday were a fluke. It sort of worked out, but I am starting to build some confidence in it. Not a lot of fairways but only one big miss (tolerable location to recover). Irons were suspect, chipping was brilliant and brutal all at the same time. Putting was great. I only missed one within ~10 feet and had a 40-ish footer that was perfect lag - rolled to about 6 inches past the hole. Started with two doubles, +4 the rest of the way with 13 putts.

My scores were terrible and some of my shots horrendous but, the views were nice and I was playing golf so it was a good day. My highlight shot was a 5W from 197 that had a nice little fade around the dogleg and ended up nicely on the fringe. It made me smile. Sent from my iPhone using MyGolfSpy

My son FINALLY has his driving permit!!! Big day for him. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

What's in the bag threads are usually pretty popular, if you post pictures. We like the pictures of shiny objects. Also, posting in the How'd You Play thread people will give likes.