GPS111
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Posts posted by GPS111
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2 hours ago, Kansas King said:
I've had a couple days to let everything soak in and my current mood is unchanged: **** the PGA Tour.
That said, I'm curious what the long-term ramifications are of this assuming it isn't stopped by antitrust actions. It seems to be an inherently risky proposition for the purse not just of the PGAT but of most professional golf to be in the hands of one sovereign investment fund. Obviously, the Saudis have a long-term plan to try and improve their image around the world and one way they're doing that is through sportswashing. The PIF is an enormous fund. However, I have some questions.
What happens if there is a regime change in SA? What if they don't support the sportswashing efforts?
Will the PIF still be equally financially supportive if there is a global recession that results in depressed asset valuations around the world?
While this is a long way off, what happens if oil becomes a far less profitable global commodity? Or if Saudi oil resources start drying up?
I know a lot of these questions are unanswerable but there are some real long-term risks that I fear can't be addressed with words on a piece of paper that we call a contract. The amount of concentration risk that professional golf is going take on is massive. This won't be an issue anytime soon but what about 20, 40, or even 60 years from now?
What happens if SA has another human rights/ethics blunder?
What happens if SA is put on the OFAC list?
These aren't unimaginable risks. The United States was days away from defaulting on its own debt. While very unlikely that congress would fail to kick the can down the road, the risk was present.
I know this will sound cliche, but I have friends from SA that I met in college. Great guys. I have no ill feelings for the regular people of SA. My biggest qualms with the PIF taking over the professional golf is that 1) professional golf is no longer an organic self-supporting organization. I know some will try arguing that it's better for the players but I don't care. It's an unnatural organization. 2) This goes beyond professional golf. The SA PIF has been taking large stakes in other sports and many private/public companies. On top of the PIF's ownership in U.S. entities, they are a major purchaser for the American defense sector. I'm not against foreign investment in the U.S. However, this isn't a Russian billionaire looking for to diversify their wealth, this is a sovereign country directly buying influence in America and around the world. I know someone will say "bla bla bla, it's what the U.S.A. has been doing forever". Don't care.
The most concerning thing about all of it is that it seems we're just rolling over and taking it without a care in the world. It feels lazy.
It feels corrupt.
And don't lose sight of we are helping directly fund this at the pump when gas prices go up every time Saudi Arabia cuts oil production like they will be doing in July by a million barrels per day to keep their income up. They buy in to golf then make us fund it further in order to drive.
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Best article I've read on this so far. It explains a lot. Even though it makes more sense of everything it won't make up for player animosity. That will take time.
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Morning all! Took a couple days off to be seeing eye dog for my wife's eye surgery. I'm not a doc but what she had done sounds like an oil change to me (changed the fluid in her eye). Weather in western Washington has been in high 70's with some low 80's lately but today is not supposed to break 60 with a little rain. No wild fire smoke but there are some really bad fires just north of us in Canada with a huge new one. A weather shift and we'll have the smoke, too. Despite all that I think I'll sneak out for a quick nine. Supposed to watch my wife but things are going good. I'll tell her I've been sitting on her right (surgery) side and been there all along!
No, the patch comes off this morning and all will be good. So nine today and an 18 over the weekend.
Hope everyone has a good/bad/indifferent round in them this weekend! All of them are good and end with a beer!
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2 minutes ago, Kenny B said:
We get smoke like this virtually every year; sometimes from Canada, but also from central Washington, Oregon or Idaho/Montana depending on which way the wind is blowing.
We've had some smoke from Alberta and BC earlier this year in Arlington, Washington but it did not last long and so far no more yet. Lately it's been an annual event so fingers crossed we won't see any more!
- Merlin1313, Kenny B, BKervin and 3 others
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Holy crap! Breaking now:
https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/pga-liv-golf-merger-rcna87914
And:
https://www.thescore.com/epga/news/2660236
Welcome to the morning!
- sirchunksalot, Merlin1313 and cksurfdude
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9 minutes ago, Fred Mitchell said:
Absolutely skip the hype and propaganda from the manufacturers and find out what the equipment really offers for ME, not what Tiger or Rory.
Amen to that!!!
- cksurfdude, Fred Mitchell, Matsubaum and 1 other
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Have you purchased any golf products based on MyGolfSpy reviews? (Please list which ones)
- Taylor Made M1 driver
- Taylor Made M1 (3w because I liked the driver)
- Snell MTB golf balls
- Kirkland putter
- Fitting at both Golftec and Club Champion (if you go to the doctor, always get a second opinion!)
- Different graphite shafts. Led to using graphite iron shafts.
- Discussion on club head technology led to buying Tour Edge irons. I'm a senior golfer and am part of the demographic they cater to.
How has MyGolfSpy changed the way you think about golf equipment?
If I buy a suit to look good in certain circumstances I get it fitted. Off the rack always hangs wrong and looks bad. Reading MGS comments led to the same for golf equipment. Have it fitted if you want to "look" your best.
Have these purchases lowered your scores? (List which products and how much they have lowered your scores.)
Most definitely YES. Some made improvement immediately without practice, some needed range/practice time to dial in matching ball and shaft to get the feel with the distance and accuracy I wanted and understanding swing changes I needed to make because of weight differences, etc. Bottom line is the equipment changes and suggestions led to more effective use of practice. The driver and fairway woods helped the most. I was able to dial in distance and accuracy. The clubs became more predictable so they are a confidence builder off the first tee.
How have these purchases helped you enjoy the game more? How?
Like above, the purchases were part of the equation. The resulting practice from buying them was the rest of the equation. Fitting, intelligent buying based on knowledgeable discussion through the forum, and practice dropped my scores from the mid/high 90's to the low 80's and I'm flirting with the 70's now. Dial in putting and that will happen this year. That so far is the ONLY club MGS discussions are still deciding for me!
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Congrats to cnosil daughter passing her licensing exam. My daughter is a nurse and I know what it took to get there. As fast as MGS, I spy with my little eye little bits of what spies are doing all day long! I lt starts with coffee before breakfast and continues as I can catch and read things as time at work allows. And I get alerts all day as you all respond to different comments. Keep it up! It breaks up the work day!
- cnosil, BKervin, cksurfdude and 4 others
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5 minutes ago, Slow said:
Mostly for the best of series. Primarily interested in what works for 85-90mph swing speeds. My driver and my golf ball choice both came from MGS testing. Of course, there have been plenty of things that I would love to be a tester on. However, I think I burned up all of my golf gear testing luck about 10 years ago. First, I won a year's supply of Srixon golf balls, (their idea of a year's supply and mine were two different numbers. Their idea was three dozen) Then I won a Cleveland 7 iron and a TaylorMade 6 iron all in the same year. My golf buddies were really pissed that I won golf balls and two irons from three different companies. So, while I would love to test something for MGS I realize that the gods of golf have already favored me. Now if they would just favor me on the golf course.
Don't know if I call you lucky or cursed! But I agree - MGS provides a lot of insight and opinions relative to a lot of different skill levels. Just need to pick the parts of the conversations that fits yours.
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I thought everything was safe but got a deal I could not refuse. Ended up replacing a TaylorMade M1 440cc driver with a Tour Edge C722 (445cc). Took 13 holes to get it dialed in (yes, pressed into service the day after I got it) but once it was the first drive after adjustment was a laser that went 280 yds, easily a 60 yd improvement for me. Not bad for a 70 year old but who said leveraging new technology is a bad thing. Now that drive for me was obscene and it has since settled down to a pedestrian 240-250 but the opportunity for longer always teases because lightning struck once! Regardless, a quantum leap distance and accuracy improvement to my game made by a decision I didn't see coming. So I guess in the end, nothing is really ever safe in the bag. There will always be a GAS attack (Gear Acquisition Syndrome).
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1 hour ago, Murv said:
For the old timers my advice is to go to woods. Last year I added a 7 wood and then a 9 wood to my bag. Easier to hit and get some elevation.
That's the Jack Nicklaus advice. As you and your game ages, replace longer irons with shorter woods!
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I prefer a wood over a hybrid and even over longer irons. I hit 6 iron down through the wedges just fine. Contact ball then ground with great ball flight and distance for the club. Longer than a 6 iron and I tend to get more "sweepy" with the swing but that is based on a long time understanding my swing tendencies. Maybe it's the longer club length getting in my head but carrying all the way down to a 7 wood gapped my clubs enough to carry 6 iron and down for irons. Tried 3 through 6 hybrids and could not make them play like the shorter woods for me.
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On 5/4/2023 at 7:39 AM, Tsecor said:
I still play my 910 D3 driver because i refuse to pay $600/$700 for one club i hit 12 times per round......the prices of drivers are insane and this bubble will have to burst at some point.....are we trending towards $1000 drivers?
I had the same reaction when shaft prices went above $150. Now good ones are $350 and I read an article where there is a $1,000 shaft. Without a head.
Ball reaches a point where the answer to the question is how much can I afford to leave behind in lost balls? $50 dozen and I lose 6 my round is $60 green fees and $25 in lost balls. Currently using Bridgestone D9 Long Distance. Also use TM Tour Response so my average is in the $30/dozen range. Both balls work for me from the tee and into the green.
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It depends on the course but typically an hour plus ahead of tee time. If the course has a driving range then I add time to shake some things loose on the range. No range and an hour ahead to roll some putts/chip a bit and stretch. My home course has no range and first tee is only 50 yds from the clubhouse so an hour is plenty of time.
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Great timing to go with this post. On line today:
https://golf.com/gear/golf-balls/golf-ball-performance-issues-round/?amp=1
Addresses exactly what we've been talking about. And one ball for all 72 holes on tour? Bonkers.
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1 hour ago, Frickenhacker said:
Never, It's not the putter. My putting issues are self inflicted!
If you date your driver but marry your putter then I'm an unfaithful swinger as I have six (different brand/model) putters and they all screw me. But in all honesty Frickenhacker probably has my issue pegged. Despite thinking the five putters waiting in the corner are plotting against me waiting for their next turn in the bag it all comes down to me. And why do I have six putters. And tried different shafts in some of them? I need to marry one. I mean I've been fitted for everything, EXCEPT the putter, including the ball. Which is probably why I have so many - my thinking I can fix it myself. Whew is that expensive! Now I've bared my unfaithful soul I need to get fitted and stick to it. Putting is the last strokes I need to break 80.
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7 minutes ago, Smackey17 said:
I've heard so-called golf ball experts say that a modern ball should last 5-12 rounds without performance degrading, though I've never seen any corroborating tests. I use a urethane cover ball, which is on the softer side and will tend to scuff when hitting anything but a plush fairway or cushiony green. So typically I play a ball until it has a visible blemish or scuff, which is anywhere from one round to five or six.
Here's a couple articles that may help. Short answer says research backs a ball lasting 7 rounds without a loss in performance with no other damage. But considering 300 million balls are lost per year how many of us have a ball that makes it that far?!
https://www.nationalclubgolfer.com/news/how-long-does-a-golf-ball-last/
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Reading these posts has a theme. Comments on how long a ball gets used starts with a number and ends with ".....or until I lose it"! And I'm no different. I'll play one usually one round, maybe two "until I lose it" or it picks up a cart path scuff or some other cover damage. Covers now are harder to damage from grooves or trees, etc., than the covers 30 years ago so that doesn't happen as often. But when it does or 18-36 holes are reached it hits the shag bag
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15 minutes ago, Manny said:
I have a hard time wrapping my head around a place that does "not allow" someone to walk.
I know my group, we all walk and if it werent for the cart people, we could easily finish in 3 hours.
So I'm just wondering what the logic is for forcing people to cart it?
I've golfed in several places in Canada and Washington where carts are required due to the terrain and/or where the hike between green and next tee is a hundred or more yards. Walking those slows pace of play considerably to well over 5 hrs. Carts are a necessity to keep pace of play down to 4 - 4.5 hrs.
Not many but some are cart only. There are others (Aberdeen Glen in Prince George, BC) that provides a courtesy cart service to haul you between specific holes but you can walk. Uses an 8 person golf cart!
But you always have the option to not play a cart only course. There are plenty of others.
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Missed the tie breakers, blew my wad on Rory (again!) but had Rahm on my team so am happy. No matter how it turns out every year, the Master's rules due to its inclusion of all things golf. Womens amature, always amature champs in the field, and their uncompromising commitment to the game of golf in it's purest form. Opens are great but the Masters is the keeper of golf.
Congrats to the winner of the contest!
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The post going around about how long you keep golf gloves led to an interesting subject. One response said old gloves go into the driving range pocket of the golf bag which leads to the question.
Who has something like a driving range pocket on their golf bag and more generally do you have a golf junk box and what's in it?
I do. Scorecards from all the courses I've played over the past 50+ years, old model golf balls I've used (Acushnet, balata balls, etc.) and all sorts of stuff that accumulated in the bag over the years that I just can't get rid of in case "it may be needed again"!
What have you got you just have to keep?
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I don't wear one so mine last a long, long time. But I don't have any issues with sweaty hands, even in humid conditions. But I do have rain gloves for the absolute wet conditions. A "requirement" in the Pacific Northwest for playing between November and March. These gloves I have yet to replace after two years but then they aren't needed for or don't get more than a dozen or so rounds a year.
- GolfSpy TCB, Merlin1313 and tony@CIC
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Cut score +4. Tiger after 2 rounds +2.
Cut line has been +3 or +4 13 times in last 22 years. Weather in Augusta going to suck all weekend so could be higher. Highest cut in last 15 years was +8 in 2007 when weather was also less than best. Sticking with close to the average for cut despite weather. Hoping Tiger makes the cut but think it's Rory's year.
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2 hours ago, Golf2Much said:
My golfing buddy and I belong to a golf club that used to allow members to walk the back nine early in the morning (until about 8:30) and later in the afternoon as part of the membership. After we attended a golf school, we agreed to meet one day a week to walk a few holes in the back playing multiple balls to practice what we learned. I bought a pull cart and we found the practice and helping one another with the drills we learned helped to sustain our improvement.
This year however, the course decided to charge an additional $750 on top of your membership for the privilege of walking nine holes. We talked to the owner and his rationale was that walkers do not spend any money at the course. They don't pay cart fees and the bar isn't opened when they finish so they don't drink. Of course, he conveniently doesn't count the $2300 membership fee in his argument, especially since the course is basically just sitting there unused until the first group makes the turn. So, my pull cart collects dust in my shed and I likely will not be walking until they change their minds on the added fee.
That is about the dumbest thing I've ever heard about a golf course. Isn't that what green fees or memberships are for? To be able to play the course? If I choose to walk vs "spending money" to rent a cart I need to be penalized? Maybe he needs penalized by taking your business somewhere else.
He would have been better off just saying membership went up $750.
What TV series are you streaming?
in The 19th Hole
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Rewatching 1883 and first two seasons of 1923. Excellent! Never watched and don't want to watch Yellowstone but these series that prequel it are amazing if just for the history.