[Specialty (or limited use) Clubs]

I had three rounds in a row earlier this year where I found myself up against a tree or other obstruction and couldn't get a club on the ball unless I was left handed.  During those rounds I turned an 9 iron upside down and hit out left handed, then one of the course I was at was having a fund raising golf club sale of used clubs.  So, I bought a left handed 7 iron!  I've actually used it twice now this year.  Swinging left handed feels so weird and takes some practice.

[Weight Loss Thread]

As of yesterday i'm officially down 70 lbs since Feb 2nd 2021 (only 7 months).  Keto + Intermittent fasting + exercise is the magic bullet for me.  I'm still losing weight even though I'm not trying.  I want to gain some muscle at this point and stay healthy.  I'm at 18% body fat according to a DXA scan I had earlier this month,  BMI = 22.  My pre-diabetes is reversed (hbA1c = 5.2), my liver function is back to normal, and my kidney function is almost back to normal.  My tina is gone, my skin tags are gone, my snoring is almost gone, my joints no longer ache, and I am able to jog 3 miles without stopping.  Completely changed my life.  I suggest checking it out.

[My DIY Backyard Putting Green]

4 hours ago, juspoole said:

Very nice - thanks for adding all the detail.  Would love to some day have a putting green in the back yard, but probably won't be as fortunate to have it as large.   

I admit I got a little carried away.  total finished size is about 1100 square feet.

[My DIY Backyard Putting Green]

7 hours ago, fozcycle said:

That looks great! What part of the country do you live?

Western Washington State

[My DIY Backyard Putting Green]

During COVID lockdown I bought a net and made a hitting mat so I could hit some balls.  We had this fugly 21’ round pool that we rarely used since the kids moved out.  Spring came around and I was tired of maintaining something I rarely used.    Then I got the bright idea of putting in a putting green.  The pool was on a giant concrete slab with a slight slope away from the house.  I did a bunch of searching online and couldn’t find anybody who installed a putting green directly on concrete. But there were tons of people who put them in on compacted bases that looked like they were nearly as firm as concrete so I decided to give it a shot.  Here are the steps I took.  (sorry I couldn't figure out how to place the pictures with the appropriate step.  You'll have to figure out which is which.)

Step one, figure out what turf was available and how much it cost.  Having someone else install it looked to be prohibitively expensive, so I decided to do it myself.  I got quotes and samples from a couple of different companies and estimated it would cost about $3k.  OK, I can do this.  So I got to work.

Step two: get rid of that damned pool and pressure wash the concrete.

Step three: what to do about holes?  I decided to core drill 4 ¼” holes and bought some 6” regulation cups and pins off amazon (kingtop).  I had to buy the drill bit and drill adapter online, but was able to borrow the drill from my father-in-law.  The maintenance guy at work suggested building a moat around the hole with clay and run water in it to help lubricate the bit.  I also made a jig to keep the bit from wandering when I started.  It took about 30 minutes per hole including rest stops for my aching back.  They turned out pretty good, but not perfectly level.  In hindsight I should have bit the bullet and rented a core drill with stand from the local equipment rental shop.

Step four: decide which turf to go with.  I narrowed it down to a few I liked.  I wanted to have a putting surface and a fringe.  So I took my favorite sample to my local course and laid them on the practice green to see which matched the best.  The samples I chose were almost a dead match for the real thing.  I placed my order and waited patiently

Step five: The turf arrived and I enlisted my neighbors and the truck driver to get the rolls off the truck.  I ordered 3 rolls, one for fringe and two for the putting surface, all 15 feet x 28 feet. The fringe roll weighed 250 lbs. and each putting roll weighed 210 lbs.   There was no way I was doing this myself.

Step six. Roll out the rolls to let them stretch out and make some rough cuts.

Step seven: make some final cuts and seam everything together using seam tape and adhesive.  The seams didn’t turn out perfect, but they aren’t bad enough to affect the ball roll so I’m good with it.  My wife and I did this and we did our best.  Some areas of the seams disappeared while others are clearly visible.  To me this was the most difficult part of the operation.

Step eight: Add sand.  I ordered enough green sand from a local company to have 2 lbs. per square foot for the fringe area.  The turf sales rep told me the putting surface would run at about an 8-9 on the stimpmeter without sand.  So I decided to forego adding sand to the putting surface just n case it was too fast.  Turns out it’s pretty fast without the sand, about the same as my local course.  I ended up purchasing 850 lbs. of sand in 17, 50 lb. bags.  I applied the sand using a drop spreader while my wife came behind me with a broom to brush it all in and stand up the fibers.

Step nine: time to cut the holes.  I very carefully went cut through the turf following the edge of the holes in the concrete.  I trimmed any hanging fibers with scissors.  Then I put in the cups and pins and waited patiently for my custom flags to show up. 

Step ten: Finally, my flags arrived and Margarita Links was officially opened!  While I was installing the putting green the cottonwood decided to start blowing like a blizzard.  I ended up buying a cheap vacuum from Walmart to “mow” the green.  My wife wouldn’t let me use her Dyson.  I can’t blame her.

Step eleven: I had planned on putting my hitting mat directly on the fringe in the area I designated as the driving range.  But, The fibers held the mat up so when I stepped on it the mat would move.  I could actually walk it across the fringe by stepping on it repeatedly.  So I decided to cut in the matt by removing a section of the fringe and filling it in with some remnant putting surface.  I had to patch it in because I didn’t have a large enough remnant to cover the entire area in one piece.  It’s good enough but not perfect.  The mat I bought is a 5’ x 5’ real feal golf mat and is excellent.  I left enough space around the matt to hold a golf ball tray and my skytrak simulator.  Since it’s a square matt I can rotate it if it starts showing signs of wear and I can put the net in a couple of different directions.  Then I drug the net into place an voila, now I’m really done!

Costs?  With sand, seaming tape, drill bit, shipping, tax, etc. my total cost came to $4,127.17  for the putting green and fringe.  The driving range including the mat, net, and ball tray came to $681.48.  Waay cheaper than it would have cost to have someone install it for me. 

It looks incredible and I’m so glad I’m done.  It’s awesome to be able to chip and putt anytime I want or to hit the “driving range”.  I doubt my game will get any better because I’ve been playing a long time and I still suck.  This is mostly for my wife and my personal enjoyment.

 

 

[GOLFTEC Fitting Question]

I had a full bag fitting at Golftec in November 2019.  I'll never buy clubs again without a fitting first.  We tried 7 different brands with multiple shafts and found the combination that was best for me.  They emailed me a PDF of their recommendations compared to my then current clubs (pics attached).  The experience was great, especially since the fitter was also my coach at the time.  I ended up buying my irons through them, but didn't want to shell out for the driver at that time.  I ended up buying the exact driver and shaft combination they recommended from Callaway's used club site.  My clubs work great for me.  I just need to work on that nut that holds the handle.

Ron

[Weight Loss Thread]

Hello, new guy to the forum here.  I didn't expect to see a weight loss thread but thought I'd share my story.  

I went to the Dr the end of January '21 just to get a referral for another procedure but since I hadn't been in since my physical 5 years prior they insisted on doing blood work, weight, etc.  I got my referral but I also got upsetting results from the blood work.  I was pre-diabetic, my liver and kidney tests both showed damage.  I was also 231 lbs and clinically obese (BMI > 30).  I'm 5' 11" so yeah, I was pretty fat.  I had to research the numbers to learn what they meant and then had a follow-up to go over the numbers with my doctor who agreed with my assessment.  I'm pretty sure the blood work numbers were the same 5 years ago, but they never said anything other than lose weight and exercise.  They've been telling their patients that for decades and guess what, it ain't working.  I always thought I was eating healthy and doing the right things.  So on Feb 2nd I decided to do a lot more research and figure out the best way for me to fix this mess.  That's when I stumbled on low carb.  At first I was just low carb'ish less than 100 grams of carbs a day.  I saw some immediate results so I ramped it up and started using our elliptical machine we've been dusting for years.  At first I could only do 15 minutes, but now do 40 minutes almost daily.  I decided to ramp it up further and go full Keto.  I keep my carbs under 50 grams per day and usually quite a bit lower.  I also implemented intermittent fasting with some longer fasts occasionally.  I don't snack and I don't cheat, which I think is a huge key.  When I fast, I do not get hungry because my body is eating fat all the time and I no longer have the carb cravings.  

The results?  I had a second blood test Mar 12th and I'm no longer pre-diabetic, my liver functions have returned to normal, my kidney's are a little better and as of today, (less than 4 months since starting), I'm officially no longer overweight!  I've lost 53.4 lbs with a BMI of 24.9.  I now weigh 177.6 lbs and am a lean mean golfing machine!  I still have some belly fat so I'll continue to work on that.  A lot of people can't maintain this diet for some reason.  There's a guy at work claiming he's doing Keto with no results.  I saw him walk by the other day to the lunch room with two frozen burritos on a plate.  He's also constantly snacking.  I don't think he gets it.  I don't have any problems with it and for me it's not a diet, it's a permanent lifestyle change.  My wife asked me when my diet was going to be over and I told her it was never going to be over.  She saw my initial results and decided to give it a try.  She is now down about 30 lbs and we feel great.  I used to avoid pictures of me like the plague (even before the plague) and now I no longer care.  If I could figure out how to post pictures here I'd show you before and after pics.  Last year me and the guys had a costume golf day and I went dressed as an older fatter Ricky Fowler.  I could barely fit into the orange size 38 pants I bought for the occasion.  Now I'm wearing size 34 and they are getting loose.

If you want to learn more about Keto plus intermittent fasting there are some doctors on YouTube that give great guidance.  Dr. Ken Berry, Dr. Eric Berg, and Dr. Jason Fung.  Just search for their names and you'll see tons of videos on a lot of related subject matter.

Good luck everyone and congratulations to all of you who have worked so hard to improve your health.

Ron

[MGS Forum Badge Catalog]

Hi, new guy here.  Could you add Veteran, Broke 90, and Hole in 1 badges to my profile?

Thanks,

Ron

[Pacific Northwest: AK, WA, ID, MT, OR, WY]

1.    How long have you been playing golf? What’s your handicap or normal score?
I’ve been playing since around 1988.  I’m just an 18 handicap but feel like I’m on the verge of playing some great golf.  Of course, I’ve felt like that for years.  I actually had a 13 handicap for a short while after having the round of my life, then the USGA handicap system penalized me for being 7+ shots better than normal and dropped my handicap to 13.  I'm back to an 18 now, but hope to legitimately be a 13 again some day.

2.    What do you love about golf?
I like taking long walks on the beach and through the woods, as long as I have a shot to the green!

3.    What brings you to MyGolfSpy? Do you already know any other Spies?
I don’t know any other spies, but like the forum.

4.    Where are you from? What is your home course?
I’m from the Pacific Northwest, then joined the Air Force for 22 years and moved all round the world.  I finally retired and moved back home.  Me and some guys from work spend way too much time at Madrona Links in Gig Harbor.

5.    What are the best and worst things about golf in your region?
You can play year round, as long as you don’t mind getting wet and muddy.

6.    What do you do for a living?
IT Manager for a local company

7.    How’d you pick your user name?
I’ve been a Corvette nut since kindergarten, I’m a veteran, and my name is Ron (VetteRon)

Growing up, my parents played a little golf.  I remember watching them hit wiffle balls in the front yard thinking what a stupid game.  Then around 1988 when on leave from the Air Force my best friend from high school suggested we go golfing.  My first Tee shot hit a house, so I reloaded and hit their car.  I've been addicted ever since.
 

I almost forgot, I finished making a backyard putting green recently.  I'll post some pictures in another post.