Stephen Lee

I definitely hit more greens when hitting more fairways, although the difference is only 2 greens per round. Generally if i'm in the fairway I'm going to get more roll and i probably struck it better so i end up with shorter distances into greens as well as the additional distance control that you're going to get with a fairway lie.

If you're ever looking at equipment look at the guys (and girls) who don't get paid to wear this stuff or play with the clubs they have. Guys like Brooks or Horschel who don't have club deals. Better to look at the LPGA and the senior tours as well as mini tours and qualifiers to see what people are wearing out there. Especially with anything for durability, nobody is a better shopper than a mini tour player

I highly suggest their online fittings. You submit a video of your swing and they'll fit you for a ball. I play with the B X and I really like it but will be experimenting with the Prov1 and the left dash over the winter. No complaints about Bridgestone from me though

Agreed with everything. Seeing as my ball striking has been solid and my tee shots are really what is kicking me in the teeth, i've kept the weights in the heel for now to maximize consistency. I started keeping track of how many greens were missed because my tee shot was in a bad place. Usually, 4/8 of the greens I miss are due to my tee shot being left in poor position, not my actual ball striking. And for whatever reason, going to 3 wood or 3 iron has been finding the fairway even less than the driver with this set up. That being said, probably mostly a mental block there

Anyone playing in the golfweek am tour finals in Hilton Head?

Howard county! Born and raised in Clarksville.

Yeah that's pretty much what i'm searching for. I mean ideally what i'd like to do is just tighten it up a little bit. My issue is keeping it in play at times and that's when the big miss comes out. If i can produce a shot where my miss is ok and my well struck ball is good, i'd rather have that then a great ball when i hit it well and a penalty stroke when i don't. That being said, i don't want to get too comfortable with the weights set up for consistency and possibly be sacrificing 20 yards forever Yeah sounds like we're in very similar boats. In the long run, it's not making any REAL difference but this game is of course a constant pursuit of perfection that will never end haha. Keeps me searching for every yard I can muster out of this 130lb frame!

I've just moved it back to center yesterday. I haven't played yet but the past 2 months i've been hitting it out of the center face to produce a straight ball / little draw. It's felt like i've been hitting it out of the toe but in a weird good way that's hard to explain? I've felt like i've been able to release the club a lot better too with the weight in on the heel. Hopefully moving it back to center I can maintain the same release and continue to produce a straight ball flight maybe a slight fade.

Yeah i understand all of that but my issue is my strikes are very consistent and not horrible so should i really be moving the weights back to try to find the center? Do I need that to maximize distance or is my distance already maximized with my new "center" now being where my strikes already are. So my main question is, do i need to move the weights back to center and go through a swing/setup change and find the center to maximize my distance or is it already maxed out with my strikes being there and the weights being moved to where they are

Personally I have a 3 iron and a 5 wood that i swap based off of the course and the conditions. If we're playing about 7,100+ yards I won't usually be hitting any 3 irons off the tee unless it's a really firm course so I'll use 5 wood. Anything less than that and I'm usually hitting 3 irons off the tee 2-3 times a round. Or if it's windy I'll go 3 iron. I have a high bounce 60 degree that I pretty much never use

Exactly, it's way less normal than my typical shot which is just barely on the heel, when i say on the heel I literally just mean maybe a quarter of a ball in on the heel. My last important tournament of the year is the Maryland Mid-Am in 2 weeks (I see you're from Maryland as well). I'm definitely going to keep the weights where they are for now because I find the fairway more consistently. That's worth giving up 15-20 yards for me to eliminate the big miss and probably 1-2 penalty strokes a round. But that's kind of what i expected to hear. I'll move them back to the center in August and work my strikes out towards the toe over the winter break. Side note- my distances are at 1,500 ft altitude but going back to Maryland they're down a touch from those numbers listed

My typical miss with my driver is in on the heel. I VERY rarely miss out on the toe, maybe 1 in 100 shots if any. 60% are probably just a bit in on the heel, 20% way in and low on the heel, 20% dead center. That being said, usually I'll have days where typically everything is in the same place. I'm rarely missing all over the face. So i can play my miss. If i'm hitting it dead center, I can play a straight/slight draw and get maximum distance off the tee (315 or so) but i can work it either way if i want to. If I'm missing it with my typical just slightly off the heel strike, I play more of a baby fade that's super consistent but not as long (290ish). If I have the big low and in on the heel miss going, I have to play a harder cut that kills any distance on it and I average around 265. I moved the weight into the back into the heel (D1 setup on the hozzle) and it makes my 60% shot of a little in on the heel more of a center strike maybe a little toey on the new "center" and it eliminates the big miss. It allows me to play a baby draw/straight ball more consistently. My problem is that even when i'm hitting the new "center" of the club, I'm only getting 290-295 on shots that feel like they should be closer to 315+. That being said, the big miss is gone so i think it's the right setup for me. But seeing as I am a 1.3 handicap and been dropping since i started 3 years ago, am I doing the wrong thing by essentially training myself that a slight heel strike is the "center" of the club now? Will my distance forever be limited by the fact that i have to move the weights into the heel? Or should I be getting the same distance as a center struck ball with weight in the center?

Agreed, that's definitely on the list for myself but I'm ok with a 20-30 minute drive if need be. Usually in that range I can find something that's affordable. I'm also moving in with my girlfriend right now so rents now have a nice 50% off sale! Also on my list is an affordable enough airport nearby but I live 2.5 hours from the airport now and it's not the worst thing in the world. So pretty much anywhere has some sort of a major airport in that range. However both of those are things I will strongly look into as well

I'm looking to move again next year back to the US but I'm looking for a club that fits my needs. I've previously lived in Daytona Beach, FL and played at LPGA International (36 holes, amazing practice facilities, amenities are ok, $267 per month no cart fees after 3pm no initiation) and now I live in Colima, Mexico (18 holes, average practice facilities, 5 star amenities, great membership community, $221 per month no initiation $50 a month cart fees). Unfortunately it seems like I'm in a very small minority that picks a course and then moves based off of that. It's extremely difficult to search for memberships when I have no real criteria for my location and 99% of clubs don't put membership pricing online. It results in a ton of time spent emailing people often getting no responses and researching. That being said, I am willing to move pretty much anywhere but i don't even know where to start. Drop some suggestions below if your club or one you know of fits most of my criteria. Under $350/month including everything (I am 26 so qualify for a young executives membership or something similar in most places). Initiation fees also a minimum ideally because I tend to move around a lot. Cart fees included or able to be paid monthly, quarterly, annually, etc. I play 4-5 times a week and even if cart fees are $5 it ends up being a massive cost 18 holes in fairly good shape and long enough for me to properly prepare for courses i'll face in tournaments. I play some tournaments at 7,500+ yards so a 6,000 yard course just doesn't give me enough preparation for that Able to play year round and not hate my life out there in December Some strong membership would be nice with the ability to challenge myself against other members that are in the neighborhood of scratch or better, some membership tournaments, etc. Good practice facilities would also be nice. 3 practice holes at LPGA International allowed me to actually practice hitting wedges into greens and shots off the tee into the fairway and that was huge. But at the end of the day, a good short game area is what my game really needs A solid gym that has actual free weights not just machines and dumbbells Drop some suggestions for me! PS- i don't understand why a website like this or a service doesn't exist, I feel like it would be mutually beneficial to both the clubs and people inquiring. It's on my to-do list to start a website like this but it's a long list

They should be able to bend a 54 to a 55 or 56 no problem if you're looking for a cheaper fix

Any members in Mexico? I'm south of Guadalajara in Colima

My typical miss with my driver is in on the heel. I VERY rarely miss out on the toe, maybe 1 in 100 shots if any. 60% are probably just a bit in on the heel, 20% way in and low on the heel, 20% dead center. That being said, usually I'll have days where typically everything is in the same place. I'm rarely missing all over the face. So i can play my miss. If i'm hitting it dead center, I can play a straight/slight draw and get maximum distance off the tee (315 or so) but i can work it either way if i want to. If I'm missing it with my typical just slightly off the heel strike, I play more of a baby fade that's super consistent but not as long (290ish). If I have the bid low and in on the heel miss going, I have to play a harder cut that kills any distance on it and I average around 265. I moved the weight into the back into the heel (D1 setup on the hozzle) and it makes my 60% shot of a little in on the heel more of a center strike maybe a little toey on the new "center" and it eliminates the big miss. It allows me to play a baby draw/straight ball more consistently. My problem is that even when i'm hitting the new "center" of the club, I'm only getting 290-295 on shots that feel like they should be closer to 315+. That being said, the big miss is gone so i think it's the right setup for me. But seeing as I am a 1.3 handicap and been dropping since i started 3 years ago, am I doing the wrong thing by essentially training myself that a slight heel strike is the "center" of the club now? Will my distance forever be limited by the fact that i have to move the weights into the heel? Or should I be getting the same distance as a center struck ball with weight in the center?

i had issues with this. I emailed them and they sent me new ones pretty quickly. I can hear the noise they make when they're working so it's easy for me to tell when they're not. Not sure if anyone else hears the faint screeching noise as well. Doesnt bother me but its a good indicator of if they're working or not

my thought is that he was probably trying to get a little more forgiveness than the 100's but went into the 200's vs the driving irons to launch it a little lower. just a guess

2nd swing is the best place for used clubs. No competition especially if you live near one and can get a free fitting. I got an old demo set for 1/2 off retail. Only the 7 iron had the plastic off, the rest looked like they had never been hit

i would agree, weight probably getting over your toes. If you stand too far from the ball, subconsciously you lean into it and obviously your strike goes closer to the heel. Harder you swing, more your weights going to move which makes sense why you can half swing it alright. When you set up, set up a little closer to the ball. Get set and then pause, move your weight back onto your heels, feel the weight transfer to the heels, then make your swing focusing on keeping the weight in the heel portion of your foot. It will feel really weird but in reality it'll probably end up being around the middle of your feet and with time it'll become muscle memory. Good luck!

What's your main problem? or do you know your main problem? Are you chunking, thinning, just inconsistent all around? Maybe post a video and that would help us recommend training tools because it's not clear, at least from the post, exactly what in your chipping that you're looking to fix

I went from Taylormade M4's to Honma TW747v's (not blades but close) when I was about a 10 handicap and now i'm down to a 1-2. I was having issues with the glue on the clubs and had club heads flying off and Taylormade was being a pain about it so I figured it was time to upgrade anyway. I found them much harder to hit at first but once i got used to them, I was able to work the ball either direction. With the M4's, my problem was that there was so much offset. When i tried to hit a draw and caught the middle of the face it would turn into a hook 20 yards longer than my normal shot. With much less offset and a face that isn't as hot, I don't have that fear. The other would be the distance. I don't need a 4 iron that goes 235 yards that I can't stop on a green. The Honma's closed the distance gaps a bit and took away the fear of hitting it "too well" and having it explode off of the face with a ton of side spin

Thanks!