jlconnolly11

I have never used a Bridgestone ball before, but I have started branching out and trying different brands the last 2 years. I started with(and am still using) Taylormade Tour Response balls, but I have tried out Vice Pro Plus, Calloway ERC Soft, Srixon Q Star Tours, and Maxfli Tours. So far, nothing has felt better than the Tour Response for me. Maybe Bridgestone Tour B RX will?

I generally carry 6-9 depending on the course I am playing and how likely I am to lose a few in the water/woods. I never need them all, but it doesn't hurt. I always come home with more than I started with though. Surprisingly, a lot of people don't want to look very hard for their balls if they're not in the fairway!

I've recently started getting back into the gym, mostly cardio but a little bit of weights as well. I've really got two questions: 1. What types of workouts are you doing that helps increase your swing speed/power? and 2. What types of workouts can you do that will increase flexibility and stability? I'm played soccer until I was twenty, so my cardio fitness has always been good, but I'm newer to weightlifting. I want to gain strength that will lead to faster swing and more power, but I don't want to do anything that would compromise my flexibility or lead to injuries due to stiffness. What do you do or do you have suggestions for workouts to try or avoid?

I'm pretty new to the forums and just now getting to a point in my life where I can spend multiple hours a week playing/practicing. While I'm newer to golf, I'm not new to testing and reviewing products. I'm actively engaged in the unreleased/upcoming product scene in the IT world. I receive and test products several times a year under an NDA with several large networking brands. I've been doing this for about 5 years now. As these are unreleased products, the companies are looking for very specific feedback in order to improve their products before release. That is not quite the case with all of the golf equipment typically available in these tests, but I think the white box golf ball tests and several others have been unreleased products looking for honest feedback. I think my experience in reviewing products, as well as the fact that I'm relatively new in the golf space, would be a benefit to those seeking these types of reviews. I've not come to a conclusion on my top brands in any specific category, therefore I'm not biased by where I think a new product should fit in the industry. This could be seen as a downside, but I think a lot of golfers have preconceived notions about what product should do based on the brand. The MyGolfSpy forums have been a big benefit to my game, and I would like to be involved with helping others in the future with potential reviews.

I understand that X-stiff and stiff shafts are for faster swing speeds and stronger players. I also know that regular and senior flex are for normal or slower swing speeds. However, my question is more about the shaft flex per club type. For instance, I swing a driver around 105 mph on average so I use a stiff shaft on my driver and woods. I don't swing my irons very hard though. In fact, I would rather club up and do a 3/4 swing rather than trying to get every yard out of an iron with a hard swing. I feel as though this has helped me with my consistency, especially on my longer irons. I'm curious if it's common to have stiff shaft in driver/woods/hybrids but a regular shaft in irons and wedges, or if most people just get one type of shaft flex for all of there clubs. Thoughts?

Well, I got an early Christmas gift for myself. I went and got fitted at Golf Galaxy, and the results recommended getting a set of Stealth irons. However, I couldn't justify that price and the clubs I hit second best was the Aerojet irons. They didn't have any LTDx irons in stock for me to test out, but recommended them as a cheaper option with comparable specs to the Aerojets. I spent a good month looking for a deal on a used set, but didn't see anything sub $500 for any in decent condition. Right before Thanksgiving, I stumbled across a crazy sale and got NEW set of 5-PW,GW Cobra LTDx irons for $319 out the door! I've only played them 4 times before it got cold/I got busy, but so far I am very happy with my purchase! Thanks for all of the advice, and I would highly recommend anyone looking for new irons to go and get fitted!

1. Your current driver( photo included) and the story of why you are gaming it. I am currently using a Cobra Amp Cell Silver Driver 10.5 with a Fujikura Fuel 60g Stiff graphite shaft. I have been using this driver since my grandparents got it for me as a birthday gift in 2013. I grew up playing with my grandpa, but by 2013 he couldn't make it out to play anymore and passed away in 2014. I plan on keeping this and passing it down to my son whenever I do upgrade. I have wanted to upgrade for a while, and have tried out some of my buddies newer drivers, but I haven't had the budget (3 kids born in the last 6 years). 2. Why we should pick you to test the driver. I am finally getting the the point where I can play 2-3 times a month now, and I know that doesn't seem like much, but I used to only play 5-6 times a year. I have noticed that my biggest deficiency is accuracy off the tee, and while it's not major, 1/3 of my drives will slice just to the right rough of the fairway on my local course. I know a new club isn't the only answer, and I need to fix my swing to lessen my slice, but I also know a newer, more forgiving driver couldn't hurt! 3. Tell us about your best drive or driving round this season. My best drive this year was on a 340 yard par 4. It's pretty straight, and ends on a down hill slope into the green from about 75 yards out. Normally I land it on the flat part and don't get much of a roll. This time, however, I got lucky and caught a sprinkler head! It hit directly on the sprinkler head and cleared the hill I usually land on, got a nice kick down the slope, and rolled right on the the green about 20 feet from the pin. I have never been more excited to wait while my buddies hit so I could get up to see where my shot ended up!

Yesterday I spent a couple of hours just working on my club distances to see if I had any obvious gaps. The biggest noticeable gap I have is between a 3 Hybrid and my 4 Iron. It ended up being about 30-35 yards. After working on hitting my 4 iron more flush, I was able to decrease it to about 20-25. Good enough for now, but I'll keep working on it!

Thanks for all the advice! I plan on getting fitted sometime this fall to see what would work best for me. Probably going to go the pre-owned route for financial reasons, but the fitting makes sense as I hope to use these for a long time. In the mean time, I plan on trying out ALL of my buddies irons to see if I can get an idea of what I like to give myself a good starting point. Thanks again!

I typically stick with spikeless, so I tend to keep mine for yardwork and other uses even after I buy new ones for golf. After that, I use them til the soles fall off.

I really enjoyed reading this report. It was definitely eye opening and something I'm excited about testing out in the future. For now though, I am still going to buy the best balls I can get on clearance since I know I'm going to lose them eventually. It would be interesting to see a round of testing like this done on mid range balls in the $20-$30 per dozen range. I avoid refurbs and the cheapest balls out there, but I also don't want to throw $50 in the pond every 2-3 rounds.

Another thing that hasn't been mentioned yet is that even if you do all the research in the world, it won't matter if you don't have the basics down. If you can't repeat a consistent swing mechanic on most of your swings, the ball isn't going to make too much of a difference. This applies mostly to beginners obviously, but also those that don't get to play as often as they would like to. One other thing is that if you enjoy playing golf, you can have fun with any ball your hitting. I've sunk many higher quality balls in the lake while hitting some of my better shots with balls I've found in the woods.

Hello! This is my first post! I am looking for some suggestions of what irons would be a good fit for my game. I am 34 years old and have played golf off and on since I was in my teens. In the last year I am playing a lot more than previously. Almost every week at this point. My driver speed is usually between 104-112mph when I to go to a range with a monitor. I have a hand me down set of old(IE 90's) Mitsushiba Vipers with graphite shafts that are definitely showing their age. As I am having more time and chances to play, I feel that I could benefit from a newer set of irons more than anything else. With all of the new technologies and buzzwords, I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed. What do you recommend or what should I stay away from? I've been leaning towards Cobra LTDXs or a Sim Max 2 set, but that is purely based on the price point and looks. Thanks for any and all help!