TomW

I'm working with my Pro to test out new wedges (Sand and Lob). Learning more about bounce and grind and what makes most sense for the typical New England sand bunkers (not soft and fluffy like Florida). Any suggestions would be appreciated. Thanks.

I did my own ball test at the course yesterday using the GCQuad by Foresight Launch monitor. I should preface this by saying I am 65 years old, 6 ft 4in., and still fairly athletic. My typical driver distance is about 240yds, unless I get a hold of it and can still put it out there around 280. As the great Toby Keith (God rest his soul) would say, "I ain't as good as I once was". I hit shots with my Callaway Apex DCB 7 iron (UST Mamiya Recoil DART Graphite shaft), and my Mizuno STx driver (MFusion D39R shaft). I hit shots testing the following balls: Bridgestone Tour BRx Mindset; Titleist Pro V1; Taylormade TP5 (New); Vice Pro Plus; Snell MTB Prime X When comparing Ball Speed, Spin, Launch Angle, and distance, I found the Bridgestone Mindset almost identically with the Vice Pro Plus. Both the Mindset and Vice fell short of the Titleist Pro V1 and Taylormade TP5 in all categories. This being said, all balls tested were close in the Ball Speed and Distance categories. The biggest differences I saw were with respect to Spin (Back Spin and Sidespin). For example, the mindset showed about 17% less spin with the 7-iron and 23% less spin with the driver when compared to the TP5. In general, I thought the Mindset had nice feel and would definitely play with it, but let's talk about the "Mindset" marking. I took the Mindset out on the course, along with the TP5, and played 18. Identify, Visualize, and Focus they say. I personally find the look of the Mindset marking appealing, but I felt like it could have been a company or college logo and I'd get the same effect. Off the tee, I always focus on the back of the ball (Nicklaus?), so teeing up with the Mindset mark on top was frankly distracting for me. For the 7-iron, the only time the mark would come into play would be on par 3's when you can set the ball on the tee oriented the way you want. (I play it as it lies.) So with an iron off the tee, I felt the same thing. For putting, my experience with the Mindset was less than expected. I know it's me and my putting style and process, but when I stood over the ball to putt, I found the Mindset mark to be a bit hypnotic. Now I suppose that's what Bridgestone wants you to feel, since they say "Focus on the dot" and putt. HOWEVER, for me, I swear it made my brain almost forget the info I stored into it prior to the putt. My putts were fairly consistently the wrong speed. I did not experience this with the TP5, which has the typical direction line. (I don't really consider myself the type of putter who is dependent on direction markings when I putt, sorry. My pre-shot routine is pretty quick and I tend to read it, visualize, set up, take a final look and putt.) I believe, mostly from my younger years, you need to avoid taking too much time over all your shots, because that allows that evil thing between your ears to get too engaged Hopefully this isn't too long-winded, and some of you can relate. I'm looking forward to everyone else's reviews. - TomW, Boston

Got my dozen yesterday. What a nice surprise. The marking is certainly captivating. Our course was expected to open for the season yesterday but in typical Massachusetts fashion, an April snowstorm prevented it. I plan to hit these in the simulator this week and compare to a few other brands.