L.I. Rich

An order for wedges and hybrids I place in the first week of March is expected in May and June respectively. Driver arrived this past week. The reason stated was shaft availability in both cases.

Played yesterday and today in pretty crummy weather, but was grateful that the course for the opportunity to take advantage of it.

Just got word my course is reopening! No practice facilities, clubhouse, restaurant, 1 person per cart. Can’t wait for Saturday.

I placed my order back on February 11, and received it on the 17th. At the time the site said it was back ordered. Anyway, circumstances have certainly changed since then. Courses are closed for who knows how long here, so I should really do more with it than I have now that my golf time won’t be used on the course. My experience with the planemate so far has been quite good, but limited. In the five weeks I’ve owned it, I’ve worn it maybe a total of 2.5 hours, including a 45 minute session in a Trackman simulator bay. I have also played six rounds or so in that time, and have equaled my personal best low score at my home course, and three others were within a few shots. Furthermore, that personal best round closed with a bogey, triple. Ugh. For February and March, these scores don’t happen for me. My low scores come in August and September. Personally, there was a lot of low hanging fruit. The basic protocols have really improved my game from 150 in. I can take a five (let’s say) iron, swing it halfway to halfway, and chase a shot up onto the green (or close and not in trouble) that doesn’t get more than 10 feet off the ground from anywhere now. I used to have lots of trouble turning that shot over and hooking it into fescue and trees. Chipping and pitching doesn’t cause uncertainty. I approach the shot confident that whatever shot I choose, I’ll make clean contact and start it on my chosen line. I used to feel very defensive in the short game. Like someone who reads the last chapter first, I did try the full swing protocols without mastering the early stuff. Full confession, I stink at the one handed shots. I have lots of difficulty still with the top hand (right cause I’m righty) crossing over the bottom on my follow through, around waist high, causing the band to wrap around me. Makes me feel completely uncoordinated. It’s a process and I guess I’ll have to follow it. Now I have the time. This product has been very helpful to me personally. It has helped me with shallowing out the downswing, sequencing, maintaining spine angle, and hip rotation throughout the swing. On the trackman, the results have been a much smaller delta between my club path and face angle at impact. That equals straighter shots. Cheers everyone.

So you can afford your golf habit!

Two daughters in college now and one more will be in two years. $ave a$ much a$ po$$ible!

@GSwag Great post!

Sounds like you’ve found a situation that fits your needs, and with it being non-equity, you have no long term commitment.

If you can afford it and it fits socially, then go for it. Let’s see, what’s not to like? usually much better practice facilities pace of play is better than public = by a great deal near me tournaments and competitions are lots of fun locker rooms, bag storage, attendants demo clubs from pro shop get to test all the new stuff when the OEMs come to do demo days staff are super focused on getting you whatever you need (hustling for tips, but never any sense of entitlement to one) usually nice restaurant and grill room spontaneous access - you can usually just show up and play Potential cons, lots of which are related to having paid up front and being locked in Course maintenance issues for any number of reasons (weather, personnel, etc.) Add on fees (these should be anticipated going in) changes to membership - groups coming or going changing the morale or comeraderie of the membership if an 18 hole club, a sense of lack of variety i was fortunate to be able to go private several years ago, and I have loved it. Definitely not a value proposition in terms of $/round, but I appreciate all the extras enough for it to be worth it.

Amen brother. Thank you!

Thanks RevKev. After posting, I reread a dozen pages or so of the thread to remind myself that gains, plateaus, and losses are all to be expected. I also need to make time to practice. I’m spending time on over speed training, it seems like I need to figure out a way to overcome the time issues and add balance to the off course work.

I’m now in the middle of week five and my speeds are dropping: Green Blue Red Right Left Right Left Right Left Week 1 130 123 120 119 120 111 Week 2 128 122 115 114 113 111 Week 3 123 121 119 112 110 109 Week 4 118 114 112 105 110 103 So far in week five, my speeds are down even more. I understand this is somewhat expected, but it is puzzling. My body feels a little stronger and more flexible, but just not able to get the moves correct to generate more speed. On the course I’ve had quite a bit of difficulty. I haven’t done any practicing between rounds, so the only swings I’m taking between rounds are super speed swings. I’m not hitting fairways and the hooks are showing up in my irons too. I would love to get to the range during the week, but family and work time constraints so far have made that impossible. I have seen some improved distances - on our longest par fours I’ll be hitting PW-9 in, but at the end of the round I’ll have 2 birdies and 4 lost balls. Im going to stick with it and try to get some practice in, maybe have a brief lesson to see if there’s some swing duct tape that can get me going again.

Yes for me, as described above. I think I need to make sure I get some range time in to make sure I can keep the club (particularly driver) swing a good golf swing.

Thank you RevKev. I think I will reach out to them, it can only help. I will have to figure out how to differentiate and focus on fast as opposed to hard. I don’t want to think about mechanics on the course (of course :-)). It’s good to hear you describe the improvement in your iron striking. One of the things I’ve noticed is that my iron ball striking has improved quite a bit. Really crisp, centered, squared up. Stock distances are now former max distances.

Than you Sir!

Thanks for the kind words. I believe that the training works based upon the evidence from this thread, its adoption on tour, and the endorsement from the pros at my club. I think I need to keep up with swing practice as diligently as I am following the protocol to gel it all together.

Maybe there is no correlation between the training and actual driver swing, maybe there is. I certainly hope that I can get back on track.

2/3’s of the way through week three now. So far no bumps in max speeds in training. I had a range session last night to try to work through the driving trouble I had on Saturday. I warmed up, went to the short game area and had a good session. Moved on to the range and was really pleased with the mid irons. Crisp strikes, on target, very consistent. When I took out the 3w and driver, I had all sorts of difficulties executing a swing. I kept swinging as though I was trying to knock the cover off the ball with the consequent effect that I was off balance with poor tempo and shots going everywhere but down the range. It took me about an hour to regain some control and actually swing, not HIT! KILL! the ball. I feared I might be susceptible to this sort of thing, my teachers have always worked hard to get me out of hitting mode and into swinging mode. Has anyone else struggled with this? Anyway, I do find it curious that my iron striking has improved while I’ve gone into hit mode with the driver.

Every time I play Bethpage, I’m shocked at how hard it is to advance the ball from the rough. I have no inside information on the setup, but I will be surprised if guys will be able to score when missing the fairway.

I’ve got two weeks of results to post. The first day of week one, I measured my driver speed on the radar prior to starting the protocol. Measured speed was 103. Green Blue Red Right Left Right Left Right Left Week 1 130 123 120 119 120 111 Week 2 128 122 115 114 113 111 Following the 3rd session of week one, I tested my driver again and reached 111. Week two I did sessions 1 & 2 on Monday & Tuesday, skipped session 3 and driver test. The 130 entry in week 1 was recorded in session 1. Didn’t come close in session 2, hit 123 in session 3. Is the gap between green & red max similar to what others have seen? I played a match on Thursday, followed by a scramble. Won the match and the scramble (yay). I drove the ball quite well most of the day until late in the day when I began missing left. I felt I was on my back foot and couldn’t snap out of it. I played Saturday and it was a continuation of the hooks. On my back foot, poor tempo, ugh. I hit two fairways the whole day, and they were grounders that made it through the teeing area. I obviously didn’t score well, but my irons, wedges and putter were working, so I posted a high/average round. Actually struck my irons quite well. Weird.

Thanks.

I have a few weeks to improvise something to kneel on. I’ll post my first two weeks results when I do the last session in a couple of days. I’ll be playing Thursday and Saturday and I’m really hoping that the ball striking remains steady.

It is the price that’s galling. $50 for a styrofoam rectangle is a pretty bold ask.

Thanks. The mind is willing but my knees are weak!

Awesome