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Mike Z

 
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Everything posted by Mike Z

  1. First owned: This is a picture of one that is in a lot better shape than what mine was in. Lots of fun in that car.
  2. Bourbon and Irish Whiskies for me. Been going through locals for a little while now. Valentine Mayor Pingree is pretty tasty and working through a case of Copper Craft Single Barrel now. As a once in a while treat, I go to a local restaurant that has Poli Arzente grappa. This stuff is delicious - and expensive. The bartender at this place said if I like Arzente then I need to try Papas Pilar rum. So I did. Very easy on the wallet and enjoyable to sip - similar tasting notes to Arzente but not a replacement. I'm sure its nowhere near as good as the rums listed in the few preceding posts, but I think its a legit start on the road to rum that is worthwhile drinking without coke now and a headache later.
  3. Just pulled the trigger on a new 3 wood. Normally don't do the "latest/greatest" thing so this is a little new to me, but I had some pro shop credit to burn and I didn't really need much of anything else. TaylorMade Stealth with KBS TD 70 Cat 4 shaft. Sadly I won't be able to use it on turf until spring, but will be hitting the simulator as soon as it comes in. Not sure what will be next, but SOMETHING will be next!
  4. As a fan talking about it, I have to say the Masters. Its always been my favorite. It marks the beginning pf spring and the golf season for me. Just all the ceremony and tradition. And it can be argued that the best of the best compete there. With a fan's mindset that's where I would want to hoist the trophy. That said if I were a pro who had worked my entire life to reach the apex of golf, then it would be the US Open I think. Its my nation's championship. It can be argued that its golf's most strict test - no disrespect to the The Open Championship.
  5. Have run into a similar situation. I had success letting the customer (returned his old item he was replacing instead of the item he purchased)know that I was going to make a police report and a report with the postal inspector general if the situation was not cleared up within 24 hours. I got a phone call with payment soon thereafter. In this case it was outright fraud with intent. In your case there isn't any proof of intent. That said, you should stand behind what you sell. If you have a counterfeit product and don't know and sell it, its not right to make that your buyer's problem. Its yours and you can deal with the person/company you got it from.
  6. Then in that case, good morning @Bang60. Hope you had a restful night and have a tee time today. I didn't play a lot of golf for a couple of years. Pandemic, purchased a business.... and once I was able to start playing a decent amount again I started coming back to this site more to feel more in touch with the game. Guess that's my "spy" story.
  7. Amen. And nothing to be sorry about. Had that same feeling when Callaway first did that. To this day I have never owned a Callaway club. I have only ever even played their golf balls when they were free.
  8. Thanks! I am from Livonia. Thanks to both for the comments on the board. I hope my comments didn't come across the wrong way, I was just very surprised to see it in one of the first few threads I opened. I guess all I can say is "carry on, don't mind me", LOL
  9. Not sure I really care about the betting side of it. Kind of sick of betting running the show in a lot of sport. (end rant) If you're betting then you're an adult and you should be aware of exactly what you are betting on. And in the case of golf, that means that situations like this can and will happen. Aside from some possible bad PR I don't see the way this played out as an issue. As for the Cam situation, its his and his caddie's job to know the rules and apply them correctly - whether or not they are always sensible or fair. If I still have to play out of a divot in the middle of the fairway, then taking complete relief doesn't seem like a big issue to me. Side note: have not been on here a lot for a few years. Life/work changes took up a lot of my online and golf time. But from what I remember there wasnt the kind of flaming going on then as there seems to be in this thread. One of the things that made MGS unique. Kind of disappointing to see it now.
  10. Grafalloy Blue Titleist 905S. Loved that setup. Could take anything that i could give it. Diamana Ahina in a Ping Anser is pretty solid as well. Tried the "new" Blue a few years ago and it didnt go well.
  11. 1. Have you purchased any golf products based on MyGolfSpy reviews? (Please list which ones.) Snell MTB. That's about it. I see more of it in the future becase as I read the reviews, it kind of puts information in my head that I will use in purchasing decisions. There's usually a couple year lag, though as I rarely buy equipment before its a couple years old and discounted with the exception of balls. I use too many to wait that long. 2. How has MyGolfSpy changed the way you think about golf equipment? I'm more prone to trying things I would not have before. I almost always have purchased based on what fits my eye and is similar to what I have but a step forward. Now I will widen the field to things I have read about on here. 3. Have these purchases lowered your scores? (List which products and how much they have lowered your scores.) Very hard to quantify. My gut reaction is that being more informed has helped me to play better. How much better is anyone's guess. Knowing more about the equipment not only makes for better purchases, it also helps to save some money and be more confident. So, I'm not sure that quantifying it in strokes does the benefits justice. 4. How have these purchases helped you enjoy the game more? How? Yes, see above. More knowledge = more fun. Less spend (Snell, I am looking at you) for equal or better performance = fun.
  12. The 20* I had purchased is in the bag ans will stay in the bag. The 22* would be in if I didn't have the 20* The 26* rotates in and out depending on conditions (windy and its out). The 30* will stay out of the bag unless something changes. Bottom line for me is that these are good long iron replacements. I guess I don't consider 30* a long iron and 26* is borderline.
  13. Not really. It helps to tee it as low as possible (lower than I hat been used to with the FW-15's). I still think I lose a lot when the ball strikes high on the face but its a little more manageable now. I am guessing that its a function of how high I hit it anyway that a strike high on the face spends its reduced energy going up instead of away from me.
  14. Kind of curious if there is anyone in the forums who had been looking at these clubs and how your impressions compare with the reviews. In comparing my review to the others, I'm the only one who had distance issues using these off of a tee. I'm trying to figure out why. I have a match play tournament this weekend and I am thinking about putting the 26 and maybe even the 30 back into play just for the extra forgiveness and what a good strong long iron shot can do to put pressure on an opponent (also not too concerned about keeping the ball low. The weather looks hot and humid but little wind).
  15. Without giving too much away before the review, these clubs are really easy to hit. For someone who doesn't know what they are they look intimidating. I've asked a lot of people to try them and almost every time I hear some version of "I can't hit blades".
  16. Ben Hogan FW-HI Irons Official MGS Forum Review by Mike Z Player Biography These irons (22, 26 and 30 degree) are being reviewed and evaluated next to the same lofts in FW-15 irons. In order to get in the bag on a permanent basis, the HI's will have to out-perform the 15's. I'm not afraid of long irons at all. In fact there are times I would rather have a ling iron in my hand than a mid-iron. I waited anxiously as the Ben Hogan brand got re-launched and was interested in what they were doing. I played Hogan Apex in various forms for most of my playing career. So each new product (except for hybrids – I detest hybrids) is something that I want to put my eyes on. I became really interested in the HI irons because I wanted to fill a gap between my 3-wood and 22 degree iron. There are 2 spots on my home course where that becomes important. I hit the ball fairly high, so the HI flight wasn't why I was interested. It is because of the added forgiveness and the lower loft available. These are the clubs I am reviewing along with their counterparts: Performance Performance at the Range Describe the following: Accuracy – These irons are fairly accurate. They tend to want to draw a little or a little more than the 15's in my bag. Though the degree of “left” in the HI's isn't at all unmanageable. From someone who detests hybrids because of their “left” that should let you know that while it's there on the HI irons, it's not intrusive. I definitely would not and will not rule then out of my bag for it, Distance – This is where things get interesting for me. I was honestly expecting a little more distance loft-to-loft than the 15's. I expected it because in my minds clubs like the Titleist 712U had a hot face (kind of like the SGI clubs out there that are what I call hand-cannons). The HI's don't have that. They are almost identical in terms of distance to their counterparts. I took a screen shot of my launch monitor of a shot that I thought was representative of the overall with each club and its counterpart. Here is how they compare: 30-degree 15: 30 degree HI 26 - degree FW 26-degree HI 22-degree 15 22-degree HI (a hair thin) - I am going to refer to this later 22 Degree HI (my best swinng of the day – this is probably about 4 yards longer than it should be apples to apples) Trajectory Characteristics – The above numbers tell the story here. The HI's launch about 2 degrees higher than the 15's. And even with a little less spin, the ball flies a lit higher. When hit with the HI's the ball wants to go up. And even with a thin shot, there isn't much of a launch penalty. The thin shot above was a groove low in the words of Johnny Miller. Forgiveness – Stupid easy to hit. If you hit the ball anywhere there are scoring lines the ball goes relatively straight without a drastic loss of ball speed. One exception to this will be discussed below and that is a ball struck high on the face. I will go into the playability of that aspect in a moment but for now the takeaway is that to me the ball seems to balloon and lose a good amount of distance, Control – The surprising thing to me is t how much the ball could be worked. My expectations were a kind of straight flight in the direction of the face at impact. These clubs will give you a fair amount of sidespin when you ask for it. Not as much as the 15's but enough. They won't be kicked out of the bag for being too hard to work. The notable exception is that it is almost impossible for me to hit these low. Even a punch-shot wants to climb. Range Score: (8.5 out of 10 points) There's a lot to like about these clubs. I'd be tempted to score them higher if it weren't for my massive expectations and the difficulties I have hitting these low. FW-HI pulled out a bit Performance on the Course Describe the following: Accuracy – Not much is different here than the range impressions. One addition is that the turf interaction was about identical comparing the HI's to the 15's. I expected the HI's to be a little challenging out of the rough but they weren't. Even with the wider sole they got through the rough pretty well. Distance – The experience with these clubs on the course is about the same as what I saw on the range with one (huge in my opinion) exception. Off of a tee, the HI's were for me easily one club shorter than their counterpart with a high ball flight. The effect is more pronounced with the 30 and 26 degree than the 22 (maybe only a half a club) degree but the effect is there. This is noticeable and material to me as a golfer. If you are considering these irons then you need to consider testing these from both turf and from a tee. Your experience may differ especially if you don't hit the ball as high as me, I would not recommend crossing them off of your list because of this, but you should be aware of the possibility of an issue and find out how it affects you if at all,. Consistency – Same thing here as with the range and noting the issue I had off the tee. Except fo a high on the face hit, the HI's were remarkable consistent shot to shot and because of their forgiveness probably eek out an advantage over the 15's in this category. Shot Shaping – Again, not much different between the range and course in this category. A punch out of trouble requires a bit of added attention if you need to keep the ball low. Carry vs Roll – I am going to reply on the launch monitor data above to tell most of the story here. On the course the HI's spun less than the 15's but the fact that the ball was coming down on a steeper angle pretty much offset the lesser spin. Course Score: (23 Out of 30 points – I penalized these pretty severely for their performance off of a tee) Performance Notes I like the way these clubs perform in all but one area. And even in that area it's not that the club performed poorly, it's that they performed differently than I expected. I had some other people try these clubs and the results were generally positive. I got comments like “the ball jumps off the club” quite a bit. Subjective Looks These clubs look like a player's club. For the extra size, its astonishing to me how well the clubs look at address. I would have trouble telling the HI's from the 15''s from the address position and the 15's are gorgeous to me at address. From the front and back of the head they are also had to tell from their siblings. These look a little clunky to me from the sole, but not enough to dissuade me from liking them. Look quick enough at the bag and you aren't going to notice. Looks Score: (19 Out of 20 points) Sound and Feel Things get a little murky here for me. I SOOOOO want the feel from a classic Hogan blade that anything else just doesn't do it for me. With that said, I think due allowance has to be made for the fact that these are meant to be forgiving clubs and just aren't going to feel or sound like a blade. The feel and sound could best be described as muted. Both are pleasant. Does it make sense to you if I said that the feel and sound are about 80% of what you would expect from the 15's? I do want to make one thing clear – both the sound and the feel will let you know how you hit the ball. I suppose that the feedback is the important part here so no worries. Another thing I will note is that the impact never sounds “cracky” like the sound you get hitting a “hand cannon” (for those of you old enough think 1980's era Wilson Ultra off of a cast cavity back) Sound and Feel Score: (18 Out of 20 points) Likelihood of Purchase I would definitely purchase this product. They are good at what they are supposed to be good at. They are a long iron replacement that plays like a long iron, albeit a more forgiving one. Knowing what I know now I would not end up with up to a 30 degree. The ball flight is just too high for me and almost undesirable off of a tee. I would have at most 2 of these in my bag. Most of that has to do with how high I hit the ball and not needing or wanting the extra height. LOP Score: (18 of 20 points) Subjective Notes Throughout this review I have posted pictures from a recent trip. I was VERY fortunate to be able to cross St. Andrews off of my bucket list. I'm not saying this to brag. I am saying this to set the stage for laying out my thinking of what clubs to take with me and which to leave home. This trip was a once on a lifetime trip and I thought long and hard about which clubs to take. Should I take the HI's? They're really easy to hit and spin less than the 15's. Is the flight going to be too high for the elements over there? What did I really want more? Forgiveness or playability? Turns out that the 22, 26 and 30 degree HI's stayed home. I was too concerned about the height of the shots in the Scottish wind. But that's not the end of the story. As I disclosed in Stage I, I already owned one of these clubs (20 degree bent to 19). That club made the trip with me and took the place of my 22 degree FW 15. My thinking was that as the lofts lowered the “tee penalty” got lower and also at that low of loft the effect of the wind was already as low as I was going to be able to get it. In hindsight, the 22 and 26 degree models would have been fine as the tight lies all but eliminated a high on the face hit. I went into all of that to say this: I had a FW-HI with me and I was happy I had it. I was a little nervous teeing off on #1 at the Old Course so I didn't make a perfect swing, but the technology in the club gave me a perfect result. Thank you to the Ben Hogan Golf Equipment Company and the designers of the FW-HI's for rewarding my trust with 120 yard in from the center of the fairway. Questions & Answers. I am going to leave this spot open as a place to address direct questions that the MGS community may have. As I see them I will add them here and answer them. Conclusion I perhaps jumped the gun and told my story a little early. So at this point I all I have left to say is that if you are looking at a long iron replacement for the purpose of getting something easier to hit than what you have but want it to look like a genuine long iron then you owe it to yourself to put these on the “try” list. If you are looking for extra distance then you probably need to look elsewhere. I commend Hogan for creating these clubs for a specific purpose and creating something that fits the purpose exactly. Lastly I want to thank Hogan and MGS for the opportunity, My experimentation continues and the decisions I made about what to ta with me to Scotland aren't necessarily final with respect to what I am putting in the bag permanently. Total Score: (86.5 out of 100 points)
  17. I want to start this portion of the project by saying “thank you” to MGS, the people at MGS who make the site and reviews work and the Ben Hogan Golf Equipment Company. In sharing the information in this post, my goal is to help you decide how the conclusions I arrive at later on will translate to your game and to what extent they might. I'm 46 years old and have been playing golf since I was 12. Golf has played a big role in my life. I worked as a caddie, bag room attendant, pro shop assistant and grounds crew member (I cut the holes for a summer and that was REALLY fun and I am sure I was anonymously hated at least a few times) over the course of 7 or so years as a youth. I went to college on an Evans Scholarship. And maybe the think that is most important to me now, golf is a bond I share with my Dad. I grew up playing a Donald Ross course and the club I belong to today is a Donald Ross course. Looking back, learning the game on a Ross course definitely has an effect on how I play the game. Fairly tight, small greens that slope back to front. I learned to miss short of the green or pin and to play all different kinds of chips from around the green. I believe it forced me to tend to be a “feel” player. I also became good at taking my medicine and punching out of trouble. I'm between a high 6 and high 7 index most of the time. My driver swing speed in in the 105 mph range indoor on mt SkyTrak. I suspect its a little higher on the course. After completing a swing rebuild a couple of years ago. I went from trying to hit draws to playing a baby fade. The reason for that is that draws are to hooks as kittens are to cats. My kitten had turned into a huge cat. And I grew to really hate that cat. Which brings me to my general aversion to typical hybrids. I call them “hook wands”. I have never met a hybrid I did not hit left. And since I hate left, I hate hybrids. And since I have never had too much of a problem hitting long irons (I carried a 1-iron until about years ago and I could hit it). I also tend to hit the ball pretty high so again there hasn't been much of a need for a hybrid. Hybrids are also U.G.L.Y. I played most of my life with Hogan blades. Apex II. Redlines, PC, Grind, 1999 and 2006 models to be exact. Then, as my swing devolved forcing me into the aforementioned rebuild and the Hogan name was nowhere to be found on a golf club (thanks, Calloway) I bought a set of Titleist AP2's. I never really got to a better place than détente with them. I mention this to highlight the fact that a club has to look “right” for me to feel comfortable with it in my bag. Right now I have in the bag: Ping Anser Driver, 8.5* Diamana ‘ahina X flex shaft Adams Super S 15* 3 wood stock stiff shaft Ben Hogan Fw-15 in 22, 26, 30, 34, 38 and 42 degree lofts with KBS Tour V stiff (22, 26 and 30 being pulled for purposes of the review) Ben Hogan TK-15 46, 50, 54, 58, 62 wedges (same shafts) Putter Du jour that will be well served to learn how to swim So, what do I expect out of these clubs? Let me tell you why I bought one well before I knew there was a review opportunity. I had a gap in my bag between a 3 wood and 22* iron (think 4-iron). A hybrid was out and a 5-wood was out because of the narrow fairways and extremely penal rough where I play. I wanted something that would: Be useful from a number of different lies Be more forgiving than a blade ( I wanted the miss to be a more playable shot) Be useful off the tee Look at least somewhat traditional Give a good (but not too high) ball flight Be able to be kept low for punch outs Not go uncontrollably left That list is my set of expectations for the review clubs with one addition - I have to retain the playability of the club that is being removed from the bag. These have to be a clear plus to stay. I looked at a lot of options (Titleist 712U was on the list for a long time) and really only made my decision after discussing the clubs and options with a Hogan representative. I bought a 20* model bent to 19*. I'm not going to get into a review at this point. It's not time and my review will have a lot to do with the clubs as a long iron alternative and not as a “utility” club. I will share, though, that it's second round in my bag I was about 6 inches away from a double eagle using that club. It's fair to say I got off to a good start with the FR-Hi iron. Let me know if I can answer any questions or if there is some information that I can provide on a comparative basis that you would like to see in my review. Here's a few shots of the clubs next to their FW-15 counterpart: Here's a few pictures of them on their own And here's a picture of the result of a 30* FW-Hi shot out of heavy, wet rough from 170 yards (it stopped on a pretty firm green): :
  18. Just ordered.... expected to ship in 2 weeks. Ordered a 20* bent to 19*. Stoked to try it on the course. MSRP is $169. Not bad compared to the other option I was considering - the Titleist T-MB. Will put a review up when I have used it enough.
  19. We can agree do disagree... I don't fail to acknowledge the quality of the OSU program, yet, the eventual B1G champion did earn its spot.
  20. I don't know if anyone would have beaten Bama in that game. It was obvious to me watching that game that while MSU could hang for a while, it just wasn't going to happen for the whole game. The quality of depth is just too much to overcome. They wear you down and force you to make a mistake. Hats off to Bama,
  21. And that turned-out to be a cruel, cruel joke.
  22. All I can say is that the ending of the Michigan State Michigan game was truly unbelievable. Both teams played pretty well. MSU outgained UM by 150 yards. UM's special teams led by Jabrill Peppers outgained MSU by 100 yards. Peppers is a stud. Both defenses stuffed the run. I cannot imagine how UM fans had to feel after that game. Even worse than what the Detroit Lions do to their fans.
  23. That is a distinct possibility..... MSU can play and has played a bunch better, but I don't know that they will, and UM isn't going to make is easy. Good luck in the game and the rest of the season.
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