driveandputtmachine

I post on both sites, but WRX is WAY more active in the forum areas. So I end up posting more there. I even changed my username here a few months back to match since they didn't for some reason. I learned club fitting a couple of different ways, first from Dana Upshaw. He taught me so much when I was trying to figure some things out. I also did an OEM master clubfitter program(which was a joke and I will not mention which OEM as I am not here to bash and I like their clubs). When Dana passed away I lost someone to bounce questions or ideas off of, so I now get a lot of that info from Stuart and Howard. Opinions on clubs from a company are just like the old saying. I know that MGS is trying to focus on and apply data on their reviews/most wanted stuff, but it will never convince me to buy a club. My swing is weird, everyone's swing is different and unless MGS has me testing something to gather data then their data doesn't really help me much at all on clubs or shafts. Can it give me good starting points for those items? Sure it can. The ball testing stuff since I know my numbers with my two preferred balls I can use that to compare what they show those balls at to the other numbers to get an idea of things that may work. The quality stuff was truly eye opening though, I mean I have never played a Callaway golf ball other than those I may find to hit a crazy shot or buy a sleeve to test because i never liked them for my game, but it was eye opening.

I think after I moved to Atlanta you and I talked about GEA and the Myrtle Beach Golf Talk site both. I was good friends with Brian Noblin that ran MBGT and he also ran a booking service in MB. He is still in MB. We are also both lead tape aficionados, shoot I even have ported my PW, GW, SW, and LW since the late 90's. My parents still live in the OIB area and own Coastal Hardware & Supply in Sunset Beach, so I get down there a good bit to visit. I get a little misty eyed over a few of the courses that have shut down in the south Brunswick area, many were closed 12+ years ago. Angels Trace was a great deal for locals, March Harbor and Ocean Harbor both had some great views on their holes, now you have to go to Tidewater to get those good views right on the marsh/water. OIB Golf Course wasn't a good track but was a good deal for a decent course. Sandpiper has land that goes all the way to HWY 17 and could build at least another 27 holes, the Pearl is finally getting close to building some homes and closed down 6 or so holes out of their 36 and rotate around. Other than the snap hook you have to play off of the tee box on one of the finishing holes there are some really good holes out there. I rode around the first nine holes that were to be the New Ocean Ridge course with the guy who was going to be the superintendent. They had erosion control fabric on the greens waiting for the temps to get right to sod or sprig them and the housing market crashed and good bye to Jaguar's Lair. I saw the overall plan for the 18 holes that were going to be out there and it would have been the best course of the Big Cat's. My grandparents used to go down and stay at my parents place all winter and would join St James back when the only course out there was called The Gauntlet, and I played Carolina National it's opening weekend when Fred Couples was in town for it.

I have been fitted by a top fitter in the US, I know what works feel for me feel wise with shafts. However what I like and what feels good doesn't always work with every head. I know this going in, but I also know what shafts and a general head weight, swing weight, and length will work for me. The problem is that not every head works with this format. Because of the general lack of good fitting locations near me this is how I go about everything, better than off the rack buying and getting out 3 or 4 times in two weeks and couple of range sessions while I demo a driver is going to get better results(for me) than sitting in a bay and banging away on driver. Are there other shafts that could make any head I have played recently better numbers wise? Sure, but I play golf on the course and not on the range and therefore numbers gathered on a range or indoors is only a small part of the equation.

Yes and hopefully they will go and get fit to determine what is best for them. If they are not going to get fit regardless this data is better than anything else out there, by a wide margin.

I am not a statistician but saying each person needs to take a 100 swings with a club for it to be statistically relevant is just silly. You are talking about taking the number of shots from 20,000 shots to 200,000 shots. They have 100 per driver. 35 testers hitting 10-15 shots with each meets a statistical relevance, because there are over 100 shots with an individual driver. Technically at least 350 with each driver, so the requirement is met. Just like when you look at a group of 100 tests and take a statistical analysis, should each student be required to take 100 tests? Or is 100 tests valid? Not 100% the same, but in no world is taking 100 swings with a driver more statistically relevant for me in a fitting than taking 5 or 6. In a year 100 drives vs 100 other drives in a comparison might be good analysis to see which you are better with in a strokes gained type of application, but I know whether I can hit good shots with a driver in two or three swings, this is what this tool can help with. Knowing some basics to determine your starting point. I have a Stealth that I cannot hit to save my life with any of the three shafts I have tried in it. I also will be trying the Triple D Rogue and the Mizuno STZ-220. Why? This test gave me some results to look at those heads, the stealth I tried just because of hype and they happened to have one in U-Try in decently close specs for me. I had tried all of last years releases already.

Happens all the time, the only exception was the Ping G400 Max. It was super forgiving for everyone. I have a Stealth+ on loan from that U-Try system. 30 bucks and can give the Stealth plus a whirl for 2 weeks. Considering I'd lose more the 30 in value buying and then reselling it's worth a shot. I have All-fit adapters on almost every Driver shaft and most 3 wood shafts I own. Yes I know go get fit, but the CC near me all have limited space and haven't been able to register Driver numbers for me with any regularity and the Trie Spec near me uses range balls, but are at least outside. Initial results with the Kalil were horrible. Hooking the absolute crap out of everything. Had to make a weird funky swing to keep it on the planet. That is 6 swings on the range and 5 on the course. I have three shafts set to try this week if it ever stops raining. I will say that I like the look of it so much better without the white coloring. It did produce some stupid length drives, and some stupid depth into the woods on those 5 course swings. I hit 2 out of 5 where they were playable towards the green, one was seriously long. My problem is always having a lot of spin, which isn't horrible, but when I play a driver all the spin comes off the dispersion also goes way down. I would be shocked if any of the shafts I am going to try rectify this for me, as I have not gotten along with TM drivers for the past 4 cycles. My next choices to try will be the ST-Z 220, and the triple Diamond. I did not like the Triple Diamond Epic Speed I tried from last years models. I also want to try the Srixon, just because I have gotten along with everything else they made last year. My Mizuno adapter and an extra TM and Callaway adapter(collar) should be here tomorrow so I can put the TM, Rogue, and hopefully soon up against my Gamer.

I hate hitting inside and getting a time at the Kingdom East is near impossible here in Georgia. Luckily Global Golf has the Stealth in their U-try system and for 28 bucks they will ship me one and I can try it on course. Also another great thing is having the all-fit connectors on a pile of shafts here to try in the head. I haven't liked a TM driver in quote some time, and while I don't expect som eye opening changes, the spin numbers I have seen may be just what the doctor ordered for me.

I still spend a lot of time on WRX, my username is Driveandputtmachine over there. If you are so inclined you will see I do spend quite a bit of time over there. The reason I don't read a ton of reviews from folks is the fact that I have seen over the years people in their honeymoon phase exaggerate their gains with a new club or clubs, I guess it makes them feel better about having shelled out a pile of money for their new stick(s). Also I have no idea how well they were fit for their previous clubs, most will all say they were fit, but many by an idiot. A lot of people say they were fit, and actually weren't and this time maybe they were or they lucked into a club or clubs that actually match up well against their swing. Oh there are people that were fit before and couldn't get a great fit no matter what they tried. Then maybe they lucked into an off the rack fit with a new driver, or actually they were fit this time and are now more optimal. I was the first one personally, I had a G400 Max that I loved because of the number of fairways that I hit with it. It was super forgiving. NO shaft or face angle tweaking could get it optimal. I was fit into my current Epic Max LS, and then I tweaked it above and beyond to get it better. It still isn't optimal, but consistency is more important to me than the occasional long bomb ore even mostly long bombs but with a huge dispersion. I got my center contact more often with my new setup, my off center are less so now, so the Cally is actually hitting more fairways than the 400 max was(according to Arccos) and I was able to drop my spin by over 600. Will I try the Mizuno, Cally, TM, and Cobra releases really in depth? Probably at some point this year, but based on the actual videos I have seen I don't think I will get a ton more out of them. I have hit the Stealth a few times and the Cally and they Cally seems super stable, and the TM seems like it will lower spin, I took my all-fit adapters and rings into a local store where I know some folks and tried out their demo heads. I saw an increase of CH speed of roughly 2-3 MPH with the Stealth, but none of the 6 shafts I took or the X flexes they had on hand were as good dispersion wise as my EM LS. The Cally was more stable than the TM, the ball speed was about the same(I think the average was 1.4 higher than my current EM LS, CH speed about the same, I did not make centered contact as often. I think Cally has increased ball speed in some of the locations where my misses were occurring vs my current, but my dispersion was down. Again I had no extra weights with either and I play my heads at roughly 44.5 and a head weight of 208 with a driver for optimal, however I don't see myself gaining more than a couple of yards with either, and based on a 45 minute session with each, neither will be much better dispersion wise for me. I remember where I was with the EM LS before adding head weight.

I have not read many personal reviews. I know a few people that jumped on the latest greatest bandwagon and have one, one guy was fitted for his. Gaining clubhead speed can be huge for a lot of people. It is not for others who will just hit a club more offline now. As for the guy that picked up 23 yards of carry, at least one of two or three things were going on there. 1. He was not fitted for his last driver. 2. If he was fitted, he was fit by a moron. 3. He didn't hit a single of his drives with his old driver anywhere near the Sweet spot. If you are properly fit for a driver NO new driver is going to give you 23 more yards of carry. Carbon doesn't trick CT. Sure maybe a 4 to 8 yards because your club head speed picked up. Maybe it lowered his spin to more optimal. However you see where I am going he was never optimal in his last driver if his spin became more optimal. I am not doubting that this or the new Mizuno or Cally or Cobra may be a better overall driver for someone. Maybe one of them has really managed to kick ball speeds in someone's normal miss area therefore overall one of these new ones is better, but increasing carry by 23 yards doesn't happen unless 1,2, or 3 from above happens. Maybe two of them(3 and 1 or 2 and 3).

Watch the PGA guys warm up, they'll rake balls over to hit with Irons and wedges, and sometime three woods and hybrids. However I have never seen a single once pull balls off the ground and tee up to hit their driver. Most of them are tossed a ball by their caddy, or pull one out of a bag to hit with the driver. So even on Metal faced woods this is probably a good idea, I imagine even more so on the carbonwood face. Am I intrigued by the carbon wood? Yep. However just like brand new cars I never buy the first model year. Carbon wood saves a bunch of weight from the weight of the face, however they lose a bunch of it in the bracing. In future iterations those weight savings will be more pronounced as they will better brace that face and reuse that weight somewhere else, a savings of 4 grams isn't game changing. Sure the face may lower spin, but so can the design of a head and quite a few other things. Maybe the combo from the carbon wood lowers spin in a way that the rest of the weighting makes it the best driver for me, but it isn't some super out of the blue just game changing difference. Every three years or so there is a club produced that for my swing and delivery makes a big difference. Last year the Epic Max LS was that head. Almost as forgiving as the G400 Max, and yet a lot lower in spin to hit my window more often. I will try the TM, Cobra, Mizuno, and Cally releases this year, but I don't expect a ton of difference from what I currently have.

I wish people wouldn't assume what I have or have not read, and would actually read what I posted themselves. Having a very good friend that was a patent attorney for a top golf company I have learned quite a bit. Can drivers get better? Yes they can, is there some super material that could stay below the required ct mandated by the USGA and produce higher ball speeds, there very well could be. It is not here currently, in last years releases and not in this years releases. Can they figure out how to increase ball speed on more places on the face? Again, yes. Can they figure out a way to make the head swing faster, again yes. That doesn't change the smash factor multiplier to get from a CT to ballspeed. I can also train to swing faster and increase ball speed. THAT IS NOT WHAT I SAID. I said they have not figured out how to trick the CT measurement and produce higher ball speeds and basically get to a higher smash factor. Can they make center strikes produce much bigger smash factors than they do currently? If a new material is discovered or made that can fool CT and increase ball speed, sure. That material is not in any head this year from all of the testing I have seen. So yes ballspeed is currently maxed because there is not a material out right now that can stay below the CT and produce a big increase in ball speed. Can they lower spin? Again yes. Can they do other things to make drivers better? Sure, as I said IN MY FIRST POST, yes they can. Please show me how the great and powerful OZ will stay below the CT and increase ball speed in some magnificent way, because until that happens yes drivers are maxed out as far as ball speed on SS hits.

I have mine still firmly in the bag and it will be staying other than in the heat of the summer the 2 iron may go back in. I have mine in 17* and absolutely still love it. I am adding lead tape to the shaft to get my strike more centered, but the flight and everything else of the stock MMT works pretty well for me. I miss toe side, and therefore hybrids and I have never gotten along.....at all. So the fact that this is still in my bag and I do not see myself replacing it is an absolute miracle with a hybrid.

I have a TM Mini 300 in 13.5 on the way, but I will be using it as a 3 wood, or basically a second tee shot option.

I rarely order the "new" clubs every year. CT is maxed and therefore ballspeed can only do so much. What they can get better is retaining ballspeed across the face and keeping the ball in play across the face. Stealth had me interested because of the weight savings, until I read that most of that savings was used up building the bracing for the new face, so they basically save 4 grams. So no big weight savings to increase the MOI to help keep the ball in play across the face, and from what I have seen the ball speed isn't super special across the face either. I am struggling to see a huge improvement in what SIM2 could do. Sure most of the reviews I have seen are showing lower spin compared to other drivers, but I want my spin in the 2500 range and have that with my current driver. Will I try the Stealth, LTDx, and new Rogues? Absolutely, but I am not seeing anything in reviews that are showing any massive improvement and it will probably be a waste of time for me since I am pretty well fit in my driver already.

I am of the opinion that trying to match your woods to your irons is a fool's errand. First off SW I think is crap. Total weight and balance point(MOI matching is much better) but you still should not match your irons because it is a different swing. Take your driver, 3w and hybrid to the range. Get a large roll of high density lead tape. Experiment with placing on the shaft, head to figure it out. I start with the shaft, many people I see are having issues with super light shafts when their irons are super heavy. Use foot powder spray to determine your strike location as well. You could be hitting many of them off of the heel which could be causing problems with the fade, but more than likely you, like roughly 70% of players, are more susceptible to weight and it causing a timing issue with your driver and woods. Placement on the shaft? You can ring it around the spot 14" below the grip, or you can mark that spot and extend above and below that mark in equal distance. Also on the head, place equal part on the toe and heel if your strike pattern becomes erratic with the weight on the shaft. This is how I self fit my driver a few years back to understand what head weight, shaft weight, and balance point of a shaft works best for me.