GolfSpy AFG

The putting discussion is weighing on my mind. In my last round with @Ben JoestI putted poorly; I had a quite a few really good chip shots spoiled by short misses with the putter…in most cases I was mis-reading the putt on the low side. I’m hoping to use Stack Putting to work on my putting on my home practice green, but I’m also thinking about working on green reading, specifically AimPoint Express. @cnosil, do I remember right that you’ve dabbled in AimPoint? Thoughts?

I appreciate that; helps a lot. All I needed to hear (read) to talk me out of it.

Okay, so being very much in the rain gear market I have to say, the poofiness thing is a big deal…if a garment is going to interfere with a swing or a putting stroke then it’s game over, right? So, some of you seem to be experience some poofiness and others not so much. What do you think is behind that? Your own build? Are you confident you are in the right size? I’ve spent a lot of time in a weight room so I tend to need L/XL around the chest/shoulders but that’s too much room at the waist; seems like a formula for poofiness as well.

Congrats testers. Really really solid group here…can’t wait to follow along.

Still thinking about a 7 wood. Only problem is it’s not necessarily for a hole in the bag, I’m kinda just curious. Problem for me is I don’t want to try it without “my shaft”…Ventus Blue. Gets to be an expensive toy for curiosity’s sake. I’ve already got a 4h Apex Pro with a Ventus Blue HB sitting in my backup set not being used…

I’m no expert and not in a position to prescribe my own regimen. In short: it had been working until some medical issues got in the way that I’m slowly putting behind me. But, the foundation was speed training with the Stack followed by weights on MWF, then mobility work on Tuesday/Thursday. Not saying what you’re contemplating won’t work, in fact if done correctly it absolutely will. But, just recognize that the absolute most efficient means to gain clubhead speed is variable inertia speed training, re Stack, Rypstick, SuperSpeed.

Agreed. And, if you’re a DECADE believer (like me) you’ll generally agree that starting a putt on line is probably the easiest of the requisite skills for successful putting.

Easy. With my username I’m cultivating a rep as a crusty old hard ass and you’re ruining it.

Well, I’m in no position to say it’s right or wrong, but I’m not sure I would relegate myself to just one particular group of clubs per day like that. That seems very heavy on block practice vs random. In which case perhaps each day should be spent on block practice working on a particular drill or technique issue, and then more random practice in the second half of the practice. Any speed training planned to help pick up that 5 mph?

Chris, it’s too early for me to offer feedback on any improvements or not, but I can tell you the quality is good. Lots of demonstrations of ball flight laws and why things happen, then lots of drills to work on to improve strike quality. Worth $60? Debatable; some of the video is pretty much reiterating what he’s already put out in The Practice Manual, and the drills are not revolutionary or unique to him. But, so far I’m optimistic it was a good investment.

Nice. I think you’ll find the pause in the speed training will actually help your speeds. Plenty of people, myself included, report faster times when they let everything “set” so to speak at the top of the swing before firing. And I should have added the meditation work to my regimen as well. Daily use of my Waking Up membership.

So, you southern boys may not fully appreciate this, but us Northeasterners and Midwesterners are rapidly running out of golf season. In my case, I'll play if it's above 40, and there will probably be the occasional day of that without snow over the winter, but my Ohio golf season is dwindling down. So, I'm turning my attention to how I'll get better during the winter. (My goals for next year I'll save for another time, but suffice it to say: get much better.). As you may have read in the What Have You Bought Lately, I'm suddenly a country club member with a wife encouraging me to play more, so damn it I'm going to be ready next year. First, this will be the first offseason ever where I'll actually be able to take full swings at home. No, no launch monitor, but I've taken some inspiration and advice from a while back from @Tom the Golf Nut, capitalized on a suddenly extremely cooperative spouse, and converted an upstairs room into a makeshift hitting bay. Now, it will be whiffles only, no real balls, but that's okay, because I also bought this... If you're not familiar with Adam Young (of The Practice Manual fame), he's a big proponent of working on skills versus technique, and The Strike Plan is loaded with drills designed to work on the skill of center-face contact. My main goal is to wear those drills out to move my contact into the sweet spot on a far more consistent basis. I'll take 1-3 lessons as well as more of a diagnostic, but the plan for the coming months is to really focus on strike quality. Oh yeah, and plenty of this as well... So, those are my offseason plans. What are yours? And by all means, give me your feedback on my own plans!

In a development I didn't see coming for sure, I joined a country club yesterday! Walnut Grove Country Club in Dayton, Ohio. https://walnutgrovecc.net/ Not the best pics, sorry. I try not to get my phone out much during a round. It's not the swankiest or most upscale club in the area, but it's a nice track, well maintained, and the family will enjoy the pool in the summer, and the bar and restaurant are solid as well. Frankly, it was my wife that pushed me to join, and now she's on me to make sure we get our money's worth! Suddenly there is a LOT more golf in my future than I thought there would be, and I'm fired up to finally drive my handicap down to where it should be! More on that tomorrow...

Actually, get in the Stack app under "Account" and you'll see a link entitled "Refer Friends, Earn Credit." Using that produces a hyperlink you can send to a friend; once he/she uses that link to buy, they get $50 off the purchase (much better than 10%) and you get a free year of the app. I'm happy to refer anyone who might be interested and wants a link, just shoot me a DM.

Sasho does a lot of podcast appearances, and in his most recent appearance he did share that Stackers tend to see optimal numbers in the early afternoon, likely owing to their Central Nervous System being fully activated, warm, and ready to go. Whether someone can rearrange things in order to do their speeds sessions is another question. I typically have to mine first thing in the morning before a workout. For what it’s worth, I do tend to agree with Sasho…on those days where I am off from work and can wait until a little bit later in the day, I do tend to see faster speeds. Anyone who’s interested in the Stack should really find a couple of Sasho’s podcast appearances. I promise you’ll come away really impressed with the man and what he’s put in to this product.

I’m with you Chuck. For me I will play at 40 degrees or higher, provided there are no other elements going on as well.

Congrats!

Thanks Chuck. I did look at some of the others and I’m not sure I’m in a position to say GolfShot is necessarily better, but MGS was pretty effusive in their praise (https://mygolfspy.com/news-opinion/partner-content/golfshot-golf-gps-app-another-app-upping-its-game/). And, if it can give me Strokes Gained and max out the utility of the watch I’m happy.

@WaffleHouseTour this is great stuff. That “chest poof” is exactly one of the things I’d be concerned with in buying rain gear; I’ll be really interested in your upcoming chipping and putting feedback. I guess my only comment on any impacts to clubhead speed is that driver would probably show the greatest disparity…it’s the one club you’re trying to hit as far as possible rather than a specific distance, so you’re very likely to have a longer range of motion, greater intent, etc. What you’ve done here is great, don’t get me wrong, but I’ll be interested if you perceive any lost distance from the tee box when you get on course.

Much lower annual rate, no green sensors. So far so good. Now, does it work…

$60 annually, but I’m willing to pay that since it also offers Strokes Gained analysis and links and posts to my handicap.

After dumping Arccos in its entirety, I just downloaded and bought a Pro membership with GolfShot GPS. It promises Apple Watch integration, real time distances, and shot tracking without sensors. We’ll see…

So @Ben Joest, I’m curious what you’re doing off the tee. Do you typically hit a cut or a draw? Are you a guy who sticks to one shape or are you trying to work the ball? Just kind of curious how much consistency concerns are equipment versus swing related…

So, I finally plugged the sensors into my Edel's (it pained me to do it), set everything up, and took Arccos back out on the course, this time via my Apple Watch. The Good The watch interface was extremely user-friendly, and constantly provided me with accurate GPS data. (The second pic is a comparison to the cart GPS showing a back pin.). Setting the pin location (last pic) is also easy; easier than with Link actually. Starting up the round, navigating holes, the watch interface is truly flawless. And, I did not experience any watch battery drain. I've heard this complaint before from other users, and perhaps this just owes to my Apple Watch being a brand new Series 8, but battery life was not a problem for me. The Bad I shot a 69! Except I didn't, I shot an 80. Using the watch showed me no improvement in detecting shots, and in many ways it was worse. It actually missed more than 11 shots, but it also did the fun trick of adding shots on other holes. For instance, I had a par on the par 3 6th hole, and Arccos recorded a triple! I have no idea why that would happen either, in fact if you've played with me you know I am very light on practice swings and I take no practice strokes on the putting green, so what the hell Arccos is picking up is beyond me. So, the final verdict: the watch, for me, does not fix what for me is a fatal flaw in inaccurate shot tracking. If I'm going to have to go in and manually update my shots, then I plan to get GolfLogix or GolfShot for watch GPS usage and renew my DECADE account. Arccos is just not as user-friendly as it's supposed to be in my experience, and I've elected to not renew my subscription as a result.

Exactly what I’m thinking