PING Apologist #9

THAT is outstanding!

Hitting into my new backyard net again tonight was a much better experience. Applied my lessons, things I've absorbed from the "net" and just basically relaxed. Hit well throughout he bag...I love having the option to pound a bucket here at home. After, I worked on putting with the advice given by Grandmaster Spy cnosil and did very well. It worked for me straight away. All I have to do now is make it a consistent part of my game and I'm golden...Heh...easier said than done... I'll keep at it though in hopes of repeating "good" habits and losing the bad ones. Thanks GMC!!!!

Hey there pulledabill. I'm struggling with my grip too, but with just one lesson and using the SKLZ grip trainer for a short time, I've managed to get it under control. Those aren't the only resources I've used either. Check out this fella on Top Speed Golf, Clay Ballard. He's one of my top go-to's and you'll be surprised at how much you can get that grip under control-and fast! I've also posted a thread about grips issues just today. Check it out. the Spies will help you!

That's good stuff! Thank-you very much Sir! I'll try this out tonight and report back. Cheers!

Great question! Same backstroke for all and changing speed. On my "putting brown" (living room carpet), I have about a max distance of around 10-ft to play in, so my variables are limited a bit. I generally roll from 3', 5' and then 9 or 10' when putzing around. I just started this little experiment so real-world feedback has not been gained yet. Ideas? Suggestions? I'm open to all.

Last night after things settled down a bit after dinner, I worked on putting a bit. I'm trying something I've been hearing more and more about in reference to the putting stroke as a whole-that is the 1/3 to 2/3's principle. My stroke has been 50/50 (50% back & 50% forward) and I'm not consistent at all with it. By only taking back by 1/3 and following through by 2/3's, I'm seeing a bit of light and it's promising. I'm thinking that with less of a backstroke, it's taking some self-introduced flaws away and the 2/3 forward stroke helps to project the ball toward the target area more crisply. I will continue with this method for a while to see if there are true results for me.

You just described my round on Sunday to a T. My iron play was ***t but my driver sang. I had 3 monster (for me) hits that exceeded 250 and laser-straight. If we both keep at it and chill, maybe one of these days we'll both be on the happier side of this thread... Cheers!

I got real lucky when I selected my 3H. It really is one of my favorite clubs to hit. Total laser beams out to 200. I'm considering ditching the 4I for a 4H. I just cannot seem to hit my long irons worth a darn generally

I'm currently subscribed to: Shawn Clement-He's really easy to understand and has a simple task-oriented method of teaching that I like a lot. Top Speed Golf-These guys are really wired tight! Very easy to understand and they have fantastic drills that really help. Mark Crossfield-Great reviews and I love that wry British humor. Fried Eggs Golf-Randy here has world-class production value, is incredibly funny, insightful and humble. This is the channel I look forward to seeing most often. I just don't understand why he doesn't have a billion subscribers yet..! Come on Spies, help him out! Randy is absolutely f-ing hilarious!

Hit Desert Canyon over in Mountain Home yesterday. Had bursts of brilliance twisted up with staccatos of stupidness .

I'm all fixed up, thank-you very much for this and everything you guys do. We are all lucky to be a part of this and it is my pleasure to have been able to contribute a bit. Cheers!

Good stuff, thanks!

It's opening for me now, still no USA hats, bummer...

Unable to access the store this morning for some reason. I'm hoping there are some updates happening to it like the addition of MGS USA hats that seem to be elusive...

How'd I practice today? Well, I finally got my hitting mat paired up with my hitting net, got a bunch of x-out balls, got them all set up in the back yard and started a-whacking... Took my Pro's lessons to heart and did my best to morph my grip to a more "strong" type, then worked on a new take-away along with a new follow though, and generally did...well intermittent... I got a long way to go, but there is hope...maybe. Started off the mat with PW, hit most fairly well. Moved to 9-I and did ok. Pulled out the 7-I and faired better but while hitting the 5-I, I definitely went south. Grabbed the driver to gain some semblance of "normal" and cranked a few decent ones but with some reservations... Decided to pull my trusty 3H and laced several good ones and followed that up with some positive shots with the 3W. Back to the driver and NO JOY. F-ng disaster. I got a lot of work to do, but the good news is that gripping with a more "strong" grip is feeling more and more comfortable, and I can certainly feel the extra power it provides vs. my "neutral" original grip. I also am working on a better wrist hinge and lag. When these all come together, my ball speed, accuracy and distance all seem to come together. More sessions are definitely in my future. I like having the flexibility to create my own range at home. I have great expectations it will be a positive thing for me in the long run. Weird...right Spies? I wish I had taken this little excursion more seriously back when I was 25-30 and not while pushing 50. I'd be better off, but honestly the journey is really fun with all of your help, and that wouldn't have been possible even 10-years ago. Cheers and "Play Your Best" !!!!!!!

Training aids, and boy do I need them. Fresh off my club eval/lesson, I've picked up a hitting net (already have a mat), bucket of x-out balls, alignment sticks and a Sklz grip trainer. My lesson definitely proved that I need to work on a stronger-style grip and also work on getting my swing to start back more toward the inside. I also need to stand taller and with a narrower stance. To achieve all this, I need to seriously develop some solid brain memory so it'll be more natural for me when on course, therefore I'll be setting this up tonight and start wacking...

Greetings MGS. I just donated the other day and was kind of surprised that there seemed to be no link between the donation page and my forum profile. My profile still does not show that I'm a donor and I was wondering if I did something wrong or if I missed a step. Ideas? Suggestions?

Fog is burning off and have a tee-time set for 1:13 despite my wife asking if I was "crazy". Well....Yes. Yes I am! No apologies, hitting the links!

Hang-10 Bra! My uncle, an original long-boarder from the 50's taught me to surf way back when. My home beach was Tourmaline Bay on the North end of PB. He even taught me to sail on his old, old Hobie cat (sail # 300 & something I think) and we surfed Tourmaline with it too. Good times Bra!

Second time out by myself in the past 2-weeks-weather in Idaho this last couple of weeks has been chilly, but very playable. Did 18 today, front 9 with a father-son duo and then left alone for the back 9 with no one behind. Took my time and made a day of it. Pared all par-3's, had my fairway woods, hybrid and most irons singing for a change... My driver and putter were absent however..! Ah well, great day out there!

In from 18 in Idaho today...! grabbed a couple of Mike's Mango Extra Hard's and backing those up with sips of Evan Williams Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey. Good day!

Well...I'm kind of a weirdo I suppose. I'm near 50 (this year in August) and I've never been a part of anything like this...ever. Now my job is very "tech-ee", but even so, I still went kicking and screaming into my first "smart" phone when the first Motorola Droids were released way back when. I'm kind-a an old fuddy-duddy for stuff like this..! So long story short...er, maybe..! I found this site last year when the Golf Bug bit me, looked at the all articles and cruised through many of the forums picking up all sorts of good nuggets from many of you great folks. When I jumped into the sport feet first last summer and decided to join MGS, I was then be tasked with creating my first ever screen name. My original was the "Duff-Man" from The Simpsons ​TV show which my first thought and also happens to still be my login name. But after creating that name, it dawned on me that I could do way better and also be a bit, well...unique. PING became a reality for me after lots of on-line research. Their engineering approach to things REALLY appeals to me, so too does their marketing and branding...they really are just what I was after. I watched a tour of their facility on line once where they employ Americans on US soil (a big deal to me) that assemble and tune their clubs. That blog also had a total fitting included a peek into THE vault...after that, it was all over for me. I am PING. That and I also have a great sense of OCD. So, when I began to acquire my own set of swingin' stix, I could not bring myself to deviate from the brand-at least to start and to-date. Therefore, I was a PINGMAN! But that was way too obvious. Ping Apologist #9 just seemed...well....right for me. The "Apologist" was funny to me since I knew once I built my signature showing my WIMB, that I thought many of you more experience types with a grab-bag of various brands of custom sticks would surely get a laugh at the "new guy". The #9 is only 'cuz that it is my lucky # and the number I wore all through high school and Babe Ruth ball way back when. It also leaves room for 1-to-8 to chime in...heh...

Based on MGS reviews, I've used that knowledge base to ultimately grab up my bag, umbrella, sunglasses & gloves. In the forums, I've picked up more info, like ball types and even socks (Kentwool!). Both have been very good resources for us gearhead types.

For Christmas this year, our house rewarded us with the immediate need to replace our drawer-style $1k microwave oven-yesterday..! Thanks house! This is on top of the year of never-ending joy of our home-owner cheer. During the past 6-months we've been rewarded with a new dishwasher, garbage disposal and for laughs, a replacement 65" TV...all of which have found their way to go "f-it" suddenly just after warranties have lapsed..! Hard sometimes to justify a sometimes "leisurely" lifestyle where the occasional golf game is involved and have to constantly juggle those "important" disposable "needs" with actual required expenditures... Damn

Judas (blanking) PREIST METAL GODS nuf said