Pupini

April 8

Thought I would give everyone a quick update. Picked-up my new Ping 425LST last week. First impression is that I made the right choice. I was able to play 18 holes and the results were eye opening. I hit 11 out of 14 fairways and my misses were 5-10 feet offline, not "other fairway" misses. I had swings that felt horrible and I expected to see the ball inline for the trees, but to my surprise, they held their line and wound-up in the rough, but playable.

The result was my first sub-80 round in two years and I attribute it to more fairways hit and always having a playable ball of the tee. I have another 18 scheduled for this weekend and I hope to see the same results.

March 24

I went for a full driver fitting a few weeks ago and the best shaft for me was the KBS TD with the Ping 425LST. After going through the fitting, I am now a firm believer that there is no one size its all approach. Just because I like the KBS TD with the PIng, doesn't mean it will react the same when paired with a TM or Callaway head for example.

March 20

I was in a similar situation. Had shoulder surgery, turned 47 and my joints couldn't take it anymore. I had played TTS300 or Rifle shafts in my irons since I was 25. I went for a fitting to get new irons and was recommended the Recoils. Great shaft and I loved it. PGA SS recommended a set if Mizuno's that would have cost me $1,200+ and I just didn't want to spend that much. I bought a set from Sub70 and based on my specs and what PGA SS recommended, they put me in a set with the Aldila NV iron shaft. These shafts are great. Very similar feel to the Recoils. I would add those to your list.

March 17

3 hours ago, RSS said:

Thanks about 10 yards shorter on average with roll and Ping dispersion was tighter groupings with TSI2 2nd.

Thanks

How many rounds have you played with it? I just bought the Ping 425LST because the Max gave me too much spin. I've always been long enough that I would gladly give up 10 yards for more accuracy, so it's more of a personal preference.

March 14

22 hours ago, Middler said:

I am definitely considering reshafting one club to see how it plays. I don’t know much about graphite shaft options yet but I’ve heard good things about MMT’s and I know Recoils are a common choice **. I am leaning toward reshafting as if I bought new I’d probably just get a newer version of what I have - and I hit them and didn’t see any difference, if anything a mildly harsher feel.

** I’m playing the XP95 S300’s I was fitted for now. I’d probably go with Regular flex and about the same weights.

Great Idea. I was in the market for new irons so I went to PGA SS for an iron fitting. I picked up a few MPH with graphic. Then I went to the Sub70 website and ordered a few demo clubs in graphite. After bringing them to the course and range, I was hooked. I am 47 years old, but had shoulder surgery last year. I wish I made the switch sooner.

Some good shaft options include the Aldila NV and the Recoil. I went with the Sub70 irons which saved me about $800.

March 14

I just went for a fitting and was placed in a Ping LST driver head. Heads are very subjective to feel, sound etc. However, when looking at shaft options, I would HIGHLY recommend the KBS Tour red shaft. I hit the the Ventus, Sensei and found the KBS to be an absolute perfect fit for me. I have a similar swing speed and as you.

March 11

1 hour ago, cnosil said:

The KBS shaft isn't on a lot of people's radar; I just don't think KBS promotes it enough. I have the shaft in my driver and I agree with you on it being a great shaft.

I wasn't familiar with it, but like I said, it was very impressive.

March 10

First of all, thanks to everyone on this forum for the advice. Knowing that PGASS has a 90 return policy I purchased a Ping 410Max (Pro Stiff Shaft) two weeks ago because it was $100 off. At the same time, I scheduled a Driver fitting thinking that if I needed a shaft upgrade, I could still get it and I would be $100 ahead of the game since I already saved on the cost of the driver. I've never been fitted for a driver and it was an eye opening experience. Here's what I learned....

Before getting started, I told the club fitter that although I just bought a new club, but was open to anything -shaft upgrades, new driver, etc. I wanted him to keep an open mind so he could find the right driver for me. I also told him that I wasn't concerned as much about maximizing my distance on sweet spot hits, my focus was minimizing the damage on off-center hits or poor swings. I'm 5'4" with a swing speed between 108-113 and there are a lot of moving parts in my swing. Lots of leg action and sometimes poor hip rotation so my miss is often a push/block with a weak tail.

After warming up with a 7-iron, I took 10-15 swings with my 410 so we could determine a baseline. From there it was a fun exercise of trial and error trying different heads, shafts, combinations and fine tuning everything.

A few quick observations (from what I experienced during my fitting). All of today's high-end drivers are really good. The difference between club heads on well struck balls is minimal (a few yards). I hit the Ping 425 series, Titleist TSi3/TSi2, Sim 2, Callaway Epic series, Srixon, and the Cobra.

I also tried a bunch of different shafts, Tensei Orange, Ventus Blue, Ventus Black, Mamiya Lin-Q Purple, and the KBS Tour Driven Red. Again, each of these shafts performed really well. I've read good reviews on this site about the Ventus and the Tensei, but the shaft that impressed me the most was the KBS Tour Driven. All shafts that I tried were X-stiff. Until now I've played a stiff shaft because I thought that my swing speed fell into the stiff category. The Tensei was good, but it didn't produce the low spin rates I was searching for on mishits. The Ventus Blue and the Lin-Q were both excellent. Good spin rates and overall distance. Very good and I would recommend both. The KBS was a clear winner. I had my three best hits of the entire session with that shaft and the Ping 425 LST. If anyone is looking at a shaft upgrade, I would highly recommend putting the KBS in the mix.

In the end, I wound-up going with the Ping 425LST with the KBS Tour Driven Shaft XS. The combination of the two here spot on for me. The dispersion of my misses was reduced greatly because it kept my spin rate below 3000. My miss tends to be towards the toe and high on the face. There we some balls that I hit on toe that carried 260, rolled another 20 yards, and they were only 20 yards offline. Previous setups would have that ball 30 yards offline. It was very impressive to see how important finding right combination of head and driver are in results. While recommendations on shafts and club heads are great, nothing can replace a good fitting.

PGA SS used GC Quad for the fitting and the cost was $49. Not bad.

March 4

Thank you again everyone for the advice. I decided to buy the 410 Plus with the tour 65 shaft. While I was there I signed-up for a driver fitting knowing that I can return the club for credit within 90 days if I don't like it or if there is one that is much better suited to my swing.

March 4

How long have you been playing golf? What’s your handicap or normal score? Mid 80s is my usual score, I can get as low as 77 if my short game is working.
What do you love about golf? Love the fact that you never win. No matter what your score is you always feel that you left a few shots on the course.
What brings you to MyGolfSpy? Do you already know any other Spies? Love the reviews and advice on equipment and I don't know any other spies.
Where are you from? What is your home course? Live in Midland Park, NJ and don't have a home course other than the Bergen County courses.
What are the best and worst things about golf in your region? It's crazy expensive to join a club, it's hard to get tee times in the bergen county system, but we have a lot of good public courses within an hour drive.
What do you do for a living? Public Relations and Marketing.
How’d you pick your user name? I had a puppy that was incredible at breaking out of cages, so we combined Houdini and puppy and came up with Pupini as her nickname.

March 3

1 hour ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

These two hit the nail on the head

Thanks so much for the feedback. I think I will go ahead and buy the LST with a tour shaft. I will take the $100 I am saving on the club and put it towards a fitting.

March 3

25 minutes ago, revkev said:

Of course everyone is different - you saw the MWD results - the 410 LST more than held it's own against anything out there for this season - I would have to thing that whatever little bit extra you'd be getting from another driver is not worth the $100 to $150 you'd be spending. If it's the 410 Plus though I would certainly think long and hard. I have been disappointed with mine - should have stuck with the 400 LST.

Good luck

Thanks for the feedback. They have lots of options with the plus, a decent amount for the LST and a few SFT. What was it about the Plus that's given you problems?

March 3

So my local PGA SS has the 410 on sale for $399. The catch is that they don't have any demo clubs now that the 425 is out so I can test the various shaft options. They have the Evenflow Black, Tour 65 &75, the Alta and the Tensei Orange. I swing between 105-112 so I know it is a stiff, but I'm not what to go with. I think the Evenflow is a bit too heavy for my liking and I am leaning towards the Tour 65. I've read the Tensei has a high launch angle, but I am concerned about spin. Any thoughts or advice is welcome.

My other option is to ditch the 410, pay an extra $100-$150 and get a 2021 driver and test the shafts.

March 3

3 hours ago, Herts JoaTMoN said:

I had an issue about 2 years ago when really trying to stripe the ball in practice but not had any issues since. With Uk restrictions for about 9 out of the last 12 months I've hardly swung at all, so guessing my golfing muscles have atrophied and need building up a little to with stand the forces of a full swing.

I had shoulder surgery last year and it wasn't until then that I realized the importance of stretching. I won't play or practice without doing a 5 minute stretching routine. Arm circles, hold the shaft in both hands palms-up and raise the shaft over your head, raise your hand above your head and then try to scratch the middle of your back (hold for 10 seconds and switch hands). Do 10 reps of these and it should help. If you experience a sharp pain when doing the stretches, go to a Dr.

March 2

Quick update guys. I ditched the idea of cross handed chipping. While I found it helpful in the beginning I decided to go back and practice the traditional way A LOT. I've gotten much better and I've realized much of it is practice and confidence. Thanks for the feedback.

March 2

Did you have shoulder pain prior the lockdown and cold weather or did it just start happening?

March 1

1 hour ago, cnosil said:

I have tested the majority of their line via most wanted testing. I can tell you that they have a solid lineup from top to bottom.

Thanks. Just pulled the trigger on the 3 hybrid.

February 28

In the fall I purchased a combo set of irons from Sub70. 639CB PW-7, 699Pro 5&6, both with Aldila NVGraphite shafts. I've used the clubs for maybe 10 rounds and I love them. They've exceeded my expectations. The feel is great, I've gained a few yards from my old Ping i10s, but the accuracy and ease of use are great. I've already promised my 17-year-old son a set when the weather gets a bit warmer.

There are a few clubs in my bag that I've been looking to replace, specifically the hybrid (old TM TP model) and maybe a putter. My question is, has anyone tried the Sub70 hybrid or one of the putters? The JB wedge, looks pretty cool as well, but I don't need a wedge just yet.

I like supporting the little guy, and their customer service is so good, that I would like to give them the sale.

February 28

On 2/23/2021 at 8:59 PM, ejgaudette said:

So figure its time for an update at it hit 40 this today, the first time in probably more than 2 months. Got out there to check the speed and how it is keeping up since I have been taking a bit of a break. Well I can confirm that the speed is still there and that the warm temperatures really help things out. I was hitting 110 out of the gate and even got up to 113 which is a big number for me. Feeling encouraged to keep it easy until things get a bit warmer again and then hit the ground running. Still been lifting some, doing some ab work, and still running. I will keep everyone posted and likely move this more to a game improvement thread in the future.

Nice job, keep it going. The warmer weather was great yesterday. Went to the backyard for some dry swings and it was awesome. Hoping the snow in NJ melts soon.

February 28

So I've wondered, how does the hosel style affect the putting stroke. Is it preference or does it have a real impact on how the putter performs?

February 28

On 4/2/2020 at 9:27 AM, jlukes said:

This is a common misnomer. Face balanced putters close FASTER than putters with toe hang.

Ultimately it comes down to how the golfer reacts to the feelings the putter gives, but the science of toe hang (more weight in the toe) means closing down the rate of rotation. Face balanced putters rotate closed faster.

Is there such thing as heel weighted putters with more weight in the heel. The same way move weight in the heel of a driver produces a draw bias.

February 19

I'm looking for a new driver now. I plan to hit all of them, Ping, TM, CAll, Srixon, Titleist and cobra. Already hit Ping Max & SFT and loved both of them. I think the SFT was a little better for me, but I will hit them again. Next up on the list is Titleist.

February 12

Thanks guys. I'm very familiar with Quintic and Paul Hurrion. I'll see if I can find a location that uses it. Maybe I'll try both and see if there are any differing outcomes.

February 11

I've decided to finally get fit for a putter and I wanted to see if anyone has experience with the PGA Superstore Tour Van putter fitting? Or the Club Champion putter fitting. PGA Superstore is closer and I have a 50% off coupon.

Thanks in advance.

February 10

Hello everyone - I'm looking to get back in shape after a shoulder surgery and a year of not taking care of myself. Specifically I'm looking into Yoga since I am very tight and have lost a lot of flexibility. Has anyone used a good Yoga for golfers program. I found something called GolfBodyRX which focuses on dynamic stretching. Any advice or feedback is welcome.

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