Gatorbob

FYI for those thinking about getting an electric cart, Costco has the sale on the MGI Zip Navigator AT online for for the next week (through 6/13/21) at the $1299 price with accessories ($300 off list with about $250 worth of accessories.)

Duffer, I completely get your point. I moved recently from a course where I could hit the next fairway and still get to the green in 2. Now I'm on a course like your northern course - 10 feet of fringe then water, OB, or knee high fescue(aka lost ball). Those penalties quickly add up on a score card. I was trying to break 80 on a par 70 course (70.9/129). Now I focus on breaking 90 on a par 72 and keeping all rounds under 100 (73.4/138). My handicap quickly hit the soft cap. Fortunately I just play for enjoyment and rarely play in events that require a handicap. Overall, I think this harder course has forced me to become a better golfer because I have to think more. I took RickyBobby's approach and started playing with strategy and course management. Recent example - longest par 4 on the course where the conventional play is Driver. I pulled out hybrid to the horror of my playing partner. My plan was not to hit the green in two, but hit two controlled shots that allowed me to chip/pitch close to the pin. In some ways it puts me at a bit of a disadvantage but I had a makable putt for par...that I missed. But I effectively took the water and woods out of the hole, and had a par opportunity - which for a bogey golfer is a win. I also toyed with the tee boxes I hit from - my course has 4 for mens, i played with the middle two. That has not been mentioned as an option yet. Granted the handicap adjusts for the tee boxes, but If you play blues in the more open course and whites on the tight maybe that would even out your handicap. Especially if you sacrifice distance for control in the tighter course which is the longer of the two. Good luck!

No doubt they would, but I am about to change home courses. I have no doubt I will go through all of them as I learn how to play a course with water on most of the holes!

I'll listen to Get a Grip with Max Homa and Shane Bacon. Some of the content is completely random, but I like hearing a pro's perspective on how courses play, the approach to the week's tourney, etc.

I play the blacks and have not noticed anything unique either.

One last thought. Don't underestimate the value of the 7x vs 6x optics. It may not seem like much but when I look through other rangefinders it is noticeable. It was a huge difference from the V4 and others. May not be as big a difference with the V5. I mentioned this on another thread but I will sometimes use my rangefinder to look for my ball (that can be 100-150 yards away) when I go to where I think it should be and it's not there or when cresting a blind hill. It has saved me a lot of steps when walking.

I bought the pro XE last year and really like it. I spent the extra money because I figured it would be something I use for 8+ years and it would be worth the extra money for the additional features. At the time it had better optics which really makes a big difference. Looks like the V5 uses the same. I would say the temp and alt adjustments are worth it depending on where you play. My home course is at about 4.5k feet and on the side of a mountain. I noticed that my slope range will be +/- 10 yards vs other range finders without the "elements" features depending on if I am going up hill or down hill. So if you travel around and play courses in CO and FL, then yes, I would say the extra $100 is easily worth it. The ability to know that your 170 club is actually 170 at what ever course you are playing and not 160 or 180-190 would make the round more enjoyable. Or even not those extremes but if you play a home course and travel to Appalachians for a couple of rounds you will notice a difference. If you only ever play your home course I don't know that it would be worth it because you will be able to equate your "distance" to a club and not have to worry about the variation that altitude/temp induces.

I had the same issue with the new Performance+ balls - I bought them in March I believe. They cut so bad on me that I had to take some out of play after one hole going tee-fairway-green. (Granted I was playing new SM8 wedges...but still.) I have over a dozen left in the garage. For the price they are still a good value, but if you don't lose a lot of balls I'd look elsewhere. I moved to the Snell and that is a very durable ball that has played consistently for me.

I didn't mean to phrase it as a negative. Just a statement of fact. Since I played a solid putter before it was a new input to my stroke. But you are absolutely correct that it does provide more feedback - feedback I am still figuring out as I get used to it.

I just put my thoughts on the putter in the "unofficial reviews" section. Bottom line I like it. I'm keeping it. Glad I bought the weight kit.

I finally received my KS1 Putter after a shipping snafu. Bottom line - I like it and I’m keeping it. Glad I bought the weight kit. Before I get to my impressions I’ll let you know a bit about my putter history so you can frame what i say: I have only ever had one putter in my bag - bought in 1992 from the thrift store. It was J.C. Snead Northwestern 405 Brass head putter from the 70’s. That means my frame of reference is limited. It made me a better putter because it was so unforgiving, but it was time to move on. I also used a pistol grip(SNSR 140cc). My main issue was distance control - the swing weight of my putter was C1, which is apparently on the light side. KS1: It feels solid but the sound is not uniform. I recently started using Snell Blacks full time. On the practice green I purposely mishit some shots. Distance was pretty consistent from the sweet spot out towards the tow though the sound changed. Hits towards the heel were noticeably shorter. But on the whole, I would say that the putter is very forgiving of mishit shots. It turns out that I don’t like the standard setting as much as when i adjusted the weights. My distance dispersion was much better with the weight kit than without. I wouldn’t call the greens I worked with fast, they were solidly in the normal range. I tried every combination I could think of and it came down to one with the 15’s and the 20’s with the grip weight. I will likely tweak it further when I have time and patience. The logo is not near as bad in person as it is in pictures. But I never see the club from behind so that may have something to do with my impression. I have been playing with it for two weeks and have not noticed it once. On first glance when I opened the box it was off-putting, but on the course at address - the club looks good. My grip was properly aligned unlike the other reviewer. I preferred a pistol grip, but I can deal with this. It has a flat end which I appreciate and I’ve adjusted to the feel It was a little less upright than my previous putter, but is .5” shorter, so my view at address felt about the same. I feel that standing over it (and being left eye dominate) that I am able to hit it where I think I am aiming it. As for the distance control - That is still my weak spot. Turns out that a new putter does not fix everything! But I do think that it did improve my on course performance P.S. Kirkland could get away with much smaller packaging. The weight kit packing is ridiculous and the putter packaging is not much better. They could easily compress the layout.

Alex, you are now the volunteer to do the review! Karma intervened and my order didn't ship or got lost. Since it is already sold out they can't fill it. (Maybe it became one of the putters on Ebay!) Good luck, hope it works for you! Looks like I will be looking elsewhere for a putter. Might just go the Edel route.

So do I - Now that it appears I have been "volunteered" to put one up! I should have it by next weekend if the shipping timeline holds.

The putter is on sale now. Just picked one up.

Thanks for the heads up. They were ahead of schedule.

I've been trying out different balls to find just one to play with. The Kirkland was good, but it was shorter off the tee. I hit far enough off the tee that it isn't that big of a deal for me to adjust to. But what I really didn't like was how fast the cover got cut. It is referenced in the reviews as well and I can attest to it. One solid hit with a wedge and you get tracks including some that have the dislodged cover sticking out like a pulled thread. It did spin a lot around the green though! I would still play it because it is a great ball for the price, but I was doing enough damage through the course of normal play (no trees/cart paths) that I lost confidence in whether I should still put balls in play. Yesterday I did a side by side with a pro v-1, and the Snell MTB-X and Black for 9 holes. The difference between all three was negligible and I could attribute the difference to my capabilities. I ended the round by hitting each of the two sleeves of Snells and the pro v-1 twice with full swings from the Volkey SM-8 56* I just bought within the past week - so fresh sharp grooves. The worst damage to the 6 snells (white balls) was a little bit of discoloration on one. If you lose a lot of balls the Kirkland is a strong contender. But I am leaning towards using the Snell Black regularly. The difference in durability and how often I lose a ball makes the extra cost worth it for me.

I did a fitting with a Titleist rep at my local club for a 3 wood and a hybrid and then did hours at Puetz in Seattle for my irons. I was surprised at how fast the Titleist rep narrowed the recommendations for those clubs. He looked at the trackman data and tried about 2-3 setups and that was it. That day I was consistent and they still work great when I hit them. The Puetz experience was different because I was able to play around a lot over more than one day. Plus I worked with more than one fitter at two different locations. One guy was great, very patient and listened to what I had to say. The other was a salesman who, while knowledgable, pushed the flashiness. The clear example of the salesman (besides being stuck on selling the "look" of the club) was when I got good distance with one brand - but had absolutely no consistency. Sure I hit one 7 iron 190, but the next went 165, and the one after that 176. He pushed those sticks because I crushed the one. I had no confidence in that person. The other guy took the time to work with me and give me space to really try things out. He told me about the pro's and con's of different brands (e.g. Some brands include various shafts in their price, others don't) and seemed to try to find something that really fit my swing - based on what the numbers said, but also what he was seeing. The clubs he sold me I consistently hit within a 5 yard range. Not as far, but consistent. The short version of this is I am a believer in fittings. But just as with everything the people you work with make a difference. I want to get a new driver and look at putters, but I hesitate to just buy something off the shelf because I have seen what a difference the right shaft can make. Best of luck to you.

I'm was (am) one of those guys. But I'm still dialing in my game - especially within 100 yards. I haven't played much the last 8 years due to kids/work but am now getting back into it. I've gone from a 28 index to a 15 in the past 18 months due in large part to the short game. New Irons helped as well. As I've gotten used to the feel again I do pull the range finder out less within 50, but it will still happen depending on the situation and pin location. If you are worried about pace of play, you should love to see my pull out the range finder and get a quick understanding. It saves a lot of time over finding a ball past the green or trying to get it out of the sand and all those extra shots! But to the point of the thread: I have the Pro XE and it is absolutely great. I play a hilly course so like others have stated sometimes a GPS would be better, but I find those clumsy when watching others use them. The magnet on the XE makes it easy and fast to use while riding, and while walking it is not much slower. The resolution of the XE is a big benefit - so much better than others I have looked through. I will sometimes use it to find my ball while waiting for others to hit or when I crest a blind hill and it's not where I expected it to be. One consideration with the elements portion of the slope setting for the XE for those that play at altitude: since elevation and temp is factored into the slope, when you turn on that setting it can throw off your partners if you give them a slope reading that they are not used to. But It's great if you go from FL to play a round in CO.

Fair point. I went back and listened a little closer and I think you're closer to the truth than I am.

Long time lurker, first time poster! On the MGS No Putts Given podcast this weekend they mentioned that it is more likely akin to the Odyssey line (about min 33.) Regardless, I've been playing the only putter I've ever owned/used - bought in '92 from a thrift store with my first set. It is a conversation piece when I play with new people. But it's going to be time for an upgrade to something with a higher swing weight (mine is a C1 and distance control is a weakness) and more forgiveness. If I can't get into get evaluated/fitted for a new putter, I'll probably give this a go in the meantime.