Maybe next time I'll take the drop

[Tony Covey MGS]

So I flared a 4-iron open going for a par 5 in two on Saturday and ended up well within the boundaries of a water hazard. I found my ball nestled among the big rocks lining the bank. Rather than playing smart and taking a drop, I decided I could drop a wedge between the rocks and pop my ball up onto the green.

 

Of course, I'm not really good enough to do that (not sure if anyone is), so instead of popping it into the green, I bashed my gap wedge into the rocks and sent my ball backwards into the meaty part of the hazard. My own stupidity cost me a stroke (not that it really mattered...the way I was playing, 1 stroke or 10, it wasn't going to be a good day), and worse still, I took a nasty chunk out of my wedge.

 

You guys ever do anything completely stupid like that? I can't be alone here.

 

 

[daves81]

Absolutely,i do the same thing all the time. I know better but for whatever reason i think I can pull off the impossible(for me)anyway.So dont feel alone .I just dont use my head in the heat of the moment sometimes.Maybe you can file and polish your club to use it again .dave

[Tony Covey MGS]

It's really the stroke more than anything else that pains me. I knew there was a damn good chance my club was doing to take a hit, but if I had managed to find the green it would have been worth it. I actually made a conscious decision regarding which club I'd be the least upset about getting dinged up. It sure as hell wasn't going to be my Miuras, and I'm also quite fond of my Solus FC-10, and to a lesser extent my Callaway X-Forged. I decided to sacrifice a Vokey 200 series Gap wedge. I've been thinking about replacing it for a while, but I haven't found anything I like enough to bag yet.

 

Maybe it's time I started learning how to grind my own wedges.

[Nasty Canasta]

Unless I am playing for money, in some sort of tournament or league play. I will drop every time.

[GolfSpy Dave]

MF that ding looks painful.

 

I believe that your wedge is now non-conforming and you MUST buy a fancy new wedge to replace it.

[JBones]

I actually have two instances, one from this weekend. This isn't really in the same category, but I had a ball that rested in the middle of a cart path this weekend. If I would have took a drop, it would have put me on a severe downslope in thick heather grass, so I decided to play it. I have been carrying an old dinged up Cleveland 60*, so I smacked it right off the cart path. It was the third shot on a par 5 and I stuck it to a foot from 35yds, so it worked out nicely.

 

The other was a true, I shouldn't have done that "Tin Cup" moment. This course had a small "outhouse" in a hazard between a green and tee box that I ended up about 3' short of. Even though it was a man made obstruction, I didn't think I got relief, because it was in a marked hazard. So, I decided that I was going to play a ricochet shot off the side of the "outhouse" and onto the green. I took my normal routine and picked the perfect spot on the building to hit. What I didn't notice was that it wasn't flat wood, it was paneling and my ball hit right on the edge of a groove and ricocheted right back into my nuts. I will always take a drop now in that situation.

[jamo]

A few years ago in a high school match I was in some trees but on top of a rock, and I used my pitching wedge (an Orlimar Tri-Metal) to knock it onto the green. Unfortunately I also knocked off a piece of the wedge.

[Rounders]

I missed a 3 footer one day and proceeded to lob my ball in the air and send it into the bush farther than Barry Bonds on steroids with my brand new Cameron SS Newport. It took some creativity and a vice but she's back to normal. I feel your pain.

[Andrew Bush]

its a wedge oh man i wouldnt loose sleep about it. Its when u do it with a 6 iron when i hate looking at it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Tyk]

Ouch! That's a good sized gouge there! I guess you now get to practice some club repair!

 

I put a similar gouge in a brand new 5 iron. Hit it off what looked like bare dirt, but there was a rock just under the surface. The clubs were only a few weeks old at the time. I figure that's when you know they're really yours!