Used and Abused

[jmculak]

I started playing consistently about 18 months ago. I bought a used set of Strata's on CL with a Callaway XR1 driver for $200. I didn't want to invest too much in case I ended up either not enjoying it, or not being able to play that much. Since purchasing them I have played/practiced 3-4 times a week and have gotten "good" enough that now I only lose 3-4 balls per 18, instead of 9-10! I am coming up on the end of a deployment and have a little extra cheddar in the bank account that the wife said I can use on some "new" clubs.

Here is what I have purchased thus far (all used) all shafts are regular flex.

Ping G400LST

Cobra FMAX combo 4h-PW

Ping glide 2.0 stealth wedges in 52, 56, 60

Cobra king F8 Fairway 3-4 wood

Only thing I have not bought yet is a putter. I am waiting to get back home to try several out to see what style/brand I like and works best. My theory is that if your going to go "custom" or spend more money on a single club it should be a putter as you touch it more than any other club in the bag. I'm also a pretty consistent 3 or worse putter and hoping if I find the "right" putter it (in conjunction with a lot of practice) may help me bring that down.

Any suggestions as to how to pick a putter, or any advice is greatly appreciated.

Mike

[cnosil]

5 hours ago, jmculak said:

Any suggestions as to how to pick a putter, or any advice is greatly appreciated.

Try different putters.  Try different hosels, different weights, different offsets, different toe hangs, etc.   see which combination allows you to start the ball on your intended line with different length strokes.   Then you can start working on distance control.

[edingc]

The putter is the one club in my bag that I had a "fitting" for. My local shop was offering free putter fittings. It was nice to have someone else watch my stroke and bring me clubs based on it. My putting has drastically improved since the fitting.

 

 

 

[Kenny B]

5 hours ago, cnosil said:

Try different putters.  Try different hosels, different weights, different offsets, different toe hangs, etc.   see which combination allows you to start the ball on your intended line with different length strokes.   Then you can start working on distance control.

Good advice.  Everyone is different in their strokes and you have to find which type of putter works best for you.  Try not to have a particular brand in mind.  A good putter doesn't have to be the expensive one.  Lots of options.  

Take a look at the the last couple of years of MGS Most Wanted putter testing to get started.  Then try all putters you can find in your local golf store.  I really wanted the Evnroll; everyone was raving about it.  It's a great putter but when I tried the various models, none of them worked for me; ended up with Ping after getting fit at Ping HQ.

[perseveringgolfer]

32 minutes ago, Kenny B said:

Good advice.  Everyone is different in their strokes and you have to find which type of putter works best for you.  Try not to have a particular brand in mind.  A good putter doesn't have to be the expensive one.  Lots of options.  

Take a look at the the last couple of years of MGS Most Wanted putter testing to get started.  Then try all putters you can find in your local golf store.  I really wanted the Evnroll; everyone was raving about it.  It's a great putter but when I tried the various models, none of them worked for me; ended up with Ping after getting fit at Ping HQ.

^^^^ This is good advice

[MGoBlue100]

First of all, congrats on the end of your deployment. Thanks for your service! Putters are so personal; try a bunch & go get fitted, as many have said. Then, as most of us do, buy 15-20 more .
P.S. You’re going to LOVE those Stealth wedges. Play well!!


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[russtopherb]

Agreed on all of the above. Try as many putters as you can, because you never know what style/length will just feel "right" to you. I spent an hour in a shop with almost $200 in gift cards burning a hole in my pocket and I walked out with a used $25 Odyssey because that's what felt the best and I sank the most putts with. 

[golfertrb]

All the other advice is really good and should be really helpful. The only thing I would add is Ping has an app for your phone to determine the kind of stroke that you have which should get you started on a style of putter to use. The app is free and it is supposed to be attached to the shaft of your putter with a clamp that holds your phone. I didn't have the clamp but I worked it out by making my own - after some trial and error it worked fine and I found the app recommendation helpful. It turns out I had the right style of putter already but it showed me that it worked.

As others have said, then you can go and try a lot of putters to find which one feels the best. Good luck and thanks so much for your service - I really appreciate it.


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[jmculak]

First, thank you all for the support. I consider it an honor to serve a nation as great as the U.S. and am even more honored at the appreciation shown to our nations military by it's citizens.

Second, Thanks for all the putter advice! Looks like I need to block off a couple hours when I get back to try ALL the left handed putters in stock. (that was a left handed golfer joke, they probably have four). But seriously, I am contemplating making a drive to Pinehurst or Raleigh where there are larger stores who will hopefully have a larger selection than what I can find at my home courses pro shop.

Third, IRT the Ping App, thank you, but I am one of those simpletons who owns an android phone, thus the Ping app is not available to me.

Fourth, can anyone tell me how to make a signature with all the clubs in my bag? I have used the search function and have not managed to figure out how you all get the cool brand logos.

Mike

[cnosil]

Fourth, can anyone tell me how to make a signature with all the clubs in my bag? I have used the search function and have not managed to figure out how you all get the cool brand logos.

There are some help topics in signatures but the basics are:

From the full website go to account settings and you can edit your signature. When you are editing you can also click on the smiley faces and down near the bottom of the list are all the manufacturer logos.