2023 MGS Forum: Cobra 50th Anniversary Special!

[CFreddie]

4 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... A different kind of focus I think. I played the front 9 with my best friend in Asheville NC and was 2 over. He had a miserable 9 and was feeing pretty down about it. I told him I would play him for dinner and all I could use was my 5 iron and putter. I shot even par on the back 9. I was a little surprised at how teeing off with a 5 iron, left me close to another 5 iron to the green. Two of the par 3's were 5 irons and theater two I just had to play a 3/4 shot. What was interesting for me was I realized how focused I had to be with every shot and maybe equally important is I had no expectations. It was a valuable lesson and changed my game for the better. 

... I think it is the same with these challenges. I had been struggling with some physical issues that effected me mentally before the challenges started, and my first swing with my 205yd hybrid from 145 yards turned on a light bulb and I was out of my funk. We have the capability to hit all kinds of shots, yet we rarely do. Complacency is replaced by intention. So I think as long as our swing is in good shape, a sharper focus with no expectations is a really good combination for scoring. 

Well said - I told a buddy after my round yesterday that it was one of the most fun rounds I’ve played in awhile.  When you are limited by your tee shot, it forces you to think more strategically about placement and setting up the next shot.  

[rkj427]

19 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... A different kind of focus I think. I played the front 9 with my best friend in Asheville NC and was 2 over. He had a miserable 9 and was feeing pretty down about it. I told him I would play him for dinner and all I could use was my 5 iron and putter. I shot even par on the back 9. I was a little surprised at how teeing off with a 5 iron, left me close to another 5 iron to the green. Two of the par 3's were 5 irons and the other two I just had to play a 3/4 shot. What was interesting for me was I realized how focused I had to be with every shot and maybe equally important is I had no expectations. It was a valuable lesson and changed my game for the better. 

... I think it is the same with these challenges. I had been struggling with some physical issues that effected me mentally before the challenges started, and my first swing with my 205yd hybrid from 145 yards turned on a light bulb and I was out of my funk. We have the capability to hit all kinds of shots, yet we rarely do. Complacency is replaced by intention. So I think as long as our swing is in good shape, a sharper focus with no expectations is a really good combination for scoring. 

This is a great story and summary Sam, and it should also give some who visit the range something to do rather than just beating balls with various clubs.

An example would be to try and hit a 5 iron to 100 yards, or a 7 iron to that distance, vary the clubs and distances during practice gives the player additional "tools" or clubs to use when faced with certain conditions while out on the course.

This is why I try to play irons only rounds multiple times during the year, but mostly in the spring here, so that when I am playing for score, I know or realize that I may have "played that shot before" and it alleviates a lot of potential anxiety or blow-up scores trying to pull off a "miracle shot."

PS: Great round Tom - Let's GO Team #2 

[CFreddie]

4 minutes ago, rkj427 said:

This is a great story and summary Sam, and it should also give some who visit the range something to do rather than just beating balls with various clubs.

An example would be to try and hit a 5 iron to 100 yards, or a 7 iron to that distance, vary the clubs and distances during practice gives the player additional "tools" or clubs to use when faced with certain conditions while out on the course.

This is why I try to play irons only rounds multiple times during the year, but mostly in the spring here, so that when I am playing for score, I know or realize that I may have "played that shot before" and it alleviates a lot of potential anxiety or blow-up scores trying to pull off a "miracle shot."

PS: Great round Tom - Let's GO Team #2 

Just calling this out @rkj427, I’m liking everything about your post EXCEPT for that last part (1 > 2, at least in this case). 

[GolfSpy_KFT]

Played an irons only 9 before scramble league tonight and it admittedly took me awhile to get going. Hit awful tee shots on the first four (you could say 5) holes causing me to have to scramble. I went double, double, bogey, triple. I can say with certainty, I was swinging WAY too hard on the first two tee shots, both par 4s. Par 3 third I thinned into some trees but got up and down about as good as I could from my lie and just missed a par putt. 

After a shanked tee shot on the par 5 fourth hole and needing to punch out from under a tree, I finally put a good swing on my 6 iron and according to Arccos it went 219 yards. I think this is not accurate but who knows. Sadly I chunked my PW into a greenside bunker next but got out into the fringe. Putted from there and then two putted for a snowman. 

Hole 5 was another over swing and thinned 6 iron. Had to take my medicine and chip out into the fairway with my PW as the green was blocked by a corner of trees. Followed that with another PW that landed just off the green on the fringe. Used my putter from there and then one putt for a bogey. This is where my swing started feeling better and I started getting better strikes off the tee. Hit a good 7 iron on the next par 3 but ended up in a bunker. Got out in one and two putted for another bogey. 

Par 5 seventh hole and I striped a 6 iron 175 yards that would have gone further had it not caught the top of an oak tree just off the right side of the fairway. Went 6i again but duffed it, then pulled a 9 iron to get me to striking distance of the green. It faded left and landed in the rock hard rough and ended up rolling out to 163 yards and longer than I wanted. Thankfully stayed in bounds and I hit a 3/4 PW 95 yards to the green. Two putt bogey. 

Par 4 eighth I hit another really good 6i off the tee with some right to left flight. I want to call it a cut but it was probably more of a fade. That one went 190 yards and left me with 122 to the pin. Went PW and hit that to pin high but well right if the flag. Two putt par. 

Par 4 ninth hit 6i again and once again clipped the top of a tree on the right side of the fairway that knocked it down a bit for a 172 total distance. Had to make a smart play again as I was still about 166 from the green and was blocked by a tree. Chipped out with my PW, then hit PW 110 yards to pin high right, barely missed the one putt for par and settled for bogey, good for a 48 (+12).

Had I been able to get off to a better start off the tee, I think I could have taken a few more strokes off that score.

First time out with the Supernova as well and it performed very well. Definitely firmer feeling than my Spider Tour, but I lagged well with it and left myself with 4’ or less on second putts all night including league play. Lipped out on a roughly 20’ putt for birdie during league because I hit it too firm, and I would say saw the benefits of the SIK face when I missed badly on the heel of a putt for par and still hit my line and found center cup. 

I’m hopeful to squeeze another 9 in maybe Friday evening, otherwise will be playing 18 Saturday or Sunday morning early to submit a score that I can use for the challenge. 

[richk9holes]

Got the set ready for tomorrow for the record, Dad thinks I'm not crazy, his reply "Seve Ballesteros could play with 1 club." I don't see the relevance.

Notice I'm the first one to post photos of the 8 clubs I'm bringing. I'm predicting this means I'll be posting a nightmarish score, but I'm going to go ahead and challenge the whole team #1. @chisag  @CFreddie @Jnoble89 I want that smoke. My 2i has me feeling big and I used the PW from my Apex set so I could keep the S70 set intact for this.

I'm playing with Dad from his tees at a place I should conceivably play blue (5650 v. 6053) putting me on the white tee and taking driver from my hands I predict allows me to shave 6-10 strokes from my 89 I shot last Wed.

[GolfSpy_KFT]

6 minutes ago, richk9holes said:

Got the set ready for tomorrow for the record, Dad thinks I'm not crazy, his reply "Seve Ballesteros could play with 1 club." I don't see the relevance.

Notice I'm the first one to post photos of the 8 clubs I'm bringing. I'm predicting this means I'll be posting a nightmarish score, but I'm going to go ahead and challenge the whole team #1. @chisag  @CFreddie @Jnoble89 I want that smoke. My 2i has me feeling big and I used the PW from my Apex set so I could keep the S70 set intact for this.

I'm playing with Dad from his tees at a place I should conceivably play blue (5650 v. 6053) putting me on the white tee and taking driver from my hands I predict allows me to shave 6-10 strokes from my 89 I shot last Wed.

Does that mean that we all get to move up a set of tees? Cause if @chisag moves up, he’s going LOW. I’m talking -7 or better low. This guy lives for competition. Please stoke the fire more for him!

[richk9holes]

66 if I recall correctly without his irons

But he did stay in a Holiday Inn Express that night.

[GolfSpy_KFT]

Also just posed a -2 irons only yesterday or today

[GolfSpy_KFT]

While I am thinking about it, I believe I played with the closest representation of @chisag that I’ll get here in Wisconsin for league tonight, and the gentleman is coincidentally my neighbor! Didn’t miss a single fairway, only had one mishit the entire round, and striped fairway woods effortlessly. I asked him after our round how low his handicap got and he said scratch, so not entirely at Sam’s level, but he was very good and SO consistent. He then told us he had won 11 men’s championships and 12 president’s cups (former tournament held at our local course) in years past. Needless to say I told him I’d very much like to get out and play some rounds with him this year. It was so fun to watch. 

[JerryB]

Nice round @Jnoble89!  Good to see you're getting some solid distance on those irons as well!

[GolfSpy_KFT]

1 minute ago, JerryB said:

Nice round @Jnoble89!  Good to see you're getting some solid distance on those irons as well!

Thanks! They are rocket launchers. What I also really like is I am not hitting fliers with them so far. The obnoxious 163 yard 9 iron was solely due to the cement like rough as we haven’t had any good rain in two months. Otherwise so far they seem very good. I don’t swing super hard so I’m happy with them for sure! The feeling when flushing one is awesome.

[chisag]

On 7/10/2023 at 6:51 PM, chisag said:

Don't swing any harder off the tee to make up for not having a driver or wood. Trust your swing and take the yardage you get. A well struck iron with always carry farther and be more accurate than an iron you mishit from over swinging. I had a couple carry farther than I thought they would today because I just put a smooth swing on it and hit the center. (I think theres a lesson in there somewhere ) 

 

48 minutes ago, Jnoble89 said:

Played an irons only 9 before scramble league tonight and it admittedly took me awhile to get going. Hit awful tee shots on the first four (you could say 5) holes causing me to have to scramble. I went double, double, bogey, triple. I can say with certainty, I was swinging WAY too hard on the first two tee shots, both par 4s.

[GolfSpy_KFT]

3 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink

[chisag]

5 minutes ago, Jnoble89 said:

You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink

 

... No worries, you are not alone. I tried working with CFrdeo but he lacks patience. 

 

 

[sirchunksalot]

Great round @Jnoble89! I'm happy to see the progress your game is making since we've started the challenge. It's awesome!

I need to remember not to swing too hard today. I have a tendency to over swing with irons since I'm not the longest of hitters.

[tchat07]

Wedges are the favorite part of my game and unfortunately a very necessary part with all the greens I miss. If I weren't playing a short course tomorrow I'd give it a go but wedges will be in high demand tomorrow.

[cnosil]

3 hours ago, sirchunksalot said:

Great round @Jnoble89! I'm happy to see the progress your game is making since we've started the challenge. It's awesome!

I need to remember not to swing too hard today. I have a tendency to over swing with irons since I'm not the longest of hitters.

 the metal side of golf is definitely a requirement for this challenge.  Your irons go as far as they go and you can’t make them go farther.   Look at the length of the hole and how far you typically hit the club you plan to take off the tee and realize it may take you 3 or 4 stroke to get to the green.  Make your normal swing for each and every shot and keep the ball in play; no hero shots!

[GolfSpy_KFT]

36 minutes ago, cnosil said:

 the metal side of golf is definitely a requirement for this challenge.  Your irons go as far as they go and you can’t make them go farther.   Look at the length of the hole and how far you typically hit the club you plan to take off the tee and realize it may take you 3 or 4 stroke to get to the green.  Make your normal swing for each and every shot and keep the ball in play; no hero shots!

I think that was one of the bigger challenges for me over the first half of my round yesterday. Feeling like I had to get as much as possible out of my tee shots definitely caused poor strikes. The mental aspect of stepping onto a tee box where I have never pulled an iron before, as silly as that sounds, was also something that took getting used to. Once I let that stuff go and just focused on good swing, good tempo, I was striking the ball much better, as evident by finishing +4 over my last 5 holes (+8 on the first 4 ).

[Preeway]

One thing an iron only challenge can also help with is being mentally strong enough to handle a bad tee shot requiring a longer approach than you originally envisioned. So many times I’m hitting 5i instead of 9i due to a bad tee shot and I miss badly since I’m still frustrated about the first shot. Yesterday I was able to approach those shots with a positive outlook because I was in the best place possible hitting iron off the tee. Just have to learn how to carry that mindset into every round. 

[cnosil]

7 minutes ago, Jnoble89 said:

The mental aspect of stepping onto a tee box where I have never pulled an iron before, as silly as that sounds, was also something that took getting used to. 

Doesn’t sound silly at all and that was exactly my point.   I face that issue every time I do a most wanted testing session….Give me a club to test and I want to hit it farther and the launch monitor s like a digital scoreboard where you try and beat the high score .   

[TSauer]

49 minutes ago, cnosil said:

Make your normal swing for each and every shot and keep the ball in play; no hero shots!

This is the most important piece of advice, not only during irons week, but just in general. I think these challenges are going to be a blessing in disguise, at least they have been for me.

[GolfSpy_KFT]

5 minutes ago, TSauer said:

This is the most important piece of advice, not only during irons week, but just in general. I think these challenges are going to be a blessing in disguise, at least they have been for me.

What was ironic, and almost comical to me haha, was that as soon as I went back to full bag for the scramble league, I launched a tee shot OB with my driver on the second hole. Didn't lose a single ball during my 9 holes irons only. Certainly goes to show that just because a club can hit the ball longer, it does not mean it's going to be consistent. Not losing strokes off the tee by keeping shots in play, even if they aren't great strikes, is going to lead to lower scores for me for sure. 

If only I could figure out how to keep driver in play 

[TSauer]

1 minute ago, Jnoble89 said:

What was ironic, and almost comical to me haha, was that as soon as I went back to full bag for the scramble league, I launched a tee shot OB with my driver on the second hole. Didn't lose a single ball during my 9 holes irons only. Certainly goes to show that just because a club can hit the ball longer, it does not mean it's going to be consistent. Not losing strokes off the tee by keeping shots in play, even if they aren't great strikes, is going to lead to lower scores for me for sure. 

If only I could figure out how to keep driver in play 

I feel this! The par 5 I played yesterday with only irons is a troublesome hole for me usually. The fairway isn't wide by any means, right is OB in the woods and left is a tree line that runs to the green that you don't want to be in. Guess what? I'm usually in said trees because I always pull out driver. Hitting a smooth crossover twice on that hole yesterday and still making par opened my eyes a little bit. If my wedge shot was just a little closer to the pin, I could have escaped with a birdie.

As far as keeping the driver in play, whenever you find the answer be sure to let me know!

[GolfSpy_KFT]

2 hours ago, TSauer said:

I feel this! The par 5 I played yesterday with only irons is a troublesome hole for me usually. The fairway isn't wide by any means, right is OB in the woods and left is a tree line that runs to the green that you don't want to be in. Guess what? I'm usually in said trees because I always pull out driver. Hitting a smooth crossover twice on that hole yesterday and still making par opened my eyes a little bit. If my wedge shot was just a little closer to the pin, I could have escaped with a birdie.

As far as keeping the driver in play, whenever you find the answer be sure to let me know!

This par 5 layout you speak of is EXACTLY the same as the par 5 fourth at my course. OB woods right and tree lined left. I have lost so many balls to the trees on the left/home's yards behind the tree line 

[sirchunksalot]

Let's go!

[chisag]

4 hours ago, TSauer said:

Hitting a smooth crossover twice on that hole yesterday and still making par opened my eyes a little bit.

 

... Yup, even if you don't score well these challenges are very eye opening. On the long 551yd par 5, I sometimes try to get too much out of my driver or advance a 5 wood too far and over swing juuuust a little, but enough to put me in a position I have to work around trees. Irons only I figured it would be a brutal hole but after a couple 200 yd 4 irons I was left with 145 to a front pin and hit an 8 iron to 10 feet and just missed the birdie. And I have struggled on that hole to make par with a driver and a 5 wood! 

[CFreddie]

4 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

Let's go!

Haha this looks so sad & empty

If only we had those small par 3 bags as part of this challenge…

[BKervin]

7 minutes ago, sirchunksalot said:

Let's go!

The King Cobra looks like it ate your other clubs for lunch!!  LOL

[TSauer]

33 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

... Yup, even if you don't score well these challenges are very eye opening. On the long 551yd par 5, I sometimes try to get too much out of my driver or advance a 5 wood too far and over swing juuuust a little, but enough to put me in a position I have to work around trees. Irons only I figured it would be a brutal hole but after a couple 200 yd 4 irons I was left with 145 to a front pin and hit an 8 iron to 10 feet and just missed the birdie. And I have struggled on that hole to make par with a driver and a 5 wood! 

This is me to a T.

When I go driver and I end up a long ways out, I always tell myself I have to go for it with a hybrid or 3 wood on that hole. I know that the probability of me hitting either of those clubs 125% and still ending up in a decent spot is low, but I do it anyway in the off chance it ends up being good. But now, on those days when my swing doesn't feel so great, I know that I can play the hole differently and still end up scoring well.

[GolfSpy_KFT]

2 minutes ago, TSauer said:

This is me to a T.

When I go driver and I end up a long ways out, I always tell myself I have to go for it with a hybrid or 3 wood on that hole. I know that the probability of me hitting either of those clubs 125% and still ending up in a decent spot is low, but I do it anyway in the off chance it ends up being good. But now, on those days when my swing doesn't feel so great, I know that I can play the hole differently and still end up scoring well.

Same. The odds of me hitting a 3 wood perfectly from 230+ out to get on in two is so low. But, the odds of me hitting a full shot anywhere from 8i - GW into the green are much higher. I’m going to start taking the approach to hit my second shot on par 5s to a spot where I am confident I can get a third on the green with a decent chance at birdie. I’ll still go for it once in awhile though