What Golf Purchases Did You Make in 2023?

[noelrl]

Way too many purchases in 2023!

Love combing CL for local golfers cast offs.  Found a Taylormade Stealth2 driver, Cobra LTDx driver, and Sub70 849D Driver all in stiff flex.  Took them all to our local simulator bay and was amazed at how similar the numbers were.  Previous gamer was Mizuno ST-Z 220 and all of these beat that by about 10 yards.  

Really wanted to buy a few dozen of the new Maxfli Tour ball but I didn't care for the alignment aid and still have about 4 dozen OnCore Elixr balls that I'm pretty happy with.  

My new Sub70 Sycamore 004 putter was probably my best purchase.  Love that it came with a weight kit and I was able to fit it perfectly for my stroke.

[Padavich09]

I pretty much bought a whole new setup in 2023.  

Father's Day 2022, I bought myself a starter set, TopFlite XL and played 4 rounds with them, mainly to see if i wanted to continue with golf. I knew i was going to continue, but it made the wife happy not spending money on clubs (250$).

2023, I bought a new bag, white Maxfli stand bag (loved a Callaway bag, but wasnt sure I would end up with Callaway clubs...lol.) Bought a new to me Epic Speed driver off Facebook. Purchaed a Epic Speed 3 wood, Odyessey Stroke Lab 1 putter from Golf Galaxy. Ordered a set of Callaway Mavrik Max irons (5I-GW) from Carl's Golfland, and late 2023 i picked up a Mavrik 3H so i could finally get rid of the TopFlite 4H.  I also purchsed and love my ShotScope H4, would have went with the X5, but i ordered like a month too soon...lol

best purchase of the year was the Callaway ERC Soft 360 fade.  I've tried tons of balls, cheap balls, expensive balls, DTC balls. the best of the bunch for me and my swing were the ERC Soft.  They gave me the most distance off the tee and from irons.  I'm a 26.8 hdc, so my green play is not the best right now, and I can actually get them to check up on the green, providing i hit the ball correctly.  

[SDunne]

I had held onto a very old set of trusty wedges for a while partially through nostalgia, the fact they are fairly forgiving and I was being a cheap to replace them. However, after an interstate trip where I couldn't pack my clubs a rental set opened my eyes to the new and wonderful... After playing with some Jaws on the round, I realised that my old Ping Eye 2s should be replaced. 

After a visit to a golf store and playing around with some Jaws, some TM Hi-Toe as well as a few others, I found myself enjoying the Cleveland RTX Full Face Zipcores and bought both a 50 and 58. 

I've now had these for about 4 months and love them. They're great with full shots and partials to help you pin-seek while I've also used both out of the sand and they slide through wonderfully to get you out of trouble. I've never been able to impart huge amounts of spin on a ball but these have helped a lot. The grooves are great and having a full-face gives me a lot more confidence when opening the face and trying to get out of trouble. 

Some of the intangibles - they feel really smooth in hand with a solid weight to them which I like as gives me confidence to dig through sand or rough/fringe; the sound off the face is lovely and while the full face took some getting used to behind the ball, I would miss it now I've played it a lot.

This has been a big upgrade in the bag and I couldn't be happier.  

 

[Golf2Much]

Though it's never good to try and do an inventory of everything you spent associated with this game (as some of us and most of our spouses would be shocked), there were a few highlights.

Backyard putting green installed and associated training aids:  My wife wanted a pool for our small Key West back yard.  As part of the negotiation, she said if she got a pool, I could get a putting green.  I viewed this as a win-win.  The ProPutt green and chipping pad went in a perfect spot in the back.  Of course, I also had to get some accessories like the PuttOut putting plane stick set, (another) PuttOut Pressure Putt Trainer, a chipping net, putting mirror and shag tube.

In late 2022, I purchased a LAB Directed Force 2.1 putter and loved it.  So much so, I purchased another on eBay as a backup and to putt on the new back yard green.

It seems that 2023 was the year that all my golf shoes decided to fail.  So, I decided to purchase a few pair and rotate their use.  Early in 2023 I purchased a pair of Sqairz golf shoes on sale.  I take a wide golf shoe and found them a little tight.  So off to eBay and I purchase a pair of shoe stretchers to give me the little extra room I needed.  Sure enough, that worked, and they are now in rotation.  On Black Friday, I also picked up a pair of Adidas ZG23 BOA and Puma Adaptfoam Alphacat shoes.  

2023 was a year of golf ball experimenting.   At the start of the year, being from Western New York, I wanted to try the OnCore golf balls.  I started with the Elixr 2022 model per their recommendations.  It was OK and I fed that back to them.  Their response was sending me samples of each of their balls so I could see which best met my needs.  That was great customer service.   Being a Plastics Engineering graduate from UMass-Lowell, I then had to try Snell balls when their new MTB Prime came out.  Seem that Dean Snell graduated two years after me from the same program.  Finally, with the help of MGS's promotion, I tried the Maxfli Tour S.  I like them so much, I purchased ten dozen leading up to 2024.  Throw in three dozen of Srixon Divides and I'm all set for 2024!

2023 was also a year of apparel transition.  Every couple of years I turn over my golf shirts, shorts and other garments.  This past year, I basically converted my golf shorts to moisture wicking with purchases of Adidas and Walter Hagen brands.  For shirts, I experimented with SCALES and filled out my closets with Peter Millar and Adidas moisture wicking shirts.  I also picked up a couple of Zero Restriction wind shirts and pull overs on eBay to round out my collection.  

Probably the most interesting thing I purchased was a yardage book and leather cover for my friend and I.  When we visit each other, we exchange little gifts.  We were heading up to Boston and it's always a chore to find something for the guy who has everything.  As a OnCore VIP, I saw they had an arrangement with PuttView so I purchased yardage and green map books for his and my home courses.  To make it fancy, I found a source for leather covers and completed the gift.  

Throw in about 150 rounds of golf, golf cart fees and other purchases, I'm lucky I have a forgiving wife!

[MEstep]

2023 was my coming back to golf year so there were many purchases made... My first purchase was a set of Footjoy shoes since I know that I would be doing a lot of walking to chase my ball from rough to rough as I worked my way down each hole. I found a free Sun Mountain 14-way bag on FB market that I cleaned up and carried most of the year. Throw in the multiple number of balls that I picked up along the way. I really liked the matte red ones as my red Oakley lenses pick them up easily. I don't know if I would call it a true "purchase" or not but I do go ball shopping a lot while I'm hitting out of the thick rough or the trees. I guess its a perk of being an inconsistent player... 

I was using a set of borrowed clubs from my friend who had a nice set just collecting dust. My previous set of clubs was from when I was in high school (early 2000's) and was a cheap set from Wally-word. When he saw a picture of them I think it was a "What are those?" moments and he lent me his set. As I got more into golf my wife decided it was time to get my own set and sent me to get some for my Anniversary gift. I got fitted for a set of PXG 0211's with the MMT stiff shafts. There was a big difference in the consistency of my shots after getting these. No I'm not perfect I still have my few in the tall stuff but man getting fit is totally the way to go. I recommend it to anyone who is buying clubs. Takes a lot of frustration out of the game. 

My next purchase was a new bag. My free FB find came with a hole in one of the pockets that was right next to where I put my putter. With my putter having the oversized grip each time I put it back into the bag (sometimes more forcefully than others due to my bad putting) the pocket would rip a little. It got to the point where it was just getting annoying to keep looking at. So I purchased a Maxfli 21 Honors 14+. I liked it because it wasn't a crazy price, I loved the Volt yellow color and it had most of the features of the expensive bags. I know that most will say that I should have gotten x or y bag instead. That I put a bandaid on the situation, but with the coupon, the points that I already had for store credit, and  the warranty I feel like I got the best deal for that bag.

My last purchase for the 2023 year was a new Gen5 0311xf driver. I had been saving up and just as I was ready PXG had them on sale. Which was perfect timing.  I went back over to the store and got fitted into the correct shaft for my swing. I'm not bombing it but I can attest that my dispersion is much tighter now. The driver technology has come a long way since when my old gamer (Titleist 907r) was made. 

All in all it was a huge year for me in purchasing. This year my goal is to continue to focus on getting more consistent and start stinging more than 2 good shots together. If I make any purchases in 2024 it might be a 3w or wedges but, honestly I doubt it. I would love to be able to get a sim setup so that I can play more often. I have used a Garmin r10 into a net with an iPad and as simple as that setup is it just works well. Time will tell what 2024 brings. 

[Huse343]

I purchased the TaylorMade Stealth irons last year. I upgraded from my Nike Vrs irons from college golf. I was torn between the Stealth and the P770. I ended up choosing the Stealth, solely on saving a few hundred bucks. I absolutely love them. They are super forgiving and LONG. My PW is carrying about 155-157. This makes long par 4’s and all par 5’s that much easier. Having a short iron into a par 5 is awesome. Although I didn’t buy them for gained distance, it’s certainly an added bonus. The forgiveness on them is excellent. I’m usually a pretty good ball striker with irons, but these take it to the next level. I dropped from an 8 handicap down to a 3 last year, only change I made was the irons. I am hitting an average of 2-3 more greens per round. 
 

My goal for 2024 is to be a scratch golfer and I know the Stealth will help me get there. Overall rating of the Stealth irons - . Highly recommend - Especially now with them being on sale!

P.S. - I had my first hole in one last year, and it was with the Stealth irons. So I guess that’s a bonus too…  

[Domino1]

T 350 irons 6- 48degree wedge ,tsr1 4 and 6 hybrids all with sr. flex shafts

[kylekye]

Started playing about 9 months ago with a full Callaway Strata set I picked up from craiglist, got lessons and played on a course for the first time 5 months after I started. I caught the itch for golf and bought myself a full set of Mizuno JPX 923 HM irons, Paradym driver, and a PXG Brandon Battle Ready milled putter. Once I developed my swing more over the next couple of months I also got myself TM Stealth 2 3 wood, 3 and 5 hybrids, and the Odyssey AI One #7 putter. Loving my set up at this time, a little much for a beginner but I am confident my kit will serve me well for my long journey ahead!