jbern Intro and WITB

[ParFore74x]

8 minutes ago, jbern said:

I don’t think you’ll be disappointed! Are you planning to write a review? I’m thinking about going with the full-face grooved JB’s for my next wedge set!

I definitely could write a review about it. I ordered the full groove version for the 58° to see how I like it. If it works out for me I’ll end up ordering a 54° as well, because I like matching sets.

[jbern]

8 hours ago, funkyjudge said:

The 699 and 699 Pro heads are pretty forgiving and they are nearly as long as the longest irons I have hit (Cobra King Forged Tec X, Callaway Paradym, and Tour Edge Exotics E721 and E722).  The only things that I don't particularly like about the Sub 70 699 and 699 Pro irons are that that the sole has too much of a curved leading edge (not camber, curvature from heel to toe), and that they have a little harsher feel than some other hollow-body irons.  Also, to get the yardage gaps right in the transition between the 699 and 699 Pros (the break is between the 7 and 8 irons in my blended set), the lofts need to be adjusted some.

That’s great to know! Thanks for the info!

 Hopefully you can see it in the photos, but the 659 CBs have almost a V-sole and I really like it. 

[jbern]

19 minutes ago, ParFore74x said:

I definitely could write a review about it. I ordered the full groove version for the 58° to see how I like it. If it works out for me I’ll end up ordering a 54° as well, because I like matching sets.

Go for it! I’d appreciate reading someone else’s feedback before I make the purchase! I’m going to need new wedges before next season for sure

[buckpillar]

On 2/24/2024 at 8:35 PM, jbern said:

Intro:

I’ve been a forum member for over a year now and haven’t done a proper intro and WITB, so here we go!

First off, I'm a dad to three young kids (ages 1-6). They are awesome and keep my wife and I very busy. None of them are into golf yet, except for driving around in the cart! The kids are into soccer and gymnastics and then as a family we like to go on hikes and bike rides and get out on the lake in the summertime. 

For work, I'm an engineer for a fleet of generation facitlities of all types. I design the protection systems that keep the equipment and people safe within the generation facilities.

As far as golf goes, I golfed for the first time when I was a 14 years old, the day before high school golf team tryouts. I proceeded to tryout for the golf team and I ended up making the final spot on the golf team. After that I golfed almost everyday the weather obliged from May-October for the rest of high school. I was not a nerd for golf during that time, but by my senior year, I was floating between a 5-7 hdcp. We did not have a good team as you can see from the local newpaper article (that is me in the photo):

After high school, golf and I had a falling out and I only golfed 7 times over the next 15 years. Then a friend from church asked me to be in a scramble in the fall of 2021 and at the scramble they talked me into joining a fall golf league. Ever since I've been obsessed and get out every chance I get.

 

WITB:

Drivers:

I've been gaming a PXG Gen4 10.5* (turned down to 9*) with a Mitsubishi Tensei Blue 65g S-flex. It's been a good driver and was definitely an upgrade from my Cleveland Launcher 460 (circa 2003).

I felt like I was missing out on a little distance and forgiveness. So I've been slowly browsing for something different and landed on a Cobra LTDx with a Project X Blue Smoke 60g 6.0 shaft that I got from a fellow forum spy! I'm going to be doing a head-to-head for the next few weeks to make sure it's worthy of going in the bag!

 

Fairway metals and hybrids:

My 3W came from coming runner up in the MGS Forum Open Championship Pick'em contest sponsored by Titleist!!! I won my choice of fairway wood! I chose the TSR2 15* (turned down to 14*) with a Project X Blue Smoke 60g 6.0 shaft. It's been a fantastic club and perfectly filled the gap between 5W and Dr I used to have.

The 5W has been a staple for me since a started golfing. My first 5W was an actual wooden 5W and was my go-to club when I was nervous or in any trouble. The PXG Gen4 XF 5W (19* turned down to 17.5*) has rails along the bottom that really help it glide over the turf. I can't see myself replacing this one for a while.

I had never used a hybrid before and when I came back to golf in 2021, I could NOT hit my long irons at all. My 3, 4 & 5 irons all went the same distance. PXG was running a bonkers sale on their Gen4 fairway woods and hybrids so I just decided to get a 4hybrid to try out. It hasn't left my bag since. My only complaint with it is the sound is not good to me.

 

Irons:

I’m writing up a long term review on these Sub70 659 CB irons so I won’t say much about them here. I’ll just say that I like them a lot! I bought them used off of fb marketplace. They were a little beat up, but the price was too good to pass on. I have the 5-AW (50*) with Project X 6.0 steel shafts. 

 

Wedges:

I used to buy cheap wedge sets that came in 52*, 56*, & 60* sets. They did the job, but since switching to a more premium 54* & 58* wedge in the Sub70 286, I’ll never go back. The feel and playability is just different and better in about every way.

 

Putter:

Armlock putting took some time to get used to and I’m still not quite there, even after half a season with one. There’s no denying that my putting stats have improved since making the switch to the Sub70 AL-6 armlock putter. I have an Unofficial Review here that goes into a lot of detail about the putter and my stats.

 

Grips:

I use Graves Golf Academy single plane grips on my irons, hybrid and fairway woods. I’m a single plane swinging golfer and the grips are just an easy checkpoint for hand position. They are kind of a pain to install because of the spot on alignment that’s needed.

 

Balls:

This one will be ever changing, but my main two balls of choice are the Vice Pro Drip and the Maxfli Tour S. The Vice Pro Drip just looks and the Maxfli Tour S was a top performer during Titleist white box testing and again later when I did a ball test of my own! 

Bag and Accessories:

I have a Titleist 6 divider bag that’s about 20 years old and it’s fine. I love the simple look of it, but I wouldn’t mind an upgrade soon. It also looks great on my Clicgear 4.0 pushcart. I walk 90% of my rounds and was fortunate enough to be a ’23 MGS Forum Tester for the Clicgear 4.0. If you’re interested in it, see my review here!

 

I also carry a ruler or two to use as alignment aids. One I have marked up with where my foot and ball position should be for each club. 

My glove has been Kirkland Signature since reading an MGS article about them, putting them on my Christmas list and my Costco loving M-I-L’s eye’s lighting up at an easy gift opportunity! They’re great gloves, but I’m beyond excited to try the MGS forum badged Red Rooster gloves that are coming my way in May!

 

 

I think that’s about all. It’s been a pleasure being a forum member for over a year now and getting to know so many wonderful golfers and fellow spies!

Have a great day everyone! 

Nice write up and Great find. Thanks for sharing.

[funkyjudge]

On 2/24/2024 at 8:35 PM, jbern said:

Intro:

I’ve been a forum member for over a year now and haven’t done a proper intro and WITB, so here we go!

First off, I'm a dad to three young kids (ages 1-6). They are awesome and keep my wife and I very busy. None of them are into golf yet, except for driving around in the cart! The kids are into soccer and gymnastics and then as a family we like to go on hikes and bike rides and get out on the lake in the summertime. 

For work, I'm an engineer for a fleet of generation facitlities of all types. I design the protection systems that keep the equipment and people safe within the generation facilities.

As far as golf goes, I golfed for the first time when I was a 14 years old, the day before high school golf team tryouts. I proceeded to tryout for the golf team and I ended up making the final spot on the golf team. After that I golfed almost everyday the weather obliged from May-October for the rest of high school. I was not a nerd for golf during that time, but by my senior year, I was floating between a 5-7 hdcp. We did not have a good team as you can see from the local newpaper article (that is me in the photo):

After high school, golf and I had a falling out and I only golfed 7 times over the next 15 years. Then a friend from church asked me to be in a scramble in the fall of 2021 and at the scramble they talked me into joining a fall golf league. Ever since I've been obsessed and get out every chance I get.

 

WITB:

Drivers:

I've been gaming a PXG Gen4 10.5* (turned down to 9*) with a Mitsubishi Tensei Blue 65g S-flex. It's been a good driver and was definitely an upgrade from my Cleveland Launcher 460 (circa 2003).

I felt like I was missing out on a little distance and forgiveness. So I've been slowly browsing for something different and landed on a Cobra LTDx with a Project X Blue Smoke 60g 6.0 shaft that I got from a fellow forum spy! I'm going to be doing a head-to-head for the next few weeks to make sure it's worthy of going in the bag!

 

Fairway metals and hybrids:

My 3W came from coming runner up in the MGS Forum Open Championship Pick'em contest sponsored by Titleist!!! I won my choice of fairway wood! I chose the TSR2 15* (turned down to 14*) with a Project X Blue Smoke 60g 6.0 shaft. It's been a fantastic club and perfectly filled the gap between 5W and Dr I used to have.

The 5W has been a staple for me since a started golfing. My first 5W was an actual wooden 5W and was my go-to club when I was nervous or in any trouble. The PXG Gen4 XF 5W (19* turned down to 17.5*) has rails along the bottom that really help it glide over the turf. I can't see myself replacing this one for a while.

I had never used a hybrid before and when I came back to golf in 2021, I could NOT hit my long irons at all. My 3, 4 & 5 irons all went the same distance. PXG was running a bonkers sale on their Gen4 fairway woods and hybrids so I just decided to get a 4hybrid to try out. It hasn't left my bag since. My only complaint with it is the sound is not good to me.

 

Irons:

I’m writing up a long term review on these Sub70 659 CB irons so I won’t say much about them here. I’ll just say that I like them a lot! I bought them used off of fb marketplace. They were a little beat up, but the price was too good to pass on. I have the 5-AW (50*) with Project X 6.0 steel shafts. 

 

Wedges:

I used to buy cheap wedge sets that came in 52*, 56*, & 60* sets. They did the job, but since switching to a more premium 54* & 58* wedge in the Sub70 286, I’ll never go back. The feel and playability is just different and better in about every way.

 

Putter:

Armlock putting took some time to get used to and I’m still not quite there, even after half a season with one. There’s no denying that my putting stats have improved since making the switch to the Sub70 AL-6 armlock putter. I have an Unofficial Review here that goes into a lot of detail about the putter and my stats.

 

Grips:

I use Graves Golf Academy single plane grips on my irons, hybrid and fairway woods. I’m a single plane swinging golfer and the grips are just an easy checkpoint for hand position. They are kind of a pain to install because of the spot on alignment that’s needed.

 

Balls:

This one will be ever changing, but my main two balls of choice are the Vice Pro Drip and the Maxfli Tour S. The Vice Pro Drip just looks and the Maxfli Tour S was a top performer during Titleist white box testing and again later when I did a ball test of my own! 

Bag and Accessories:

I have a Titleist 6 divider bag that’s about 20 years old and it’s fine. I love the simple look of it, but I wouldn’t mind an upgrade soon. It also looks great on my Clicgear 4.0 pushcart. I walk 90% of my rounds and was fortunate enough to be a ’23 MGS Forum Tester for the Clicgear 4.0. If you’re interested in it, see my review here!

 

I also carry a ruler or two to use as alignment aids. One I have marked up with where my foot and ball position should be for each club. 

My glove has been Kirkland Signature since reading an MGS article about them, putting them on my Christmas list and my Costco loving M-I-L’s eye’s lighting up at an easy gift opportunity! They’re great gloves, but I’m beyond excited to try the MGS forum badged Red Rooster gloves that are coming my way in May!

 

 

I think that’s about all. It’s been a pleasure being a forum member for over a year now and getting to know so many wonderful golfers and fellow spies!

Have a great day everyone! 

I am a huge fan of the Maxfli Tour CG Series balls (the 2023 Tour X is my absolute favorite), and Vice makes some excellent balls (Pro and especially Pro Plus, and the Pro Drip model is indeed very cool!). I think that you will like those MGS Red Rooster gloves.  I thought that they were too tight at first, but they stretch just enough, and I was impressed enough that I ordered more of them this time around; I just hope that they get here before I leave for my Scotland golf trip on May 23.

[jbern]

11 hours ago, funkyjudge said:

I am a huge fan of the Maxfli Tour CG Series balls (the 2023 Tour X is my absolute favorite), and Vice makes some excellent balls (Pro and especially Pro Plus, and the Pro Drip model is indeed very cool!). I think that you will like those MGS Red Rooster gloves.  I thought that they were too tight at first, but they stretch just enough, and I was impressed enough that I ordered more of them this time around; I just hope that they get here before I leave for my Scotland golf trip on May 23.

I agree with you on the Tour X being a favorite. When I did my personal ball test, it was my top choice in a number of categories. The Tour S just outperformed the Tour X, for me, on distance, dispersion, full-swing spin, and ball height (simulator data). 

I am very excited for the Red Rooster glove! I ordered them one size small, as recommended, in hopes that they stretch adequately! I saw some posts that the Kingsmill outing folks were thinking they were going to get the Red Rooster glove before that outing, so hopefully you do too! Have fun in Scotland!

 

[bens197]

Nice setup! 

[BreakfastBall15]

Love this WITB. As someone who got a full set through PXG full bag promo deal I will say their fairway woods are extremely underrated. 
 

Also, I’m eagerly awaiting your review on the 659 CBs. I get targeted adds for them all the time and I’m very tempted on pulling the trigger. 

[jbern]

1 hour ago, BreakfastBall15 said:

Love this WITB. As someone who got a full set through PXG full bag promo deal I will say their fairway woods are extremely underrated. 
 

Also, I’m eagerly awaiting your review on the 659 CBs. I get targeted adds for them all the time and I’m very tempted on pulling the trigger. 

I agree with you on the PXG FW clubs being underrated.  The turf interaction, feel, sound, forgiveness & performance are all good. I would not hesitate to get another PXG wood/hybrid set, especially if they're having a great deal going on!

Yes, I'm waiting on the 659 CB review to hopefully get some video, but I may just publish it and then add videos later. We'll see! If you do pull the trigger, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

[BreakfastBall15]

40 minutes ago, jbern said:

I agree with you on the PXG FW clubs being underrated.  The turf interaction, feel, sound, forgiveness & performance are all good. I would not hesitate to get another PXG wood/hybrid set, especially if they're having a great deal going on!

Yes, I'm waiting on the 659 CB review to hopefully get some video, but I may just publish it and then add videos later. We'll see! If you do pull the trigger, I don't think you'll be disappointed.

Agreed on upgrading the fairways. I didn't get the chance to hit the black ops when I went in for a driver fitting but a 7 wood has been something I've considered. IIf they blow out the gen 6 I might grab one. 

Great to know. I love the raw look and pictures don't make them look overly intimidating. 

 

[jbern]

5 hours ago, BreakfastBall15 said:

Agreed on upgrading the fairways. I didn't get the chance to hit the black ops when I went in for a driver fitting but a 7 wood has been something I've considered. IIf they blow out the gen 6 I might grab one. 

Great to know. I love the raw look and pictures don't make them look overly intimidating. 

 

Yes, I could see myself replacing the 4hy with a 7w! I do like hitting the hybrid but it sounds like a tin can!  

[Jesse_Land]

Have you put the Sub70 irons review together yet? I don't need to replace my PXG's yet, but when I do will be heavily considering going with Sub70. I have the new Pro Version 2 fairway wood in a 5-wood and have been really pleased. What are your thoughts on those 659 CB's?? 

[jbern]

3 hours ago, Jesse_Land said:

Have you put the Sub70 irons review together yet? I don't need to replace my PXG's yet, but when I do will be heavily considering going with Sub70. I have the new Pro Version 2 fairway wood in a 5-wood and have been really pleased. What are your thoughts on those 659 CB's?? 

This a great reminder that I need to get that done. I put it on the shelf when I was selected to test the LAB DF3, but I'll have to get back at it! 

If you want a cliff notes version: They look/feel awesome! They have a fairly small footprint and thin top line, but they have a bit more offset look at address than I'd prefer. Love the slight v-sole on grass, not on turf/mats. Forgiveness is very good on slight mishits. Forgiveness is not good on mid-large mishits. Feedback is phenomenal through the Project X 6.0 shafts.