, at least not often... For the most part I am seeing minor distance loss. Occasionally, I'll see a bit of a hook show up on strikes closer to the toe but really that is the ball strikers fault not the club. I see the same type of action from my Burner 2.0's on miss-hits.The SCOR method actually promotes choking down an inch at a time and utilizing full swings. The markings on the grips exactly one inch apart.
By way of comparison the markings on the NDMC are about 13/16 apart. The idea of choking down in known increments is solid IMO. Grips like these are certainly more helpful in knowing how far you are choking down when compared to say a Tour Velvet.
One-T doesn't miss the sweet spot
QFT
I will say hands down I would choose the SCOR clubs by a wide margin. I went through quite a few different Cleveland wedges, all with varying degrees of loft & bounce. The only one I could ever hit consistently was a CG10 56* - 2-dot (whatever that means). I had days and situations with all of the other wedges where I could hit them well, but the inconsistency was a confidence destroyer.
Are you ready? Let's get on with it then.
So this morning I got out at o'dark o'clock in the pouring rain (sniffle) to start rocking a marathon testing day. 1x18 holes (6400 yards), 1 x 18 hole par 3 (1800 yards), 3 range buckets (240 balls) and a partridge and a pear tree were shot today. I didn't really care about scoring, deliberately missed some greens in odd positions to see what would happen and to get some more data. To make this less of a text block I'm going to break up my thoughts into a couple of sections and posts.
A: The Grip
Great picture by mdbuschsr to really show the markings on the grip. I honestly can't believe no one thought of this before because it's genius. I spent a long time working on what would happen in each grip position with a 1/2, 3/4, full swing and the results were impressive. I need more data before I can say for sure but changing the grip position wasn't as uniform as I thought in terms of distance change on each club. For example with the 59 using a half swing I could alter the distance from 45 to 68 yards pretty easily which gives up a distance change of 23 yards over 5 grip positions (I'm the weirdo that Spanks aluted to who grips the club waaay up on the small line at the top of the grip). This in theory gives us a 4.6 yard change based on the grip position. It didn't play out quite so uniform for me. One position changed the distance by 7 yards, well above the mean and I found this consistent though the 51/55/59.
I'd also like to point out that these grips are pretty great in the rain. I started on the par 3 this morning when it was pouring and foolishly forgot my towel in the car. Turns out, I didn't need it. The grip seems to repel water rather well (to be fair, so does the Pure grip on the Scratch's). I didn't have a single problem with slipage and they dried out remarkably fast when I was done for the little water they took on. Like were bone dry by the time I swapped my shoes.
The less stellar part is I don't really like the compound part of the grip at the top. If I was at the range practicing my short game all day I'm not sure my hands would be a happy camper at the end. It grips into your hand so well that those who don't wear a glove and who have soft hands could find they rip a bit. Not like taking huge chunks out or anything but there could be irratation
B: Shaft
I'll be totally honest and saw I'm not really sure what to think of this shaft yet. It feels very similair to a KBS Hi-Rev, even right down to how you can feel the tip of the shaft whip through the ball on a full swing. I'm use to the feeling from playing KBS tours and Hi-rev's in the past but it's been a bit so the feel is a bit weird to get use to. I'll also touch on the weight of the shaft when I talk about the iron v wedge question SCOR brings up.
C: Set up Position
I really want to touch on setup position because I'm finding it extremely important to get the most out of these wedges and how it plays with the sole. Earlier there's an excellent shot of the Vsole from adwillingham. Getting the sole to the correct bounce angle for the lie you have is very important. Don't just plunk the wedge down, swing away and expect magic. You need to woo it with the Barry White setup to get it going. If your lie is fluffy and you need the bounce, set up with the main part of the sole being down. In my case I find that it means my hands aren't in front of the ball as I'm use to. If however you need less bounce, you need the leading wedge of the sole to be grounded. This will likely end up with your hands being farther in front of you then usual. Don't move the ball around to compensate, that way leads to disaster as I found out today. Let the sole guide your hand position for your shot and adjust your ball position as normal.
For example, if using the 58/59/60, set up with the ball being further back in your stance and set the club down on the proper part of the sole. If for example you have a fairway lie, use the front edge, let it move your hands forward. What you'll notice here as well is that moving your hands more forward means your weight is shifted more towards the front as well. Lots of people seem to want to keep their weight back when chipping and it doesn't allow them to get down and through the ball for the chip. When your weight is more forward, it helps reduce this from occuring leading to lots of saved shots around the green.
If you have a fluffy lie and the plan is to open the face up, the club isn't quite so demanding about where you put your weight. It does tend to lead to a more balanced setup since your hands are closer to the ball but there's nothing stopping you from leaning either way or staying balanced as is your preference. I did find that going after the ball in the fluff and sand I was having better results with a balanced weight setup but I can see that vary on the person easily.
I've got 8 more sections to touch on but because this is becoming long I'm going to just finish with two more.
D: The 59 is Awesome
Why is the 59 awesome? I got my first hole in one today with it baby! Lets rock it Old Gray Style :bananadance::banana::alien2:
E: For Tmex
Hey Tmex, remember your Jaws and the sweet spot? I might not be quite as good but I'll take this up against your Jaws anyday
Not sure that's going to come out picture wise but after 30 shots with the 55, I didn't have a single outside of a quarter spot. Little higher up the face then I would like but what can you do when they were all out of the rough?
Still to come on Tuna time:
vSole thoughs
Distance changes
Irons v wedges cage match
forged v cast and is Tuna really a snob?
Until later tonight. Same tuna channel, totally different time. KAPOW!
