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Trying to Break 100

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-CRW- said:
Well it today's round didn't go as planned. I shot a 104. I made some adjustments this week to my driver set up and it made a big difference. I hit 10 out of 14 fairways. Of the remaining 4, 2 were just outside the fairway, 1 was a pretty strong slice, and 1 was a draw that I aimed a little too left with early on (expecting a little fade) that ended up running into water. That drive and a fat shot with my 58* wedge over water (that didn't make it) cost me 2 penalty strokes. I had 38 putts, so not too terrible. I had a few one putts and also a few 3 putts. So after my two penalty strokes and 2 extra putts, I'd say 10 strokes were caused by poor iron strikes that resulted in being either errant enough to put me in a bad spot (like behind a tree) or were topped robbing me of enough distance to require at least 1 extra stroke for each shots respective hole.

The remaining 18 strokes were from 40 yards and in. This is an area that I'm really going to have to spend more time with. I had some pitches from 20-40 yards that ended up being fat and going half the required distance, some 5-15 yard chip/pitches that were short, and a few that were long and rolled off the back of the green. Some holes had a short chip followed by a long one over the green due to over correcting. There were plenty of longer approach shots that fell long, short, or to either side of the green. But I could have saved par on those holes if it weren't for poor chipping/pitching. I also would have had 36 putts or less if it weren't for poor chipping/pitching.

I had one GIR on a Par 4 (just barely, like two inches on the front of the green). I was no more than 10 feet from the hole and ended up 3 putting for a bogie because I left the first putt soooo short. The second one ended up being even with the hole, maybe an inch to the left. Very frustrating to say the least. I had a lot of stupid mistakes.

In my short 9 month golfing career I've had 13 lessons, 6 of which were over the last 6 weeks. None of those lessons have been on short game skills. I'm going to have to break down and go to a short game school. Funny thing is, the past two rounds were a 114 and 115. I didn't lose a single ball those rounds, but today I shoot a 104 and lost 2 balls to water. I'm trying the e6 and am liking them so far. I do think they like to run on the green, but they are long and straight just as advertised.
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san jac again? Keep at it, your almost there. I been having good range sessions, playing this Sunday morning with three other THP'ers.
 
Yes on San Jac. It's cheap, halfway between me and the guys I play with, and I like to walk. I'm not against driving a cart, but I could use the extra exercise.

I follow the Houston group thread, but I'm not ready to jump in with guys with sub 20 handicaps. I don't want to slow them down and don't need to feel rushed while playing.
 
FWIW, sometimes it's helpful to play with guys @ lower HCP than you. I've found that as long as the players in question are tolerant of my struggles I learn a lot from watching how they approach different shots and holes. The DFW THP group has been crucial to the development of my golf game, and they're almost all under 20 HCP with many in single digits. It's all about finding the right group, IMO
 
Played here and shot a 46/45 for 91 woo hoo sadly I easily Could have been a few strokes better but two bad par 3s kept me very very humble.

Looking forward to my next round ( likely a 106+ lol)

The round was made very special as I played with my cousin a 3/5 Marine I definitely do not see him enough but was just honored to get out and play a round with such a great man.
The fact that he played after his engagement party says a ton about him! He said he played his best round ever as well .
 
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Aha, just found this thread and it's my current goal. A couple things have helped me along so far:
-I play regularly at a little par 3 course with my son. He gets to learn golf, and I practice approach shots and putting all day long. I'm rewarded on the last two holes as they are both long and straight. I pull out big dog and let him eat from 8 to 9 (yeah, tee 8 to green 9) if nobody is around. Working my 5 and 7 irons all day, dropping as close to the pin as possible is great fun.

-my son and I regularly have putting games, where we both start from the same position and go for one shot/who's closest. Great fun, almost not like practice. If nobody is around, we can get in quite a bit of putting practice.

--due to the relaxed nature of the par 3, many times I may hit several balls from the same spot towards the green. I know I should hit it it in one, but this gives me lots and lots of wedge practice, recovery shots, etc.

All of this can only be good for your "big game" when you hit the real course. Short game is where the strokes are.
 
I had another bad day and shot a 113 this morning. The main difference between this week and the last two was my putting. I had 43 putts. I also had two penalties after hitting the same body of water twice on the same hole! Topped the first shot from around 110 and watched it roll in. Then took a drop that I hit fat which caused the shot to be short and fall in the water. I only had 1 par on a par 3 which was luck because I missed the green.

My driver was okay, not as good as last week but I changed shafts and my first time to hit with it was on the course. I went from a 55g stiff to a 79g Xstiff. The 55 felt too whippy the more I get used to the heavy S300's in my irons. I didn't have any bad shots with the driver. I had a few slight pulls at first, but it may have just me getting used to the weight change - both were playable in the left rough just off the fairway. I then had a few fades and pulls just to the right of the fairway as I adjusted my setup and R1 settings throughout the round. The xstiff was longer for me. My first drive was a slight pull that was around 270 that landed in the rough and was robbed of a good roll. That's probably the second longest drive I've had during a round. I hit a good fade later that was around 275. The rest were around 230-250 depending on whether I hit fairway or rough. Now I'm wondering if I could do even better with a stiff in the same weight or an xstiff that is somewhere between 55 and 79 grams.

I tracked my pitches and chips this time and it's obvious that I suffer most with pitches. Anything from 5-60 yards. I had 21 pitches total and only 7 chips (which I'm counting as like 3 yards and in with more of a putter like stroke). Some were fat and short and others were thin and rolled over the green. 3 shots were from a green side bunker that I couldn't get out off.

l had some issues with iron shots and only broke out my 3 & 4 irons a handful of times. I had success with the 4 and misery with the 3. I also have issues on the long par 5's due to the distance. When I hit a good 3i shot it only travels 180 max. I don't have any fairway woods or hybrids right now.

I also hit a few shots with my dads old ping knockoff irons with stiff graphite shafts. It was like cheating next to playing with my AP2's. His clubs have large faces and are significantly lighter. I hit them straighter and about 20 yards longer than my irons. My normal 6 iron is around 150-155 and I hit his 175. I'm going to stick with these ap2's for at least a year before I give up on them though.

I'll keep moving along and hopefully I'll do better next week.
 
One thing that's helped me is some advice on understanding course management. I still occasionally struggle to break 50 a side, but there's a good chance I'll break 45 a side and threaten 90. Course management comes down to this: As I walk up to every par 4 hole, I look at the yardage and subtract 150 from it. The result is how far I want my tee shot to go. If it goes a little more, awesome. If it goes a little less, that's still OK, because I'm hitting an iron at the green, which I'm pretty alright with.

(Quick aside here, and a personal opinion: There a good chance that if you look at your numbers using that strategy, you'll see that you're not hitting driver very often. If you're aiming at 12 par 4 fairways and would be hitting driver more than 8 times, consider moving up a tee.)

On par 5's, you have two shots to get to 150. From that 150 stake, play it like a par 3, regardless of the rest of the hole. Sure you can't tee up the ball, but unless you're 150 out and stuck behind a tree, you can play it out from there.

I think as players in the 20+ handicap range, the biggest problem isn't long strings of bogey golf, it's the holes where I hit ESC. The meltdown holes. The 7+ shot holes that just frustrate me to no end and put a bad taste in my mouth for the rest of the round. Chopping the hole into two parts: the drive to 150, and a par 3 the rest of the way, has really helped me reduce those. The other thing is relying too much on streaky play. Some days I just don't have it. I don't drive the ball well, or my irons are awful, or I'm not playing my short game very well. Sometimes it's all of them. Viewing each hole as getting to 150 and playing it out from there helps prevent that perfect storm when I'm just not hitting the ball very well, especially off the tee. It also allows me to look at tougher par 4's and say "How can I use two shots to get to 150 (or less) and out of the <90 yard (aka touch) range?" An iron off the tee, and a short iron to 130? Maybe I hit my 8 or 9 iron approach shot close and get par, or 2-putt for bogey. So part of course management is knowing which are the "tougher" par 4's on your course and playing those for bogey rather than trying to manufacture a miracle. There's at least 2 par 4's that I walk to not even planning to make par, because of a split fairway or harsh bunker placement right around that 150 mark. So I knock it short off the tee, then an iron to 120, get on & 2-putt or chip it close and 1-putt.

I'm not trying to patronize, but since coming to view the course this way (and it's a recent development) I've played better, and felt better about playing. A bad day with my driver doesn't bother me because I'm not going to use it very often. A bad day with my 3W means there's only 1 or 2 more holes that I might play for bogey. But that's far better than playing them for par and trying to force shots that will result in a snowman. And when I'm driving it pretty reliably, maybe I use it a bit more often and get down in that 120 range where I can hit a 9 iron or PW into the green. I still struggle, and it often doesn't work out as well as I plan, but coming to the course with a strategy and doing my best to work to it has really helped my mental outlook on the game.
 
I haven't played a round since my last post, but had another lesson today. This game is really frustrating. I just started learning how to hit from the inside and turn the corresponding hooks into draws (though not too efficiently or consistently - but I haven't been consistent since I started golfing last year).

Now, the instructor introduces body turn as I was mostly arms before. Now I'm back to slicing or pulling depending on the club face because I'm coming outside to in. It was obvious from my divots that were pointing well left of where I intended to aim. I'm hoping that I can get the timing down better to straighten out my trajectory (whether it be a fade or a draw). I did see immediate distance gains when I got a good turn. I typically hit my PW 110-115 and was hitting it 130-140 when I struck the ball well.

The instructor made some additional adjustments to the position of my feet as well. He believes in one ball position with different stance widths depending on the club, but he feels short irons should involve hitting the ball from the center of your stance and then expanding you rear foot depending on the length of whatever club your are hitting. This seemed to help with contact and distance as well. I think before I just assumed one ball position meant a little farther forward than what he intended. This led to more topped strikes then I was used to when following a 4 ball position setup across all clubs.

I'm playing again this Sunday and won't have time to practice any before then. I'm almost tempted to not score my round and just play for fun this time. Maybe take mulligans when I make mistakes to get the correct feel of the shot I'm trying to make.
 
Im currently working out of Jakarta at the moment and found myself with a day off today. So booked a tee off at 1030 this morning at the Senayan National Golf Club in the centre of the city. Its quite compact and narrow, off the white tees 65.2 / 122 with a Par 69 total yardage of 5034.

Having arrived an hour or so early due to no traffic in the city, I managed to tee off just after 0930, walked to the starters hut to be met by a very happy smiling caddy and she proceeded to walk around to the 15th tee to start on so there was no waiting around. This was definitely a round of two halves, started off with 2 bogies, 2 doubles, par, triple, bogie, par, triple, leaving me on a 46 I didn't want to know my score but I had a feeling it was going to be hovering around 50 so a 46 was a pleasant surprise. The 2 triples were down to 3 putting both ending 2 inches from the hole. Driver was definitely working well today, long irons not so well but majority of my short game around the greens was good and putter was average with 3 x 3 putts, 3 x 2 putts and 3 x 1 putts the first 9 holes. I was in that happy place, it was hot but not unbearably hot , and the walk was good after spending all week indoors working.

The back 9 starting at hole 1. Now it all went down hill, there was a society of 40 golfers in 10 groups of 4 teeing off in front me, the last group who I ended up behind consisted of 3 guys and one of their 10 year old sons. We'd covered the first nine pretty quickly with only 1 3some in front of me who were playing quickly. From arriving at the first tee to actually teeing off was a 30 minute wait, fair enough sit in the shade and relax. Finally tee off hit a good drive, wait 10 minutes for the group in front, followed by a 5 iron which left me 130 yards out uphill into wind, another wait of 10 minutes for them to clear the green, pulled the 7 iron connected well nice high straight flight I'm thinking thats gonna be short and bam buried deep in the front bunker. made a hash of the bunker shots, and 3 putted for a 10 double par!. Put it behind me, get to the 2nd, group in front haven't tee'd off yet and the group in front of them are on the green finishing up, another long wait finally tee off, another double par for an 8. Got a little annoyed at myself on the 2nd and also at the group in front for playing so slowly. Onto the 3rd same waiting time, but a bogie par3. It took 2 hours and 7 minutes to play the first 4 holes!!!!! By this time I was getting peeved and politely asked if I could play through on one of the par 3's, the group in front of them had long gone out of site and the group in front of me, 2 had hit their tee shots, the 3rd was just about to and the young boy was waiting to hit his 20 yards again. They refused to let me go through so I sat and watched 4 lost balls in the water from the father and sons tee shots.

Finally got to the last hole, Par 4 262 yards, I watched them tee off, and waited until I thought they were far enough in front for me to tee off, hmm I connected with a nice fade on a dog leg right (my ever decreasing slice has become a gentle fade) and ended up nicely on the fairway with a easy 40 yard pitch onto the green for my 2nd shot, well thats how the 2nd shot looked in my head, in reality it was a duff into a bunker, out the bunker in one over the green into the fringe 35ish odd feet from the hole, 9 iron chip and run ended up 3 foot from the hole to putt in for bogie. Last nine holes went double par, double par, bogie, bogie, triple bogie x4, finishing with a bogie for 60!!!!! Grand total of 106. Positives from today are driver is really starting to get consistent, short game is getting a lot better with more successful shots than bad shots, putting is up and down and my irons I am still far to steep on the down swing but getting shallower providing I slow everything down. Negatives, Im not patient enough when it comes to waiting, my bunker play is awful and I need to forget the last bad shot / hole.

However I do think just over 4 hours to play 9 holes is extremely slow play, even the caddies were saying it was very very slow, I had groups getting backed up behind me and there was no one in front of the group in front of me, they were well out of sight.
 
I played today and did much better. I'm too stubborn/competitive to not score my round. I shot a 97. My drives were good for the most part, hitting 8/14 fairways with all but 1 of the remaining being just off the fairway, and the one bad one being a big pull left. I was hitting pulls with most of my clubs except my PW and 52/54/58 ATV wedges. My full approach shots with those clubs made the green. Everything else I pulled as much as 20 yards left. I expected that though after the changes introduced in my last lesson. My short game isn't good, but has improved a lot. Especially the 0-15 yard range from the edge of the green. 15-60 are still pretty rough for me. I had 34 putts with only 1 three putt. I also holed out on one hole with a chutt. 3 pars, 7 bogeys, 6 dbl bogeys, 2 triples - no birdies/eagles, but had some opportunities for birdie where I missed putts. I was 6 over on the par 3's, 11 on the 4's, and 8 on the 5's.

My extra strokes on the 3's were due to either short or pulled tee shots. My extras on the 5's are mostly from the distance and my inability to hit anything longer than a 5 iron. I currently do not have any hybrids or fairway woods. My extra strokes on the 4's are a mix, but mostly pulls or short on approach shots or poor chipping/pitching.

I got the fix your body, fix your swing book recommended on a thread here. I failed all the assessments with flying colors. I plan on working on the routine in the book finally starting the blue track for the PGA Academy DVD program for the next 8+ weeks. I'll still be working with my instructor 1x a week. Hopefully I can continue to stay under 100.
 
Keep plugging away

Oh and congrats on the chutt and 0 putt
 
-CRW- said:
I played today and did much better. I'm too stubborn/competitive to not score my round. I shot a 97. My drives were good for the most part, hitting 8/14 fairways with all but 1 of the remaining being just off the fairway, and the one bad one being a big pull left. I was hitting pulls with most of my clubs except my PW and 52/54/58 ATV wedges. My full approach shots with those clubs made the green. Everything else I pulled as much as 20 yards left. I expected that though after the changes introduced in my last lesson. My short game isn't good, but has improved a lot. Especially the 0-15 yard range from the edge of the green. 15-60 are still pretty rough for me. I had 34 putts with only 1 three putt. I also holed out on one hole with a chutt. 3 pars, 7 bogeys, 6 dbl bogeys, 2 triples - no birdies/eagles, but had some opportunities for birdie where I missed putts. I was 6 over on the par 3's, 11 on the 4's, and 8 on the 5's.

My extra strokes on the 3's were due to either short or pulled tee shots. My extras on the 5's are mostly from the distance and my inability to hit anything longer than a 5 iron. I currently do not have any hybrids or fairway woods. My extra strokes on the 4's are a mix, but mostly pulls or short on approach shots or poor chipping/pitching.

I got the fix your body, fix your swing book recommended on a thread here. I failed all the assessments with flying colors. I plan on working on the routine in the book finally starting the blue track for the PGA Academy DVD program for the next 8+ weeks. I'll still be working with my instructor 1x a week. Hopefully I can continue to stay under 100.
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Sounds like you have my habits with the pull, over the top swing/ not getting the hips thru?
 
My last two rounds I have just squeezed under the century mark. I got to work on my putting stroke and getting off the tee to get myself into the breaking 90 thread.
 
Crowe925 said:
Sounds like you have my habits with the pull, over the top swing/ not getting the hips thru?
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Well, before this last lesson I was mostly arms. I'm trying to use my hips, but I found that moving the hips didn't matter if you are trying to swing with your arms. This week I had two range days and during the second something just clicked with me. I watched an ignition golf video on fixing pulled shots that talked about not using your arms/hands and turning the center of your sternum back. Doing that with the hips made for amazing hits for me. Stopped the pulls and I was hitting nice draws that were within 10 yards of my target line.

I had a hand full of topped shots that went right and a handful of pulls, but roughly less than 10 mis-hits out of 75 or so balls. It was probably the best range day I've had since I started golfing last summer. I have another lesson today, so hopefully some of it stuck with me!
 
I've done it, shot a 98 this afternoon, out in 45 and back in with a 53. Played here http://www.palmgarden.net.my in Malaysia, it was the only course I could get on as a single non member near to where I am working this week and next. I started off badly with a slice to the right and ended up with a triple bogie then things improved. The back 9 was not so good. Easier to just put a link to the score card than try to remember and explain. I think I could have had shaved a few more strokes off this round had it not been for a couple of balls that decided they wanted to go for a swim. As long as I mentally tell myself slow down my swing my ball striking is getting a lot more consistent and ending up with fewer chunks and pulled shots to the left.

 
Keep at it and the scores front to back will match up better.
 
Congrats!!!
garethw said:
I've done it, shot a 98 this afternoon, out in 45 and back in with a 53. Played here http://www.palmgarden.net.my in Malaysia, it was the only course I could get on as a single non member near to where I am working this week and next. I started off badly with a slice to the right and ended up with a triple bogie then things improved. The back 9 was not so good. Easier to just put a link to the score card than try to remember and explain. I think I could have had shaved a few more strokes off this round had it not been for a couple of balls that decided they wanted to go for a swim. As long as I mentally tell myself slow down my swing my ball striking is getting a lot more consistent and ending up with fewer chunks and pulled shots to the left.

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garethw said:
I've done it, shot a 98 this afternoon, out in 45 and back in with a 53. Played here http://www.palmgarden.net.my in Malaysia, it was the only course I could get on as a single non member near to where I am working this week and next. I started off badly with a slice to the right and ended up with a triple bogie then things improved. The back 9 was not so good. Easier to just put a link to the score card than try to remember and explain. I think I could have had shaved a few more strokes off this round had it not been for a couple of balls that decided they wanted to go for a swim. As long as I mentally tell myself slow down my swing my ball striking is getting a lot more consistent and ending up with fewer chunks and pulled shots to the left.

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Good job! Learn from the last round and next time out maybe those mistakes will not occur lowering that number further!
 
Trying to Break 100

Shot a lousy 58/56= 114. First full 18 this year in normal scoring conditions, crowded course and all. Good news was a lot of the swing improvements I've been making with my instructor are taking shape. Only had 3 balls lost today and I was consistently hitting decent shots, just a mess of a short game due to rust. That will clear up in a couple weeks and I think I will be in a good place. 4/14 FIR, 0/18 GIR. 40 putts was horrible, but they just rolled the greens and I had no consistency. Good to get out finally though.
 
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I played in 25-30mph winds the other day and ended up with a 107. I'm honestly not even upset. Lately my driver has been very straight and working well for me. But with this wind I watched drives get pushed from on side of the fairway to the other. My 8 iron is normally a 130-140 yard club from me, but with the wind at my back it was over 170 and with wind in my face it was barely reaching 110 for me. I watched chips and putts get blown across the green and balls blown off of my tee more than once. Long story short, it was miserable. I've played in cold rain and enjoyed it more than this wind.

I had 3 penalties that resulted in 6 extra strokes and 3 lost golf balls. I had 39 putts and a few extra chips after watching what looked like good chips end with the ball rolling 30+ feet off of the green. I had some consistency issues switching between my ap2's with s300 shafts and my ATV wedges with stock kbs wedge flex shafts and increased swing weight. One was a fat shot with a wedge that ended up with the ball in the water. I had straight shots come up short or long off the green due to wind, or get pushed left or right of the green for the same reason.

Overall my irons were the most consistent they've been for me as far as solid contact goes. My drives were good, but the same as I've been producing for the past month or so. My pitching and chipping has dramatically improved and I had less extra strokes from contact issues and more from weather issues. Near the end of the round I switched from the E6 that I've been playing to the Project A and saw no difference in my drives but saw improvement around the greens.

My plan for next week is to play on a day with normal weather and to play the project a ball the entire round to see how it works for me. I also ordered a set of used Vokey SM4 wedges with S200 shafts that will be here before the end of the week. I take a lot of full shots with my wedges so hopefully the vokeys will feel more like my ap2's. I'd also like to drop my 3&4 iron and pick up hybrids to replace them. I struggle being more than 50% consistent in good contact with the 3&4 irons. I also need a 3 wood. Something for second shots on par 5's.
 
High winds are fun. In an extreme weather day a few months ago, I hit 3 and 4 hybrid off the tee to keep it down, and played knockdown shots all the way around. Links style golf. Shot 81
 
thewitt said:
High winds are fun. In an extreme weather day a few months ago, I hit 3 and 4 hybrid off the tee to keep it down, and played knockdown shots all the way around. Links style golf. Shot 81
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While I have a general idea of what makes a knockdown shot, it's not something I've tried before, and definitely not a shot in my bag. I do need to make it a priority since I often find myself just off the fairway with trees branches in the way of my shot.
 
Very necessary to have in your bag. Basically put the ball back in your stance and abbreviate your follow thru. Keep hands low.

You may be surprised at just how useful this can be.

I hit a "hooded" 4 iron 170 yards and ran it on a green while everyone in my group either fell way short or let the wind take their ball dozens of yards offline.

For real links style golf, these shots are a must.
 
-CRW- said:
I played in 25-30mph winds the other day and ended up with a 107. I'm honestly not even upset. Lately my driver has been very straight and working well for me. But with this wind I watched drives get pushed from on side of the fairway to the other. My 8 iron is normally a 130-140 yard club from me, but with the wind at my back it was over 170 and with wind in my face it was barely reaching 110 for me. I watched chips and putts get blown across the green and balls blown off of my tee more than once. Long story short, it was miserable. I've played in cold rain and enjoyed it more than this wind.

I had 3 penalties that resulted in 6 extra strokes and 3 lost golf balls. I had 39 putts and a few extra chips after watching what looked like good chips end with the ball rolling 30+ feet off of the green. I had some consistency issues switching between my ap2's with s300 shafts and my ATV wedges with stock kbs wedge flex shafts and increased swing weight. One was a fat shot with a wedge that ended up with the ball in the water. I had straight shots come up short or long off the green due to wind, or get pushed left or right of the green for the same reason.

Overall my irons were the most consistent they've been for me as far as solid contact goes. My drives were good, but the same as I've been producing for the past month or so. My pitching and chipping has dramatically improved and I had less extra strokes from contact issues and more from weather issues. Near the end of the round I switched from the E6 that I've been playing to the Project A and saw no difference in my drives but saw improvement around the greens.

My plan for next week is to play on a day with normal weather and to play the project a ball the entire round to see how it works for me. I also ordered a set of used Vokey SM4 wedges with S200 shafts that will be here before the end of the week. I take a lot of full shots with my wedges so hopefully the vokeys will feel more like my ap2's. I'd also like to drop my 3&4 iron and pick up hybrids to replace them. I struggle being more than 50% consistent in good contact with the 3&4 irons. I also need a 3 wood. Something for second shots on par 5's.
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I use a Cobra AMP Cell 4/5 hybrid set at the 4 setting and i dumped the 3 wood for a G25 4 Wood which I have found a lot easier to get in the air both off the tee and off the ground. I'm only carrying 13 clubs at the moment so have space for 2/3 hybrid once I have the 4/5 sorted out. If I can get 200 yards off the tee with my driver followed by a reasonable 4 wood, I should be in 8 or 9 iron range of the green on a 500 ish par 5 hole. That is assuming a straight ball flight!
 
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