Success with Vintage Clubs - Cool or Annoying

[SonofSnowman]

This discussion of groove technology is way beyond my pay grade, but, for what it's worth, Tom Wishon does seem to claim in this article (and the comments section) that grooves and milling help to some degree to impart spin.

http://wishongolf.com/wedge-backspin-create-backspin-with-a-micro-groove-wedge/

 

[YetiLooper]

I never said I wasn't believing you though. All I was getting at was the grooves do have some affect on the spin. If I was wrong so be it, doesn't matter, all that matters is the gets in the hole at some point.

 

[YetiLooper]

Back to the original post. I don't think I would advise playing vintage clubs and expecting success. Take them to the range that can be fun. Old putters work just fine.

 

[bigdaddy]

Just thought it was funny that putters are said to have "no advances". I tried a Works putter this year and IMMEDIATELY noticed that it got the ball rolling much faster than any other putter I had tried in the past. That said, I decided to go with another putter as I liked the look of it better.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[blugold]

This discussion of groove technology is way beyond my pay grade, but, for what it's worth, Tom Wishon does seem to claim in this article (and the comments section) that grooves and milling help to some degree to impart spin.

http://wishongolf.com/wedge-backspin-create-backspin-with-a-micro-groove-wedge/

Consider the source. He's trying to sell wedges.

I never said I wasn't believing you though. All I was getting at was the grooves do have some affect on the spin. If I was wrong so be it, doesn't matter, all that matters is the gets in the hole at some point.

You are right. Grooves affect spin. But not by grabbing the ball, that was my bigger point.

 

[YetiLooper]

I guess the thing my zero research opinion came from is when I hit my wedges I have to clean ball cover out of the grooves. I have a hard time thinking that doesn't impact the spin rate.

 

[blugold]

I guess the thing my zero research opinion came from is when I hit my wedges I have to clean ball cover out of the grooves. I have a hard time thinking that doesn't impact the spin rate.

I know. It's counterintuitive. But it's the truth. Grooves don't "grab" the ball.

 

[Evok]

I know. It's counterintuitive. But it's the truth. Grooves don't "grab" the ball.

We had a thread awhile back where we were all discussing this and someone brought up the shaved wedge and that test showing it was getting a ton of spin. Cant remember who started it tho

 

[black mamba]

There are diplomatic ways of explaining things. Saying you hope other people read it and correct me is kinda unnecessary way of pointing things out.

The guy lives on here

36. 000 posts. ? Really?

 

[guernseyhacker]

i'm fully with the no technical advances in putter tech people. Yes there's been many 'advances' to help some people with certain styles but nothing that makes new putters better than old ones. It's an interesting discussion though and i'm certainly not saying we should stop making new putters as everyone has different preferences.

just my 2c on the grooves discussion (apologies for continuing the tangent) the best analogy I can think of is car tyres. best performance is smooth tyres in the dry but as soon as it's wet then you need grooves to deal with the water. spin comes from friction and friction comes from contact area so in most conditions the grooves simply help maximise the contact area with the club. Good article here:

http://probablegolfinstruction.com/golf-club-grooves-backspin.htm

 

[Mystery Meat]

If you have a proper swing, than everything will work no matter what age it is. Buying new equipment won't give you a better swing. I used thing equipment helps, but the proper motion is all that counts

 

[rallo]

If you have a proper swing, than everything will work no matter what age it is. Buying new equipment won't give you a better swing. I used thing equipment helps, but the proper motion is all that counts

This... my dad still games on old set of powerbilt blades, and an old lefty copper putter. He is a scratch golfer and still kicks my butt even though he only gets out about 5 times a year. He has one of the smoothest swings I've seen in person. That said, he upgrades driver and 3 wood occasionally

Sent from my SM-N910V using Tapatalk

 

[SkiBumGolfer]

I think it's kinda cool to see a throwback. Ken_h had a set of old Hogan Apexes at our Torrey North round on Saturday and I was fawning over them like a schoolgirl haha.

As for drivers and long clubs though, I just can't see anyone who takes the game seriously choosing to turn down the benefits of added forgiveness on off center shots and higher ball speeds = great distance.

 

[YetiLooper]

I know. It's counterintuitive. But it's the truth. Grooves don't "grab" the ball.

Spent some time thinking about it some more. I think the engineering term that would apply is drag coefficient. Friction is created by greatest surface area in contact. Think of it like a stainless steal pan vs a Teflon pan. Teflon creates a small texture which then creates less surface in contact with what you are cooking hence it doesn't stick. (Yes I am sure there are other factors) meanwhile stainless is smooth so food sticks without a lubricant. So in applying to a golf do to the spherical shape of the ball it will for a small time roll up the face, the flatter the face the less time the ball interacts the less time it interacts the less drag and less consequential spin. It probably a clue as to why the PM wedge by Callaway has such a long boxy toe, it enables the ball to stay in contact with the face longer thereby allowing for more spin.

So you were totally right on this. Good call man!

 

[blugold]

Spent some time thinking about it some more. I think the engineering term that would apply is drag coefficient. Friction is created by greatest surface area in contact. Think of it like a stainless steal pan vs a Teflon pan. Teflon creates a small texture which then creates less surface in contact with what you are cooking hence it doesn't stick. (Yes I am sure there are other factors) meanwhile stainless is smooth so food sticks without a lubricant. So in applying to a golf do to the spherical shape of the ball it will for a small time roll up the face, the flatter the face the less time the ball interacts the less time it interacts the less drag and less consequential spin. It probably a clue as to why the PM wedge by Callaway has such a long boxy toe, it enables the ball to stay in contact with the face longer thereby allowing for more spin.

So you were totally right on this. Good call man!

I was short last night. My brain was tired. I know I came off pretty dickish. I just had little energy to be cordial. That's on me.

 

[YetiLooper]

No worries I work like.60+ hours a week, I get there at times too.

 

[mcrobertsjmac32]

Ok I had this thought last night but didn't want to poke the rage rhinos that were in here lol.

Honest question. I've read articles on both sides of the argument. I get that a grooves job is to move away grass, and dirt etc to help the ball contact the face in the "grooves don't help ppl spin the ball" argument. Now here is my question, how when from a tight fairway lie where I'm a picker and I take no divot, visually see a difference in spin between my old Ram wedges and my newer Tour Trusty or Grenade wedges. Also I think it was Rick Shiels that did a video of him hitting new vs old wedges on a mat (so no grass or dirt to move) and the new grooves spun a significant amount more than the old wedges. Judging by the argument that more face touching the ball = most spin you would think the worn down wedges where the face appears to be almost flat would spin more that the groove wedge from a mat or hard pan lie?

 

[Drumdog]

"Is this cool or annoying?"

Neither....to me. It's a putter that works for him.
Like Snedeker and his driver. They try new things and sometimes go back to what is dependable for them.