High Handicap looking for advise on new clubs

[bozack]

Hello all,

So I am a pretty high handicap player on a league, been playing for three years now and am looking to change up some of my equipment.

I started with a boxed Adams Tight Lies set and have since updated the driver to an Adams Speed line S (actually had two, the second is adjustable) which I like a lot, the sets driver had a very flexible shaft as do all of the graphite shaft clubs.

I am now thinking of picking up the rest of the speed line clubs as they are pretty affordable online and I am not a fan of how flexible the hybrids and woods I have are.

Currently I have a 3 and a 5 wood, and a 4 and a 5 Hybrid.

I was going to replace the clubs I have with the same only from the Idea series but my league partner suggested I dump the 5 wood and instead get a 3 hybrid. I never hit the woods in league play but didn't know what you guys recommend or if anyone has dropped a wood for a hybrid.

Thanks

 

[JB]

I dropped a wood for a hybrid. I think a lot of people have. It will depend on if you prefer hitting irons or woods as a hybrid is definitely more iron type of a swing.
I would say go to a store, hit a bunch of stuff that fits your budget and go with the one that you like the look of and hit okay. Dont worry about brand at this juncture or matching things and see what you like the most.

 

[CBaker]

I also dropped a 5 wood for a strong hybrid, but I also like 5 woods as well. I have no trouble hitting either, but I know a decent amount of people that don't like hybrids for one reason or another. I'd suggest trying them out in stores and see what you prefer.

 

[Wilson Staffer]

Exactly what JB said. Matching gear isn't really advised unless every club in the set fits your game. Not saying matching is a bad thing either but rather irrelevant at this stage in your development. Demo and game my man. And have a blast while you're at it.

 

[bozack]

Hey thanks all, so for me it was more a matter of regrip and reshaft what I had or just get something new, and the prices of the new stuff on line was so low, when I go to golf galaxy their older stuff is usually pretty beat and the new stuff is much more expensive.

As for me, this whole season I don't think I hit my woods once, I will occasionally use my hybrids though, with the irons being the most.

 

[Golf 'N Gator]

I dropped a wood for a hybrid. I think a lot of people have. It will depend on if you prefer hitting irons or woods as a hybrid is definitely more iron type of a swing.
I would say go to a store, hit a bunch of stuff that fits your budget and go with the one that you like the look of and hit okay. Dont worry about brand at this juncture or matching things and see what you like the most.

Could not have said it better!

 

[GopherBroke]

I am a pretty high handicap player...I started with a boxed Adams Tight Lies set and have since updated the driver to an Adams Speed line S

Hi! Like you, I'm relatively new to the game, and my first set of clubs was an Adams Tight Lies box set (TL1014 from 2011). I've added a gap wedge, and never used the mallet putter that came with the set (hated it, prefer face-balanced blades). I noticed one of your posts from a couple of years ago mentioned that you'd dinged the driver...so did I! Topped it really bad, and put a nickel-sized ding right next to the hosel. Doesn't seem to affect performance, but...with my game, it's hard to tell. I still can't hit it worth crap.

Anyway, I'm currently taking lessons and working on improving my game, but the first thing I think I'll do is upgrade the driver. The irons and hybrids that came with the set seem to work much better for me.

That being said, I don't have any advice for you, but it seems we're in the same boat!

 

[bozack]

Hi! Like you, I'm relatively new to the game, and my first set of clubs was an Adams Tight Lies box set (TL1014 from 2011). I've added a gap wedge, and never used the mallet putter that came with the set (hated it, prefer face-balanced blades). I noticed one of your posts from a couple of years ago mentioned that you'd dinged the driver...so did I! Topped it really bad, and put a nickel-sized ding right next to the hosel. Doesn't seem to affect performance, but...with my game, it's hard to tell. I still can't hit it worth crap.

Anyway, I'm currently taking lessons and working on improving my game, but the first thing I think I'll do is upgrade the driver. The irons and hybrids that came with the set seem to work much better for me.

That being said, I don't have any advice for you, but it seems we're in the same boat!

Ha, so with the stock driver I put a mean dent in the bottom and then the side from some mean slices, I bought another Adams driver the next season on ebay for like $80 and it was for the most part the same design, ended up denting that one too, finally got the super S adjustable for $110 on the net and it has worked out great.

I am ok with the irons, they seem fine...but the woods especially seem very "whippy" and the hybrids have a good amount of flex also. I was going to regrip them and maybe reshaft to something firmer, but a place online is selling the super s black woods and hybrids for $40 a club, and if the shafts are anything like the driver I think I will like them a lot better.

I actually use the mallet putter though I wonder if I would be better off with something else, and I hate the bag...that will be the next thing to go.

Now I am just trying to determine if I want to drop a wood and get three hybrids, or keep the woods and get a different hybrid (3+4 vs a 4+5)

Overall the set has been good

 

[Dave Alvarado]

I got on a launch monitor with my full 14 club bag a while back to see what I could really hit.

It turned out that I was hitting my 3W and 5W off the deck about the same distance, and I was less consistent getting a good shot with the 3W. So it came out of the bag. For irons, it turned out my gapping was super consistent until the 3i, 4i, and 5i. Those were inconsistent with launches, so they got fired. I've struggled with hybrids in the past but I think that was a ball position at setup thing, I'm hitting them better now. For gapping, I really only need one, so I typically play a 4h, although I've experimented with 3h and 5h and may put those in the bag at some point.

Right now my bag goes Dr, 5W, 4h, 6i-PW, then a 52* wedge for short game work and a 56* wedge for sand. And of course a putter. That's 11 clubs that I know for sure I can hit, and there's room in the bag to play with other things like different hybrids, mini drivers, etc. But to play, I need those 11. And honestly as a high handicap, they work just fine. If you're playing smart golf you're not ever trying to hit a wood to the green, and you're thinking *very* carefully about hitting a hybrid to the green. Most of the time you're just managing distances so you're hitting comfortable clubs to the green, and when you play smart like that you actually save strokes, even though you aren't hitting many GIR.