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Why not just start with blades?

SuperStroke
Great point, I learned to play golf using blades. My dad used them up to a few years ago( he's 66 now) and he was a scratch golfer for many years. He would cut down one of his old blade sets for me and off we would go hitting balls around the yard. So thru the course of time and technology why not play something more forgiving and just enjoy the game and not worry about striking the ball perfect every shot. I currently game Ping G15's and have no complaints. I can work the straight ball or baby fade with them, no draw for me. ( I wish) so back to the point I feel it takes a grooved swing to game them and I do not have the swing for them now, maybe some day I will venture back down that road. Just my thoughts......
 
Why not just start with blades?

I started off with cheap hand-me-down blades. After 4 years I finally got some game improvement clubs.

I think starting with blades hindered my progress; here's why: mishits were so wildly off I had no idea what I did wrong. I also had no clue what my gapping was since I couldn't hit a club consistent enough to get a regular yardage.

When I changed clubs I was able to focus a lot more on smaller components of my swing. If I hit way, way off the sweet spot I knew it and could make the little tweaks I needed. With blades any kind of miss ended up in a way, way out there shot, so I didn't know what little tweaks to make.

In the end I think most of us improve by making little adjustments at different times. With blades you have to make huge leaps in ability - since that's not possible it's harder to learn as you go.
 
I think there is a golf maturation process that also informs whether or not you are ready for blades. Most HPers are golf-obsessive; we read and think about golf nonstop and even if some of us don't have the skills to play blades, we understand (1) the benefits of playing blades; and (2) how playing blades forces you to have a better swing or be doomed to craptastic play.

When I was in my early 20s, I started to creep up on a single digit handicap. Because I was delusional and thought I was becoming an awesome golfer, I sold my DCIs and bought some sweet Mizuno blades. And although those clubs were "butter" and easily the most beautiful clubs I've ever hit, my game suffered as a result. Simply, I did not know my swing well enough to understand the misses. More importantly, I didn't have the patience to hit thousands of balls at the range to understand my swing or the feedback those blades were giving me.

Now, many many years later and after a long hiatus from golf, I'm playing a ton. I'm actually starting to understand the golf swing and my swing in particular. I can usually tell right when I hit where it went and whether it is short, long, or in the lake 4 yds in front of me. I also understand whether a draw or a fade is the proper shot, and can actually do it sort-of-not-on-accident too. In short, I am mentally ready for blades and the creativity and shot-making it opens up. (Don't get me wrong, I'm still not buying blades....yet.)

A beginner that has no experience and no true sense of what a ball should or shouldn't do in a particular situation? Not so much.
 
My first set was 1982, I remember going to the local golf store (small retail store privately owned) and they sold me a "beginner set" which were MacGregors....as I search my memory of what those clubs looked like I would say they were definitely blades....I remember when the cavity backs came out and it was all the rage....I played with those Macs for a long time and they were hard to hit but I did move to the more forgiving clubs as soon as they were available and I was able to afford them....not sure hitting blades for years as a beginner helped me anymore than if I had started with SGIs.....Instruction and practice is more important at the beginning then equipment IMO
 
I admit I didn't read every reply so I am probably :deadhorse:

There is a LOT more to becoming a good golfer than striking the ball well. I most sincerely believe you can get to scratch just fine with "game improvement" clubs, and that getting into the single digits will indeed be easier if you use clubs that are more forgiving of slight (or not so slight) mishits.

Getting into the single digits, IMHO, is more about strategic play, a decent short game, and getting the driver under control than it is pure shots with your irons. Why not make it easier on yourself? You CAN tell that you haven't hit the sweet spot with GI irons, and as you become a better ball striker you will know how you have missed it (high/low on face, toward toe/heel) if you're paying attention and trying to improve.

Why not start with blades? Because you do not have to, and a really hard game will be a little bit easier if you don't.
 
The good news for all who think they might want to play blades is that they are the EASIEST clubs to buy used in any golf shop. My local Edwin Watts has three used sets of Titleist 712 MB's and one set of Mizuno Mp-4's for sale right now at about $300 each. They are fine clubs, they were just bought by ego driven wannabees who found they could not hit them and traded them back in for cavities.
 
I started with 1983 power bilt citations... still have them. I took 15 years off, went back to the power bilts, said... they are ok, but time for a new set. I bought a set of Wilson Staff D I 11s based on reviews and nostalgia... I always wanted Wilson Staffs. I believe these are super game improvement irons. Holy Crap! If they made these things 15 years ago, I'd never have taken a break! The shaping ability of the blades is not my issue, as the only shape I want is straight! I have a similar story about my persimmon woods when compared to Xhots, but another thread I guess. Why not take advntage of the technology? A lot of people seem to think there is a ego issue with these, but Ef them. Im on the green and they are in the woods!
 
yoopergolfer said:
I would say a big reason is money as well. When I started 4 years ago I just wanted some clubs. I got a whole set for like $150, I was thrilled. Had no idea about what clubs to use or when to use them. At that point I just wanted to learn the game. I also think it's hard to judge what your goal is when you first begin to golf. I started because my friends played and they got drunk while doing it, as a 23 year old at the time, that sounded awesome. But then a couple summers go by and you realize that all winter long you are thinking about golf and looking at equipment, you realize you have a passion for it, you realize it is something to want to be good at.

The guys that I originally played with beat me up one side and down the other, I couldn't break 120. Now it's no fun playing with them because they are no competition and still just get drunk while playing. And I like drinking and golfing as well, I am not a prude. But my main objective is to get better, my friends don't have interest in getting better, just being outside, which is fine, when I play with them I know it will be very casual, no issues. But my view of game has changed, I respect it and love it, and now I only want to be better. I don't think many people are out there, who haven't played golf, just decide one day to become a single digit handicap. It's a transition process.

That being said, if someone were to ask my advice, I would say buy what you want, if money isn't an issue, learn with a blade or better club. If money is an issue, then get something used or cheap and start from there, you don't know what the clubs are supposed to do anyway. I wouldn't trade my blades for anything, but there are some golfers that kick my can all over the course using 10 year old nothing clubs. Golf has so many moving parts between your own swing and the equipment that is right for that swing. But like any good carpenter, a good golfer will succeed with the tools he has.

Man I can't wait for winter to be done, this sucks.
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Thanks for the reply. And yes, winter sucks!
 
robmypro said:
Maybe this is a dumb question, but why not just learn to play with the most unforgiving clubs possible? If you are really serious about being a good player, wouldn't the precision needed to hit the ball correctly with blades force you to get it right? When I was learning to play in the 1970's I used my dad's old set, which was a set he was actually using on the tour years earlier. Eventually I began to hit some good shots, so it wasn't impossible to learn with them. I know some people aren't that serious, so maybe in that case it makes sense. But if you are trying to be a single digit HDC or lower, why not just bite the bullet? It would definitely make the game more frustrating for a while, but when you did hit it right you'd know you did it right. It would seem to be a much better barometer of real progress you are making.

And...think of how much fun you'd have shopping for new clubs?

Full disclosure. I did not search to see if this has been discussed a million times, so sorry in advance if it has!
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Been there, done that. When I started playing in the 70's, pretty much everything was blades and very small headed at that. I learned to play and played well at times, but I'll take today's irons any day over those old blades. My hands still sting from them yet today. Technology is part of life in everything we do. Is it all good? Who knows. I miss plenty about the days gone past, but little headed blades is not one of them.
 
I have to say guys, I am reading all your replies and I don't see any wrong answers here. One thing that strikes me about the community is how non judgemental everyone is, even if they don't agree with anything i say! It is unusual to say the least! Thanks!

I definitely get the main theme of "why make a hard game even harder", and even if starting with blades did speed the overall time required to get to scratch, is it really worth it? Is it worth the risk of starting to hate the game? Or, ending up selling blades for something easier, and taking the hit? When I first started playing in the 1970's using dad's hand me down blades, maybe that experience turned me off, leading to a 30+ year hiatus? I never really gave it much thought, but it is always easier to stick with something you actually see progress with, instead of hours and hours of almost no visible improvement. I guess I just wasn't expecting golf to be so hard when I was growing up, especially considering I was good at every other sport I played regularly. I am just not sure that as an adult i could handle the challenge better, and weather the storm. Probably not, but you never know!

Once again, thanks for all the great responses. I learn a little more by reading each post!
 
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Heres a set of blades for you. This 2 Iron has a sweet spot on it exactly the size of a gnats ass. Were sweet clubs back in the 1980s, just like a beech wood knot was a sweet club back in the 1480s!
 
Like has been said many times, I may be able to reach single digit handicap or even + handicap with GI or SGI clubs. That's fine, I don't ever plan on playing professionally so what difference does it make. Low handicap is low handicap.

Now as a follow up, you said you used the clubs that your "dad used on tour". So in other words you had built in professional help that the vast majority of us do not get to have and you had it for FREEEEEE!!
 
VA_Park_Ranger said:
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Heres a set of blades for you. This 2 Iron has a sweet spot on it exactly the size of a gnats ass. Were sweet clubs back in the 1980s, just like a beech wood knot was a sweet club back in the 1480s!
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I was at a second-hand shop the other day and showed my son a MacGregor 3 iron from the early 1980s. He thought it was a putter and didn't believe me that it was a 3-iron until I showed him the number on the bottom.
 
I practice with blades but bring my GIs to the course, if that makes any sense.
 
robmypro said:
I have to say guys, I am reading all your replies and I don't see any wrong answers here. One thing that strikes me about the community is how non judgemental everyone is, even if they don't agree with anything i say! It is unusual to say the least! Thanks!

I definitely get the main theme of "why make a hard game even harder", and even if starting with blades did speed the overall time required to get to scratch, is it really worth it? Is it worth the risk of starting to hate the game? Or, ending up selling blades for something easier, and taking the hit? When I first started playing in the 1970's using dad's hand me down blades, maybe that experience turned me off, leading to a 30+ year hiatus? I never really gave it much thought, but it is always easier to stick with something you actually see progress with, instead of hours and hours of almost no visible improvement. I guess I just wasn't expecting golf to be so hard when I was growing up, especially considering I was good at every other sport I played regularly. I am just not sure that as an adult i could handle the challenge better, and weather the storm. Probably not, but you never know!

Once again, thanks for all the great responses. I learn a little more by reading each post!
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I agree with Dr. RosenRosen and several other commenters in that it takes at least a basic understanding of the swing to figure out why a mis-hit on a blade is acting the way it is. Just picking one up as a beginner and self-diagnosing would be very difficult. A mis-hit also penalizes distance so it would initially be hard to get an idea how far a well struck shot would go. There are forgiving cavity back clubs out there that are still workable. My second set of irons was a set of Tommy Armour 855s that I will never get rid of. I played them for almost 20 years and changed to new irons about a year and a half ago. After a while, with instruction, I could work those irons as much as I wanted to. My favorite shot was a running hook or slice 4 iron out from the woods under trees to try to run it up the fairway in the general direction towards the green. Believe me I had a lot of practice. I bought the clubs after an iron of my "starter" set cracked off and flew 20 yards into the range on a fat shot into a practice mat. I never second guessed buying the Armours even though they seemed expensive at the time. They were very forgiving, but still as workable as I wanted over the next 15-20 years.

That said, I now have three RAZR X Forged Musclebacks (8-PW) that I use mainly during practice. I occasionally use the PW in my bag, but less and less often. I picked them up for an incredible deal off Callaway pre-owned (I love that site). I enjoy using the musclebacks to practice my swing, but my more forgiving clubs are staying in my bag. They feel pretty similar to my Razr X forged irons (somewhat forgiving- probably less forgiving than I should be playing), but highlight mis-hits pretty well. They are also fun to play around with. If I was giving advice, I would recommend sticking with the forgiving clubs while someone is learning the basic swing until they are at least striking the ball well with those irons. Then, if they wanted and have a set or pick up some cheap blades, try them out at the range. You can still take advantage of the technology on the course.
 
I can see where you're going with this one. That's a very good point that blades force you to be perfectly precise. The problem is, if you don't already have a solid golf swing, there is nothing to hone to that precision. I feel like starting with a forgiving set would allow you to get a base swing in, and then move on to harder to hit clubs to refine that swing. For example, my uncle gave me his still-in-great-condition hogan apex blades. While I wouldn't use them in competion, I frequently use them in practice rounds in order to drill a more precise strike. I've gotten good enough at that that now I'm purchasing players irons this year. I figure that would be a decent progression, right? Just my 2¢


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out-off-bound said:
I practice with blades but bring my GIs to the course, if that makes any sense.
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It absolutely does. You have me thinking! Maybe I could buy one used blade (3 iron for example) and practice with it to hone my precision, then use the GI on the course. Even if I only did a little work with it, it might help.
 
JesseO said:
I can see where you're going with this one. That's a very good point that blades force you to be perfectly precise. The problem is, if you don't already have a solid golf swing, there is nothing to hone to that precision. I feel like starting with a forgiving set would allow you to get a base swing in, and then move on to harder to hit clubs to refine that swing. For example, my uncle gave me his still-in-great-condition hogan apex blades. While I wouldn't use them in competion, I frequently use them in practice rounds in order to drill a more precise strike. I've gotten good enough at that that now I'm purchasing players irons this year. I figure that would be a decent progression, right? Just my 2¢


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
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That definitely makes sense. I am thinking I will progress to something more challenging, but only use it for practice. Like swinging a bat with weights which makes the real swings lighter.
 
robmypro said:
That definitely makes sense. I am thinking I will progress to something more challenging, but only use it for practice. Like swinging a bat with weights which makes the real swings lighter.
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Why not just purchase a roll of impact tape? That way you can practice with your gamers and still learn the way you want.

This is meant to be hyperbole, but if you're after the negative reinforcement, why not just bring a small knife with you and stab your leg after a miss hit?
 
blugold said:
Why not just purchase a roll of impact tape? That way you can practice with your gamers and still learn the way you want.

This is meant to be hyperbole, but if you're after the negative reinforcement, why not just bring a small knife with you and stab your leg after a miss hit?
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Lol that was funny. But the tape idea sounds good!
 
i started with blades ten years ago im fortunate that my best friend
is a teaching pro so lesson cost and balls were nil
i bought anser irons but i play a draw so the off set in these clubs can be a bother
in not overcooking a draw
i practiced every day and grooved a pretty decent swing
i would not recommend blades to anyone not willing to spend a significant
amount of time learning how to hit them
play what makes you the happiest and gives you enjoyment
 
Start with whatever clubs make you happy and make you want to play. It's your money and there is no rule to which set you should use. There are players clubs, designed for the scratch and tour players, but if you are a good ball striker, there's nothing negative about using the same clubs. I'm an 11.4-13 hcp golfer and I use a set of MP-59's (upgraded from G25s). I consider myself a good ball striker and 8/10 shots are right on the sweet spot. 2/10 are off due to club face angle at impact. I would be a low single digit golfer if I actually spend time on my short game. After playing two rounds with the MP-59's, now I wish I had gone for pure blades.
 
blugold said:
Why not just purchase a roll of impact tape? That way you can practice with your gamers and still learn the way you want.

This is meant to be hyperbole, but if you're after the negative reinforcement, why not just bring a small knife with you and stab your leg after a miss hit?
Click to expand...

I quoted this based on the shear brutal genius behind the negative reinforcement.

I started with a set mixed set of Northwestern/Palmer/Golden Bear blades. I played those for 6 years until my dad bought me a fitted set of King Cobras. I will tell you this, my first 6 years of golf were very tough. While I learned to strike the ball well, I hated practicing in the cold or playing when my young swing wasn't on. It almost took the fun out of the game. When I went to a cavity backed club I started enjoying the game a whole lot more.

This is a fantastic thread and some great thoughts posted. Something to keep in mind though; the average golfer is looking to golf once a week and enjoy it. Not everyone wants to take their game to that "next" level, so starting with a set of blades isn't really the best thing for them.

And blu, I tried the knife thing today while practicing.....everything was fine until I ended up cutting three fingers off.
 
adamw238 said:
I quoted this based on the shear brutal genius behind the negative reinforcement.

I started with a set mixed set of Northwestern/Palmer/Golden Bear blades. I played those for 6 years until my dad bought me a fitted set of King Cobras. I will tell you this, my first 6 years of golf were very tough. While I learned to strike the ball well, I hated practicing in the cold or playing when my young swing wasn't on. It almost took the fun out of the game. When I went to a cavity backed club I started enjoying the game a whole lot more.

This is a fantastic thread and some great thoughts posted. Something to keep in mind though; the average golfer is looking to golf once a week and enjoy it. Not everyone wants to take their game to that "next" level, so starting with a set of blades isn't really the best thing for them.

And blu, I tried the knife thing today while practicing.....everything was fine until I ended up cutting three fingers off.
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But did you stop mishitting those blade irons?
 
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