"New and Shiny" or "Stick to What Works"?

"New and Shiny" or "Stick to What Works"?

  • New and Shiny

    Votes: 12 36.4%
  • Stick with What Works

    Votes: 15 45.5%
  • Other

    Votes: 6 18.2%

  • Total voters
    33

bobgeorge

Kentucky Wildcat Fan!
Joined
Jan 6, 2011
Messages
2,046
Reaction score
51
Location
Georgetown, KY
Handicap
15
I understand this is kind of heresy on golf forums but it has been a slow golf year for me so far...only about 4 rounds since March...but one thing I have learned is golf is about enjoying your time on the course and playing the best golf with the equipment you have.

I haven't bought any equipment in about a year...G400 driver was my last purchase I think....and have zero plans to buy any equipment in the near future. IMHO, 95% of playing decent golf is between your ears and your swing....equipment might help with 5% or less.

I understand that trying new equipment is fun & I have did it a lot over the past 10 years.....but to be honest I can't say that equipment has done much if anything to improve my scores....& I have found better things to do with my time and money than to think about will this driver give me 2 more yards...or should I use a wood or hybrid.

I plan on getting back to playing at least 3-4 rounds a month & enjoying it to the fullest with the clubs I have. Wishing everyone else a wonderful golf season for the 2nd half of 2018!

What say you?
 
I'm torn between the two worlds here - I love new and shiny, but I'm starting to hit a comfort zone with some of my clubs. I've shot about the same score with irons that have vastly different setups, but I've been playing the same driver going on 3 years now and don't have any desire to change. Same with the fairway. Putter I plan on keeping in the bag a while.
 
Id prefer to play with what works but I do see that having something new in the bag will give you some new "Mojo" and can sometimes score a little better because of it. The game is more mental than anything.
 
I've really slowed down on my equipment purchases and bag turnover and I've reached the point in my golf game where I'm truly all about the score. I still cast a wandering eye at all the new and shiny, and i still love to demo everything I can, but i only purchase if I see a tangible benefit.

Except putters. I'm an addict with a habit and I love it.
 
I'm not a fan of always rushing out and buying the latest and greatest. I think that if your clubs are over say 5-7 years old that there is probably an advantage to upgrading but even then its probably an incremental upgrade if you have decent gear.
 
I’m slowly leaning “go with what is working”. I like shiny and new, but right now my game is trending the right way and I’m finding a comfort level with my set up. I’ll tinker with shafts more than the clubs themselves.
 
I just got back to playing a year ago after a couple of decades away from the game. Since committing to play more going forward I have pretty much changed out my whole bag and I am still tweaking my long club combination. However, once I feel good about ALL of my clubs I plan to stick with them for several years.
 
Generally speaking, I'm pretty loyal to my equipment. You wouldn't know it this year though, but I'm coming off about a 12 year layoff and my gear was old back then. The only holdover I have in my bag is a Vokey 60* wedge. I've replaced my irons, driver (borrowed), putter, added another Vokey wedge, and just yesterday bought a 3 wood and replaced an old hybrid. I'd like to get a new driver next year and a new bag, but then I honestly think I'll be set for awhile - maybe rotate one thing in every other year or so...
 
Over the last few years I've been all about new and shiny but I've been able to slow up on everything but putters. I've found a bag setup that works for me and I'm trying to commit to it for the season.

But I'm with ArmyGolf on putters. I can't help myself when it comes to a nice flatstick.
 
New and shiny is always fun for me. Do the new and shiny clubs stay in the bag for more than a few rounds? Not always, but I love playing with everything I can get my hands on.

My current bag is trusty stuff on the long end, and new and shiny (well, matte black) irons.
 
After years of equipment 'hodom, once upon a time, I'll generally stick to what works now.

That's not to say that my interest isn't piqued occassionally here and there, it sure is, but then I imagine trying to find a similar comfort level with new stuff as I enjoy with my gear now. Dampens enthusiasm some. Most of my changes now are due to strategical need.

Case in point, this spring I needed a new hybrid. It was mental, LOVED my old original Exotics 19° but because it was the actual club that I was swinging when I blew out my back, it had to go as I was tangibly nervous to grab it. Couldn't get it outta my mind. Totally mental, but real, LOL...

The new hybrid was fantastic but created yardage gaps so I addressed that with matching hybrids.

Same with wedges. Was very happily playing my 56° and 60° PM wedges. Despite using a matching GW to my set and then others, I saw an enormous yardage gap occur between PW and GW (caused by a club length jump in iron distance that inexplicably didn't translate to GW).

Even though my CF-16 PW (loft & life checked couple months ago) is 45°, because I hit these irons longer than my previous sets, I actually theorized that a 46° wedge would fill the yardage gap.

It did, but also presented it's own yardage issue from there so I rounded out the wedge set with new ones to go: 45°, 46°, 52°, 58°.

My VERY longwinded way of saying that I will make a change and enjoy the process and getting new toys. But now I'm not chasing the promise of tech affording better play (not denying it's part either, though), I'm addressing verifiable issues within my set as it relates to my evolving game.
 
Used to get a lot of new and shinny but have settled on what I have for the most part. I did replace worn out wedges this year and a new driver, irons and the rest of the woods and putter is set.
 
New and shiny is always fun and exciting. But there is a lot to be said for tried and true. I also know that it typically takes me a while to truly get used to, and maximize the benefit of, equipment changes so I am probably much more patient than a lot of others.
 
Are these options mutually exclusive or can you have both in the bag at the same time? Irons/hybrids are stick to what works and everything else is pretty new and shiny.
 
I've always tried a lot of stuff but I've not bought a lot of equipment over the years. My irons (AP1 712s) are about 6 years old and I really like the feel of them (I don't like how high I hit them but I hit them solid most of the time) but I know I probably need to think about the possibility of replacement if the tech advances offer an improvement in performance and forgiveness for me. My driver is 4 years old so I probably need to look at the new drivers strictly from technology and fit viewpoints, if nothing else. I have recently added an M2 hybrid and new RTX 3.0 wedges.

I've had the same putter for 18 or so years. I've tried several new and different but always come back to it. I am interested in the newer Odyssey putters but haven't been able to demo one on grass.
 
I like both and have both. Im OCD when it comes to my equipment so most of the time it is both :)
 
Stick with what works, but always be open to new game improvement technology
 
Other. It just depends.
 
For me, stick with what works. I played my R11 driver for about 4 years, my AP2 710’s for about 5 years. I did swap a bit the last couple of years trying to find the right set up which I think I now have. My current XR16 will be the next club to be changed, but at the minute, it’s working well, so that change probably won’t be for another 12 months at least.


#FiberLaunch
 
Well, if you look at my scores, what I've got ain't working. Lol.

I stick to gear for a long time. It's me, not the clubs. But, I do love window-shopping.
 
The only reason that I have new and shiny in my bag right now is because of the opportunity afforded to me courtesy of the folks at Callaway and THP. Otherwise my F6's would still be in my bag and I'd be chugging along with 3 release old irons etc. I'm a fan of playing what works and if it's not broke don't fix it.
 
As long as new and shiny is what works, thats what i go with
 
My current Taylor Made driver is about 5-6 years old. I'm hitting it great...due to the lessons I took FINALLY clicking, I'm hitting it farther than I ever have. And MOST of them in the fairway.

Friends are telling me to get a newer driver...the new technology will get me more distance.

So over the winter I tried out a few new drivers in the simulator. (I live in WI...no chance to go outside). I always brought along my current driver.

Every driver I tried did not give me the distance of my current club.

Granted, I only took 25, 30 shots with each, but still, my current one always went farther.

Really don't want to drop hundreds on a new driver that SHOULD get me more yards.
 
Hitting the point of diminishing returns if you are properly fit for your equipment. If you have a major change in your swing due to age, injury, etc. that could be a legitimate reason.

That being said I like shiny new things so I still do a lot of "buy and try".
 
I’m actually. Taking a liking to my beat up and worn clubs. It gives them character.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 
Back
Top