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  1. #1
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    Improvement strategy

    This thread is in part a spin-off of the highly charged debate over CBs vs. Blades. I got back into golf about 5 months ago after about 4 years out of the game and decided to update my equipment. When I bought new clubs (everything but 3 wood and putter) I based my decision primarily on what I felt my initial improvement goals should be. 1) consistent and straight off the tee and 2) consistent and accurate from 50 yds in and with the putter. The result was the following;

    Driver: Callaway X460 tour, 10.5*, (one of the few out there with a square face and no off-set), may not be the best, but a solid club and I was familiar with Callys. Without a consistent swing, no real need to do in-depth demo'ing of other brands. Also cut the shaft to 44.5, going to 44.

    Irons: 2004 Big Bertha 4-PW and 18* and 21* hybrids, good deal on E-bay, the goal for these was to allow me to play and have fun while I focus on the other two areas.

    Wedges: You guys will go off on this one, but I bought one of those 3 wedge sets of Adams wedges to replace my mixed set of Titleist, Cleveland and Mizuno wedges. All outstanding clubs, but did not mix together well and did not compliment the new irons distance wise (52* Vokey 15 yds longer than BB PW). For what it's worth, for those looking for inexpensive wedges without getting total junk, look at the Adams, best I've ever hit for $25 a club and don't give up on them early, they get much better with a little wear on the face.

    Thus far the idea has worked for me, with lessons I'm making progress in the two focus areas (still need work on the putting) and the "fat irons" let me survive playing a round. I do pay a price for not taking advantage of a closed face, draw or movable weighting on the driver, but it's forcing my to make a better swing. The downside (where the other discussion comes in) is that I'm already feeling some of the negatives of the "fat irons" and could probably benefit from something else.

    The only question I have about this approach is do you think something is lost by using irons that do not force me to make a good swing and trying to isolate parts of my game rather than working on all of it simultaneously?

    Just thought this diatribe and your thoughts might help someone who's starting out and are making equipment and improvement decisions.

    Thoughts???

    MGS

    (Wow, I just realized how long this is, next time I'll publish a book and call it, Golf by Dummies.
    Last edited by southernm31; 06-12-2007 at 02:36 PM.
    "Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into a even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." -Winston Churchill

  2. #2
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    i bought my mp32s just for that reason (well i love the looks as well) i thought a blade would help my ball striking to improve quicker,and it did. however it was taking to long to groove a great swing so i went with the x20 tours. i guess what im trying to say is that if you have goals to improve alot, then go with an iron that you can keep for a couple years that your skill level will not soon outgrow.

  3. #3
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    Agreed Dennis, and that's part of the reason I posted this, so others can learn from my mistakes before they spend money. I decided all of this in despair, coming off a couple of rounds in the 120s. I didn't realize how far I'd come in just a month or so until I went to the range before a round and the callaway demo tent was there. I tried a couple of different irons, X-20s, tours, even the x-forged with a variety of shafts and was able to tell the difference in feel and trajectory depending on the different combinations and hit all of them pretty consistently.

    If I had it to do over, I would have went with the X20s and may do it still while I can get a little trade-in value out of my BB's.
    "Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into a even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." -Winston Churchill

  4. #4
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    i like the player's cavity backed iron like what I have. I've hit a ton of iron sets from several brands and these are by far the best combo of feel, looks, forgiveness, & workability I've ever used. Only wish I had tried them when they first came out!! This type of iron gives the best of all worlds and it's something you aren't going to outgrow skill-wise like Dennis said. Several cleveland staffers play them. Other irons I can think of are Titleist 695cb,Taylormade r7 TP, and Ping i5. x20 tours would be a great option for you I think. Easy to hit and will have some workability once you start grooving your swing. It's really hard to work the ball either direction with large offset and big soles. I think only beginners should be playing those so they can hit the ball somewhat straight.
    Be glad we aren't getting all of the government we're paying for.

  5. #5
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    BJ you are right, you can work the ball without much effort. i think the biggest reason i said what isaid is ,cost!! its expensive to buy a nice set of irons only to need another set 4 months later. i got a great deal on my mp32s on ebay(465) but i still wont get my $ out of them. i guess i needed to be a little smarter,huh !

  6. #6
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    We may have stumbled onto a lesson here, if you are going to err, err on the side of forgiveness. One I can say about the BBs is that I can always play with them, they are consistent and after working with them I can control distance some, so I don't have to buy another set (but not having to has not stopped me before). The big downside is that you have one shot, high and straight, which is not necessarily a bad thing and if improving your game is a goal, not just playing, the BB's will take you through life with a bad swing and never know it.

    MGS
    "Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into a even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." -Winston Churchill

  7. #7
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    good solid idea. Pay close attention to any feedback you get at impact and really keep an eye on your swing... large irons tend to mask small swing flaws that will tend to worsen with time... scores should not determine when you upgrade. when your iron shots all tend to stay on your intended line you are ready to upgrade.

    sounds to me like you are doing everything very logically and i am sure it will work out perfect. good luck and keep us updated.
    Omen, the GR standard by which all GOLFERS will be measured.

  8. #8
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    I came off a bit of a layoff as well 2 years ago… if your anything like me you were probably horrified to see how big and offset irons became. In 1985 there was no such thing as a game improvement iron. My Ram starter set in 1985 still had blades. The popular player’s CB back then became the Ping Eye 2 (still pretty good). Even now, my Ping i5’s are slightly more offset than I would prefer. I very few reasons for any player to go bigger and more offset (Ping G5 or Rapture). In Callaway terms… the X-20 is plenty forgiving and the Big Bertha’s just take it too far (the Fusion Wide-Soles aren’t even worth comment here). Buyer’s remorse seems to be part of the game… have you looked at Callaway Pre-Owned? X-18 Pro’s are a nice player’s iron…
    Titleist 909D2 9.5, Motore F1 (s)
    Callaway Diablo Edge 3W, E370 (s)
    Ping i5 2-PW, CS Lite (s)
    Callaway X-Tour 54,60
    Ping G5i B60

  9. #9
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    I wouldn't say I'm afflicted with buyers remorse so much as I'm questioning the rationale I used to make my decision and wanted to put it up for discussion. The BB's, despite being morbidly oversized are not that bad, they get the job done, so I don't really have a problem with them. Holding on to them may be a good thing, as I'm hell-bent-for-leather on golf now, but work may assert itself again and I may be done for a long period of time and come back into the same dilemma.

    I can always go back to my old 845s, they're in great shape and are solid clubs and I loved them why I was playing reglarly, although I could use a little stiffer shaft. But then the question comes; Am I going to put $200 worth of shafts and grips into a $50 set of clubs? Why not go ahead and buy a new set? This line of thinking is why I'll never be rich.

    MGS
    "Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into a even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." -Winston Churchill

  10. #10
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    if ur hitting the BBs well no need to replace em.
    Be glad we aren't getting all of the government we're paying for.

  11. #11
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    You can always consider a forged iron that as your swing improves (or degrades) a good club fitter can loft and lie (bend) them for your new hopefully improved swing.

    My dad has been playing the same irons for over 20 years. The shafts have been changed a couple times and the grip size larger for his now arthritic hands and they have slowly become bent more upright as his swing changed over the years.

    Every year he tries a new set for a couple rounds and he simply goes back to his old irons. Now drivers are a different story.
    Cheers,
    Jay

  12. #12
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    A little update on this conversation as far as irons go. Today I demoed the x20, x tour and x forged and I couldn't tell a difference between them and my 04 Big Berthas. The distance was the same, trajectory was the same. The shafts were uniflex for mine and the x20s, and project x 6.0 for the tour and forged. Every now and then I would catch the x forged sweet and it would feel gooooood, but the end result was the same, no real difference is trajectory or distance. I was suprised at the forgiveness of the forged, much better than I anticipated, you could feel that it was off center, but it didn't make you pay too much for it. Either way, all great clubs, none worth $400-500 more than the BBs. Maybe I'd change my mind if I tried some Mizunos or Clevelands

    MGS
    "Golf is a game whose aim is to hit a very small ball into a even smaller hole, with weapons singularly ill-designed for the purpose." -Winston Churchill

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