New Woods

rwebber3 · Jul 10, 2006

I m hoping someone out there can help me. I ve been in the market for some new woods for about a month now. Ive hit the mall Titleist, Taylormade, Nike, Cleveland. etc.

I am currently playing the cobra speed series and it has been good to me but Im getting tired of the closed face and am ready for a more advanced club that can be worked a little better.

Anyone have any suggestions?

Perfect Impact · Jul 10, 2006

GET FITTED and choose a clubhead that is visually attractive. IT IS NOT THE MFR REPUTATION that determines suitability to you. It is THAT IT IS PROPERLY FITTED, PERIOD. For less than $500 I have a set of clubs that is as good FOR ME as Tiger's $5000 set BECAUSE IT FITS ME and unless I intentionally do them harm, will last two lifetimes. Maintenance? Clean them and replace grips (tires) in a timely manner. Go to Tom Wishon's site and read a little about it. Ill fitted expensive clubs are a huge mistake.

mrodock · Jul 11, 2006

PI,

Grooves wear out though? Need to get irons regrooved by golfsmith or golfworks ever few years?

Matt

Perfect Impact · Jul 11, 2006

Haven't worried about it yet. And my driver has none at all anyway. With the right golf ball, grooves are not such a big deal. Besides, for most shots, even around the green, backspin is not my friend. I do not like a ball to back itself off the green. My favorite is "Flop, Drop, Plop, and STOP."

rwebber3 · Jul 11, 2006

Clubs

Im sorry but I have to agree. Im not saying people should just buy expensive clubs just to buy them but there seems to be a correlation between high quality clubs and my golf game. MY titleist 735's are hands down a betterthan club than my old G2's. There is a much better ball flight and the ball stops on the greens rather than skidding through. If grooves didnt matter all those big equipment trucks at every tour stop would be out of business bc there would be little to no maintenance necessary before a round.

Ernie Els said keeping your grooves clean is the only way to truly stop a ball on the green with an iron wedge. The grooves allow us to control spin.

Perfect Impact · Jul 11, 2006

I'm not pretending spin isn't valuable on approaches, but it is hardly "once a year maintenance" for golfers whose day job is NOT 10 hours a day hitting golf balls...

Hardly any components sold by reputable suppliers are of low quality: it is a matter of picking which ones you want. But you do not need to pay for the endorsements and brand names to GET quality.

One of the major golf club mfrs I understand remarked how they had to buy other golf companies to make a profit since their club sales barely broke even: Callaway, I think it was... Endorsements, etc. I didn't pay Callaway prices by a long shot for clubs that because they fit me, are much better for me. I would have to START with Callaway pricing and THEN get them fitted.

My guy in Daytona Beach has been fitting and club repairs etc. - a full service shop - for 25 years; he tells me half of his business is fixing OEM clubs of every description in two different ways: to clean them up so that their progressive lofts ARE what they are supposed to be (plus or minus 2 degrees means sometimes that a 5 iron will be weaker than the 6 in the same set...), and plus or minus 4 gms means sometimes that the 5 iron head weighs more than the 6. AND the lengths, lies, etc. are not controlled carefully. AND FINALLY he has to put in new shafts so often simply because the OEM shafts are not suitable for the golfer who bought "those quality brand name clubs."

And then spines them, swingweights them, fixes the lie angles, etc. Why bother: just get quality components and save all that money AND get properly fitted.

Tom Wishon's materials/advice/counsel is an absolute must for anyone half serious about his golf!

rwebber3 · Jul 11, 2006

Clubs

Of course the average golfer wont need have to take his clubs for a check up as often as a pro but there is something to be said about looking down and loving what you see. And for some people that means playing the best equipment possible. I am by no means an equipment whore but I know when Im 200 out and I need to carry a small creek on a 480yd par 4 I like that I have a perfectly fit titleist 4 iron in my hand. But thats just me.

Perfect Impact · Jul 11, 2006

Yes: I said in my first post that it had to be attractive to you: which is one reason I couldn't BEGIN to play Ping irons - shovels.... wow.

I personally like a thin top line iron - and the Mizunos are absolutely the most beautiful and well made I have ever seen. Trouble is that I already am fitted with perfectly good and attractive clubs now: and what makes the difference for me is just that. And having the experience of good shots WITH those clubs gives me the confidence you speak of. It isn't the name on the club: it's my ability to wield it consistently getting good and predictable shots.

rwebber3 · Jul 11, 2006

Agreed

I totally agree thatg its the fit and how they play but as far as the mental side is concerned some people more confident playing a club that their favorite pro might be playing on TV.

By the way as for my original post about woods. I just bought the cleveland laucher steel woods on ebay. Bought a driver 3 wood and 2 iron halo hybrid all for $350 and the ywere brand new. Absolute steal and a great feeling great looking club, thats my feeling anyway

tourdeep · Jul 11, 2006

"just do it"

Perfect Impact said:
GET FITTED and choose a clubhead that is visually attractive. IT IS NOT THE MFR REPUTATION that determines suitability to you. It is THAT IT IS PROPERLY FITTED, PERIOD. For less than $500 I have a set of clubs that is as good FOR ME as Tiger's $5000 set BECAUSE IT FITS ME and unless I intentionally do them harm, will last two lifetimes. Maintenance? Clean them and replace grips (tires) in a timely manner. Go to Tom Wishon's site and read a little about it. Ill fitted expensive clubs are a huge mistake.

Fully agree to get fitted AND to have a pleasant to attractive clubhead visual. All things equal, of course.

But, since it never seems to add up to equal, it is all about the manufacturer's reputation. Why do advertisers spend billions of dollars on promoting a swoosh, a snake, a sunburst "H"...cuz marketing fiends know the most important golf equipment element to the masses happens to be prestige, a sense of belongingness with Tiger, Vijay, Ben...and that itself gives the player a greater advantage, the confidence, the mental edge,,,to

just do it...

birdie_man · Jul 11, 2006

Perfect Impact said:
My guy in Daytona Beach has been fitting and club repairs etc. - a full service shop - for 25 years; he tells me half of his business is fixing OEM clubs of every description in two different ways: to clean them up so that their progressive lofts ARE what they are supposed to be (plus or minus 2 degrees means sometimes that a 5 iron will be weaker than the 6 in the same set...), and plus or minus 4 gms means sometimes that the 5 iron head weighs more than the 6. AND the lengths, lies, etc. are not controlled carefully. AND FINALLY he has to put in new shafts so often simply because the OEM shafts are not suitable for the golfer who bought "those quality brand name clubs."

PI man...

I don't doubt that components are very very good quality (and you can control everything yourself)....

But are you being serious about lofts, etc? You must be talking about clubs that have been played for some time....

...?

mrodock · Jul 11, 2006

birdie_man,

I've heard the same things. Even companies like Mizuno can really mess up swingweights, lofts, etc.

Matt

Perfect Impact · Jul 11, 2006

No, BM: I am talking about the lack of quality control from the "big boys" - and it is not an aberration. You simply cannot expect OEM clubs to have taken the pains TO make lofts, lies, weight, shafts, lengths, to have the integrity that a good golfer deserves. With a few exceptions, of course. (Without having done business with Mizuno, I do expect they would not have quality control problems of this degree.)

I should let you talk to my club maker.... he filled my ears full after my own observations led me to question the clubs I saw being used.

It comes as a lightbulb going on when someone says "I was hitting my 6 iron just as far as my 5 and I didn't know why; NOW I KNOW!"

Many of the best known clubs are simply mass produced to satisfy marketing departments, and not because they care about quality we deserve for the money.

birdie_man · Jul 11, 2006

Wow that's horrible....

Thanks for the heads up...for real.....I'll pay attention to that for sure with my next set (buyin em soon)....

What are some of the best components? Sites?

I guess you have to know someone who can assemble em for u?

mrodock · Jul 11, 2006

From what I understand these are two of the very best:
kzgolf.com
wishongolf.com

birdie_man · Jul 11, 2006

Yaya heard of them....supposed to be good stuff.

I've always thought these looked mint too:

http://www.feelwedges.com/shop/index.php?cPath=3_21

$$$ tho....but I don't want a set that's all haywire either....inaccurate specs....

mrodock · Jul 11, 2006

make sure someone certified by the proclubmakerssociety.org is fitting you. There might be other organizations that are similarly trustworthy, not sure though.

johngolf33 · Jul 11, 2006

You should try the Tour Edge Exotics woods. Very Solid and the 3 wood is very HOT. I don't think that the USGA tests the COR for fairway woods.

Millrat · Jul 13, 2006

Motive?

Perfect Impact said:
No, BM: I am talking about the lack of quality control from the "big boys" - and it is not an aberration. You simply cannot expect OEM clubs to have taken the pains TO make lofts, lies, weight, shafts, lengths, to have the integrity that a good golfer deserves. With a few exceptions, of course. (Without having done business with Mizuno, I do expect they would not have quality control problems of this degree.)

I should let you talk to my club maker.... he filled my ears full after my own observations led me to question the clubs I saw being used.

It comes as a lightbulb going on when someone says "I was hitting my 6 iron just as far as my 5 and I didn't know why; NOW I KNOW!"

Many of the best known clubs are simply mass produced to satisfy marketing departments, and not because they care about quality we deserve for the money.

Ya I heard the same rap from a local clubmaker. Guess what, this story is what gets them customers and nothing more. They can "fill your ears" all day long but what objective proof supports their claims?

Why is it unrealistic to expect an OEM to monitor the quality of their product?

What makes you think Mizuno is beyond such behaviour?

There are other reasons why a person could hit two clubs the same relative distance e.g. hand manipulation.

Sure club are mass produced, so are golf balls. IMO that increases your chances of a quality product not the opposite.

Not as if I work for a major company or anything but I have faith in the manufacturing practices of the biggies. I can't believe that a QC dept at any large casting shop or assembly facility would accept variances in loft or lie greater than +-.05 deg.

CW

Perfect Impact · Jul 13, 2006

The spec sheets on some components notes that the lofts are plus or minus two degrees. Suppose the 5 iron is two up and the 6 is two down: that amounts to identical lofts.

Your cynisim is understandable but not accurate: and if you don't believe me, maybe you'll believe what Maltbie actually says on their spec sheets: for lofts, plus or minus 1 degree: for weight, plus or minus 3 grams. Given that heads vary usually by seven grams progressively, that makes it possible to have side by side heads weighing the same, hence swingweighting VERY erratically given everything else being the same.

But the greatest aberrations are probably in shaft flex and alignment...

My club maker does not need to drum up business: he is inundated by quality golfers seeking to have their equipment fixed. And they don't go there so much based on suspicion but from performance in that, "Glenn, there's something wrong; that 8 iron just doesn't feel right." And testing it reveals, sometimes, an incredible variance from the other clubs. Story goes how Hogan could never hit one of his irons as well as the others and years later discovered how its specs were so far off. But mass production to an audience that is not discerning is the real root of today's problem. Get those things out and keep our mfr costs down!