Post by Richie3Jack on Apr 6, 2015 11:28:22 GMT -5
Course: LPGA International (Jones Course)
Stimp: 9
Weather: 75 degrees, cloudy and partly sunny, 3-4 club wind
Ball: Pro V1x and Nicklaus Black
Was looking for another course to play and wanted to test my BombTech Grenade driver and the Nicklaus Black Golf Balls. They had the Rees Jones course and the Arthur Hills course for the same price. I prefer the Hills course over the Jones course (so does the rest of the world), but I figured I could probably get out at the Jones course by myself and not have to wait as long. Plus, the Jones course is much more open to allow for me to test the equipment whereas the Hills course requires more precision off the tee.
#1: Hit a good drive despite the first swing of the day and found the fairway. Hit a SW that went short. I had 120 yards with a cross wind and the ball had a lot of spin on it. Chipped to a foot and kicked in for par. (E )
#2: This was one of the holes where I tested the BombTech versus the Wishon and the Wishon I only took a so-so pass at the ball and the BombTech I hit as well as I could and the BombTech was 8-paces shorter. I was in between a 7 and a 8-iron, but I didn’t want to miss long so I hit 8-iron to the middle of the green, 2-putted and made par. (E )
#3: We had 200 yards, but the wind was going across and sorta into us…or so I thought. I hit my 3-hybrid which I can hit about 230 yards and did just that and flew the green. I hit lob wedge onto the green , 2-putted and made bogey (+1)
#4: This was a so-so drive that found the fairway. I hit a nice SW to about 12-feet and lipped out the birdie putt. (+1)
#5: This drive was crushed, but unfortunately was into the wind. I still hit it about 280 yards which is impressive for me into a strong wind with not much roll and a 44.5” driver. One of the things I have discovered with my research is that I think having to lay-up for Tour players is much more difficult to execute that given credit for. They tend to lay-up further back than they need to and then can’t hit their approach close to the hole. I also think there is just a mental block for golfers laying up. And it was exposed for me here as I hooked this one into the left woods. I hit a nasty shot that found the greenside bunker and followed that with a mediocre bunker shot…2-putted and made bogey (+2)
#6: The entire time in this round so far I was stuck behind some kids golfers who were with their parents, likely preparing for a US Kids event. My god they play slow. They did let me go thru and I flushed my 8-iron to 20-feet and drained the birdie putt. (+1)
#7: One of the things I am starting to focus on is dogleg lefts as I struggle to hit the drives well. This is a dogleg left, but it is not a narrow fairway. And I still hit a poor drive that found the right rough. I then had 200 yards into the hole from a bad lie into the wind and I hit a 3-hybrid that was about 25 yards too long and left me with a 75-footer downhill. And I lipped out the putt which would have been a heckuva birdie. (+1)
#8: This drive was hit well and about 270 yards into the wind. I then flared my S-Wedge a bit and had a 20-footer for birdie and was aimed too far left and made par (+1)
#9: This was one of the holes where I tried out a bunch of the different balls I had (Pro V1x, Callaway S3, Nike RZN Black and Nicklaus Black). The Pro V1x was hit okay, a bit low and went the furthest along with the well struck Nicklaus Black. The RZN Black was about 20 yards behind, but it was an old ball. And the Callaway S3 was about 30 yards shorter and that was an unused ball. So, good bye Callaway S3.
I then hit a pretty good 3-wood (The Wishon 919F/D is really working nicely) and missed the green to the right. I thought I hit a brilliant lob shot, but it hit the slope and moved 25-feet away from the cup. 2-putted and made par (+1)
#10: This is where I started to struggled with my swing. Too much hip slide and not getting the left leg into extension early enough so the left hip stays behind the left ankle and I rotate into impact instead of slide into impact. This was a weak flare out to the right. They had the pin in a super tough position and I hit to the middle of the green with a S-Wedge and 2-putted to make par (+1)
#11: Good drive although I got some right pelvic tilt here so I got away with it. I then was in between clubs and decided to punch and 8-iron because I didn’t want to be short under any circumstances. This was also an incredibly difficult pin to fire at, so I played more towards the middle of the green and I flushed the punch shot and it went exactly how I wanted it. The putt had me going up a tier and I just ran it by the cup. (+1)
#12: This was a well struck drive, but it found the fairway bunker. Again, the wind caused me to be in between clubs and I hit a decent shot that ended up short of the green. I had a basic chip, but again…the pin was cut right above a tier. The ball checked up on me and left me well short. I hit a good putt, but missed and made bogey. (+2)
#13: The drive was right into the wind and it goes into a hill and I hit one well here, but it only went about 250 yards. I then had a tricky 2nd shot because I was hitting 3-wood, but the wind was blowing hard towards the pond. So I aimed towards the middle and was looking to hit a slight draw which is what I did. I then hit a ¾ S-Wedge from 90 yards to 12-feet and drained the birdie.
I started to notice a better way to putt with my Armlock putter. Using the right thumb and right forefinger to pull the club back and just let the gravity drop. The stroke started to look better and the contact was much better. (+1)
#14: I flushed a 4-iron into the wind and it somehow stayed on the edge of the rough and didn’t roll into the bunker. I pitched to 4-feet and the changed putting stroke drilled the putt. (+1)
#15: This was hit well, but I made the cardinal mistake of not finding the fairway on a Red Zone shot par-4. I found the left bunker instead. I was a bit antsy over the fairway bunker shot because in order to get there from 210 yards into the wind…I would need to hit a 3-hybrid and I wasn’t sure I could get it over the lip of the bunker. I stuck with it and slipped and hit a poor shot, but it was okay.
One of the things I’ve been working on lately is trying to minimize the effect of hitting a poor shot, especially off the tee. When I hit one, I want to come away with bogey or par instead of double bogey. So while the fairway bunker shot was poor, it still ended up okay. I then hit what I thought was a good shot, but it went to the back fringe, 2-putted and made bogey (+2)
#16: This was a drive where I started to notice that I was not getting left leg extension early enough in the downswing and I hit an ugly drive that found the fairway but didn’t go very far. I then focused on the left leg extension and ripped a 3-wood about 270 yards. I murdered that one. I was left with a tricky shot because the front pin required a flop shot to an elevated green. And I thought I hit a good one, but the wind just knocked it right down and short of the green. I chipped and kicked in for par (+2)
#17: A decent 5-iron that was pushed a little and missed right. A weak pitch that careened off the hill and left me with a 15-footer and I 2-putted for bogey (+3)
#18: I focused on getting the left leg extension and killed a driver that went into the right rough (tough fairway to hit). I then had a bit of an uphill lie and figured I was better going short of the green than missing pin high because of the bunkers, so I hit a 6-iron pretty well, but high up on the face. I went short and right, I lipped out the pitch shot and made par (+3)
NOTES: I think this round was better swing wise. I didn’t ‘lose my swing’ for nearly as long and put together that I was sliding again and figured out the mechanics for it. I also got to test out the equipment. I’m not sold on the BombTech, but I will continue to play with the Nicklaus Black golf ball. I’m pretty excited about the small change in the putting stroke with the Armlock putter. I’ve been putting pretty well with it, but I’m still working out a few small kinks. I would say that if I had 10 putts with the armlock I would make 8 nice strokes and 2 strokes that reverted back to old habits. I think now it is getting to a 9:1 ratio.
37-38=75 (+3)
8/14 Fwy
10/18 GIR
32 putts
-5 GIRO Score
+3 ‘15/5 Score’
Stimp: 9
Weather: 75 degrees, cloudy and partly sunny, 3-4 club wind
Ball: Pro V1x and Nicklaus Black
Was looking for another course to play and wanted to test my BombTech Grenade driver and the Nicklaus Black Golf Balls. They had the Rees Jones course and the Arthur Hills course for the same price. I prefer the Hills course over the Jones course (so does the rest of the world), but I figured I could probably get out at the Jones course by myself and not have to wait as long. Plus, the Jones course is much more open to allow for me to test the equipment whereas the Hills course requires more precision off the tee.
#1: Hit a good drive despite the first swing of the day and found the fairway. Hit a SW that went short. I had 120 yards with a cross wind and the ball had a lot of spin on it. Chipped to a foot and kicked in for par. (E )
#2: This was one of the holes where I tested the BombTech versus the Wishon and the Wishon I only took a so-so pass at the ball and the BombTech I hit as well as I could and the BombTech was 8-paces shorter. I was in between a 7 and a 8-iron, but I didn’t want to miss long so I hit 8-iron to the middle of the green, 2-putted and made par. (E )
#3: We had 200 yards, but the wind was going across and sorta into us…or so I thought. I hit my 3-hybrid which I can hit about 230 yards and did just that and flew the green. I hit lob wedge onto the green , 2-putted and made bogey (+1)
#4: This was a so-so drive that found the fairway. I hit a nice SW to about 12-feet and lipped out the birdie putt. (+1)
#5: This drive was crushed, but unfortunately was into the wind. I still hit it about 280 yards which is impressive for me into a strong wind with not much roll and a 44.5” driver. One of the things I have discovered with my research is that I think having to lay-up for Tour players is much more difficult to execute that given credit for. They tend to lay-up further back than they need to and then can’t hit their approach close to the hole. I also think there is just a mental block for golfers laying up. And it was exposed for me here as I hooked this one into the left woods. I hit a nasty shot that found the greenside bunker and followed that with a mediocre bunker shot…2-putted and made bogey (+2)
#6: The entire time in this round so far I was stuck behind some kids golfers who were with their parents, likely preparing for a US Kids event. My god they play slow. They did let me go thru and I flushed my 8-iron to 20-feet and drained the birdie putt. (+1)
#7: One of the things I am starting to focus on is dogleg lefts as I struggle to hit the drives well. This is a dogleg left, but it is not a narrow fairway. And I still hit a poor drive that found the right rough. I then had 200 yards into the hole from a bad lie into the wind and I hit a 3-hybrid that was about 25 yards too long and left me with a 75-footer downhill. And I lipped out the putt which would have been a heckuva birdie. (+1)
#8: This drive was hit well and about 270 yards into the wind. I then flared my S-Wedge a bit and had a 20-footer for birdie and was aimed too far left and made par (+1)
#9: This was one of the holes where I tried out a bunch of the different balls I had (Pro V1x, Callaway S3, Nike RZN Black and Nicklaus Black). The Pro V1x was hit okay, a bit low and went the furthest along with the well struck Nicklaus Black. The RZN Black was about 20 yards behind, but it was an old ball. And the Callaway S3 was about 30 yards shorter and that was an unused ball. So, good bye Callaway S3.
I then hit a pretty good 3-wood (The Wishon 919F/D is really working nicely) and missed the green to the right. I thought I hit a brilliant lob shot, but it hit the slope and moved 25-feet away from the cup. 2-putted and made par (+1)
#10: This is where I started to struggled with my swing. Too much hip slide and not getting the left leg into extension early enough so the left hip stays behind the left ankle and I rotate into impact instead of slide into impact. This was a weak flare out to the right. They had the pin in a super tough position and I hit to the middle of the green with a S-Wedge and 2-putted to make par (+1)
#11: Good drive although I got some right pelvic tilt here so I got away with it. I then was in between clubs and decided to punch and 8-iron because I didn’t want to be short under any circumstances. This was also an incredibly difficult pin to fire at, so I played more towards the middle of the green and I flushed the punch shot and it went exactly how I wanted it. The putt had me going up a tier and I just ran it by the cup. (+1)
#12: This was a well struck drive, but it found the fairway bunker. Again, the wind caused me to be in between clubs and I hit a decent shot that ended up short of the green. I had a basic chip, but again…the pin was cut right above a tier. The ball checked up on me and left me well short. I hit a good putt, but missed and made bogey. (+2)
#13: The drive was right into the wind and it goes into a hill and I hit one well here, but it only went about 250 yards. I then had a tricky 2nd shot because I was hitting 3-wood, but the wind was blowing hard towards the pond. So I aimed towards the middle and was looking to hit a slight draw which is what I did. I then hit a ¾ S-Wedge from 90 yards to 12-feet and drained the birdie.
I started to notice a better way to putt with my Armlock putter. Using the right thumb and right forefinger to pull the club back and just let the gravity drop. The stroke started to look better and the contact was much better. (+1)
#14: I flushed a 4-iron into the wind and it somehow stayed on the edge of the rough and didn’t roll into the bunker. I pitched to 4-feet and the changed putting stroke drilled the putt. (+1)
#15: This was hit well, but I made the cardinal mistake of not finding the fairway on a Red Zone shot par-4. I found the left bunker instead. I was a bit antsy over the fairway bunker shot because in order to get there from 210 yards into the wind…I would need to hit a 3-hybrid and I wasn’t sure I could get it over the lip of the bunker. I stuck with it and slipped and hit a poor shot, but it was okay.
One of the things I’ve been working on lately is trying to minimize the effect of hitting a poor shot, especially off the tee. When I hit one, I want to come away with bogey or par instead of double bogey. So while the fairway bunker shot was poor, it still ended up okay. I then hit what I thought was a good shot, but it went to the back fringe, 2-putted and made bogey (+2)
#16: This was a drive where I started to notice that I was not getting left leg extension early enough in the downswing and I hit an ugly drive that found the fairway but didn’t go very far. I then focused on the left leg extension and ripped a 3-wood about 270 yards. I murdered that one. I was left with a tricky shot because the front pin required a flop shot to an elevated green. And I thought I hit a good one, but the wind just knocked it right down and short of the green. I chipped and kicked in for par (+2)
#17: A decent 5-iron that was pushed a little and missed right. A weak pitch that careened off the hill and left me with a 15-footer and I 2-putted for bogey (+3)
#18: I focused on getting the left leg extension and killed a driver that went into the right rough (tough fairway to hit). I then had a bit of an uphill lie and figured I was better going short of the green than missing pin high because of the bunkers, so I hit a 6-iron pretty well, but high up on the face. I went short and right, I lipped out the pitch shot and made par (+3)
NOTES: I think this round was better swing wise. I didn’t ‘lose my swing’ for nearly as long and put together that I was sliding again and figured out the mechanics for it. I also got to test out the equipment. I’m not sold on the BombTech, but I will continue to play with the Nicklaus Black golf ball. I’m pretty excited about the small change in the putting stroke with the Armlock putter. I’ve been putting pretty well with it, but I’m still working out a few small kinks. I would say that if I had 10 putts with the armlock I would make 8 nice strokes and 2 strokes that reverted back to old habits. I think now it is getting to a 9:1 ratio.
37-38=75 (+3)
8/14 Fwy
10/18 GIR
32 putts
-5 GIRO Score
+3 ‘15/5 Score’