Sparky First day with the new PXG Black Ops driver, and it was BAD! Same shaft and same weight distribution that I use with my Gen 5 driver. Yet the Black Ops was a crazy fade machine. When I did get it in the fairway, it was LONG. My usual is 235, and if I nuke it 250-255. The first straight one with the Black Ops was 280. But most of them were hard fades that really hit and rolled deeper into trouble. Not a good day 1.

Spent a good hour on the simulator at our local course messing with the drivers. In the end, the Black Ops head was maybe 2-3 yards longer than my Gen5, but I just could not square up the face consistently. One more regular range session confirmed it was not a good head for me. Listed the club on WRX, and sold the head in 24 minutes. Back to the Gen5, although I picked up a Geek DCT head for cheap on ebay for some nostalgia.

Very sad to see the simulator showing driver carry at 230 now. Turning 60 in 2 weeks, so I knew already, just depressing to see it confirmed. But started going to the gym again last week, so I expect to see 250 again in a couple of weeks. 😄

    Played 9 with a buddy of mine after helping him with some of his chores. Drove the green on 1, 160 yards away with my 8 iron; had a slight helping wind, got par. Bogey on 2 & 3 each. Lost a ball on 4, carded an 8... like I forgot how to swing a club... hit a decent 7 iron on 5, ended up with a Bogey. Hit one of the trees on the right with my drive on 6 and ended up 150 yards away, faded my 8 iron into the wingd and ended up just short of the green, chipped on and had a 10'+ uphill putt that fell for par.. 7 I bumped my 9 iron and let it run onto the bottom right of the green, missed the birdie putt by a couple inches, made the uphill par putt. 8 I pushed my 9 iron to the right rough and walked away with bogey. Hole 9, I hit my 5 iron pure. About 2/3's of the way down the left side of 9, there is a pine tree that stands 90'+ tall. My 5 iron cleared that tree and stopped in the rough of #7. Chipped onto the green, and 2 putted for bogey. Had a good time playing, and a few good shots. My tee shot on 9, I never expected it to go that far!! If I keep that up, I'll have to start using my 7 iron, and watch it end up short.

    39/38....77
    1 birdie
    10 FWs hit
    11 1-putts....but for full disclosure I will add that I was on several fringes prior to some of those.
    1st double bogey in the past 2-3 years, iirc, & that came on a Par 5. 7s are ugly figures on scorecards!!

    Had the Never Compromise putter (@Eguller) in the bag and it is still money, esp. from long distance; drained a couple 30'ers.
    Another oldie along for fun was the 7.5 SMT Indio w/DTG shaft. Still a long hitting head, and I was toeing a lot of them straight down the FWs. (I need more $600 drivers😅)
    Re-shafted (steel) LogicalOne irons performed much better. Forced myself to use them when I might have taken out a hybrid. Won some/lost some of those battles.
    Also remembered something my old 'instructor' (@LBlack14 😄)told me many years ago about hybrids.... 'hit down dumbass'. Extra yards when needed today.

    Nice day, 87*.

    And I beat Tiger, that hack.

      Par4QC Had the Never Compromise putter (@Eguller) in the bag and it is still money, esp. from long distance; drained a couple 30'ers.

      👍🏌️‍♂️

          CallMeAl You get busy and then just sort of decide the one thing that can go is golf. You go to the range, hit it like crap and say, “ yeah, I can be all set.”

            CallMeAl Did go to the range today......I Suck!!!

            Not sure I've ever heard that.......range + suck. Odd bird you must be.
            Only great shots are hit on ranges. On course only, is where you may suck.

                Par4QC I'm usually a stick at the range, but after those rare times I couldn't hit anything I had my best rounds ever. These days I never get to the range....that's for people with free time 😞

                    Par4QC

                    It was BAD! Couldn't hit a Bull In The Azz With A Bass Fiddle!

                    I think I'm gonna do the Ben Hogan method...

                    Take 2 weeks Off and Then Quit!

                      KCee Haven't been to a range for(maybe)18 years or so. Used to just go test out drivers that I was building/selling on Ebay. The balls got to be so bad, I've not gone back.

                      I just go to the course. Good or bad swings may follow.

                          42/44 today. I did something I've never done before. GIR on the first 7 holes. But I 3-putted 3 of them and missed two 7-8 foot birdie putts. That 42 on the front 9 was a travesty. Got four more gir on the back nine but 19 putts. Mostly I was misreading greens badly on longer putts, including underestimating the slopes. So uphill I often came up way short and downhill too long. It felt good tee to green, though.

                          Played nine yesterday afternoon for my first golf in about a month.

                          I couldn't decide if I was really good or pretty bad. I hit some really good drives. I got to about three feet on the par 3 sixth hole. My chip on 8 stopped one inch shy of the hole.

                          On the other hand, I pulled a short iron ten yards left of the green on 2, chunked a 9-iron on 9, etc.

                          Highlights: Went long of the opening par 5 in two shots, with driver, 5-wood. Havent reached that green in two for about 6 years. Tee shot on 6 looked like it was going to go in but ended up three feet behind the hole.

                          Lowlights: Missed the birdie putt on 6. It was a down-hiller with more break than I thought. I aimed at the right edge and tried to give it speed to not run it too far by, and it lipped out low. To make it I would have to have aimed outside the hole, or hit it more firmly and risked going six to ten feet by the hole. Still a bad miss, though.

                          Overall, fair. Don't really have a score. Played two balls off the tee fairly frequently. For the first time in forever, there was hardly anybody at the course.

                          I shot 40-43-83 at Giant Oak Golf Club in Temperence, MI today. Played well on the front, and then just ran out of gas on the bank where I bogied five straight holes before even making a par. 5 GIR's, 33 putts....just not very good
                          in any part of the game on the back 9.....

                          Par4QC I like to go to the range just to swing as fast as I can and not care where it goes. Then I’ll grab a 60 degree. Open it up, move it up in my stance and take full swings so the balls goes 10 miles high and at the 50 yard flag. I like watching peoples faces

                              Typhoon I like to go to the range just to swing as fast as I can and not care where it goes.

                              I've noticed that a lot of guys do that on the course. 🙄