From Tee 2 Green

I hit the new TaylorMade R11 irons for the first time this week. I am a big fan of the R11 clubs, well the hybrids at least, so I was naturally interested in the new irons. I will admit that I tried out the R11 3 Wood for a few weeks and found that I hit my old Cleveland 3 wood much better and farther. As a matter of fact, I hit the R11 2 Hybrid father than I did their 3 wood. I know a few people who hit the R11 3 Wood and none of them are that impressed with it. But since I like the hybrids, I had to try out the new irons.

The R11 irons had a good feel to them. The ball seems to jump off the face, as it does the hybrids. I only hit them into a simulator, so I was unable to see the actual ball flight.  However, the simulated flight was high and long. I would recommend you give them a try. They are marketed as irons to help the low to mid handicap player. I can see that after hitting them. They are not so forgiving that you can’t work the ball at all, but do give you a very generous sweet spot. If you are looking to invest in a new set of irons, I don’t think I will need to tell you to try these. The TaylorMade marketing department will do that for me.

I personally switched to the TaylorMade RAC irons from ’05 this season and still maintain that those are the best irons that TaylorMade has ever built. I think everything after them is just a copy of those RAC irons. If you want to save yourself a lot of money, go onto eBay and search for RAC irons…I got mine for about $160.

Until next time…

Tags: Cleveland Golf, Golf Companies, Product Review, Taylor Made, Thoughts by Bill
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Definition of fundamental: a principle, law, etc, that serves as the basis of a system.

I have always thought that the grip and set up were fundamentals of a good golf swing. But how can they be fundamental if everyone does them differently? Players use strong grips, weak grips and everything in between.  Players set up open, closed and square. Other things that people have told me are fundamental to a good golf swing, tempo, alignment and posture. If you can vary all of these things so drastically and still be one of the best players in the world, how can it really be a fundamental to the success of a good golf swing? [Read more →]

Tags: Lessons, Product Review, Thoughts, Tips by Bill
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I have been testing the new Backstryke Marxman putter for a few weeks. I think the first comment from most people is that the the putter looks a little odd.  It is a little strange to see the shaft connected to the back of the putter and not the face.  This was a little easier for me to get over as I use a Scotty Cameron Futura putter and let’s face it, compared to it, no putter looks that strange.  Unlike my irons, I generally don’t care how my putter looks. I judge putters more on set up, feel, roll of the ball and the most important thing, whether I can make putts with it.

When I tried the Backstryke in Golf Galaxy, the first thing I noticed was how easy it was to set the face square to the target line. I really like being able to see the entire face as I set up to the ball. I also noticed that the putter forces your hands to be pressed forward at address. For golfers that tend to keep their hands even or behind the ball at address, the Backstryke may be a bad option. However, having a hands forward set up will definitely promote a tighter, more consistent roll. Like my Scotty, this putter definitely sets up square and is very easy to align to the target. Overall the Backstryke passes the set up test. [Read more →]

Tags: Odyssey, Product Review by Bill
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I have been hitting the new Taylor Made Penta TP golf ball for about a month now.  I wasn’t unhappy with the ball I have been hitting for over a year, but I fell prey to the great marketing machine and had to try this new “five layer” ball.  I was neither disappointed or impressed with this ball. I did wonder how many layers is enough for a golf ball? Is five enough or will we get to a ten layer ball and then what would the first layer be?

Adding a fifth layer produced the same results as adding a fifth blade to my razor – sounds good but not really sure I noticed the difference.  I think the Penta TP is surely as good as the Titleist Pro V1, Callaway Touri or my ball of choice, the Srixon Z-Star.  The Penta TP is a little more expensive and I the performance did not warrant spending the extra $10.00 a dozen. [Read more →]

Tags: Callaway, Product Review, Srixon, Taylor Made, Titleist by Bill
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I recently tried both a new Taylor Made R9 driver and R9 3 wood with the new Flight Control Technology (FCT).  I will admit that I am not a big fan of buying a driver off the shelf.  I think that your clubs will perform better if they are fitted for your swing.  For that reason, I think the FTC system is genius.  I have always believed the most important component to your driver is the shaft and not the head, just ask anyone who has teed it up with me and after a few holes wants to know what driver I am using.  When I tell them I use a driver head from a company that is out of business, they are shocked.  A little known fact is that most driver heads are made in the same factory – that’s right, Titleist and Taylor Made have the same people making their heads.  I use a head from La Jolla that was combined with the right shaft for my swing and I have never hit a driver farther or straighter – not even the Taylor Made I tried (and mine costs about $100 to have made).  The only reason I even try other drivers, is just to see the improvements in the technology.  When I find one that I can control that goes farther, then I will replace mine.  I am a golfer, so curiosity makes me try the new clubs despite the fact that technology doesn’t change that much year to year. [Read more →]

Tags: Product Review, Taylor Made by Bill
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Congratulations to Zack Johnson on his victory in Fort Worth this weekend.  I am not sure I have seen such a putting display since, well Zack Johnson did it at the Masters in 2007.  Maybe there is something to these See More putters.  I remember the first time I noticed that putter, Payne Stewart had just made a 15 foot putt to win the US Open in 1999.  A few of my friends bought the putter the very next week.  I was never really able to putt with a straight shafted putter, but I think the idea is very sound. [Read more →]

Tags: News, Product Review, Thoughts by Bill
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