Playing with equipments that Helps or Handicap?

Notice that there is quite trend here for golfers to focus so much on their equipments, and look like there are quite a number that are using equipments that look like it belong to a PGA players. Wondering what is their handicap.

If you look into the bag of really good players, single digit golfers, you will notice that they probably have use their irons for 3 to 5 yrs, putter maybe more than 5yrs old... the only newer piece of equipment in their bag maybe the driver! So is it that they are outdated with their equipments or that the new golfers are too caught up with what's new and what the TOUR Players are using?

The Tour equipments may only suitable for Players who practice everyday for up to 8hours and had been doing it for years!

sorry I'm not sure what you meant by TOUR player equipment ? I heard some story of their equipment being custom made and definitely not off the shelf with a bill number in the 5th digits. I don't think any of us is using this type of equipment but I could be wrong...

PS : I do think some of the ppl in the forum are actually tours or close to tour standard, so that might be an exception..

Cheers,

is playing new models = playing TOUR equipment? I dont think so.

you should think of tour players as actresses paid to carry around the latest Chanel handbag or Lionel Messi getting paid to wear Adidas footie shoes.

buying new equipments is very natural. It's just commerce/consumption.

Let me ask this: imagine if most of us (recreational golfers) only play old clubs. What do you think the golfing industry would look like?

equipment is like fashion


some fashion look good on some ppl

some fashion don look good on some ppl

some ppl..don need fashion to look good

some fashion...no mattter how good, don help many ppl to look good

but .... some ppl donno which fashion look good on them....

some ppl also dunno what fashion is...

golfoooo wrote:

Notice that there is quite trend here for golfers to focus so much on their equipments, and look like there are quite a number that are using equipments that look like it belong to a PGA players. Wondering what is their handicap.

If you look into the bag of really good players, single digit golfers, you will notice that they probably have use their irons for 3 to 5 yrs, putter maybe more than 5yrs old... the only newer piece of equipment in their bag maybe the driver! So is it that they are outdated with their equipments or that the new golfers are too caught up with what's new and what the TOUR Players are using?

The Tour equipments may only suitable for Players who practice everyday for up to 8hours and had been doing it for years!

I think you are over generalising. Among golfers, there are different groups, some like to spend money on new equipment, some like to stick to what they have, some are really old school. I would think that the distribution of these groups within single handicappers is similar to any other group of amatuers of whatever handicap (as long as they are not sponsored).

You may know many single handicappers, or you are one yourself, that stick to the equipment you have because it suits you well. However, there are also single handicappers who will continously search for the optimal shaft, optimal driver, optimal ball. We should not conclude that sticking to one set of golf equipment for years is the path to being a good golfer just because of the limited sample set of people around us.

That being said, my personal view is that the best way to spend your money if you want to improve at golf is to engage a personal coach and practice correctly and diligently.

However, buying golf stuff is not always about "buying a game". Just as career women and tai tais are well known for retail therapy, for a lot of guys in this forum, buying golf stuff is just as pleasurable. It can sometimes also be known as buying "hope and happiness", which is priceless.

One thing I would like to point out. Although it is true that a good golfer will be able to play decently with any equipment (especially if he or she has a sharp short game), it is also true that the better the golfer, the more he or she stands to benefit from a proper equipment fitting.

Please note that when I say proper equipment, it definitely does not mean something a Tour Professional is using. Proper equipment is a clubhead and shaft that is suited to your swing, assembled and tuned by a skilled fitter.

The VAST majority of us would not suit Tour Spec equipment (our swing speed is not fast enough), however, it does not mean that the clubheads that they use, when matched with the correct shaft, are not suitable for amatuers.

I think we are lucky nowadays that the fitting services (which previously were only available to pros) are now available to all at very reasonable prices.

Perhaps the good golfers with old equipment that you know might be pleasantly surprised after a visit to a good fitter.

meddling with equipment makes me happy.

actually I am hoping to find the optimal golf course which can give me a good score ....more than finding equipment

If you can't play like a pro... at least try to look like one.

cos changing equipment is easier then changing wife

and always blame the equipment , it makes golf easier

haha... i agree about the part on buying hope

Wah, Derek. A well-articulated post.

I used to buy and buy. It got expensive really fast.

Then I figured it out. What works best for me.

A better approach for me, to save money, I buy the best that I can afford that I can't even hit well yet. That way, I shift my obsession from buying to training.

And new equipment fails to tempt me because I already have (in my mind) the best that I can reasonably afford. And it's up to me to get my game up to par to match it.

But I understand how it feels - buying new gear somehow feels darn good, like buying toys in childhood.

So I shift the shopping urge to shoes, hats, and belts. Less damaging to the wallet that way.

Peace.

Derek wrote:

golfoooo wrote:

Notice that there is quite trend here for golfers to focus so much on their equipments, and look like there are quite a number that are using equipments that look like it belong to a PGA players. Wondering what is their handicap.

If you look into the bag of really good players, single digit golfers, you will notice that they probably have use their irons for 3 to 5 yrs, putter maybe more than 5yrs old... the only newer piece of equipment in their bag maybe the driver! So is it that they are outdated with their equipments or that the new golfers are too caught up with what's new and what the TOUR Players are using?

The Tour equipments may only suitable for Players who practice everyday for up to 8hours and had been doing it for years!

I think you are over generalising. Among golfers, there are different groups, some like to spend money on new equipment, some like to stick to what they have, some are really old school. I would think that the distribution of these groups within single handicappers is similar to any other group of amatuers of whatever handicap (as long as they are not sponsored).

You may know many single handicappers, or you are one yourself, that stick to the equipment you have because it suits you well. However, there are also single handicappers who will continously search for the optimal shaft, optimal driver, optimal ball. We should not conclude that sticking to one set of golf equipment for years is the path to being a good golfer just because of the limited sample set of people around us.

That being said, my personal view is that the best way to spend your money if you want to improve at golf is to engage a personal coach and practice correctly and diligently.

However, buying golf stuff is not always about "buying a game". Just as career women and tai tais are well known for retail therapy, for a lot of guys in this forum, buying golf stuff is just as pleasurable. It can sometimes also be known as buying "hope and happiness", which is priceless.

One thing I would like to point out. Although it is true that a good golfer will be able to play decently with any equipment (especially if he or she has a sharp short game), it is also true that the better the golfer, the more he or she stands to benefit from a proper equipment fitting.

Please note that when I say proper equipment, it definitely does not mean something a Tour Professional is using. Proper equipment is a clubhead and shaft that is suited to your swing, assembled and tuned by a skilled fitter.

The VAST majority of us would not suit Tour Spec equipment (our swing speed is not fast enough), however, it does not mean that the clubheads that they use, when matched with the correct shaft, are not suitable for amatuers.

I think we are lucky nowadays that the fitting services (which previously were only available to pros) are now available to all at very reasonable prices.

Perhaps the good golfers with old equipment that you know might be pleasantly surprised after a visit to a good fitter.

golfoooo wrote:

Notice that there is quite trend here for golfers to focus so much on their equipments, and look like there are quite a number that are using equipments that look like it belong to a PGA players. Wondering what is their handicap.

If you look into the bag of really good players, single digit golfers, you will notice that they probably have use their irons for 3 to 5 yrs, putter maybe more than 5yrs old... the only newer piece of equipment in their bag maybe the driver! So is it that they are outdated with their equipments or that the new golfers are too caught up with what's new and what the TOUR Players are using?

The Tour equipments may only suitable for Players who practice everyday for up to 8hours and had been doing it for years!

I've looked into bags of really good players, they're usually referred to as what you would call a touring PGA proffesional and most of them change equipment not only because its given to them but because they feel it benefits their game.Your "single digit" golfer friends probably have a swing that have tons of flaws in them which is why they CAN'T change their equipment because they need their club to compensate their swing, otherwise change Driver for what? And btw, are they single off black as well? Because I think most of the forum members here who have tour equipment can easily play off black, your "one chip one putt" friends im not so sure.

Hope it helps !