The monetary cost of extra yards...

[Orikoru]

I have lessons because I want to play better, not because it’s a chore. Same with anything in life if you want to improve you have to put the effort in.

If you don’t want to improve that’s absolutely fine too, but don’t criticise those that do.

Have the odd lesson that's fine, these guys were talking about bombing 400 notes on lessons all at once! Forget that.

 

[RangeMonkey]

Have the odd lesson that's fine, these guys were talking about bombing 400 notes on lessons all at once! Forget that.

I’ve spent £770 on lessons since I started six months ago. I’ve still got some to take, though (if I continue).

 

[RangeMonkey]

I’ve spent £770 on lessons since I started six months ago. I’ve still got some to take, though (if I continue).

Sorry, my mistake... £870!

 

[Orikoru]

Sorry, my mistake... £870!

Jesus Christ man that's insane.

 

[RangeMonkey]

Jesus Christ man that's insane.

Actually, to be fair, that price has included credit for range balls, so it’s actually only £650 that’s gone onto the lessons.

 

[sunshine]

Sorry, my mistake... £870!

Wow. When are we going to see you on tour?

Seriously, what does £870 get you? How do you feel about your game?

 

[Parsaregood]

Have the odd lesson that's fine, these guys were talking about bombing 400 notes on lessons all at once! Forget that.

I never had a lesson and got to a 1 handicap,I started taking lessons and managed to get to a low of +1.6. Wouldn't personally count what I've spent on lessons, have long forgotten how many I've had anyway. point is I enjoy practicing and learning different things about this game in general so it's worth it to me

 

[RangeMonkey]

Wow. When are we going to see you on tour?

Seriously, what does £870 get you? How do you feel about your game?

I’m guessing you’ve not seen my recent posts...See my new thread...

 

[Deleted member 15344]

No, seriously, in my opinion if you've spent 400 on lessons then the game has become a chore. I play for fun, not as some sort of self-improvement quest.

That’s about 10-15 lessons - not exactly a “chore”

Peolle can still play for fun as well as having lessons to improve the fun

 

[Orikoru]

That’s about 10-15 lessons - not exactly a “chore”

Peolle can still play for fun as well as having lessons to improve the fun

Wow, it really adds up doesn't it?

 

[howbow88]

Surprised there is 20 yards between your Titleist and the Taylor Made if you were fitted for both, the 917 is still only a couple of years old design. Other option is to try a different shaft in the 917, something slightly more flexible and higher launching may well make up the 20 yard difference. If you like your current driver it might be worth a go, certainly cheaper than a new driver and with screw in shafts it's easily done and you can buy and sell shafts easily enough on eBay or Facebook.

I would agree - it is most likely the shaft in the Taylormade is a bit better suited to me than my Titleist. I did also give my mate's Callaway XR a go, and that had a very 'whippy' shaft. I didn't get on with that in the slightest - the ball was going much higher but around 20 yards less in total distance than my current driver!

As for trying out new shafts... I would be concerned of 1) Buying on Ebay/Facebook. 2) Buying without trying. I like the idea in principal, but for a decent selection of shafts that I can try, I would be looking at a custom fitter. That would involve a fee plus the cost of the shaft, and at that point is it not just worth buying a new club?

Another post might touched on something I imagine may well hold the answer - the Taylormade stock shaft is 1" longer than my current one. if we equate the shaft suiting me better to 7 yards, the TM head/face giving me 3 yards, could we say the further 10 yards comes from shaft length? All guess work of course, but longer shafts do give longer distances in general. It would also explain why I was probably spraying the TM about a bit

 

[patricks148]

I can give the ball a fair old
Wallop but I’d give my right arm to have a short game half as good as yours - not that it would do much good as then I’d only have 1 arm

done,,,,, i won't even have your arm, your distance for half my short game

 

[Ye Olde Boomer]

There's a 36 hole public course about a half hour's drive from where I live now.

Haven't been there for years, but forty or so years ago, I played in an after work 9-hole league there. We got to play all four nines on a rotational basis.

There was this one 285 yard par four that was pancake flat from tee to green.

We nicknamed the hole "the lie detector" for obvious reasons.

Nobody with whom I played ever drove it in league play. I came as close as anybody back then, but never hit putter for second shot..

 

[Woodie42]

I’ve never understood the marketing appeal of “extra yards” for a driver. All an extra 10 or 15 yards means is that one uses a slightly shorter club on the next shot ... say a five hybrid instead of a four. The cumulative effect of the two shots is the same. There may be instances where those extra yards means that the green can be reached in one shot less but, for most of us average amateurs, they will be few and far between. Or am I missing something?

Apparently Callaway tried to market one of their drivers on the slogan “hit more fairways”. Hardly anybody bought it! Length it seems is everything!

 

[patricks148]

There's a 36 hole public course about a half hour's drive from where I live now.

Haven't been there for years, but forty or so years ago, I played in an after work 9-hole league there. We got to play all four nines on a rotational basis.

There was this one 285 yard par four that was pancake flat from tee to green.

We nicknamed the hole "the lie detector" for obvious reasons.

Nobody with whom I played ever drove it in league play. I came as close as anybody back then, but never hit putter for second shot..

i find that hard to belive, every time i've looked at any US golf forums, no one admitted to hitting it less that 300 yards.... carry

 

[sussexhacker]

Just taken my new (second hand) cobra f8+ down to the range and even in the cold I reckon it was going at least 20 yards and probably a fair bit more than that than my previous driver

It I caught hold of my old big stick it went roughly 250 in summer at the range but I reckon this was carrying 270 with winter range balls

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

See Rick Sheils vid of the Callaway Clubs from Costco...buy a set of these for £480 - and then get an extra 10yds for your tee shots by replacing the driver with a Callaway Mavrik - which coincidentally costs about the same as your full set - at around £450...mmmh

 

[Springveldt]

This is a great point.

Unless you are already cat one or lower, £400 of lessons is probably going to generate more yards than a new driver.

I'm not Cat 1 but single figures and unless getting lessons is going to add a lot of club head speed onto my driver there is no way I'm getting 20 yards of carry from lessons. Driver is the best part of my game, I'm usually pretty good with it. I could do with a lesson to get my spin down a touch but according to Flightscope I'll gain 7 yards of carry from that if I can optimise it, so the lessons are then going to have to give me 5 or 6mph of speed.

If someone offered me 20 yards of carry for £400 I'd buy it that instance and suffer the consequences from the wife later. Hell, I paid £300 for speed sticks and a radar so I could swing them in my garden after work and that gave me about 10 yards of carry.

 

[Dan2501]

No, seriously, in my opinion if you've spent 400 on lessons then the game has become a chore. I play for fun, not as some sort of self-improvement quest.

Totally disagree. Paying for lessons has enabled me to improve my game significantly, which in turn has increased my enjoyment, the game has become more fun the better I've got. I don't find lessons a chore in the slightest, and find the self-improvement aspect enjoyable. If I take up a hobby, I want to be as good as possible at that hobby, and find lessons to be the most sustainable and efficient way of improving.

 

[Orikoru]

Totally disagree. Paying for lessons has enabled me to improve my game significantly, which in turn has increased my enjoyment, the game has become more fun the better I've got. I don't find lessons a chore in the slightest, and find the self-improvement aspect enjoyable. If I take up a hobby, I want to be as good as possible at that hobby, and find lessons to be the most sustainable and efficient way of improving.

I just think it's funny how people treat golf differently to other sports. If you start playing 5-a-side football, people don't suggest you go and pay for football lessons. When I started playing badminton with the wife we didn't go and book badminton lessons, we just went and played badminton.