Opinions please!

Follow Thread

By Edward K

  • 0 Likes
  • 5 Replies
  1. Edward K

    Edward K
    Wesley Chapel, FL

    Military

    I play with ancient clubs, and with limited play still shoot in the mid 70's. I play less than once a month.  I'll hit par once or twice a year with my max score still around 79-80. I was better than scratch for years, just don't have the time to play even a few times a month. I'm from the land of "it's the swing that counts, not the value of your equipment"........Are a new set of clubs REALLY going to make a difference?

  2. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    If you started playing with the clubs since they were new, your swing may have changed, and you didn't indicate the condition of the groves. new heads and shafts fit for you can make a difference.  Drivers can be noticable after 5 years, and irons after 8-10 years, with below average wear.  You might not change your score much, but you may might it easier to score.  One big difference may be the loft of your irons.  The new ones may be almost a club less lofted.    Titleist has been making incremental changes every 2 years, unlike the new design of month claiming more yards with each release make the wild claims.

  3. Christopher V

    Christopher V
    North Canton, OH

    I always go by the saying, if it's not broke don't fix it. New Clubs offer many more benefits with all the improved technology. Best thing to do is go hits some balls in a golf simulator or driving range and compare new clubs to your old clubs. You should know pretty quickly if the new clubs will be worth your money.
  4. Mitchell C

    Mitchell C
    Carterville, IL

    Edward,

    Sounds like you are a good player in your own right, but like all things technology has evolved and has improved significantly over the years.   I would recommend you sample some of the different lines of Titleist irons, and get fit by a local fitter or PGA professional.  They'll be able to dial in all the proper specs on new clubs and be able to provide great assistance on getting the right shaft/lies/lofts/etc for your game.  Your swing certainly doesnt ever have to change, but an upgrade in technology and equipment can only help, whether that is with your slightly off center shots or spin rate or added yardage.   Best of luck to you, and you can never go wrong with any of the Titleist lines of equipment, timeless and classic stuff!  Play well!

    -Mitchell C

  5. Sam S

    Sam S
    Granger, IN

    Here's my opinion on the matter:

    For your putter, it would probably not make a drastic difference.  The putter has always been a matter of preference.

    For your irons, if you're playing blade irons, it wouldn't make too much of a difference.  Back in the '70s and '80s, companies made some pretty great clubs, especially Wilson irons.  Titleist has really separated themselves from their competitors on their recent irons, particularly with the ground interaction. 

    For your wedges, it would make quite a difference.  Now with the SM5, you can customize your wedges entirely to fit your personal game.  I personally think they're pretty incredible.  Sure, wedges my have had a bit more spin before the groove ban, but most likely, your wedges have worn down to the point where they're not doing much for you.  You'd be surprised at how much of a difference custom grinds can make.

    With the longer clubs, the drivers, the woods, the hybrids, this is where you're more likely to see the biggest improvement.  In the past 5 years, the golf world has been witnessing the biggest growth in this area, in my opinion.  Now, we've got bigger heads (so big that they had to put a limit on them!)  We've got increased distance and forgiveness.  The list goes on...  With Titleist drivers, you can get fit into the proper shaft for your swing, with two different heads to chose from.  You want a club that provides the best combo of forgiveness and distance.  Titleist does this really well, because of these two heads that are engineered for two different types of golfers.  Getting fit for these will definitely help your game.  Golfers who get fit average 40 extra yards.  Having been a scratch golfer yourself, you're obviously not going to gain that much distance, but you should see a massive difference.

    The best part about Titleist is that you don't have to take anyone's word for anything: they've got custom fitting!  All you have to do is get fit, and let the improvements speak for themselves.

    Thanks,

    GM

  6. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    I'm also of the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" school but there are certain portions of your golf game that benefit from newer clubs.

    I concur on wedges.  The only choice in 1972 was PW and SW.   The PW was typically a 52* club.  The SW was about 58* and had a super wide flange on the bottom.  I've been playing Titleist wedges since 2007 (had a 258-12 as my sand wedge until 2009 and then played SM2 60-07 and 64-07 thru 2011; played SM c-c thru 2012 but just couldn't hit the right combo).  I have to admit that I have had a great short game with the SM4 wedges; however, I wish they would have kept the grind they used on the SM c-c 62-07. 

    Irons..... 

    The difference between blades or player irons differs little vs old school except for loft.   A 5 iron in 1967 had a loft of 31 deg and a 9 iron about 48.  Today's player irons are 27* for a 5 iron and 47 for a PW.  

    Game improvement irons - Png Eye 2 had a 5 iron loft of 28* and a 9 iron of 45* in 1983.  AP1s have been 27* for a 5 iron and 45 for a PW until this year.    If I put an AP1 PW alongside an Eye 2 9 iron they get about the same distance. 

    The loft of a driver or fairway hasn't changed much; however, distance has.    Old school drivers were 11*, a 3 wood 15* and a 5 wood 21* (4 woods were 18*).   Standard loft drivers are 10.5, 3 woods 15* and 7 woods 21*.  I can tell one for a fact that a 910F 19* fairway gets the same distance as a 975F 16.5. 

    For the other vendors, quite frankly, their best years for drivers, fairways and hybrids was sometime around 2007-2008.  I put a 2007 Brner HT draw driver alongside a 10.5* R11 over 3 years ago and it just smoked it.  HT is a 13* loft!  The easiest ever to hit fairway wood is a 2007 Brner 7 wood; however, I have to cut it 1" and use a Dri Tac grip to maintain swingweight.  The easiest to hit 4H is the 2007 Brner cut 1/2" short.  Other than that, their shaft lengths are really ridiculous - 43" for a 5 wood is horrendous!  The highest lofted fairway wood these days is 23*.

    As far as 27* hybrids, it is a tossup.  I can take a 910F and a Sperfast 1.0/2.0 and they will all go the same distance properly set up.

    What I don't like in the golf industry is no major vendor makes a 31* or 34* hybrid so you have to go to a custom club vendor.  I have a 2007 Smo2 SQ 7-34 hybrid that I have been using for 3 years now (I almost eagled a par 4 with my approach shot Friday playing to an elevated green 135 yards away; my ball was a foot to the right of the hole).  I've gotten spoiled with a 34* hybrid since 2006 and dropped the 7 iron completely last year (that is the highest lofted club I have carried since 2006). I broke 80 last year.

Please login to post a comment.

Sign In

Haven't registered for Team Titleist yet?

Sign Up