When should you change clubs?

Re: When should you change clubs?

marshall h — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 05:48:05 GMT

Brent, if you want technical advise you would need to give numbers (ie driver head speed and 6 iron head speed with launch angles and spin rates for both) , not having that info i still think you would benefit from new ap2's. It would also help to have your handicap or some score info. You should only buy the cb/mb combo if you are a low handicapper and shoot in the mid 70's consistently, the ap 2 712 has a much higher moi than your current model and will give you excellent feel and some work-ability and will not make the mis-hits as punishing, and at the end of the day you want to have fun and remember the good shots. Hope this helps.

Re: When should you change clubs?

David Browning — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 00:58:41 GMT

[quote user="Brent W"]

I have the original AP2's, Bought when they came out.

Is it time to get a new set? Am I missing out on some new technology? I would love a combo set of CB's and MB's.

Can you help me justify buying a new set.

[/quote]

The 1st gen AP2's were/are, some amazing clubs. However, the new 712's are more forgiving, more consistent, have a better feel, a little more workable, etc.. Get a hold of your local Titleist rep and schedule a fitting. I'm sure they wouldn't mind if you brought your own AP2's. Trust me. You would LOVE the new 712 AP2's!

Re: When should you change clubs?

Don O — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 22:00:08 GMT

If you get fit, you're buying by the club. Hence, you can mix and match AP2/CB/MB as well as buy a set of 6/7/8/9. The box stores may have 5-GW and 4-PW sets on the shelf. I only bought a 5I (5-PW) basically because the fitter felt I could hit it well enough. Otherwise would have just gotten 6-9. I've never liked a set PW, but the AP1 has worked better than others I've had (or I've made progress with my swing??). The price quoted was 6 x the club price.

Re: When should you change clubs?

Carlo Angelo — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 19:40:19 GMT

wear and tear... if it is beat up time for a new one!

my time frame is 10 years, that's how long I've been using my 690CB's. Time for upgrade!

Re: When should you change clubs?

Lou G — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 16:59:37 GMT

I tried TM irons about 5 years ago and they had horrible feel. I love Burner woods but absolutely abhor their irons and wedges. I'm pretty happy with my Eye 2s. Quite frankly, even though they are lofted about 2* more than the new irons, the distance difference is MAYBE 5 yards and I would rather have the ball stick the green. The other issue with buying new irons is that I use a 7 wood, 5H and 7H in place of the 3-6 irons and I don't use the set wedge. So why waste $1000 on a set that you only use 3 of the clubs? Don't know if Titleist would sell AP2s individually (for instance, if someone wanted the 6-9 irons).

Re: When should you change clubs?

Lou G — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 18:31:26 GMT

[quote user="Jacob L"]

[quote user="Scott M"]Club manufacturers are having trouble coming up with improvements that justify spending a grand for new ones. If you are not getting satisfactory performance from your current set, or you just want a shiny new set & you have a loose $1000 burning your pocket,why not. However, I'll tell you from experience, the clubs you are wanting are much less forgiving than what you have now. Another thought, why don't you check Ebay to see if they have what you want. Good luck deciding.

[/quote] First off the new AP2s are more forgiving not less forgiving than the old ones. And don't do eBay to buy titleist there are legit golf shops on there but I personally wouldn't spend $800-1000 on eBay. And titleist doesn't strengthen their lofts at least not from today's lofts. Of course they are strengthened from 1990s- early 2000s but that's because swing speeds are are getting faster and players are getting stronger and launching it higher. If you want strongthened lofts go look at TM Irons "shudders". But anyways back on topic the new AP2s have a different weighting than the previous sets of AP2s. They are slightly more forgiving while staying workable. Personally I love my 712 AP2s best iron I have played so far just becaus of the tech that is in it. But it's your choice and if you do get new clubs go to a titlist fitter not a golf galaxy or something like that.

[/quote] e-Bay is overpriced even for used clubs; however, there is a chance of finding something typically not at Golf Mart or Golf Galaxy. I wouldn't buy a guitar on e-Bay because I'm one that has to play it before buying.

Re: When should you change clubs?

Jacob L — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 16:50:13 GMT

Re: When should you change clubs?

Lou G — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 12:59:30 GMT

[quote user="Lou G"]

[quote user="Brent W"]

I am not looking for game improvement irons. And I just don't want a shiny new set, I appreciate the comments

but I was hoping someone with a little more knowledge on things like groove life and also newer technology will respond.

I practice and play allot and I am starting to wear the sole down on my clubs and I am sure the grooves are wearing out also.

If someone with a more technical insight on club wear can respond that would be cool.

Again I do appreciate the feedback.

[/quote] In regards to wear, the soles take much more of a beating vs the grooves. Sand or hard ground accelerates wear on the soles. In regards to the "newer technology", to foster the claim of longer distance, they have delofted the clubs (if you do the math, a club with 4* more loft, given equal weight heads and equal length shafts is going to hit farther by 10 yards). In 1975, a pitching wedge had 50* of loft and a 5 iron had 31* loft; a standard sand wedge was 57-58* and had a thick flange with about 4* of bounce. a 1983 Eye 2 9 iron had a 45* loft and that is about what a modern pitching wedge is. Nowadays you see irons that have what seems to be 10 pieces on the head and the metal part is a mere frame. Wilson 1200 irons in the 1970s had perimeter weights on the backs of the heads. If you look at a player iron from now and from 20 years ago, there is very little difference other than a larger head. The shape of a Ping iron remained virtually unchanged between 1972 until about the early 1980s. I've also seen a couple absolute busts in the wedge market. The F Squared wedge I found very difficult to use (got one used and returned it promptly); nothing beats a good ole Vokey.

[/quote] I meant to say "4 degrees stronger (less) loft)". There are some irons that stand the test of time, like Apex II, Eye 2, and Titleist DCI 981. Also, I did a side by side comparison between DCI and Eye 2 irons and found a 3-5 yard difference (which was expected due to 2* stronger loft on the former); this is a difference of 20 years in "technology". In regards to fairway woods, there was a time when there were some on the market that had head sizes the same as that of an old-school driver. Very hard to hit on the ground (one of them was a so-called "sports store" club, i.e., Dunlop, Alien, et. al). The newer persimmon clubs (the only maker of them is Louisville Golf) have heads the same size as a 975F or a Warbird. Fortunately, Titleist has remained "sane" compared to some of the other vendors in regards to shaft lengths on drivers (basically 45"). Some are getting as long as 47" and, quite frankly, are very hard to hit. There was also a bust in driver "technology" in the '80s - the 52 inch shaft club; there were claims as to how they could improve distance but were just about impossible to hit. In my opinion, what necessitates club change is when you have a shaft flex change or when your clubs don't work like they used to. I went from stiff to regular in 2006.

Re: When should you change clubs?

Lou G — Mon, 27 Feb 2012 00:18:20 GMT

[quote user="Brent W"]

I am not looking for game improvement irons. And I just don't want a shiny new set, I appreciate the comments

but I was hoping someone with a little more knowledge on things like groove life and also newer technology will respond.

I practice and play allot and I am starting to wear the sole down on my clubs and I am sure the grooves are wearing out also.

If someone with a more technical insight on club wear can respond that would be cool.

Again I do appreciate the feedback.

Re: When should you change clubs?

ToddL — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 17:14:40 GMT

For the average golfer, I would recommend changing clubs whenever you want. I say that because for the average golfer the purpose of playing golf is to have fun. If you think new clubs will help you have more fun, then get new clubs! Of course, your level of disposable income will dictate your ultimate decision...

Re: When should you change clubs?

Brent W — Sun, 26 Feb 2012 03:43:45 GMT

I am not looking for game improvement irons. And I just don't want a shiny new set, I appreciate the comments

but I was hoping someone with a little more knowledge on things like groove life and also newer technology will respond.

I practice and play allot and I am starting to wear the sole down on my clubs and I am sure the grooves are wearing out also.

If someone with a more technical insight on club wear can respond that would be cool.

Again I do appreciate the feedback.

Re: When should you change clubs?

Scott M — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 23:42:01 GMT

Club manufacturers are having trouble coming up with improvements that justify spending a grand for new ones. If you are not getting satisfactory performance from your current set, or you just want a shiny new set & you have a loose $1000 burning your pocket,why not. However, I'll tell you from experience, the clubs you are wanting are much less forgiving than what you have now. Another thought, why don't you check Ebay to see if they have what you want. Good luck deciding.

Re: When should you change clubs?

Lou G — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 17:01:04 GMT

The one thing you can do, in all seriousness, to settle the debate about spending $1000 for a brand new set of irons is bring your current 6 or 7 iron and do a shootout between it vs one of those you desire. I went to a demo day armed with my current driver and fairway woods and my Eye 2 irons. I took the driver and hit it alongside three 10.5 deg R11 drivers (M flex, R flex and stiff flex); I hit the stiff driver dead straight with a neutral face but lost yardage. I set the M flex and R flex drivers to draw and didn't see any distance change vs my good ole 13* draw driver (I've hit that so-called "old geezer" driver over 250 yards on a few occasions and hit one 270 yards one time). Also didn't see any gains between my 2K7 Burner 7 wood vs a K15 of the same loft. Finally put my Eye 2 7 iron vs a G15 and there MIGHT have been a difference of 3-5 yards. You get a comfort zone with your irons and know the ins and outs of them and that is what makes it hard to switch.

Re: When should you change clubs?

Lou G — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 23:28:48 GMT

[quote user="Brent W"]

I have the original AP2's, Bought when they came out.

Is it time to get a new set? Am I missing out on some new technology? I would love a combo set of CB's and MB's.

Can you help me justify buying a new set.

[/quote] Don't think I could help you there because I'm one of those that hangs on to golf clubs for a long time (I used my dad's X31 irons for 25 years and I finally changed to metal woods in 2006). I'm of the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" school. I personally can't justify spending $400 for the latest driver when the one I have hits just fine and finds the fairway a majority of the time (my current driver is a 2007 Burner HT draw).