Golfers are suckers....

[JR]

Yup, they spend thousands on the best equipment and still can't break 100. They'd probably score just as well by dropping a couple of hundred on a set at Canadian Tire. And even better if they took the money they saved on clubs and took a half dozen lessons.

Suckers, indeed. I've golfed (although not much any more) since I was about ten years old and I'd say that this guy pretty much nails it.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080815.wlgolf15/BNStory/lifeMain/home

Take my brother. He's a pretty decent player, but he's also a product magpie, always winging over to the shiniest new piece of equipment. Only problem is, his game isn't any better than it was a few thousand dollars ago. His golf-related sentences begin with, "I just don't understand why my driving/chipping/putting isn't better." The inverse is my father-in-law, who buys knockoffs at the flea market for forty bucks and just won his club's senior championship.

Take a lesson.

 

[dixiehack]

I have this picture of Canadian Tire looking like the inside of Snoopy's doghouse. Exactly what don't they sell?

 

[kleeda]

Can't wait to read this.

 

[slappy4428]

I have this picture of Canadian Tire looking like the inside of Snoopy's doghouse. Exactly what don't they sell?

fatback and sowbelly.

 

[playthrough]

He wrote a book called Playing Through...now that's brilliant

Of course he's dead-on. I'm happy to say every club in my bag is at least five years old and I have no plans on replacing any of them except maybe the putter. Always, always blame the putter.

 

[bydesign77]

Custom, new clubs will help only the better players. The weekend warriors don't need the new stuff too much. The forgiving clubs make the game easier, but without proper mechanics, they won't shave all that many strokes. So yes, golfers can be suckers.

 

[TwoGloves]

Buddy of mine who died a year ago bought every freaking gadget on the market. Read all the instruction magazines. I told him he should have spent his money on lessons or range balls but he never believed me.

 

[JR]

I have this picture of Canadian Tire looking like the inside of Snoopy's doghouse. Exactly what don't they sell?

Sex toys.

 

[doubledown68]

My Wilson Pro Staff set I got for $200 or so a few years ago on ebay has a sweet sky mark on the driver. Every time I unsheath the war club, it reminds me what a brilliant striker of the ball I am.

 

[John]

My first set of clubs I inherited from my grandfather, who probably bought them before I was born. When I was playing all the time in the summer during high school, my handicap was around an 8.

I've got much nicer clubs now, though I don't play near as much, but I haven't come close to shooting 80 in years.

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

Yup, they spend thousands on the best equipment and still can't break 100. They'd probably score just as well by dropping a couple of hundred on a set at Canadian Tire. And even better if they took the money they saved on clubs and took a half dozen lessons.

Suckers, indeed. I've golfed (although not much any more) since I was about ten years old and I'd say that this guy pretty much nails it.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080815.wlgolf15/BNStory/lifeMain/home

Take my brother. He's a pretty decent player, but he's also a product magpie, always winging over to the shiniest new piece of equipment. Only problem is, his game isn't any better than it was a few thousand dollars ago. His golf-related sentences begin with, "I just don't understand why my driving/chipping/putting isn't better." The inverse is my father-in-law, who buys knockoffs at the flea market for forty bucks and just won his club's senior championship.

Take a lesson.

A wise man once said, "Never give a sucker an even break." That could explain golf companies' business practices.

 

[Matt1735]

Bowlers are the same way... they expect every ball they buy to be perfect and when it's not, rather than practice, they go buy another ball... $200 a shot for top-o-the-line

 

[qtlaw]

I don't disagree that golfers are suckers, I've got a buddy who has six sets of irons (worth $800 per set) and still can't hit a drive 250; its pretty sad. I've always hinted "um, those $500 set of lessons might help" but to no avail.

Now, there are some tech advances that are undeniable, the driver and ball. Its astounding how much a difference they make over 10 years ago. Now you do need a decent swing to get the benefits. If you don't have that, its over.

 

[accguy]

I might be deemed a sucker on this thread, but sometimes good gear does make a difference. I spent some time on a launch monitor this spring with a good club fitter and ended up spending too much money on a driver with a really good shaft. As a result, I'm driving the ball better than I ever have in my life.

With a driver, it is all about shaft fit. Most of the heads are pretty good.

If I was to advise somebody on what to get, I would tell them to get fit for Ping irons and get that color code in the G5 iron. It's one iron behind the current technology, but still a very good stick. You can probably get a set of new or close to new on ebay for 300 bucks if you look around enough.

 

[CollegeJournalist]

Now, there are some tech advances that are undeniable, the driver and ball. Its astounding how much a difference they make over 10 years ago. Now you do need a decent swing to get the benefits. If you don't have that, its over.

The ball you're playing isn't going to make a damn bit of difference in the score you're shooting until you can shape shots, consistently put spin on the ball when you want to and know exactly what you're looking for in a golf ball.

In other words, most golfers with a handicap higher than 10 aren't any better playing Pro V1s than they are with a beat up Pinnacle.

 

[2underpar]

if you aren't a real good golfer and want to improve, buy knock-off clubs for $300-$400, spend $200 on lessons from a competent professional and then spend $200 on practicing what the pro said.
Don't spend $800 for a set of irons and expect them to magically make your score drop eight shots.
and, if you really want to improve, practice your short game and putting. that will cut more strokes off your game than anything -- eliminate the screwed-up chips shots and three-putts and see how fast your score goes from 95 to 87. It doesn't even cost money to go to the practice green or chipping area at most places. it's not nearly as much fun as standing on the practice tee and trying to hit your driver 350 yards in a machine-gun like fashion.
after you start playing better, then start looking for better equipment.

 

[slappy4428]

Cheat. Like I do.

 

[RedHotChiliPrepper]

I played top flites until I could consistently break 80 and I realized I needed a ball that would better hold the green when I hit into it. I switched to the titleist nxt tours until I began to flirt with 80 consistently and tried pro v1s and other top spin balls.

I can honestly say that the different balls made a difference in my game, but not until I became a more consistent ball striker to where it mattered what kind of ball I was hitting.

That being said, this is my 11th summer playing golf and I broke 80 for the first time last week when I shot 77 on a good course.

So there's no magic fix in golf that changes things overnight, not even an occasional lesson. Everything takes lots of time and practice. But I'm not sure there's anything more rewarding in sports than to break through a score barrier, whether its 100, 90, 80 or 70, knowing that it's because of the patience and culmination of constant trial and error with your swing.

 

[CitizenTino]

Generally, my biggest priority in picking out a golf ball is looking for whichever one is cleanest. The shiny white ones are easier to find in the rough and/or woods.

I can count on one hand the number of times I've broken 100.

 

[Ace]

Lots of people are suckers for buying the shiny new thing across the board.

You could also say that someone is a sucker for buying a new Lexus when they could have bought a Toyota for a lot less.

That said, I've never spent more than $300 on a set of golf clubs.