Looking back at what's worked and what's not, I've made a couple of changes to my bag for the end of the season.
Out: the 4i has been dropped. While it's a great club in certain circumstances, I simply don't hit it as well as I need to if it's to stay in the bag. I didn't need the ShotScope data to justify this as I know from round reviews and practice sessions that it's just been too erratic. I will keep it in the spare bag for the moment and reassess it in the spring.
In: my 4 hybrid is back. It's an old Callaway Apex Pro 23 degree with a Graphite Design Tour AD-DI hybrid shaft. It's just much easier to hit. I know that I was hitting the 4i well at my fitting but I've just never been as comfortable with it on the course. The biggest benefit of this club though is the ease of hitting it from slightly iffy lies. Yes, it can go a bit high at times for the links, but I'm happy to take that over the inconsistency of the 4i.
Out: my Odyssey TriHot 5K Three putter. What! Am I really being serious here? It's not been in the bag for long and my stats have improved since gaming it, so what's going on? Well, practicing with it post my recent lesson has shown that I've got quite a pronounced right-sided miss with it. I like it, I was good from long distance with it and will keep it in the spare bag rather than selling it.
In: my old Toulon Atlanta putter is back in the bag. Part of me really wishes I hadn't messed around with putters again so much this season. This is the one that was the subject of the post linked here https://www.thoughtsfromthetrain.com/post/odyssey-putter-fitting-asking-for-a-kick-in-the-whatnots and it was excellent for most of last season. Post my lesson with Mike I've been practising with a small gate and it has demonstrated conclusively that I start the ball online better with the Atlanta than I do with the TriHot 3. It's not that I putted poorly with the TriHot, it's just that I putt better with this one. While it's not an ugly club at all, I prefer the look of blade putters more, but I am just more "streaky" with them.
I know from my recent lesson, practice and play that I need to keep working on my stroke. My most recent stats have improved compared to how bad they were earlier in the season, but my stroke still has the habit of breaking down on short putts, especially when under pressure. Think Will Zalatoris and you'll get an idea of how bad my stroke can look at times. Having spoken to a few users of L.A.B. putters, I am tempted to try one of them as they are supposed to help with this exact issue. However, my recent lesson demonstrated that I'm actually a good putter despite my doubts, so it's time to practice and work on my drills first before making any more (expensive) changes. Improving my stroke is surely a better solution!
So there we have it, a couple of unexpected late-season changes, but ones that make me feel much more comfortable with my set.
Here's to some decent golf through the remainder of the year.
Comments