reduced handicap from sim play

[70's]

In California playing golf in 45 is doable but I would be bundled in ever thing I owned, and certainly would not have the free swing I am use to having. Hope you have a great round and get back to us on how it went.

[ZMax]

In California playing golf in 45 is doable but I would be bundled in ever thing I owned, and certainly would not have the free swing I am use to having. Hope you have a great round and get back to us on how it went.

Well, the temp was 45 and breezy. I had thermal underwear and 2 layers of clothing. I had difficulty turning my hips. So, basically the first round of the year for me sucked.

Off the tee = C+
Off the grass = D
Short game = D-
Putting = B, thanks to the simulator

I had some problems chipping and pitching off the real grass. It was difficult to judge the distance. I blame the simulator for this.

[70's]

I am really sorry to hear that. I was hoping for the exact opposite. Other than the short game do you think 90 percent of the problem was the amount of clothing? Is that why you could not turn your hips?

[ZMax]

I am really sorry to hear that. I was hoping for the exact opposite. Other than the shot game do you think 90 percent of the problem was the amount of clothing? Is that why you could not turn your hips?

Oh, definitely the clothing. I could barely sit at the restaurant with all this stuff on. I normally hit a draw with an inside-out swing but today, I would guess that my swing path was mostly straight or outside-in with a closed face. Most shots started left and stayed left.

[70's]

well I will pretend that I never heard that review and get back to me when the weather is nice outside and you’re in slacks with a long sleeve shirt on. Get back to me then with how you think you played THAT DAY. Well bubba in Florida should be able to give an accurate reading. Again really sorry to hear that post but as far as I am concerned it never happened. Thanks for getting back to us Z.

[bubba22]

Probably difficult to judge based on the elements. Weather, clothing etc will affect the ability to play. My only thing is that the sim conditions are always perfect with respect to the conditions, lie etc so playing for real will always be different. Putting seemed good Z. All others will come with the better conditions.

[SDL]

ZMax,

I'm just glad to see you were able to play. It reminds me of a round I played in the Chicago area several years ago. My brother lives in Chicago and I was there in December for a meeting. We played at Cog Hill on a sunny day with a temp of 38*. The clothing was a bit of a problem, but we still had fun. My cold-weather clothing rules are based on trying to wear as few layers as possible on my arms (no more than 2, but 1 layer is best) since that seems to restrict my swing the least. What course did you play yesterday?


I hope to get out to play here in Iowa sometime in the next couple weeks if the weather cooperates.

SDL

[ZMax]

ZMax,

I'm just glad to see you were able to play. It reminds me of a round I played in the Chicago area several years ago. My brother lives in Chicago and I was there in December for a meeting. We played at Cog Hill on a sunny day with a temp of 38*. The clothing was a bit of a problem, but we still had fun. My cold-weather clothing rules are based on trying to wear as few layers as possible on my arms (no more than 2, but 1 layer is best) since that seems to restrict my swing the least. What course did you play yesterday?


I hope to get out to play here in Iowa sometime in the next couple weeks if the weather cooperates.

SDL

We played at a small local course(suburb west of Chicago) down the street from me. It was free yesterday.

38 deg is too cold for me.

[mmlincon]

Hey Zmax, why don't you put on the same clothes and hit some shots on the simulator to see what you were really doing? Might be interesting....

[70's]

Even I would go out in 45 degree weather for free golf. Again sorry to hear about the results, the guys are right the binding from the amount of clothes would bind anyone up. Get back to us when you are able to play in 60’s and up

[ZMax]

Hey Zmax, why don't you put on the same clothes and hit some shots on the simulator to see what you were really doing? Might be interesting....

Great idea. I might just do that.

[cvclub]

I have had the DD for 2 seasons now......I am a mid handicap 8-12 depending on day! I can say with absolute certainty that the sim has improved my ball striking and it has accelerated my learning curve when 'experimenting' with various swing modifications. I love being able to try different techniques ( I read every golf tip known to man) and then see the effect immediately on swing path, speed, tempo, yardage, etc.

I have found that using DD in the winter allows me to rehearse various swing cues and when I go to the course I am all business versus trying to experiment there. I also have a lot more confidence that my swing will hold up under pressure and when it does crack occasionally I can quickly fix it because I have had so much training w/the DD.

Last, I downloaded the V1 swing analysis free version to my laptop and now I can film my swing while using DD and see what happens when I experiment with spine angle, hip turn, etc. It feels like I have my own TV show the "golf Fix"....it's a blast and again the feedback is priceless in building confidence that I take to the course.

For me, the bottom line is that I have become a student of the Swing and game thanks to DD and I can correct a swing flaw realtime. I now have more confidence and more fun during the round!

There are a few areas that I 'adjust' to on the course.....Flop shots, ball spin effects, etc. but so far I have found that since my basic ball striking has improved the adjustments are not as difficult and my scores actually have become more consistent.

[bubba22]

Those are all good points cvclub. Do you think your handicap has gone down with the dd? I know for a fact that mine has not and for me it is the short game that needs the attention. Just wondering if you keep your scores and have noticed any major handicap improvement.

[cvclub]

You know I can not say that my HC has really lowered but I can say that I am 100% more consistent on my ball striking ability. I have always been a decent scrambler/putter so my rounds are interesting to watch. Now I am very predicatble with my long shots and I believe this year could be my breakout season as I match the ball striking improvement to my short game. Time will tell but you know the game is 80% mental so the sim has already improved a lot of my game, right?

[bubba22]

Oh I agree that the sim will help ones confidence and ball striking for sure. I guesse the question is what is the best measure of REAL improvent. Is it the feel, the confidence, improved scoring, handicap improvement etc? I certainly feel better since having the sim especially early in the season. I can say for a fact however that my handicap has not improved.

[cvclub]

Good point Bubba...I think real improvement is all of the above that you mentioned. Each golfer has to decide what they want to work on and improve, and my opinion is that the sim (DD) is best for ball striking fundamentals. If your short game and putting are your weak links then I don't think the sim will make a lot of difference.
I golf in 2 leagues with a wide range of abilities. I would guess that 90% of the golfers would benefit from using a sim to improve their swing mechanics. and knowledge of what is going on during their swing. How many times have we heard a golfer say "I don't know what I am doing wrong?" I believe that a winter w/DD could help anyone become a better 'student/instructor' of the golf swing. I also think that most would improve by several strokes on their long game.

The short game is so 'feel' dependent that you really need to be outside with a nice practice green. Just my two cents......

[bubba22]

I second your 2 cents cvclub ...

[SDL]

If your short game and putting are your weak links then I don't think the sim will make a lot of difference.

While I generally agree that short game improvement doesn't follow automatically from use of a sim, I do think that having accurate measurements of swing path can improve putting significantly. I have a very hard time with aim and swing speed when putting on my sim (P3Pro), but I learn a lot from the data I get regarding swing path. Using that data, I can then take my putting to a real course and tweak my swing speed to the green speed while still benefiting from my improved ability to move the putter head on a more consistent path.

So my sim doesn't improve my putting "feel" or distance control, but it does significantly improve the direction and consistency of my stroke. And that's a pretty important part of sinking putts!

SDL

[bubba22]

Well played the Disney Osprey Ridge course today. I only brought down 6 clubs with my Sunday bag. Out of interest, what clubs would you guys bring? My son made me play from the tips 7100 yards. Front nine 38. Thinking the sim is the bomb. Back nine 43 for an 81. I am ok with it. I don't think the sim has improved things much for me but it is only one round.

[70's]

From 7100 you are going to need more than 6 clubs. I think that based on what you said the sim has maintained your score. The back 9 could have been different because you were getting tired because of the big temp change? That is good news to me bubba, I am just in a waiting game right now. Do not want to get anything until I hear reviews on all systems that have integrated everything. So when protee gets the LA taken care of I will hear what you have to say about it. When the GC2 gets the club data I will hear reviews about it. I am shocked that if they demoed it why it is going to take 4-5 more months to come out. If the Px2 and lx come out I would love to hear reviews about that. Thanks for writing a review on your day. I think from 7100 and only 6 clubs your day was fantastic.

[ZMax]

Had a decent round yesterday. Temp was about 60 and I was wearing jeans and a light jacket. Overall it was much better than the first time out.

Putting was good but my short game(60 yards in) really needs work. I need to spend a day or two on the chipping green and try to get the feel back. I'm thinking that while the Fiberbuilt built grass panels on the PX2 is nice to hit from, it's no substitute for real practice on the chipping green.

I've also come to a conclusion that if one wants a truly accurate simulator, one must have both club and ball data. By ball data, I mean both LA and ball path. LA alone is not enough for me.

[bubba22]

For me it is the club data (club face angle, path and speed) as well as ball data (speed, direction and launch angle). Spin is a bonus but not 100 percent needed.

[70's]

That is good to hear Z. I agree with you about needing all ball and club data. I just want a system I do not have to set up any cameras but I just went on foresights website and did not see where it said ball path. Does the GC2 get ball path?

[ZMax]

[FONT=Calibri]When the GC2 gets the club data I will hear reviews about it. I am shocked that if they demoed it why it is going to take 4-5 more months to come out. If the Px2 and lx come out I would love to hear reviews about that.

Yeah 4-5 months seems long but this is the golf industry.

The LX will not go into production until the fall, due to lack of interest. I might try to convince him to make two. One for me and another one for bubba22.

[ZMax]

That is good to hear Z. I agree with you about needing all ball and club data. I just want a system I do not have to set up any cameras but I just went on foresights website and did not see where it said ball path. Does the GC2 get ball path?

The GC2 does measure ball path +/- 1 deg. They call it azimuth,

[70's]

If i was to get reviews on an item, those are the two i want to hear from.

[70's]

Thank you for the info Z

[ZMax]

You're welcome. Have you looked at the ADX? It measures both club data and ball LA, speed, and path. No cameras.

[70's]

I saw the ADX but i have not really looked at it. will try to see about trying to get reviews about it. i know it is relatively new and will see what I can find.

[bubba22]

Played Mystic Dunes yesterday and shot a 78. Three putted 3 greens. Pro tee sim has certainly helped maintain my swing as I swung very confident. I find hitting or chipping from fringe or first cut similar to the Protee grass top. Very nice.