I appreciate all the advice. Error/RS, I feel about basketball the way you do baseball. Knee and back problems have pretty much ended my hoop days, darnit. I just pray they don't doom my golfing before I even start. Hoodooman, good advice on the double bogie situation. Methinks I'll be doing a lot of that, at least early on. What's a reasonable price for a set of clubs? Are used ones worth considering, especially since I'm a newbie? I have a relative who has a few sets and he's willing to let me use one. Do the rest of you share AAA's comment about getting ones with custom grips? Mahalos, H
It's not just custom grips. It is shafts that are the correct length and stiffness and lie angles(ie how the club sits on the ground) that fit you so the toe or heel is not digging in and flipping the club around. As for how much to spend, it kind of depends on your objective. If you want to impress your customers, etc you might end up spending $1500 for a set of clubs, but they won't play any better than what you can pick up on ebay for $200. For learning purposes, any decent cavity back iron set should do ok, so most likely your uncles' clubs would do fine. Plus, a clubmaker can adjust them, at least within limits. Use the money you save on lessons.
after a year of going to the range and buying all kinds of goodies ( never took lessons ) and playing about a total of 50 some holes and after a couple of close call scuffles with the guys waiting behind me i have to say .........I QUIT.....ill stay with bball till me knees cant take it anymore and then perhaps ill give it one more try...
This is getting to be a serious problem. Slow play is not just a newbie problem, but newbies often have trouble keeping up their pace. Looking for balls, hitting extra shots, etc it all eats up time. Then you have guys who are either just plain rude about hitting into the group ahead or feel that is an appropriate way to encourage them to speed up. Can be a volatile situation. Often the course rangers at expensive resort courses are reluctant to say anything to either group for fear of getting into a squabble themselves. A few basic guidelines to staying out of trouble include: 1. If there's a group behind waiting, do not hit extra balls or take more than a couple of minutes looking for a lost ball. If you're routinely taking double and triple bogeys, just pick up and dropit on the green and take your two putts and leave. 2. Manage your cart efficiently. Do not leave your cart and walk far ahead, meaning you have to go back toward the tee to retrieve it. That's a good way to get hit. Leave your cart on the back side of the green, so you are not in the way when you leave the green. 3. If you're a beginner, schedule play at non-peak times. Late afternoon is usually a better time than first thing Saturday morning. 4. If you can't hit the ball reasonably straight most of the time, take some lessons and practice before going to the course. Do not play your first round at an upscale course designed for accomplished players. And, most importantly, 5. if someone behind you hits into your group twice, make sure they can't see you before you pocket their ball. Otherwise, step on it or kick it into a hazard. If you decide to hit it back at them, make sure you can hit it that far. Very embarrassing if you flubb a "hitback."