Colorado WRX 2022

[stoneydukes]

2 hours ago, Joelness said:

 

Welcome back! Actually, one of the best instructors/coaches in CO is 5 mins from you. Just about all the best players north of Denver (I don't know that many on the other side) go see Ed Oldham. I go see him 2-3 times a year and he gets me going in the right direction every time.

 

I can also recommend the Sports Stable. I went all winter last year and it was solid. The bays they use are OK but definitely not close to Trackman/GCQuad. The methodology is basically two "laser grids" right in front of the screen that the ball passes through and measurements are taken. Last year I paid $100/mo and got 2h/day for it. That price was worth it for me.

I believe the new ownership has raised rates significantly ($70/hr now from $35 previously) but this is second hand knowledge as I haven't been there since they changed the name. The monitors were only ok as far as tracking stuff. I really only used it for spin, ball speed, and distance so it was ok, but I also did the PGA superstore deal and have gone there almost exclusively over the $40-60/pop at the stable.

 

[Joelness]

19 hours ago, stoneydukes said:

I believe the new ownership has raised rates significantly ($70/hr now from $35 previously) but this is second hand knowledge as I haven't been there since they changed the name. The monitors were only ok as far as tracking stuff. I really only used it for spin, ball speed, and distance so it was ok, but I also did the PGA superstore deal and have gone there almost exclusively over the $40-60/pop at the stable.

 

 

To re-state it: Any of you are welcome at my house. There is a $0/hr cost. Just shoot me a message

[deadsolid...shank]

On 1/13/2022 at 5:21 AM, deadsolid...shank said:

Thanks Eric.  I’ll be back in Denver tomorrow, hopefully I’ll see the guy who was supposedly playing. Maybe I can find out the story ( which pretty much looks like he couldn’t have played). 
 

And also, welcome!

I don’t who he talked to on the phone who said it was open, or if he just misheard, but he told me today he drove over there and of course…..all closed!

 

Maybe next week. 

[Dancin]

I went down to Four Mile Ranch today. Greens are a little bumpy but not slow. Fine day with low 60s temps. They were packed sending people off both sides in the morning, but still played in 4:15. I hope they have money for seed in the spring because it looks like they're getting lots of play with everywhere north snowed out.

[BombinJim]

On 1/1/2022 at 4:18 PM, pseudoswede said:

Happy 2022, everyone! I'll repeat what we used as an ice-breaker from last year...

 

• What are you looking to improve with your game this year?
• What gear do plan on buying this year?
• Do you plan on joining a club or league this year?
• Any fun golf trips planned?

Hi All,

 

Just landed a job out here; I will be moving to the Denver area once I find a house. In the meantime I’ll be alternating two weeks out here, two weeks back in Savannah. Of course I brought my clubs and have been doing some indoor practice. Playing common ground this afternoon. Looking forward to trying out many of the courses listed in the 2021 thread; still debating on whether I will eventually join a club or hop around.
 

In 2022:

I’m going to continue working on my swing, resolving many issues that I’ve been tackling with my swing coach.

 

As far as gear, I’m probably going to finalize my back-up/walking bag and grab an Anser style putter, a 3W, and backup driver.

 

I am certainly open to joining a league/club this year.

 

I’m finalizing a Pinehurst trip in late February. It will be my 2nd year doing the Titleist package. Planning on playing #2 and #8.

 

Cheers!

-Jim

[EricMatt]

On 1/13/2022 at 3:14 PM, Joelness said:

 

Welcome back! Actually, one of the best instructors/coaches in CO is 5 mins from you. Just about all the best players north of Denver (I don't know that many on the other side) go see Ed Oldham. I go see him 2-3 times a year and he gets me going in the right direction every time.

 

 

I went on last night and Ed had a couple of times available this week and into next week.  I tried to book online, but the system had no way to "sign up".  It had a "sign in" and a "forgot password", but no "I'm new here" button anywhere.  I tried for around an hour.

 

Finally, I called the number on the website today, but it rang for a long time with no answer.

 

Looks like the times available are all gone now, and it's into February, but I'll be out of town a lot in Feb.  Just bad timing I guess.

 

How do I get on his schedule?   Maybe I need to call a different time of day and talk to someone?

[Joelness]

So I was playing Spyglass Hill with a friend on Friday night and I kept hitting drives that just fell out of the sky. The GCQuad was giving me backspin rates of 600-1200 which makes no sense for me. I generally spin the ball on the high end of 2200-2700. I chalked it up to a fluke or the GCQuad was misreading my drives (would be the first time.)

 

I played 18 with a friend yesterday and while warming up I noticed that my driver was doing it again! That made me much more curious so I started looking closely and noticed this 😰:

 

Is it ironic that my driver shaft broke three weeks ago (TourAD DI 7x) and I found a replacement and got the PING tip on there? Nahhhhhh

 

I decided that it has been several years and I've made a big swing change over the last 18 months so I might as well get a new fitting. I'll be at Club Champion to see what works on Thursday. Hooray!

Edited January 18, 2022 by Joelness

[Joelness]

1 hour ago, EricMatt said:

 

I went on last night and Ed had a couple of times available this week and into next week.  I tried to book online, but the system had no way to "sign up".  It had a "sign in" and a "forgot password", but no "I'm new here" button anywhere.  I tried for around an hour.

 

Finally, I called the number on the website today, but it rang for a long time with no answer.

 

Looks like the times available are all gone now, and it's into February, but I'll be out of town a lot in Feb.  Just bad timing I guess.

 

How do I get on his schedule?   Maybe I need to call a different time of day and talk to someone?

 

You are right, when I did there was a sign up link. As far as the calls go, Ed has been out sick for the last few days. I was supposed to see him Thursday last week and he had to cancel it so that might have been why he didn't answer.

 

You can also call the Ranch CC golf shop as I believe they can book for Ed also.

[Dancin]

1 hour ago, Joelness said:

So I was playing Spyglass Hill with a friend on Friday night and I kept hitting drives that just fell out of the sky. The GCQuad was giving me backspin rates of 600-1200 which makes no sense for me. I generally spin rates on the high end of 2200-2700. I chalked it up to a fluke or the GCQuad was misreading my drives (would be the first time.)

 

I played 18 with a friend yesterday and while warming up I noticed that my driver was doing it again! That made me much more curious so I started looking closely and noticed this 😰:

 

Is it ironic that my driver shaft broke three weeks ago (TourAD DI 7x) and I found a replacement and got the PING tip on there? Nahhhhhh

 

I decided that it has been several years and I've made a big swing change over the last 18 months so I might as well get a new fitting. I'll be at Club Champion to see what works on Thursday. Hooray!

 

Wow. I'm surprised the sound didn't change dramatically with a crack like that.

[Dancin]

1 hour ago, Joelness said:

 

You are right, when I did there was a sign up link. As far as the calls go, Ed has been out sick for the last few days. I was supposed to see him Thursday last week and he had to cancel it so that might have been why he didn't answer.

 

You can also call the Ranch CC golf shop as I believe they can book for Ed also.

About a year ago he actually had a note on his site saying he wasn't taking any new students. That doesn't seem to be there any more but maybe that is still the case.

[EricMatt]

I've been working on lag the last week after seeing a video of my swing for the first time in many many years and realizing how much I was flipping at the ball.

 

Pulled up Congressional CC on the sim at the PGA Superstore Foresight sim tonight and had a quick round.  Was kind of rushed, but I'm happy with the progress.  I'd been pretty disappointed with my distance and caused by a real lack of lag in the driver swing.

 

My real "success" moment came on hole 9, which is 660 yards.  Keep in mind, the sim was set to Denver altitude, no wind and hard fairways by default.

 

Anyway, poked the drive 340, which is very long form me.  Longest I've ever seen on that sim. I was stoked, but then sad as I realized I didn't have my 3w in my bag tonight to give it a run at the green from 319 to the pin and maybe 295 to the front.  So I pulled out the 2h (which is dialed down to 16 degrees) and swung absolutely out of my shoes.  Figured with some of the new stuff I was working on, I'd see how close I could get it.

 

Man, I could feel the lag i was working on in that swing.  With a huge turn and big kick....  and I pured it, it felt so nice.  It was dead straight and landed just short and rolled on.   302y hybrid.   Jesus, no way I could do that again.  In 20 shots I wouldn't do it again, but it was fun to do once.  660y hole, on in two (yeah, it's just a sim).  😄

 

Didn't play amazing otherwise, still have lots of work to do with not lagging and THEN rolling the wrists (always in the left bunker), but progress as far as I'm concerned.  The distance and speed has always been something I lacked, but the consistent contact and direction and distance was something I could always find, so I hope it comes back without losing the gains.  🙂

 

Golf is so much fun.

Edited January 18, 2022 by EricMatt

[pseudoswede]

All annual passes (regular, 2-person, family, and college/youth) to The Ridge at Castle Pines North are already sold-out. Yikes. They've also discontinued the range pass in lieu of a discounted green fee pass which includes unlimited range privileges--for the low, low price of $1000 ($1500 for two people; family is sold out).

[Joelness]

9 minutes ago, pseudoswede said:

All annual passes (regular, 2-person, family, and college/youth) to The Ridge at Castle Pines North are already sold-out. Yikes. They've also discontinued the range pass in lieu of a discounted green fee pass which includes unlimited range privileges--for the low, low price of $1000 ($1500 for two people; family is sold out).

 

Seems pretty cheap, how much are greens fees with the pass?

[pseudoswede]

9 minutes ago, Joelness said:

 

Seems pretty cheap, how much are greens fees with the pass?

 

Weekends looks like $75-85 per round, so not a huge discount.

Edited January 18, 2022 by pseudoswede

[Joelness]

1 hour ago, pseudoswede said:

 

Weekends looks like $75-85 per round, so not a huge discount.

 

😬 Aaaaaand now it feels like a waste of $

 

I can just imagine the marketing. "For the low-low price of $1,000 you can pay what everyone else on GolfNow™ pays! Get them while supplies last!"

Edited January 18, 2022 by Joelness

[pseudoswede]

2 minutes ago, Joelness said:

 

😬 Aaaaaand now it feels like a waste of $

 

Yup. Basically you're paying $1000 for a range membership.

[deadsolid...shank]

Damn golf is getting expensive.  Especially down there. Makes my setup here that much better. 

[RobotDoctor]

On 1/18/2022 at 7:13 PM, deadsolid...shank said:

Damn golf is getting expensive.  Especially down there. Makes my setup here that much better. 

Agreed.  I'll take advantage of Fort Collins golf while I am able. Might be switching locales to a warmer environment later this summer. Golf isn't cheap where I am thinking of moving to but I can play year round on growing grass.

 

AND, the Colorado WRX region group is by far the best out of all of them. The Florida WRX groups ..... not so much.

 

Edited January 20, 2022 by RobotDoctor

[Joelness]

4 hours ago, RobotDoctor said:

Agreed.  I'll take advantage of Fort Collins golf while I am able. Might be switching locales to a warmer environment later this summer. Golf isn't cheap where I am thinking of moving to but I can play year round on growing grass.

 

AND, the Colorado WRX region group is by far the best out of all of them. The Florida WRX groups ..... not so much.

 

 

🤐Psssst, quit telling everyone it's cheaper up here.... C'mon man

[RobotDoctor]

5 hours ago, Joelness said:

 

🤐Psssst, quit telling everyone it's cheaper up here.... C'mon man

Lol, I never said that.  Just that the cost of playing golf in Colorado IS getting ridiculously high.  I have little idea of the cost in Florida.  I’ll keep that a secret when I find out.   😉  I complained about the weather.  No secret about that.  😂🤣😂
 

Edited January 20, 2022 by RobotDoctor

[pseudoswede]

The weather's perfectly fine here. We had a tailgate BBQ this past Saturday (when it was hovering in the high 20s) in the hotel parking lot. I had to take off my outer coat.

 

Maybe this will revoke my WRX card, but I would probably get sick of playing golf year-round. Of course, I've spent the past two winters inside hockey rinks instead of on the slopes. 😞

[Joelness]

5 hours ago, RobotDoctor said:

Lol, I never said that.  Just that the cost of playing golf in Colorado IS getting ridiculously high.  I have little idea of the cost in Florida.  I’ll keep that a secret when I find out.   😉  I complained about the weather.  No secret about that.  😂🤣😂
 

 

I think it's pretty high outside of anywhere warm enough to grow the weed they call bermuda grass. My father-in-law lives in New Smyrna Beach and we go down just about every year. I'm always blown away how cheap the golf is (walking $25, riding $35.) There's only one course out there that's as good as most we have here though so that's it's own tradeoff.

 

Golf is definitely cheaper on the north half than the south half of Denver, I'm just trying to keep it that way by not telling everyone 😉.

 

Unfortunately boys, golf is going to get a lot more expensive this year. Ammonia and seed are up 5x-10x right now. Considering that and all the dessication due to the drought this summer/fall and I'm a bit worried about golf courses in CO in 2022. We might end up with dead spots everywhere as superintendents can't afford to re-seed the areas that died.

Edited January 20, 2022 by Joelness

[pseudoswede]

• What are you looking to improve with your game this year?

Putting, putting, putting. I also need to improve on more consistent ball-striking (hitting a bit too low on the face) as well as long-iron play off the deck.

• What gear do plan on buying this year?

I'm looking for a 2-iron-ish club that I can actually hit without topping or duck hooking. Maybe a 3-iron-ish club, too.

• Do you plan on joining a club or league this year?

I plan to re-join Front Range Golf Club again (I think this will be my 12th year).
I also hope to join a couples league with my wife. We struck out last year, so I'm refreshing The Links' website constantly for updates. Red Hawk Ridge's couples league is already full with a waitlist!

I may also try to convince my wife to join the Ladies' Tuesday afternoon golf league at Family Sports.

• Any fun golf trips planned?

Omicron is definitely making it difficult to plan. We had planned on spending a week in Albania (via Greece) but current restrictions makes that a no-go. I'll probably be in Sweden for only 2-3 weeks, but I'll still try to golf a few times.

Otherwise, I bought inflatable stand-up paddleboards for my wife and I for Christmas. If golf courses are full, at least we can head out to a nearby reservoir with a billion other people.

[deadsolid...shank]

2 hours ago, Joelness said:

 

I think it's pretty high outside of anywhere warm enough to grow the weed they call bermuda grass. My father-in-law lives in New Smyrna Beach and we go down just about every year. I'm always blown away how cheap the golf is (walking $25, riding $35.) There's only one course out there that's as good as most we have here though so that's it's own tradeoff.

 

Golf is definitely cheaper on the north half than the south half of Denver, I'm just trying to keep it that way by not telling everyone 😉.

 

Unfortunately boys, golf is going to get a lot more expensive this year. Ammonia and seed are up 5x-10x right now. Considering that and all the dessication due to the drought this summer/fall and I'm a bit worried about golf courses in CO in 2022. We might end up with dead spots everywhere as superintendents can't afford to re-seed the areas that died.

Going to be really bad in Greeley for the first part of the season. Boomerang is only opening the front nine until July. 

[Joelness]

Soooo I had a driver fitting with Club Champion in Westminister today. First and foremost, those guys were fantastic. It was scheduled for 90 mins but only lasted 24 because he couldn't really beat my setup and we spent the last 15 mins hitting all the heads "for craps and giggles." In the end, he wouldn't let me pay. Can you believe that? He said he wouldn't charge me. I told him I wanted to at least pay him for the 25 mins I got and he flat out wouldn't take it.

 

If you want my personal opinions on all the new heads read on.

 

Basically after getting baseline numbers with my shaft on a G425 (since my G410 is cracked) he said "we basically can't get better than your shaft for you." At that point he found a similar driver shaft because they didn't have any Tour AD's in stock, and put all the new heads on it to compare. Here's my notes on each:

Cobra: Worst of the bunch. This was because they have offsetting weights on the bottom and one is 3g and the other is 10g. This means that unless you purchase another weight you can't find a neutral bias. I hit it anyway because why not and yeah.... It was awful. Looked OK, felt like garbage and flew like garbage.

 

Callaway 3-diamond: Looks good but different as the crown of the club knuckles down before the face starts. When I hit it good it was the longest one. However, we had two shots out of six that randomly spun 3700 revs and were ugly. Where my game is there's no way I can accept that as it's not worth a bunch of good ones for the random awful one that costs two shots by going OB or something.

 

TM Stealth: Looks great, albeit different than I'm used to with the outline on the top and the reddish face. This turned out to be the best of the bunch for me. It launched just a touch higher, slightly more smash (1.48 vs 1.46) which averaged to 1 yard longer for me. I also hit one that felt WIPED and still kept the spin down and flew better than it felt.

 

G425: Looks like a Ping has for years now. Club is the best on off-center hits and was basically the same club as the TM Stealth. Considering I will probably get one as a Warranty replacement for my cracked G410 LST it's a no-brainer.

 

If I had to buy a new one today TM gets the edge in performance but the ability of the TM heads to crack scares me. I don't want to be out of a driver mid-season and need to wait for a replacement. My last two heads have been Pings and yes, both cracked in the end but at least they lasted 2+ years first.

Edited January 20, 2022 by Joelness

[Gmcourtney]

Stop swinging so hard and you wouldn’t keep cracking faces… 😉

 

On the topic of high greens fees, I’m firmly in the camp of raise ‘em more.  Part of the “shrink the game” initiative. A season of $100 walking only rates might help people get back to whatever they used to do pre covid… and make tee times easy to get again. 😄

 

 

[Dancin]

4 hours ago, Joelness said:

Cobra: Worst of the bunch. This was because they have offsetting weights on the bottom and one is 3g and the other is 10g. This means that unless you purchase another weight you can't find a neutral bias. I hit it anyway because why not and yeah.... It was awful. Looked OK, felt like garbage and flew like garbage.

That is completely idiotic if you can't get a neutral setting standard. Can't believe they're doing that.

 

How was the sound on the TM? Going with a carbon face I would have thought it would be really muted.

Edited January 21, 2022 by Dancin

[pseudoswede]

11 hours ago, Dancin said:

How was the sound on the TM? Going with a carbon face I would have thought it would be really muted.

 

That's my biggest complaint about carbon faces/crowns. It sounds like hitting a golf ball with a paperback book. I need that sharp "TINK!" sound.

 

In the mid-90's, I cracked an original Big Bertha driver horizontally across the whole face. It probably didn't help that I was hitting rock-hard range balls in 30-degree weather.

[CDM]

16 hours ago, Joelness said:

Soooo I had a driver fitting with Club Champion in Westminister today. First and foremost, those guys were fantastic. It was scheduled for 90 mins but only lasted 24 because he couldn't really beat my setup and we spent the last 15 mins hitting all the heads "for craps and giggles." In the end, he wouldn't let me pay. Can you believe that? He said he wouldn't charge me. I told him I wanted to at least pay him for the 25 mins I got and he flat out wouldn't take it.

 

If you want my personal opinions on all the new heads read on.

 

Basically after getting baseline numbers with my shaft on a G425 (since my G410 is cracked) he said "we basically can't get better than your shaft for you." At that point he found a similar driver shaft because they didn't have any Tour AD's in stock, and put all the new heads on it to compare. Here's my notes on each:

Cobra: Worst of the bunch. This was because they have offsetting weights on the bottom and one is 3g and the other is 10g. This means that unless you purchase another weight you can't find a neutral bias. I hit it anyway because why not and yeah.... It was awful. Looked OK, felt like garbage and flew like garbage.

 

Callaway 3-diamond: Looks good but different as the crown of the club knuckles down before the face starts. When I hit it good it was the longest one. However, we had two shots out of six that randomly spun 3700 revs and were ugly. Where my game is there's no way I can accept that as it's not worth a bunch of good ones for the random awful one that costs two shots by going OB or something.

 

TM Stealth: Looks great, albeit different than I'm used to with the outline on the top and the reddish face. This turned out to be the best of the bunch for me. It launched just a touch higher, slightly more smash (1.48 vs 1.46) which averaged to 1 yard longer for me. I also hit one that felt WIPED and still kept the spin down and flew better than it felt.

 

G425: Looks like a Ping has for years now. Club is the best on off-center hits and was basically the same club as the TM Stealth. Considering I will probably get one as a Warranty replacement for my cracked G410 LST it's a no-brainer.

 

If I had to buy a new one today TM gets the edge in performance but the ability of the TM heads to crack scares me. I don't want to be out of a driver mid-season and need to wait for a replacement. My last two heads have been Pings and yes, both cracked in the end but at least they lasted 2+ years first.

 We're you able to test the LTDxLS...??? I saw one and it appeared to be a fade bias.  Looking at the weights they are in center btm while the others are as you note.  

 

Edit:  the LTDx has just one weight in the center back looking online

Edited January 21, 2022 by CDM

[Joelness]

11 hours ago, Dancin said:

That is completely idiotic if you can't get a neutral setting standard. Can't believe they're doing that.

 

How was the sound on the TM? Going with a carbon face I would have thought it would be really muted.

 

I didn't notice anything with the sound, honestly didn't even cross my mind. Either way I can't give any judgement considering it was indoors. It didn't trip me out or anything. I'm surprised you guys care about the way it sounds. If it gives you the best drives, who cares?

 

"Make fun of the sound of my driver all day, that's what it sounds like to hear a ball carry yours."

 

7 minutes ago, CDM said:

 We're you able to test the LTDxLS...??? I saw one and it appeared to be a fade bias.  Looking at the weights they are in center btm while the others are as you note.  

 

Edit:  the LTDx has just one weight in the center back looking online

 

Yes, it was the LTDxLS. Those two weights in the middle are different weight so you can't get a neutral setup. I think he only set me up with that one because I need a low spin head. Any standard heads and I end up in the 3000 rpm zone.

 

In the end, unless it's my putter I really don't care what things look like either. I personally just look for objectively the best one for me which is dictated by the numbers. I still have two Titleist 913s in the bag for that reason. I'll just be Stenson for a while and rip that 3w for two more decades (hopefully, god I love that thing.)