Starting a new adventure . . . Minimalist Golf

[Ghostwedge]

4 hours ago, Dan Drake said:

How low can you go? 

 

I've just returned from my annual beer-drinking trip where I play lefty with my group of buddies.  And while I contributed mightily to the team in pitch shots, putts, and even a couple of drives (unhumble brag - I can outdrive all of them lefty if I catch one, lol!), its just really, really hard to hit a good golf shot off the ground to a target like a golf green.  So, I'm thinking of changing up the game next year and playing righty, but with a limited set of vintage clubs.  

 

So, what is the fewest anyone on here has played with in multiple rounds (not a 1 club or 3 club tourney) and what does it do to your scores?  

 

FWIW, I'm trying to make the game fair, but also to win.  Surely no conflict of interest there, right? Right? 

DD, you need to go with a steel shafted PowerBilt persimmon driver, a few Scotch blades and a bullseye putter next year. Or the Wilson, Hogan, Macgregor versions. That will make your buddies eyes water as they reach for their wallets. 

lol

[Ghostwedge]

On 5/17/2024 at 12:38 AM, 54CW said:

Putting my $0.02 in on the bag talk. 

I’m usually playing 7-9 clubs and sometimes…a full set (sorry guys, I can’t fully commit yet lol) and I go back and forth with a 8” Mackenzie canvas bag and a PING craz-e lite.

The craz-e lite is THE best bag period, I swear by it. I tried a moonlite, a hoofer, a hoofer lite, an L8 one strap, Sun Mountain 2.5 & 3.5, and one of the Titleist carry bags. The craz-e lite is perfect. It’s fit well into carts and push carts. It handles rain well. The straps are comfy and has great pockets. 
 

The Mackenzie is purely for style and it’s a fantastic bag. This summer I will settle on my minimal set and keep just the mack. 

I second that... Ping Craz-e lite. Great bag for minimal set and walking.

[Dan Drake]

20 hours ago, Ghostwedge said:

DD, you need to go with a steel shafted PowerBilt persimmon driver, a few Scotch blades and a bullseye putter next year. Or the Wilson, Hogan, Macgregor versions. That will make your buddies eyes water as they reach for their wallets. 

lol

You are dangerously spot on with this!  Here's my proposed lineup of clubs:

 

Driver - Palmer Peerless Pete P62 w/Dynamic Gold

8i - PING Eye 2 OG w/JZ Lite

Sw - PING Eye 2 OG w/JZ Lite

Putter - Spalding TPM II

 

We would be playing a 2 man scramble from 5,400 yards and my partner would only putt.  I'm guessing that with the help of a read on some putts (he's not a golfer, so some of the reads are absolutely unusable, lol!), with this club setup we should be able to come in somewhere around even par.  Remember, I'm not getting two swats at each shot, only one.  The 8i can cover 3 of the 4 par 3's and a couple of the par 4's while the Sw covers the other par 3 plus almost all par 4 approach shots.  Par 5's will be interesting, but not too tough, the 8i should work for 3 of them while the other will require a chippy driver off the deck, lol!

[WipeyFade]

21 minutes ago, Dan Drake said:

You are dangerously spot on with this!  Here's my proposed lineup of clubs:

 

Driver - Palmer Peerless Pete P62 w/Dynamic Gold

8i - PING Eye 2 OG w/JZ Lite

Sw - PING Eye 2 OG w/JZ Lite

Putter - Spalding TPM II

 

We would be playing a 2 man scramble from 5,400 yards and my partner would only putt.  I'm guessing that with the help of a read on some putts (he's not a golfer, so some of the reads are absolutely unusable, lol!), with this club setup we should be able to come in somewhere around even par.  Remember, I'm not getting two swats at each shot, only one.  The 8i can cover 3 of the 4 par 3's and a couple of the par 4's while the Sw covers the other par 3 plus almost all par 4 approach shots.  Par 5's will be interesting, but not too tough, the 8i should work for 3 of them while the other will require a chippy driver off the deck, lol!

Great set up. I feel like I could play these clubs on just about any course under 6,300 yards. 

[Ghostwedge]

1 hour ago, Dan Drake said:

You are dangerously spot on with this!  Here's my proposed lineup of clubs:

 

Driver - Palmer Peerless Pete P62 w/Dynamic Gold

8i - PING Eye 2 OG w/JZ Lite

Sw - PING Eye 2 OG w/JZ Lite

Putter - Spalding TPM II

 

We would be playing a 2 man scramble from 5,400 yards and my partner would only putt.  I'm guessing that with the help of a read on some putts (he's not a golfer, so some of the reads are absolutely unusable, lol!), with this club setup we should be able to come in somewhere around even par.  Remember, I'm not getting two swats at each shot, only one.  The 8i can cover 3 of the 4 par 3's and a couple of the par 4's while the Sw covers the other par 3 plus almost all par 4 approach shots.  Par 5's will be interesting, but not too tough, the 8i should work for 3 of them while the other will require a chippy driver off the deck, lol!

Love it..... the best part will be that " PGA" bag tag on that scrawny Sunday bag.

Kinda like a sheriff's badge, they know who is in charge. ☺

[Dan Drake]

Anyone have any experience with Tourbon golf bags?  

 

https://www.tourbonstore.com/collections/golf

 

The canvas/leather one seems like too good a deal ($108 shipped) for minimalist purposes.  Throw in a set of trestle sticks and you are done for $150 all in, no? 

[azgreg]

2 hours ago, Dan Drake said:

Anyone have any experience with Tourbon golf bags?  

 

https://www.tourbonstore.com/collections/golf

 

The canvas/leather one seems like too good a deal ($108 shipped) for minimalist purposes.  Throw in a set of trestle sticks and you are done for $150 all in, no? 

[Kmagnuss]

Brought out 8 clubs last night for a quick 9 holes... I liked it.  I especially liked how light my bag was.

[54CW]

Here’s WITB. Would love to see photos of what everyone is lugging to the course. 
 

I usually play 8 clubs but picked up a 54 and 58 S159 to replace my 56 so I’m playing 9 clubs now. 
 

Edited May 25, 2024 by 54CW
Grammar

[54CW]

 

I think we could all do alright with Driver, 7 iron, SW like this.

[WipeyFade]

1 minute ago, 54CW said:

 

I think we could all do alright with Driver, 7 iron, SW like this.

I love this guy, his IG is awesome and hilarious. 

[azgreg]

I got tired just watching him.

 

[54CW]

@WipeyFade that's how I happened upon that clip. I'm a big fan of his too.

[WipeyFade]

I’m on vacation and I’ve played 2 rounds in the past 2 days. One was average and one was really bad. I’m still trying to nail down my set, once I think I have it I run into a situation that calls for something else lol. During the bad round the wind was blowing pretty hard, the rough was pretty long, and the landing areas were small. Many of the par 4s required less than driver off the tee and my next club down was a 6 iron. When I get home I’m putting the 4 iron back in. The way I play has evolved to the point where gapping is out the window and I have started playing shots instead of distances if that makes since. I have barely used my pw this trip and when I have I could have done just as well with a knockdown 8i. The set when I return will be D/3w, 4i, 8i, 56, and putter. 
One guy did stop to ask how many clubs I had. I said, “ Six today. I figure if I’m going to play bad, I might as well play bad with less clubs.” 😆

 

Edited May 29, 2024 by WipeyFade

[g_nw]

On 5/24/2024 at 10:22 PM, 54CW said:

 

SHEESH, I love this NCW setup ...and "3 PUTTS: 0" 🥵

[54CW]

@g_nw I need to switch that to 3-Putts: 1000 

[DocBrown3887]

My Titleist premium carry bag arrives tomorrow fingers crossed (got it on sale for $120 in the light blue)! I currently only have a 14 slot Titleist cart bag so I'm looking forward to walking some again.

 

For now I am just going to "red team" "blue team" my full set for 8 clubs / 7 club sets. I guess depending on the course I could plan according to tee box...which reminds me, another way I am thinking about playing is random number generating a tee box so I could be at the reds or the tips any given outing.

Edited May 30, 2024 by DocBrown3887

[Tommy56]

17 hours ago, DocBrown3887 said:

My Titleist premium carry bag arrives tomorrow fingers crossed (got it on sale for $120 in the light blue)! I currently only have a 14 slot Titleist cart bag so I'm looking forward to walking some again.

 

For now I am just going to "red team" "blue team" my full set for 8 clubs / 7 club sets. I guess depending on the course I could plan according to tee box...which reminds me, another way I am thinking about playing is random number generating a tee box so I could be at the reds or the tips any given outing.

I’ll be very interested in your thoughts on the light blue (and maybe a real-world pic also) as I’ve been eyeing that exact bag, but undecided on the color. Thanks in advance.  

[DocBrown3887]

4 hours ago, Tommy56 said:

I’ll be very interested in your thoughts on the light blue (and maybe a real-world pic also) as I’ve been eyeing that exact bag, but undecided on the color. Thanks in advance.  

 

At unboxing I was definitely like oh man this is flimsy with no framing and was a bit worried. But, I must say after getting the half set in there it feels real sturdy on my back. Will have to practice "unloading" from my back, extending the legs and placing on the ground in one motion, lol.

 

I love the color but I've always liked blue and anything semi Panthers color I like. The orange accents are neat imo. See for yourselves in the pics vs. a full size cart bag. I do think I could easily fit a full set or near full set in there. I'm currently messing around with 6 iron as highest iron hence all the head covers in these pics.

 

 

 

 

[drn92]

1 hour ago, DocBrown3887 said:

 

At unboxing I was definitely like oh man this is flimsy with no framing and was a bit worried. But, I must say after getting the half set in there it feels real sturdy on my back. Will have to practice "unloading" from my back, extending the legs and placing on the ground in one motion, lol.

 

I love the color but I've always liked blue and anything semi Panthers color I like. The orange accents are neat imo. See for yourselves in the pics vs. a full size cart bag. I do think I could easily fit a full set or near full set in there. I'm currently messing around with 6 iron as highest iron hence all the head covers in these pics.

 

 

 

 

Nice looking setup.

 

drn92

[Tommy56]

@DocBrown3887  Thanks so much for taking the time to post all the pics and your comments… very much appreciated.
Nice kit you have there!

[DocBrown3887]

8 hours ago, Tommy56 said:

@DocBrown3887  Thanks so much for taking the time to post all the pics and your comments… very much appreciated.
Nice kit you have there!

 

19 hours ago, drn92 said:

Nice looking setup.

 

drn92

Thanks! Last year I bought new clubs for the first time ever, still had all my stuff from middle and high school over 20 years later lol.

 

I want to try and walk 9 with it this weekend, fingers crossed!

[joshfisher]

Maiden voyage tomorrow. Trying out tsr 2 hyb or tm 5 wood. Possibly looking into new tm udi for the spot between mini and long iron

-2024 TM BRNR Mini 13.5 Oban Devotion 75 06

-Titleist TSR2 18 @17 Oban Kiyoshi Purple 100 05

- TM Stealth tour issue 5 wood Aldila RIP 95 TX

- Geom Lee Blades

Long 22.5

Mid 30

Short 38

Wedge 46

Shafted with TT Monaco 127X

- Titleist Sm9 WW 54D and LBK 60

-TM MY Spider GT slant

 

Edited June 1, 2024 by joshfisher

[DocBrown3887]

43 minutes ago, joshfisher said:

Maiden voyage tomorrow. Trying out tsr 2 hyb or tm 5 wood. Possibly looking into new tm udi for the spot between mini and long iron

-2024 TM BRNR Mini 13.5 Oban Devotion 75 06

-Titleist TSR2 18 @17 Oban Kiyoshi Purple 100 05

- TM Stealth tour issue 5 wood Aldila RIP 95 TX

- Geom Lee Blades

Long 22.5

Mid 30

Short 38

Wedge 46

Shafted with TT Monaco 127X

- Titleist Sm9 WW 54D and LBK 60

-TM MY Spider GT slant

 

 

Sweet setup! I'm actually opting for an even lighter bag than what I posted above, BRNR mini in 11.5, 6, 8, P, 54W and putter. Mainly because I just installed my Medium JumboMax Ultralight Str8 Tapers tonight and that is as far as I got and refrained from doing everything in case I hate them. I was a dingbat and punched a hole out the foam backing on the 8 iron...oh well live and learn. Used to rubber where going too far doesn't matter....lol

 

Also, even though this is minimalist thread please use that sexy BRNR head over!

Edited June 1, 2024 by DocBrown3887

[joshfisher]

1 minute ago, DocBrown3887 said:

 

Sweet setup! I'm actually opting for an even lighter bag than what I posted above, BRNR mini in 11.5, 6, 8, P, 54W and putter. Mainly because I just installed my Medium JumboMax Ultralight Str8 Tapers tonight. I was a dingbat and punched a hole out the foam backing on the 8 iron...oh well live and learn. Used to rubber where going too far doesn't matter....lol

 

Also, even though this is minimalist thread please use that sexy BRNR head over!

 

[WipeyFade]

1 minute ago, joshfisher said:

 

I love The Buck Club headcovers. I’ve got The Masters caddie gnome that I use on my putter during the spring. 

[Pens #1 fan]

Been thinking of going this route to cut down on retail prices. But now I’m thinking of Dr468PW in 3 ‘24 sets so I can have it all. 

[DocBrown3887]

Welp, very interesting results...went to a local cow pasture with decent greens and walked 9 in about an hour 15 minutes, which was refreshing. Shot 39, 4 over for the par 35. Had two three putts so really wasn't the bag's fault. The par 3s happened to line up with 6, 6, and W so that helped some. Got to say, I didn't have any gap problems, the main issue was technically needing a 5 wood for some tee boxes, but I just took some off the mini and was OK. Really eye opening experience as I've never played with anything less than a full bag.

 

Regarding the JumboMax Str8s in Medium...feel great for the driver, but a slightly awkward first time out for the six iron. I was coming up short and sometimes short and right on approach shots off front of greens. I figured out on number 8 on the W par 3 that I just wasn't swinging hard and through for some reason. Need to hit the range, but maiden voyage nothing too unusual and they do feel nice though really big. Makes the club head feel lighter even though the grips are about 5-8 grams lighter than the Lamkins I took off.

 

Edited June 2, 2024 by DocBrown3887

[yinzerniner]

20 hours ago, Pens #1 fan said:

Been thinking of going this route to cut down on retail prices. But now I’m thinking of Dr468PW in 3 ‘24 sets so I can have it all. 

Well you could use the other half of clubs with another minimalist set in mini driver/ 5-7-9-54 and just combine the two on regular outings. Or split them by going halvsies with a longer hitting buddy 👍

[DocBrown3887]

22 hours ago, Pens #1 fan said:

Been thinking of going this route to cut down on retail prices. But now I’m thinking of Dr468PW in 3 ‘24 sets so I can have it all. 

 

1 hour ago, yinzerniner said:

Well you could use the other half of clubs with another minimalist set in mini driver/ 5-7-9-54 and just combine the two on regular outings. Or split them by going halvsies with a longer hitting buddy 👍

 

I would do what yinzerniner is saying and do "odds and evens" sets as to not get bored / still hit other numbers. So maybe 2 sets of evens if that is what you like and 1 set odds to change things up / open up another set of tee boxes without it being too easy or difficult at your normal courses.