Race Bannon's OFFICIAL Golf Talk 2023-2024 Thread

chuck

YellowSnow said:

chuck said:

Bob_C said:

chuck said:

YellowSnow said:

Should I learn to hit a driver in 2023? This is the question.

Modern drivers are the easiest club in the bag to hit Yella. If my iron play, which I work on a lot, came close to my driving, which I never work on except during rounds, I'd be a scratch golfer.

Get one and figure it out. I'd look for one of the previous year's Taylor Mades, M series or Sim, to avoid spending $400+ on a club that you don't think you can hit

So true. Unless there's a crazy dogleg or a hazard that cuts through the fairway or something, I hit driver. Not because I've got a big dick or anything, but mostly because the sweet spot is so big now compared to a 3w or long iron. Better chance of hitting it straight and on the face than those other options.

I have a friend who can routinely crush it 300 yards but isn't consistently accurate. He's still usually in play and in wedge range though. What cracks me up is how he'll pick some odd hole to "play it safe" with his three iron. 81% of his iron tee shots are 100 yards shorter than his driver and in the rough, if he's lucky. It's comical.

I don't disagree with the logic here. I need to buy a modern, forgiving driver and learn to hit it.

But my 5 iron goes about 170 yds with an easy tall guy swing and generally hits the fairway. I'll take 170 in the fairway vs 240 in the rough every time.

Also, the rough at my course is fucking brutal. Here's the 1st tee. @Tequilla can confirm.

Desert courses need to have wide ass fairways or I'm saying no thanks. I don't golf on rocks with rattlesnakes and scorpions.

My driver is wildly forgiving. It really doesn't spin the ball much at all. I'll push or pull shots but they tend to go straight where I hit them.

RaceBannon

When I was learning to play in the 80's after having forgotten everything from when I was a kid a guy I played with told me to hit two five irons and a wedge and you will play bogey golf. We weren't playing 7200 yard courses

I knew he was right. It made sense. The math worked

But fuck that. I'll shoot 100 my way

Bob_C

YellowSnow said:

chuck said:

Bob_C said:

chuck said:

YellowSnow said:

Should I learn to hit a driver in 2023? This is the question.

Modern drivers are the easiest club in the bag to hit Yella. If my iron play, which I work on a lot, came close to my driving, which I never work on except during rounds, I'd be a scratch golfer.

Get one and figure it out. I'd look for one of the previous year's Taylor Mades, M series or Sim, to avoid spending $400+ on a club that you don't think you can hit

So true. Unless there's a crazy dogleg or a hazard that cuts through the fairway or something, I hit driver. Not because I've got a big dick or anything, but mostly because the sweet spot is so big now compared to a 3w or long iron. Better chance of hitting it straight and on the face than those other options.

I have a friend who can routinely crush it 300 yards but isn't consistently accurate. He's still usually in play and in wedge range though. What cracks me up is how he'll pick some odd hole to "play it safe" with his three iron. 81% of his iron tee shots are 100 yards shorter than his driver and in the rough, if he's lucky. It's comical.

I don't disagree with the logic here. I need to buy a modern, forgiving driver and learn to hit it.

But my 5 iron goes about 170 yds with an easy tall guy swing and generally hits the fairway. I'll take 170 in the fairway vs 240 in the rough every time.

Also, the rough at my course is fucking brutal. Here's the 1st tee. @Tequilla can confirm.

Is that Tetherow?

YellowSnow

Bob_C said:

YellowSnow said:

chuck said:

Bob_C said:

chuck said:

YellowSnow said:

Should I learn to hit a driver in 2023? This is the question.

Modern drivers are the easiest club in the bag to hit Yella. If my iron play, which I work on a lot, came close to my driving, which I never work on except during rounds, I'd be a scratch golfer.

Get one and figure it out. I'd look for one of the previous year's Taylor Mades, M series or Sim, to avoid spending $400+ on a club that you don't think you can hit

So true. Unless there's a crazy dogleg or a hazard that cuts through the fairway or something, I hit driver. Not because I've got a big dick or anything, but mostly because the sweet spot is so big now compared to a 3w or long iron. Better chance of hitting it straight and on the face than those other options.

I have a friend who can routinely crush it 300 yards but isn't consistently accurate. He's still usually in play and in wedge range though. What cracks me up is how he'll pick some odd hole to "play it safe" with his three iron. 81% of his iron tee shots are 100 yards shorter than his driver and in the rough, if he's lucky. It's comical.

I don't disagree with the logic here. I need to buy a modern, forgiving driver and learn to hit it.

But my 5 iron goes about 170 yds with an easy tall guy swing and generally hits the fairway. I'll take 170 in the fairway vs 240 in the rough every time.

Also, the rough at my course is fucking brutal. Here's the 1st tee. @Tequilla can confirm.

Is that Tetherow?

Yup. My 2023 life goal is to break 100 at Tetherow.

YellowSnow

RaceBannon said:

When I was learning to play in the 80's after having forgotten everything from when I was a kid a guy I played with told me to hit two five irons and a wedge and you will play bogey golf. We weren't playing 7200 yard courses

I knew he was right. It made sense. The math worked

But fuck that. I'll shoot 100 my way

Regrets? You've had a few. But then again, too few to mention.

Bob_C

YellowSnow said:

Bob_C said:

YellowSnow said:

chuck said:

Bob_C said:

chuck said:

YellowSnow said:

Should I learn to hit a driver in 2023? This is the question.

Modern drivers are the easiest club in the bag to hit Yella. If my iron play, which I work on a lot, came close to my driving, which I never work on except during rounds, I'd be a scratch golfer.

Get one and figure it out. I'd look for one of the previous year's Taylor Mades, M series or Sim, to avoid spending $400+ on a club that you don't think you can hit

So true. Unless there's a crazy dogleg or a hazard that cuts through the fairway or something, I hit driver. Not because I've got a big dick or anything, but mostly because the sweet spot is so big now compared to a 3w or long iron. Better chance of hitting it straight and on the face than those other options.

I have a friend who can routinely crush it 300 yards but isn't consistently accurate. He's still usually in play and in wedge range though. What cracks me up is how he'll pick some odd hole to "play it safe" with his three iron. 81% of his iron tee shots are 100 yards shorter than his driver and in the rough, if he's lucky. It's comical.

I don't disagree with the logic here. I need to buy a modern, forgiving driver and learn to hit it.

But my 5 iron goes about 170 yds with an easy tall guy swing and generally hits the fairway. I'll take 170 in the fairway vs 240 in the rough every time.

Also, the rough at my course is fucking brutal. Here's the 1st tee. @Tequilla can confirm.

Is that Tetherow?

Yup. My 2023 life goal is to break 100 at Tetherow.

Yeah that's a beast of a course. Played there a few years ago and hit a few that I thought were perfect and just gone. Definitely not a bomb and gouge place.

YellowSnow

Bob_C said:

YellowSnow said:

Bob_C said:

YellowSnow said:

chuck said:

Bob_C said:

chuck said:

YellowSnow said:

Should I learn to hit a driver in 2023? This is the question.

Modern drivers are the easiest club in the bag to hit Yella. If my iron play, which I work on a lot, came close to my driving, which I never work on except during rounds, I'd be a scratch golfer.

Get one and figure it out. I'd look for one of the previous year's Taylor Mades, M series or Sim, to avoid spending $400+ on a club that you don't think you can hit

So true. Unless there's a crazy dogleg or a hazard that cuts through the fairway or something, I hit driver. Not because I've got a big dick or anything, but mostly because the sweet spot is so big now compared to a 3w or long iron. Better chance of hitting it straight and on the face than those other options.

I have a friend who can routinely crush it 300 yards but isn't consistently accurate. He's still usually in play and in wedge range though. What cracks me up is how he'll pick some odd hole to "play it safe" with his three iron. 81% of his iron tee shots are 100 yards shorter than his driver and in the rough, if he's lucky. It's comical.

I don't disagree with the logic here. I need to buy a modern, forgiving driver and learn to hit it.

But my 5 iron goes about 170 yds with an easy tall guy swing and generally hits the fairway. I'll take 170 in the fairway vs 240 in the rough every time.

Also, the rough at my course is fucking brutal. Here's the 1st tee. @Tequilla can confirm.

Is that Tetherow?

Yup. My 2023 life goal is to break 100 at Tetherow.

Yeah that's a beast of a course. Played there a few years ago and hit a few that I thought were perfect and just gone. Definitely not a bomb and gouge place.

Extremely challenging. Designed by the same dude who did Brandon Dunes. Jokes was he was going through a divorce when laying out Tetherow.

@chuck 32 years ago this was all beautiful piney woods and then in '91 a big burn came through the far West side of White Wakanda. Cleared things out and now its a high desert version of Chamber's Bay. I hope the trees don't grow back since this is my fire break.

Bob_C

YellowSnow said:

Bob_C said:

YellowSnow said:

Bob_C said:

YellowSnow said:

chuck said:

Bob_C said:

chuck said:

YellowSnow said:

Should I learn to hit a driver in 2023? This is the question.

Modern drivers are the easiest club in the bag to hit Yella. If my iron play, which I work on a lot, came close to my driving, which I never work on except during rounds, I'd be a scratch golfer.

Get one and figure it out. I'd look for one of the previous year's Taylor Mades, M series or Sim, to avoid spending $400+ on a club that you don't think you can hit

So true. Unless there's a crazy dogleg or a hazard that cuts through the fairway or something, I hit driver. Not because I've got a big dick or anything, but mostly because the sweet spot is so big now compared to a 3w or long iron. Better chance of hitting it straight and on the face than those other options.

I have a friend who can routinely crush it 300 yards but isn't consistently accurate. He's still usually in play and in wedge range though. What cracks me up is how he'll pick some odd hole to "play it safe" with his three iron. 81% of his iron tee shots are 100 yards shorter than his driver and in the rough, if he's lucky. It's comical.

I don't disagree with the logic here. I need to buy a modern, forgiving driver and learn to hit it.

But my 5 iron goes about 170 yds with an easy tall guy swing and generally hits the fairway. I'll take 170 in the fairway vs 240 in the rough every time.

Also, the rough at my course is fucking brutal. Here's the 1st tee. @Tequilla can confirm.

Is that Tetherow?

Yup. My 2023 life goal is to break 100 at Tetherow.

Yeah that's a beast of a course. Played there a few years ago and hit a few that I thought were perfect and just gone. Definitely not a bomb and gouge place.

Extremely challenging. Designed by the same dude who did Brandon Dunes. Jokes was he was going through a divorce when laying out Tetherow.

@chuck 32 years ago this was all beautiful piney woods and then in '91 a big burn came through the far West side of White Wakanda. Cleared things out and now its a high desert version of Chamber's Bay. I hope the trees don't grow back since this is my fire break.

Played Bandon and Tetherow on the same trip. Kidd's Bandon course is very subtle and straight forward, especially compared to the other courses there. Was expecting something similar at Tetherow, not the case.

RaceBannon

BleachedAnusDawg said:

RaceBannon said:

You're not really trying to make the tour you want to crush stronger

Norman chokes again

My point really isn't about LIV making the Tour better. I'm saying that Tour players should be thanking LIV for coming along and giving them some nice pay raises. LIV accelerated some changes that benefit those guys.

https://www.golfchannel.com/news/history-repeating-itself-30-years-later-greg-norman-still-challenging-most-powerful-men-golf

Little history

BleachedAnusDawg

Rory might want to shut up and thank his LIV peers and Greg.

https://www.espn.com/golf/story/_/id/35762063/pga-tour-revamps-format-designated-events-no-cuts

In what commissioner Jay Monahan described as decisions that will "transform and set the future direction" of the PGA Tour, the tour's policy board voted Tuesday night to dramatically change the format for future designated events, which will have smaller fields and no cuts.

In a memo to PGA Tour members Wednesday, a copy of which was obtained by ESPN, Monahan announced that eight designated events in 2024 and beyond will have fields between 70 to 80 players and no cuts. It's another wave of dramatic changes as the PGA Tour continues to try to fend off a threat from the Saudi-financed LIV Golf League.