Garmin Approach G8

The Garmin Approach G8 is Garmin's top of the range golf GPS. I have been using this product now for 6 months and having owned other GPS devices, feel this offering must be one of the best all round GPS products currently on the market. 

The basis of the unit is a 3-inch color touch display that has as standard more than 39,000 international courses pre-loaded. The greatest feature I feel is that this unit offers is the ability to upload updates free for life via a Wi-Fi connection. Yes, no monthly/annual charge and no more connecting the unit to a computer to update it. The unit itself connects very quickly to the satellites and you are not spending vasts amounts of time waiting for the unit to be available at the start of play. Its battery life is approximately 15 hours on full charge, however I do recommend trying to recharge the unit after every use as if you are a week between rounds like most of us, the unit may not last the distance over two rounds when they are a week apart. 

Another feature that this Garmin offers is the "Smart Notification" feature. This feature allows you to get SMS's and emails delivered directly from your iphone via Bluetooth to unit. Thus you can have your phone on silent, leave it in your bag and still make sure that important messages can be read when they come in. A tip for using this feature with your iphones is that if you have notifications turned on, they will all flow to this device, meaning you may get way too many messages from sources such as Bloomberg etc that you may not necessary want on the golf course. But overall this is an excellent feature that sets this unit apart.  

The standard screen itself is full colour and features layup arcs at 100, 150, 200 and 250 meters/yards (depending on your set up) so you know exactly how far the trouble is and how far you need to hit it when laying up. It also offers touch targeting (right) that lets you touch any point on display and get the precise distance to exact spot selected. This can be fairway, hazard, landing area, or the front, middle and back of the green.

The unit also allows you to Zero in on the pin with Green View feature. By touching the flag on the map to zoom in on the green and then dragging the flag to position it where you see it, providing a precise distance to the area selected from where you are standing.

The unit also acts as a digital scorecard and allows you to not only keep a track of your scores and up to 3 other playing partners, but also offers the ability to keep a track of fairways hit, greens in regulation and putts per round. Stats can be accessed during the round, and even downloaded to your PC afterwards. The scorecard feature allows you to score in the following formats: Stroke Play, Stableford, Skins and Match Play and offers the ability to load with adjustable handicaps. These can also be uploaded to Garmin Connect to allow for a more in-depth history of your games and performance. 

A great feature that many GPS units do not offer is the Play Like feature. This features provides the user the distances to the target, adjusted for gradient associated with uphill or downhill shots. You can set the unit to offer club advice, a nice feature, but one that i have chosen to turn off. 

So the cons, well there are not too many. The unit itself has auto advance, however I do find that its sometimes not to be trusted if you are on an altered format. The unit will change easily from for instance the 5th to the 6th, however go the 5th to the 7th, it does need a manual adjustment via the screen. Also, The screen does not have a protector, so I recommend getting a generic screen protector as the opportunity for scratches in the golf bag are many. 

I often use this unit combined with a laser. To use a laser or GPS unit singularly has pro and cons. To use them in combination offers I feel the best of both worlds. The laser will give you an exact distance to the flag and really that's about it. It takes away thining about landing points on a green. Blind shots and non visibility of the green when using a laser means you could potentially be hitting a shot into trouble. The Garman G8 allows you to really plan how you want to attack a hole. Measurements to hazards, adjustments for gradients, lay up zones and landing spots can all be pin pointed giving you better course management, which is a major difference between a professional and an amateur.  

Would I recommend this unit, absolutely. I would like to hear from other users that have experiences with the G8. Remember to sign up to follow my blog. Thanks SJ 

Golf Pride MMC Plus golf grips

I am very focused on ensuring that my clubs grips are always clean, have enough grip, able to handle any moisture and most importantly...are comfortable. I had always used a full corded grip and like many users had the tell tail wear points on my non gloved hand. When Golf Pride released the new Decade MultiCompound (MCC), I immediately knew this was the grip for me. A corded brushed cotton top for the top hand/gloved grip and a soft rubber on the lower hand that enabled you to get the feel and touch i love. I have been using these grips for a number of years with the standard 2 wraps of tape under each. Besides different colours, these grips have not changed significantly for a number of years. Could they get any better? I am not sure they could.

BUT... this year at the PGA Merchandise Show they released the Golf Pride MMC plus 4. Being one to track products i love i was curious the see what was the difference in this new product. So what is the difference? The major difference is that the grip now features a larger lower hand grip and users a softer grade of rubber. So why a larger lower hand? Well this is not new. Pros have been doing this for years through the use of an extra two wraps of tape on the lower hand. So if i was using a traditional grip, i would have my two wraps of tape down the entire grip and then and extra two wraps under the bottom hand.

The larger lower hand is supposed to encourage a lighter grip pressure, thus reducing tension and increasing power. The MMC Plus 4 is designed to negate the need to use the extra wraps and essentially means the grip is now has limited tapering down the shaft. The increased size of the lower hand is actually a 4.6% increase than what a normal grip would be. They come only in 3 colours (blue, red and grey), which for the avid MMC fan may be disappointing, given there are 10 different colours in that base range.

So what are they like? For me, this has been a significant change and improvement. The reduced tapering means gripped down shots do not feel much different and i do believe that the desire to grip heavily during times of tension on the course is reduced. The rubber is also softer than the original MMC and moisture control remains excellent. Alot of people see my grips and notice the difference and when they pick them up their first comments are usually how great a larger lower hand feels on the club. I find the greatest areas this grips assists with are when using the driver and when chipping. If you struggle with tension in your hands whilst chipping i would really recommend the switch, given you do not have the tendency to hold on tighter as you move down the taper and do not get that snatching feeling.

I was lucky enough to be in the USA and pick up my grips whilst i was there. They are still yet to be released in Australia which means to order them from here means many consumers are paying a substantial premium that takes a $9.50USD grip to almost $17.50USD in Australia and then postage on top of that. Are they worth it, yes. So Golf Pride, please hurry up and release these in Australia.

Love to hear from anyone that also has these grips on and using them.

Adidas Boost Golf Shoes

Adidas have recently released the Adidas Boost golf shoe. Adidas shoes have gone through a number of iterations in the past couple of years and it seems have moved from one spectrum to another. First there was the Tour 360 (traditional golf shoe), then Adidas Zero (extremely light golf shoe not alot of padding), then the Gripmore (a walk on and off course golf shoe) as well as Adicross (on and off course golf shoe as well as everything in between). Adidas however have been the one company i feel driving down the overall weight of golf shoes which i think is a major issue with fatigue on course. 

I have always been drawn to a golf shoe with the training shoe look, padding and weight. The first to deliver this was the Nike Tiger Woods product. The only issue is that they did not fit my wide foot. I have been using the Tour 360 (wide fit) for some time, however these are a traditional looking shoe with your screw in cleats that offered limited padding and although lighter than the old Footjoy Dryjoys, were no where near a sand shoe comfort level. Then, the Adidas Zero was released, very light shoe, but also too narrow for my foot and still not alot of padding. I purchased a pair of Adicross due to not only the width but also the on/off course benefits, but the padding i feel is insufficient and left me with sore feet after 18 holes. A great training shoe however,  

The new Adidas Boost shoe seemed to offer a logical mix between what i was after, the sand shoe look coupled with the padding and weight i desired. And yes i was right. The fist feeling of putting on this shoes is like standing on a sponge. If you are not used to it, you would almost argue it must be too soft, but let me assure you after 18 holes of walking uphill and down its well appreciated. Also on first fit, the width is something that is appreciated. There is enough room in the toe box for a larger foot to feel snug in you are not slopping around. The grip is also something i was really surprised about, given these are non screw in type cleats, There are extremely similar to the Gripmore product, but have varying sizes that seem to work exceptionally well. The stability of the shoe is also something that surprised me due to the softness of the midsole, but strong stability is not an issue. 

So how are they wearing? These shoes are now 4 months old, they have been worn every week and at training and as you can see still look good and the soles are still not showing any major signs of wear. I am not a person that washes their shoes after everywhere, nor every week, but i do monthly use a wet rag to clean the leather. There is a small amount of wear in the back traction areas as can be seen, however most golf swings would not need this. The Gripmore cleats have shown only very very minor wear which is pleasing. 

 

The only small sign of wear is in the back of the right heel inside where the lining has a small hole. This hopefully will be the limit and is something that all my golf shoes get. Not a deal breaker in my books. 

Overall, i love these shoes. I would love to try the Puma Titan Tours as well the Adidas ASYM Energy Boost (right/left hand specific hoes with full boost padding thoughout the shoe) to compare, but at this stage i will be sticking with these for this year as i have really enjoyed using them. 

I would love to hear other examples from people that own these shoes or can compare them to others they have used from this years releases. 

Taylormade M1 2016 Driver (updated photo)

Well the release of the M1 went ahead yesterday and i must say the M1 range (Driver, Fairways and Rescue) look amazing. I am puzzled why the rescue is not out in white and appears to be black only. Anyway they look amazing and i cannot wait to hit them. In my previous blog i only had a picture of the top, front on and face. I can now confirm the second slider on the bottom is the change the center of gravity and thus impact ball flight.

Love to hear your comments..

http://taylormadegolf.com/taylormade-drivers-M1/ 

Bob Vokey Personalised Wedges

When it came to ordering wedges a year ago I was faced with a few dilemmas from what is a big decision.  Do I go back to the trusted Clevelands which had always served me so well over the years? Do I look at the new wedges from existing brands on the market, Taylormade, Nike or Callaway or do I go with the Titleist option, the Bob Vokey?

Titleist talk up Bob Vokey as the "Master", as probably Cleveland do and now Callaway with Roger Cleveland. I tried them all at my club, I was lucky that every manufacturer turns up on the one day... Great for members as it's very hard to try all the options. After hitting a few, I soon settled in the Titleist Vokey 56 and 60 degree TVD design as they just seemed so crisp off the ground. The rep mentioned personalising them and showed me his. Immediately I was sold and it's not as expensive as you think. At the time they were $215 per iron. Not only is it a great design but with the personalisation they become my wedges, no one else's.

These wedges are amazing. I play off alot of mixed lies, tight and grassy and they perform extremely well. They are balanced and are fantastic in bunkers. They have also worn well and although they are starting to show their age, they continue to look great. I get a lot of comments about them and people just love he look. 

All Vokey wedges are cast. I know a lot of companies are starting to launch forged wedges, personally I have tried a fair majority of them all and unless you are a professional golfer, I believe you would struggle to pick the difference. Also if you a concerned about cost effectiveness, you will pick the cast as they will last longer. 

A lot of pro's use Vokey and I can see why. They work well on most ground and with all the new grinds with the SM5 there is no excuse that you cannot find a wedge that suits you or where you play. I love these and willl find it hard when they need replacing. 

http://www.vokey.com/wedgeworks/customization/personalization.aspx

New 2016 Taylormade Driver Photos

Have just seen this on mygolfspy.com and think its looks awesome...

It looks like there is the SLDR and R15 weight slider... should be lighter thanks the carbon fiber... Carbon Fiber is something that featured in the 2009 Titleist 909D Comp and we never really saw it again..The composite was supposed to be a high launch high spin..

Butch Harmon's Golf School

In April this year i had some time over the weekend and decided to attend the two day staff school at Butch Harmon's in Las Vegas. Without a doubt one of the best golfing experiences I have ever had. Even though it was not one of the school's where Butch was present, the instructors I had were just amazing. Don Callahan who has been with Butch for a long time now and teaching golf for over 50 years and Nick Hellwig who has been with Butch for over 15 years.

The session started with a group of 4 of us hitting balls on the range as a warm up. Titleist Pro V1, Callaway or Taylormade training balls, all set up to hit. The pros will spend some time watching you hit balls and then give you an initial thoughts of where you can improve. Speaking to the rest of the group, they got their weaknesses immediately as they did with mine. Then there is a little adjustment working with them and then its into the video area.

The video area is fantastic to visit on its own. Its Butch's trophy room. In there are flags from majors, minor and other events with messages of thanks from Tiger, Phil, And Scott and i envisage now Ricky Fowler. This is the same area where all the pros are assessed by Butch and is essentially his office.

The video analysis is something else, not only can they get 5 different views, but it is also contrasted to tour pros so you can get some appreciation of what the difference is. Although alot of pros can do this with trackman footage, to be able to compare your swing to a pro that is standing in the same room is something else. The output is printed and Don will identify the key development areas are put into a folder with comments to take away. Especially good if like me you are working with a coach back home.

From there it was bunker work in a purpose built bunker,

chipping, more iron work, woods, putting (where you can also sample nearly every Scotty Cameron design available) and then out for 9 holes on the Rio Secco course with Nick. The course is awesome and although you only play nine, its good to see how you have progressed throughout the two days.

The course i feel is great value, for $2100US i got three nights accommodation at Paris in Las Vegas, transportation to and from the golf course and lunch for the two days as well as the tuition. I know i will be back and i suggest if you have a weekend or longer available, give it a thought.

http://www.butchharmon.com/

Taylormade Project A

Taylormade Project A

I recently trialed a box of these balls and loved them. Having been a Pro V1 fan from old, I was tempted to these by the data Taylormade are showing that suggested that there could be some benefit in using a lower spinning, soft ball.

Do I really need a high spinning ball like the Pro V1? Make no mistake, I LOVE the Pro V1 and the Taylormade Tour Preferred for chipping, their softness, their bite and just the feel off the club, but is it the "right" ball for me? This issue is what many golfers in the mid handicap range are faced with. Do I achieve any benefit from tour balls or are they in fact causing more issues than I know?  But, I am sure of one thing when I say, like many others out there, if the pros are using them, then why shouldn't I?

In using the Taylormade Project A i found off the tee is where i have really benefited in using them. They feel LONG and it was going straighter, especially for the off center hits that i know alot of us are prone to. Around the green, and i dont know how it is possible but the Project A feels the same level of softness and i am not noticing any lack of spin. Maybe its the user? I do not hit enough golf balls through the week to notice the difference from the Project A to a Tour ball. These are not your average hackers ball. The best thing is that they are substantially cheaper than the tour balls.

Give them a go, i am sure you will not be disappointed.