Is golf becoming to "Hi-Tech?"

I always see peeps posting new threads about "Which Driver should I get?" or "Should I get the newest driver on the market?" I sit back and think to myself why do these people run out and buy the newest thing on the market? I hate to break it to these people but the newest driver on the market and the one that Ben Hogan do the same thing: they hit the ball off the tee.
I use a Real wood driver (but my shaft is a graph shaft) and I drive just as far as anyone with a Quad 4. I use a Chicago Classic putter and just as good with it as I do with my buddy's White Hot. I don't get it?? I know all this new "Hi-Tech" makes the game fun, but is it good for the game? I mean, yea you shot a 93 today with a driver that "controls" the flight path of the ball and irons made to so forgiving that you can close your eyes and still hit a GOOD shot. But did you really shot a 93 today or did you just use today technology to beat the game?
I don't know, I just really wanted to sand on the soap box today I guess. I just believe we are getting away from what golf really is. I game of You vs. Yourself.

What do ya'll think?

__________________
Golf is a game that is played on a five-inch course - the distance between your ears.
~Bobby Jones

If you're caught on a golf course during a storm and are afraid of lightning, hold up a 1-iron. Not even God can hit a 1-iron.
~Lee Trevino

Actually, the only time I ever took out a one-iron was to kill a tarantula. And it took a seven to do that.
~Jim Murray

Hi Righty,

This has been a gripe of mine for a few years now, I like the newer technology with the larger faced drivers etc which helps the higher h/capper hit the ball and more forgiveness, however what really annoys me is the claims of extra yardage with their new driver compared to the old one.

Fair enough I have the Taylormade R7 in fact it's my second one I liked it so much, however I only hit the ball further now because my swing improves every year, and I only score better because my attitude improves every year.

I have said it before many times..................."I should be hitting the ball about 500yds now because every club I buy promises another 20 yds"


Rubbish


Ian.

__________________
Once you learn the swing, your next step is mastering golf psychology................

"Tis better to travel hopefully than to arrive "

I look at some of these guys on the tee box swing a driver which look like a brick tied to a stick. Yardage out of a club is only 20% of what golf is. What you want is to know that the club can put the ball where you wanted.

There are 2 things in golf I think have helped the game:
1. Shafts
2. Golf Balls

I use the new Maxfli Ice golf balls and LOVE them( I also use Top Flight as well), but I believe that no matter what type of head (Driver or Iron) it is the Shaft that matters the most. Why? Because the Head of the club is use where the Shaft ends, the Shaft of a golf club is apart of you. It's the only thing between you and the ball.

__________________
Golf is a game that is played on a five-inch course - the distance between your ears.
~Bobby Jones

If you're caught on a golf course during a storm and are afraid of lightning, hold up a 1-iron. Not even God can hit a 1-iron.
~Lee Trevino

Actually, the only time I ever took out a one-iron was to kill a tarantula. And it took a seven to do that.
~Jim Murray

TheRighty,

How many 'prestige bags' do you see on the course? By prestige bag, I mean Titleist Blades, or the latest and greatest driver or irons.

How do the people with the prestige bags score?

My wager is that they score as poorly as those with component clubs, those with clone clubs, those with Wal-Mart clubs, or those with rental clubs.

Until head manufacturers can give me wedges that drop the ball on a dime (stun) regardless of the swing I put on the ball, I won't thing that golf is too high tech.

You can give me the perfect shaft for me, the perfect head, the most comfortable grip... and I can still slice it back into the village.

Regardless of gear, you still have to swing it. You still have to get up and down. You still have to be able to putt.

__________________
True Length Technology Fitter - www.truelengthtechnology.com
It's live! - www.ShipShapeClubs.com
PCS Class 'A' Clubfitter

A new highlight: Golfing the home course on Christmas Day.

I say it too often: If it's golf club shaped, you can play with it.

For the record, I'm a club doctor, not a swing doctor.

the equipment thats marketed is very different from what the tour pros use. most of the new equipment is designed for the higher handicapper to get the ball up easier, so what happens, especially with fairway woods is that you get these looping shots without much roll. I think the main advantage of the new stuff is more forgiveness on off center hits.

I dont necessarily think that the game is becoming too "Hi-tech" and if it is, is it really that detrimental to the game as a whole? Look at the booming percentage of people joining the game of golf all around the world because of the amount of fun they are having. I mean, hitting a wooden driver solid is not half the feeling as it is hitting "inbetween the screws" of your Taylormade R7. I think that its actually good for the game, maybe not the PGA tour because these guys are just taking whatever they can from this, but nonetheless for the game it promotes a better experience out there on the golf course; which is the main idea of any sport. I would have to say it depends on how you look at it as well, I mean I can say that I have noticed a difference between certain equipment, and when you do play with the better equipment, you enjoy the game more, you want to go out to the range the course more often so you can get that feeling of striking a perfect shot or making a perfect swing. Golf is a changing sport but it is also a growing sport, so why fix it if its not broken?

Just reading an issue of Golf Digest from last year "the Slice is Dead". Their data compared robot swings of several "neutral" club heads with "draw" heads. The results showed a noticeable number of shots ending in the fairway with the draw club. More shot with the neutral club ended up in the woods to the right.

I'm tempted to agree with "Therighty" it's not the technology. You just have to look at handicaps over the last several decades. However, I've got an old persimmon 3 wood that I hit from time-to-time and I have to say it's a difficult club to hit pure.

Personally, I think any game-improvements from equipment are off-set by the drinks cart! Maybe that's the real equalizer. Maybe that's why handicaps aren't coming down.

Never thought of that....maybe your on to something

I do agree with what everyone is saying, but "james.welsh" does make a good point about the draw heads. So instead of trying make your game more pure by perfecting your swing, you run out and go buy a draw head which gets rid of the slice?
Just think if Tiger is having an off day. The Ball is drifting right on him on every tee off, so on the 4th hole he pulls out a draw head and puts it onto the fairway. Now does that make him a better golfer then the Golden Bear? He didn't change his swing any, he just changed to better Hi-tech stuff.

__________________
Golf is a game that is played on a five-inch course - the distance between your ears.
~Bobby Jones

If you're caught on a golf course during a storm and are afraid of lightning, hold up a 1-iron. Not even God can hit a 1-iron.
~Lee Trevino

Actually, the only time I ever took out a one-iron was to kill a tarantula. And it took a seven to do that.
~Jim Murray

Low Post, you are so right. My wife started going down the range a couple of years ago, and I bought a $150 set of clubs for her. They are pretty tacky, but still manage to hit the ball well. If she complains about them, I simply take the three wood and drill it about 220 with range balls.
Back in the eighties, before I stopped playing for a while, my old Macgregor Eyomatic would go about 250 once every lunar eclipse, and the Andy Bean blades would see a seven iron max out at 140, and this was playing a Topflite or Pinnacle.
We have moved on, and the game is far more fun for it - but you still have to chip and hole the six footers

http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/05/24/news/golf25.php


Click on the link and you will see that golf scores haven't changed in forty years for hackers, and got a little worse for pros.

I hit my Knight clubs that I purchased at Wal*Mart for $150 just as well as my golfing buddies hit their Hi-Tech expensive clubs.

Buying a name brand expensive club will not make you a better golfer. Learning how to use the clubs you have will.

If someone wants to give me a $500 driver ,I'll take it. I'll never buy one.