181 - Bitten By The Bug...

Well, it has been five months since I updated this little corner of the web, the reason being it has been five months since I even looked at my bats (other than to move them out of the way when trying to get to stuff in the spare room that is). All that changed today though.

My lovely, lovely fiancée bought me a lesson at a local driving range for Christmas. Bag of balls, hour lesson, tea and coffee – all very civilised. To be honest, I wasn’t looking forward to it but I’ll hold my hands up and admit I enjoyed it a lot more than I should.

The day started with mission Gok Wan would have loved, picking the perfect outfit to wear for such an auspicious occasion. I forgot just how much kit I have bought over the last couple of years. 20 minutes later I was bedecked in white Oakley polo, black Oakley pants and an ace Puma jumper (below). I looked the part if nothing else.

Time to dust off the bats (literally). I took my driver, 5 iron, 7 iron and 52* wedge – a pretty varied selection for the Pro to assess me on I thought.

I removed the massive, fluffy kangaroo head cover from my driver incidentally, replacing it with the standard Mizuno one. Big coward.

Richie and me arrived at a shoddy looking site that looked like it was in serious need of a makeover.

We learned later from the Pro that the place had just been taken over and had been stripped ahead of a complete renovation and expansion planned in the next couple of months.

The accommodation may have been poor but the instruction was very good. The Pro recorded my swing as I went through my paces with the 7 iron and spotted immediately why I sliced the ball so much and why my distance is restricted. Apparently I have noisy hands and an active left foot. 5 minutes of instruction later I was bombing balls straight and true. Result.

I spent the next hour watching the ball mostly sail where I wanted it. I wasn’t completely cured but I was hitting the ball straighter, further and more consistently. That hour has just rekindled my desire to play and improve, I’ve definitely been bitten by the bug again…

70 - Here We Go Again...

Right, so what have I been up to over the last few months? Not a lot to be honest. I’ve been reading golf magazines, buying golf books, watching golf in glorious HD-o-vision and buying the odd product from the ever increasingly competitive online stores (I’m looking at you onlinegolf.co.uk). You may have noticed I haven’t actually mentioned playing golf, this wasn’t an accidental omission; I haven’t swung a wrench in months.

I’ve decided to make a conscious effort to return to the driving range to work on my basics, as I know I’ll be rustier than the face of a well-used Oil Can Vokey. One of the many magazines I obsess over had a three-part supplement set designed to help get your score down focussing on the fundamental elements of golf – things like ensuring you have the correct grip etc and I’m going to work through them methodically.

Once I learn how to actually hit a ball again with my driver and irons I’m getting on field with Terry and Richie and I’m going to learn how to chip properly (I find it difficult to practice chipping on the mats at the driving range – end up with my fillings coming out after each juddering impact). When I get a bit more comfortable with chipping I’m getting down to my local municipal and hitting the course hard. I know I have said this before but I’m determined to do it this time.

I want a new set of clubs but I’m not buying them until I can use the set I’ve got now. I have got the cash there, ready to splash and I might make the trip to the driving range at Fiddlers Ferry as the guy at the pro shop there offered me a decent deal on the clubs I was after the last time I spoke to him (January) so I might see what he can do for me now that the economy is on its knees and no-one is spending any money.

Last time he offered me a free wedge but I had already bought myself one, then he tried to tempt me with money off a gorgeous Bettinardi putter but I’ve since sorted myself out with one of those too (more news on this later) so he’ll have to think of something else out, a bag possibly?

Right, so that is my plan. I’m going to try to stick to it as I’ve got most of the gear but no idea. I desperately want to be better at this game but I don’t progress quickly enough which means I get disheartened and give up. I thought golf was supposed to be a relaxing sport; it just stresses me out most of the time!!!

67 - We Bow Down To The Big Wedge...

Just because I haven’t been playing golf recently doesn’t mean I haven’t been obsessing over it or buying stuff to play it. I’m up to three golf magazines a month now although one of them is a mostly rubbish American one I picked up from Borders because it had a review of the Mizuno MX-200 clubs I’m thinking of getting.

I have been taking advantage of the January sales that just about every golf equipment selling website has had on. The first purchase was a gorgeous Mizuno MP-T Raw Haze wedge. This copper coloured beauty is 58* with 10* of bounce (whatever that means). What I do know is that it looks stunning new and is designed to rust like the hulk of the Titanic to make it work even better.

It can be found on certain sites for a whopping £85 but I got it for £30 delivered! Absolute bargain I’m sure you’ll agree. I now have a full set of Mizuno wedges ready to conquer rough/bunkers/fairway around the green.

To go with my new 58* Raw Haze I’ve also got a 52* and a 56* Mizuno MP-R Black Nickel. The three of them should weigh in at over £250 but I got the lot for just £90, which is, if I’m being honest, giving me a semi!

I’m going to put in a lot of practice with these babies as I ready somewhere that 70% of golf is played within chipping distance of the hole (although I’m not sure how true that actually is). Both Richie and Terry have both offered to help me learn how to chip the ball accurately and Alan is always there to give me advice at the driving range.

Yep, the addition of the Mizuno wedges is going to see me chipping like a champ although if I’m still useless I’ll just blame the cheap arsed bats I have just bought…

54 - Knackered Ankles and Treacherous Thoughts…

On a recent drinking expedition around the many and varied bars of Liverpool I managed to ‘hilariously’ go over on my ankle. Oh how the lads laughed as tears welled up in my eyes with every electric shock that shot up my leg when I put any weight on my foot. Bunch of bastards. I tried to drink through the pain but it was no good, I’ve knackered my ankle.

The initial diagnosis, admittedly made by a mate who had “been on a health and safety course and done a bit of first aid an that”, was that I had “done my ligaments”. Great news. When asked what I should do I was advised to strap it up, apply liberal amounts of ice and then wait a month until it sorts itself out. And like that, I’m not playing golf again this year.

After four days of rest I can walk on it again but if I twist my ankle, say in the way I would at the end of my now almost perfect golf swing, I get those lovable little electric shocks up my leg again. Typical isn’t it? I finally get some professional tuition, now know what I’m supposed to be doing and I can’t practice. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; this game is evil.

Now that I’m not playing I’m back to looking at all the pretty, pretty golf things. I was again drooling over the Titleist Vokey wedges and it got me thinking about Mizuno’s wedge range. It turns out that those clever chaps in Japan have only gone and made a wedge that not only looks as good as the Vokey but is apparently almost as good…no seriously!!!

The Mizuno wedges come in two flavours namely the R Series and the T Series (the R and T stand for Round and Teardrop and refer to the shape of the head with the former having a slightly fuller look while the latter looks more traditional). Both come in two finishes; chrome and a pant tighteningly gorgeous Black Nickel. You can see where this is going…

After a bit of research it turns out that Mizuno are the shit when it comes to grain flow forging club heads which is handy when producing wedges as clubs made in this way are softer and have more feel – exactly what you need according to the experts I’ve been listening to online. They rave about how buttery the wedges feel and how easy they are to use.

In their video review, Today’s Golfer praises the wedges for the quality of the materials (it seems plating the clubs in Nickel makes them more durable and softer than traditional chrome), their cool design and their playability. They are slightly heavier than the other wedges they tested (including the Vokey) meaning that you just need to swing it and it does all the work for you.

New they actually cost about the same as a Vokey but a quick look around shows they can be had at a decent discount, especially by eBay shops (£40 delivered in one place) so they are definitely more attractive to my wallet. I haven’t budgeted for a new wedge or two so the cheaper the better in my opinion.

Do I turn my back on the object of my desire for the last few months for the sake of a few bob? Nah, but I might turn my back on it because the Mizuno is a fantastic iron that looks really, really good, it the same wedge as my clubs and because I won’t feel such a beut using it on the course.

Oh and they make one called the Black Ox which starts off black and rusts to shit like the Vokey! Get in...