Breaking 100-90-80: your monthly guide to the scoring basics

Golf Digest, Nov, 2003 by Frank Thomas, Art Chou, Clay Long

Monkey Business

To score your best, beware of golf's equipment evils

What you hear, what you say, what you see can be a deterrent to realizing your scoring goals. For instance, no doubt you've heard that you can buy a better golf game. You can't. But making smart decisions about your equipment can help you whittle away the superfluous strokes that prevent you from breaking 100 or 90 or 80.

One common denominator to realizing these scoring goals: getting the ball in play off the tee. For the beginner, that means choosing a driving club with the proper loft, shaft length and flex. Better players can go with the Big Stick--just be sure to have a go-to club for tight driving holes. And all golfers can benefit from using the ball best suited to their playing ability.

Breaking 100

Hear no evil: Until you can use a half-set of clubs effectively, do not listen to those who tell you to carry a full set. When starting the game, getting the ball airborne is not easy, and doing so consistently is harder. Lessons are important, but just as crucial to your progress is the proper selection of tools.

Frank Thomas

Inventor of the graphite shaft and Technical Director of the U.S. Golf Association from 1974 to 2000, Thomas now serves as Golf Digest's Chief Technical Advisor. He gives equipment advice to readers in Golf Digest's Frank Talk column and through www. franklygolf.com.

Shafts: Stay flexible

Most golfers should play with more flexible shafts. A shaft that's too stiff will generally cause you to hit the ball low and to the right; you may also lose feel of the head. A more flexible shaft will allow you to time the swing more effectively and thus gain a little increase in clubhead speed and be more consistent.

Get a grip

Playing with hand-me-down clubs before deciding what to buy? At the very least, invest in new grips. Chances are the old grips are worn and slippery, which can affect your grip pressure and swing. New grips cost $5 to $8 a club and usually can be changed in minutes or overnight at your local golf shop.

Breaking 90

Speak no evil: Eliminate any talk of the triple bogey. To break 90 you basically need to play bogey golf. A few pars cancel a few doubles. Fill in the rest of your card with bogeys and you've met your goal. Other words and phrases to banish: "X-flex" ... "Blades" ... "Let's play from the tips" ... "Mulligan."

Art Chou

A founding member of the Golf Digest Equipment Panel, Chou was director of club development for Titleist from 1989 to 1996 and president of Pixl Golf from '99 to '03. Through Chou Golf Design Labs, he now assists various equipment companies in product development.

Use whatever works

Choose a sand wedge that will help you get out of the bunker in one shot every time. For some, that may be a specialty sand club; for others it's a traditional design. Same for your chipping and pitching club. It may be an iron from your set or a chipper. Use whatever design that helps gets you on the green.

Cavity back vs. blade

I've made both. As proud as I am of the muscle-back blade models, I wouldn't recommend one for most golfers trying to break 90. A cavity-back design offers more forgiveness on off-center hits; the lower, deeper center of gravity helps get the ball airborne.

Breaking 80

See no evil: My college coach said breaking 80 was easy--just follow his nine-hole formula, 3 3 3 = 39. "All you have to do," he explained, "is hit three greens, get up-and-down three times and limit yourself to three bogeys per side." He didn't want to see any double bogeys on our scorecards.

Clay Long

A technical advisor on the Golf Digest Equipment Panel, Long has designed clubs for MacGregor and Arnold Palmer Golf and was head of research and development for Cobra. A plus-1-handicap, he now runs his own club-design company, Plus 2 International (www. rollyourball.com).

Go with two wedges

I suggest two wedges: a sand wedge with 56 to 58 degrees loft and 12 to 14 degrees bounce and a pitching or gap wedge with 50- to 53-degrees loft and 6 to 9 degrees bounce. Vary the speed or length of the swing to dial in distance. To shoot 78, you don't need to hit flop shots, cut shots or one-bounce stoppers.

Aim straight

To see how well a putter aligns for you, find a straight five-foot putt. Place a coin 10 inches behind the ball; use it as an alignment guide. Try different putter styles and offsets until you find one that seems easiest to get on the target line at address.

What's In Your Bag?

Carry only the clubs that suit your game

My guidelines for the ideal beginner's set:

Driving club. 13- to 16-degrees loft, with a regular-flex shaft of standard length for optimum control (i.e., a 3-wood).

Fairway wood. Loft of 19 to 23 degrees and a shaft with the same flex as your driving club.

Irons. Oversize 5-, 7- and 9-irons, with the most forgiving design--perimeter weighting and low center of gravity.

Choose the lightest, most flexible shafts you can control (graphite or steel).

Wedges. Carry a pitching wedge and sand wedge, both with substantial bounce (about 12 degrees) to help prevent the leading edges from digging.