NiceBallz - Play Ballzy

Ever seen those ‘What’s In The Bag?’ features in the traditional golf publications? It’s all bull.

For one, you can’t buy clubs with the specifications Tour pros use. And, if you did, you couldn’t play them. Shafts as heavy as a hammer and as stiff as a telephone pole. Special sole grinds for “maximum turf interaction.” Whatever.

NiceBallz introduces Baggage, a new feature that provides you with a look inside our golf bags at the clubs we carry — and the real deal behind the specs. Here is a peek inside GolferWriterGuy’s bag, and the baggage he brings with him to the golf course each week:

Driver- Callaway FT-5 Tour (9.5 degree loft, Aldila NV stiff shaft 65 grams). Average approx. 265 yards. I bought this club for the 460 cubic centimeters of forgiveness and the open clubface, which took the snap hook out of play but brought a big banana ball as my main miss. Fore right! Nah, I can’t complain. After a sale, a coupon and a trade-in I got this club new for about $92. What do you want for less than $100?

Hybrid- Adams Golf Idea a2 (20 degree, Aldila NV stiff shaft 85 g). Average approx. 210. Great on short par 4s and long par 3s, this hybrid hits the ball low and long. The only problem is it will go as far as about 225 when I pure it, outdistancing some players’ 3-wood, but on miss hits it only goes about 180. That’s a huge gap. When it’s good, it’s real good. Otherwise, it’s not. That’s not good.

Irons- Titleist DCI 962 (4-PW, True Temper Dynamic Gold Sensicore stiff S-300 steel shafts). These are classic clubs, with a thin topline, a modest progressive offset and a reasonable cavity back. These irons are two degrees upright, and I often hook the hell out of them. However, I do love these irons and have owned them about 12 years. Why change? I’m too cheap to buy a new set. But, my ego does take a beating because most modern iron sets feature clubs with lofts that are 2- to 4-degrees stronger. In essence, the contemporary 7-iron is what they used to call a 6-iron. That’s why they go farther today. At least that’s what I tell myself.

Wedges- Titleist Vokey Design Spin Milled (52, 56 and 60 degrees, True Temper Dynamic Gold wedge flex). These wedges go anywhere from about 75 yards to about 105 yards — unless I chunk it or blade them. They are versatile with great feel, but the square grooves have spun balls off the front of a green more often than they have helped. Regardless, all that backspin makes me feel cool. It’s sad, I know.

Putter- Boccieri Golf Heavy Putter BM-2. I stole this putter from Hack. No, really. Took it right out of his garage, though I did eventually pay $75 for it. My stroke was so bad with my old stick that I constantly missed 2- and 3-footers. A serious case of the yips. That’s pretty bad for someone not yet 40 years old. But the counter-balanced Heavy Putter got me straightened out. Lag putting is more difficult, but then I make more 5-footers than I used to. It all works out. However, this club is a heavy load. Double up on the Advil before you tee off or book a chiropractic appointment for Monday. Maybe both.

Misc.- My bag includes several other miscellaneous items including a rules booklet that I never consult, and a huge poker chip of a ball mark that really pisses people off on the greens. I have some Blistex in my bag. I once went on a date with an heiress to a lip balm fortune but she wasn’t into me. Maybe my lips were too dry. Anyway, I also carry a ton of groceries so I can graze during a 5-hour round. Two Gatorades, two apples, two energy bars and one banana. I’ve got it down to a science because I’m freaky like that.

That’s all the baggage I care to share. Stay tuned soon when Hack shares his baggage with the world.

Do you have any baggage? Lay down on the couch and tell us.