I've started referring to my efforts to become a single-index handicap as my "
Mad Mission." I promised to share details about what worked and what didn't. The first thing I want to talk about is golf balls.
There are two different camps on this issue. One says players spend way too much money on golf balls and they usually aren't good enough golfers to play them. Another says you need a decent ball to play well. I've been in both categories.
I was a proud pink ball player for my first season of golfing. Honestly, they were much easier to find, and I often landed in some camouflaged places. There are some decent pink balls out there. I preferred the
Slazenger one.
During my second season golfing, I switched to what I called "big girl balls." I ditched my pink for traditional white, but I stayed girly. I went with the
Callaway Pearl. I think this is actually a very nice ball for most ladies. As Goldilocks would say, "not too hard, not too soft, but just right."
Then I graduated to the
Callaway HX Hot balls. These gave me a little more distance than the Callaway Pearls and I needed that as I started to hit more greens in regulation. Bogey was no longer my par, and these balls helped me get my index down into the teens.
This season, I realized how very hard it is to move from a teen-something to a single-index handicap. I know, I know,
I didn't make it. But I came damn close. (BTW, only singles are allowed to comment about my failure to do so-and I WILL check!)
A friend talked me into trying
ProV1's this year, so I bit the bullet and coughed up the bucks. For a long time I would use a different ball on water shots. Then I realized those are the shots where I need the ProV1's most. I needed those shots to stick when they landed on tricky par-3's. So I started using them all the time. In fact, this was part of my Mad Mission. I decided I had to play with the same ball–all the time–and I chose the ProV1's.
This really did make a difference
for me. As a strong hitter, but not a huge hitter, I had to focus on my short game to drop my handicap. For the first time in my golfing
career adventures I really did start to fall in love with this part of the game.
I'd hit our short game practice area and play
Big Break games in my head. I had to have pretend opponents, otherwise it wouldn't have worked. Remember I have NO problem talking to myself on the course. That way I'm assured of at least one listener.
My chipping and putting have always been decent, but they improved dramatically. I went to final elimination once or twice, but always prevailed on my imaginary Big Break.
Now I've officially become a ball snob. After the weather turned bad this fall, I thought I would try some cheaper balls that I had lying around. It was ugly. I couldn't stand how they felt or sounded off my driver head. They felt terrible on the iron face too. They were just too hard. It was a bad combination for a player who still struggles to find good ball flight.
Many other things helped drop my handicap, but finding a ball that was right for me and sticking with it was part of the equation. I may not spin the ball like the pros, but I do hit flop shots that need to stop when they hit the green. Basically a mishit for me with a ProV1 is far less damaging than one with a harder ball.
Fortunately I don't lose golf balls as much as I used to, so I purchase far fewer per season. That's how I am justifying $40/dozen. But I have learned one trick: buy a ball retriever.
Fall is a great time to find other people's ProV1's that never made the green. Many of these are brand spanking new (after a little scrubbing). So the next time your buddy insists on playing from the tips, let him. I'm happy to fish for his balls.
This photo really stinks. It's hard to take a photo of yourself with your iPhone.
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