Product review: TaylorMade M4 driver
When TaylorMade announced the new M4 driver, I was of two minds. On the one hand, I love my 2017 M2. By my reckoning, it is the best driver I’ve ever owned.
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When TaylorMade announced the new M4 driver, I was of two minds. On the one hand, I love my 2017 M2. By my reckoning, it is the best driver I’ve ever owned.
The USGA and R&A announced today the modernized Rules of Golf that will go into effect at the beginning of January 2019, ending a six-year process of discussion (and yearlong period of review).
Story & photos by Mike Besa
A TaylorMade product launch is a big event and in 2018, their launch of the new M3 and M4 at the Army Driving Range in Fort Bonifacio was no exception. A huge crowd turned out to see the latest golf clubs from the golf-equipment giant from Carlsbad, California. TaylorMade Golf has a huge following here all anxious to see and test the much-hyped Twist Face Technology.
Golf manufacturers struggle to outdo and out-hype each other in their attempts to separate us from our hard-earned cash. Twist Face. Jailbreak. Dragonfly technology. You’ve seen the ads and surfed their web sites. You know what I’m talking about.
From the moment we set foot on Ayala Land Premiere’s Anvaya Cove Golf and Sports Club, we knew it was something special. The land, the layout, the amenities…everything about it just screamed “world class.” We know that that’s a term that’s been used quite loosely in the past, but rest assured, it is entirely appropriate when applied to Anvaya Cove’s stunning golf course.
Market forces being what they are, new golf clubs typically make it to our market a bit later than the larger markets in the Asia-Pacific region. Now while that delays our enjoyment of the latest and greatest that equipment manufacturers have to offer, it allows us the latitude of observing the rest of the world’s reaction to said clubs and that should allow us to make better purchasing decisions when the time comes.
Late last season the Asian Tour returned to China after a long nine-year absence. This past week we shattered an even longer challenge of the Tour, which was securing a commercial partner for the Order of Merit. This position had been vacant for 11 seasons! We are delighted to have announced our partnership with Habitat for Humanity, the global nonprofit housing organization that works with families to build or improve a place they can call home. As everyone should be aware by now, we have renamed the Order of Merit to the “Habitat for Humanity Standings” effective from the Maybank Championship. In addition to becoming our featured partner, Habitat for Humanity will also be the “Sustainable Development Partner” of the Tour. This means they will be our official charity and we will work with them to activate the partnership with select staff and players volunteering our time at some of the stops on Tour to work on-site at their projects.
Story & photo by Mike Besa
Your putter is the one club in your bag that seems to defy the advancement of golf technology. Yes, there are plenty of putters that have used science to make them roll the ball better, respond better on mishits and in theory, make you a better putter. But that said, it is an indisputable fact that most golfers continue to play with putters that were fundamentally designed in the 1960s.
Expectations and goals are two different things. Future goals, which represent improvement, are a good thing. Expectations to achieve goals and go out and shoot a good score are not. This is why performance in golf is usually cyclical—a player will shoot a low score, or win a tournament, and then expect that same success in the next round or tournament. The bar gets raised, and finishing below it is viewed as a failure. Expectations create pressure and put too much focus on the result and future outcome, which as you’ll know if you’ve read my Ultimate Mental Game Training System, increases pressure, tension and panic (performance anxiety).
When it comes to World Golf Championships (WGC) events, Dustin Johnson probably provides the best description.
Story & photos by Mike Besa
We all play around 50 percent of our shots within 40 yards a.k.a. “The Scoring Zone,” so doing everything we can in our preparation for each shot is critical if we’re going to play as best we can. Here are five things you can do to immediately improve your performance in the scoring zone.
I’ve seen it happen every year since I began writing about golf and golf clubs. Every year the equipment manufacturers introduce their latest, greatest drivers with each claiming to be longer and easier to hit than last year’s model.
When Gary Player speaks, it is often best to pay attention and absorb his infinite words of wisdom.
PATTAYA, Thailand—The course architects at Golfplan (www.golfplan.com) will unveil this spring their new 18-hole design here in the Silver Lake region south of Pattaya.
New technology and the latest manufacturing techniques have greatly enhanced what the equipment manufacturers have been able to do with a golf club. The year 2017’s drivers combined multiple materials using the most advanced manufacturing techniques to produce unique designs that send the golf ball further, straighter and with less spin than ever before. These circumstances came together last year to produce the best, most consistent drivers the game of golf has ever seen.
The end of the good year 2017 is upon us and as is our custom, it is time to look back on the year that was and how the golf courses of the country fared.
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, December 5: The PGA TOUR, on behalf of the International Federation of PGA Tours, announced today that the 59th edition of the World Cup of Golf will return to Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, with The Metropolitan Golf Club playing host to 28 two-person teams representing their respective countries from November 21 to 25, 2018. As one of five events co-sanctioned by the International Federation of PGA Tours, the Melbourne World Cup of Golf is a truly global and historic event, which has been played 58 times since 1953 in 25 countries, and is the only event that sees the world’s best come together and compete for their countries, outside of the Olympics.
This is a topic that gets a lot of feedback from our readers. There is so much choice that it’s confusing. Which wedge do I get? How many wedges should I carry? What lofts should I get? What’s bounce? What are the different sole designs for?
For the very first time, the Philippines sent its first-ever delegation of 14 (11 players) to the World Amateur Golfers Championship and Invitational (WAGC and Wagi) in Malaysia to represent, compete and make our country proud and they didn’t disappoint.
Story & photos by Mike Besa
Xander Schauffale probably epitomizes best what the PGA Tour is all about these days.
The Play it Right movement started on the 23rd of May in 2014, when an unashamed cheat took the top prize in the Mayor Erap Cup at Club Intramuros. Fortunately, members of the old Pinoygolfer forum behind and in front of him in the tournament witnessed his underhandedness.
The pre-shot routine is arguably as important as the swing itself. Where you put your focus before a shot will have a huge impact on the swing and the end result.
Story & photo by Mike Besa
Sadly, the fifth staging of the Resorts World Manila Masters is also the last. You see, the five-year agreement between Resorts World Manila and the Asian Tour to fund the tournament as the title sponsor has come to an end. But what a glorious tournament it was!
The PGA Tour’s annual Asian odyssey served up a marvelous treat for golf fans across Malaysia, South Korea and China during a spectacular month in October, delivering edge-of-your-seat action for the most avid golf fans and those new to the game, as well.
Getting to know a person takes time. It takes time and patience. Lots of both. The more time you spend with the person, the more of yourself that you invest in that person, the more open you become to that person, the better you will get to know him/her. When things are going smoothly, it’s lovely. But you have to take the good with the bad. Coping with the bad side of the person is the key to the relationship.
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