There are three main types of bag available Stand, Cart and Tour each have different features and there is a massive variation in the weight of these bags as well.

Stand bags are advisable and used by people who prefer to walk their round of golf. These bags normally have a great deal of storage as well as good separation for your clubs which is very important is you are using graphite shafts as they scratch very easy. The other thing to look for in stand bags is a good strap, for years I used a golf bag with a single strap which caused me all sorts of problems with my back in the long run. The straps which are best are those that are like a backpack that also have magnets in them. The magnets have a good healing and soothing for aching muscles during the round.

I have picked out two stand bags that have ticks in all the boxes as far as the features mentioned above:

CALLAWAY Warbird XTT Stand Bag Featuring XTRA Traction Technology (XTT) which allows its base to actually tilt forward when the legs are deployed, promoting maximum stability whether in an upright position or tilted, stand position. 7-way, 9 oval top 6 pockets, including valuables and insulated cooler pocket Nylon 5.0 lbs

NIKE Sasquatch Tour Stand Bag Nike Pro SasQuatch Tour Stand Bag: Nike innovations continue to meet the unique needs of the golfer. Nike Golf brings breakthrough products to the course, including revolutionary golf bags. At Nike Golf takes technology seriously. Individual, 14-way, full-length divider system Versatile golf bag for walking or riding Nike Woven Air technology in the revolving double strap 10 strategically placed pockets (including water bottle pocket and cooler pocket) New dual-durometer, wide bag base Waterproof valuables pocket Golf ball Quick Access Sleeve Integrated tee holder Logo cresting compatible

Cart bags are slightly different to stand bags with regards mainly to size and carry straps. As the name describes they are designed for golf carts and being on the back of a golf cart or on a golf trolly. This means they can be heavier as they don’t have to be carried around the entire course. They are also larger than stand bags and they can carry more. Again I have selected one that I feel are worth the money:

CALLAWAY BB Sport Cart Bag Callaway Big Bertha Sport Cart Bag: Callaway s Big Bertha Sport Cart Bag features new nylon fabric with mesh and polyester accents. It comes with an individual putter pit, EZ Access Magnetic Pocket, Extra mesh water bottle and accessory pocket and a rainhood. Custom logo on bottom ball pocket ACS construction

Tour Bags are normally the most durable of the three. Designed for the professional golfer who travels a lot with their clubs, tour bags are designed to carry everything the golfer needs for all situations. My personal preference is the Mizuno which is below it is perfect for the back of a cart as well as the trolly but also allows me a lot of space for all the gadgets I have as well as waterproofs and other items. They are very good and last forever, I have had mine for around 5 years now and it is still in very good condition surviving trips abroad on a number of occasions.

Mizuno’s Staff Tour Bag is designed to suit the needs of Tour Players. The Staff Tour bag features a 5-way, easy access divider system, durable PU synthetic outer shell with multiple storage compartments, large Mizuno Pelican Pocket™, Mizuno Balance Handle™, integrated Mizuno Hydro Sleeve™, molded Contour Shoulder Strap and lightweight Mizuno Showercap™.

I have been out and about in a new shopping center not far from where I live today and they have a golf shop there that is a small independently owned place. On this discovery my wife decided that she could leave me in the cresh (or the newly discovered golf shop as it is more commonly known) and go off to look for what we actually went there for. This was my first chance to get my hands on the new 2008 Taylormade R7 CBG Max Irons.

For a little outfit this shop is very well equipped, they have a golf simulator and as it was rather early and not busy the shop assistant asked me if I would like to try the clubs over a few holes on the simulator. So off I went clubs taped up so as not to mark them. Now my Mum always told me that if its heavy put it down because its probably expensive. Well yes they are expensive and yes they are a little heavier than what I am used to in my own clubs.

The sales bumph is below:

TaylorMade r7 CGB Max 2008 Irons – RH Steel The TaylorMade r7 CGB Max Irons have maximum technology for maximum speed, distance, forgiveness, and accuracy. Large, thin, high-strength steel clubface promotes high COR for faster ball speed and increased distance Extra-large clubhead with tungsten weights increases MOI for greater stability and forgiveness SuperFast Technology reduces total club weight and promotes faster swing speed for added distance Inverted Cone Technology expands the high COR zone to promote higher ball speed on off-center hits for more distance shot to shot Hollow topline allows CG to be moved back deep in the clubhead for incredibly easy launch on a towering, distance-enhancing flight

So are they any good? YES are they worth the money? Well I have a real issue with clubs that come in over $1000 and as you will see by clicking the link above they are over that mark at a massive $1099.95, I just do not see that any clubs are worth that money.

The oversized head does give a good control, using them with varied club speeds, in the simulator, it is harder to see the flight and landing of the ball obviously but the feel of the club and the straight strike was very pleasant and would have suited any golfer.

Personally I wouldn’t buy the Taylormade R7 CGB Max Irons as I still think they are overpriced and that clubs should be affordable to all levels of golfers. So Taylormade Great set of clubs but work on your prices, maybe if you take the imprint of your name off the hosel of the club it would bring the price down. Are they that good, not for that price in my view.

Taylormade r7 CGB Max Irons
		$770.78
TaylorMade r7 CGB Max Irons 3- PW, (Men’s, Right-Handed, Graphite shaft, Regular Flex)

I know this could get little complicated but I will try and keep it as straight forward as I can. There are 5 different letters that are given to define how much golf shafts bend when the club is being swung:

• L This is the shaft that is most flexible and most commonly found on ladies golf clubs and actually means Ladies Flex.
• A Is the next in the flexibility stakes and now mostly found on senior golf clubs, however they were originally found on amateur golf clubs (hence the A)
• R is a Regular flex and now found on most of the clubs that you will see in your local golf shop.
• S the next up from the regular and stands for Stiff flex
• X last but not least is the Extra Stiff flex. This is most frequently found on professional golf clubs.

There are slight issues with the ratings however, one of the main problems is that the R flex from lets say Callaway is not the same as the R flex from Taylormade. This is one of the main problems when choosing the correct golf shafts for your irons, hybrids, driver and woods.

So what is the solution to make sure you get the right golf shafts for you game? Get the right advice from professionals that will be able to steer you in the right direction as well as supply you with the clubs you want with the right shafts attached.

Golfsmith offer a club fitting service through their website which allows you to completely customize your clubs from any manufacturer. Its well worth taking a look at even if you are not looking to buy new clubs it will allow you to check your current club fittings to see if you have the right golf shafts for your swing.

After accusing him of cheating to gain an unfair advantage in the wet and giving him a little bit of banter to see how much he blushed, he came clean on this wonder method. He uses his Mum’s washing up gloves in the wet!

After a little while we started to discuss how this would work and if it was within the boundaries of the rules. It turns out that it is an old trick and has been used by a number of different players over the years on rainy days.

I have to say the thought of a golf course full of people playing golf in wonderfully colorful rubber gloves does raise a smile but at the same time as the thought of sinks full of washing up because rubber gloves are missing gets a laugh as well.

It works though, the gloves are designed to keep the hands dry and to grip onto the most slippery of wet dishes covered in soap, so being able to grip a golf club that has a specially designed grip that when combined creates a great deal of friction and sticks like glue. You do however need to make sure you get the right size, if you get golves that are too big for you then your hands can move around inside the glove and make your shots a lot less accurate.

The sound of it made me think that it was a wind up, but it wasn’t and it is a tried and tested method. So the next time it rains or your heading for the course and there are grey clouds above make sure you raid the kitchen sink and grab a pair of marigolds before you go!

Motion Coach now have a home version of their software that you can hook up to a normal web cam and have your swing analyzed in a step by step system. This is great for those that don’t want to spend a great deal of money each month checking their swing to see how it is going and then spending time with the golf pro. Now it would seem we can go to the golf pro and tell him what we need to be working on.

All joking aside having a proper analysis of my swing was one of the best things I had ever done for my game, following the advice of the professional coach that showed me my step by step problems and then how to iron out those problems helped me drop a great deal of head speed and yet maintain the distances I was getting. In some cases reduction in head speed gave me more distance as the club was doing all of the work.

Technology has come on such a long way in the past 15 years that the game is becoming easier for all to participate, there is of course still the element of skill involved but the more and more technology grows the more benefits people will see in their game. Balls are now rounder, clubs are now more forgiving, gloves offer greater grip and don’t even get me started on how much drivers have evolved. Basically the world we live in has allowed for development within the game we love so I for one will not be fighting it but embracing it full on.

Speaking of which I am now off to test out another new set of golf irons that I will be reviewing tomorrow!

And here is why, I made a promise to myself that I would walk my round of golf at least once a week (I normally play either once or twice a week minimum) so once a week is next to nothing really. However I always carry my bag when I am on the course and this particular course has more hills than the Rocky Mountains! So it was going to be a long hard slog for me carrying my bag!

However a few weeks back I purchased one of the brand new Callaway golf bags designed especially for people who are stubbon like me and carry their bag on a regular basis. Callaway have come up with a bag that not only has a back support so you can carry the bag like it is a rucksack but also for the more adventurous golfer who plays in any weather a waterproof cover so your grips don’t get soaked in a down poor!

So when we get to the 11th, which is probably the furthest away from the club house you can get on the back nine for this particular course, and the heavens opened and unleashed enough water to spark arks being built around the globe, I calmly put on my water proofs and covered my bag and said “Thank the powers for Callaway golf bags!” Even enough room for my wet kit without weighing a tonne!

So what I am thinking and forgive me for throwing a few ideas around, a wrist band much like the plastic ones you can get that offer a way of pointing out what charity you support, well if motion sensors are that clever these days and microchips are able to put a man into space then they must be able to create a chip small enough to go in a wrist bracelet that can pick up motion and contact!

With this in mind I have a few more ideas on how to progress it forward including being able to link it to a computer in order to download the scores directly to a handicap program giving you an accurate handicap calculation in minutes of walking off of the course! (getting better all the time isn’t it?)

There are handicap programs available but none that will measure the score you have as you go around the course!

The ball has a nice soft feel that is very responsive to any type of swing, if you have a slower swing then this ball can give you better distance and control around the greens.

Check out which Nike ball is best for you at the Nike Golf Website it is simple to work out which is which as they can narrow it down to two straight away.

I spent two hours on the course with the Nike One Platinum and I was more than impressed it gave good flight and caught me out a little with an approach I would have normally gone with a 7 iron I ended up well over the back of the green rather than in the middle of it. Once adapted to it then it was a nice feel and performance to it that would be expected of any golfer.

Lets face it if Tiger Woods says they are OK then who am I to argue?

Nowadays golf towels not only contribute to their primary cause but also in their secondary purposes. Golf towels have now become the coloring factor and the designer wear for the golf players along with the golf umbrellas. Custom made golf towels having the company logo or the golf player’s name have become so common. Further there are embroidered golf towels that add up a lot of color to golf. Hundreds of online stores and agencies have cropped up to provide custom made golf towels with the necessary embroidery or the company name print on them and the financial statistics of these companies show that the designer perspective of golf towels is gaining greater markets day by day.

Embroidering and designing in a common fabric is easier. But golf towels are an exception and it is not so easy to embroider in golf towels. Even though golf towels are woven materials like sweaters, the raised loops on the surface of the golf towels create a challenge for many embroiderers. The loops compete with the stitches in the golf towels when embroidered resulting in degradation in the quality of the embroidery. To surpass this difficulty, a lot of strategies can be employed. Digitizing is one of the important techniques in overcoming the difficulty in embroidering golf towels. When the design is digitized, compression fill could be employed to stabilize the nap of the fabric. This way the design lies on the top of the projected surface and the embroidery turns out to be perfect.

With the increased involvement of technology the golf towels embroidering process, the popularity and simplicity in the designer aspect of golf towels is growing.

Golf glove used differs based on the age, sex and size. There are junior golf gloves, men golf gloves and women golf gloves. Among the men golf gloves there is differentiation available as men cadet golf gloves and men regular golf gloves. Also special left hand golf gloves are also available in the market. In addition to this designer gloves are also been produced to suit the taste of the golf players. The sizes available are small, medium, medium large (M-large), large and extra large (X- large). All these variations are available in golf gloves to promote better grip during the golf play and to suit the golf player.

Usually golf gloves are removed between rounds. At this time the golf gloves are allowed to dry because of the perspiration from the hand the golf gloves would have become wet. Sometimes the gloves become gnarled and crusty due to sweat. This problem is called as the “golf glove grunge”. This will greatly reduce the sensitivity, comfort, fit and grip offered by the golf glove.

To prevent this trouble golf glove guards are available. This protects one’s golf gloves to deliver a super-sensitive feel; exceptional fit and superior comfort each and every swing. The golf glove guard allows golf gloves to air dry naturally and so maximum tactile sensitivity is sustained throughout the life of the golf glove. This also improves the playability, longevity and pliancy of the golf glove. The golf glove guard helps in hygienic use of golf glove. A golf glove guard prevents moisture and sweat from building-up inside the leather glove, whereby the golf glove guard eliminates germs and bacteria.

To choose an appropriate golf glove to play, all these factors that decide the suitability of a specific type of golf gloves to a person; have to be taken into consideration. Only when a proper golf gear is used, then a game of golf becomes truly enjoyable.