This might not be the most earth-shattering confession but it is a striking one.
I have one real hobby – golf.
I have only one real way of doing anything that resembles exercise – golf.
And, given half the chance, I can happily sit through five hours of tour drudge on TV and not really have a problem with slow play, a five-shot win or even too many adverts.
If there is a definition of a golf nerd then it’s me. My home course (Moortown) is my happy place, my golf mates are of a similar limited vein and the past few weeks have been spent mentally racking up mini bucket-list trips.
One reason I haven’t had a ball fitting is that I don’t really know what I want from a ball fitting. I’m not a big hitter by any means but I don’t feel like I need too much help off the tee and the thought of moving on from my G400 driver fills me with dread.
I don’t want to hit the ball very high and I like to nudge it around the course which makes me sound like some sort of master craftsman, who is able to fashion shots into tucked away pins, but it’s more borne from a place of not wanting to lose a ball.
Unless it’s a brick I don’t really care what the ball sounds or feels like and I don’t really chip. My short-game repertoire extends to hitting a shot up my nose with a 64˚ wedge or bumping a 6-iron along the deck to, again, nudge it 10-15 feet away before missing the putt.
If I were able to chip, even in a functional manner, I think I would pay more attention to the merits of a ball fitting but, given they like to fit backwards from the green to the tee, my worry is that I would have to hit tens of chips, none of which would have any spin and none of which would tell us anything.
My irons generally/always come up short which is more down to not taking enough club – and more nudging and more shying away from the prospect of having to hit a chip.
Maybe 10 years ago there were perhaps three balls that, to my eyes and ears, were exceptionally good so it was a far easier choice to make while, now, it feels like every brand has got their offerings spot on.
At the same time I am something of a ball snob. I play nearly all my golf with a Pro V1. Why would you not? I tell myself phrases that I like the way that it comes ‘out the right window’ but I don’t really know what that should be.
I would guess if I spent time with a Titleist ball fitter I would end up with a Pro V1x which is another reason to avoid one.
All of which is a nonsense.
While I’m certainly not doing myself much harm on the ball front, and my clubs, swing (and mind) are far more damaging, I could very easily spend some time with a specialist ball fitter and put an answer to all of the above.
I might then go to a course where any shot that requires a bit of height might not be beyond me and I might even add a bit of clarity to my golf.
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