NEWS

A Quick Nine: What do you want/need the most this golf season?

By T.J. Auclair, Interactive Producer
Published on
A Quick Nine: What do you want/need the most this golf season?

If you love playing golf - and chances are if you're reading this, you do - this week is a big one. The annual PGA Merchandise Show is taking place in Orlando. It's where all the newest goodies are being introduced for the new season.

Equipment, clothes, accessories, you name it - all of it is in Orlando waiting to become the hot item of 2011.

In keeping with the PGA Merchandise Show theme, for this week's, 'A Quick Nine,' feature we asked our Facebook fans: What single piece of equipment do you need/want to add to your bag this upcoming golf season?

Here's what you offered up:

1. Hybrids. Funny looking clubs? Yes. But ask any PGA Professional and he or she will likely tell you to ditch your fairway woods and long irons for a set of hybrids. They're easy to hit out of any lie and will save you strokes.

Facebook fan quotes:

"A hybrid for that 195 to 210 yard shot." -- Arthur Kelsch

"I've always been old school, and carry, and use, a ping zing one iron, and a Titliest DCI two iron, both 2 degrees upright. Now I've passed the 52 years of age mark, I think the utility wood, could be a replacement, that gets my h/cap down from 5.7 to a lower figure." -- Terence Williamson

"Hybrids, hybrids, hybrids!!" -- Mary Mallon Nelson

2. Wedges. We've all had it drilled into our heads since we started playing the game - the short game is the most important aspect of golf. Wouldn't it make sense to have some wedges to help you perform?

Facebook fan quotes:

"New wedges!! Really need some to go with my old school RAC irons!" -- James Rawson

"Proper Wedges, I.E. bounce, loft, grind options! -- Jason Shupper

"Some new CG15 wedges!!" -- Reid Neumann

"I would like to have new wedges. Perhaps CG15." -- John Gress

"New Wedges No Doubt." -- Jim Estep

"A spin city lob wedge to replace my Hippo 60* (stop laughing)!" -- Marc Stanney

"Possibly a Cleveland CG16 wedge. Or three of them actually." -- Reinout Schotman

3. Drivers. Not surprisingly, this was one of the most popular items discussed on our fan page this week. No matter how important the short game is, the long game is what people love. And the driver? It's like a car. Bragging rights for the person with the nicest, most expensive, best-looking big dog.

Facebook fan quotes:

"I would LOVE to get my hands on a quality high-launch driver well suited for a medium swing speed (regular shaft)." -- Mark Boyd

"New driver and fairway woods! Taylormade preferably." -- Noah Aossey

"R11 or Superfast Burner." - Johnny Freeman

"I definitely need/want the new Titleist 910 Driver, D2 8.5 !!! I feel like a blasphemer carrying ALL Titleist equipment, except for a Taylormade Tour Burner driver." -- Joe Schumacher

"Want the 07' Burner driver back. Best ever or since." -- John Luikert

"Got to go with the R11. You've got the moveable weight technology, the flight control technology and the face plate that changes the loft of the club face. You can also put shafts from other clubs in it like the R9 because they kept the same sleeve on the new shafts. They also have the majority of the shafts that you can get from the new Titleist 910 including the most popular Diamanas and more. It really just comes down to which club looks better to you and whether you like the feel of one or the other. You can make the ball go straight on any day so that is not a factor. You also have to decide whether or not you like the white crown of the R11, or if you want to go classic with the black of the Titleist, which also has some carbon fiber on the bottom I believe. For me, Taylormade is the way to go as my bag is all Taylormade except for wedges. Can't wait to hit the new R11 on February 4th!!" -- Ryan Tetrault

"The new Taylor Made 2.0 Superfast driver is already on order." -- Mike Touhey

"Titleist 910 Driver. I haven't switched from my 905R because I haven't found a better one, but the 910 is the one." -- Michael C Welch

"Nike Machspeed Black Driver 9.5 Degrees!" - Ozzie Terrel Greene

4. Putters. If the driver is the hot car in your bag, the putter is the delicate baby. Find a nice one and be gentle with it so it doesn't act up.

Facebook fan quotes:

"Ghost putter!" -- Eric Xiong

"I need a putter. Preferably a Scotty Cameron Studio Select Newport. Please." -- August Organschi

"An amazing putter that is under $40 (I think putter prices are just crazy) and some good wedges." -- Jared McQuade

"For sure putter, for sure the ball goes into the hole every time you use it." -- David Joe Smith

5. Irons. If you're like most people, irons aren't upgraded as often as most clubs. But, there's always something new available.

Facebook fan quotes:

"Ping to re-make the EYE 2 irons." -- James Dustin

"Need the Titleist AP2 710 irons, new grooves that don't mark up the balls as easy and not so much backspin with the short irons." -- Jim VanBoven

"Has to be the new Nike VR combos with black and White multi compound golf pride grips and the true temper project X Rifle Shafts." -- Colin Smith

"Callaway RAZR Tour Irons." -- Eric Ciampa

"Adams hybrid irons." -- John D George

6. Golf Cart… the pulling kind. Few things compare to walking the golf course. But if that bag weighs too much, it can get old fast. Why not think about purchasing a pull cart? You can still get your exercise without straining your back and shoulders.

Facebook fan quotes:

"A pull cart that is large enough to carry my bag and have some additional storage while being easy to handle in/out of the vehicle." -- JD Dickinson

7. Golf balls. Doesn't matter how good you are. No one can have too many golf balls.

Facebook fan quotes:

"A case of Srixon golf balls!" -- Tony Stubbs

"Golf balls with a magnet in it and steel cups lol." -- Mark Pager Irvine

8. New shaft. We were surprised not to have more responses regarding club shafts, which are just as, if not more, important than the clubheads themselves.

Facebook fan quotes:

"New shaft for my Supertri." -- Rene Requenes

9. Accessories and gadgets. From the miniscule (hats and towels) to the extravagant (home simulators), you covered a wide range of accessory and gadget options.

Facebook fan quotes:

"Optishot home simulator has to be the best product for keeping your game in tune during the long winter months." -- Christopher D. Vincent

"A comfortable pair of eco friendly golf shoes to get back into the game with." -- Arnold Rutkis

"Do they make a towel that stays dry and warm?" -- Patti Connolly Denis

"A new Pukka hat." -- Jason Hanna

"Frogger Golf Club Cleaner." -- Michael Aylmer

"Pinseeker range finder & the ideal driver shaft to optimize launch & spin." -- Nick Solheim

"An item to pick up a ball from the hole without bending over that is actually designed for golf use. Natural pain meds and new pair of shoes." -- Amanda Ellis

"New golf GPS." -- Damon Valloreo

"Rangefinder or SkyCaddie? Still deciding which is better. Could really use a new three wood as well." -- Kent Kolemainen

"I really want the Frogger towel." -- Daniel Sandoval

"A golf simulator for home use." -- Gary Bebelaar