Dallas Golf Blog

Golf Club Review: Cleveland 588 DSG RTG+ Wedges

Dallas Golf Equipment Review:

Cleveland Golf is the leader in wedge technology, and has dominated the Wedge category in golf for many years. The 588 DSG RTG+ Wedge is another achievement in Cleveland's long line of great wedges.

The first thing you'll notice is the finish. It is different from other RTG Wedges Cleveland has produced. It is a copper colored bronze finish. Over time, the finish is designed to rust to add feel and abrasiveness.

We found this to be one of Cleveland's most versatile wedges. Notice the double grind on the sole. This feature made it easy to open the face and play a variety of shots without changing the bounce too much. The wedge sets up well whether you have the face open or square. We found this especially important on harder surfaces. Other wedges tend to bounce or skid at impact, where the 588 DSG seemed to "slide" under the ball. The milled face added a little extra "bite" on many of our test shots, allowing us to control the distance without worrying about bouncing over greens, even out of some moderate rough. If you mis-hit your wedges alot, you may want to consider the GC-11 cavity back model. The 588 Models are not known to be as forgiving, so you need to be on your game if you plan on hitting full shots with these. If you're looking for a great wedge out of the sand and around the greens, the 588 DSG RTG+ is a good bet. It is versatile, sets up easy, and looks fantastic.

Buy Cleveland Wedges Here.

Titleist Scotty Cameron 1st of 500 Detour Putter

Dallas Golf has a mint condition Titleist Scotty Cameron 1st of 500 Detour Putter in stock.  It is like new, includes the original head cover, and original grip.  It was a store demo model and we took it on trade.  As you can see, it is in perfect condition.  You can buy it here.

Scotty Cameron Detour 1st of 500 Putter: The new Scotty Cameron Newport Detour extends the original Detour design into a conventional putter style. The Detour two-style milled stainless steel frame with an integrated arched aluminum face and body provide visual indicators that help create the proper putting path. Features:     * A curved profile and orange sightline show the player the proper stroke path     * Stainless steel backweight triangulates weight at the corners for a high MOI (moment of inertia) and enhanced dynamic stability     * The new orange Studio Design grip matches the orange shaftband and orange headcover     * A stepless shaft provides a clean look at address with positive feel and feedback

Behind the Scenes at Dallas Golf: Used Club Operation

You can browse our used golf clubs by clicking here.

You can trade in your used golf clubs by clicking here.

If you have questions about our used clubs or trade-in process, please email us at info@dallasgolf.com, or call 800.955.9550.  We sell the same great used clubs online and in both of our DFW retail locations.

Equipment Review: Ecco Flexor Hydromax Golf Shoes

If you're like me, comfortable shoes are on the top of your list when it comes to your golf equipment.  I never have really found a pair I like, probably because I've always tried to get by with the discount models or ones from the sale rack.  I figure they aren't going to be comfortable anyway, I might as well spend as little as I can. 

My attitude about golf shoes changed when I tried on the Ecco Flexor HydroMax.

38414 | White-Titanium-Black | Leather-Lizzard-Croco

Last year I was introduced to Ecco Golf Shoes by our local Sales Rep John Goulet.  When he came in to sit down with us, I was skeptical about his sales pitch.  I was thinking of Ecco as any other golf shoe:  Some leather, a few spikes, strings, and hopefully "waterproof".  By the time he was done explaining the craftsmanship and fit of an Ecco Shoe, I was ready to buy a pair.

He brought in a few samples for us to try on.  The first thing I noticed was the fit.  Ecco fits their shoes in a unique way. 

From the Ecco Website: "To better build for comfort, we reinvented how shoes should fit. Conventional shoes fit across your feet at the toes, restricting the way your toes spread as you walk. ECCO's "Freedom Fit" fits from heel to instep, allowing toes to spread naturally to better support your weight and foster a more comfortable walking experience."

I normally wear a size 11 in most shoes.  But I found that in the Ecco I fit snugly into a European Size 44, which translates into a US size 10/10.5.  My rep explained that most manufacturers size a little bigger than they do for marketing purposes.  It is easer for them to sell men larger sizes, even though it isn't entirely accurate.   Be aware of this when you order or try on a pair.  I've since bought a pair of Ecco dress shoes and the same rule held true. 

I found that as soon as I stood up, my foot seemed to melt into the sole.  The fit was snug at the heel and through the arch of my foot.   The upper was very, very soft and seemed to mold to my foot right away.  I could tell I was going to very happy with these shoes.

Even though Ecco has several great styles to choose from, I chose the Flexor HydroMax in Black/Titanium.  It has a modern look, while still holding on to some golf tradition.   It features the HydroMax waterproofing system, which always comes in handy here in Dallas.

Normally I like to break in a pair of golf shoes by hitting balls in them or walking around in the yard.  I'd almost never take a brand new pair of leather golf shoes out of the box and play a round of golf in them.  But this time, I trusted Ecco to produce a blister free round for me.  And they delivered.  I played 18 holes at Brookhaven CC in Dallas, and my feet have never been happier.  No blisters, no rubs, no complaints.  You heard me, out of the BOX, and onto the first tee.  With a full grain leather pair of golf shoes.  Try that with your Foot-Joy Classics and see how far you get.

The one thing I hear about Ecco from our customers is "Why are they so expensive?".  The Flexor HydroMax retails for $180, as do most of their models.  I always respond the same way.  If you buy 3 cheap pairs of golf shoes over the next 2 years, you'll have wasted the money you could have spent on one really good pair that will last you forever.   You'll feel better in the Ecco, you'll look better, and you'll play better.  Surely that's worth $180.

We highly recommend Ecco Golf Shoes.  I found the fit, quality, and performance exceeded my expectations.  Every person you talk to who owns a pair will tell you that they are the best golf shoes they've ever owned. 

Of course, you can buy a pair here.

Here are the Ecco Product Specs:

Uppers made of "pure aniline" smooth leather which pulls up to give a nice depth of color

Direct injected black PU midsole

Multi colored TPU outsole with carbon textil for enhanced stability

Two component vegetable tanned leather and microfibre top layer inlaysole on a comfort fibre foam

Made with Hydromax™ leather which has high water resistant properties

Multi colored TPU outsole with carbon textile for enhanced stability

Classic looking golf shoe enhanced by "exotic" printed crocodile leather detailing

Fitted with bi-colored Stinger™ cleats from Champ® with visible wear indicators and Q-Lok™ insert system

Good Things Happen to Good People

In case you missed yesterdays FedEx Cup Playoff Event at the Barclays Championship, one of the good guys in golf was rewarded for his perseverance.  Steve Stricker birdied 4 of his last 5 to win the Barclays and take the lead in the FedEx points chase.  It was great golf, and a better story.  Stricker hadn't won on the PGA Tour in over six years.  He lost his PGA Tour card two years ago, and has had to crawl and fight his way back to the top.  He was so overcome with emotion when Peter Kostis interviewed him, he could hardly get the words out to describe how it felt.  You could tell that every one there was genuinely happy to see him win.  Even his opponents applauded him when the final birdie putt dropped. 

I couldn't help but think of Michael Vick at that moment.  When the weekend's sports news was dominated by Vick's guilty plea to dog fighting conspiracy charges, I thought about how I never remember a GOLFER being involved in any news like that.  I remember Barry Bonds (baseball,steroids), Tank Johnson (football,weapons), PacMan Jones (football,too many to name), and more recently Darrent Williams (football,killed outside a Denver club).  The most controversial figure we have in golf is John Daly (PGA, cigarettes, crazy wives, bud light) and what he does happens 10 times a year on the average NFL Team.  Yeah, he drinks too much, but it never gets him suspended, thrown in jail, or murdered.  Here's Vick, getting all of the press for being a downright thug, yet 99 out of 100 people will have no idea who Steve Stricker is today.  Its too bad people don't pay more attention to the good in life, rather than obsessing over the bad guys. 

The point of my rant, is that I encourage parents to get their kids involved in golf.  It truly is one of the last gentleman's (and lady's) sports, where honesty, integrity, and self preservation, are the lessons.   Get your kids playing golf and go play with them.  There seems to be a high correlation between golfers and good behavior, good grades, and good citizenship.  Not to mention the fact that it develops mental toughness, hand-eye coordination, endurance, and patience.  The lessons I learned from playing golf with my dad still stick with me today.  The number one lesson, "You never know when you're gonna get lucky with the putter", said after he made a 50 foot curling downhill putt at Keeton Park in Dallas, to beat me by one shot.  Thanks, Dad.

Congratulations to Steve Stricker, not for winning, but for being one of the good guys, and reminding us all of a well known saying (at least its on a needle point my grandmother made me):

"All things commeth to him who waiteth,
as long he worketh like hell,
while you waiteth".

North Texas' Colt Knost Wins US AM & Pub Links

SMU's Colt Knost became only the 2nd man to ever win the US Public Links and US Amateur Titles in the same year, yesterday at Olympic Club near San Francisco.  Colt, who is from Pilot Point, just north of Dallas-Fort Worth, played golf for the SMU Mustangs, and plans to turn pro in a few months. 

Congratulations to Colt for a tremendous accomplishment.

You can read the complete US Amateur story here.

FC Dallas Foundation Golf Tournament a Success

We would like to thank the FC Dallas Foundation and all of the FC Dallas players for hosting a great event at Castle Hills Golf Club yesterday.  As an event sponsor, Dallas Golf sent 5 representatives to enjoy a day at the course with FC Dallas.   Pictured from left to right are Dusty Grey, John Terry, John Cartlon, Chris Smith (me), and John Bishop.  My group featured Drew Moor, starting center fullback for FC Dallas.  Drew is a very good golfer and was a super nice guy to spend the day with.  Since John Carlton and I are soccer nuts, we tore Drew's ear off talking about the MLS Season, David Beckham, and the US National Team, to name a few soccer topics.  Our group didn't fare well in the tournament, but we had a great time and got to know one of the rising stars in the MLS.   Checkout some video of Drew Moor in action on the golf course.   

What I took away from the day was that professional athletes are successful because they come through in the clutch.  Several times our team put the ball in Drew's hands, and he delivered.  He birdied 2 holes consecutively, using only his shots in the scramble format.  He flagged a 5 iron from 185 yards on a par-3, and roped a 5 wood from 220 yards to a back right pin position and made a 15 foot downhill putt for another birdie.  It was impressive for someone who makes their living at one sport, to be downright good in another.  For some reason when you think "professional athlete", you get a vision of an overly muscled block-headed jock.  That isn't the case with any of the FC Dallas squad.  They are all unassuming, normal looking guys, but they happen to possess a VERY specialized skill.  Dallas Golf was proud to be associated with each of them and their Foundation Event.

We hope you'll help us support the FC Dallas Foundation in their effort to serve the DFW Metroplex through the creation and support of programs, events and organizations that benefit the overall good of our community, and positively advance the lives of disadvantaged youth through the sport of soccer.

We encourage you to get involved in your community, too.  Whether through golf, or soccer, or any other type of volunteer work, get our and support others who are less fortunate that you are.  The work will repay you many times over.

Equipment Review: The Golf Buddy Plus GPS Range Finder

With several range finder and GPS options on the market today, I thought we would take a look at the newest entrant in the race to the proper yardage.  Its called The Golf Buddy Plus.   We enlisted the help of sales rep John Goulet to get the low down on the Golf Buddy Plus.  Here's the info John provided for us.

The Golf Buddy Plus is the most accurate GPS unit on the market for golf course applications.  Its small, lightweight, and fast.  There is never a membership fee to download new courses, and it comes pre loaded with courses from your area.  Golf Buddy distributes according to zones, so you never have to worry about finding courses in your area.  They are already loaded when you take the unit out of the box. It automatically finds the course you are at and tells you what hole you’re on with no scrolling to find the course.  There is never a membership fee in the can hold up 1000 courses and they can be preloaded so don’t have to download them.  If you have a golf buddy that is not pre-load you can go to the website golfbuddyusa.com and download any of the courses available for free.  You can buy golf buddy at finer golf retailers or check the website for the nearest retailer in your area.  A few other notes:  we measure as the crow flies, straight to the green.  We measure to all bunkers front and back.  All hazards are measured to front and carry.  You can customize to your own needs by having the option to put down up 13 more spots per hole.  It can also measure your shot to know how far you hit every club. The golf buddy allows you to set the exact pin positions so you know exactly the yardage to the hole.  It has 12 channel receptions. It can be used right out of the box in 3 to 4 minutes because it is preloaded and pre-charged.   It comes with a poly/lithium battery the best in the business that carries a 12 to 13 hour charge.  It comes with 7 languages and the options for meters or yards.  The major benefit is the ease of use. 

We found that the Golf Buddy Plus is the easiest GPS unit to operate.  In a round at Dallas Athletic Club, it came right out of the box, asked if we wanted to play the Blue or Gold Course, and we were on our way.  During the round, if we wanted simple yardage to the greens, we never even clicked a button.  With a few clicks we could get yardages to carry bunkers, lay up yardages, and green depths.  If you're looking at a GPS unit, we highly recommend the Golf Buddy Plus.  We sell it here.

Other customer comments:

-Jason, Mesquite, TX- "Very easy to read easy to use. When you think you are on the 150 marker and you find out that you are really 160 out."

-Robert A., Garland, TX- "What I have found out is that I pull the right stick because I have the correct number right in front of me."

Playoffs?! Don't talk about playoffs! Are you kidding me? Playoffs?!

"Playoffs?! Don't talk about playoffs! Are you kidding me? Playoffs?!" - Jim Mora, Indianapolis Colts Head Coach

A quote made famous by Indianapolis Colts Head Coach Jim Mora may end up being synonymous with the FedEx Cup.  The PGA Tour will have us believe that they are entering playoff season this week, but the #1 seed in the tournament gave himself a voluntary bye-week.  What would happen if Peyton Manning called up Roger Goodell and said, "Hey man, I'm pooped.  Mind if we sit this one out?".   If you've read this blog before, you know that I am a big big fan of Tiger Woods.  But I have to say his apathy toward the highly promoted FedEx Cup is disappointing.  I mean its one thing to be #1 and go out and prove it.  Its another thing to tell the rest of the PGA that you're #1 and you don't HAVE to prove it.  I realize that Tiger is busy working out his bottle feeding arms, but the PGA went to GREAT lengths, not to mention poor FedEx, to make the "chase for the cup" something to watch.  Starting this week, we should have seen all of the big names chasing a $10 MILLION prize.  Instead, we're giving a free pass to Tiger, while everyone else goes out and tees it up.  The sad thing for FedEx, is that no one cares anyway, but now that Tiger isn't playing in the first event, it destroys ALL of the credibility they MIGHT have earned with a playoff.  The best player in the world and clear favorite to win gets no penalty for not playing, and can still win the Cup, whether he wants to or not.

If its a playoff, then run it like one.  If you want to give the best players a bye-week, then do it.  Just tell us in advance, and don't get egg on your face when Tiger, or any other player, says "I don't value your playoff system" and gives you the week one brush off.  Maybe next year they will work out some of the kinks and figure out a way to put some teeth in this thing.  For now its just the same old Fall Finish, and sadly, most of us will probably catch the NFL Games before we jump over to the "golf playoffs".

Golf Club Review: Callaway X-20 Tour Iron Set

I bought my first set of "pro-line" irons in 1997.  They were the famed Ping Eye 2 Square Grooved Irons.  I bought 'em used and they worked for me up through about 2000.  My next set of Irons was the Callaway Steelhead X-14.  The first time I hit them I fell in love with them.  They went farther than my eye2 set, and I tended to hit them straighter, more often.  I hit them great, carried them from Dallas to Memphis to Destin to Maui and back, and they never let me down.  I played with these irons up until one month ago.

I am a 10 handicap or so, and I break 80 about half the time I play.  As my swing has improved, and I've learned more about the golf swing, I noticed that when I wasn't as sharp as I should be, I'd always miss with my irons to the left.  The X-14 has a slight little offset, and it didn't help my tendency to pull my irons fairly often.  So much so, I found myself compensating for it, and then my swing got all haywire.  So after 7 years with the X-14 Iron, I decided to make a switch.  Keep in mind, I work in a 10,000 sq. foot warehouse full of golf clubs, so the decision wasn't to be an easy one.

My first attempt at a switch led me to the Taylor Made R7 Irons.  A set came in with Rifle 5.5 shafts, and I thought the shafts would fit my swing speed.  I took them out and played a round with them.  I played fine, but I never really hit a "wow" shot with them.  I was struggling with the offset and still hit that occasional LEFT shot I was worried about.  I tried a couple more rounds with them, but just never got comfortable.  For someone who tends to hit the ball more right of their intended target that I do, these would probably work great.  They went higher than the X-14's, and were about a half a shot longer.  They just didn't fit my swing.

So I went back to the racks to search out the magic set.  I settled in on Callaway because they had been so good to me for so long, I just had to decide which model.  I talked with Jim George, our Richardson store manager about which model I should try.  He is an expert club fitter and has a lot of experience in dealing with people doing what I am doing.  He recommended the Callaway X-20 Tour Irons.  I was nervous about anything marked "tour" because that usually indicates it is for a better player and often less forgiving.  But, since I was open to anything, to took them for a test drive.

The concept behind the X-20 Tour is pretty simple.  Callaway carried over the 360-degree undercut channel concept from the previous X-Series irons.  The claim is that the center of gravity is moved back and down in the face, increasing the effective perimeter weighting.  The X-20 Tour also keeps the extreme notch weighting from its larger cousin, the X-20.  This also helps to maximize forgiveness, and makes for a higher Moment of Inertia (more stability) than previous Callaway Models.   Where the X-20 Tour sets itself apart from  the X-20 is in the heel grind and overall styling.  The new heel grind effectively reduces the blade length, making this iron very easy to hit out of the rough.  The overall style is a "tour" inspired design, with a thinner top line and a squarer toe than the X-20 Model.   There is virtually no offset in this design. 

My summary and Observations:

I found all of the "tour" enhancements to be a benefit to my swing style.  I tend to be a straight ball hitter, and prefer to hit a fade when I can.  With the X-14 I was pulling the ball due to the offset.  With the X-20 Tour, the first few shots I hit were a little right of my target and fading.  I wasn't used to the setup at first, and the lack of offset took some getting used to.  But I went back to my basics of proper aim, alignment, and swing path, and everything straightened out nicely.  I am hitting the ball a full club longer with the X-20 Tour Irons, as compared to the X-14.  I typically hit my pitching wedge about 110 yards, but I am hitting it about 120-125 with the X-20 Tour.  As a 10 handicap, I mis hit shots more often than not, but I found these irons to be very forgiving, despite the tour setup.  The feel is fantastic, just as I expected from Callaway.  I had no problem working the ball either way I wanted, and I found it easy to hit a variety of trajectories.  During my first round with them, on vacation in Destin, FL, I played at The Raven Golf Club.  On the 17th hole, I flew a 9 iron 140 yards, straight over the flag to about 3 feet.   I was sold and these are staying in my bag.

I am only carrying the 6-PW, as I have employed Callaway Big Bertha 2002 3, 4, and 5 irons that act as my "hybrid" irons.  I've had these for a while and they are great as traditional long iron replacements. 

I replaced the grips on the X-20 Tour Irons with the new Lamkin Dual Density Torsion Control grips.  They are super soft, and make it very easy to grip the club with a minimal amount of grip pressure.

If you are a better player, I recommend the Callaway X-20 Tour iron.  I found they gave me more distance, great feel, and prevented the dead pull I'd experienced with the X-14.  A new set runs $799 in steel shafts.  We carry a full line of Callaway products in our retail stores.  We often have certified pre-owned sets that run about $550.  Search our site for a set now.