Big difference in some of the distances covered it seems. Oosthuizen hit hole #2 with the longest mid-iron for an Albert Ross, and Arnie saying a spoon or cleek gets home in two.
Oosthuizen found the green and cup bottom with a 4 iron on his second shot at hole #2. I use a little different reference frame and not sure if it’s correct but has always been my template.
Long irons: 1,2,3
Mid irons: 4,5,6
Short irons: 7,8,9
4W = 1 iron
Most people, even back in the persimmon era didn’t carry 1 irons. Many did, but it was not standard in every bag. I agree that 1 iron and 4 wood would produce about the same distance. 1 iron was used more for accuracy, the 4 wood was better to get the ball up in the air more for a softer landing …. often into a par 5 or long par 4. I always considered the PW to be a fairway iron.. and they used to label it a 10 iron actually. The SW was mostly delegated for sand most of the time. Most iron sets were sold 2-PW… and the 1 iron was typically an extra order…
That being said, I can’t remember ever not gaming a 1 iron… even back to junior golf days.
#3 plays a lot more different nowadays with the green’s Stimpmeter reading being near 15.
It’s impossible to predictably bounce and check the ball coming from the right side of the fairway with the green sloping steeply and down to the left.
That’s why everybody tries to carry past the bunkers on the left and hit their second shot from the left side now.
I always ask the question.. what was wrong with the Masters before they changed everything?
Yeah, my ‘74 Macs have a #10 stamped on wedge. Hand me my 10 iron please…
Very simple Tiger Woods came on the scene and they knew at that point they had to Tiger Proof golf courses to try to stop him from breaking every record that they cherished. Augusta is the first course to be on record saying they would Tiger proof the course and we see how that worked out. The rest is history every course after that made changes with one purpose in mind. How can we stop Tiger Woods making a mockery of our hallowed golf courses. History has shown that you can’t Tiger proof a golf course because he was just that much better than the entire field that they played for second place for a full decade.
I blame Augusta National for creating the environment that we see today because Tiger Woods in 1997 made the famed Augusta National bend a knee and that was even after shooting a 40 on the first 9 with Nick Faldo.
The irony is Faldo won The Masters the year before in 1996 and he put the green jacket on Tiger in 1997 and we never heard from Faldo or Norman or any of the others from that day forward.
But every private club had a board meeting on the Monday after the Masters and said we have to Tiger proof our golf course. Which started with putting bunkers 300 yards out. Tiger Woods is the only player in the history of the game that made golf courses change their entire course in order to slow him down.
This topic is an entire podcast by itself, look at all the players in the hall of fame and none of them had games that made golf courses rework their famed courses but Tiger.
Raymond Floyd shot 17 under in 1976 with persimmon and blades and a balata ball. Tiger shot 18 under in 1997…. one shot better with a metal wood. I don’t know Tiger’s specs on that club or how much trampoline effect there was coming off the face. Hogan shot 14 under in 1953 putting on greens that would be like today’s tee boxes. No one before Hogan had ever reached double digits. Changing the course was absurd.
I agree with Blades4life….. Augusta started the problem and caved to the USGA deciding to allow their insanity with the gear at the pro or elite level of play. In 1998, O Meara won, and he was not a long hitter by any means. Tiger was there and didn’t win.
I think the modern gear actually hurt Tiger as he was probably the last truly great player to have grown up playing persimmon. The frying pan drivers let too many people into the game. Players with mediocre technique are getting far better results and a great iron player like Tiger isn’t benefiting from that nearly as much.
I used to love watching The Masters.. this year I haven’t even turned on the TV… instead decided to re do the rear brakes on my car, new calipers, rotors, pads and will be bleeding them out so I can drive it up to Napa tomorrow.
I’m sure it will be exciting, but I’d rather have my car back on the road by the end of the day.
In 1997 the drivers didn’t have trampoline effect yet. A metal wood of that time would achieve similar ball speed as a persimmon.
Tiger Woods’ WITB: 1997 Masters
Driver: King Cobra Deep Face (9 degrees)
Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold X100
3-wood: Titleist PT (15 degrees)
Shaft: True Temper Dynamic Gold X100
Irons: Mizuno MP-29 (2-4) and MP-14 (5-PW)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X100
Wedges: Cleveland 588 RTG (Raw Tour Grind) (56, 60 degrees)
Shafts: True Temper Dynamic Gold X100
Putter: Scotty Cameron Newport TeI3
Ball: Titleist Professional 90
https://www.golfwrx.com/775802/tiger-woods-masters-witbs-a-look-at-the-5-sets-woods-won-with/