Opinion & Analysis

The Formidable 3-Wood vs. The Indomitable Driver

Published

10 years ago

Jul 18, 2016

In more than 50 years of playing, I’ve had a love-hate relationship with the driver. Being the longest club in the bag, it’s not an easy club to master. We stand farther from the ball than any other club, and though the club head is the largest, now up to 460 cubic centimeters, and the entire club the lightest, the shaft is both the longest and the whippiest in the bag. For these reasons, along with the reality of facing an often tree-lined fairway with sand or water near the edges, I’ve always been a bit intimidated by the driver. But a well-struck driver travels farther than any other arrow in our quiver, and the temptation is huge to use it time and again.

The driver is also the chief weapon/tool of the often-vulnerable golfer’s ego, a fact that club manufacturers have used to their advantage in offering up a new and improved menu of promised distance and forgiveness each year. Their advertising enters our brain like a fresh ball in a pinball machine (anybody remember them?), promising new hope for a longer hit and a better score. Out on the range or at the golf shop’s simulator, there are no trees or water hazards or bunkers to contend with, so you appear invincible as the numbers register obstacle-free distance and accuracy, convincing you that “This is it. This is the baby that’ll change my game. Yep, wrap it up. I’ll take it,” you confidently tell the smiling salesman, who continues to compliment you on how well you swing, attempting to further solidify the sale.

But then you take the behemoth out to the course for its first real spin, and the trees get in your head, along with the water to your right, and … ”Where did that slice come from? The guy in the store said this thing had a draw bias!” And soon you start feeling like Ulysses, drawn to the song of the beautiful, tantalizing Sirens (in this case, your driver), and avoiding certain death on the rocks by plugging his ears with beeswax, and having his men strap him to the mast so they could safely pass and continue on their epic journey. Then having passed the Sirens’ call without heeding their intoxicating song, they would be silenced, as legend has it, and die.

Are present-day drivers and the ad boys’ presentation of their winsome possibilities for game improvement equivalent to the song of the Sirens that tempted Ulysses? Perhaps. Which is why you might want to consider the endangered 3-wood on the tee. I say endangered, because despite Henrik Stenson’s noted proficiency with this long-time weapon, the 3-wood has been increasingly devalued as a viable substitute for the driver off the tee. Why? After all, with its shorter length, it can be more accurate in finding the short grass, which could definitely result in lower scores. Blow a driver into the trees, and one or two shots are lost right then and there. Keep a 3-wood in the fairway, and you restrict your losses to a bogey, and open the possibilities of par on a tight hole.

Of course, we all know why the 3-wood hasn’t caught on with handicappers: loss of distance when compared with the driver. And it’s true: A solidly hit three-wood could result in 20-30 yards less carry than a well-struck driver. But the keyword here is “well-struck.” How often do you strike a driver solidly when compared with a 3-wood?

Now I suggest you do some simple personal research around this issue, for looking at generalized stats from other golfers or even from Iron Byron will be mostly irrelevant to your situation. It’s not just physical factors involved, but mental. With a shorter club and swing, your confidence may increase as you face a fairway where obstacles abound. Take 20 swings on the range with each club and compare the number of solid contacts you make with each. Which club won: the 3-wood or the driver?

Of course, this exercise is only for those who, as I, have struggled with the driver more times than not. If your driver is consistent and works to your satisfaction, keep it in the bag and use it often. But if you depend on a hope and a prayer every time you step up to the tee box, then consider switching to the 3-wood (or 4- or 5-wood, or even 20-degree hybrid) as your club of choice off the tee.

In reality, a well hit 3-wood will go farther and more accurately than a poorly hit driver. Now many handicappers unfortunately are not willing to face this particular reality. Remember Einstein’s definition of insanity: Doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. That’s what the fanatical among us, myself included, do with the driver. We just won’t let go of expecting beyond expectation, into the realm of delusion, different results. Again, I think the ad boys have accomplished their goal of getting into the brains of we unsuspecting, innocent golfers, and conditioning us to the possibility that we may be capable of huge, booming drives smack down the middle of tight fairways, with long hang time, clearing all obstacles, and rolling out to 290, even 300 yards. These are powerful images, honed by watching pros on TV, as well as the occasional Teamster in your foursome who hits the cover off the ball.

But please consider the lowly 3-wood if you are driver-impaired (Mine’s a trusty Ping G10, a freebee from my buddy Rob Wallace. My driver is the great G30, but those turbulators aren’t always my friend). I hesitate to guarantee success, but I almost do with respect to accuracy and enough distance to get you to 150-yard range on most holes (depending how hard the wind’s blowing). You’ll be looking at more at pars and bogeys than doubles and triples. True, you’ll often be hitting your approaches first, but they will be on short grass instead of pine needles, tree roots, and over and under hanging branches that look much nicer from a distance.

Note: In the course of my research on this subject, I’ve stumbled on an interesting side effect to 3-wood use off the tee. As you get more and more proficient with this workhorse club, skill with the driver will improve as well. Why? Confidence increases, and, truly, golf is a game of confidence. I assert that eventually you can move back to the driver for holes where it’s really necessary, such as wide-open fairways without many obstacles like traps or water or whatever else can inch its way into your head and play with your timing. But now you will have a choice: both can be viable and usable clubs under the right circumstances.

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Stephen Altschuler

Stephen has been a freelance writer since 1969. He's written six books, including the award-winning The Mindful Hiker and The Mindful Golfer, a best seller. His book covers all aspects of the game of golf, and can be purchased at local booksellers and online here. Stephen has also written many regional and national articles, and currently blogs at www.mindfulgolfer.com.

40 Comments

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pvisser

Jul 21, 2016 at 9:43 am

You say with a shorter club and shorter swing you confidence will increase. Sure but why would you swing your 3 wood shorter when on the tee? Why not swing your driver shorter then? Problem with the driver is that the large club head tempts you to swing like a madman. The smaller 3 wood does not invite you to do that nearly as much. In my experience a wild swing with a 3 wood gives me bigger disaster hits than an equally wild hit with a driver, probably as it is easier to hit it on the toe or swing under the teed-up ball. But I don’t because the club head is much smaller and the ball closer to the ground.

The length of the shaft can be a bit of an issue – I choke down on the shaft and, as with all clubs, that gives more control. But the biggest point is to swing in control, and you will hit just as many fairways as with your 3 wood.

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Dave

Jul 20, 2016 at 8:55 pm

Yo Uno do you know how far 310 yards really is better check your reader. Love these guys that hit it 300 yards and can’t brake 100.

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Monts

Jul 20, 2016 at 6:57 pm

No truer words have been written.
especially in my case. I have been playing golf for 46 years and was as accurate a driver of the ball as anyone, but have lacked Club head speed to generate distances over 230yds. I wanted more distance.
Since the advent of the super drivers I have lost the straightness and have spent thousands of dollars trying to find the holy grail of Drivers, still without success, this includes many many shafts as well.
What i did purchase 2 years ago was the Galloway 3 deep pro ( skeptical again at that time) This 3 wood has saved me from the fetal position many times over an over again once the driver started misbehaving.
I actually hit it longer and more accurately 90% of the time so I mix and match with my driver all the time.
The issue with me is IF I use the 3 wood all the time it starts reacting the same as the driver figure that one out!!!

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myron miller

Jul 20, 2016 at 5:58 pm

I am very skeptical of using 3-wood all the time to replace driver, especially for older players. Today I played and measured my good drives – avg. 168. hit 11-12 fairways. Two times I used a 3-wood. Averaged off the tee 75 yards off the tee (hit it skyward too often) and no fairways. Off the fairway if I’m lucky i’ll hit 3 wood about 150-155 measured max is 175-180. But really good drive is 200-215 with moderate roll (zero roll today, very very soft fairways.

Have tried 3-wood lots of time and never close. And losing 20-30 yards from 180 is not good and makes holes play even longer than they are.

Back when I was a typical WRXer and hit it a mile, I did use 3 wood a lot on holes less than 350 that were for one reason or another not driveable.

But nowadays, I’ve worked with the driver and hit it not very far but generally always in play. If not, it wouldn’t make much difference with 3-wood as it was super bad swing. Duck hook push slice and I can do that with any club. generally avg 10-11 out of 14 fairways with driver.

And I see a lot of senior golfers that hit it down the middle – not super far but generally always pretty much in play – if not in fairway in first cut or so and usually playable. Anybody can hit it bad with a bad swing but if its generally in the fairway why switch. And I use a 47″ length down from the 48 I used for years. Just because the 48 was too close to max length and depending upon how measured arguments could say it was too long. And 47 gives me a little more breathing room.

Extra length adds a little swing speed that adds a little distance. Just some extra practice gives enough control to keep it generally close to in play.

Besides, as others have said, once you learn how to hit 3-wood off tee consistently, you can generally hit driver pretty good as well. Stenson hits his 3 wood 305. And that’s plenty far for most holes and keeps him out of the trouble that driver could get into if it were much longer. Even for a 500 yard par 4, 305 leaves less than 200 left which is a 5-6 iron and his iron play is superb. So why does he need more length.

Personally if people have trouble with full sized driver, quite often the mini-driver will work better than the 3-wood and is much easier to hit off the tee, I’ve found.

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Ocho Cinco

Jul 20, 2016 at 12:27 pm

Great article. I have seen many golfers starting to hit 3-wood off the tee and become more accurate.

But, what about the Mini Drivers? I have a golf buddy who put his driver away for a while because he couldn’t hit it straight. He switched to hit his 3-wood off the tee on every driving hole and was extremely accurate. Now he bought a mini driver and loves it. I had same issue. Every time I played with him, I would slice my driver on some holes and lose shots to him because he would hit his 3 wood on the fairway. So I decided to try it…I started using my old backup 3-wood (Nike SQ Sumo2 Squared 3-Wood) as a mini-driver and this helped me gain confidence on the tee. I was almost hitting it as far as my driver and definitely straighter. I was even out-driving some of my buddies! Now I am playing with driver, and hit more fairways, but am strongly considering a Mini-Driver! Waiting for Nike to come out with one.

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- Jo
  
  Jul 20, 2016 at 1:04 pm
  
  A mini driver is basically a modern day version of the old steel drivers. The difference is they are titanium heads now, but the CCs are still about the same (330 last time I saw). They also play with a modern 3w length shaft, which surprisingly is the same length old drivers used to be.
  
  The benefit is it can replace a 3w and driver because the loft is usually higher, around 14* or so. The smaller 330cc head makes it easier to hit off the fairway than a driver head at say 430cc, and is why it can replace the 3w as well.
  
  However; if for some reason you can’t hit a mini driver very well, the alternative is to build a better mini driver. Get a 430cc head and use a 43.5″ shaft and you basically also have a mini driver, without the capability of hitting it off the fairway.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Piter
    
    Jul 20, 2016 at 4:26 pm
    
    You are right on Jo. Had thought the same: isn’t a mini driver just a modern version of the smaller sized drivers’ from before? Had not checked the figures so thanks for that. For that matter, modern 3 woods are about the same size as drivers of even longer ago. But likewise with more loft.
    Instead a changing to a shorter shaft on your driver, why not just choke down your grip? It is what I have been doing recently and have been hitting it much straighter. Too good effect, have won 4 out the last 5 longest drives (c-grade) during Saturday comp. Playing with a 10 yr old TM Burner btw.
    
    Reply Report comment
    - jo
      
      Jul 21, 2016 at 6:49 am
      
      I’ve tried choking down before and it just doesn’t feel right for some reason. The only club I can comfortably choke down on is my lob wedge lol. I’m not sure if it is the grip design being tapered or what.
      
      Reply Report comment
Steve Dodds

Jul 19, 2016 at 7:54 pm

Most people hit their driver straighter than their 3 wood.

http://pluggedingolf.com/tee-shot-myth-golf-myths-unplugged/

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Uno

Jul 19, 2016 at 12:27 pm

Oh, and I have NEVER hit my 3 wood farther than my Driver. I wouldn’t know how. My driver is 30 to 40 yards ahead of my 3 wood, even on mishits. And I don’t miss my driver that much. But I definitely don’t get that much out of the 3 wood.
You all should go find a driver and a driver swing that gets you out there. Tee it up high and rip it

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- dos
  
  Jul 19, 2016 at 1:47 pm
  
  It not hard to hit a 3 wood farther than a driver actually. If you hit a driver 200 off the tee on a par 5 and follow it up with a 215 yard hit with a 3 wood, guess what…You just hit a 3 wood farther than a driver….That is the whole point to the article. I’ve even done it with my own clubs.
  
  On a par 5 I ripped a drive 235 yards right down the middle with my driver off the tee. This left me with 265 yards to the hole. I pulled my 3 wood out and smashed the ball again. I hit 246 yards thanks to a downhill roll and wind at my back. So again entirely possible.
  
  I will say this. If you aren’t hitting your driver 20-30 yards further than your typical distance with a 3 wood, than something is off with your driver. My actual typical distance with my driver is around 235-245. With my 3 wood my actual typical distance is 215-225.
  
  I have recorded shots with my driver over 300 yards, and also with drives well under 200 yards. I also have 3 wood shots maxed around 250 and some as low as 80 yards.
  
  Goes to show some truth to the story. You can out hit your driver with a 3w, and on days when the driver isn’t working for you, highly recommended pulling out a 3w.
  
  Reply Report comment
  - Tres
    
    Jul 19, 2016 at 1:56 pm
    
    Cuatro, Cinco, Seis
    
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  - Uno
    
    Jul 20, 2016 at 2:57 am
    
    No, I don’t think I can hit my 3w longer than my driver. I’ve tried. I hit my driver around 310, and no matter how hard I try I can only hit my 3w to about 280, max, down wind with slight downhill into a par 5 with no hazards in front of green and open roll to the pin. Carry’s only about 260 though for that shot. But then I would have hit my driver about 335 with the same wind at my back. I don’t think I’ll hit my 2 hybrid in that situation.
    My distance gaps with all my clubs are where I want them.
    If I reversed the wind, and it’s into me, about the same speed, I would probably hit that drive about 280 max, and the 3w would only go about 250 tops if I get lucky, without to much spin on the hit, which is hard to do since I’m hitting down on it so much.
    
    Reply Report comment
    - Jack
      
      Jul 20, 2016 at 5:45 am
      
      So clearly you’re an excellent player who averages 310 for your driver and 270 for your 3 wood. Congrats. You should really at least be playing on the smaller tours.
      
      Reply Report comment
      - Merde Smizzle
        
        Jul 20, 2016 at 9:47 am
        
        Yeah except that he’s only an average putter. You have to be able to putt well and have an amazing short game to get on Tour. Anybody can hit it far these days. Look at all them college kids
        
        Reply Report comment
      - Kevin
        
        Jul 20, 2016 at 11:22 am
        
        Yea, except he does not. The 3 and the 2 must be backwards on his keyboard
        
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    - Dos
      
      Jul 20, 2016 at 9:14 am
      
      So here in lies the issue with your example. You base everything on max distance.
      
      In a typical round how many times do you hit 310 yards? All 14 drivable holes, 1/2, 1/4, 3/4?
      
      It is very easy to say, yeah I don’t hit my 3w longer than my driver, when you only look at max distance every time. My max distance with a 3 wood is 256 and had a lot of help from a fast green. My max distance with a driver is 311. So clearly I can’t hit my 3w longer than my driver either. But…
      
      On the hole where I snap hook a driver and it goes 189 yards into the trees, yes I can hit my 3w farther. Or the hole where I sky high a ball and hit the turf behind the ball with my driver and get maybe 210 yards. Yes I can hit my 3w farther then too.
      
      Point is, if all you do is look at max distance, yes you should not be able to hit a 3w farther. You have to look at the holes where you miss hit, hook, slice, sky one, top one, hit a tree, etc. That is the point of the article. When your driver is playing like crap, chances are you can hit your 3w farther. Especially if you are not getting pro distance.
      
      Reply Report comment
    - Mr. Wedge
      
      Jul 20, 2016 at 12:26 pm
      
      In my experience people drastically overestimate how far they hit their driver. Everyone who says they can hit it out to 300 if they rip it, usually averages about 250-260. That one time you hit it 300 with a perfect swing, downhill roll, with wind at your back, doesn’t mean you are a 300 yard hitter. My guess is this guy hits it 265-270.
      
      Reply Report comment
      - Jo
        
        Jul 20, 2016 at 1:11 pm
        
        This is very true. I know so many people who play off the theory of max distance as their average distance.
        
        I use a shot tracking device and my longest recorded drive is 311. It had assistance from a cart path and downhill. My average is around 225. My typical, which is a completely different stat, which factors out miss hits is 245. So 3 completely different numbers. My range of distance is 200-311 according to my shot tracking. That accounts for every drive I’ve hit.
        
        Anything under 200 and it considers it a miss hit because it has calculated what distances I hit the most often. I’ll usually have 1 to 2 shots below 200 per round.
        
        Anyways, it goes to show that actual distance can vary greatly. Mine is a 100 yard slide. I know I can expect to get 225-245 with my driver. It is well above my miss hit range, and well below what I’ve maxed out at.
        
        Reply Report comment
cody

Jul 19, 2016 at 12:10 pm

a lot of negativity here. i actually thought it was a good article. yes there is a bit of captain obvious to it, but it was good. lighten up everyone. I dont think anyone gets paid to right these articles they do it for the enjoyment of golf.

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Smitty

Jul 19, 2016 at 10:02 am

Probably the least insightful article I’ve read on WRX.

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Jake Anderson

Jul 19, 2016 at 3:22 am

this article was completely pointless.

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Uno

Jul 19, 2016 at 3:12 am

I enjoy hitting up on the driver. I don’t understand what’s so difficult about hitting these giant heads. I hit my giant driver nice. It’s such an easy club to use nowadays, compared to the tiny headed persimmons or the original metals. You don’t have to hit down and all you have to do is take it off the tee. So forgiving.
Hitting down with the 3 wood is too scary, the shaft’s too long to hit down, it’s so far away from my body I can’t control hitting down on it so good, I’m also one to hit a 3 iron type club than a 3 wood

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Mat

Jul 18, 2016 at 11:41 pm

This is all garbage. All that’s being done here is a more controllable shaft length. This whole post could be summed up with “get a 43.5″ driver shaft”.

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- bingo
  
  Jul 19, 2016 at 1:51 pm
  
  As my name implies…bingo! I recently switched to a 43.5″ shaft that I took directly from my 3w. To make it fair I even took a 5w shaft at 42.5″ and put it in my 3w. Never looked back.
  
  The results will surprise you though. I don’t hit it any farther, but I do hit it a lot more accurate. I have not seen any loss of distance though. I have a ton of shots logged through game golf to back it up. If I just put up my typical distance with my old driver it is 220, with my shorter driver, my typical is 231. However; it has gone up only because I hit less balls short, not because I hit more balls farther. So same distance, but not nearly as many miss hits…
  
  3w has the same results.
  
  Reply Report comment
no3w4me

Jul 18, 2016 at 10:22 pm

I hit my driver so perfectly that no 3 wood ever matches it and I get scared about even pulling it out of the bag, I prefer to hit a 3 iron than a 3 wood

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- that guy
  
  Jul 19, 2016 at 3:26 pm
  
  Yeah I feel ya. I don’t even use a driver. I smash a 1 iron further than I do a driver. Don’t even game a wood now. just 1 iron down….Beast Mode!!!
  
  Reply Report comment
other paul

Jul 18, 2016 at 8:59 pm

Golf balls go so far these days that I don’t even use a 3 wood off the tee anymore. 4i at the most. The farther a ball goes the more offline. I play my best rounds aiming for 100 yards markers.

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Charles

Jul 18, 2016 at 3:02 pm

You can find an “old” driver like SLDR for less than $80. Go by one with 12° loft, cut the shaft to make 43 in total club length. Go play a casual round and discover how is funny to hit every fairway. It worked well for me. With this setup (mine is a SLDR 12, 43 in) I rarely miss a fairway, and my few misses are very playable.

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snowman

Jul 18, 2016 at 2:29 pm

good thought IF you hit 3 wood far enough. I hit my driver about 30 yards farther than my 3 wood, so playing the proper tees for me that’s a lot of ground to give up and on many courses could make several par 4’s barely or unreachable. As you say, if you just cannot hit driver, then great pull the 3 wood, but spend some time finding and practicing with a Driver. It is Very important for your potential as a golfer.

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- Hawks
  
  Jul 19, 2016 at 3:29 pm
  
  This is a great point. I think what the article is trying to point out is that for the average player the driver is really no longer than a 3w. When you consider the average driving distance of a 95s golfer is 200 yards, it really puts things into perspective that yes, you can in fact hit a 3w farther than a driver.
  
  I do agree that everyone needs practice with a driver to get it dialed in. You should be hitting a driver 20+ yards more than a 3w on a typical drive.
  
  Reply Report comment
LISTEN TO ME

Jul 18, 2016 at 2:27 pm

Go get an M2 3 wood! It is incredibly hot! I don’t use driver anymore. Don’t need it!

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- Bofhus
  
  Jul 19, 2016 at 7:24 am
  
  Agreed – the M2 three wood is a game changer. If only it came in the 13* then my (M2) driver might be left behind to collect dust!
  
  Reply Report comment
Steve Barnhurst

Jul 18, 2016 at 2:23 pm

I’ve carried a strong 3 wood for years – 13′ loft, 1.5″ longer than standard and it is my go to club. Great for tight par 4’s when you want a ‘good safe shot’ plus I can get it off the deck when I need to and let’s not forget about first tee nerves with the driver. It’s more forgiving and well hit, is up there with most drivers and not far behind others. Just about to upgrade to the Ping Stretch I think as nothing else out there on the market that appears to come close! right now.

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Scott

Jul 18, 2016 at 12:46 pm

Didn’t this website just have at least one article indicting that you might as well just hit driver, because the average player can’t hit a 3 wood either?
http://www.golfwrx.com/336404/is-your-3-wood-really-more-accurate-than-your-driver-off-the-tee/

Reply Report comment
- Ian
  
  Jul 18, 2016 at 3:21 pm
  
  Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.
  
  Reply Report comment
- ng
  
  Jul 19, 2016 at 3:07 am
  
  You’re too clever for this website, Scott
  
  Reply Report comment
SV

Jul 18, 2016 at 12:16 pm

Until about 10 years ago I used a 2 wood (13*) off of the tee instead of a driver. With the larger heads I was finally able to hit a driver. While I am fairly accurate off of the tee, I am not as accurate as with the 2 wood. Also, with the 2 wood I wasn’t trying to outdrive anyone, thus I made better contact and usually was not that far behind others or even up with them.
The conclusion (mine) is that most people playing the correct tees would be better using either a 12*-13* driver or a strong 3 wood (13*-14*). The smoother swing will result in better contact, getting better distance combined with accuracy.

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Rancho

Jul 18, 2016 at 11:44 am

Not that the message is wrong, but there’s much debate that the quote about insanity was actually from Einstein and the phrasing of your relation of the tale of Ulysses and the Sirens isn’t accurate. Ulysses’ crew plugged their ears with beeswax, but Ulysses was tied to the mast so he could hear their song.

Pedantry aside, there a lot to be said for a shorter club off the tee. I learned that following the Nationwide tour players around Empire Lakes and learning that they rarely took out the driver before the fifth hole.

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