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It’s the second trip of the THP Event series called Shaft Up with UST Mamiya in 2022. For those that have missed the previous years, Shaft Up is a series of 3 events on the THP Forum where lucky forum members win a full fitting, golf at amazing course, new equipment and oh yeah, it is all 100% free including airfare. This year trip 2 is being held at Victoria National and it is going to be an amazing follow.
Shaft Up #3 contest is coming soon. Check out the details here and you could win one of these amazing trips.
Before getting ahead of ourselves however, Shaft Up #2 is coming next week and just because you will not be at Victoria National with Danny Le from UST Mamiya, and myself, does not mean you cannot win an amazing prize.
How to Enter Two THP Forum Members are heading to Indiana to get fit by into the new Callaway Rogue ST driver along with a premium UST Mamiya Shaft. Then they will be playing as a twosome against Danny and myself. Those forum members are @montantk and @qwkz51
Step 1: Post below and include the following information.
Who will win the match? To make things even, we will be giving up a stroke per hole except par threes in match play. What is your current driver? What shaft is in your current driver? What is your favorite UST Mamiya driver shaft?
Step 2: Follow along with this Live Update Thread and see if you were right and if you are the lucky winner. The updates will kick off below beginning with travel.
The Prize: We have a killer THP Prize Pack filled with amazing goodies going out to the lucky winner of the contest!
If you like our weekly contests, make sure you share them across the social media platforms below and check back each day for more new exclusive THP content.
Entries must be submitted by Sunday June 12th at 11:59pm ET. The winner will be chosen randomly from those that guessed right. Please remember only one entry per person.
Danny saying to get after it caught my attention. I struggled in my fitting because I fear a hook like you wouldn’t believe. I need to get back to that because I hit the straightest, longest bombs I can remember with Danny prodding me to really get after it. A side benefit was knowing that shaft could take whatever I could dish out and it didn’t feel much different. Controlled or full throttle, the Lin-Q Black just felt the same. It’s nice knowing that there won’t be any surprises with the shaft regardless of how I swing it. I’m working my way to 13/14 UST Mamiya shafts in my bag. I get along well with them, but it’s such a slippery slope.
I agree and it makes sense. Obviously not everyone can swing 120+ but why not swing at our max and see what works. I’d have to imagine you’re a lot better off taking a softer swing with something that was meant for a faster swing and swinging harder with a shaft meant for a slower swing
Due to excitement I was up around 5:30. Stayed in bed for a little bit to catch up on the posts and got ready for the day ahead. For those wondering, there were no plungers needed the rest of the trip. I knew that this was going to be an awesome day but @DannyLe and @JB exceeded my expectations. The morning started out pretty normal with a few shanked wedges on the range. There was some playful banter going back and forth but I could not wait to step on that first tee. We headed over to the putting green for a bit. I wish I took a picture but every morning there is a small 4 ball pyramid near each pin for those who want to warm up. I thought this was pretty cool. We finally headed to the first tee and @Qwkz51 and I could barely contain our excitement. Truth be told, I don’t really remember my tee shot. I do believe I ended up in the left rough and it was my first experience with how bad that rough actually was. I tried hitting a 6i and it just swallowed the club. We played a mock match with no strokes and it was not Hot Plungers day. We had some drivers that weren’t really working for us and that is not a course you want to be struggling off the tee. Despite all the lost balls, it never took away from how amazing the course truly was. I also still don’t think that the course is too hard. I think it’s a perfectly balanced test of skill. A high handicapper probably will have a tough time breaking 100 but that’s how it should be at a course like this. After baking in the heat, I went back to the cottage to change before lunch. I think the best thing about the lunch menu was just how simple it was. A handful of items that weren’t overly filling but tasted excellent. This is going off tangent but the whole dining experience there reminds me of a book Anthony Bourdain wrote where he talks about good food only needing 2-3 quality ingredients. Everything on the menus there was simple yet perfectly prepared. Now back to golf…We sat down with the pro who was an awesome guy, we talked about the course, what Dormie Network is all about, and some personal golf stuff. In the back of my mind part of me couldnt wait for lunch to wrap up so we could go to the fitting. @Qwkz51 was up first. He went through a couple of combos with Danny but I think the heat was getting to him and I don’t blame him. It was hot and sticky outside. An overnight rest was all he needed because his driver looked REALLY good on Tuesday. I wouldn’t be surprised if his gains surpassed mine because he has some speed behind the club. I stepped up to the plate and hit a few warm up drives. The spin was like that of a 5 iron which was killing me. @DannyLe is so good at what he does that the first ball I hit with the first combo dropped spin by probably 1500rpm and I picked up 30 yards of carry. After that ball I knew the Lin-Q black was the shaft. It felt very stable and it didn’t feel heavy at all despite being almost 20g heavier than what I’m used to. What really got my attention too was that Danny wanted me to really get after the ball and I think that makes a huge difference. We all want distance off the tee so why is it that most fitters would rather fit you into something with a more controlled swing and then just let you try and hit bombs after the shaft has been picked? Why not check both boxes with the shaft? Needless to say, I think UST Mamiya is going to make its way into a few other clubs in my bag. After the fitting, Hot Carl and I went out on the back 9 to practice for the match the next morning. We got to hole 12 and the hole wrapped around a pond with water and bunkers lining the left side of the hole almost all the way to the green. To cover the bunkers you were looking at probably a 260-270 carry. I decided to take them on because one more lost ball wouldn’t hurt me (thanks JB) and to my amazement, I covered it! Had I taken that line earlier, I wouldn’t have even had a chance. We ended up playing to 14 and the heat got the best of us so we went back in and cleaned up for dinner. We sat in the cottage talking about our initial reactions to our fittings and discussing what was ahead. After an hour or so we headed to dinner and the forbidden rice made it onto 3/4 of our plates. I can’t stress enough how good it was. I ended up going with a pork chop, JB got the burger, Danny got crab cakes (those need to be talked about more), and Hot Carl got the ribeye. Once again it was another immaculate dinner. If I’m not mistaken, I believe that’s when the BuffaloPlunger was given wings on the forum. Until the day I die, I will proclaim my innocence when it comes to who clogged the toilet. After dinner we ended up heading back to the cottages and called it an early night. I was in bed when I heard Hot Carl talking about some sewer alarm going off. I couldn’t really hear it but I did hear him mention that the plunger might be the culprit. Had JB or Danny been in his room I might have been?? I went to bed knowing that there would be big shoes to fill. By the end of day 2, I probably could have been talked into becoming a member because Dormie Network is the sh*t (this message has been approved by BuffaloPlunger).
I’m about to hop on my flight home so day 3 and maybe a brief day 4 will come later tonight
So awesome to see serious gains from the fitting and immediately being able to go and get after it on that tee shot on hole 12.
That’s always a test for me. I want to be able to take an aggressive line with confidence and with this fit I can. When we played 18 yesterday I took on the water and carried it with ease. I wish I would have shot the distance but this was my approximate line
The test for me is being able to take on an aggressive line with confidence and with this fit I can. I took on a similar line on 18 and covered it with ease. Here’s the approximate line I took
That is great! Yeah, I’d be going for that nicer looking patch way to the left.
I’m commenting as I catch up, so forgive the out of order conversation. Caught up on day 1 last night and enjoyed seeing the custom ball marker gift from @Qwkz51, the cabins, and the short game access + shenanigans. Yes, this is a Driver oriented Shaft Up event, but I love see such a cool practice green and people enjoying it.
Next up, as I dive into Day 2, had to comment on this picture of Hole 2. WOW. That looks so good!
Next up, as I dive into Day 2, had to comment on this picture of Hole 2. WOW. That looks so good!
This reminds me! Thanks again @Qwkz51 for the custom ball marker!! The story of it is super cool and I’m definitely going to use it in my rounds! It also happens to be Bills colors?
So cool! I didn’t know there was more than one, that’s even awesome-er.
Fun to hear you relive it and include some more tidbits of your experience. Well done ??
Was that line the first or second ball ?
OK, the Par 3’s on the Front 9 are officially outstanding and comment worthy. This is stupendous. Those knolls and approach . #5 with the water was pretty tasty too. Wow oh wow.
Shhhhhhhhh I topped the first one
The par 3s were the best I’ve ever played. Words can’t describe how fun this course is. The course tour doesn’t do the knolls any justice. Some of them are just massive
In fairness, were there ANY holes that weren’t exceptional?
None at all. Never once did I look at one of those holes and think it had a poor design. Every single intentional hazard such as bunkers and strategic tree placements was in play. When none of that was present then you had the pressure to hit a perfect shot or else you would end up on a hillside…see ya ball, or in water
Awesome match!!! I knew the JB/Danny pick would be correct sooner rather than later. ? Way to get the W!
Such a brutal and beautiful course (Breautiful? ?)
The fittings (and photos) by @DannyLe were amazing as usual!
Congrats to @BuffaloPlunger and @Qwkz51 for getting to enjoy such a special experience!
If I ever get lucky enough to go to a Dormie Network course, I’m going HAM in the pro shop. You guys got some awesome gear.
As I close the browser tab, my brain is saying: As much as I enjoyed reading all these posts, these SOBs made me google “hot Carl“ – W T F ??????
Awesome match!!! I knew the JB/Danny pick would be correct sooner rather than later. ? Way to get the W!
Such a brutal and beautiful course (Breautiful? ?)
The fittings (and photos) by @DannyLe were amazing as usual!
Congrats to @BuffaloPlunger and @Qwkz51 for getting to enjoy such a special experience!
If I ever get lucky enough to go to a Dormie Network course, I’m going HAM in the pro shop. You guys got some awesome gear.
As I close the browser tab, my brain is saying: As much as I enjoyed reading all these posts, these SOBs made me google “hot Carl“ – W T F ??????
At this point I’m convinced @JB doesn’t sleep. Woke up around 6 and got ready for the day ahead. We were all up pretty early so before we headed to the range we dropped some stuff off at the cars to get ready for departure. Once everything was squared away we headed to the range for @Qwkz51 fitting. It was a night and day difference. He was hammering the ball and the flight was REALLY good. I think @DannyLe had the Lin-Q black in it but also threw the blue in his bag to fiddle with. His drives came up huge during the match. The first 3 holes didn’t go as planned. We had a tough start on 1 and then recovered on 2. The only issue was Danny hit an absolute dart and made the putt for birdie and we ended up with net par. 3 was also really tough but I wasted a good drive and we made it in for net bogey. On the front we were giving it a good fight and then the unthinkable happened. I have a short putt to get us to down 2 and I ended up 4 putting! It wasa nightmare. I think the highlight of the front, and maybe the whole round, was Hot Carl nearly chipping in for eagle which would have been a net 1! He came up huge for team HawtPlunger! The back 9 was going really well. We battled to get to 1 down and then we got to 16… On the first round of tee shots, nobody had a ball in play. The wind was calm but it must have been breezy higher up because everyone’s ball, except JBs, kept getting pushed out left. On the second round it was the same story but Danny found a bunker so we conceded and went Dormie. We rolled up to 17 and I was up first. I hit a good drive but pulled it a little right and ended up in the water. Carl hit a short one but was in. JB was in a bunker and Danny piped one in the fairway. We needed a miracle but sadly neither of us could muster up the shot. After some short deliberation, we conceded the match. It ended up working out because Danny was able to catch and earlier flight! For those who dont know, Evansville airport is tiny and security is only open in the morning and even so if you arrive to early you have a looooong wait in the lobby. Hot Carl and I stayed to have lunch and I grabbed a shirt from the pro shop. After lunch we said our goodbyes and he dropped me off at the airport.
@Qwkz51 was a hell of a partner and we were able to feed off of each other. It wasn’t often that we both had a bad hole. Hot Carl is just an all around great dude and I hope we can partner up in another event!! I can’t wait to hear about the progress in your game no that you’re bombing that driver! I know you say you don’t have the speed you once had but I think you’re selling yourself short!
@JB and @DannyLe I can’t thank you guys enough for bringing me along on my first experience and giving me some amazing gear at a world class golf course. THP is an amazing community and UST Mamiya is the real deal. It’s certainly not going to be my last shaft from them. This was truly the experience of a lifetime
As for Dormie Network and Victoria National, it feels like it’s golf as it’s meant to be played. The whole philosophy of the club is being able to go out and have a good time with your buddies and not really worrying about your score. They have spared no expense to give their members and guests a world class experience that makes you want to keep coming back. The best part is that you essentially have the property to yourself and you don’t need to follow a schedule. If you want to play a few holes and skip around, you can do just that. Want to go to 16 after dinner and just hit balls there until the sun sets? You can do that. To me, that’s what golf should be. Just going out and having fun without worrying about rules or packed courses. Victoria National is a bucket list course and it is easily my favorite course that I have played.
Shaft Up #2 was an absolute blast. I hope I get to play with you guys again in the not so distant future. I can’t wait to follow along for #3!
I already said it, but you and @Qwkz51 did a great job bringing us along for the 3 days. You guys played some solid golf on a tough course and put up a good fight to the end.
You are not alone. Now I’m hearing fighting on arrival, fighting for survival in my head.
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