In golf having the right gear for your game is crucial. In blogging having the right keyboard is just as crucial. Okay maybe I’m being a little too dramatic in my opening. How about this as another option: I just got a new full sized keyboard from MacAlly and it is really cool.
Top: lighted room Bottom: same keyboard in darkeess
I’ve been a Mac user for many years. Decades in fact. I no longer use desktop machines. I have a MacBook Pro on a shelf on my desk, and two larger monitors on each side. It’s a three-monitor setup. I use an external keyboard and mouse as the MacBook Pro keyboard is too far away and too high.
For a few weeks now I’ve been using this new MacAlly backlit full size keyboard. Typing with it is super smooth. I love the feel of the keys and even the sound they make. Similar to golf, “feedback” from a golf club is part feel, part sound. The same with this keyboard.
Feaatures
The backlighting feature is nice. In the dark the keys and numbers illuminate very well. The look is super cool:
There’s a button on the upper right that allows the user to turn off the backlighting.
The key layout is the same basic layout as a standard Apple keyboard, but some of the key graphics are a little different. There are 16 shortcut keys for one-touch control of applications and other functions.
The keypad is a 17-key numeric.
The USB cable is nice and long, 150cm. This is quite convenient for my setup.
Final Thoughts
If you’re a Mac user and need a keyboard, I’d check out MacAlly’s offerings, specifically the Backlit Full Size USB Keyboard ($59). The key action is smooth and sounds great. Typing is a breeze and easy on the fingers. The key sensitivity is perfect. No false strokes. The backlighting feature is a nice visual.
Last weekend I could have sworn I saw the guy in the group in front of us chugging beer from his driver. I caught up with them and sure enough, the dude has some kind of golf driver beer keg.
I’m continuing with my reviews of all the tremendous courses at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort with Pacific Dunes Golf Course. Pacific Dunes opened in 2001 and was designed by one of golf’s best modern designers, Tom Doak. I’ve grown to be a big fan of Tom Doak’s work and I’ve experienced a good number of his courses, from Ballyneal in Holyoke, Colorado to The Loop at Forest Dunes in Michigan.
Pacific Dunes Overview
Pacific Dunes is par-71 18-hole course which tips out at 6,633 yards from the Black tees. There are four other sets of tees for golfers of varying skill level, age and gender. The shortest Orange tee is a tad over 5,000 yards. Course slope from the Black tees is 142 with a course rating of 73.0.
The golf course is located along miles of beautiful shoreline amongst natural dunes that link the ocean to the inland. Links. Add the challenging course rating to Pacific Northwest winds that would make Scotland proud. Then mix in a tremendous landscape of dunes and you have a serious but aesthetically stunning test of links style golf.
Tee
Shotmaking from the tees at Pacific Dunes requires strategy, execution, grit and sometimes a little luck. Placing tee shots in the proper positions in the fairway will lead to better looks at the green or next target. Many of the bunkers and undulations of the fairway are slightly hidden or masked from the tee. The landing areas may look small from the tee but properly placed shots will have plenty of room.
Pacific Dunes par-3 11th
Strategy in terms of aiming points and club selection is crucial to avoid catching well placed fairway bunkers, natural hazards, dunes, and native areas.
Fairway
The fairways at Pacific Dunes are hard and fast. They offer up fairly wide landing areas, but are guarded by bunkers and well placed natural features. Outside the fairway is not a recommended place to go, especially with the large gorse bush areas. Yes gorse. When looking out at the gorse and the terrain from the fairway I could swear I’m in Scotland.
Approaching the greens from the fairway is challenging. Often the golfer must make an educated guess as to how much a particular shot will release and place the approach to the proper point. This landing spot could be on the front of the green for a middle to back pin, or even 20-30 yards short of the green for shots that will have a lot of release.
Green
In true links fashion and just like the Old Course in St. Andrews, it is difficult to tell where the fairway ends and the green begins. I love this type of golf.
Putting at Pacific Dunes is a thrill. Each green’s undulations present a solid challenge for the golfer in picking the proper line and speed. It’s also easy to get careless and putt it onto a wrong tier, or even off the green and down to a collection area. Even worse, I saw a few putts go off into bunkers.
Don’t get me wrong though. The greens aren’t too penal or severe. A good putter (like I consider myself) can navigate most any position in two putts.
The collection areas around the putting surfaces give the golfer the option to putt, chip or pitch. Putting worked best for me in terms of distance control and shot difficulty but there were some occasions where I had to fly the ball over a bunker. A high level of concentration is needed in those situations, due to the hard greens and the hard ground beneath the ball.
Strategy
Some holes tempt the golfer to go for it, like the short 316 yard par-4 6th. On one of my rounds on Pacific Dunes, going for it worked. I missed the green short right and put a nice lob wedge close to the pin where I made a satisfying birdie.
Another super fun short par-4 is the 338 yard 16th. On one round I had a hard left-to-right helping wind from the tee. I blasted my driver over the corner and rode the wind to about 20 yards from the green. From there I didn’t even use a wedge. I putted from the fairway to the green, as is almost always an option.
Even short game shots around the putting surfaces can require quite a bit of strategy and creativity, not to mention a lot of help from flat out skill! Check out the video below from the par-3 11th.
Above: John Retzer (GolfBlogger.com) plays a nice hybrid down the slope from the back right of the green. Then John Duval (intothegrain.com) hits a tremendous bunker shot from the right bunkers. And don’t forget to notice the ocean view. Fantastic.
Amenities
Pacific Dunes is part of Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. The resort offers hundreds of acres of golf over six world class courses. Supporting those courses is terrific lodging, food and beverage, spa, hiking, and more.
Bandon Dunes Lodge
The practice areas at the resort are fantastic. The customer service at the practice areas, specifically my new friend Melanie Bowman, is unmatched.
Final Thoughts
Pacific Dunes is pure golf. It is golf the way it was meant to be: Walking only. No cart paths. Hard and fast. Aesthetically stunning. Physically and mentally challenging. Rewarding. Memorable.
Pacific might just be my favorite course at Bandon Dunes Golf Resort. But picking a favorite there is like picking the best out of five courses that rank at an 11 on a 1-10 scale.
Fortunately I live in a high desert area of northern Utah, not Florida. Our humidity level is minimal, when it is high. Only a couple of times per year after precipitation will I find myself sweating enough that I can see the moisture on my arms, feel it in my hands or, well you know where this is going. That said, I’m about to begin “testing” out a new apparel product to Hooked on Golf Blog: SwampButt Underwear.
SwampButt isn’t just a name. There’s technology behind their garments. The fabrics provide moisture wicking (removing moisture from the wearer) via polyester and lycra fibers in the boxers, and cotton and lycra in the briefs.
Stay tuned for the full HOG review soon. Pray for high humidity and high temperatures so I can get the perfectly “ripe” conditions for the review.
Anyone who has followed me on social networks is well aware of my struggles with my short game. I’m a solid putter, decent driver of the ball, okay iron striker… But if I miss a green my short game is often not strong enough to save par. I’ve been as low as 10-20% on my save percentage. That’s not going to get it done. When you miss a bunch of greens that can only add up to a bunch of bogeys or worse. I’ve worked hard to improve the short game this year, and I’ve made improvement. Part of my recent improvement includes the Indi Golf StingRayTT ScoopBack lob wedge.
Indi Golf StinRayTT ScoopBack
There are numerous technologies which make the StingRayTT unique. First off the face is milled with “traction grooves.” These grooves run the entire length of the club face. For some reason I often hit my chips on the toe and the grooves which extend into that area really help with distance control.
“Friction surface” is another face feature which adds more grip and control. The surface helps prevent the ball sliding up the face and promotes more spin.
ScoopBack technology provides forgiveness by varying the face thickness and moving the weight to the perimeter. There is quite a bit of mass moved from the center of the head to the upper toe area. That mass in the upper toe helps provide distance and control on off-center shots and shots where the golfer is opening the wedge up (flops).
In order to keep the visual appearance of the wedge attractive the wedge features a “spoiler line.” The top-line of the club is beveled so the thickness of the ScoopBack looks natural when standing over the ball.
Specs
The StingRayTT lob wedge I tested is a 60 degree model. The lie is 64 degrees with 8 degrees of bounce. The club length is 35 inches and finished swing weight is a D5. Graphite shaft options include ProjectX ZL 6.0 (stiff), 6.0 (regular), and 3.5 (women/senior).
Shafts
Two shafts are available with the StingRayTT. Steel options include the KBS 120 wedge shaft (stiff) and KBS 110 (regular).
Grip
The included grip is a Golf Pride Tour Velvet. Quite adequate.
On The Course
I’ve enjoyed gaming the StingRayTT. On shots from about 90 yards and closer the TT is most often my weapon of choice. Full swings in that 90 yard range fly high and straight, and have a ton of spin. I have to be sure to carry the shot all the way or even past the landing area to account for backspin.
Chipping with the TT is terrific. The super grip the face provides gives me more spin and distance control. I can open the TT up and hit high flops which land softly, or close the face down and pinch a running shot. All good.
One big and great surprise I found with the TT is bunker play. The 8 degree grind is perfect for my sand game. I’m able to blast out very good shots from green side bunkers in varying sand, from soft fluffy to hardpan. Getting out of bunkers is as easy as it has ever been for me.
Final Thoughts
The Indi Golf StingRayTT ScoopBack lob wedge offers numerous technologies not found in big brandname wedges which provide excellent forgiveness and control. Checck out Indi Golf’s offerings before you pull the trigger on your next wedge purchase.
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