Since my last trip to the golf course, the weather has been rather cold and snowy. With not much to do because of Covid, one spends a great deal of time online visiting club reviews and researching new equipment. There sure is a lot of eye candy out there!
Well, I keep my clubs back in our home office... I just appreciate having them around. The old blades are starting to look a little tattered with the worn grips from hours of time at the practice range and my net setup outback. Even my newer set of clubs are starting to look a little tired. And yes, I started thinking about replacing one or the other set of clubs, all because they aren't new any longer. They still perform well however and I think I was just looking at all the nice neat new stuff! Not because any new equipment is really going to improve my game much. So, I got to thinking about why I was even looking at new equipment. "Isn't there something I could do to make the equipment that I currently own new and exciting again?" The answer is certainly yes... So I began a quest to make my old stuff look and feel new again!
The first thing I did was give all of my clubs a thorough cleaning. I'm not talking about setting my clubs in a bucket of water and hoping they come clean. I'm talking toothbrush clean! This gave me a chance to really examine my clubs up close and personal to make sure every grove looks its best and is its sharpest. I even polished them for the first time in some time. Then I set them aside for a day or two... Mistake. I went right back to club reviews...
This time however I started watching reviews on club refreshing, including grip maintenance and replacement. Grip replacement is something I use to do religiously! Yearly as a matter of fact. Easy enough, I ordered new grips, not just any grips, grips that I had wished I'd bought when I originally ordered my clubs and never had put on even with other grip changes (I'm a bit cheap at times I guess). I've always loved cords and that's what I ordered.
It took a better part of a week for the new grips to get here and this gave me a chance to get all my regripping equipment put together, including a new hook-bladed razor knife for cutting the grips off my clubs Be careful with razors my mother use to tell me! There's a story here that I might share in a moment...
The day the new grips arrived was like Christmas! Twenty-six new grips, a thirty pack of grip tapes, and some solvent - what more could a boy ask for! Now it's been a while since I've done my own regripping, done lots in the past but it's been a while. I still have my technique and everything, but it's been a while... and my new hook-bladed razor knife, well it's new. The last thing my wife said to me before I got started was and quote "Bob, you should wear gloves while working with that knife!", to which I totally ignored. Bad mistake, I should have listened. With the first cut to remove the first grip, I managed to slice my finger to the bone. I totally don't know how my finger got in the way of that knife? Anyway, the next thing I did was to humbly run into my wife's women's cave with my hand spewing blood and politely asked if she could help me out with a couple bandaids!
The moral of the story is - always listen to your wife and, always wear gloves when cutting off grips!
Once I got patched up, I continued and think I regrip every club we own. Yes, including the wife's clubs and yes, with a sliced-up finger.
So, where was I? Oh yes, making my clubs feel fresh and new again... I can honestly say that all the work and enjoyment of refreshing my golf clubs have worked in giving me a fresh opinion of the equipment I already own. I don't think either set of my clubs is going anywhere except the golf course for some time to come. The look and feel of my equipment are great. I saved a ton of money and appreciate what I already have more than ever. Until next time... Don't attempt to cut your finger off and try a refresh instead of giving in to that urge to buy new equipment.
