The Joy of Golf

Here at Par3NearMe, we’re all about expanding your knowledge of golf. Whether its swing mechanics, equipment reviews or addressing common questions, our goal is to do everything we can to make you a better golfer.

This, in turn, should lead to more success and joy during each round.

That’s why we’ve acquired two sister sites, https://ltbaygolf.com and https://golfindianrun.com which we are using to educate golfers, help them find tee times, and more.

Our goal is to contribute to your knowledge of golf, while also inspiring the joy of golf in you.

The Philosophical Game

On Par3NearMe we aim to answer all the philosophical and practical questions you might have about the game, and send you out in search of some of the best par 3 golf courses you’ve ever imagined.

While you’re walking or riding from hole to hole on your favorite local (probably Par 3 – we’re just saying) golf course, we know you have a lot of time to contemplate. Arguably, that’s as much a part of the game as the whole “getting the ball into the cup” thing.

That time on the course can leave you with lots of questions, and ultimately, a curious mind about the game is a great thing.

However, too many unanswered questions can lead you to worry, rather than to go with the flow of the game.

Answering Questions

That’s where we come in. We can answer the questions you never quite feel like you can ask your fellow golfers, or like you should ask anyone at all. And we can do it so as to put your mind at ease, and let the joy of golf flow through you.

What kinds of questions are we talking about? Oh, all kinds. For instance, we can tell you everything you ever wanted to know about golf balls but were too embarrassed to ask. We understand it can be difficult to ask those basic questions when you’re new to the game, and by the time you’re no longer new – it’s too late to ask without looking a fool.

To that end, we highlight golf essentials and golf lingo for beginners.

Never fear – no-one’s checking your internet history, so you can find the answers you’ve always wanted to know right here. Answers to questions like whether the golf balls you choose really make a difference to your play or how many golf balls are on the moon or even whether or not all golf balls weigh the same — we help you get right down to the nitty gritty of the game.

What’s the deal with low-compression balls? People keep talking about them, but do they really make your shots travel further, or is that just some clever hype to sell you more expensive golf balls? Find your answers here, and increase the joy in your golf.

Can a clever choice of ball actually help you deal with your slice? Or your slow swing speed?

Do good balls go bad the longer you play with them? Or can the right balls offer you forgiveness when you most need it?

How many golf balls fit in a 5 gallon bucket? Can you buy a commercial golf ball washer to clean balls in bulk? No golf ball topic is off-limits.

We even talk about the short-lived Cayman golf balls and The Best Illegal Golf Balls.

Have you ever wondered how far you can throw a golf ball? Yes, we talk about that too.

Do different balls, in fact, really have the effect on your play that the manufacturers say they do, or is it just so much… well… balderdash? We aim to be your first port of call when you need to know the answers to the questions you don’t feel you can ask – and the questions no-one else will answer for you!

Practical Advice

We also go beyond the marketing hype, and offer you all the practical advice you could need about the right balls to use at every stage of your golfing career, from beginner, through your high handicap years, to becoming a mid-handicap golfer, and finally to the cutting edge of your low-handicap years – if you get there.

Don’t worry if you never do – plenty of golfers find a point at which their joy in the game supersedes the need to shave numbers off their handicap. Golf is a broad church, and it can take both those who want to progress all the way down the handicap slope, and those who, to misquote Mark Twain, just want a good walk, enhanced. So long as you find what it is that brings you the joy of golf, it’s all good.

For the younger folks, we provide some practical wisdom on how to get recruited for college golf.

Golf of course is about far more than your choice of balls or your current handicap – though we’re not above a little celebrity ball gossip, either. Want to know which balls Tiger Woods uses? Look no further, we’ve got you covered.

Golf can be about all sorts of things – from simulators to practice ranges, from golf club carriers to the best golf bags.

Then there is the endless discussion about golf clubs. We start basic with questions like: What clubs should I have in my golf bag?

From there we move into more advanced topics like: Are Callaway clubs good? or Why are Japanese golf clubs so expensive? Our unbiased take on these questions put you in the driver’s seat when it comes to decision making.

We dedicated an entire series to putters, focusing on:

We even discuss the best golf grips and where Golf Pride grips are made.

Never heard of wedge bounce or smash factor? We’ve got you covered.

De-Mystifying Mysteries

We’ll give you tips on everything from getting the most out of your drive off the tee, whether you make that drive with a regulation driver or an iron, depending on the length of the course.

We’ll de-mystify some of the biggest secrets in the repertoire of the club bore. What actually is the difference between forged and cast irons? Does the difference even exist, and if it does, should you spend the time it takes to care? Will it genuinely enhance the pleasure you get from the game, or will worrying about such differences only get between you and the joy of golf?

Do you need a 19 degree hybrid or a 20 degree hybrid? Chances are at least one of these rescue clubs will help you.

But more than just de-mystifying these things, we aim to give you practical advice that can really help you, but that most fellow golfers will assume you already know, and most golfing websites don’t cover.

We even wade into the world of mini golf rules and mini golf outfit suggestions. Once upon a time, some members of our team ran a mini golf course.

How long can you use a golf club before you make a majestic swing one day and find the club head soars off into the distance and the shaft has dissolved into dust or rust, for instance?

Should you be using longer or shorter shafts, according to your height, and have you been mismatched with a club set? You can certainly be sure that a set of clubs that are the right length for you will increase your joy in a day’s golfing, and it will also, quite apart from that, probably improve your stroke and your shot numbers.

Aim for the enhanced joy first, and the numbers will probably follow. But if they don’t you’ll still have had a better time through enhancing your understanding of why some things are the way they are in golf.

Do your irons come with an automatic expiration date? Should you buy new golf clubs each time the manufacturer releases a new set, and if you don’t, will you be missing out on the latest innovations? Or is “FOMO” a case of “fake blues” that stands between you and the joy of golf?

The truth is probably somewhere between the two extremes – just because new clubs come out, there’s no law that says you have to have them immediately (especially if getting them would cause you financial hardship).

But it’s entirely possible that your joy in golf might begin to diminish if every other golfer you know is hitting longer drives, sweeter chip shots, and more dead-eyed putts because they’ve got the newest thing and it’s upgraded their performance.

We even discuss places to sell your vintage golf clubs (feel free to send us a commission).

Golf Carts

It’s hard to discuss the sport without highlighting one it’s best amenities — golf carts. We LOVE golf carts and spend lots of time highlighting them.

If you need some eye candy, check out our galleries:

We also feature the best golf cart batteries so you can zip around the golf course or your neighborhood at full speed.

Latest Debates

We’ll clue you in on the latest debates in the golfing world, too. Golf chippers – what on earth are they, and above all, are they legal and should you get one?! What’s the latest thinking on hybrids, those magical clubs that combine the distance of woods with the precision of irons? Have they gone mainstream in professional golf, and if they have, should you pack your golf bag with them?

We’ll keep you up to date on the new, and advance your understanding of developing issues and controversies across the game. Should this knowledge help you understand more about the game in general and your game in particular, it will probably enhance your joy. If you don’t need these updates to connect with the joy of golf, then by all means, feel free to use us to answer the questions that do help you.

The Best Par 3 Golf In The World

True to our name and our founding principles, we’ll also keep you updated on some of the best Par 3 courses, both around the world, and just around the corner from you. That’s part of our reason for being – to bring you some of the sweetest (and possibly toughest) courses where you could go and play, and to show you some of the most magical Par 3 golf courses around the world, just on the off-chance that you happen to have booked a plane flight to somewhere near them on your summer vacation.

Whether you’re a news-hungry golfer or whether you take a simpler, less info-rich approach to the game, there are very few golfers who can’t connect to the joy of the game by seeing, and trying, some glorious par 3 or executive golf courses. That’s the kind of thing that gets us up in the morning and talking about all things golf.

The Practical Side of Golf

For those golfers with less of a thirst for progression down the handicap, and more of a pragmatic approach to their thoughts – we’re here for you too. Ever wondered whether you can drive your golf cart off the course and down the freeway like a golfer without a cause? We have. And because we have, we can tell you everything you need to do to turn that dream into a reality, and increase the level of joy you find in golf and the way of life it inspires.

Got a golfing buddy with a birthday coming up and want to increase their joy of golf? Not a problem – we’ve been out and found you some of the best gifts a golfer can get for under $50, so you can be the friend they need without wasting good golfing hours searching for just the right gift.

Heck, if times are tough right now or you’re saving up for the flight to one of the world’s best Par 3 courses, we’ve even shaved a cool 40 bucks off your gift options, so you can get them the best gift they’ll get for under $10. Who said economy and the joy of golf could never coexist?

If you play in rainy weather, we have some suggestions for waterproof golf shorts.

The Fun Of Golf

And for those days when the joy of golf mostly involves a bit of fun with friends, we’ve got you covered there too. Fancy pranking a pal with a golf cart? On the strict understanding that we don’t endorse any of these ideas, we can give you some clues on how to make the most of your opportunities.

We can even up your style game with some of the funniest golf gloves on the market.

April Fool’s Day your favorite day of the year? Want to add a little joy of golf to both your day and the day of a prankable pal? How do (safely) exploding golf balls sound to you? We can hook you up.

Or if you or your pals can’t get to the golf course on a day when you really want to, you can keep the joy of golf alive and shared between you, by sending your buddies a well-timed golfing meme or dropping a goofy golf knock-knock joke. Raise a smile, connect it with the game of golf, and before you know it, all your days are better and you’re making plans to meet up for a round at the next available opportunity.

The joy of golf will mean different things to different golfers. That’s part of the wonder of the game. At Par3NearMe, we hope to be a portal that will connect you to your joy of golf – whatever it means to you.