I hate trial and error when it comes to spending money. I much prefer unbiased golf equipment reviews to make my purchasing decisions. I've even been known to whip out my iPhone and use its web browser to look up a product review while I was in a pro shop. This has often saved me from wasting money on a product that wasn't right for me.

But where do you look and how can you tell what's biased and what's unbiased? And where to find a good site? Things have changed over the past 15 years. Back then, email was a productivity tool and not an exercise in frustration with all the spam. Likewise, websites gave you actual information whereas today half of them are a canned paragraph of useless text and a barrage of obnoxious ads.

My ideal golf website is created and run by a true golfaholic. Somehow who knows the game inside out, yet also knows how to write and run a website. The site would explain the game of golf, describe all the equipment needed for golf, contain tips and resources on how to improve your game, and so on. It'd include factual information about the game, historic tidbits, as well as plenty of straightforward reviews of golf clubs, golf shows, and golf carts. I want to learn why today's golf balls go farther and why they are so much easier to control. And I want to know, how in experts' unbiased opinion, balls from Maxfli, Titleist, Nike, Callaway and others differ.

Yes, I know; you can read about all this in magazines and there certainly are enough golf commercials and ads out there. But just knowing that leading golfers uses Ogio or Burton golf bags or some advanced Ping hybrid doesn't help me much. I am not Tiger Woods or Ernie Els. I just want to know how well golf bags, golf carts, golf shoes or golf club work for me. I don't need the hype. I just want the facts.

To give you one example of what I am looking for. I do believe in training aids. I am not a golfing natural and I need all the help I can get. But I also don't want to waste money on stuff that doesn't work. So why should I not benefit from the knowledge and expertise of someone who has tried it all? For example, I had no idea how the LeaderBoard Golf Trainer worked. But I found a detailed description on a golf site and now I know all about it. That doesn't necessarily mean I'll buy it, but now I know what it is.

Another technology I've become interested in is golf GPS. You can buy those at discount stores, but I wanted to know how they work and where they fit into my game. Once again, an online golf equipment review website came to the rescue. It's just invaluable to have an expert describes a technology, how it can help you, and then point you in the right direction.

Do sites like the ones I described above have to completely non-commercial? I don't think so. Everyone deserves fair compensation for their work and if a really good golf equipment review site has links to stores and sites the author has had good experiences with, that's fine with me. I'd rather buy from a place that comes highly recommended.