The OS Golfer's Thread!

[pietasterp]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

The greens were too severe and the choice of the grasses probably was a mistake. I don't know what you can grow out there but I don't think every course looks quite like that. Too many shots which appeared to be well struck and on the mark ended up too far from the hole. All that said the scores weren't all that much different from a tough Open setup.

Apparently, bent grass or newly laid fine fescue works just fine. Or, just having poa greens (as a lot of west coast courses do) is apparently fine. I think it was just the mix of fescue and poa that caused most of the problems with green-to-green consistency.

The USGA is caught between a rock and a hard place. With the clubs shafts and balls as good as they are today I guess you have to trick up a course and make it play close to 8,000 yards to test most of the young lions out there.

At some point the USGA is going to have to get over the fact that their champion isn't going to be shooting par.

I don't think it's a problem to have Even or somewhere around that score be the winning score, even with today's technology. If I recall correctly, I think Justin Rose won 2 years ago at Merion with +1, so it's not about distance (Merion is tiny). Actually, if you think about it, the longer you make the course, the more it favors the power hitters. If you want to keep up with technology (or eliminate it from the equation completely), you should set the courses up shorter so that it provides no real advantage to be able to hit it 345 off the tee. For example, a 445 yd par 4 with a hard dogleg at the 300-yd mark basically eliminates the difference between a guy who hits it 350 off the tee and a guy who hits it 290.

I think the issue is how that winning score is achieved: if the course is playing with tight fairways, greens are rolled to pavement levels of speed, and the rough is grown out to be extremely penal, to me that's legitimate. But if you artificially gerrymander a tailor-made tournament course so that you're manufacturing even par rounds based on the gimmicks, well, that seems less legitimate to me.

[N51_rob]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

USGA has the formula already for tough US Opens....Narrow fairways and punishing rough. Oakmont in 2007 (using it because it will host the 2016 US Open) was tough as hell for the pros. +5 was the winning score. It will be very interesting to see what the USGA does there. We will be 9 years removed and technology will be vasty superior to what it was in 2007. But Oakmont played to 7,200 yards as a par 70. It will be very interesting to see what it looks and plays like next year.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I think the issue is how that winning score is achieved: if the course is playing with tight fairways, greens are rolled to pavement levels of speed, and the rough is grown out to be extremely penal, to me that's legitimate. But if you artificially gerrymander a tailor-made tournament course so that you're manufacturing even par rounds based on the gimmicks, well, that seems less legitimate to me.

Yeah, that's what I was getting at. They can set it up tough, but sometimes things like 2011 will happen and they just have to accept it rather than opening up the precedent of making a custom-made circus.

[Skyboxer]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

FINALLY getting out! Monday 11:30 am tee time. My bud is done with school for a few months so there should be plenty of golf between now and then.

Rain should be all done by late this evening.

I do however have to get gutters cleaned out today ..... said I was going to get that done for 2 weeks now..

[pietasterp]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

FINALLY getting out! Monday 11:30 am tee time. My bud is done with school for a few months so there should be plenty of golf between now and then.

Rain should be all done by late this evening.

I do however have to get gutters cleaned out today ..... said I was going to get that done for 2 weeks now..

Ha...I think you're the first guy in history who regrets procrastinating on a chore around the house, and then had it come back to bite them in the rear when they wanted to go out golfing...

[speels]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Went out on Saturday and shot 77, which is pretty good since I am am 11 factor.
For the first time in my life I had 2 eagles. Chipped one from just off the fringe on a par 5 and then made a 20 foot downhill right to left breaker. Thing is, I missed a 3rd one earlier in the round when I left it about 3 inches short.

I did have the usual 2 doubles and a triple though. If I could ever get consistent.

[Skyboxer]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Golf... golf...golf... lol

Played what I know was the best round ever and score doesn't show it.
Well it sort of does as I shot what was already my best round ever of an 85.

It was pretty crowded so we go paired up to other guys. 1 older gent and a 17 year old who actually has an uncle I work with (Small world)

Anyways my whole game was rather good except for 2 holes that cost me.
Front 9 I had an 8 on the card (par 5) and back 9 I had a 7 (par 4)...

Overall I shot: (Course was a par 70)
Par 3's +1
Par 4's +10
Par 5's +4

Lost 1 ball (the 8 blow up) after a horrendous hook. Irons were manageable and overall I gave myself chances.
Did make 1 birdie... yay Lol.

If I just shoot bogeys on the 2 blowups I get an all time low of 81

Just need to sure up a couple hiccups and eliminate the blowups.
Was a great fun day though. I got some serious sun..... I'll feel that later.

[N51_rob]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

That was my last round Sky. Two birdies, was striping my driver, killing my long irons and the putter was in the zone. Naturally the short irons were AWOL. Two birdies and lots of edge burning putts.

It was the best my swing felt all season, just had no feel with the short irons.

[msuduo]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

39-45-41 for 27 holes yesterday. Only the 2nd time out on the course this year. Just don't have the money to play like I want.

4-5 chunk shots are killing me. I have no idea how to duplicate my good shots. I once thought I would never break 80 again, but after yesterday I know I will. Just a matter of time.

Sent from my SGH-M919 using Tapatalk

[Matt10]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Looking forward to playing this Friday at the crack of dawn, then again Saturday. I shot 84 this past Saturday, which is the best round of the year so far.

I said screw it on teaching methods, etc - and went back to my own rotational version of swinging the club. It's a swing that got me to a 5 hcp when I started playing, and was able to compete in several tournaments from the tips.

The search/thirst for more power took over and I went into Tiger mode trying to find the absolute best way to swing the club, thus overhauling the swing not every year - but every 3-6 months.

Now that it's back, I can focus on my former strength - not weakness - the short game. That 84 could have easily been 74 if I had just chipped and putted better, and more naturally. It's getting there, watch out!

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I also am playing tomorrow morning at an ungodly early hour. It's the only time I could get a crew together during the long weekend, as everyone has plans or travel starting tomorrow afternoon through Sunday.

After getting spoiled on the courses out in Palm Springs back in April, I sort of had a crappy start to the season back home. But now I'm turning a corner - shot a 41 in league on Monday. Looking forward to getting 18 in bright and early.

[pietasterp]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

So, hit the range yesterday....

I think I realized what makes me the most angry about the current state of my golf game: I never have the same problem two days in a row. It's extremely frustrating because I'll fix one problem, and things will be great for a few days/weeks, then a new problem comes up, then I have to diagnose/fix that, then on and on...It's like a never-ending game of whack-a-mole.

It's to the point where it almost seems to me that quick/accurate diagnosis and fix of swing issues is one of the most important golf skills I can have at this point. For whatever reason, I completely lack the ability to swing the club exactly the same way on more than 1 consecutive day. I know a lot of people have that issue, but it's to an extreme degree with me. I guess that's the problem with always having been a "feel" or "rhythm" type player...I tried years ago to develop a more "mechanical" swing to eliminate day-to-day variability as much as possible, but it never went anywhere (I basically couldn't find a repeatable mechanical swing that actually allowed me to hit the ball at anywhere near as well as I can when I'm playing well with the baseline swing).

Anyway, it's enough to make me want to break my 5-iron over my knee. But instead, I'll probably go hit the range again today for more self-flagellation. Golf and I are in a pretty abusive relationship right now...

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I've been playing since I was 5 and never had lessons. So I know exactly what you mean. For me, I just go with it and don't ever get too angry if I'm not striking the ball well that day. I refuse to go to the range and beat myself up over something I do for fun and relaxation. I'd rather grab a friend and play 9 than practice.

[Skyboxer]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I've been playing since I was 5 and never had lessons. So I know exactly what you mean. For me, I just go with it and don't ever get too angry if I'm not striking the ball well that day. I refuse to go to the range and beat myself up over something I do for fun and relaxation. I'd rather grab a friend and play 9 than practice.

And that's the attitude to really have.
I'm also self taught (Videos and eavesdropping on others lessons lol )

The last 2 times I've went out I have played really good. Just those couple blowups have killed me.

Tomorrow I am hitting a local course at 8 and plan to play around 9 holes just seeing where swing is since I haven't played in a week.

Then at 12:52 my friend and I have a tee time for a real round at a course in VA.

Sunday we have a foursome set up. So certainly getting my golf fix for the week.

[pietasterp]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I really wish I could adopt that temperment, but some people are just wired that way and others aren't....my friends can go out and just enjoy it even if they're hacking it up, but it bothers the living dog-poop out of me even though I try to tell myself to just relax and let it roll off. There's an odd sort of OCD streak that golf gets going in me, though, that I feel compelled to try to constantly fix and tweak to get better. It's sort of the gambling mentality of inconsistent reward - you always feel like you're this close, so you keep trying. And there are just enough days where you're striping everything that it fools you into thinking you can do it.

But, despite all that, I still enjoy it. Just some days more than others.