Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

[steez3]

So im a average tiger player and just getting into the golf game, when im playing my road to the masters at whatever course i play all 4 rounds and i have it set for easy flagstick..... but after each round it switches and goes up a level, so round 2 is set to medium flagstick then hard for round 3 and expert for round 4.... am i able to change this somehow? I highly doubt courses change to hole location after each round in real life and by round 4 im always 2 or 3 putting and always fall out of contention. I dont understand why it would automatically change the flagstick difficulty.

[sooner66]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

I don't have an answer about changing the settings, but they do change the hole locations after each round in pga tournaments.

[NEOPARADIGM]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

This is actually a fairly serious problem. That "putting is broken" thread talks about it quite a bit, specifically the extent to which flagstick placement in the 3rd and 4th rounds is stupid hard and unrealistic.

[cardswin2006]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

For those complaining that the flag placements are unrealistic, I would venture to say they haven't played a fourth round in a PGA event. There's a reason guys don't shoot -37s in real life. Or go 10 under on their final round on a regular basis.

In fact, those are probably the closest aproximation to real golf when you consider PGA players often have to determine where on the green to hit the ball (front, back, left, right) so they have an uphill putt with little break. The ones that do that effectively, both in real life as well as TW 12, will find themselves having easier putts.

Now if you have a complaint about the ball break physics and the ball returning to your feet after said putt...that's an entirely different subject and problem (but does also happen in real life on occassion).

[Seymour Scagnetti]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

For those complaining that the flag placements are unrealistic, I would venture to say they haven't played a fourth round in a PGA event. There's a reason guys don't shoot -37s in real life. Or go 10 under on their final round on a regular basis.

In fact, those are probably the closest aproximation to real golf when you consider PGA players often have to determine where on the green to hit the ball (front, back, left, right) so they have an uphill putt with little break. The ones that do that effectively, both in real life as well as TW 12, will find themselves having easier putts.

Now if you have a complaint about the ball break physics and the ball returning to your feet after said putt...that's an entirely different subject and problem (but does also happen in real life on occassion).

You are so off base and it seems like you haven't even played the game yet . Many pins are either right on 45% slopes or just on the edge of it where if you miss by 2 inches it rolls down 30 feet. There is literally no safe place on the green. It's pretty safe to say there has never been a hole in PGA history that was on a 45% slope or right on the edge of it and if there was one that would be the last time that course ever hosted a PGA event.

What makes holes difficult in 4th rounds are holes being placed several feet above a ridge, a hard to get to area that being protected by trees or bunkers forcing you to draw or fade the ball or on a 2 tiered area so a bad approach shot forces you to putt over that ridge but once you get over the ridge it flattens out. The immediate area around a hole (of at least several feet) is never tricked up as to punish a near miss and having it on a 30-45% degree is unheard of.

The hole itself is always surrounded by a generally flat area where you do have breaks and even the more severe ones will never punish the golfer if he just misses. Fast and strategically placed greens is what makes it difficult not making it a mini putt hole where there is no skill involved.

[fishepa]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

Three-putts are not really all that common on the PGA tour. Jim Furyk just had his first 3 putt in over 2 years this past weekend.

[Seymour Scagnetti]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

Three-putts are not really all that common on the PGA tour. Jim Furyk just had his first 3 putt in over 2 years this past weekend.

On some of these carnival holes, a 3 putt is like an eagle for me.

[cardswin2006]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

You are so off base and it seems like you haven't even played the game yet.

Well I've played the game plenty, so not sure what to tell you there.

[sooner66]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

The pga may put holes near slopes, but they are never in the middle of them like we are getting. Is this a problem that can be patched or are we stuck with it?

[jliven23]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

Any chance this could be fixed in a patch? I know nothing about patches so maybe that isn't even an option. But the pin location is a game killer for me. I'm tired of hitting my approach to 15 feet and four putting from there. That DOES NOT happen on the PGA, LPGA...only on my municiple course, and even then not quite as often.

It's ruining this game for me yet I love everything else! I was in an amazing round at St. Andrews last night...three guys back and forth with the lead on the back nine...until I missed an 12 foot BIRDIE putt and wound up with TRIPLE BOGEY.

Ugh.

[Section_25]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

On some of these carnival holes, a 3 putt is like an eagle for me.

Was in an online match the other day and I could "NOT" make the putt.....It was a nightmare hole...I think I hit it in the water twice, then I finally get to the green and I'm putting all over the place....It finally just said something like "too many shots" and ended the hole. I was glad it did.....talk about embarrassing....LOL

[gubunko]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

I've noticed that too Section. Based on my fairway play, I should be at least on par for the round, instead two or three holes make me +10.

[Seymour Scagnetti]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

It's just a case of pure laziness by the devs which is really pathetic since pin placements can ruin a golf game so easily and is so important. This problem has been there for years and has gotten progressively worse each year and the only way that can happen is there is no testers going thru every course and pin placements being programmed indiscriminately to make it "expert" rather than studying the green and the various plateaus and putting in the extra work and set pins in strategic places like in real life. That's why there will be no patch.

It could be worse because the only reason these carnival pins aren't more abudent is because alot of courses have close to flat greens thru the whole area so those 45% slopes just aren't there to abuse. But any courses with bigger slopes all have the carnival pins so it's sheer luck that there isn't more.

[JustinJones]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

It could be worse because the only reason these carnival pins aren't more abudent is because alot of courses have close to flat greens thru the whole area so those 45% slopes just aren't there to abuse. But any courses with bigger slopes all have the carnival pins so it's sheer luck that there isn't more.

Another thing that annoys me is the inconsistencey of the green speed and the caddy. Two very weird things happened to me last night when I was finishing up my third round putting. The first was that I had a 30+ foot putt 4 feet up hill and i had to aim just over half way to the hole so it didn't role off the da** green. This was really aggravating, and then once I got close to the next hole which was inside 5ft the caddy's projected put circle or w/e its called wanted me put up the ridiculous 45 degree slope 10 feet up and have it roll back down to the cup. I didn't of course and made an easy 4 footer.

I really wish someone could explain to me either one of these, its so aggravating that I bought the special addition for $80 and the core game play is ridiculous.

[JustinJones]

Re: Need some help understanding flagstick placement.

Sorry if I'm being off topic but the Caddy really annoys me. I like the visual of the caddy helping you with shoots, but thats it.

If I had control of the caddy feature I wouldn't have him show you shots or the trail of the ball at all. I would just have the commentary of what the caddy suggests when your aligning your shot with the options to turn the feature on, off, in certain situations such as putting, or just a button to ask for his opinion. What do you guys think?