The Golf Thread

Dude, you and Coach need to re-read what I said. I said we played 9 holes, and that I shot 39 and Racer shot 31.Did I say we played a match?? Anywhere??? NOPE

2 friends playing golf, and drinking beer

we shook hands on the 18th, both said how much fun it was (first time we've played together all year), then headed to the bar where we talked about skiing. 

You said you play straight up no strokes they are for pussies, that is what I was referring to.  

I play a lot of golf where its just for fun and I don't even pay attention to what my playing partner shoots so I get it.  You stated it like you were playing a stroke play competition.  

The great thing about golf is it has a built in way for people of varying ability to compete.  If I played Campy I'd have to give strokes or it would be not an even match.  I also prefer match play for uneven abilities as a intermediate player will most likely make a least one big number on a hole.  I think I made one double bogey in July.  Match play keeps it more even and if you have a disaster hole you pick up and move onto the next one just losing one hole. If you have 3 player use match play rules and play skins.  If 4 players play team match play like the ryder cup.  Its a great format that I really enjoy.  We used to play alternate shot at the club I belonged to in Watertown and that is a ton of fun and very fast.

The most fun I have playing golf lately is the 9 hole match play matches I have with my son on the LP Club Pristine Course.  Tiny and fast sloped greens designed by the guy that designed the Masters make me really work to make birdies.  I give my son 11 strokes - he is a 26 and I was a 4 (now a 3 but he keeps getting better too) cut the difference in half as we are only playing 9 holes and we settle on 11.  He didtn have a HCP until this year so before we had to guess how many strokes I give him.  The HCP system is tried and true and it seems to make our matches very close and I have to work my butt off the beat him.  Some day I hope he is giving me strokes.  

Gotcha, I was referring to tourney's. I can't stand playing in hcp tournaments. I prefer tourney's that are pre flighted, flighted after the first round and play for the cash the second round, or even Club Championships because those seem to always be scratch. HCP tourneys always seem to never work out --- too many sandbaggers for my liking and most of those dudes stay away from the scratch tourneys.

Coach Z wrote

I play a lot of golf where its just for fun and I don't even pay attention to what my playing partner shoots so I get it.  

Really??? I can't help but notice when someone is tearing it up --- I actually thought he shot 30 but he quickly corrected me that he shot 31. I missed one of his chips on a hole while I was floundering around myself

Do you play by the rules of golf Coach?? One double bogie in the month of July??????? An entire month???? I'm willing to bet there are thousands and thousands of  pro's who can't claim that. If true, you truly are a golfing hero

Got a double bogie...yesterday...and a triple.  

TJ vs Coach!  The loser of each hole must drink a beer before teeing off on the next hole.  

Coach will be tanked by the seventh hole!!  

My money's on TJ.  Who's betting?  

I'll take TJ --- that lightweight Coach has already said his game goes to shit after 2 beers

2 beers??

I appreciate the confidence but coach is as good as he says he is.  I would take the challenge cause I may win.  I'm not certain Coach can drink 18 beers and still stand..you have to finish to win.  I on the other hand could probably go another round.  Nothing to be proud of just the facts.   I don't drink and golf either but it probably would not hurt my game very much.

If we're going to drink a beer on every tee box I'm in on that deal

For my hcp I don't make many birdies.  What I do well is hit fairways and greens.  My short game is really pretty good except that the sand is truely evil this year here.  I'm also a good lag putter.  In July I didn't play any away rounds. I know the LP Club so well which makes a huge difference.   Put me on an unfamiliar course and I'm not nearly as good and doubles result.  

Do I play to the letter of every rule - probably not but who really does.  I'm not walking back to the tee to hit another ball if I lose one if I didn't think to hit a provisional because I thought I would find the ball. That happened last week and I  dropped a ball and took a penalty and made bogey but probably would have been a double if I walked back to the tee and was hitting 3.  how many players walk back to the tee if not in a touranment?  I  play fast so sometimes I don't always take the flag out when putting which probably hurts me more than helps me.

Last time I drank on the course was playing night golf with the glow in the dark ball.  If I had 2 beers TJF would beat me for sure.  A beer a hole and I wouldn't be walking. If there was a pro tour for a beer a hole Campy might be ranked #1 in the world.    But I drink craft beer so maybe that piss beer Campy drinks might be a different story .

Coach Z wrote

 

Do I play to the letter of every rule - probably not but who really does.  I'm not walking back to the tee to hit another ball if I lose one if I didn't think to hit a provisional because I thought I would find the ball. That happened last week and I  dropped a ball and took a penalty and made bogey but probably would have been a double if I walked back to the tee and was hitting 3.  how many players walk back to the tee if not in a touranment?  I  play fast so sometimes I don't always take the flag out when putting which probably hurts me more than helps me.
 

We do. For real. I would hit a provisional and call it as such or if I didn't I'd go back to the tee.

I asked you that because of the scores you put up and you don't seem to play stroke play tourneys, or if you do you don't tell us about them. A club I was a member at for many, many years had a member who would always turn scores in right around par or maybe even one or two under / over. We convinced him to play in the club championship one year --- he couldn't break 90, that's no shit. Another year went by so he showed up again to redeem himself -- couldn't break 90 again. To my knowledge he no longer plays in strike play tourneys but yet still turns in incredible scores. Yea right. Some guys once they feel the slightest bit of pressure fold like a cheap suit. That going back to the tee bit you talk about turning into a double??? Shit man it could be a 10 -11-or even worse. I've seen it happen, shit it's happened to me. That gimme putt guys always pick up because they are in a hurry seems to become very difficult, many times resulting in a 3 putt. Pressure in golf is a funny thing. Until you feel it there's no describing it. Guys like Pro and Racer it doesn't seem to bother, which is impressive to watch. I've talked of the "other Pro" on here before. He's another guy who's a golf fucking stud. He played on tour for a while and actually played in The Players Championship thru local qualifying not that long ago. They don't get rattled. Last week in his tourney he was 5 over on his front 9 and 4 under on his back 9. That's being able to block bad shit out of your head right there. To me that kind of play in more impressive than the 60 he's put up before. I've played enough tourneys now that my give-a-shitter is broke and I truly don't care about my score anymore so while pressure still sneaks in my head it's nowhere what it used to be because I don't care if I turn in a bad score.

Coach Z wrote

 

Last time I drank on the course was playing night golf with the glow in the dark ball.  If I had 2 beers TJF would beat me for sure.  A beer a hole and I wouldn't be walking. If there was a pro tour for a beer a hole Campy might be ranked #1 in the world.    But I drink craft beer so maybe that piss beer Campy drinks might be a different story .

Tell you what --- you pick the beer OR I'll bring the beer and a bottle --- we'll tear it up Bro

And there's no way I'd be ranked #1 with the company I keep. Racer Ron would smoke me like I hit reverse. Sure I'll stand toe-to-toe with him in the drinking game but no effin way in golf. The more he drinks the better he seems to get. He's won a lot of tourneys with beer cans falling out of his cart --- I mean bombed It's impressive to watch.  

If I think there is a chance I will not find the ball I will hit a provisional unless it is staked.   When I play by myself I don't pull the flags out of laziness.

The LP Club unfortunately doesn't have a club championship or even a member guest.  The big tournament they do is team match play like a ryder cup but its mostly for tourists.

Since I play with others that usually are not as low of HCP as me I think match play is more fun as its more competitive on each hole.  I just enjoy that vibe better as I find it keeps me interested in every hole and forces me to try for birdies when my stroke play game is more of steady eddy type which is kind of boring.

I usually will hit a provisional but sometimes in on a links course your ball just disappears a few inches off into the fescue.  I know where on the course I can expect and not expect to find my ball.  I never ride so its not such a simple matter to go back to the tee.  Regardless it maybe happens only a couple times a year so not a biggy.  It would be awesome if they developed a trackable ball using Bluetooth technology.  It would speed up play so much.  I hate looking for balls - that fricking fescue makes my legs itch.

I do use the equable stroke control so my worst score I can post is a double.  I don't make a lot of others so it doesn't really matter much and those rounds likely end up being in not my top 10 of 20 anyway.

in case you don't know about there here it is. The way it should be used to speed up play is if you are two less than your max for a hole and not on the green - pick it up and move onto the next tee.

Course Handicap Maximum Number
9 or less Double Bogey
10-19 7
20-29 8
30-39 9
40 and above 10


TJF has played with me and can tell you that I can play well.  I get in slumps just like ever one else and I don't post about my shitty 80 when I am not hitting greens.  The Gihn system is such that your upper half of scores get thrown out.  My high score posted for this year is 81 and my average is between 75 and 76.  The LP Club courses are par 71 links and 70 Mt so that makes my average lower by a couple of shots than if I played at a par 72 course.  I always play blue tees on MT and blue on links on weekends but during the weeknights I play the combo tees which they have a stroke and slope set on them on the links where there are 4 tees you play the whites to get done faster.  There of the 4 holes are very long so it takes them from bogey to birdie potential holes.  Now that I think about it playing those tees definitely has dropped by double bogey's I make as they were almost always the holes I doubled - the holes moved up to white are 2 a long par 3 to a medium one, 7 a 460 yard par 6 goes to a short par 4 where you hit a hybrid off the tee, 10 a long 4 with a difficult tee shot to a medium 4, and 15 a 560 par 5 to a 475 which brings in the possibility of hitting the green in two.  The stroke average for these tees is about 2 lower but I probably play it at least 3 lower and it takes out the big number possibility of these long holes particularly if its windy.  The tips yellow tees on the links are over 7100 and that is much too much golf course for me.

I'm well aware of equitable stroke control as well as handicap is based on potential. That said, you can't have a true handicap unless you post all your scores and for 18 holes.

The thing about equitable stroke control is that in a REAL tourney you have to take whatever score you get. No picking up at 10

equitable stroke control.  Ha TWSS

I was five over on the front last night with a triple and a double.  4 over on the back.  5 missed puts from 5 to seven feet.  Story of my life.

And match play is the only way to bet.  You can brag about your score at the bar while you handing me your cash.  Bring your GHIN and some cash and we got a game.

actually that is not true

USGA now allows for 9 hole posting

The rules also allow for posting as few as 14 holes if for some reason you cant play all 18 - due to a hole being out of commission, or you skipped over a hole to speed play, weather or darkness.  In that case you take the score for the skipped holes that you would normally score or use the hcp of the hole to determine what to add to par if you are not familiar with the course.  That really comes into to play in the fall when you cant finish 18 in the evenings after work.

Campy I know the rules of golf really well.  I think the average golfer probably does not have a clue about them which is fine as this is supposed to be a fun game after all.

I don't roll the ball but some rules are pretty stupid at public golf courses because of the conditions are not optimal.  Our sand right now is the worst I've ever played in.  Something happened to it this winter and it was not recovered and they need to add more plus it gets seldom raked.  I'm personally in favor of them putting in a local rule to allow for raking and replacing your ball.  The sand is so firm this year I have taken to putting it out if there is not a lip to contend with.  

Just to remind ourselves this is a game

I'll be glad to play but no strokes either way ... hey that rhymes. Strokes are for pussy's  And so is match play