How do you keep score?

[lumpuckeroo]

That's when I would ask why are they going to the golf course to "play golf?"

I don't disagree with your view on this, there are just times when it can be difficult to follow the rules to the letter. You should know were to drop from a hazard and such but there are times on a crowded public course were going back to the tee to retee for a lost ball would be very bad.

[mdl]

Mdl: I really don't understand your argument. Forget the team-sports and let's compare it to Tennis, Bowling, Track and Field sports, Martial Arts, Fishing, Weightlifting, Swimming etc or any of all the other gazillion individual sports there are. Do you play by the rules or not?

Again the equation between the fact that one might take a mulligan every once in a while with cheating yourself. Like I said before, I follow the rules once I've decided to play a ball, exactly cause I'm out there for the challenge. But there's no other sport quite like golf, where you've paid what (for me) is a lot of money to get to play. If I decided to be a really serious bowler or pole vaulter or something, and say I bowled a really horrible game and was frustrated with my trajectory or spin or something. Well I could go pay another $4 and do it all over again. Or say I'm really into martial arts. If I'm working on some move or whatever and I have a bad session. Well I can just keep on going, pretty much exactly the same as ever, until I'm happy about it.

You don't get to do that in golf. What if my favorite hole is a tricky par 4 on 15, I've been more inconsistent off the tee than I'd like that day, so I haven't gotten to play many good/fun approach shots, and I tighten up and snap hook a ball. Why does it bother people so much if I want to take another drive so maybe this time through the hole will be fun, and I don't have to wait 2 weeks and pay another $50 to get to play my favorite hole again? With the handicap, I think I'll just delete it. I had put my scores into golflink just to assess my own development, and if the number that came back was 1 or 1.5 points lower than it would have been if I played as if I was always in a tourney, that's not something I care about. The motivation was to track relative improvement, not have some number I could feel proud of.

[Lefty22]

I play tennis recreationally. Sometimes my partner and I will disagree on whether a ball was out or not, and we'll replay the point.

No that's not an accurate analogy, if that argument is stupid then blame yourself because you came up with that scenario and it's not the argument others are making.

In your example you are acknowledging the boundary as is required by the rules of the game. You are in a direct competition with another player where the outcome affects BOTH of you. In this instance there was only a discrepancy and need to replay the point due to the simple fact you were trying to play by the rules and didn't have the luxury of a line judge. I think a more accurate situation would be that you go to play tennis but that pesky net keeps getting in the way, so you take it down. You also decide those boundary lines are too constricting so you play everything off the fence with two bounces is in play. Now, even though you are still holding tennis racquets, hitting a tennis ball, and on a tennis court - you are NOT playing tennis. You're playing Calvinball now ( Link to Official CalvinBall rules ). For those who know what I'm talking about, I think Calvinball is what I'm going to start referring to this bastardized form of sport people are playing on our Golf courses...

[Lefty22]

I just started coding up a little script so I could keep my own database of personal scoring stats. In the past I've only kept strokes, putts, and fairways, but if I get my code up I think I'll start adding things like up and downs from inside X yardage, from bunkers, drives right/left, what club I hit for my approach, etc.

Sounds like a lot of work solving a problem that's been solved quite thoroughly already -

ScoreCard does most of what you list and way more in regards to Web exports and Stat graphing. It's done and ready now - you should check it out, I really dig it. http://thesandtrap.com/forum/showthread.php?t=10012

[DavidFehertysBike]

Many of the rules of golf are so esoteric i dont blame players for being loose with them. Most of us are just focused on hitting the ball good and getting it into the hole. There are some basic rules that should be followed,(dont ground the club in a hazard, OB rules, knowing the local rules of relief, etc) but rec players dont need to worry about being obsessed with the rule book. Its overkill.

[billm408]

Many of the rules of golf are so esoteric i dont blame players for being loose with them. Most of us are just focused on hitting the ball good and getting it into the hole. There are some basic rules that should be followed,(dont ground the club in a hazard, OB rules, knowing the local rules of relief, etc) but rec players dont need to worry about being obsessed with the rule book. Its overkill.

Agree. In my regular group we all know the rules and have played competetive golf. Our basic rule is "do what your conscience allows".

The one rule breach that we've all agreed on is what we refer to as the "tree root ruling". If a tree root interferes with your swing, you get relief from the root, but not line of sight. It took a broken wrist (not mine) before we agreed on this one! Even though we're weekend hackers, waiving a rule is not something we take lightly- especially when there's money on line, but some things are more important as playing by the strictest USGA guidelines.

[Elvisliveson]

Agree. In my regular group we all know the rules and have played competetive golf. Our basic rule is "do what your conscience allows".

There already is a "tree root ruling", it's called taking an unplayable lie under penalty of 1 stroke.

[billm408]

There already is a "tree root ruling", it's called taking an unplayable lie under penalty of 1 stroke.

Free drop in our game. Not worth the damage to clubs and body parts.

[Elvisliveson]

Free drop in our game. Not worth the damage to clubs and body parts.

It very well may not be worth it. That's why the rules allow you to declare an unplayable lie and drop the ball out of the trouble, UNDER PENALTY OF A STROKE.

[CG031]

It very well may not be worth it. That's why the rules allow you to declare an unplayable lie and drop the ball out of the trouble, UNDER PENALTY OF A STROKE.

I'm not a big guy on rules, but I have to agree with this one. I know in several golf matches this year I could've shot a helluva lot lower if I could move the ball when next to a tree/root.

[Mr3Putt]

Look, for those of you who choose to not play by the rules, or only those rules you feel are fair, or your personal interpretation of the rules, or any method you choose of keeping your score, I say... Hey, it's your world.

I think most of the posters in this thread who oppose some/all of the rules are either relatively new to the game, and/or just play with one or two other people who share their views on mulligans, do-overs, pick-ups, etc. I've seen these guys on the course, as a matter of fact, they are probably the majority of the recreational golfers on the planet.

I once saw a guy put a tee under his ball in a fairway BUNKER! We were playing a parallel hole, he hit off the teed up bunker ball and it got on the green and he said to his buddies "How about THAT shot!?!" Was he cheating? In his world, it was a great shot. Ya know what? He was having a wonderful time!

Whenever the rest of us play ("us" being the guys who choose to abide by all the rules) we choose to not tee up the ball in the bunker.

On Thursdays and Saturdays I play with between 12-30 other like minded players. I have side bets with most of them. Now since 30somes are usually frowned upon by most golf courses these fellow competitors are off on another hole and I'm not watching each and every stroke. Nor, are they watching mine.

I know that whenever I'm paying a bet to a guy who beat me by one shot a side, that I was really beat. I'm sure he didn't take a mulligan, pick up a putt or do any of the other make-the-game-easier things that have been proposed here in the prior posts.

How do I know this? Because he, like me, chooses to play not by "our" rules, but "the" rules.

I could pick a stranger from these boards who plays by the same universal rules as I do, compare handicaps, work out the strokes and have a fair and equitable bet. I find that the ones who do choose to abide by the rules are the ones who would rather pay for an honest loss than get paid for a dishonest win. From my personal experience, these guys are usually the most fun to play golf with too!

Now, is that better than your world? Maybe not. But if you stick with this sport long enough, your playing partner world will be bigger than the 2 or 3 chums you now tee re-tee it up with. When that happens and you play a guy with the same "handicap" as you, but now you're forced to make the putt, play the shank, and play it down. You'll get smoked.

You see the rules are not made to make the game hard, they are in place to make the game fair.

By the way, just because we're abiding by the rules does not mean we're not having a blast!

Hopefully, one day you'll understand.

If not...Hey, it's your world.

[deronsizemore]

Look, for those of you who choose to not play by the rules, or only those rules you feel are fair, or your personal interpretation of the rules, or any method you choose of keeping your score, I say... Hey, it's your world.

Nice post. I think that sums it up well.

[CarlSpackler]

Nice post. I think that sums it up well.

I agree. For those who take some liberties on the course, try playing a round with no "good putts", mulligans, rolling the ball, free drops, etc. I think you will find it enjoyable and liberating.

[Leftygolfer]

I play by the rules 100%. I am sure I make errors because of lack of knowlege but I do know the rules pretty well. I do not cheat because I like to make real scores, not a cheated one. There isn't much better going birdie for bogey when I hit it OB. But if I played like people I know I would not have that joy because I would go take a drop where it went OB.

[jlh1508]

I keep score with a pencil and the scorecard... tried using mobile.oobgolf.com but just don't like having to go to my phone during a round

[Fourputt]

It's just a game, dude. It's supposed to be fun. Chill out a bit and let people play how they want to play.

Golf is recreation. Not taxes. I think if some guys go out to the links for a little fun they should be able to use whatever rules they want.

What I have never been able to understand is the peculiar idea that playing by the rules isn't fun??? Why is it more fun to play by a set of made up ideas that can't be related or compared to any other form of play? When the topic of golf comes up in a group of people, I want to be able to speak a language that the others might understand, and that isn't going to be possible unless we all play the same game.

With the handicap, I think I'll just delete it. I had put my scores into golflink just to assess my own development, and if the number that came back was 1 or 1.5 points lower than it would have been if I played as if I was always in a tourney, that's not something I care about. The motivation was to track relative improvement, not have some number I could feel proud of.

How do you track improvement if sometimes you play with a couple of mulligans, fudge the OB or lost ball rule, play a second ball for practice, or whatever you deem is ok at the time, but for another round you don't make any of those modifications to the game? You play a different game on different days, so trying to track your progress seems to be a bit futile to me.

I agree. For those who take some liberties on the course, try playing a round with no "good putts", mulligans, rolling the ball, free drops, etc. I think you will find it enjoyable and liberating.

I've had friends who switched from using questionable practices to playing real golf by the rules and they were quite surprised to learn that it was still fun. In fact it was more fun, because the more they got into it, the easier it was to relate to what the players were doing on TV. Some aspects of the game that always seemed a bit mysterious became clear.

It's a lot more fun when you hit a bad shot to take the consequences, and then scramble a par (or even a bogey) from it. Then you are able to discuss it afterward with satisfaction in the certain knowledge that you did it by the book, not by the mulligan.

[Elvisliveson]

It's a lot more fun when you hit a bad shot to take the consequences, and then scramble a par (or even a bogey) from it. Then you are able to discuss it afterward with satisfaction in the certain knowledge that you did it by the book, not by the mulligan.

I agree completely. I can remember just last year when over the course of about a month, I hit 3 balls O.B. from the tee and made birdie on the second ball for a bogey each time. The two regulars in my group took as much enjoyment out of that as I did and talked about "the streak". Of course, when on my 4th O.B., I made triple, they called me a choker, lol.

[iacas]

It's a lot more fun when you hit a bad shot to take the consequences, and then scramble a par (or even a bogey) from it. Then you are able to discuss it afterward with satisfaction in the certain knowledge that you did it by the book, not by the mulligan.

Some of my most memorable holes have been sixes on par fives after a poor drive left me sitting three somewhere I'd normally be sitting one.

I could give up and take my ESC (for handicap purposes - these aren't in matches or tournaments), but instead I choose to grind to make a "birdie" with the second ball and a six overall. Pressure is a 15-footer for one of these "birdie-bogeys." To parrot what you said earlier, I too have never understood why people always counter with "I'm just there to have fun." I am too, but I manage to do so within the constructs of the Rules of Golf.