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Playing with really, really, really bad players


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I'm an 80-shooter who usually plays with other 80-shooters, and most rounds I shoot . . . around 80. The problem is that about once a month I'll play a round on short notice and end up paired with 120-shooters.

Just recently I was paired with two guys who had all the latest equipment -- $400 drivers, forged muscleback irons, Cameron putters. And they wanted to play from the tips. Judging from their equipment and desire to play from the back tees, I assumed they must be fellow single-digit handicappers, so I agreed to the pairing. But they were riding, and they looked at me walking and likely thought, "OMG, this guy's is going to slow us down."

So off we go. I hit my first tee shot, then each of them hits five shots to reach my drive. I hit my second shot onto the green, then each of them hits five more shots to get to the green. And they worried about me slowing them down? Seriously?

I realize that everyone has to pick up the game somehow, and when they only play once a month, it's not going to be pretty. But it wasn't just their playing skills that bothered me. They didn't seem to know anything about etiquette, including where to leave their cart, when it was their turn to hit, how and when to attend the flag, not talking while I was hitting, yacking on their cell phones, etc.

I couldn't play ahead because the course was crowded and there was no place to go. I got out of my normal rhythm, forgot all about my pre-shot routine, made bad swings and bad decisions and hit shots I would never hit playing with other 80-shooters. I ended up shooting 92.

My question for any sports psychologists out there: How do I maintain focus and "play my own game" when playing in these circumstances? I don't want to be rude.

What's in the bag:
Driver: TaylorMade Rocketballz (non-adjustable), 10.5 degrees, stock graphite shaft R flex
Hybrids: Kasco, 17 and 25 degrees, stock graphite shafts
Irons: Golfsmith Tour Cavity Forged, 4-PW, graphite shafts R, 2 degrees upright
Wedges: TaylorMade Black Oxide, 52, 56, and 60 degrees, graphite shafts
Putter: Rife Barbados w/SuperStroke grip 
Ball: Bridgestone RXS

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Not a sports psychologists, but I do know, and golf with a couple of these critters. I never let others cause me grief in my own game. It's just mental fortitude on my part I suppose. It's the weather, the course, my ball, my clubs, my swing. Good players, average players, or poor players, they are not part of my game. I can't give blame, or credit to issues that are not part of my own game. I tend to treat all other players with different entertainment values. They paid their fees, and their game, what ever it is,  is just as welcome on the course as mine. All these personal ideas, plus I have never forgotten when I first started out is how I get through a round of golf, with very few interruptions.

In My Bag:
A whole bunch of Tour Edge golf stuff...... :beer:

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I'm an 80-shooter who usually plays with other 80-shooters, and most rounds I shoot . . . around 80. The problem is that about once a month I'll play a round on short notice and end up paired with 120-shooters.

Just recently I was paired with two guys who had all the latest equipment -- $400 drivers, forged muscleback irons, Cameron putters. And they wanted to play from the tips. Judging from their equipment and desire to play from the back tees, I assumed they must be fellow single-digit handicappers, so I agreed to the pairing. But they were riding, and they looked at me walking and likely thought, "OMG, this guy's is going to slow us down."

So off we go. I hit my first tee shot, then each of them hits five shots to reach my drive. I hit my second shot onto the green, then each of them hits five more shots to get to the green. And they worried about me slowing them down? Seriously?

I realize that everyone has to pick up the game somehow, and when they only play once a month, it's not going to be pretty. But it wasn't just their playing skills that bothered me. They didn't seem to know anything about etiquette, including where to leave their cart, when it was their turn to hit, how and when to attend the flag, not talking while I was hitting, yacking on their cell phones, etc.

I couldn't play ahead because the course was crowded and there was no place to go. I got out of my normal rhythm, forgot all about my pre-shot routine, made bad swings and bad decisions and hit shots I would never hit playing with other 80-shooters. I ended up shooting 92.

My question for any sports psychologists out there: How do I maintain focus and "play my own game" when playing in these circumstances? I don't want to be rude.

Too much thinking here. . .

Don't feel self conscious about walking. I even played some other low double digit players who were driving a cart, and we all ended up at the green at roughly the same time.

You let the situation get into your head and that's why you ended up shooting in the 90s.

Just relax and play. The fact that they are in carts and have the latest top of the line equipment shouldn't affect your game.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

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When I was 15 and learning to play, I played with two other buddies (just learning) and another buddy who was scratch.

So 3 of us were shooting in the 120's or more, and he was shooting 75 or better. Every time.

I asked him years later how he did that, pretty amazing in hindsight. He just said he worked on his own game and kind of detached himself from our games. He still talked to us but when it came to golf he could separate himself from whatever distraction we were providing. And we were providing a lot of distraction :-)

This really works for me, too. Don't get caught up in other people's games. Don't even watch them putt or hit. Just focus on yourself and your game, and be a good role model. Make it a game to not get caught up in what others are doing. See how well you can keep them from messing up your mind.

And you will find that pretty soon nothing anyone does can distract you or upset you. That is a really handy skill to have when serious golf is necessary, or when folks are talking, jingling coins, using the ball washer or whatever when you are trying to swing and they aren't aware of what they are doing.

Good luck!

Steve

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I was playing with 2 guys yesterday who were riding and I was walking. These guys were bad but they were FAST! I could not keep up with them and I was hitting every fairway and every green. They just jumped out of the cart and wailed on the ball, jumped into the cart again and wailed on the ball. They were shooting double par and I couldn't keep up. One guy was had a chaw of tobacco and playing in work boots. The other guy was in gym shoes. He was very nice, but obviously a little slow (not golf wise). Still enjoyed myself. I typically don't keep track of others scores and don't let it affect me.

Driver.......Ping K15 9.5* stiff 3 wood.....Ping K15 16* stiff 5 wood.....Ping K15 19* stiff 4 Hybrid...Cleveland Gliderail 23* stiff 5 - PW......Pinhawk SL GW...........Tommy Armour 52* SW...........Tommy Armour 56* LW...........Tommy Armour 60* FW...........Diamond Tour 68* Putter.......Golfsmith Dyna Mite Ball..........Volvik Vista iV Green Bag..........Bennington Quiet Organizer Shoes.... ..Crocs

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I couldn't play ahead because the course was crowded and there was no place to go. I got out of my normal rhythm, forgot all about my pre-shot routine, made bad swings and bad decisions and hit shots I would never hit playing with other 80-shooters. I ended up shooting 92.

Same thing happens to me. Playing with bad players destroys my rhythm no matter how much I try to concentrate on my own game.

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The main thing that bothers me about bad players is their lack of etiquette. Moving around, talking, getting clubs during my swing. They usually play slow too, but not always. This twosome was playing a form of golf polo. Not sure if the ball stopped before their next shot. :-) What fun is that? To each his own, I guess.

Driver.......Ping K15 9.5* stiff 3 wood.....Ping K15 16* stiff 5 wood.....Ping K15 19* stiff 4 Hybrid...Cleveland Gliderail 23* stiff 5 - PW......Pinhawk SL GW...........Tommy Armour 52* SW...........Tommy Armour 56* LW...........Tommy Armour 60* FW...........Diamond Tour 68* Putter.......Golfsmith Dyna Mite Ball..........Volvik Vista iV Green Bag..........Bennington Quiet Organizer Shoes.... ..Crocs

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If it's only once a month, I would just chalk it up to "mental toughness training."  If you can focus/concentrate while playing with these yahoos, then you'll be able to super focus when it really matters, like in a tournament or a money game with your normal group.  I don't think I would help them look for their golf balls after the first time or two, though.

Robert Spann

:ping: :adidas: :adams: :leupold: :nike: :srixon: :nickent:

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Same thing happens to me. Playing with bad players destroys my rhythm no matter how much I try to concentrate on my own game.

I play with a guy I work with and his son a few times a year. They are 120-130 guys. What I do is kinda make it a point to see how low I can go while playing with them. They both have good etiquette but they are just not very good. I help them when they ask and I do usually help look for their way ward shots. Most of the time I shoot a decent score. I try to keep in mind that I'm out golfing it doesn't get much better than this.

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Kind of reminds me of the time many, many years ago my "non-golfing Army drinking buddies" wanted to go play golf for the first time ever when I was stationed in Korea.

To begin with we had been out drinking til about 4:00am and around 10:00am they woke me up and wanted to go play golf. I was probably still just drunk enough to agree to that ridiculous idea so off we went.

In my time in the military I introduced about 25-30 guy's to the game of golf. Someone would approach me and I would always start them out on the range for a few sessions before we ever hit the course. On this day we skipped all that and went to the course and I knew it was a bad, bad idea, lol.

We all payed for 18 holes and my three buddies rented clubs and off we went. Now to add to the drama this is Korea in the summer time and it was 90* with about 99% humidity, so it was fricken hot, and I'm hungover like a big dog. My buddies were actually very good athletes and excelled in baseball, football, boxing but lets just say none of them had any natural talent for golf.

Without going into too much detail here's the basic statistics of that round:

Their average shot was a 20 yard duff!

It took 3 hours to play the front nine!

I think we let approximately 12-14 groups go through(at least one group per hole and two groups on a few others)!

By the 7th hole I don't think I was even playing anymore, I was just trying to herd them along to end the misery!

So we finally make it to the 9th green and I look at them and flat out tell them "Look guy's I feel like I've been banished to Golf Purgatory herding you guy's around the course in 90* weather. Why don't we just call it a day and head straight to the 19th hole" They all three got a big smile on their face and happily agreed they had had enough.

Obviously that's not the way to ever introduce anyone to the game but the combination of youth and alcohol prevailed that day.

You only make that kind of mistake once but as the OP stated sometimes you do get paired with near beginners or just bad golfers and it can be a challenge. When I'm paired with strangers in a casual round I approach the first tee as a blank canvas as far as what kind of pace and rhythm the round will have to it. Once I see their first tee shots I will then set my expectation of pace for the day. Simply if they are duffers I will walk slower and breathe slower, and just try to do everything at a slower pace because I know I'm going to be spending a lot of time waiting, and waiting, and waiting!

Another thing I will do is position myself in a way that I can watch their ball flight but not their swing. If they are bad golfers you have to help watch their ball flight because their going to hit wild shots and it's just going to slow things down even more if your not helping them track the ball. But the important thing is I don't want to see their swing, I just don't won't that image burned in my memory of a bad swing while I'm out playing.

I guess the other thing I would consider is just being patient and try to be an Ambassador to the game of golf. Understand that we all started there at one time so try to be as encouraging and helpful as possible(without spitting out swing tips and on course lessons). Just help them track their ball and at the end of the round suggest a reputable instructor they might want to visit.

I could get away with telling my old Army buddies they sucked and we are going to quit and head to the bar after 9 holes because they were close friends, that probably wouldn't go over to well when playing with strangers, lol!!!

Merry X-Mas!

In My Bag:
Driver: :Cobra Amp Cell Pro 9.5*, Stock X-Flex

3 Wood: :Cobra Bio Cell 16*, Stock X-Flex

5 Wood: Cobra Bio Cell 20*, Stock S-Flex
Irons: Bridgestone J40-CB 3-PW, Project-X 6.0

Gap Wedge::Vokey: 52* CNC  

Sand Wedge: :Vokey: 58* CNC  

Putters: Scotty Cameron Newport II 

Ball: Bridgestone 330-S(2014)

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The trick is to pick the side of the hole that they're not currently occupying and walk down to the distance of your ball. Wait at that distance (preferably behind a tree or some other sort of cover) until their balls pass yours, then walk to your ball and hit. Just completely ignore them and think about your next shot, or maybe the weather, or a TV show that you're looking forwards to watching. Just think about everything that isn't the other golfers and focus down when it's your turn to hit.

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Forgot to mention the rangefinders -- on a 400-yard par-4 they had 350 yards for their second shots and measured them with rangefinders. Hit the ball another 50 yards, 300 yards to the green, pull out the rangefinders. Next shot goes another 50 yards -- 250 yards to the green, rangefinders. I'm thinking that whatever money they spent on the rangefinders could have been better spent on lessons.

The etiquette is often a bigger issue than playing skills. Many years ago I played a lot of golf with a guy in his 70s who shot right around 100 while I shot between 75 and 80. But I would rather play with him than 80-shooters with bad etiquette. He walked rather than rode, knew when it was his turn to hit, observed all the rules of courtesy and etiquette, and picked up the ball at "double par." With no one ahead of us, we could play 18 holes in four hours or maybe 4:15.

What's in the bag:
Driver: TaylorMade Rocketballz (non-adjustable), 10.5 degrees, stock graphite shaft R flex
Hybrids: Kasco, 17 and 25 degrees, stock graphite shafts
Irons: Golfsmith Tour Cavity Forged, 4-PW, graphite shafts R, 2 degrees upright
Wedges: TaylorMade Black Oxide, 52, 56, and 60 degrees, graphite shafts
Putter: Rife Barbados w/SuperStroke grip 
Ball: Bridgestone RXS

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Funny you should mention that. Just before I got paired with these guys, I was chatting with the starter about the "play it forward" idea and he said that a major contributor to slow play on that course was players who play from the tips who, based on playing ability, should move up two sets of tees and play from the whites.

What's in the bag:
Driver: TaylorMade Rocketballz (non-adjustable), 10.5 degrees, stock graphite shaft R flex
Hybrids: Kasco, 17 and 25 degrees, stock graphite shafts
Irons: Golfsmith Tour Cavity Forged, 4-PW, graphite shafts R, 2 degrees upright
Wedges: TaylorMade Black Oxide, 52, 56, and 60 degrees, graphite shafts
Putter: Rife Barbados w/SuperStroke grip 
Ball: Bridgestone RXS

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Forgot to mention the rangefinders -- on a 400-yard par-4 they had 350 yards for their second shots and measured them with rangefinders. Hit the ball another 50 yards, 300 yards to the green, pull out the rangefinders. Next shot goes another 50 yards -- 250 yards to the green, rangefinders. I'm thinking that whatever money they spent on the rangefinders could have been better spent on lessons. The etiquette is often a bigger issue than playing skills. Many years ago I played a lot of golf with a guy in his 70s who shot right around 100 while I shot between 75 and 80. But I would rather play with him than 80-shooters with bad etiquette. He walked rather than rode, knew when it was his turn to hit, observed all the rules of courtesy and etiquette, and picked up the ball at "double par." With no one ahead of us, we could play 18 holes in four hours or maybe 4:15.

Too funny! :-D The people in front of us were exactly the same way. I even ended up disqualifying my round today, because I started chipping while waiting at the tee box.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

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The people in front of us were exactly the same way. I even ended up disqualifying my round today, because I started chipping while waiting at the tee box.

That's perfectly legal. You are allowed to practice chipping and putting on both the green you just vacated and the next teebox, provided you do not currently have a ball in play (after you holed out and before you teed off).

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That's perfectly legal. You are allowed to practice chipping and putting on both the green you just vacated and the next teebox, provided you do not currently have a ball in play (after you holed out and before you teed off).

Not sure about that. I remember Seve being penalized two strokes in the Masters for hitting some practice tee shots into the woods on 13 tee when things were backed up. He didn't have a ball in play at the time since he was waiting to tee off. I know it's a different topic and you normally wouldn't think someone would bring up Seve in a thread about really, really, really bad golfers. :-)

Driver.......Ping K15 9.5* stiff 3 wood.....Ping K15 16* stiff 5 wood.....Ping K15 19* stiff 4 Hybrid...Cleveland Gliderail 23* stiff 5 - PW......Pinhawk SL GW...........Tommy Armour 52* SW...........Tommy Armour 56* LW...........Tommy Armour 60* FW...........Diamond Tour 68* Putter.......Golfsmith Dyna Mite Ball..........Volvik Vista iV Green Bag..........Bennington Quiet Organizer Shoes.... ..Crocs

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Note: This thread is 3363 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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