hey, how many of you golf to get better?

[Greg]

I play to get better, but for fun too. I try not to get discouraged if i play well one time and poorly the next, im still somewhat inconsistent. If i play poorly i figure i'll do better next time and try to learn from each shot, good or bad.

[Yukari]

I would think that like any sports or hobby, one would play because they enjoy it AND to get better. If you didn't enjoy it, you would quit. You want to get better because that is part of the fun of playing--just like any other sport.

Take for example basketball. I play basketball because it is fun. And I also practice and play to get better.

I don't think you can easily separate the two. They are too intimately intertwined imho.

[sonicblue]

Very interesting, now that I think of it this way. I would have first said, "I absolutely play to get better." Golf is so interesting that way, in that 'success' is not a shot, a group of shots, or even an entire round of shots. It's individual shot success and/or greatness, coupled with consistency across multiple rounds, days, weeks, months, etc...

But, someone above mentioned basketball. I'm 36, my knees are hell, but I'm a damn good basketball player. A group of guys play during lunch at work sometimes. When I go out to play, I don't think of it in terms of 'getting better,' but I do think in terms of 'play well' and 'win.' There are many ways to contribute there: shoot well, make good passes, play good defense, but when it comes down to it, I consider my skill there somewhat 'fixed.' I have good/bad days, good/bad stretches, but in general, I'm satisfied to call myself a 'good' player with ups and downs.

In golf, I am always looking to get to a level that is 'better' than I am now, but maybe it's not all that different. Maybe I'm already a better basketball player than golfer; if my outside shot is off, I try to pass more or get more layups. Golf isn't quite as flexible; you may want to hit 3-wood when your driver is off, but 3-wood may be off, too, and 7-iron off the tee may simply not provide the opportunity for par.

I think it comes down to, a very difficult, circular and self-perpetuating mindset. You have to enjoy and accept your current level, but that - along with a desire to be better - is what will lead to being better. That's why I love the game.

[JoelDuffer]

Yes all true
I have raced go-karts in my past life and as with golf if you thought you are as good (or FAST) as you will ever be it changes from hobby/fun in to something that takes up your time.(IMHO) At 50 yrs. old i do not react as fast as a 18yr. old does on the track, yet I have seen things that I can react quicker to because of my experiance. May not make any sence to others but I relate it to my golfing. (Or what ever some might call it) I may not always drive the fairway, but I can get back to it.
Bottom line, racing is a gas, abit a younger mans(persons) sport but not the dertiming factor ( look at Mark Martin in NASCAR) as golf's Tom Watson, shooting better will aways be a goal, the fact that we may get there is another story
With a love of my hobbies, JoelDuffer

[SpringBokVol]

to get better.

[wedge player]

to get better.

i practice golf to get better.

[Sir Ryan]

I definitely play to get better. Golf is pretty much a lifestyle for me.

[Chas]

Some interesting posts recently. As you get older as a golfer, you start having to compensate for physical deficiencies more and more, obviously. Fortunately golf is a sport where you can do this more effectively than many others. As a rather fit young squash player (softball, yellow dot) aeons ago, I got beat a few times by much older and slower players who ran me ragged around the court. Guys who had played competitively for 15-25 years. Then I started to do it to the young turks myself ....

Watson's amazing performance at the Open is a good example, lots of well-implemented strategy and good judgment compensated for his physical shortcomings (fit as he is for his age of course).

Relevance to thread: in this sense we can always improve, by adjusting better and better to the aging process and so staying competitive for longer.

[sp33d]

I play to get better. I practice all the time, but I play for fun. Sure I have crappy rounds, but I dont let it bother me too bad there is always tomorrow.

IF I never got better, I'd probably still play quite a bit, but probably with less passion. But not getting better is not a result of the game, its a result of dedication. Everyone can get better and anything if they focus and give it their all.

[Cooker]

Definitely play to get better, practice makes perfect...

[JSwiney10]

I play for enjoyment but honestly, how much fun is it when you're playing crappy? Surfers have a sayin that the best surfer is the one who is having the most fun. I believe the golfer that is having the most fun is the one playing the best.