Balls vs. brains???

[Where's the Cart Girl?]

My dad and I play golf all the time together, and at least once a round we usually undertake th same argument based on this scenario...

Were both faced with a shot that calls for a certain amount of carry or else it's a lost ball. Over water, waste area, gorge, whatever.

I address the shot, swing, and hopefully it lands somewhere on the other side. He walks up to his shot, switches to a ball he doesn't care about (sorry rules guys out there but we don't play on the tour so he skates on this as far as I'm concerned). Then he swings and hopefully his ball lands somewhere on the other side too.

But every now and again one of us doesn't make it.

When it's me he says, "Well, there goes $4. I don't know why you don't just play sh*t balls on those shots."

And when it's him I say, "You see, you f*cked with the fluidity of your game. You put it in your head that this shot was somehow different by switching balls, and you poisoned your brain."

So where do you all stand???? Save a buck or save your mentality??

I say that by dropping that ball he's 'expecting to fail' on some level and it's sewing that seed of failure in the part of his brain that manages the unconscious elements of his golf swing. But I don't really enjoy feed Pro V1's to fish either, and after the first one goes in I definitely think about which bag pocket I wanna pull the next one from. So who are you????

[Knockglock]

  WheresthCartGirl?? said:

My dad and I play golf all the time together, and at least once a round we usually undertake th same argument based on this scenario...

I agree 100% with you. Golf is a game of confidence. If your so unconfident in your shot that your replacing a ball, that's not good for your head game in my opinion!

However, if you just plunked one in the water, I don't really see the harm in grabbing a cheaper ball, it's not going to affect your head anymore than you just sending one for a swim. But at least on your first shot don't start undermining your game.

[Bauer]

If he made that comment to me more than once I would probably pick his ball up and throw it in the hazard.

[Elvisliveson]

[QUOTE=Knockglock;356238]I agree 100% with you. Golf is a game of confidence. If your so unconfident in your shot that your replacing a ball, that's not good for your head game in my opinion![QUOTE]

I agree, well said. You have to expect success, not anticipate failure.

[Where's the Cart Girl?]

  Bauer said:

If he made that comment to me more than once I would probably pick his ball up and throw it in the hazard.

Ha. he's got 40 years on me, a bad knee, and only half a right lung but I'm confident i'd have a forged iron either in my head or up my ass before i got anywhere his golf ball if I tried to throw it.

Thanks though.

[deronsizemore]

I agree with what the others have said. If you're dropping another ball for fear of losing your good one, you've pretty much already set yourself up for failure.

If he lacks the confidence to make it over the hazard, why not just lay up?

[Where's the Cart Girl?]

  deronsizemore said:

I agree with what the others have said. If you're dropping another ball for fear of losing your good one, you've pretty much already set yourself up for failure.

Some of the shots will be par 3's over hazards, so it's not always a question of laying up/going for it, it's just a shot that demands at least X yards of carry.

His mentality is - My swing is my swing, regardless of what ball is in front of me so I can hit a cheap one over just as often as a good one. And if I don't make it I saved a couple bucks anyway.

[deronsizemore]

  WheresthCartGirl?? said:

Some of the shots will be par 3's over hazards, so it's not always a question of laying up/going for it, it's just a shot that demands at least X yards of carry.

Ah yeah, makes sense.

If it were me and I was worried about possibly putting a ProV1 into a hazard, I think I'd just play a cheaper ball rather than switching on a shot by shot basis. Regardless of what he says though, he's got some doubt in his mind that he can't make the shot or else switching balls wouldn't even enter his train of thought. I play nothing but ProV1's and can honestly say that switching balls for fear of losing one has never entered my mind.

[schigara]

I only carry one brand and model of ball. I carry the Maxfli Blackmax, which is a top line ball equal to the ProV1, but I get them for .50/ball on ebay.

I don't want to lose one but if I know it's a shot I can make, I hit it with confidence. 50 cents or 5 dollars, I don't care about the ball, I care much more about the shot.

I am still a bit inconsistent with my irons so the last thing I want to do is add another variable into the mix by changing balls from one shot to the next.

Maybe if I paid retail for the balls, I'd have a different perspective. Because I don't care about the money, I can concentrate on hitting the shot without making a change. I only lose 1 ball every round or every other round.

[JAshley37]

I switch balls up. I'm fairly inconsitant and occasionally don't clear the hazard. To me, it has nothing to do with confidence. Personally when I line my shot up my ball brand is the last thing on my mind. I just put it down as a back up I guess you could say. Kind of a I think I can make it but just in case sorta thing.

[Uber$winG]

The ball in play is the BALL in play – it doesn’t matter if you’re on Tour or touring fair green municipal fields.

Once someone picks up their ball in the middle of playing a hole and substitutes it for another ball the whole round is compromised.

Why not put the substituted ball on a tee and really go for it… better yet, why not smear some KY on the face of the club and go for the full effect.

He’s already failed by cheating… regardless of whether he makes the shot or not.

I know we're not on Tour, that’s why it’s possible to start a particularly hazardous hole with a ball of a different make. If you come to a hole that is fraught with hazards, play a crap ball from the start so you don’t have to switch balls and break the rules of golf.

[Knockglock]

  Über$winG said:

The ball in play is the BALL in play – it doesn’t matter if you’re on Tour or touring fair green municipal fields.

For casual players such as the person described, I don't think they care about the rules of golf nearly as much as they care about not wasting money :)

[sam004]

A crap ball is like a bad penny, hard to get rid of. Give me a $4 Pro V and it's in the woods or in the hazard. Give me a scuffed Top Flight and I can play a whole round.

[Big_M]

If you even think about switching balls to save money on certain shots, then you are probably playing with balls above your ability level anyways.

  Über$winG said:

The ball in play is the BALL in play – it doesn’t matter if you’re on Tour or touring fair green municipal fields.

good point

  Knockglock said:

For casual players such as the person described, I don't think they care about the rules of golf nearly as much as they care about not wasting money :)

then why would they play a prov1 in the first place?

[kris]

haha I used to do this too when i was younger. Not switch mid hole but if the hole had water on it that I wasn't sure about, i used to keep a stash of old balls in my bag especially for these holes. Figured it was pointless and just go with the same ball now. If i hit it in the water, i hit it in the water.

[enduro]

  Über$winG said:

The ball in play is the BALL in play – it doesn’t matter if you’re on Tour or touring fair green municipal fields.

If you're not turning the score in to the USGA or similar organization, you get to make the rules.

Who cares what he does. If he feels better about it, go for it. Losing a 4 dollar ball sucks.

[enduro]

  enduro said:

If you're not turning the score in to the USGA or similar organization, you get to make the rules.

Wait, I totally fell for the troll. you got me! Good one!

[schigara]

  Big_M said:

If you even think about switching balls to save money on certain shots, then you are probably playing with balls above your ability level anyways.

No probably about it. Definitely!