Is this Sand Bagging?

[2bGood]

I have the big championship coming up in a week and somehow I manged to time it well as I am playing great golf lately. My last three rounds have all been 5-8 strokes under my cap. AS a result once I posted them I saw my cap drop a two strokes. Normally I would have 4 more regular rounds to play before the tournement, but I think I would be better off taking those rounds to practice rather then play. This way I won't keep lowering my cap and I can also work on some trouble shots for me.

thoughts?

[MiniMoe]

sandbagging is when you go ahead and play the next few rounds and play bad just to get the handicap back up as much as possible. Practice before a tournament is not bagging at all... just smart golf.

[CG031]

sandbagging is when you go ahead and play the next few rounds and play bad just to get the handicap back up as much as possible. Practice before a tournament is not bagging at all... just smart golf.

Exactly.

What your doing isn't sand-bagging IMO.

[2bGood]

I guess my concern is I am going out of my way to not post anymore rounds. If I play in the championship like I have played my last few rounds I shoot well under my cap and not look too good.

[n8ron]

Sand Bagging is an overused term, almost exclusively spoken by the loser.

[Shindig]

I guess my concern is I am going out of my way to not post anymore rounds. If I play in the championship like I have played my last few rounds I shoot well under my cap and not look too good.

If you practice instead of playing, chances are you're going to get better - as long as your course management doesn't start to stink as a result.

It's not sandbagging in my mind either.

[leo3]

If you shoot 5 - 8 shots under your index in a tournament next week, it won't matter what you do this week, you'll most likely be accused of sandbagging anyway. 8 shots under your index is either the round of your life, and not easily repeated, or an indication your handicap is not very accurate.

[TheLauncher]

I say play and post, but you don't have to take the rounds super seriously. Who knows, maybe they will be more in line with your earlier handicap. If they're not, you will be playing well enough to not need those strokes in the tournament anyway (although more is always nice).

[golfbarefoot]

My definition of Sand Bagging is when you intentionally play poorly to raise your handicap... then go compete with that bloated and dishonest handicap against other guys who are truly that index and beat them down and take their money..

[2bGood]

If you shoot 5 - 8 shots under your index in a tournament next week, it won't matter what you do this week, you'll most likely be accused of sandbagging anyway. 8 shots under your index is either the round of your life, and not easily repeated, or an indication your handicap is not very accurate.

I am better player than my handicap would indicate.Infact I often get accused of being a sandbagger early in a round as I may be playing really well and look like a single digit guy than I explode later in the round and shoot 90.

I had a 36 front 54 back a few weeks ago, so I have game in me but I just could not get it together this year. I made several postive changes to my game this season as I decided I didn't want a bandaid swing, but rather one that was technical sound. It has taken me most of the year to trust my swing and get it going and I am still working on it, but it is close. At any rate it coming together the last few rounds and my cap is dropping fast. Lets see how I do under pressure...

[MiniMoe]

Don't worry too much. You don't have to post a score every time you play. I learn more by going out on the course and hitting two balls from trouble areas and weird lies, than I do from the range. The range is to work on the swing. The course is where you learn to hit shots... learn to score. You can't do that and post scores. So, go ahead and drop 5 balls and learn how to hit that bunker shot from a downhill/ side hill lie. Hit 8 chip shots with different clubs to learn how the ball reacts from different lies. Hit ten putts from the same spot with different speeds to learn how the ball reacts to grain. What ever it takes to make your game better, it's not sandbagging to learn how to play the game. Golf is less about learning how to swing the club than it is learning how to play shots from all kinds of areas to all kinds of pins.