"Blow up" holes.

[NCGolfer]

There's a catch-22 with my game...and it has to do with trying to avoid 'blow up' holes. I'm the kind of person that has a lot of pars scattered with a few bogeys and one or two birdies. I'll sometimes go a few rounds without making a double or worse.

The problem is that I don't make many birdies. My scores don't vary much...I'm usually around par most of the time. The funny thing is that the course doesn't matter with me. I'm the kind of guy that will shoot about the same score no matter where I play...that is, my score doesn't change more than you would think.

I do avoid blow up holes and have a very conservative game. I think most of it comes around the putting green where I have, until recently, done everything in my power to not 3-putt. I've been a 'die it in the hole' type of putter. Thus, I have a lot of pars.

I'm not wild off the tee and don't hit it extremely long so I'm usually not in much trouble either. I play really boring golf...try to hit as many fairways and greens as possible and hopefully I have a good day with my irons so I can get some easy biride putts. If I want to shoot some lower numbers I need to create and convert some more biride opportunities.

[Rafcin]

There's a catch-22 with my game...and it has to do with trying to avoid 'blow up' holes.

C'mon, your game is good enough to take chances here and there... FEARLESS GOLF.... this is your solution. The skill is to block out any thoughts of possible negative outcome and focus on execution. It doesn't mean crazy or stupid golf, there is a huge difference.

It sounds too me, like you're fearfull golfer. The only thing that keeps you around par is your skills. Maybe you should play a few rounds w/o keeping score, try to get yourself in the mindset of FG... That's what I'm working on this year, maybe you could too

[NCGolfer]

It sounds too me, like you're fearfull golfer.

You are right. The first place I'm working on that is on the green.

Maybe you'll see a different golfer in October.

[Rafcin]

You are right. The first place I'm working on that is on the green.

sounds like a side bet to me...

Anyway - talking about October - in a match play competition I'm playing even more aggressive than usually. Very often my match play score (if I'd keep it) are much worse than average, yet I happen to win a few of them.

[Chas]

There's a catch-22 with my game...and it has to do with trying to avoid 'blow up' holes. I'm the kind of person that has a lot of pars scattered with a few bogeys and one or two birdies. I'll sometimes go a few rounds without making a double or worse.

Hmmmm. You're the kind of golfer that I'm aspiring to be at the moment, boringly consistent. Believe me it's better than where I am now (although it's true I'm making progress). I'm not going to worry about being too cautious until I'm closing in on scratch myself, which aint going to happen in the near future. In other words, I wish I had your problem .......

For me, it's about keeping cool and calculating in the face of adversity.

[Maverick]

my "blow up" hole is usually followed up by consecutive pars for some reason. Iguess when you're at the bottom everything else looks up.

[elivate]

I too suffer from the "blow up hole" usually at least twice a round... This weekend is a good examle, I had one of my better rounds, I ended up shooting 91, which is pretty good for me, but I had an 8 on the ar 4 11th!!! Man, a bogey would have gotten me to 88 and that is my best score ever...

Oh well... At least I was hitting the fairway with my driver a lot more consistantly...

[Konrad]

I've got a good story about eliminating the blow up hole.

I was playing in the junior club championship at my course, and it was pretty much me against one other kid. We had seperated ourselves from the rest of the kids, and I was behind a stroke on the 17th hole of the second day. The 17th is a long par 5. We both drove it pretty far offline and we winded up right next to eachother. I pitched out to 200 yards, and the other kid pulled out a 3 wood and tried to get it close. He hit a tree, and probably advanced it 100 yards, with no chance anymore. I hit a 4 iron on the green, and two putted. He hacked it around to a 9 and I won the title.

The point being that there's no shame in being smart. Don't put any pressure on yourself to hit the damn pin with your next shot. If you start thinking "I've got to hit this on the green or I'll make a double and ruin my round" then you're probably going to make a double. Just say "I can make this shot"

[Rafcin]

...The point being that there's no shame in being smart. Don't put any pressure on yourself to hit the damn pin with your next shot. If you start thinking "I've got to hit this on the green or I'll make a double and ruin my round" then you're probably going to make a double. Just say "I can make this shot"

hm.. you've lost me. Obviously you're saying - play safe when it's called for - but then when I think "I can make this shot" as you suggest - I'm letting it rip no matter what chance of success there are !

[Konrad]

I'm just saying that you have to think postitive. If you are laying up and wedging it on, or trying to hit the green, you have to think that you can accomplish your goal.

[Lbob]

Been there, done that, got the tee shirt.

I'm the origninal short-but-straight guy. I don't try to hit hero shot because I know I can't hit them with andy consistancy, but I still get blow up holes. I'm a bogey golfer so doubles, triples and snowmen really hurt. I don't get too many birdies to make up for them. I don't have nearly as many blow up holes because for some reason this year I internalized the idea that sometimes you just take your medicine. Helps a lot. Like when I was having the round of my life and hit a drive down the right center of the fairway that took a bad bounce into some very nasy rough. Had 150 to go to an elevated and very nicely trapped hole. Never even thought about the green, just got out the SW, hacked it onto the fairway, put a wedge about 12 feet from the hole and darn near scrambled a par. No muss nor fuss.

Howerve, this thread reminds me of the "Nemisis" holes thread. I think some holes are conducive to blowups/big numbers. On my home course, the 9th hole is a dog leg left with water on the left, and OB on the right. I've never had a water ball or hit one OB (knock wood!) but I can still get a big number on the hole because if you miss the fairway left you are faced with a downhill, sidehill shot from really thick rough where it's tough to advance the ball much less put it where you aim it. I've had shots shoot out left or right and hook and slice. They usually end up in another patch of nasty rough where you get to pitch over a deep bunker and if you miss long you're in grass bunkers. I've screwed up many a good round on this hole.

[thehillgolfer]

i am completely random when it comes to blow up holes and recovering from them....point in case

today i had a 7 on the 2nd hole, birdie then next hole and play the rest of the front nine in even par, missing several birdie putts, i played lights out. on hole 12 hit it behind a tree, punched out short of the green then 3 putted for a double, which then started a string of 4 straight doubles....

[prutkows]

my "blow up" hole tends to be either one.. or two or three of the first three holes. even if i go to the range first i still struggle in the beginning of every round. it really got to me when i was younger but now i just try to push through and drop some strokes later on in the round. eventually i'll need to get rid of "blow up" holes altogether to get down to a lower handicap but overall im pretty satisfied.

[iammike]

my blow up holes will usually begin with some ok shot, and then a terrible second shot that leadds me to blow it over the green on my recovery shot. By the time i'm actually on the green it'll probably take me who knows how many putts to get in the hole.

I have a tendancy to get frazzled as of late with my game, depending on the group i'm playing with.

I'm trying to get a better handle on it, i find having more confidence in what i'm doing through reading golf stuff and practice, plus not overcomplicating what I'm thinking about has helped me a lot.

[MaRx]

This is ironic. My buddy and I were just talking about this the other day on the course. I had THE WORST "blow up" hole of my season the other day...

A short par 5 (480 yds) sharp dogleg left hitting into a blind green over water.... My drive was probably 250-270 yds way left of the fairway. I decided to lay up because of the blind approach, and the water in front.. Hit a wedge Fat of course on the layup right begind this HUGE grass hump next to the fairway. Shur enough my first ball went wayyyyyy right into the woods. Dropped another ball hit another FATTTTT wedge that dropped in the water. After several swear words I setup up to another ball... I had to hit the S$%t out of this PW to get to the slopy green. I smashed my PW the 145 yds to the hole and it hit the front of the green stops. I look up after putting my club away and taking in some jokes from my buddies to notice my ball still rolling towards the water. It did stop, and I was able to chip up and make the putt for a 9! Damnit! I ended up shooting a 41, but still... Talk about BLOW UP!