Can you get good playing once a week?

[KGC]

If you can practice once a week and play once a week you should be set. It depends whether you are able to assess your own play. If you need a pro to tell you what you are doing right or wrong then continuing to play without lessons may be the wrong direction.

Playing with someone else also seems to be an issue. The advice that gets kicked around here is that you should try and play with someone who is better than you, this may expose you to other ways to improve. Again it gets back to being able to self assess and incorporate this into your game. Playing with someone else should also open up diffent ways of playing your course so the same shots you leave may be given a different perspective.

Hope you are enjoying the golf though!

[misty_mountainhop]

Just wondering if you can actually improve by playing 18 only once a week and hitting up the range once or twice??...

Yup. That's essentially what I've done for years and I don't even get that amount in over the Winter months. I used to play/practice a lot more (~25-30 years ago) which may have helped groove the basics very well but the last 20 years or so has been exactly what you describe or even less. Handicap currently 4.4 and coming down (oh yes!) next season.

[zenchili]

If you play once a week but when you practice you work on your weakenesses you should see steady improvement. If you just hit balls to hit balls then you will probably not improve in the areas you want to improve in. I think the main thing is what you practice and how you practice. Then go out and see what's working. Each round you play should point you to the things you should work on.

[wedge player]

i play twice a week and never go to the range,i have a net in the yard i hit into.thats my strategy for it lol

[Lefty-Golfer]

If you played one round a week, and practiced a few hours a week on short game only, I think you would improve.

very good point...nothing like a small wager to keep things interesting.

[Three Putt]

I play usually once or twice a week on the weekends, practice at least 2 times a week at the range and chip and pitch in the yard a lot.

Depends on what type of "player" you are. Some guys would rather play rounds instead of practice (Ben Crenshaw), others love to practice (Vijay, Tom Kite).

I would dump the membership and get lessons with that money, find a league or something to play in once a week for the competition and freindly wagering.

[Chief Broom]

But if you're sick of playing alone, join a league. It's fun, and competitive enough that you learn how to play under pressure.

League play is the ticket and every course usually has multiple leagues you can join. Obviously you'll need to meet some of the people in those leagues, but just talk to the club pro to introduce you. Leagues are always looking for new members so joining shouldn't be a problem. The format is fun and challenging, and as you play with the league more you're practice will naturally become more focused.

[wmiller]

I only play once a week now, sometimes more like during the holidays. But I have health probs (back, knee) that are more the restriction than skill.

But before I married, I was playing 18 on Sat and Sun, range balls to loosen up. No real practice per se. Solid 2, but could go no further working 50 hrs a week and only seeing a club on the weekends. I couldn't quit work, didn't have rich parents nor a rich uncle, so that was that as they say.

Thats when I decided to play the game as enjoyment and a personal challenge. I don't play for money (I could care less what someone else shoots, it's me against the course), and enjoy playing alone. But that's just me. I'm weird, and my wife agrees.

I can still shoot near par a few times a year, but it requires a warm day, my back and knee to cooperate, and a little luck. Getting old(er) stinks.

[Zeph]

You don't get good on the course, you get good on the range. Making changes on the course is something I find very difficult. I spend most of my time golfing on the range and putting/chipping green. Can't say I get that much better, but there is always improvement.

The best is of course practice with a purpose, preferably with a coach.

[wedge player]

You don't get good on the course, you get good on the range. Making changes on the course is something I find very difficult. I spend most of my time golfing on the range and putting/chipping green. Can't say I get that much better, but there is always improvement.

but as the saying goes you cant take the range to the course

id rather play you learn more.

[ProStuart]

I started the game of golf when I was 30. That was 9 years ago and I've only ever played once a week. My handicap is 8.6 but I got down to a 7.7 at my lowest.

So, yes it is possible, but only to a point - mine being a handicap of 8/9. I can't see myself ever getting below that unless I spent a lot more time on the range/on the course.

[garch]

I am like the OP - playing once a week, plus 2-4 range/short game practise sessions a week. Relating to comments made previously in my thread, my question is - what is the best use of time spent at home? Especially when limited to indoor practise like we in the UK currently are, what methods would help the overall game when we do get the opportunity to play again?

[zrlaegel]

yes......if you go to the driving range four or five times a week. then when you do go to the course take is seriously dont screw around

cheers~Zach

[Elvisliveson]

You must master the basics to play good golf (5-12 handicap) and you don't need to go to the course to do that. Heck, you don't even need to go to the range. All you need is a true quest for how the golf swing works, a club, and a place to swing it.

[localhawaii]

I think you can get "good" playing once a week. I have been playing now for about 22 months (had two months off for tearing rib cartilage) and have carded about 75 rounds. Some of the weeks I played either once or twice a week and on one crazy weekend we played four rounds (two on sat and two on sun). Fortunately here in Hawaii, there isn't really any winter so playing during the winter months is almost the same as playing during the rest of the year. Interestingly enough as I have found that as my game got better and worked out the kinks of my swing, i have gone to the range less. I actually have forgone going to the range and focused on doing mirror work and carpet putting at home. Dont get me wrong, when I find that I am getting the jitters or a particular club just doesnt want to cooperate, I make sure to get to the range to get things right in my mind and build the appropriate muscle memory to fix any problems. I wanted to get down to to a single handicap by the end of 24 months, but the clock is ticking!

[Bastid]

Playing once a week will still allow you to improve but you will reach a level to where you cannot get past. Golf requires constant attention, I've noticed that when I don't play for a couple of days, my touch around the greens is not quite as sharp. I play 4-5 times during the week and have an eighteen hole match with a good friend of mine. I like to play by myself during the week because it allows me to focus on what I need to improve. If you want to improve, you need to realize that golf is in individual sport. Yes, playing with a friend is more fun but it won't put you in the same focused state of mind that you will have if you're playing with people you don't know.

The thing I don't like about playing with new people is how they always ask for advice. I try to offer it but you know, I'm out there to play and work on my game, not help some weekend guy that is playing golf now because it's the "in" thing to do.

If you want some honest advice on how to take serious shots off your game, begin and end your round by spending 30 minutes on the putting green. Practice those 3-6 footers, start making them until you can do it with your eyes closed. How many of those do you miss in a round? You know how many times a pro makes one of those to save par? A good pro will hit a lot of shots to make birdies, but they also know how to scratch a 68 or 69 when their game is out of sync that day by making those types of putts.