Does golfing bad depress u?

[rygamer]

I shot really bad yesterday,  I think I had a 10, 9, and a 8  over nine holes of golf.  Why is this game so hard?

[CuppedTin]

Where are you at with your golf game man? Have you had lessons, do you practice, etc???

Give us more than that and maybe we can figure out a good starting point.

[newtogolf]

It doesn't per se depress me, but it can be very frustrating.  I played yesterday and hit some of the best drives and wedge shots of my life but at the same time I ruined two eagle opportunities (a par 4 and par 5) by hitting my mid irons fat and missing the green.  I wish I could have a camera crew film me through a whole round to figure out why my swing just falls apart at times.

[CuppedTin]

Originally Posted by newtogolf

It doesn't per se depress me, but it can be very frustrating.  I played yesterday and hit some of the best drives and wedge shots of my life but at the same time I ruined two eagle opportunities (a par 4 and par 5) by hitting my mid irons fat and missing the green.  I wish I could have a camera crew film me through a whole round to figure out why my swing just falls apart at times.

Do you always (100 percent) of the time play your ball as it lies?

[rygamer]

It's the typical "I hit it great at the range", then you go out on a real course and you think you are doing exactly what you were doing at the range and you totally mess up.  Then you start talking to yourself....muttering bad things...etc...etc....

[newtogolf]

If I'm counting it towards my handicap, yes, if it's just a practice round I don't keep score at all.

Originally Posted by CuppedTin

Do you always (100 percent) of the time play your ball as it lies?

[rygamer]

Originally Posted by CuppedTin

Where are you at with your golf game man? Have you had lessons, do you practice, etc???

Give us more than that and maybe we can figure out a good starting point.

Just started again.  Had to wait until all my kids were out of diapers.  Hope to play more often.  Practice for me has just been the golf range, no formal lessons, unless you count youtube.  Hopefully I can get my swing on video, and you guys can chime in, on what i'm doing wrong.

[saevel25]

range to tee box is tough for some people. Also, beating balls on the range can't really mimic the golf course situations. The best thing to do is to play golf more, get use to hitting over bunkers, water, knowing were to place the ball, work around the golf course.

Every shot you hit on the golf course, stand behind the ball and imagine the shot shape you want, pick the line you want to start it on, line up and hit the shot. Then watch it till it lands, and rolls out. Then think about that swing you just made, and the shot you just hit. Try to develop a feel for the swing. Do this for bad and good shots. Never stop looking at the ball, even if you hit a bad shot. The more visual information you can tie to the golf swing, the more feel you will develop. Just build that experience.

On the range, do that preshot routine for every shot. Imagine the shot, line up and hit it, and watch the shot fully. Then contemplate the swing you just made before hitting another shot. Just don't hit ball after ball with out a purpose.

[CuppedTin]

Originally Posted by newtogolf

If I'm counting it towards my handicap, yes, if it's just a practice round I don't keep score at all.

This is just my opinion but I think you should always play it as it lies, even when you are not counting towards your handicap. I honestly think you will see your scores dramatically improve.

[rygamer]

Originally Posted by saevel25

range to tee box is tough for some people. Also, beating balls on the range can't really mimic the golf course situations. The best thing to do is to play golf more, get use to hitting over bunkers, water, knowing were to place the ball, work around the golf course.

Every shot you hit on the golf course, stand behind the ball and imagine the shot shape you want, pick the line you want to start it on, line up and hit the shot. Then watch it till it lands, and rolls out. Then think about that swing you just made, and the shot you just hit. Try to develop a feel for the swing. Do this for bad and good shots. Never stop looking at the ball, even if you hit a bad shot. The more visual information you can tie to the golf swing, the more feel you will develop. Just build that experience.

On the range, do that preshot routine for every shot. Imagine the shot, line up and hit it, and watch the shot fully. Then contemplate the swing you just made before hitting another shot. Just don't hit ball after ball with out a purpose.

I definitely will try this.  Thanks.

[mobosecomin]

Just to add to what saevel25 said ..

Never hit a golf ball unless you are working on something or playing, and never hit a golf ball unless you are hitting at a target.

If you don't know what to work on at the moment you could just get Ben Hogans book. It's a great place to look before heading to the range.

[tristanhilton85]

The game can be depressing/frustrating sometimes.  It's really tough when you have good range sessions and feel like you're on the brink of breaking through and then it either doesn't happen or you manage to regress.  However, when you do finally break through and reach a new level it is a great feeling.

Originally Posted by CuppedTin

This is just my opinion but I think you should always play it as it lies, even when you are not counting towards your handicap. I honestly think you will see your scores dramatically improve.

Nah... if you are playing a round for handicap purposes or tournament or whatever then obviously play according to all the rules including playing the ball as it lies... however, if you are just practicing and you are trying out different types of shots or working on different things, then by all means move the ball around.  I look at it this way, there is a difference between playing and practicing, if you play you follow the rules, if you practice, well that's different; some people just practice on the course rather than the range.

[Cut68]

It doesn't bother me that much when I don't score well, because I usually know why, but I am a miserable SOB to be around when I'm just not striking the ball well. If I shoot 90 but am catching the ball flush, I can live with it because I'm likely missing a lot of putts or not getting up and down like I normally do, or spraying my driver into a place I can't get out of. Sometimes, I'll creep over 90, and it's because I end up hitting a dirty little duck hook all day and can't fix it to save my life. THAT will put me in a rage until I have time to fix it.

[GaijinGolfer]

It doesnt depress me but it does get on my nerves sometimes.  Its just part of the game.  Golf is a game that requires you to be very precise and all it takes is having 1 thing in your setup or your swing wrong or having your timing just a fraction of a second off to totally mess you up.

Theres been many times where Ive taken a little break from golf because I was playing poorly.  Sometimes it takes to take a little break, not thinking about golf for a while to help reset your mind.

[darkhunter139]

It does not depress me but it does piss me off sometimes.  Shooting a good score usually brightens my day up though :)

[jcm011]

I wouldn't say it depresses me but it definitely puts me in a funk. Don't dwell on a bad round-- if it was that bad just go home, take a shower, and call a friend to go get a beer. I'm not saying forget the lessons you may have learned that day but when I play worse than usual I stay up until about 2 am watching golf videos, obsessing about what I did and swinging a club over and over; the result? I end up trying to fix things that weren't broken the next time I play... and play even worse.

I can't really see any upside to getting upset.

EDIT: And before anyone says they can't help if they get mad I just want to reiterate that I have a horrible temper and yell at myself that Helen Keller has better ballstriking than me. I'm speaking from experience!

[THR3E]

When i don't shoot better then par you might not want to talk to me till my next round,

but i guess that's just the expectations I have for myself..

[CuppedTin]

Golfing is a privilege, so it never depresses me. I can't believe someone would carry a very good mental game if they couldn't carry on a conversation after shooting over par, sounds fishy to me...