Angry Golfers???

[bfn18]

Why would anybody break a club over a bad shot??? I played with one of my good friends on sunday and he was not having a good day at all. Mind you this he is not a good player from the start, never broke 100 and expects to be great by just playing and not getting lessons or even going to the range. After about 12 holes, he started just breaking his clubs over his knee. I think he left the course with about 6 clubs in his bag. I just want to know why, especially when you have a good set of clubs (ping g10 50th aniversry addition).

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by bfn18

Why would anybody break a club over a bad shot??? I played with one of my good friends on sunday and he was not having a good day at all. Mind you this he is not a good player from the start, never broke 100 and expects to be great by just playing and not getting lessons or even going to the range. After about 12 holes, he started just breaking his clubs over his knee. I think he left the course with about 6 clubs in his bag. I just want to know why, especially when you have a good set of clubs (ping g10 50th aniversry addition).

Because he's an idiot?  Maybe he decided to give up the game?  He's seriously in need of anger management classes?

He's not someone I'd be playing with again.

[rustyredcab]

People are idiots.

Playing with my Jr. high aged son in an outing years ago, we were paired with two high school kids. These kids were hot-heads and my son naturally looked up to these older boys. About half-way through the round, one of the kids messed up his drive and threw his driver. It logged in a bush nearby about eight feet off the ground. As he climbed into the bush to retrieve it, it became clear that the bush had thorns. We came out with his driver and a bloody shirt and nicked up face. It was a great object lesson for my son about how stupid one can look when one loses ones temper on the course.

One of the guys in my regular group is 72 years old. When he was a boy, he was a caddie. We played the course where he caddied and the 18th hole has a river in front of the green. On one of his first loops, the member was playing badly. The member put a ball in the river capping an awful round. He told my buddy that he'd carry his own damn bag from here. As they got half way across the bridge, he tossed his entire bag in the ragging river and walked off leaving his young caddie stunned and un-tipped. He bag swiftly disappeared down the river.

[Grndslmhttr3]

I've never intentionally broken clubs (such as snapping over the knee) but I have broken a few clubs out of anger. Been a while since that last happened, though. One time, I was near the 150 stake and bladed the crap out of my shot, which sailed way out of bounds. Without looking I flung my iron backwards and turned around to see it sitting right by the stake with the shaft at a 90-degree angle.

I have a friend who did the exact same thing the OP described; at least (for his sake) they weren't exactly G10 irons, though that doesn't really matter to the outside observer who sees some kid snapping clubs over his knee.

[maradona10]

In my limited time involved in the sport (7 months) I have only every lost the plot once on the course.

It was a quiet afternoon, no one else around except my playing partner and going up the fairway my mind just went and I frisbee'd my PW up the fairway.  I felt ashamed immediately but it stemmed from the annoyance that I knew I could hit the shot and that low irons are my favourite most reliable club.  Needless to say I putted out for a 12.

[iPutt]

Was playing with two brothers who are friends of mine the other day and we were coming down the 17th fairway after me and the younger brother had been playing pretty shitty all day. The older brother put his drive pretty far down the middle and with out telling us, was something like bogey par away from breaking 50 on one 9 for the first time. Now normally during our rounds, we'll get into each other's heads but it's all in good fun of course. Turns out he didn't take too kindly to out questioning at the time. Things like, "do you breathe in or out in your backswing?" and "is your club face normally that closed at address?" So next shot he somewhat shanks into the trees, then dropping another ball he hits it again in to the trees! By now me and his brother are just doubled over with laughter, and with a few choice words, he turns around and hurls his 8-iron into a tree! We're absolutely in tears by now and he seems beside himself at what he just did. Well the 8-iron actually snapped in half after we finally got it down from the tree. I actually felt a little bit bad after the fact, but it was just our normal group dynamics and his reaction was way over the top. Makes a great story though.

[clubchamp]

I played with another member and his guest maybe 2 weeks ago and the guest wasn't very good. All the sudden after flubbing a chip which he did on every hole he wrapped his wedge around a tree. I felt bad because the member was really embarrassed and pretty much told the guy it was time to go on the next tee.

[cdriver]

Played with a guy once who duffed a wedge shot and swung his club at a sapling about chest high. The shaft wrapped around the tree, shaft broke at the appropriate time, and he got the clubhead right in his chest. Poetic justice.

[Ben]

I've broken clubs. I try to be as calm on the golf course as possible. Every once in a while though, the evil inside wins.

But the story of your friend, to break club after club after club in the same round, now that's something different! After the second club it must have become less entertaining and more uneasy to watch.

[tx_basser]

I've seen people do it, but I can't bring myself to doing it.  I build my own clubs and hit my shots, so nobody else to blame but me.

[Mr. Desmond]

Breakng a club shows other issues.

[Callahan14]

Originally Posted by Mr. Desmond

Breakng a club shows other issues.

Yes it does,  "Passion for the game"

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by bfn18

. I just want to know why, especially when you have a good set of clubs (ping g10 50th aniversry addition).

Maybe he was thinking about the BS television ads where Hunter Mahan questions every non-PING player's intelligence and was imagining they were Hunter's limbs.

[Paradox]

Dropping a few clubs on the follow through...I've always done that when I'm frustrated but for anyone to EVER throw a club or break a club or swing it wildly in an inappropriate way is pathetic and sometimes even dangerous.  I had a friend who almost hit me in the face with his putter after he missed a short putt and swung it really hard like a normal swing.

He's thrown many clubs that bounce around all over the place and sometimes get really close to hitting people.  He starts cursing because he sucked at hitting a shot, he blames the course for bad shots,

I inadvertantly threw a putter once not too long ago..I missed a birdie putt for a 79 and I swung the putter up to my shoulder but when I did it slipped out of my hands.  It went about 10 feet in the air and I tried desperately to catch it before it hit the green.  Luckily it landed sole down and didn't do any damage but I still felt awful.

[rwfastrax]

Clubs are too expensive to intentionally damage. I'm more likely to take my anger out on a ball if anything. If a ball has wronged me repeatedly...I feel it's just asking for a watery grave. Happens maybe once a year.

[darkhunter139]

I am not going to lie I have thrown my putter a few times but never hard enough to actually break it.  I try to keep my cool most of the time but sometimes after that 4th putt lips out I lose control for a second or two.

[madcityscott]

A friend of mine chucked a wedge into a tree and it got stuck. He had to stand on the shoulders of one of the other guys to get it out.

[jcm011]

I've broken one club when I was angry but did not do it on purpose and immediately felt stupid/ashamed even though no one else was around. Pulled my 7 wood off the tee (Mizuno T-Zoid), it hit a tree and went straight down into the water, threw the club at the ground and the shaft just shattered right around the hossel (graphite obviously). I loved that club and have kept my temper in check ever since because, not only can I not afford it, it is not the clubs fault :P.

On the other hand-- someone I know with an historically bad temper once broke every single club in his bag over his knee, one by one, and threw them into a pond. Definitely not doing that.