Why is it unbelievable I can drive 300+ ?

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by sacm3bill

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Originally Posted by bplewis24

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Originally Posted by Darksun22

A lot of pro sprots players are great golfers. Look at Tony Romo.  He was a 1.2 handicap last time I checked.  Hell,  Justin Timberlake (not a sports player) qualified for some PGA event a few years back if im not mistaken. ????  correct me here if im wrong.

I don't believe that is correct.  Timberlake hosts an event, but I don't think he's ever qualified for anything.

Agreed. The only celebrity I can think of that has even tried was Jerry Rice - he used to talk about hoping to someday play in the Champions tour - got sponsor exemptions for a couple Nationwide events - missed the cut in the first one shooting one stroke better than last place - got DQd in the next for his caddy using a rangefinder, but not before setting the record for worst round in the event's 18 year history. Gave it up after that. Not meaning to bag on Rice, just saying he thought he had game and was rudely awakened. I do agree that a lot of pro athletes in other sports are great golfers, notably many in baseball and hockey.

Didn't a few "celebrities" with more game than Rice at least consider it? Rick Rhoden of course rings a bell.

[sacm3bill]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

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Originally Posted by sacm3bill

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Originally Posted by bplewis24

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Originally Posted by Darksun22

A lot of pro sprots players are great golfers. Look at Tony Romo.  He was a 1.2 handicap last time I checked.  Hell,  Justin Timberlake (not a sports player) qualified for some PGA event a few years back if im not mistaken. ????  correct me here if im wrong.

I don't believe that is correct.  Timberlake hosts an event, but I don't think he's ever qualified for anything.

Agreed. The only celebrity I can think of that has even tried was Jerry Rice - he used to talk about hoping to someday play in the Champions tour - got sponsor exemptions for a couple Nationwide events - missed the cut in the first one shooting one stroke better than last place - got DQd in the next for his caddy using a rangefinder, but not before setting the record for worst round in the event's 18 year history. Gave it up after that. Not meaning to bag on Rice, just saying he thought he had game and was rudely awakened. I do agree that a lot of pro athletes in other sports are great golfers, notably many in baseball and hockey.

Didn't a few "celebrities" with more game than Rice at least consider it? Rick Rhoden of course rings a bell.

I'm just saying Rice is the only celebrity or pro athlete I'm aware of who ever played in a Nationwide or PGA Tour event. I could certainly be wrong.

[JetFan1983]

John smoltz plays somewhere above or below scratch and got a sponsor's invite into the Nationwide Tour's 2011 South Georgia Classic. He shot 84-87 for DFL by nine strokes. Romo is probably the most talented celebrity athlete golfer, but he cant practice nearly as much as these retired athletes can, like Rhoden, Billy Joe Tolliver, Mark Rypien, Chris chandler, etc. Dan Quinn won yesterday at the celeb classic, but he caddies for Ernie Els most weeks, I think. I'm not sure if he can practice much either, but I still think Romo would take him down with more reps since Quinn only hits it like 250-260 off the tee at sea level. Romo constantly hits it 320+ in Tahoe, which is at like 6000 feet of elevation I think. Plus he has the all around game. Balky putter, but again, without practicing much, he can't really expect to have much touch on the greens.

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by newtogolf

Taylor Made banked a lot of money this year selling longer drives so I'd say this thread is indicative of the obsession with hitting it longer most golfers have.   Seems if people aren't single digit handicaps, driving the ball 300 yards is a good consolation prize.  Sadly I can't claim either....

Nobody ever said that length doesn't sell - it's a great marketing gimmick.  The trouble is, by itself, it doesn't help your score, it only strokes your ego.

[dlance]

Originally Posted by Spyder

lol You're taking the attention away from the OP with each point that I highlighted in bold for you. You're saying that you're hitting your long/mid irons poorly and have below-average putting, yet maintaining a 14-15 handicap? You realize you're claiming that you're hitting the ball 350 yards as well, in the same post? I highly doubt you have legitimately broken 90 with your "swing for the fences for enjoyment" mindset.

Again, please post your swing and let us admire it. To claim you're hitting the ball as far as Bubba Watson or any tour player with a 14 HC, which is probably made up, is completely ridiculous. You're not hitting the ball 350 yards anywhere on the course, period, in any conditions (course and weather combined).

I have to post and back up this other guy with the 350 yard drive...I am a 5 handicap and hit the ball far. I don't average 350 by any means, but it is far from a stretch that i can hit that far. Now some people may say well yea, your handicap is a third of this other guy, but i have to say that i was hitting that far when i was a 20. The main improvement in my game has been accuracy and chipping. I have always had the distance, and i don't think that it is fair to say that just because he doesn't score well means that he can't bomb one out there every now and then...

(i do want to point out that i am not saying that he does hit that far as i have never seen his swing either, just saying that the possibility is there regardless of his handicap)

[Dave2512]

The new 300y guy certainly has a better swing than the OP and he's admitted to that being all he cares about so I don't doubt he tries to swing out of his shoes each and every time.

[Darksun22]

Originally Posted by Spyder

lol You're taking the attention away from the OP with each point that I highlighted in bold for you. You're saying that you're hitting your long/mid irons poorly and have below-average putting, yet maintaining a 14-15 handicap? You realize you're claiming that you're hitting the ball 350 yards as well, in the same post? I highly doubt you have legitimately broken 90 with your "swing for the fences for enjoyment" mindset.

Again, please post your swing and let us admire it. To claim you're hitting the ball as far as Bubba Watson or any tour player with a 14 HC, which is probably made up, is completely ridiculous. You're not hitting the ball 350 yards anywhere on the course, period, in any conditions (course and weather combined).

First, The OP is NOT EVEN POSTING.  He has either lost interest in the topic, or has chosen to do the trackman and saw the results. The topic is now open.  Ill try to answer all your questions separately.

My swing is already posted in this thread.

Jamie S. is not a tour player, and can hit 9 iron 310 yds?  Driver 400+, and is 5'11 170lbs.  All this means is he is good at one thing, hitting balls long. As am I (but not even close to his level).

My best round ever was a 79 shot when i was a senior in the state qualifiers.  Since then i stopped playing for 6 years except the occasional 1-2 rounds a year for business.  The last 12 months ive been playing again, the last 3 months ive been playing 4x or more a week actually trying to hit a 10 handicap.  So never breaking a 90 is a joke. Besides I only hit driver on the course 5 or 6 times a round.

Maybe my poorly and your poorly are different.  My distances are gapped too much and  my launch angles are not consistent enough, which translates into a shot that may be 10yds long or short. This can turn your 20 foot birdie put into a 25 yd chip from the back of the green and having to get up and down for par.

My putting needs help on longer puts.  But when i say below average, I'm not really comparing myself to the 100 weekend hacker. I need to work on not 3 putting on any hole.  Reading fringe putts. Short, hard breaking putts.   I think i could still shave 3-4 strokes off from improving my putting just a small bit.

My goal is to be a 10 handicap.   Mid 80s daily is good enough for me.  I can still shoot in the 90s on a bad day right now, I want to cut out any 90s. Reasonable enough i think.

I said i get enjoyment in my 1 super long ball a round,  not that i hit 300s every hole.  Actually, I use my 4 iron off the tee more than my driver due to my distance not working on most holes i play.  When im playing with friends and not pushed for time, I will often hit my real tee shot, then they will want to see what i can do if there is a reachable par 4, or super hard dogleg. Ill hit a few for fun, That is where most of my mid-low 300s come from.  Im still 24 so were out having fun, Im already signed up for some small local long drive tournaments, so is it really hard to see why that is fun to me?

My handicap is well kept, Only thing I will say that could change it is if i get to my ball and cant find it in the rough or whatever ill take a drop instead of holding the group behind me up to drive back to the box and re hit. We all agree on this at the first tee before the round starts. But i may loose max 2 balls a round unless im just playing with drives off of a certain tee.

That may be a stroke a round. I have not played a round of golf in the last 3 months that i have not had money on, so you BET we are keeping score for real. They want my money.

Lastly, Bubba Watson can hit a ball further than mid-low 300s. He just doesn't do it every hole.  And hes not using a LD driver.  My reg driver only touches 330 MAX on a great hit under normal conditions, LD drive can put +30 Yds if hit correctly. Ill put money on if you gave Bubba a custom fit 1000$ long drive drive (like the Geek in my bag) that he would put a few out close to 400 for you.

[sacm3bill]

Originally Posted by Darksun22

...My handicap is well kept, Only thing I will say that could change it is if i get to my ball and cant find it in the rough or whatever ill take a drop instead of holding the group behind me up to drive back to the box and re hit. We all agree on this at the first tee before the round starts. But i may loose max 2 balls a round unless im just playing with drives off of a certain tee.... That may be a stroke a round.

How many penalty strokes are you giving yourself when you take a drop for a lost ball? If none, your score per round (and therefore your handicap) is at a minimum 4 strokes higher. I say minimum because you're assuming that had you hit a provisional, it would be in play and about where you dropped, when in fact there is a chance the second could be lost too.

If you're giving yourself one penalty stroke per lost ball, then your handicap is at least 2 strokes higher.

If you're giving yourself 2 penalty strokes per lost ball, that's the next best thing to playing by the rules, but your handicap is still not right since you're removing the possibility of a bad provisional.

Regardless of how long a hitter you are, your handicap is far from well kept if you're losing 2 balls a round and not taking stroke and distance for them.

[Darksun22]

Originally Posted by sacm3bill

How many penalty strokes are you giving yourself when you take a drop for a lost ball? If none, your score per round (and therefore your handicap) is at a minimum 4 strokes higher. I say minimum because you're assuming that had you hit a provisional, it would be in play and about where you dropped, when in fact there is a chance the second could be lost too.

If you're giving yourself one penalty stroke per lost ball, then your handicap is at least 2 strokes higher.

If you're giving yourself 2 penalty strokes per lost ball, that's the next best thing to playing by the rules, but your handicap is still not right since you're removing the possibility of a bad provisional.

Regardless of how long a hitter you are, your handicap is far from well kept if you're losing 2 balls a round and not taking stroke and distance for them.

I said 2 balls MAX was lost... I take one stroke for the drop.  We never hit provisionals unless we know we are doomed.  And as far as I hit it, its a game of hide and seek even in the fairway bunkers and such lol.   I probably average 1 of those "drops a round" so i agree with you mostly.  My handicap may be 1 stroke too low on average, because there are rounds I play the same ball all round.

Thats the worst of it though. We even make each other put out 6 inchers.  And ive missed a few 2 footers the last few months... really sucks, but we play right.  We even give strokes for grounded clubs in hazards and bunkers.  We try our best to play right.

[sacm3bill]

Originally Posted by Darksun22

Quote:

Originally Posted by sacm3bill

How many penalty strokes are you giving yourself when you take a drop for a lost ball? If none, your score per round (and therefore your handicap) is at a minimum 4 strokes higher. I say minimum because you're assuming that had you hit a provisional, it would be in play and about where you dropped, when in fact there is a chance the second could be lost too.

If you're giving yourself one penalty stroke per lost ball, then your handicap is at least 2 strokes higher.

If you're giving yourself 2 penalty strokes per lost ball, that's the next best thing to playing by the rules, but your handicap is still not right since you're removing the possibility of a bad provisional.

Regardless of how long a hitter you are, your handicap is far from well kept if you're losing 2 balls a round and not taking stroke and distance for them.

I said 2 balls MAX was lost... I take one stroke for the drop.  We never hit provisionals unless we know we are doomed.  And as far as I hit it, its a game of hide and seek even in the fairway bunkers and such lol.   I probably average 1 of those "drops a round" so i agree with you mostly.  My handicap may be 1 stroke too low on average, because there are rounds I play the same ball all round.

Thats the worst of it though. We even make each other put out 6 inchers.  And ive missed a few 2 footers the last few months... really sucks, but we play right.  We even give strokes for grounded clubs in hazards and bunkers.  We try our best to play right.

Sorry, you did say max and I was thinking average. Still, you're picking and choosing which rules to play by. Your length gives you an advantage in, well, length - but it has the inherent disadvantage of more lost balls. It's part of the game. It's the same principle that requires people to use course management every time they're faced with a decision to lay up or go for it - weighing risk versus reward. You're simply taking the reward part of being able to hit your driver far and not assuming the risk. If you're so concerned about playing "right", then do it - like by hitting a provisional with your 3 iron if you can't see where your drive ended up. Otherwise at least take the decimal point off your handicap, because it's at best an approximation.

[Dave2512]

Not taking the distance part of the penalty is an unfair advantage. Just because it would take too long to go back and re-tee would likely make a person think twice about hitting the errant bomb. I wouldn't play that way and that's precisely why my driver stays in the bag when I'm not sure I can keep the ball in play. I don't doubt that it affects my score. I also don't doubt that playing more conservatively would take away the long ball bragging rights. Because you never see anyone saying I hit one long ass drive a round and only on a wide open hole where I don't have to use less club to keep the ball in play. It doesn't sound as impressive stated like that.

[Jwat381]

The thing about the long drive, and most of the people I see who hit the big bombs, is that it seems to have less to do with the actual game of golf. You use your driver only a small percentage compared to wedges and putters, and a long drive guarantees you nothing. Most of the long drivers, especially in the long drive comps, seem to just get a jolly out of striping a ball. That's fine and all, and I'd love to have the ability to put one down the pike 300+, but that's not at all what golf is about. I've had some real great drives that resulted in bogeys and double bogeys. I don't know about you, but I rarely sit in the car on the way home re-living my one drive I smashed when I had to write down 100 or whatever on my scorecard.

[onesome]

The only football player that I remember ever playing competitive pro golf was John Brodie, that was any good.

[Jwat381]

Not to bag on Jerry also, but I remember thinking that he didn't look all that good, considering he was trying to make a nationwide event. Then I was not surprised at all when he turned in poor results.

Originally Posted by sacm3bill

Agreed. The only celebrity I can think of that has even tried was Jerry Rice - he used to talk about hoping to someday play in the Champions tour - got sponsor exemptions for a couple Nationwide events - missed the cut in the first one shooting one stroke better than last place - got DQd in the next for his caddy using a rangefinder, but not before setting the record for worst round in the event's 18 year history. Gave it up after that. Not meaning to bag on Rice, just saying he thought he had game and was rudely awakened. I do agree that a lot of pro athletes in other sports are great golfers, notably many in baseball and hockey.

[Dave2512]

I get the feel good thing about hitting it long but I too believe that unless it can be a regular part of your game it's pretty much meaningless. I'm not even sure what is considered long in reality. I've been tracking clubs for a few months and my driver average is 257. That's when I swing in a manor that's going to keep the ball in play. A long way from 300 but when I hit it that far I'm so far out in front of the guys I'm playing with I've just got to assume a lot of guys overstate their actual on course distances. I'm not talking about flailing away at it on the range or in a bar but what people actually hit when score is a consideration.

I played with a guy Sat that kept talking about how far the ball was going. I had my gps and he was way off. On most holes I hit my 3w and he was lucky to get it that far 1/3 of the time. On one of the par 5's he was certain we hit it at least 300y. I didn't make great contact but it did stay in the fairway. GPS said 288 to middle of green on a 527y par 5 so we hit it 240. The guys behind us dressed like pro golfers, they looked sharp, were on the other side of the trees we hit past and they were high fiving. Somewhere in the 215-220 range. I got to watch them tee off on pretty much every hole while I waited on the folks in front of us.

[Jwat381]

I love this so much. Such a typical experience at a golf course.

Originally Posted by Dave2512

I get the feel good thing about hitting it long but I too believe that unless it can be a regular part of your game it's pretty much meaningless. I'm not even sure what is considered long in reality. I've been tracking clubs for a few months and my driver average is 257. That's when I swing in a manor that's going to keep the ball in play. A long way from 300 but when I hit it that far I'm so far out in front of the guys I'm playing with I've just got to assume a lot of guys overstate their actual on course distances. I'm not talking about flailing away at it on the range or in a bar but what people actually hit when score is a consideration.

I played with a guy Sat that kept talking about how far the ball was going. I had my gps and he was way off. On most holes I hit my 3w and he was lucky to get it that far 1/3 of the time. On one of the par 5's he was certain we hit it at least 300y. I didn't make great contact but it did stay in the fairway. GPS said 288 to middle of green on a 527y par 5 so we hit it 240. The guys behind us dressed like pro golfers, they looked sharp, were on the other side of the trees we hit past and they were high fiving. Somewhere in the 215-220 range. I got to watch them tee off on pretty much every hole while I waited on the folks in front of us.

[sean_miller]

Oh we're long, longer than everyone we know, and certainly longer than the posers who were following us, but length isn't important so that's why we only swing very easy to keep the ball in play every time, but rest assured we could be very very long if we really want to be.

[Dave2512]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

Oh we're long, longer than everyone we know, and certainly longer than the posers who were following us, but length isn't important so that's why we only swing very easy to keep the ball in play every time, but rest assured we could be very very long if we really want to be.

You connected a lot of dots that aren't there. I never called anyone a poser and I never said I hit it long. I don't think I hit long and I don't think anyone not hitting it past me does either. Just that my experience is people overestimate their distance relative to what it is on the course with a normal golf swing. I never doubted the first guy's long distance claims. I only tried to explain that swinging so hard that he was making primitive snorting noises in an effort to prove he's long is within the grasp of anyone here but that's not golf. I give it a try here and there if I'm on the range and without fail I send out of the range to right and into #7 fairway. The guys I saw this weekend had game they just didn't hit it as far as they thought they did. The guy I played with bettered my score by 6 strokes despite not getting it off the tee as far as he thought he did. I'm not poking fun at anyone. I simply don't think hitting it long has any value if it's not something that can be incorporated into how you personally play the game.