Psychological Warfare

[iacas]

Can't throw a blanket over every specific example of "psychological warfare" listed in this thread, but in general giving the needle is fun when you're with friends, if you like doing it.

I'm going to amend my previous statement and try to clarify some things here.

I consider "psychological warfare" as described in the first post as a direct attempt to mess up the game of your opponents. People have tried that stuff on me and I power through it (usually it just makes me want to beat them more), and I don't do it to others. Trash talking or talking smack or whatever AFTER they've hit their shot (or after I've hit mine) is commonplace among my regular groups of friends. It'd be weird if it wasn't there. But I don't call that "psychological warfare" - just ribbing. It's all post-shot, and we all quiet down or stop in time for the next shot.

[Mhinderaker]

"So when you swing, do you breathe in or out?"

[popey]

There was a great article in this months Today's Golfer. It rated the best ways of gaining an advantage without being a cheat.

1. Using your body on the green and stand close to a player putting out from a few feet. THis will play on his mind as he wants you to move but may not ask you to so will be on his mind as he putts.

2. Influencing club selection was the best. By pulling out a driver on a short par 4 and then once your opponent has hit a bad drive then pulling out a long iron. This is not cheating as he is trying to gain an advantage by looking at what club you are hitting which is actually again the rules.

3. Misleading information. If he hits a wayward drive comment that it should be good even though you know that he wont find the ball. This then means he has to walk all the way back to the tee and hit again which will be very annoying to him.

4. The one that I do consider cheating is to make a noise while your opponent is swinging. This is becasue all the others if you are strong enough mentally you can ignore while it is impossible to ignore some opening a bottle of drink at the top of your swing.

I think that you can use a little bit of gamesmanship but it should be the golf that does the talking and not by cheating your way to winning.

[iacas]

1. Using your body on the green and stand close to a player putting out from a few feet. THis will play on his mind as he wants you to move but may not ask you to so will be on his mind as he putts.

Breach of etiquette. Though you may not actually be cheating, it's still a pretty low-life thing to do.

2. Influencing club selection was the best. By pulling out a driver on a short par 4 and then once your opponent has hit a bad drive then pulling out a long iron. This is not cheating as he is trying to gain an advantage by looking at what club you are hitting which is actually again the rules.

Eh, this isn't worth the trouble.

3. Misleading information. If he hits a wayward drive comment that it should be good even though you know that he wont find the ball. This then means he has to walk all the way back to the tee and hit again which will be very annoying to him.

Right, and you have to stand there and wait, too. That doesn't strike me as a win at all.

I know those weren't your ideas, but rather from that magazine... which may explain why I don't subscribe to that magazine. Blech. Look, the final word from me on any sort of gamesmanship (i.e. attempts to disrupt your playing partner) is as follows: you're clearly thinking about your opponent more than you should be, and it's probably throwing off your game too. Additionally, though it may not be against the rules, it's rude and breaches etiquette (and you can be DQed for serious breaches of etiquette). So, that's why I don't do it. Post-shot trash talking or ribbing is one thing: trying to cause another player pain, annoyance, or a bad shot is another.

[Undr Par]

this post is great and this situation came up on Friday when I played.

We caught up with a 3some on #8 and had to wait on these guys the rest of the day. They were cutting on each other from tee box to fairway to the green, they were actually very loud and to be honest just plain stupid, all 3 slighty older then me (early 40's I'd say)....they would cuss each other, when on the tee box say things when the other was teeing off, after the shot laugh and again just being stupid. (heard them say I hit a 3w, or 3I for example)

So my point is, I'm like Iacus, I don't do it (cause I'm not out there to beat you or Paul, Peter, John whomever, I'm out there looking to play the course and get better) personally I don't care if others do or not, but when a group is doing it and holding others up because they are doing it now that's another thing imho......

[niblick]

where's the check box for "bush league"?

[NM Golf]

Look, the final word from me on any sort of gamesmanship (i.e. attempts to disrupt your playing partner) is as follows: you're clearly thinking about your opponent more than you should be, and it's probably throwing off your game too.

Erik, you hit the nail on the head. Exactly correct!

[sonicblue]

For any round of golf, I generally prefer to encourage my mates and have everyone shoot a good round, but who doesn't like to dig a little with a "man, you really killed that one" after a duff. However, if there's actual stakes to the match, I wouldn't pull any of these lines.

[getinthehole]

Thats a smart thing to do, but agreed, when your playing with friends is the only time its okay. Playing in a tournament its just non-etiquette.

Thats funny, the other day I played with this guy, and I was hitting 7 iron from 150, then comes "7 iron?! I'm hitting a 9 iron!" then he addresses the ball, and just before the shot, he closes the clubface into about a 5 iron, and manages to keep it straight and he lands it on the green, I hit my 7 iron to the same area, and he thinks he's a huge hitter because he basically hit a 5 iron 150.

By saying 7 iron?! I'm hitting a 9 iron, he's basically trying to make me pull out my 9 iron with my normal clubface stance and try and rip it.

[lamebums]

Thats funny, the other day I played with this guy, and I was hitting 7 iron from 150, then comes "7 iron?! I'm hitting a 9 iron!" then he addresses the ball, and just before the shot, he closes the clubface into about a 5 iron, and manages to keep it straight and he lands it on the green, I hit my 7 iron to the same area, and he thinks he's a huge hitter because he basically hit a 5 iron 150.

I did that about a week ago. It backfired, actually. I pulled a 4 iron on a long par 3, and I said six, so my buddy pulled five. Thing is he still landed pin-high while I was off in the cabbage to the right. And he's not normally a long hitter.

[letgodsortemout]

I did that about a week ago. It backfired, actually. I pulled a 4 iron on a long par 3, and I said six, so my buddy pulled five. Thing is he still landed pin-high while I was off in the cabbage to the right. And he's not normally a long hitter.

How far was that hole?