Putting from Fringe Scoring/Stats Question

[Rock26]

When counting total putts, do you count a putt from the fringe as a putt?  Might be a dumb question so feel free to make fun of me..

Thanks,

Rock

[Hardballs]

Only if using a putter I would say!

[boil3rmak3r]

When counting total putts, do you count a putt from the fringe as a putt?  Might be a dumb question so feel free to make fun of me.. Thanks, Rock

Technically, putts from the fringe or elsewhere off the putting surface aren't included in official stats. It's you're call, though, whether you want your personal stats to include putts from fringes, or not. Keep your own stats in a way that you feel will help you analyze your own game the best. For example, I play a course that has very small greens. Because of that, ending up on the fringe is often a result of a really good shot. So, I'll track my official GIR's, but also have an added stat of GIR's+fringe. If I have a round of 6 official GIR's, bit my GIR+fringe was 9, I know my GIR number alone didn't necessarily reflect an accurate view of my approach shots....

[Hardballs]

Serious? You keep a stat for landing on the fringe when your greens are small? Give yourself a break man!

[Golfingdad]

When counting total putts, do you count a putt from the fringe as a putt?  Might be a dumb question so feel free to make fun of me..

Thanks,

Rock

Not a dumb question.

I don't count them because if I did, then I'd be fudging my GIR stats.  But when evaluating my stats, I also recognize that I'm not counting them, so I don't look at my stat sheet and see 4 GIR and 27 putts, and go "Yay!!!"

It doesn't really matter how you choose to track the stats, as long as you take into account however you are doing it. :)

[boil3rmak3r]

Serious? You keep a stat for landing on the fringe when your greens are small? Give yourself a break man!

I'm not THAT hard on myself. I'm also not good enough to get too worried about those things :) What made me start looking at fringes, is when I learned the average distance from the hole on approach shots by PGA tour guys. From 150 yds, their average distance from the pin would BARELY fit on some of our greens (I.e. the flag would have to be front right, and the ball would have to end up back, left). When I learned that, I realized that they play enormous greens and maybe I should cut myself some slack...

[flopster]

I don't count them, and still wind up with plenty of putts

[David in FL]

As others have said, technically, whether you're using a putter or not from off the green, only putts from the putting green itself are counted.

To take it one step further.....if your first putt is on the green and you inadvertently putt off the green, your second "putt" from off the green would not count as a "putt" either.

All in the interest of maintaining consistency in your stats.

[DeadMan]

A GIR is what you're aiming for because the easiest part of the game is putting (doesn't mean I'm saying putting is easy, but it's easier compared to anything else in golf). Being on the fringe normally means that you are able to putt. So I count hitting the fringe as a GIR, personally. I could see if you have huge greens and hit the fringe while still being really far away from hole not counting it as a GIR. But for all intents and purposes, hitting the fringe is just as good as a GIR.

[dbrock504]

I always used my 56* wedge off the fringe until one day when I was playing with a stranger. I hit the ball with the wedge and it went 5 ft past the hole. The old man pulled a ball out of his pocket and said "now putt it". I did and the ball came to rest  .25" from the hole. He then went on to educate me about Ben Hogan's theories to use the putter as much as possible as you can maintain more control that way. Been doing it for 3 rounds since, and I would say it's effective. Good ole Texas wedge!

[RandallT]

I always used my 56* wedge off the fringe until one day when I was playing with a stranger. I hit the ball with the wedge and it went 5 ft past the hole. The old man pulled a ball out of his pocket and said "now putt it". I did and the ball came to rest  .25" from the hole. He then went on to educate me about Ben Hogan's theories to use the putter as much as possible as you can maintain more control that way. Been doing it for 3 rounds since, and I would say it's effective. Good ole Texas wedge!

Kenny Rodgers should write a song about that old man. You got to know when to putt 'em. Know when to chip 'em.

[BuckeyeNut]

For accurate stat keeping purposes...................a fringe is a missed green, and a putt from a fringe is not a putt!!    If you miss the green and land on a fringe.........then 2 putt for par.  It counts as a missed green and 1 putt.

[Aguirre]

I understand how official records are kept but I use a judgement call.  If it's very close, I usually count it as a putt.  I mean, if I'm putting through one foot of fringe to a pin 20 feet away, it's very makeable.  That's a putt for me.

But if I have five feet of fringe/fairway and I elect to use a putter because of the terrain and a feel that I can get closer to a pin fifty feet away, I don't count it as a putt.

Basically, if it feels like a putt I would normally hit on a green surface because the fringe is inconsequential, I count it as a putt.  I feel this is a more accurate judge of my putting.

And if it feels like a putt, and I'm close, I count it as GIR.  Twenty feet from the hole but a foot onto the fringe is a pretty damn good result.

[Aguirre]

I always used my 56* wedge off the fringe until one day when I was playing with a stranger. I hit the ball with the wedge and it went 5 ft past the hole. The old man pulled a ball out of his pocket and said "now putt it". I did and the ball came to rest  .25" from the hole. He then went on to educate me about Ben Hogan's theories to use the putter as much as possible as you can maintain more control that way. Been doing it for 3 rounds since, and I would say it's effective. Good ole Texas wedge!

I can't remember who said it, but:

"If you can putt it, putt it.  If you can't putt it, chip it.  If you can't chip it, pitch it."

Basically, around the green, you want to get the ball on the ground as quickly as possible.

[BuckeyeNut]

I understand how official records are kept but I use a judgement call.  If it's very close, I usually count it as a putt.

I understand how official records are kept but I use a judgement call.  If it's very close, I usually count it as a putt.  I mean, if I'm putting through one foot of fringe to a pin 20 feet away, it's very makeable.  That's a putt for me.

But if I have five feet of fringe/fairway and I elect to use a putter because of the terrain and a feel that I can get closer to a pin fifty feet away, I don't count it as a putt.

Basically, if it feels like a putt I would normally hit on a green surface because the fringe is inconsequential, I count it as a putt.  I feel this is a more accurate judge of my putting.

And if it feels like a putt, and I'm close, I count it as GIR.  Twenty feet from the hole but a foot onto the fringe is a pretty damn good result.

I understand how official records are kept but I use a judgement call.  If it's very close, I usually count it as a putt.

If you have any desire for accurate stats, you are only cheating yourself.   If you count putts from the fringe, your putting stats will suffer, and your GIR will be artificially inflated.   All in the name of bogus stats............I guess?  Why bother to keep stats if they are bogus?

[Aguirre]

If you have any desire for accurate stats, you are only cheating yourself.   If you count putts from the fringe, your putting stats will suffer, and your GIR will be artificially inflated.   All in the name of bogus stats............I guess?  Why bother to keep stats if they are bogus?

Bogus to who?  My ranking on the PGA Tour?

I feel that keeping the stats this way gives me a better measure of the current state of my game.  If I hit five official GIR, but have five more greens where I hit the ball on the fringe close enough to putt and have a reasonable shot at birdie, I feel that should be reflected.  That's a better ball striking round than hitting seven official GIR, yet have zero fringe hits that result in makeable putts.

[BuckeyeNut]

I suppose if you miss a fairway by only 6"................that should count as a fairway hit too.  LOL

Whatever......my 2 cents is why bother to keep stats if they aren't accurate.  The point of keeping stats is to evaluate your game and better yourself.   Not doing it right only cheats yourself and defeats the purpose.

[Aguirre]

I suppose if you miss a fairway by only 6"................that should count as a fairway hit too.  LOL

Whatever......my 2 cents is why bother to keep stats if they aren't accurate.  The point of keeping stats is to evaluate your game and better yourself.   Not doing it right only cheats yourself and defeats the purpose.

No, because hitting the ball out of the rough usually significantly affects the shot.  Not so with many fringe putts.  Not all, of course, which is why I don't count all fringe hits as GIRs.

But I'm keeping stats for a specific reason, and that's to properly evaluate the state of my game.  I believe I'm better able to do that in this manner.  It better reflects how well I'm putting the ball, and better reflects my ball striking.  Eg, I'd rather have a twenty foot birdie putt through a foot of fringe than a forty foot birdie putt on the green.  And three putting from twenty feet over a foot of fringe is a failure, and I want my stats to reflect that.  Not fool them by counting only two putts.