Why all the testosterone?

[Jeremie Boop]

True, but that's a far cry from stating 9 FW hit.

I guess he was thinking you meant first cut or FW, which would be pretty impressive at 275 yards for a bogey golfer. . .Mr. 4 putt strikes again?

It is, perhaps, a misunderstanding as to what "in play" means I suppose. But via game golf stats, even my average drive is up to 262 which includes all drives recorded. I stated typical distance, as given by GG is 275 so it's not like I just made up some random number. Regardless, it is what it is, and some people just won't accept it.

[phan52]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

I didn't see anywhere where anyone stated this?

Originally Posted by Jeremie Boop

I believe he's referring to me. Apparently having 9 out of 12-13 in play around that yardages *as in have a second shot not OB* isn't sufficient to classify it as typical though.

I would love to have 9 out of 12-13 at my "typical" yardage of 235 or so. But most days I don't even do that and I still score consistently in the 80's. If I can go 9 out of 14 I am usually scaring 80.

[Dave2512]

A bigger WTF to me than the high handicapper that can hit it long is why they don't take measures to become better golfers. The guy I played with last week that hit a legit 350 yard drive, uphill to boot, had never taken a lesson and he's been at it decades. He lives on the golf course for crying out loud. His swing was all kinds of bad but he had speed but absolutely no idea where it was going because his technique was so flawed. The same things that made his drives impossible to predict were the same things that were causing him to hit all kinds of poor iron shots, right down to stubbed chips. Even his putting was pathetic. He was missing greens from inside 50 yards it was bizarre. We talked a bit and it came up that I had just started golfing in 2012. I had played before but it was a long, long time ago, like junior high long ago and I am late 40's. He was shocked I could play as well as I do and asked how I did it. It was a quick answer, I took lessons, practiced and changed what needed to be changed. I don't enjoy golf if I don't play half decent. I can't imagine someone like that guy chasing balls all over for decades. He seemed miserable.

[Jeremie Boop]

I would love to have 9 out of 12-13 at my "typical" yardage of 235 or so. But most days I don't even do that and I still score consistently in the 80's. If I can go 9 out of 14 I am usually scaring 80.

With all due respect, it really doesn't matter what you would do, it's about what I can do. In all honesty I've been trending down pretty fast this year. Since June, when I really started buckling down on improving, I've dropped from 22.5 to 18.1 and right now I'm trending at 17.3. That's over 5 strokes of improvement in 3 months, not too shabby in my opinion. So, I am improving in other aspects of my game as well.

A bigger WTF to me than the high handicapper that can hit it long is why they don't take measures to become better golfers. The guy I played with last week that hit a legit 350 yard drive, uphill to boot, had never taken a lesson and he's been at it decades. He lives on the golf course for crying out loud. His swing was all kinds of bad but he had speed but absolutely no idea where it was going because his technique was so flawed. The same things that made his drives impossible to predict were the same things that were causing him to hit all kinds of poor iron shots, right down to stubbed chips. Even his putting was pathetic. He was missing greens from inside 50 yards it was bizarre.

We talked a bit and it came up that I had just started golfing in 2012. I had played before but it was a long, long time ago, like junior high long ago and I am late 40's. He was shocked I could play as well as I do and asked how I did it. It was a quick answer, I took lessons, practiced and changed what needed to be changed. I don't enjoy golf if I don't play half decent. I can't imagine someone like that guy chasing balls all over for decades. He seemed miserable.

I used to just be happy being able to blast it past the people I played with, but the same time I joined this forum was the same time I decided to improve. It took 2 years, but it's finally starting to pay off. To be fair, it was my own fault that I wasn't able to improve previously. The first year I was jumping around trying way too many things at once and both winters I never worked on keeping my swing in shape. While I can't promise that I'll do any better this winter, at least I know that the work is paying off and if I focus next year like I did this year who knows where my HI will be. *Assuming the weather doesn't take away as many playable days as it has this year.*

[MrFlipper]

Something I see in these posts is something I sure don't understand, and haven't understood for a very long time. Yet I see it often.

I carry my driver 235 or so, certainly not a long hitter. I can sure swing a lot harder, pick up maybe 10-15 yards of carry on my better hits, but my rhythm would suffer, my one way miss would turn into a two way miss, I'd be all over the place and my scores would suffer.

So I gotta ask, to you higher handicappers who hit it a relative mile, why not swing a little slower/smoother, develop a one way miss with control, and keep it in play all the time at 250 rather than many at 275 and more than a few in the weeds?  With better rhythm to boot?

Surely there is a simple answer to this, but I sure don't understand Honest question.

[RGoosen]

In my opinion we are giving daa1969 too hard a time. I can think of a lot worse offenses that thinking you hit the ball farther than you actually do. Like I said early, I have a few friends that were college athletes in other sports that hit it a long way but don't shoot scores I would expect to shoot if I hit it as long as them. A little good natured teasing is reasonable. Piling on should be reserved for people that feel like they own the course, cheat in tournaments, or hit into other players, or other similar offenses. Just a thought. Carry on...

[Lihu]

In my opinion we are giving daa1969 too hard a time.

I can think of a lot worse offenses that thinking you hit the ball farther than you actually do. Like I said early, I have a few friends that were college athletes in other sports that hit it a long way but don't shoot scores I would expect to shoot if I hit it as long as them.

A little good natured teasing is reasonable. Piling on should be reserved for people that feel like they own the course, cheat in tournaments, or hit into other players, or other similar offenses.

Just a thought. Carry on...

I agree, and most of the responses were based upon people's own personal capabilities. They think that just because they can't hit that far that everyone else can't. It's an equally bad ego driven statement to claim it's impossible for someone to hit as far as that person claims.

On top of it all, @daa1969 was not all that far off given his altitude adjustments. Most people hit a 280 yard drive and think it's 300 yards anyway, especially if you use the yardage markers to estimate your drives.

As I mentioned to him in an earlier post, if he had simply stated that he plays the more forward tees even with a 103mph SS then no one would have complained. . .

[Jeremie Boop]

Something I see in these posts is something I sure don't understand, and haven't understood for a very long time. Yet I see it often.

I carry my driver 235 or so, certainly not a long hitter. I can sure swing a lot harder, pick up maybe 10-15 yards of carry on my better hits, but my rhythm would suffer, my one way miss would turn into a two way miss, I'd be all over the place and my scores would suffer.

So I gotta ask, to you higher handicappers who hit it a relative mile, why not swing a little slower/smoother, develop a one way miss with control, and keep it in play all the time at 250 rather than many at 275 and more than a few in the weeds?  With better rhythm to boot?

Surely there is a simple answer to this, but I sure don't understand  Honest question.

The problem I have when I slow down is it causes worse misses than when I swing regular. I'm not swinging "all out" or "out of my shoes" normally either. Until recently I did have a one way miss, it was a pull draw/hook. It was only recently that I picked up the push fade/slice due to a swing change which improved my irons. Always seems to be the way, fix one thing and break another. Still, though, the end result is still a positive one as my scores are holding steady and my index is dropping as the higher scores drop off.

[phan52]

I agree, and most of the responses were based upon people's own personal capabilities. They think that just because they can't hit that far that everyone else can't. It's an equally bad ego driven statement to claim it's impossible for someone to hit as far as that person claims.

On top of it all, @daa1969 was not all that far off given his altitude adjustments. Most people hit a 280 yard drive and think it's 300 yards anyway, especially if you use the yardage markers to estimate your drives.

I don't think my responses to Jeremie were based solely on my own capabilities. I was also basing it on my experience with players who can "typically" hit it 275+ and still hit as many as 9 out of 14 fairways. That is a pretty good ratio, by any standard. I have read some of his recent responses and I can understand that he has other issues with his game, but most bogey golfers who can hit it 275+ are rarely near the fairway, let alone 9-14. We have one kid at our place who is a 17 handicap and he has recorded a 125 MPH swing. He has driven a number of our greens in the 350 or so range. Nice grill room talk, but he can't come close to doing it all the time and it is a strictly a matter of luck if he gets it near his target. He makes a significant number of birdies, but he also hits a significant number of tee shots OB or out of play, hence a 17 handicap. Our club champ, on the other hand, probably averages around 280 with serious accuracy but he can always step it up well over 300 if he wants to. But why risk it if he doesn't need to? 280 is really all he needs on the vast majority of golf courses.

[turtleback]

Ill probably get chewed out for this but its just my opinion and I could be wrong.If you really want to find out how good you are then you should play the tips every once in awhile aslong as your not holding people up preferably on an open course thata not crowded.I dont care what that course rating says on card bout different tees because theres no way 7000 yd course only plays 3-4 strokes harder than from 6000 yds.I personally believe its much more than that.On a 6000 yd course I should generally shoot 80.I dont see myself only shooting 83-84 from tips.It would be more like 86-89.

The CR difference between a 7000 yard course and a 6000 yard course should be closer to 5.

This will be my last post on this site, seems to be a lot of riff raff here, probably a bunch of the same clowns that have turned a nice leisurely 3hr round of golf into a 5 hr waiting game. Ive proved myself as well as i can, you just dont get it, everyone seems to think if your long you have to be good, nobody argues with a long drive competitor, most of them will tell you they dont score well, does that mean they cant drive it 400+, i know what i can do and so do the people around me. Guess its all the same macho testosterone filled jakwads i see all day long on the course, oh well, im out! Shanks for nothing jakwads!

In my opinion we are giving daa1969 too hard a time.

Nah I do not think so.  He came in ascribing motives right from the start (can people have reasons for playing longer tees other than testosterone or being macho?)  And in the end, as so many do, he showed his true colors.

I DID appreciate the irony, however of someone tossing out testosterone in the thread starter and then spending the bulk of the thread advertising and defending his own driving distance.  Did his point really require all the (not so subtle) bragging about his distance?

I think @daa1969 got exactly the response he was looking for.

[Jeremie Boop]

I don't think my responses to Jeremie were based solely on my own capabilities. I was also basing it on my experience with players who can "typically" hit it 275+ and still hit as many as 9 out of 14 fairways. That is a pretty good ratio, by any standard. I have read some of his recent responses and I can understand that he has other issues with his game, but most bogey golfers who can hit it 275+ are rarely near the fairway, let alone 9-14. We have one kid at our place who is a 17 handicap and he has recorded a 125 MPH swing. He has driven a number of our greens in the 350 or so range. Nice grill room talk, but he can't come close to doing it all the time and it is a strictly a matter of luck if he gets it near his target. He makes a significant number of birdies, but he also hits a significant number of tee shots OB or out of play, hence a 17 handicap. Our club champ, on the other hand, probably averages around 280 with serious accuracy but he can always step it up well over 300 if he wants to. But why risk it if he doesn't need to? 280 is really all he needs on the vast majority of golf courses.

You originally said "in play", in play doesn't mean "in fairway"... I never indicated that I hit 9 of 14 fairways, I said I have 9 of 12-13 *driver shots* "in play" as in I have a second shot because the ball isn't lost/OB. The course you play is significantly more difficult than those I play, given your statement of 138 slope. I assume that would mean you have a much tighter course. If I were to play your course it's very possible that I would not have as many opportunities for second shots with my offline shots. Most courses around here you don't need to be on the fairway, or even overly close, to have a decent second shot.

[MrFlipper]

The problem I have when I slow down is it causes worse misses than when I swing regular. I'm not swinging "all out" or "out of my shoes" normally either. Until recently I did have a one way miss, it was a pull draw/hook. It was only recently that I picked up the push fade/slice due to a swing change which improved my irons. Always seems to be the way, fix one thing and break another.  Still, though, the end result is still a positive one as my scores are holding steady and my index is dropping as the higher scores drop off.

Thanks. Honest question, honest answer. Hopefully your one way miss will return soon. That's a huge part of scoring, at least in my little world.

I agree, and most of the responses were based upon people's own personal capabilities. They think that just because they can't hit that far that everyone else can't. It's an equally bad ego driven statement to claim it's impossible for someone to hit as far as that person claims.

On top of it all, @daa1969 was not all that far off given his altitude adjustments. Most people hit a 280 yard drive and think it's 300 yards anyway, especially if you use the yardage markers to estimate your drives.

As I mentioned to him in an earlier post, if he had simply stated that he plays the more forward tees even with a 103mph SS then no one would have complained. . .

Folks don't always buy into this, especially those that live at altitude, but it is a lot. I live in San Diego, from here to Phoenix where I used to live, was about 10% due to hot drier air and a little more altitude. From SD to Colorado where I grew up is about 15%, but if you don't have a higher ball flight you don't always see it. It's a big deal. I grew up thinking I was an average hitter, when I moved to San Diego I felt like I couldn't hit it out of my shadow. Now If I go back to Colorado and play, my 235 yard carry turns into 265 ish and I feel like Magilla.

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lihu

I agree, and most of the responses were based upon people's own personal capabilities. They think that just because they can't hit that far that everyone else can't. It's an equally bad ego driven statement to claim it's impossible for someone to hit as far as that person claims.

On top of it all, @daa1969 was not all that far off given his altitude adjustments. Most people hit a 280 yard drive and think it's 300 yards anyway, especially if you use the yardage markers to estimate your drives.

I don't think my responses to Jeremie were based solely on my own capabilities. I was also basing it on my experience with players who can "typically" hit it 275+ and still hit as many as 9 out of 14 fairways. That is a pretty good ratio, by any standard. I have read some of his recent responses and I can understand that he has other issues with his game, but most bogey golfers who can hit it 275+ are rarely near the fairway, let alone 9-14. We have one kid at our place who is a 17 handicap and he has recorded a 125 MPH swing. He has driven a number of our greens in the 350 or so range. Nice grill room talk, but he can't come close to doing it all the time and it is a strictly a matter of luck if he gets it near his target. He makes a significant number of birdies, but he also hits a significant number of tee shots OB or out of play, hence a 17 handicap. Our club champ, on the other hand, probably averages around 280 with serious accuracy but he can always step it up well over 300 if he wants to. But why risk it if he doesn't need to? 280 is really all he needs on the vast majority of golf courses.

I was referring to the OPs case, and I think the only confusion between you and Jeremie had was regarding percentage of fairways versus what someone considers a usable drive.

[Natural Patrick]

I have played with a couple of younger guys that I work with this summer a few times. One played college baseball and is still fit and  all around good athlete. Anyway they both like to talk about their 300 plus yard drives. So after playing a few rounds with them. I came to the conclusion that what they thought was a 300yd drive and what I thought was a 300yd drive were two different things.  Keep in  mind that I average around 245 - 250yd off the tee. So I told them the next time we played, I was going to bring my range finder with me and we can see what it measures their drives at. Here is what we found out. A lot of drives in the upper 270's a couple in the 280's and the long drive of the day was 293. He bet me a 6 pack the 293yd drive was well over 300yds. So in the end they both came to the conclusion that my range finder was not accurate. Even when I stood on the 100,150 and 200yd disk in the fairway it was never more than 1yd off. Do I wish I had their length, sure I do. Do I wish I had their scorecard, not a chance.

[Braivo]

Back to the OP. I enjoy playing courses around 6,300-6,500 yards. Sometimes this is the tips, other times it is the white tees. It all depends. I just look at the card and pick tees that are in this distance range.

I measure my drives with a garmin. Excluding shanks they are between 250 - 275 with my longest ever recorded at 291.

[Lihu]

I have played with a couple of younger guys that I work with this summer a few times. One played college baseball and is still fit and  all around good athlete. Anyway they both like to talk about their 300 plus yard drives. So after playing a few rounds with them. I came to the conclusion that what they thought was a 300yd drive and what I thought was a 300yd drive were two different things.  Keep in  mind that I average around 245 - 250yd off the tee. So I told them the next time we played, I was going to bring my range finder with me and we can see what it measures their drives at. Here is what we found out. A lot of drives in the upper 270's a couple in the 280's and the long drive of the day was 293. He bet me a 6 pack the 293yd drive was well over 300yds. So in the end they both came to the conclusion that my range finder was not accurate. Even when I stood on the 100,150 and 200yd disk in the fairway it was never more than 1yd off. Do I wish I had their length, sure I do. Do I wish I had their scorecard, not a chance.

I think we covered the possibility that these markers are not all that accurate.

Although, I wouldn't claim I can drive 300 if I only drive 290, but still. . .to me a 293 yard drive and a 300 yard drive are almost the same. Yeah, I wouldn't compare them to any tour pros drives, but for all intents and purposes in amateur golf that's 300 yards. Even 280 is pretty much a "300 yard" drive for us hackers. . .

[isukgolf]

After reading this thread and looking at my gamegolf stats ... I must have lowT ... Gamegolf is humbling ... while my longest is 283, my average it 215 ...

[Lihu]

After reading this thread and looking at my gamegolf stats ... I must have lowT ...

Gamegolf is humbling ... while my longest is 283, my average it 215 ...

Don't be discouraged. My carry this month is longer than my average distance, it's those "woods" I keep hitting.