Do You Lose More Golf Balls When Playing Scramble or Stroke

[TheTraveler1974]

I've played a few scrambles with family and friends in addition to two scramble tournaments.  Without a doubt I lose more golf balls in a scramble than I do in regular stroke play on my own or with strangers I've been paired with.  For me this boils down to two factors.

1. I'm very focused on keeping up the pace of play so as not to negatively impact my partners or the groups behind us.

2. Someone in the group almost always hits a better shot than I do, even if I find do manage to hit the fairway off the tee.

A little info about me.  I'm a double bogey golfer who in the past has played at most 10 full rounds per year.  Only recently have I begun to focus on improving the basic skills and it's starting to show, just a little anyways.  I rarely lose a ball from followup shots; my shot from the tee box often goes astray, though.

What is your experience with this?  Do you lose more balls in scramble or stroke play?  Do you focus more on pace of play during tournaments?

 

[14ledo81]

Scramble for certain.  If someone has a good one in play, I'm going for a shot (many times) that I would never try in stroke play.

[woodzie264]

For me scramble, no question.  With a safe ball out there, I think we would all tend to play more aggressively than when playing your own ball

Edited September 19, 2016 by woodzie264

[Jeremie Boop]

The same typically. I have a few wayward shots of the tee no matter what the format is, so it really doesn't impact my lost ball ratio. The only thing that might increase my lost balls in a scramble is just not bothering to go get one if it's way off track or only making cursory look for my ball because not finding it makes no real difference. So it's not so much that I lost the ball as I didn't bother trying to find it.

[jsgolfer]

Scramble definitely, who doesn't try and hit a driver 250 yards off the deck over the water to a tucked pin.  

[gregsandiego]

9 hours ago, TheTraveler1974 said:

I've played a few scrambles with family and friends in addition to two scramble tournaments.  Without a doubt I lose more golf balls in a scramble than I do in regular stroke play on my own or with strangers I've been paired with.  For me this boils down to two factors.

1. I'm very focused on keeping up the pace of play so as not to negatively impact my partners or the groups behind us.

2. Someone in the group almost always hits a better shot than I do, even if I find do manage to hit the fairway off the tee.

A little info about me.  I'm a double bogey golfer who in the past has played at most 10 full rounds per year.  Only recently have I begun to focus on improving the basic skills and it's starting to show, just a little anyways.  I rarely lose a ball from followup shots; my shot from the tee box often goes astray, though.

What is your experience with this?  Do you lose more balls in scramble or stroke play?  Do you focus more on pace of play during tournaments?

 

My experiences are almost exactly the same. I'll pick up my ball if I can find it in under 30 seconds.The nature of the game (get to the next "best") forces you to hurry. If I'm playing my own ball I feel like I've got a bit more time.

Ironically (and no this isn't totally off topic), I've started to dislike scrambles for various reasons:

The pace of place is supposed to be quick but it's actually slower. I think the mini-committee discussion before each of 4 shots slows it down.

The other thing is what you mention is about someone hitting a better shot than you. I've been grouped with players that have many more years of experience and better ability. It's a total let down to be constantly walking to someone else's shot.

The scramble is supposed to be less pressure, more fun. Sometimes it is not either.

[TheTraveler1974]

Thank you all for taking the time to reply.

[jkelley9]

Certainly scramble. Usually for me it's a good time so I'm being super aggressive with my shots. Just trying to cover some distance. In the couple of scrambles I've played this year I had some decent golfers in my group in a field that plays golf maybe once a year and has to borrow equipment from friends. I was the second best golfer in the group having a good run and would tee first and wallop a drive then the best golfer would clean up in a safe spot only if needed. 

Scrambles are fun. It's nice not worrying about personal score on a Saturday morning with a big group.

[Psyber]

I take the same risks off the tee either way so I lose about the same amount of balls either way haha

[CarlSpackler]

Yep. Scamble for me too. I just don't tend to look very hard for wayward shots in a scramble, and like others have said, I will often try more risky shots over water if someone has one safely in play.

[Buckeyebowman]

I don't lose all that many balls, but it's definitely more in the scramble format than when I play my own ball. I don't really care for scrambles since they invariably turn into a slugfest followed by a putting contest.

Of course, if I could slug and putt better, I might feel differently!

[Pretzel]

I lose more golf balls in the scramble format because I'm often asked to swing for the fences and take risks on my tee shots in scrambles. If it's a dogleg over a hazard I'm usually the person on the team who waits for someone to put one in play before I tee up the ol' Pinnacle Gold and try to cut as much off the corner as I can. Stuff like that is why I usually buy a sleeve of "distance" golf balls before the round to play my tee shots with since I can anticipate losing at least one or two during the course of a round when one risk or another doesn't pay off. Those are risks that I often might not take during stroke play, but don't hurt me to take during a scramble and can only help, so I take them then.

[TheTraveler1974]

So it looks like we're all fitting into one of these categories so far.

1. Lose more during scramble because we take riskier shots.

2. Lose more during scramble because we're less inclined to spend time looking for a ball which went astray.

3. Lose the same amount as when playing stroke play.

 

[No Mulligans]

I lose less in a scramble.

I'm an odd one in that I tend to be more accurate when I swing for nearly max distance.  So I swing the same in a scramble as I do in a regular round.

But the primary reason I lose less balls is simple logic...

1. I take fewer shots, my group might end up 8 under or so instead of 18 over or so when I play stroke play.  That's about 26 fewer shots give or take.  Fewer shots = less lost balls.

2. I'm hitting from good lies because I'm on the fairway more often and whether or not I'm on the fairway it's essentially lift, clean, and place.

The last scramble I played I lost maybe one ball? Best I can remember.