Is score the most important thing to you? If so, you might want to rethink this game.

[Lihu]

Yes, how well you do is basically the score, but is it how well you played?

So, I read this post about the book "Golf in the Kingdom", and it kind of made me think about the topic of score.

Quote

“Donna worry about the score so much, it’s not the important thing.”

Spoiler

 

Most of us have had rounds where everything was feeling great. The swing was great and you were sinking all your putts. When you tally up the score or look at the final result in your app, it comes up mediocre. . .but it was a great round. And yet, some of us don't remember that!

Then there are those threads about making the rules simpler and playing by some other alternate rules, making everything a par 5, etc.

To me, those threads are advocating playing something other than golf.

On top of that, the concern for score more than playing golf pushes some players to cheat. That's not golf. So, what's the point?

[Jakester23]

It might just be a coincidence but my two best 18 hole score were the two best rounds I played. They were by far the best ball striking rounds of my life.

[Groucho Valentine]

The score is really the only thing that matters to me... I dont give a crap if skunk it all around the links as long as I'm satisfied with the number. 

[golfintheworld]

How  many times did Tiger say "I hit the putt perfect. It just didn't go in". More times than none my best rounds consisted of my best iron shots and inside 30 shots. I can scramble and create shots from bad lies and I'll miss a few putts. 

[Wanzo]

 

19 minutes ago, Lihu said:

The swing was great and you were sinking all your putts.

Wouldn't this equate to a good score?

20 minutes ago, Lihu said:

but it was a great round

I'm not sure I follow, maybe it's all in how you define a "great" round?

If you focus on score, maybe these things are harder to have happen....swing great and sink putts?

[bkuehn1952]

A number of times I have read remarks to the effect that in golf there are no "style points." That comment is spot on.  The lowest score wins (where have I heard that?).

There are certainly other reasons and benefits to playing golf, whether one's score is high or low.  The essential element of the game, however, is scoring.

[Jeremie Boop]

I don't necessarily focus on score as a measure for a good round. Sometimes if I don't lose any golf balls during the round I consider that a good round, other times my score is only marred by one or two bad holes and the rest of the round was really good. I look at each round as a whole and as a number. Now, a good score typically does lead to me thinking the round was a good one, there are plenty of rounds that I'm satisfied with even if the score doesn't show anything special. I think I've even mentioned that in the "how'd you score" and "my swing" threads that the round was "better than the score shows" . I can understand how better players would only see the score as the most important thing, but those of us who aren't that good can see other things as important in a round than just score.

[Shooting29]

I have played bad but scored well. i have played bad and the score reflected that poor performance.  I can't recall playing good and having a bad score. 

Score is the only way I measure success.  In tournament golf score is the only thing that matters.

[Lihu]

1 hour ago, Wanzo said:

Wouldn't this equate to a good score?

Not always. You might have a round with one or two bad holes due primarily to misfortune or bad shots off the tee, but the rest of it was phenomenal. Did those two bad holes ruin the entire round for you?

 

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I'm not sure I follow, maybe it's all in how you define a "great" round?

If you focus on score, maybe these things are harder to have happen....swing great and sink putts?

Not really. If you only focus on score you could add some "pressure" to possibly do something you should not or would not do otherwise?

For instance, you decide that you want to tee off with a 3W instead of a driver because it looks a little narrow where you normally land a driver. You opt to use a 3W to fall short of that "trouble" even though the last 10 rounds with the driver was fine. However, this time, you don't want to mess up that chance to par the 9 or something? It works out, but now you are two clubs behind on the approach of where you would normally be. The longer club hooks over into the trap or something.

Stuff like that plagues some of us when we shoot for score rather than simply making a swing at a time and focusing on each shot.

 

1 hour ago, bkuehn1952 said:

A number of times I have read remarks to the effect that in golf there are no "style points." That comment is spot on.  The lowest score wins (where have I heard that?).

Style in golf can be something like "purity in movement". You're making nice swings that feel good in doing so. It's like dance or something. It feels good to make that movement.

So, if you have a great day of nice swings and your putts are making it in but just because you have one or two misfortunes, does that completely nullify the round? It was a great round except for the coyote that took your ball off the green on one of the holes that you and your partners were absolutely sure was close to the pin.

 

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There are certainly other reasons and benefits to playing golf, whether one's score is high or low.  The essential element of the game, however, is scoring.

I feel like the essential element to golf is playing by the rules, making good swings, putts and good decisions, while score is the culmination of success of those things?

LSW wins, sure, but if you sacrifice any of the "essential" elements, is it still a better round than if you scored mediocre but "played well" so to speak?

 

4 minutes ago, Shooting29 said:

I have played bad but scored well. i have played bad and the score reflected that poor performance.  I can't recall playing good and having a bad score. 

Score is the only way I measure success.  In tournament golf score is the only thing that matters.

I'm possibly thinking more on the lines of unfortunate events that lead to poor scores rather than plain bad playing?

[David in FL]

Sorry, I want to score well.

If I score poorly, I'll certainly look for positives in my ball striking and overall play upon which to build confidence for my next round, but the score is ultimately what I care about.

That's likely why I never play "practice" rounds, or by myself.

[Kalnoky]

1 hour ago, Jeremie Boop said:

 I can understand how better players would only see the score as the most important thing, but those of us who aren't that good can see other things as important in a round than just score.

This is true at my level for sure. I remember beautiful well-struck shots more than making pars. Because, it is possible to make ugly pars, but I'm more interested in demonstrating competence. Similar to the basketball game HORSE - if I cannot "prove" a shot by repeating it, it's only luck. 

Edited February 8, 2017 by Kalnoky

[Patch]

Way back when I paid attention to my scores. 20-30 years ago I played for a good score. I was some what consumed by the game. Not so much now. 

These days I play just for the fun of being out there, in the out of doors. Doing something with old friends, and other times making new friends. This is why I now can play in such a relaxing manner. 

I have a number I play for, but that's about it. If I play below that number, that is a good thing. If I play above that number that's fine too. In both instances, I was out there enjoying what I was doing. 

[cromulent]

Definitely important. As someone who's shooting rounds of 101-105, I can't help visualising that elusive 99, 98 etc.

But the other numbers are important to me too- I want to get GIRs, I want putt under 2 per hole, improve my % fairways hit. Those are the numbers I'll try to take encouragement from if I shoot a poor score on any given day.

It also helps for me to know that nobody cares about my score but me...

[Lihu]

1 hour ago, Jakester23 said:

It might just be a coincidence but my two best 18 hole score were the two best rounds I played. They were by far the best ball striking rounds of my life.

Those are "perfect rounds". Nice.

 

1 hour ago, Groucho Valentine said:

The score is really the only thing that matters to me... I dont give a crap if skunk it all around the links as long as I'm satisfied with the number. 

That's kind of my point. I've done this and didn't really feel all that satisfied. It's like I depended upon luck too much and I feel like it's not reproducible.

 

1 hour ago, golfintheworld said:

How  many times did Tiger say "I hit the putt perfect. It just didn't go in". More times than none my best rounds consisted of my best iron shots and inside 30 shots. I can scramble and create shots from bad lies and I'll miss a few putts. 

Yeah, but do you feel like these rounds were good? The score says so, but doesn't it feel like there was more luck involved?

 

22 minutes ago, David in FL said:

Sorry, I want to score well.

If I score poorly, I'll certainly look for positives in my ball striking and overall play upon which to build confidence for my next round, but the score is ultimately what I care about.

That's likely why I never play "practice" rounds, or by myself.

Obviously, you do it consistently. So, no argument here. . .

 

6 minutes ago, Patch said:

Way back when I paid attention to my scores. 20-30 years ago I played for a good score. I was some what consumed by the game. Not so much now. 

These days I play just for the fun of being out there, in the out of doors. Doing something with old friends, and other times making new friends. This is why I now can play in such a relaxing manner. 

I have a number I play for, but that's about it. If I play below that number, that is a good thing. If I play above that number that's fine too. In both instances, I was out there enjoying what I was doing. 

This is also cool, but do you care about how you struck the ball?

 

3 minutes ago, cromulent said:

Definitely important. As someone who's shooting rounds of 101-105, I can't help visualising that elusive 99, 98 etc.

But the other numbers are important to me too- I want to get GIRs, I want putt under 2 per hole, improve my % fairways hit. Those are the numbers I'll try to take encouragement from if I shoot a poor score on any given day.

It also helps for me to know that nobody cares about my score but me...

I feel like part of the problem is because you're focused on the score/stats either consciously or sub-consciously. Would it help to only focus on one shot at a time?

[GolfLug]

'Great score' and  'great round' are synonyms.

Luck swings either ways and is a wash. I accept luck breaks with gratitude and bad breaks with with a shoulder shrug.

[Piz]

The score is a by-product of playing.  Usually, the less cognizant I am of where I stand, at a given point, the "better" I am playing.  That said, an 82 is not necessarily a better round than an 85.  It is a lower score; but small differences have more to do with good fortune (or bad) than skillful play.

[cromulent]

1 minute ago, Lihu said:

I feel like part of the problem is because you're focused on the score/stats either consciously or sub-consciously. Would it help to only focus on one shot at a time?

It would help enormously- you're absolutely right. My trouble is that when I hit the 16th hole or so, I'm SUPER-conscious of the score and it's a big distraction. Maybe when I break 100 I'll relax a bit, but in the meantime I'm trying to work on focusing on the shot at hand with pre-shot routine etc.

The mental part of the game is a whole other skill set.

[CarlSpackler]

It's all about the score. If I drive the ball long and down the middle and then lay sod over the next shot, then blade one across the green and 3 putt, I'm not happy. Even if I hit 2 great shots and 3 putt, I've again wasted the hole. I actually find perverse pleasure in finding a bad drive that someone thought was OB or whatever, putting it on the green and making birdie or par.