Driving Range Etiquette

[Marty2019]

I can only remember one time when I encountered distracting behavior on a driving range.  It was a foursome of guys in tank tops and flip flops who were really bad golfers and they guffawed at a lot of their shots.  But they weren't there for very long. 

The funny thing is, where I usually practice, the conversations I often overhear are young guys talking about trying to make the tour!   They are usually really great golfers (just judging from the shots they are hitting) who are talking about their latest experience trying out for some tournament that is a notch below the web.com tour.  I find those conversations interesting. 

And then there are the guys who get a big bucket of balls, and set up a chair, light up a cigar, and sit there puffing the cigar between shots.  Or having a conversation with their buddy.  I don't mind it as long as I'm not downwind of that cigar. 

The rest of the guys are grinding away like I am, topping, chunking, slicing, grunting, hitting a bad shot and looking at their club face, as if that isn't their normal shot.  I fall into that group- the slightly embarrassed, just insecure enough to care about what other people think, trying to act like we're better than we really are.

 

Edited October 28, 2017 by Marty2019

[Lihu]

9 hours ago, Marty2019 said:

I can only remember one time when I encountered distracting behavior on a driving range.  It was a foursome of guys in tank tops and flip flops who were really bad golfers and they guffawed at a lot of their shots.  But they weren't there for very long. 

The funny thing is, where I usually practice, the conversations I often overhear are young guys talking about trying to make the tour!   They are usually really great golfers (just judging from the shots they are hitting) who are talking about their latest experience trying out for some tournament that is a notch below the web.com tour.  I find those conversations interesting. 

And then there are the guys who get a big bucket of balls, and set up a chair, light up a cigar, and sit there puffing the cigar between shots.  Or having a conversation with their buddy.  I don't mind it as long as I'm not downwind of that cigar. 

The rest of the guys are grinding away like I am, topping, chunking, slicing, grunting, hitting a bad shot and looking at their club face, as if that isn't their normal shot.  I fall into that group- the slightly embarrassed, just insecure enough to care about what other people think, trying to act like we're better than we really are.

The cigar thing is something one of the female instructors complained about for the kids she instructs.

Hard for me to agree with denying people from smoking them. Seems like an integral part of Golf, and many of my partners smoke them.

Maybe they should be restricted to the downwind stalls?

This is something for the etiquette books?

 

BTW, if you feel embarrassed just mutter to yourself that every shot sucks including those you hit on the screws. At the end, just mutter “I suck at this stupid game.” Self consciousness isn’t an issue after that.

Edited October 28, 2017 by Lihu