NotPortlyNJ

Well just the other day, the 1 ball I lost on my local course was NOT lost in the water (as it usually is) but when I sliced my drive on #4. I KNOW I saw it slice right, and the rough on that side is far from unplayable (in fact I've become pretty good at recovering from that area :( ), but for the life of me I could not find my ball the other day. I walked out about 250 yards ( well beyond how far a sliced ball would have gone), and since nobody was behind for a couple of holes, I walked BACK to the tee box to hit #3, and still did not find my ball. Well, I like to THINK I'm not stupid.

I find it helps to warm up. Gotta at least hit a few putts to see how the greens seem to be running. Not even necessarily to sink them (although that's satisfying), just to see how to avoid hitting it short.

The buddy trip is how I got into golf in the first place. Been going on one since 2008, and the group of 30 guys has been doing this for 25 years. It's a scramble format for the tournament, plus an optional additional round prior to it, over 4 days of drinking and camaraderie. Each year, the organizer decides on the location, accommodations, and other activities (music venues, etc), so there is no issue with everyone trying to "help" with setting it up. The last thing the organizer does after the tournament is appoint next year's organizer.

If I'm not working on something specific (trying to get my driver to not slice, dialing in my hybrids, etc.), I'll usually warm up w/ wedges or mid irons, then play a course in my head: hit a tee club, appropriate iron depending on tee shot, approach wedge, etc., to get on the green. Putting is of course done another time.

Interesting thread on this. I started playing in earnest last year, and started with the 10 finger grip. My pro just asked me to pick up the club and then he adjusted the alignment, etc., of the grip. I suppose he just wanted his students to do what feels right to them, and adjust from there. Recently I've been experimenting with the overlap grip (which I use for putting and now chipping) on the range, but I lose yardage and don't strike as well. So I think I'll stick with the 10 finger, at least for full swings. As a novice, I suppose this really is the best time to tinker with this.

Here is an example of incentives for fast play: http://www.crystalgolfresort.com/Golf/FastTrackGolf.aspx

Does anyone have any recommendations for golf in the South of France? I'll be in the Nice area for my daughter's wedding in late September, and I'm thinking it might be nice to get a round in while I'm out there for about 12 days. I'm a beginning golfer (second year) with limited French language skills. Thanks for any recommendations.

+29, twice. Once early last year -- my first 9 holes on a real (par 36) course after a few lessons and some range time. +29 my first time out this year -- 58 on a par 29. Fortunately, I'm down in the 40's on that par 29.

That's why I'm playing an executive course nearby. I warn people that I'm new and that I suck and the response is always "so do we that's why we're here" :)

As a beginner myself, this thread kind of hits home for me, however, I am not a slow player. I may take a lot of shots, but I've never been THAT bad that I'd need 30 minutes to finish even a long par 5 while walking -- I would have been totally embarrassed if I hadn't been on the range enough prior to my first time really playing a real course if I hit ALL my shots that badly. Having said that, you want to give some leeway for a novice to be able to make a game of it, but at some point you need to draw the line. If your novice friend is just hitting that bad, he/she needs to pick up. 20 minutes on the hole in the OP would be one thing, but 30-35 is just way too slow. General rule IMHO is double par should be the absolute max. Even I have never shot that high.

I, too, only took up this game last year. My first time out on a real course, I went solo, and on the 2nd or 3rd tee, someone caught up and joined me. He didn't feel qualified to give me swing advice, but helped with the mental game, most importantly: don't swing so hard! I still struggle with this, but not nearly as much. My game is getting better as a result. Find a local executive course -- it'll boost your confidence greatly. That, and hit the range. Find what your weakness is, and work on it. If you have more than 1 weakness, well, one thing at a time. After my first time out this year (put up a 129 on a fairly difficult par 72), I determined that my irons and hybrids just were not working. A few hundred range balls later, I'm now fairly consistent with them. Now, on to woods, which are hit or miss, and lag putting. Oh, and remember: this game is hard.

Couldn't agree more, and probably what keeps most hackers like myself playing.

Yes, I am, and I have focused practice to thank. Picked the game up last year, took a few lessons, made good progress, broke my foot, and most of that was lost, until this year. Now, it seems that "poppa needs a brand new everything" comes to mind in that I need to work on everything. Started in April getting to the range, and chipping balls in my back yard. Played a round at a local par 29 executive course -- 2 par 4's, the rest 160 and less par 3's. My first round I discovered that my iron striking was HORRIBLE, putting up a 58. So a few hundred balls at the range, and 2 weeks later I had dropped 16 strokes, and I feel I'm getting a good handle on chipping. Now, since my irons are OK (could still use some fine tuning), but my last round after making par on the 1st hole (par 3), I discovered that I had too many GIR - 3 putt holes, so it's off to the putting green now to work on lag putting, in addition to getting my hit-or-miss driver working for the par 4's. Focused practice for me for now.

Good point about not being concerned about getting lung cancer from second hand smoke at the golf course. Some of the comments here are along the lines of "OMG, I got a whiff of smoke from 100 feet away! I'll be dead of emphasema next week!" which is ridiculous. The reason smoking is banned in indoor places (and as one who enjoys a nice cigar on the golf course, I FULLY agree with it), is that: 1. Second hand smoke in the accumulations found indoors, over time, IS bad for you, 2. It's worse for children, 3. Banning indoor smoking was done primarily for the benefit of employees of restaurants, bars, etc. (but curiously not casinos), who must be there for several hours at a time breathing all that smoke, 4. Second hand smoke from a cigarette is not filtered, and since tobacco companies put additives in that prevent the cigarette from going out when left in an ashtray, as a hand-rolled cigarette or a cigar would, all that smoke comes drifting out for no reason whatsoever. The comment about the guy smoking on a sidewalk being "just as bad as smoking indoors" is beyond ridiculous.

Just give me a tree. No need to walk deep into the woods, I guess I'm just a "whip it and grip it" guy.

First question to ask yourself is "frustration aside, do I enjoy golf?". If the answer is yes, please don't compare yourself to others yet. See my thread in this forum titled "A tale of two rounds" and you'll see that I made great strides by finding what I needed to improve and practicing that. And, I didn't start taking this game up in earnest until last year -- at age 48! At your age you can probably improve even faster.

Last year was the first year taken this game up in earnest, after having played an annual scramble with a bunch of friends once a year for the past few years. I was making progress last year, took a series of lessons, then got derailed by a broken foot last August. So this year, I'm starting out early, and have played 2 rounds at a local short course (par 29). My first round I shot a miserable 58, and my iron shots were either topped or shanked. Having determined that I need to work on my irons and chip shots, I hit the range 3 or 4 times and practiced chipping in my back yard, and the result 2 weeks later was a 42 -- took 16 strokes off! Just goes to show: find your weaknesses, work on them, and see results. First Round: Second Round:

In addition to hitting the range, it sounds like you need to work on your mental game. Sounds like you're getting frustrated, and that's going to affect your shot too. Golf it seems is 90% physical, and the other half is mental, and the mental half is not much easier.

I believe the answer to 3 is yes, you can drop at the point where the ball crossed the hazard but no closer to the hole. Further away is OK though.

I certainly do remember the first time I went out and kept my score (not counting a few drunken scrambles at the annual golf outing that finally got me into the game this year) since it was only 2 months ago. Shot a 65 on a 9 hole par 36 course. Kept it strict too -- no mulligans, counted penalty shots, including the one that didn't come near getting over the water hazard. I've been practicing at another 9 hole course, keeping score sometimes. I plan on getting back to that first course soon so I can see how many strokes I've taken off.

About 4 years ago I started going on a golf/drinking outing with a great group of guys, an annual affair which I should have started on years ago, and regret that. That first year I had only occasionally hit a golf ball, and it showed. Last year I took 2 lessons just so I could swing a club. I hit a couple of good shots in this scramble tournament and became hooked. This year I've taken a few lessons, practiced on the range, and now typically walk 9 holes at least once a week at a local muni. I thank all those guys for introducing me to this game. But I digress... This outing started by a few guys who went to college together. One of their fathers mentioned that, as they grow older, they will have fewer and fewer times to get together, and that someone should start an annual event to get them together. From there, they brought friends, who brought friends, and now the group can be 25 - 30 guys showing up. So k-troop, try to start an annual outing now, before you drift apart too much.

I've only recently taken up this game, and have played mostly 9 hole rounds, but I walk and carry my bag. I find my stamina increasing -- I'm not nearly as tired after 9 holes as I used to be -- imagine that. Also, my local muni charges $10 on weekdays / $12 on weekends for the poorly maintained 9 that I usually play (there are 2 other 9's for an 18 hole course, but that's $20/$25 and I usually let the real golfers play that without me in their way), and I feel too cheap to add $12 for a cart on top of that.

I have a chromed cigar holder / flask thing that looks like a double cigar holder but one side is a flask, usually filled with single malt. Useful when alone, otherwise a separate larger flask of single malt when with company. Also a cigar clip that clips onto my bag. And of course a couple of bottles of partially frozen water. Would carry beer but I usually walk. Any advice on keeping the beer from getting shaken up while walking?

If you tell her it requires shoes, that simply means 1 thing: SHOE SHOPPING! She'll end up with 18 pairs of golf shoes.

Can you show a picture or post a link to this thing?