CaddyCarl

The closer I get to the green, the worse I am, it feels like. I'd much rather approach from about 130, with my 8 hybrid.

Gives the phrase, "I wish I had three right hands" a whole other meaning...

I was going to post, but this pretty much says it, for me.

Look, I've been on this website long enough to recognize how this is about to go for me, and that's ok. I expected to catch hell, but my opinions are my opinions, and nothing you said changed my mind. I'm of the mind that swinging a stick and hitting a target, whether it's a ball or a pinata, is an entirely natural thing, that doesn't take a whole lot of instruction or repetition to be reasonable at. We had to take my sand wedge out of my 7 year old grandson's hands because he couldn't keep the ball in the back yard. Kept hitting it in the street, 60 yds away. Repeatedly. He was 4' tall. With my wedge. To him, the club was so heavy he had to pick it up, put it on his right shoulder, take a half squat and almost jump off the ground to get it moving, then swing his hands as hard as he could in the direction he wanted the ball to go, and there it went. I've never taught him a thing about swinging a club, because he has zero interest in sports. He just wanted to play around with Poppy, and was mimicing(sp?) me as best as he was able. My whole point was, and I concede I didn't do the best job of making it, people have far more innate physical ability than they're led to believe. Maybe I should have just said that, and been done with it. And finally, I'm a 57 year old, disabled, stage 4 cancer survivor, with spinal degradation. I fatigue easily, and have issues with balance, memory, and focus, due to extensive chemotherapy and radiation. I cannot play or practice much. In my opinion, a score of 95 is perfectly acceptable for a man in my state. So, screw you, dude

My two cents is, swinging a stick and hitting an object is a perfectly natural movement for a human to do. We've been swinging sticks and hitting things since the dawn of man. Our bodies and minds are wonderfully adaptive to using tools. The first dude that decided to hit a stone with a stick, to while away the time, would have quit doing it if he didn't become reasonably proficient at it in short order. We've all done it as kids. Pick up a stone, flip it in the air, and hit it with a stick. An afternoon of doing that and you get pretty good at it. No batting coach required. Sure, elite golf is a different animal that requires focused training and practice, and elite ballstriking is not a natural talent, and needs to be taught, because it requires elite technique. But the core skill of swinging a stick and hitting something is entirely natural, IMO. Sorry for the rant, but that blanket statement that man did not evolve with the natural ability to hit a ball with a stick is bs, IMO. Golf is not hard, and does not require instruction, past a brief introduction to it's fundamentals. You get better by playing. Competitive golf is hard, and probably requires instruction, because of the introduction of the concepts of distance and precision. But then again, what the hell do I know.

Around here the munis and semi-privates are open all year, unless there's snow or a heavy rain event that closes the course. As soon as the snow melts or the course dries, they open back up. We couldn't this year, but most years we can play year round with maybe a week or two break here and there. Winter golf is a whole different game. I love the imagination it requires.

Dude!!! 😎

I voted no. Because if you decide to play the "sport" you should play by the sport's rules. Ignorance of the rule should be treated the same as ignorance of the law. The cops aren't going to let you slide because you claim ignorance of the law. "Gee officer, I didn't know the speed limit was 55mph". You decided to engage in a competitive sport that is governed by rules. Follow the rules. Is it really that hard? Knowledge of the rules of the game is one of the few things you have complete control over. Learn them, then. If it's too much for you, don't compete in officially sanctioned events. Or don't come crying when johnny law points his finger at you. For all the shit you get away with on a golf course, on a daily basis, you probably owe the man a penalty stroke or two anyway. Come back to folk golf, where we don't worry about such nonsense 😉

Looks kinda like my swing. Ball back in the stance, early release sweep swing. Easy to learn. Easy to repeat. Not the way to elite golf, but I don't care about that. Club up and move it along. Keeps me in play. Not as hard on my back, either.

I'm squarely in the golf saved my life camp. I suffer from depression and PTSD. I used to see a psychologist until I realized I got far more from golf. Prayers, and welcome, sir.

That's the one!

I choke down on a 3H. It used to be the 3I but I like the hotter face of the hybrid.

I guess I've gotten so unbearable, I broke a lamp swinging in my living room, my wife is starting to look at weather reports to see when I can go play. 😏

In caddy school we were taught to lower the flag softly to the deck. The membership at the club would get heated if caddies were dropping flags. I do it to this day. Every time. Either lower it by the flag, or hook it with my putter. And, by the way, I'm a casual golfer all day long.

^This. And it used to cause me quite a bit of angst, until I came to the realization that the reason I don't do those things is because I must be ok with where I'm at.

The OP asked specifically about pros we've met. I've only met one. Tom Watson. And he was great. In 2007 I was caddying in a local tournament sponsored by Lancaster General Health, at Lancaster Country Club, and they had arranged for 'Ole Tom to meet every foursome on the 17th tee, a relatively short par 3, and play the hole with them. Watson's tour bag was standing off to the side, along with a couple of reps. He greeted each of us as we stepped up to the tee box, including the caddies. Watson has a soft spot for caddies, as I'm sure many of you are aware, and he happily engaged us in light conversation before everybody tee'd off. When I shook his hand I got a good sense of the power of his grip. Anyways, I can't remember if he tee'd off first or last, amongst the men in the group, but I do remember he had nice easy stroke, and put it inside 10'. One of my golfers was a female, and pretty good, and she tee'd off last. I gave her her club, and she stepped up and promptly rang her tee shot off the pin. Watson was so excited he was fist pumping and high fiving everybody in sight, "man, I love a great golf shot!!". Dude didn't know this woman from a can of paint. To see a seasoned Tour pro that excited over some amateur he doesn't even know hitting a great shot. It was just so cool...

My con relates to shot distance. I think I can still hit that far. I'll look at a shot and think "7 iron". No it's not. At one time in your golfing life it might have been a 7 iron. At 57 years old, that is no longer a 7 iron. It's a 5 iron now, or more likely a 5 hybrid. I'm still learning my lesson with that. Amateurs tend to hit their shots too short, instead of too long to begin with. Compounded with advancing age, and limited play and practice time, I've really had to start rethinking my bag, and course strategy, when it comes to convertable distance. I played a par 3 last week that used to be 9 iron for me. Took a 6 iron to green it. That can be a hard pill to swallow for some guys...

Go Furyk!! Lancaster County representin'...

Yeah, I don't get it. Compared to a cotton t-shirt and blue jeans, even the least expensive modern golf attire is so lightweight and comfortable it's like wearing pajamas. And cheap too. My latest golf shirt was a brand new adidas, $2.00 at a local flea market, with some company logo stitched on the front. Who cares? 2 dollars! Maybe it's counterfeit. I have a couple of authentic adidas shirts and I can't tell the difference. Why wouldn't ya wear the stuff? It's half the fun! Maybe some people just feel like being contrarian.

Me and my golf buddy played for the first time since late December. Got paired up with two strangers, walked off with two friends with plans to play together again next week. It's what it's all about...

I didn't start breaking 100 with any consistancy until I went with a minimalist set up. One day at home I was thinking about my game (imagine that...😉) and was pretty disgusted with the state of things. I took a hard look at my bag, and pulled out every stick I didn't feel warm and fuzzy about. Left me with 5 clubs. Driver, 7 wood, 8 hybrid, PW, putter. I know... Anyways, took that setup to the course and immediately broke 100 with it (98). I don't get to practice or play much, but since going with a minimal setup I spend more time in the 90's than I do the 100's. I'm confident in my ability to hit a reasonable shot 7 out of 10 times with evey club in my bag. About 180-200 with driver, and I'm good for 150 or so with that 7 wood. Now I'm out about 350. If it's a long par5 I just hit the 7 again. On most of the munis and other courses we play around here, that's plenty of distance. And I'm pretty serviceable around the green with that 8 hybrid. I spend very little time trying to hit shots I have no business trying. IMHO it's a great strategy for high cappers. And you can always add more clubs to the bag, as you play and get better. Low cappers can benefit too, becoming more imaginative with shots, and so on. Boy, I'm long-winded today... apologies 🙏

I have never in my life purchased a new golf club. And if I did, it would be a club at a time, as I carry a minimalist bag.

1974 Ford Mustang II. Bought it from a buddy when I was in the service. Beat the hell out of it going back and forth from Lancaster, Pa to Camp Lejeune. It was puke green. Loved that car.

I had to resurrect this one. Lyle's passing was heartbreaking. I'm a stage 4 survivor myself. The treatment regimen was punishing. When Lyle decided to pull the plug on it, I had empathy for that. But, man I want everybody to win 😔. I like to consider myself a fairly rugged dude, but without my wife and daughters, boy, I don't know...

I used to be ok at this game. I've never had a lesson, and have never in my life purchased a new golf club. 20 some odd years ago I was a pretty consistent bogey golfer. Life got overtaken by events and golf went away for awhile. Came back to it in 2014, and have been improving at the rate of about 5 strokes a year. Goal is to get to bogey golf again. Then maybe we'll consider some clubs and lessons