Played 9 Yesterday, Some Beginner Questions

[david613m]

It was a great day for golf yesterday. A little cloudy, not too hot, but no chance of rain. So, after work, I sprinted to the golf course to get in nine holes. It was the first time I played with my new clubs and one of only a few times I've actually played through 9 holes this summer as I've been spending the majority of my time at the driving range.

All in all, I can't complain too much about how I did, but it was a bit below my expectations. I double bogeyed most of the holes and wasn't able to pull off any pars unfortunately. On the first hole, I hit an awful tee shot and another bad shot for my second. I think I was conscious of everyone watching the first tee. On the par 4, I finally got to the green in 4 and two putted it for a double bogey. On the second hole, also a par 4, I actually was about five feet from the green after my third shot, just barely missing it. My chip wasn't great, but wasn't bad, but the green was rated the hardest of the course. It sloped sharply from back to front. I three putted for 3 over. The rest of the holes were similar, but through holes 5-7, I started getting tired and hitting really bad shots. My natural inclination when I start doing that is to tense up to try to get more "control," but of course, that just makes things worse. I kept playing through, though, and recovered on the 8th, where I got back into form.

The 9th was a par 3, 148 yards. I figured my 7-iron would be good as I usually hit my 6 around 150 on the driving range (or so I thought). I hit a beautiful shot that went probably 5-10 yards past the green. Unfortunately 5-10 yards past the green was into the clubhouse area and out of bounds. There was no wind, so either the yardage is off on the course, the yardage is off on the driving range at which I hit, or I'm slowly improving my distance. I dropped the ball and chipped it onto the green about 5 inches from the hole for a total of 4. (I'm right in adding one shot for the drop?) I'd take the bogey, though, especially after having such a bad run in the middle and recovering very nicely. 5 yards less and I would have had my par.

Some questions that I had as I was playing:

1) Not the group in front of me, but the group in front of them were a foursome that played so so so slowly. It was unbelieveable how slow they were. I would have to wait five to ten minutes minimum at every single hole. Is there some polite way to deal with this? If it were the group directly in front of me, I might have said something or asked to play through, but the group in front of me was a two some that was fairly quick and I never really got a chance to talk to the foursome. It easily doubled the amount of time it took me to get through the 9 holes.

2) I noticed the ground was damp at times. Should I hit the next club up when the ground is damp? I felt that my shots weren't going as far as they usually did.

3) Can you trust the yardage on the course signs?

[Old]

Nice work man.

For me, I usually play in a 4some, but sometimes double.
We just deal with it usually. Use the time to rest up and map out the hole, etc. But sometimes 1 person will ask us if they can go ahead in front of us and that's cool.

As for wet grounds, the ball doesn't bounce or roll as far as it would on dry ground, so use your judgement on if you need to go up.
If you're in the rough, I find that the grass just klings on to the club and makes it harder to swing through, so maybe it's good to use the next up.
Putting is the worst (for me) when the green is wet. You need to put more umph in it b/c it doesn't roll much. It's harder for me to guage it.

I usually trust the yardage they post.
Last course I played, they had carts with a GPS mapping system in it. It was the coolest thing I've seen.
It tells you exactly how far your cart is from the hole.
I found that the signs that post yardage were within 5 or so yards that the GPS displayed.
Old.

[jc@bg]

Some questions that I had as I was playing:

1) Not the group in front of me, but the group in front of them were a foursome that played so so so slowly. It was unbelieveable how slow they were. I would have to wait five to ten minutes minimum at every single hole. Is there some polite way to deal with this? If it were the group directly in front of me, I might have said something or asked to play through, but the group in front of me was a two some that was fairly quick and I never really got a chance to talk to the foursome. It easily doubled the amount of time it took me to get through the 9 holes.

2) I noticed the ground was damp at times. Should I hit the next club up when the ground is damp? I felt that my shots weren't going as far as they usually did.

3) Can you trust the yardage on the course signs?

1. Allowing faster groups or individuals to play through is supposed to be common etiquette, but in practice I don't see it that often. I play lots of times by myself (the last hour before dark, usually) but still don't have many foursomes or slower twos or three wave me through--and I usually shoot 76-82 and play quickly. What can you do if people in front ignore the fact that you're waiting? If there's no one close behind *me* who I'd be slowing up, I use the extra time to practice some putts, chips around the green I've just finished. This is very valuable and makes the slow pace of play much less bothersome.

2. Hitting the next club up (or with less loft) is a good idea for two reasons when the ground is damp: it's harder to get the ball to roll very far when it's damp, and it's also harder to compress the ball when you hit it. Take one more club, swing easy and smooth, and try not to take too much ground with your shots.

3. Yardage signs are usually fairly accurate, because (I think) most gold courses measure yardages with surveyor's tools. That said, I don't know their precise procedure for measuring. For instance, do they go line-of-sight from the tee (easier on par 3's), or do they go to the middle of the fairway and then down the dogleg if a hole can't be played straight through? One thing's for sure, we're seldom exactly in the center of a hole, so those of us with less than advanced geometry skills might have to approximate from time to time.

Hang in there. Sounds like you found the positive from your round to build on, which is how we improve. -- JC

[Golferyukon]

3. From the tournaments i have been playing in lately i have learned that most yardage markers are accurate most of the time... but if you are in doubt go w/ the club you feel more comfortable w/, as a result you should hit a better shot

[david613m]

That's a great idea about chipping and putting on the green before while you are waiting. That didn't occur to me for some reason.

[Bravo35223]

david:

You are doing fine for someone with so little experience and with new clubs....

A few generalities for you...

1) Distance with your clubs. It may take awhile for you to really understand how far you hit your clubs. A trip or two to the range will surely give you a decent idea but over time (as you hit more shots) your given distance will become more accurate. Also, figuring in the factor that you are getting lessons now can make a significant difference.

Only time - and many shots under different conditions (wind, surface conditions) will tell you.

2) Marked distance measurements on courses. This is almost impossible to tell without sighting or mechanical measuring equipment. Once again - as a generality - good quality courses will be very good to excellent on their yardage measurements. The technology used for this in the past 10+ years is optical/laser and is accurate within less than an inch. Therefore, I have found that the markings on good courses to be very accurate but have played more than my share of golf on courses where it is clearly several yards off. If you DO get a chance to play a course that has GPS, I would definitely do this as it will help you understand your club distances well..

3) Playing speed. Slower groups are supposed to let faster groups play through but so very often - this is not observed. Also, please know that foursomes are often given an "informal priority" on golf courses and many foursomes will take it as a "right" that they will not let singles or doubles come through them. So when you are thinking of playing golf - you will be less frustrated if you can get four players together.

You're probably thinking,"Hey Bravo I am just learning the game". And if this is your thought - I understand. You likely want to get some consistency in your play before you start with groups.

This is a challenging issue because (worldwide) golf courses are generally quite crowded. Wish I had a magic wand for you on this one....

[divotman]

"The 9th was a par 3, 148 yards. I figured my 7-iron would be good as I usually hit my 6 around 150 on the driving range (or so I thought). I hit a beautiful shot that went probably 5-10 yards past the green."


as you improve you will learn the distance you normally hit each club. remember that range balls don't fly as far as the balls your playing with, so this may partly explain why your ball went further. also it will help if you try to stay with one type of ball. if you play "whatever comes out of my bag", there will be more inconsistency in your distance. even putting is different from ball to ball, so finding and sticking with one ball will help.

[david613m]

That's a good point about the ball. And thanks for the tips, Bravo -- they are always more than welcome. I head out tonight with my instructor to the course -- we'll see how I do having played the front nine once already and with less soggy conditions. I know I'm not hitting my seven iron on the 9th now!