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Is workability overrated in amateurs?

Jericho

Jericho

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I'd say so!

I bring this up because something occurred to me this weekend...my scores are starting to catch up (within 3-6 strokes per round) to my 2 partner's however they both much better than me. One plays SGI Cleveland Launchers and the other plays Titleist CB's. I play my Di11's and aim to hit the ball as straight as possible whereas these two seem to love to hit every draw/fade combination known to man. While it's cool to see I notice that too often they'll slightly overcook it one way or another and end up off the green leading to a chip, and 2 putt for a bogey. They both have the potential for very exciting rounds but more often than not they end up with plain jane mid-low 80's. When they want they can hit the ball straight and get great scores but their insistence on hitting "show shots" has led to me catching up to them. They used to always beat me by a dozen or so strokes...this weekend we played at the 3rd hardest public course in the country (according to an issue of GD) and I took the front 9 and dominated the par 3's. I had a mini blowup on the back and ended up losing by 4 and 2 strokes but someone like me should not be seriously competing with them I feel like.
 
I think it's a good skill to have, but just trying to hit the ball straight is probably easier most of the time.
 
Jericho said:
I'd say so!

I bring this up because something occurred to me this weekend...my scores are starting to catch up (within 3-6 strokes per round) to my 2 partner's however they both much better than me. One plays SGI Cleveland Launchers and the other plays Titleist CB's. I play my Di11's and aim to hit the ball as straight as possible whereas these two seem to love to hit every draw/fade combination known to man. While it's cool to see I notice that too often they'll slightly overcook it one way or another and end up off the green leading to a chip, and 2 putt for a bogey. They both have the potential for very exciting rounds but more often than not they end up with plain jane mid-low 80's. When they want they can hit the ball straight and get great scores but their insistence on hitting "show shots" has led to me catching up to them. They used to always beat me by a dozen or so strokes...this weekend we played at the 3rd hardest public course in the country (according to an issue of GD) and I took the front 9 and dominated the par 3's. I had a mini blowup on the back and ended up losing by 4 and 2 strokes but someone like me should not be seriously competing with them I feel like.
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Maybe. I'm glad I learned how to play golf by hitting draws and fades, as opposed to focusing on hitting straight shots. Being able to play different shots into tight pin locations (or hitting out of tricking spots off the fairway) has been invaluable. But then again, I practiced hitting shots one handed ala Johnny Miller.
 
I think it's very overrated. One of my regular playing partners obsesses over working the ball, yet it's one of the biggest downfalls of his 17 handicap.

Hit the ball straight and you're bound to get into single digits. I know I don't bother working the ball.
 
I think left to right and vice versa is a little overrated but being able to control your trajectory is extremely important especially in areas with consistently high winds.
 
I think it's hard for me to focus on workability since I fight a natural fade and I wouldn't be able to focus on hitting it anything more than straight but it is a great skill to have. I just hit straight to the right on a dog leg right and hope I don't hit anything lol
 
I don't want to live in a world where the rope-hook-me-jeebus doesn't exist.
 
i'm with hawk, while great to have the ability it's something most people don't NEED to do in most situations. most amateur golfers don't need to hit fades to tucked pins...they should be playing to the fats of greens and lookin for a two putt...
 
Hawk said:
I don't want to live in a world where the rope-hook-me-jeebus doesn't exist.
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It came out twice this weekend. Jman enjoyed that shot a little bit.
 
Canadan said:
I think it's very overrated. One of my regular playing partners obsesses over working the ball, yet it's one of the biggest downfalls of his 17 handicap.

Hit the ball straight and you're bound to get into single digits. I know I don't bother working the ball.
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This is true. I'm a natural draw hitter and for me to fade is nearly impossible.
 
In the grand scheme of things I'd say yes. Hitting a straight ball with solid contact > than trying to move a ball if not ready to do so
 
Canadan said:
I think it's very overrated. One of my regular playing partners obsesses over working the ball, yet it's one of the biggest downfalls of his 17 handicap.

Hit the ball straight and you're bound to get into single digits. I know I don't bother working the ball.
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Agree completely. Countless times I have seen golfers (my uncle is a perfect example) trying to hit that fade or draw and disaster ensues. For us average golfers (5-25 handicap), I think more CONSISTENT success, results, lower scores - whatever you want to call it would occur by playing a straight shot or your natural shot (baby fade, etc).
 
JB said:
It came out twice this weekend. Jman enjoyed that shot a little bit.
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No gathering would be complete without that shot making an appearance.
 
Wonton said:
This is true. I'm a natural draw hitter and for me to fade is nearly impossible.
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Nothing wrong with having a consistency in your swing, as far as I'm concerned.. I worry about the guys walking up to the ball in the middle of the fairway and 'playing a cut' because there's a bunker on the right side of the green... Honestly, how are they surprised if they block it?
 
Whatever you want to do to have an enjoyable round. Most folks spend their money to play this game and if they get more enjoyment from shaping shots then going low because they "just missed" then good for them. Not everyone that works out is aiming to bench 500 lbs. As long as you play on pace you can do whatever you want.
 
echico said:
Whatever you want to do to have an enjoyable round. Most folks spend their money to play this game and if they get more enjoyment from shaping shots then going low because they "just missed" then good for them. Not everyone that works out is aiming to bench 500 lbs. As long as you play on pace you can do whatever you want.
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I tend to agree with this. I have a coworker who always tells me how much he loves to work the ball around the course. That's his thing.
 
I dont think its over rated if its done properly.
 
There's allot more to it than just moving it left or right, you can hit a draw for some added distance or roll, you can hit a cut to take a little off the distance or land the ball soft. It's nice to have the shots when you need them even though it's not often.
 
I can't move a ball from left to right (I'm a lefty) so laterally moving the ball means very little to me but I sure do like manipulating the trajectory of my golf ball. That's very important to me.
 
Yes it is overrated. Too many amateurs, myself included, focus too much on multiple shot shapes instead of being consistent with one. Instead of working to hit draws and fades and controlling trajectory, just work on hitting a consistent shot.
 
I generally score in the Mid to high 90s so I might not be the best judge but... I have also had a subtle fade to my shot (5 yards or ) and I am much more comfortable knowing the ball is going to "straight" and going to land roughly were I want it too. If I am hitting it straight, I don't see much need to work the ball. For me it is just about trying to strike the ball pure.
 
It's highly overrated IMO. Speaking for myself and I can "work" the ball both ways, but I can't control the 5 or 15 yards of cut/draw which would make it useful. Golf is hard enough, if you have to hit a cut or draw to get to a pin, chances are it's a sucker pin and you should be going for the middle of the green
 
IDK if workability is all that important, but I do believe having a consistent ball flight will help any high hcpr improve quickly because that generally means you have found a repeatable swing.
 
Id be happy if I could hit it straight all the time.. lol
 
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