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Do you think your way around?

Trout Bum

Trout Bum

Regional Rival
Albatross 2024 Club
Joined
Jun 27, 2011
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Handicap
15
As I sit here reflecting on some past rounds, it became obvious that my best rounds in recent history have been because I placed the ball where I wanted and it made club choices and shot making easier. Also the errant shots were mostly played as a take your medicine and just get out of trouble. The hero shots got me in trouble and cost me a ton of strokes.

Do you think your way around the course?
 
Trout Bum said:
As I sit here reflecting on some past rounds, it became obvious that my best rounds in recent history have been because I placed the ball where I wanted and it made club choices and shot making easier. Also the errant shots were mostly played as a take your medicine and just get out of trouble. The hero shots got me in trouble and cost me a ton of strokes.

Do you think your way around the course?
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sometimes I do, and then sometimes I try to be a hero from the trees when I know I shouldnt

So Id like to think Im better now than in the past, but still make the occasional stupid decision
 
Pretty much have to. I think you and I had a form of this conversation on the first tee at True Blue in 2012.
 
Visualization is a very powerful thing. I try to think through how the shot is going to go in my head. I think it's a huge part of the game.
 
I believe that chances for being in the right position on the course are enhanced by knowing where those places are and thinking about how to get there. Execution is not always there but planning is still valuable.

I actually wrote the course guide for our club a few years ago. I did not set out to do so. It was supposed to be a cooperative effort among members but I was the only one to make any such effort so all my thoughts became the guide.
 
I am trying to get to the point that I think myself around the course, instead of a grip it and rip mind set. I had that going for me the first nine yesterday, then made a mental mistake, pulled 3w and put one in the drink. Had I taken the smart approach and played to a yardage I could have snagged a par or better instead if a double. Looking back now I did that in all the holes I had bad scores on.

Hmmmm
 
I'm trying to think my way around the course better than I have in the past but I still make a poor decision once in awhile.
 
My best rounds I do. But forcing yourself to take your medicine instead of trying to pull off a difficult (stupid) shot is hard!
 
Trout Bum said:
As I sit here reflecting on some past rounds, it became obvious that my best rounds in recent history have been because I placed the ball where I wanted and it made club choices and shot making easier. Also the errant shots were mostly played as a take your medicine and just get out of trouble. The hero shots got me in trouble and cost me a ton of strokes.

Do you think your way around the course?
Click to expand...

For me lately for what ever reason i think my way around except for 2 or 3 swings a round & those swings seem to cost me dearly. Golf is minimizing the damage on your bad swings & a lot of times most amateurs will compound the issue. Hind sight is always 20/20 & while i try not to think about previous rounds inevitably i do, just yesterday later in the day someone(wife) asked "how did you play" & i thought i struck it ok, but had the usual few bad swings. When that happens I try to think about what i did wrong on those bad swings, did i play to quickly, was my swing fast, wrong club, etc & a lot of the time I can't even recall what I did & that is because i did not focus for that shot/ pre-shot routine was probably not there.

Oops may have gone off on a tangent there, what was the original question :laughing:
 
I am trying to get better at this. My better scores usually come when I do this as well. Placement is highly underrated. I think we get stuck sometimes thinking simply that longer is better.
 
I certainly try to think my way round the course and play sensibly and as long as the swing is co-operating then I tend to find I play better
 
I try to the best I can. If I know the course and have played it a time or two I have a pretty good understanding where I want to put my tee ball and where not to go. If I've never played the course before I hope I'm playing with someone who has but if not I'm going to give it my best shot. I think understanding and placing shots where you want them are the best way to great scores
 
ForTheLovOfGolf said:
I try to the best I can. If I know the course and have played it a time or two I have a pretty good understanding where I want to put my tee ball and where not to go. If I've never played the course before I hope I'm playing with someone who has but if not I'm going to give it my best shot. I think understanding and placing shots where you want them are the best way to great scores
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I think this is a good point. Familiarity plays a big role.
 
Wicked Cool Bearded Man said:
I think this is a good point. Familiarity plays a big role.
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I really do think it's a big part. Also if you're playing with someone who knows the course but hits a different ball than you it can make seeing the course in a completely different light. For me, I like to know what the hole may do and where to miss, not where to hit. Play my game as best I can just knowing where the big misses are.
 
No. I am more of a hero shot kind of guy. That's why I am a 12 handicap.
 
I try to. Honestly it's a struggle. That flag can just tempt me to go for it. That hero shot is so tempting. Starting to get better at hitting a club that gives me the distance I prefer for that next shot as opposed to hitting it as far as I can then dealing with the results. Now that my 100 yard game has gotten better it makes it easier to think my way around.
 
I am really trying to, but I still have work to do. I suffer from delusions of grandeur where I think that I can get on a 560 yard par 5 in two if I just pipe a drive right between the water hazards.
Yesterday the 3rd hole was a tight 215 yard par 3. I had already mishit my hybrid on the first hole and had no confidence on the teebox holding it, so I hit SW, SW and then 2 putted for bogey. Maybe that was smart, maybe that was absolutely ridiculous, who knows.
 
Trout Bum said:
As I sit here reflecting on some past rounds, it became obvious that my best rounds in recent history have been because I placed the ball where I wanted and it made club choices and shot making easier. Also the errant shots were mostly played as a take your medicine and just get out of trouble. The hero shots got me in trouble and cost me a ton of strokes.

Do you think your way around the course?
Click to expand...

I definitely do, it is one of the strengths of my game for the most part. I am not a long hitter by any means, so my good rounds come from having a game plan and sticking to it.

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ForTheLovOfGolf said:
I try to the best I can. If I know the course and have played it a time or two I have a pretty good understanding where I want to put my tee ball and where not to go. If I've never played the course before I hope I'm playing with someone who has but if not I'm going to give it my best shot. I think understanding and placing shots where you want them are the best way to great scores
Click to expand...

Wicked Cool Bearded Man said:
I think this is a good point. Familiarity plays a big role.
Click to expand...

Definitely, for some of the courses I have played, you could shoot some very high scores the first few times you play until you get to know the course

An example at my home course - the par 5 5th, the tee shot looks like you can aim along the right side of the fairway, but what you can't see is that the hole slopes left to right and anything down the right side will almost certainly end up in the rough and possibly behind some trees if you are unlucky that are out of sight as the hole is level for around 150yds or so and then goes downhill and you can't see anything that lands on the right-hand side
 
I don't think too much and honestly if I think about my best scores I probably think the least!
 
I totally think my way around a course. Try visualize everything in my mind pre-shot. I saw this video, and its very similar to how I visualize my round.
[video=youtube;_f9-KLDVCtk]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_f9-KLDVCtk&list=PLAEnNnHWpE9akvHuOu2VVCyLgPaMbOSWi&fe ature=share&index=38[/video]
 
I always think my way around the course. But my process is quick, I pick my shots and commit right away. I know basically what I want to do as I am walking up to the ball.

The real thinking comes in play when I am in a situation where I have manufacture a shot from a less than desirable location. But other than that I pick where I want the ball to go and hit it.
 
I am telling myself at every tee box, what club will leave me around 130-150 out, this is bringing more consistency to my game since I get reps with certain scoring clubs, but it does leave me keeping the driver in the bag more. Which who doesn't love swinging away with the driver, but its better not too at times for scoring opportunities, for me at least. But also course layout plays a role too, ill hit driver on a hole I don't need to if it a that wide open and feel like trouble is almost a non factor then ill let it fly regardless of management thoughts

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I am working on the planing part, also building it all into my pre-shot routine, think about your next shot as it pertains to the current shot, then block it out. Pick your line, two practice swings, step up, and swing away without thinking.
 
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