We've launched the new forums! Read more here

Hitting "into" the group ahead or hitting it "close"...

charley48 said:
If I think they're out of reach that would probably the time I hit the best shot of the day. So it depends on whether or not I think I'm gonna get my ass kicked. :sneaky:
Click to expand...
I've hit into the group in front of me three times in my life. Each time my dad told me I couldn't reach them.
 
I’ve done it once but they were cool about it after I apologized. In general, I think 20 yards would be the absolute closest I’d want to be to anyone. I’ve been hit into multiple times from people on different holes. No harm no foul. However, I did have one guy that bombed it into our group during a charity event twice. The second time I put his ball on a tee in the fairway. Instead of apologizing, he came up to the next tee box raising hell while we’re there trying to have fun and raise money for the kids, it was wild.
 
oumagic said:
Unless you hit someone, you just hit close. If you hit a ball that rolls in between someone’s legs, that is too close. I did that on accident in a THP event :eek: sorry again, @ArmyGolf
Click to expand...
Man that was a great moment haha! Good times!
 
AnthonyC said:
Also, its against NJ attorney General policy to fire warning shots.
Click to expand...
I think that the NY AJ doesn’t have jurisdiction internationally lol , so in Australia .. target acquired ? Hahah
 
Par 4 slightly uphill gradual rise to green , was shortened some 50 metres ,unbeknownst to me. Our group in front ( part of social golf club were approaching said green... On the tee I wrongly assumed they were clear of my drive, So drove ball and heard almighty thump as ball still airborne landed on the roof of the cart and bounced forward . I yelled sorry and then drive forward and apology. Consensus suggested ball would have been on or near green and flag . No one hurt more important.
 
bbutler said:
How about under these circumstances. Threesome playing behind our five some. We are on 9th tee they should be playing approach shots to 8. They pick up and skip in front of us as we are teeing off. Actually drive carts between us and the par 3 9th hole. We are thinking they are leaving or god knows what. Next thing they are in front of us maybe 150 to 200 yards off 10 tee looking for balls in the ruff. All we could not to tee off directly at them. We refrained. Should have drilled them as they drove though as we were teeing of on 9.
Click to expand...
A fivesome? I'm sure a lot of people would've jumped in front of you.
 
Hit into... hit it close to. To me that's the same thing when considering a group of people.
Hit your ball into a hazard... hit your ball close to a hazard. Not the same in this context.

I know me. I know my game, as crappy as it is. The one time I decide there's no way I can reach that group ahead of me is the one time I'm puring that shot and it'll make a bee line for that group. I'll wait... unless they're more than 200 yards out, I'll go for it. I've never hit a club much further than that. And I won't use my fairway woods, I'll use a shorter iron.
 
MONTANTK said:
At least they were cool about it. My friend drove a par 4 because the ball bounced twice on the cart path and landed on the green while they were putting. He apologized but they were not thrilled
Click to expand...
Then those guys are Richards. You shouldn’t get mad because a guys ball bounces twice off of a cart path.
 
I did it yesterday without knowing (until after the round) on the 18th hole, a par 5 with a blind approach shot. My buddy was up at the top of the hill and gave me the all-clear after they had left the green. I waited about 45 seconds after that and then hit from 241 yards. I pulled it about 20 yards and flew it in the back bunker pin high. Half of the foursome was still hanging out in their cart left of the green, and I found out in the bar after the round that my shot flew over and just right of their cart. I knew the members and they actually apologized to me for hanging out next to the green going over their scorecard, lol.
 
BlueHen2006 said:
If you have to ask, you already know the answer....
Click to expand...
Last year had the group behind us hit a ball that went flying by me. I wasn't happy. They were apologizing and all was good.

I will never intentionally hit into a group. I have been hit by a golf ball in the back of the neck. Wasn't fun.
once is a accident 2x and were are going to have a conversation.
 
While I don't play slow, I'm never in that much of a rush either and not much of a "message sender" especially if there's nowhere to go ahead of the group in front of us. If we catch up on a tee box, i/we will ask to play through, if there is open space ahead.

As for hitting into a group by accident.... i was as playing with my brother, who can crush his drives, in a local "pro-am" event and he teed off on a par 4 where we couldn't see the green - you tee off into a deep valley with a slight dogleg left when headed back up the hill (The Pro we were with said "hit it" so we hit it).... We play the hole and reach the green, where we found my brothers tee shot, and there is a foursome just standing there waiting... we had figured they would be WELL ahead of us as one of our foursome had found trouble on the previous hole... We apologize profusely.... They weren't upset we hit into them, just wanted to see the guy who drove the hole and managed to make a driver suck back towards the pin when it landed :oops: (we missed the eagle putt, but made bird) :rolleyes:
 
RealPretendPsychic said:
If it’s enough that they hear it or take notice, it’s too close.
Click to expand...

I agree with this. You get one free pass and then if you do it again, I pick up the ball and put it in my pocket. If you want to come apologize and beg for forgiveness, I might give you the ball back.
 
PatsFan said:
Last year had the group behind us hit a ball that went flying by me. I wasn't happy. They were apologizing and all was good.

I will never intentionally hit into a group. I have been hit by a golf ball in the back of the neck. Wasn't fun.
once is a accident 2x and were are going to have a conversation.
Click to expand...

Years ago, one of the guys I played with frequently was a real hot head. There were a few times, the group behind hit "into" our group. There was someone in this thread that said when that happened, their ball would be chipped into the woods.....Not this feller! He hit it right back at 'em. They'd holler and shake their fist. But one time, a guy gets in his cart and rolls up to my buddy, gets out of the cart and walks briskly up to him, only to take in the full 6'7" at 240 pounds of my buddy, who was glaring at this guy. Then, the guy offers up a meek apology. I'll never forget that.

However, my friend's hot-headedness was one of the reason I gave up golf 20plus years back. He could be a very unpleasant person to play with.
 
So we want to have good pace of play and we want to make sure nobody hears a ball land behind them?

Say you have 320yd par 4. Some internet golfers can hit the green with their 7 iron but most are not rolling up to the green with their drives. I can get close enough to where the folks on the green will hear my ball land but it will be well short of the putting surface. Do I have to wait until they leave the green? Do I have to hit 7 iron so that they won't hear the god awful bounce?

Of course you don't hit into someone or over their heads. Some people are too sensitive about their personal space. If I hit a shot on a par 5 that stops 10-15 yds short of the green that the group in front of me is on I don't feel any need to apologize. It was not going to hit anyone. If I hear a ball land behind me that had no chance to hit me then who cares.
 
blugold said:
Fun fact, there used to be a THP member who was a personal injury lawyer. When somebody hit into him or missed from a different tee box, he would leave his business card under their ball.
Click to expand...

I did that once, at the Branson invitational, get together, whatever it was called many years ago. We were the last group of all the THPers, something like 10-12 groups maybe? It was a lot. Anyways, some single is behind us. Hit into us for about 4-5 holes. First time we just sort of waved, thought maybe he didn't see us. Another time, we were just walking off the green and he proceeds to hit the green while were still on it. Another former THPer proceeded to put that ball in the drink. Mind you, this whole time, this dude is watching us sit on the tee boxes with other groups while we all wait our turn to be able to hit. It's not like the didn't know things were pretty majorly backed up. Another time, I wrote a note for him on my business card (I am a lawyer). He picked that up. Then, finally, he 'laid up' over the top of us on a par 5. That resulted in a confrontation between said former THPer and this rando single. To be clear, the former THPer was one of the nicest guys you would ever meet or play golf with, but he also looked like he would win a fight against any number of patrons in a bar.

On the plus side, the course felt bad about it, and we got a free bloody mary out of it. And the rando single was sent somewhere else.

As to the original question, it happens, when we hit that magic shot, or catch a cart path, or whatever. Just go and apologize. I've never been mad at anyone who apologized. But if you think you might be within 20 yards of them on a great shot, then you best just wait.

~Rock
 
If there's even the slightest chance I can make it to them, even with a once in a lifetime shot, I'll wait. Not worth it. We play fast, but I'm not in that much of a hurry.

If I accidentally thin one and get too close to somebody, I'll be the first to go up there and apologize for it.
 
I've done this... Average drive 215 - 225. Player ahead 250 yds out. Checked the distance with my Bushnell. "I'll never reach him." "FORE!" Ball rolls up next to his bag. Oops. "Sorry, I never hit it that far. I checked your distance on my Bushnell first." We played the rest of the 9 together.
 
I don't hit if I think it's possible to get close to the group ahead.

It's a safety issue, and even if it doesn't have potential to cause injury, it brings drama and angst to the day on the links that aren't necessary.
 
I find both to be aggravating (generously speaking).

My perspective is that you should be a shot away from the people in front of you. If you're rolling shots up near the green while they are still putting, I still think it's a bad look.
 
Several years ago, I was playing a short par 4 (just looked it up, 300 from the back tees) with the pin in the back. Guys were putting on the green and I was averaging about 280 off the tee with my driver. My ball flew like a heat seeking missile just a tad off line from the center, bounced right in front of the green and up onto the putting surface. I had about 30 feet or so for eagle and about 30 feet from the group finishing their putts.

I went to apologize, they were super impressed with my driving ability and invited me to play through only to see my s**k a long iron off the tee on the next hole.

When playing with my wife, who hits it about 220-240, she usually goes first off the tee. Just to be certain. Some of the public tracks in my area have golfers who will stand around the player hitting his iron shot in the fairway, then double back around to look for their balls or go into the rough, sand, etc. to hit their next shot. I've been caught off guard a few times by this and had to apologize explaining I thought they were on their way to the green, not back to their balls.
 
If it is close enough to make them turn around or get their attention it is the same thing in my book.
 
I hit into the same group twice last week and I felt terrible. I think the first one was excusable. Due to the configuration of the course, this twosome parked their cart in my landing zone and walked up to the cart (they parked in a fine area, did nothing wrong). I wasn't going for the green on this par 5, so I laid up. There was water to one side, so I aimed for the opposite side of the fairway, near where their cart was parked. Landed it about 15-20 yards short of their cart (which would have been still 75-80 yards short of the green, where they were). We both arrived at my ball/their cart at the same time. Kinda awkward and I apologized.

A few holes later, I decided to tee off because they were well outside of my normal landing zone on a long par 4. Instead, I smashed my longest drive ever on this hole and ended up about 30 yards farther than normal. The ball caught a little down slope and probably rolled right up near them as they were getting ready to drive to the green. At that point I felt like a real ass and apologized again. I gave them much more room the rest of the round.
 
In a scramble tournament the group behind hit into os on 8. On hole 13 they rolled one on our green. I knocked it off the green. I walked directly at them on the way to the next tee box, they said nothing.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top