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How Much Do Green Conditions Affect You?

Jeff Spicoli

Jeff Spicoli

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I just turned on the Career Builder Challenge and within 10 minutes, the announcers have remarked multiple times about how many putts the players are making this week with the greens being in perfect shape.

A few weeks ago I played a course where the greens were very slow and bumpy and I just about convinced myself that there was no way I was going to make a putt. Conversely, when conditions are very good, I get an extra boost of confidence.

My question is: how do you green conditions affect you? Do you feel like you can make just about any putt on 'perfect greens? Does it get in your head when conditions are less than ideal?
 
Fast or slow you have to deal with, as long as they are consistent...

But bumpy (to the point where they can bump right or left, or jump into the air) I want to walk off the course and ask for a refund.

Very, very rarely will greens get that bad though.

I can only recall one course like that.
 
It affects how much time I spend reading the putt. If I know the ball goes exactly where I aim then I take the time. If I am playing plinko I walk up to the ball, aim over there ish and putt.If a robot will only make 50% of the putts hitting them the exact same speed no point worrying about putts
 
More than I would like to admit. I do not flavor slow grainey greens. I can deal with them but fast greens that role true are much more to my style!
 
Jeff Spicoli said:
I just turned on the Career Builder Challenge and within 10 minutes, the announcers have remarked multiple times about how many putts the players are making this week with the greens being in perfect shape.

A few weeks ago I played a course where the greens were very slow and bumpy and I just about convinced myself that there was no way I was going to make a putt. Conversely, when conditions are very good, I get an extra boost of confidence.

My question is: how do you green conditions affect you? Do you feel like you can make just about any putt on 'perfect greens? Does it get in your head when conditions are less than ideal?
Click to expand...
My confidence goes out the window on inconsistent greens. Seems like as soon as you say, "I'll either hit some bumps and get it there or steam it past if it's smooth," distance control goes to pot.
 
If greens are consistent on a course not much, I think I usually adapt after a few holes. Not a fan of bumpy greens
 
I would concur with smoother greens give me better confidence where slow/bumpy is very frustrating as you feel like the outcome is out of your control due to the unpredictability (when bumpy/punched).
 
I can usually adapt to either fast or slow, but the confidence is always higher when they are fast and true. Now subtle breaks? Well, that is another story..... :banghead:
 
Man, you should see some of the greens I putt on early in the year. #grahamcracker

Obviously I putt better on greens in better condition, but I "try" not to let poor green condition affect my game too much.
 
Paladin said:
My confidence goes out the window on inconsistent greens. Seems like as soon as you say, "I'll either hit some bumps and get it there or steam it past if it's smooth," distance control goes to pot.
Click to expand...

Same thing here. I feel like my technique goes out the window. My distance control seems to do ok even the greens are bad, it's just everything outside of gimme range that is a problem.
 
Sometimes bumpy greens can get in my head. You can have the perfect line and speed but a bump can throw off the putt and I start thinking, that taking my time and reading the putt won't matter because something will throw it off.
 
I'm an equal opportunity poor putter. They can be perfect and I can still need 36 putts... or they can have some bumps and I can only take 28 putts.

What I can't stand is when the practice green is NOTHING LIKE the greens on the course. I go to the first hole with a general idea of the speed of the greens and then I blow the first putt 15 feet past the hole.

Ugh.
 
Greens around here are usually pretty bumpy and can be two different speeds from one to the next, so when I get to play nicer course I usually fair a lot better. It's just how it is in small town middle of Kansas golf around here. You'll have burnt spots, dollar spot, unfixed divots...it's just part of the game here.
 
I feel like I can adapt within a few houses as far as pace goes as long as they are consistent through out the course. What gets me is the bumps. If the greens are bumpy I psych myself out and generally get frustrated on the greens.
 
I like smooth and fast because I just make more putts.
My putting gets much better if I play the same course a lot or a few times in a row.
 
Green conditions probably affect me more than any other thing during a round. I rely a lot on my short game (chipping and putting) and if the greens are slow and grainy I'm in trouble. I tend to try to "help" the stroke when they're slow, and usually lose all feel for distance, and often yip putts. I much more enjoy fast greens because I feel I can just put a smooth stroke on the putt.
 
The greens being inconsistent affect me in a negative way. Its hard to get into a groove. And bumpy greens just suck.
 
Greens that are not smooth or a consistent speed from hole to hole do bother me. Unfortunately in N. California nearly all the greens have some Poa Annua and therefore don't putt very smoothly. I much prefer the average green at a muni course in Minnesota or Wisconsin over the private courses such as the one I belong to here in California. I average about 1.5 more putts per round on these California greens because the don't putt as true.
 
Fast I like. Bumpy I don't like.
 
Only time greens affect me is when they are slow or bent grass. Slow greens kill me because my tempo has been practiced so much on greens that are 10-11 on stimp so for me to hit the ball harder to get the ball to the hole really throws me off my game. As for bent grass, I just never putt good on bent grass


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Jeff Spicoli said:
I just turned on the Career Builder Challenge and within 10 minutes, the announcers have remarked multiple times about how many putts the players are making this week with the greens being in perfect shape.

A few weeks ago I played a course where the greens were very slow and bumpy and I just about convinced myself that there was no way I was going to make a putt. Conversely, when conditions are very good, I get an extra boost of confidence.

My question is: how do you green conditions affect you? Do you feel like you can make just about any putt on 'perfect greens? Does it get in your head when conditions are less than ideal?
Click to expand...

I don't really recall any time that I played a course where the greens didn't mostly roll true. Some are faster, some are slower, and occasionally less than perfect due to ignorant players not properly repairing pitch marks, or sometimes just weather related damage that hasn't fully healed. Even then a properly maintained green should not be so bumpy that it severely affects almost every putt. I'm not even all that bothered by aerated greens - they are what they are. I just play it as I find it.
 
When green conditions are crappy - bumpy - and fast it reduces my chances of making a putt.

If they are smooth and not too fast I'll make more putts. Too fast for me is over 11.
 
I don't really let it bother me - once I see bumpy greens, I know the putting will be a crap shoot, and I just do the best that I can.
Fast greens - another story.
Undulated greens - yet a different story!
 
I definitely prefer fast and little grain. Slower and grainy don't really bother me other than I just don't make as many putts. If the green conditions are poor, ie bumpy, weeded, etc, that does get irritating. I played a course this summer with my kids and the greens were unplayable. We had to put in an automatic 2-putt rule - they were that bad. Took a lot of the fun out of the round and we won't go back there.
 
Bumpy greens drive me nuts. I can handle fast or slow greens, but when I have no control over the bouncing off line, that really irritates me.
 
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