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Playing in the wind.

Templet0n

Templet0n

washed...
Albatross 2024 Club
Joined
Jun 7, 2019
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Location
Reno, NV
Handicap
snow..
In my area if I want to play with any regularity I have to just accept playing in the wind.

I used to hate it and just stay home but then it would go weeks without a round because when my opportunity came it would be windy.

so I just accept wind and go. I have learned to almost enjoy it as adds an extra level of thought to the round.

today I played and the wind was a constant 15-20 mph with gusts in the mid 30s and I was able to still put together a solid round for me.

what are your thoughts on wind? Do you hate it and avoid it if at all possible? If you are playing in the wind what is your approach?

I have found that I play a bit smarter in the wind because you have to take a second to try and make a few educated guesses as to how the ball will react.
 
I found I like the wind when I am playing with my friends for beers. It makes me focus more and play shots more which in turn makes me play a touch better. Plus also gives me a "damn wind" excuse.
 
I like it. I am pretty good at flighting the ball down and that ypically gives me an advantage over most of the people I play with. They take an extra club and swing harder with their normal ball flight while I take an extra club and swing about 3/4 and hit a low draw. I actually fair better into the wind than I do with the wind.
 
My first day at bandon the winds were brutal, no joke, constant 30 mph and gusts up to 45. Actually got a PCC +1 on my index that round.

When I first teed up i swung so hard inadvertently that i hit right off the top of the driver, it whent like 100 feet straight up and almost went 50 feet forward and was headed backwards as it was landing.

After that round I started realizing that if you hit it normally, it wouldnt go as far as your normal shots but it wouldn't veer off as far as you think it might and i started scoring better.

But man, even when I started getting used to it, when the wind blows your tee of the ball and your having a hard time standing still at address it definitely gets in your head.
 
I don't mind 10-15 mph much, but when it gets up in the 25+ mph range it really messes with my game. I won't go out to play if it's 25+, but if it kicks up during a round I'll bear down and finish out in it.
 
Cinco said:
My first day at bandon the winds were brutal, no joke, constant 30 mph and gusts up to 45. Actually got a PCC +1 on my index that round.

When I first teed up i swung so hard inadvertently that i hit right off the top of the driver, it whent like 100 feet straight up and almost went 50 feet forward and was headed backwards as it was landing.

After that round I started realizing that if you hit it normally, it wouldnt go as far as your normal shots but it wouldn't veer off as far as you think it might and i started scoring better.

But man, even when I started getting used to it, when the wind blows your tee of the ball and your having a hard time standing still at address it definitely gets in your head.
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I have found the hardest wind to deal with is into and off your back.
 
I don't mind it. I don't have to play in it constantly anymore, so that's probably part of not minding it though. In Nebraska it was constant and like you, you either had to play in it or not play. It can be fun and challenging, and rewarding, but it can wear me down too. I'm outdoors a lot and it was hard to want to fight it on off time too. Can get exhausting. I usually did though, and learned a ton of invaluable stuff playing in it all the time. Shots I still use now even when it's not blowing, the focus on flight and spin windows, club choice lessons, etc. Because of all of that, when it is blowing here, it's usually to my advantage.
 
I don't fight the wind. I just take what ever it gives me. Sometimes I take more, or less club. Sometimes I aim more left, or right. I always try to hit the ball lower.

I usually won't play in 25+ mph winds, on a wide open course. A ground wind blowing across the greens is the worst.

Luckily my home course has a lot of wind breaks such as trees, and houses.
 
Where I am, you're pretty much guaranteed for it to be blowing a decent amount unless you move well inland. Nothing really changes that much for me, club up if it's hurting and club down if it's helping. Oh, and if I'm standing on the tee box and it's a big left to right wind then I'm saying a little prayer as well :ROFLMAO:
 
We can get a fair bit of wind where we are, maybe not as much as @HarlettoScara but it can get a bit breezy

These days it doesn't bother me, but I have played times where a flushed 5i only went 130yds into wind and an 8i carried 180yds, so it can mess with your head if you let it
The hardest thing to get through my head was not to try and kill the ball as swinging harder rarely tended to work, so now I will try to imagine swinging even easier than I would on a calm day and making sure of a good contact

The most intimidating shot I have ever had to hit in the wind was an island par 3 green where I had to aim a good 30yds away from the green over the water and trust the wind to bring it back - fortunately I made dry land but not everyone was as lucky
 
I am a glutton for punishment. When the wind kicks up I always go play. We don't get that much high wind in Louisville so I use it for practice for when I go somewhere it will blow the whole time.
 
I played yesterday afternoon and the only time the 25-30 mph gusts bothered me was on the greens. Tough to hold your stance when it's either blowing into your face or back and causes you to sway in your stroke. :(
 
Strong wind is part and parcel of golf where I am and where I grew up . Down wind and into the wind doesn't bother me, a strong cross wind is very difficult though.

Case in point being a par 3 last week. Strong down/cross wind from the right, solid 9 iron with a draw (natural shape, nothing forced) started on the far right edge of the green and misses the green left. I don't have the ability to confidently try to hold a fade into a wind like that so I don't have much in the way of options other than aim ridiculously far right.

In calm conditions it would have been a slight draw but the way that wind grabs the ball at peak height is incredible to see.
 
NVGOLFER80 said:
In my area if I want to play with any regularity I have to just accept playing in the wind.

I used to hate it and just stay home but then it would go weeks without a round because when my opportunity came it would be windy.

so I just accept wind and go. I have learned to almost enjoy it as adds an extra level of thought to the round.

today I played and the wind was a constant 15-20 mph with gusts in the mid 30s and I was able to still put together a solid round for me.

what are your thoughts on wind? Do you hate it and avoid it if at all possible? If you are playing in the wind what is your approach?

I have found that I play a bit smarter in the wind because you have to take a second to try and make a few educated guesses as to how the ball will react.
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My HS kids hate it because I love it so much. I stopped getting bothered by it an instead just learned how to play in it. Smoother swings, more club, and flighting the ball down for days.
 
Wind is great fun. Into the wind is a challenge. With the wind is another. Cross winds frustrate, but force some creativity.
 
You have to learn to play in it if you want to be any good in this game. So challenge yourself to play a lower shot, take more club, swing easier & not harder. Take advantage of the wind direction when you can. Remember that the wind does affect putting as well. :eek:
 
golfinnut said:
You have to learn to play in it if you want to be any good in this game. So challenge yourself to play a lower shot, take more club, swing easier & not harder. Take advantage of the wind direction when you can. Remember that the wind does affect putting as well. :eek:
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If the wind is at my back, I always club down and swing normal or maybe a little harder. Get more spin to hold the greens. Knowing that it's ok to swing hard INTO the wind hoping the shot balloons and drops straight down is a good way to be aggressive as well.
 
blugold said:
If the wind is at my back, I always club down and swing normal or maybe a little harder. Get more spin to hold the greens. Knowing that it's ok to swing hard INTO the wind hoping the shot balloons and drops straight down is a good way to be aggressive as well.
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If you're going to swing hard Into the wind, just remember to take more club than you think. (y)
 
Here in El Paso it is the exact same as the OP. More wind than no wind and you just have to learn to play in it or you will not be playing much golf. Makes me work harder to manufacture shots. In fact it has become so normal that on "no wind" days it is hard to visualize a shot.:ROFLMAO:😆:ROFLMAO:
 
golfinnut said:
You have to learn to play in it if you want to be any good in this game. So challenge yourself to play a lower shot, take more club, swing easier & not harder. Take advantage of the wind direction when you can. Remember that the wind does affect putting as well. :eek:
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What many don’t think about in the wind, the harder you swing, the more spin you generate, it’s why so many struggle flighting down into the wind.
 
Jman said:
What many don’t think about in the wind, the harder you swing, the more spin you generate, it’s why so many struggle flighting down into the wind.
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Yeah I know. I was referring to @blugold comment about swinging Harder Into the wind. I never play it that way because it never ends up where I want it. It's too hard to judge how much spin you're going to create vs how hard the wind is blowing. So I always try to flight it down out of the wind as much as possible. (y)
 
Jman said:
What many don’t think about in the wind, the harder you swing, the more spin you generate, it’s why so many struggle flighting down into the wind.
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Without a doubt. I like to be somewhat aggressive so I use the wind to steepen my descent angles. If I know it's a one or two club wind, I can still be aggressive and go for the flag while keeping my normal swing tempo. With the wind at my back, I want all of the spin I can get.
 
blugold said:
If the wind is at my back, I always club down and swing normal or maybe a little harder. Get more spin to hold the greens. Knowing that it's ok to swing hard INTO the wind hoping the shot balloons and drops straight down is a good way to be aggressive as well.
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It’s also a good way to create a dispersion issue depending on situation, add to it most aren’t ever going to be comfortable taking 3-4 more clubs to make that shot work. Wind golf can actually increase predictability and consistency if one lets it, you simply have to alter your approach targets and landing point to use the course layout to your advantage while controlling the spin in the wind.
 
Jman said:
It’s also a good way to create a dispersion issue depending on situation, add to it most aren’t ever going to be comfortable taking 3-4 more clubs to make that shot work. Wind golf can actually increase predictability and consistency if one lets it, you simply have to alter your approach targets and landing point to use the course layout to your advantage while controlling the spin in the wind.
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yeah, 3-4 club winds are a different animal. Taking a 3 wood from 6i distance is less than ideal. I was thinking a 2 club wind. Taking a 6i from 8i distance doesn't scare me. Taking 9i distance from GW distance doesn't scare me.
 
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