Peaceful vs Frustrating?

JB

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Had a talk with one of my golfing partners today and he was speaking about how he is at peace on the golf course, but had to take some time away because frustration was getting to him. I find those terms to be contradictory of each other, so in talking more, its more about the idea of playing golf is peaceful to him, but playing was causing frustration.

That rings true for a lot of people I have a feeling and was curious where THPers fell on the spectrum.
 
It’s both for me. Being outside on a beautiful course is peaceful. The state of my game is frustrating.
 
I definitely find myself at peace on the course these days.
When I'm in the middle of a very frustrating swing issue it does get frustrating, but it never overshadows the overall peace and enjoyment of being out on the course.
 
Its both for me but try to just make it enjoyable and peaceful every time. Golf came much more peaceful to me after I moved up north and have winters off now. Just appreciate the time I have out there now even though I still always want to play my best.
 
Getting out on the course is very peaceful and relaxing and fun. If I am trying to score well and struggling or something about the round is bugging me, and I'm not enjoying myself, that is when frustration might set in. It's all about the expectations we set for ourselves and I prefer to just have fun.
 
We focus way too much on how good we are at golf instead of enjoying to play it imo. The USGA handicap is supposed to make it fun and even for everyone, instead it gives us all a little number we are frustratingly trying to beat lower and lower.

I think the PGA Tour contributes to this as well with their competition being stroke play. IMO stroke play is only for the very best of the best. The average golfer should go out and play match play or skins games with their friends. Playing 18 1 hole games is much better for your sanity than trying to hold it all together 18 strait times. Plus $1 a hole is about the most fun and harmless gambling there is on Earth.
 
Sometimes its peaceful, sometimes its frustrating. Not many things more peaceful than being on the course early with birds chirping and not many people around. I think frustration is just part of the game
 
Peaceful. Especially as my playing time has lessened. I appreciate it when I get out there much much more.


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I often get in the same boat as your playing partner. The golf course has always been my getaway every since I was a kid when my parents got divorced. It's my happy place and a time to forget about all of the crap going on around me.

But on the flip side I've become pretty decent at the game and have expectations and when things don't go how I think they should it gets frustrating. If it lasts too long I have to take a little break. For the most part though I soak up my surroundings and just enjoy the day.
 
For me I totally get it. I love when I am out there enjoying the scenery and the company but playing bad golf gets to me. As much as I enjoy it it does frustrate me to no end.
 
Golf is the most stressful fun you can have.... Or the most fun-filled stress you can have


There's moments where it's super enjoyable and phases where it's not, just like anything else (work, relationships, vacations, pets, kids, etc).. overall take the bad with the good and try to enjoy it as much as possible

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I don't ever recall having a peaceful feeling on the golf course. If I'm playing bad I'm frustrated or just don't want to be there. If I'm playing well my concentration level is so high I don't even notice the elements. I've have a lot of fun on the golf course, but it's not peaceful at all to me.

Hiking with my dog on beautiful day or sipping drinks by the pool I find peaceful, never felt that way on the golf course.
 
Golf is a great way to be mindful - it's a lovely walk on a lovely day, with new friends or old friends or just by yourself. It's not really what I call a walk in nature, but you're outside and enjoying yourself, so that's a big win.

It's kind of a microcosm of life. You have to learn to take the good with the bad. It's a great way to learn to just keep moving forward after adversity or greatness. In either case, a bad shot or a great one, you still have to just keep moving forward to the next challenge.

So you hit a bad shot. You might go "awwww" or "poop!" or "farty pants!" but you just move on. The next shot is going to be better.
 
Golf and woodworking are my mental floss. On the course, I’m not worried about bad shots - usually laughing them off.

I look for improvement, but don’t worry about it, just enjoying the day and getting some aerobic exercise and joint flexibility.


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Sometimes its peaceful, sometimes its frustrating. Not many things more peaceful than being on the course early with birds chirping and not many people around. I think frustration is just part of the game

Agreed, golf in those settings is amazingly peaceful. Frustration comes when you expect more out of your game than you're able to deliver on at that moment. It can be amazingly frustrating but so peaceful at times. Think hole 18 at Caledonia in Myrtle Beach....when I think of peaceful settings in golf that hole always comes to mind first.
 
Peaceful. It is my "me" time to get away from everything and just relax. I can have the worst round, but if I am with good company then it doesn't matter to me. Yes bad golf is frustrating, but that frustration is minor compared to things happening in every day life.
 
In my case I don't think I would use the word "peaceful" in regard to golf - enjoyable, fun, sometimes relaxing might be more applicable. I definitely think golf was enjoyable more often when I was just taking up and learning the game. Just the idea of being on the course was fun. As one gets better I think expectations start setting in and frustration rears its ugly head when they aren't met. It used to be that frustration could build and last from one round to the next or even longer. Now, the frustration begins with a poor swing, not a poor result, and lasts only until getting ready for the next shot. As a result, my rounds are always enjoyable, and being a competitive person the degree of enjoyment tends to be tied to the score. :act-up: Also, the camaraderie and company of my playing partners has taken on more significance and is a factor in the enjoyment as well.
 
Golf is a great way to be mindful - it's a lovely walk on a lovely day, with new friends or old friends or just by yourself. It's not really what I call a walk in nature, but you're outside and enjoying yourself, so that's a big win.

It's kind of a microcosm of life. You have to learn to take the good with the bad. It's a great way to learn to just keep moving forward after adversity or greatness. In either case, a bad shot or a great one, you still have to just keep moving forward to the next challenge.

So you hit a bad shot. You might go "awwww" or "poop!" or "farty pants!" but you just move on. The next shot is going to be better.

This is the philosophy I try to keep on the course. If it’s not enjoyable what’s the point?
 
it's all about perspective.

why am i playing golf today? is it to focus hard, and continue to drive my handicap as low as possible because i think i've figured things out and ready to play at the level i think i'm capable of? or is it to turn off my brain, forget about the stresses i deal with at home and work, and enjoy the serenity of the surroundings and enjoy the time to unwind?

i think some people are capable of both. i'm not. it has to be one or the other. i can still care and enjoy the round for the escape it brings, but i can so often slip into the former where i think "today is going to be the day, i'm going to shoot a pb" and that almost always leads to frustration and disappointment.

if i've said it once i've said it 1,000 times: i'm not good enough to get mad. there is no better perspective in golf than that.
 
I no longer allow the state of my game to ruin an otherwise great day in the outdoors. I found that I can enjoy a round of golf on the days that I do well just as well as I can on the days that I don't do well. I keep reminding myself, whether good or bad, at least I'm not laying in a hospital bed somewhere.
 
It's peaceful until that first thinned GW goes 30 yards over the green on #2.
 
This is the philosophy I try to keep on the course. If it’s not enjoyable what’s the point?

EXACTLY. If it was an easy game, we wouldn't be playing it. Embrace the challenge because it's fun!
 
Holes can be frustrating, but the game is peaceful to me. It got all out of sorts last year early so I quit playing until earlier this year. But I understand the point of taking time away because you can get so focused on the wrong ideas
 
As a newer golfer, it's extremely peaceful when I'm able to just lose myself in the course and the game. I find myself trying to figure out how to manage the course the best, what shot options are available to me with where I am. Most importantly though, I look at my golf game as a puzzle. I have all the right pieces, it's just putting them together into a consistent picture. Yeah, I get frustrated but if I look at it as frustration with regards to not having figured out the puzzle yet, it's 1000x more enjoyable than if I'm frustrated because I'm playing like garbage. For me at least, that way I'm frustrated with my failed attempts to solve the puzzle, not the game itself. A little mental trick that keeps me itching to go back for more.

I'm not sure who said it first but I wish I did. It's the reason I love the game. "You play golf for 3 things 1) Fellowship 2) Nature 3) Score. The second you stop playing for those 3 things in that order, you don't deserve to be on the golf course." (I got as close as I could with the quote so if someone knows the right wording and author, I'd love to be able to cite and attribute it correctly.)
 
It's 95% peaceful for me now. I'm not taking time away from my family to be frustrated, but I can totally relate to anyone who does get frustrated.
 
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