How angry can golf make you?

A twist on the Smile thread. How angry do you get on the golf course? on a scale of 0-5 - see poll (choose as many as you like). Any tales of shame and diciplinary hearings?: please elaborate.

3 Clubs snapped in one round.

bit like a tin of pringles, once you pop you can't stop (although why they have a resealable lid I don't know)

Super

If i was your playing partner in that situation I would ask that you left the group and returned to the clubhouse if you were to behave in such an abusive manner.



I dont show much outward emotion on the course but I can be left thinking about poor shots well after a round has finished. It is the need to find the cure to these small issues that has me out playing again the next day.

Why Mac, they weren't your clubs, My partners were nowhere near me and on two of the occasions unaware of what I did, and it was more comedy than anything else.

By all accounts, you can't afford to ask people to leave your group.

Generally a Number 2 (so to speak!) but per the other thread, if I'm having a poo-ey day it turns into more of a laugh. Little game I play is noting the point in the round at which I think I need birdies to buffer. The 6th Tee is my best.

One Saturday a notorious helicopter afficionado at our place winged his bat down a large hill full of gorse after screwing up his tee shot on the par three that requires clearance of the whole lot (only 110-120yds).

"you not going to get that?"

"no, f*cking useless <rant> <rant> etc"

Was clocked at 6.30 Sunday morning sheepishly combing the whole hill for the offending item.

I get angry way too often and when I think about it, it is ridiculous. If my livelihood depended on my game, then I would understand. It is only a game after all.

lorus59 wrote:I get angry way too often and when I think about it, it is ridiculous. If my livelihood depended on my game, then I would understand. It is only a game after all.

A common misconception. If your livelihood depended on it, you'd be playing and practising day in, day out, and you'd know that if you missed a shot today you'd be on the range fixing it afterwards and would have another chance tomorrow. We play on average once a week, most of us don't get to practice much besides and we want to get the maximum enjoyment from our one round. Therefore, missing one shot out of our 90 is more annoying than a pro missing 1 out of 280.

I think a blowout is good now and again. Makes you realise what an idiot you've been and that you are supposed to play for fun. Easy to forget that sometimes.

Been reading a few books by Rotella lately and it puts things in perspective and I've been playing some great golf.

My American friends, the ones I still have, love my English swearing on the course - far different language than the American version.

Watched a championship footy match last week on an american stream and the announcer came out with 'the teams are tied for 1 at the break'
superb.
Im a 2 at worst and similarly unexcitable by success(on the basis something will go wrong soon)

Dont get angry on the golf course, I am not a very good player, and do not play enough to get much better. So hacking my way round, i take the good and the bad. Hit a bad shot, just think, i could be at work! Keeps me happy all the time.

SR - I listen to a few Dr Bob audio books from time to time. It has certainly helped put things into perspective especially missing putts on the greens.

"Even great putters miss easy putts"

Also, having listened to one of his putting books I have moved into very much following an identical routine each putt and now only focus on the one thing I have picked out as a target - the brain does seem to figure out the rest sub consciously.

For me, it seems to have worked as I regularly take 28 - 32 a round and have markedly improved from 2 - 8 ft. This makes the first putt or chip less daunting, which makes the approach easier which frees you up on the tee too.

Although, one of Dr Bob's stories has him recanting a Seve interview after a 4 putt at Augusta, something along the lines of "Seve, how come you four putted on <say> 16?" to which Dr Bob in his best American Seve accent says "I putt and meess, I putt and meess, I putt and meess, I putt and make"

There are weeks when all I can think on the greens is "I putt and meess" in Bob's Seve accent! Needless to say, I do.

Now I don't think it's purely Dr Bob as I did tweak a fundamental in my swing, but I have dropped from 6.1 at the start of the season to 4.6 now including my first competition red number early on.

super_realist wrote:Been reading a few books by Rotella lately and it puts things in perspective and I've been playing some great golf.

You do know that bob Rotella is the first step on the Scientology ladder?

kwinigolfer wrote:My American friends, the ones I still have, love my English swearing on the course - far different language than the American version.

I have one of my group cracking up whenever I have cause to yell winker as the ball sails into the trees, cabbage, or just in front of my feet. He says he doesn't hear that one very often and he has been known to steal some of my turn of phrases from the golf course.

super_realist wrote:...By all accounts, you can't afford to ask people to leave your group.

Sorry Mac but .

I went for #3 as I'm being honest but generally I'm more likely to be a #2.

Combination of 2 or 3 depending upon severity of outcome. Damage always repaired though whilst still giving it some muttleys.

I've worked hard at trying to drop from a 3 to a 2 although from (4) I've also had the ear piercing 4 fairways scream before. The nadir for me came when I broke a wedge last June after chunking out of a bunker into a pond.

It's odd where it comes from as well. On a green it's almost always just muttering disgust now (the days of throwing the ball up and baseballing it 90 yards into a field with the putter are long gone). The shots that get me are the fats and thins, angry at myself for such poor technique I suppose.

Venting though is I think an admission that things are getting on top of you and I've NEVER done it in singles matchplay (for obvious reasons). So I reckon if I have the strength not to do it in matchplay then I should have the same resilience to stop doing it in medal play.

JAS wrote:...Venting though is I think an admission that things are getting on top of you and I've NEVER done it in singles matchplay (for obvious reasons). So I reckon if I have the strength not to do it in matchplay then I should have the same resilience to stop doing it in medal play.

Good point that!

I often think it's done more for effect. i.e. when people get really angry about a shot it's a way of suggesting to their partners "oh I can't believe that happened it's never happened before" without actually saying it.

Problem is when you play with them week in week out it can wear pretty thin. Weak assed pussies if you ask me.

Personally I get slightly disappointed with myself when I miss short putts or hit bad chips but that's about it.

Actually, I thought about what I posted this morning on the first tee and made a commitment to myself not to lose it regardless of what happened.
Went through the first 5 holes on the championship course at Carnoustie in level par. At the 6th blocked my lay up 2nd into the ditch, took the penaly drop, one shot gone. Tugged drive on 7th o.o.b. oops!...now the resolve was being tested, 2 more shots gone. Blocked tee shot at 8, got up to it and it was on a tight downhill lie and 2 bunkers lay between me and a green sloping away from me and an o.o.b. fence waiting behind...yep, chunked it into the bunker and burst out laughing. Ended up with an 86 (31 points with 5 blobs). I reckon keeping the head really helped me bounce back with pars and even a birdie on a stroke hole (10). Playing a course like that you just can't afford the mental energy drain of getting negative at poor shots. A lot easier said than done but I think I proved a very important point to myself today.

Haven't voted because the nearest I could get would be - no reaction apart from an occasional mild expression of disappointment.

I just enjoy my time on course too much to spoil it with anger.