Your most unpopular Golf opinions?

[jda]

If you cannot get people to get into better shape to live longer, avoid strokes, heart attacks, diabetes, etc, then probably not going to get them to care about being better at golf.  Showing up with a new driver and putter is a lot less work than getting in shape and getting stronger.

 

After being a good collegiate athlete, I started running nearly every day about 3 years ago for the first time in my life.  Shopping, going to the mailbox and everything in life is a lot easier.  Of course golf is easier if you get in shape... if for nothing else you are as close to 100% at the end of the round as you are at the first and you don't fade.  With a fully healed shoulder, I started to lift again, and with about 10-12 workouts on each muscle group, I was at least a full club longer - this will plateau, but still a huge benefit for not much work.

 

Nearly nobody needs to get into better shape to be a better putter, but many will buy a different stick than work on it at all.  The truth is that if you cannot make putts with a rear shafted putter from 1970, then you need to work on your skill more than you need to by a new piece of "tech."  It is OK to find the sweet spot on a putter and laugh at those who need MOI for their mishits.... with a putter.

[Warrior42111]

1 hour ago, RoyalMustang said:

 

 

This was awhile back, but someone else posted here that to make a proper golf swing, 44 degrees in external rotation in the trailing hip is required. Less than that and you can't make a full swing and end up adding a work-around (typically sway). My wife measures this on her patients: over 18 months, 63% didn't have enough external rotation. So, that's 63% of us, right off the bat, that can't swing a club the right way. And that's only one issue out of potentially 15 or so. There are a ton of moving parts in the body involved in the swing. Spinal range, ROM in shoulders, wrists, hands, fingers. disssociation between hips and torso. 

 

 

Probably more for the teaching forum but what defines a proper golf swing?

 

From a purely technical standpoint the ball will move based on club speed, club path, face angle, and where on the club the ball is struck.  If person A does it one way and person B another way and it is the most repeatable way for them to swing a golf club does proper matter.

[PuffyC]

I like how Titleist thinks there's only one correct golf swing and if you don’t rotate a certain body part X degrees then you’re doing it wrong. Or how if you’re not in tip top physical shape you’ll never be good at golf. LOL. 

[AngryGilmore]

17 hours ago, jda said:

If you cannot get people to get into better shape to live longer, avoid strokes, heart attacks, diabetes, etc, then probably not going to get them to care about being better at golf.  Showing up with a new driver and putter is a lot less work than getting in shape and getting stronger.

 

After being a good collegiate athlete, I started running nearly every day about 3 years ago for the first time in my life.  Shopping, going to the mailbox and everything in life is a lot easier.  Of course golf is easier if you get in shape... if for nothing else you are as close to 100% at the end of the round as you are at the first and you don't fade.  With a fully healed shoulder, I started to lift again, and with about 10-12 workouts on each muscle group, I was at least a full club longer - this will plateau, but still a huge benefit for not much work.

 

Nearly nobody needs to get into better shape to be a better putter, but many will buy a different stick than work on it at all.  The truth is that if you cannot make putts with a rear shafted putter from 1970, then you need to work on your skill more than you need to by a new piece of "tech."  It is OK to find the sweet spot on a putter and laugh at those who need MOI for their mishits.... with a putter.

Agreed on this.  Once you start working out regularly you don't WANT to sit around on the couch.   I had a stroke myself two years ago caused by untreated high blood pressure.   At the time, I was built like the proverbial brick $&!+house but I've lost weight and strength since then.  But I'm back in the gym and taking better care of myself.   Coming awfully close to taking one of Charon's boat rides will straighten people out pretty quickly.

[mshills]

Plastic tees should be outlawed. 

 

Rakes should be placed in bunkers, not next to them. 

[klebs01]

44 minutes ago, mshills said:

Plastic tees should be outlawed. 

 

Rakes should be placed in bunkers, not next to them. 

Even the USGA recommends rakes outside bunkers. Lots of reasons, including penalty implications, to have rakes out. 

[mshills]

43 minutes ago, klebs01 said:

Even the USGA recommends rakes outside bunkers. Lots of reasons, including penalty implications, to have rakes out. 

Hence the title of the thread……

 

Our super asks us to put them in the bunkers. 

[jda]

Played a few places recently that do not want you to take the time to rake bunkers.  If the next player is in a footprint, then free drop or they can rake and place.  It is weird.

[Golfbit2X]

1 hour ago, mshills said:

Plastic tees should be outlawed. 

 

Rakes should be placed in bunkers, not next to them. 

I agree with the ban of plastic tees as they usually break apart pretty quick due to brittleness except for the ones I use.  

 

I was fortunate to buy these Crivit (Lidl in-house brand) tees that are made of a certain kind of plastic that's pliable to a certain degree but still rigid enough to penetrate firm to hard ground. 

 

I've been using it for more than a couple of years now and have never had any broken tees due to its pliability.

 

Sadly, lidl may have discontinued this item as I haven't seen it in their stores this year. 

[Archimedes65]

I think my least popular golf opinion is that I think gimmes have no place in golf.  Anytime, anywhere.  Every ball should be putted out, all the time.  If you didn’t hit it in the hole, you didn’t make a score on the hole.  I don’t care if it’s a weekend round for fun, or the Ryder Cup.  The ball should have to be holed out every time.

 

I putt my ball out every time because it makes me a better putter in general, having had to get good at hitting everything within three feet if I wanted to shoot decent scores.  Always makes me chuckle watching horrible putters pick up a three footer, as if they had better than a 50/50 chance of holing it.

 

 

Edited September 16, 2024 by Archimedes65

[bigred90gt]

On 5/1/2024 at 7:55 AM, RoverTiger said:

Fully agree and well put.

 

I'm someone who likes his music hard and loud; about 70% of my library is metal or some derivative thereof. On the course, however, I want my zen and escape from just about everything.

I am the same way. I would say 80-90% of my library is metal and hard rock, with some old school gangster rap thrown in for good measure. I love music, to the point that I have a pair of Openrun Pro bone conduction headphones I keep in my office (wearing them right now actually) and another pair I keep at home, and if I'm not on the golf course or sleeping, I have them on. BUT, I loathe listening to music on the course. The two people I play 99% of my rounds with are completely opposite. One of which is my wife, so she wins that one. The other a friend I met playing golf 15 or so years ago. when I play with him, I am usually joining their group, so I don't say much about it. I do have one friend who also detests music on the course, so I always enjoy my rounds with him. 

 

The only saving grace for me is I have learned to tune it out for the most part, as long as it's not too loud. I find myself constantly turning my wife's music down, because she will turn it up if there's a song she likes while we're walking to the green. My buddy on the other hand, I don't mess with his phone, just as I don't expect him to mess with mine. I'll occasionally ask him to turn it down a bit when it gets too loud, but otherwise I just tune it out. 

[Jgolfer99]

Here is one that will ruffle some feathers but I strongly believe in it.  If you are not breaking 80 (or have a realistic shot to) step away from the back tees so help me Lord.

[GowerND11]

15 hours ago, Jgolfer99 said:

Here is one that will ruffle some feathers but I strongly believe in it.  If you are not breaking 80 (or have a realistic shot to) step away from the back tees so help me Lord.

 

I think it depends on the back tees. This is a sweeping generalization, and generally I'd agree. However, there are courses out there, where the "tips" are 6200 yards. I have no problem with someone who can shoot 85 or better playing from there. 

[jda]

The back tees also are for people who want to get better.  If they can keep their composure and keep up, then who cares?

 

I am almost 50 and can still hit 3-5 irons into greens and hold them.  This all came from playing the tips into my 30s and getting better a long irons instead of just hitting 7-PW which I was already good at.

 

Most people would be better players if they played from the tips more often.  This just in, but you don't get to where you can play the tips until you play them a bunch.

[Zeta]

On 9/19/2024 at 12:20 AM, Jgolfer99 said:

Here is one that will ruffle some feathers but I strongly believe in it.  If you are not breaking 80 (or have a realistic shot to) step away from the back tees so help me Lord.

You should start golf from the forward tees and allowed to move back box by box after you have broken 80 on each one. Back tees allowed when you break par from the next to last tee.

 

You are moving forward if you haven’t broken 80 in 20 rounds.

 

It seems so weird to me that people are absolutely torturing them self’s from the wrong tees in this insanely hard game.

 

ps. not playing from the back tees

[McMunch]

On 9/18/2024 at 5:20 PM, Jgolfer99 said:

Here is one that will ruffle some feathers but I strongly believe in it.  If you are not breaking 80 (or have a realistic shot to) step away from the back tees so help me Lord.

You can hit from the blues when you shoot par from the whites. No exceptions.

[Archimedes65]

On 9/18/2024 at 2:20 PM, Jgolfer99 said:

Here is one that will ruffle some feathers but I strongly believe in it.  If you are not breaking 80 (or have a realistic shot to) step away from the back tees so help me Lord.

 

Agreed, but IMO experience the problem isn’t always ’that guy’, it’s his 2-3 buddies who can play from the tips force him to play from them as well, rather than just having him move up and play the blues.  I see that all the time at my club, I.e., groups that play from whatever tees the best golfer in their foursome is playing from, rather than each teeing off from the right box.  Our tips are ~7,000 yards and I often see guys that are lucky if they’re 15 indexes teeing off from the black tees on #1.

[oiler45]

This will be unpopular but I dislike people who want to play TOO FAST !  I played as a single today and walked the course. I joined a group of 3 who were riding. The course was not too busy and there was no one in front of us. The married couple in the cart were super fast players but were pretty chill while the single in the cart was grumpy all round because he thought we were playing too slowly. We finished in exactly 3 hours - granted they could've finished in less time if I was not walking. I felt rushed all round - I told them they could ditch me if they wanted to but the couple in the cart said the pace of play was not a problem. I'm 66 years old and I feel walking a full length golf course in 3 hours is fast enough - I honestly couldn't do it much quicker.

[Argonne69]

9 hours ago, oiler45 said:

This will be unpopular but I dislike people who want to play TOO FAST !  I played as a single today and walked the course. I joined a group of 3 who were riding. The course was not too busy and there was no one in front of us. The married couple in the cart were super fast players but were pretty chill while the single in the cart was grumpy all round because he thought we were playing too slowly. We finished in exactly 3 hours - granted they could've finished in less time if I was not walking. I felt rushed all round - I told them they could ditch me if they wanted to but the couple in the cart said the pace of play was not a problem. I'm 66 years old and I feel walking a full length golf course in 3 hours is fast enough - I honestly couldn't do it much quicker.

 

I play very quickly, but I've fallen back a few times when I felt that I'm holding up the group if there's room ahead. If I wind up catching the group because they eventually run into slower groups, then I'll rejoin.

 

[mshills]

10 hours ago, oiler45 said:

This will be unpopular but I dislike people who want to play TOO FAST !  I played as a single today and walked the course. I joined a group of 3 who were riding. The course was not too busy and there was no one in front of us. The married couple in the cart were super fast players but were pretty chill while the single in the cart was grumpy all round because he thought we were playing too slowly. We finished in exactly 3 hours - granted they could've finished in less time if I was not walking. I felt rushed all round - I told them they could ditch me if they wanted to but the couple in the cart said the pace of play was not a problem. I'm 66 years old and I feel walking a full length golf course in 3 hours is fast enough - I honestly couldn't do it much quicker.

Agree 100%. Four players playing 18 in 3h is plenty fast. For my place, arguably too fast when on foot. We aren’t spread out at all, but it’s western PA so elevation changes all day, and that matters. After climbing the huge hill from #6 fairway to #7 tee box, yes, I am going to wait to catch my breath and get my heart rate back down before teeing off, and yes, you can wait and give me 45 seconds. 
 

I’m not so interested in tales of playing a pool table flat course in Kansas in 2h. Why? What did you shoot? Were you out there long enough to enjoy it?

 

[Warrior42111]

12 hours ago, oiler45 said:

This will be unpopular but I dislike people who want to play TOO FAST !  I played as a single today and walked the course. I joined a group of 3 who were riding. The course was not too busy and there was no one in front of us. The married couple in the cart were super fast players but were pretty chill while the single in the cart was grumpy all round because he thought we were playing too slowly. We finished in exactly 3 hours - granted they could've finished in less time if I was not walking. I felt rushed all round - I told them they could ditch me if they wanted to but the couple in the cart said the pace of play was not a problem. I'm 66 years old and I feel walking a full length golf course in 3 hours is fast enough - I honestly couldn't do it much quicker.

Honestly, I don't think it's unpopular, more just an empty barrel makes the loudest noise situation.

 

I'd say 98% off golfers hate  4.5+ hr slogs but also 98% don't want to play and 'run and hit' with zero social interaction, and golf is a social game for the majority

[Double Mocha Man]

12 minutes ago, Warrior42111 said:

Honestly, I don't think it's unpopular, more just an empty barrel makes the loudest noise situation.

 

I'd say 98% off golfers hate  4.5+ hr slogs but also 98% don't want to play and 'run and hit' with zero social interaction, and golf is a social game for the majority

 

It's a balance. Golf is not a race against time any more than a stroll through a museum. I always try to do the Louvre in under a half an hour.

[PuffyC]

Golf has to be the only hobby where half the people not only want to get it over with as quickly as possible but some get downright irate if they’re forced to suffer an extra 20 minutes doing it. 

[MountainKing]

On 9/16/2024 at 6:12 PM, Archimedes65 said:

I think my least popular golf opinion is that I think gimmes have no place in golf.  Anytime, anywhere.  Every ball should be putted out, all the time.  If you didn’t hit it in the hole, you didn’t make a score on the hole.  I don’t care if it’s a weekend round for fun, or the Ryder Cup.  The ball should have to be holed out every time.

 

I putt my ball out every time because it makes me a better putter in general, having had to get good at hitting everything within three feet if I wanted to shoot decent scores.  Always makes me chuckle watching horrible putters pick up a three footer, as if they had better than a 50/50 chance of holing it.

 

 

 

Once you get to a certain level this is 100% (although I do love playing money games against a guy who claims to shoot in the 70's but plays with gimmies)...but if you're out there grinding on 3 footers hole after hole for an 8 or 9 then no way, pick up and move on.  At some point does it really matter if you shot a 100 or a 118?

 

On 9/20/2024 at 5:17 AM, Zeta said:

You should start golf from the forward tees and allowed to move back box by box after you have broken 80 on each one. Back tees allowed when you break par from the next to last tee.

 

You are moving forward if you haven’t broken 80 in 20 rounds.

 

It seems so weird to me that people are absolutely torturing them self’s from the wrong tees in this insanely hard game.

 

ps. not playing from the back tees

 

Agreed, but I'd go a step further and say you need to shoot par.  I laugh when I hear somebody say "I want to the challenge".  Golf is judged against par, if you're not shooting par, you're being challenged. 

 

42 minutes ago, PuffyC said:

Golf has to be the only hobby where half the people not only want to get it over with as quickly as possible but some get downright irate if they’re forced to suffer an extra 20 minutes doing it. 

 

When I'm golfing, I want to play golf, not watch grass grow.  I can watch grass grow for free in my backyard.  I also have other things in life I like to do, golf isn't the only thing I got going on.  If I have a 5 hour window to play golf, if it moves at an appropriate pace I can easily play more golf.  Your statement leads me to believe you prefer just sitting around vs actually playing the game.

 

On 9/12/2024 at 3:18 PM, Warrior42111 said:

Probably more for the teaching forum but what defines a proper golf swing?

 

From a purely technical standpoint the ball will move based on club speed, club path, face angle, and where on the club the ball is struck.  If person A does it one way and person B another way and it is the most repeatable way for them to swing a golf club does proper matter.

 

If Person A and person B are good players and have repeatable swings, they may visually look different but I"d bet they have a lot more in common than not.  98% of the tour guys all make very similar moves through their swings despite looking different.  If it's repeatable, and getting good results, it's probably a good golf swing.  I can't count on one hand how many bad swings I've seen in my life that still provided good results. 

Edited September 26, 2024 by MountainKing

[Archimedes65]

2 minutes ago, MountainKing said:

 

Once you get to a certain level this is 100%...but if you're out there grinding on 3 footers hole after hole for an 8 or 9 then no way, pick up and move on.  At some point does it really matter if you shot a 100 or a 118? 

 

If you’re out there grinding for 8’s or 9’s every hole, you’re not really playing golf, and this entire thread doesn’t apply…

[PuffyC]

21 minutes ago, MountainKing said:

Your statement leads me to believe you prefer just sitting around vs actually playing the game.

I actually prefer playing given the choice, but if having to spend an extra hour with my buddies on a golf course is the worst problem I have this week then I’m having a pretty great week. It just always baffles me seeing people have meltdowns because of the occasional slow play, or throwing clubs because they made a bad shot. Those things are going to happen and if they make you that miserable then maybe golf’s just not for you.

[mshills]

10 hours ago, PuffyC said:

Golf has to be the only hobby where half the people not only want to get it over with as quickly as possible but some get downright irate if they’re forced to suffer an extra 20 minutes doing it. 

100%. I’d love someone to call me an idiot or a clown because I cannot or will not play as fast as they do.
 

Here is my hot take. TPI is pseudo-medicine and exists only to drive more TPI business. 

[MountainKing]

9 hours ago, Archimedes65 said:

 

If you’re out there grinding for 8’s or 9’s every hole, you’re not really playing golf, and this entire thread doesn’t apply…

 

I've unfortunately seen this more than ever the last couple of years.....

[MountainKing]

8 hours ago, PuffyC said:

I actually prefer playing given the choice, but if having to spend an extra hour with my buddies on a golf course is the worst problem I have this week then I’m having a pretty great week. It just always baffles me seeing people have meltdowns because of the occasional slow play, or throwing clubs because they made a bad shot. Those things are going to happen and if they make you that miserable then maybe golf’s just not for you.

 

 

Golf is not what most of us do for a living.  Slow play and backing up everybody behind you is selfish and arrogant. It's a shared space and people should act accordingly so they can enjoy the game, and allow others to enjoy it as well.  With golf being a hobby, people may have other things going on in their lives that they have to get to. 

 

Everybody should be able to book a round at 8am and know they'll be home around 1pm to do the family thing or take care of other business they have going on in their lives.  They shouldn't be forced to walk off the course 14 holes in because some clown decided he wanted to spend the day out there.  A guy who tees off in the fall at 1pm should have no problems finishing 18 hole, not having to walk off in the dark at hole 16 because the guys in front of him have no clue how sunsets work.

 

Thinking outside of your little world,  if you're seeing those frustrations, there's probably a bigger reason for it.  They paid and may be at risk of not finishing because they were hoping to play in 4:20, and are now stuck out there an extra hour because you decided the golf course is a good place to hang with your buddies.

 

As far as me, I've resorted to playing early before the clowns come out - or I'll stick to courses that I know have rangers out that actually enforce pace.

 

 

[Argonne69]

13 minutes ago, MountainKing said:

 

 

Golf is not what most of us do for a living.  Slow play and backing up everybody behind you is selfish and arrogant. It's a shared space and people should act accordingly so they can enjoy the game, and allow others to enjoy it as well.  With golf being a hobby, people may have other things going on in their lives that they have to get to. 

 

Everybody should be able to book a round at 8am and know they'll be home around 1pm to do the family thing or take care of other business they have going on in their lives.  They shouldn't be forced to walk off the course 14 holes in because some clown decided he wanted to spend the day out there.  A guy who tees off in the fall at 1pm should have no problems finishing 18 hole, not having to walk off in the dark at hole 16 because the guys in front of him have no clue how sunsets work.

 

Thinking outside of your little world,  if you're seeing those frustrations, there's probably a bigger reason for it.  They paid and may be at risk of not finishing because they were hoping to play in 4:20, and are now stuck out there an extra hour because you decided the golf course is a good place to hang with your buddies.

 

As far as me, I've resorted to playing early before the clowns come out - or I'll stick to courses that I know have rangers out that actually enforce pace.

 

 

 

Can't one spend the extra hour with their buddies on the patio after the round enjoying a drink and chatting about their 4 hour round? Just because one finishes a round in a reasonable pace doesn't mean they have to make a beeline for the parking lot and head home. 

 

As you note, not everyone has the luxury of spending that extra hour on the course with their hands on their hips watching a player on the green spend 60 seconds aligning their ball for a 2 foot putt. Yeah, saw that last summer. Timed the clown and he took nearly two minutes to hole out.