Is it worth it?

who what when

Ok so i started plaing golf seriously nearly a year ago and in that time my handicap has gone from 24 to 15. Ive spent quiet a bit of money on the game in the last year too, 2-3 grand i reckon once everything is counted!

Now im pretty certain i have the ability to become a low handicapper, say 4 or 5 but i also know thats my limit! No amount of practice will get me to scratch or below par!

So my question is this, is it really worth it? To make a massive investment of time and money in order to get somewhere i know i will and then have to make another huge investment to keep myself at that level.

Is it worth it? Do you get more satisfaction from being really good (yet not brilliant) golfer than you do from going for the odd round and being delighted when you hit 40 points with a 16 handicap?

I'd be interested in peoples opinions on this

Jimdagym

How do you expect anyone to answer that? Only you know how golf makes you feel.

G1032

who what when wrote: »

Now im pretty certain i have the ability to become a low handicapper, say 4 or 5 but i also know thats my limit! No amount of practice will get me to scratch or below par!

How can you know this? How can you say you'll get to 4 but never any lower?

BUACHAILL

I think if your good enough to get to 4-5 you can get to scratch or better, its just how much you want it and how hard you work to get there !! thats my own thinking on it

As for your question of is it worth it ? well that depends on what you measure your success by and what satisfies you ! Personally for me I think its worth it. No matter what you look at be it sport , music, business etc people at the top of their respected games put in more work, dedication, sacrafices than everyone else thats why they are the best in their profession. They obviously have the inner drive to be the best they can be. Money shouldnt come into it, you either want to be the best you can be or you dont. The fact you even have to ask the question would suggest its not worth it for you.

Maybe I am wrong !!

soundsham

eh...

just pack it in now
save yourself the money
and tell anyone that asks that you once played off 4

f22

The difference between 4/5 handicap and being a decent scratch/+ golfer is massive. The game is there to be enjoyed first and foremost, the day itbecomes a chore is the day I stop playing.

Zardoz

f22 wrote: »

The difference between 4/5 handicap and being a decent scratch/+ golfer is massive. The game is there to be enjoyed first and foremost, the day itbecomes a chore is the day I stop playing.

I wouldnt say its a massive difference but its a noticeable difference allright.
You have to be an excellent ball striker to be off scratch but the most noticeable difference I think is the short game.
If you want to play to below 4 it requires a huge time commitment as your game will have to be very sharp over 18 holes.
I'm off 5 myself and I'm stuck to be honest.I dont have enough time to practice and while my game is solid and I'm a good ball striker I am not clinical enough inside 120 yards.
I tend to concentrate on my ball striking and technique where I guess I should be spending 60-70% of my time practicing with the wedge or 9 iron but I dont enjoy that.

Do you get more satisfaction from being really good (yet not brilliant) golfer than you do from going for the odd round and being delighted when you hit 40 points with a 16 handicap?

Yes ,I do get more satisfaction from being a low handicapper than a high handicapper but it can also be very frustrating.
The lower you get the harder you are on yourself and you start analysing your swing and technique and it can become a vicious cycle.
I'd say try to get as low as you can but dont be too hard on yourself ,we are only part time golfers .

dvemail

I suppsoe it depends on what you want from the game.
Is all you want to do is to get your handicap down as far as it can go?
Do you play the game for the enjoyment of it or for winning competitions?

Id say just keep playing until you feel the enjoyment has gone from the game and then pack it in. But it all depends on you.

who what when

Zardoz wrote: »

Yes ,I do get more satisfaction from being a low handicapper than a high handicapper but it can also be very frustrating.
The lower you get the harder you are on yourself and you start analysing your swing and technique and it can become a vicious cycle.
I'd say try to get as low as you can but dont be too hard on yourself ,we are only part time golfers .

Thanks this is the kind of answer i was looking for. You see im pretty sure that if i persist with this game i'l be very much the same as yourself.

Right now im delighted if i get under 85. Now lets say in 2 years ive improved to say a 6 handicap, i will be appalled by an 85!
I mean the feeling of hitting a good round stays the same regardless of whether your handicap is 20 or 2, its just your score that changes!

who what when

dvemail wrote: »

I suppsoe it depends on what you want from the game.
Is all you want to do is to get your handicap down as far as it can go?
Do you play the game for the enjoyment of it or for winning competitions?

Id say just keep playing until you feel the enjoyment has gone from the game and then pack it in. But it all depends on you.

Well none of the above really. I play for 2 reasons.
1 As someone who mostly played team sports i love the fact the whether i have a good day or bad i only have myself to blame.
2 The feeling of playing a good hole or round. Hard to describe it but it really is very addictive!

charlieIRL

who what when wrote: »

2 The feeling of playing a good hole or round. Hard to describe it but it really is very addictive!

thats my motto since i started playing golf, no matter how bad a round if you make one excellent shot it will keep you coming back for more.

heavyballs

who what when wrote: »

Thanks this is the kind of answer i was looking for. You see im pretty sure that if i persist with this game i'l be very much the same as yourself.

Right now im delighted if i get under 85. Now lets say in 2 years ive improved to say a 6 handicap, i will be appalled by an 85!
I mean the feeling of hitting a good round stays the same regardless of whether your handicap is 20 or 2, its just your score that changes!

i really would love to know how someone who is "Delighted" with a score like that is "pretty certain" that they will become a low hcp'r in the next few years,if you tell me the secret i'll tell all my mates who have played to that 85ish standard for the past 10 years or so and then i'd at least have a few people i know to play scr cups with.........thanks in advance

who what when

heavyballs wrote: »

i really would love to know how someone who is "Delighted" with a score like that is "pretty certain" that they will become a low hcp'r in the next few years,if you tell me the secret i'll tell all my mates who have played to that 85ish standard for the past 10 years or so and then i'd at least have a few people i know to play scr cups with.........thanks in advance

I think youre totally missing the point of this thread but anyway.

To clarify, after 1 year (not 10) of playing golf seriously i believe i have the ability to get my handicap to around 4-6, somewhere in that ballpark.
Everyone has a limit to the extent they can improve and i believe that would be mine. I could be wrong, it may be higher, it may be lower but that is not the point at all.

The reason 'all your friends' cant get past 85, (strange that theyre all at the same level) is because like i say, everyone eventually reaches the best they can be. After that its downhill again.

As for being delighted with an 85, well thats the standard im at right now.
A year ago i was delighted to be getting under 95. Hopefully this time next year i'l be breaking 80 but again thats neither here nor there and has nothing at all to do with my original question which you made no attempt at all to answer.

Dont mention it

BUACHAILL

who what when wrote: »

I think youre totally missing the point of this thread but anyway.

To clarify, after 1 year (not 10) of playing golf seriously i believe i have the ability to get my handicap to around 4-6, somewhere in that ballpark.
Everyone has a limit to the extent they can improve and i believe that would be mine. I could be wrong, it may be higher, it may be lower but that is not the point at all.

The reason 'all your friends' cant get past 85, (strange that theyre all at the same level) is because like i say, everyone eventually reaches the best they can be. After that its downhill again.

As for being delighted with an 85, well thats the standard im at right now.
A year ago i was delighted to be getting under 95. Hopefully this time next year i'l be breaking 80 but again thats neither here nor there and has nothing at all to do with my original question which you made no attempt at all to answer.

Dont mention it

why do you limit yourself and your ability ?
Believe it or not some people in fact majority of people I would say can reach any level they want if they can apply themselves correctly. Just dont understand your mind set, dont be so limiting and you might be nicely suprised with the results

heavyballs

BUACHAILL wrote: »

why do you limit yourself and your ability ?
Believe it or not some people in fact majority of people I would say can reach any level they want if they can apply themselves correctly. Just dont understand your mind set, dont be so limiting and you might be nicely suprised with the results

i don't think it's as easy as that boy,a certain amount of natural ability,co-ordination etc would be needed,if it's just about applying yourself the average hcp would be surely a lot lower than (bout 15ish i think)it is now,think of people you know in your club playing to the op's standard,you reckon they can reach 'any level'?
the op will find as he goes down in hcp that his handicap will level off at times and prove very difficult to get down to 4 or 5ish,that said i wish him the best of luck with it
(btw the amount of golf you play you should be off scr,great f***in job you have,i think you're fond of the odd Tiger raid boy,defo something illegal with all that time on your hands)

BUACHAILL

heavyballs wrote: »

i don't think it's as easy as that boy,a certain amount of natural ability,co-ordination etc would be needed,if it's just about applying yourself the average hcp would be surely a lot lower than (bout 15ish i think)it is now,think of people you know in your club playing to the op's standard,you reckon they can reach 'any level'?
the op will find as he goes down in hcp that his handicap will level off at times and prove very difficult to get down to 4 or 5ish,that said i wish him the best of luck with it
(btw the amount of golf you play you should be off scr,great f***in job you have,i think you're fond of the odd Tiger raid boy,defo something illegal with all that time on your hands)

Jaysus jealous of my job now aswell as me being a member of 2 clubs while you have none. Your right I should be lower but I am just not able;) ha. it will come 7 aint bad for someone playing only 3 full years albeit really full years ha ha. That said I have been forced to take some time off, durty aul groin strain been at me for months now, time to let it heal !! might actually do some work for next few weeks. Ring your bank and put them on high alert:D:D

heavyballs

BUACHAILL wrote: »

[/B]


Jaysus jealous of my job now aswell as me being a member of 2 clubs while you have none. Your right I should be lower but I am just not able;) ha. it will come 7 aint bad for someone playing only 3 full years albeit really full years ha ha. That said I have been forced to take some time off, durty aul groin strain been at me for months now, time to let it heal !! might actually do some work for next few weeks. Ring your bank and put them on high alert:D:D

ok then,how many hours?

BUACHAILL

heavyballs wrote: »

ok then,how many hours?

????

heavyballs

BUACHAILL wrote: »

????

how many hours are you taking off? forget it.off to the pit

BUACHAILL

heavyballs wrote: »

how many hours are you taking off? forget it.off to the pit

I thought u meant that alright but thought you might be slagging the hours I work also, I wont play a round for a week anyway and see how it feels then, was thinking 2 weeks would be enough but it has been fairly bad so who knows

gawoo1012

who what when wrote: »

Ok so i started plaing golf seriously nearly a year ago and in that time my handicap has gone from 24 to 15. Ive spent quiet a bit of money on the game in the last year too, 2-3 grand i reckon once everything is counted!

Now im pretty certain i have the ability to become a low handicapper, say 4 or 5 but i also know thats my limit! No amount of practice will get me to scratch or below par!

So my question is this, is it really worth it? To make a massive investment of time and money in order to get somewhere i know i will and then have to make another huge investment to keep myself at that level.

Is it worth it? Do you get more satisfaction from being really good (yet not brilliant) golfer than you do from going for the odd round and being delighted when you hit 40 points with a 16 handicap?

I'd be interested in peoples opinions on this

Don't be so sure, it is much easier to drop from 24 to 15 than it is to drop from 10 to 4. The key difference is absolute consistency. After 1 year, you have the knowledge and experience to say that you will get to low single figures. Interesting.

Anyways, I don't see the logic of your question as your motivation and enjoyment of the sport are specific & unique to you. What you are asking is: should I become a bandit and nurse my handicap so that I can pick off several prizes a year or should I be true to the spirit of the game and try to be the best player that my abilities will allow me to be?

GorHugh

How about you ACTUALLY GET to 4 - 5 and then worry about the scratch side of it !!