This got me thinking from another thread. Can you tell someone's shot even b4 that person tees it up? And I'm not talking about someone you reguarly play with, I'm talking about someone you've never met. Over the years, I gotten very good at it and I'm sure there are a few pros or scratch golfers (of which I am neither )on this board who can do this too.
One dead give away and hint No. 1 - if a person takes two or more practice swings for no reason (i.e. they're not waiting for the group ahead of them and are just trying to stay loose), then there's a 95% chance the guy will hit it about 180 yds or less with a 30 yd slice, if the ball goes in the air at all.
Hint #2 - how they grip the club before they even address the ball.
I will mention one time many years ago where I was so wrong it was laughable. I saw one guy wearing shoes with 3" platform heels (remember those shoes from the '70's? ). I wasn't sure the guy would hit it at all and he hit about a 280 yd drive with a 3 yd draw - to this day, it still ranks as one of the best shots I've seen.
Last edited by greenguy : June 23rd, 2005 at 01:27 PM.
iI will mention one time many years ago where I was so wrong it was laughable. I saw one guy wearing shoes with 3" platform heels (remember those shoes from the '70's? ). I wasn't sure the guy would hit it at all and he hit about a 280 yd drive with a 3 yd draw - to this day, it still ranks as one of the best shots I've seen.
I sure hope that was at the range and not on a course...LOL...he didn't happen to have a colored afro as well? LOL
Maybe I haven't seen enough swings , but I can't. I've seen too many odd grips, stances, swings, etc. that actually worked to have any clue. I usually have a pretty good idea where mine went without looking. Unfortunately "pretty good idea" often isn't good enough to find it unless it's in the short grass.
Can you tell someone's shot even b4 that person tees it up? And I'm not talking about someone you reguarly play with, I'm talking about someone you've never met. Over the years, I gotten very good at it and I'm sure there are a few pros or scratch golfers (of which I am neither )on this board who can do this too.
I'm afraid to ask what you thought of my swing before we played!
I try to never look at the swings of other people on the course. Some can be so bad you want to claw your eyes out after seeing it. I avoid watching because if I see something odd I fear it would get into my head, and if I see something good I will try to emulate it on my next swing, both of which would be disasters.
I remember playing Bethpage Blue one weekend before our afternoon tee time on the black, and a single joined our group. The guy had a dirty, beat up, 20+ year old staff bag, with some old knockoffs that were probably bought from the same year. His driver was an old persimmon, and he was wearing sandals. I was thinking, man, what a round this'll be. Turns out, that he was a good player, and shot somewhere in the 80s. Never underestimate your playing partners. I bet ya he came to the course thinking someone would propose a money game or something. He had to have been the epitome of a sandbagger
This got me thinking from another thread. Can you tell someone's shot even b4 that person tees it up? And I'm not talking about someone you reguarly play with, I'm talking about someone you've never met. Over the years, I gotten very good at it and I'm sure there are a few pros or scratch golfers (of which I am neither )on this board who can do this too.
One dead give away and hint No. 1 - if a person takes two or more practice swings for no reason (i.e. they're not waiting for the group ahead of them and are just trying to stay loose), then there's a 95% chance the guy will hit it about 180 yds or less with a 30 yd slice, if the ball goes in the air at all.
Hint #2 - how they grip the club before they even address the ball.
I will mention one time many years ago where I was so wrong it was laughable. I saw one guy wearing shoes with 3" platform heels (remember those shoes from the '70's? ). I wasn't sure the guy would hit it at all and he hit about a 280 yd drive with a 3 yd draw - to this day, it still ranks as one of the best shots I've seen.
I typically take 2 or more practice swings. And as a 2+ practice swinger, I felt I should stand up for all my brethren who don't hit til the swing feels right. If it's good after one, i hit, after 2, i hit, and so on. Who ever said 2 practice swings is bad. BTW, I hit my 2 iron 225 off the tee and my five wood 230 off the turf. The other day, after three practice swings, I hit my longest drive ever of 305 and again with multiple practice swings i pitched to 4 feet, and (you guessed it) with multiple putter practice swings i made the putt for birdie. And I NEVER slice! I either draw, fade, hit it straight, or (gasp) hook!!!
This doesn't really qualify but I do have one guy I play with on occasion who's whole round I can call. Its pretty simple; he can play 4 or 5 good holes starting out but as soon as he hits his first bad shot its over.
He then immediately stops finishing his swing trying to "guide" the ball and starts getting down on himself. Hes also fond of reliving his bad shots during casual rounds throwing down a second ball and in most cases hitting the same bad shot. Funny part is his first bad shot is usually not that bad, ending up in a spot where he could possibly go up and down if he would just move on and leave the bad ones behind.
Its like watching a train wreck in 18 frame slow motion.
I have tried comments like "do you really want to relive your bad shots" or "the most important shot in golf is your next shot" but none of these clichés seem to work.
I shudder to think of what you guys would say about my swing. Stuff like "that's going in the woods" or "that ball will never get off the ground" etc. The sad part is that when my game is on, the swing works better than anything conventional. But first, the game has to be on.
I typically take 2 or more practice swings. And as a 2+ practice swinger, I felt I should stand up for all my brethren who don't hit til the swing feels right. If it's good after one, i hit, after 2, i hit, and so on. Who ever said 2 practice swings is bad. BTW, I hit my 2 iron 225 off the tee and my five wood 230 off the turf. The other day, after three practice swings, I hit my longest drive ever of 305 and again with multiple practice swings i pitched to 4 feet, and (you guessed it) with multiple putter practice swings i made the putt for birdie. And I NEVER slice! I either draw, fade, hit it straight, or (gasp) hook!!!
I said about 95% chance - nothing in life is certain And the hint is having a bad grip - I prolly could tell your shot by looking how you grip the club to tell if the practice swings are a waste of time. Bad grip=bad shot.
That's one reason I think practice swings are a waste of time - if you don't have a good grip, then you (maybe not you in particular, just the rest of the 95%) ain't going to cure a bad shot by taking practice swings.
Another dead give away is posture - good grip, good posture and I might feel more tolerant toward people taking practice swings. My point is bad grip, bad posture=bad shot, no matter how many practice tries. If someone has a preshot routine that doesn't try to correct the basics of addressing the ball correctly, then don't waste time. Hit the bad shot and get it over with already! Nothing wrong with bad shots - lord knows that's what I do all day. Wasting time for a bad shot makes me
Last edited by greenguy : June 25th, 2005 at 08:19 AM.
I'm afraid to ask what you thought of my swing before we played!
To be perfectly honest, I paid very little attention to your swing. I watched where the ball went, not much more. It's when I'm working that I pay more attention 'cause I'm waiting for someone to hurry up so I can do whatever I'm doing.
When I'm playing, I don't pay much attention to anyone UNLESS they're wasting time!!! Then you'll catch my attention, cause I'm waiting for that person to PLEASE get the agony over with already
Fortunately, most people I play with are relatively fast players, even the ones that aren't very good, like myself. I'm a poor golfer, but I don't waste time.
I remember playing Bethpage Blue one weekend before our afternoon tee time on the black, and a single joined our group. The guy had a dirty, beat up, 20+ year old staff bag, with some old knockoffs that were probably bought from the same year. His driver was an old persimmon, and he was wearing sandals. I was thinking, man, what a round this'll be. Turns out, that he was a good player, and shot somewhere in the 80s. Never underestimate your playing partners. I bet ya he came to the course thinking someone would propose a money game or something. He had to have been the epitome of a sandbagger
I don't know how people play in sandals. Last nite in our couples league, both the guy and woman we were paired with wore sandals and both did very well. But both played relatively fast and so I didn't notice if the sandals effected their shots 'cause most of them were playable. Looked uncomfortable to me, but thats just IMO.
I sure hope that was at the range and not on a course...LOL...he didn't happen to have a colored afro as well? LOL
No, he was on the 7th hole at the Grand Hotel course on Mackinaw Island in Michigan in 1976. It's was a beautiful hole 'cause the Governor's summer mansion is on a hill on the left overlooking the downhill, dogleg left hole. The view is second to none because the Straits of Mackinaw and the Mackinaw Bridge are in the background. If you hook it just right, you can cut yardage off the hole by going across the mansion's property (think the Road Hole at St. Andrews, only in reverse - dogleg left vs. dogleg right).
And no, the guy didn't have a 'fro or carry a John 3:16 sign!
I actually have a pair of foot joy golf sandals equipped with cleats. I thought it would be perfect for the Florida summers but failed to take into consideration all the bugs mud and water. Which is most often where my ball lands.
June 23rd, 2005, 01:21 PM
)on this board who can do this too.
). I wasn't sure the guy would hit it at all and he hit about a 280 yd drive with a 3 yd draw - to this day, it still ranks as one of the best shots I've seen.
Then you'll catch my attention, cause I'm waiting for that person to PLEASE get the agony over with already 
Linear Mode
Similar Threads
