AWESOME front 9..horrible back 9

[tsecor]

Anyone ever play out of their minds on the front 9 or the back 9 and then completely fall apart on the other side, like you never hit a ball before? That happened to me last night....1 over on the front and then I took a 9 on a hole which I haven't done since I was 10 yrs old....it was like I forgot how to hit a ball and completely lost any semblance of a game on the back 9....had a chance to shoot 74 or so, but ended up at 85....what the heck happened? it totally shattered my confidence heading into a best ball tourney this week

[andrue]

I just had the reverse. And the front 9 is the easy 9 for short hitters like me. But I got two 8s and a 9 because for the 3rd through 8th my swing deserted me. Not quite as bad as yours sounds but I was spraying wedges and mid irons around which is unusual and my putting was poor. Most annoying is that I still don't know why it went wrong. It just gradually came back over the remainder of the round with most of the (supposedly hardler) back 9 being quite good.

 

Out 55, in 46 for gross 101.

 

The only good news is that I think it's within the buffer zone for my 20.9 handicap so no change.

 

But I really wish I knew what happened to my swing. It's been great all week and it came back 'by itself' so..um? I did notice toward the end of yesterday's round that it felt 'odd' but couldn't pin down why. Slightly irritating as I was hoping to win my second September medal in a row :-/

[sportz2k1]

I have the same issue. I would shoot 12 over and follow up by 5 over. This inconsistency keeps me from shooting below 85

[Springsteennut]

I had this happen a couple of years ago. I’m playing by myself and I was in a really good rhythm and shot a 40 on the front 9. I get to 10 and a guy pulls up and asks if he can play with me. He tells me he works at the course. Nice guy gave me great advice on how to play each hole ( which I’ve used since then ) but I completely lost it. I end up shooting a a 50 on the back nine. A 90 on this course is nothing to sneeze at but it’s that whole what could of been that we’ve all been through.

[Jack Pearsall]

Knew a guy who always, always played every back nine fantastic, but always just was terrible on the front. Eventually JP asked him what gives? What’s going on? Says it takes nine holes before the leeches affect him. JP is like “what??” Guys pulls up his shirt, he’s go a leech on each inside the shoulder blade. Freaked JP out.

[RGrinn13]

I did this last weekend in the second round of our club championship. Went 46-37-83. Frustrating but, it happens.

[ProphetLogic]

Worst ever was 35-46. It was awful.

[mukster]

Ah, the old Ray/Ray round

[Chomper]

44/32.

What could have been...

[andrue]

And today, confirming that fatigue and general incompetence were not a factor I've just completed a round at Kirtlington, UK in 84. My driver was working well and my putting was tolerable. I had a few issues with pushing my irons but I can't complain at +14 (it's only a par 70) :)

[Range Pro]

Over the years, I've learned to not add up my score after nine if I knew that I was play pretty well. Knowing the front nine score always caused me to get ahead of myself and start thinking about the final 18 hole score. However, I've always wanted to know my front nine score if I was playing average to bad. It gave me a target to shoot better on the back.

[Bigsetzee]

I still have the odd one of those, in fact I had one of the weekend.

 

+4 followed by +9. I've gotten better at not doing it as much but to be honest it's only about two holes that ruin my rounds (e.g. a double and a triple),

I feel like if I could get rid of those I'd be around an 8 hcp instead, if only. The rest of the time I'm usually really happy with my play.

[Mignuz]

Once it happened the exact opposite to me...

On a medal tournament I started with bogey on 1, 2 and 3, with a really good bogey save on the third.

The problem was I was hitting it really awfully and I was thinking about retiring myself for the competition.

But I didn't give up and fortunately I found that my main error was I wasn't turning that much my body.

I made another bogey on the first 9 for a 40, and scored a -2 34 on the second 9, for a 74 that was enough for winning the net tournament and a final (one week all inclusive paid) in Seychelles.

So the lesson is: never give up.

[3PuttHero]

The story of my golfing career...

[SBH9458]

Could happen to me at any time. Has happened many times. For me, it is just golf. Not playing enough these days to be consistent so I have to just try to enjoy the game rather than worrying about front 9 v back 9.

[Duffner's Waggle]

Somethin similar.... had a tough front 9 45 so I decided to turn things around on the back and was even through 4 when disaster struck:

• Par 5 14th.... hit a high bomb, but tugged it left behind some trees. Had to punch out then scramble just to make bogey.
  

• Was determined not to go left on the next tee....pushed it right on the other side of the same trees....tried to hit a big high draw that never drew....had to chip through some more trees...hit a branch, finally up and down with 2 putts....double.
  

• Par 3 16, I leave it a little right.....slides down the slope to the right of the green and ends up under a tree. I have no stance, no swing, and try to basically putt it out left. Had to get cute with the chip to get it near the pin...bladed it into the back bunker. Out, then 2 putts. TRIPLE.
  

• At this point, my round is spiraling, and my cousin asked me to hit his new driver to see what I think....smoked one long, and a little left....it gets lost in a decorative flower bed. Drop, hit my 3rd off a tree branch, which drops straight down. Long iron to the back of the green, two putts for double.
  

• Determined to be in the fairway on 18, I hit driving iron, but it's off the toe and I'm in the center of the fwy, but way back. 230 left off a steep downhill lie to a peninsula green with a tight opening. Chunked my hybrid, ended up right in some...you guessed it....trees. Had to punch out. Wedge to 15 feet. 2 putt for 6.
  

If you're keeping score at home, that's even through 4, then FIVE 6's in a row to close with a smooth 45, exactly what I had on the front. Brutal.

[Flop2TheFace]

I'm having this issue with bad back nines as well. Went 37-43 yesterday and had a similar round two weeks ago. I eat by an intermittent fasting protocol normally, so I was playing fasted both mornings. Obviously, I think this is a huge factor. Has anybody got a good dietary protocol to help keep energy high over a long round? Looking for good mid-round snacks that aren't high in sugars that I can put in my bag. Also, would be interested in something simple for breakfast that won't weigh me down on the first couple holes / make me feel like I've got to drop the duece mid-round.

[MtlJeff]

Usually I'm the other way around LoL.

 

I have a few tournament rounds that were 43+ in the front and under par on the back.

 

Most recent one was 46-35. Did 43-33 once

[nosedive32]

I've been getting through 12 holes or so around 2 or 3 over and imploding to shoot around 82 most rounds this year.

 

I actually had a round where we started on 1 skipped 2 and 3 then played them last. I played them bogey birdie to complete a "front" 39 (2 is the 2nd hardest hole on this course by far) in a round of 86 ?

[i*windows]

this happens to me so often. 47, 38 last week

[stiffdogg06]

Not sure if any of you believe it but have you heard of this saying. You are shooting well/bad on the first 9 and think, damn, I am not near my normal score. And you gather it to play well or worse to get close to your "normal" score. If I believe that, no idea. Golf is hard.

[bburleigh0625]

Worst ever for me was a front nine 36 (even par) followed up by a back nine 48. Looked and felt like 2 completely different players that day!

[Joelsim]

Yeah, played about a month ago at East Sussex National, tough, tough course with ridiculous greens. 5 over front nine, 17 over back nine including a 10 FFS.

[SoAZ]

It was a few years back so don't remember my exact score but believe it was a 40 front followed up with a 55 on the back and I'm pretty sure I par'd 10. For a 12 handicap it was pretty tough. It was the first time I played that course but man that was hard to swallow.

[SoAZ]

> @Flop2TheFace said:

> I'm having this issue with bad back nines as well. Went 37-43 yesterday and had a similar round two weeks ago. I eat by an intermittent fasting protocol normally, so I was playing fasted both mornings. Obviously, I think this is a huge factor. Has anybody got a good dietary protocol to help keep energy high over a long round? Looking for good mid-round snacks that aren't high in sugars that I can put in my bag. Also, would be interested in something simple for breakfast that won't weigh me down on the first couple holes / make me feel like I've got to drop the duece mid-round.

 

I go 14-16 hours between meals too and find nuts and jerky help when I play and I would be out still on the course during meal time.

 

[Flop2TheFace]

I’ll try that. 36-45 yesterday. I’m also trying some mindfulness exercises. So hard when you know you have the game to go low, but keep getting in my own way!

[craigs24]

I just shot 43-55, frustration over which brought me to this topic. I agree that energy and hydration is super important. But I have to add that you must play the swing that got you there and don't fiddle with things, trying to make them better. Introducing the smallest change can cause big, bad results, put the train off the track and force you to struggle to get back on.