Anyone else have this happen

[ithawk]

golf is mental

When ever I play by myself or with people I have not met before I play really good but when I go and play with friends or family members I completely fall apart. I know it's from not concentrating on my swing but I'm just curious if anyone else has this happen.

[Placebo]

I was just thinking about that the other day. I'm the exact same way, drives me nuts!

[nochct]

When ever I play by myself or with people I have not met before I play really good but when I go and play with friends or family members I completely fall apart.  I know it's from not concentrating on my swing but I'm just curious if anyone else has this happen.

42392[/snapback]

i don't play that well if i'm playing with bad golfers or with friends where i'm just out having fun. if their is money on the line or even a six pack of beer i'll concentrate more and play better. you might be really into your game with strangers as you're not distracted.

[DemolitionMan]

Just happened to me yesterday. Played with two guys I never met before, shot my career round. Last Friday I played with three friends and shot my worse opening 12 holes all year before getting on track for the last six holes.

 

Now there are many ways I could look at the terrible round. I was out of sync. The course was very tough, sloping in the 140s, my tee game was way off.....I was gambling on Friday, but not yesterday.

 

Golf is a funny game, but the trap many of us fall into is looking back for too much meaning and not looking forward. You could take any round and look back on it with at least 5 different perspectives. For example, did you not shoot a good score because you were with friends and family? Do you start analyzing the misses and head right for the range? How do you explain shooting a better score with strangers? You are the same guy, same swing. So maybe you have too much concentration. Maybe you just need to relax more and play your shot, not anyone else's.

 

Take the good things from your best rounds with you as you go forward. Next time you tee it up with your friends, treat them more like strangers. It's hard to do. I don't mean don't talk to them. But when you are talking to your friends you have a lot of preconceived notions and experience running through your head, there are no surprises. With strangers, it's all new, there is small talk getting to know someone, you start to look at their shots closer because you do not know what they are going to do, etiquette becomes more formal, all of this contributes to keeping your mind occupied and more relaxed.

 

With strangers it's probably easier not to overthink, you are more aware of your surroundings then when it's your turn you step into a very tight routine. You think of the shot, plan it, step up, hit it. Less thinking, less pressure. With your friends, there's probably a bunch of thoughts running through your head and you put a lot of pressure on yourself to perform.

 

Now being such a mental game, most of what I just typed can be thrown right out the window. Previous to yesterday, my three best rounds before were shot with friends. The only thing I can say all my best rounds had in common were great shotmaking and a very relaxed approach. I didn't overthink. But that's probably because I was hitting good shots and did not have to think. The first ball that goes in the water, and the don't overthink strategy goes right in the water too.

 

Anyway, don't worry about the concentration thing when playing with your friends, but do make an effort to play with a different approach that can keep you more relaxed. Maybe stay away from your ball until you absolutely have too get there, then get into a routine and get the ball in the air in less than a minute. Not too fast, and not enough time to overthink.

 

Good luck.

[cpa49707]

I normally play my best with friends that I feel comfortable with and am relaxed. If I'm playing with strangers that are especially good I fall apart. We all have our comfort zone.

[Sakman]

Just happened to me the other day. I guess that's what I get for trying to be too competitive. It's enough to drive you insane.

 

Another mental thing I need to get over is how I played the course in the past. I have a tendency to compare that round with how I should play it again.

 

I love this game.

[dorfblee]

My game usually implodes when I play with my friend's dad. For whatever reason, if Frank is playing, I'm tanking. It's happens about 50% of the time. The nicer the course deeper south my game goes (San Juan Oaks and Half Moon Bay Old Course).

[Teetogreen86]

When ever I play by myself or with people I have not met before I play really good but when I go and play with friends or family members I completely fall apart.  I know it's from not concentrating on my swing but I'm just curious if anyone else has this happen.

42392[/snapback]

i don't play that well if i'm playing with bad golfers or with friends where i'm just out having fun. if their is money on the line or even a six pack of beer i'll concentrate more and play better. you might be really into your game with strangers as you're not distracted.

42398[/snapback]

 

I'm the same way. When there's something on the line I can feel it mentally that I'm more into the shots and my decisions. If I'm out with my buddies just playing for fun, and I start playing bad then I'll just start doing stupid crap and making dumb decisions.

 

As for playing with strangers, I find I usually play well, unless they are a really high handicap. I feel like I have something to prove, because most people ask what my handicap is on the first hole. To solve that I should just say I'm a 28 or something :fool: .

[Golfchicago]

My biggest problem is when I am playing with friends is we try to play as many holes as possible. we end up playing so fast that we don't take enough time to line up and study our putts. That is probably what suffers the most. Yeah there is definitely a lower level of concentration when I play with my friends. Sometimes I get away with itm ost of the time I don't.

[ithawk]

Super fast play gets me screwed up also, you know going to play with people who show up 2 minutes before you tee off they get out there and everything just seems rushed. It usually takes me 3-4 holes before I get my self slowed down.

[BridgestoneKevin]

Yeah i have the same problem, its really screwy. Ill play in one of my junior tournaments and play well, and playiung with strangers its all good, but when i go out with my brother and play i end up messing up way to much and not playing to my potential. it drives me up the walls sometimes.

[gatorgrad]

I tned to play better when I'm laying with someone of my same ability or better. If I play with someonw worse than me, I tend to play down to their level.