Have you ever thrown a club?

[bobfoster]

Just a bit curious about WRX golfers. 

 

About how freaky good golfers get. Must admit I did (like, four decades ago or so). 

 

Golf is astoundingly frustrating to play. If you haven't thrown a club, how have you dealt with it?

[Nickb333]

When I was a teen, I borrowed my dads Sam Sneads with leather grips. On a damp day I literally threw the driver onto the freeway during my follow through. Panic! Jumped the fence and retrieved it. 
 

Never thrown a club on purpose. 

[naj959]

Many times. After replacing the third iron shaft and realizing I look like a toddler, the club throwing drastically minimized. I will add that every time I've thrown a club I was playing by myself.

[elwhippy]

Many times. It usually results in fits of laughter from my playing partners. 

[mat562]

It wasn't a throw; more of a lackadaisical toss towards my bag from a few feet away after three-putting a par five for a par. My putter, a Ping Pal 4, spun once, landed on the toe end, and broke.

 

I later got a rollocking from the club captain (it was in a junior club match) and a proper roasting from my father. I had to wash my parents' cars a few times before I saved up enough money to buy a replacement Anser 2, which I've still got. £40 was a lot of money to a 14 year-old.

 

I've never chucked another one.

[SnowbirdTom]

Underhand tossed a 3 wood at my cart and just shook my head when the graphite shaft snapped.  That was the last one, nearly 4 years ago now.  Came to the realization that it's just a game.

[Soloman1]

i threw a driver deep into the woods next to a tee about 30 years ago. i’m still embarrassed about it, having never done it before or since.

 

i was up to my neck in crap at the time. jet lagged and in the middle of a divorce where you buy a woman you hate a house.

 

it’s probably still there if you want a driver. look at the right side of the tee box of the 12th hole of harper hills golf course in nashville.

[naval2006]

Yes, I have. I’ve Also seen my fair share of golfers throwing clubs through the years. Many of them would start with the holier-than-thou speech, though, if the hear so and so threw the wedge at 15th today. And there’s the usual reserved bunch: what happens at the course stays on the course. 

[Mikey_HACKilroy]

I did; although I didn't exactly intend to actually throw it... Honest. 🙂 

 

It was a particularly bad day and I was about 22.... I was so mad that I literally swung the 3 Wood over my head like I was swatting at the air not thinking about the whole momentum thing as it slipped out of my sweaty hand. It hit grip down and it was a weird bendy motion as the steel shaft bent up like a straw. It was literally like you pinned it and stomped it as it appeared to neatly and slow just fold up..........

It was my favorite club in the bag, and instantly I felt pretty stupid. Fortunately, I was just playing a round with my dad and only he saw it. I never threw a club when I was with people I didn't know. LOL
 

Now? I still get just as frustrated after a string of really bad shots, but throwing clubs is a no no. It is really bad for me to play on my own, but I get anxious when I get paired with people I don't know. I need golf friends. LOL

Edited March 14 by Mikey_HACKilroy

[nitram]

I've never thrown one, but I've broken a half dozen or so over my knee. Haven't done so in two decades or so, though.

[Hickory4ever]

I have never thrown a club myself. I have observed many including clubs that have ended up in trees or broken shafts. 

[jwhite86]

When I was younger I did a few times... now, priorities have changed and I just laugh bad shots off

[david.c.w]

Absolutely.   Now that I am 50 it is much, much less than when I was younger.

 

Not that it really matters, but they are more chucks toward the bag or cart, and not at all like the Judge Smails heave-ho onto the patio.

[ae1985]

Yes lots. I changed my medication (no kidding) and the anger isn't there anymore.

[jvincent]

I will occasionally lovingly toss a club towards my bag.

[Ferguson]

Never a thrower, myself.  however, this reminds me of an incident.

 

I once saw a guy top his tee shot on first hole.  He pulled another ball and pushed it directly right.  He then took his driver and slammed it against the tee marker, breaking the head off.  After, he stood directly over the clubhead on the ground and started yelling at it.  He was yelling at the clubhead.  Just gibberish, it was like the father from a Christmas Story with the furnace.  He finished "the display" by throwing his shaft and clubhead in the woods and walked off toward the parking lot leaving his clubs on the cart.

 

My buddy taps me on the arm and says, "I guess he's quitting the game." 

My reply, "he could be having marital trouble."  Both groups near the tee erupted in laughter. 

And that's where it started.   Ha. 

 

 

[RSinSG]

This is likely TLDR for some so feel free to scroll past.
 

Not me but my golfing buddy of 40 years was a famous club tosser when he was in his 20’s. Two incidents stood out above the rest and I shared one at his retirement party.

 

First one was at Oak Valley in Beaumont, CA a course with lots of trees. First club was tossed and got stuck in a tree. In true Tom Sawyer fashion he tried to dislodge it by tossing another club. Both clubs required a course employee with a ladder. 
 

You would think think would cure him but no, he became a legend for another outburst. We were playing Canyon South in Palm Springs (now called Indian Canyons South) with two other friends. My buddy had a terrible start and I could see the pot was boiling and ready to blow. While he was clanking and shanking his way up the fairway the other two guys had driven to the green and were standing behind it waiting for my buddy to pitch up from 40 or so yards. Sadly, they were busy talking with each other and not paying attention and missed his botched pitch shot and the subsequent mighty helicopter wedge toss. I was kinda transfixed as I watched the club sail towards the two in seemingly slow motion until in a one in a million shot the club head hit one of the guys directly in the jewels. 
 

The guy grabbed the damaged important parts, and without a sound fell over sideways like a felled tree. When he recovered he had some poignant things to share with my buddy who was appropriately mortified and apologetic, and the awkwardness lasted for a few holes. To his credit this was the incident that cured him of his club tossing as I never saw him throw another. He still had a temper though and he had to reshaft several clubs until he mellowed and realized he wasn’t good enough to get angry over bad shots.

 

We started playing golf in the early 1980’s and even though I moved away from Palm Springs we still get together a couple times a year to play. He’s now director of security at a very exclusive private club and a perfect gentleman when we play. Getting older has some benefits.

[Greenie]

I am too anal about my clubs to throw one.

 

One time when I was walking I paired up with another walker that would throw his TM driver gently towards his stand bag after hitting a bad drive. We were teeing off on one hole and after another bad drive by him he tossed his driver and he didn't release the club exactly right and somehow it ended up in an over hanging tree beside the tee box. It was stuck up in the tree. After waiting around for a few minutes I thought it was a good time to ditch this guy. I played three holes and the fourth hole looped back to where this guy was still trying to get his club out of the tree.

[bcjim]

Rare but I have a buddy who is a regular club tosser. Its usually good entertainment. He totally lost one in a lake and another had to be abandoned in high grass until the next day when there was enough light to search for it. He's also knee-snapped a few and has tested the limits of many others in various styles of abuse. 😂

[mikedejong33]

When I was first starting out, I had a new to me Taylormade driver (the Pittsburgh Persimmon with the steel shaft). I was probably about 15 or 16 at the time. After a bad drive, I helicoptered that drive down the fairway, and sure enough the head hit the ground and it snapped. I felt so much shame, and I had to get it fixed myself. I have never thrown a club since. I have thought about it a few times with a putter, but never threw another one.

 

I have a funny story about club throwing though. A few years ago, our course did a drone flyover to post hole by hole videos on Youtube. Me and some buddies were playing, and we noticed the drone but didn't pay too much attention. Anyway, one of my buddies is a serial club thrower, and sure enough the drone caught it! So now we can go on Youtube and when you get to the certain hole you can see my buddy down below tossing a club. Pretty funny.

[dropkicked]

Never.

My pops would have raw'd my backside..

[Cliffy2020]

I can honestly say I’ve never thrown “a” club

                            

[Hawkeye77]

It's never been a thing for me, but sure, over a period of decades I've gently tossed a few - usually in disgust by my bag, maybe few feet.  I rarely get angry over my golf, more like I figure I deserve all the things that go wrong, haha.  The only time I ever really let one fly was when I was out playing by myself during my COVID comeback, trying to walk a few holes when I shouldn't have been walking, nobody else out playing, and hit a horrible 5i on a hole and let it fly, lol.  We met back up soon on the way to the green and I didn't really have the strength to throw it very far, but it was definitely emotionally charged with all sorts of frustration - I felt better!  

 

Years ago the day before I got married my best friend, who didn't play a lot of golf, joined me and future brother-in-law for a round. He had this beautiful brand new putter, can't remember the brand, but it was expensive even back then and he was pretty proud of it but also telling me how his brother was giving him loads of guff about spending that kind of money on a putter when he wasn't very good at golf.  Well .  .  .  on the 15th hole he missed a short putt and he tossed it towards his bag in disgust - it was a very delicate toss and not very far at all, but it landed just right/wrong and the head snapped off!  We were all pretty surprised it even broke. He was crushed when we got done there weren't any like it in the clubhouse because he wanted to replace it quickly so his brother wouldn't find out he'd broken it the first time out. We still laugh about it.  Incidentally, it was the first time I broke 40 on our par 37 and difficult back 9, don't remember anything about the front 9 - so good omen for a wonderful marriage!

[Hawkeye77]

1 hour ago, Ferguson said:

Never a thrower, myself.  however, this reminds me of an incident.

 

I once saw a guy top his tee shot on first hole.  He pulled another ball and pushed it directly right.  He then took his driver and slammed it against the tee marker, breaking the head off.  After, he stood directly over the clubhead on the ground and started yelling at it.  He was yelling at the clubhead.  Just gibberish, it was like the father from a Christmas Story with the furnace.  He finished "the display" by throwing his shaft and clubhead in the woods and walked off toward the parking lot leaving his clubs on the cart.

 

My buddy taps me on the arm and says, "I guess he's quitting the game." 

My reply, "he could be having marital trouble."  Both groups near the tee erupted in laughter. 

And that's where it started.   Ha. 

 

 

 

A long awaited revelation! 😀

[Ferguson]

8 minutes ago, Hawkeye77 said:

 

A long awaited revelation! 😀

 

Mr. Foster's thread brought that back from the memory banks.  

 

[alittleoverpar]

About 50 years ago, when I was 12, I topped a 3 wood and threw it up over my shoulder and into a tree, where it got stuck and remained.  I assume it eventually fell to ground, but I never saw the club again.  That was my last club toss.

[MountainKing]

When I was in my late teens/early 20's I was young and delusional with thoughts that I could make a living playing.  I was a bit of a hot head in my younger days and after a few years of getting nowhere, and running out of money, I started feeling that pressure and threw/broke more than my share of clubs.  I may have also gotten DQ'd from an event for pushing a bench down a hill.  None of it was my finest hour, but on a lot of those mini tours/qualifiers etc you're in pretty good company if you're breaking and throwing clubs lol.

[MattM97]

Like Matt Every style toss? No I have enough control over myself not to do that. But like a frustrated fling or slam the handle down on a wedge or iron I've done a few times when frustrated. 

 

My one buddy tossed his driver like a javelin and snapped the shaft. That alone would stop me from doing that to my clubs because that's an expensive throw, I'd rather my throws make me money not cost me money. 

[Augie53]

About 20-something years ago, in my late 20's.  Was playing league against a two-some of older guys.  After a bad tee shot (another slice) I chucked my driver down the fairway.  One of the older gentlemen kindly said to me, "son, you're not good enough to be throwing your clubs".  Thought about it and he was right, haven't thrown one since. 

 

At the time I was going through a rough patch. Marital issues that eventually ended up in a divorce, crappy job, stagnated career, struggling financially.  Look back on it now and all the stress and pressure I remember from that period, that old dude is probably lucky I didn't rap the club around his neck.  Maybe if he was jerk about it I would have, but he addressed me in a sort of fatherly way so the message resonated with me to this day.

[Pepperturbo]

Never threw a club or anything out of frustration or anger.  Never engaged in conflict while angry either.  Letting frustration, anger or fear drive my reaction means I've lost sight and lost...  

 

What is sad is that we see people commiserating over bad behavior in threads like this.  Thanks, social media.

Edited March 15 by Pepperturbo