Who taught these kids the game???

[cwbrion]

I thought golf was about honor.

I was a golf professional for about 10 years and enjoyed teaching juniors how to respect the game as well as how to play the game. This is a true story that I just heard from one of my old students. This young man is probably the best junior in our area and a fine gentleman. He finished his round in a sectional tournament (high school tourney) and checks his card and turns it in. Some other kids wait till he turns his card in, and they immediately take to the erasers to "adjust" their scorecards so they nip him by like a shot. Are you kidding me? If you can't beat someone then then take off your hat, shake their hand, and go on about your day. This is just another reason to add to my list of leaving the golf profession behind. Let me hear what you WRXers think of this?

[ExProGoingBack]

Whoever organized the tournament doesn't know how scoring works. I played in high school....div.I and was a professional for a number of years. Every tournament I played in each player recorded his own score and that of another in the group. Both signed the cards and then were turned in. Unfortunately alot of kids are not honest...however....I'd blame the tournament director first on this one.

[TourBound3617]

society these days...

[cwbrion]

This is the tournament before state finals I believe for high school. I think the kid(s) may have even been in his group so there was no scoring tent as there is for other tournaments. They just walked off to the side and waited. After his score was posted, they made some changes, and then turned in their cards.

[Dizz]

I would say you have some growing up to do yourself if this is on your list of reasons to leave the golf profession.

[Connorws]

i am a highschool student that plays on my highschool team and there is one or two guys that cut their score in tournaments. it pisses me when the guys never practice and then have to cheat to look good? like cmon its golf how are u going to get any better if you arnt honest with yourself. youve deffinatly got other problems if u have to cheat in golf. sorry saw the right place to vent =p

[Dizz]

[quote name='Connorws' date='28 May 2010 - 12:27 AM' timestamp='1275020865' post='2472290']
i am a highschool student that plays on my highschool team and there is one or two guys that cut their score in tournaments. it pisses me when the guys never practice and then have to cheat to look good? like cmon its golf how are u going to get any better if you arnt honest with yourself. youve deffinatly got other problems if u have to cheat in golf. sorry saw the right place to vent =p
[/quote]

How bad are the kids that are cheating? When I was in high school there was no possible way for anyone I played with to cheat and it never even crossed my mind. I mean, at least as far as changing scores goes...I did see guys improving lies or mis marking their balls on the greens. But there is no way anyone I played with shooting a relevant score could cheat. The difference between 112 and 117 is meaningless but 72 to 77 would be quite the difference.

[cwbrion]

I left the golf business a couple of years ago now. I have loved the game my entire life and the fact that these kids would disrespect it so bad would easily be reason for me to leave the golf business. Please keep your negativity to yourself as this thread is not about me. I asked for people opinion's on this situation.

[walts00]

Something doesn't add up quite right with this story. Were the culprits identified and DQ'ed? I can only assume so as someone would have had to find out about the shenanigans to tell you the story. And I assume that someone would have gone to tournament directors immediately after they found out.

If these players were never identified and DQ'ed then it would have been because this player had no proof that the dishonesty took place. Perhaps the young man was just speculating as to why he got beat in the tournament?

[stage1350]

Do you know that this occurred for a fact? If so, why didn't YOU blow the whistle on the cheaters?

[cwbrion]

This young man WOULD NEVER speculate as to why he got beat. He would take off his hat and shake their hands. I will get some more details this weekend.

[Dizz]

[quote name='cwbrion' date='28 May 2010 - 11:28 AM' timestamp='1275060518' post='2472897']
This young man WOULD NEVER speculate as to why he got beat. He would take off his hat and shake their hands. I will get some more details this weekend.
[/quote]

If you were truly in the golf business for that long then you should how tournaments are run. If he signed his card and turned it in then he also kept score for another kid in his group. There is just no way in my eyes for two kids in a group to erase their scores and get away with it. Maybe if the players are shooting 90+ then a few strokes getting lost isn't crazy but to lose in a Sectional you would think these kids are shooting sub 80 scores where there is just no way for this to happen.

[MtlJeff]

i played a few sports growing up at pretty high levels, it amazes me that it amazes others that people cheat. Cheating is part of every competitive sport, because a lot of people out there just don't give a damn. If you want to avoid people like this, go to your house, put your fingers in your ears and sit in the corner indefinitely with the music turned way up. Otherwise just be the best person you want to be and leave it at that. You can't quit your job in golf because of it, work in an office and then tell me about people's morals!

[mshills]

This story is impossible unless whomever is running the tournament is dumb as a bag of hammers, which I suppose is possible.

[doof_dizzler]

[quote name='TourBound3617' date='27 May 2010 - 07:48 PM' timestamp='1275011332' post='2471981']
society these days...


[/quote]

Stories like the OP's are the end result of changing morals in society and family law to allow no-fault divorce. Predictable but the horse is long out of the barn by now.

[grabthepin]

I know of a club that discovered some finished players phoning through the score needed to win to their mates still out on the course, for the purpose of fudging scores and bringing home the prizes. It's not just kids.

[Sean2]

Last year my 15 year old lost a match because he called a penalty on himself. He was the only one who saw the infraction.

Two weekends ago he called another penalty on himself, again no one else saw it.

I'm more proud of him for doing that than I would have been if he had won.

[honketyhank]

I regularly play with a retired high school golf coach. I once heard someone ask him what topic he spent the most time working with his kids on. His one-word answer: "behavior".

[High Plains Driver]

They may get away with it now, but the kids not practicing or talented enough will not get away with it in college.
They will be the high school 'studs' who can't get a spot on a Jr. College team.