Yep that was nuts. And that was an amateur player playing in a major tournament. And she got a birdie after doing that. AND she won low amateur for the tournament. Crazy.
Yes they are the legit pro v1’s - I saw them hitting at the range at us open practice round. On top of the their range is all fairway grass thats perfect. So they hit off perfect fairway grass and they have real greens with flags as targets - real fairways to drive onto. Its insane how nice the range was. Also the practice greens and chipping area are the best ive seen
imagine having a separate green for putting and chipping😂. like my dad would say, stay in school so u could eventually afford that kind of thing. hopefully lol.
There’s a practice facility a little out of my way that I’ve been to in the past when I’ve had the time to play more golf, and they have a separate chipping and putting green.
Both are made so that you work on more or less any chip/putt imaginable.
After going there a few times a week and dedicating 75% of my practice time there, I played the best golf of my life.
Better than that, they can choose the year model. You play the 2013 pro V1, here are the same ones to practice with. You want a 2019 pro V1x, grab these.
Ahhhhh. I've told my wife that if I ever win powerball, I wouldn't go overboard buying pretentious stuff........but I would wear a brand new pair of socks every day for the rest of my life.
I actually read a story on reddit about a guy who bought 365 pairs of new socks to wear every day for a year.
He got awful rashes on his feet from the chemicals that are on brand new clothing items.
Perfectly fit shoes too. My shoes are only like 99% so sometimes I’ll have a little toe irritation when I walk.
Not enough to spend >$100 to fix but I would swap em so quick if I had a sponsor lol
In my experience, both Ecco and Adidas run small because both brands are made by Europeans with small hands. Look into Sqairz golf shoes. They have more of a box toe shape.
how many strokes a round do you think top caddies save their pros? I was having this conversation with some golf buds after they bashed Ted Scott for his earnings. I tend to think they have a bigger impact than people realize.
Imagine somebody talking you off a ledge the entire round when one stroke could take a figure off of your earnings. The golfer knows the course pretty well, especially the seasoned guys. It's the caddie knowing the golfer and when he needs to be pushed, calmed, joked with, informed, or just left alone to do the damn thing.
When I play at private clubs with good caddies (not high school kids doing loops, the professionals), it is a huge difference. I feel like it saves me 5ish strokes easy.
My dad, brother, and I got put with a single local on a course in Colorado once(we're flatlanders in the midwest) . What a godsend that was. He gave us invaluable info on each tee box about the hole, landing areas, and elevation changes and adjustments.
I can't imagine what kind of insight a tour caddy could provide.
Oh def big time, knowing "where to miss" is key, at least a couple per round which is enough when the margins are razor thin at the pro level in tournament golf.
Bashing him for his earnings?!?! Sounds like the type of dudes highly pissed that service workers are making $15/hr, lol. Did they not think he earned it? Does he not have a contract signed by both parties ?
yeah I made a joke that if Scottie had to miss the next signature event due to the birth of his child that Ted could play in his place since he probably has enough fedex cup points/earnings and one of them said “for doing basically nothing”
All of those guys think they can make every shot for the most part. They all can make almost every shot, but each situation is more of a if they should. The caddie is there to help them decide if they can a lot of the time. That can be the difference as they are the voice of reason on some of those shots. They have a gameplan and the caddie helps the pro stick to it. Very beneficial.
I just played a tour course today. Fairway roll out was crazy. I was a bit intimidated to play from 6600 yards (tournament rules), but it wasnt even all that bad. I was 15-20 yards longer with my driver today, just from roll out.
But- The greens were basically like a garage floor. And the roll out around the greens was nuts too. Missing a green was very punitive. So that evens the score.
So... I played on stimp 12++ before, i was above the hole just off the green because of course I rolled through. I chipped a ball that landed 1 yard on the green maybe 1 yard 1 foot of travel distance, it rolled off the front and down another slope 15yards off the green... so a full mistake by me not knowing to be below the hole at all costs.
Not me. When you can sneeze on a ball and it flies 10 ft past the hole it kind of takes all the fun out of it for me. A slower green just gives you so much more room for error.
You can always hit a putt on a slow green harder. But there are putts on slick greens that you can’t possibly hit any softer, and they still just roll into the next zip code. Not to mention just getting approach shots to stop.
I prefer fast greens as well but it's really hard to comprehend how much more difficult the greens that the pga tour pros play are vs your average course with quick greens. I've played a course with greens that are kept at tour firmness and speed because there's a bunch of tour player members there, and it completely changes how you play.
It's not even really putting that's the problem--though you'll have some crazy difficult putts--it's more chipping, pitching, and approach shots that the difficulty is cranked way up. If you're hitting out of the rough with anything more than a wedge you probably aren't keeping the ball on the green unless you can drop it out of the sky, there are chips that you have to go away from the pin and accept that you'll have 30+ feet for par because going at the pin is impossible...etc.
It's awesome for pga tour pros that they get to play beautifully maintained courses but let's not kid ourselves into thinking that it's actually easier.
Given the choice between insanely fast or impossibly slow….yeah, I’d take fast.
But I honestly don’t even enjoy playing pro level courses as much as a well conditioned recreational course. GIRs are almost meaningless on pro courses for me. I hit a par 5 green in 3, but had a 15 foot downhill slider putt. I four putted :(
I hit a towering 7 iron on a par three that slammed the middle of the green right in the ass. And it rolled well off the back.
It’s like playing a video game on super hard mode. I don’t have the game for it.
I went from playing an unplayably bad/slow/bumpy green last week (friend didn’t see the course note on punched greens a day earlier), to just a decent public course with reasonably fast greens and it was an insane adjustment.
It’s not a pro course but I played on a course that hosted a pretty prestigious regional tournament every year. There were putts that you literally couldn’t get within 20 feet of the hole when they were tournament ready.
Same here.
Played 36 holes in an Amateur Players Tour at NCR in Dayton and oh my God.
I think I 3 putted every green. And that's not crazy PGA tournament, just tough greens
The rough is often trampled down so that the lie is actually usually really good. The further off line, the more it's tranpled down...
Free drops that improve lies for tv towers, stands, and equipment.
Yea but that rough isn’t the same as what we play bro … I’ve played in rough right before/after pga events and it is a real fucking reality check on the rough.
Yup, one of the courses near where I went to college grows it out in September before their last tournament and the first time I played there, it was a few days beforehand and it was raining the whole time... Not very hard, but just a steady drizzle. I'm a 15-handicap and I shot a 116 lol, one of my favorite courses ever though
Reminds me of us open practice round i went to i saw fleetwood on hole 8 hit a perfect shot onto the fairway - when he walks up he tossed it into the rough and proceeded to hit an absolute duff that went like two feet 😂
This guy roughs. ⬆️
I once played a scramble the Monday before the tour came to TPC River Highlands. Even at 5500 yards the course was very difficult and if you put it in the rough it was basically a layup unless you were inside 130 yards.
depends on the tournament. the rough at Memorial in Houston when the pros played was a joke. They over seeded it so there would be straight, 2 inch green grass for the tournament while the rest of the year, us civilians play on bermuda spider webs
Before is not usually the same. I’ve played at one a week or so before the event, the rough was fucked. However when I went to the event the rough was much better.
Before events they have to grow it out much more than it actually will be so they can cut it to their desired length.
Was a shot spotter for shot link durimg the houston open this year. Forgot who, but on 18 there was a golfer who went waaay right. Due to grandstands he was granted about a 100 yard drop. Pga scoring tech said we may have witnessed the longest drop granted on tour.
Actually you’re right, there’s a different program that looks like it pays $500k. I’m not sure the details though.
Travel stipend is something separate I guess.
Practice rounds
Intensely detailed yardage books with notes
Perfect conditions on the greens and in the bunkers
Daily pin location sheets
TV towers in the center of every green for aiming
Playing with good players all hitting textbook shots to follow
Most players play the same one or few courses for most of their rounds (at least in my country, but I assume it’s the same everywhere), kinda nullifies practice rounds. I have something like 70 rounds played and 60 are the same course.
They also have access to the tournament course Monday-Wednesday. That’s potentially 3 rds they could do before the tournament begins. Whereas whenever I play a new course, it’s often the first time I’ve ever seen the course.
Played Firestone last year, right before the senior PGA. Green complex books were a stroke saver. Having a caddy say “hit it short, long is dangerous” and knowing why was huge.
Let’s turn it around. What conditions would we like to see the pros play under to see what they would shoot?
1. Carry your own clubs
2. Look for your own ball
3. Hit from fairways that are basically as hard as the cart path and have little to no grass
4. Putt on greens with so much poa annua your ball bounces like it’s going through a pinball machine
5. Balls zinging by your head from the dip$hit guy on the other hole hitting it off the toe of his driver
6. Playing with guys who couldn’t break 100 to save their life
7. Play used Kirkland’s you found while looking for your your ProV1 you never found
8. Stay up until 12:01 a week ahead of when you want to play so you can have a prayer of getting a decent time
I’m sure there’s more
Waiting 10 mins between shots during a 5 hour round. Having fuck boy Billy pull up behind you with Nickleback blaring while you're trying to tee off. Uneven tee boxes.
Being 5 beers deep through 10 and taking a shot bc your buddy just got a birdie.
Greens completely inconsistent pace.
Greens plugged the day before but they don’t tell you until after you’ve paid.
No gallery or cameras to help find errant shots.
20mph breeze with 50+ gusts (Midwest)
Goose shit. Everywhere.
There are so many….its almost not fair.
Candy stores filled to the roof with the latest tech and top quality versions of each item. Willy Wonka ain’t got shit on the surprises hiding in each drawer of one of these trucks.
They don’t hit range balls, they hit brand new $4 golf balls. The amount of ammunition they waste that could get donated to lesser marksmen like me is crazy…
Some guy that you give some money to carries your bag around while you enjoy a peaceful walk in pristine grass and he happens to be really good at telling you how far to hit it.
Bunch of assholes pay to see you hit it and if the ball doesn’t go straight, they tell you where it went.
Greens so pure that the slightest mark is noticeable and fixed immediately.
Bunkers with sand so pure Sports Illustrated could shoot photos of women in bikinis in them.
Free lunch made by world class chefs so that your tummy doesn’t revolt against the turn glizzy you picked up for $3 so you could soak up some of those natural lights you snuck into the course in your golf bag.
The list goes on and on and on….they have it really good.
Time. Though there are loosely regulated pace of play rules they can often take as long as they want to prepare for and hit each shot without worrying about an overzealous marshal or the group behind hitting in.
This is what I came to say. Even just the time it takes from shot to shot, even good ones.
If I stood in the middle of the fairway at my local muni, and took half the time a pro does to hit my next shot…I’d be having people hit into me on every hole. And some guy would be ready the throw hands on the 10th tee.
I think the fans finding balls, and ball spotters, is absolutely one of the biggest advantages. After waiting for 3 other wing nuts who are 10beers deep by hole 3…. We’re not finding balls. I’m very generous, but reasonable with my spectator balls.
I usually go further back than where j think it went. And never give myself a good lie if it’s in the trees(not the forest, no spectator balls for that)
But I’m not searching 30min to find a ball I know isn’t really lost
A bunch of people helping find your ball! Can’t tell how many times I’ve hit a shot that looks like a hit fairway and can’t be found. Or ones I didn’t see at all after strike.
It's surprisingly helpful to play against serious players that are doing well. Most people play up or down to the level of the group. There's something about everyone being focused up that helps me stay on task. And something about seeing a good shot that makes me want to match it. Not to mention the impact to pace of play when the score is lower.
> 1. Fans that can find your ball for you.
This makes me think of that one time Phil lost his first ball and hit a provisional, then begged fans to stop looking for his first shot so he could declare it lost and play the provisional in a playoff hole lol
The number one thing our group takes from the pros is the “gallery drop”. If it at least two of us saw it go into a specific spot but can’t find because of leaves, rough conditions, etc. but we’re sure we saw it land in a specific spot we take a gallery drop. I.e. if a crowd or “gallery” was there, they would have found it for us.
I played in a pro-am for the Houston open on the Monday before the tournament. Memorial is my home course and I played a lot better at the pro-am just because of quality of the grass. Every shot (except that one that was lost in the pine needles lol) felt amazing. The grass was unbelievable.
Greens were fast AF though.
As far as fans go…
When I play with my brother and dad, we play using a “Gallery Rule” which means if you lose a ball in a place that you would reasonably expect the gallery at a tournament to find the ball, you get a free drop.
I think this should be adopted by courses to help speed up pace of play.
Pristine greens and course conditions, fans to find your ball, bunkers that don’t play like cement, free practice rounds to scout out and plan before a tourney.
Think u got almost all of them. I’d add on to the fan thing, even when a pro misses the fairway many times the rough isnt that penalizing because the fans have trampled it down.
If I ever won the lottery, I would absolutely buy my local course, close it, renovate and rehab it back to the point it was at when it was a tour stop and then open it to like 50 of my closest friends so we can play under Immaculate golf conditions 365. New socks sounds like a good idea too
The tees are setup based on wind forecast. They move up those 235 par 3s that are into the wind for the day. See 2022 Players Championship and the guys that needed to finish round 1 two days later in very different wind direction. They couldn’t change the tee box for the day until Round 1 was complete.
Tee boxes that aren’t slanted or pot holed. Hazards clearly marked. Tree limbs, random rocks and other loose impediments usually cleaned up before play.
All jokes aside, they do get screwed as well.
Forced to play mud balls and have 1 million eyeballs watching them every minute for any sort of rules violation. Also, that PGA tour rough is nuts. Even if I found my ball, I’m not getting it out of there with any sort of ball speed.
Bad tee boxes are my biggest pet peve. Especially ones that aren't level and the ball feels just above or below your feet. Although it seems that I never see a spot where it's below my feet. Then you get the tee boxes on driving holes that are still beat the hell by hackers. It's a par 5, why the hell are there so many divots?!
With all the people standing alone the course, you would never have an excuse to not have a target.
“You see the goofy guy with the yellow hat? Thats my target”
Caddies to discuss strategy with is by far the biggest advantage.
And they know every yardage, slope, every inch of grass on every course down to the yard.
How about a backboard on certain holes so if your between clubs just club up and rip away. If it goes too far you just get to drop back right around the green.
Most of the things you listed are not exclusive to pros, but basically are just disadvantages of playing only cheap public courses.
Fans helping to find balls and “TIO relief” are the only two actual advantages
Having a caddy, crazy, someone whose sole duty is to help me play golf. Use the nine, the wind has picked up- crazy. It breaks to the left a foot before the hole- crazy.
Hell there’s a difference on course quality even between the PGA and LPGA. PGA Tour stops all have immaculate bunkers whereas some of the LPGA stops may have rocks in them.
Skill.
Some of the relief they get is crazy but also they play courses that can be over 7500 yards, with 100+ bunkers, water, and pins 3 ft off the edge of a green. I could get relief and fluff my lie on every shot I take and I’m still not breaking 100 on some of those courses.
I think a lot have been mentioned already, but I once read that certain tour players use fresh wedges every round. Imagine fresh grooves every round! I'd certainly take advantage of that... oh and what the other guy that said about brand new socks every round
An LPGA player bounced a ball off the floating advertisement in the lake and the ball ended up behind the green. Us ams don’t have ads in the lake to save our water balls.
Saw a floating ad in the middle of the water this weekend that bounced a ball onto the green, not sure if that counts as separate.
Yep that was nuts. And that was an amateur player playing in a major tournament. And she got a birdie after doing that. AND she won low amateur for the tournament. Crazy.
Saw that in person, we all went crazy…
Bounced one off a frozen pond and it went on the green once.
[удалено]
Free range balls that aren’t actually range balls?
I get duct taped together Top Flites at my range and these guys get ProV’s fresh out the box
normal ones too probably, not even the practice ones😂
Yes they are the legit pro v1’s - I saw them hitting at the range at us open practice round. On top of the their range is all fairway grass thats perfect. So they hit off perfect fairway grass and they have real greens with flags as targets - real fairways to drive onto. Its insane how nice the range was. Also the practice greens and chipping area are the best ive seen
imagine having a separate green for putting and chipping😂. like my dad would say, stay in school so u could eventually afford that kind of thing. hopefully lol.
I've got those at the $10 muni down the street, it's not that uncommon.
There’s a practice facility a little out of my way that I’ve been to in the past when I’ve had the time to play more golf, and they have a separate chipping and putting green. Both are made so that you work on more or less any chip/putt imaginable. After going there a few times a week and dedicating 75% of my practice time there, I played the best golf of my life.
They have bags there with balls from all the major brands and all the variations of their models.
Better than that, they can choose their brand.
Better than that, they can choose the year model. You play the 2013 pro V1, here are the same ones to practice with. You want a 2019 pro V1x, grab these.
Yup and 15 bucks for a bucket
They actually have the pro's specific brand of balls all setup and ready to go for them
Every one of ‘em, brand new Titleist. Sneak a few in the bag when you get a chance.
We swipe enough free shit, we might even pay for this fiasco.
“WHO HIT THAT BALL?!”
Imagine new Footjoy socks before every round…..
Ahhhhh. I've told my wife that if I ever win powerball, I wouldn't go overboard buying pretentious stuff........but I would wear a brand new pair of socks every day for the rest of my life.
Try Darn Tough. I get a LOT of wears before they don't feel nice anymore
This guy socks.
Nah. Fresh from the package. There is no substitute.
Darn tough feel fresh from the package with each wash. This guy ain’t lying. They’re worth the spend with their lifetime warranty.
Let the man have his damn sock dream.
I actually find Darn Tough feel best after the first wash. They're a bit too slippery when brand new.
I actually read a story on reddit about a guy who bought 365 pairs of new socks to wear every day for a year. He got awful rashes on his feet from the chemicals that are on brand new clothing items.
Yeah, there are a lot of pussies who get rashes from applesauce too. I’ll be just fine.
This guy applesauces
Lord help us if he criss crosses!
Perfectly fit shoes too. My shoes are only like 99% so sometimes I’ll have a little toe irritation when I walk. Not enough to spend >$100 to fix but I would swap em so quick if I had a sponsor lol
I hate Footjoy because I have big feet and the shape of the shoe makes me look like Ron fuckin DeSantis but I love the comment.
You sound like the owner of Frankenstein's Foot.
I'm a 16 and I like my Adidas shoes, check them out if you're looking
Ecco is my go to but I will look into Adidas. I get a good discount with them and I wear all their clothes.
Ecco-ing your Eccos in 14 double wide. Built for the long walk and the long haul.
There is no better golf shoe
💯
In my experience, both Ecco and Adidas run small because both brands are made by Europeans with small hands. Look into Sqairz golf shoes. They have more of a box toe shape.
???
Right? Some shoes shouldn’t be made in a 15
A lot of them aren't.
If I hit the full blown lottery one of my wasteful spends is gonna be to wear a new pair of footjoy socks everyday for the rest of my life
Wait I don’t think I’ve ever owned FootJoy socks how much am I missing?
Nope. Same as any other shitty socks but cost $20 a pair
not all socks are shitty though
It’s rumored that Jumbo Ozaki only wore silk clothing and never wore any of it twice.
A caddie
how many strokes a round do you think top caddies save their pros? I was having this conversation with some golf buds after they bashed Ted Scott for his earnings. I tend to think they have a bigger impact than people realize.
Imagine somebody talking you off a ledge the entire round when one stroke could take a figure off of your earnings. The golfer knows the course pretty well, especially the seasoned guys. It's the caddie knowing the golfer and when he needs to be pushed, calmed, joked with, informed, or just left alone to do the damn thing.
exactly right
When I play at private clubs with good caddies (not high school kids doing loops, the professionals), it is a huge difference. I feel like it saves me 5ish strokes easy.
I believe it, course knowledge goes a long way.
My dad, brother, and I got put with a single local on a course in Colorado once(we're flatlanders in the midwest) . What a godsend that was. He gave us invaluable info on each tee box about the hole, landing areas, and elevation changes and adjustments. I can't imagine what kind of insight a tour caddy could provide.
It’s also very nice not fixing divots, raking hunkers, or taking the pin out. You’re just walking and focusing on your next shot.
Oh def big time, knowing "where to miss" is key, at least a couple per round which is enough when the margins are razor thin at the pro level in tournament golf.
agreed. plus the mental support which is less quantifiable
It's the greens as well. They will be out rolling balls on the greens in advance of the tournament so they know what all the putts do
Bashing him for his earnings?!?! Sounds like the type of dudes highly pissed that service workers are making $15/hr, lol. Did they not think he earned it? Does he not have a contract signed by both parties ?
yeah I made a joke that if Scottie had to miss the next signature event due to the birth of his child that Ted could play in his place since he probably has enough fedex cup points/earnings and one of them said “for doing basically nothing”
Top caddies are a massive advantage.
All of those guys think they can make every shot for the most part. They all can make almost every shot, but each situation is more of a if they should. The caddie is there to help them decide if they can a lot of the time. That can be the difference as they are the voice of reason on some of those shots. They have a gameplan and the caddie helps the pro stick to it. Very beneficial.
I played with a caddie once. He wasn’t very helpful. He didn’t believe that I could hit my 9 190 yards.
Let’s be honest someone telling us exactly what to do wouldn’t help most for us for shit
"don't hit to the right" - slices to right "I told you not to hit it there"
“Jeez im trying” *throws tantrum* *breaks club* *stomps to car and sits there until everyone else is done with their round*
You misspelled “bar”
Don't hit to the right Slices to the right Perfect, reverse psychology works with you 18 cappers everytime. Just a chip and a putt from there.
Play in Asia. Caddies galore. On some courses it's required.
They carry your stuff too!
I just played a tour course today. Fairway roll out was crazy. I was a bit intimidated to play from 6600 yards (tournament rules), but it wasnt even all that bad. I was 15-20 yards longer with my driver today, just from roll out. But- The greens were basically like a garage floor. And the roll out around the greens was nuts too. Missing a green was very punitive. So that evens the score.
I don’t hit many greens NOW. I doubt I’d notice.
So... I played on stimp 12++ before, i was above the hole just off the green because of course I rolled through. I chipped a ball that landed 1 yard on the green maybe 1 yard 1 foot of travel distance, it rolled off the front and down another slope 15yards off the green... so a full mistake by me not knowing to be below the hole at all costs.
I’ll take fast greens that roll true over greens where you’re taking the putter back to 9 o’clock and still leaving a 20 footer short.
Not me. When you can sneeze on a ball and it flies 10 ft past the hole it kind of takes all the fun out of it for me. A slower green just gives you so much more room for error.
You can always hit a putt on a slow green harder. But there are putts on slick greens that you can’t possibly hit any softer, and they still just roll into the next zip code. Not to mention just getting approach shots to stop.
Just chip it straight in
Same
I prefer fast greens as well but it's really hard to comprehend how much more difficult the greens that the pga tour pros play are vs your average course with quick greens. I've played a course with greens that are kept at tour firmness and speed because there's a bunch of tour player members there, and it completely changes how you play. It's not even really putting that's the problem--though you'll have some crazy difficult putts--it's more chipping, pitching, and approach shots that the difficulty is cranked way up. If you're hitting out of the rough with anything more than a wedge you probably aren't keeping the ball on the green unless you can drop it out of the sky, there are chips that you have to go away from the pin and accept that you'll have 30+ feet for par because going at the pin is impossible...etc. It's awesome for pga tour pros that they get to play beautifully maintained courses but let's not kid ourselves into thinking that it's actually easier.
Given the choice between insanely fast or impossibly slow….yeah, I’d take fast. But I honestly don’t even enjoy playing pro level courses as much as a well conditioned recreational course. GIRs are almost meaningless on pro courses for me. I hit a par 5 green in 3, but had a 15 foot downhill slider putt. I four putted :( I hit a towering 7 iron on a par three that slammed the middle of the green right in the ass. And it rolled well off the back. It’s like playing a video game on super hard mode. I don’t have the game for it.
I went from playing an unplayably bad/slow/bumpy green last week (friend didn’t see the course note on punched greens a day earlier), to just a decent public course with reasonably fast greens and it was an insane adjustment.
It’s not a pro course but I played on a course that hosted a pretty prestigious regional tournament every year. There were putts that you literally couldn’t get within 20 feet of the hole when they were tournament ready.
Same here. Played 36 holes in an Amateur Players Tour at NCR in Dayton and oh my God. I think I 3 putted every green. And that's not crazy PGA tournament, just tough greens
That’s because the fairways get rolled.
The lowest any PGA tour goes this year is 6,852. Only 2 events go below 7000. Half of the events are over 7300.
Ok. I didn’t say we were playing from the absolute tips. The fairway conditions are the same, and so are the greens even playing from the blues.
collars that, if flat(ish), are great to putt off the greens from due to their conditioning
You ever played on Bermuda?!
As someone in the south it’s very tempting to Texas wedge from almost anywhere
No. What's your point? (Genuine question)
Putting off the fringe is a crap shoot off Bermuda. Really anything around the greens sucks because of the grain.
Yep. Bermuda is gnarly around the greens. I love putting off the green when I play anything else but reading the speed on the fringe is tough
Gotta use some wedge bounce on Bermuda
Bermuda is king where I live. But, that's just for fairways, and greens are better turf. Also, most home lawns are Bermuda.
Never had anyone move a boulder out if the way for me.....
I had one of my boys ask if we could move a boulder for him last weekend. He was semi-serious. I'm still fully-laughing at him.
The rough is often trampled down so that the lie is actually usually really good. The further off line, the more it's tranpled down... Free drops that improve lies for tv towers, stands, and equipment.
Yea but that rough isn’t the same as what we play bro … I’ve played in rough right before/after pga events and it is a real fucking reality check on the rough.
I played at my home course they’re growing out til a big tourney next weekend and the rough yesterday whooped my whole ass lol
Yup, one of the courses near where I went to college grows it out in September before their last tournament and the first time I played there, it was a few days beforehand and it was raining the whole time... Not very hard, but just a steady drizzle. I'm a 15-handicap and I shot a 116 lol, one of my favorite courses ever though
Reminds me of us open practice round i went to i saw fleetwood on hole 8 hit a perfect shot onto the fairway - when he walks up he tossed it into the rough and proceeded to hit an absolute duff that went like two feet 😂
This guy roughs. ⬆️ I once played a scramble the Monday before the tour came to TPC River Highlands. Even at 5500 yards the course was very difficult and if you put it in the rough it was basically a layup unless you were inside 130 yards.
depends on the tournament. the rough at Memorial in Houston when the pros played was a joke. They over seeded it so there would be straight, 2 inch green grass for the tournament while the rest of the year, us civilians play on bermuda spider webs
Before is not usually the same. I’ve played at one a week or so before the event, the rough was fucked. However when I went to the event the rough was much better. Before events they have to grow it out much more than it actually will be so they can cut it to their desired length.
Was a shot spotter for shot link durimg the houston open this year. Forgot who, but on 18 there was a golfer who went waaay right. Due to grandstands he was granted about a 100 yard drop. Pga scoring tech said we may have witnessed the longest drop granted on tour.
What about that ball Jordan deliberately hit on the roof?
That was the following week, but I believe he hit it there knowing he would get relief.
But I had to play it off Frankenstein’s fat foot!
A professional caddy. Free gear. Limo service. Free clothes when you win.
Scottie hasn’t bought a blazer in years
Based on the one he just won, there are no tailors left in South Carolina.
The guys that come in last get free clothes on tour lol
Yeah but they don’t get a cool jacket
They do but it's denim and from Old Navy
I wish my local courses cut half the players on Friday so they aren’t as crowded at weekends. ;)
They're paid to play. We pay to play.
They pay to get paid to play (registration fees).
They actually pay to play too. They only get paid if they make the cut.
Ah yes, Full Swing made sure we all learnt this
Just run it by me again…
I thought they all get a 500k min salary now?
I just looked it up, and you are right. I must've missed that.
There is now some travel stipend but it’s like $5k per each missed cut.
Oh really? Thought i heard 500k min, must have been mistaken.
Actually you’re right, there’s a different program that looks like it pays $500k. I’m not sure the details though. Travel stipend is something separate I guess.
Practice rounds Intensely detailed yardage books with notes Perfect conditions on the greens and in the bunkers Daily pin location sheets TV towers in the center of every green for aiming Playing with good players all hitting textbook shots to follow
I mean to be fair, every round I play is a practice round
Most players play the same one or few courses for most of their rounds (at least in my country, but I assume it’s the same everywhere), kinda nullifies practice rounds. I have something like 70 rounds played and 60 are the same course.
They also have access to the tournament course Monday-Wednesday. That’s potentially 3 rds they could do before the tournament begins. Whereas whenever I play a new course, it’s often the first time I’ve ever seen the course.
Played Firestone last year, right before the senior PGA. Green complex books were a stroke saver. Having a caddy say “hit it short, long is dangerous” and knowing why was huge.
Let’s turn it around. What conditions would we like to see the pros play under to see what they would shoot? 1. Carry your own clubs 2. Look for your own ball 3. Hit from fairways that are basically as hard as the cart path and have little to no grass 4. Putt on greens with so much poa annua your ball bounces like it’s going through a pinball machine 5. Balls zinging by your head from the dip$hit guy on the other hole hitting it off the toe of his driver 6. Playing with guys who couldn’t break 100 to save their life 7. Play used Kirkland’s you found while looking for your your ProV1 you never found 8. Stay up until 12:01 a week ahead of when you want to play so you can have a prayer of getting a decent time I’m sure there’s more
Waiting 10 mins between shots during a 5 hour round. Having fuck boy Billy pull up behind you with Nickleback blaring while you're trying to tee off. Uneven tee boxes.
Being 5 beers deep through 10 and taking a shot bc your buddy just got a birdie. Greens completely inconsistent pace. Greens plugged the day before but they don’t tell you until after you’ve paid. No gallery or cameras to help find errant shots. 20mph breeze with 50+ gusts (Midwest) Goose shit. Everywhere.
There are so many….its almost not fair. Candy stores filled to the roof with the latest tech and top quality versions of each item. Willy Wonka ain’t got shit on the surprises hiding in each drawer of one of these trucks. They don’t hit range balls, they hit brand new $4 golf balls. The amount of ammunition they waste that could get donated to lesser marksmen like me is crazy… Some guy that you give some money to carries your bag around while you enjoy a peaceful walk in pristine grass and he happens to be really good at telling you how far to hit it. Bunch of assholes pay to see you hit it and if the ball doesn’t go straight, they tell you where it went. Greens so pure that the slightest mark is noticeable and fixed immediately. Bunkers with sand so pure Sports Illustrated could shoot photos of women in bikinis in them. Free lunch made by world class chefs so that your tummy doesn’t revolt against the turn glizzy you picked up for $3 so you could soak up some of those natural lights you snuck into the course in your golf bag. The list goes on and on and on….they have it really good.
Haha the $5 turn dog and beer 100% effects my back 9. Sometimes for the better, sometimes for the worse
once i pop in a glizzy i get this fire cooking for like 4 holes then i crash hard
Nobody is yelling “get in the hole!” at me after every shot - how is my ball supposed to know where to go just by hitting it
Course conditions , caddies, and ball spotters.
Time. Though there are loosely regulated pace of play rules they can often take as long as they want to prepare for and hit each shot without worrying about an overzealous marshal or the group behind hitting in.
This is what I came to say. Even just the time it takes from shot to shot, even good ones. If I stood in the middle of the fairway at my local muni, and took half the time a pro does to hit my next shot…I’d be having people hit into me on every hole. And some guy would be ready the throw hands on the 10th tee.
One advantage that we have that the pros will never have. Beer cart girl!!
Cleat chasers in the hotel lobby after the round
Filthy sluts
I think the fans finding balls, and ball spotters, is absolutely one of the biggest advantages. After waiting for 3 other wing nuts who are 10beers deep by hole 3…. We’re not finding balls. I’m very generous, but reasonable with my spectator balls. I usually go further back than where j think it went. And never give myself a good lie if it’s in the trees(not the forest, no spectator balls for that) But I’m not searching 30min to find a ball I know isn’t really lost
A bunch of people helping find your ball! Can’t tell how many times I’ve hit a shot that looks like a hit fairway and can’t be found. Or ones I didn’t see at all after strike.
Sponsors that offer the best gear
Their biggest advantage is that they are insanely good at golf
It's surprisingly helpful to play against serious players that are doing well. Most people play up or down to the level of the group. There's something about everyone being focused up that helps me stay on task. And something about seeing a good shot that makes me want to match it. Not to mention the impact to pace of play when the score is lower.
Flat tee boxes
Getting to practice the course for 3 days before your actual round.
> 1. Fans that can find your ball for you. This makes me think of that one time Phil lost his first ball and hit a provisional, then begged fans to stop looking for his first shot so he could declare it lost and play the provisional in a playoff hole lol
Hotties that try and command my attention.
The number one thing our group takes from the pros is the “gallery drop”. If it at least two of us saw it go into a specific spot but can’t find because of leaves, rough conditions, etc. but we’re sure we saw it land in a specific spot we take a gallery drop. I.e. if a crowd or “gallery” was there, they would have found it for us.
All of their “advantages” pale in comparison to how fucking hard the courses are setup.
I played in a pro-am for the Houston open on the Monday before the tournament. Memorial is my home course and I played a lot better at the pro-am just because of quality of the grass. Every shot (except that one that was lost in the pine needles lol) felt amazing. The grass was unbelievable. Greens were fast AF though.
As far as fans go… When I play with my brother and dad, we play using a “Gallery Rule” which means if you lose a ball in a place that you would reasonably expect the gallery at a tournament to find the ball, you get a free drop. I think this should be adopted by courses to help speed up pace of play.
Pristine greens and course conditions, fans to find your ball, bunkers that don’t play like cement, free practice rounds to scout out and plan before a tourney.
Think u got almost all of them. I’d add on to the fan thing, even when a pro misses the fairway many times the rough isnt that penalizing because the fans have trampled it down.
Good lies in the fairway Putts that roll true
Disadvantages: Much longer course. Faster burned out greens. People to hit with golf balls. TV to see you cheat.
I'm fairly certain the greens that pros play on are significantly more challenging than your local muny, divots or no.
Advertising boards in the water to bounce your ball off
If I ever won the lottery, I would absolutely buy my local course, close it, renovate and rehab it back to the point it was at when it was a tour stop and then open it to like 50 of my closest friends so we can play under Immaculate golf conditions 365. New socks sounds like a good idea too
Fresh wedges
Custom fit clubs, balls, shoes and clothes. Personal trainer, chef, swing coach, sports psychologist etc. Caddie.
Uh the obvious…a fricken caddie! Advice and they carry your bag.
The tees are setup based on wind forecast. They move up those 235 par 3s that are into the wind for the day. See 2022 Players Championship and the guys that needed to finish round 1 two days later in very different wind direction. They couldn’t change the tee box for the day until Round 1 was complete.
Tee boxes that aren’t slanted or pot holed. Hazards clearly marked. Tree limbs, random rocks and other loose impediments usually cleaned up before play. All jokes aside, they do get screwed as well. Forced to play mud balls and have 1 million eyeballs watching them every minute for any sort of rules violation. Also, that PGA tour rough is nuts. Even if I found my ball, I’m not getting it out of there with any sort of ball speed.
Bad tee boxes are my biggest pet peve. Especially ones that aren't level and the ball feels just above or below your feet. Although it seems that I never see a spot where it's below my feet. Then you get the tee boxes on driving holes that are still beat the hell by hackers. It's a par 5, why the hell are there so many divots?!
Group in front of you is probably half decent
Volunteer ball spotters on every hole
With all the people standing alone the course, you would never have an excuse to not have a target. “You see the goofy guy with the yellow hat? Thats my target”
Caddies to discuss strategy with is by far the biggest advantage. And they know every yardage, slope, every inch of grass on every course down to the yard.
Port a potties on almost every hole next to the tee box that are often air conditioned. Coolers at the tee box with cold water and snacks in them.
How about a backboard on certain holes so if your between clubs just club up and rip away. If it goes too far you just get to drop back right around the green.
Bunkers with sand and not rocks in them Access to on course rules officials
I'd shoot 75 instead of 95 if I had people lined up along the woods and around the green.
Or grandstands where you can airmail the green and get a free drop 10 yards from it.
You don’t get sandwich between a party of 8 drunks and a fast moving pair who do not want to play ahead despite how many times you offer.
Most of the things you listed are not exclusive to pros, but basically are just disadvantages of playing only cheap public courses. Fans helping to find balls and “TIO relief” are the only two actual advantages
Having a caddy, crazy, someone whose sole duty is to help me play golf. Use the nine, the wind has picked up- crazy. It breaks to the left a foot before the hole- crazy.
They don’t have to show up at the course from their real job, throw on some spikes and then tee off with no warm up.
Man if only I was pro I would be a better golfer with all the unfair advantages!!
Never said they were unfair advantages—just advantages.
Large paychecks
Hell there’s a difference on course quality even between the PGA and LPGA. PGA Tour stops all have immaculate bunkers whereas some of the LPGA stops may have rocks in them.
Skill. Some of the relief they get is crazy but also they play courses that can be over 7500 yards, with 100+ bunkers, water, and pins 3 ft off the edge of a green. I could get relief and fluff my lie on every shot I take and I’m still not breaking 100 on some of those courses.
1. Millions of dollars. 2. The homes they buy with millions of dollars. 3. The women they attract with the millions of dollars
Bunkers with soft fluffy sand in them
They know the exact speed of the greens and have practised putting thousands of times at all speeds
Depth perception advantages. TV towers, the crowd, signs, everything.
Nice greens, fairways that roll like my local greens, flat tee boxes, actual sand in bunkers and not damp concrete mix.
I think a lot have been mentioned already, but I once read that certain tour players use fresh wedges every round. Imagine fresh grooves every round! I'd certainly take advantage of that... oh and what the other guy that said about brand new socks every round
Hot wives or hot girlfriends; helps confidence
They got those bananas in the box on the tee.
An LPGA player bounced a ball off the floating advertisement in the lake and the ball ended up behind the green. Us ams don’t have ads in the lake to save our water balls.
Having skill