Round Played: with Stan Fisher and Dennis & Darlene McPhee –
By Wayne Halm –
Is Poor Putting Contagious?
On September 13th 2015 I played the Kauai Lagoons Golf Course with Stan Fisher from Newport Beach, California and Dennis & Darlene McPhee from Laguna Niguel, California. My wife, Sally, took pictures for us and we had a great day.
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(Click on any picture to get a larger view, then use the browser ‘back’ button to return)
Before the round I rolled enough balls on the practice green to know that it was going to be a long day on the greens. I just had no “feel”. On the first hole it was just me, but by the second we were all missing easy putts.
Was it my fault? Is poor putting contagious? Leave a comment and tell me what you think.
But I am not going to take all of the blame. Our approach shots, and some of the pin placements, did create the opportunity.
Still, “we” are the ones who executed the three putts.
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Perhaps it was the opening created by the putting, but the par-3 14th hole got into our heads.
3 out of our 4 players missed this green.
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Can you tell which player hit the green?
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The putting showed up on the score card, but not on our faces. We were having too much fun to let putts affect our smiles for long.
Stan and Wayne
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Dennis and Darlene
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So what do you do when the putts just won’t drop? You keep trying that’s what!
Both Stan and I parred the par-4 18th hole – and that is something to brag about.
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Four happy laughing golfers walked off the course this day. And no, they weren’t just laughing at my outfit, we had fun! It was the way golf should be.
Come play golf with me.
The Kauai Lagoons Golf Club 800-634-6400 or http://www.KauaiLagoonsGolf.Com .
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Wayne
Sounds like a great day. 3 putts sometimes just happen. I prefer to try and let it. A fellow blogger suggested a putting book by Bob Rotella.
Aloha,
Yes, in spite of the putting we had a wonderful day. When the “feel” is not there, I just keep rolling the ball until it returns. Thanks for the reference. And do come play golf with me.
A Hui Hou,
Wayne
Aloha Wayne,
I’ve had encounters where it seems as though putting, whether good or bad, can be contagious. Momentum is a real thing in this crazy game and I do believe what is happening with our playing partners can affect our momentum for better or for worse. The trick is to feed off the positive, and shield the negative. Once I’ve got it figured out, I’ll let you know!
That putting book Linley mentions is “Putting Out of Your Mind”. He is all about freeing your mind of unnecessary technical thoughts and just focus on your target and have fun with putting. After all, having fun is the main objective.
Cheers!
Josh
Aloha Josh,
I’m not very technical with putting. It is all “feel” for me. When the feel is there the results are satisfying – when it’s not they are laughable. But I agree, it should always be fun. And laughter is definitely contagious.
A Hui Hou,
Wayne