Does playing a great course elevate your game?

[Tim Gavrich]

Well, does it?  When I play a golf course I've been anticipating playing, or playing for the first time, I tend to play a little better.

[Patrick_Mucci]

Tim,

I think Ran Morrissett would answer, with one exception, NO.

But, I'll let him speak to his competitive rounds on great golf courses.

[Andy Troeger]

It hasn't helped me in my fairly limited opportunities    

I would tend to say it hasn't made any difference, except that because the great courses I've played are harder than average, my scores have been higher than usual.

[Glenn Spencer]

I think that it elevates what I am able to do that day, but it does not always translate into lower scores. For me, everything seems to work out the opposite of the norm. I will do things out of the ordinary, for better and worse. The one thing I have noticed, is that if I am playing a very famous hole, I tend to not fair too well on those. I can remember making 6 on 18 at Inverness. Now that I am on it, I also tend to find the famous hazard on a hole, it is almost like I want to go there. For example, if I ever played Augusta, I would go at the front right pin with an 8iron and most definitely wash that ball on  12

[Gene Greco]

I'll tell you one guy who elevates his game on demand on great courses and that's photog pro Neil Regan.

It's plain scary, in the realm of Ty in CaddyShack....nah..nah...nah...nah..nah.....

We go to Prairie Dunes play 18 and he asks me what the best hole on the course is. I say #8 is all-world.

Next 18 he gets to the tee, hits a beauty followed by a solid iron to the green, scratches his ass in three long deliberate strokes and sinks the putt for birdie.

We go to Sand Hills, play 18. He declares #14 to be the greatest par 5 in the world. Next 18 hits a beauty off the tee, a sizzling iron on in two, scratches his ass in three long deliberate strokes, "Always with the right hand," he says, sinks the putt for eagle.

Sand Hills next trip. Pins are horizontal, blowing like it only does in the UK. All 8 guys can kill it. One guy drives #2, others drive 7 and 8 with irons and 11. Neil says at dinner no one has driven 12. Next day he drives 12, scratches his ass in three long deliberate strokes and makes the putt for eagle 2.

Winged Foot West #18. He's 165 yards from the green. Pulls out putter, scratches his ass in three long deliberate strokes and putts it to gimmee distance.

Southampton Golf Club we grab a cart. Play 11 holes in about an hour. Neil is 6 under. We wait about 45 seconds because we've finally run into the group in front of us. Neil gets out of the cart, takes off his glove, scratches his ass quickly twice and says lets go in and have a Corona.

I'm sure others can vouch for me here. It is simply astounding!

[Mark Brown]

It can do both. My example. First time at Pine Valley. In the morning I was in total awe and not focused and shot 93. I settled down at lunch and shot 76 in the afternoon.

I also think you hit both more great shots but also more not so great shots. In the afternoon round the 76 included 4 birdies and 4 double bogies. I think I lost my focus on about 4 shots, just wanting to take the entire experience in.

[A_Clay_Man]

if I am playing a very famous hole, I tend to not fair too well on those.

Fascinating. I have had the exact opposite experiences.

To the point where if I'm not having a good day (frequently) I'll ask pleadingly if this next hole is world famous.

[Tim Gavrich]

Tim,

I think Ran Morrissett would answer, with one exception, NO.

But, I'll let him speak to his competitive rounds on great golf courses.

But what about your game, Mr. Mucci?  Are you in agreement with Mr. Morrissett?  For me, great courses sometimes sneak into my subconscious.  It's almost as if I unknowingly want to do justice to the place by playing well.  Perhaps I enter a more serene state of mind and play better.  I felt that way whe I played Yale for the first time this past September.  I shot 76, which seems worse than my handicap would suggest, but it felt like a well-earned 76, and I wasn't at all upset at any point during the round.

However, when I played the Old Course at Half Moon Bay, I hit my tee ball on the 18th into the Pacific, even though the ocean is about 30 yards right of the fairway and the wind was blowing right to left.  I guess I subconsciously wanted to be able to say that I've hit a ball into the Pacific .

[Patrick_Mucci]

Tim,

As amateurs, our games our fleeting, with a great deal of variance from day to day.

But, on this subject I disagree with Ran, who still insists that unusual golf courses, like Innescrone, identify the best golfer.

I think that any golf course helps the player who best understands its architecture and the relationship between the features and their game, understanding the caveat expressed in the first paragraph.

Interfacing with architecture, the architectural features, with a heightened sense of awareness can be of assistance to the golfer.

But, that's just step 1 ...... recognition.

Step 2 is ........... execution.

And, many's the slip twixt the cup and the lip.

My thoughts are, that the more the golfer understands the architecture that he's confronted with, the better he'll be able to navigate his way around the golf course.

I'll add one more caveat.

Provided that he's playing from the appropriate tees.

[Phil Benedict]

I have never played well on a famous course, other than a decent round at Yale last summer.  Just get too nervous, I guess.  My worst experience was Pinehurst #2, where I spent most of the day in my pocket. Awful to think about because I didn't get to experience the greens.  Can you believe it? Years later I read a quote by Nicklaus about all those trees at Pinehurst, and none of them are in play.  They were in play for me!  Kind of like blowing it on your first date with a real knockout.  I've done that too.

[cary lichtenstein]

With the exception of Oakmont, Medinah and Southern Hills, I played played pretty well at most of the great courses and I have no clue as to why that is

[Jordan Wall]

I feel really nervous when I first tee it up at a nice course.

Feels like I am gonna pee my pants or something because I am so excited.

But sometimes it helps because you are already looking forward to playing the course so you might already know how to play some of the holes...

[TEPaul]

Definitely.

[Andy Hughes]

Most of the courses I play have fairway grass 3-4" tall, and the greens are all bumpy and shaggy, and the bunkers are like concrete, so the odd round for me on a great course I do tend to play better as I can almost get my club on the ball from the fairway, my putts tend to bounce a little less and bunker shots are more explosion and less screaming line drive after my wedge ricochets off the hardpan.

[Richard Muldoon]

Generally I find I play worse, especially if it is the first time I have played the course.
I think it is the anticipation, wanting to play well too much and trying to take everything in, that makes me lose focus on actually hitting the bloody ball.
If you think this means I have the concentration of a Fruit Fly, then you are probably right.

[PThomas]

au contraire, I am usually so hyped up with excitement that I play worse than normal

[Dan Moore]

If I could figure out why I can shoot 10 strokes different one day to the next I might be able to answer this.  However, in general I think I play better on a great course because I usually try to be ready by practicing in the days before and just seemed more engaged by the experience.  Of course playing better doesn't always mean scoring better on a challenging track.

ps.  Paul Thomas winter really does suck in Chicago today doesn't it   -8 F  thats -22 Celsius

[PThomas]

Dan - when I win that Powerball tonight I'll give you a call and we'll be off the Casa de Campo on  private jet!

[Dan Moore]

Deal.  I know a course you can buy

[Tommy Williamsen]

 I find that I concentrate better when I play a great course.  Generally that translates into playing better.  The place I notice it the most is around the greens.  My short game is elevated and I'll grind on every putt.  The first time I played Pine Valley I shot 78.  I haven't broken 80 (five tries) since.