Ball Spotting

[Beedee]

Something JamesR mentioned in the Irritating Habits thread struck a chord with me. I too am a truly atrocious ball spotter. Until advancing years caught up with me recently, my eye-sight has been good but I've always been awful at finding my ball.

I'm red-green colour blind and wondered if that might have something to do with it. I've tried playing with different colour balls to see if that helps. The yellow ones are certainly easier to follow in the air but I don't really find them easier in the grass.

Any tips? Apart from pay more attention or find a PP with eagle eyes.

Cheers

B

 

[jdpjamesp]

I'm not at all colour blind. I can usually see my ball in the air but I'm hopeless at finding it anywhere other than the fairway. It's so frustrating to hit a decent drive (for me), end up a couple of yards in the rough and just not find the ball anywhere.

 

[Matty6]

If I hit a bad shot I tend to just pick up my tee, repair my divot and forgot to keep track of the shocking ball flight. Has caught me out a few times. Simple fix really, just keep my damn eyes on my ball!

 

[Deleted member 1147]

I can watch the ball in the air fine, but it seems that once the background changes (particularly when it's dull or the sun is in front of me) I lose the ball and in the end it's potluck as to whether I chose the correct end point in it's flight.
With the sun behind I'm not too bad at all.

 

[cliveb]

If I hit a bad shot I tend to just pick up my tee, repair my divot and forgot to keep track of the shocking ball flight. Has caught me out a few times. Simple fix really, just keep my damn eyes on my ball!

You've hit the nail on the head. It's when you've hit a bad shot that it's most important to watch it like a hawk, and yet most of us instinctively turn away in disgust. But if we stripe one down the middle, we unnecessarily gaze at it in admiration until it comes to a complete halt.

 

[duncan mackie]

Useful for areas of featureless rough, note the distance to the green from the tee you have played from, estimate the distance you have hit it and taking into account a bit here and there for angles decide how far you have probably got left from where it's ended up.

Now walk up to that distance showing on your DMD and focus your search there.

Obviously not applicable to SwingsitlikeHogan (sorry)

 

[Crow]

Similar to Duncan's idea, my GPS has a distance feature so if I've sprayed one into a featureless area of rough then I'll zero from where I struck it, head off to the rough and when the yardage showing is my estimate for the shot I'll look around there.

 

[Green Bay Hacker]

Despite where the HNSP should be, I appear only to be able to follow the ball if I stand behind the player taking the shot. If I stand to the side or slightly ahead on the fairway, I may as well have my eyes closed.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Despite where the HNSP should be, I appear only to be able to follow the ball if I stand behind the player taking the shot. If I stand to the side or slightly ahead on the fairway, I may as well have my eyes closed.

LOL

 

[Deleted member 15717]

I have an annoying habit of watching the ball in the air, then looking down at the rough area it is headed, then when I go to look at the ball again, I lose track of it against the sky/clouds.

I am trying to make a conscious effort to watch the ball more, even on bad shots

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I still struggle with distance, but have recently got a new pair of specs that turn a grey hue in sunlight and it's made seeing the ball in the rough or fairway from distance much easier and easier to follow in bright sun off the club

 

[the_exile]

I really struggle to track my shots in the air. If I'm playing by myself I lose a silly amount of balls through my inability to hit straight and follow the ball. Last time I played I lost 12 (yes - twelve!) balls... If I was using decent balls they would have cost more than the green fee.

 

[Region3]

Useful for areas of featureless rough, note the distance to the green from the tee you have played from, estimate the distance you have hit it and taking into account a bit here and there for angles decide how far you have probably got left from where it's ended up.and then take 20yds off it

Now walk up to that distance showing on your DMD and focus your search there.

Obviously not applicable to SwingsitlikeHogan (sorry)

Just added a little bit

I do a similar thing, but with the "mark ball" feature - if I remember at the tee.

 

[KitaScot]

I lost track of a couple drives recently...being red-green color deficient and having a "lazy" (dominant) not helpful...AFTER they hit the ground.

I have to remind myself to hold the "Rory" pose (as a Scot I played with recently called it) until the ball comes to a stop...even if it is posin'. It'll be especially important next month on links courses I'll be playing for the 1st time.

Added benefit: ensures (well, enCOURages) that my follow-through is where it should be, nice and balanced.

 

[garyinderry]

I really do think it is a skill that you acquire and get better at over time.

You constantly see beginners losing balls after hitting it no more than 30 yards along the floor.

I am like a blood hound at times. At times I don't take my eyes off the spot I've picked until I get there.

A provisional ball when you have hit one into the crap usually helps in judging distance.

 

[TonyN]

Pick something memorable or prominent near to where your ball comes down. At my old course, they have white lines on the trees that flank the fairway because it looks identical all the way up. The biggest trees have 1, 2, 3 and 4 stripes on the further up you go.

If more courses did this, we'd spend less time 20 yards passed our lost balls.

 

[Slime]

Something JamesR mentioned in the Irritating Habits thread struck a chord with me. I too am a truly atrocious ball spotter. Until advancing years caught up with me recently, my eye-sight has been good but I've always been awful at finding my ball.

I'm red-green colour blind and wondered if that might have something to do with it. I've tried playing with different colour balls to see if that helps. The yellow ones are certainly easier to follow in the air but I don't really find them easier in the grass.

Any tips? Apart from pay more attention or find a PP with eagle eyes.

Cheers

B

Don't use a club any longer than your putter .

 

[LincolnShep]

At my old course, they have white lines on the trees that flank the fairway because it looks identical all the way up. The biggest trees have 1, 2, 3 and 4 stripes on the further up you go.

I've never seen that but it's a brilliant idea. So many times you walk up to group of trees and realise that the 'one' that you'd spotted from the tee is not nearly so easy to recognise once you're closer and/or looking from a different angle.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I've never seen that but it's a brilliant idea. So many times you walk up to group of trees and realise that the 'one' that you'd spotted from the tee is not nearly so easy to recognise once you're closer and/or looking from a different angle.

We have something similar on our 5th with stake posts painted with a white line on the second third and fourth, each higher than the last. If we can do it on that hole it begs why we don't do it on some others. A question I'll be asking this week me thinks

 

[Norrin Radd]

im not one to follow too closely where my pp`s ball has gone as its their problem not mine ,i will help look for it .
when it comes to my ball i watch it like a hawk ,through the air to where it lands ,then mark the spot and try and walk straight to it.
if im in a friendly knock with mates i will watch their shots ,but in competition its their ball so they should watch it ,not rely on others for their poor shots.
i dont expect others to watch where my ball lands as its my ball and my job to keep an eye on it . if they watch it then thankyou ,but i dont expect them to.
like i have already said ,i will help to look for a competitors ball ,and many times i have found it for them ,but only because they knew the general area the ball had finished in .

all this might sound selfish ,but i am not playing golf for them ,
its your ball ,you make sure you keep an eye on it .