is this normal? new course

[hovis]

my last 5 rounds on my course have been great. went to a friends course today that i've never played before. i was briming with confidence. OH DEAR. shot a very bad score. my driving was spot on but was shanking the hell out of chip shots and missing 4ft putt's.

so, is it normal to play a bad round when your on a new course? or am i on my own

 

[G_Mulligan]

Sometimes I play better sometimes I play worse. The man who figures out why we play well in certain circumstances and can bottle it will be a rich man indeed.

 

[philly169]

i think its fairly normal, maybe a bit of nerves as its a new course, your not 100% where the hazards are, etc.

 

[Matty]

Unknown entity. At your home course you'll have the club in your hand before you've reached your ball for the next shot. At a totally new course you'll be analysing the course, where your ball is, where you want to get to next and what club you need to make the shot. The greens will play faster or slower too which affects your putting stroke and green reading.

Lot's more to go wrong there so no great surprise to me. Just get out to the same course again and see if you improve second time around!

 

[HomerJSimpson]

I can play well at a new course but tend to try too hard and make a pigs ear of it. I'm usually much better second time around

 

[bigbazzaboy]

Took me until end of November to shoot less than 100 when playing a new course for the first time. Shot a 96 that included a lost ball,a drop,30mph gusting winds (which did help me carry about an extra 30 yards on my drive the one hole we had it behind us) and using a fairway mat for a few holes.

Next time i played a new course after that i shot 86 and finished 3 shots off the competition winner,who was a member of the course and a scratch golfer. Im making a point this year of playing as many different courses as i can,i wasnt getting any better playing my local course.

Also tend not to do well playing in new company for the first time.

 

[Evesdad]

I tend to play better as I think my way round more, consult the course plan and yardages better etc, rather than at home course where you can take the home knowledge a little for granted and it's not always right!

 

[HawkeyeMS]

I think it stems from uncertainty as you aren't entirely comfortable.

I played last night at our course in a little Tuesday roll-up some mates have. The problem is, they insist on playing off the yellows which last night were as far forward as they could be. This was the first(or possibly second) time I've ever played off the yellows and I was amazed how much difference it made. Ditches I normally lay-up to were now drivable and par 5s reachable in two so decisions had to be made. Having just got to the point where I know the course from the whites this was a whole new experience. Admittedly I didn't play great and I took on some shots I wouldn't normally attempt but I figured those are the rounds to try things out in, and not all of them came off. It was like playing a different course and 34 pts is less than I would expect. I'll know better next week.

 

[viscount17]

new courses can be nerve wracking as you don't know what you're in for - your putts you could probably put down to that.

chips, less likely - you can do that anywhere and it may just have been a bad day

 

[ScienceBoy]

I am mixed really. I shot my handicap at a course I play once every year today, shot a few over off the whites at a course I play less often on Saturday. At east brighton I shot 41 points on my first time at the course!

I think if you do not know it you blindly take on shots a member might think twice about, sometimes you benefit, and if not you dont.

At your home course you may shoot a better score more often but you might shy away from some shots on some holes.

 

[Del]

The first game at a new course for me is always my best round, then for some reason it all goes down hill from then on

Also if I have a few weeks off then my first game back is always the better one.