Scorecards should be fluid

[Bdill93]

I completely get this. Very good point well made. This is how a stableford-thinker thinks. I used to do exactly that.
To my view, now, this is cart before horse. The pure form of golf is 18 holes gross score. That is the basis of my thinking now.
So I am, "treating it like stableford" to your mind. I understand that.
But in my mind I am treating it like "real golf" (ref: a previous post) and thinking about stableford to a much lesser degree while playing my round. Knocking a 7 down to a 6 (if that applies) during my round is not treating it like stableford it is following the rule of adjusted gross score. In your mind that is "like stableford" in my mind stableford is like the adjusted gross score rule.
At any given time in my round, I am aware roughly what my stableford points tally is. Most of the time I am playing in stableford competitions. I get only 3 shots so it is easy for that to be in my head. But my thoughts are not focussed on my stableford points, because it does not help me focus on returning a good score. I am usually focussed on beating my 8th best score and I keep a tally in my head of how many over par I am while pursuing that goal.
I do not convert my 8th best score back to stableford and keep a tally of my stableford points to achieve my goal. I would do exactly that, however, if I were still a stableford-thinker.

I think about my golf score not my stableford score, mostly.

This is, and has been, a very interesting discussion. Thanks to all for taking part.

Interestingly, my best ever gross round was shot during a stableford comp. I cant remember if ive ever had more than 44 points - think I have - but ill never forget that I shot 80! No blobs on the card so no difference to my adjusted gross. Just thinking in points helps me round, im mentally better at chasing points than I am thinking about my 8th best score to par.

One thing works for one, one thing for another!

 

[sunshine]

ill never forget that I shot 80!

And here we are, after 141 posts, the bottom line is that gross score is ultimately how you judge yourself.

If I went out and ran 10k, all I or anyone else would be interested in is my actual time. The fact it took me 45 minutes but a very good runner would take 30 minutes and the world record is 26 minutes makes no difference. None of this silly fluid par nonsense.