Thinking of calling it quits

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You've said you keep thinking about it and it drags you back to the range so I guess you don't really want to quit as it sounds like you'd miss it. I think if you fell out of love with the sport you wouldn't want to pick up a club.

Play for fun, don't take a card out and play with someone worse than you ;)
 
1] Stop playing in competitions. Don't practice.
2] Play with a light carry bag and 7 clubs.
3] Play at quiet times, Sunday evenings, early mornings etc.
4] Count the really good shots you hit per round, when it gets to 21 you are back in business.

As Srixon says you have reached your level and you probably know you will not improve on 10. So, try to play to 14 handicap and not 4.
We all go through these spells and generally come out the other side.
I think there is far too much competitive golf played these days and not enough fun games.
 
Pack in and sell all your stuff.

Or pull your finger out and play a bit better. Concentrate on tempo and watch the club hit the ball. Things will improve.

Or pack the game in...
 
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Spirit bro - spirit and keep the faith. If I may tell my related story

I've just suffered 2yrs of regular shanks and it has often been a dozen+ times a round - sometimes many more. Totally and utterly soul destroying as I have been down to 6 - and so scoring in 90s-100s++ in medals has been awful and I have actually wondered why I play the game if it's going to be like this. I have thought about quitting membership next renewal.

But about three weeks ago I had a lesson (and for that I had to put away foolish conceit I had around having never had a lesson!) and that has (just about) stopped the shanks. And for the moment that is good enough to get me back on the rails.

I have realised that there has been a significant technical flaw in my swing for maybe 25-30yrs- but as I played so much I grooved a swing that mitigated the flaw. It was only in last ten yrs - after eight years not playing more than a couple of rounds a year (family and house move etc etc) - that the flaw has become evident; I started to play more again but had lost 'my groove'. And trying to fix it (without lessons - my foolish conceit!) I gradually compounded it - and then as I said last two years - utter misery.

But I can see the light - I know what I was doing and so if I shank I focus on what I must do to ensure I don't repeat it next shot. It's difficult as my 'natural' swing will have to change - and that could take a while - and I don;t really like that (conceit AGAIN). If I didn't love the game and what it offers to each and every one of us then maybe I'd still think that I couldn't be bothered. But I'm going to give it a go.

So given my own situation I'd say try and see through your current 'chaos' and disappointment. Appreciate and congratulate yourself on what you have achieved in such a short time. Understand and be honest to yourself about why you play golf - and if you decide to give it a further go decide what you now want to get out of playing, reset your goals and expectations, and go play.

And if you decide to can it - take solace in knowing that having played to single figures you will always be able to pick up your clubs and have an enjoyable knock whenever you want - it's great to have that under your belt.
 
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You've had lessons. Have any of the pros you've seen explained what the swingpath & clubface are doing when you hit a bad shot? When he tells you to make a change does he explain why? Do you understand your own swing? I've had similar problems to you and most of it arose from not having a clue as to what was causing the bad shots. Personally, my revelation came when I read "The Plane Truth" by Jim Hardy and subsequently bought his book "Solid Contact" The first book explains very simply why you may get conflicting advice depending on whether you have a "one plane" or "two plane" swing. The second gives advice on how to incorporate small changes in your natural swing to correct a swing that is too steep or too shallow. Not suggesting you go down this route but it's essential you understand that a variety of bad shots can be caused by the same swing fault.

In my experience, most pros are crap teachers & try to get you to swing like them. Much better to work it out for yourself, diagnosing faults from impact & ball flight.

Don't give up. I did for 6 years and really wish I hadn't.
 
Is this a slump? Everyone goes through slumps. Welcome to golf. For pro's it means losing thousands of pounds and potential lifestyle if they lose a tour card. For amateurs it's a big plateful of fustration at something which is often very important to us.

Slumps are just part of the cycle/process (pick your term, everyone's got one..) and often precede kicking on to the next level in terms of consolidating skills, improving performance or just plain old enjoyment. I've had (and will have) my share and always work through it usually by just forgetting all expectations (particularly any based around hcp - the biggest impediment to good amateur golf thinking ever) and swinging slow and smooth.
 
Maninblack4612 said:
You've had lessons. Have any of the pros you've seen explained what the swingpath & clubface are doing when you hit a bad shot? When he tells you to make a change does he explain why? Do you understand your own swing? I've had similar problems to you and most of it arose from not having a clue as to what was causing the bad shots. Personally, my revelation came when I read "The Plane Truth" by Jim Hardy and subsequently bought his book "Solid Contact" The first book explains very simply why you may get conflicting advice depending on whether you have a "one plane" or "two plane" swing. The second gives advice on how to incorporate small changes in your natural swing to correct a swing that is too steep or too shallow. Not suggesting you go down this route but it's essential you understand that a variety of bad shots can be caused by the same swing fault.

In my experience, most pros are crap teachers & try to get you to swing like them. Much better to work it out for yourself, diagnosing faults from impact & ball flight.

Don't give up. I did for 6 years and really wish I hadn't.
Click to expand...

This was exactly my problem. Even although I'd read (Hogan) and thought I knew all about 'planes' I didn't REALLY understand the way my swing related to 'planes'. I disagree a little about 'sorting it out yourself' but in general will go with that advice. I needed a pro to point out the fundamental flaw. Now that I understand that I will have a go incorporating it into my swing - but I'll have a couple more lessons to help me along that road.

And for me this is crucial - as soon as the pro had me correcting my basic fault I immediately 'felt' in my swing that the fault had been the source of a number of other characteristics of my swing that I had always thought were wrong but had managed to get away with.
 
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I feel your pain matey. After a great start to the season, I've recently gone into a bit of a tailspin with terrible ballstriking and big high fades resulting. To top it off, I've succumbed to the same injury that plagued the whole of last season..

BUT, being the stubborn, Pig Headed individual that I am, I've spent the last few days checking every aspect of my fundamentals and have found that due to some spectacularly bad advice (that I'd forgotten I received), my grip has gone a bit strange and has resulted in and almost impossible swing path. Attempting to correct this swing path has placed additional burden on my left elbow and has set me back up to 4 weeks..

The moral - Don't accept advice from strangers. No matter how good they (think they) are. And always, ALWAYS keep an eye on the basics of set up..

Good luck...:thup:
 
Think my fanatical approach to my golf is well known. I've absolute belief I can be a single figure man and had loads of lessons in the winter of 2102 and worked hard on my game confident that 2013 would be the year. Like you, nothing seemed to improve and went from 10-12 instead of going down. Medals were embarassing at times and I couldn't make a score. My short game was abysmal and I would duff or thin everything. I didn't enjoy last season at all competitively. However I enjoyed the social games and played better in those.

In the end I went back and worked on some changes last winter but came out in 2014 with less expectations. I've gone up a further 0.3 but feel I'm playing better and have finally hit buffer zones and so the next thing is some cuts. Lo and behold I played great at the weekend and my short game was as I've always imagined it could be.

My long rambling point is you sound as competitive as I am and get annoyed when the hard work and effort isn't paying off. I'm nowhere near where I want ot be, but I'm enjoying the process again. It would seem a shame if you gave up after investing that time and money but for what its worth, have you considered a different teaching pro. I went to my current pro in December 2011 and went from 14-10. It just clicked better than with the other guy. I will never be textbook but I understand my swing now and what causes the bad shots and more importantly know what I can do on the course during bad games to minimise the damage.

I hope whatever you decide to do you'll not give up forever. I reckon if you are off 8 there is still a golfer in there and I'd maybe try another pro first, enjoy the rest of 2014 and accept that maybe you'll go up before you come back down. I know how hard it is to enjoy when you are running up cricket scores and look like you've never played before. I've taken the brickbats on here when my steadfast belief in my ability hasn't been matched by performances but I'm still here and I finally feel I've turned a corner. It will come. You are too good for it not to. Keep the faith
 
Cheers for all the words. I do understand my swing, and it can be tough to get it "aesthetically pleasing" and textbook, so my pro has worked with that. I can get a little flat at times, which is the main cause for some of my issues, and I am a little laid off at the top, which we have left alone, using it as a characteristic (hey, Sergio is laid off at the top, and it doesn't affect him so much!), but when the two come together, it can cause issues.

Whilst at the range last night, my pro recorded a swing of mine, and spent time analysing it last night and this morning, looking at different things, and he believes he may have found the cause of my shermans and inconsistencies, so hopefully we'll get to the bottom of it all sooner rather than later. I've no inclination to return to the course (except having to play a pairs knockout this weekend, and then a pro-am next week!), so will try and get it all sorted with plenty of range time...but it is completely soul destroying. I guess the most annoying part is that just before this all started, I was probably playing the most consistent golf I have ever played..and then overnight, it disappeared! Weird.

I'll keep battling for a few more months and see what happens. Fingers crossed, in the coming week/weeks, I'll be posting about everything being back to normal and better. We can but dream eh?!

Oh..and to answer someone's question earlier...Project X 5.0's in the irons :D ;)
 
At the end of the day it's a sport we play for enjoyment - it's not a living for us

Need to find a way to get the fun back into it - if you can only get enjoyment out of scoring and playing well then it's going to be a frustrating game for you. I would look to find another way of getting enjoyment instead of just scoring well - relax and enjoy the company and the course and the weather and the banter - forget the scoring , forget the swing thoughts etc etc and just walk then hit , walk then hit and have a laugh.

Sports supposed to be fun and enjoyment - shouldn't be a chore or a drag on life.
 
Wabinez said:
Cheers for all the words. I do understand my swing, and it can be tough to get it "aesthetically pleasing" and textbook, so my pro has worked with that. I can get a little flat at times, which is the main cause for some of my issues, and I am a little laid off at the top, which we have left alone, using it as a characteristic (hey, Sergio is laid off at the top, and it doesn't affect him so much!), but when the two come together, it can cause issues.

Whilst at the range last night, my pro recorded a swing of mine, and spent time analysing it last night and this morning, looking at different things, and he believes he may have found the cause of my shermans and inconsistencies, so hopefully we'll get to the bottom of it all sooner rather than later. I've no inclination to return to the course (except having to play a pairs knockout this weekend, and then a pro-am next week!), so will try and get it all sorted with plenty of range time...but it is completely soul destroying. I guess the most annoying part is that just before this all started, I was probably playing the most consistent golf I have ever played..and then overnight, it disappeared! Weird.

I'll keep battling for a few more months and see what happens. Fingers crossed, in the coming week/weeks, I'll be posting about everything being back to normal and better. We can but dream eh?!

Oh..and to answer someone's question earlier...Project X 5.0's in the irons :D ;)
Click to expand...

at least share or the story is redundant!
 
Truthfully...if you think "that's it I'm done with this flipping game" and that thought isn't immediately followed by a touch of panic if that became a reality - well then maybe it is time to move on. We all go through those moments and I've lost count of the times the gear was going on Ebay that night (if it survived the river on the course)!! Each and every time though the reality of that was something I couldn't consider. The fact you think "enough" and moments later "range - sort it" suggests to me that you're nowhere near quitting.

Stick at it. Form is temporary, class is permanent.
 
AmandaJR said:
Truthfully...if you think "that's it I'm done with this flipping game" and that thought isn't immediately followed by a touch of panic if that became a reality - well then maybe it is time to move on. We all go through those moments and I've lost count of the times the gear was going on Ebay that night (if it survived the river on the course)!! Each and every time though the reality of that was something I couldn't consider. The fact you think "enough" and moments later "range - sort it" suggests to me that you're nowhere near quitting.

Stick at it. Form is temporary, class is permanent.
Click to expand...


LOVE IT!!! Spot on!
 
You know i am more scared of not being able to play... I cannot think of reason to carry on with a life without golf, i don't want to watch other people live life.
 
Sounds to me like this is down to your expectations. Your handicap has tumbled and is way below mine so clearly you have a great golf swing where I don't. I play for a break from life at work and home though - I don't care too much about the score and the handicap, I'm content to be outdoors, upright, breathing and able to (loosely) swing a golf club and make contact with the ball.

Have a think about why you play (sounds like you are here for the numbers - score and handicap) more than anything else. And that's fine but be realistic in your expectations. Maybe play a few rounds where you don't even count your strokes and see how that goes.
 
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