What a waste.....!!

JustOne

JustOne

Ryder Cup Winner
Joined
Apr 6, 2009
Messages
14,803
www.justoneuk.com
I met this kid (25) and I've never seen a ball striker like him. We met about 2 weeks ago and he was all over the place, long hitter, although I didn't really noticed just how 'big' until the 15th hole when he hit an iron from 190yds and then said... "I was trying to lay up with that 7-iron, I didn't expect it to land next to the pin".

I mean WHO even pulls a 7-iron from 190... into the wind!!!???

This guy is a Natural (and I mean that with a capital N)

And he can putt.... knocks in 3ft - 6ft putts for fun. It's extraordinary just how many putts he makes.... and as for his driving.... it's mahooooosive!

I've played three rounds with him now and these are the clubs I've seen him hit over those few rounds.....

1 (525) Driver, 8-iron :mad:
2 (367) 4-iron, wedge (uphill)
3 (389) Driver, lob wedge
4 (165) 9-iron
5 (440) Driver, 8-iron (uphill)
6 (152) Wedge
7 (305) 6 iron, lob wedge (uphill)
8 (480) Driver, 6-iron
9 (241) 4 iron
10 (348) Driver, chipped on
11 (425) Driver, punchy wedge
12 (318) Drove the green
13 (180) 6 iron (uphill)
14 (415) Driver, wedge
15 (458) Driver, 9-iron
16 (407) Driver, wedge
17 (172) 8 iron (into the wind)
18 (531) Driver, 3-iron (hit the pin) :mad:


His h/cap?



20.2 :confused:


This guy is a NATURAL, you could play for an entire lifetime and not hit the ball like he does, I've never seen anyone so gifted..... but at 25? I dunno.... if he wanted to be a pro he could almost make it if he lived the game for the next 2-5yrs, his game is really amazing, I've never seen anyone so natural and hit the ball soooooo far. I don't know whether to laugh or cry for him - seems such a waste of a gift. We do have a right good laugh though (little consolation!!) :D
 
there has to be a meltdown issue somewhere along the line those are solid forum distances but on a 20 h/cap he should be cleaning up every week???
 
pbrown7582 said:
there has to be a meltdown issue somewhere along the line those are solid forum distances but on a 20 h/cap he should be cleaning up every week???
Click to expand...

But not if your wedge is as accurate as your driver and a 7 iron can be anything from 150 to 190 yards...

Consistency is the key to finding the target, not all out distance.

All a player like that needs to learn to do is play at 80% 90% of the time and call on the rest when distance control isn't needed.

I recently got a 5 on a par 3 due to poor knowledge of my distance alone, only a good up and down saved the horror score of a 6! Should have been a 4 at worst but my 5 iron went nearer 190 into the wind rather than the required 170. Just hit it TOO well :mad:
 
Amazing, but what did he score and why? There's an awful lot of short iron and wedge approaches that must be ending up well off target if he's shooting in the 90's. :confused:

Has he been playing long? is he good at other sports? Maybe there is a coach somewhere that can harness that ball striking ability.
 
Gareth Bale played at our course a few weeks ago and the pro said he is one of the biggest hitters he has ever seen. Sounds like the same sore of distances you are talking about.

He's off about 8 I think. Being a big hitter is one thing but you will never get to pro level just by being a massive striker.
 
we've all seen or know people like him. my cousin hits wedges further than my 7 iron, his driving leaves my best 40 yds behind and I'm no slouch, there isn't a par 5 he cannot reach in 2.........yet if he broke 90 he would be ecstatic.

I'd wager there's guys like him in every club in the country.

P.S is he not creeped out you recording all the clubs he uses :whistle:
 
Perhaps I've missed something, but where's the natural talent here? :confused:A bloke hits it a long way (plenty do) and plays off 20.2 (plenty do)? Sounds like an average handicapper to me. :D
 
We had a lad at my club who hit the ball further than anyone I've ever seen, not surprisingly he could get a little wild at times. He was off 3 so he had a decent all round game but he didn't seem to care to much about golf, he just plays for a laugh and never puts any practice in. Just a natural talent as the bloke who James played with. On a flat 480 yard par 5 I've seen him hit a driver and a 60 degree lob wedge. At my old course there is a hole with a 280 yard carry to go over a "quarry" & he hits a 5 wood over it & he's driven a 420 yard par 4, it was down wind but the second shot you're hitting into a upslope so you wont get much run.

It makes you wonder how good he could be if he actually put some effort into the game.
 
Hitting a wedge 152 yards? The big puff, tell him to man up..;)

I have a mate who plays about twice a year, natural sportsman, he shoots in the mid 80s when he plays and his clubs are at least 25 years old. He has a bladed 2 iron from the 80s! I think with some new clubs with all the associated improvements over a 25 years old set, and a bit of practice he could be easily in single figures, but he's not that bothered!
 
played with someone like this a few weeks ago , absolutly bombs it hits 8/9 when i was hitting 5 but he didnt care , blobs , duff chips , drivers boomed about 40yrds right . he just doesnt have the mentality to take care just wanted to smash the ball as hard as he could :rofl:
 
Natural and 20.2.....hmmm

My friend is a natural, he works abroad for long periods and will have long spells without hitting a ball, well over a year, yet when he is back in blighty and playing a game with us he will shoot 3 or 4 over par with ease....we make him play of 4 when he comes out with and even thats probably generous.
 
Last edited:
I agree with a lot of the comments on here in regards to questioning whether he is in fact a 'natural' sorry, a 'N.atural'.
He hits the ball miles, can hit every par 5 in two but is close to shooting 100. Doesn't sound like a natural to me, just someone who can blitz the ball down the fairway.

Seve was a natural, someone who could see the shot, could hit the ball way off track but still come out with a par or birdie. That is a natural. The guy you have described is just a beast and there are plenty of people on tour that hit a long ball.
 
All good (true) comments guys, smashing the ball miles isn't everything.... but it's the quality of strike and the fact that he doesn't swing outta his shoes to do it. He was lined up waaay right with his driver and hitting a lot of blocks/toe hooks (very wild), we've worked on that, he was flipping the club when chipping and hitting regular thins/fats and his bunker play was pretty poor, along with his course management.... playing with mates it was all about ripping it rather than scoring. Playing off 20 he has more confidence off the tee smashing a 3-iron than I ever did in 20yrs of golfing....(bloody git!) :(

To be REALLY good at this game you can't be phased by courses over 7,000yds to start with. If you don't have distance you'll never be more than a low h/cap club golfer at best. I've not seen many people in 20yrs golfing who I think have got what it takes but at 25 it's now or never for him, and I reckon it'll be never.
 
JustOne said:
All good (true) comments guys, smashing the ball miles isn't everything.... but it's the quality of strike and the fact that he doesn't swing outta his shoes to do it. He was lined up waaay right with his driver and hitting a lot of blocks/toe hooks (very wild), we've worked on that, he was flipping the club when chipping and hitting regular thins/fats and his bunker play was pretty poor, along with his course management.... playing with mates it was all about ripping it rather than scoring. Playing off 20 he has more confidence off the tee smashing a 3-iron than I ever did in 20yrs of golfing....(bloody git!) :(

To be REALLY good at this game you can't be phased by courses over 7,000yds to start with. If you don't have distance you'll never be more than a low h/cap club golfer at best. I've not seen many people in 20yrs golfing who I think have got what it takes but at 25 it's now or never for him, and I reckon it'll be never.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to work out what your level of expectation is for this guy. Are you trying to distinguish him as a future pro on the tour if he could be bothered to put in the effort to learn how to play?

At 25 with a handicap of 20.2, absolutely no chance whatsoever.

there are guys out there who are 20, playing off +2 who never make it.

No offence but it sounds like you have a man-crush on this guy because he tonks it a long way!
 
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