Why Do You Play Golf?

[jbw749]

It's a question I've been asking myself often lately.

 

To perform well?

Enjoyment?

Learning?

Exercise?

Environment?

Socializing?

Prove how bad a** I am to myself and others by going low and having a possible chance to bragg about it?

 

If I'm focused on the last one none of the others seem to happen.

 

 

[dbdors]

 

To perform well?

Enjoyment?

Exercise?

Environment?

[pinhigh27]

chicks dig the long ball

[PostandGhost]

Because I hate being happy.

[roboxm3]

Because I hate being happy.

 

This.

[Hoganstriker]

Fun and the challenge of trying to shoot a halfway decent score.

[flog2]

Love a challenge standing on the first tee, then love the walk after the score has gone by the 2nd tee.

[A.G.Blade]

the anticipation of actually playing golf one day, and not golf swing

[deathbymuffin]

the pursuit of perfection.

 

golf's a game that most reasonably athletic people can get "good" at with enough time, proper instruction, and the right mindset. i'll never dunk a basketball or hit a 420 foot homerun, but any of us can knock it stiff from inside 150 or drain a 40 foot putt.

 

and even when you tee off with great expectations, when your game happens to go south, at least you have the company of friends in the outdoors for a few hours.

[exgolfpro]

I have often asked myself this question and honestly, I don't have a good answer. But here are a few things that I feel.

 

1) The social aspect of the game is NOT why I play. My most enjoyable rounds are usually either early in the morning or late in the evening, by myself.

 

2) I get alot of satisfaction from either playing a great round or even pulling off a shot or a chip that I consider to be difficult. There is something about facing an impossible chip and pulling in off exactly as I envisioned it.

 

3) I walk 100% of the rounds that I play and there is something about getting out on a hot day, working up a sweat and playing well. When Im done with a particularly hot or tough day, I feel a sense of accomplishment.

[RecidivistGOLFER]

It's the feeling you get when you make a great shot. There's an awful lot to like (and hate) about this game, but I play it for the endorphin dump I get when I flush a 7 150 yards and it thumps down on the green pin high. That feeling of making that perfect swing with my 3 wood and the metallic *tink* my 906 makes as the ball rockets out of the grass on a straight line toward the pin from 200 out.

 

It's the only game I've ever played that gives me that.

[starsail85]

I play cause I love links golf, the feeling of hitting a crisp shot off a tight links fairway is something I love, I love nature , the outdoors, the weather, the sand and the salt and the turf .

 

I often make myself miserable working on technique

 

I also like competitive golf , nothing like it when the blood is pumping and the card is on the line

[airjammer]

As a competitive person this is about the only sport where you can play till you can't walk anymore and the strongest player usually shoots a better score.

 

I use to bowl but the made the typical house shot so easy and the balls so oil sucking that anyone with a high end ball that can let go of the ball without fouling can shoot 200+...this is a slight exaggeration but not by much.

[joker2]

What else you going to do with all that grass? Have a picnic?

 

[leekgolf]

I play for several reasons:

 

I really enjoy the challenge of always working on mastery. Can I improve my game? Can I improve my swing? Can I improve in spite of myself? Can I stay focused when my round goes sideways? Can I stay focused when I'm approaching a new personal milestone?

 

I'm over 60 and it gives me a regular chance to play like a little kid with other boys.

 

I've formed some of my closest friends through golf.

[dpb5031]

It's the competition for me, pure and simple. Golf is a great competitive outlet for aging athletes still possessing a desire to compete.

 

I honestly can't remember playing alone over the last 20 years. I'll only play if I've got a good match set up or a tournament.

 

Everyone is different...

[trapsmv15]

Cool question (to let/force us to reflect on why we play).

 

I play because I love it. But, to say something other than that, I play because it's good exercise for me to walk, it's something I can do alone OR with friends, and it's the only sport I can really do now with a bad leg (think House MD, just not nearly as dramatic).

 

It lets me feel as if I can still be my former athletic self, at least sometimes.

[sprcoop]

From my earliest memories playing sports I don't know if it's adrenaline, endorphins, narcissism or what but producing a well executed, or even perceived well executed athletic move, has been intoxicating. Some examples from my own experience:

 

Perfectly placed curve ball that caused the best hitter in the league to whiff 3rd strike big time.

Barrel of the bat line drive through the infield.

Perfectly thrown pass just off the finger tips of the defense.

Perfect speed, direction and rotation of a bowling ball in the pocket that makes it look like the ball is the last thing off the deck.

Smoked first serve down the T for an ace.

Running top spin backhand cross court that dips inside the line as opponent is rushing the net thinking they had you.

Straight down the fall line mogul run that felt effortless.

Perfect tracks left on previously untracked snow.

 

A well stuck golf shot whether drive, iron or putt that drops gets me that same rush. My scores suck but if I get a few of those rushes per round (I used to be happy with one) it's all good.

[Wedgefromhere]

The challenge to get better and the opportunity to shoot my lowest score every time I step up to the first tee.

[diddle]

I play golf for many reasons! I've been playing my whole life. One of my earliest memories is my grandpa and I out in the yard chipping and hitting shots across the road into the woods... And the first time I hit a really good shot, I was 10 and my grandma was with me. The times I played with my dad and when we were done, going home and mom would be cooking fried chicken, cornbread and green beans for dinner... The times I would play with my mom before she went to be with the Lord!

 

Playing with my son when he was little and watching how excited he got when he hit a good one and saying dad, dad did you see that shot! And now that he is older just spending time enjoying a few hours together outside. (When I can pull him away from his girlfriend)

 

Hitting a 3 iron so pure I dont even feel the ball on the club face...

Hitting a 7 iron with a little draw and watching it drop out of the sky 6 ft from the hole...

Hitting a drive as solid as I can, spitting the fairway and rolling out 250 and beyond...

The smell of fresh cut grass...

Playing early on a cool morning and the dew covers everything!

Playing by myself in the summer evening with a warm breeze and watching the sun come down!

 

Competition is fun but what truly motivates me is challenging myself...

 

Golf doesn't lie, it's a game of honesty and doesn't allow you to be too puffed up! It reflects the amount of work you put into it!

 

When everything comes together, time slows down, I don't think, calm comes over me and I simply PLAY...

[Thug Hunter]

To know that I can hit any particular shot as good, if not better, than a professional in the sport on any given shot............Now all I have to do is find their consistency and make those shots 99% of the time!

[Sean2]

I love getting to the course at dawn and going to the pitching range and working on my short game. I am the only one there. Watching the sun rise, the peace and quiet, it is quite sublime.

 

I play because in my 60s I can still play a competitive sport (play under pressure), I love the feeling of a flushed, well executed shot (though that does not happen often enough), walking outside in beautiful settings, the silence on course, to name a few.

 

ps: I took my best friend and his 18 year old daughter to the airport Saturday as she will be playing in the Evian. This is her first year on Tour and overall is having a good rookie year. When they are home, we always play some golf. Her father is a great player in his own right, but watching her hit great shot after great shot is sublime too. I have never seen her lose a golf ball, her irons have tiny little brown circles on the sweet spot, the way she can compress a golf ball, her consistency is ridiculous. SHE plays golf, I just hit a golf ball, find it and hit it again.

 

I play with some very good golfers, and they are fun to watch. She is in a totally different zip code however. And she is a sweet kid. Has no affectations, is very personable, and laughs a lot.

 

The premise of golf is quite simple: get the ball in the hole with the fewest strokes. However, it has countless nuances and it is those nuances that make this the greatest game on the planet.

[MonteScheinblum]

It's a question I've been asking myself often lately.

 

To perform well?

Enjoyment?

Learning?

Exercise?

Environment?

Socializing?

Prove how bad a** I am to myself and others by going low and having a possible chance to bragg about it?

 

If I'm focused on the last one none of the others seem to happen.

 

To experience the way my ex-wife treats me when she's not around. Can't get enough of that.

[Mozza73]

I can't really answer that, as a past time and interest it is completely incompatible with my life, I can't afford to play it, and with a 4 year old son and a job that has me working away from home 2 nights a week I can't justify spending any time on it over family life.

 

That said I love it, my golf life is spending occasional hours on the range and very, VERY occasionally getting out on the course, I can count on one hand the amount of times I have done the latter this year.

 

Its horribly frustrating as with so little play its impossible to improve (in fact I'm probably getting worse!) , but I still take every opportunity I can to swing a club, hit a golf ball or read about every bit of swing theory I can as one day I will get the opportunity to get more serious with the game. Until then I'm just going to try to follow my pipe dream of the "dependable repeatable swing" and then one day get to use it in anger.

 

Like I said, I don't really know why, but I've been bitten by the bug for sure!

[stuboy]

It's the same reason people get addicted to gambling, sometimes you hit that shot that gives you that rush and you just want to keep playing until you get that feeling again. Never know if you next shot is going to be that perfect shot, so there is the expectation which makes the eventual pay off all the sweeter. Keeps you going through the millions of duffs, tops, slices, shanks, hooks, hitting it out of bounds in between the good shots. :russian_roulette:

 

Plus I enjoy socialising with mates in nice surroundings.

[Swi24]

Because there are split seconds where I can feel like a professional. I will never be able to break a touchdown run through 300 lb linemen or throw a baseball 90 mph but what I can do is have a wedge in my hand and stick to 2 feet or make a 30 foot putt (no matter how rare it may be) just like the pros.

 

I also enjoy the solitude of a golf course and enjoy the fact that there is no team to let down. I'm hard enough on myself as it is.

[rtran]

something about watching a little white ball flying in the air gets my attention...

[DevilDog]

I needed more aggravation in my life.

[brentkosta]

chicks dig the long ball

 

No