Wives who play golf too.

[matracy68]

Should I try to get my wife to play too?

I have a feeling that I will be opening up a ton of controversy here but I would like to get my wife into golf. She went to the range with me yesterday and she has a very long way to go.

My question is this. Should I bother with this so I can spend more time with my wife or should I keep golf to being me with the guys? There are arguments for both sides of this.

[ripsid]

I've heard guys say."I golf so i can get away from her!" and personally that's fine and all, but I look at it this way... I love my wife, and I love golf...why not put my 2 loves together. Now we don't play all the time, but we'll play a few times a year and mostly goto the range and such with her. If I could get her to golf with me more, I'd do it...that way I can play more golf without grief & aggrivation. ;)

 

SiD

[Golfchicago]

My wife tried to play golf. Shes has some talent but doesn't have the time. It is all about priorities and wants. If she loves it and wants to suceed, it would be a great outlet for her. I would leave it up to her. I know plenty of people who have wifes that do and others that have wives that don't play. Either way is o.k. She deserves to enjoy herself. Let her decide.

[Josh T]

It has been the best thing for us.

 

Get her into a beginners clinic. My wife started about a year ago and can now shoot 105ish.

 

Also, those times that you can't seem to figure out what club to buy next. You end up going out and purchasing new equipment for her.

 

Hell her bag is as nicely set up as mine now.

[matracy68]

I feel the same way about my wife but it is really nice to go and play with the boys on the weekend. We have another couple that both the husband and wife play so it would be cool to play with them. My dream is to go on a golf resort vacation like Kingsmill or Ginn to do nothing but play golf and hang out in a resort setting. Having my wofe play golf too would make it a lot easier to convince her to go. I really enjoy spending time with my wife and I am always looking for ways to share good times together. I am just afraid that she wont be good for a long time because she has more priorities in her life and golf would not be that high on her list to do. She teaches aerobics so she is in fantastic shape. I think that she could be good with some lessons. I don't want to teach her my bad habits. Like I said, we did the range yesterday and she did OK. I am totally lost on if I should persue this or not.

[Golfchicago]

I think you address a good point..boundaries. You need your time with the boys. I wouldn't think she would have a problem with that? As far as playing with her and her current talent. So what if she isn't good or never will be good. If it allows you to spend quality time with her, it is worth it. I play with all types of golfers. It is really no big deal as long as they keep up.

[Goldenhawk]

I play golf. Our six-year old son has been playing golf since he was one. Our 1-1/2 year old son is running around the house with plastic golf clubs since he started walking about 6 months ago.

 

When both boys start playing, she will need to help me watch them. When they play in tournaments, I will watch one, she will watch the other. The 6-year old is pressuring my wife to play and take lessons, and maybe caddie for him. My wife will have no choice. Eventually, she will have to play.

[kamtile]

We live on an executive course and she plays it with me a couple times a month ,that leaves me guilt free to play regular courses with my buddies and its a great place for her to learn .It been really good for my short game. Also ,there is a womens club that she may join at some point, then she can have her "buddy time" too.

[tina]

nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

ooo

[retep]

YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

 

definitely yes. get her some lessons and get out on some 9 holer's. doit. doit. my wife is decent and likes it and she had lessons all summer on saturday mornings.

[The Boom Bapp]

I purchased a set of Cally's for my wife after she tried golf and we ended up playing together every other Wednesday. Me getting her involved gives us time together and to keep our relationship healthy. She really has no hobbies and I feel bad If she does not get out of the house, I take care of my daughter on Mondays and Tuesdays and play 18 on Sundays and 36 every other Wednesday alternating rounds with my wife. She spends more time with the kids and is a very busy person. We don't always play golf but she knows that she can go with me anytime to the movies, the mall, hiking, biking, the spa, or whatever and that I am here for her so she does not feel trapped. Watching the kids or taking care of the house and every day items that allow us the freedoms we persue is a full time job for both of us. I am a very active person in my family and everyday I try and keep my home functional and do my best to keep things in shape. My wife is much busier and works harder than I so I make it a point to show her she is important to me I try and give every effort to provide her an oulet to just chill!

 

Getting your wife involved in golf can be a good and it will show her that you care, but with women, there needs to be structure and planning. Don't just spring it on her and expect a "Sure let's go!" give her a weeks notice anytime you plan to ask her to play. She will feel appreciated and like she is apart of your life!

 

Take Care

The Boom Bapp

[dday]

I got my wife into the game at the end of last summer. She grew up with a golf OCD father who was golf 24/7 (my kind of guy) but she rejected golf because of him. She didn't really want to play when I drug her out but she went a few times and we had a good time. This summer she's really starting to get into it and said the other day that she either needs to get really serious about the game or give it, I'm going to get her some lessons as soon as I can find a good coach.

 

The moral of the story, we have a great time together, we only play twice a month or so together and the rest of the time I play with the guys. It's good QT for us and I get to play more without the grief of her being at home bored.

[tina]

I was joking.. My wife does not play and i like it that way. its still my time to myself... I just love being on the course late evening or early morning with no one around .. great time to just clear the head.. no chatter etc...

[JDorfler]

Here's how I see it. You can play golf twice as much with your wife playing as well. You go on Saturday with her, and Sunday with the guys. Or vice versa. More golf, less grief if she is one of those that gets upset you spend too much time with the guys. And do what I did, get her a beginner's set and see where it goes from there.

[cloudlx]

My wife plays, she got into it to spend more time with me. How can you argue with logic like that? She has had several lessons now and is really developing nicely. I guess the only word of caution that I have is be sure that you want her there. If you're not sure then it can be a burden. My wife has always been really understanding that I need to have me time with the guys or by myself, so she doesn't get bent out of shape if I go golfing and she doesn't come. If your wife tends to be on the needy side of things, it could get to be a bit much.

[FlyFish]

Don't make this mistake of trying to teach her. Start out by getting her at least five lessons, preferably with an accomplished female instructor, and taking her to the driving range. The only advice that I give her on this course is alignment and course strategy. It works out much better this way.

 

Golf for my wife is more of a social thing. She is usually only good for 9 holes unless the weather is really nice. The upside of this is that you can play those 9 hole courses that you ordinarily never play.

 

For 18 holes I always take a cart so that she can relax and enjoy a couple of cocktails on the course.

 

Now that she is getting into it, she is starting to get more competitive. It's funny. The other day she knocked 5 wood about 175 yards onto the green and kept going to how she it it further then another guy in our group. ;)

 

I don't neccessarily want to play every round with her, but it makes golf vacations an easier sell now.

[golfebj]

Make sure you still have your guy time. Play with the Mrs. one day and have a day with the fellas.

 

I've played with my spouse and while it's fun at times, that's really my quiet time.

[matracy68]

I have a set of junior clubs for her right now that are old but should be good enough for her to learn on and figure if she wants to learn the game or not. I plan to get them regripped soon with the Winn breast cancer grips. Her sister plays and is a breast cancer survivor so that will help her feel better about it. My buddies wife plays in the womens groups on Saturday mornings and then with him in the afternoon. It does make sense to get her involved but I would just hope that she likes it the same as I do. Again, with her it is about her priorities and what she wants to do. I don't want to force anything on her. She was super frustrated yesterday at the range. This will get better with practice since I still get pissed myself.

 

Thanks for everyones opinion.

[elippsis]

My girlfriend and I have been playing golf together since we started playing 3 years ago. Since then, she's become very good, and her handicap is now 17.8. We love playing golf together (most of the time) and the best thing about it...I am too scared of her to freak out on the course when we play, so my temper has gotten better.

 

We play probably twice a week together and I love it! She loves it too, so it's been quite fun.

[Ogre41]

I love playing golf with my wife, but she doesn't seem to really enjoy the game as much as I do. She loves playing on vacation and recently one of her good friends took up the game, so maybe she will want to play a bit more. She is by far my favorite person to play with. But our differing amounts of obsession leave me with more than enough chances to play with the boys and not neglect her. I guess I get the best of both worlds.

[hbear]

If she plays it will also make it MUCH easier to bring your clubs whenever you go on holidays....

I can't think of a holiday in which we haven't brought our clubs....and it's a lot of fun to play.

 

Ultimately you will still have your space as more than likely she won't be as addicted/crazy as we are...nor will she want to play with the boys all the time. My wife has a blast in her ladies league, and plays with me once in a while.

If you have a wife that golfs, she will better understand why the game is so important to us.

 

I've logged in about 115 rounds this year (in Canada so we started at the end of April (Early May))...

And never have any troubles or get heat from doing so because I have a wife that plays and understands.

[Pen]

Here's my story-- I'm "the wife" who learned to play golf—(sorry for the long post)

 

My better half (better, especially, when it comes to golf) grew up playing golf and has been a single digit handicap most of his life. When we first started seeing each other, we I thought it would be fun for him to teach me how to play golf. He was up for the idea, but told me from the beginning that we would spend a long, long time building fundamentals before I ever played a course. We spent a lot of time working on basics, and also developed a vocabulary for swing mechanics (it just makes it easier if both people know what “inside out”, “casting”, “reverse pivot” or “turning the wrists” actually means).

 

My first season I had one club, and would go to the range now and then with my better half. He invested a LOT of time and patience teaching me fundamentals. I took for granted then how hard it must have been for him to teach me, and deal with my frustration. (NOTE: It was no problem for me to start with lessons from him, but a LOT of couples find this difficult. When in doubt, don’t give her swing instructions—go find a PGA pro.)

 

Fast forward to last season (my fifth season): I had finally played and practiced enough (and had taken enough lessons from a professional instructor) to join my significant other for a long weekend at Pinehurst. Wow. I shot between 110 and 120 each round, which isn’t great by GolfWRX standards, but we had a brilliant time together. I had a full set of clubs, had course etiquette and some course management skills, and had an equal number of "awesome" shots and total whiffs. At the end of the season, *I* suggested we take a week off to play at PGA National in the FL off-season. We played 7.5 rounds of golf in 7 days, and absolutely loved it.

 

Fast forward to this season: Now I love to play, and we usually play at least 18, sometimes 36, and sometimes more holes every weekend. We play more golf now than my significant other did before (but, he played less golf, and spent more time on the range, while I was learning). My scores have come down to being consistently under 110, with the occasional score breaking 100. I expect to be breaking 100 regularly soon, and hope to break 90 by the middle of next season. I finally can work on parts of my swing alone, and don’t need him watching me and giving me advice at the range in order to have a productive session. I plan to take regular lessons going forward.

 

Now, I'm often the instigator of our golf vacations, and *I'm* the one who proposed our 7-day golf vacation in January, and our Pebble Beach vacation in June. I’m happy to take our clubs on any trip. And, I’m the one in our relationship who is a real club ho... I got him some Miura irons and wedges this year, ordered a TP Mills putter for myself (*ahem* along with a totally new bag of stuff!), and have a TP Mills putter on order for him. Patience has its rewards!

 

Helping me learn the basics required a lot of commitment and patience from both of us. Now, I’m glad that I can play, and look forward to watching my handicap continue to drop. But, I would have been deeply annoyed to spend a lot of time and energy learning how to play, only to find out that he just wanted to play golf with the guys. Make sure you understand what you want, and what she wants, before starting...

[ssites]

Pen,

 

great post! You sound like my wife ;)

 

I say absolutely get her to play with you. I still play as much as I used to with the regular guys foursome, but now I get to play twice a week lots of times since she "drags" me out!

 

It is a great place to have a good 4-5 hours to just be together without the normal distractions of the kids work etc. Most couples are lucky to get 4 hours a WEEK alone.

 

Plus, the benefits are huge. We play on vacations, she loves to go to golf stores, buy clubs, watch golf, talk golf etc...and she smokes it off the tee too.

[billybaroo]

My wife and I just played her 2nd round out on a real golf course yesterday, we'd been to a pitch and putt a couple times, and I really enjoy getting out there with her. She's having fun too and likes the scenery as well as the wildlife out on the courses.

 

She started coming with me to the range ~2+ years ago and using my clubs, which I knew were wrong for her, but it was cheap. When she decided she wanted her own clubs she didn't know what to get, rather than tell her I bought a mish-mash set of 1-2 year old equipment. She ended up with a Cobra, Callaway, Ping, Titleist, and Taylor-Made ladies clubs that made pretty close to a workable set. I paid less than $20 for each club. We spent another year of driving range only with her and these clubs which boosted her confidence as they were much easier to hit.

 

Finally this year she decided she wanted lessons, a matching set of clubs and to play on a course. We picked up a set of clubs then she went to a 2 day school and learned more of the basics to build on what she had already learned. Finally we went out to a local course that is wide open and relatively flat - an ego boost course for someone who plays often. She had a great time, even got a par on the #7 stroke hole (par 3 over water, I had to explain to her how impressive that was by showing the vast number of balls in the pond. LOL ) Yesterday at the same course on a ~300 yard par 4 she smacks her 5 wood (no driver yet) ~160 then ropes a 4i to ~5 feet! Then she missed the birdie but made the par. New putter...had she been using mine still I bet she would have made the 3.

 

She enjoys it, and wants to play more which I like. She only likes to play 9, so when I want to play 18 I go off and play myself; when it's 9 we play together. It works out well.

 

IMO having a golfing spouse is a good thing...if nothing else it makes buying new equipment easier as they know the prices of stuff! $600 irons are a bargain when there are $1,200+ sets out there!

[leekgolf]

My wife seriously took up golf this summer. It's great! I play with my friends, tourneys, etc. and she is fine about it. Then after I play with the boys, I play 9 with her. She also asks me to play 9 once or twice weekly. She usually plays once or twice with the girls as well.

 

She has a teaching pro she trusts and takes regular lessons. It's a great thing. Now she WANTS to watch the TOUR. She understands when I tell her I have my eye on new irons (Srixon i-701 tours). she understands when I'm aggravated because I play poorly. She understands the feeling of a well struck shot and how addictive it is.

 

It's the best.

[tbowles411]

If my wife golfed, I know for a FACT, I would get better because she'd let me go out whenever I wanted! I'd kill to have my wife golf.

[dmac4g]

My wife has tried to play golf. I got her lessons and she seemed to have a great time. After one of her lessons, I went to the range with her to hit some balls. She set up in the stall directly behind me. Three hosel rockets later into my calf, she gave it up! :beee:

 

We have talked about playing again and she is going to try once the kids are grown giving her more time to devote to it. I am looking forward to those day's!

 

I think playing with the wife would be good times! ;)

[jcgrcya]

So who's supposed to watch the kids? ;) ;) I actually tried to get my wife to play golf and she had absolutely no interest to even try it. I even bought her some lessons and she didn't go to even one. I would like for her to play but I'd like her to do it because she wants to, not because I want her to. Hopefully she'll come around, but for now, I'll just keep taking my 4 year old son. :beee:

[kinneywhat]

My wife golfed maybe 2-3 times a year the last couple years. This year she took a beginners golf class that was once a week for 6 weeks, with each session being an hour long. There were only 4 other women in the class, so they got a lot of good one on one time with the pro. It's definetly helped her game quite a bit. She consistently can shoot around 105-115, including any penalties or whatever else she manages to do on the course. She even throws in one or two pars a round. I figure having your wife gol is the best of both worlds. You get to golf more if she's a golfer as well, plus it's spending quality time together if it's just the two of you.

 

We'll be joining our coutry club as a family membership for the first time next year. I sure hope she keeps her interest in the game. She likes to play, but would never play more than twice a week. I'm thinking she;ll probably be playing around 27 holes a weel. It should be a good time. (Unfortunately, there's no couples membership like a lot of clubs have.... just single and family)

[ckguy914]

Get her a pair of golf shoes, I am sure that'll help out the cause. ;)