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I played in Open conditions...

IrishGolfer

Fac ut gaudeam
Supporting Member
Sep 1, 2004
6,542
4,976
...on Saturday. Yes folks, 30mph winds with 40mph gusts on a links course off the tips. Brutal!

I hit a hybrid 270 yards on hole 7 and 150 yards on the very next hole. Both were equally well hit with a low draw!! I hit a 4 iron on a downhill 160 yard par 3. But to me those shots were fun to try and hit. Moving the ball to the back of the stance, Keeping the follow through short and low. Using my lower body top drive these shots under the win.

I managed to get round the front nine in +3. But the wheels came off on the back nine, limping home in +10. The biggest factor to me was the putting. I had 40 putts, 22 on the back nine!!! The wind was blowing the ball all over the greens. It was hard to get a solid stance over the ball. Putting is my Achilles Heel and it was like an open wound, with the wind prodding a thorn into it at every chance.

Turns out the competition was (unsurprisingly) a non counting event. The SSS was 75! I had the 3rd best gross with an 84!

So hats off to the Best in the World. To play as well as they did in that sort of wind was nothing short of extraordinary.
 

warbirdlover

Ender of all threads
Supporting Member
Jul 9, 2005
19,151
5,601
central Wisconsin
Country
United States United States
I can imagine how hard it is to hit the normal clubs with that kind of wind but having to play the wind on putts? Yikes. :)
 

Eracer

No more triple bogies!!
Oct 31, 2005
12,405
8
I like playing in the wind - up to a point. But 30-40mph is just too tough for me. You don't really play "golf" in those conditions, you play "wind management."
 
OP
IrishGolfer

IrishGolfer

Fac ut gaudeam
Supporting Member
Sep 1, 2004
6,542
4,976
  • Thread Starter
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  • #4
I can understand a lot of folk who say they don't like playing in this type of wind. But I love it, it is a challenge and you get such a kick out of trying to manage the wind correctly. Punching in an aggressive wedge that stops at the stick. Flighting in a low fade holding into the wind. Lashing a drive downwind. Even when a shot doesn't come off, it's the "next shot" mentality. Trying to minimise the damage.

You have to think things through, throw away the Strokesaver. Use your imagination. I don't think I would like to play in that sort of wind all the time. It would probably ruin my swing. But it's good to at least try and beat the wind the odd time.

As the scores from Saturday showed the wind won!!!
 

Harry Longshanks

bow-chicka-bow-wow
Jul 20, 2008
718
0
You have to think things through, throw away the Strokesaver.

Slightly off-topic, but I wish the Strokesaver guides were more prevalent in the U.S. :(

tiger_caddie_BO2005.jpg
 

The master

online
Oct 24, 2004
1,735
5
There is nothing I love more than manufacturing shots in high winds, I played last night and it was probably blowing around 20mph, I was playing class 5 irons from 130 with a bullet draw that doesn't get more than 20 feet of the ground. Saying that I wouldn't fancy playing in a high winds in qualifying comps too often.
 

twogreen

Well-Known Member
Aug 7, 2006
492
54
We had a day like that while in Scotland last September while playing Balcomie. There was no rain; but the wind was brutal. Putting was the worst part of the day. I normally ground the putter when addressing the ball, so trying to hover the putter to avoid penalty strokes when the wind moved the ball was entirely new for me.

Sometimes the wind would gust while setting up to putt; and I had to take a step backward to avoid losing my balance. It was a fun day; because I had never played under those conditions until then. It wasn't the kind of fun I would want to have on a regular basis, though. :D
 

DrivetheGreen66

College Golfer
Jun 29, 2008
171
0
I have played in conditions like this two times before. both times in tournaments. One of the tournaments was actually cancelled after nine holes because of the severity of the wind. But i do have to say that it is FUN!!!!
 

Adam Pettman

Well-Known Member
Nov 3, 2005
2,765
0
Love playing he shot that never gets above 20ft of the ground, I'm not great it but thats what practie is for.
 

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