blonde poker forum

A really pleasing amount of interaction on my Diary about golf so I think it makes sense to start a Golf thread & see if it gets any traction.

We seem to have quite a few golfers here, some long-term, others quite new. We also have a Golf "Pro" of sorts - MANTIS is in the Golf Business, think he's a junior greenkeeper or something.

Use this thread to report on golf rounds, reports on different Courses, anecdotes, clubs you want to buy or sell, & of course bandits. Oh, & especially any 'photos of yourselves & your golf pals.

PS - Chirping is allowed.  

Starter for 10....


Biggest golf "peeve"?

Was wondering the other day why you hadn't done this already, it's gonna be like a poker thread though full of posts with bad beats and thinly veiled brags :)

Here's a couple from recent holiday.

Slow play, playing a new course behind a 3 ball 2 guys and a lady. We were a 2 ball and my brother in law doesn't carry the ball that far I had looked at the course and we decided to play off the blues in between normal yellows and ladies reds. This 3 ball carried the ball a lot less than my BOL and were playing off the tips. Waiting all day in soaring heat was bad enough but watching them hit at least 2 balls of every tee as they couldn't carry it to play got to me and when we caught them at the next tee I politely informed them they were playing off the wrong tees. They said it was a comp (not an official one but between a bunch of expats) and they had to play off the 'Rocks' which were rocks with the hole info on. Didn't think to offer us through and stood on every green visibly counting the 12 shots they had each taken then walking back across the green as they had forgotten a club at the other side.

Last game with Swiss guy and his grandson - no etiquette - young lad would regularly just play when he felt like it. We would both have similar puts on a line I was further away and he just strode in and played then both would walk right over your line when at the hole. We just looked at each other and had a laugh but did wonder as I know golfers in Switzerland have to pay to get a licence and pass a test on etiquette etc. Guess there isn't a don't be a dick section to it.

Anyway great idea will probably get me posting a bit again. When's the next 'Blonde Golf Bash ^TM '?

 When's the next 'Blonde Golf Bash'?


Monday (weather permitting)

I’ve only played Golf twice, once in England and once in Vegas. I was terrible both times.

I’ve always felt golf is an expensive sport, am I wrong? Can you hire clubs, or do you have to have your own? How much is 18 holes roughly?

Pet peeves are slow play and bad etiquette. Oh and my driver at present. 🤣

Had one of my best rounds last Weds playing with Chris "Sleazy" Keyworth. So did he BTW. Played Onneley Golf club which I joined the day before.

(https://i.ibb.co/LmY9dLm/20250716-114151.jpg) (https://ibb.co/pcb4jtc)

In thread! present golf hate - insects - got bitten by clegs last saturday now big red marks near the sockline. 

I hate it when the people in your four ball invite the two  ball behind to play through without telling you, which could lead to an embarrassing situation.

Huge golfer and fan here! Will enjoy the thread for sure

Fave type of course?

Links golf for me can’t be beaten.

Day 4 of The Open.


Anyone notice that Nicolai Højgaard & his twin brother Rasmus Højgaard are tied going into Day 4, both on -6?

What are the chances of that? Some proud parents there. 

Sadly, due to starting time protocol, & 5 players all tied on -6, they are in separate pairings, 10 minutes apart. Would have been rather lovely if they went out together today. 

My bets for The Open (all EW) were....

Harry Hall (-5)

Henrik Stenson (-1)

Justin Rose (-5)

Russell Henley (-6)

Tyrrell Hatton (-8)



So, realistically, I have a squeak of an EW place with the cool, calm & collected Tyrrell, and so I'll be rooting for him.

Hall, Rose & Henley all need a minor miracle, & Stenson is out of it.

Pretty pleased to get all 5 through to Day 4, but still every chance of coming up dry.

Moderately flat Parkland.

Links golf, generally speaking, is way too hard for me, with bunkers & gorse galore. I did play Seacroft (Skegness) which is Links, & Woodhall Spa (Heathland) on a 2 day sortie recently, & just about got it round both with semi-respectable cards, but if I only had one round left to play in my life it'd be a flattish Parkland.

I don't really know where to start with that...


We were a 4 ball (Red, JAKALLY, bookiebasher & me) & JAKALLY was searching for his tee shot in the spinach on the other side of the Fairway, while the other 3 of us were a few yards apart on the opposite side. A good 2 ball were waiting on the tee, so we shouted "PLAY THROUGH GUYS". They were 200 yards away & heard us clearly, as they snap prepared to drive off.

The first guy bombs it down the middle, it lands 10 yards past us & bounds along another 50 yards.

Whereupon Mr Red suddenly turns to face them, cups his hands & roars at the top of his voice WHAT THE FUCK DO YOU THINK ARE YOU DOING, CAN'T YOU SEE US?

Apologies & red faces all round. Tom blamed us, obv.   

Never heard of "clegs" before, apparently normal people refer to them as horseflies. Still, google informs us that only the female bites humans, so there's that. 

Indeed, & looking good so far.

It's a re-match between Karabiner, Red & myself, following the initial 3-ball a couple of weeks ago. I can't recall who won on that occasion but we can be pretty sure who didn't. Tomorrow I will play better. Maybe. 

It's touch & go on the weather front, but as of Sunday morning it's looking maybe 60-40.

Hi Vinni.

Hiring clubs can be done occasionally, but generally I don't think it's an option.

You can buy a set dirt cheap on Facebook, e-Bay or at a Car Boot though. I think Red paid about £80 for his starter set & they don't stop him hitting the ball a mile. Some of my Clubs are 30 years old from my Golf 1.0 adventures. As a golf newbie, any old clubs will do for starters.

Cost of a round of golf varies enormously, but as a general rule, on a half-decent Course you are talking anywhere between £25 & £50 per round as a Guest or Visitor. Might be able to get on a Muni a bit cheaper I guess.  

If you get the bug, then it's best to join a Club. A regular Course will charge between £1,000 & £1,500 per year, (some have a joining fee too) but for that you can play every day of the year, so it becomes great value the more you play.

Need a few other bits & bobs too - golf shoes, balls & sundry bits & bobs, but mostly cheap, except for the shoes.

I think you'd do just fine, but some Courses are a tough walk so ideally you need to lose 3 or 4 stone first.  

A cleg is a type of horsefly, specifically the Haematopota species, known for its painful bite and tendency to be stealthy. While "horsefly" is a general term for various flies in the Tabanidae family, "cleg" often refers to the Haematopota species known for its sneaky approach and painful bite

also from google and the last phrase describes my assailants perfectly.


 

There are three, "No membership required" golf courses near me. The cheapest is Enderby, £9.60 for 9 holes or 13.60 for 18.
The next is Whetstone, £18.50 for 18.
Then there is Leicester Golf Center. I think that's £14 for 9 ans £25 for 18.

I imagine there are similar places everywhere.

FYI Vincent, it's cheaper to fly back to the UK for a round of golf than it is to play in Malta

They had promised to wear identical clothes had they been drawn together which would have been fun for the commentators.

In my golfing days I made the same trip with a pal. Woodhall Spa (Hotchkin the original course not the abominable Bracken) followed by Seacroft.
A different friend used to organise a game for his birthday. Players would gather from around the country and the course was always in the Top 100 list (UK).
In truth i was never good enough to play courses like Woodhall Spa, nor St Andrews, Birkdake, Lindrick, Ganton etc but managed to get a memory from each of them. Took the trophy twice through the wonders of inconsistency and the handicap system.

I don’t play these days, and hadn’t really missed it till you lot started chirping on about it. Starting to wish I hadn’t sold the clubs now.

Speaking of the wonders of inconsistency and the handicap system...

you tube golf vids.

Anyone got favs? There are so many and unfortunately a lot of them have either very little content or don't actually cover the topic billed. One I watched the other day claimed to show the difference between good putters and bad putters and then prattled on about the most common error of good putters until I gave up with it.

This is an ok one for content and somewhat on topic with thread readers.

YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TlX5CByq7Y

I have been using my neighbours spare electric trolley to see how I go on. Game changer for us mature golfers so I've purchased one complete with brolly holder and phone holder.


(https://i.ibb.co/mCP2f0Qy/Messenger-creation-EF66565-A-7188-42-A1-BFF3-4-FC135-A2-BA6-E.jpg) (https://ibb.co/FbdyRXGY)

(https://i.ibb.co/1GhsLyfF/Messenger-creation-CDB6-D042-81-BA-4606-8-B41-BE5-D4-CADFF6-A.jpg) (https://ibb.co/fdB826Yj)

(https://i.ibb.co/8g8Bp8n2/Messenger-creation-BCD6-EAB8-12-EB-4-D25-9-C1-C-330-B23029-D19.jpg) (https://ibb.co/60sZxscb)

Game changer

FFS don't let Red see that

Will look at bit tattier when I put my 20 year old bag and clubs on it.

🤣🤣🤣

I've had one for a while and they do make life easier. I was playing a course on an island in the River Tay a couple of weeks ago (pic below) and it is accessed by a walkway alongside the bridge that carries the aberdeen train. Obv I it wasn't really practical to get my trolley and clubs up a stairway etc so I just hired a push trolley. I lost count of the number of times I tried to press the button to get the push trolley moving.... 

I might get one when I get old.

Golf life with Jimmy Bullard
Had spome decent stuff recently with him getting coaching, including from Faldo

Good round today. Best I've shot in years.

(https://i.ibb.co/KjdKxdL1/Screenshot-20250723-173103-Outlook.jpg) (https://ibb.co/HD6hT6xJ)

(https://i.ibb.co/fj1mb07/20250723-130430.jpg) (https://ibb.co/81KFJ8V)

Is that mini digger searching for your golf ball

Mizuno bag, at a guess circa turn of the millennium ?

Good call, bought in 2004 along with the irons I'm still using. Will get round to getting another bag soon. Playing 6 times a year until recently didn't justify a new one. It's very tired now isn't it.

As long as you get out be competitive and have fun that’s all that matters,

Doesn’t matter  what sent up you have

Indeed. The bag is getting a bit of wear and tear though. I feel a birthday present coming on .😁

You only have to miss one of your many holidays out and you can have a new everything

Life balance Trev, it's tricky. 😁

I don't blame you, enjoy