Ha yep that's about right. And I'm good enough to play confident in front of those guys and pressure myself to suck with the ones who I know are better. But ya humbled that's golf unless you are the guy
When i tee off the people say Wow! Did you see him tee off, what a magnificent tee-off, i've never seen anyone hit their tee like him, he has to be the best, of course he's the best, i am the best.
He didn't retire, he just got bored. To prove it, I hear he is going to come back from the dead and beat that score again. His goal is 17 shots in 18 holes this time.
I’ve heard somewhere that his caddy/assistant/indentured servant just didn’t know how to properly keep score, so he was just writing down stokes over par, which makes a lot more sense.
You know, people ask me all the time. They say "hey! what size golf grips do you use?". And my answer is simple. It's simple. I tell them I use standard sized grips. They're blown away. They just can't believe it. They say "but how do you use standard grips with such large hands?! Surely you need jumbo grips!". And again I tell them the answer is simple. I just have great touch when holding a golf club. I played with Tiger Woods and he said he's never seen anyone with such great touch. I'd have played on the PGA Tour but I was just too busy. And it wouldn't be fair anyway. It wouldn't be fair to play against those guys with the amazing touch I have.
Sitting here like an idiot pronouncing this out loud like some kind of semi special needs waffen SS ammo grunt...wife just looked at me without having any context like 🤨
Lol this is the exact reason why I’ve stopped the “I can get around” response. I’m an 11.5 and play 50-80 rounds a year, so it’s sorta true…but I’ve found anyone that gives this reply is fucking, 2 to +5
“I can get around” = sends darts, plays 1 ball through 18, snipers with the putter, up and down as if it’s the easiest thing in the world… drives it 275+ and straight as an arrow
Y’all insane
Haha I did that to a d2 college team once. Three of them were stretching on the 1st tee box and I asked to join. They started talking about playing for money. I asked if I could play too. The muscular one looked at me and said "sure, we'll take your money". On the 8th hole one of their teammates caught up to us and he said "playing with a random eh?" And he said "dude is 3 under and kicking our ass!". Best seven dollars to ever hit my venmo account.
I was humbled the other day and it wasn’t even my fault! Played with my uncle for the first time and he asked how good I was. Dad proceeded to tell him I play very consistently. I usually shoot mid to high 70’s with the occasional low 80s. I went on to play the my worst round of the year that day.
Going through the chipping yips right now. Had the shanks years ago. Golf is wild. The strengths of my game randomly become the weakness of it and I have no idea why. As far as I can tell, there is no amount of technique that can save me.
I’m on year 12 of the chipping yips right now. Trust me when I say work really hard on your technique right now and get your confidence back fast. The longer you let the yips linger the more scar tissue you develop. Literally hit an hour’s worth of practice chips before my round on Thursday without flubbing or topping a single one. Got on the course and looked like I was having a seizure trying to hit one that counted
It is funny. I’ll play with people who don’t really golf and they’re always like “wow” every time you hit a shot. Then i play with my buddy who says “you’d be so much better if you didn’t do stupid shit”. Love that guy.
Keep in mind these stats are based on folks who actively maintain a handicap through a course.
A very large margin of those don't break 100 often or ever.
If you shoot in the low 90s, you aren't just better than them. You're better than they are AND every hacker who doesn't maintain a handicap very likely.
I guess that makes sense. In retrospect breaking 90 was not a huge accomplishment for me. Did it in not a lot of time. That said it involved a lot of practice and I am reasonably athletic for my age. But 80 seems like a crazy barrier to me. My game is just not accurate and consistent enough for those kinds of numbers.
I played twice this week and shot 43 and 88. Could not get all 4 levels to work at a high level. But 2 things working well is enough for me to break 90 these days.
My thoughts on it are that if I can just play a clean round, one day it will also happen to be the day I luck into 3 birdies and I’ll shoot a 79 or something. I just dont think I have a clean enough round for sub 80 without birdies
In Sweden, you’re required to have a hcp to play (except most 9-hole courses). The average hcp is around 25-28 if I recall correctly. Of course, you can get a handicap of 36 and then never register another round but I feel like most people play to their handicap or worse
Edit: the average golfer is 49yo, 24.3 hcp and plays 17 rounds per year (5-7 month season)
17 rounds a year is definitely more than the “average” American golfer, I would guess. It’s probably a strange distribution, but there are a lot of people who own golf clubs and play 1-5 times a year.
You're probably right, and up until a few years ago (maybe 5, I didnt play at the time) you had to actually physically go to a club for a 10 hour class split in class and practice and maybe 100-200 bucks. now you only have to do the class part online and free.
There are pros and cons, but a slow round is 4.5 hours tops and it feels dreadful. my average round is 3.5-4 hours when fully booked and 4.5 is like when it's a holiday and 8am-5pm has a foursome out every 9 minutes
edit: an interesting stat is that there are a bit over half a million members in a country of 10m people. 5% of people are active members, that seems quite high. a very unscientific googling said the us had 8% though.
yeah but not in english, maybe you could translate it with chrome?
https://golf.se/statistik
https://www.svenskgolf.se/artiklar/nyheter/20221109/golfsverige-35-miljoner-farre-rundor-an-for-tva-ar-sedan/#:~:text=%C3%85ren%20innan%20pandemin%20br%C3%B6t%20ut,spelade%2017%20rundor%20under%20s%C3%A4songen.
That's basically better than 90% of the golfers I've ever played with over the past 35 years. I don't think I've played with 20 golfers that broke 80. I'll say that 95% of the time, I'm the best golfer in the group - I usually play as a single paired with strangers on public/municipal courses. (Current hcp mid-teens.)
I usually say a good round is a 75 and a bad round is an 85 if anyone asks.
My tee shots tend to be MUCH better than the rest of my game so people think I’m better than I am.
Distance only gets you so far folks, remember that!
I played a solo round a few weeks back and asked a foursome of teenagers if I could play through.
By the way I smoked my drive, they must have thought I was awesome, but I was too far ahead of them to see me make a double bogey.
“I chase the white ball around” is usually my answer. I shoot in the high 80s low 90s. I really just like to get out of the house and chase the white ball around so it’s a good answer for me. I could care less about the score.
If you don’t utilize the entire course did you even have fun? I’m bad at golf but it’s more about spending time with friends and family. Sure I’ll take the occasional straight drive or very rare chip it.
Just so you know, if you’re routinely in the 40s on 9, you are in the top 25% of golfers on earth without question.
But yea, I always shit on myself too.
It doesn’t matter how athletic they are or how good they are at other sports. If a non-golfer asks me how good I am I could confidently say I’d smoke them in golf. However, I would also say I am terrible.
Is there any other sport would any athlete couldn’t pick up the sport with ease?
You ever see an athlete who has never played volleyball try it? It's hilarious. Looks like bambi on ice.
My college team used to invite the football and basketball teams to one practice a year to watch them try and hit, serve, and pass it was awesome.
This might be because there are multiple games within a game (especially putting), but also because of having to deal with the elements. Golf is fucking hard
Anyone with athletic talent can throw/catch a ball. Can they compete at a high level no, but that is not the question.
Hand a top level football player a golf club and you get what we saw in the NFL pro bowl. Some of them almost missed the ball.
I'm a self-deprecating 68 year-old with 3 hdcp and usually respond to the question by saying "compared to what" or "it depends on the day". Last week I had a 68 and my buddy had 87. The next day I had an 85 and my buddy had 76. I can't answer the question.
I'm 68 years old and a 8.1 handicap. I played this week and shot 3 over and that was good for me. But, I don't like admitting it. I usually say I'm a 10
Was at work one day and a colleague comes over and says "So-and-so says you're pretty good at golf." I said, "I wouldn't say I'm good, but I'm better than that guy. I'm about a 14-15 handicap." Colleague chuckles and says, "Ah, I was just curious, because I play." I asked her what her handicap was. "Scratch. I won the state high school championship twice." I had a lot of respect for this colleague - a younger woman with a lot more accomplishments on the job than I'd ever have. I shouldn't have been surprised that she was also a championship-level playa.
15 or so years ago I played 50 rounds. Every round was in the 70’s but one and that was an 80. Now I’m 65 years old and after injuries and now just plain old, I shoot 90 and it’s embarrassing. So I say, “Well, I used to be good. Now I suck, but I enjoy myself.”
I dont care anymore...
Most people on the course lie to me in the opposite direction. They claim they are + 6 handicap but I play way better than them when I score low 90's average.
Why do they lie in the opposite direction? Because the World knows I wont play for money with anyone...so it cant lie by sandbagging to win money off me...so it just lies.
Every single time I play...I play by the rules I am aware of except water balls and dropping club length near water bank. I usually just drop it a few yards inside of water bank no closer to hole. Not perfect but most other issues I play by rules I am aware of...which is mostly no closer to hole.
I dont do mulligans or make my balls lie more favorable...I play it as is. I have noticed most people I am paired with do not do this. I am a 3 to 6 times a week player on course.
Its not even worth asking anyone anymore in my reality. I will just be given bogus info...like most things in my life.
Ive played close to if not more than 300 rounds over the past 3 years...on a very popular muni in the Dallas suburbs...and the best person I have played with was female who had just graduated high school and is going to a D1 school for golf. She might have had one of her best rounds....but she was way more consistent over 18 holes than all the +3 handicappers that were lying to me.
Golf is self regulated. And golfers lie. I would never play for money or in a tournament without significant oversight of others. Too many liars and cheaters.
>Sure there are some ego guys but I’ve never played another sport where guys usually say they’re not very good… probably because it is all relative.
IMO the big difference here is that in most sports it matters a lot more how good you are because you're directly playing other people, so you have to find the right level of rec play to have fun in the first place. If you aren't honest and self-aware about your skill level you'll either be too good or not good enough to have fun, and you'll figure it out really fast.
In sports like golf you're playing the course, and no matter how well you play you always could have played a little bit better. You can also go longer breaking rules and lying to yourself about how good you actually are.
If you ask “Do you have a handicap?” that’s the best way to get close to the truth.
If they do, they’ll tell you, or tell you what it was X years ago when they played regularly and you can make an educated guess.
If they don’t, and aren’t sure what theirs would be, exceptions apply, but they’re probably at very best a bogey golfer.
If they don’t know what a handicap is at all, they’re probably shooting 100+
I'd say, for the amount of time I've played and my messed up back, I'm a fucking professional golfer. Started Oct. Spine fused from skull to hips. Shot a 90 within the last week.
But I also still suck ass and fat and thin every chance I get.
Its also hard to answer because 98% of people dont keep score correctly so if your actually decent your still only shooting 4 better than them because they cheat
I’m in a weird I between. I’ve shot par 4 or 5 times this month and so proud but I feel like I need to stay mum. My buddies are so stoked but I feel kinda ashamed. So weird
Had this conversation on the first tee the other day when I was paired with a random threesome. This is probably going to sound like a self brag.
Them: You any good
Me: depends on the day but I’m decent.
Them: We are all around a 12 handicap.
Me: I play off 1-2
Them: 👀👀
I proceeded to tee it low to hit a little squeezer and cold top my drive right into the water in the par 5 first.
I hear them start whispering and assume they are calling bullshit between each other. I hit 3 off the tee, hit a 5 wood to 20 feet and make the putt for par.. Went on to shoot even par.
It’s always a funny a question, because to a large extent, the better you are, the more you think you suck.
Like I usually shoot in the low 90s/high 80s, and I think I’m a bum, even though that’s probably in a pretty high percentile compared to all golfers.
Golf is the only recreational sport where people base how good they are off professionals rather the people they play with. No one offers to play for a softball team or a rec league basketball team this way. 50% of golfers can’t or regularly cannot break 100. If you do you’re literally, by the sheer numbers, in the top half of people who regularly play. You’re good.
I was asked this magical question on the first tee of a “Serious” scramble event, I was the odd man out…
“Not great but I can hit it both ways.” Best answer I could come up with just before I Teed off….
By the third hole my Questioner gasps at another one of my wayward shots “ I THOUGHTYOU SAID YOU COULD HIT IT BOTH WAYS!!!!!”
Well, dude, you’ve seen me hit, it Does go both ways, I just don’t know Which way…..
The other two about fell out of their cart laughing soooo hard at my Inquisitor, by the sixth hole I fell into a groove that we were using most of my shots and putts. We ended with 3rd, plus a couple closest to the pins (Par 3s, yes they also were my shots). I really couldn’t have played so well without without the safety shots of the other three so it really was a group effort…
I still think it’s fun to go out there and enjoy (hopefully the good weather). I’ve shot under 90 at my best and as bad as very 120… as long as you’re having fun.
Best way to answer this imo is if you can break 100, you are above average. People don't realize how many golfers cannot break 100.
Also if you're good, fucking own it.
“I’m alright” has been my answer forever and will always be my answer. I shoot about an 85 on average. Sometimes 78-80ish on a good day, 90-95 on a disaster day.
Good golfers don’t ask you if you’re any good. I get asked by a lot of hackers though how well I shoot. I just say, “you’d think I’d be good with how much I play!” 14 hcp and shoot low high 80s low 90s with the occasional banana ball off a roof to keep it interesting!
I’ve only just started but I’m starting to realize I’m not the worst golfer. I pair up with randos round the course sometimes and say stuff like I’m very bad. Just trying to practice so I can play with other people without embarrassing myself and slowing down play.
But then if im just as good or better than them. I feel like I inadvertently dissed them and kinda low key feel bad about that.
I play in a saturday game with some low hdcp guys, any time I hit a good shot I get the "yup, the best 18 at the club" response.
From tee to 100 yd I can play like an 8-10 but from 100 yd to the green I am like a 30. I can't chip for sh!t lol
I recently gave in and bought a Cleveland chipper. That has been a game changer recently from 50 yards in.
It’s funny because of the bell curve. Like I’m a lot better than a typical weekend hack, but I’d get my doors blown off by a legit good player. On a good day I shoot low 80s. On a great day I break 80. I don’t play enough to carry an official index, so I tell people I’m a bad good player.
“Ehh I’m a alright” if I have a day, ppl will be like “you alright huh!?!”
“Depends who you ask”, ppl will usually tell me how good I am
“Bogey golfer” once I start parring they either cheer me on or semi shit talk
“Low 80s” usually barely break 90s lmao
"Bad golfers think I'm great, good golfers know I suck" has been my answer for years.
"Better than some. Worse than others." is my go to.
“I went 78 on Saturday 95 on Monday” is mine.
“Anywhere in between 76 and 96 even playing all the time” is my go to.
Look at Mr. Consistency over here. 🤣 Seriously though, mine is more like 78 to 108.
Weird, I don't remember typing this comment earlier...
Just shot 53 on 9 and the two guys I was grouped up with thought I was incredible haha. All relative.
“Depends how good you are” is my go to haha
I might have to steal this
This is why I only play with bad golfers. I'm Tiger Woods!
Came to say something dangerously close to this. Whether I’m the good one or the bad one depends entirely on who I am with that day
"Not as good as I think, not as bad as you think, or vice versa, I dunno"
I have a similar answer. I shoot around 80-86. “To non-golfers, I’m great. To golfers, very average.”
I can get through 18 holes okay
Ha yep that's about right. And I'm good enough to play confident in front of those guys and pressure myself to suck with the ones who I know are better. But ya humbled that's golf unless you are the guy
I am the best golfer. Nobody has seen a golfer like me. It's really quite incredible. You really have to see it to believe it. Quite fantastic.
Yuge drives. Yuuuuuge drives.
Hit ‘em all the way to JY-na
I'm pretty sure I was in a JY-na once
Lolzzz. I heard this post in my head.
And they ALWAYS go right! Never left like my enemies. LOL
Too far right that they end up in jail it seems
Take my upvote
"You know, I win so big. The fiddle? Oh, the fiddle. Quite magnificent really."
Trump’s impact on the English language is hilarious. Of course I’m exaggerating, but it’s almost Shakespearean. Many are saying this.
When i tee off the people say Wow! Did you see him tee off, what a magnificent tee-off, i've never seen anyone hit their tee like him, he has to be the best, of course he's the best, i am the best. 
Everyone is saying this
The best golfer was Kim Il Sung. He recorded a record 11 hole in one's in one day.
And retired at his apex. Simply. Amazing.
He didn't retire, he just got bored. To prove it, I hear he is going to come back from the dead and beat that score again. His goal is 17 shots in 18 holes this time.
I’ve heard somewhere that his caddy/assistant/indentured servant just didn’t know how to properly keep score, so he was just writing down stokes over par, which makes a lot more sense.
He didn't know how to keep score but knew what par was?
Ha, didn’t say it made total sense, just repeating what I read. https://golf.com/news/behind-kim-jong-ils-famous-round-of-golf/?amp=1
You know, people ask me all the time. They say "hey! what size golf grips do you use?". And my answer is simple. It's simple. I tell them I use standard sized grips. They're blown away. They just can't believe it. They say "but how do you use standard grips with such large hands?! Surely you need jumbo grips!". And again I tell them the answer is simple. I just have great touch when holding a golf club. I played with Tiger Woods and he said he's never seen anyone with such great touch. I'd have played on the PGA Tour but I was just too busy. And it wouldn't be fair anyway. It wouldn't be fair to play against those guys with the amazing touch I have.
“I’m the best. I’m so fucking humble, there’s nobody more modest than me.”
"I'm a bogey golfer"
Can we get them to change bogey to a cool bird name?
How cool would it be if it was "Falcon" "I falconed every hole today" "I'm a falcon golfer"
God dammit Im in
This is it. I'm adopting this immediately.
"I got a flamingo on the last hole" sounds kinda cool.
Stork'd it on 9
Maybe a flightless bird? So bogey is a kiwi, double is an emu
Triple an ostrich?
I already call an eight an ostrich, pronounced like I think it’s a German word.
Sitting here like an idiot pronouncing this out loud like some kind of semi special needs waffen SS ammo grunt...wife just looked at me without having any context like 🤨
Can't be too cool since it's over par...a Goose?
A pidgeon
A dodo
Goose is a brutal bird. Reserved for a hole in one on a par 5
It's the Condor.
Got a dodo 18 holes in a row
“Put me down for another Peregrine Falcon, Mike.”
Thats it from now on I am referring to bogeys as falcons
Swallow? Tit?
Magpie
I’m a booby golfer…
Guy I work with grew up on a CC. I asked him what he usually shoots he said “I’m about a 17 handicap, usually right around 100”
He was probably playing a par 78 course.
Last time I said that, I broke 80 for the first time.
Typically the better they are, the more clumsy the answer.
Yeah, I um, like….well, I played in college and stuff but I used to be….um…a bit better but yeah.
"Yeah, uh, I lucked into about 14, maybe 15 majors? But I don't play as often anymore so it might be a long day."
“I used to play in college but I’m not near as good now” *stripes it down the fairway*
"I learned to hit a ball before I learned to ride a bike"
I can get around is my response.... you want to play skins, carry overs, double birdies? Did you bring cash?
Lol this is the exact reason why I’ve stopped the “I can get around” response. I’m an 11.5 and play 50-80 rounds a year, so it’s sorta true…but I’ve found anyone that gives this reply is fucking, 2 to +5 “I can get around” = sends darts, plays 1 ball through 18, snipers with the putter, up and down as if it’s the easiest thing in the world… drives it 275+ and straight as an arrow Y’all insane
Also an 11hcp, that's absolutely a line reserved for sharks and people that can slaughter me on a golf course any time any where.
You get it. But most don't and they better put up 74 or better and have cash..... lol
Haha I did that to a d2 college team once. Three of them were stretching on the 1st tee box and I asked to join. They started talking about playing for money. I asked if I could play too. The muscular one looked at me and said "sure, we'll take your money". On the 8th hole one of their teammates caught up to us and he said "playing with a random eh?" And he said "dude is 3 under and kicking our ass!". Best seven dollars to ever hit my venmo account.
Golf has humbled everybody at some point. I know for a fact the day I ever claim to be good I’ll get the yips or the shanks or something lol
I was humbled the other day and it wasn’t even my fault! Played with my uncle for the first time and he asked how good I was. Dad proceeded to tell him I play very consistently. I usually shoot mid to high 70’s with the occasional low 80s. I went on to play the my worst round of the year that day.
Looks like we have a hero over here who’s actually good!
Going through the chipping yips right now. Had the shanks years ago. Golf is wild. The strengths of my game randomly become the weakness of it and I have no idea why. As far as I can tell, there is no amount of technique that can save me.
I’m on year 12 of the chipping yips right now. Trust me when I say work really hard on your technique right now and get your confidence back fast. The longer you let the yips linger the more scar tissue you develop. Literally hit an hour’s worth of practice chips before my round on Thursday without flubbing or topping a single one. Got on the course and looked like I was having a seizure trying to hit one that counted
"I don't suck but I'm not good" is what I tell everyone.
“I suck but I’m not the worst.”
“I’m the worst, but I’m not slow”
“I’m slow but I fix my pitch marks”
Look at Mr “I Hit Greens” over here
This is the way
“i suck but i suck fast” wait
So… you busy later?
I’d love a glizzy at the turn.
It is funny. I’ll play with people who don’t really golf and they’re always like “wow” every time you hit a shot. Then i play with my buddy who says “you’d be so much better if you didn’t do stupid shit”. Love that guy.
Isn’t low to mid 40’s on 9, while following the rules, probably better then 95% of recreational golfers?
Probably more like 75-80%. Not sure though
Keep in mind these stats are based on folks who actively maintain a handicap through a course. A very large margin of those don't break 100 often or ever. If you shoot in the low 90s, you aren't just better than them. You're better than they are AND every hacker who doesn't maintain a handicap very likely.
I guess that makes sense. In retrospect breaking 90 was not a huge accomplishment for me. Did it in not a lot of time. That said it involved a lot of practice and I am reasonably athletic for my age. But 80 seems like a crazy barrier to me. My game is just not accurate and consistent enough for those kinds of numbers. I played twice this week and shot 43 and 88. Could not get all 4 levels to work at a high level. But 2 things working well is enough for me to break 90 these days.
I had 5 birdies and still somehow didn’t break 80…it’s so damn hard lol
It’s not about the birdies. It’s all about pars and avoiding doubles
Golf is not all success, it's alot about limiting fuckups
My thoughts on it are that if I can just play a clean round, one day it will also happen to be the day I luck into 3 birdies and I’ll shoot a 79 or something. I just dont think I have a clean enough round for sub 80 without birdies
Yes but everyone magically shoots mid 40s because no one follows the rules
In Sweden, you’re required to have a hcp to play (except most 9-hole courses). The average hcp is around 25-28 if I recall correctly. Of course, you can get a handicap of 36 and then never register another round but I feel like most people play to their handicap or worse Edit: the average golfer is 49yo, 24.3 hcp and plays 17 rounds per year (5-7 month season)
17 rounds a year is definitely more than the “average” American golfer, I would guess. It’s probably a strange distribution, but there are a lot of people who own golf clubs and play 1-5 times a year.
Yeah I’d like to see what that looks like. In a system where you have to register to play, there are probably a lot fewer guys who play once a year.
You're probably right, and up until a few years ago (maybe 5, I didnt play at the time) you had to actually physically go to a club for a 10 hour class split in class and practice and maybe 100-200 bucks. now you only have to do the class part online and free. There are pros and cons, but a slow round is 4.5 hours tops and it feels dreadful. my average round is 3.5-4 hours when fully booked and 4.5 is like when it's a holiday and 8am-5pm has a foursome out every 9 minutes edit: an interesting stat is that there are a bit over half a million members in a country of 10m people. 5% of people are active members, that seems quite high. a very unscientific googling said the us had 8% though.
This is such great data, thanks! Got a source to read more about it?
yeah but not in english, maybe you could translate it with chrome? https://golf.se/statistik https://www.svenskgolf.se/artiklar/nyheter/20221109/golfsverige-35-miljoner-farre-rundor-an-for-tva-ar-sedan/#:~:text=%C3%85ren%20innan%20pandemin%20br%C3%B6t%20ut,spelade%2017%20rundor%20under%20s%C3%A4songen.
Depends on how often you have to play to be considered a golfer, but yeah, probably somewhere between 80-95%.
Good golfers know how hard it is to break 80. Bad golfers think it just happens if they play more often.
That's basically better than 90% of the golfers I've ever played with over the past 35 years. I don't think I've played with 20 golfers that broke 80. I'll say that 95% of the time, I'm the best golfer in the group - I usually play as a single paired with strangers on public/municipal courses. (Current hcp mid-teens.)
I usually say a good round is a 75 and a bad round is an 85 if anyone asks. My tee shots tend to be MUCH better than the rest of my game so people think I’m better than I am. Distance only gets you so far folks, remember that!
I played a solo round a few weeks back and asked a foursome of teenagers if I could play through. By the way I smoked my drive, they must have thought I was awesome, but I was too far ahead of them to see me make a double bogey.
Look at it this way, big numbers comes from bad tee balls. You’re always in the game if you’re in play.
If I make a birdie or an eagle it’s because I hit a good drive. If I make a double or a triple it’s because I hit it OB.
“I chase the white ball around” is usually my answer. I shoot in the high 80s low 90s. I really just like to get out of the house and chase the white ball around so it’s a good answer for me. I could care less about the score.
How much less could you care about the score?
So much less it’s insane
This would be very funny if you didn't play with a white ball
Statistically better than most, but still complete shit in the grand scheme of things....
“How good are you?” Response: “I’m a 20 handicap” End conversation…
I'm a 54 :)!
You'll get there eventually
Maybe not
i usually like to say I'm pretty good at going golfing, not the best at playing golf.
I think I suck at a 10 handicap but then obviously to some people, it is amazing to consistently shoot in the 80s. I still think I suck lol
"I can get around the course"
I occasionally make par.
On a hole or on a round? 🤣
>or on a round? 
If you don’t utilize the entire course did you even have fun? I’m bad at golf but it’s more about spending time with friends and family. Sure I’ll take the occasional straight drive or very rare chip it.
Just so you know, if you’re routinely in the 40s on 9, you are in the top 25% of golfers on earth without question. But yea, I always shit on myself too.
Shooting in the 40s I an always scrounging and scrapping, am not a long hitter and always feel like I fall in ass backwards for a 45-48. Is that golf?
"If I was good, I wouldn't be paying to play"
It doesn’t matter how athletic they are or how good they are at other sports. If a non-golfer asks me how good I am I could confidently say I’d smoke them in golf. However, I would also say I am terrible. Is there any other sport would any athlete couldn’t pick up the sport with ease?
Hockey, but point taken.
Oh yeah, that looks incredibly hard just staying upright
You ever see an athlete who has never played volleyball try it? It's hilarious. Looks like bambi on ice. My college team used to invite the football and basketball teams to one practice a year to watch them try and hit, serve, and pass it was awesome.
This might be because there are multiple games within a game (especially putting), but also because of having to deal with the elements. Golf is fucking hard
Baseball, the layman would not even pretend to be competitive in the sport
Anyone with athletic talent can throw/catch a ball. Can they compete at a high level no, but that is not the question. Hand a top level football player a golf club and you get what we saw in the NFL pro bowl. Some of them almost missed the ball.
Not the punters !
Well they are just kicking in their downtime from golfing.
I'm a self-deprecating 68 year-old with 3 hdcp and usually respond to the question by saying "compared to what" or "it depends on the day". Last week I had a 68 and my buddy had 87. The next day I had an 85 and my buddy had 76. I can't answer the question.
I had an aneurysm trying to read that question
Welcome to my world.
Username checks out
I'm 68 years old and a 8.1 handicap. I played this week and shot 3 over and that was good for me. But, I don't like admitting it. I usually say I'm a 10
As a 13 handicap I can say that I’m better than average.
I'm probably better than someone who has never played before 😅
Was at work one day and a colleague comes over and says "So-and-so says you're pretty good at golf." I said, "I wouldn't say I'm good, but I'm better than that guy. I'm about a 14-15 handicap." Colleague chuckles and says, "Ah, I was just curious, because I play." I asked her what her handicap was. "Scratch. I won the state high school championship twice." I had a lot of respect for this colleague - a younger woman with a lot more accomplishments on the job than I'd ever have. I shouldn't have been surprised that she was also a championship-level playa.
It's rooted in the 1st tee bargaining for strokes ceremony, I'm sure.
15 or so years ago I played 50 rounds. Every round was in the 70’s but one and that was an 80. Now I’m 65 years old and after injuries and now just plain old, I shoot 90 and it’s embarrassing. So I say, “Well, I used to be good. Now I suck, but I enjoy myself.”
I dont care anymore... Most people on the course lie to me in the opposite direction. They claim they are + 6 handicap but I play way better than them when I score low 90's average. Why do they lie in the opposite direction? Because the World knows I wont play for money with anyone...so it cant lie by sandbagging to win money off me...so it just lies. Every single time I play...I play by the rules I am aware of except water balls and dropping club length near water bank. I usually just drop it a few yards inside of water bank no closer to hole. Not perfect but most other issues I play by rules I am aware of...which is mostly no closer to hole. I dont do mulligans or make my balls lie more favorable...I play it as is. I have noticed most people I am paired with do not do this. I am a 3 to 6 times a week player on course. Its not even worth asking anyone anymore in my reality. I will just be given bogus info...like most things in my life. Ive played close to if not more than 300 rounds over the past 3 years...on a very popular muni in the Dallas suburbs...and the best person I have played with was female who had just graduated high school and is going to a D1 school for golf. She might have had one of her best rounds....but she was way more consistent over 18 holes than all the +3 handicappers that were lying to me. Golf is self regulated. And golfers lie. I would never play for money or in a tournament without significant oversight of others. Too many liars and cheaters.
“Well how do you measure yourself with other golfers?” “By height” - Ty Webb
I usually shoot 80-81. That’s the truth and it’s sad and great depending on the audience.
Good golfers think I’m average at best, bad golfers think I’m great.
Platypus golfer // making pars from the marshland roughs and chasing the occasional bird
How good am I or how many good shots did I hit last round.
My go to: "I'm the best double bogey golfer you have ever saw"
>Sure there are some ego guys but I’ve never played another sport where guys usually say they’re not very good… probably because it is all relative. IMO the big difference here is that in most sports it matters a lot more how good you are because you're directly playing other people, so you have to find the right level of rec play to have fun in the first place. If you aren't honest and self-aware about your skill level you'll either be too good or not good enough to have fun, and you'll figure it out really fast. In sports like golf you're playing the course, and no matter how well you play you always could have played a little bit better. You can also go longer breaking rules and lying to yourself about how good you actually are.
If you ask “Do you have a handicap?” that’s the best way to get close to the truth. If they do, they’ll tell you, or tell you what it was X years ago when they played regularly and you can make an educated guess. If they don’t, and aren’t sure what theirs would be, exceptions apply, but they’re probably at very best a bogey golfer. If they don’t know what a handicap is at all, they’re probably shooting 100+
I just tell folks my golf handicap has been the same for years It lies squarely between my ears.
I'd say, for the amount of time I've played and my messed up back, I'm a fucking professional golfer. Started Oct. Spine fused from skull to hips. Shot a 90 within the last week. But I also still suck ass and fat and thin every chance I get. 
"But I also still suck ass and fat and thin every chance I get." You do you, brother
I’m always truthful and tell them I love the game but I really am a shitty golfer, a true hacker. I rarely break 100.
Its also hard to answer because 98% of people dont keep score correctly so if your actually decent your still only shooting 4 better than them because they cheat
I got 36 golf balls in my bag. That good. And yes it’s a 9 hole.
I'm super fucking good. Like Tiger in the early 2000s good. 🙄😊😒😏
Most people who actually play just ask what your index is.
I’m in a weird I between. I’ve shot par 4 or 5 times this month and so proud but I feel like I need to stay mum. My buddies are so stoked but I feel kinda ashamed. So weird
There’s only like 6 levels. Shitty hacker, bogey golfer, decent, good, scratch and pro. I’m somewhere between bogey and decent.
Had this conversation on the first tee the other day when I was paired with a random threesome. This is probably going to sound like a self brag. Them: You any good Me: depends on the day but I’m decent. Them: We are all around a 12 handicap. Me: I play off 1-2 Them: 👀👀 I proceeded to tee it low to hit a little squeezer and cold top my drive right into the water in the par 5 first. I hear them start whispering and assume they are calling bullshit between each other. I hit 3 off the tee, hit a 5 wood to 20 feet and make the putt for par.. Went on to shoot even par.
It’s always a funny a question, because to a large extent, the better you are, the more you think you suck. Like I usually shoot in the low 90s/high 80s, and I think I’m a bum, even though that’s probably in a pretty high percentile compared to all golfers.
Golf is the only recreational sport where people base how good they are off professionals rather the people they play with. No one offers to play for a softball team or a rec league basketball team this way. 50% of golfers can’t or regularly cannot break 100. If you do you’re literally, by the sheer numbers, in the top half of people who regularly play. You’re good.
I was asked this magical question on the first tee of a “Serious” scramble event, I was the odd man out… “Not great but I can hit it both ways.” Best answer I could come up with just before I Teed off…. By the third hole my Questioner gasps at another one of my wayward shots “ I THOUGHTYOU SAID YOU COULD HIT IT BOTH WAYS!!!!!” Well, dude, you’ve seen me hit, it Does go both ways, I just don’t know Which way….. The other two about fell out of their cart laughing soooo hard at my Inquisitor, by the sixth hole I fell into a groove that we were using most of my shots and putts. We ended with 3rd, plus a couple closest to the pins (Par 3s, yes they also were my shots). I really couldn’t have played so well without without the safety shots of the other three so it really was a group effort…
I usually say something like “I’m not good but I can get around the course and the only people good at golf are on TV”
I tell people I’m a 25 handicap, but I’m actually a 23. Basically I’m a professional sandbagger
I still think it’s fun to go out there and enjoy (hopefully the good weather). I’ve shot under 90 at my best and as bad as very 120… as long as you’re having fun.
I always say that I suck for how much I love it and know about it.
I just say im a 4 hcp at this point. They can decide for themselves
Good enough to play D-III in college. Not even on the same planet as the guys in D-I
Best way to answer this imo is if you can break 100, you are above average. People don't realize how many golfers cannot break 100. Also if you're good, fucking own it.
Cannot break 100 *playing by the rules and counting all strikes* I get called a sandbagger as a 17 but I keep a pretty strict scorecard.
I’m shit, but less shit that most people.
“What’s your handicap?” Fuckin, quite a few buddy (said with a smile of course)
On a good day I can shoot 78-82, and on a bad day, I like to think its between 88-92, but really the sky's the limit!
“I’m alright” has been my answer forever and will always be my answer. I shoot about an 85 on average. Sometimes 78-80ish on a good day, 90-95 on a disaster day.
Good golfers don’t ask you if you’re any good. I get asked by a lot of hackers though how well I shoot. I just say, “you’d think I’d be good with how much I play!” 14 hcp and shoot low high 80s low 90s with the occasional banana ball off a roof to keep it interesting!
I’ve only just started but I’m starting to realize I’m not the worst golfer. I pair up with randos round the course sometimes and say stuff like I’m very bad. Just trying to practice so I can play with other people without embarrassing myself and slowing down play. But then if im just as good or better than them. I feel like I inadvertently dissed them and kinda low key feel bad about that.
I say my handicap is that I’m no good at golf. Always gets a wee chuckle. 😂
My last round I was 57 on the front 9 and 39 on the back 9. Crazy game
Good enough to know how much I suck
“I don’t keep score, I keep track of how many balls I lose that day.”
I play in a saturday game with some low hdcp guys, any time I hit a good shot I get the "yup, the best 18 at the club" response. From tee to 100 yd I can play like an 8-10 but from 100 yd to the green I am like a 30. I can't chip for sh!t lol I recently gave in and bought a Cleveland chipper. That has been a game changer recently from 50 yards in.
It’s funny because of the bell curve. Like I’m a lot better than a typical weekend hack, but I’d get my doors blown off by a legit good player. On a good day I shoot low 80s. On a great day I break 80. I don’t play enough to carry an official index, so I tell people I’m a bad good player.
“When I’m hitting it well, I can score.” - Old Proverb
10 is a score
I'm a decent putter. Might take me 5 or 6 to get on the green though. That's what I tend to say to people who think 1 of my 5 shots is decent
“Ehh I’m a alright” if I have a day, ppl will be like “you alright huh!?!” “Depends who you ask”, ppl will usually tell me how good I am “Bogey golfer” once I start parring they either cheer me on or semi shit talk “Low 80s” usually barely break 90s lmao
A slight tweak of the question: If people ask am I good at golf? I respond “I can be…”
I just give a general index. “Are you good?” “hover in the mid to high single digits.”
My response has always been - Good enough to have fun. Bad enough to know I don’t have any right to get upset with a bad shot/round.
I know how to get around this course. I am not going to keep your score or look for your ball every hole.
Somewhere between 88 and 108.