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Better this Way

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Fri, Jul 24 2009 10:06 PM (13 replies)
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  • Futures
    79 Posts
    Thu, Jul 23 2009 5:45 PM

    It is much better to COUNTevery round you play.  I think most players probably count all rounds,  but I think  many don't.  

    I do even with unlimited play tournaments---NO STARTING OVER, NOT FOR ME!!!  Honesty makes your handicap truly accurate and it feels good to know my true ability and how much I need to improve. 

    The ONLY time that I won't coun't a round is if the connection is all screwed up, but I would say this applies to something like 1 in 50 games; so hardly at all.

    I play a lot of real golf, and you have to count all strokes; same here.  If you want to be honest with yourself, that is. 

  • Faterson
    2,902 Posts
    Thu, Jul 23 2009 6:55 PM

    Futures:
    I think most players probably count all rounds

    I wish I could share your optimism. My definite impression from dozens of multi-player rounds is that most players who join them quit (usually on holes 1-3), and only a minority of players finish all 9 holes. Seeing a foursome complete all 9 holes is extremely rare.

    (Also, and I mean no disrespect to lady golfers, it seems like 9 out of 10 lady golfers ditch their partners after their first bad shot or two, without so much as saying bye. My favorite lady quitter was one who, instead of making a bogey putt from 2 feet, swapped her putter for the driver, hit a furious drive of about 200 yards from the green to the nearby woods, and disconnected from the game without saying farewell. She was one of those numerous Pros with low 70s average scores. Except that on this site, a low average score doesn't signify much, since you can adjust it to your liking by quitting all of your bad rounds.)  

  • BALLSDEEP2
    7 Posts
    Thu, Jul 23 2009 7:41 PM

    Does it really matter if someone does not finish a round with you or whoever! Maybe they dont like playing with you, maybe something came up good lord people need to stop with the bs and worry about something more important!!! Finish your round and move on its just a game you can restart its ok.Faterson you need to play with ncviz or iconian theey will mop the course with you

  • Faterson
    2,902 Posts
    Thu, Jul 23 2009 8:25 PM

    BALLSDEEP2:
    Does it really matter if someone does not finish a round with you or whoever! 

    I believe it does. If I want to play a single-player game, I can launch that instead of a multi-player game that turns into single-player after a few holes. It's a matter of (un)fulfilled expectations.

    By way of illustrating that, unlike you, I'm no Master, just an occasional golfer, and I like doing other things on my computer while playing multi-player rounds. (Probably a sacrilegious thing to hear for a Master's ears!) That means I enjoy processing my emails, reading the news, etc., while playing a multi-player game. That's why I like foursomes; they move slowly, and I have time between shots to devote to other things. However, after 2 out of 4 folks quit, the speed of the game suddenly becomes a lot faster, and I practically need to focus exclusively on the golf game, which is not what I originally wanted. That's some unfulfilled expectation for ya, and it can be very frustrating.  

  • nivlac
    2,188 Posts
    Thu, Jul 23 2009 11:20 PM

    Well, I try not to quit any multiplayer games, unless as Futures mentioned, there is a connection problem or I get involved with the wrong people.  Just getting a game started can be quite an adventure some days.  Sometimes the meter freezes on me at the exact right moment causing a massive mis-click.  Those rounds get trashed because rolling the ball 20 yards in front of me isn't indicative of my ability, but even when that happens I still play through to the last putt because rounds with good friends are few and important.

    However, when it comes to unlimited play, I'll toss the round the minute I feel I cannot attain the score I've already posted.  For one, I don't have all day, despite what some may think. :)  I'm never playing more than an hour or two a day to avoid burnout.  I've been there once already, so lately I've been trying to regulate my playing time a little better.  I've been all over the forums today, but didn't play a single round.

    Secondly, and more importantly, it's a financial decision.  My GI-D balls cost money.  I need to be very aware of how much ball I'm wasting on a round deemed useless.  In unlimited 9-hole play, I can't use more than a sleeve otherwise I very well could end up in the red and that's no good.  I need to make smart 'business' decisions to maximize how long those balls last.  If that means stopping on hole #13 because things aren't working out then my wallet and I remain friends another day.

    For me, average never enters the equation anymore.  Before recently, it was a game to take down the #1 spot and average mattered only as it related to performing that specific task.  Now that #1 spot is gone and there's no longer a reason for us to continue that behavior other than ego stroking.  My average now sits at 61.82 mostly because I've played a lot of multi and 9-hole tourney rounds this month.  It's a lot easier to shoot a 31 than it is to shoot a 62, so the average comes down just because I'm playing 9 holes instead of 18.  I certainly don't expect to go shoot a 62 every 18 holes, but I can realistically expect a 31 without nearly as much effort.  If 9-hole games were counted as half rounds as they should be then my average would probably be a little higher than it is now, but that probably wouldn't change things much.  Two front 9's on Bethpage are easier than two back 9's, so the system is still flawed.

    I appreciate the comparison to real golf, but what applies in the real world doesn't always carry over to the virtual world.  A classic example is Call of Duty.  That's supposed to be a war simulation, but yet you can turn friendly fire off.  I bet some of our troops over in Iraq & Afghanistan wished they could do that.  Sure, that's probably not the best example, but I just used it to illustrate that there's almost always a disconnect between real and virtual.  Having the ability to suspend reality is important when watching a movie and in various ways, you have to be willing to do the same thing here.  Holes #12 and #16 on Kiawah run in exact opposite directions, but I still must suspend reality to accept that I somehow ended up with a headwind on both holes.  It is only a computer game after all, so I try to take it for what it is instead of what it's meant to imitate.

    From my experience, I tend to find that the importance of average drops off immensely as you progress to the top of the player pool.  Though plenty do, not every player is out there to stroke their ego.  Personally, I don't need a number to tell me if I'm any good or not.

    Sorry to go on and on, but I wanted to give you guys a different, non-average centered perspective on this. :)

  • Futures
    79 Posts
    Fri, Jul 24 2009 9:14 AM

    I finish all rounds and I don't start over...Period. 

     I take back what I said. I will re-state "Better This Way, for me".  My average score is as accurate as it can be for this game.  I don't start over, I complete all rounds.  That's how I get the most fun out of this game.  I like my average to be as perfect as it can be. 

    I care more about my average score being accurate than I do starting over to win a few extra credits.  I don't have all day either; so I want to go to the next hole and finish.  I don't want to keep starting over,   maybe climb a couple spots on a leader board.  I am not here to focus on credits or prizes, but if they come my way then okay (I was happy with my 7 birdies in a row).  But  I am here to have fun,  and fun for me is approaching this game as I approach my real-life golf game.  I finish all rounds and I count all my strokes.  I want to know my true ability.  I come to this site to establish an accurate rating...period. Tha'ts what makes this game exciting.....for me.  Knowing that if I lose a ball or have a bad hole, I can overcome and fight back to negative figures on my round.   I like the challenge. 

  • tibbets
    1,043 Posts
    Fri, Jul 24 2009 10:10 AM

    If you want an accurate rating, then start by playing 18 hole rounds only.  9 hole rounds times 2 doesn't give you an accurate rating at all.  At one point my average was 55.  It's pretty easy to lower your average considerably if you only play 9 hole rounds.

  • nivlac
    2,188 Posts
    Fri, Jul 24 2009 12:04 PM

    That's all well and good.  Everyone will have a different approach to the game.   

    When I first stumbled upon WGT however many months ago the one thing that caught my eye was an advertisement banner that said something like, "Join the World Golf Tour and quit your day job!"  I took that as my challenge to become good enough to compete in the eventual cash tourneys they will offer.  Supplement the income a little while having some fun in the process.   After all, aside from The Donald, who doesn't need more cash?

    Very little matters to me aside from actual tournament performance.  I can try to win tourneys with a 61 average, or I can try to win tourneys with a 74 average it doesn't really matter.  Either way, the only score that ever really matters is the one I shoot in a tournament.  That is the ultimate barometer of success or fail for me.

  • Futures
    79 Posts
    Fri, Jul 24 2009 12:51 PM

    Well, sure, I guess we all play for different reasons.  But, really, no one is going to make sufficient income on this site.  You might as well give it up and take up part-time work if you really need more income.

    Realistically, if I wan't to make more money, I will have to take up a part-time job and spend less time on this website, which I plan to do.  But I am not here to make money. 

    Regarding my average score, even if 9 hole rounds are not accurate, it does not matter.  It's going to be the same for everyone.  I already shoot at least 8 strokes better here than in real life.  If I get a lower average from the nine hole rounds, it's okay.  It is still an accurate figure because I finish all rounds no matter what, and no starting over.  I like it that way.  

    The most I have won here is 150.00 at amazon.  But even the best players on here are wasting their time if their ultimate goal is to establish more income.  Even they could make a ton more money doing something else.

    When you look at the hours spent on this site,  you are actually losing money--compared to what you could be doing in hours spent at some other job.

  • Lysti
    323 Posts
    Fri, Jul 24 2009 12:54 PM

    9 out of 10 lady golfers?  Wheres that number coming from? Wow...I've only played one other person who has quit on me before but theres been times when I was invited way too late at night which I told him I don't know how long I'm going to last! And people that don't finish their rounds come in all shapes & sizes just so they stop blaming  only the players who are doing poorly for quitting. I witnessed a round when a very well known good player started out poorly & as soon as he was doing well quit without a word and disapeared.

    Didn't really care when that happened...just thought it was funny! =D

    And is it really true theres a single player out there who has never ever quit a round even by him or herself? I think I just take it for what it is...just a game maybe win something maybe not. The competition is fun & I like this better than any other golf game I have ever played.

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