Discussion Boards

    Bookmark and Share
Search | Login

The Big Break - Stina's ridiculous column    Back to Topics  Page: 1 of 8     
From: ASorentino (1 of 72)   7/27/2009 9:06:19 AM
To:
I was reading through the new edition of a very popular golf magazine which contains Stina's monthly column.(Not gonna specifically name magazine) And usually I read her column and just laugh at her suggestions which are silly and sometimes border on ridiculous. You see Stina usually points out the absolute sexist nature of golf. Which I have not endured because I am not a woman. However, I play alot of golf and find her criticisms to be extremely overdone. But this month's column(August), caught my attention for a different reason. The hypothetical posed was some gentleman believes a 4 or 5 handicap male golfer can beat an lpga professional on a 7000plus yard course. Now, I agree that a 4 or 5 handicapper could not beat an lpga pro on a 7000 yard course. But, I have a friend who caddied on the lpga tour for a couple of seasons. This gentleman was a scratch golfer, and played alot of big amateur tournaments. As a caddy, he would tee it up with some of the girls on non-tourney/pro-am days. And he supplemented his income very nicely on these outings. Beating up on the girls on 7000 yard courses was not a problem for him. And I don't think it would be for many plus handicap, tournament tested amateurs. So Stina, good try. I think the lpga players are extremely talented, but I would have to lay my money down on the guys on this one.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: Onebulldogs (2 of 72)   7/27/2009 10:25:44 AM
To: ASorentino In response to Post 1
The entire problem with the hypothetical is the impact of distance on the match.

Let’s say you have two golfers: each is a scratch golfer on the same course.

Golfer A: He averages 285 yards off the tee and obtained his handicap from the black tees, say 7,000 yards.
Golfer B: He/She averages 235 yards off the tee and obtained his/her handicap from the blue tees, say 6,500 yards.

If Golfer A and Golfer B play a match from the back tees, Golf A wins the majority of the time.
- Golfer B will be unlikely to reach any of the Par 5’s in two. Golfer A will reach most of them. (I figure 2-3 shot advantage for A)
- Golfer B will struggle to reach the green in regulation on any long par 4’s. (I figure another 2-3 shot advantage for A)
- A 7,000 yard course will have 1-2 par 3’s in the 200 yard range. Golfer B will be forced to hit a fairway wood while Golfer A will probably have an iron in his hands. (I figure a 1-2 shot advantage for A).
- All in, I would think B would need 6-8 shots to make the competition fair. The longer the course, the more strokes B would need.

If Golfer A and Golfer B play a match from the Blue tees, Golf A wins the majority of the time.
- Although Golfer B will do “OK” on the Par 5’s, they will play as long par 4’s for A. (I figure 1-3 shot advantage for A)
- Although Golfer B will reach the greens on long par 4’s, Golfer A will be hitting a mid iron v. hybrid/FW for the approach (I figure another 1-2 shot advantage for A) (I figure 1-3 shot advantage for A)
- While A will not have huge advantage on Par 3’s and short Par 4’s, figure he is less club (figure 2-4 clubs?) on each shot. (I figure a 1-2 shot advantage for A)
- All in, I would think B would need 3-8 shots to make the competition fair.

Simply put, 50 yards off the tee (+ additional distance on every other club) is an enormous advantage. The short hitter would need strokes to compensate for it. How many would depend upon the course?

If the Amateur got his 5 handicap from the blue tees at most courses, I would take the LPGA pro 90-95% of the time – regardless of distance played. If he got it from the black tees, it would be a close match at 7,000 yards.


Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: Mo222 (3 of 72)   7/27/2009 10:36:04 AM
To: ASorentino In response to Post 1
I saw a couple other columns of hers that were ridiculous.

1. She stated that people should not take practice swings b/c it slows down the pace of play. I hate slow play, but you can take practice swings and still play quickly. She played to a 12 index at the time so perhaps she would benefit from a quick practice swing or two.

2. If I remember correctly, she said she did not want men to get out of the golf cart when she teed off, and certainly did not want them to walk with her to her tee box, even if the intent was to watch where the ball went.

3. She wants to ban cigars from the golf course. I hate cigars and will do everything I can to make sure I am not downwind, but I will not advocate banning them.

I am beginning to wonder if she is just trying to get a laugh from her column.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: GolfPHX (4 of 72)   7/27/2009 12:01:56 PM
To: ASorentino In response to Post 1
A 5 handicapper male would beat a good number of LPGA Tour players from 7,000 yards. Not all of them, probably not even most of them, but a good number of the LPGA Tour players would not be able to beat a 5 handicap male who plays a 7,000 yard course on a regular basis from that distance. I would say the bottom 1/4 of the LPGA Tour could not break 80 on a 7,000 yard course. the problem in this comparison is that everyone assumes that Annika Sorenstam or Lorena Ochoa are the "typical" LPGA pros, and that is simply not true. Take a look at #125 in the LPGA scoring stats - 15 events, 48 rounds - 74.04 average. This player is somehow 76th on the money list. A 5 handicapper could take her on and win 9 out of 10 from 7,000 yards. She averages over 74 from much, much shorter distances, she would not break 80 from 7,000 yards.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: Rali (5 of 72)   7/27/2009 6:11:14 PM
To: Mo222 In response to Post 3
As a woman golfer, I have to agree with Stina on Item #2, about men not needing to be on the tee box when she hits her tee shot. Most all women I play golf with feel the same way. We usually stand completely away from the tee box & let the player who's up have it all to herself. It's just considered a courtesy.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: 19thHOLEskipper (6 of 72)   7/27/2009 8:43:35 PM
To: ASorentino In response to Post 1
So let me get this right,
on one hand you agree with her hypothetical premise,
and on another you don't?
Or was it that you got it all twisted around into something else entirely, and have yet to make a point?

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: StormingZ (7 of 72)   7/28/2009 5:46:35 AM
To: Mo222 In response to Post 3
It's funny the way they depict Stina in the magazine...always an angry look on her face...arms crossed as she looks on in scorn at the someone (usually a man) breaking one of "her" rules of golf!

I'm not a big cigar smoker, but when she said that if a cigar smoker bothered her, she'd yank the cigar out of the guy's mouth and step on it. That one got a lot of laughs a few weeks ago with the guys. I won't even say what one of them said he would do if she ever took the cigar out of his mouth! :0)

Anyway, can any guy imagine how awful it would be to be married to this woman? Good looks only go so far...living with a feminazi drill sargent would be the worst!
Edited 7/28/2009 5:48:00 AM by StormingZ

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: golfhound (8 of 72)   7/28/2009 6:18:41 AM
To: ASorentino In response to Post 1
I am a 6 handicap at my home course. Last fall, I played with two ladies who were active LPGA players. They were not top tier players, but both had earned a fair amount of money on the tour and were able to retain their cards. They played from the same tees as I did. The course plays 6532 yards. I out drove both of them by an average of 30 to 35 yards. On the par fours, when I hit a 7 iron, they were hitting hybrids. They were very accurate and were excellent putters. I didn't have a great day and both of them beat me by a few strokes from 6532 yards. At 7000 yards, I think the outcome would be different. They might still win, but I think I could beat them at least some of the time. In any case, they were both very nice and a lot of fun to play with.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: kingofpoop2 (9 of 72)   7/28/2009 6:51:12 AM
To: Rali In response to Post 5
Don't know what you or her are talking about because I have never set foot on a woman's tee unless my ball landed there or my young daughter needed help teeing her ball.
Don't have any idea where in the world this is coming from.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

From: 19thHOLEskipper (10 of 72)   7/28/2009 6:54:09 AM
To: kingofpoop2 In response to Post 9
The more I read of your posts the more I come to the conclusion you don't actually play the game.

Reply  Report  Ignore  

   Page: 1 of 8     

Go to post: 1-10  11-20  21-30  ...  71-72  
Back to Topics