Post by Deleted on Oct 25, 2016 20:33:19 GMT -5
I don't have as much time to practice as I used to and as a result, my game has suffered a bit. But that's not the point of this post.
I really enjoy my time as a Ranger testing courses. I get to see what's coming up and even get excited about when I'll get to play some of these courses for real.
When I first started Rangering last season, I used to dread testing the PGA/Euro courses. They were so hard. I remember one I shot 12 over par. But, I had a job to do so I did it. I was also hoping for the day when I'd be able to play one of these monsters and do reasonably well.
About a half hour of so ago, I tested a course that will be coming up on the PGA tour. I had some pretty tough winds and like I said, my game has been suffering. So I expected to do pretty bad.
I shot 11 under par.
Now you have to understand something. I'm not all that good at this game. I'm kind of a bottom rung Web player. Just look at where I am right now this week. I made one cut and missed one so far this season. And that was pretty much how last season went the 10 weeks I was in Web. In fact, I only stayed in Web because of all the guys who were inactive and didn't return. Otherwise, I'd be back in CC this season as I did horribly in the Web finals.
My point? The courses are just not that hard anymore for many of the weeks. With the new rules for the tour, PGA isn't the old PGA.
And with it...my feeling of "If I could only do well on a PGA level course" accomplishment is gone. That awe, wonder, and excitement is a thing of the past. In short, the challenge is gone.
Now yeah, of course I get that if I'm shooting 11 under on this course the PGA elite are going to shoot 20 under. I get that. But if we're going to be shooting arcade scores to compete, that kind of takes away a lot of what TGC great.
And yeah, I also get that this is all relative. If the courses were hard as nails and the top guys were just about breaking par, I'd be shooting 12 over. I get that. But the fun, at least the challenge to doing well on the course itself, forgetting about the rest of the field, is gone. Yeah, I'll shoot my 11 under and everybody else'll still beat me by 4 or 5 strokes, but the sense of accomplishment, at least what you can have in a video game, is pretty much gone for me. I always said if the day ever came that this game was so easy for me that I was shooting in the 50s, I'd be gone. Well, we're getting dangerously close to that time. I shoot 8 under now and it's like, meh. It never used to be that way. 8 under was a score I was proud of. Now, not so much. Not with how easy the courses are becoming.
I don't know where this is all gonna go. I am hoping more than anything that TGC 2 brings a new challenge to this game. Because if firm greens have essentially turned off the player base and have gotten so many people to quit or threatening to quit, and this is what we're left with, TGC 2 can't come soon enough. Because this is a real snooze fest. I don't even care about the weeks anymore like I used to, which might explain why I play so bad when the tourney comes.
Anyway, I've said my peace and now I'm gonna go slink back into my little corner. I don't expect anything to change until TGC 2 but I just needed to vent a little. It's because of this wonderful community that I'm still here and no other reason. But whatever fear I had about playing in the PGA is gone.
Because we're not in Kansas anymore Toto.
I really enjoy my time as a Ranger testing courses. I get to see what's coming up and even get excited about when I'll get to play some of these courses for real.
When I first started Rangering last season, I used to dread testing the PGA/Euro courses. They were so hard. I remember one I shot 12 over par. But, I had a job to do so I did it. I was also hoping for the day when I'd be able to play one of these monsters and do reasonably well.
About a half hour of so ago, I tested a course that will be coming up on the PGA tour. I had some pretty tough winds and like I said, my game has been suffering. So I expected to do pretty bad.
I shot 11 under par.
Now you have to understand something. I'm not all that good at this game. I'm kind of a bottom rung Web player. Just look at where I am right now this week. I made one cut and missed one so far this season. And that was pretty much how last season went the 10 weeks I was in Web. In fact, I only stayed in Web because of all the guys who were inactive and didn't return. Otherwise, I'd be back in CC this season as I did horribly in the Web finals.
My point? The courses are just not that hard anymore for many of the weeks. With the new rules for the tour, PGA isn't the old PGA.
And with it...my feeling of "If I could only do well on a PGA level course" accomplishment is gone. That awe, wonder, and excitement is a thing of the past. In short, the challenge is gone.
Now yeah, of course I get that if I'm shooting 11 under on this course the PGA elite are going to shoot 20 under. I get that. But if we're going to be shooting arcade scores to compete, that kind of takes away a lot of what TGC great.
And yeah, I also get that this is all relative. If the courses were hard as nails and the top guys were just about breaking par, I'd be shooting 12 over. I get that. But the fun, at least the challenge to doing well on the course itself, forgetting about the rest of the field, is gone. Yeah, I'll shoot my 11 under and everybody else'll still beat me by 4 or 5 strokes, but the sense of accomplishment, at least what you can have in a video game, is pretty much gone for me. I always said if the day ever came that this game was so easy for me that I was shooting in the 50s, I'd be gone. Well, we're getting dangerously close to that time. I shoot 8 under now and it's like, meh. It never used to be that way. 8 under was a score I was proud of. Now, not so much. Not with how easy the courses are becoming.
I don't know where this is all gonna go. I am hoping more than anything that TGC 2 brings a new challenge to this game. Because if firm greens have essentially turned off the player base and have gotten so many people to quit or threatening to quit, and this is what we're left with, TGC 2 can't come soon enough. Because this is a real snooze fest. I don't even care about the weeks anymore like I used to, which might explain why I play so bad when the tourney comes.
Anyway, I've said my peace and now I'm gonna go slink back into my little corner. I don't expect anything to change until TGC 2 but I just needed to vent a little. It's because of this wonderful community that I'm still here and no other reason. But whatever fear I had about playing in the PGA is gone.
Because we're not in Kansas anymore Toto.