Mulligans...why?

[ATL96Steeler]

Full disclosure...I used to take mulligans when I 1st started playing until one day...another story.

This past weekend I played with 2 guys...one I hadn't played before, and the other I hadn't played with in a couple of years...we're all announcing where our game are...1st tee...they're both in the fairway and I'm underneath a tree, but a clean 2nd shot.

We get to the green and they ask me about mulligans...they normally take 2 a side...I say no I haven't played that way in some time, but what's the purpose?

The response was..."we're just amateurs"....well, we played the round out...no mulligans...I asked them afterwards...were these scores about where you would normally score? Well...no...normally about 4-5 shots lower.

If you play a round a every other month or even less...who really cares? It would take you a couple of years to have enough rounds for a handicap... in that case IMO the score shouldn't matter to be honest.

What about you...do you take mulligans...if so, why?

 

[fknhippie]

Kind of...when my wife and I are playing, we'll try shots we've never practiced just to see if we can do them. Gotta call it before you try though, what would you normally do and what are you going to try. if you can't pull off the shot, you do your normal shot and move on.

if you're playing with the guys, no mulligan.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Kind of...when my wife and I are playing, we'll try shots we've never practiced just to see if we can do them. Gotta call it before you try though, what would you normally do and what are you going to try. if you can't pull off the shot, you do your normal shot and move on.

if you're playing with the guys, no mulligan.

No biggie...those are kind of practice rounds if you will and you do learn what you can and can't do better on the course vs the range.

 

[jonvi]

I play the game about once a year...some years none. I go with the thinking that the more strokes, the better the deal is for the money.

But I never take a muligan. I usually don't have enough golf balls in the bag to take chances on mulligan's.

 

[HizzleRocker]

The only time I ever take one is if I am going straight to the tee without any warm up whatsoever. Even then, it is stated beforehand, "2 off the tee."

Mulligans during the round is just not right.

 

[mrwallace2ku]

W/o the "mulligan" I would have quit this sports 20 years ago. Pencils the best "wood" in my bag anywhoze.

 

[NEhomer]

Mulligans

 

[R.J. MacReady]

Mulligans are like sleeping pills. It's something you may need to use at some point in your life but you want to get off them as soon as possible.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I play the game about once a year...some years none. I go with the thinking that the more strokes, the better the deal is for the money.

But I never take a muligan. I usually don't have enough golf balls in the bag to take chances on mulligan's.

lol...especially on those water holes...you know more than just 1 ball wants to go swimming!

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I found it really funny that one of the guys is a member of a club and actually carries a hdcp...I told him...you do know that the handicap is supposed to help you right?

Golf is one of the few sports/games where it's actually okay to be bad (relative to par, thus handicaps) so that's why I find mulligans comical now...I mean if you shoot 92 with a couple of mulligans vs 95 without them...what's the big deal?

 

[gohusk]

I play with them. The only chance I get to play is at dawn which is before 5 in the morning mid-summer so there's no warmup at all. I'll give myself one for my first drive, first long iron shot, and first short iron shot if I need them. I know it's technically cheating, but most guys are getting in a small bucket before they hit the course so I don't have a problem with it.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

I play with them. The only chance I get to play is at dawn which is before 5 in the morning mid-summer so there's no warmup at all. I'll give myself one for my first drive, first long iron shot, and first short iron shot if I need them. I know it's technically cheating, but most guys are getting in a small bucket before they hit the course so I don't have a problem with it.

If you're a casual, every so often player...not a big deal...but if this is your regular routine and these other guys are getting there early enough to get in a small bucket, I wouldn't be so accommodating...if $ was on the line...if not...no problem.

I play with some guys sometimes that always show up 5 mins before the tee time and play right out of the trunk...2 off the 1st is how they do it...the thought is if everybody gets 2 off the 1st, its a level playing field.

 

[gohusk]

If you're a casual, every so often player...not a big deal...but if this is your regular routine and these other guys are getting there early enough to get in a small bucket, I wouldn't be so accommodating...if $ was on the line...if not...no problem.

I play with some guys sometimes that always show up 5 mins before the tee time and play right out of the trunk...2 off the 1st is how they do it...the thought is if everybody gets 2 off the 1st, its a level playing field.

For me there's two types of mulligans. The first is when I'm going out to the course cold and swinging the club for the first time and just gaff the living crap out of it because I'm cold and the practice swings were the first time I've had the club in my hand all day. I'll drop another one if that's the case and I'll only allow myself to do that once for the first two holes. The 2nd type is just a bad shot which I won't take because bad shots are part of the game. If I'm playing in the afternoon (which is rare) I won't do this because there's no excuse for going out there cold. But this is all when I'm playing against myself. If there were competitive against other guys then I wouldn't do it beyond two off the first tee. I'm a stickler for everything beyond that. If I get lazy addressing the ball in the rough and I see something that could have very well be an oscillation when addressing the ball after I back away from it because I've noticed that I did that I'll still give myself the stroke penalty, I don't really understand that rule to begin with. With these high resolution cameras and fans officiating the tournaments from their couches is there really any such thing anymore?

 

[Clemenza]

Mulligans are a good way to spice up a bet. So my buddies and I often played a skins game for 18 holes and for each 9 we'd agree that we could use one mulligan but that it could only be used on tee shots and had to be announced immediately (can't wait to see how your opponents hit, for example). It adds a little strategy to the game. In stroke play I agree that it really doesn't have a place but when playing match-play it adds a little bit of fun to the match. We don't take the game or ourselves too seriously so not a big deal to be able to add a mulligan to the match.

 

[ATL96Steeler]

For me there's two types of mulligans. The first is when I'm going out to the course cold and swinging the club for the first time and just gaff the living crap out of it because I'm cold and the practice swings were the first time I've had the club in my hand all day. I'll drop another one if that's the case and I'll only allow myself to do that once for the first two holes. The 2nd type is just a bad shot which I won't take because bad shots are part of the game. If I'm playing in the afternoon (which is rare) I won't do this because there's no excuse for going out there cold. But this is all when I'm playing against myself. If there were competitive against other guys then I wouldn't do it beyond two off the first tee. I'm a stickler for everything beyond that. If I get lazy addressing the ball in the rough and I see something that could have very well be an oscillation when addressing the ball after I back away from it because I've noticed that I did that I'll still give myself the stroke penalty, I don't really understand that rule to begin with. With these high resolution cameras and fans officiating the tournaments from their couches is there really any such thing anymore?

Question...not sure what kind of player you are scorewise, but your points above make me think you play more than just a tad.

Say on one of the mornings you use a couple of your "no warm up" mulligans and that day you're just on, and at the end of the round you've broken a scoring barrier...arbitrary number, but break 80 for instance...in your own head can you accept that as a true score?

 

[ATL96Steeler]

Mulligans are a good way to spice up a bet. So my buddies and I often played a skins game for 18 holes and for each 9 we'd agree that we could use one mulligan but that it could only be used on tee shots and had to be announced immediately (can't wait to see how your opponents hit, for example). It adds a little strategy to the game. In stroke play I agree that it really doesn't have a place but when playing match-play it adds a little bit of fun to the match. We don't take the game or ourselves too seriously so not a big deal to be able to add a mulligan to the match.

Agreed...it's not a big deal in that case.

 

[Jack_John_Mark]

No.

But I'm a really competitive guy and I always think I'm going to break the course record every time I tee off.

I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I took a mulligan and ended up shooting a 28 and breaking the 9-hole record at my course.

I'm also an avid golfer and play in several Opens every year, so I might have a different take on it. Ultimately, you're only making yourself worse if you don't make yourself play every shot that you have gotten yourself into. Sittin next to the base of a tree? Too bad, you hit it there, now find a way to make par.

That's what makes golf so great. Even when you hit a shitty shot, you can still score on that hole if you can get creative enough and have a little patience.

 

[Jack_John_Mark]

Gimme's are naughty as well, in my book.

The hardest putts to hit in a tournament are the ones within 4 feet. Make yourself make them.

 

[gohusk]

Question...not sure what kind of player you are scorewise, but your points above make me think you play more than just a tad.

Say on one of the mornings you use a couple of your "no warm up" mulligans and that day you're just on, and at the end of the round you've broken a scoring barrier...arbitrary number, but break 80 for instance...in your own head can you accept that as a true score?

I get in at least 36 holes a week in summer so I do take it seriously and I would take the score with a grain of salt. It's just impossible for me to get any type of warmup in before a round which is a pretty big disadvantage. But if I were playing in a group that was at least semi-competitive I wouldn't do that.

 

[gohusk]

Ok. So I played today and only took 1, and that's because the two guys (couple of random people that I was paired with, really nice guys) insisted on it. Just a horrid tee shot with my 4 iron that went about 50 yards. But I think I'm done with them. You don't go out to the basketball court and ask for retries on outside shots.