There's nothing wrong with focusing on your shot and executing. Remember while you're out there to play well, you're also out there to have fun. Cherish it as time goes by way too fast! Keep up the good stuff and keep on improving! 

I think you kind of nailed it on the head, CoolBreeze. There's absolutely nothing wrong with being absorbed by the game, but there should be a balancing act of enjoying your time with your playing partners. I don't think many people want to be the guy that no one will eventually play with if you don't even want to talk to them. Unless you're on tour, remember, it's just a game at the end of the day. 

Thanks. Will try hard to balance the two. When volunteering a couple of months ago, I noticed Stacy Lewis being so focus on her game that she seldom talked. 

I too am in a similar place with my game. I won't discuss my scores with anyone when I play alone. When I am alone I really slow the pace down and study each aspect of each shot, I even play better when paired with a stranger someone that I don't have looks in common to talk about. It is frustrating to me that while playing with my best friends I can't bring that same intensity to those matches. 

I play a lot of the time alone, for the simple reason my buddies do not like the wee hours of the morning like I do,  I savor the walk and usually use my solo rounds for my game improvement, concentrating on shot making , putts, etc.  But I wouldn't give up my time with my playing partner or my league play. For we have a great time enjoying each others company and the game.  

The Balance will reward you with both Game Improvement and Lasting memories with your friends.

I think one thing that will help with balancing your focus/intensity on the golf course will be to develop a really good pre-shot routine. Improving a golf game takes significant commitment and focus and not letting yourself relax between shots might be a recipe for getting burned out and ultimately not enjoying the game. Some of the best players I've played with really do an excellent job of knowing when to dial up the intensity and also dial it back down.

There is a lot to be said for getting into your own world and focusing on your game without outside distractions from everyone else around you. As much as I love to play with a group of regular friends I have played with for years, I definitely play my best whenever I get the opportunity to play solo.

At this time of year here in MD, the courses are not full all day during the week. Some days when the conditions aren't the best, there are very few out there playing. Being a member at a nice daily fee type course, I love to take these opportunities to play solo and as slow or fast as I feel like it, with no one behind me and no one in front. I really focus on my game that way. If I want to take extra practice swings until I feel I am ready, I do. I don't feel the pressure of others waiting on me. I can read putts from all angles and take my time. This is not realistic on a busy course or when even just playing with others. It's not fair to them....unless they happen to have the exact same way of thinking and can relate.

I am a 10 handicap. Yet, this month alone in 4 rounds playing single and another with a very nice guy of whom I did not know, I shot 5 consecutive rounds in the mid-high 70s while really being able to focus on my game. Whereas, my normal scores are in the mid-low 80s most of the time. (We are out-of-season here so the scores did not actually bring down my handicap any.)

Being alone on the course is usually good for my game. I'm not surprised to hear it is for yours too.

Yes, and I believe the USGA is making a huge mistake with the handicap system.  If I post a 79 during my round, I can swear to you it was a 79.  If I post a 91, I can swear to you it was a 91.  In the spring and summer I play nearly all my rounds by myself...or my oldest son.

I race out of the office to hit the course....and bust it to get 18 in before dark.  I can socialize on the course Saturday morning or Sunday afternoon if I have the time.

I rarely play alone, usually with friends or with new people I've never met.   Here's what I do regardless of who i'm playing with.  When I'm hitting or my playing partner is getting set to hit, I back off and keep quiet.  Let them think about their shot,etc... It's only when we're walking to our next shot or waiting to tee off is when i'll engage in a friendly conversation..   

IMO, having those friendly conversations allows me to relax and not think about my previous shot especially if it went wrong "what did I do wrong?", "Why did it go that way ", etc..

CB is dead on, golf is all about having fun and enjoying your time.   It's really the only sport where you get to meet some great people and I've had the honor of meeting a lot of them..   A few of them have invited me to their course after our round has ended (never took them up on it though, wish I had).  Who knows, the next guy you play with could be a member at Augusta :) 

Relax, have fun and keep up the great rounds! 

Cheers!

Hi Rizal,

I think many other posters covered the topic pretty well. Golf is a social game and pastime -- enjoy the playing partners company when appropriate and focus when you need to.

A story I remember reading was about Ben Hogan -- he was particularly well known for how little he interacted with fellow players as he was so focused on his game keeping in mind that he was playing for a living. As Sam Snead said, the only thing Ben often said during a round of golf was "you're away"! :-)

All the best! D.

I guess you have to ask yourself what is more important, playing better  or having fun and enjoying a round with friends. Hit um straight , Dave...

I like to practice on my own at the range or on the cutting green. However, when I am out on the course, I like to play with some friends. I've had some of the best days of my life out on the course with my buds and have some great stories to tell because of it.

Agree, practice time on range and green is alone time. Also like to go out and play alone, just to really work on specific strokes. When I play with friends, I tend to stray mentally, but try to interact with friends and talk about anything but golf.  When time to play, I want my thoughts clearly on the process.  Sometimes, friends think I'm angry, and not talking, but just trying to get my focus back. Luckily, my friends know how serious I am about golf!

Have a great 2016 TT!!!!

Come late March, Tuesday Wednesday Thurs and sometimes on Friday before work I head to the course.

I wake up around 5:30am, get to my club around 6, hit the range for 30 minutes and play as many as holes as I can before 8 am.  

I prefer to play alone.   I only play 9, because that's when I really try to hone in on game, focus and work on my shots, especially my putting.    

I agree it's tough to play in a group and really focus on your game, especially if you're playing with friends who are not as competitive nor serious about golf as you are.  I try to play with friends who have similar aspirations as I do.  That's pretty much only two guys, so it works out pretty well.  An 18 hole round for us is easy 3 hours if not less.  We don't chum it up, we play.

On the weekends, that's when i bring my buddies out, who like to play but aren't as competitive.  It's fun to cut loose with them, but I never get out control with my swing.  I usually dial everything back at least 75%...except for the drinking...when my wife isn't around.  

No reason to CRUSH the driver, unless someone says to me "you won't" and tries to challenge me ;)

The downside of playing alone in 2016, no one can sign my scorecard hence my scores don't count.  I'm thinking of starting the #lonelygolfer campaign taking my scorecard to random large crowds, standing in the middle, feeling alone.

I'm competitive and like to play the best I can.  But at the end of the day, I know I don't have the time to be really good.  So for me, golf is fun.  I play to have a good time and an enjoyable few hours with friends.  I still want to play well and get frustrated when I don't, but I don't have to make a living playing golf.  So a couple of strokes each round really won't affect my life.

With all that being said, the biggest change I made from when I was young and playing competitively to now is my focus.  I use to be like you and would get distracted easily if I played tournaments with friends.  We would be talking and joking the the whole time and I would lose focus and not score well.  Now I've learned to turn that on and off.  I can be telling a joke or a story in between shots, but as soon as I get to my ball, I hit the switch and I'm completely focused on the shot at hand.  I found by learning to do that, I play better and enjoy my rounds more.

Also I don't like to talk too much on a round or on the range...

Some guys in the club don't like it too much...

I rather talk in the club house afterwards... 

This one is easy for me.  When I started playing at age 9  ( 1977 ) golf was very unpopular in my area.  None of my friends played so I usually found myself alone when I practiced or even on the course.  I still don't have any close friends who play so I'm usually paired with a group who are all  know each other and I am  a third wheel .  Most golfers are very friendly to someone who is added to their group but I find I spend most of the day focused on my game .  I don't mind since I love it so much.  I've alway been a fast player and usually score better when I don't have to wait.  I enjoy the complete emersion without any distractions  which allows me to concentrate more on my golf than chit chat.  there's plenty of time for friends after the round or off the course.  Maybe I'm just too competitive or taking my golf too seriously.

Same situation for me regarding my goal shooting into the 80's but the confidence I have in my golf game is seriously lacking, bordering on pathetic, so I intentionally try to get out on the course alone.  I don't want to be a hindrance to other golfers on the course,  and I really want to focus and achieve the goal I have set for myself.  I do still have a blast every round ( I love this game), but I've set a goal and I want to see it through.

I once played golf with a guy who owned the course record.  I was intimidated by him and told him I did not feel good enough to play golf with him.  He said, "It is not how you play golf, it is who you play golf with."  That relaxed me and I enjoyed the game and never forgot that.  I enjoy the game because I play with strangers who become my friend after a round.  That is what I enjoy the most, not my own game.