How Does a Layoff Affect Your Game?

[Johneli]

Tiger recently said that when he picked up a club for the first time in almost 2 months he "hit it like a god." The second time he picked them up he hit it like a 10 handicapper. And from there it started to come back. Interesting. How does a layoff affect your game? Are you refreshed or do you have to start from scratch and rebuild your swing? Maybe you're one of the lucky ones who can pick up where he left off. Personally, I hit it great when I first pick em up and then, when the inevitability of over-thinking enters the equation, old problems reassert themselves.

So, having stated how layoffs affect you, comment on what you do to get back in the swing. What drills, exercises or regimens do you follow? Do you start slowly with stretching and exercising or do you just jump right in and start swinging? Should be interesting to hear from some of you cold weather guys who have to renegotiate with the golf gods after a protracted layoff.

[JPsuff]

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That's pretty much the same way it affects me too.

I actually look forward to the winter downtime because it gives me a chance to let my mind clear. When I pick up a club again in the spring, it's like doing it for the first time and I enjoy that "clean slate" feeling.

One thing I absolutely will not do during my downtime is read or watch "instructional" stuff. I'll glance at the occasional article in a golf rag, but I will not engage in any major swing change things.
One winter, many years ago, I decided that I needed to "get my mind right" regarding things golf and I proceeded to overdose on golf videos. Mostly Jack stuff but there was also a smattering of other pro's in there as well. When I began to play the following saeson, I was so messed up that it took over a year to get back to normal.

I suppose that if I'd had the opportunity to actually try these things out as I learned them, I wouls have quickly found out what worked and what didn't, but just watching all this stuff with no opportunity to actually try any of it, created a sensory overload that totally messed me up.

Now, I just tinker with my clubs and wait for the weather to change. I know I have a good swing so I don't "play" with it anymore in the offseason.


-JP

[Bigvivec]

Just back from one month off in the States, and I am finding the game slowly coming back...short game and putting are pretty ragged, driving is not consistent and irons need an alignment tune...body feels good though and appreciated the downtime...

[Fourputt]

It depends on the length of the layoff. A couple of weeks to a month and I usually swing pretty well. Sometimes the chipping and putting feel will be a bit off, but the swing and the focus is usually good.... much better than it is when I'm playing 3 or 4 days in a row. I think I actually burn out when I play too much Even though I don't feel any disinterest, I just seem to lose my concentration more easily when I've been playing a lot.

[Johneli]

Even though I live in a warm weather climate, there are times that I don't play for a couple of weeks. When I get back to it I usually hit the ball very well. But in an ongoing attempt to get better and better I start analyzing tiny aspects of my swing that I believe could use some polish. As soon as I start this process that feeling that I'm "playing stupid good" (as in when I was a kid with no lessons) dissapears. OK, I'm not numb to the fact that I should stop thinking and just swing, but it's just never the same after the thought processes kick in. Go figure. Maybe I should just play one round every couple of weeks, but of course, normally I could never do that. I will forever be banging my head up against that great brick wall that is golf.

[GolfSavage]

If I took a layoff to heal from some injury, I usually can expect a couple of bad rounds or frustrating practice sessions at the range until I get the "groove" back. But if I can't play for a few weeks simply due to schedules, weather, etc. then my first round back is sometimes one of my best rounds, especially if I was struggling with something the last time I played. It's like I forgot the bad habit or swing thought that was causing the previous problem. Of course, usually within 3 or 4 more rounds I've developed something new to worry about, but that's what you get when you can only get to the course once a week or so.

I heard Alice Cooper the other day on a talk show talking about how golf helped him get sober. If I remember correctly, he said he played 36 holes in the morning, showered , had lunch, then practiced the rest of the day, and did that for a year, every day! He went from a 40 handicap to a 9! Today I think he's down around scratch. I don't know how well I'd play after a schedule like that, but I'd like to be in a position where I could try it out sometime!

[jwaldrop]

I'll usually play great for a few holes, with a really under control swing. Then, I get confident and the wheels fall off. Usually my problems are with the short game...no touch on distance on chips and putts.

[C-Tech]

Longest layoff I have had is about 3 weeks and I came back with a nice smooth swing off the tee and good iron shots. My short game stunk and my putting wasn't sharp either. I believe I could lay off for a long period if I just practiced putting and chipping. My full swing just wouldn't suffer that much.

[gpblue8]

I'm back to the game after about a nine year layoff. My son's nine so do the math. I think when I first came back a few months ago I was playing better than when I stopped. I picked up some of my old golf instructional books as well as bought a new one and I know I'm thinking too much out there after reading. I've also been guilty of tuning in the golf channel and hiding the remote from the family. I guess I need to pick a couple of things to work on at the range and try to clear my mind on game day. Another nine year break is not an option.

[jwaldrop]

I did forget to mention that I will have some back stiffness (sore muscles) and trouble loosening up after the first time I play, and for a couple of times out. I've only noticed this as I've gotten older, lol!

[Bigvivec]

I practiced 3 hours yesterday on short game and another two today...things feel much more controlled and in sync again...layoffs stink! We'll see how it goes tomorrow on the course...get the driver back on track and I'm in business again...

[90civicracer]

I had about 5-6 weeks off this fall and when i came back the first round killed me. My drives were horrible, as were my chips and putts. My irons weren't that bad, but could have been a bit better. Now that I've played a few times these past few weeks, everything has come back together and it feels like I didn't even take much time off.

[deronsizemore]

Layoffs usually don't effect my long game. It effects my short game the most, but that only takes a couple weeks to get back.

I think sometimes I play/practice to much and that has some bad effects on my game. We had a warm weekend a couple weeks ago and I got to play after taking about a month off from cold weather and I shot a personal best -2 70, so sometimes the layoff does me some good.

[90civicracer]

My first day back (black friday) from my 5-6 week layoff I shot a 98, two days later I shot a 79 in just about the same conditions. To be honest, the day I shot 79, I knew I was doing decent, but I figured I was somewhere around 83-85. I just hit a lot of fairways and didn't get into any trouble throughout the day. It's amazing how boring a good round can be at times, lol.

[stlcard_25]

I usually find that I have no idea what my swing feels like after such a long layoff. I think my mind just kinda moves my arms, hands and body without thinking there for the first round, and I seem to play pretty well. Then it gets shaky for a bit before I get back totally into the swing of things.

My layoff is just really starting though...I may get out again by April 1.

[Wazmankg]

I haven't played in over 6 weeks due to an injury and now weather. That's the longest I've gone in 3 years. There's really no pattern to how a layoff affects me. Last year I didn't play from just before Thanksgiving until I went out on New Years Eve. I played remarkably well. Other years when we've had our usual 4 month downtime I've always hit the range a couple of times before playing and started off reasonably well. The one time I violated that rule I went out in 58 my 1st round back... came back in 43 though. It's not as if my game is that finely tuned to begin.

[Johneli]

"It doesn't!" Tiger Woods-circa Dec. 2007

[pick-it-up]

A layoff always does my game some good.

I normally play 3-4 times a week during the summer. And my best rounds always come after taking a week or two off. Last summer, I had my best round after coming home from a 4 week vacation.

Typically, it's my second round after a layoff in which I score the best. It always takes several holes for me to get my short game (feel) back.

[Darth Fader]

I find that my short game and all the 'feel' shots are if not already gone then well on the way,the long game however is still pretty solid.

[JungleJ]

Well I recently played my first round in over three months.

Hole 1 - short par 4, hit driver to a decent length, in the fairway. Wedge on to the green although not close, two putt par.
Hole 2 - par 3, hit 6-iron pinseeker, pitched less than 12 inches from the hole and spun back to 5 feet. (all this in front of the 4 ball calling us through!). Putt lipped out and I tapped in for par.

It got worse from there! Irons were atrocious and the short game was off. I had, and I kid you not, 12 putts that burned the hole without dropping.

Normally I would have gone to the range a day or two before to get the feel of the club back but this was not possible. To get back in the groove it is the usual combination of hitting the range and playing more regularly. So basically my game is going to be off for the foreseeable future...

[Wazmankg]

It's been a while since I've had to find out, but it's already been over 2 months due to weather and back problems. And it looks like we're in for a typical Michigan winter, which inhales mightily so it could be March before I get out. They're calling for 50' by Sunday but we have this little matter of 4" of fresh snow as well.

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by Wazmankg

It's been a while since I've had to find out, but it's already been over 2 months due to weather and back problems. And it looks like we're in for a typical Michigan winter, which inhales mightily so it could be March before I get out. They're calling for 50' by Sunday but we have this little matter of 4" of fresh snow as well.

4 inches??? that's barely a dusting. It's going to warm enough here for the next several days, but we have more than foot of crusty, drifted snow... drifts more than 2 feet deep in places. It's been one month since any courses were playable here in the Denver area.

But, I get to test this thread out, because I leave Friday to drive my 80 something parents to SW Florida.... so I'm definitely playing at least one round before I fly back to winter...