One of the most frustrating aspects of my golf game is the ‘no trouble double’ bogey. You know the hole where you are not in any trouble, but you after hitting a couple of poor shots and then 3 jacking on the green, you walk towards the next hole muttering under your breath. Of all scores that frustrate me, the ‘no trouble double’ bogey is the worst.
Let me set the stage for you. It is a par 4, 350 yards from tee to green. There is not much trouble on the hole, but I still need to be in play off the tee. It is the 13th hole, dogleg left, at Osprey Links and during my last round, I decided to hit a 3-wood off the tee to play safe. Apparently, that was my first mistake.
With only 200 yards to the 150 yard marker, the 3 wood is normally the safest play. Well, after duffing my tee shot, I was 175 yards from the green. Still a reachable distance, however this particular shot plays about 185 because of the elevated green. Still well within my wheelhouse.
After hitting my second shot a bit fat, I was 20 yards from the green partly up the hill on the left of the green. I have been here before, so I grabbed my gap wedge and wanted to hit the ball just past the yellow pin. I hit it past alright; 45 feet past the pin. I still thought that an easy 2 putt for bogey was in the cards until I hit my first putt!
I completely miss read the put and left myself a 12 footer for bogey. My next putt rolled 8 inches past the hole on the left and I tapped in for a ‘no trouble double’ bogey. Lets just say that my walk to the 14th tee was a little warm because I was steamed at playing this easy hole so poorly.
Unfortunately holes like the 13th happen in my game. I am sure that from time to time they happen to you as well. I have no sage words of wisdom to offer on how to prevent it because I am do not know myself. However, how I react on my next shot I definitely can control.
While walking to the 14th tee I did have a few choice words from myself. However, before walking onto the 14th tee box, I push any negative thoughts away and prepared to play my next shot. This routine is something I have practiced for years. Each hole is a chance to start anew and walking on the tee box with a clear mind works wonders for my game. As it turned out, I striped my drive do the 14th fairway which led to a lip out on my birdie putt.
Understanding that ‘no trouble doubles’ happen; it is a part of golf. What I do next is what is important.
I am a grateful golfer! See you on the links!
The Grateful Golfer 
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Well familiar with the no trouble double. Usually there is a three putt involved. The 3 wood off the tee brings to mind one of my favorite sayings. Never confuse bad execution with bad thinking. Even though the execution was bad, the thinking was good. Sometimes being a little conservative off the tee just does not sit well. It’s the old story of being committed to the shot. In your example, the gap wedge seemed to be the worse shot. Maybe another club would have done better. 99% of the time a no trouble double is just due to poor thinking.
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Vet,
Great points about second guessing my decision to hit a 3 wood off the tee. Early in the season, I like to shake my game up and use different clubs for practice; this is one of those cases. However, I do expect to hit every shot well…..is that unrealistic? 😉
Cheers Jim
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It is realistic. Every bad shot is caused by doing something that you are uncomfortable with or something you are not aware. Every bad outcome I should say.
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Thanks Vet!
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I never heard it called that before, ‘no trouble double’, I like it. A double is of course something none of us likes, but they are part of the game. I kind of separate them into two classes. Doubles caused by one bad shot and doubles caused by 2 or more bad shots on a hole. The one bad shot class I don’t let bother me too much. Maybe I sent one out of bounds and just couldn’t manage a bogie. I hit a very poor shot and that’s not good but, usually forgivable. But when it’s two bad shots, I’ll get angry with myself. Especially if one is a chip. I really hate hitting really bad chips. It indicates my head was no where in the game. But it happens. I’ll call myself names as I walk off and then do my best to forget about it and get ready for the next hole. Because if there is one thing a double tells me, it’s that it’s time to regroup. Get back in the game.
Talking about this reminds me. 3 years ago, when my last home course was still open, I remember writing here about gaining the ability to turn myself around at the nine if I was having trouble. Thinking about doubles and getting ready for the next hole, I’d say I’ve learned to turn myself around by the hole now. The mental game is stronger now than it was just 3 short years ago and the number of doubles has shrunk. And I don’t falter and bogie just because I hit three birdies in a row anymore. In fact, that thought hasn’t crossed my mind in so long I had almost forgotten that was an issue for me. Not that I do it so often. It’s just, when it does happen, my mind hasn’t dragged that little tidbit of information up to haunt me in a long time. That’s progress.
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Kevin,
I would say that being able to, now, dismiss previous holes as required is a great step forward mentally. It is something that we should all work on if we want to consistently score low. The mental side of the game is so very important and yet often overlooked. Great to see that you are improving!
Cheers Jim
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