Winter Golf

I plan on getting out this winter provided we have a reasonably mild winter here in Southern New Jersey,USA. I've never played in the winter before and have a couple of questions. What effect will the cold have on my irons and driver? Will it damage them? What type of ball would be best? Am I crazy?????

Thanks in advance,
Dan

I'm just over the river here in Philly, and I played into early December last year. I found that if the temperature was above, say, 45, and the wind was minimal, it wasn't too bad. But if the wind kicks up at all it's miserable out there.

I don't think the cold has any discernible effect on the equipment--after all, it's not THAT cold. If there's frost they won't let you on the course until it thaws, to prevent damage to the greens.

To answer your last question, yes, you are crazy.

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Todd
Philadelphia, PA
USA

The reason the pro tells you to keep your head down is so you can't see him laughing. ~Phyllis Diller

One thing you need to be carefull of is not to hurt yourself. You muscles are less limber in the cold. In addition, the ball is harder if left out in the cold, less compression and after a while your muscles will feel it hitting against a "rock". Store your golf balls in the house, not in your trunk. Do not hit too many balls at the range - as they really get hard.

Grab a low compression or Ladies ball - they'll perform much better in the lower temperatures.

I'll switch to the precept lady in about a week, when the temperature takes a permanent dive.

I've played in medal competitions on frosty greens. We only play on temp greens if they are too waterlogged. Of course it's a lottery because the ball bouces all over the place !

I play winter golf here in Chicago as long as there is no snow on the ground. The ground freezes and you learn to bounce the ball on the green. Your clubs will be fine if you don't leave them in your trunk all the time. I would be afraid that an ice cold graphite shaft might snap.

It is smart to roll the ball on to loose grass so that you don't hurt your wrists hitting down into frozen turf.

I look at winter golf as entertainment (don't worry about your score), it shortens up the winter and it is good exercise.

As someone else mentioned, top flites, pinnacles, etc are good balls for winter golf.

One other bonus, the ponds all freeze over, no lost balls.

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Imagine how boring golf would be if every shot resulted in a hole in one. Perfection is over rated.

Hey, people go hunting, run marathons, play basketball, play football, all in the winter. Why not golf??

I live in Ohio and last year, I played upto and into part of December. Because there was snow on the ground all January and part of February, I didn't start back up until mid February. I started back up by just taking a 7 iron to the executive course and playing with it only. It made for a nice winter walk and I got some good practice in.

Another plus, many golf courses have reduced winter rates that are a great deal. And on top of that, the crowds have long ago packed up their clubs. Guess what, no slow play..haha.

I will be playing until Christmas. Then pick it back up in February. It will be a long January here in Ohio.

Chessbum...