Back playing 18 but everything feels like hard work? It’s not your game — it’s the season. Here’s what’s going on and what to do about it.
If your first few rounds have left you tired, stiff and three over your usual by the turn, you’re not imagining it. Early-season golf is physically harder than mid-summer golf. The course is playing longer, your body hasn’t done this since October, and the weather is making everything worse. Here’s what’s actually going on — and what to do about it.
The Course Is Playing Longer
Fairways are saturated. A drive that ran 30 yards in July is stopping dead or plugging. That’s costing you a club or two into every green before you’ve even mis-hit anything.
Add wet, grabby rough that turns a slight miss into a lost ball, greens that are slow and possibly on temporary pins, and ground soft enough to make four hours of walking feel like five. Your legs know, even if your scorecard hasn’t caught up.
The adjustment: Take one more club into every green and aim middle. A 7-iron to the centre of the green beats a 9-iron that pitches short into soggy ground. Stop chasing pins — that’s a June game. Right now, hitting greens in regulation is the win.
Your Body Hasn’t Done This for Five Months
You might have been to the gym, walked the dog, stayed broadly active. But you haven’t rotated hard through your trunk 70-plus times, loaded your hips on every swing, or walked 10,000 steps on uneven, soft ground in four hours. Those are golf-specific demands and your body has been off the clock.
What that looks like by the 12th hole: your swing gets shorter, you start steering the ball, your lower back tightens up, and your contact goes to pieces. It’s not a fitness problem — it’s a readiness problem.
Before every round, do these three things (five minutes, on the putting green or car park):
Hip circles — feet shoulder-width, hands on hips, ten slow circles each way. This wakes up the rotation you need for every full swing.
Trunk twists — club across your shoulders, turn fully left and right, fifteen times. Go slowly and feel the stretch through your mid-back.
Graduated swings — start with half-speed pitch swings and build to full over six or seven shots. Your first full swing of the day should not be on the first tee.
Between shots, keep moving. Standing still in 8°C stiffens everything. Walk with purpose, roll your shoulders on the tee, keep your hands warm — cold hands mean a death grip and zero feel around the greens.
Eat Before You Play, Eat at the Turn
A spring round burns more energy than a summer one. You’re working harder on soft ground, your body is burning calories to stay warm, and wind resistance is a real factor over 18 holes.
A coffee and a cereal bar won’t cut it. Eat properly before you play — porridge, eggs on toast, whatever you’d have before a long walk. At the turn, top up: nuts, a flapjack, a sandwich. Your concentration on the back nine depends on it.
Water matters even when it’s cool. By the time you feel thirsty, you’re already under-performing. Take a bottle and sip steadily through the round.
Play These Rounds Smart, Not Seriously
Your first cards of the season are not a fair test. The course is longer, your body is catching up, and the rhythm of regular play hasn’t kicked in yet. Treat March and April as pre-season: focus on solid contact, good tempo and finishing 18 without flagging on the last three holes. The scores look after themselves once the ground dries out and you’ve got five or six rounds in your legs.
