![\"Scorecard](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/GettyImages-157295089-1024x682.jpg\")
Scorecard and generic golf items | Source: Supplied<\/p>\nA quirk of competitions that we all love is the two\u2019s pot. You could be having a shocker but, don\u2019t worry, there\u2019s one more par 3 left.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s one more shot at earning back your entry fee, plus a little bit more if you bank a two on a day when the rest of the field hasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n
No one would turn down a boost to their pro shop credit. I certainly didn\u2019t when I came second in a chunky comp earlier this year. Hopefully, I can build my pot and treat myself in a few weeks. <\/p>\n
But honestly, without sounding like an archetypal tour golfer, I don\u2019t play in competitions for the money. I play in them to play as well as possible, and to beat my handicap.<\/p>\n
I have a dialled-in, automatic tracker in my brain for where I stand during a round. I know how many shots I have left, what my gross score is, and what I need to do to shoot as low as possible.<\/p>\n
I suspect many golfers are like this, but prize money vouchers never cross my mind in competition. If I\u2019m agitated at playing badly, it isn\u2019t because I haven\u2019t got another \u00a315 in my account \u2013 it is because I want to play better and raise myself to new levels.<\/p>\n
If it is a board competition, it would obviously be an honour to have my name etched on the wall at my club. Maybe that is the only occasion where winning would cross my mind. That is something I have always cherished on the rare occasion it\u2019s happened.<\/p>\n
But even still, winning a competition has never, ever been a consideration for me. Honestly, I don\u2019t think I have ever entered a competition to win it. <\/p>\n
Scorecard and generic golf items | Source: Supplied<\/p>\n
ALSO: I holed a shot with my provisional ball \u2013 does it count?<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n I have one objective in competitions: To shoot the lowest score possible<\/p>\n Match play is different, as it has a finite outcome. You either win or lose, so in that format, my outlook is different.<\/p>\n On the whole, I see competitions as a sphere where I can play under pressure to cut my handicap, to come away from my post-round pint with the satisfaction of a good round.<\/p>\n I want to look back on that six-footer for par I nailed on the 15th, or that bunker shot I stuck by the pin when I was in trouble. Good, solid golf is what gets my juices flowing. If remuneration comes with it \u2013 happy days. If it doesn\u2019t, my good round is there in my mind and on my handicap record.<\/p>\n Last autumn, I played in a competition for golf writers at Wallasey<\/a>, on the Wirral. I played out of my skin, shooting 2-over-par, which translated to 42 points. I was delighted and extremely proud of the golf I played.<\/p>\n When I returned to the clubhouse, someone else had shot 43 points. I couldn\u2019t have cared less. I was still absolutely buzzing from the golf I\u2019d produced.<\/p>\n In the same writers\u2019 group, we had the privilege of playing at Royal Liverpool<\/a> the next day. After a rocky start, I finished with 37 points, and something like four blobs and six birdies. Once again, I was beaten by one shot by someone who played a little bit better.<\/p>\n I couldn\u2019t possibly come away disappointed. The shots I hit and the scores I made will be with me forever. That is where my love of the game and satisfaction come from.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve never been one to look at a leaderboard with envy. I have played competitive golf for about 15 years, and I\u2019ve lost count of the wincing members in front of me in the line to the score computer, envious of the leading numbers, when they\u2019d hoped their total wouldn\u2019t be beaten.<\/p>\n If I\u2019ve scored 38 stableford points, or I\u2019ve shot a gross score better than my handicap suggests, I don\u2019t even look at the rest of the scores on the screen. <\/p>\n Good golf solves everything, as they say. <\/p>\n There is nothing like getting in your car to go home and reliving shots in your mind. The voucher in my wallet might as well not be there.<\/p>\n Now have your say<\/p>\n What is your motivation for playing in competitions: golf club vouchers or just being able to say that you played well? Let us know in the comments and tell us on Facebook<\/a>!<\/p>\n NOW READ: I understand the Rules of Golf. That doesn\u2019t mean I have to agree with them<\/a><\/p>\n