When did you first beat ____?

General Discussion
#1

Going off of @TimS thread on being introduced to the game, when was the first time you beat your dad/grandpa/idol/whoever (can be gross/net/etc)

I don’t know that I can remember exactly when I first beat my dad in any particular format. He was a sub-5 handicap most of my childhood and from what I can remember I was probably holding my own (with some handicap) by the time I was 13 and we were probably pretty even by the time I was in high school.

Sometime during my freshman or sophomore year I started beating him consistently straight up… until…

The last round we played together before I went to college he beat me!

That was a miserable 9-10 months waiting for my revenge, which I got the first round we played together the next June. Not sure he’s beaten me straight up since and now I have to give him shots.

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#2

I don’t really remember. My dad wasn’t all that good, so I was probably beating him when I was 12 or 13 years old with some regularity. But I was still shooting 90-100 at that point.

The bigger deal for me was when I started to consistently beat my Grandpa. He started when he was 50 and worked himself to being a good golfer…shooting upper 70s to mid 80s most of the time. I started to beat him pretty regularly when I was a Sophomore in High School. Nobody was happier than him about that development.

I’ll throw in a fun story too. I was playing once with my Grandma and my Great Aunt and I was playing terribly. I was down in the dumps. So they told me “this 9 we’re playing our best ball against you, so buck up and play better.” I didn’t want to lose to two old ladies, so I started to play a lot better and managed to beat them, something like 42-45. Good memories.

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#3

Never beat gramps…he was a whiz with a 3 wood and “chipper”…along with a deadly putter. He passed before I really got serious about golf in college - but was the person that definitely introduced me and my 2 brothers (and dad) to the game.

Can’t remember when I first beat my dad…probably early - as he was later to the game than me. He jumps up and beats me now about once a year - and really lets me have it when he does :slight_smile: . Love it!

I can say though that the first time my step-son beat me was about 4 years ago when he was 17. He finally got serious about his short game…he’s now a 4 handicap and I’m a 12…and he hits it at least 80 years further than me!!! He got his first hole in one this year…with a driver on a par 4. I’m still waiting for mine…the good old fashioned 7 or 8 iron I hope on a par 3.

#4

I can go the other way with this one: the first time my son beat me in a hole of golf. He was 3.

There’s a super-tiny course in Minnesota that I’ve played with Kirke a handful of times. Nine holes, total length: 575 yards! :slight_smile:

The shortest hole on the course is 40 yards. Kirke hit his hybrid off the tee on the green. I hit my partial wedge over the green. Kirke two-putted for his par; I chipped on and two-putted for a bogey.

And there we were: at three, he had straight up beaten me in a hole of golf.

FWIW: here’s what Kirke’s swing looked like when he was 3:

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#5

Want my kids to beat me, but 3 may be a little early for my sanity! Hope that’s a harbinger of him beating the older kids with regularity

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#6

We were back in the Twin Cities this August for Kirke’s first golf tournament and played the course again. This time, for the first time, he beat me straight up for the full nine holes from the same tees (he’s 7 now):

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#7

Been keeping up with his progress on Twitter for a while! Kid’s got a great swing and more importantly he seems to love it. Way to go, dad.

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#8

Bested my dad for the first time when I was 12 and I haven’t lost to him since. He’s actually pretty good, but age has slowed things down a bit - he’s having a hard time with that. The man can drain putts like nobody I’ve ever seen. He’s an awesome scramble partner.

And a damn good dad.

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#9

I’ll never forget July 20, 1969. No, it wasn’t because that was the day that Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, it’s because it was the first time I’ve ever beat my golfing idol - my dad - in an 18 hole round. I was 16 and he was still an awesome player, but on that day, I got him for the first time. Neil’s accomplishment was pretty special too!

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#10

When I was 13 and broke 100 for the first time. My dad sucks at golf though.

Beat my uncle (who was around a 4 handicap at the time and most his life) for the first time in 2014 I believe. He had a bad day and I shot 82 to beat him a couple strokes. I was so pissed after the round though because I had an even par 36 on the front and hadn’t broken 80 yet. My uncle had hip surgery a couple years ago and lost 50+ yards and plays to a 10-11 handicap now making me my family’s best golfer now - not that the bar is particularly high lol.

#11

My dad didn’t play. But he got to watch me break 80 for the first time in a high school match and that was pretty special for both of us.

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#12

Took me twenty years to beat my golf coach from high school, and I wasn’t bad for a lot of those 20 years. First commemorative ball I ever kept was me beating him: 73-75. I don’t know if I appreciated how good he was when I was growing up. I honestly believe he hit over 90% fairways (the most reliable cut you’ll ever see), would always hit greens and often stick it close from 250 out with his wooden ping 3w, and was the best chipper and putter I’ve ever played with. He got up and down almost every time, and often chipped in, and consistently made 20+ foot bombs. He was also very competitive and hated losing. I’ve still only beat him a handful of times, and he’s 74 now. Now he plays from the senior tees and I play from the back tees, and we are still close, although his touch around the greens is fading. I love playing with him.

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