Do you practice your numismatic short game, or do you pound 75 consecutive balls with your driver?

ColonialCoinUnion

For years most of my coin time was spent looking at my coins, or scouring dealer inventory lists looking for dates / types that I needed. Great fun, mind you, and nothing wrong with actually having fun with your hobby, but that time wasn't real productive at the end of the day.

A few years back I started to think that if I did a little more research, learned more about my specialty and practiced putting for a few minutes each day I might actually find other aspects of the hobby I enjoyed and/or would be become more expert and less prone to making mistakes.

Now I spend most of my time studying and reading about the coins I collect, and tracking what sold where for how much in what grade, etc., etc. Actually I've found that I enjoy that even more, and all that time spent has paid off both in terms of helping me identify the specific areas that are of most interest to me, and in helping me make more educated buying decisions.

FC57Coins

When you realize that there are so many coins and so little money it also dawns on you that some of these peripherals such as reading, research, and in my case, photographing coins, can be just as enjoyable and rewarding if not more so. I think that by taking care of this "short game" as you call it, you tend be become more reserved about just accumulating coins and concentrate more on getting the pieces that you will appreciate more in the long run.

"Drive for show and putt for dough"

wingedliberty

I agree.

1. Quality over quantity.
2. Duplicates are ok if they are exceptional
3. Set completion is a great goal, but I also enjoy the best of the best.
4. Specialization will help you enjoy the hobby more. No question about it.
5. Supplement with literature in what you specialize in.

Sounds like a formula for really enjoying the hobby.

pmh1nic

I'd don't think I'd enjoy the collecting nearly as much if not for spending time doing the things CCU and Frank mentioned; research, reading, photographing and of course spending time on this crazy forum. The hunting, buying and examining coins is very enjoyable but the other things compliment and add to the pleasure.

keets

the best two pieces of advice i've gotten were to look at as many coins as i could and to put together a small library of sorts. i did both and the results have been very satisfying. i'm a price/auction tracker as well. by interacting at the forum and submitting coins for certification i've gained ground on the rest of the hobby, at least in certain areas. like Clint Eastwood used to say, "A man's gotta know his limitations" and in this hobby it seems good to stay within what we each know. i've also hooked up with a few collectors that i use as mentors of a sort. the funny thing is that they probably don't even know it!!

al h.

Shamika

I suspect that if you don't spend time reading and researching, you'll become bored with collecting sooner than you think.

Believe me, in the long run a good numismatic book will bring you more enjoyment than a good coin.

Lakesammman

Nice analogy.

MrEureka

Real men don't use putters! I cannot and never will be able to attribute late date large cents. On the other hand, I regularly take flyers on things I know nothing about. I have way more fun that way and it's surprisingly profitable.

mgoodm3

Now that you mention it. I have been buying more than reading lately. I'll have to mend my ways.

Bear

Since circumstanses made it impossible to continue series or complete sets, I have retained

the best 25 of my coins and sold the rest. Now I concentrate on only magnificent toned Old Commems

and indevidual type ,of outstanding beauty, strike, color , luster and grade.

Sometimes in collecting, your choices are dictated both by your interests and cash available .

While I dont really collect to turn a quick profit. In time, I expect to come out ahead on my coins.

morganbarber

I love coins and fishing. Golf analogies do not register.

WACoinGuy

I've definitely enjoyed reading, researching, and photographing my existing collection. When I got back into seriously collecting about a year ago, it was nice to have a hundred or so coins already in my collection that I could use to help hone my grading skills, use to take pictures, and check for interesting varieties. Definitely a lot cheaper looking over my existing collection than building a collection from scratch. And it's nice to spend some time with some "old friends" and help me remember why I bought the coins I have in the first place...