My quest to break 80...

[LeftDaddy]

Update: I played yesterday and shot 81. Played with a friend of mine who is a 3 hcp. I did some comparisons between my game and his because we are very similar in how we play. He shot 76.

 

- I'm slightly longer with all clubs than him...maybe 5 yds off the tee and a few yards with irons.

- He definitely has a better short game than me. That opened my eyes a bit, as I have a pretty good short game (I thought) but he was definitely better.

- His iron play was slightly better than mine. His proximity to the hole is certainly better and he hits some beauties at times. He was a little inconsistent though. I've seen him sharper. I was ok with the exception of two really bad swings with a PW of all things (and that plus the next thing is what cost me my 79).

- Putting. He is most definitely a better putter than me. However, after I made a royal mess of a good opportunity on the 5th hole he noticed a problem with my putter grip. He showed me what I was doing wrong. We fixed it and as he said, I went from "looking like Sergio over a 4 footer to looking like Spieth". It was amazing the difference. It improved both my speed control and my accuracy. I was a different golfer on the greens after that.

 

I cost myself 2 strokes in the 1st 5 holes due to bad putting, and at least 2 strokes with a short iron into a couple of greens. Was annoying to shoot 81 when I could have easily shot 77. Oh well. It will happen very soon, especially after we fixed my putting grip / stroke.

[Sean2]

I occasionally shoot the sub-80 round. The keys for me are keeping the ball in play off the tee, and short game.

 

Good luck, you seem to be very close.

[jerebear21]

Here's my take since I finally joined the club. The difference for me is stay more consistent off the tee and hitting more GIR. And no 3 putts. You can strike the ball like a boss but those 3 putts are momentum killers.

 

I had 2/8 par saves and have consistently hit 7-8 GIR. If I can get a couple more par saves I can definitely go lower.

 

Work on ball striking because that will take you the longest. Then compliment your game with a short game. That's my approach.

[swizbeatz]

Sounds like short game for sure. No reason hitting driver the way you have been not to break 80. If you get up and down 50% of the time you don't even need to hit any greens if your next to the par 5's in 2.

[pheenomz4774]

I've broken 80 a couple times including a round of 75. I worked on a few things mentally to try and get there. I have had several 9 hole rounds sub 40, and even a few at even par since.

 

1. Have confidence in your short game. This allows you to stay positive about bad approach shots. Even if you miss the green on your approach you still have a chance to par.

2. Go for par 5s when there isn't any trouble. With the added confidence in your short game, you can take more chances to snag birdies on the par 5s.

3. Keep it in play off the tee. That almost always guarantees you a scrambling opportunity even if your irons are not on.

[marte]

Here's hoping the putting grip change you mentioned in post 31 does the trick as you are very close. A couple of better chips, make a couple more putts and you are there. If I was you I'd quit fixating on breaking 80 though. It's going to happen. And when it does you are going to be pleased with how easy it was. Good luck.

 

I am curious though as to how you play all those 80 yard shots as it seems they are your achilles heel. Are you trying to smash a 60* or something? At the range, if I was you, go through the bag so as you don't lose touch with what you are doing well but alot 25-40% of balls to nothing but 25 - 100 yard shots, experiment with different clubs...e.g. with a PW grip down to the metal, swing back to waist high, come through moderately aggressively and see how far the ball flies..stuff like that. In your case even a small improvement with these "scoring" shots will pay off especially with how well you drive the ball.

[jdl]

The key for me in breaking 80 the first time was finishing the first 17 holes in only 72 shots and having an easy par 4 finishing hole. ;)

 

Seriously though, may have been coincidence but I have just gone to a 3 day "short game" school and that helped a whole bunch. Not sure how much I really learned or if it was just spending 3 mornings doing nothing but short game practice.

[chadly643]

The first time I broke 80 I didn't know it until I added the score card up. I think there is a real mental hurdle involved in breaking 80 for the first time. When I wasn't going in to 17 or 18 with the idea of "just finish the next two in one over" I was under a lot less pressure and just played those holes how I always do. Breaking 80 is a product of playing decent golf, not an abstract skill unto itself. Good luck. 80 is a very attainable score and it sounds like you are about to do it any day now.

[LeftDaddy]

Thanks for all of the encouraging replies. As I mentioned earlier, I came close two years ago but was too fixated on my score. I choked. I've since gone through some major swing renovations and it is all finally starting to click. I'm a MUCH better golfer than I was back then tee to green, but not as good around the greens right now. But I didn't choke away a 79 in the last few rounds. I'm just not overall sharp enough (but close).

 

To the question about 80 yard shots...oh man, where do I start? Two years ago I was so good from 40-120 yards. I had this awesome shot that I used with a variety of clubs and I could stiff it. But I lost it post my knee surgery...it got so bad I even developed a big case of the shanks. I have practically worked on nothing else since then because I really need that shot back. I've only just now "gotten it back" in the last 3-6 months. It's weird though...I'm so consistent with it on the range. But I think that some of my doubts still creep in on the course. I'm about 50/50 with hitting that shot well on the course now. I will get it back with reps, but for now I am "managing" it a bit.

[swizbeatz]

Playing with better players will help a ton too, just watching course management and how they play shots around the green.

[LeftDaddy]

Another update. Shot 82 yesterday and 83on Friday. The 82 yesterday was really frustrating. I lost at least 7 strokes from horrendous putting. I played a course I haven't played in a while and had no time to warm up, so no time to get a feel for the green speeds. I finally got the feel on about the 14th hole , but it was too late by then. I had already 3 jacked 4 greens, and had missed at least 4 under 8 feet or so. I'm not that bad of a putter, I don't think. Maybe I'm worse than I realize.

 

Anyway, the 83 on Friday wasn't completely due to poor putting. I didn't putt it great that day though either.

 

Looks like I need to spend a lot of time on the practice green.

[oregongolfguy]

4 3 putts is tough. My question is....why were they 3 putts. Were they just super long nasty multi break first putts??Missing from around 8ft although mentally annoying isn't the end of the world. Your going to miss plenty of those.

[MountainGoat]

The formula for breaking 80 is very straightforward:

• no doubles (or higher)
  
• no 6s (or higher)
  

Do that, and you'll break 80. Crushing your driver means nothing. Staying out of trouble means everything.

[Hilts1969]

The formula for breaking 80 is very straightforward:

• no doubles (or higher)
  
• no 6s (or higher)
  

Do that, and you'll break 80. Crushing your driver means nothing. Staying out of trouble means everything.

 

I have only had one round in my life without a double bogey and that was a 79, I have lost count of the 80,81,82 rounds I have had with a double or triple. It's usually one really bad shot that costs me plus I'm a pretty bad 5 to 10 foot putter.

[WooPig]

You can do it with a double or triple, the trick is being able to keep your head and make par or better on the next hole.

I agree with the poster who said it's easier to break through if you don't know your close, when I was trying to do it for the first time I stopped adding up my card after nine so that I wasn't sure where I stood. It allowed me to just play my game and I soon after got it done.

[HitEmTrue]

The formula for breaking 80 is very straightforward:

• no doubles (or higher)
  
• no 6s (or higher)
  

Do that, and you'll break 80.

 

Or you could end up with an 86. :)

 

Need 11 pars plus what you suggested. Couple of birdies eases things a bit.

 

[WooPig]

As stupid as is sounds, birdies are the answer. Think about it, every birdie takes away a bogie. Since I seem to be destined to make only 1 birdie per round so I'm afraid I've hit a plateau until I can figure it out. My problem is that I'm going to make some bogies but haven't figured out how to make the birdies to offset them to get to my next goal.

OP, I bet when you break through you'll stack up 3 or 4 in a row because it won't be a mental thing any longer.

[LeftDaddy]

It's not a mental issue right now at all. I haven't "choked" on 15 or whatever thinking "I'm finally going to do this". That did happen two years ago. But I've shot between 80 and 85 for every single one of my last 10 rounds, but in all of them I've finished stronger than I started. The "good news" is that I came to realize that I don't have the short game to make it happen right now, and I can probably narrow it even further to putting.

 

All of the 3-putts were long 1st putts, but not so long to be that tough. I don't play this course often so I didn't have a feel for speed until the back nine. That was a factor too. But I missed so many inside of 6 feet or so. That really bothered me.

 

I just need to get to work on the practice green. At least I now know that.

[TheCityGame]

The formula for breaking 80 is very straightforward:

• no doubles (or higher)
  
• no 6s (or higher)
  

Do that, and you'll break 80. Crushing your driver means nothing. Staying out of trouble means everything.

This post seemed so odd, I went back and looked at my scoring record.

 

The last 9 times I've broken 80, including a couple 76's, I've had at least one double. A couple rounds I've had two doubles, and I've even had a couple triples mixed in. And definitely plenty of 6's.

 

On the other hand, I haven't had a single round in last 12 or so where I broke 80 without a birdie in it.

 

In other words, I crush driver all day, occasionally it gets me into trouble, but generally, it puts me in great position to make a couple birdies and make easy pars. I never broke 80 with any regularity until I learned to crush driver everywhere. Most rounds I hit it 12-14 times out of 14 opportunities.

 

I had to go back to a 73 to find a round where I didn't have a double. And right before that, I had a 78 with 6 bogeys, no doubles and no birdies. Played Saturday with a friend of mine. We went 76/75 and both had a double.

 

IOW, I find your straightforward formula bunk.

[Boricua Golf]

I have to agree with he guys stating that you have to stay in play, hitting from the fairway helps a lot, have a pre-shot routine, and of course, what everyone has suggested, the short game has to be a bit better, especially the putting, 3 putts will add up really fast, I used to hit my PW or 9i (bump and run type thing) before I got comfortable with the lower lofted wedges around the green, and it seemed to help me in the confidence area, I knew I wouldn't hit it fat or thin with a wider sole (bounce), practice different shots with those clubs, some of my good friends (really good players) at times they will putt right off the green...just a few thoughts, good luck

[jerebear21]

I'm going to have to agree with thecitygame. Learn to be a better ball striker. You leaving your putts on the other side of the green. Crush your driver and you'll have a short iron in play. I played with a gentlemen and notice one of the par 4 I had driver 8i where he had driver 3w in. It was a 430y. He had a good short game and made par despite missing the green. I missed an 8 footer for birdie. But if we were to play 18 holes of that yardage I question his sustainability to maintain par and doubt he can even go lower. Crush the driver. Short iron in hand is a formula for success. Short game helps you get even lower but breaking through consistently requires a bit of long game work.

[LeftDaddy]

I think it depends on the player and his/her strengths and weaknesses. I am absolutely killing my driver right now (for me...longish but not WRX long). I have a lot of short irons in to greens. I'm not quite as sharp with those clubs as I should be, so that needs some work (but it is getting better each round). My chipping was hurting me a few weeks ago but I put in a little work and have mostly fixed that. Putting has killed me the last two rounds. I thought I was an ok putter until the rest of my game started putting pressure on my putter, and I have mostly failed that test. I'm averaging low 30s for putts per round. Not good.

 

There are no "simple rules " like "no doubles" etc for breaking 80. I've shot 81 in a variety of different ways. Once, I had 4 birdies. My 82 this weekend? No birds, no doubles...all pars and bogeys. I agree that you can't have too many big numbers. And a good tee game is very helpful, along with a good short game. The bottom line for me is that my short irons and my putter have to improve (putter is glaring weakness right now).

 

Thanks for all of the guidance guys..I find this thread very instructive!

[marte]

I think it depends on the player and his/her strengths and weaknesses. I am absolutely killing my driver right now (for me...longish but not WRX long). I have a lot of short irons in to greens. I'm not quite as sharp with those clubs as I should be, so that needs some work (but it is getting better each round). My chipping was hurting me a few weeks ago but I put in a little work and have mostly fixed that. Putting has killed me the last two rounds. I thought I was an ok putter until the rest of my game started putting pressure on my putter, and I have mostly failed that test. I'm averaging low 30s for putts per round. Not good.

 

There are no "simple rules " like "no doubles" etc for breaking 80. I've shot 81 in a variety of different ways. Once, I had 4 birdies. My 82 this weekend? No birds, no doubles...all pars and bogeys. I agree that you can't have too many big numbers. And a good tee game is very helpful, along with a good short game. The bottom line for me is that my short irons and my putter have to improve (putter is glaring weakness right now).

 

Thanks for all of the guidance guys..I find this thread very instructive!

 

Agree with this. All kinds of ways to NOT break 80.

So I'm curious LeftDaddy. In your 1st post you wrote that your buddy had fixed a putter grip issue and that you started putting really well. What's up with that? Are you still doing it or did you go back to your old grip?

[deathbymuffin]

I think you're on the right track. Ballstriking with your irons clearly needs to improve. Also helps when you can throw in a handful of birdies. I had a round recently where I tripled the 2nd hole and followed that with back-to-back bogies. 5-over after 4 holes. In the past, I would have just folded up my tent, let my focus slip and just hacked it around to a mid-80s finish. This time I just tried to focus on making one par. Parred 5, 6 and 7. Birdied 8. Parred 9 and then birdied 10. All of a sudden I'm at 3 over after 10. Finished with 2 more birdies and 2 more bogies to shoot 75. Basically, if your overall game is good, you'll get there in the end, even with a terrible hole thrown in.

 

Oh, agree with others that you have to avoid three putts. I consider myself an average putter, but I'll have streaks where I string together a bunch of 3 putts in the 20-30 foot range. I shot 83 at Torrey South in the rain on Sunday which should have been better if not for 4 3-putts, including a stretch of 3 in 4 holes on the back. Those are some of the most frustrating rounds.

[Jon H]

I cannot speak for anyone else, but I break 80 here and there and GIR's are key for my game. If I stay out of the penalty, hit a couple of birdies to counter the couple doubles I cannot seem to avoid, and bang out pars sub-80 is right there.

[llewol007]

Hey Op, a few suggestions from me and its been said by others and hope it can help. One thing is to really hone in on your short game. If you watch the pros on television, the thing that separates them is the skill to knock it in or really close from off the green and that includes from the the bunkers. If you are confident about your chipping and pitch shots, its like picking up an extra stroke from tee to green. Most players do not realize the obvious that half the game is with the flat stick and around the greens. The second thing I always offer that I have repeated in multiple other threads is to practice out on the golf course. It sounds to me like you intend to hit the same club every single time you play a golf course. That can be good and that can be bad. Another skill that the players on the higher level have is that they have more than one way to shoot into the green. Watch the youtube by Graham Mcdowell. He says you should have a couple shots when approaching a green and I am a firm believer. You have to be able to play a high shot, as well as a bump and run shot into the green. When you take your practice to the golf course, Hit a couple off the tee. Hit your typical club that you would use but also play a club with an intended yardage for your approach shot. That way, you train your game to be able and utilize your whole bag and not just a Driver, wedge all day. Play a 3 wood or driving iron and learn to play the mid irons in. Thats the confidence you will need to get you cracking 80 not just once but more often. The final thing and what I realized is course management. What I mean is your focus should be the same for the number handicap hole all the way up to the 18th. Tackle each hole with a plan and dont just swing for the fences. Play to a yardage and your strengths. It doesnt make sense to leave yourself 60 yard shots when you rarely practice them. Play to a full wedge and have a higher percentage of executing the shot. Well thats more than a few but hope it all helps.

[LeftDaddy]

I think it depends on the player and his/her strengths and weaknesses. I am absolutely killing my driver right now (for me...longish but not WRX long). I have a lot of short irons in to greens. I'm not quite as sharp with those clubs as I should be, so that needs some work (but it is getting better each round). My chipping was hurting me a few weeks ago but I put in a little work and have mostly fixed that. Putting has killed me the last two rounds. I thought I was an ok putter until the rest of my game started putting pressure on my putter, and I have mostly failed that test. I'm averaging low 30s for putts per round. Not good.

 

There are no "simple rules " like "no doubles" etc for breaking 80. I've shot 81 in a variety of different ways. Once, I had 4 birdies. My 82 this weekend? No birds, no doubles...all pars and bogeys. I agree that you can't have too many big numbers. And a good tee game is very helpful, along with a good short game. The bottom line for me is that my short irons and my putter have to improve (putter is glaring weakness right now).

 

Thanks for all of the guidance guys..I find this thread very instructive!

 

Agree with this. All kinds of ways to NOT break 80.

So I'm curious LeftDaddy. In your 1st post you wrote that your buddy had fixed a putter grip issue and that you started putting really well. What's up with that? Are you still doing it or did you go back to your old grip?

 

Good catch...I wondered if anyone would call me out on that. I did "fix" my grip, but I had also been needing to get my putter lie angle fixed for a while too, so I decided to go ahead and do that. I got it bent from 70 deg to 72 deg (all my clubs are bent 2 deg upright and the putter fitting showed that also). Anyway, as soon as I got my putters bent I started pulling the heck out of them. The guy told me it would take some time to get back to square.

 

So anyway, I have putted 1,000 times in my rec room at home so I think I'm square now. It should be all good. But when I went out Saturday, my issue was speed control and misreads. I'm hitting my lines better than ever and keeping the face stable. But the greens on this course are a good bit slower than what I'm used to and that just messed my mind up (and my reads). And I didn't get a chance to practice prior to the round at all (went out dead cold). I'm sure I should be able to adjust if I were actually all that good, but still...

[naval2006]

I usually shoot in the mid/high 70's in the most boring way. I find a lot of fairways, I get on the green in regulation but not too close to birdie and I two-putt most of the times in this situation. My short game is fine at the side of the green and below average with the wedges. So when we add up at the end of the round what I look like and what I score are rather different.

 

I think it must be experience or something, but I seldom go with more than bogey on my rounds. It's not that I think about not making mistakes, which is detrimental, but I work my way around the course so that I always have "makeable" shots.

 

On the whole, you need good all-around skills to shoot in the 70's but nothing superb; perhaps making most 3-4 footers makes it.

[AEuropa]

New to the forum. Renewed golfer after a 20+ year hiatus. But, successful in many other endeavors in my life, much of which I attribute to a logical approach to training and a solid mental game. Take this post for what it's worth, simply as food for thought.

 

...but was too fixated on my score. I choked.

 

I would argue that the fact that you posted this thread indicates that you are, indeed, still fixated on your score, and specifically, breaking 80.

 

It's not a mental issue right now at all. I haven't "choked" on 15 or whatever thinking "I'm finally going to do this". That did happen two years ago. But I've shot between 80 and 85 for every single one of my last 10 rounds, but in all of them I've finished stronger than I started.

 

. Putting has killed me the last two rounds. I thought I was an ok putter until the rest of my game started putting pressure on my putter...

 

Is it possible that you start every round with the hope/expectation that maybe TODAY will be the day that you break 80, and thus you "choke" before you even really get started? Then once you've blown (in your mind) the chance to break 80 after several bad holes, you "relax" and go back focusing on the moment instead of the outcome? Outcome-based thinking is results killer in almost all endeavors, especially individual sports.

 

Again, this free advice is worth exactly what you paid for it...! Keep grinding and you'll get there.

 

- Alex

[marte]

I think it depends on the player and his/her strengths and weaknesses. I am absolutely killing my driver right now (for me...longish but not WRX long). I have a lot of short irons in to greens. I'm not quite as sharp with those clubs as I should be, so that needs some work (but it is getting better each round). My chipping was hurting me a few weeks ago but I put in a little work and have mostly fixed that. Putting has killed me the last two rounds. I thought I was an ok putter until the rest of my game started putting pressure on my putter, and I have mostly failed that test. I'm averaging low 30s for putts per round. Not good.

 

There are no "simple rules " like "no doubles" etc for breaking 80. I've shot 81 in a variety of different ways. Once, I had 4 birdies. My 82 this weekend? No birds, no doubles...all pars and bogeys. I agree that you can't have too many big numbers. And a good tee game is very helpful, along with a good short game. The bottom line for me is that my short irons and my putter have to improve (putter is glaring weakness right now).

 

Thanks for all of the guidance guys..I find this thread very instructive!

 

Agree with this. All kinds of ways to NOT break 80.

So I'm curious LeftDaddy. In your 1st post you wrote that your buddy had fixed a putter grip issue and that you started putting really well. What's up with that? Are you still doing it or did you go back to your old grip?

 

Good catch...I wondered if anyone would call me out on that. I did "fix" my grip, but I had also been needing to get my putter lie angle fixed for a while too, so I decided to go ahead and do that. I got it bent from 70 deg to 72 deg (all my clubs are bent 2 deg upright and the putter fitting showed that also). Anyway, as soon as I got my putters bent I started pulling the heck out of them. The guy told me it would take some time to get back to square.

 

So anyway, I have putted 1,000 times in my rec room at home so I think I'm square now. It should be all good. But when I went out Saturday, my issue was speed control and misreads. I'm hitting my lines better than ever and keeping the face stable. But the greens on this course are a good bit slower than what I'm used to and that just messed my mind up (and my reads). And I didn't get a chance to practice prior to the round at all (went out dead cold). I'm sure I should be able to adjust if I were actually all that good, but still...

 

Nah, not calling you out at all. Just wondering if you stuck with the new grip or if you, like so many of us do, just kind of forgot about something that was apparently working for you. You didn't, so that's good. Basically a new putter..no warmup... slow greens...a course you don't normally play.... and you shoot 82---pretty good. My only advice here is do whatever you gotta do to get to the course early enough to hit some chips and putts to get a feel for the ball-before teeing off.

 

A little data on me you might find of interest. Just tallied it all up. Over the last 18 years I've played 566-18's at my home course. 249 were 79 (44%) or lower, mostly 77-79 but a lot of 72, 73, 74's. Plus 170 (30%) 80, 81, 82's (tons more chances to go sub 80). Pretty steady lately but far from a good player...lousy putter. I'm 70. Been playing for 50 years but quite seriously since I was age 52-18 years ago. The bulk of my 83+ scores were 17, 18 19 years ago when I would shoot 77 one day and 97 the next. That inconsistency drove me batty. My hope every time I go out is to break 80. My "hope" not necessarily my "goal". Can't ever remember going to the course thinking "I'm going to break 80 today." You go out, hit the ball and it happens...or it doesn't. You're making good progress. It'll happen for you soon enough. Have fun.