My Road to Improvement - 7/9/25 new swing video

[bortass]

Shot a 43/47, 90/89. I had a quad on 18, so posted an 89. Mi index will drop to 17.x from the looks of things.

 

The 43 on the front had two doubles. #5, par 5, I had to take a drop on my first two shots but somehow salvaged the double. The other was on #7. Hit my approach into a back bunker. Left the sand shot 30 feet short of the cup. Par putt was tracking good and hit a small rock from the aeration. That killed the speed and left me two feet out for bogey, which I missed.

 

Back had two doubles and the quad. Hit my second shot on a par 5 into a pond. The other was on a par three when I chunked my ball into the stream fronting the green. Hit a great pitch, over stream and a bunker to 9 feet but couldn’t convert the bogey.

 

Overall, things seem to be heading in the right direction. I hope to practice this upcoming week which should help.

[bortass]

My index is now 17.8. It's only dropped 1.6 since 5/20 but I was buried behind a hard cap of 19.4 since 3/4. This is making me feel real good about how my scores are trending.

 

The biggest change is my partial wedges. My partial wedge swing feels much more aggressive than my 'normal' swing. It's adding distance and my partial PW is sometimes going what I would normally hit my 9i aka 120 yards. I am noticing the occasional increase in iron shots but it is nothing like what I am experiencing with my wedges with regard to how often it happens. 

 

An iron example from Saturday was on #13. par three with a back flag. Guy lasers it at 135ish. The green is up a slight slope, so above us and wind in our face.  because of the wind I opt to hit my 130 club, 8i. I hit it great, a high draw at the flag that completely carried the green, 139 yards. The pitch mark was about a foot behind where my ball came to rest...

 

I do not feel that aggressive with driver or woods off the tee. However I have hit a few impressive (for me) drives. I referenced the 268 yard drive on #5 Saturday. I also had a 268 yard drive, again a level hole and no cart path assist, on #9 that day. I am still struggling with pushes though, my guess is my wrists are too passive based on what my tendencies have been in the past. The release is not something that is natural to me.

 

Woods off the deck are still "danger, use in case of emergency". I used to consider myself decent with this shot but have lost it. I am more likely to just hit my 5i short than try to hit a wood off the deck. The frustrating thing is when I hit my 4w solid, it's a game changer. I can get next to the green on some par 5s in two. Sunday, I used it for an emergency on #5. I was about 200 out on a par 5 and already laying 4 thanks to consecutive drops. I hit a solid baby draw about 205 just past the green on the right. I get to #14 and had hit a great drive to a level spot in the fairway. Went with 4w and solid contact, but likely near the toe, and with an open face, push fade into a pond. #18, par 5, drive into right trees, drop and duff my layup. Green is in range of a wood so I go for it, another open face push fade into a pond... Blah. I'll just have to keep at it and try to figure out how to become decent with this shot again.

 

 

 

[bortass]

Today, #15 par four and here is my drive:

 

3-4 feet from the front edge of the green. Roughly 240 yard drive. Chip it to inside 18 inches and walk away with a par… I suck, lol. Can’t blame punched greens for that miss. Oh well. At least I almost drove the green.

 

Things are Helter Skelter on the course but the overall trend, except for today, is positive. I hope to write about both rounds tomorrow because there seems to be some good stuff happening.

[Duffer Mark]

Good drive! It's so hard not to think of what could have been. In last Wednesday's league, there were 5 strokes in 9 holes that could have - should have - easily not been on my scorecard. 😁

[bortass]

Saturday hit a high on 98, so it was quite warm on the course. Shot a 42/46, 88 with 1 penalty on the front and 5 on the back, lol. I had 9 pars, 4 bogeys, 3 doubles, and 2 triples. It caused my index to drop 0.1 to 17.7 which is nice.

 

I'll start with the penalties.

 

#5 hit a real solid pull draw down the left side and find my ball in a stream, so I had to drop 228 off the tee. May need to dial back to 4w off this tee again. This led to one of the two doubles on the front.

 

#11, I seem to be hitting the ball a bit further and decide to hit 5i off the tee instead of 7w. My concern is a solid 7w may find the bunkers at the outside edge of the corner of this dogleg left. I hit a horrible, thin, pull hook that gets a few feet off the ground and goes straight into the left hazard. I drop 91 yards off the tee and don't have any shot at the green and need to layup.  I'm in a depression and can't see anything except the tops of the trees I'm aiming at. Hit a very solid 8i and never found the ball and one guy in my group said he heard it land on dirt but not sure where.  I just take another drop and end up with a triple.

 

#12, push fade my 4w into the right trees. Have to drop and it turns into another triple after I thin my 9i into a bunker.

 

#15, pull my drive into left trees and come away with a bogey.

 

#18, awesome drive on a par 5, 264 yards. I opt for 5i across the stream and I'm aiming well left of the pond.  Ball starts way right and curves right, into the pond. The face had to have been wide open at impact... Leads to a double after some clunkers.

 

Driver was mostly on though with distances of 250, 186( push fade into trees that got spit out, so no drop), 245, 228(drop on 5), 187 mishit low pull, 270, 247, 270,214 (drop on 15), 260, and 264.

 

Partial wedges are still going longer than normal and I'm playing them that way now. Even had a couple irons go longer than expected as well. Namely a 138 yard high draw with my 9i(120 club) that landed on the green and bounced a few feet closer to the tee box. It's still a roll of the dice with every swing since I have some bad mishits but overall things seem to be heading in a good direction.

 

Sunday was a different story, 46/53, 99 with 4 penalties on the front and 5 on the back.  There were 4 pars, 5 bogeys, 6 doubles, 2 triples, and a quad.

 

Penalty time.

 

#3, this one was a killer. Par 5 and my drive gets me in 4w range of the green, so i go for it. Hit it solid and into a front bunker. Pick the ball clean and launch it over the green and OOB. Turns into a double.

 

#4, push fade with driver into right trees. A series of mishits after the drop and a double is carded.

 

#5, another pull draw into the left hazard with driver and I mishit the two shots after the drop as well. Another double. 

 

#11, try 5i again after Saturday's fiasco and hit a horrible push fade in trees lining the right side. No sign of the ball and likely OOB. I drop where it entered the tree and am forced to lay up, leads to a triple.

 

#16, par 3, and i leave the face open and hit a push fade dead into the right trees, a double.

 

#17, push fade with driver way right that lands on the cart path and kicks deep into the wood(marked as hazard). Drop and another double. 

 

#18, lackluster pull with driver forces a layup that i do not hit well. I have a 4w into the green and hit it off the toe with a wide open face. Push fade into pond.  Drop and hit a partial PW thin and into a back bunker. Chip out with 7i but hit it too hard and over 30 feet past the hole. Three putts for a quad(9).

 

Driver distances, 255, 239, 202 (drop on4), 221 (drop on 5), 205 (thin push), 252, 261, 231, 242 (#15 where I almost drove the green see my prior post), 212 (drop on 17), 175 (drop on 18). Plenty of proof that my driver swing is not there yet but still the longer distances when I don't hit it offline is very nice.

 

Same story as Saturday with partial wedges, playing them at one club up than in the past seems to be working. Hit a lot of real high shots that just drop and stop with them. 

 

I need to keep working on getting the arms and wrists involved but I still think my overall trend is in the correct direction. My pars have almost all been 'easy'. I do not feel like I am scrambling to save them. I had 13 pars this weekend and only got up and down 3 times( all on Saturday).

 

Hope I'm not delusional and interpreting what is happening on the course wrong, lol.

 

[bortass]

Got out and played with the Seniors today. Shotgun start and we were on hole #16. I missed the green short and chipped in for birdie!  A great way to start and overall I played decent. Shot a 45/43, 88. One birdie, four pars, nine bogeys and four doubles. Not a single triple for a change and 'only' three penalties!

 

I'll get the less stellar stuff out of the way first.

 

#1 was a double. A good drive set me up with what i though was a 6i approach. I missed right and long, landed on the cart path and bounced into the hazard. Led to a double and I think I should have hit 7i on my approach.

 

#6, par 4 and I hit the green in two, 32 feet past the hole on the right. I get the speed right on my birdie putt but it's low. The ball stops two feet to the right of the cup. I three jack from there... A four putt double.

 

#11, par 4. Push my tee shot and it leaves me a 6i in which is also a push. I catch my pitch onto the green thin and it rolls 42 feet past the hole. A weak par putt stops 12 feet short. Turns into another double.

 

#12 par 4, pull my 4w drive into the left trees but it gets spit out. Hit 6i into the front bunker. Green is above me and I barely get out. Chip to 4 feet and two putt for double.

 

Notice I only mentioned one penalty in the doubles?

 

#9, 250 yard drive that's a touch left and in the pond. I come away with bogey. This is the #3 HCP hole and I'm always good with a bogey even if there are no penalties.

 

#15, slice my drive into the right trees. Drop and hit my approach to 14 feet. par putt lips out, bogey.

 

I worked for the pars today. I only had three GIR and they account for two of the four pars and the bird was a chip in. There were only two shots that were complete messes. The sliced drive of #15 and I topped my 4w on a par five and it led to a bogey after a great drive. All my other mishits were okay. Either a push or short but nothing horrid.

 

I am still sorting out my iron and wedge distances. I am playing them a club longer more often and it seems to be panning out. Still not perfect but it's not causing any real issues. I like this trend. I had two drives of 261 and another two in the 249-250 range, so the big stick seems to be working out too. 

 

Speaking of trends, I feel like I am hitting the ball better and playing pretty solidly( for me). My index will drop again over night a little. I do hear Monte's voice in the back of my head though. He's telling me anyone can string a few good rounds together. I think he says that at every clinic, lol. I still need a lot of work and have been slacking with my practice, so I'll try to be a realist if things start to fall apart on me, lol.

[SNIPERBBB]

Think the bigger bright spot for you is that you didn't have any topped or chunked shots. Or if you did you salvaged at least bogey out em. Which is a huge step.

[bortass]

20 hours ago, SNIPERBBB said:

Think the bigger bright spot for you is that you didn't have any topped or chunked shots. Or if you did you salvaged at least bogey out em. Which is a huge step.

Thanks, that does seem to have improved. I still hit it fat at times but not seeing the real bad chunks as much. The tops seem more localized to the four wood off the deck which is why I rarely use it. I will try it at times but results are not great still. Too bad because i used to be much better with that shot.

[bortass]

Yesterday's round in pictures. It was a shotgun start which is why #16 is first.

 

16 – par 3, 147 yards, #8 HCP. Elevated green with a forced stream carry. Bunkers short right and long left and middle. Tiered green with a strong back left to front right slope.

 

17 – par 4, 363 yards, dogleg left, #6 HCP. Fairly open fairway with bunkers on the right at the corner. Green has a tier and heavily slopes left to right, can putt off this green... Bunkers short of the green as well.

 

18 – par 5, 504 yards, straightish, #2 HCP. There is a stream carry on either the second or third shot. There is also a pond fronting the green...

1 – par 4, 404 yards, straight, #1 HCP, bunker front right.

 

2 – par 3, 142 yards, #17 HCP, bunkers short left and right, and long left.

 

3 – par 5, 458 yards, dogleg right, #9 HCP, couple of fairway bunkers on the left at the corner.

 

4 – par 4, 293 yards, straight, #15 HCP, water left and OoB right. Right side has a slope. There's a fairway bunker on the right.

 

5- par 5, 501 yards, dogleg right, #5 HCP, hazard down the left side. There's a slope on the right side which makes the fairway narrow in the landing spot. A stream runs down the right side from the corner to near the green

 

 

6 – par 4, 367 yards, slight dogleg left, #7 HCP. Medium width landing area with a bunker on the left. Houses are on the right and there's a sharp slope into the left trees if you end up too far into the left rough.

[bortass]

Rest of the holes from yesterday.

 

7 – par 4, 351 yards, slight dogleg right, #11 HCP, elevated tee shot to a wide open fairway that slopes down right to left all the way to about the 100 yard marker. Bunkers on the left marking the corner and a slope on the right.

 

8 – par 3, 160 yards, elevated tee shot, #13 HCP, bunker on the right side of the green. Slope to the right of this hole that is weed whacked. So it's long stuff and wild. Balls can get lost here.

 

9 – par 4, 357 yards, straight hole, #3 HCP, water on the left as you approach the green. The pond fronts this green.

 

10 – par 4, 342 yards, dogleg left, #10 HCP hole. Elevated tee shot to a lower fairway. Green is elevated with a bunker front right.

 

11 – par 4, 329 yards, 90* dogleg left, #12 HCP. Fairway eventually slopes down to a stream short of the green, forced carry.

 

12 – par 4, 315 yards, 90* dogleg left, #14 HCP, green is elevated. Narrow tee shot that opens as you reach the corner.

 

13 – par 3, 123 yards, #18 HCP, green is elevated with bunkers short right and left and long left. Tiered green as well.

 

14 – par 5, 543, straight hole, #4 HCP. Elevated tee shot to wide open fairway. Fairway slopes down left to right, water on the right closer to the green and fronting the entire green.

 

15 – par 4, 264 yards, straight, #16 HCP. Elevated tee shot to a fairway that is always soft and cart path only year round. Fairway bunkers on left side in line with the green. Bunker surround this green except for the left side.

[bortass]

I pretty much crapped the bed Saturday 😂 50/47, 97( 96 for GHIN because of an X that Arccos has as a quad). Four pars, six bogeys, 6 doubles, a triple, and a quad.

 

The quad( I took an X) involved hitting my tee shot OOB, I dropped where the ball went out and added the two penalty strokes. I then hit the next shot OOB as well, lol.

 

Triple( par 5) involved an awesome tee shot, cart path assisted four wood 250 yards. I fell apart from there. I was laying 6 by the time I was on the green and two putt from 15 feet.

 

The doubles were a mix of reasons. On one par 5, I mishit the first four shots, which included a drive of a whooping 85 yards. Another was needing a chip and three putts or two chips and two putts.

 

Sunday was different though. 41/47, 88, which dropped my index by 0.2, to 17.3 which also gets me out of the soft cap!

 

I was +2 through 7. Bogey on #8 and a double on #9. I had birdie putts of 6 and 9 feet that I did not convert but inside 10 feet has a chance of being made. 

 

The back started with a lucky par on 10. I hit a great 4w off the tee and chunked my approach short of the green. Hit a blind pitch to a foot. Followed it with a bad double and two three putt bogey. Par on #4 HCP hole( par 5) and then I went on the double, double, double, bogey train. That train was caused by pulled tee shot into a hazard on 15. #16, par 3, I chunk my iron into the stream short of the green. #17 push fade drive into a hazard and I followed it with a frustration shot that was a bad decision and only advanced the ball about 85 yards.

 

#18 though bugs me. A solid drive in play on this hole for a change. I have a 5i across the stream and I am aiming well left of the pond. I leave the face wide open and hit a push fade dead right into the pond. I have done this multiple times with my 5i on this hole lately. I do not get it. 

 

I characterize the back 9 as my normal mishits all showed up in condensed form. The only dumb shot I had was when I got frustrated on #17. Everything else was the correct decision but poor execution.

 

Seven pars, six  bogeys, and five doubles but no triples or worse for a change. Seven GIR but I three putt two of them.

 

I just wish I knew why I keep missing 40 yards right with my 5i on #18. It's killing me. I also need to figure out how to not hit it heavy on a downhill lie. I try to level my shoulders with the slope but almost always hit it fat.

 

I'll be playing a new course late Thursday afternoon as part of the house hunting process. The online reviews of it are mixed but I have to actually play it to see if we even bother to keep looking at houses in the subdivision surrounding it. It's supposed to be a challenging course but may be in rough shape. I hope to do the same thing next week in another area we are considering houses. I haven't played anything but the courses at my club since moving to GA back in 2019, so this will be a shock to my system and game. I'll be sure to remind myself that my score is not indicative of the course, lol.

 

[bortass]

Played a new course for the first time since I joined my current club back in late 2019. The online reviews made me think it was a goat track with terrible conditions. We checked out the clubhouse over a month ago and it was a hard pass based on what we saw. The state of the clubhouse jived with the reviews of the course. A real nice building that's not being maintained.

 

Well, I will say I was surprised. Fairways were in real good shape and it's been very hot and dry the last few weeks. There's areas of runoff damage but this is a hilly course and the location of the damage made sense based on topography. There's some broadleaf grassy weed growing in the fringe/rough around a number of the greens. I have seen this same exact plant in similar places at my sister club, just not as much of it.

 

Greens are small and have no tiering. Some damage to the greens from unfixed pitch marks, again I have seen the exact same thing at my sister course. I saw that grass/weed in two of the greens. There was one plant on #1 and two plants on one green on the back. #8 was the worse green. It had some larger areas of damage and what looks like moss growing in on one side that is shaded.

 

The bunkers are small and there are not a lot of them compared to my home course. I saw grass growing is spots and was worried when I hit my ball into them. I was surprised by the sand. It was soft and my wedge dug in fine without hitting hardpan. I was amazed. Pretty sure the little clumps of grass in the bunker could be easily pulled out.

 

There is not much water in play and no ponds that need to be carried. I recall a pond on the right side of a couple holes and that's it. Because of the hills there are a few forced carries over brush but nothing I consider unreasonable.

 

There are five sets of tees and all seem to be in place, par 72. I played the whites which according to the card are 6200 yards with rating/slope of 70.5/129. The white tees at my home course are 5963 yards and it's 68.9/126. The course is hilly, so it plays shorter than it's yardage IMO. Most of the tee boxes are elevated. A number of greens are also elevated, so a fair number of blind shots in based on where I left myself.

 

Wife drove the cart, so the score was posted but no one else with us. I was winging it based on what I could see and what I noticed with Arccos. Having no course knowledge onlyreally hurt me on #18. I hit an okay tee shot and told it to run when it landed and bounced off a slight slope on the left of the fairway. I thought it would kick right and roll down a slope. What I couldn't see is there was a drop off filled with brush, not fairway, past the crest of the area I landed my tee shot it. maybe a well struck draw down the middle could have carried it all but this may be a hole where I'd tee off with an iron.

 

I am bummed with my performance.  I had a 53/44, 97 with five penalties off the tee and another three with second shots/approaches.  I posted a 93 because of NDB and it's not quite low enough to change my index. The front had two triples, a quad, and a 5 over, so +15 on four holes and the back had a quad. I opened with three pars and had a three putt bogey on #4. Then it was quad, +5, triple, bogey, triple. The back was bogey, birdie, par, bogey, par, par, bogey, double, and quad. I managed 9 GIR and 36 putts.

 

#5, par 5 and a quad. Mishit drive only goes 157 yards but finds the fairway. I go with 5i and hit that terrible push fade that has been plaguing me with this club. The ball hits a tree on the right side and drops, 66 yards. I hit Monte's 4L shot with 7i and it goes 180 yards thanks to a downslope. I have a downhill lie and inside 60 yards of center with a forced carry over brush. I chunk my 60* into the brush. Drop and hit a thin pitch over the green into a bad spot. Chip through green and second chip to a foot and I have my 9.

 

#6, par 4, +5. Hole is dogleg left and I tee off with my 4w. Smother heel shot wormburner that goes dead left off the tee and rolls into a hazard. Drop 68 yards off the tee. &i and 4w get me in a bunker fronting the green. Hit my sand shot over the green, picked it pretty clean. Blah putter chip to 11 feet and a three putt for 9.

 

#7 par 5, triple. Push fade drive into right trees. Drop and push fade 4w into right trees. Push fade 5i and expect it to be in trees/wet but I find it. Pitch it short of the green but chip it inside a foot.

 

#9, par 4, triple. Push fade driver into right trees. Drop and I have no shot at the green because I'm blocked by trees. Ho hum low 5i power chip, about 108 yards, to get into the fairway. Blind shot to an elevated green and i hit my AW over the green. Bad chip is 15 feet short. First putt goes 6 feet long but I somehow make that putt to save my triple.

 

#18, par 5, quad. Thought I hit a decent drive but I didn't know the fairway ended as explained in more detail above. Drop and I hit 5i. That bad push fade into the right trees but it stops on the edge of the cart path. I have to hit a 4L shot with 6i to the green. Good contact and the correct ball flight but it's a pull and goes into the left trees. Blade my pitch over the green, chip to three feet and two putt, lol.

 

#17 was a double but I don't consider it 'bad'. It's a par 4 and with the elevated tee, I can reach with my 4w, so I whack my 4w to try and drive the green. It's a very solid high draw down the left side. A great looking shot but my ball is in a front left bunker. It takes me three to get out of the soft sand, lol. I then two putt from 6 feet. I think this is not a green I would go for in the future. It's narrow with a couple small bunkers guarding the front and long doesn't look great either. 

 

Hole of the day was #11, par 4. An okay mishit drive into the right side of the fairway, 213 yards. Blind shot to an elevated green and I hit 7i. Get to the green and find this:

 

An easy birdie, lol.

 

Drive of the day was on #10, 287 yards because it's all downhill, lol.

 

Overall, my swing was off and cost me on a number of holes. I had a fair bit of mishits, push fades/slices, with my driver that stayed in play, but still did okay. I can't complain about a high number on a course I have never seen before though.

Edited June 28, 2024 by bortass

[bortass]

My round Saturday was lackluster. A 46/47, 93. I had four doubles on the front and the back was worse. A quad, triple, and double. I did manage a birdie that kinda helped some. The round had no impact on my index. My short game bit. I had three chips on #9( double), bunker issues, and my pitching was off. I can't say my shorter range chips were all that hot either. I just didn't leave myself many makeable putts.

 

I'm on vacation, so I played this morning with the seniors. Weather was better, mid 80s with some wind. I am pretty happy with the round but could have done much better IMO. A 44/43, 87 which should drop my index by about 0.3 unless PCC kicks in.

 

I had a triple(8) on the front when I pulled my drive into a hazard and two shots later, put it into a greenside bunker. It took three to get out and luckily I made the putt to save my triple. The back featured a triple and a double but I also managed a birdie on a par three. I almost made another birdie putt but left it about 4 inches short, lol.

 

My short game left a bit to be desired. I chunked a few pitches which I don't understand at all. Also chunked some partial wedges. Some chips had distance control issues too. What is funny is my putting was better per SG but I left some out there with two misses from about 4 feet. No three putts though. 

 

I did hit my 4w off the deck three times with much better results. All were nice looking draws that went 190-200 yards. 

 

There were a fair number of mishits but I managed a decent score nonetheless. My scores are trending in the correct direction at least.

 

Tomorrow I play a new course. I am not expecting much score wise but it should be fun. 

 

 

[bortass]

Yesterday's round would be rated as okay. It's a course I have never played before, 6246 yards and 69.9/129. What I normally play at my home course is 5963 yards and it's 68.9/126. Course conditions were good. I'd say my home course is in better shape overall but it was perfectly fine and in better shape than the course I played last Thursday. Greens were a decent size and pretty flat. they were punched about 10 days ago but were mostly healed. You could tell they had been punched in a few spots but that's about it. They putted true and speed was decent. 

 

There were no other golfers with me, so I had no one helping figure out where to aim or what to avoid. That did catch up to me a few times because I didn't notice a stream in blind area on #1 and there was a hole on the back I couldn't figure out where to aim because it was a blind tee shot with a dogleg. The lack of course knowledge cost me a couple of shots but the main culprit was just my swing, lol.

 

I shot a 50/43, 93. My wife drove the cart which made it a postable score. It did not change my index at all. My swing issues were mostly when I felt rushed because of people behind us or the grounds crew waiting on me to clear a tee box to mow.  The front nine had us waiting almost every shot. We caught the twosome in front of us on #3, they were waiting on a foursome, and didn't offer to let us join them. That was fine since we were in no hurry until a group finally caught up to us on #8. On #10, the foursome had let the twosome in front of us through and then let us play through. I think that's why I did better on the back until we ran into the guys mowing, lol. My wife commented that I start to rush when I think there are people waiting, sigh.

 

The front had three triples. One from not knowing the course. Another on a par 3, #8, when I hit a push fade into the right trees(this is when the guys behind us caught up on the same teebox) and I couldn't find it, so lost ball drop.  Massive push fade tee shot across the main road and OOB on #9.

 

The 43 on the back had a birdie and two doubles. I had a bad three putt for one double and the other involved hitting my approach into a stream when I hit a terrible push fade with my 6i. My other errors I salvaged for bogey somehow, lol. For example one bogey on a par 4 involved three bad shots in a row then a good partial AW to 13 feet and I made the putt for a change. 

 

The new courses helped tell me one thing about my game. It's about the same if the course is in the ballpark with regard to yardage and slope/rating. I could have done better just by not spitting the bit with so many shots.  I hope to get back to practicing next week. I never made it to the range at all in June, so I'm sure that will impact my progress soon.

[betarhoalphadelta]

18 hours ago, bortass said:

 

My swing issues were mostly when I felt rushed because of people behind us or the grounds crew waiting on me to clear a tee box to mow.  The front nine had us waiting almost every shot. We caught the twosome in front of us on #3, they were waiting on a foursome, and didn't offer to let us join them. That was fine since we were in no hurry until a group finally caught up to us on #8. On #10, the foursome had let the twosome in front of us through and then let us play through. I think that's why I did better on the back until we ran into the guys mowing, lol. My wife commented that I start to rush when I think there are people waiting, sigh.

 

 

 

 

I completely get feeling rushed when you know someone is behind you. But if you're waiting on the group in front of you, who is waiting on the group in front of them, then you can't let yourself worry about the group behind you. 

[bortass]

1 hour ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

I completely get feeling rushed when you know someone is behind you. But if you're waiting on the group in front of you, who is waiting on the group in front of them, then you can't let yourself worry about the group behind you. 

Exactly, logical but … Part of it is having an audience. Like I should care since I know I’m just another okayish golfer out there. But there is still a feeling of pressure and maybe I would have hit those terrible shots w/o anyone watching. Gotta live the mental game😆

[betarhoalphadelta]

I hear you. The shots I hate are when it's a slow day on the course and you're waiting for the green to clear on a par 3. All of a sudden the group behind you is finishing the previous hole and showing up to the tee right as you're getting ready to hit. 

 

I'm not all that comfortable playing golf in front of a gallery 😉

 

[bortass]

More Helter Skelter golf over the weekend. Sometimes I'm competent and sometimes I'm just terrible. 

 

Saturday was a 48(no penalties)/46(took an X and a bunch of penalties).  My putting sucked. Three putt from 5 feet, double. Three putt from 11 feet, double. I had two putts from 3 feet three times. I missed two other putts inside 2 feet that are not included in the previous items.

 

The front had a string of incompetent shots that led to a couple of triples. I took an X on #10 when I topped my 4w into the junk in front of the tee box and reteed. That shot was off the toe and into the right trees. I would have been dropping 4, with no shot at the green. So I just picked up and carded NDB. A couple holes later I pull me 4w into the left trees off the tee and never find it, came away with a triple.

 

Hole of the day was #18, par 5. I hit a pull draw that springboard off the left slope and down the cart path 287 yards, lol. That put the green in range of my 4w. I hit a solid shot over the stream and pond onto the green and 39 feet below the hole. Eagle putt is up a tier and i get it to a foot and make the birdie putt fort a change. I have never hit this green in two.

 

Sunday was a little better, 44/46*, 90. * because I picked up on #14 and just carded a NDB 8. The 44 on the front had a triple(8) on #5. A real good tee shot and I topped a 5i into a hazard right in front of me. Putting was much improved since I made most of my shorter putts for a change and I had some real good lag putts. My best hole was #13, par 3. I hit a slight pull with my 9i on and somehow got lucky and sank the 43 foot birdie putt. Pure luck, not skill, lol.

 

The trends I have noticed with my irons and wedges seem to be holding. I have been playing them a club longer and it's working fairly well. Some of my partial wedges are going even longer than expected with my upgraded yardages.

 

With irons, I still catch them a bit heavy at times and the miss tends to be a push fade. A pull will show up once in a great while but those are rare. 5i, and even 6i on one shot yesterday, are trending towards disaster though. I do not know the issue but I can either top my 5i or hit a push fade that is low, starts way right the start line I want immediately, and curves way right. that bad push fade showed up with a 6i into a pond yesterday. I don't seem to see that way right miss with shorter clubs.

 

Driver is all over the map and the biggest trend is an inability to close the face leading to push fades and even a couple of slices that started far enough left to stay in play. I did have one awesome steep swing that left a mark near the crown, flew like a short iron, and broke a new wooden tee about an inch from the bottom, lol.

 

Woods off the deck are slowly improving. I am hitting them solidly a bit more than I am mishitting them. It's to the point where I will actually use that shot instead of avoiding it completely. I'm still worse than I was late last year when I couldn't miss and hit the nice looking draws most of the time.

 

No changes to my index and progress is reasonable based on my lack of practice. I plan to hit the range in the morning and getting back to it.

Edited July 8, 2024 by bortass
cause I'm an idiot and forgot to clarify

[betarhoalphadelta]

3 hours ago, bortass said:

More Helter Skelter golf over the weekend. Sometimes I'm competent and sometimes I'm just terrible. 

 

 

I resemble that remark 😉

 

3 hours ago, bortass said:

Some of my partial wedges are going even longer than expected with my upgraded yardages. I still catch them a bit heavy at times and the miss tends to be a push fade. A pull will show up once in a great while but those are rare.

 

 

 

Partial wedge distances is a bit of a problem for me right now too. I feel like if I try to lay off too much, I risk a chunk. But if I don't watch it, I can easily blast one 15+ yards farther than I intend because I don't want to chunk. And for some reasons a pull is my primary miss. 

 

I suspect it has something to do with the shortened swing for me and maybe I'm not opening the face as much as I do in my full-swing backswing, so I have an accelerated closure? Whereas the opposite could occur for you and something you're doing makes it harder for you to close the face? I know my typical miss is left while yours is right, so something with a shortened swing maybe getting us both? Dunno...

 

[bortass]

3 minutes ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

I resemble that remark 😉

 

 

Partial wedge distances is a bit of a problem for me right now too. I feel like if I try to lay off too much, I risk a chunk. But if I don't watch it, I can easily blast one 15+ yards farther than I intend because I don't want to chunk. And for some reasons a pull is my primary miss. 

 

I suspect it has something to do with the shortened swing for me and maybe I'm not opening the face as much as I do in my full-swing backswing, so I have an accelerated closure? Whereas the opposite could occur for you and something you're doing makes it harder for you to close the face? I know my typical miss is left while yours is right, so something with a shortened swing maybe getting us both? Dunno...

 

I am a dumb@ss... Thanks for quoting my post so I could see what I wrote is messed up. I did a quick edit but what I meant to have said is my irons are heavy at times and miss with a push fade.

 

My partial wedges can be heavy as well but my misses tend to be based on the lie. I will miss left with the ball above my feet because while I know it will go left, I do not have a feel for how much. The hole it normally happens on would have me aiming towards the right bunkers and I can't bring myself to do it, lol. I worry about hitting it straight into them which means i aim towards the right side and my ball ends up almost pin high on the left side.

 

My partial wedge distances are pretty solid because I always try the same swing with them. I only have one distance per wedge, I'm not messing with the Pelz clock thing anymore.  Sometimes I may try to step on one a bit but that's about it. I think the increased distance is from using my arms more, which would account for my irons being longer, and perhaps I've made the swing longer over time. I will say I am aggressive with my partial wedge swing and I hit them high, so they drop and tend to stop quick. I'm probably doing something suboptimal but it's not like I'm trying to hit a 52* 120 yards.

 

 

[bortass]

I decided to do something a little different with the two range sessions I've had this week. I decided to add in target focused practice. I really don't care too much about where the ball goes when I'm doing practice blocks that involve drills and think I need to also work on my target focus. I kept the 'target' practice pretty basic. Same club at the same target and go through my pre-shot routine for each ball. Yesterday I used my 8i and it went fairly well.  Today I used my 5i because I have been struggling with it and it was a mess, just like on the course. I cannot figure out how to swing this club any more. Almost every shot was thin and most were that terrible low push fade. I can't seem to get the face closed for whatever reason. No video, so I can't try to work out what may be the mechanical issue.

 

I think the important take away for me was what happened when I used my 8i for one shot near the end of my 20 minute block of hitting 5i. The 8i was nice and high and went at my target. Whatever the issue is seems to be more apparent with a longer club and less loft which make sense but the shots are radically different. The 8i is playable and the 5i is not. I really don't think I can use that club until I fix the issue because that push fade is so far offline and weak. 

 

The lack on my 5i will make things a bit interesting when I play because I had been hitting it decently enough that I would rather use it than try to hit a wood off the deck even though I give up 20+ yards. I think I'd rather hit a wood now, lol.

 

Regardless, it has felt real good to be practicing again. I'm hoping to get in a couple more range sessions this week to keep working on my pivot. I may try to snag some video to see what the swing looks like these days and if I do, I'll be sure to include the 5i.

[bortass]

Arccos added a new feature. Wish this was common place for me, lol.

 

Edited July 20, 2024 by bortass

[bortass]

I'm not sure what to make of the new Arccos 'Top Shots' feature. It will probably vary by person but for me it's like a gold sticker on my first grade homework, something that makes me feel good but has little bearing in the greater scheme of things. The screenshots above are from my Saturday round. I had three Top Shots and all had the PGA logo. The one I didn't include was a pitch that was better that 55ish% of PGA shots. My round on Sunday had two Top Shots with the PGA stats which were 59% and 88% better than the PGA. I looked at my rounds before the weekend and a few have the Top Shots button available but none have the PGA logo. It just calls out my best approach shots for that round w/o any mention of how it compares to the tour. It's a quick way to look at one's best approaches for a round.

 

 

[SNIPERBBB]

45 minutes ago, bortass said:

I'm not sure what to make of the new Arccos 'Top Shots' feature. It will probably vary by person but for me it's like a gold sticker on my first grade homework, something that makes me feel good but has little bearing in the greater scheme of things. The screenshots above are from my Saturday round. I had three Top Shots and all had the PGA logo. The one I didn't include was a pitch that was better that 55ish% of PGA shots. My round on Sunday had two Top Shots with the PGA stats which were 59% and 88% better than the PGA. I looked at my rounds before the weekend and a few have the Top Shots button available but none have the PGA logo. It just calls out my best approach shots for that round w/o any mention of how it compares to the tour. It's a quick way to look at one's best approaches for a round.

 

 

I think its just a feel good/marketing thing.

[bortass]

I have the stats below to compare today versus the start of the year. I know this is not the best measurement since it's just based on my last 10 rounds in both cases. Course conditions are different and it's not a big sample size but I'm trying to keep it consistent with how I first captured these numbers back in 2021.

 

Overall, my last 10 rounds are much better with a total strokes gained improvement of +6.7 strokes which is roughly a 48% improvement. I got to a point that was even better last year, so I will not claim that my current level of play is here to stay.

 

Driving is a touch better, improved by +1 SG, with improvements in distance and a slight reduction in penalties. My accuracy has dropped off some though.

 

Approach shots are the biggest gain, improved +3.3 SG. I'm surprised that it's no longer my worst stat. This area has always been the worst for me. It's now roughly the same as my driving stats which is a big win as far as my improvement goes.

 

Short game is also a touch better like my driving stat, improved by +1 SG. This is still my best area. The biggest gain is with my 25-50 yard chipping and it's being offset by my sand game getting worse. I'm okay with the sand game being worse because of what has happened with the course. Our bunkers have been played as GUR for over a year with them being played out of once they were repaired. We had a handful of bunkers repaired by the end of 2023 and now almost all of them are. So I actually have more sand shots now.

 

Putting also showed some decent improvement of +1.4 SG. I went into a major putting funk and this used to be my second worse stat a few years ago. it is slowly getting better but I am still a bad putter. I do okay with putts from 15+ feet but I suck in the 3 - 5 foot range.

 

 

I still believe that full swing is where the greatest potential improvement is. This has been consistent ever since I start playing again and is the area that has shown the biggest gains over the years. It's also the most difficult to improve. My putting is better but still sucks TBH. My strength is short game but I don't feel like I have a decent short game. None of this is surprising as I have always felt I have a lot of room to improve in all aspects of my game.

 

My plan is to switch up my practice for a while. I want to focus more on short game and putting. These are areas that historically people say are the low hanging fruit. It's easier to make decent progress with less work in these areas. That's a blanket statement and may not apply to everyone but I think I fit the bill. I expect to see a larger short term ROI on my practice time by focusing on them. 

 

This may sound dumb because it flies against the numbers but I feel more confident with my driver than I do chipping. A bad drive doesn't feel as bad as a boned chip. I think part of it is the concept that short game is 'easier', so mistakes feel all that much worse. 

 

I have been to the range twice this week. Both days I spent 20 minutes chipping two balls to a hole. I'd throw them to different spots and chip both to the same hole. Then throw them to different areas and chip to a different hole. That way I got different lies, distances, and break/slopes with every shot. I was able to use all four holes on the practice green since no one else was there. I spend the other 20 minutes putting each day. Yesterday was just making random short putts to the various holes and today I did the drill where you putt over a driveway marker/alignment rod.

 

 

 

The numbers for those that like them! 

 

Last 10 rounds compared to a 12 HCP	1/2/24	7/24/24
Overall SG	-14.2	-7.5
Driving SG	-4.4	-3.4
Distance	-1	-0.2
Accuracy	-0.4	-0.6
FW Hit %	54%	50%
Left %	16%	19%
Right %	29%	32%
Penalties	-3	-2.6
Approach SG	-6.5	-3.2
Par 3	-0.4	-0.3
Fairway	-4.9	-1.9
Rough	-1.2	-0.9
Sand	NA	NA
GIR	23%	31%
Long	4%	2%
Short	55%	48%
Left %	6%	8%
Right %	13%	10%
GIR Average Distance to Hole (12 HCP averages 31 feet)	26 Feet	21 Feet
All Approaches Average Distance to Hole (12 HCP averages 65 feet)	96 Feet	79 Feet
Short Game SG	-0.3	0.7
Chips 0 – 25 Yards	0.9	1.2
Chips 25 - 50 Yards	-1	0.4
Chips 0 – 25 Yards Average Distance from Hole (12 HCP averages 17ft )	12 feet	11 feet
Chips 25 - 50 Yards Average Distance from Hole (12 HCP averages 26ft )	31 feet	20 feet
Sand 0 – 25 Yards	-0.1	-0.9
Sand 25 - 50 Yards	-0.1	-0
Sand 0 – 25 Yards Average Distance from Hole (12 HCP averages 24ft )	19 feet	28 feet
Sand 25 - 50 Yards Average Distance from Hole (12 HCP averages 32ft )	34 feet	38 feet
Putting SG	-3	-1.6
First putt 0-10 feet
0 – 2 feet	-0.2	-0.3
3 – 5 feet	-1.3	-0.9
6 – 9 feet	-0.8	-0.5
First putt 10 – 25 feet
10 – 14 feet	-0.2	-0.1
15 – 24 feet	-0.4	-0
First putt 25 -50 feet
25 – 39 feet	0	0
40+ feet	-0.1	0.2
First putt 50+ feet
One Putt %	21.10%	21.10%
Two Putt %	62.20%	66.60%
Three+ Putt %	16.10%	11.60%
Putts per Hole	1.9	1.9
Putts per GIR	2.2	2.1

[bortass]

I can't complain about last week. I managed to go to the range three times and worked on both chipping and putting each time. The sessions all went well IMO. Weather permitting, I hope to work on the same things this week.

 

I only played Saturday and it was cart path only because we've been getting some rain almost every day for the last 10 days or so. The round was amusing. My ball striking ranged from okay to meh but I had no penalties. I only had three GIR and just two up and downs, along with 34 putts. The end result was almost bogey golf. I shot a 91 with a four putt triple on #17. I was able to offset the three double bogeys with a birdie and two pars but that triple was too much to overcome.

 

Realistically, bogey golf is pretty good on a day my swing is off and nothing is going quite right. Now if only I could learn to strike it well and keep it in play, lol. It does show how avoiding penalties can really help out because this was destined to be a mid to upper 90s kinda round if I found ways to spray shots OoB or into hazards like I normally do.

[bortass]

I think I have managed all of three rounds since my last post with two of those being last weekend. House hunting has cut into weekend golf time a decent amount. I have not been able to get to the range either. This week is a wash because the course is closed til Saturday because they are punching the greens. The main positive thing I have managed was getting Monte's new Break 100 then 90 video.

 

It's not a long video but the content is good. I already got my $ worth from watching it once which says a lot IMO. The putting section is the same idea that he shares in clinics and in UTB 2.0. Keep the lower body quiet and speed is what matters. He provides a drill related to speed control that I may try at some point. He goes over his sand shot and also covers three short game shots, wedge, bump and run with an iron, and bump and run with a wood/hybrid. Again there are drills tied to these as well. The full swing section is where he covers setup and grip. That section alone was worth the price of admission for me. The rest of the full swing is NTC and Powershift all rolled into one set of simple drills. There's no detail like you find in NTC or Powershift but there doesn't need to be. Monte tells you want you are looking for/trying to do and that's about it. They will help get the movements for a good backswing and then cast A. There's a second drill that is just about the shift to help get weight to the lead side. The drill he shows where you actually hit a ball was a new one for me and one I plan to try out and involves hitting three different length shots with an iron. I also think Monte does add in his standard comment about not using driver to make a swing change.

 

The target audience is the key for the video and it hits the mark. There are no details to get hung up with regarding what your wrists are going or anything in-depth about how your weight is supposed to shift. Reality, and my personal experience, is you don't need to be solid to break 100, you just need a semblance of okay play. Reduce the 3 and 4 putts. Get on the green with short game, being close to the hole is a bonus. Get out of bunkers in one shot more often. Hit the ball a decent distance in the correct direction most of the time. Monte sets realistic expectations when he talks through the various section. In the short game section he hits the ball 12 feet past the hole and comments that it's a great result. He also explains the progression of what shot to hit when with the short game. Always start with the easiest shot aka putter, then wood/hybrid, then iron, then wedge, based on where the ball is and what you are dealing with. That bit of course management was very nice to see. The drills also include realistic progressions, try the putting drill at 20 feet then try it at 30 feet, etc.

 

I have shot a very small number of scores in the low 80s but reality is I'm a 90s golfer. Most of my scores tend to hover in that area which is why I snagged the video. I'm so glad I did. The section on setup and grip highlighted issues I have. My right thumb has been in the wrong place for I don't know how many years now. My posture is a bit off as well. The bunker shot recap made me realize I didn't setup with my weight left. The short game shots provided a nice refresher of how to hit a couple of them.

 

In my typical fashion, I just started to make changes during my rounds last weekend. The hell with practicing it first, fire in the hole! I focused on fixing my right thumb and trying to get in a better set-up on every shot. I actually used the wood and iron bump and runs. I made sure my weight was left in the bunker. My scores did not magically improve but I wouldn't expect them to because I hadn't tried any of this stuff before and the grip change alone feels weird. I shot a 95 Saturday and a 90 Sunday. That 90 could have been a bit lower but I spit the bit on a couple short putts after hitting some great approaches.

 

Bunkers, they were all packed sand thanks to rain. I got the ball out in one shot 80% of the time. I did launch one of them over the green because my club skipped into the ball off the packed sand. 

 

Bump and runs with iron/woods - no speed control. You gotta give ball a good whack when using a wood and I left those short of the hole but got them all on the green. The 7i bump and run needs more work and I may have tried it in spots I shouldn't have. Overall i am happy with the results I saw with trying these shots whenever possible with no practice

 

Full swing - saw some improvements. I need to keep at the grip and setup changes until they feel natural. The terrible push fade and slice I have been battling pretty much went away. It was far from perfect but overall the misses were much better and I had a couple real solid shots. I had been struggling with a few shanks with driver and topped shots in the rounds leading to this last weekend and those all went away. I expect to see improvements in my full swing/partial wedges just from a more correct grip and posture with the current swing I have.

 

Next round will be at the sister course next weekend because of the punched greens here. Golf will be a bit hit or miss with the housing hunt situation, so I am really not expecting to see any great scoring improvements but I am hopeful. Gotta take what I can get, lol.

[betarhoalphadelta]

45 minutes ago, bortass said:

 

 

He also explains the progression of what shot to hit when with the short game. Always start with the easiest shot aka putter, then wood/hybrid, then iron, then wedge, based on where the ball is and what you are dealing with.

 

 

This was one of the things I need to take on from the video. For me I've basically been wedge or putter, and because I'm not good with the wedge, I'm taking putter sometimes from distances I REALLY should not be using putter. I need to practice the 4h and 7i options more.  

[bortass]

On 8/20/2024 at 2:43 PM, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

This was one of the things I need to take on from the video. For me I've basically been wedge or putter, and because I'm not good with the wedge, I'm taking putter sometimes from distances I REALLY should not be using putter. I need to practice the 4h and 7i options more.  

I used Monte's short game shot progression again this weekend. I still have not had any time to practice and the results were as expected. My distance control is off. The 4w bump and run came up short because you really gotta whack the ball to get it going and I'm still scared of blowing it way past the hole. The iron bump and runs almost always went long. I used 7i mostly and started to mix in my 9i for some shorter ones. One of the shots of the day Sunday was on 18. I hit a 47 yard bump and run with my 7i and managed to hole it out. Pure luck at that range but I feel the odds of holing that shot are higher with a bump and run versus using a wedge. I had no elevation changes to deal with either. I hope you give these shots a try.

 

As for how I played overall, it was up and down.  Some real good shots/holes but too many bad ones. Part of it is I'm thinking during my swing which is no bueno. I have not been able to do any serious practice since the end of May and it shows. I think I will be able to get out this week to work on things though.

 

There are some golf changes heading my way that I will need to sort out. It looks like we'll have a new house by early September. This is going to cut down on my free time because there's a lot of stuff we need to do, painting, moving etc. The new course is public and the range is not included in the membership. The course itself is harder than my current course, 70.5/129 versus 67.3/120. The greens are smaller and I feel like the fairways are more narrow but I only played the course once back in late June, so I do not have a good feel for it. The course is very hilly, so a lot of elevation changes and some blind shots/carries. It was very fun though and I really liked the topography. This course is not is as good of shape as my home course but it was better than I had expected. 

 

The biggest issue I may run into is the ability to post scores. I won't know anyone, so most of my rounds may be solo unless my wife drives the cart. I had been averaging close to eight posted rounds a month, so my index was always a good indication on how my game was progressing. That may no longer be the case. Oh well. I'll deal with it when the time comes.

 

Have a good one!

[betarhoalphadelta]

8 minutes ago, bortass said:

I used Monte's short game shot progression again this weekend. I still have not had any time to practice and the results were as expected. My distance control is off. The 4w bump and run came up short because you really gotta whack the ball to get it going and I'm still scared of blowing it way past the hole. The iron bump and runs almost always went long. I used 7i mostly and started to mix in my 9i for some shorter ones. One of the shots of the day Sunday was on 18. I hit a 47 yard bump and run with my 7i and managed to hole it out. Pure luck at that range but I feel the odds of holing that shot are higher with a bump and run versus using a wedge. I had no elevation changes to deal with either. I hope you give these shots a try.

 

 

Congrats on the hole out! That's a rarity and ALWAYS fun. For me especially when things aren't perhaps going so well and it ends up being a par save lol. 

 

For me though when we start getting to 50 yards and beyond I feel comfortable enough with partial wedge there. I don't really think of that as a pitch any more. I've become pretty comfortable with that. Inside 40 I think I'd be making use of that 7i though. 

 

10 minutes ago, bortass said:

The new course is public and the range is not included in the membership. 

 

The biggest issue I may run into is the ability to post scores. I won't know anyone, so most of my rounds may be solo unless my wife drives the cart. I had been averaging close to eight posted rounds a month, so my index was always a good indication on how my game was progressing. That may no longer be the case. Oh well. I'll deal with it when the time comes.

 

 

I don't have a lot of experience with private or semi-private courses. And I don't know exactly how packed courses are in the Atlanta area. What I *do* know is that I basically am NEVER playing alone, even if I book as a single, here in SoCal, with the exception of morning rounds at the pitch & putt. These are all public courses, but the tee sheets are packed dawn to dusk, even on weekdays. 

 

And there are ZERO courses around here that will block the other three spots of your tee time if you book as a single. If someone else gets online and wants 1, 2, or all 3 of the remaining slots, you're playing with them. And that's always the case around here. It's rare to even play as a threesome. People are watching the sheets and if I have booked a foursome for Sunday and determine Friday afternoon I need to drop to three, there's almost always a single there on the tee on Sunday morning to join us. 

 

So you might find yourself playing a lot with people you don't know, whether you want to or not.