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

[bortass]

1 hour ago, North Butte said:

I'm still not sure one of my rare rounds in the (high) 70's with very few duffed/disaster shots is any more fun than the time I made 4 birdies and shot 85. The highs and lows are their own kind of adventure I guess. But I do sometimes wish I could live for just one summer with the game of some of the guys in my group who've been playing all their life, their handicap never moves out of the 10-11-12 range and they make like 8 pars and 10 bogeys or 10 pars and 8 bogeys or something round after round. That kind of consistency is kind of cool, too.

All depends on the game at hand! The weekly group I play with is skins using half course handicap. Being erratic in scoring helps. A natural birdie has a shot at winning any hole and a par/net birdie does on quite a few of them too. I think if my index was based on even scoring, I wouldn't fair as well as I currently do, lol. 

[North Butte]

1 minute ago, bortass said:

All depends on the game at hand! The weekly group I play with is skins using half course handicap. Being erratic in scoring helps. A natural birdie has a shot at winning any hole and a par/net birdie does on quite a few of them too. I think if my index was based on even scoring, I wouldn't fair as well as I currently do, lol. 

I also like team games we play once in a while where everybody gets their handicap strokes and the best 2 balls out of 4 (net) count for the team. Or 3 out of 4, even. Once in a while I can make a birdie on a stroke hole and the team will feel like I am their best friend forever...at least until the next hole. 

[bortass]

2 minutes ago, North Butte said:

I also like team games we play once in a while where everybody gets their handicap strokes and the best 2 balls out of 4 (net) count for the team. Or 3 out of 4, even. Once in a while I can make a birdie on a stroke hole and the team will feel like I am their best friend forever...at least until the next hole. 

I also liked the random draw scrambles(no strokes), where the pro shop made the teams based on HCP. Being a D player there was no pressure because I wasn't expect to do anything but when I did I was popular for a moment or two, lol.

[betarhoalphadelta]

2 hours ago, bortass said:

All depends on the game at hand! The weekly group I play with is skins using half course handicap. Being erratic in scoring helps. A natural birdie has a shot at winning any hole and a par/net birdie does on quite a few of them too. I think if my index was based on even scoring, I wouldn't fair as well as I currently do, lol. 

 

Yeah, I used to be in a foursome with two low 80s shooters and at the time a good round for me was high 90s, and there was another guy in the group at my skill level. We'd play dollar skins, stroke a hole to the high caps, and myself and the other high-cap would clean up. 

 

Again it comes down to be able to throw down a par at literally any time, so net birdie on the other two guys. But because they were SO much more consistent, more often than not they were pushing holes. So myself and the other high-cap could bogey or worse three holes in a row while the other two guys pushed, and then you drop a par (net birdie) on them and pick up 4 skins. 

 

Now I'm on the other end of it... Lowest cap in my typical group lol.

[North Butte]

1 minute ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

Now I'm on the other end of it... Lowest cap in my typical group lol.

It's always more fun, or at least easier, being the high 'capper. 

 

The other day I was in a head-to-head contest with another guy in my usual group and we were both playing like [slang word for backside]. My handicap is like nine strokes higher than his so I knew I had that going for me but I wasn't keeping the scorecard. I just knew we'd both hack up a hole, he'd end up making a 10-footer for bogey and I'd end up with a three-putt double. That kind of thing all day long. 

 

I'd pretty much given up by the last couple holes but when the scores were toted up I actually came out a stroke ahead (net) and won a couple bucks. I was like, "Note to self, never be the guy giving up nine strokes!". 

 

I felt go guilty I offered to buy him a beer but by that point he wasn't in the mood to drink. We both really just wanted to get out of there and come back some day when we don't totally stink at golf.

[bortass]

@betarhoalphadelta I'm in no danger of being the low cap. The main group I play with ranges from 10 - 16 guys per week and the strokes( half course handicap) vary from 4 - 13.  I'm the second highest with 9 I think. There's always complaining about 'government holes' when someone snags a skin via a stroke. 

 

@North Butte Some of the guys play side games and one of them is fairly complex with rotating partners but the kicker is the winner has to buy the beer. I played with them Sunday and my birdie on 18 won 6 points and then my partner sank a 30+ foot putt that was also worth a point. Those 7 points put me in first place by 1. So I 'won" $13 from the other three guys and spent $16 on their beers, lol. Really think second place is where to be in that game....

 

I've heard a story where one guy was on 18 and his partner told him if he won that hole, he'd win overall, so he putted the ball into the pond to make sure it wouldn't happen.... LOL  Funny how side games can change how someone plays.

[bortass]

"You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems." - Atomic Habits, James Clear.

 

Funny that, in retrospect, my attempts to break a scoring goal are proof of this statement. Lessons and range work to improve my swing, playing to gain experience, course management improvements, those have improved my golf system. If anything the goal has been a hinderance because I have always thought it was the end all be all. It was the measure of my improvement and my view of myself as a "golfer". I have written in my threads on breaking 100, 90, and this one as well, about getting frustrated with scores. The impact of that frustration has changed as I've gotten better at handling it but it'll always be there. The goal is XYZ, and not achieving it is proof of failure. 

 

That is not reality though. My only failure when it comes to golf was when I quit playing. Why did I quit? Well, my goal was to break 80. I managed to shoot an 84 in the process, so kinda close. However, my game took a nose dive. I got frustrated with my scores and it wasn't fun. I played less and my index went from 19 to high 20s/low 30s. So I played less, which made shooting a good score even harder(LOL),  and eventually just stopped.

 

I want to be the best golfer I can be and I do not believe I have reached my potential. How's that for a mission statement? LOL. That's really what it comes down to though.

 

How does my rambling tie into the quote? It's making me think a bit differently, a change in perspective. Focus on improving the process and eventually I will reach that end state of being the best I can be. DECADE, Obee's putting improvement thread, Monte, and other sources all touch on it. If you improve the process and keep following it i.e. trust it, eventually it will pay off, assuming you actually improve the process of course.

 

I think it's time for me to reframe things. I don't suck at golf. My swing isn't broken. There's no need to feel bad that it's been almost 3 years and I haven't broken 85.  Breaking 85 again will not suddenly change anything, except release the pressure the goal has placed on me. I got my index to a personal best this year, so in a way, I hit a new peak in my ability.

 

The path forward is to improve my golfing system and it always has been. It's just never been the real focus in my mind, which has always been about the result. It's the journey, not the destination (A concept that has not aligned itself well with how I view things historically).

 

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

100% agree. 

 

A goal by itself is nothing. 

 

I had a discussion in another forum about climate change and there was a lot of argument over whether countries had a plan to reduce emissions. One person was saying that a country plans to cut emissions by 50% by 2030 or 2040 or whatever it was. Another person argued that's not even a plan, it's a goal. Because there was no plan (at least one that was politically palatable that someone would stand behind in a democratic system.

 

I said in the same thread that I had a goal to be a scratch golfer. Someone said that is an unrealistic goal because less than 2% of golfers ever get to scratch. I said that's not a problem; that's 1 in 50. If it was 1 in 5000, perhaps I could say that there is a talent limit that will stop me. But 1 in 50 is something you can get to with work. 

 

So if there's something you want to do, you should have 3 things:

 

1. A goal.
2. A plan.
3. Commitment to executing the plan.

 

As it stands, "breaking 85" or "getting to scratch" as a goal is a worthwhile goal. Then you need a plan, and it needs to be a plan that if you execute it, will get you to your goal. And finally, you need to actually be willing to execute the plan. Of course that, more than a plan, is what will stop me from likely ever getting to scratch. Golf isn't enough of a priority in my life to commit to executing the plan to the extent that I'd ever get there. 

 

The key is that the goal is an output, a result, while the plan and commitment to executing are inputs. Thus the most important part is the plan and the commitment. The goal just becomes a measuring stick. If you've defined a plan and you're living up to it, but the improvement isn't coming, then you need to look at whether the plan is sufficient. But the goal isn't going to make you a better golfer; executing the plan is. 

 

A lot of people screw this up. They say "I want to lose 20 pounds and get fit." And you ask what the plan is. "I'm going to exercise more and eat better." Well, those are subjective statements. That's not a plan, it's a wish. Tell me what your workout regimen is going to be. Tell me what your dietary plan and system for monitoring your actual input will be. If you don't have those, it signifies that you don't have a plan and you're not committed, and as a result I don't think you're going to hit your goal. 

 

So you're absolutely on the right track. Trust the process, and that if you keep up on the input, the output will take care of itself. 

[bortass]

Great post @betarhoalphadelta.

 

I suck at planning as in I don't like to do it and it's not a natural skill for me. I'm sure I could get good at it with enough practice and learning but I'm not about to start fixing that. SMART kills me, lol.

 

Atomic Habits makes the premise that you just make small changes/improvements and over time, as you add more, you will reap the rewards, at least with what I have read so far. I can buy into that and it's not overwhelming, lol. I've seen enough success with the first habit I decided to adopt that I recently added a second one. That's being successful too, so I want to start applying it to golf.

 

The actual stated goal to break 100/90/85 has caused me issues in the past. I focus too much on that end state and go off the rails. I still believe I can break 85 again, even though I'm playing a harder course. So I wonder, if I try to focus on being a better golfer, will that ease some of the foolishness that gets in my head?

 

The reality is my true goal is to become a better golfer, that's it. Measures of that would be breaking 85 again. Seeing my index drop. Losing less balls when I play. So far I think I have made some extremely solid strides in becoming a better golfer. Much more that if I just look at breaking 85 but almost never have a round below 90. Perhaps is just a mental shell game.

[bortass]

@betarhoalphadelta are you or your son still using your Orange Whip? I recalled you have one and used it for warming up. I've had one forever and almost never use it. I'm thinking about trying to create a habit to swing it on a regular basis. My thoughts are to figure out a rep count and just swing it that many times nightly. I think I can stack that habit off another one I do most nights which makes it more likely to actually happen.

 

 

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

2 hours ago, bortass said:

@betarhoalphadelta are you or your son still using your Orange Whip? I recalled you have one and used it for warming up. I've had one forever and almost never use it. I'm thinking about trying to create a habit to swing it on a regular basis. My thoughts are to figure out a rep count and just swing it that many times nightly. I think I can stack that habit off another one I do most nights which makes it more likely to actually happen.

 

 

I still use it pre-round to warm up, but haven't done it for regular swing training. 

[bortass]

Got out  for 18 on the forward tees. The total score was a disaster but carding a 10 will do that, lol. Overall it was a decent round though. I was by myself and felt like a practice round. I had time to think about my swing in general much better than when I play 18 with the guys. I also had a first.

 

I reached #3, par 5, in two. There was a tailwind and I hit a high fade with driver, 238 yards and into the fairway. I didn't look at the yardage to the green and just grabbed my 4w. I couldn't see the where the flag was, so I aimed towards the left side of the green. I hit a very solid high fade that was a slight push. I get to the green and my ball is on the back right about 18 feet past the hole. My eagle putt was a foot short though.

 

I also used the 60* wedge two times.Hit both greens, 12 feet and 6 feet from the hole respectively.  Overall, I'm 100% hitting the green with it and my proximity is averaging 14 feet. Gotta love the honeymoon phase 🙂 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Hey, my last round, carding a 10 was only the 2nd-worst hole that day 😂

[Hickory4ever]

On 11/16/2022 at 4:28 PM, bortass said:

Great post @betarhoalphadelta.

 

I suck at planning as in I don't like to do it and it's not a natural skill for me. I'm sure I could get good at it with enough practice and learning but I'm not about to start fixing that. SMART kills me, lol.

 

Atomic Habits makes the premise that you just make small changes/improvements and over time, as you add more, you will reap the rewards, at least with what I have read so far. I can buy into that and it's not overwhelming, lol. I've seen enough success with the first habit I decided to adopt that I recently added a second one. That's being successful too, so I want to start applying it to golf.

 

The actual stated goal to break 100/90/85 has caused me issues in the past. I focus too much on that end state and go off the rails. I still believe I can break 85 again, even though I'm playing a harder course. So I wonder, if I try to focus on being a better golfer, will that ease some of the foolishness that gets in my head?

 

The reality is my true goal is to become a better golfer, that's it. Measures of that would be breaking 85 again. Seeing my index drop. Losing less balls when I play. So far I think I have made some extremely solid strides in becoming a better golfer. Much more that if I just look at breaking 85 but almost never have a round below 90. Perhaps is just a mental shell game.

I liked the posts by bortass and I also appreciate that you say that you suck at planning and all of us vary in our dedication to achieve our goals.

 

Coming from a sales/marketing background, I encountered many people that would set a goals that were frankly unrealistic and guess what, never achieved them. I see the same thing in golf.

 

Breaking 85 regularly is probably a realistic and achievable goal for most people that currently score in the low 90’s. The first order of business is assessing where you are currently and why. This assessment can be as complex as you want but my recommendation is keep it simple.

 

The biggest barrier to reliable scoring in my opinion is blow up holes. To keep things simple, look at the doubles or higher first. Eliminating large numbers is essential and frequently the result of compounding errors. After that, grading each area of your game (course management, Driving, approaches, chipping, putting) honestly will uncover where the greatest incremental improvements are needed. If you want to dig deeper, assess performance on par 3’s, 4’s and 5’s.

 

Once you know where you are leaking oil, make a realistic plan to improve that area. Don’t be afraid to get focused help from a good teacher.

[bortass]

On 11/18/2022 at 5:26 PM, Hickory4ever said:

I liked the posts by bortass and I also appreciate that you say that you suck at planning and all of us vary in our dedication to achieve our goals.

 

Coming from a sales/marketing background, I encountered many people that would set a goals that were frankly unrealistic and guess what, never achieved them. I see the same thing in golf.

 

Breaking 85 regularly is probably a realistic and achievable goal for most people that currently score in the low 90’s. The first order of business is assessing where you are currently and why. This assessment can be as complex as you want but my recommendation is keep it simple.

 

The biggest barrier to reliable scoring in my opinion is blow up holes. To keep things simple, look at the doubles or higher first. Eliminating large numbers is essential and frequently the result of compounding errors. After that, grading each area of your game (course management, Driving, approaches, chipping, putting) honestly will uncover where the greatest incremental improvements are needed. If you want to dig deeper, assess performance on par 3’s, 4’s and 5’s.

 

Once you know where you are leaking oil, make a realistic plan to improve that area. Don’t be afraid to get focused help from a good teacher.

 Blow up prevention is always an issue and I seem to find new ways of doing it. For example, Saturday I was in the left rough and had a 5i into the green. I somehow hit a push that started 45* right of my line that curved more right and OOB. A different hole was because of three putting inside 7 feet...

 

The biggest issues with my game over the last 10 rounds per Arccos are: Driving penalties; Shots from the fairway; 100-150 yard approach shots. As far as the breakdown by par for a hole: par 3s I average 4.1, par 4s is 5.4, and par 5s is 6.6.

 

So back to Friday and Saturday's rounds let's say a blow up is a double+ as you suggested.

 

Friday:

• bladed a partial PW into a stream( double)
• Push fade with driver leads to a drop (double)
• Push fade, way right, with 5i into pond.  Dropped and shanked PW into pond. Followed up with a 3 putt from 33 feet. (+5, lol)
• Push fade with driver OOB(double)
• Push fade with 6i way right of green and it takes a pitch and a chip to get on. (double)
• Pull a partial SW into greenside bunker.  Get out 32 feet past the hole and 3 putt.(double)
• Push fade with 9i and miss green right, two chips and two putts.(double)

Saturday

• four putt from 39 feet(double)
• Layup after bad drive. My GIR+1 shot goes long. Chip to 7 feet and 3 putt. (triple)
• Pull off tee into left rough, 70 yards shorter than normal. 7i is mishit and comes up short of green. Chip to 15 feet and 3 putt. (double)
• Pull drive into tree on left and ball ends up in middle of the fairway but too far out. Push my layup under some tree. Partial SW is pulled into pond. Mess up pitch into green. Chip and hole that out. (double)
• Push fade with driver OOB. (double)
• Push fade with driver into right hazard. Drop and layup short of stream. Blade 5i into the face of a stream. Drop and push fade 5i into pond. Take an X and card an 8(triple).

 

Maybe I need to write about the bad holes/shots and not the good ones....

 

I did notice the feel of my right hip going back on some iron shots that came out excellent on Saturday. They were very high draws and went a bit further than normal even with the colder temps(41* at tee off and 51* at the end). I'm hoping that it's something that I'm finally starting to do on the course more often.

[Hickory4ever]

1 hour ago, bortass said:

 Blow up prevention is always an issue and I seem to find new ways of doing it. For example, Saturday I was in the left rough and had a 5i into the green. I somehow hit a push that started 45* right of my line that curved more right and OOB. A different hole was because of three putting inside 7 feet...

 

The biggest issues with my game over the last 10 rounds per Arccos are: Driving penalties; Shots from the fairway; 100-150 yard approach shots. As far as the breakdown by par for a hole: par 3s I average 4.1, par 4s is 5.4, and par 5s is 6.6.

 

So back to Friday and Saturday's rounds let's say a blow up is a double+ as you suggested.

 

Friday:

• bladed a partial PW into a stream( double)
• Push fade with driver leads to a drop (double)
• Push fade, way right, with 5i into pond.  Dropped and shanked PW into pond. Followed up with a 3 putt from 33 feet. (+5, lol)
• Push fade with driver OOB(double)
• Push fade with 6i way right of green and it takes a pitch and a chip to get on. (double)
• Pull a partial SW into greenside bunker.  Get out 32 feet past the hole and 3 putt.(double)
• Push fade with 9i and miss green right, two chips and two putts.(double)

Saturday

• four putt from 39 feet(double)
• Layup after bad drive. My GIR+1 shot goes long. Chip to 7 feet and 3 putt. (triple)
• Pull off tee into left rough, 70 yards shorter than normal. 7i is mishit and comes up short of green. Chip to 15 feet and 3 putt. (double)
• Pull drive into tree on left and ball ends up in middle of the fairway but too far out. Push my layup under some tree. Partial SW is pulled into pond. Mess up pitch into green. Chip and hole that out. (double)
• Push fade with driver OOB. (double)
• Push fade with driver into right hazard. Drop and layup short of stream. Blade 5i into the face of a stream. Drop and push fade 5i into pond. Take an X and card an 8(triple).

 

Maybe I need to write about the bad holes/shots and not the good ones....

 

I did notice the feel of my right hip going back on some iron shots that came out excellent on Saturday. They were very high draws and went a bit further than normal even with the colder temps(41* at tee off and 51* at the end). I'm hoping that it's something that I'm finally starting to do on the course more often.

In the quest to break 85 or any score, doubles and worse are going to make it difficult. Penalty strokes add up fast. I would look for any pattern and work on those areas.

[betarhoalphadelta]

59 minutes ago, Hickory4ever said:

In the quest to break 85 or any score, doubles and worse are going to make it difficult. Penalty strokes add up fast. I would look for any pattern and work on those areas.

 

I find it difficult to do this, honestly. 

 

I do realize I have two known trouble spots: greenside bunkers and mid-range pitches. The former I just suck at (and typically playing on trash courses with terrible sand doesn't help). The latter is a consistency issue rather than lack of ability; too often I chunk them. 

 

But for the long game, I usually don't find it to be any consistent error, course management issue, etc. I don't even think it's compounding errors, as I usually try to avoid the hero shot when I'm in a bad spot. It's just that every once in a while, I hit a terrible, horrible, no good,  very bad shot.  That right there could be double territory. Sometimes I do more than one in a hole, and at that point I'm lucky to save double. 

 

So for me it feels like the only real option is to work on my swing in general, so I make fewer of those complete screw ups.

[Hickory4ever]

6 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

I find it difficult to do this, honestly. 

 

I do realize I have two known trouble spots: greenside bunkers and mid-range pitches. The former I just suck at (and typically playing on trash courses with terrible sand doesn't help). The latter is a consistency issue rather than lack of ability; too often I chunk them. 

 

But for the long game, I usually don't find it to be any consistent error, course management issue, etc. I don't even think it's compounding errors, as I usually try to avoid the hero shot when I'm in a bad spot. It's just that every once in a while, I hit a terrible, horrible, no good,  very bad shot.  That right there could be double territory. Sometimes I do more than one in a hole, and at that point I'm lucky to save double. 

 

So for me it feels like the only real option is to work on my swing in general, so I make fewer of those complete screw ups.

Given what you have written, a short game and sand lesson would be your best bet in my opinion. The examples you gave showed 6 and 7 blow up holes which will make even bogey golf difficult. I wish you the best in your golf journey.

[betarhoalphadelta]

13 hours ago, Hickory4ever said:

Given what you have written, a short game and sand lesson would be your best bet in my opinion. The examples you gave showed 6 and 7 blow up holes which will make even bogey golf difficult. I wish you the best in your golf journey.

 

Yeah, and short game practice would help too lol 😉 

 

In my most recent round, we actually played a higher end course than usual, with higher-quality bunkers. I went into greenside bunkers twice and actually got out on the first time both times, basically swinging the same as I do at my usual courses but with much better results. One got out and was actually close, one got out and was too short but out. I think I need to revise my technique for the trash bunkers, because I think I'm trying to do what I'm supposed to (i.e. what Monte recommends in his video series) technique-wise in bunkers that don't have sand that will allow for that. 

 

In my own rounds, I consider triple+ to be "blow up". While I realize lower cap golfers include doubles in that, I can quite often put together enough pars in a round to balance my doubles and get to bogey golf. The Grint says that in my last 20 rounds, I'm averaging 0.3 birdies and 4.9 pars per round. 4.2 doubles per round and 2.5 triple+. So if you're calling doubles or worse a blowup, that's 6.7 per round as you suggest. But IMHO it's the triple+ that will ruin a score. If those triple+ holes were simply doubles instead, though, I'd be averaging 1.2 strokes over bogey golf, and based on index calculation I would probably be mid-teens instead of just under 20. 

 

But yeah, I need some instruction and a lot more practice on short game, AND I need to clean up long game to avoid penalties/OB/etc. Now... to find the time for all that 😂

[MattC555]

For me a blow up hole is when composure is lost.  All the strokes count the same, but when we lose our cool we get hot and blow up.  What could have been 2 strokes ends up being 4 due to lack of concentration.  I'm guilty of it, as I imagine all golfers are, at times.  What helps me is to ignore my score in general and just focus on the next shot.  Basically stay as even keeled as I can.  Double bogey or worse will still happen, but in that case its just circumstance - not a self inflicted wound. 

[betarhoalphadelta]

On 11/10/2022 at 8:00 AM, bortass said:

I'm sure there will be others that may chime in but here's my take.

 

My priority order would be NTC, BF, Efficient Swing, and then D4D.

 

 

I procrastinated, and I'm glad I did. Monte has a Black Friday deal for NTC, BF, and ES as a package for 49.99. So now I've got all three lol. 

[bortass]

On 11/24/2022 at 10:30 AM, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

I procrastinated, and I'm glad I did. Monte has a Black Friday deal for NTC, BF, and ES as a package for 49.99. So now I've got all three lol. 

That's awesome! I hope you both like them. Have you watched any of them yet?

 

I played a lot of golf with the long weekend, 18 both Friday and Saturday, and a red tee scramble Sunday.  Nothing worthy of a writeup though. I had some real good shots and holes but way too many dogs. For example, Saturdays round took me until hole 7 to card less than  a double bogey. So my index is starting to creep back up again but that seems to be what happens to me late in the year. Some of it will be the conditions. The grass is dormant so everything is soft/wet from the overnight rains we got.

 

The scramble was a blast though. 3 person teams and men played the red tees and women had special tees setup even closer. We shot a -7, 65, with two bogeys. It was flighted by HCP and we tied for second in our flight at -12 with first being -13, lol. The team in the A flight that won was -22....

 

Anyhow the scramble turned interesting for me because of my driver. We'd get a ball in play and I'd just whack my driver to see what would happen. It actually behaved better than in my normal rounds. It was strange that I'd hit it in spots I'd never hit it if I was trying to score well and it panned out. I know it's a common strategy in scrambles but I was less erratic than normal, that's the head scratcher. I didn't have the weak push fade or the pull that kills me in normal rounds. It was either a draw or a slight push with just a little curve to it. It makes me wonder if I need to swing my driver harder, lol.

 

Don't get me wrong, they weren't all perfect. The overall shot shape seemed better is all. Just something else for me to think about.

 

As far as hitting shots I normally wouldn't, no change there. Just because I got away with it doesn't mean it's smart, lol. It was fun though and worked out more often than not. I'm hoping to be able to play in more scrambles next year, assuming I can find a team.

 

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

27 minutes ago, bortass said:

That's awesome! I hope you both like them. Have you watched any of them yet?

 

 

Not yet. Thanksgiving weekend was actually quite busy for us. Looking forward to it though.

 

[bortass]

December looks to be a wash thanks to weather, either rain or freezing temps. Managed all of three rounds with the last being back on the 17th. The freeze that shutdown the course should end in a day or so but there's a good chance of rain Saturday, so I don't know if we'll play. Weather isn't the main cause of the higher scores, it just makes the struggle worse if you know what I mean.

 

Overall 2022 was a good year with 69 rounds that I was able to post to GHIN. I have not been able to get out for many practice rounds in a few months though nor the range. I'm hoping to turn this around in 2023. I saw improvements when I was playing more, especially the iron only rounds from the forward tees. I really felt that was helping my pitching and irons.

 

GHIN and my index showed a decent improvement. It started at 24.0 and will end at 20.2. I did reach an all time low of 18.2 in October. So I do have that as a personal best.

 

Arccos stats which are last 10 rounds compared to a 12 HCP. First set of numbers is from my post on 1/3/22, second set is as of today, 12/27/22.

 

Overall: -16.1/ -13.9 strokes gained. Overall my last 10 rounds of the year are a bit better than what I started the year with. There are some real dogs in my last 10 scores but winter conditions will mess with things and I said the same thing last year when I compared the start of 21 to the end of 21. So that's a constant so far. 

 Driving Overall: -2.8/-5.1, Well this hasn't been that great to end the year. The big change is I'm missing left more often and those tend to be pulls into the left trees. The miss that had been killing me was a push fade into the right trees. So I set-up on the right side of the tee box and aim left. So if I hit a pull it's not going to be pretty.

 

Distance : -0.3/-0.2 average distance 202/202( a 12 averages 228), no change but I am using my 4w off the tee on two holes that I don't think I was doing earlier in the year.

Accuracy: -0.8/ -1.3, I'm missing right as much as in the past but missing left a fair bit more.

FW hit 59%/49%

left 17%/27%

right 24%/24%

Penalties: -1.7/-3.7, love those trees....

 

Approach Overall: -6.3/ -5.6, my biggest weakness is a bit better, it improved over 2021 as well, so I kept that positive trend going. I did better on par 3s and from the rough. My shots from the FW were not as good though. I did increase my GIR percentage by 4%, lol but my proximity to the hole got a touch worse. The biggest shift is I'm missing to the right more than I did at the end of '21. My average distance to the pin on all approaches improved my 6 feet though! Hey, I gotta be excited about something 😉

 

Par 3:-1.2/-0.9.

Fairway:-3.7/-4.0 .

Rough: -1.3/-0.8

Sand: NA/+0.1, I didn't have any sand approach shots at the end of 2021 and they are pretty rare regardless.

GIR: Hit 19%/23%

Long:6%/3%

short: 57%/54%

left: 8%/7%

Right: 8%/13%

GIR Avg distance to pin: 24 ft/ 27 ft

All approaches avg distance to pin: 94 feet/ 88 ft

 

Short game Overall -2.9/+0.1, a big gain and the only area I do slightly better than a 12 HCP. My shorter chips are the real big gain and I'm averaging 7 feet closer than the start of the year. I ended this year with longer pitches being not as good but some of that is adding the LW back in. I've tried it for a few longer pitches and it hasn't been pretty. This is also a swing that I haven't been using as much since I haven't been spending time on the range. So it's not as good as it could be. My sand stats are a bit better but that's a misnomer. The bunkers are trash and they are being played as GUR in course events and by the groups I play with.

Chips 0-25 yards: -0.4/+1.5

Chips 25-50 yards: -1.0/-1.5

Chip 0-25 average distance from pin: 17 ft/10 ft. A 12 HCP averages 17 feet BTW

Chips 25-50 yards average distance from pin: 27 ft/30 ft. 12 HCP averages 26 feet.

Sand 0-25 yards:-1.3/-0.1

Sand 25-50 yards:-0.1/0.0

Sand 0-25 average distance to pin: 33 ft/23 ft. A 12 HCP averages 24 feet.

Sand 25 – 50 yards average distance to pin: 71 ft/25 ft. A 12 averages 32 feet.

Putting Overall : -4.2/-3.3. Still pretty bad but it's a tiny bit better. I cut down the number of 3 putts. Arccos changed the putting distances breakdown. They are more granular now and don't align to the old ones once you get past 25 feet. It looks like I'm slightly better across all of the old range bands though 6 – 9 foot putts really stands out.

 

Old First putt 0-10 feet: -2.3

New first putt 0- 2 feet: +0.2

New first putt 3-5 feet: -0.8

New first putt 6 – 9 feet:-1.5

Old First putt 10-25 feet:-1.3

New first putt 10 – 14 feet: -0.4

New first putt 15-24 feet: -0.4

OldFirst putt 25-50 feet -0.5

OldFirst putt 50+ feet: -0.1

New first putt 25 – 39 feet: - 0.3

New first putt 40+ feet: -0.1
 One putts: 17.7%/17.7%

Two putts:55.5%/63.3%

Three+: 26.1%/17.2%

Putts per hole: 2.1/2.0

Putts per GIR 2.2/2.4

 

[Bob M]

@bortass I've followed this thread since I started playing golf again when I retired in May 2019, in other words pretty much since its inception.

 

Quick background: I quit my league in 2010 because we were doing a significant renovation on the house and found that I didn't really miss the game. At the time I quit playing, my index was around 16 (don't recall the exact number), mostly on the basis of my driving and mid-iron approach shots. Being 10-years older (I'm now 66) returning to the game has felt a bit like starting over. Thank you for chronicling your journey as I can relate.

 

I recently read Jon Sherman's book "The Four Foundations of Golf" and found it to be a terrific resource which I can't recommend highly enough. The book is divided, not surprisingly, into four parts: Managing Expectations, Strategy, Practice and The Mental Game. Based on my takeaways and your comments above two suggestions which could help:

 

1) Try to find a simulator facility and evaluate your dispersion with various clubs; driver, fairway woods and mid irons, etc come to mind. According to Sherman, a golfer who drives the ball 220 yards could easily have a 50 yard dispersion. Once you know this information for you with various clubs, you can better plan your shots, which should help reduce the number of penalty shots.

 

2) You've got to reduce 3+ putts. Putting practice should focus on getting lag putts of various distances close to the hole and putts from 10' and less to increase the number of these which you sink. I spent a fair amount of time on this work (particularly lag putting) in 2022 and got % 3-putts and holes/3-putt from 14% and 7.4 (first 10 rounds) to 9% and 10.6 (last 10 rounds). 

 

Personally, I will be heading to the Trackman at my local Golf Galaxy in the next week or so to both assess my dispersion for my 2023 bag and work on improving my driving distance which is really poor (Shot Scope PAve is only 175 yards). 

 

 

[bortass]

     Hope everyone had a good Xmas for those that celebrate it. I got a couple of golf related books, Every Shot Must Have a Purpose and The Four Foundations of Golf.  I'm looking forward to gleaning what I can from them and will comment about them once I actually start to reads them.

 

    As you may have seen I renamed this thread. The specific goal of shooting an 84 or less has caused me some heartburn. It boils down to feeling like a failure for doing it already. It's dumb because I have made some big strides in my game but that 84 is the best I have ever done in my life and constantly measuring myself against it means I am always short of the mark. My goal is to improve as a golfer and that 84 would be a measure or proof of it, if you will. I am confident it is doable still, I just need to get the number out of my head.

 

    I need to think about how I want to proceed but I'm going to try the Atomic habits route. Make small changes and over time reap the rewards. An example, which hasn't happened yet, would be to start taking the techniques from Every Shot Must Have a Purpose and adding them into my process. Maybe spend the first 5 - 10 minutes of every range session hitting chips at the practice green. There are so many areas where I can improve as a golfer that I don't need to just focus on one thing and ignore everything else.

 

      I also need to go back through what I have documented in this thread to see what may have been working for me. One reason I try to write stuff is so I can review it later and refresh my mind/maybe can a new insight after the fact...

 

   Improvement is a process and it's disjointed when it comes to me and golf. I can't always get to the range multiple times a week, even if I say I want to. There's an ebb and flow to it. So I'll see if having a different frame of reference will help or not , lol.

[bortass]

49 minutes ago, Bob M said:

 

 

I recently read Jon Sherman's book "The Four Foundations of Golf" and found it to be a terrific resource which I can't recommend highly enough. The book is divided, not surprisingly, into four parts: Managing Expectations, Strategy, Practice and The Mental Game. Based on my takeaways and your comments above two suggestions which could help:

 

  Too funny. I mentioned this book in the post I was typing when you replied. I'll be reading it soon!

[Bob M]

2 hours ago, bortass said:

I got a couple of golf related books, Every Shot Must Have a Purpose and The Four Foundations of Golf.  I'm looking forward to gleaning what I can from them and will comment about them once I actually start to reads them.

 

Looking forward to hearing more about "Every Shot Must Have a Purpose". As I recall, Lynn Marriot and Pia Nielson are of the opinion that it is possible to shoot 54. 

[SNIPERBBB]

I know this sounds easier said than done but it seems from reading this post over the years that the tops and chunks are your biggest score killers. Obviously it doesn't the hole they happen on but its a confidence killer that can spiral a round out of control. 

[bortass]

21 hours ago, Bob M said:

@bortass I've followed this thread since I started playing golf again when I retired in May 2019, in other words pretty much since its inception.

 

Quick background: I quit my league in 2010 because we were doing a significant renovation on the house and found that I didn't really miss the game. At the time I quit playing, my index was around 16 (don't recall the exact number), mostly on the basis of my driving and mid-iron approach shots. Being 10-years older (I'm now 66) returning to the game has felt a bit like starting over. Thank you for chronicling your journey as I can relate.

 

I recently read Jon Sherman's book "The Four Foundations of Golf" and found it to be a terrific resource which I can't recommend highly enough. The book is divided, not surprisingly, into four parts: Managing Expectations, Strategy, Practice and The Mental Game. Based on my takeaways and your comments above two suggestions which could help:

 

1) Try to find a simulator facility and evaluate your dispersion with various clubs; driver, fairway woods and mid irons, etc come to mind. According to Sherman, a golfer who drives the ball 220 yards could easily have a 50 yard dispersion. Once you know this information for you with various clubs, you can better plan your shots, which should help reduce the number of penalty shots.

 

2) You've got to reduce 3+ putts. Putting practice should focus on getting lag putts of various distances close to the hole and putts from 10' and less to increase the number of these which you sink. I spent a fair amount of time on this work (particularly lag putting) in 2022 and got % 3-putts and holes/3-putt from 14% and 7.4 (first 10 rounds) to 9% and 10.6 (last 10 rounds). 

 

Personally, I will be heading to the Trackman at my local Golf Galaxy in the next week or so to both assess my dispersion for my 2023 bag and work on improving my driving distance which is really poor (Shot Scope PAve is only 175 yards). 

 

 

 I came across Sherman's site when I did a search for Atomic Habits and golf. I liked what he had written there and suggested the book as a possible gift and received it 🙂 I'm curious to see what he says and I'm pretty sure I'll enjoy it.

 

I do have some on course dispersion data from Arccos but I've never looked at it closely. Here's the last 100 rounds with my driver, 860 shots:

 

 

I will need to see what other Arccos data I have available and try to figure out how to use it. My max dispersion seems to be 120 yards, lol.

 

I agree on the three putts and putting in general. I think working on shorter putts will help this. I miss too much inside 10 feet and that 3 foot distance is what always seems to make me uneasy. It should be a very makeable putt and I'll miss a few per round.

 

17 hours ago, SNIPERBBB said:

I know this sounds easier said than done but it seems from reading this post over the years that the tops and chunks are your biggest score killers. Obviously it doesn't the hole they happen on but its a confidence killer that can spiral a round out of control. 

 

Yeah, low point control is an issue. It kills me when I'm inside 100 yards and have a partial wedge into the green after a great drive and I chunk it short of the green. Or there's water involve and I thin it in...  I may have to add in some practice that's focus on low point. I know there's drills out there for it. The chunks and tops are the 'hidden' score killers. They aren't as obvious after a round compared to the balls that went into the trees off the tee aka the actual penalty shots.