Slow Swingers with Low Handicap

**wrx_junki** · April 16, 2009

Was wondering how many out there have a under 10 handicap with a fairly slow swing. I only hit my drives around 250 and my irons are fairly short. Can't reach most par 5's in 2 unless they are short. How do you compete with the long hitters? Do you have to out play them with the short game?

**jcrob902** · April 16, 2009

yes absolutly every body I play with outdrives me but can hardly ever hit wedges good enough to make those big drives matter, when they miss the green with there iron shots there chips and pitches don't help them either I almost always win because they are so incinsistant with there mid, short irons and wedges so yes if you can't hit the long ball kill them with the short game it deflates the ego and takes them out of there game.

**David in FL** · April 16, 2009

I carry my driver about 240 and hit a 7 iron 155 so I probably fall into the category of a short knocker for my handicap but it just doesn't bother me. I can hit a 420 yd par 4 with a mid-iron and even though I'm not dancing in 2 all that often, I can get within a short chip of any par 5 under 530 yds.

I think it's a misconception that you have to be "long" to score well. I also think that it's just as much of a misconception that one aspect of the game can, by itself, make up for inadequacies in the remainder of the game......especially once you get down into the lower single digits. What allows me to play well, isn't one aspect of the game, it's solid, consistent ball striking, a well rounded game, and decent course management skills. If I couldn't keep it in play off the tee, hit a solid mid-iron, a 3-wood or a hybrid, play from the bunker, play in the wind, etc.....the best short game in town wouldn't keep me at a 5 or lower. You can hack your way up to the green, never hit a GIR, and then get up and down with some consistentcy and play to a 10 or 12, but that just won't get you down to the low single digits......at least not IMHO.

**lumpuckeroo** · April 16, 2009

I agree with David in FL, my handicap has risen in recent years (age, weight and time are the culprit) but I have always kept up with the long hitters with a deft short game and solid ball striking. As long as I was around the green, I could get up and down and saved a lot of strokes.

Plus I never let my lack of distance creep into my head and hurt my game, it never bothered me that from 170 one of my playing partners was deciding between a 7 or an 8, and I was hitting a 5 iron.

**bogeymike** · April 16, 2009

250 off the tee is not short for an amatuer. It may seem that way with people claiming they "average 290" or something like that when they actually hit 1 out 0f 10 290 yards and the rest 220 yards into the trees. Your kind of distance is plenty as long as you're not hitting it into the woods or something. Won't make the PGA tour but you could definitely be a 3 or 4 handicap with that distance. Peopl elove to talk about how far they hit a certain club as if that is a value of how skilled they are at golf. Distance helps (quite a bit) but don't listen to all the nonsense. I find that people who talk a lot about how far they hit a certain club do that because nobody wants to hear a story about their triple bogey.

**Jenks465** · April 16, 2009

I agree with the two above posts. I average around 240 yards from the tee and hit a six iron around 150 but i'm very consistent in what I do (65-75% fairways, 10-13 GIR, and rarely take more than 30 putts per round). Good scoring is all about being solid in all areas of the game, not hitting the ball miles. The best player i've ever played with was a guy who was actually hitting it shorter than me off the tee but he was so solid he played to +4! You might have heard of him his names Gary Wolstenholme and he qualified for the US Open last year and beat Tiger Woods in the Walker Cup in 1995!

**DavidFehertysBike** · April 16, 2009

Im also shortknocker for my handicap. My average drive goes about 270. My misses will struggle to get to 260. Guys around where i am are usually in the 290 range. As others have said, consistantcy is the key. I may be reletivley short, but i the those shots all of the time and know how to play my distances. With good course management, short game and putting, you can overcome anyone who is a more powerful ballstriker than you.

**dmc** · April 16, 2009

I wish I could hit it 250-270. Maybe when the fairways dry out. Mine are more like 220-230. The coarse I play is a 6610yd par 71, 72.0/129. I hit alot of hybrids into the greens and like the others have said, solid wedge game and I'm know for being a good putter. I also keep the ball in play. The only way I can hit a par 5 in two is dry conditions and downwind.

**Big_M** · April 16, 2009

I'm also going to say that those that average 240-260 off the tee are NOT short hitters, but rather average hitters for a decent player. I rarely play with people who outdrive me and I am in the 250-280 zone depending on conditions. I hit my 7-iron 155-160. I don't consider myself short, but I'm not a long baller either. I measure my drives with GPS and hear people I golf with say what they think they hit... 9/10 guys overestimate the length of their drives. I think of a short hitter as less than 240, and I have seen some of these guys that CAN score. They do it through consistency and a good short game.

**blackxpress** · April 16, 2009

I wish I could hit it 250-270. Maybe when the fairways dry out. Mine are more like 220-230. The coarse I play is a 6610yd par 71, 72.0/129. I hit alot of hybrids into the greens and like the others have said, solid wedge game and I'm know for being a good putter. I also keep the ball in play. The only way I can hit a par 5 in two is dry conditions and downwind.

Same here. I don't have an official USGA handicap but my game is rapidly improving. I'm shooting low to mid 80s with a goal of getting into the upper 70s before the end of this season. Anyway, my driver distance is around 220. I had a driver fitting back in February and the launch monitor showed it consistently in the low 220s. I'm striking the ball a good bit better now and I've hit a few recently that went 250 but those are rare for me. Most of the guys I usually play with can hit it farther than me when they really get a hold of it. Most of the time though, I end up out driving them or at least hitting it the same distance as them because of their mishits. I definitely hit more fairways than they do so I'm usually in a better position for my approach shots.

I'm gaining a little distance because I'm taking lessons and my swing mechanics are getting better. That said, at age 51, I doubt if I'll ever be a long ball hitter but that's O.K. The thing that's helping me improve my score more than anything else is my short game. I might not reach the green in regulation on a long hole but I'm getting really good at chipping it close and 1-putting. Bottom line: I'd rather be short and safe than long and wrong any day.

**wrx_junki** · April 16, 2009

I hit 250 with my driver only hit about 150 with a good strike using a 7-iron. The 9-iron goes anywhere from 110-120. Trolling these forums, all I hear is everyone hitting their 9-iron 140-150. The only person I know that used to be close to scratch was a fairly long hitter so I was just wondering. Thanks for the responses, gives me hope in becoming a low handicap.

**NickDarius** · April 16, 2009

I drive 230-250 depending on conditions

5 iron 165-170

9 iron 110-115

I consider this pretty decent distances for an amateur.

I gave up going after distance and have decided to go for repeatability, control and accuracy. That's what will bring golf scores down.

Remember:

Drive for show, putt for dough

The only club used on every hole and about half the strokes is your putter, your driver only comes out of the bag 12-14 times max.

**Shindig** · April 16, 2009

Wow. I've found this thread to be inspirational. I drive 215, maybe 225 on a great hit, maybe 205 on a really bad hit. 9-iron? 105. My 165-yard club? 3-iron.

**65withatriple** · April 16, 2009

Corey Pavin averages 250 yds. and can still compete from time to time on tour. Jeff Slueman is also a short knocker on the Senior Tour and had something like 25 consecutive rounds under par recently. Its now how.....its how many.

Quick story....I am a long knocker and played with a guy who has had 5 starts on the PGA Tour. I out drove him by 30yds. all day and he beat me by 5. Needless to say his misses were much better than mine.

**ks8829** · April 16, 2009

Corey Pavin & Justin Leonard are short hitters on tour and both have major championship wins under their belt.

short game is the great equalizer especially your putting.

**kafka01** · April 16, 2009

Sure you can play well and into low single digits beeing short of the tee. But you have to look what your scoring opportunitys are on a course you play. Every normal Par 5 i consider as a scoring opportunity, every Par 4 i can hit a wedge into (< 130y) i consider as a scoring opportunity and of course short Par 3s. But the easiest of all of them are the Par 5s, and if you cant reach them (or put it somewhere close to the green) you are giving up strokes you will need to compensate for errors on more difficult holes.

I dont know what your ambitions are, but if you cant hit it long, there is a boundry you wont be able to overcome, simple for the reasons i stated above.

Just look at PGA-Tour stats under Scoring / Par3/Par4/Par5 Performance and you will see where you can save strokes.

Best Par3 Performance avg. 2.9
Best Par4 Performance avg. 3.95
Best Par5 Performance avg. 4.44 and nobody has an over par performance

**wrx_junki** · April 17, 2009

Drive for show and putt for dough is right but also keep in mind that if I'm within 90-150 yards within the flag I have a pretty good percentage to hitting the green and making par compared to being 150-250 from the green that I have a fairly low chance of hitting.

Also, the munis that I most often play the ball tends to take bounces on its way to the hole. =/

**Kcas77** · April 17, 2009

The drive is the least important part of the game has long as it is kept in play. For people who say their distance is hurting their game suck it up and move a tee up. Simple solution right. If you keep a handicap it should stay the same because of the different slope and rating. Some people hit the ball far and others dont quit bit**in about it.

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