Crazy Round....Bad break....but still got into the single digit handicap

So it was around 60 degrees and cloudy...bored on my day off so I decided to go play 9 with my raincheck from yesterday. Tee game was fairly decent iron play was poor to moderate based on my 3/18 GIR down alot from usual...only hit 3/14 fairways although I was knocking the piss outta the ball and my misses were generally within 10-15 ft of the fairway with rough that isnt very punishing. Blue Tees plays 6714 yards a Course rating of 71.3 and a Slope of 122.

I hit the practice green and putted for about 15 minues and hit 3 range balls with a 9 iron for warmup haha!

Front 9, first tee is a 312 yard downhill driveable par 4, I hit it pretty straight just started right and stayed right....green high have to pitch over a bunker and the pin is close so I short side myself...what do I do hit it in the bunker and it plugs in the face of the bunker...I think this is gonna be a long day...hit a good  bunker shot left myself 5 ft for par which I made and off I go. I hit very little greens on the front nine so as all of you know when you generally miss GIR and do a lot of chipping usually putts are easier to make rather than hitting the GIR. I had 8 one-putts in a row. I missed #8 Par 5 in 2 by a couple feet so I was putting probably a 35 ft for eagle and +2 at the time...since I was putting from the fringe it doesnt count as a putt and I left it 6 inches from the cup for my 1st of 2 GIR on the front...tapped in for Birdie and another 1 putt it was. #9 was my only conventional GIR for the front 9; I went in +1 and drove it to 100 yards right center of the fairway hit my 56 to about 20ft and 2 putted for par...Shot +1 37 on the front...now it was almost 4 PM and I had no intentions of playing 18 but I thought with an hour and a half of daylight left I would finish it out as this was my best chance of shooting 70s in about a year when I last shot 79 on borrowed clubs right before I PCS'ed to Okinawa. I have shot (3) 83's (1) 82 and an 80 recently so I have been close since I switched to my new S56s, Tour S wedges, and TP superfast driver. YES THAT 10 PUTTS FOR THE FIRST 9

Anyways I decide to play the back 9...#10 is a very tough hole 592 dogleg left par 5...I hit it though the fairway into some trees...have to punch out leave myself with like 220 to the green i hit a nice draw 4-wood to about 10 yards short of the green into the wind....chip on 2 putt...start out the back with a bogie. Settle down Kurt, its a tough hole and bogie isnt bad. #11 tough 456 yard par 4...I drive it a little right next to a tree but if I get it up high I have a chance at the green...185 yards I pick a 6 irons so that I could clear the trees which I did and left myself about 5 yards short of the green with the pin in the front...I nearly hole my chip with my 60 degree wedge and tap in for par...next hole 181 par 3 I hit 6 iron just left of the green chip on make a 15 ft putt for par. OK settle down in the groove now. Next hole 368 par 4 I knock it again about 3 ft left of the fairway with 58 yards to the flag with my laser rangefinder...hit kinda a bad 60 degree to the front fringe and since I putt from the fringe, I miss the GIR and get yet another 1 putt...at this point I am at 15 putts through 13 holes WOW! I double bogie the next which was only 156 par 3 but went long and left. Had to pitch on under a tree and over a bunker and had my first 3-putt for the day...Now I was keeping my score and knew I had to limit my mistakes since I was only at +2 total going into #14. I hit a poor lag putt for birdie from the fringe on 15 and bogied +4 through 15. 2 Putt from 15 ft for par on 16. 2 putt from the fringe for par on 17  (450 yard par 4 uphill)...

So here I sit +5 overall going into 18...all I need is a double for 79 and if I par 77...Hit a good drive about 3 ft left of the fairway leaving myself 90 to the flag via my rangefinder...pin is in the front and there is a hill behind the hole leading to the upper tier of the green. Hit a poor 56 degree kind of fat to about 20 yards short...I think OK Kurt pitch on 2-putt 78...NOPE...I pitch up with my 52 degree trying to go long if anything to hit it into the hill so that it comes back toward the hole as to not leave it short (plays uphill)

I HIT THE FLAG and it kicks off the green right back at me...bad break as I pitched exactly as I wanted 2 and should have had a 10 ft par putt. I do this again only to hit the hill and to my luck it stays right at the top of the hill and Im begging for it to roll down....NOT SO MUCH...I putt it down and it goes 10ft by as it was super quick with no way to stop it....miss the 10 ft putt...4 on...3-putt 7....all I needed was a double fricken bogie shoot 79 and I get a tripple...37 43=80 DAMN THIS GAME!

I'll get there!

Need to update my handicap to a 9.5

Thanks for reading

Kurt

Oh yea 11 pars, 1 birdie, 1 tripple, 1 double, and 4 bogies...26 total putts a new best for me

good for you! My current golf goal is to my index to single digits, you must feel good to get there!

Thanks!

If you wanna break 80 it's gonna take some good putting.. I shoot low 80's and hope to break 80 once every five rounds this year.. Every round which is not alot that I've broken 80 I get off the tee pretty good. You can't lose a tee shot OB and break 80 to often.. Iron play helps but it's the one spot you can be avg in.. The short game is where it all happens for us guys trying to break 80... you have to get up and down to have a chance..And you gotta make those 6 or 10 footers and drop at least one 20 or 30 footer... Breaking 80 does not have to be pretty is just gotta be smart golf and a little lucky... If you stay focused thru entire round and don't make doubles you can do it.. Bogey is okay on the really hard holes but you really need one or two birdies to help out..I've never broken 80 without a birdie.

Good round anyway, even you didn't break 80.

A tip to break 80 as you have the game. DON'T look at the score!!!  DON'T figure out what you NEED on the last few holes.  DON't even think about it.  Play each shot on its own and you'll break 80 easily.  You KNEW what you needed "just" to break 80 on the last few holes......don't do that.   Don't think about  "needing only a 6" on the last hole. Concentrate ONLY on the next shot NOT your score.

BTW - you can break 80 without a birdie.  I do it all the time.  No penalty strokes, no 3 putts, nothing more then a bogie on the card.............Lots of pars : )

Yea I need to def stop doing that...I thought I was money after nailing the drive and I'm sitting 100 out into a par 4...the 2nd shot was just plain bad....and the 3rd was just plain bad luck as I hit the pin! Need to tighten up my game from 100 in and spend more time on the putting green as well. Hell while I'm at it I need to tighten up my tee game, iron game, etc....haha it never ends as we strive to improve constantly

Did it this afternoon.........zero birdies, 36 putts and shot a 79.  Even had 2 penalty strokes in there, 2 one putts and 2 three putts.  Putted horrible : (

Shot 82 Today with a couple of junk holes that I need to eliminate. A couple 3-putts including a 3-putt from 25ft for Eagle scoring par on the hole. Could have easily been another 80 or better. Was horrible off the tee only hitting 4/14 fairways and 5 GIR I think...havnt been practicing much but have been scoring fairly well...

82 from the back tees further lowered my handicap to 9.1...have to shoot 81s or better from the back tees to lower any further. Hopefully I'll be at my goal of 8.0 after this year and then set new goals! Started off well with a 20ft birdie putt that I sunk on 1...bogie on 2, par on 3, then stuck a 5 iron from 180 to 4 ft on the par 3 for another birdie.

Gotta eliminate those 3-putts...clean up my chipping/pitching game and work on the tee game...shoot if I keep improving a 7.x index might be in my future!

All in all nice day...62 and sunny middle of January golfing...can't complain!

Good day guys!

Oh yea 31 putts today...not horrible but could have been better