Is it just me?

No, it's not just you, thats the story of my golfing life. On the rare occasion it all does come together it sure is fun though.

I break my game down into about four different areas: driving, irons, short game, and putting. Not once, in my entire three years of playing, have they all come together at once. Granted, it's been closer to coming together as of recently, but there's always something majorly off. If I hit 11/14 fairways, I have 43 putts. If hit 6/18 greens (good for me), I haven't hit any fairways. I think what all golfers really strive to be is consistent and I think that's when you really start getting good.

Like was said above, its consistency.  The vast majority of armatures don't have it.  That's why we are am's and not pro's.

At our handicaps, nothing will come together at once. Yesterday I hit 13/14 fairways and didnt blow up the par 3s, today my driver shouldve been tossed into the first lake I saw. The key is to not get frustrated. Friday, I could blow off the bad shots since I was playing with a friend and it was more about having fun. Yesterday and today was tournament time so everything was magnified.

In the end, you just have to relax - forget the bad and it will all be good. If we dwell on the bad shots, they will continue.

It's definitely not just you. So far this year, I've been terrible at scoring due to inconsistencies. Saturday was a perfect example. I hit 6 of 15 fairways and with the exception of 1 OB drive, the rest were all very playable. Long and mid irons were pretty decent and I gave myself a chance to have a lot of up and down opportunities except that I couldn't hit a pitch 50 yds and less to save my life. I just kept chunking them all round and putting was only so so. Next time I play I probably won't be able to hit a drive but I'll knock every pitch close.

For me the inconsistency has reached a new level recently and Im considering some time off of playing and doing individual tasks alone for some time.

IE Chipping only, then Putting only, Then Driver Only etc...

Example last time I played. 250yd drive middle fairway. Next shot, top the golfball. Shot 3 chip it on. Shot 4 scuff the putt. Shot 5 horridly dissapointing bogey....

And its like that on every hole. Good shot Bad Shot, Good Shot Bad Shot....

This post was more of a rant than anything else... man if only I could eliminate those couple bad shots... 150 yards and in I can hit almost any green, but getting to that 150 yards can be a problem if I'm behind a tree or in a ditch. Putting... two putts are no problem, the occasional 3 putt. And my woods are finally coming together. We'll see... finals week this week then it's range or 9 holes every day before work and two 18 hole rounds on the weekends!

It's definitely not just you.  Yesterday I could do no wrong with my 'scoring' wedges to some very tight pin placements.  Three 30-yd-and-under flop shots to within 5 ft of the cup, and I couldn't hole a single putt.  Other days I can't miss with the putter but can't chip it close enough to even give myself a chance.....sigh.

Re: ...with two friends and was trying to help them out most of the round.

Its completely the opposite for me. When someone asks me what is wrong with their swing and I start thinking about the mechanics more, my swing seems to improve.

On another thread someone was saying about Karma....here it is again.

Ive only had maybe 1 or 2 rounds in the past 12 years where everything has come together, so dont be too hard on yourself.

Completely agree, I have found my game is easier to live with when I am just happy to be out playing.  Of course I want to hit the ball well and play well, but I have had times in my life where I wasn't sure I would ever get to play again, so every time I play I feel lucky to be there, so relax and enjoy, it will happen.

It is not just a mid-high handicap thing. As you get better, your expectations and skill level change, so "having it all come together" is just as rare at most amateur levels, even scratch. I think the pros are able to bring it all together more often because they practice and play this game for a living and have built such consistency. Even in the pros, the reason you have one-hit wonders (think Ben Curtis) is because they had that fluke weekend where it all came together and they won a major. Other pros have the ability to bring their A-game almost every week. I think it is really hard for most people to bring it all together because of the nature of golf. No matter what you do really well that day, everything else seems to be just a little worse so it balances out to your normal skill level and average score whether that be par or bogey.

In my case, if I am striking it really well, I am not making any birdie putts. On the other hand, if I am all over the golf course with the long ball, I usually end up scrambling with some one-putt par saves. However, sometimes I have rounds where nothing works out and I blow up into the 80s. Unfortunately, those are more common than the occasional round where everything is clicking and I shoot 70-72.

I have never had it all come together in one round. My best round I have ever had ( 79 ) had some of the worst driving I have ever had. I think I hit 5 fairways. I also had 35 putts which isn't great but I hit a lot of greens by my standard and only had one blow up hole which was a double bogey.

http://fairwayfiles.com/score_details.php?pscore_id=1389497

I don't go out expecting for me to hit all parts of my game, but If I can figure out my best parts and my worst parts, I play according to them.