Question for the Instructors

[Low Numbers]

I'm a senior player who played the mini' s for many years in the late 80's to mid 90's . Then saw a young Mr Woods who made everything and I hadn't made anything since I was in the womb so I entered the real world.  As fate would have it, I got some stupid idea to try again.  This time I met with James Sieckmann and he fixed my putting. Now here's the question, I will shoot the exact same score no matter the toughness of the course. On a very hard course in a mini tour event, I shoot 69 to win by 4. On another course,  a TPC course I shoot 70 the first day to trail by 1. Second day I knew I needed to go low and was 4 under after 9 then have 8 straight pars and don't  get up and down on the last to win by 1.  I usually hit a lot of greens and fairways. Have 165-167 mph ball speed have good ball control and don't have penalty shots. I miss it where I aim.  I make putts when I need to. Wedge game around green  is maybe a C but  I am working hard on it. I can't seem to keep it going once I get under par. I was -6 through ten yesterday , and end up at -4.   I've been told by everyone to " keep it going".   But I've struggled doing that.  There's nothing in the stats that show anything except proximity to hole seems To go up a little when I get under par. (+ 3-4 feet while fwy and gir % stays the same) It' s almost as if uncomfortable being too far under par. The putts just seem to stop going in. I don't think about It, or try not to..  Do you have any ideas for things to try? I thought about playing the ladies tees and constantly reminding myself that I'm way under par. I believe I can go low, just can't seem to do it.  

Edited May 24, 2019 by Low Numbers

[upndown21]

Sports psychologists make big bucks in situations like this. If your serious about taking your game to the next level maybe you try it out. 

[iacas]

Play a few rounds from the forward tees and learn to go low. If you can, pretty easily, then that's not necessarily the problem.

Maybe when you start -6, going back to -4 is just reverting to the mean.

[phillyk]

What's more important to you, shooting a certain score or playing the best you can? One line of thought is playing to beat a field, the other is playing to beat yourself or some other internal goal.  One has a foreseeable limit, the other does not and allows room to do more.  It's definitely easier said than done, but learning to forget the past and the future, to focus on the present is important.  One way to practice that, as Erik said is to play the forward tees and get used to it.

[Double Mocha Man]

6 hours ago, Low Numbers said:

 It' s almost as if uncomfortable being too far under par. The putts just seem to stop going in. I don't think about It, or try not to..  

I cannot tell you how many times after 5 or 6 holes at my favorite course I am 1 or 2 under.  I rarely stay there.  It's like the ol' "water seeking its own level".

[Low Numbers]

4 hours ago, iacas said:

Play a few rounds from the forward tees and learn to go low. If you can, pretty easily, then that's not necessarily the problem.

Maybe when you start -6, going back to -4 is just reverting to the mean.

I apologize for asking this but, what exactly do you mean by "going back to -4 is just reverting to the mean". 

[Low Numbers]

3 hours ago, phillyk said:

What's more important to you, shooting a certain score or playing the best you can? One line of thought is playing to beat a field, the other is playing to beat yourself or some other internal goal.  One has a foreseeable limit, the other does not and allows room to do more.  It's definitely easier said than done, but learning to forget the past and the future, to focus on the present is important.  One way to practice that, as Erik said is to play the forward tees and get used to it.

Can you please elaborate on this ? I am so literal that sometimes things escape me. My whole career I was told to get my head together. I tried to no avail. I honestly didn't know how or what to do. I just thought that if hit enough balls and putted enough it would vvome together. It never did.  I've under performed, choked away leads, generally wasted my talent.  I'm older now, and more mature so hoping I can learn something 

[iacas]

40 minutes ago, Low Numbers said:

I apologize for asking this but, what exactly do you mean by "going back to -4 is just reverting to the mean". 

You usually don’t shoot -6, right?

So the rounds you start off well, you revert to your average. Just like some rounds you start off poorly and then improve upon.

[golfprotl1]

  I respectfully suggest that there is not a score + or - until a golfer has finished 18 holes...we all start out with par and we perform each shot....one at a time...as best we can and add it up at the end......it's just the single golfer and the golf course is our only competitor...maybe we shouldn't worry about score during a round....and remember we are not defined by that rounds numbers until we finish the round..... 18 holes.... that's what each golfer is measured by at the end of the day...how well we performed our task against par....hope this helps and congratulations on what appears to be some great rounds of golf...........this might seem easier said than done... but I'm convinced that should be a golfers goal....par or better or worse is the final standard all of us are measured by....