Birdies, Pars and Bogies!!!

[Kiin Yang]

Having played golf for about 3 years now, I've just begun to get good!!! Don't ask!!! lol!!!

I've got to a stage where I'm on the green in 2 on a Par4 and putting in 2 and 3's, which to me is ok acceptable. But to get my score down I really need to be putting in 1's and 2's.

I recently hit 83 and played the round in record time (2 hours 40mins) yes it was a rush as my friend and I was trying to beat the light. Now since then I've hit 86, 89, 89, 90, 103, 89, so I'm consistant, but one thing that worries me is that I get the birdie chances and don't convert them and I end up with a par or a bogie.

I'm getting to a stage where I know my scores are getting there or thereabouts and I'm happy but I know there is more to hitting a good drive and thats the putting. I've been very good at putting up till the last 2 months and its not helped my scores, I want to be putting averaging 31 to 35 putts a round am I being realistic or too over ambitious???

Please any thoughts???

[Garthmo]

I think that is realistic, I played a few times a year up untill last season when i finally got a membership and started plaing 50 times a year and got my scores into the 80's. Now this year i have shot 2 78's. My putts seem to be in the low 30's but my drives are the problem when i hit the fairways and hit my GIR i am laughing and at least that gives me a chance to get birdies and then a tap in par are nice. I think you are kind of in the same positon, but I think and the same goes for me, if you want to improve we have to go to the range keep the swing consistant and really work on the short game hard so when we do miss the green we can give our selves a good chance for an up and down, and work on making those putts. just my .02

[Kiin Yang]

I'm glad i'm not the only one, I've got 3 rounds this weekend so hopefully my putting can and will improve. My short game has always been the best part of my game and my driver the worst now its vice versa.

To be honest I would prefer my short game be perfect like Big Phils and then worry about my driver last, but being able to hit my driver roughly 240-260yrds its helping me a lot, being in a distance where my short game doesn't have to be spot on. That's proberly why my short game has suffered and I don't hit my irons as close as I would like to the pin and then my putting suffers.

[MunkeyGolfer]

When I was struggling with my putting I worked on distance. I found that if my first putt was the right distance but maybe not the right line, I was still able to two putt. Get the distance down and I think it will come a lot easier for you.

[golf_junkie27]

Read Bob Rotella's "Putting out of your mind." This will re-inforce some of your beliefs and simplify certain things for you.