Your 2009 Personal (Golf) Goals

[Titleist Man]

Get handicap down to 6
shoot par or better on 9 or 18 holes at my home course
make another hole in one
make another two eagles
play more tournament golf

[ks8829]

Practice
Short game, chips and pitches from around the green and within 70 yards and ultimately to improve my up and down percentage to 80%.

Goals
Shoot under par 5 times and consistently shoot within my handicap.

[kevidinho]

consistently shoot 80-82
get confidence in hitting my driver
hit at least 5 buckets of balls per week (in the summer)

[iPutt]

1) Get more consistent. I have the ability and distance to par every hole but I have to eliminate the duffs and shanks only 20 or so yards.

2) Start shooting under 100 consistently. I did it once on my last round of the year so I know I can do it. I'll admit my handicap is only my best round, so I guess I'm measuring potential not average. Maybe come late 2009 I'll start keeping a true handicap.

3) Stay focused on every shot of the round. I feel like at times I'll just go through the motions and this is not acceptable.

4) Hit more greens in regulation. I averaged only like 2 greens in regulation which is horrible. I feel like on the fairways I hit my irons great but I get a mental block on par 3 tees where I find the GIR a given. Ironically most of my GIR come on par 5's.

5) Sand saves. Oh how much I dread a green side bunker. I skull the ball, hit right under it, or hit it into the lip. My main problem is that I have nowhere to practice. I'm gonna have to find a place that has a usable practice bunker.

Well I'll start with these for now and maybe add some more during the next year. I'm gonna definitely check back come fall next year too to see how I did.

[Kcas77]

My #1 goal is to make my High School golf team which is incredibly hard to get on
My #2 goal is to hit longer straighter drives because I lose most of my stokes off the tee I feel I should hit my drives farther because other kids are out driving me but I am hitting my irons farther than them. I hit my drives usually 235 yards but sometimes I can get it around 260 yards which is were i feel like I should be hitting my drives.

[RocktimusPryme]

Well oddly enough I knocked 10 strokes off my low score the other day and shot a 78. So my Break 80 goal i guess is out. I also got my no triples in a round goal I had been chasing for about a year. So 2009 goals here we go.

1. Get my handicap down to single digits and keep it there

2. Get my Gir, and Fir to a consitent 50% +

3. Be prepared to play competitevly in Amateur Tournaments in 2010

4. Get an eagle, always thought I would get one of those before I broke 80

[Guest]

1. I want an eagle. All my friends have had them, and some of them are horrible.
2. I want a round in the 70's.
3. I find that I do great on 9 holes, 1 to 2 over par, but the back 9 always gets me. So, more stamina?
4. Focus on every shot. Always think positive about bad shots and recover. Even the games greatest hit bad shots every once in awhile, but, they dont loose their focus and recover.
5. Play to beat myself, not my friends.
6. Hit a bucket a balls at least twice a week.
7. Short game, short game, short game!!

This past year, I have shot 80 6 times and 81-82 about 20. Im so close to breaking the 80's i can taste it. However, when I get to the last hole and all I have to do is par it, I crack and get bogey or double. I need to learn how to focus on what I am doing and not the score. Easier said than done.

[denver_nuggs_15]

1. Get down to a 10 hcp or better: Currently I am a 14.1 handicap and feel that I can drop at least four strokes per round. Here's how:
2. Lower my putting average: Per round I usually have 36 putts...with a few 3 putts. The threeputts come on GIRs...even better. It's the first putt that kills me, either babying it up there or blowing it by the hole. I want to get rid of threeputting and become more confident with 10-12 footers for par or better. Hopefully, I will drop my average to 33 putts per round.
2.a. Get up and down more often: Putting the ball to inside 10 feet always helps the putting average. I want to read Stan Utley's book on the short game. Today (yes I played today) I had 4 up-and-downs. That is usually not the case because I cannot hit putts (I just put chips to gimme range today). I'd also like to add another wedge. I will probably drop my 56 for a 54 and 58. However, if I do this, I will have 15 clubs.
3. Take lessons again: I want to take lessons not just once like I did in 2008. I want to make it a habit so my swing becomes more consistent and effective.
3.a. Gain at least 10-15+ yards per iron: (I like setting the bar high.)Lessons should allow me to do this. I am 6'4" with long arms, so I have great leverage. However, I only hit a 7 iron 155. (I want it to be 165-170.) I want to create clubhead speed without losing accuracy with irons. Also, I want to make consistent contact with better lag. If I gain 10-15 yards with each iron, I can drop my 5-wood for another wedge.
3.b. Gain 20 yards with driver: I am setting the bar high here again, but feel that this goal is possible. I drive the ball 250 on average, but could easily get another 20. I get no roll (b/c of my swing), balloon a lot of shots, and fade the ball too often. I will accept hitting fewer fairways with the added distance.
3.b.i. Get fitted for a driver: This should help me to gain 20 yards. I got fitted for irons and there was a huge difference when I got used to them. I have been looking at some Snake Eyes components and want to get fitted for the proper shaft. Maybe I'll get my r7 reshafted.
4. Make high school golf team: I never tried out for a golf team so this would be a first. If I drop to a 10, I will have a great chance of making the team. I'm not sure if I will try out because I play volleyball for my school (same season as golf).
5. Keep track of stats: I have done this the past few months. I keep track of FWs hit, GIRs, and putts. I want to do it for all of 2009 using some computer program. I also want to add driving distance and average putt distance on a GIR.

2009 Future Stats
Handicap: 10.0
FWs: 55%
Driving Distance: 270 yards
GIR: 40-45%
Putts per round: 33
Putts per GIR: 1.98
Average putt distance on GIR: idk
Low score for the year: 76 (4 or 5 over depending where I play)
Low score for 9 holes: 35 or 36 (even par depening where I play)
Eagles in 2009: >=1

[golffish]

1. Save enough scratch to be able to play bi-weekly.

2. Get my iron distances consistant.

3. Get handicap under 20

[uttexas]

Always enjoy every second on the golf course
Only read mental golf books (Golf is not a game of perfect, etc), golf fiction/nonfiction (stories from Q school, etc) and philosophical books (ie Golf in the Kingdom) no more instruction books
Practice the short game including bunker play 75% of the time
Get more flexible-do some yoga or thai chi every day

[mrgilmore]

1. Get my handicap to 5.

2. Hit more GIR. Currently its at 38.88%. Like to get it in the high 40's

3. Improve ball striking with irons

4. Be more consistent. I can shoot even par easy then next 9 ill shoot 6 or 7 over

[MiniMoe]

I have been thinking about this a bit, and have to revise my original post.

New goals and things to work on.

- To have a plan for every shot especially on putting. I need to focus and adjust to green speed. Fast greens are easy.... slow ones are not.

- Work on distance control inside 120 yards. - I'm OK, but not nearly good enough.

- Most important of all... Slooooooow downnnnn. I get rushed and I'm done. There is a difference between playing fast and being rushed.

- Walk more... drink less.

[ktm7385]

1) Hit the range at least twice a week.
2) Play at least a round a week.
3) Break 100.

One and two are doable, but three might be a pipe dream.

[tonyy]

Hopefully get to scratch by the end of 09. Also to remember to keep my grip light throughout the round. I have a tendency to start tightening my grip as I get fatigued.

[wesmcnew512]

Practice More: I play a lot of golf but never practice. This year I want to spend more time practicing. Also want to take what I practice to the course when I play..I know very simple.. Just not for me!

[picrig]

I didn't really have a 2008 goal list (just picked the game up seriously in June).

1. Drop handicap from 18.7 to 7. It's down from 25.9 in July.
2. Devote more times to practicing than playing.
2a. Devote a significant portion of that practice to the short game
2b. Spend time working on drills that improve the golfswing, but don't necessarily require hitting a ball (or else range balls will cause me to go bankrupt)

3. Improve swing mechanics to the point where I can hit both a fade and draw on command.
4. Improve some key stats
4a. GIR to 40% (18.67% currently)
4b. Sand Saves to 35% (20.69% currently)
4c. Up and Down to 50% (19% for the year, but 29% over my last 10 rounds)
4d. Average 2 birdies per round (i.e. improve wedge game)

5. Enroll in the Orlando campus of the Golf Academy of America in either Fall or Winter of '09

[rjfan91]

My main goal is to END the 2009 playing season as a 14 handicap at my local course. This means I'll hopefully dip lower during the meat of the playing season and end with the inevitable gain of a stroke or two during fall (cold/wet) play. To accomplish this, I know I have to create a few sub-goals. IE, practice putting more often, work on chipping and tighten up my swing with my longer irons.

[Aaronsrix17]

get to 10 handicap since this will only be my third year golfing (im 15 hanicap now)