First Nine Post-Hiatus.. Whoah.

[Travtex]

Apparently making myself take a few weeks off taught me how to play golf a little bit.

So, having carded back-to-back +15 and +17 9-hole rounds I said 'Screw This' and spent the next few weeks fishing. No swing practice, no range, no books, no golf. Pbbt. Up yours, golf! When I went back to the range last week, I went in with basically a 'Reboot' mentality, rebuilding the swing from scratch.

First range session was promising. Second range session even more so... Hadn't had back-to-back solid sessions, before. Was this a bit of consistency? By the third range session this morning, I was getting downright cocky about it... (It did NOT at all help that I ended up with a small group of appreciative spectators. I hit a couple of 240-250 carry drives (downhill, *laugh*) that convinced a couple people I was the left-handed John Daly... "Oh, that's three hundred, EASY." Forgive me for not correcting him.)

Anyway, that got me feeling froggy, so all hot and tired and worn out AND sleep-deprived, I decided it'd be a GREAT time to get back on the course.

And... it actually went better than ever before. I ended up +9 for 9, my best to date... That included leaving some shots on the course -- I found the water twice, lipped out a three-footer, and zoomed past a five-footer. I -hit- four greens and actually held two of them. One of which stopped dead in its tracks from 135 (Leaving a shocking crater of a ball mark).

I had three pitch shots from 30-40 yards that ended up 6', 3', and 1' from the cup.

Still chasing bogey as the Season Goal, but for me that was a great score that could have very easily been three or four strokes better. Shot of the day had to be the one-footer. It was a 30 yard pitch uphill to a pin placed on the far side of a two-tiered green. Couldn't actually see the cup from where I was, and when I saw it rolling over the slope I sprinted over there like a crazy person thinking it was going to go in for birdie. *heh*

Awesome day! Woot.

[richard]

Wow. That's great. I normally find that I do better after a brief layoff. It's always nice to just "reboot" as you say. Great job!

[JML22]

Sometimes your muscles need time to really adjust

[double_j]

Sometimes your muscles need time to really adjust

Not only the muscles but also the head. It's odd but I always find my best rounds come early-ish in the season - before I try to get too fancy with my shots or overthink everything. Sometimes its nice just to go out there and swing for the sheer fun of it. Amazing what shelving expectations can do for your score, too.

I'm in that same boat now. My last 3 rounds were at least 5 strokes above my norm if not much worse (91, 93, 89) and I just don't feel mentally good with my game. I just need to force myself to let it go and not worry so much about the numbers.

[rocky74]

I am actually going through a mid-season slump myself. I usually shoot between 103 and 108 for 18 holes. Played a tough course this past Friday and shot 114. I just figured the score was high because the course was tough. Then, yesterday I played an average difficulty course and shot 54 on the front, and 64 on the back for 118! YIKES! I mean I seriously lost all control on the back nine. I felt like a lost puppy. I couldnt hit off the teebox or fairway, and i sucked around and on the greens as well. Usually when I'm playing bad, at least one area of my game is helping me keep my scores down, not yesterday...all was lost. I think I need a break to clear my head, maybe I'm just thinking too much on the course.