How good are your good shots?

[Open-Faced Club Sandwedge]

I'm a double-bogey golfer at best, right now. I took about two years off playing (and I wasn't any good to begin with), and just got back into it in the last month. I don't strike the ball very well very consistently; I have a lot of shanks, fat shots, and the occasional topped shot.

But I've been working on my swing, and I think my fundamentals are sound, because:

My good shots are really amazingly good. I played a par 3 course yesterday, and two of the holes are around 200 yards, and I decided I'd hit a pitching wedge off the tee, so I could chip from the fairway for my second shot, instead of probably searching in the woods for my ball.

Both times, I hit that pitching wedge extremely high, with a 3-5 yard draw, dead center of the fairway, divot just in front of the ball, and with a lot of backspin (almost no bounce/roll from where they landed). They went 146 and 148 yards, GPS-measured.

147 yard perfect ball flight with a pitching wedge! Granted, the S9 PW is a strong loft (44°), but I really doubt Tiger Woods (or substitute your favorite golfer if you want) hits his pitching wedge any better than those 2 shots were.

Does this say anything about my potential as a golfer, or is everyone this way? Are your good shots literally as good as the pros? As long, as well-shaped, as much spin?

-Andrew

[3 wiggle]

I think the difference is that when the pros do it...its on purpose and they know why!

[$2 Nassau]

  Open-Faced Club Sandwedge said:

but I really doubt Tiger Woods (or substitute your favorite golfer if you want) hits his pitching wedge any better than those 2 shots were.

This thread could get good. LOL

44* is a 9 iron, despite what it says on the club. Tiger's PW is close to 50*. Hitting a PW "sky high" isn't always good, what if it's windy out? Not trying to be a jerk, just giving you a little ribbing after your Tiger Woods comparison.

[bkoguy07]

My good shots enable me to birdie most holes if i hit them well. I have quite a bit of length from anywhere on the course so if i strike it will it usually puts me in a great position to score easily.

Also have you ever seen a pro strike a ball? You'd probably remove that part about tiger if you saw it. Its really an amazing sight. the ball flight is different the noise the swing everything... I bet tiger would hit it better.

[Kieran123]

Tiger could hit his PW 160+ yards, draw it, fade it, keep it 8 feet off the ground, get to to spin back 10+ feet and hit it almost exactly where he wants it.

I know what you're saying though....sometimes you play a shot exactly how you want it and it works out perfect. It's a great feeling.

The difference is, we may do it 3 times out of 20, Tiger and the pros can do it 18 times out of 20

[double_j]

That's why golf is so great - any any given point, you can potentially hit a shot that the best pro could not do better.

I could never split the defense and drive the lane for a slam dunk, nor could I hit a 95 mph fast ball out of a major league park but that said, I can stick an iron from 150 to 3 feet every once in a while.

[ghalfaire]

I believe it says when your expectations are "just lay up" you are relaxed and just hit the shot. Seems as if often we all hit career shots when just laying up, must be a message in there somewhere. Cobra Irons have pretty strong lofts and the 44* Iron is a 9I in most sets. But there are a lot of golfers that can't hit a 9I 140 yards so it speaks well for your potential. Just keep learning.

[Ash1974]

  None said:

How good are your good shots?

Great, if I strike them clean I hit FW's and GIR's which = Birdy's or Par's

However for me it's being consistent and making my good shots more than my bad shots whcih don't happen that often, but when they do I shoot low

[Deryck Griffith]

  Open-Faced Club Sandwedge said:

Granted, the S9 PW is a strong loft (44°), but I really doubt Tiger Woods (or substitute your favorite golfer if you want) hits his pitching wedge any better than those 2 shots were.

This is your first mistake - in making such a ridiculous comment. You better believe that tiger woods can hit is PW (which is probably anywhere between 47-50 degrees) 150 yards with any trajectory he wants...high, low, draw or fade..lots of spin or minimal spin. You can also put a crapload of other PGA pros in that same category as well ie. Phil Mickelson, Rory McIlroy, etc etc etc...

Personally, I hit my 47deg Mizuno MP57(which is 3 deg weaker than your PW) 145 yards but that's not the point. Yes, I get what you are saying. Sometimes you hit a shot that is beautiful and you feel like it rivals the best shot that anyone on the course made that day; however, the lack of consistently hitting that shot over and over again or not knowing exactly how it happened or how to do it again, is a reminder that your best shot isn't something that necessarily show your potential. It's a sign of your power yes, but also keep in mind that your PW is basically a 9iron. IMO, a sign of a golfers potential is someone who would focus and speak about gradual accomplishments and goals vs. one or two shots great shots they made one day. I have a friend who doesn't hit it that long but his potential is SUPER high (went from a 18 to a 11 this year) because he is 1. realistic with his game and 2. honest with his swing and what he needs to do to get better. Yes, he may hit a great 280yard drive down the middle once every 3 rounds but I never hear him talk about it because when I ask him to do it again so I can see, he can't 90% of the time.

[BostonSully]

I know the *feeling* last time I played in a team tournament 3 of us put our Tee Shots in the woods except the guy that hits 150ish yard pop fly drives dead straight every time. Too bad it was a 350+ yard hole lol. But from around 200out I grabbed my 4 iron and crushed the ball drew it like 5 feet and landed within 10ft of the pin. The ball even had spin and it stopped! Felt like Tiger Woods there until I realized that I had hit my Driver into the woods and chunked a chip right before that lol.

[DavidFehertysBike]

My good shots are so good that i have to carry toilet paper and an extra set of boxers in my bag in the event that it happens.

[trickymicky69]

  Kieran123 said:

Tiger could hit his PW 160+ yards, draw it, fade it, keep it 8 feet off the ground, get to to spin back 10+ feet and hit it almost exactly where he wants it.

He sounds like Chuck Norris, although Chuck can keep the ball 9 feet from the ground

[ChipShot]

  Open-Faced Club Sandwedge said:

Does this say anything about my potential as a golfer,

No. Even a blind squirrel finds a nut every now and then.....

[Judah Ben-Hur]

I've have only played this game less than a month. When I hit it really good and exactly how it was planned out, I feel like just walking away from the game and leaving the equipment right there on the course for the high handicappers to squabble over. For now, I'll stick around until I can string them together.

[chilly]

  Open-Faced Club Sandwedge said:

My good shots are really amazingly good. I played a par 3 course yesterday, and two of the holes are around 200 yards, and I decided I'd hit a pitching wedge off the tee, so I could chip from the fairway for my second shot, instead of probably searching in the woods for my ball.

I'm sorry if this sounds harsh, but calling a layup to the fairway with a PW "amazing" is a little bit of a stretch. I understand the point you're trying to make, but I'd caution getting too excited about things.

I have learned as I keep playing, golf is NOT about the good shots. I play with 30hc guys who will hit the shot of the round and hit the green from 245yds out...but the rest of the round is a train wreck. When I first started, I hit a few shots that I still think may be the best shot I've hit. Trouble is, now that I've played more, I realize it's almost like spinning the roulette wheel when these great shots occur with higher handicaps (including myself). If you pull these shots off 10% of the time, then it's more a random act then any true measure of how good a golfer you are. I used to swing out of my ass and hit a 5wd 250yds off the tee...but only 1 in 10 really went where I intended. I now realize that, in general, a lot of 6-15hcp type guys really don't hit the ball all that differently on "good" shots. Difference is that the 5hcp will not hit as many bad shots, it's that simple. Get below a 6hcp, and guys do seem to hit the ball just plain better, longer off the tee and nicer looking irons...and again the 5hcp and Scratch hit the ball about the same on good shots but the Scratch is just more consistent.

[rdwoody]

Actually, I rarely hit a really great shot. My normal shots are good, in my opinion, and my bad shots are usually still OK. Every once in a while I do hit a REALLY bad shot. That happens more often than the great shots for me. All in all, I'm consistently decent.

The one thing I've always said since I started playing golf is, "the only thing keeping me from being on the PGA Tour is lack of consistency."

Just as everyone else has already said. Anybody can luck up and pull a great shot or two every once in a while. I got a guy into playing just a few weeks ago and in his first round on the first hole, he hit one of the most gorgeous pitch shots I've ever seen that stuck about a foot from the hole. After that, he went on to shoot something like a 15 on the second hole with hardly a shot that left the ground.

The ability to hit those gorgeous shots whenever and wherever they want is what separates the professionals from the weekend guys.

[bplewis24]

  Deryck Griffith said:

however, the lack of consistently hitting that shot over and over again or not knowing exactly how it happened or how to do it again, is a reminder that your best shot isn't something that necessarily show your potential.

Right. What good is a good shot if you only hit it once out of 10 attempts? Besides, it's a lot easier to hit a great PW into a 40-yard wide fairway as opposed to hitting a great PW 10 feet away from a pin location.

How good are my good shots? I won a "closest to the hole" contest during a club event last week, and didn't come close to contending in my flight as my round was pretty bad-to-average. Anybody can hit a good shot every once in a while. Brandon

[jamo]

You should check out this thread: http://thesandtrap.com/forum/threads...ght=good+shots