How did you break into single digit HCP?

[Splifton]

Over the 2009 season, I was able to lower my handicap from a 21 to a 10.  In 2010 I couldn't seem to break the barrier into the single digit HCP realm.  My goal for 2011 is to have a single digit HCP.  Any suggestions or help here?

[saevel25]

Start keeping track of were you think you are throwing shots away, because a 10 hanidcap over 18 holes, is tough man. Think about it, you got to have at least 8 holes of par or better. So whats your weaknesses?

Waisting a shot off the tee, GIR's, putting, chipping? you really got to look at all aspects of the game.

I am a 12-15 hanidcap, i know i waste about 2-3 shots around the green. I just started chipping with a 3-wood or putter to get it on the green it was so bad, no faith in the wedge, but i cut out the big number.

Analyse your game, just think about your last round you shot around 10 over, think were you made a few mistakes. If you went 10 bogies and 8 pars, then work on GIR's and putting.

[tim31x]

natural athleticism and constant practice i was an 8hdcp 100% self taught. went to school for golf and now i'm a 1.4. lessons are good but also learning the swing and proper technique with the shortgame show the quickest improvements.

[TaylorMadeTaylor]

I broke into an unofficial single digit index last month. For me I was really focusing on getting up and down more, so basically working on my short game. My driving accuracy was really bad and I improved that, but I think it was more of the short game that helped me the most. Now when I miss a green more often than not I can get up and down for par.

[RC]

Play with better players.

[tsdnorton]

100 yards and in.

That's where all the scoring comes from. Work on your wedges, work on your chipping/bump and run/flop, work on your sand shots, work on your putting, ect. Keep track of where your strokes come from. Chips per round, putts per round, GIR, FIR. If your chips per round is really high (which also means your GIR is low) work on the accuracy of your approach shot and your chipping around the greens. If your Putts per round is high (which is the most under-rated part of a golf game) get on that green and practice from 2,4,6,8,10 feet out. If your FIR is low, work on your driver (always easier to hit an approach shot or a wood if you're in the fairway)

But those final strokes will for sure come from your short game. If you're in the low-teens, you most likely have a developed swing rhythm that isn't going to change unless you do some huge changes or get a new swing coach. Just spend some more time pre-round on your short game.

[gwlee7]

Chipping, putting, and a solid wedge game.  You have to feel like regardless of what happened off the tee or with your approach shot that par is still a distinct possibility.  Have the confidence to "score ugly".

[Lefty-Golfer]

100 yards and in for sure, also keeping your miss in play. a terrible swing only costs you one unless you are out of bounds...

[iacas]

Again perhaps I'll be the first to point out that the "work on your short game" is rarely the cure. In the end, better ball striking is going to do more to take strokes off your game than the short game. The MoneyGolf article talked about this, and we all know that hitting greens in regulation is paramount.

But even if you don't hit a bunch more GIR, what's easier - a 40-yard bunker shot, a 40-yard flop shot over that bunker, or a chip from just off the fringe or just into the rough? The last one's the easiest, and your "short game" numbers will improve too because you're playing your "short game" shots from closer to the hole.

Generally speaking, ballstriking is the #1 determinant of handicap.

[jgreen85]

Originally Posted by iacas

Again perhaps I'll be the first to point out that the "work on your short game" is rarely the cure. In the end, better ball striking is going to do more to take strokes off your game than the short game. The MoneyGolf article talked about this, and we all know that hitting greens in regulation is paramount.

But even if you don't hit a bunch more GIR, what's easier - a 40-yard bunker shot, a 40-yard flop shot over that bunker, or a chip from just off the fringe or just into the rough? The last one's the easiest, and your "short game" numbers will improve too because you're playing your "short game" shots from closer to the hole.

Generally speaking, ballstriking is the #1 determinant of handicap.

I agree 1000%. I started taking the "100 yards and in advice" and spent the majority of my practice time chipping/putting. My chipping has improved and my putting greatly so, but my irons have slipped significantly, and I just can't get on the gir. It took a couple of rounds for me to realize that hitting a wedge w/in 5-10 ft from 30-100 yards consistently really isn't as easy as the pros make it look, and sinking those 5-10 foot putts consistently is even less so. Starting to get the irons dialed back in, and will hopefully see some progress this spring.

[saevel25]

Yep Iacas is right, saying working on short game is like trying to fix a leak with silly puddy, you might stop it for a while, but your going to end up with a big mess in the end. Of course short game is good, but i can't remember who said it, he basically said that he worked on the short game so he had it just in case, but he didn't want to have to lean on it as a strength. Its kinda the opposite of Phil, he developed a short game because his irons suck, he leans on it and takes risks. Tiger was always the best ball striker, and had the short game there when he needed it, he never had to lean on it to keep his game going.

[sean_miller]

When I first got down to an 8 (15 years ago) it was because I started playing courses that suited my game. Long holes with a lot of hazards and fast greens. Basically my index was fake - I was an 8 on courses with a 130 slope and a 12 on my home course.

This time around I've focused on keeping the ball in play, hitting the right part of the green (still not a great aim/directional putter - pretty good lag putter and chipper though), and avoiding blowups. My best tee-to-green rounds were my worst putting rounds (beginning of the season) so the scores were similar to my year-end rounds where I missed more greens but made more putts.

To stay as a single digit this year, I plan on working a little bit on everything, but most of all on my fitness and flexibility. Playing solidly for 12-14 holes then running out of gas down the stretch can turn a 77 into an 82 pretty quickly.

[TourSpoon]

If you are serious and did not see a lot of improvement then I would invest in some lessons to get a good fundamental basis to your game.  Once your ball striking is decent, I would then work from the hole back to the tee.  It is all important but the difference for me breaking 80 or not comes down to getting up and down a reasonable amount of the time given an average ball striking round.  When I hit the ball great, it comes down to putting, when I am decent it is scrambling, and when it is not so good it is about minimizing the doubles.  My average round of 80 is about 45% fairways, 50% GIR, and 45% scrambling.  With 9 greens that averages to even par and then 45% scrambling puts me at 5 over. I then manage to throw away 3 shots somehow with a three putt, penalty, or a bad break.

I played today and it really makes Iacas's point about ball striking.  Even though my stats look marginal on paper, you have to realize that I hit the ball great especially if you figure that when we started it was 40 degrees and windy (15-20 mph).  Conditions were tough and not conducive to scoring, but I managed to hang around all day.  I only hit 3 fairways (I was close the entire day except for one punch out) and 7 greens and shot 76.  I got up and down 6/10 for par, holed a birdie from the bunker, and made one birdie putt (total 6 bogies and 2 birdies).  What cost me?  A three putt, the punch out, and four missed up and downs.  What saved me?  Hitting it just off the fairway but in decent spots (ie: having a shot to the green), missing most of the greens fractionally, 60% scrambling, 29 putts, 2 birdies, and no doubles.  My playing partners, both of my ability, ended up shooting 82 and 84 mainly because of a couple of doubles, missed up/downs (some were in tough places), a couple of missed putts, and a penalty stroke or two.

Now how do I know this?  It's because I track my rounds with Scorecard and can see my stats and what I need to work on.  At this point, I know that I am going to miss greens so I really practice my short game because with a good short game you are never really out of the hole.  The next thing I need to improve is fairways because when I hit the fairway I usually hit the greens almost 70% of the time as opposed to 35% of the time on average.

I hope this helps you in some way.  It is not easy having Golf OCD, but it will lower your handicap to a single digit!

[saevel25]

Well we each are suited for different courses, I am good with courses that don't demand perfect tee shots, or target golf, but rather courses that will give youa  good birdie look if you do things right but emphasis on putting and putting the ball on the right side of the green. With that, i hate Jack Nicholaus and Pete Dye courses, i am a huge fan of Palmer's, Player's, Burs, and Donald Ross courses. My favorite course, is a Donald ross course, about a 135 Slope, but i shot about my handicap. Played a Pete Dye Jr. course in Columbus, ohio, 135ish slope, shot a high 90. So yea, to each there own, but generally for single handicaps, you got to know your course management and what you can and can not do.

[Splifton]

I do keep stats on this but when I look deeper in the stats based upon the comments on this thread,  it's making me look at my stats in a totally different way then ever before. I believe it is leading to one area of my game that I need to really work on.  Let me disect from my last round where I shot a 84 on a par 71, or +13:

* NOTE * - Understand the course was extremely wet.  The ball was not rolling at all on the fairway so everything played extremely long.  This really only matters on my long approach shots to the green on #2 and #15

FIR: 85.7% or (12 of 14)

GIR: 50% or (9 of 18)

Scrambling%: 22% or (2 of 9)

Putts: 38

Putts GIR: (9 GIR; 20 putts)

Putts MGIR: 2.0 (9 missed GIR; 18 putts)

---

Hole#2: +1; missed green right with 5w, 2 putt => cause ballstriking

Hole#3: +1; missed green deep with 8I, 2 putt => cause ballstriking

Hole#9: +2; missed fairway causing punch out; mental error when played shot for 85 yards when shot called for 65 yards => cause missed fairway, mental lapse

Hole#10: +1; GIR; missed 4 foot putt => cause missed short putt

Hole#11: +1; hit approach shot FAT, two putted => cause ballstriking

Hole#12: +1; missed green to 3 feet off the fringe => cause ballstriking

Hole#13: +3; hit tee shot fat, mental mistake hitting too much club on 2nd and 3rd shot(pitches within 100 yards), two putted => cause ballstriking, mental x 2

Hole#14: +1; three putted; approach shot left third shot withing 45 feet of cup => (ballstriking or lag putting was the cause, I'll go with the former) => cause ballstriking

Hole#15: +2; long par 4; hit approach shot fat, left thirdshot within 90 ft. from hole.  Honestly the best I could of done here was +1 with the distance I had off the tee => cause lack of distance + ballstriking

Hole#17: -1; stuck 56 degree wedge within two feet of pin, sunk putt for bird => cause good ballstriking or luck

Hole#18: +1; three putt, another 90 ft. plus putt, left 2nd putt 5ft short and missed => (ballstriking or lag putting was the cause, I'll go with the former) => cause ballstriking

---

If I talley all of the +14 strokes:

====================

mental mistakes = +3

ballstriking = +8

missed fairway = +1

lack of distance = +1

putting = +1

Verdict is: ballstriking

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You could make the argument that my chipping and lag putting need to get better.  But when you leave it 90ft. from the pin after your approach shot, it is going to be hard to get it there in two everytime.  Same with the chipping.  I do need to get it closer, but again if you hit the ball to the green within regulation, you won't need to be chipping.

There are other things I need to be crisper on as well and that is the mental mistakes.  I did not have the distances correct in 2 of the 3 bad pitch shots.  One I was off 20 yards, the other I did not even have the distance in my head and just hit it.  So I could shave off a couple of strokes by being a little more precise.

The short putts I will need to work on, but again I will miss those from time to time.  One or two a round will not kill me.

---

Sometimes I think that the statistics mask the problem, like chipping, scrambling% and putting.  It appears that real issue that I need to devote my time to is working on ballstriking.

[Aquaguru]

For me it was the mental part of the game.  Two years ago I would go out and just hit the ball around.  I would have really great shots and then bad shots that got me into trouble, short siding myself and putting my drive and second shots in bad spots.  My ball striking wasn't the best either.

This past year my ball striking has really come around for some reason, mostly because I played alot more, but I didn't work on it.  I don't have the time too.  The key for me was that I started to think about all the shots I would need to hit to make par on a hole.

Example: Once I get to the tee box I look at the whole entire whole and think, put my drive on right side of fairway giving myself a better look at the green being able to avoid the greenside bunker on the left.  The green is sloping down so I would like to leave myself with an uphill putt so I will take a little off my 6 iron.  Hit a safe shot onto the green.  If a make the 15 footer for birdie that is great if not I have an auto tap in par.

Thats how I play now and it has worked for me, I keep my cool when I hit a bad shot cause there is alot of golf and its not worth getting mad over.  At least I'm are playing right?

[Gordon McTavish]

A solid short-game isn't going to do much if the rest of your game sucks.  I can attest to that after a round of 108 this year that included 26 putts!

[gwlee7]

Originally Posted by iacas

Again perhaps I'll be the first to point out that the "work on your short game" is rarely the cure. In the end, better ball striking is going to do more to take strokes off your game than the short game. The MoneyGolf article talked about this, and we all know that hitting greens in regulation is paramount.

But even if you don't hit a bunch more GIR, what's easier - a 40-yard bunker shot, a 40-yard flop shot over that bunker, or a chip from just off the fringe or just into the rough? The last one's the easiest, and your "short game" numbers will improve too because you're playing your "short game" shots from closer to the hole.

Generally speaking, ballstriking is the #1 determinant of handicap.

Here's my first chance to "disagree" with one of my instructors.

I typically only hit 8 or 9 greens in a round of golf yet my hanidcap was as low as 4.8 this summer and is currently 6.3 .  Granted, the ball does typically fly in the general direction that I want it to go.  Drives between the trees, irons somewhere near the green, chip it to about 4 or 5 feet and then sink the putt about 70% of the time.

I am that guy that drives "better" players crazy in a match play situation.  For example, this summer in our club match play championship, I was asked by the guy I was riding with (each of our opponents were riding in the other cart) what my game was like. I told him that I would be putting for at least par on every hole.  Not that I would make them all, just that I would be putting for par.

So, on the very first hole, a par 5, I hit my drive just into the right tree line.  I then hit the trees again on my second shot but get it down a ways.  I then hit the trees again on my third shot and am hitting my fourth shot from about 120.  I knock the pitching wedge up there to six feet below the hole and make the putt for a par.  My opponent two putts for his par.  This goes on for most of the match and truth be told, I make can birdies when I get the chance to.  Anyhow, I close this guy out 2&1 sparying the ball all over the lot because I really did putt for at least par on every hole.

I guess all of this long windedness is to just say that improving my ballstriking is going to be what gets me to scratch.  The OP only has to keep the doulbes and triples off of the card and he can easily be single digits with a good short game.