And suddenly 3 over?

[BostonSully]

Hey guys,

At about a 24hcp all of a sudden yesterday I shot 3 over on 9 holes it was an executive course with par 29, but no bull-shit I swear. Not really sure how I should handle this as its probably the best round I've had/will ever have.

I played with an older gent I know who told me to try chipping with a 9 iron as he saw my first couple practice shots flubbed with a sw on the practice green. Also to keep it "low and slow" on the backswing, those two things are really the only thing different that I focused on as opposed to my normal round. Chipping with the 9iron in particular saved me a lot of shots.

I went out and shot 7 pars a double bogey and a single bogey. Kind of ecstatic at the thought, but a little worried about the dissapointment my next round is sure to bring. So my question to the ST is how do you low handicap golfers remain consistent and keep up the good play all the time? When I am almost clueless as to how to repeat such an effort.

[AmazingWhacker]

Have you ever played this course before?  Is your 24 handicap based on it or on a full length course playing 18 holes?  Par 29 would be 7 par3's and 2 par4's - right?

I am about an 18 (I guess) playing 18 holes on a full length course.  I recently shot a +4 for 9 holes at a par3 course, though.  The holes there are all pretty close to 100 yards - the longest is 130.  I was having a good day chipping and putting.

I couldn't do that at my regular course, though.  The thing is, if I top or thin it on a short par 3, I'm probably still close enough to chip.  On an average length par4 - it's a lot worse because it means I'm hitting a wood or long iron for the second shot - which means I'm going to be pitching instead of chipping - which means a longer putt . .etc.

Don't get me wrong, it's an awesome round and I don't think I've ever shot +3 at my par3 (I might've tho . .I don't always keep score) but I don't think you've reached your zenith as a golfer just yet.

[BostonSully]

Originally Posted by AmazingWhacker

Have you ever played this course before?  Is your 24 handicap based on it or on a full length course playing 18 holes?  Par 29 would be 7 par3's and 2 par4's - right?

I am about an 18 (I guess) playing 18 holes on a full length course.  I recently shot a +4 for 9 holes at a par3 course, though.  The holes there are all pretty close to 100 yards - the longest is 130.  I was having a good day chipping and putting.

I couldn't do that at my regular course, though.  The thing is, if I top or thin it on a short par 3, I'm probably still close enough to chip.  On an average length par4 - it's a lot worse because it means I'm hitting a wood or long iron for the second shot - which means I'm going to be pitching instead of chipping - which means a longer putt . .etc.

Don't get me wrong, it's an awesome round and I don't think I've ever shot +3 at my par3 (I might've tho . .I don't always keep score) but I don't think you've reached your zenith as a golfer just yet.

Yes it is 7 par3's and 2 par4's. Most par 3's are in the 150 range with one about 90 and two about 200 the par 4's are both 270 a piece but the fairway is as tight as most the 3's. The double bogey was a drive that went into the woods and required me to chip out then get up and down but I missed the green from about 40ish yards on the first par4.

Handicap is a 9 hole handicap from a weekly 9hole league at a full length course.

[RGoosen]

Originally Posted by BostonSully

So my question to the ST is how do you low handicap golfers remain consistent and keep up the good play all the time? When I am almost clueless as to how to repeat such an effort.

I just posted a lengthy answer to that question on another thread.  Here is the readers digest version.

- I play one shot at time.

- I hit shots that I am confident I can pull off.

- I know my yardages carry and total distance.  The last thing you want is to hit a perfect shot with the wrong club.

- A small psychological trick I used when I was trying to break 80...my score on each hole was -1, 0, +1, etc. in relation to par.  I would not under any circumstances count my score up until the end.  It helped me stay in the moment.

I hope this helps

[SloverUT]

Being a higher handicap player you can take my answer with a grain of salt..

But playing on a par 3 course does have a few advantages over regular length courses.

1) You don't use your driver often or at all and high handicappers are generally very inconsistent with it.

2) You are most often using higher lofted irons... 7, 8, 9 etc.. and these are generally easier/more forgiving for higher handicap players.

Either way you still had to putt decently well so you still did well!

Just my thoughts :)