My Swing (cipher)

[Ernest Jones]

Originally Posted by cipher

I got robbed on that putt, I am not sure what happened.  The ball seemed to go in the hole and then come back out.

When that happens you should just mark it down as a hole in one, otherwise it doesn't really represent reality.

[Slice of Life]

Originally Posted by cipher

Yeah it was still a nice score, I know the 36 will come. I just have to stay patient and trust what I am working on.  Even though my handicap is not all that much better this year(trending to 4.3 on the 1st) the stats are showing me that I am improving.  I am hoping to be a 3 something by the end of the season.  I am hitting close to 55% percent of greens the last few weeks, which is much better than where I was before.

Yeah, I can imagine how difficult improving your handicap can be once you get into single digits. It's hard to improve mine and I'm well in double figures. My big problem is hitting greens. I'm probably less than 10% which is just unacceptable.

I've been averaging about 30-32 putts per round, which should translate into lower scores, but so far...no dice. Gotta improve the ball striking.

[cipher]

Originally Posted by Slice of Life

Yeah, I can imagine how difficult improving your handicap can be once you get into single digits. It's hard to improve mine and I'm well in double figures. My big problem is hitting greens. I'm probably less than 10% which is just unacceptable.

I've been averaging about 30-32 putts per round, which should translate into lower scores, but so far...no dice. Gotta improve the ball striking.

That is the key!

[Slice of Life]

Originally Posted by cipher

That is the key!

I'm getting there. Thanks to some of the guys in my swing thread (especially Mike), I was striking the ball GREAT last night. I'm optimistic about my golfing future. Hoping to be around a 10-12 handicap by the end of the season...I feel like that's reasonable.

[cipher]

A little tuneup before the tourney.  Regressed just a bit, will correct it.  Will update results next week.

[Slice of Life]

Good looking swing...super smooth. I really have a long way to go to get a swing tempo down like that.

[cipher]

Completely embarrassed myself today.  I wasted mine and other players' time.  I don't know why I was paired with two +2 guys and a 0 but it is what it is.  When I can find the words to describe what happened I will do so because I owe it to some of you guys.  I essentially think I now have some form of the yips, maybe it was the pressure of the tournament or something, but I could not putt.  Does anyone have a belly putter they are selling? Played pretty well from tee to green.  I actually drove the ball well except for one hole on the front that killed me(did not play the back, I will get to that later), and hit my mid/short irons very well, I flushed every one of them.  I can't hit long irons right now at all.  I am just making very bad contact and have no confidence.  I wish I could say I have never felt worse about my game, but there was actually a few good things.  What is clear though is that I do not posses the cognitive capabilities to play tournament golf.  All and all I am just pretty embarrassed right now.

[Ernest Jones]

Bro, it was your first tournament of note, you'll grow into it. Every post I have ever read about tournament play (excluding the dime sized brown spot BS) posts have talked about how much your handicap balloons under that kinda pressure. You have a beautiful swing and I would kill to have your game. So shut up, suck it up and keep trucking. And I say this with love...

[cipher]

Originally Posted by Ernest Jones

Bro, it was your first tournament of note, you'll grow into it. Every post I have ever read about tournament play (excluding the dime sized brown spot BS) posts have talked about how much your handicap balloons under that kinda pressure. You have a beautiful swing and I would kill to have your game.

So shut up, suck it up and keep trucking.

And I say this with love...

Will do, but no more tournament golf for me until I learn how to putt and learn how to hit the long clubs.  As I mentioned, the one positive I took and it goes back to everything I have been working on with evolvr, is that I hit mid and short irons as well if not better than my three playing partners.  They were however way ahead of me when it came to the long clubs and short game.  I obviously need to give those areas some more attention.

[Jakester23]

Don't get down on yourself bud. You have a fu[king beautiful swing and work hard on getting better all the time. Guaranteed it won't happen next time. Keep your head up and if all else fails go to waterstreet brewery and have some Amber. Hell let me know I like to tip a few I'm not doing anything tonight.

[cipher]

Originally Posted by Jakester23

Don't get down on yourself bud. You have a fu[king beautiful swing and work hard on getting better all the time. Guaranteed it won't happen next time. Keep your head up and if all else fails go to waterstreet brewery and have some Amber. Hell let me know I like to tip a few I'm not doing anything tonight.

Don't drink, but maybe I should start...

[Jakester23]

Ha ha you'd get along with my wife she doesn't really drink either so i have to drink for 2. Seriously though keep grinding everything happens for a reason.

[cipher]

Hole#1 par4: Nice tight fade down the middle, 9 iron to behind the pin, selected wrong club with the elevation.  3 putt from 25+ feet for a 5.

Hole#2 par5: This is where my course management skills killed me.  Tried to hit a fade of the tree line left and hit a straight slight pull, went through the top of the trees but we did not hear any impact noises.  Hit a provisional with the same result and this time you could hear the crack.  Hit a second provisional aimed out to the right rough.  Could not find the first two.  Shanked a 4 iron from the right rough with a lucky result in hitting another tree and bouncing into the fairway.  Stuck a 7 iron in pretty nicely to the left center with a left pin over a bunker.  Two putt for a...ah um 9.  Accidentally recorded it as a 10 anyway but it does not matter now.

Hole#3 par3: 3 iron of the tee, caught it off the toe and landed just short.  Pitch and 1 putt for a 3.

Hole#4 par4: Nice tight fade again down the middle.  Selected wrong iron(8i) again and struck it well landed just over the green.  It was in between clubs, and I tried to take the longer one and back off a bit.  Just did not do it enough.  Mediocre pitch from a tough spot and two putt from 12' for a 5.

Hole#5 par4: Nice drive, I just ran out of room on the dogleg right and ended up just in the first cut. Hit a nice PW to about 12-13'  2 putt for 4.

Hole#6 par5: Pulled the drive a bit into the left rough.  Hit a thin 4 iron back into the fairway.  Hit a nice 9 iron to 15' or so.  This is where it gets really bad, I 4 putt from 15' for a 7.

Hole#7 par4: Hit one down the middle with the 3w.  Hit an 8 iron again to 15' or so again and this time somehow 2 putt for a 4.

Hole#8 par3: Hit a 4 iron right of the green into the bunker.  Hit a poor shot out to about 20' and 2 putt for a 4.

Hole#9 par4: Pull driver into left rough and have to punch out behind tree.  Hit 7 iron and just miss the back left pin location in the back left corner fringe.  Chip to about 5' and yep 3 putt from there for 6.

So I posted a 47 on the front nine.

Here is where I will probably get chastised, and probably deserve it.  I decided to WD.  It was clear that I should not have been out there and was not ready for it mentally and with certain parts of my short game and long irons.  Why the heck I was paired up with the other three guys I will never know, but they all made the turn with the prospect of qualifying for the main tournament.  I did not want to be the distraction between them making it and them not.  It was not fair to them to have to keep watching me play so poorly and hold the pace back.  I guess the way I looked at it was that it was an amateur tournament and I did not owe it to anyone but myself to finish.  I did however think that I owed it to the other players though in a state amateur qualifying round, not to hold them up.  I could tell that my play was starting to bug them as well.  Maybe it was the right decision maybe it was the wrong one.  I don't know.

I learned that I have some pretty major issues playing under pressure. I also learned that some enjoy the pressure of having to hit a good shot and that I do not.  Back to playing for fun and working with evolvr for me.

[Ernest Jones]

Gotta keep this quick as it's time to put the kids to bed. Nathan I really think you're being too hard on yourself. You're disappointed, I get that, but it was your first crack at it and it gives you some direction with where you need to focus your practice. Was the WD the right decision? Only you can answer that but you've given a fairly compelling argument for why it may have been. Get back on the horse. This will only make you stronger.

[iacas]

I'm a big fan of posting your score. Whatever you shoot, you own up to it, you stand by it, and so on.

I do not agree with WDing, and I think you'll come to regret it. You deprived yourself of the opportunity to learn more about how you handle adversity, and a chance to see if you could turn things around.

I doubt very much that your putting issues were really doing anything to the pace. I've played with guys who are having a rough time of it. I've been the guy having a rough time of it. I was kind of both when I took and passed the PAT, and the scores I shot that day remain some of the ones I've been most proud to shoot.

But it's also not the end of the world, nor does it really say much about what kind of person you are.

[jamo]

I shot an 87 trying to qualify for the MA Publinx last year, so I know a bit how your feel. It's just like anything else, tournament golf takes practice. I think I probably would have finished out the round, but it sounds like WDing was not a split second, hot-headed decision, but rather something that you thought out, so good on you for that. You'll get 'em next time!

[cipher]

Originally Posted by Ernest Jones

Gotta keep this quick as it's time to put the kids to bed.

Nathan I really think you're being too hard on yourself. You're disappointed, I get that, but it was your first crack at it and it gives you some direction with where you need to focus your practice.

Was the WD the right decision? Only you can answer that but you've given a fairly compelling argument for why it may have been.

Get back on the horse.

This will only make you stronger.

Back on the horse.  Played 9 this morning.  No worries.  Just a cipher, a zero in the the highest form of self deprivation.  But I will not try this again until I can hit the long clubs.  Like I said my evolvr work this spring and summer has really paid off from 160 yards and in.  I was as good and maybe better than the other three from 150 and in. I was at least 20 yards behind them and was often sticking it in there tighter.   I just really have to also work on hitting 3-5 irons and continuing to improve the driver and 3W and my course management.

Originally Posted by iacas

I'm a big fan of posting your score. Whatever you shoot, you own up to it, you stand by it, and so on.

I do not agree with WDing, and I think you'll come to regret it. You deprived yourself of the opportunity to learn more about how you handle adversity, and a chance to see if you could turn things around.

I doubt very much that your putting issues were really doing anything to the pace. I've played with guys who are having a rough time of it. I've been the guy having a rough time of it. I was kind of both when I took and passed the PAT, and the scores I shot that day remain some of the ones I've been most proud to shoot.

But it's also not the end of the world, nor does it really say much about what kind of person you are.

Sure I get it, and I probably will and already do regret it for personal reasons.  In light of the play of my partners and with seven holes to think it over I came to a different conclusion.  One of the guys ended up being the top qualifier with a 69 and another ended up in 4th with a 74.  Maybe it was not the right decision for me but I took what I believed was the best decision at the time after thinking it over for at least an hour and a half. I was out of place, I was a distraction and felt that the best thing to do was to remove myself from that group.  It was not fair to them IMO to watch me continue to melt down.  Had it had been a tournament where I had already qualified I would have felt that I owed it to the players who did not qualify to continue.  I have posted the truth about what happened and opened myself up to the "what kind of person you are" judgment and so be it.  I really don't care what others think about me.  I just make decisions to the best of my ability.  It is fair though that some should judge me for the decision.

Originally Posted by jamo

I shot an 87 trying to qualify for the MA Publinx last year, so I know a bit how your feel.

It's just like anything else, tournament golf takes practice. I think I probably would have finished out the round, but it sounds like WDing was not a split second, hot-headed decision, but rather something that you thought out, so good on you for that.

You'll get 'em next time!

After sleeping on it I may give it another go at some point, but still don't know if I enjoy the pressure of needing to make a 4' putt.  I need to improve greatly in the long clubs as I mentioned first though.  And yes, WDing for me was not a hot head decision in this case.  I almost never show any outward anger or frustration on the course, while I may be dying inside, probably to a fault.

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I really don't have much else to say about it, I just wanted to tell the truth about what happened.  I am moving on and will work on things and get better from it.

[Golfingdad]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ernest Jones

Gotta keep this quick as it's time to put the kids to bed.

Nathan I really think you're being too hard on yourself. You're disappointed, I get that, but it was your first crack at it and it gives you some direction with where you need to focus your practice.

Was the WD the right decision? Only you can answer that but you've given a fairly compelling argument for why it may have been.

Get back on the horse.

This will only make you stronger.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jamo

I shot an 87 trying to qualify for the MA Publinx last year, so I know a bit how your feel.

It's just like anything else, tournament golf takes practice. I think I probably would have finished out the round, but it sounds like WDing was not a split second, hot-headed decision, but rather something that you thought out, so good on you for that.

You'll get 'em next time!

First of all ... thanks for sharing Cipher, I know it wasn't easy.

All I can say is to reiterate what Ernest and Jamo said, which is that I wouldn't be so quick to decide that you aren't ready or interested in tournament golf.  It was your first try.  It definitely takes practice and time to get used to.  I am also a relative beginner to tournament golf and have pretty much sucked royally each time out.  But each time I get a little better handle on the nerves, feel a little more comfortable (not to mention I'm improving through Evolvr as well) so I'm confident that one of these days I'll start to figure it out.

Just keep at it.  If you find that you enjoy casual golf and not tournaments, thats great, but just don't make that decision yet. :)

Oh and one last thing ...

Quote:

but still don't know if I enjoy the pressure of needing to make a 4' putt.

One way I try (repeat: try) to help aleviate the pressure is to remind myself that it's just golf ... and amateur golf at that, where I'm not in it for the money or glory ... therefore I don't NEED to make anything.  It doesn't always work, but I'd like to think it helps some. :)