Whats your best round of golf ever and how did you feel...

[chdduncan]

I am wondering what is the best score you have shot and what you were feeling that day? Was it calmness, confidence? What do you think contributed to that feeling?

I want to see what attributes to playing the best golf of your life and your exact feelings during that round.

I personally shot a 66 at my home course. I felt a kind of numbness to doubt and whether or not I was going to hit the next shot into the water or O.B. I felt really focused on the task at hand and my pre-shot routine just felt like it was the exact routine for me. I felt in tune with my swing and my feel of the course. Not to mention I visualized my shots like never before. It was like a movie playing in my head.

What I think contributed to the amazing game I played was my practice session before I got to the first tee. Its a practice session I have used since that day. It goes something like this...

1. Get a large bucket of balls and set up at the range.

2. Stretch for about 5 min

3. Hit 5 golf balls with every club in my bag. 2 soft, 1 medium, 1 hard, 1 medium. (I do that to feel what 80% is)

4. I do whats called the "clock drill" with my wedges and practice at 7, 9, 10 and 11 o clock. (I do this for distance control)

5. I then hit 5 shots with my 6 iron to see my yardages. ( some days are further and some days are shorter)

6. I move to the putting green and chip 10 golf balls to 3 locations. short, medium and long distance.

7. Then I putt with 3 golf balls to short, medium and long range holes to get the feel of the greens

8. I go play.

This is what I do every day and it gives me amazing confidence before I even tee up on the first hole. It sure gets rid of the first tee jitters.

[chdduncan]

No one?

[BirdieNumNums]

My best round was a 3 under at a course I frequented before renovations began this past year. I knew the course like the back of my hand so that definitely helped.  What powered me to that score was basically all that summer I had flirted with going under only to flop the final 2 holes. But, I was very encouraged at how consistent my game had been all that summer, rarely ever being 3+ on that course.  My warm-up was rather simple that day. His a few drives to loosen up, hit a few wedges then a few 7i.  Rolled about five 5 footers and five 20 footers on the practice green and went to town.  I was 1 under after 10 and then 1 over by 12 but then finished strong.

As for the aspects of my game that day my putter really helped a lot and not just the scoring side of things. I had some slick putts to save par as well.  There weren't many people on the course that day since it had rained the night before and so I read putts from both sides of the hole(which I rarely do) most of the round.  Also, I was playing with a buddy who isn't as skilled so I didn't "feel the need" to hit a 7iron when I should be playing a 6iron.  I played smooth and usually taking an extra club to ensure being middle of the green rather than barely on or just off.

Then I battled the shanks and I'm just now back to the level of play I was then.

[chdduncan]

Wow. That's a great answer to my question. :)

Do you have a regimented practice routine before you play? If not I highly suggest it. It just puts you in a focus that I cant replicate with anything else.

Putting is by far the most important part of golf. Asides from the mental game. I feel that people should spend so much more time on putting than they do. Do you agree?

I can see that you weren't trying to kill the ball to impress golf buddies. Its important to stay within your comfort level. All the pro's I have talked to since I started rarely hit outside of 80% and when they hit all out its pretty much a gamble. Most high handicappers don't know this. They tend to go up and smack the crud out of the ball and hope it goes straight.

The shanks. It happens to even tiger woods.

Thank you for your reply!

[chdduncan]

I absolutely LOVE talking about golf with like minded people! It just gets me so motivated to keep practicing and get my game to an even higher level.

[chdduncan]

No one else?

[Motown88]

It's 5am on the east coast, not to mention a Sunday. Give people time to read this and respond. you're threads not going to die in the middle of the night!

[chdduncan]

LOL yeah your right. I am on a graveyard schedule so this is like 2 pm for me.

[Motown88]

Same here...I'm to tired though to actually add something substantial to this thread. Maybe after I get off work and get some sleep I'll decide to type something out.

[chdduncan]

Much appreciated motown!

[BirdieNumNums]

I think most low handicappers would agree that you need to work more on the short game than anything else.  However, you can't argue with the fact that hitting the big dog long and straight is fun.  For me, it started there as well, but then became unsatisfied with hitting great drives to only hit a terrible approach or 3 putt for bogey.  So, I became determined to figure it out and I found I had more fun draining putts on the green rather than pounding long drives on the range because I knew it was inevitably leading me to have more fun during my rounds by scoring on those killer drives.

As for me, I don't have a regimented pre-game routine.  I do focus on putting though and make sure I'm loose by hitting 5-10 balls before hand. I used to have a much more detailed [re-game routine but with having a wife and 2 children now I try not to spend that extra hour beforehand.  I generally play about once a week during the summer and practice 3-4 days during the week for about 1.5-2 hours so i get most of my feel for my game during that time.

[Big C]

My best round ever is a 76 (4-over par), which I have acheived twice.

My first was about a year ago with some work colleagues at Rancho San Joaquin in Irvine. My pre tee off warmup was as follows.

1. Arrive at the course 15 minutes before tee time

2. Check in at the pro shop and buy a 6 pack of beer

3. Head over to the first tee box.

The round was a bit fluky in the sense that I had no idea how well I was scoring until we tallied up the numbers at the end. I was putting up my fair share of bogies/doubles, but was able to offset them with some really outstanding iron approaches that day - I think I finished with 5 birdies, which is unheard of for me. I tended to write off the round, since it was a booze fest, and I had no competition or pressure from my counterparts. The next best score in our group was still north of 100.

My second 76 happened about 6 weeks ago. Again, it was unexpected, as I was in the midst of one of my worst stretches with my driver that I can remember. I had really lost a lot of confidence in my swing, watched my handicap balloon 4 strokes in 6 months, and had concluded that my future in golf was limited to fun social outings.

I did hit about a dozen balls at the range prior to that round. I did not chip or stroke any putts. Truthfully, I was just there to spend some time with my dad and didn't really care what I scored that day. Lo and behold, I had the most complete round of golf of my life. Unlike my first 76, I was in complete control of my swing the whole day and fully aware of where I stood. Most impressively (to me, anyway), I finished with 7 straight pars down the stretch to close out the round.

For me, playing good golf is all about being in the right frame of mind. A long pre-round warmup can often be just as detrimental to me as it is helpful, especially if it plants seeds of doubt or (even worse) expectations in my mind. Unfortunately, I have no idea how to enter that "zone" on a more consistent basis!

[twoton]

About 10 -12 years ago I shot a 47 for nine holes.  It was at that point, and remains, my best score.   I was playing with my wife and two distant cousins of hers. The round started out about average for me.  No ridiculously bad shots, but nothing especially good, either.  The course is constructed over very hilly forested terrain, and includes natural wetlands.  On the fourth hole, a dogleg with the tee at the top of a hill and the green way, way down below and to the right--so steep and with trees on the right side that you can't see the green from the tee.  It was one time when my slice served its purpose.

The ball sailed out and to the right and dropped quite nicely.  Remarkably nicely.  After that, my mental blocks dissolved.  It was just a relaxing and invigorating round from then on.

[poser]

Best round for me was a 67.  I've shot 68 numerous times but, always seemed to be the lowest I could go.  The 67 happened 2 years ago at my home course.  What was different for me was iron play.  I've never been a really good iron player but, drove the ball good.  Now I do both bad but, anyways.  I hit every green on the front nine and made 9 pars.  I was burning edges all day and felt like I was putting good just nothing would fall.  It all changed on the back nine I made 6 birdies and 1 bogie.  Again I hit the irons really well and finally putts started to drop.  One hole a long par 5 really comes to mind.  I sprayed my tee shot way right and had to hit a huge low cut 4 iron to just get back into play.  I was in the middle of the fairway still 204 out and hit another 4 iron to 3 feet.  Thats when I knew it was going to be an awesome round seemed like I could do no wrong.

[kw purp]

75, 3 over. Didnt feel any different that day. I shoot 76-79 pretty frequently so it wasnt very out of the ordinary. Just hit solid shots and had good chips when I missed the green.

Had no warmup, just show up and go.

[Jeremie Boop]

No point in even saying what my best was, but only thing that was different/better was fewer lost balls on the round. It's not often that I make it through a round without losing a ball, but that's not always a good round because it means I'm topping a lot and hitting low runners. If I don't see some significant improvement by the end of next year compared to now I'll probably either hang up the clubs or just play infrequently.

[nighthawk31]

2 Under on my homecourse, walking in 2h 15mins.

Felt like nothing at all, besides a total workout.

But other then hit and walk there no thoughts at all.

No misshits, just another 5 good birdie chances I missed.

[clutchshot]

No point in even saying what my best was, but only thing that was different/better was fewer lost balls on the round. It's not often that I make it through a round without losing a ball, but that's not always a good round because it means I'm topping a lot and hitting low runners. If I don't see some significant improvement by the end of next year compared to now I'll probably either hang up the clubs or just play infrequently.

Don't give up, it will come. Identify your problem and fix. Your club is coming to the bottom of the swing too early causing you to top the ball. Focus on proper weight shift and hands forwad.