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My journey to breaking 80.


Finley
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Ginger, I for sure need a sub 40 on the front. Yesterday's front could have been 37 instead of 39. Missed two par putts on 8 and 9 within 8 feet I'd say. Three putted number 2. On the back I didn't give myself good opportunities for par. Terry, I've done the same and it helps for sure. Good luck! Randy, you are so close!! 80! I hope you get to play more as I'm sure you will get it if you do. David, I'm playing two new courses next week. It's going to be nice to see some new layouts.
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play as many courses as you can. it keeps the mind fresh. and will expose you to different shots.

Agree with this again.  Shooting low on the home course is nice, but having the confidence that you can break 80 anywhere you get called to play is even better.  Keep at it, if you can shoot 39 once you can do it twice.

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Finley,

Another thing about playing new courses is to keep a open mind... And you almost dont want to worry about your score...  Which is easier said than done..   An just worry about making your best shot possible on every try...

It is what it is

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David,

I always start out that way. That is the reason I'm firing off a 39 on the front. Once I make the turn I start thinking about breaking 80. I try so hard to not think about it. I keep my score on an app, so I never look at it until the round is finished. It's hard not to know you shot a sub 40 front though..

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Brief Background - I've been playing seriously since September 2012. Before that I would play 1-5 rounds a year for fun. My job requires me to be gone from home 3 - 4 days a week. Any day that I home though I am either playing or practicing. I usually play one day, then practice the next day for a few hours.

Last 5 rounds - 86,88, 85, 83, 81.

The course I played today is 69.6/120 - 6249 yards.

My best score ever on the front 9. I put all of my focus on fairways and GIRs. 39! 16 putts, 5 GIRs, 4/7 fairways.

One double due to a penalty. 4 bogeys. 1 par. 3 birdies, all with a one putt. One 3 putt.

Back nice...  ugh...  48. These guys were nice enough to let me play through. That's when it unraveled. I felt rushed. Double, then a Triple.

5 penalty strokes on the back. I just couldn't get refocused.

Ended up with an 87.

Do you guys/gals suggest that I stick to one course? I'm currently playing 3 different ones. My 81 is on the easiest of the three. 68.8/116 - 6025.

I do this all the time. I am a pretty fast player, and I just moved to a new city a few months ago, so I play a lot of solo rounds. Frequently I come up behind a group and they let me pass.... and that is always my worst hole of the day. I get rushed, I get nervous and start thinking that if I am passing these guys I need to make it look like I am playing fast because I am playing well, and it always ends in disaster. Then I get frustrated and it carries over for a couple holes before I can re-focus. I have recently started seeking out situations where I am playing with (or at least under view of) people I do not know, and trying to get used to that nervous feeling and trying to not rush, relax, and just play my game. I won't lie and say it always works, but I am seeing myself slowly improve under those situations. Hopefully I can keep improving, and good luck to you on your hunt for 79! I'm sure you'll get there in time, I've only done it twice an it is the best feeling in the world!

In the bag:

Driver- Callaway Razr X Black 9.5* Stiff flex

Hybrid- Forgan 15*

Irons- Ping Eye 2, 3-PW, Eye 2 Plus SW

Lob- Paragon 60*

Greenside bunker specialty- Wilson Harmonized 64*

Putter- Ping Zing 2

Ball- Pro V1x (good day), or NXT Tour (bad day, flies a little straighter)

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This year was the first year iv broken it. I'm 18 iv consistently shaved off around 10 strokes a year since I started playing more(2-3 rounds a month, yes to me that's a lot) three years ago was shooting in the 100s. Two years ago my average was 92. Last year my average was 86. This year on a bad round I'm shooting 82-83. And solid rounds are as low as 77. Haven't had that great round yet. To me my key is focusing on getting the ball in play and not in the bushes. Also 50 yds and in have made me a good player! You'll get there soon but be warned. Once you get 70s. You'll be pissed every time you don't get it.
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84 yesterday and 84 today. Couldn't putt yesterday to save my life. Today I had a messy front 9. I was missing left and right. Finally got loose on the back and played some good golf.

It's almost time to start aerating the greens around here. That might make putting a little more... challenging.

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85 today.

Got a new Driver. Rocketballzzzzzzz. Went from a regular to a stiff flex and I had my best driving day this year.

39 on the front. I was playing really well Tee to Green. I had one mess up when a foursome let me play through, Double, besides that good 9 holes.

Then the back 9.  46.  Totally not fun. Rained on holes 10 - 17.

The journey continues.

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Finley, congrats on the new driver! I'm dying to get a new one myself. I had a fitting, and he also recommended a stiff flex. Hitting both regular and stiff in the same session (and seeing the data from each shot immediately after) convinced me it would make a difference.

Time is short this season- any other chances? Not sure I'm getting out any more, although the weather is just fine here. Life getting in the way.

My Swing


Driver: :ping: G30, Irons: :tmade: Burner 2.0, Putter: :cleveland:, Balls: :snell:

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80 today.

40, 40.

1 double, 6 bogeys, no birdies. I missed a lot of birdie putts today short..... ??

Randy, the stiff driver is really helping me. The head isn't as whippy coming through the ball which is making it easier to control.

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Hey, you matched my 80 on 9/5(my last, and perhaps last of the season??). Gotta admit, this is making me wanna sneak out to the course before the cold weather creeps in. First, I need to buy that driver though, huh? Hmmm, this is starting to cost me.

I needed to get up and down on the 18th from about 10 yards short of the green (back pin placement) to get a birdie for my 79, but left my chip about 10 feet short, I recall. Just missed the straight, uphill birdie putt to the left by an inch. But at least it wasn't SHORT! I tease. Congrats on the round, and the near miss.

My Swing


Driver: :ping: G30, Irons: :tmade: Burner 2.0, Putter: :cleveland:, Balls: :snell:

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Haha, you are correct. At least it wasn't short! I hate leaving birdie putts short...

I've been doing a lot of range work lately. Mostly scoring clubs. 8 - LW. 10 shots each. Goal is to get all 7/10 within 10 yards of target. Today I reached my goal on all clubs except 9 iron.

With my new driver I'm hitting 9/10 made up fairways at the range. With a stiff flex I can now hit low draw, high draw, and a high fade on command. I'm learning to not swing as hard with the driver and let my setup dictate my shot.

All of the greens around me have been aerated so I'll just be practicing for a week or two.

I have 83 days left to reach my goal of 79..

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  • 1 month later...
Finally! Last Sunday, 11/10. I just hope it counts.... I'll explain. Hole #1 513 yd Par 5. Tee shot was long, thought it was safe, looked like a good kick. Got up to where the ball should be and couldn't find it, must have kicked into a wooded area. It was a busy and a couple groups on the tee behind us, so I dropped and treated it as laying three because I didn't want to hold anything up by going back to the tee. Took a 7 on the hole. So that being said, if I handled that situation within the rules, my score was a legit 76. 3 birdies, 9 pars, 4 bogeys, 2 double bogeys. Only lost 2 balls off the tee (usually it's more like 4-5 a round). Course was 6,745 yards, 72.2 rating/129 slope. Par 71. I can't believe I just broke 80... Especially since my game has fallen apart lately. Somehow pulled it all together.
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  • 1 month later...

Congrats Tefunk!! That's a good way to end the year!

A little late but in October I shot my best round, 79. I wasn't keeping score so it kind of felt like it didn't happen. 42 on the front, 37 on the back.

During the round I didn't think about breaking 80 until I birdied 17 and realized I was +1 for the back. Then I started trying to figure out what I shot on the front.

Since then I played once in December, 40 on the front, didn't finish the back due to night fall.

I'm starting to get that itch...  Come on spring!

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Got 86 this week and was 1 over for the three par 5's and 6 over for the four par 3's and 8 over for the par 4's so the toughest parts of the course I played really well and the easiest holes I played badly.

In general this is backwards.  Par 3s versus par 4s, which are more difficult might depend on your game and your course.  But for most people on most courses (assuming you're playing the right tees), the par 5s are the easiest holes on the course.

This is definitely true for me. In my last 20 rounds I've averaged +0.4 on par 5s, +0.6 on par 4s, and +1.2 on par 3s.

Matt

Mid-Weight Heavy Putter
Cleveland Tour Action 60˚
Cleveland CG15 54˚
Nike Vapor Pro Combo, 4i-GW
Titleist 585h 19˚
Tour Edge Exotics XCG 15˚ 3 Wood
Taylormade R7 Quad 9.5˚

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I agree and usually my goal is to play the 3's and 5's as close to even as possible because IMO they present the best opportunity for that. My last 20 par performance last 20 is par 3-3.7 par 4-4.8 par 5-5.6.

Dave :-)

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Finally! Last Sunday, 11/10. I just hope it counts.... I'll explain.

Hole #1 513 yd Par 5. Tee shot was long, thought it was safe, looked like a good kick. Got up to where the ball should be and couldn't find it, must have kicked into a wooded area. It was a busy and a couple groups on the tee behind us, so I dropped and treated it as laying three because I didn't want to hold anything up by going back to the tee. Took a 7 on the hole.

So that being said, if I handled that situation within the rules, my score was a legit 76.

3 birdies, 9 pars, 4 bogeys, 2 double bogeys. Only lost 2 balls off the tee (usually it's more like 4-5 a round).

Course was 6,745 yards, 72.2 rating/129 slope. Par 71.

I can't believe I just broke 80... Especially since my game has fallen apart lately. Somehow pulled it all together.

That's a technically incorrect way to treat a surprise lost/OB ball where you haven't hit a provisional.  To play within the rules there is no choice but to go back and retee.  But I also tend to play busy courses on the weekend (walking) and don't want to walk back to the tee and hold up the course, so this is how I play surprise lost/OB balls as well.  Take a mediocre drop as if you hit a so-so 2nd tee shot and your next shot is your 4th.  You're still cheating a portion of a stroke, as you very well could have hit another lost/OB ball on your 2nd tee shot or ended up in a much worse spot than where you drop, but taking the +2 (instead of +1 and playing it as a shot into a hazard) is at least counteracting some of the rule breaking score sweetening.

To counteract feeling like I didn't play within the rules I've started taking very liberal provisionals.  I look at it as free, legal practice to try to tune up after what was at best a mediocre shot if it might be lost or OB.  If I don't need it, great, got a free legal practice stroke in.  If I do need then I get to play my provisional and play fully within the rules.

BTW, congrats on the great round.  I had a similar experience the first time I broke 80, playing an awesome round (well, really a solid front 9 and a ridiculous -3 back nine) and blasting through 80 for a 74!

Matt

Mid-Weight Heavy Putter
Cleveland Tour Action 60˚
Cleveland CG15 54˚
Nike Vapor Pro Combo, 4i-GW
Titleist 585h 19˚
Tour Edge Exotics XCG 15˚ 3 Wood
Taylormade R7 Quad 9.5˚

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Note: This thread is 3271 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

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