How do you get into the low 80's from roughly the high 80's and low 90's?

[Lihu]

Okay, some progress. Swing is probably 1/3 of the way to where I would like it. The number of GIR is increasing, and I can actually understand how beneficial it is to make fairways and greens.

I used to lose a dozen or more balls playing difficult courses. Now, I only lose a sleeve or so, and score in the low to high 90s, and score in the mid to high 80's on the easier ones.

I met a couple 2014 goals this year by not losing more than one sleeve and breaking 100 on any course I play. So far, so good, and I haven't even fully developed my new swing yet. It will take months of hard work to get it where I want it. I should post in the bogey thread http://thesandtrap.com/t/70872/bogey-golfer-only-thread-handicap-index-from-16-22-what-are-you-going-through-working-on-sob-stories. The only thing is that I do not consider bogey golf a "sob story", I'm pretty happy with it, and that's why I created this thread.

This thread is for all us bogey golfers especially the ones from the @rkim291968 thread. Let's ask for more advice as to how to improve even more!

[lifeboy]

Someone once said the key to golf isn't to keep your head down, but to keep your head up. Don't let a bad hole (double bogey) turn into another. Have a short memory and stay in the zone. I've played my best golf with that strategy. When I get to the next tee after a bad hole I think to myself, "if I birdie this one, it will nearly eliminate that last catastrophe". You can't do that of you have all of your emotions tied up. This mental trick keeps me in check, and helps me score lower.

[Aguirre]

For me, it was one simple thing:  I shortened my backswing.  I went from a 14 handicap to an 8 in six weeks.  Since then, I've hovered between 7-9, with the occasional backslide to 10-12.  Haven't improved in a decade though.  Golf is frustrating.

One thing that I definitely improved was my course management.  I always ask myself, "Where do I NOT want to end up?"  Is going for that left pin worth it (even from 100 yards), if there is a nasty bunker nearby?  Etc.  I always try to miss in the safe spot.  I think I will keep this approach until (and if) I ever got to near scratch.

Also, remember that as you improve, you'll notice some changes in your game.  When I started hitting a bunch more greens, my three putts went up.  This was because I was putting from further away from the hole more often, as opposed to missing the green and chipping to eight feet or what have you.  So I had to work on my lag putting.

[PA Golf Info]

Trust me as I am in no position to tell someone how to hit in the 80s. But it all comes down to anyone wanting to get better you have to do the same thing.

It is all about keeping personal statistics when you play. Not just keeping stroke count. this may add 1 min per hold it does not take long and will help anyone a ton to see where they need to put their focus.

* On the score card per each hole

Mark if your tee shot landed in the fairway.

Mark how many strokes it took you till your first wedge or chip shot.

Mark how many chips you took if any.

Mark how many times you had to put on the green.

That will let you know if you are missing too many fairways on the dive you need to work on control off the tee

That will let you if your irons have low distance or bad control

That will let you know if your chip shots are off if you have to take 2 on a few holes.

That will tell you if you are 2 and 3 putting to often.

It just shows you where you are giving up strokes and accuracy and what areas your really need to dial in on.

[pepsiplusconker]

Wrote out the completely wrong answer for the thread.

I'd say the first thing you need to do is not give away penalty strokes, if you can go a full round without any penalties, you should be well on your way to the low 80s.

It's all easier said than done, and in the end, when you're aiming that low, you can't afford any blowups at all, which is what kills most peoples rounds.

[RFKFREAK]

Thanks for making this great thread, @Lihu .

Obviously, I don't have anything to contribute that might be of assistance to OP but I wanted to say that reading this thread has made me reevaluate some of the things I do on the course - in particular relating to duff shots.  In particular, I find that I duff my 3W on the fairway what feels like two to four times a round (I haven't kept an accurate count) and since there's less of a chance that I'll duff my 5i, which is my longest iron, or hybrid for those situations until I incorporate hitting my 3W more into my practice.  Either that, or use my 5W instead because I feel I don't duff it nearly as often.

I wonder if it'd be useful during practice to keep a stat how often I duff both the 3W and 5W vs. my 5i.

Sorry for going

[Lihu]

Thanks for making this great thread, @Lihu.

Obviously, I don't have anything to contribute that might be of assistance to OP but I wanted to say that reading this thread has made me reevaluate some of the things I do on the course - in particular relating to duff shots.  In particular, I find that I duff my 3W on the fairway what feels like two to four times a round (I haven't kept an accurate count) and since there's less of a chance that I'll duff my 5i, which is my longest iron, or hybrid for those situations until I incorporate hitting my 3W more into my practice.  Either that, or use my 5W instead because I feel I don't duff it nearly as often.

I wonder if it'd be useful during practice to keep a stat how often I duff both the 3W and 5W vs. my 5i.

Sorry for going

The intent is to include wisdom from anyone that has something to offer.

Your definition of "duff" will change, and keeping track of it is a great idea. As you get better, I would imagine that you would eventually call it a mishit.

[RFKFREAK]

The intent is to include wisdom from anyone that has something to offer. Your definition of "duff" will change, and keeping track of it is a great idea. As you get better, I would imagine that you would eventually call it a mishit.;-)

Thanks! One of the things I realize that when I take practice swings with my woods that don't "feel right" before hitting the ball, I always duff the ball and it goes at most 50 yards. I think in those instances, since I can't analyze what I'm doing wrong on the spot, it would be better to use my 5i since I knew that will go more than 50 yards (if I don't duff that, haha).

[inthehole]

Not that I can execute this every time, but when I do get in the low 80's, I'm hitting fairways (not losing balls off the tee OB); putting above average; and not flubbing approach shots.     No secret formula, every part of my game has be above average ....

... my problem is that I have no idea what needs to be done to get below 80 when I can only get to low 80's when I'm at my best !!

[phillyk]

The biggest movement for me getting into low 80's/high 70's was reducing simple mistakes that got double bogeys and reducing the penalties every round.

[Lihu]

Not that I can execute this every time, but when I do get in the low 80's, I'm hitting fairways (not losing balls off the tee OB); putting above average; and not flubbing approach shots.     No secret formula, every part of my game has be above average ....

... my problem is that I have no idea what needs to be done to get below 80 when I can only get to low 80's when I'm at my best !!

How many putts are you currently making?

The biggest movement for me getting into low 80's/high 70's was reducing simple mistakes that got double bogeys and reducing the penalties every round.

How do you reduce the simple mistakes? What kind of mistakes are you reducing?

[inthehole]

Quote:

Originally Posted by inthehole

Not that I can execute this every time, but when I do get in the low 80's, I'm hitting fairways (not losing balls off the tee OB); putting above average; and not flubbing approach shots.     No secret formula, every part of my game has be above average ....

... my problem is that I have no idea what needs to be done to get below 80 when I can only get to low 80's when I'm at my best !!

How many putts are you currently making?

Honestly, I'm not much of a stat guy ... I should at least keep track of putts to establish a baseline.     I will say that all my putting over the winter - just coming up with a repeatable routine seems to be helping very much this year ... wish I could say the same for my chipping which I spent so much time on over the winter.     Oh well, it'll come around ...

[Lihu]

Honestly, I'm not much of a stat guy ... I should at least keep track of putts to establish a baseline.     I will say that all my putting over the winter - just coming up with a repeatable routine seems to be helping very much this year ... wish I could say the same for my chipping which I spent so much time on over the winter.     Oh well, it'll come around ...

I only ask because it makes a huge difference in what you need to do. If your putting is at 30 to 32 putts, you don't stand to gain a lot by practicing putting. Based upon what I read in the "long game" threads, I would say that gaining good full swing mechanics is paramount. Once you have this, then the next step is to improve the short game.

I'm following this. In fact, probably to an extreme. Instead of practicing 65/25/10 (65 full swing/25 partial swing or chipping/10 putting), I am doing 98/2/0. I am building up my long game first, then I can focus on the short game with a solid foundation. My handicap does not really reflect how close I am getting to the greens these days, but the fact that I can play any course from pretty much any of the tees and score roughly the same as the easy ones seems to indicate that my long game is becoming more consistent. I do mishit a couple per round for OB, but only a couple per round lately. I also lose some strokes to stupid course management "decisions". Taking this route seems to be working for me.

It makes a difference where your weaknesses are so you can make a decent strategy for improvement. I disagree that it will "come around" on its own. Unless you have a specific set of training goals, it will be difficult to improve.

I am also pretty new to golf, but I have tried many other sports. Many of the other ones, I figured out how to train to get reasonably proficient. Golf has been much harder, so I am getting all the help I can.

[inthehole]

I just meant that chipping has always been the strongest part of my game ... I'm temporarily in a huge chipping funk - haven't been able to figure out why - once I knock the winter rust off my game,  I'm confident it will "come around" (if I put in some work mind you).

I'm also with you on establishing the mid length game.    That one thread on the subject totally changed my mindset ... probably the single best golf thread I've ever seen.   Amazing how many low hcp's & resident pro's here said GIR's is the name of the game, and all us noobs who think putting is killing us are not getting it right.     I'm digging the dirt with my wedges and mid irons too at the range lately - trying to get those tighter ...

[phillyk]

How do you reduce the simple mistakes? What kind of mistakes are you reducing?

I guess I mean course management.  What I still do to this day is find a iron/distance you really like to hit into the green and hit the green consistently,  then play to that yardage on all the par 4's and even some par 5's.  This doesn't require hitting a driver every tee shot.  Typically for me, if the hole is 430+ it'll be driver, 390-425 3W, 370-400 3driving iron.  Now, I know I overlap there, but that's because either club will work fine.  I love being between 135-160 out from the green.  So If I can put my tee shots in that range every time, I'll hit more greens.  That's what I kind of mean.

For reducing mistakes/penalties, I think a lot of them come from not taking enough time to focus on what shot you want.  Either you rush the swing/tempo or just the pre-shot routine.  Most people have a good idea of their shot shaping, just gotta take the time to make sure you do it right.

[Lihu]

I guess I mean course management.  What I still do to this day is find a iron/distance you really like to hit into the green and hit the green consistently,  then play to that yardage on all the par 4's and even some par 5's.  This doesn't require hitting a driver every tee shot.  Typically for me, if the hole is 430+ it'll be driver, 390-425 3W, 370-400 3driving iron.  Now, I know I overlap there, but that's because either club will work fine.  I love being between 135-160 out from the green.  So If I can put my tee shots in that range every time, I'll hit more greens.  That's what I kind of mean.

For reducing mistakes/penalties, I think a lot of them come from not taking enough time to focus on what shot you want.  Either you rush the swing/tempo or just the pre-shot routine.  Most people have a good idea of their shot shaping, just gotta take the time to make sure you do it right.

The swing, pitching, chipping and putting might take a about year to learn proficiently with proper instruction, but I feel like course management is going to take years of experience to get good.

[jsp9999]

Last two rounds I shot 91 and 93 on fairly easy public courses.  From "don't know what the f I'm hitting", now I can at least hit ball some reasonable distance.  Having said that I look back those rounds I have many errant shots.  My biggest weakness is consistent driver off tee.  I normally hit ~230 to 240 but often hits big slice or hook depending on which way wind blows on a given hole or sometimes opposite of where wind blows If my driver is more consistent I think I can shave off 3-4 shots.  Of course 2nd shots with irons can be much improved with chipping and putting.  Whoa.  I just realized I need to improve the game of golf in every facet.  If I improve all those, I'm surely hitting a single.  Till that time I'll enjoy as weekend bogey++ golfer.

[Lihu]

Last two rounds I shot 91 and 93 on fairly easy public courses.  From "don't know what the f I'm hitting", now I can at least hit ball some reasonable distance.  Having said that I look back those rounds I have many errant shots.  My biggest weakness is consistent driver off tee.  I normally hit ~230 to 240 but often hits big slice or hook depending on which way wind blows on a given hole or sometimes opposite of where wind blows  If my driver is more consistent I think I can shave off 3-4 shots.  Of course 2nd shots with irons can be much improved with chipping and putting.  Whoa.  I just realized I need to improve the game of golf in every facet.  If I improve all those, I'm surely hitting a single.  Till that time I'll enjoy as weekend bogey++ golfer.

91 and 93 is not bad for a 30 handicap. If you really hit a 240 yard drive with a slice or hook "often", I would think it would be a lot more than 3-4 strokes savings. Each time you do it, you could lose 2 strokes or if playable 1 stroke?

We all have many facets to fix. I am currently only working on one specific aspect of the full swing.