"Lowest Score Wins" by Barzeski and Wedzik

[natureboy]

I can't wait for my book to get here. I wish the USPS would update their tracking. It's killing me waiting for it to make its way from Erie to Denver.

I obviously haven't read the book yet, but I've been thinking about my shot patterns for a couple years, and I have wanted to put together an app to visualize them and allow me to plan course strategy.  Well you guys and Mark Broadie have gotten me fired up to work on it again.

Here's a mocked up version of a hole I play often, along with the corresponding shot pattern of the what I hit off the tee (hybrid).  It's a heat map of 19 shots, some of which were taken by gps on different holes and courses (2 from this hole), and the rest from a simulator.  The yellow line is my aim line and the end point is what I where I would have thought I would have hit it (this is just a quick static prototyping to see if I could create the shot patterns, so the overlay and aim lines aren't perfect, just mocked up).

Clearly, 1) I don't hit it as far as I thought, 2)  this is the wrong club and/or the wrong line, and 3) yes, I have a beautiful two way miss right now, lol.

I have lots of ideas of where to go from here, but after reading this whole thread, I thought I'd share it and get your thoughts and ideas.

Waiting impatiently for the book,

CB

How did you convert the simulator and shot data to the heat map?

[Clemsonfan]

I read Mark Broadie's book earlier this year after embarking on a change to the One Plane Swing and took many of his lessons to the course.  I purchased LSW in late summer and really focused on all of the key tenets.  The most important for me is  closer to the hole is better if done in the safest manner.  On my home course I have dramatically improved my play on Par 5s by going for the green every chance I have provided the lie facilitates it.

I am a poor bunker player for my 5 handicap, but even when I put one in a greenside Par 5 sand trap in two I can still make par pretty easily, and a few times I have made birdie.  I need to embrace the book's par three strategy and tend to hedge closer to the hole than the middle of the green.  I am certain I could drop my handicap by a stroke if I just improved my Par 3 play a little bit from my current average of 3.6 per hole.  That is 2.4 strokes over par on those four holes!

Good read, and my goal is to improve enough to play more tournament golf in individual competition. This book is a stepping stone towards that goal.

[boogielicious]

I read Mark Broadie's book earlier this year after embarking on a change to the One Plane Swing and took many of his lessons to the course.  I purchased LSW in late summer and really focused on all of the key tenets.  The most important for me is  closer to the hole is better if done in the safest manner.  On my home course I have dramatically improved my play on Par 5s by going for the green every chance I have provided the lie facilitates it.

I am a poor bunker player for my 5 handicap, but even when I put one in a greenside Par 5 sand trap in two I can still make par pretty easily, and a few times I have made birdie.  I need to embrace the book's par three strategy and tend to hedge closer to the hole than the middle of the green.  I am certain I could drop my handicap by a stroke if I just improved my Par 3 play a little bit from my current average of 3.6 per hole.  That is 2.4 strokes over par on those four holes!

Good read, and my goal is to improve enough to play more tournament golf in individual competition. This book is a stepping stone towards that goal.

Thanks for posting.  Welcome to the Sand Trap.  We look forward to your posts.

[Clemsonfan]

Thanks for the kind words! Glad to be here and eager to discuss methods for improvement. I should have said in my post that I tend to hit towards the hole on Par 3s instead of hedging towards the center!

[No Mulligans]

Page 82 - The medicine ball drill.  In this drill is one suppose to hold on to the medicine ball or throw the medicine ball?

[chris3putt]

Page 82 - The medicine ball drill.  In this drill is one suppose to hold on to the medicine ball or throw the medicine ball?

Are you inside or outside when you do it?

[iacas]

Are you inside or outside when you do it?

Ha ha. :)

Yeah, you can throw it or not. Kind of up to you.

[mvmac]

Page 82 - The medicine ball drill.  In this drill is one suppose to hold on to the medicine ball or throw the medicine ball?

If you break anything just send the bill here

[boogielicious]

Page 82 - The medicine ball drill.  In this drill is one suppose to hold on to the medicine ball or throw the medicine ball?

All kidding aside, if you have a cinder block wall, throw it against the wall.  Do not use a sheet rock wall! Stand far enough back so the ball bounces once before returning to you (if it is that kind).  Because you are throwing out towards right field, I like to align my feet so that my throw is straight into the wall (feet aiming left).  Try and set up like you do with a club.

You can also use a fitness ball, those big inflatable balls.

[iacas]

You can also use a fitness ball, those big inflatable balls.

Not really. :)

We'll try to film something today.

[No Mulligans]

Thanks all... Looking forward to the video.  BTW, I'm enjoying the book and can't wait to see my score drop.

[Oz Max]

Is there an Ibook version?

[Ernest Jones]

Is there an Ibook version?

Not at the moment, no.

[iacas]

Is there an Ibook version?

I love my Kindle (going to read on it here shortly), but my strong recommendation is to get the paperback now.

Our publisher is going to release an eBook version eventually, but it'll cost the same and it'll be a few months out. Those are months where you could be improving and shooting lower scores (or ingesting the material if you're in the snow belt).

[9424tm]

I love my Kindle (going to read on it here shortly), but my strong recommendation is to get the paperback now.

Our publisher is going to release an eBook version eventually, but it'll cost the same and it'll be a few months out. Those are months where you could be improving and shooting lower scores (or ingesting the material if you're in the snow belt).

Is there an Ibook version?

Also, the book is more of a manual and could be slipped into a golf bag very easily. The cover is a matted, almost wax finish to repel water so it would be excellent for carrying to the course as a reference. Toting around a Kindle or ipad may be a little disastrous :)

[Missouri Swede]

Also, the book is more of a manual and could be slipped into a golf bag very easily. The cover is a matted, almost wax finish to repel water so it would be excellent for carrying to the course as a reference. Toting around a Kindle or ipad may be a little disastrous :)

Ebooks can usually be read on cell phones too, not just on iPads or other tablets.  So if it were available in Kindle, you wouldn't need to put the paper copy in the bag if you might want to look something up.  Just as I have the Rules of Golf app on my cell phone--I don't need to keep a paper copy with me on the course.

(Yes, I know that some people are adamant about not having a cell phone on the golf course.  Not the point.  I also know that some people really prefer reading on paper; I do too!  Just wanted to put it out there that ebooks can be read on something a lot of us carry with us on the course anyway.)

[9424tm]

[SPOILER=brief off-topic comment about ebook versus paper copy in golf bag:]Ebooks can usually be read on cell phones too, not just on iPads or other tablets.  So if it were available in Kindle, you wouldn't need to put the paper copy in the bag if you might want to look something up.  Just as I have the Rules of Golf app on my cell phone--I don't need to keep a paper copy with me on the course.   (Yes, I know that some people are adamant about not having a cell phone on the golf course.  Not the point.  I also know that some people really prefer reading on paper; I do too!  Just wanted to put it out there that ebooks can be read on something a lot of us carry with us on the course anyway.) [/SPOILER]

I use my phone to read as well, but there is just something cool to me about having the actual book in your golf bag. I have highlighted certain points and marked pages that I can easily flip to. I know all of this can be done electronically but it's not the same :) Also, for whatever reason I love the feel of the outside of the book. Weird I know.

[Oz Max]

The other thing is I'm a night reader, and try to read a paper book in the dark!! much easier with an Ibook, wife is a lot happier in the dark.

Not a deal breaker though, I'll have to order it at some point.

Thx guys