Diary of a bogey golfer with his 1st custom fit clubs

[rkim291968]

So, your played on Masters Sunday? Now I know two people who are setting golf records. Congratulations on your success.

As for your big question above, I think back to a friend who gave me some valuable insight when it comes to improvement in almost any area. He said that once you begin devoting more concentrated time on your endeavor, you should begin to see immediate improvement from your past results. Then, the increments of improvement, however, will become smaller and smaller until there is a general leveling off of your performance. Then the question becomes one of maintenance to keep your performance at a level that you find acceptable. That is where I am now. Just trying to maintain and keep my HI under 10.

As for the encore, I would say look inwardly while you are playing your round of golf and ask yourself, "How much more am I enjoying the game of golf, now that I have invested the time and energy for self-improvement?" If you answered the question with a smile, or say to yourself, "WOW. Who was the person that just made that fantastic shot?", that should be encore enough without worrying about what your score might be that day.

I love this game.

I played a morning round and caught the back 9 of The Masters.  What an amazing tournament for the kid!

I am still achievement driven and want to continue to improve on golf.  That's a big part of my enjoying golf.   It gives me a sense of accomplishment, and satisfaction that I don't (no longer) get from work or doing house chores.  BTW,  my wife had excellent 3 - 4 rounds this month and even she said the other day that golf is more fun when she plays better.

Joking mode on:  "Shorty" once posted that most golfers improve up to their 3rd or 4th year and that's the best they will ever be.    I want to prove him wrong and I don't think I am the only poster here to see him proved wrong.   I also want to catch up with Lihu, who motivated me to take lessons & to workout.   I solely blame Lihu for my starting this thread and nothing would give me more pleasure than singing to Lihu "Anything you can do, I can do better" after our long awaited match play.    I also want to prove to Mike & Iacas that I can reach single HI golfer status by just following their "Instruction" threads.   Once I achieve all that, I will see if I want to set my goal even higher, like becoming a scratch golfer.  I will of course have to start another thread then.  Realistically, I think FREAK will catch me up before I catch Lihu.   Looking at FREAK's swing, he can't be 30 HI and is probably sandbagging for some sinister purpose.   Joking mode off.

I love the game & the journey, "there and back again."

[JonMA1]

That's very cool Rick. Really great attitude. I think that along with your work ethic makes your goals achievable. I'd wish you good luck but I don't think luck will have as much to do with your successes.

[RFKFREAK]

Dude, I love this thread and your continually improvement is amazing!

I played a morning round and caught the back 9 of The Masters.  What an amazing tournament for the kid!

I am still achievement driven and want to continue to improve on golf.  That's a big part of my enjoying golf.   It gives me a sense of accomplishment, and satisfaction that I don't (no longer) get from work or doing house chores.  BTW,  my wife had excellent 3 - 4 rounds this month and even she said the other day that golf is more fun when she plays better.

Joking mode on:  "Shorty" once posted that most golfers improve up to their 3rd or 4th year and that's the best they will ever be.    I want to prove him wrong and I don't think I am the only poster here to see him proved wrong.   I also want to catch up with Lihu, who motivated me to take lessons & to workout.   I solely blame Lihu for my starting this thread and nothing would give me more pleasure than singing to Lihu "Anything you can do, I can do better" after our long awaited match play.    I also want to prove to Mike & Iacas that I can reach single HI golfer status by just following their "Instruction" threads.   Once I achieve all that, I will see if I want to set my goal even higher, like becoming a scratch golfer.  I will of course have to start another thread then.  Realistically, I think FREAK will catch me up before I catch Lihu.   Looking at FREAK's swing, he can't be 30 HI and is probably sandbagging for some sinister purpose.   Joking mode off.

I love the game & the journey, "there and back again."

Haha, I wish!  I expect it'll go down and a lot of my swing improvement I think has to do with this winter not only working on shedding pounds and increasing strength but also being forced to practice indoors.  Like in the Get Better Now thread  I did lots of slow practice swings indoors and being unable to just hammer balls into my net I unwittingly changed the picture.  I have a lot of room for improvement and that thread is a great to use as a reminder that slow indoor practice is great way to supplement the other things I do to keep changing the picture.

But the real reason I'm a 30 HC is because where I live we can't post scores for our HC's yet so this is all from last year.  That, and I do a terrible job of not only planning and attacking holes but I'm great at being consistent with my inconsistent contact.

[rkim291968]

4/19/15 A crazy golf weekend

Yesterday, I carded 91 which lowered my HI from 17.6 to 17.3.   I have been flirting with breaking 90, doing so 3 times in the last 12 rounds.  So, this morning's round of 109 was a shocker.  Where did that come from?  It seems I forgot everything I've practiced & improved in the last 4 months.  I panic'd and convinced my wife to play another round after lunch.  I simply could not accept that I just played double bogey golf for 18 holes.  With a good hearty meal, a bit of time to reflect, and after calming myself, I faced the 1st hole again.  I relaxed, and played the 2nd round for pure fun, not to "score" a better round.   It worked.  Like magic, I played well carding a 90 which lowered my HI further to 16.8.    One of my stated 2015 golf goal is to reach 16 HI.   I am there already.   I still can't believe my last 3 rounds were 91, 109 ( ), and 90.   What a crazy weekend of golf!

While I was focusing on ball striking from Jan to March, my (relatively) good short game declined.   I was routinely messing up bunker shots, skulling pitch shots, etc..  In April, I refocused on my short game.  It's almost back to where it was before.   In coming months, I will look at taking Aimpoint lessons and/or get a custom fit EDEL putter.    All indication is that they can lower my HI by another stroke or more.   Here's hoping.

[RandallT]

4/19/15 A crazy golf weekend

Yesterday, I carded 91 which lowered my HI from 17.6 to 17.3.   I have been flirting with breaking 90, doing so 3 times in the last 12 rounds.  So, this morning's round of 109 was a shocker.  Where did that come from?  It seems I forgot everything I've practiced & improved in the last 4 months.  I panic'd and convinced my wife to play another round after lunch.  I simply could not accept that I just played double bogey golf for 18 holes.  With a good hearty meal, a bit of time to reflect, and after calming myself, I faced the 1st hole again.  I relaxed, and played the 2nd round for pure fun, not to "score" a better round.   It worked.  Like magic, I played well carding a 90 which lowered my HI further to 16.8.    One of my stated 2015 golf goal is to reach 16 HI.   I am there already.   I still can't believe my last 3 rounds were 91, 109 (), and 90.   What a crazy weekend of golf!

While I was focusing on ball striking from Jan to March, my (relatively) good short game declined.   I was routinely messing up bunker shots, skulling pitch shots, etc..  In April, I refocused on my short game.  It's almost back to where it was before.   In coming months, I will look at taking Aimpoint lessons and/or get a custom fit EDEL putter.    All indication is that they can lower my HI by another stroke or more.   Here's hoping.

Very cool story. I think the golf gods are very aware of statistics like standard deviation. Every once in a while they let you get consistent and then an alarm bell goes off that your SD is too low. They then conspire to catch up with one round.  Good news is that you should be good for a while as your standard deviation is likely ok for the next bunch of rounds. Go shoot 89 now! (but then again, that pisses them off too, because you hit other alarms of theirs)

[dfreuter415]

While I was focusing on ball striking from Jan to March, my (relatively) good short game declined.   I was routinely messing up bunker shots, skulling pitch shots, etc..  In April, I refocused on my short game.  It's almost back to where it was before.

In coming months, I will look at taking Aimpoint lessons and/or get a custom fit EDEL putter.    All indication is that they can lower my HI by another stroke or more.   Here's hoping.

91, 109, 90? The Golf Gods were just messing with you. Look at Jordan Spieth at the Heritage. He shot 74 on Thursday and 62 on Friday. It happens to the best of us.

Just a note about the putter. There have been a number of clubs that I coveted over the years, and after I finally got them, one of two things happened. Either they were everything I expected, or I was disappointed and went back to using my old clubs. In 1990 I purchased a Ping Eye 2+ BeCu lob wedge. It was my first lob wedge, and took a while to control, but for the past 25+ years it has never left my bag. Then, again in 1990, there was the Ping B90 long putter. After after a lot of practice and a half dozens rounds, the B90 was sent to the basement where it remains to this day.  In conclusion, it is hard not to get enthusiastic about acquiring new clubs, but sometimes the clubs you are currently using prove to be the equal or better. Sometimes, you just don't know.

As for your game, you have a great formula for success. Keep up the good work.

[rkim291968]

91, 109, 90? The Golf Gods were just messing with you.

I think it's his way of reminding that I am not as good as my HI would indicate nor am making good progress.   I just hope he doesn't remind me of this on coming Saturday - yep, another tournament.   The biggest preparation I will do before Saturday is completely brainwash/hypnotize myself to believe that I am playing in the tournament for pure fun.

I am leaning toward taking the Aimpoint lessons and see where it takes me.   But taking the lesson can take a while.   It took 5 1/2 years before I finally signed up for 1 on 1 lessons this year.

Either they were everything I expected, or I was disappointed and went back to using my old clubs.

Now you tell me.  You know I bought that Alien SW you talked about in another thread.  The club is in transit.   My wife who never likes to use "used" anything  has already told me that she won't be breaking her Adams set for the Alien SW.    In fact, for the 1st time ever, she practiced getting out of bunker yesterday to prove that she doesn't need an ugly, used SW.

[dfreuter415]

I am leaning toward taking the Aimpoint lessons and see where it takes me.   But taking the lesson can take a while.   It took 5 1/2 years before I finally signed up for 1 on 1 lessons this year.

Now you tell me.  You know I bought that Alien SW you talked about in another thread.  The club is in transit.   My wife who never likes to use "used" anything  has already told me that she won't be breaking her Adams set for the Alien SW.    In fact, for the 1st time ever, she practiced getting out of bunker yesterday to prove that she doesn't need an ugly, used SW.

I posted in another thread that my golf game changed about 40 years ago when I finally took lessons. It was through Golf Digest at one of their golf schools. I spent an entire month's pay, but I was single at the time, and to me, it was an investment well spent. I think you are finding the same thing.

My wife still carries her regular Nike sand wedge for 60 yard shots and for shots around the green. The only time she uses the Alien is when she is in the sand. Since she didn't carry 14 clubs this was a no-brainer to put it in her golf bag.  Once the Alien arrives, here is a very good video for you wife to see about using the Alien...

[rkim291968]

My wife still carries her regular Nike sand wedge for 60 yard shots and for shots around the green. The only time she uses the Alien is when she is in the sand. Since she didn't carry 14 clubs this was a no-brainer to put it in her golf bag.  Once the Alien arrives, here is a very good video for you wife to see about using the Alien...

4/22/15 Alien

I've got the club and went to range to try it out.   To make a long story short, I reached the exact conclusion as the reviewer did in the above video.  In fact, I watched the video after my experiment and I was amazed how I and the author reached the same conclusion verbatim. This is a good club for beginners and will be very good for my wife.   It will complement her chipper.  I just have to convince her to carry it.

[dfreuter415]

Once my wife tried the Alien wedge and found that she could get her ball out of the bunker on the first (or second) attempt, it became a "confidence club."  And, as we both know, if you have a little confidence in a club, generally the results will be a little better. It's mostly mental, but that's a big part of golf. Besides, it's fun to try new things, even if they don't always work.

Best of luck to your wife.

[rkim291968]

4/25/15  Panic over a mini "driver" slump

This is pretty common for me and probably for most bogey golfers.  A part of my golf game will suddenly break down, and I would not have a clue what is wrong.  The latest breakdown happened with my drives.  I kept shaking balls to extreme left for OB or hit it into ground.  On Friday, I went for a late afternoon round as a tune up for the next day's club tournament.   I carded 103 mostly due to bad drives.  I could not figure out what went wrong and should went to range to fix it.   But the round finished in the evening and I was too tired to haul my body to range.  Well, the next day, my drive woe continued during the entire tournament round so much so that, by 13th hole, I lost all 9 balls I've brought.   9 balls are usually plenty to carry in my bag.   If I didn't find other lost balls while I was looking for mine, I would have to borrow golf balls from the other players.   That would have been very embarrassing.   At the end of the day, I carded 107.

I panic'd.   I worked so hard to get my game to where it is and suddenly, 3 of the last 4 round scores were in 100s which I thought I've gotten rid of for good.  Most of my recent scores have been in 90s and a few 80s.   After the round, I had my favorite comfort food (KFC), took a bit of rest, and went to range to hit a large bucket of golf balls.   My panic subsided.  I proceeded to work on my drives, ball after ball.   By the time I exhausted 150 balls, I found what I was doing wrong.   It was the old enemy of not turning my upper body enough on back swing.   Why it took so long to identify it was beyond me.

In today's round, I carded 87, a 20 stroke improvement overnight.   There wasn't a single shank or grounder, hitting 10 of 14 fairways.   Completing my back swing not only helped my drives but also improved my 3W, hybrid shots.  Most importantly, I got my confidence back and reaffirmed what I worked so hard for in the last 4 months is here to stay.

Bonus: Today's 87 score will lower my HI to 16.7 in the next GHIN report.   If I can lower it by another 0.7 points, I will meet my 2015 HI goal.   Life is good.

( For two rounds, my wife didn't hit a single ball into green side bunker and didn't have time to check the Alien SW I bought for her.  Go figure. )

[dfreuter415]

This is pretty common for me and probably for most bogey golfers.  A part of my golf game will suddenly break down, and I would not have a clue what is wrong.  The latest breakdown happened with my drives.... On Friday, I went for a late afternoon round as a tune up for the next day's club tournament.   I carded 103 mostly due to bad drives... the next day, my drive woe continued during the entire tournament round so much so that, by 13th hole, I lost all 9 balls I've brought... At the end of the day, I carded 107.

I worked so hard to get my game to where it is and suddenly, 3 of the last 4 round scores were in 100s which I thought I've gotten rid of for good.  After the round, I had my favorite comfort food (KFC), took a bit of rest, and went to range to hit a large bucket of golf balls... By the time I exhausted 150 balls, I found what I was doing wrong.   Why it took so long to identify it was beyond me.

In today's round, I carded 87, a 20 stroke improvement overnight.   There wasn't a single shank or grounder, hitting 10 of 14 fairways... I got my confidence back and reaffirmed what I worked so hard for in the last 4 months is here to stay.

( For two rounds, my wife didn't hit a single ball into green side bunker and didn't have time to check the Alien SW I bought for her.  Go figure.  )

WOW, rkim, you are certainly riding a roller coaster!  You have shown rapid improvement: on January 19th you posted your HI at 23+ and now it is trending to 16.7, an improvement of almost 7 strokes in three months!  Unbelievable.

But, as you are finding out, you never know what lies around the next dogleg. The encouraging part is that you are beginning to find swing thoughts for self-analysis that seem to work for you. So, not only is your game improving, but you are finding ways to get back on track when things go awry. Well done.

As for the Alien wedge, there will come a day when she will need it. I hope it works as well for her as it does my wife.

[RandallT]

By the time I exhausted 150 balls, I found what I was doing wrong.   It was the old enemy of not turning my upper body enough on back swing.   Why it took so long to identify it was beyond me.

I go through a checklist from my evolvr lessons when my game goes south, but I have had times when I couldn't self-diagnose. I have a tentative backswing and I think it's often exactly what happened to you. I let my arms and hands get the club back to parallel (or past!) while my hips and shoulders stall way before they should. But that's a good skill to figure things out yourself. Congrats. Good luck in the next few rounds! I'll look forward to seeing more 90s and fewer 100s.

[rkim291968]

I go through a checklist from my evolvr lessons when my game goes south, but I have had times when I couldn't self-diagnose. I have a tentative backswing and I think it's often exactly what happened to you. I let my arms and hands get the club back to parallel (or past!) while my hips and shoulders stall way before they should. But that's a good skill to figure things out yourself. Congrats. Good luck in the next few rounds! I'll look forward to seeing more 90s and fewer 100s.

It's exactly what you described in bold above!

I need to remember my checklist.   The list is captured in my 1st lesson video when the instructor evaluated my swing.

[RFKFREAK]

Wow, seeing this thread and your jumping from 100+ round to a 90 in the same day certainly makes me feel better about my situation, haha.

Just out of curiosity, and you'll forgive me if I missed it, do you have a Game Golf where you log all your shots?

[rkim291968]

Wow, seeing this thread and your jumping from 100+ round to a 90 in the same day certainly makes me feel better about my situation, haha.

Just out of curiosity, and you'll forgive me if I missed it, do you have a Game Golf where you log all your shots?

Call me Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.   It's been nothing short of crazy.   Hot or cold, and virtually nothing in between.  On Saturday's tournament round, I had two 12 stroke holes, one on par 4 and another on par 5.   Applying ESC, I reported 107.   Without applying one, I probably carded 115.   The next day?  87.   That's a 27 stroke swing.   It's makes a grown man sob uncontrollably.

No, I don't have Game Golf but I keep a few stats on my spreadsheet.   I also log what I practiced, percentage of good shots per club during practice session, % of putts I've made from certain distance, etc..   It helps me identify what my current weaknesses are and keeps me motivated to practice.

4/27/15 What's next in my plan to improve?

I think I can go from current HI to 13 or 14 by going with custom fit EDEL putter, and taking Aimpoint lesson.   These are low hanging fruits, something my hard earned $$$ can solve.   I just need to make an appointment with an instructor (not so) nearby.   Oddly, as soon as I decided to go with EDEL & Aimpoint, I am averaging 31 putts/round, a whopping 2.5 putts/round improvement.   Just a threat of going with EDEL & Aimpoint stuff has immediate impact .   (Actually, it's my renewed, focused short game practice that is paying dividend.)

To go from 13 or 14 to single digit HI, I need to increase my shot distance by another 20 or 30 yards.   That may not happen as I am slightly built, 5'5" aging/shrinking old man with short wingspan.   220 yard drive average (on solid hits only) is the best I can muster for now.  Well, let's get to 13 HI first and then figure out what comes next.

[dfreuter415]

4/27/15 What's next in my plan to improve?

I think I can go from current HI to 13 or 14 by going with custom fit EDEL putter, and taking Aimpoint lesson.   These are low hanging fruits, something my hard earned $$$ can solve.   I just need to make an appointment with an instructor (not so) nearby.   Oddly, as soon as I decided to go with EDEL & Aimpoint, I am averaging 31 putts/round, a whopping 2.5 putts/round improvement.   Just a threat of going with EDEL & Aimpoint stuff has immediate impact.   (Actually, it's my renewed, focused short game practice that is paying dividend.)

I always thought that putting was a good way to lower my scores. It is as much a mind game as physical, so getting a "special putter," regardless of make or model, might actually be beneficial to your game. (I have 4 putters that go in and out of my bag based on performance. When one has a good round, I stroke it and tell it how much I appreciate how well it played that day. But, when my putting is poor I warn that putter that there are 3 other putters just waiting their chance, and one more bad day will send the putter to the dark, dingy basement.)

In 2010 I averaged 32.1 putts per round and decided I would spend the winter months practicing diligently in my game room, which has a carpet that stimps about 10.5. I combined the extra putting practice with an excellent book called, "Zen Putting," by Dr. Joseph Parent. During the 2011 season I lowered my putts per round to 31.1, or one full stroke per round, so I was pretty happy with the results.

(http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Putting-Mastering-Mental-Greens/dp/1592402674)

The last two years I changed focus to my short game, and i agree with you that improving your short game pays big dividends. Having seen the wide swings in some of your recent scores I am convinced that you are currently on the right track in overall game improvement by working on your putting and short game, and the big numbers may soon be a thing of the past.

[RFKFREAK]

I always thought that putting was a good way to lower my scores. It is as much a mind game as physical, so getting a "special putter," regardless of make or model, might actually be beneficial to your game. (I have 4 putters that go in and out of my bag based on performance. When one has a good round, I stroke it and tell it how much I appreciate how well it played that day. But, when my putting is poor I warn that putter that there are 3 other putters just waiting their chance, and one more bad day will send the putter to the dark, dingy basement.) In 2010 I averaged 32.1 putts per round and decided I would spend the winter months practicing diligently in my game room, which has a carpet that stimps about 10.5. I combined the extra putting practice with an excellent book called, "Zen Putting," by Dr. Joseph Parent. During the 2011 season I lowered my putts per round to 31.1, or one full stroke per round, so I was pretty happy with the results. ([URL=http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&linkCode;=ur2&camp;=1789&creative;=9325&tag;=thesandtrap-20&location;=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FZen-Putting-Mastering-Mental-Greens%2Fdp%2F1592402674]http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Putting-Mastering-Mental-Greens/dp/1592402674[/URL]) The last two years I changed focus to my short game, and i agree with you that improving your short game pays big dividends. Having seen the wide swings in some of your recent scores I am convinced that you are currently on the right track in overall game improvement by working on your putting and short game , and the big numbers may soon be a thing of the past. [URL=http://thesandtrap.com/content/type/61/id/118886/] [/URL]

I respectfully disagree. I believe he'll see the greatest gains if he improves his full swing.