What is the most important aspect of golf that you think can improve your score?

[Lihu]

[QUOTE name="JonMA1" url="/t/78598/what-is-the-most-important-aspect-of-golf-that-you-think-can-improve-your-score/72#post_1084784"] The distance vs accuracy debate really isn't much of a debate in my mind. As some have pointed out, a technically sound swing will provide both. As far as striving for tour-like distances, that's not in my future. At 54, that ship has sailed. But I still believe that learning better mechanics and as a result increased distance, is still very achievable. [/QUOTE] Amen brother! If distance is only slightly more important than accuracy, and if both improve as your swing mechanics improves, then the whole distance vs. accuracy debate seems almost purely academic. It certainly is for me, until I start hitting my driver consistently.

Good swing mechanics is the main thing. Btw, I still se a lot of 54+ or even 64 year olds hitting pretty long drives. For us older newbies, it might be "simply" learning the proper mechanics without injuring ourselves. I think it's possible for most reasonably fit people to hit 250 yard drives and average 240.

[Ernest Jones]

It's not academic. It's about club selection off the tee. Those in the "accuracy camp" are probably not hitting driver as often as they should to maximize scoring potential. Fairways hit is an overrated stat. You should hit driver unless your shot dispersion oval gives you a good chance of hitting into a penalty zone. That's it.

QFT.

I was always in the "accuracy" camp. I would look at the layout and if I couldn't hit the green with the shot at hand (whether it be tee shot or approach) I would automatically lay up to my mythical wheelhouse. Since reading LSW I've reversed that thought process and now go for every inch of distance I can safely achieve. The result is a lot more pitches and chips (or even texas wedges) from nGIR positions, sometimes from the fairway, sometimes from the rough and a lower average score.

Give me 10 shots with a SW from 100y and 10 shots with a SW from 20y and I guaran-F'ing-tee you that I will average better from the 20y position. Will I occasional hit one stiff to tap-in range from 100y? Hell yes, but over time it's obvious that the percentages favour the 20y pitch/chip/bump'n'run. To think otherwise is asinine.

[CR McDivot]

Examples from my last round...

71% Fairways

22% Greens

5 Three putts

2 One putts

1 Penalty

Shot 89, but really could have come close to breaking 80...

Drives need a bit more distance, best was 240, average 220.

Flew a few greens, too much of a gap between my 19.5H and my longest iron on longer approaches.

2.3 Putts per GIR, and these were not 35 footers. My putting stank!

The 2 one putts came from tight to pin shots from 142 and 95 yards. Left several pitches from 65 to near fringe woefully off target.

Need to get some consistent distance back with the driver. Need to either hit my longer irons better or get a 24H (my 4i & 5i have been weak lately). Need to practice short game and putting.

Basically, it's ball striking, wedge play, and putting!

[DrvFrShow]

Open fairway - distance camp.

Moderately open fairway - I'll take my chances - distance.

Tight tree-lined fairway - accuracy camp.

Water hazard on the right, FW bunker on the left - accuracy.

Hole 16? water. I wish I had more distance to carry the hazard without swinging out of my socks with a tail wind. The hybrid layup leaves a 7 iron.

[Ernest Jones]

Open fairway - distance camp.

Moderately open fairway - I'll take my chances - distance.

Tight tree-lined fairway - accuracy camp.

Water hazard on the right, FW bunker on the left - accuracy.

Hole 16? water. I wish I had more distance to carry the hazard without swinging out of my socks with a tail wind. The hybrid layup leaves a 7 iron.

Julia, have you read LSW? I think you'll find that even the most ardent proponents of distance are I your camp. It's all about the Easter Eggs . If you don't understand the Easter Egg reference I highly recommend you invest in the book.

[k-troop]

Open fairway - distance camp.

Moderately open fairway - I'll take my chances - distance.

Tight tree-lined fairway - accuracy camp.

Water hazard on the right, FW bunker on the left - accuracy.

Hole 16? water. I wish I had more distance to carry the hazard without swinging out of my socks with a tail wind. The hybrid layup leaves a 7 iron.

Julia, have you read LSW? I think you'll find that even the most ardent proponents of distance are I your camp. It's all about the Easter Eggs. If you don't understand the Easter Egg reference I highly recommend you invest in the book.

Exactly.  The eggs are all about knowing where your safe zones are with each club.  Penalty zones are to be avoided at all costs, and include bunkers, trees, hazards, OB, etc.  That doesn't always mean taking less club, though.  Sometimes it means aiming for the rough on the other side.

[iacas]

Julia, have you read LSW?

Pretty sure she hasn't. If you have, @DrvFrShow , PM me a photo of your book or something and I'll add your badge.

Back to topic now.

[CR McDivot]

I agree, but mine is #12, a par 5 with the carry on the tee shot just a bit more than I can consistently handle. My partners are always trying to get the green in 2, and typically clear the hazard but miss the fairway. I have learned from painful experience to lay up short of the water. From there it's a fairway metal and a wedge.

Partners struggle from the rough to get on in 3, but for me #12 has become a fairly easy par, and a good shot at birdie.

[PJCdude]

I would say consistency. I've only broken 100 once and compared to a lot of you guys I could probably stand to fix everything. Somedays I'm actually getting a few GIRs but 3 putting and blading my wedges. Other days I'm OOB off the tee or hitting fat shots with my irons while making some sweet up and downs for bogey. I'd probably attribute this to lack of consistent practice and a lacking mental game. I'm hoping to develop more of a routine next season and try to play more while going to the range slightly less.

If I had to break down specific facets of my game though, I would say keeping the ball in play off the tee is my biggest downfall. Last fall I swallowed my pride and didn't hit anything over my hybrid while working on driver at the range. When I finally felt comfortable at the beginning of this season I started pulling driver more. I had JUST enough success to keep pulling it when I shouldn't.

I've also heard conflicting advice on working the ball as a relative beginner. Some people say you shouldn't over complicate things but I sometimes have the tendency to hit a natural draw. The problem is when I go into a round try to PLAY the draw and aim left (I'm a lefty) I end up pushing the ball OOB left. I'm left wondering, "Should I work on developing a consistent draw since I seem to be able to pull it off naturally sometimes or don't over complicate things and aim straight?"

When I get a chance to practice enough, I actually have a pretty respectable short game. I'm hoping that if I stay in a routine this summer, I'll be able to trust my 58* and not have skulls or sh@*&$ in the back of my mind.

[dave s]

Two things that will bring a 90+ shooters the most bang for the buck:

1.  Limit the 'unforced errors' of hitting OB off tee, lost balls, hazards and in general, penalty strokes.

2.  Short game.  It costs absolutely zero dollars to visit a course twice a week and work on chipping and putting.  Around the green, your goal should be up and down in 3 or fewer strokes EVERY TIME.  At a practice green you can work chipping / pitching to whatever distance is common for you then practice putts of those lengths.  If you're not making making the first putt, practice from your normal 'leave' distance.

Let's say you shoot 100 consistently.  Going back over the card, you pumped two balls OB, you lost 1-2 in the woods, took an unplayable once or twice.  Add those up and it comes to about 8 strokes.  Next review your greenside and on-green activity during the round.  Two chips were chunked and you missed 4 putts inside 5 feet.  Add those up and a 100 shooter added on 14 strokes to an otherwise decent round.  Shave ELEVEN of those 14 strokes each round and your 100 is now an 89 which is a pretty respectable score for a 100 shooter.

For those who break 90 regularly, hitting greens from the fairway will bring the biggest return.  That is to say if you've completed items 1 and 2 above already!

dave

[No Mulligans]

Two things that will bring a 90+ shooters the most bang for the buck:

1.  Limit the 'unforced errors' of hitting OB off tee, lost balls, hazards and in general, penalty strokes.

2.  Short game.  It costs absolutely zero dollars to visit a course twice a week and work on chipping and putting.  Around the green, your goal should be up and down in 3 or fewer strokes EVERY TIME.  At a practice green you can work chipping / pitching to whatever distance is common for you then practice putts of those lengths.  If you're not making making the first putt, practice from your normal 'leave' distance.

Let's say you shoot 100 consistently.  Going back over the card, you pumped two balls OB, you lost 1-2 in the woods, took an unplayable once or twice.  Add those up and it comes to about 8 strokes.  Next review your greenside and on-green activity during the round.  Two chips were chunked and you missed 4 putts inside 5 feet.  Add those up and a 100 shooter added on 14 strokes to an otherwise decent round.  Shave ELEVEN of those 14 strokes each round and your 100 is now an 89 which is a pretty respectable score for a 100 shooter.

For those who break 90 regularly, hitting greens from the fairway will bring the biggest return.  That is to say if you've completed items 1 and 2 above already!

dave

Regarding #1 - In other words, 'become a more consistent ball striker' which is what pretty much what all high handicappers looking to improve want to do.

[rkim291968]

Going back over the card, you pumped two balls OB, you lost 1-2 in the woods, took an unplayable once or twice.  Add those up and it comes to about 8 strokes.

Don't mean to nitpick but in my situation, this leads to at least +7 and possibly up to +15 or more.

2 OBs - at least 4 strokes lost (penalty + distance), and maybe more if provisional shot is also bad.

1 - 2 lost balls - at least 2 - 4 strokes, see above.

1 - 2 unplayable - at least 1 - 2 strokes and maybe more depending on how bad the areas is.

It totals up to 7 strokes lost in best case scenario, +11 or so in typical scenario, and +15 or more in worst case scenario.   I am working on shot accuracy b/c my bad scores are coming mostly from missing a shot that leads to double or worse.

[Lihu]

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave s

Two things that will bring a 90+ shooters the most bang for the buck:

1.  Limit the 'unforced errors' of hitting OB off tee, lost balls, hazards and in general, penalty strokes.

2.  Short game.  It costs absolutely zero dollars to visit a course twice a week and work on chipping and putting.  Around the green, your goal should be up and down in 3 or fewer strokes EVERY TIME.  At a practice green you can work chipping / pitching to whatever distance is common for you then practice putts of those lengths.  If you're not making making the first putt, practice from your normal 'leave' distance.

Let's say you shoot 100 consistently.  Going back over the card, you pumped two balls OB, you lost 1-2 in the woods, took an unplayable once or twice.  Add those up and it comes to about 8 strokes.  Next review your greenside and on-green activity during the round.  Two chips were chunked and you missed 4 putts inside 5 feet.  Add those up and a 100 shooter added on 14 strokes to an otherwise decent round.  Shave ELEVEN of those 14 strokes each round and your 100 is now an 89 which is a pretty respectable score for a 100 shooter.

For those who break 90 regularly, hitting greens from the fairway will bring the biggest return.  That is to say if you've completed items 1 and 2 above already!

dave

Regarding #1 - In other words, 'become a more consistent ball striker' which is what pretty much what all high handicappers looking to improve want to do.

I would probably just say "hit closer to the center of the face" most of the time with a reasonably repeatable swing.

Good ball striking to me is maximizing your swing speed and hitting close to the sweet spot. There are not that many good ball strikers.

[mcat12]

So im getting back into the game after a lonng time away. Just got fitted for new clubs and im super ready to go. Ive been reading and researching and watching videos on swing thoughts and theories for the past few monhs. 5SK, Impact, Chuck Evans, SnT...ive been watching them all and developing what i think....knowing what my limitations are...and developing a plan for a future practice routine once the weather permits. I want to take the seemingly best drills out there (my preference) and commit to the same routine repeatedly while tracking results. The overarching theme and direction/focus is from LSW where my practice will be segmented into the 65/25/15 ratio.

[CarlSpackler]

Keys 1 and 3.

[Pretzel]

Playing nearly every day in the last week (after not playing a month before) I've found that the biggest thing for my game is tee shots. How my drives go often dictates how the rest of my game performs. When I have the confidence required to swing freely with the driver on every hole (provided the easter egg is light enough, of course), I score so much better. Specifically, I need to nail my start lines better off the tee. I can control the direction and magnitude of the curve well (much better than I could before, thanks to the advice iacas provided in my swing thread), but it doesn't matter when you start it 15 yards left of where it was supposed to start.

[rkim291968]

... and my mental game.   After a poor hole, I repeat it in the next hole.  I need to recover from bad hole as soon as it happens.

[Lihu]

... and my mental game.   After a poor hole, I repeat it in the next hole.  I need to recover from bad hole as soon as it happens.

Like most shooting sports, the golf shot is done one shot at a time. Once you've made the shot it's done. You can't turn back time.

"Swear, punch the air, let loose a volley of abuses at your club,. . . whatever" get it out of your system and play the next shot as if it is your first shot of the day.