Nice Tee Shot but a Lousy Approach

[9wood]

I'm sure all of us have gotten off great tee shots which bring us hope of making good score on the hole only to completely flub the second shot. Last year that was pretty much the story of many of my golf outings. This year I have noticed that not only have I been getting some good tee shots off, but my flubbed second shots seem to be fewer so far this year. 

[billchao]

Hitting a good tee shot doesn't mean I'll hit a good second shot. I'm more likely to score worse with bad tee shots than I can with good tee shots, but that doesn't mean I haven't made par after punching out of the woods or double bogey after being 250 in the fairway.

[Lihu]

55 minutes ago, billchao said:

Hitting a good tee shot doesn't mean I'll hit a good second shot. I'm more likely to score worse with bad tee shots than I can with good tee shots, but that doesn't mean I haven't made par after punching out of the woods or double bogey after being 250 in the fairway.

This is probably going to be a common response in this thread, because most of us play like crap. It's just how many shots in a row are crappy and how many are a little less so. . .

[Ernest Jones]

8 minutes ago, Lihu said:

This is probably going to be a common response in this thread, because most of us play like crap. It's just how many shots in a row are crappy and how many are a little less so. . .

The "slightly less than crap" shot is my bread and butter. 

[Lihu]

Just now, Ernest Jones said:

The "slightly less than crap" shot is my bread and butter. 

Same here 

[Fairway_CY]

16 hours ago, Lihu said:

This is probably going to be a common response in this thread, because most of us play like crap. It's just how many shots in a row are crappy and how many are a little less so. . .

Yeah... pretty much.  

I played a tournament this weekend.  Both days I had some holes where I absolutely demolished the ball and left myself 8 iron or less in.  I was going over my scorecards on Sunday night as I entered them and I realized that on multiple occasions (at least 6 over 2 rounds by my count), I hit really good drives that left me pitching wedge or less... and I managed to make bogey or worse.  

I mean... it clearly tells me I need to work on those clubs, but it's also very, very disheartening to know that just because I put myself in position off the tee doesn't mean anything.  In fact, the best shot I hit all weekend was a fabricated shot after being out of position off the tee... and it resulted in a birdie.  

I suppose, besides the wedges becoming more consistent, the thing I really need to work on is focusing and committing to a shot... even when it looks straightforward and 'easy'.  When I think through my shots and envision them... I tend to pull them off more times than not.  When I'm in the middle of the fairway from 130 with a 9 iron or wedge in my hand and no trouble to be seen... I'm as likely to sh-nk it, hit it fat, thin it or top it as I am to put it on or around the green.  I tend to get to those types of shots and not think at all... and then the results are random and often poor.  

CY

[Lihu]

51 minutes ago, Fairway_CY said:

Yeah... pretty much.  

I played a tournament this weekend.  Both days I had some holes where I absolutely demolished the ball and left myself 8 iron or less in.  I was going over my scorecards on Sunday night as I entered them and I realized that on multiple occasions (at least 6 over 2 rounds by my count), I hit really good drives that left me pitching wedge or less... and I managed to make bogey or worse.  

I mean... it clearly tells me I need to work on those clubs, but it's also very, very disheartening to know that just because I put myself in position off the tee doesn't mean anything.  In fact, the best shot I hit all weekend was a fabricated shot after being out of position off the tee... and it resulted in a birdie.  

I suppose, besides the wedges becoming more consistent, the thing I really need to work on is focusing and committing to a shot... even when it looks straightforward and 'easy'.  When I think through my shots and envision them... I tend to pull them off more times than not.  When I'm in the middle of the fairway from 130 with a 9 iron or wedge in my hand and no trouble to be seen... I'm as likely to sh-nk it, hit it fat, thin it or top it as I am to put it on or around the green.  I tend to get to those types of shots and not think at all... and then the results are random and often poor.  

CY

It's pretty frustrating when you're 20 yards closer than all your partners only to flub the approach, but it's kind of a fact of life for mid/high handicaps. Just remind yourself that it could have been worse. Your tee shot could also have been crappy.

As you get better, the magnitude of the crapiness reduces but it's still crappy, and the feeling you always have is that you could have struck it better.

One thing that seems to have helped me is to switch up clubs every single shot at the practice range. Going from driver to wedge or iron helps. It more accurately represents how I would hit on the course. Taking a little break to think about where I want to place the ball also simulates an actual shot a bit better. I tend to play a lot of simulated rounds on the range, but have to guess what happens to the ball when I go off line, but it's better than repeatedly beating balls with the same club all the time.

Unfortunately, crappy shots are just a part of mid to high handicap golf, and no one is immune to crappy approach shots just because they hit a good tee shot.

[Jeremie Boop]

I'm just as likely to make a good shot as bad shot from anywhere on the course, it just stings more when I screw up a good tee shot with a bad approach.

[natureboy]

9 hours ago, Fairway_CY said:

I mean... it clearly tells me I need to work on those clubs, but it's also very, very disheartening to know that just because I put myself in position off the tee doesn't mean anything.

Sure it does, the more frequently the good drive happens with a good wedge shot the more likely you'll get a nice score. Watching some pro tournaments where they show all the shots for some groups has opened my eyes to just how often even pros hit big misses from relatively close. You just have to work on consistency so the good shots align on the same hole a bit more frequently.

[Buckeyebowman]

9 hours ago, Lihu said:

It's pretty frustrating when you're 20 yards closer than all your partners only to flub the approach, but it's kind of a fact of life for mid/high handicaps. Just remind yourself that it could have been worse. Your tee shot could also have been crappy.

As you get better, the magnitude of the crapiness reduces but it's still crappy, and the feeling you always have is that you could have struck it better.

One thing that seems to have helped me is to switch up clubs every single shot at the practice range. Going from driver to wedge or iron helps. It more accurately represents how I would hit on the course. Taking a little break to think about where I want to place the ball also simulates an actual shot a bit better. I tend to play a lot of simulated rounds on the range, but have to guess what happens to the ball when I go off line, but it's better than repeatedly beating balls with the same club all the time.

Unfortunately, crappy shots are just a part of mid to high handicap golf, and no one is immune to crappy approach shots just because they hit a good tee shot.

I like your thinking. Perhaps we need a "Magnitude of Crappiness" thread. The magnitude of my crappiness has been pretty high so far this year, but it's only April! Whatever, I sincerely detest ruining a good drive with a crappy approach!

[Lihu]

Just now, Buckeyebowman said:

I like your thinking. Perhaps we need a "Magnitude of Crappiness" thread. The magnitude of my crappiness has been pretty high so far this year, but it's only April! Whatever, I sincerely detest ruining a good drive with a crappy approach!

Your CMI (crappiness magnitude index)?

[natureboy]

8 minutes ago, Buckeyebowman said:

I like your thinking. Perhaps we need a "Magnitude of Crappiness" thread. The magnitude of my crappiness has been pretty high so far this year, but it's only April! Whatever, I sincerely detest ruining a good drive with a crappy approach!

Broadie already kind of did this with his net awful shots benchmark. Pros hit bad shots less badly and less frequently, but they still happen, they are just overshadowed by their statistically (relative to scratch standard I think) 'great' shots. Net awful shots correlates to average score (on a typical course) according to: #Awful = 0.24 * Score – 17.1

[Al B Tross]

On April 27, 2016 at 8:27 PM, Lihu said:

Same here 

Can I join your foursome?   

This is is a running discussion topic with my regular playing group - basically the frustration of wasting a good shot with a crappy second (and third and fourth...) shot. I've started to see signs of life in my game recently and have come to realize even more so the power of good mental discipline/positive mindset. This past weekend I shot a 103 which is in my usual range of high-90's/low 100's but how I got there was a but of a lesson for me as I shot a 60/43.  I resigned myself to ditch the frustration after a blow-up hole and not psych myself out after a good tee shot with the "just don't screw it up" thought process. Miraculously I found a swing groove that had great tee shots followed up by decent second shots on/near the green (at one point putting together a string of 4 pars in a row which I have never done before).

The challenge now is to carry this into my next round and not fall too far backwards.  Yeah, I'm still a hack but I know there's a good game in there if I can get out of my own head and keep it simple.  Seems easy enough, right?? 

 

[RandallT]

Here's a great hole from yesterday. My drive comes in from the bottom right and ends up dead center of the fairway, 220yds away on a par 5. After a string of poor holes, I decide to just lay a simple 5-iron to stay short of the bunkers. I'll just swing nice and easy, and make this a no drama hole. Limp home with an easy par under my belt down the stretch. Just lay some good swings in to get some confidence back. Don't get greedy.

Ha. My 5-iron shanks to the hazard on the right. I drop near when I enter the boundary, hit my 4th out across the creek. My fifth shot gets pushed way right and short. Now I'm faced with a downhill, short-sided pitch, with a bunker between me and the hole (and the green sloping away from me).

I then abandon all caution and choose to do a crazy flop shot with my sand wedge. The ball goes a mile in the air, lands on the fringe and trickles to a few feet. Tap in double-bogey.  

How the heck can you be 220yds out in the middle of the fairway and then have to pull out a hero one-in-a-million shot to just save double-bogey?? Oh well, that flop shot will keep me coming back 

[Jeremie Boop]

2 minutes ago, RandallT said:

Here's a great hole from yesterday. My drive comes in from the bottom right and ends up dead center of the fairway, 220yds away on a par 5. After a string of poor holes, I decide to just lay a simple 5-iron to stay short of the bunkers. I'll just swing nice and easy, and make this a no drama hole. Limp home with an easy par under my belt down the stretch. Just lay some good swings in to get some confidence back. Don't get greedy.

Ha. My 5-iron shanks to the hazard on the right. I drop near when I enter the boundary, hit my 4th out across the creek. My fifth shot gets pushed way right and short. Now I'm faced with a downhill, short-sided pitch, with a bunker between me and the hole (and the green sloping away from me).

I then abandon all caution and choose to do a crazy flop shot with my sand wedge. The ball goes a mile in the air, lands on the fringe and trickles to a few feet. Tap in double-bogey.  

How the heck can you be 220yds out in the middle of the fairway and then have to pull out a hero one-in-a-million shot to just save double-bogey?? Oh well, that flop shot will keep me coming back 

Sometimes I find it more satisfying to come back from a bad shot with a good shot than to hit 2 good shots in a row. Be it a crazy high flop that looks straight off of a PGA highlight reel or a pured hybrid or long iron that hits the green after a horrible drive. To me, it means I'm learning to let go of the bad shot and focus on the next shot. I think I need to start using that same mentality when I approach the shot after a good shot as well. Instead of putting pressure on myself to capitalize on the good shot I just hit, I need to think solely about the shot in front of me.

[bkuehn1952]

A good drive is typically just the beginning.  If driving 300 yards down the middle assured a player of a good score, more of our internet companions would be on Tour.

Long ago when I was somewhat less competent playing golf, I always enjoyed the par 3 holes.  Essentially, if one hit a decent tee shot, a good score was almost guaranteed.  The problem with par 5 holes was they required 3 well struck shots in order to make par or better. So my preference in holes was 3, then 4 and in last place, 5's.

Fast forward to today.  I look forward to par 5 holes.  I realize that a marginal tee shot or second can be recovered.  Often I have a wedge approach.  More of my birdies come from par 5's than any other par.  Par 3's are my toughest challenge.  Most often on par 4's and 5's I don't have a 225 yard approach.  But par 3 holes can regularly measure 150 to 240 yards.  That is a pretty long "approach shot".

[dave s]

My Thursday night league partner was a 2-4 times a year player before we teamed up.  He went from averaging 55-60 for nine holes to breaking 50 every round in two seasons.  He developed a really nice, dependable driver to the tune of 240-260 and down the middle.

The problem for my partner was his approach shots were a guaranteed 'fatty' that included a 16" x 4" wide alligator from the fairway, a bladed line drive OVER the green, a complete shank straight right into the woods or bunker or a 40 yard top-and-roll.

His 2nd shots on par-5 holes were usually a blistered 3-wood or 3-hybrid with a beautiful high draw right into position for one of his patented approach shots detailed above.

What I saw on all of his approach shots was a total lack of commitment to the shot.  If he had wedge in his hand, he decelerated through the shot which caused the 40-yar divot fatty.  If the approach was longer, he would under-club, overswing and hit the line drive, blade or shank.

Enter the Bushnell Laser tool.  After playing with my partner for a few years, I got a good feel for how far he hit his scoring clubs when he actually hit one SOLID.  I would give him exact yardages to front of green and to the pin.  He got better at selecting the correct club for the distance. I would offer validation on the club selection and recommend a standard, full swing with that club.

Wasn't long before he was hitting the approach shots solid and hitting greens with more regularity.  As I've mentioned before, having the correct yardage and knowing how far your approach / scoring clubs fly and roll out is a critical success factor in this game.

Now, if we could just get my partner to practice his short game, HE'D be the low hdcp on our team!

dave

[Fairway_CY]

33 minutes ago, bkuehn1952 said:

A good drive is typically just the beginning.  If driving 300 yards down the middle assured a player of a good score, more of our internet companions would be on Tour.

Long ago when I was somewhat less competent playing golf, I always enjoyed the par 3 holes.  Essentially, if one hit a decent tee shot, a good score was almost guaranteed.  The problem with par 5 holes was they required 3 well struck shots in order to make par or better. So my preference in holes was 3, then 4 and in last place, 5's.

Fast forward to today.  I look forward to par 5 holes.  I realize that a marginal tee shot or second can be recovered.  Often I have a wedge approach.  More of my birdies come from par 5's than any other par.  Par 3's are my toughest challenge.  Most often on par 4's and 5's I don't have a 225 yard approach.  But par 3 holes can regularly measure 150 to 240 yards.  That is a pretty long "approach shot".

I actually had this conversation with my wife over the weekend.  I used to dread par 5's because that's where the 8, 9 and 10 would get jotted down on my scorecards.  I got in my own head thinking that I HAD to try and reach in 2 because 'the pros do it'.  

I'm now much more relaxed on par 5's than I ever was.  Typically, a good drive is going to leave me in the 200 - 225 yard range.  If I'm hitting my long irons, hybrid or 3 wood well... I may have a go at it (providing there isn't a lot of trouble up by the green)... but more often than not, I'll try to lay up between 70 - 90 yards and use my wedges.  It's certainly not a guarantee of a birdie... but, more often than I used to, I'll stick it close enough to guarantee myself at least a par.  

Still... I prefer par 3's to anything else.  I have found that putting the ball on a tee ensures pretty solid contact.  Unless I make a huge mistake (which I still do often enough), I'm pretty good at limiting myself to no more than a bogey. 

For the tournament I played over the weekend... I played 8 par 3's and 8 par 5's.  I was +5 on the par 3's and +8 on the par 5's.  I had 2 horrible par 5's on the front side on Saturday afternoon.  

As I improve... I find my mindset changing, but... it's still aggravating (and a little devastating) to hit a shot from the tee on a par 4 that leaves me in the middle of the fairway with a wedge in my hand... and then 5 minutes later, I'm walking off the green writing down a 7 because I thinned it over the green, flubbed the pitch, chipped on short and then three-putted.

CY