Recap Your 2018 Goals

[iacas]

With the year coming to a close, it's time for our yearly self-assessment thread. Here's how this will work... 

Quote your post from the 2018 Golf Goals topic right here in this topic, then write something below your quoted post to let everyone know how you did!

Please keep replies to a minimum. Use your Member Swing thread for deeper discussions about your goals and how well you achieved them.

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The latter is the easier method, and the former won't work very well on tablets or smart phones.

[billchao]

On 12/22/2017 at 8:21 PM, billchao said:

Some of this stuff I've mentioned in my swing thread, but here are my 2018 goals:

1. Single digit handicap. Continue to improve my swing and overall game, also involves goals #2 & 3. Use the Mevo to dial in my Shot Zones (distance-wise) to improve my play on the course. Improve my driving and reduce the lateral dispersion of my tee shots.
2. Remove short game as a glaring weakness. Use the Mevo to dial in partial wedge distances and hit more greens from 120 yards and in. Bonus points for new wedges, but I want Edel and I can't find a fitter near me who will fit on grass. Spend extra time after rounds on the practice green to work on either putting or short game every week, targeting individual skills.
3. Remove my putting as a glaring weakness. I took a step late this year towards this by getting an Edel putter and was basically given a putting lesson during my fitting, so I will continue to work on the changes I was taught. Spend some extra time after rounds on the practice green to work on either putting or short game every week, targeting individual skills.
4. Improve GIR% to 40% or better. I'll use Game Golf to track my data as usual, going to base it on last 10 or last 15 rounds when the season is over because I typically play better as the season progresses. Related to goals #1 & 2. I'm including this as a separate goal because I'll consider it a success if I don't achieve #1 but manage to achieve this.
5. Reduce Putts/Hole to 1.8. Again, using Game Golf to track. Related to #2 & 3, but not quite either so I'll list this separately.
6. Play at least 20 rounds. Have to play. I managed this last year, but kids are getting older and involved in more activities now.
7. Play in a TST Outing. It doesn't have to be an official outing, but a round of golf with at least two other people from here. Always a good time to play golf fellow Sandtrappers.
8. Complete more Awards and Challenges. I'm looking at you, Flop Shot Challenge. And Break 80! That should be its own goal.
9. Break 80. 

Holy crap that's a lot of goals. Well you know what they say, if you cast a wide enough net...

1. No, but this one was always a long shot.
2. I did what I set out to do, not sure if it's no longer a glaring weakness until I look over my stats. I did map my distance wedges and spend more time practicing around the greens, but did not get fit for wedges. I didn't even buy new wedges.
3. Same as above.
4. No, but I was also injured for six weeks in the middle of summer so by the time I started playing again in August, it was like starting the season over. And then I screwed up my driving and GIR got harder to make.
5. No, but it's 1.9, so partial credit?
6. Yes - my first official goal achieved! I played exactly 20 rounds this year even missing time in the summer and packing it in mid-September. As it turned out, my kids are more involved in activities, but Sunday morning became my golf time, rain or shine (and it was mostly rain).
7. Yes, got the north-east staff (@jamo, @boogielicious, @nevets88) together for a round in June, which also happened to be the best round I played all year. Also visited @DaveP043 and had a good time, I'm giving myself credit for that as well.
8. No. My streak of goal successes has ended. I've tried and still haven't been able to catch a flop shot. I figure if I can catch one in practice, then I'll try to get it on video. Maybe we can come up with more challenges that I have a chance at completing (hit a balloon your friend is holding down the range? 🤣)
9. No, but I did match my personal best round of 82 - twice. My game is fairly stable so I don't expect to break 80 until my scoring average starts dropping more. I'll start shooting sub-80 scores around the same time I'll stop shooting in the mid-90's.

Well I did cast a wide enough net, so that strategy was a complete success. Should have made that a goal 😉

 

[Ty_Webb]

On 12/22/2017 at 8:08 PM, Ty_Webb said:

Okay here we go:

1. Mount a successful defense of my old boys tournament in April. We won it this year for the first time since 2000 and second time ever. Would be nice to win it again. I’m captain. 

2. Qualify for the MGA Mid-Am. It’s at Maidstone next year and I’d love to play in it. To do so I have to qualify for one of the Ike, the Met Am and the Met Open, so those too. 

3. Shoot a round under par. At least one. Ideally many more. 

4. Work on my wedge game with my mevo. I plan to learn how far I hit it with different clubs and different swings then use that to improve my scoring. 

5. Continue to work on my putting stroke. Two main keys. One is to work on keeping my throughswing no longer than my backswing. The other is to make sure my shoulders and arms are square so I stop cutting across it with an open face. Those two together will help with my distance control. 

6. Get some points in the Long Island POTY rankings. This one will come with the work on my game I want to do and a little more self belief. I’m better than I was two years ago but my scores aren’t really showing it. 

7. Continue working on my long game and try to get my arms and body to work in sync. 

1. We made it to the semi-finals this year. Not a win but a very good showing. 

2. I didn’t qualify for the met mid-am 😞

3. I did shoot a round under par. Left it late but did it a couple of weeks ago. Last tournament of the year. I was leading after round one with a 68. The two guys ahead of me were the met player of the year last year and the met player of the year this year. Wagr rankings of 500s and 135. That was pretty cool. I felt like an impostor on day two and didn’t play very well. 

4. I started doing this. My wedge game has got a lot better and I had a very good day indeed In the Long Island mid-am. Hit it OB off the 1st and made triple and then bogeyed 2 before finishing with a +3 73. Good for T7 and I got up and down from 70-100 yards 4 times and missed a couple of four footers that would have made it six times too. 

5. Putting has improved a lot. My 68 included being about +1.8 strokes gained putting including a 3 putt on 18 from 6 feet

6. Two aforementioned events got me points on the poty. Achieved

7. Long game had good spells and bad spells. Overall I’m pleased with the good stuff. Given that I basically get to play a couple of times a month I can’t complain about my results. 

All in all I’m calling this year a success. Didn’t manage all of my goals but a couple of them were big time stretches so I’m happy with my year. 

[boogielicious]

Quote

My gold goal is pretty simple, get healthy. I had a pretty tough year orthopedically. I had wrist and bicep tendinitis, a torn meniscus and lastly a nasty hernia to close off the year.

My plan is to start slow building my strength and swing back. I can start this first week of January although no ab work until the second week. I meet with my PT then as well.

Slow mirror swings will be first up and I hope to do that daily. I want to ingrain the proper form before I start hitting balls. I will also upload the slow swings to my Evolvr instructor too. I haven’t hit a ball since August, so it will be a long journey, but I am eager to start. I can hit foam balls indoors at my work gym, which will takes stress off too.

Did pretty well with these goals. The knee and hernia are no longer issues. It took until June to get my leg strength all the way back. I struggled early on getting form back, but the work I put in with my Evolvr lessons paid off. My scores came down. There is still a lot of work to do.

Highlights were meeting up with @billchao, @nevets88, @jamo in CT in June and taking a refresher AimPoint Class with @iacas and Dave in July and getting to play with Erik the next day. Erik gave me a couple of pointers which I have worked on consistently since. He was fun to play with and is a really great teacher.

[saevel25]

On ‎1‎/‎2‎/‎2018 at 11:58 AM, saevel25 said:

Overall Goal: Reduce Handicap to sub 3.0

Sub Goals (Not in any particular order of importance)

• Improve strokes gained putting with in 10 FT. My strokes gained putting is +.39 versus a scratch golfer (+ being worse). I can improve my strokes gained putting by .4 strokes within 10 FT. The first thing is to check if I am aiming correctly and hitting my putts on line. If these are fine, then I need to work on my green reading. I probably can work on my green reading anyways.

• Improve Short Game, specifically inside 25 yards. Game Golf is saying I lose 1.8 strokes here. It looks like my major issue is distance control. There are a few areas I can work on here. First, is better technique. Second, selecting the best type of shot for the lie. Third, is repetition to develop feel.

• Improve my approach shots. The biggest area is inside 100 yards. Even if I improve this area, it still leaves a good amount of improvement needed at 100+ yards. I hit about 45% GIR. This means I need to work on my distance wedge type shots. I know the biggest area is knowing how to control my backswing length. I have a bad habit of taking too long of a backswing and then try to control distance by slowing or speeding up the hands. Outside 100 yards, it's just hitting better shots (keep it simple )

I can't check my first goal because Gamegolf doesn't let me filter the putting in a way I need. For 2018, my putting woes switched from inside 10 FT to outside of 30 FT. I do not know if I am still struggling with inside 10 FT putts or if my lag putting is just much worse.

My short game improved from 1.8 strokes lost to 1.56 strokes lost. Overall, I improved by .7 strokes in my short game in general.

My percentage of approach shots that ended up with in 15 yards of the pin went down by 4% in 2018. Not sure that is a good metric. That is what Gamegolf is giving me. My strokes gained from approach shots actually improved by nearly .7 strokes in 2018 versus 2017.

[nevets88]

Quote

1. Continue refining shallow, motorcycle, turn/pivot - working better in conjunction with arms/shoulders, wrist conditions/rates. Less thinking through swing, more athletic/dynamic.
2. Play more - I say this every year, I'd play more if I played better.
3. Work more on wedges and putter, use Mevo to dial in distances, keep using Visio to tighten putter head path, lesson w/Preston if he's in town.
4. Continue w/full swing lessons, reading/watching whatever instruction comes available (mean to take a look at David Orr's videos).
5. Get fitted w/a new putter.

1, 2 and 4 I did, 3 and 5 didn't get to. Kind of laser focused on full swing and practiced short game while playing instead of on the range, although my short game has gotten better just by virtue of playing although would really like to have gotten pitches, chips and putts on video. Although I played more, really could have... played more.

[klineka]

On 12/21/2017 at 11:22 AM, klineka said:

Goals:

1. Break into and maintain single digit handicap
   1. Increase swing speed (using SuperSpeed system)
   2. Increase AoA and launch angle with driver
   3. Be more aware of and apply LSW principles into each round
   4. Increase scrambling % by 10-15%
   5. Putts per round average under 30
2. Compete in my first/multiple tournaments
   1. Will join and play a couple events on the GolfWeek AM tour local to me

On 5/2/2018 at 12:47 PM, klineka said:

I've accomplished part of #1 already. Broke into single digits with a couple solid rounds so far this year. Now it's a matter of staying there.

I am also going to edit my 2nd goal, based on current finances I cant justify paying $100+ per round. Playing on an AM tour will be a future goal in a few years once some other debts are paid off.

My new #2 goal is to really nail down my priority pieces, specifically Key #1, steady head, and Key #3, in-line impact/stop flipping.

I have The Hanger and will continue to use it in my practice sessions.

1. Success - Have maintained a 9-9.5 handicap for pretty much the whole season, with most of my rounds being in the 78-88 range.

1.1 Used my SuperSpeed sticks last winter and early spring, but lost motivation without a radar. I just got the radar as a birthday present a few days ago, so I have picked this one back up and will continue with this as a 2019 goal. 240 average drives are not going to cut it especially since I want to play tournaments and will play 6500+ yds regularly in those rounds.

1.2 Definitely have accomplished this using some drills from LSW and some ball position/posture adjustments

1.3 Still a work in progress, but am losing less balls, and generally aiming for more center of the green/away from bunkers

1.4 Didnt do much to actually improve this at the beginning of the year, but over the past 2 months since I've been making an effort to get to the range and chip/putt 1-2x a week, my scrambling increased from 30% in 2017 to 41% in my last 5 rounds

1.5 Same as 1.4, since I have been dedicating more time, my putts per round went from 32.4 in 2017 to 30.6 in my last 5 rounds, most likely because I'm chipping it closer to the hole 

 

2. Steady Head continues to be a priority piece for me, although my over the top motion got quite bad for a period resulting in some nasty slices and misses right, so it took me a few months to get my path back closer to neutral. Now that the path is more neutral, I can go back to steady head as my primary focus. 

2.1 Still use the hanger 1-2x a month to reinforce the flat lead wrist, I haven't filmed a face on in a while so I should probably check that.

Overall I am pleased with the progress I made in my golf game in 2018 and hope to build on this heading into 2019!

 

 

[mcanadiens]

On 3/20/2018 at 11:55 AM, mcanadiens said:

My goal is to continue the miraculous 6-year streak of not getting sued over anything that happens on a golf course.

Mission accomplished.

All in all, I did really well. My on-course temperament may not have been always perfect, but a definite step forward. I think playing in my men's association events has taught me some patience. 

[millsan1]

On 6/19/2018 at 1:56 PM, millsan1 said:

Since this is my first year of trying to play instead of just wandering around hitting the ball:

Develop a consistent swing

Get into the 90s and stay there (currently about 103 average)

Reduce 3 putts by improving lag putting and getting to where 3' is almost automatic

Learn and practice chipping

 

Consistency is a misnomer.  BUt yes, it has improved a lot.

Latest GHIN has me at 21.7, with all 10 scores being in the 90s, so yes.

Yes, but 3' are nearly automatic in fun rounds, but Match play they make me bite my nails

Yes, I have hit well over 2,000 Chips and Pitches in practice and continue to practice them heavily, most range sessions.

[Fairway_CY]

On 1/12/2018 at 2:00 PM, Fairway_CY said:

This is always one of my favorite threads each year.  It gives me a chance to get really specific with my goals and then I get to look back on them at the end of the year.  

Anyway... my 2018 goals are below.

1. Reduce penalties to fewer than 1 per round.  Last season was my best in this category, but I still averaged 1.39 penalties per round (for almost 2 strokes per round).  I'd like to reduce those numbers to less than 1 penalty and less than 1.5 strokes per round.  A large number of my penalties last year came on the approach shot of the 10th hole of my home course.  The lie is almost always downhill... plus there's a hazard fronting the green and OB very tight to the right side of the green.  I need to work on that shot so that it's no longer in my head.

2. Increase GIR percentage to greater than 40%.  My ball striking was better last year than ever before, but I still battled some pretty bad misses with clubs longer than my 8 iron.  I finished 2017 hitting 36.28% of my greens in regulation.  To get there, I'm going to have to spend some time with my 5 iron, 6 iron and 7 iron.  A majority of the par 3 holes that I play require the use of those clubs.  Although I don't have a number in my spreadsheet for par 3 GIR percentage, I'd be willing to bet it's lower than what my overall number is.  If I can fix that... I can score better.

3. Hit greater than 50% of fairways.  I came pretty close last year, hitting 46.64% but I'd like to eclipse the 50% mark this year.  Achieving this goal will make achieving the one above much easier as well.  I've been enamored with increasing my distance, but it hasn't really happened.  I've been right around 235 yards off the tee for the last 3 years.  I need to stop worrying about hitting it further and start worrying more about hitting it where I need to.

4. Putt better.  This is not a specific target.  It's very broad, but it's a part of my game that confidence is very fleeting.  The average distance of all putts I made last year was only 2.96 feet.  I also had an extremely high number of three-putts.  Finally, I averaged over 35 putts per round.  I would like to get that number below 34 putts per round this season.  It's going to take me spending some time on the practice green at my course, but I'm determined to make this a stronger part of my game in 2018.

5. Get back to the tournament winner's circle.  In 2016, out of 19 tournaments I played in, I won 2 and placed in the top 4 another 5 times.  In 2017, I played in 15 tournaments overall.  The first 4 were in C Flight where I finished T-10th, 2nd, 1st and 3rd... but then got moved into a more competitive flight due to my index dropping.  In the higher flight, I played 11 tournaments and failed to place in the top 4 in any of them.  I came close a few times but couldn't crack the barrier.  I'd like to get back into the money spots in 2018, so... this is the goal I want to reach the most.

That's it.  They're all there.  Tomorrow begins my 2018 season.  Time to get cracking on reaching at least a few of these.  

CY

1. Not even close.  I've played 87.5 rounds (maybe another 3 or 4 before the year is totally over) and I've had 156 penalties.  It seemed that when things went bad... they went really bad.  I struggled with my driver a lot this year and that led to a large majority of these penalties.

2. Nope.  I'm at 34.8% right now.  Again... a lot of this was struggles off the tee again and not leaving myself an opportunity to hit greens.  The other thing was playing from tees a little further back (6400 yards instead of about 6100 yards) meant hitting slightly longer clubs into certain greens.

3. Another nope.  I've hit 42.5% of fairways which is lower than it was in 2017.  My game, for awhile, was really strong.  It just took a large step backward over the final 2 months or so.  At one point... I battled a bad fade.  I got it together during the summer.  Towards the end of summer... my miss was a quick hook.  It reverted to a fade again.  I had no confidence standing on the tee throughout most of the year.

4. I didn't have a specific number goal in mind, but I did mention fewer than 34 putts per round.  I got better than I had been in previous years.  35.1 putts per round in 2017 but 34.6 putts per round in 2018.  Still not great... but a small improvement, so... I'll give myself a 'yes' for this one.

5. This one, I accomplished.  I played in 15 tournaments this year... all of them in B Flight.  I finished in the top 1/3 of the field in 6 of those including a win and a 2nd place finish.  I was very happy with my tournament play through the middle part of the summer.  Sadly, it abandoned me at the end of the year when it mattered most.  

All in all... not a great season.  Now I'll be working on things heading into 2019.  My golf is going to be taking a bit of a back seat for awhile due to some professional changes, but... it'll lead to more practice time and less playing, which may help out.  

CY

[Patch]

In retrospect, all things considered, I pretty much got what I wanted out of my game. That being I played pretty consistent golf, with a 15+ hndcp.  Average for all my rounds were 15.83, and my home course only average was 15. 53. All but two of my lowest scores were carded on my home course. 

Played 96 rounds, on 28 different courses from November 1st, 2017, to October 31st, 2018. 60 of those rounds were on my home course. I missed playing 100+ rounds due to a shoulder issue that kept me down for a while. 

Played in all types of weather from freezing cold to 118 degrees. High winds, calm days, and rain storms. Some of those stormy days, I had no business playing, but what the heck. 

My strong short game helped me immensely to over come my weaker, long game. Probably 80% of my practice time was spent on my short game from 100 yards out. Once on the green I was averaging below 2 putts per hole

Except for a couple of drills every once in a while, almost all my practice time was spent on specific ball, and club shots. 

It was a good year of golf for me. 

[cutchemist42]

On 1/6/2018 at 1:49 PM, cutchemist42 said:

1-Not sure how to make this a goal....but last year when I encountered a big straight pull problem giving me OB penalties, I wasted about a 6 weeks trying to fix it myself. Waited until 2 weeks were left in the season to get a lesson to figure it out. This year if I encounter a problem, I will not wait that long again.

2-Would like to get down my GG HI down from 14.3 to 12ish. Right now when I compare myself to a 10.0 HI in GG, I think I can get to it. Im losing 4.38 strokes in my putting and 2.59 strokes in my short game compared to a 10.0 HI.

3-Related number 1 goal......Keep the driver in play more.

 I'll have something a bit longer in my swing thread (some GameGolf screenshots), but for now.....

1-I used both Evolvr and a local instructor much sooner in the year and had things pointed out that I would not have before. The things pointed out to me from Jan to July really helped me out. Its ok to seek out help.

2-I think this goal should maybe have been cancelled, as I ended up playing this year at real rated golf course that increased both my GG and Golf Canada HI. This was also the 1st year I had an official handicap as it was included in my membership. A majority of my rounds are played solo, and I actually didnt play with anyone in an 18 hole round since late August and I had some good scores in that time.  My GG HI ended  at 17.4 and official was 19.9. Whats interesting is that the HIs were matching for awhile.

3- I did eventually keep the ball in play more with driver, and in the last few weeks I was swinging much better. Whats crazy and I wish I stumbled on it sooner, but I found out rotating my head a bit at setup helped my rotation a lot.I found setting up with my head too straight on led to my back leaning towards the target. I was wondering why I kept ending my rounds with back pain and did mirror work to figure it out.

 

 

[Killa]

Don’t find it in that topic but my goals were to shoot below 90 at least once, and to get a hcp below 20. 

I’m 5-6 shots away from breaking 90. It might still be done this year on my most often played course if I get a couple more rounds in and play only to score. 

To get my hcp to under 20 was not realistic as I only played one tournament and I’d needed to shoot a +6 score on that tournament to go from 31 to 19.9.

But since my garmin calculates my hcp according to Stableford my current realistic hcp is 21. It was 19,4 this year as well. 

I did also want to have key 2 and 3 “mastered” but I have failed that as I have worked on many aspects of the swing but lost mostly key 2 and a flip crept back into my swing so I think that is the main cause for my slicing woes. 

[sjduffers]

On 12/24/2017 at 3:56 PM, sjduffers said:

I feel that I am reaching my level of "incompetence" (from the Peters' principles): I am never going to gain another 25-30 yards with the driver or another 15 yards with my 7 iron. I am now aiming at keeping my game where it is and marginally improving it where there is still a bit of room.

My goals for 2018 are:

1) Get the GIR to 45%. That was the goal in 2015, 2016, 2017 and remains for 2018. I have stopped getting regular lessons (i.e. once every 3-4 weeks) and only occasionally check in with my coach. I feel I have all the tools necessary to get it there, and it's a combination of more deliberate play (I am a fast player that doesn't handle slow play very well and reacts by being even faster), better and more consistent pre-shot routine (i.e. alignment check, pick a small spot a few feet in front, etc..) and more considerations about club selection. This mostly apply to the irons: I am pretty good with the driver or fairway woods in term of selection and targets. An unmistakable sign that this is an issue is that my GIR% is currently lower on par 5s than it is on par 3s, despite being much closer to the green on average on the par 5s!

2) Fix my greenside bunker play as a glaring weakness: my sand save percentage is like 2.5%, but more troubling is the number of times I still leave the ball in the bunker or blade it over the green. It is a reason why I have a bit more trouble scoring on courses that I don't know like the palm of my hand. On courses I know very well, I am hardly ever in a bunker (either they have very few bunkers or I actively avoid them). I think I know what to do, but am having a hard time doing it, so perhaps another pair of eyes will help. I plan on taking a couple of lessons from another coach, as my current coach only teaches indoors and of course doesn't have access to sand...

3) Keep the index in the single digits, and attempt to get it under 8.0 (closest so far has been 8.2) for a couple of revisions.

4) Shoot a personal best (currently 75) on a par 70 or higher course, meaning 74 or better. Same goal as in 2017.

5) Have a round or more with 4 birdies or better. Best so far is 3 (several times).

6) Keep the putter as a strong asset (less than 5% of 3-putts and 30 putts per round). I am already there or nearly there (4% and 30.5 respectively). Ensure it stays there, even when playing on faster greens from time to time: On some faster greens (stimp 11 or higher?), I typically have an extra 3-putt or 2 as some putts get away from me, rolling too far past the hole, usually due to carelessness. This also requires more play on those greens, compared to my typical 8-10 stimped greens.

2017 was a definite step above my previous level. I think 2018 will be more of a consolidation and firming up the progress already achieved.

PS: A long term goal is to break my age, but I am probably a good 15-20 years away from that still, as I close in on 60.

This was a good year for me. I saw my handicap drop significantly, greenside bunker play is more average than a glaring weakness now. To the specifics:

1) Nope. My GIR% is still stuck at 35% It's better now on par 5s (46%) than par 3s (38%) so there is some progress in a sense. The proximity of the nGIRs improved though, which translated in easier up-and-downs (scrambling did improve by about 5%). Pretty much everything else that helps with scoring has improved: scrambling, short game, number of penalties, distance (just a few yards), fewer doubles and occasional triples, with the scoring now being more pars and better than bogeys or worse...

2) I didn't take a lesson on bunker play, but did a little bit of practice and it helped. The main thing for me was to not look at the ball at all, but at that spot 2 inches behind the ball. I sort of had the right idea before about what to do but kept hitting the ball and that's why: don't focus on it, dummy! I am not a bunker magician by any means, but the ball gets out, sometimes close, with a 11.2% bunker save success rate (vs 4% last year). So, success? Kinda.

3) Not only did I achieve my goal but exceeded it by quite a bit: the lowest index was 6.6 for 1 revision, it has stayed below 8.0 since July and below 9.0 for the whole year except for two revisions, at 9.1. This was driven not by GIR% improvement (which did not happen), although the swing did improve some, but by better course management and sharper short game all around (chip, pitch, sand, putting).

4) Yes. I shot 74 (blue tees) on a par 70 course (3.8 differential) and a 71 (also blue tees, on a different but easier par 70 course, 2.5 differential) that I couldn't post as I played that one by myself.

5) Nope. I had 3 more rounds with 3 birdies but the 4th birdie remains elusive.

6) Yes. 3-putt stat is at 3% (so just over 1 3-putt every other round) and the total putts just under 30 for the year, and at 29.2 for 20 rounds at its lowest). I played on really fast(er) greens a handful of times and limited the damage on those to no more than 2 3-putts per round, so somewhat of a success there.

It was a good year, I feel and I am probably going to recycle the same types of goal (a bit higher bar) for 2019.

Edited November 9, 2018 by sjduffers

[ryanpalm]

On 12/16/2017 at 10:27 PM, ryanpalm said:

My biggest goal for 2018 is to compete in one our local golf association events (Erie District Golf Association) - each year I debate entering and have yet to do so. I'm quite certain I won't win, but eager enough for some competition outside of my club and think this would help motivate me for some extra practice time. I'd like to lower the handicap - lowered two shots this year, going another shot down would be fine.

I failed on my biggest 2018 goal - and thus it is a major goal for 2019. I have some steps in place to address what I keep failing - planning a side project to document my quest to improve. I hope to share that project with you all before the end of the year. I recently joined Golf Evolution - an indoor golf facility in my town, which will hopefully help me stay sharp and not struggle so much early in the season.

On the bright side I did lower my handicap by one stroke - as of yesterday it is now 6.8.

[dbuck]

On ‎12‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 3:12 PM, dbuck said:

1. Re-enlist in the handicap system, and get below 11. My last official was 14.9, and that is about where I am. I have been out a couple years. I think that is a reasonable goal. Strategies to do this: eliminate blow up holes, work on lag putting, and be 90% or better on 3 footers.

2. Read LSW.

3. I guess related to #1, but complete no sixes challenge.

1. I did re-enroll in GHIN. My current handicap is 13.0. so I made it halfway to my goal. I have been as low as 12.9. I have improved my putting, and reduced 3 putts, and my lag putting is much better. I still have the occasional blow-up. For instance, Saturday on a 352 yard par 4. my drive was in the fairway, second shot pin-high in a greenside bunker. I proceeded to thin the sand shot into the water! Overall, my driving and iron shots are steadily improving. My GIR, and near GIR are improving.

2. This was accomplished and has contributed to better play.

3. I have not been able to accomplish this. I have come close a couple times, with the only sixes being bogeys on par 5's.

[easyjay39402]

I set myself two admittedly ambitious goals for 2018:

1. Handicap index down to 12

2. Shoot my age (74)

I was able to follow my practice/play plan and managed a 78 in May. My focus was on the three statistically weak aspects of my game: Driver, Par 3 tee shots, Chipping. But then a serious of medical issues threw me off track. I regrouped towards the end of the season, having managed to become competent at chipping. Driver remained a HUGE obstacle to scoring well. Ended the year a 16, down from an 18.

Edited December 11, 2018 by easyjay39402
Grammar

[Bucki1968]

 

Posted December 21, 2017

I'm actually going to try to just enjoy playing more and not worry so much about how I am scoring. I recently joined a country club and have met a few guys who actually just go out and play for the sake of getting out and having some fun. The ironic thing is that all of us usually are right around par (some lower and some higher). We put a little $ down for some incentive but not really all that much. I'm trying to not get so mad if I make a bad swing and change my attitude on the course. Frankly I don't have a plan. I'm just going to try to enjoy the round. We'll see how it goes. I would also like to putt a little more consistently. I am going to work on smoothing out my stroke and getting (and keeping) some kind of routine.  

 

 

 

I actually was able to accomplish most of the things I set out to do last year (except the putting). I hit the ball much better this year with the driver and irons. My short game is going the other direction. I have to admit though, I don't spend as much time practicing the short game as I should.

Edited December 11, 2018 by Bucki1968
Bad copy and paste job!