misterbrister

45 Putts averages out to 2.5 putts per hole. You're correct in thinking that putting would be a great area to improve. But I would go one further. It may very well be that your chipping/pitching could be the culprit behind all those putts. Remember that your short game is really any shot inside of say 80 yards. If you can get better on pitches within say 30 yards of the flag, you'll putt substantially less. Remember that your goal on any short shots is to leave the ball in a position to one-putt. Work on pitching and chipping so that you can get up-and-down (pitch/chip and then one-putt) at a much better rate. Dave Pelz's Short-Game Bible is an excellent resource for anyone looking to get better at scoring.

Lessons first. Nothing worse than having nice, shiny clubs in your bag, while still hitting the ball out of bounds.

Guys, I'm looking to possibly move to Nashville to attend Bus School at Vanderbilt. Can you tell me about any courses that fit under any of the following categories? 1) Nice, once-in-a-while treats ( awesome courses that are too $$$ to play regularly 2) Dependable, play it every week courses 3) Courses with great practice facilities I'm coming from San Francisco, where the courses are short but picturesque, and a typical 18 will cost me between $40 and $60 bucks.

I agree! Tons of courses in Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Camarillo, etc. With the warm weather, you really can't go wrong in that part of the world. The traffic, however, is another story entirely.

In addition, I think there's some built in bias on clubs, balls, etc. Honestly, who is going to tell you "I spent $300 on a driver, and it's just okay"?

Again, if she's so good at reading greens from 140 yards out, why can't she watch the ball flight?

I saw a good piece of advice that could be applicable here. Beginners should try to focus on playing an entire round with one ball. This might not be attainable your first time out (or second, or third, etc) but it's an easy goal to focus on.