elementz

A few rounds to get caught up on..... Played the only 36 hole course in our province. Started the first round at the easier Pine course (5,996 yds, 68.1/117). Have only played it once before, years ago. I started out with a double bogey but rebounded quickly and in the next 5 holes, went Par, Par, Bogey, Par, Par which left me at only +3 over after the first 6 holes. I doubled #7 and went to #8 which is a slightly uphill, straight away Par 4 measuring at 280ish yards. I hit my best drive of the day and was on the left side fringe (flag on right). My chip got away from me and ended up a tricky part of the green....3 putt Bogey - damn it. I ended up with a triple on #9 as I think I was still tilting over the previous hole which I was sure I would walk away with a par at the worst. The back 9 was a little more rough. Although I had a nice chip in for birdie on hole 13, I ended up with 3 triples on the back. 44/48 - 92 8/14 Fwys 3/18 gir 35 putts 4 penalites 1 birdie, 6 pars, 3 bogeys, 8 double+ Me and my bud went to the clubhouse for a bite before we tackled the River course....now here come the excuses. By the time we were teeing off around 3:30pm, the temp was well over 30* with the humidex. When loading up the cart again, I failed to throw in Gatorade/water in the cooler....this would come back to bite me later as the only holes located near the clubhouse are 1 & 18. #9&10 are literally the furthest 2 holes away from the clubhouse. My back was killing me and my head was pounding by the end of it. This course is a beast to me coming in at 6,452 yards (71.9/127). I don't remember a whole lot about this round as it was a week ago and I was really feeling dehydrated....and really, there isn't much worthwhile to remember. I did not play well at on this round but would love to go back and challenge myself again. 48/53 - 101 8/14 Fwys 0/18 GIR 38 putts 1 Penalty 2 pars, 9 bogeys, 7 double+ The next day, we decided to treat ourselves to one of the higher end courses in my area. This was a really nice course, links style set up. The white tees were playing around 6,173 (70.1/125). I played very solid bogey golf....nothing spectacular but I never had any blow up holes, a few doubles but no 7's or 8's on the card. The starter gave us a great tip since we haven't played there before.....you will always want to have your approach from side of the cart path for the best angle of the green. This advise was very helpful for not playing the course before. 47/46 - 93 8/14 Fwys 2/18 GIRs 36 putts 0 penalties 2 pars, 11 bogeys, 5 doubles Those 3 rounds were last Thurs/Fri and the next time I was able to get out was last night for 9 holes at my home course. This could have been a potential career 9 holes but let 2 holes get the best of me. Hole 1 - Topped my 3w off the tee, played next shot to dog leg. Approach went slightly long, got up and down for the bogey Hole 2 - Fairway, green, 2 putt par Hole 3 - Landed my tee shot on the back end of green (par 3) and ended up 3 putting my way into the hole at the front of the green for a bogey Hole 4 - Hate this hole....hit a good looking drive with a nice fade...only problem is I started the drive on the right side of the fairway. It landed safe but took a nasty kick to the right in the woods. 3 off the tee was a great shot. Hitting shot 4 as my approach....shank that one in the water. chip shot 6 up close with a tap in 7 for Triple Hole 5 - Textbook par 5. Drive, layup, approach to middle green, 2 putt par Hole 6 - par 3 where I miss the green left, chip and 1 putt par Hole 7 - Long par 5 and probably hit my best drive I ever hit on that hole. Solid contact with my 4hy that left me about 75 yards to the flag....skulled my wedge and ended up on back of green. Really tough chip on an elevated green that runs away from me (my chip landed in the rough and still rolled 20ish feet past the hole. Made my par putt that I had no business making but I will take it. Hole 8 - Easy 3w off the tee, left my wedge a little short, chip and putt for the par. Hole 9 - I haven't looked at my score but I know I am having a solid round in my head. Another hole that has my number but I can't blame that here as I had my worst swing of the day with my 3w off the tee into the woods. 3 off the tee was perfect. Hit my 4th shot approach on the green and ended up 3 putting for triple. That left me with a 44 but oh what could have been if I didn't mess up those 2 holes. I also believe 4 consecutive pars may be a record for moi. 44 5/7 fwys 4 GIR ( I only avg 4 on 18 holes so this was exciting) 17 putts 3 penalties (2 on 1 hole) 5 pars, 2 bogeys, 2 triples

Played one of my favourite courses in my area yesterday. Petitcodiac Golf Club - 68.2/121 - 5,971 yds. The course was in outstanding shape with its rolling hills and tiny greens. It was an ideal golf day, albeit, too hot imo but next to no wind and course was empty. I won't be able to go into complete details as I did previously. I find that a little distracting to record notes on each hole. I shot a 44/45 for an 89....which ties my lowest score of the year thus far. Stats wise, I was all over the place. I only hit 3/14 fairways and 2 GIR...which were both on the front. However, all tee shots were playable so my misses weren't too bad. I did take one penalty all round on my 2nd shot on the Par 5 #10 when my 2nd shot caught the pond (literally, another foot and it would have been a nice safe shot. My chipping and putting is what saved me. I only had 30 putts (13 on back) which I believe has to be my all time low. I made a small adjustment about a month ago and it seems to be working wonders. My putting always seemed to be the worst aspect of my game so that will be nice if I can maintain what I have been doing. Score 89 (44/45) FW - 3/14 GIR - 2/18 Putts - 30 Penalties - 1 6 pars / 7 bogeys / 4 double+ My buddy is coming in from out of town so we should be playing 36 holes on Thursday and 18 on Friday at courses we haven't played before. One of the courses is very challenging and may be out of our league. They only have the one mens tee box which is measuring from 6,452 yards (71.9/127)....definitely out of our comfort zone but it just doesn't feel right playing the ladies tees at 5,400 yds (59.4/105). The other two courses we will be playing seem very standard with what we are used to. 6000 yds (68.1/117) and 6,154 yds (69.6/123) Edited to add - I touched on an adjustment I made for my putting. All I did was move my ball back to middle of my stance instead of near my front foot...and I try to not move my butt (at least that's my feeling) and it seems to be working. In my last 6 rounds, I have shaved close to 3 strokes from my putting alone...I am hoping with that improvement, the overall score will start dropping more into the 80s consistently.

Played 9 at my home course last night in great weather (minus the bugs).....really wish I could have kept playing if it wasn't due for the sun setting. Hole 1: Par 4, 325 yds - This hole has a pretty good dogleg where this time of year, a good driver off the tee will run out of fairway. I teed up with 3W and it looked like a beauty draw that started too far on the left and ended up clipping the top of the tree so I easily lost a good 40-50 yards...but the ball was in fairway....didn't have best angle to green. Had about 160 left and hit a 7i well...just not on target. Ended up about 20 yards to right of green. Chipped to about 10' and 2 putt. BOGEY Hole 2: Par 4, 350 yds - Straightaway par 4 with a good sized fairway. Driving range on left side, all woods on right side. Sliced drive off into woods and hit a provision down the middle. As I was walking up, I found my original ball near the woods but in a GUR area....I'll take it. 130 out, used PW, didn't hit it all that great and stayed along the right side of the woods but the result was fine as the ball was in the rough. Pitched to 7-8' and drained the putt. PAR (lucky) Hole 3: Par 3, 128 yds - Flag was in front that I measured to 120yds. PW off tee on perfect line which came up 4' short of the hole. Nice easy birdie. BIRDIE Hole 4: Par 4, 349 yds - I have a few holes that just don't fit my eye on this course...and this hole is one of them. It is a slight dog leg right as you get closer to the hole. OOB if you go to far right and water if you go too far left. Ended up hitting weird shot with my driver (kind of topped it) but it rolled out decent and left me with 190 to the hole. I tried to make a hero shot with 4hy and pushed it right into the woods. Took a drop and next shot hit to front edge of green. Really good lag putt which left me a tap in. DOUBLE Hole 5: Par 5, 451 yds - This is really the only par 5 on the course where I have a realistic change on getting to the green in 2. Pretty decent drive with a little fade that rolled out to the right rough. (guess I won't be going for it). Decided the smart play was to lay up with a 7i...duffed that but rolled out okay. 120 to the flag on left side of a large green. Of course, I hit my PW to the right side of the green and ended up bouncing off long and to the right. Chipped to about 10' and 2 putt. BOGEY Hole 6: Par 3, 145 yds - Tricky par 3 with pond in front and OOB on right and if you are too long, you are in the parking lot. Left is definitely the safe side to miss. I duffed my 8i off the tee but luckily it held up before it reached the pond. Pitched it on with a 2 putt - BOGEY ***side note, my wife almost had her first hole in one (still looking for my first) as she was less than a foot from the hole off her tee shot. Was really cool to see.** Hole 7: Par 5, 527 yds - This hole even plays longer than the yardage as wind is always in your face...not much wind last night so that was good. Hit decent drive with a little fade in fairway. A little over 300 out, topped my 3w and rolled out 100 yards. I am 200 out, but there is a wide ditch w/water surrounding the green so I didn't want to risk it. Hit a great lay up about 50 yards short of hole. Messed up my approach as it went in the ditch, but thankfully, not in the water, so I was able to play it. Tough chip but hacked it out and 2 putt. DOUBLE Hole 8: Par 4, 325 yds - One of my favorite holes on the course, if I don't leave with a par on this hole, I am usually disappointed. Hit a nice 3w off tee. 136 left to flag but I hit my 9i fat so ended up short. Chipped it to 5' and made the putt. PAR Hole 9: Par 4, 308 yds - The 9th hole is the opposite of 8....another one that gets in my head. Although it is shorter, there is water before the green and I rank this green as one of the two toughest on the course. Used 3w off the tee and ended in right side of fairway leaving me 120 out. Caught PW fat but ended up short of water. About 60 yards to go and my next shot only went about 30 yards, just barely clearing the pond. Really nice chip to 3' and tapped it in. BOGEY. Overall, this felt like a great 9 holes although I duffed a few and got lucky on #2....I felt I had some decent shots and more importantly for me, I only had 14 putts which has to be a record. No 3 putts and no penalties are the key....which is why I would have loved to play the back 9 to see what the overall would have been. I adjusted the ball a bit in my putting stance. I am playing it more in the center rather than closer to my front foot....It is still early since I made the adjustment but my putting has been better than ever.

Randall, I have had limited instruction years back (group thing) and took away a few pieces but it was very general. I also have never engaged the My Swing forum for advice either...something I would like to do in the future. So I did play last Thursday...fought darkness but got all 18 in and it was definitely a round to forget. I don't know if it was the extreme wind going on that evening or rushing to try and get all 18 holes in but, overall, it was my worst round of the year. It was an even 100 (51/49) but I never even had 1 par that hasn't happened in a couple of years. This was at my home course as well....but the wind really was something that evening where it didn't make it very enjoyable watching a smashed drive barely make it 150 yards when the ball starts coming backwards. Played a 4 man scramble tourney on Saturday (drunk fest) but played better the more beers that were consumed. Played Monday with the wife on a tricky, but short course (6,120 yds, 67.2/124) that I play about once a year. Played very consistent and finished 44/46 for a 90...double bogey on the par 5 18 didn't help my cause to break 90 but overall, I was very happy with my play. Hit 9/14 fairways but I may have only used my driver 5-6 times. There are a few doglegs so I used anywhere from a 7i to 3hy. The few times I did use driver, I blasted a few good ones which really helps my confidence stepping on the tee box. I still have a tendency for a bad pull hook which did show up on 18. Only hit 3 greens all day so my iron play could have been better but my chipping was on fire. Almost holed one where it hit the pin and stayed out but chipping close really helped shave a few strokes as those holes were a 1 putt tap in. Everything is really starting to get dry up here due to lack of rain. I did hit some nice approach shots to the green, but just didn't stick on. Putting was tough. Finished with 34 putts (3 3putts) but I must have easily lipped 5 putts...and then I had another putt for a solid par and the ball stopped and hung over the hole. I waited and waited but it didn't move so that was a tough bogey. Overall, I had 4 pars, 10 bogeys, 4 doubles (3 of those were from the 3 putts). Oddly enough, I also had 3 penalties but managed bogey on two of them which is great for me. One of the penalties came on the 10th hole. On the front 9, I was penalty free and played the same ball. Had a nice drive on 10 and had little under 100 yards to green with a very large pond in front and woods behind green. I always have trouble with 100 yard shots as I cant get my SW to go that far and my GW flys about 110/115. I ended up trying to muscle the SW and came up short. My 4th shot from the drop zone went in tight so easy bogey save. Going to get out for 9 at my home course tonight....the goal will be to keep it under 45.

Although there are 141 pages on this topic, it seems to be dying slowly unfortunately. I am going to attempt to start participating on here as I seem to have hit a wall with regards to my scoring. I know there will be a breakthrough coming at some point, but it just seems if it's not one thing, it's another. 2016 Background Had my best year in the few years I have been playing, ie rounds played, scoring, etc. I had 39 rounds logged. Only 6 of those were triple digits with the highest being 103. Had 9 rounds in the 80s with my lowest being 84. This leaves the remainder of my rounds in the 90s (24 of them). This all resulted in a total scoring average of 93.74 spread out amongst a variety of courses. Fast forward to 2017. I have 13 rounds logged in thus far, with 11 in the 90s in addition to an 89 and a 100. That score of 100 was my first round in triple digits in about 25 rounds carrying over from last year. Right now my scoring average is 93.53 which is not much of an improvement. However, I feel like I am playing better, but the results just are not showing. My last 2 rounds were feast or famine with a 94 and 92 respectively....but each of those rounds had 7 penalties. Seems like I would Par, Double, Par, Double and so on. One of my bigger struggles is putting/short game. Nothing worse than being just off the green on a par 5 in two shots....but it takes another 4 shots from there to get it in the hole. I averaged 36 putts on the dot last year so I set an optimistic goal of 33 putts this year. If I can eliminate the 3-4 three putts I have, that would really help with this goal. My last 4 rounds, my putting has felt much better as I have been working on it. (33,34,36,33). Of course when the putter is going well, something else falls apart, in this case it is getting the ball in play off the tee. Last year, I could step up to the tee box with driver in hand brimming with confidence....that carried over to this season but has started tailing off. My irons/wedges are hit and miss with my most common miss is pulling it a few yards left....usually hole high so no problem with the proper club selection there. I still suffer from the odd shank, top, duff way too often. All in all....on an average round where I shoot 93, I can typically pick out close to 10 really dumb mistakes that happen that shouldn't have. I am going try to squeeze in 18 tonight hopefully as long as the course isn't too busy as me and my 2 playing partners will only have about 3 hours to get it in before dark. I will try and keep a slightly more detailed hole by hole recap. I think this will help as time goes on being able to review. I have some detailed stats going all the way back to 2012....just for posterity, here are my scoring averages each year....won't bore you with the rest of the stats. I am definitely trending the right direction...and although my scoring average hasn't been dropping as much as I like, there is less dispersion in my scoring. 11 of 13 rounds are 95 or lower. 2012 - 105.4 (10 rounds) 2013 - 101.94 (18 rounds) 2014 - 99.0 (17 rounds) 2015 - 97.1 (31 rounds) 2016 - 93.74 (39 rounds) 2017 - 93.53 (13 rounds and counting)

Serious question....how does this app differ from the many others out there? I currently use golfshot that I purchased for $30 back in 2012 and I have had zero issues with the stat tracking, gps, and the wide variety of courses that the app offers. What is the value for a price tag of $199 usd?

I am in the same boat Jamo...however...a couple of weeks ago I was playing with my wife and 2 buddies at a local muni. #12 is a short~280 yd Par 4 with a pond 190 from the tee and about 220 to carry. Depending how the day is going, I either try to rip a driver over the pond or just lay up and have a nice easy 2nd shot to the green. That day (and this season), I have been hitting the driver longer (sometimes straighter) than I ever have. I tee one up and unfortunately, caught some of the ground before the ball. The ball flew straight but failed to clear the pond by no more than a few feet. In this particular group, we declared that we would get 1 mulligan for the round (yea, I know) and I was purposely saving it for this hole. I declare mulligan, re-tee, nail the driver dead straight....land about 20-25 yards before the green. Ball has a nice hop and rolls within about 2.5 feet to the hole. Easy tap in for an Eagle. I was pretty excited about it obviously as my playing partners congratulated me. However, a part of me understood the reality of it only being a par. So currently, my first eagle has an * by it which I still deem unofficial by my own standards.

Welcome...what do you recommend for a decent beginners course in the Bangor area?

Welcome the best golf forum on the web Gatsby. I am a fellow NBer and you are right, this winter has been very depressing. Here is hoping we start to see some green pop up soon.

Well done, nice to see a group from my neck of the woods contribute positively (and unselfishly) to the golfing community.

The last two years have kind of been a write off for me since I was travelling so often for work. Now that I have stability at home, I took the plunge and got a membership at my favorite course around these parts so I hope to be playing (and practicing) much more. Although I didn't play often, I tracked most of my stats to serve as a benchmark for this season. Play 20-30+ rounds - I should specify that these will be legit rounds for my stats/handicap. There are a couple of executive courses nearby that I will be playing, but those will be more for practice than anything. I have never played more than 12 rounds a season so this is pretty exciting for me. Our season usually starts around late April to early October. Average score of 95 or less - Last season I logged 10 rounds and my average score came out as 105.4. My highest round was the first of the year at 117 and my lowest score was 92 (on a much easier course) and that was the only time I broke 100. Came close many times though. Therefore, the ultimate goal is to shave at least 10 strokes off my game. Fairways hit of 50% - This number may seem a little lofty for such a high handicapper like myself but last year I averaged a little over 42% fairways hit. I am not a very long hitter and ended up using 3W most of the time off the tee. I have a new driver this year and I am looking forward to taking it out (ranges aren't open yet). Ultimate goal here is to hit it longer and stay in the short grass. Greens in Regulation of 25% - This is area where I think my game hurts the most. I am looking at a large jump going from less than 8% GIR up to 25%. However, this is a must if I want to score well. There have been many times where I will hit a nice drive and either duff or shank my approach shots. One of the areas I need to work on is aligning myself to the target. I would have been pin high so many times but end up 20 yards to the left or the right of the green even though my shot goes farily straight...just wasn't aiming properly at the flag. Putts per round at 36 or less - This seems to be a nice round number to try and obtain too. Least year I average 38.9 putts per round, however, the first 5 rounds I averaged 42 and my last 5 rounds I averaged 35 so I was defintely improving as I found a putting stroke that I was comfortable with. Also picked up an Oddysey putter that I have been practicing with in the basement. Three Putts at 3.5 or less - Last season I averaged about 5.4 three putts per round. Way to many...even 3.5 is too many but I need to have a realistic and achievable goal to hit. And again, with all goals, if I exceed my expectations, all the better. First 5 rounds I was around 7.5 three putts and my last 5 rounds, I was down to 3.4. Two penalties or less - Last season I was almost accruing 4 penalties a round...not 4 penalty strokes either. Score really adds up when your ball ends up unplayable. Establish Handicap - Have never done this. Track my club distances - I use Golfshot which has this feature, be nice to have an idea on how far I can hit with each club.

Always enjoy these threads that come out of the wood work.

The club is ruined, send it to me and I will dispose of it properly.

Globalgolf.com is a site that I just discovered. Don't think they are whole sale but they offer new and used clubs (amongst many other things). Prices are very reasonable. Ordered a Nike Driver and Oddysey Putter last Thursday, shipped Friday and arrived on the east coast of Canada today. Now I just need the few feet of snow to dissapear to really try these out.

Well, I didn't get out as much as I liked due to travelling a lot on business so the majority of these goals have not been reached. I would also like to point out that 2012 was my first season of tracking my golf stats. Most of the goals in this thread were plucked out of my head but now that I have a sample (small) of various stats, I can use that to build on for 2013.

Why wouldn't it be legal?

Great read and great round...keep em coming Ben....very inspiring posts and I love the detail that you put on it....feels like I am right out there with you.

Congrats....I almost lived that story yesterday....Won't get into many details on your thread but my personal best has been an even 100 (twice) and yesterday shot a 92....could have easily been an 89. Great feeling

I live in SJ..well Rothesay... and mostly play Rockwood, Sussex, Welsford, etc....I played a few tracks up in Moncton as I traveled often for work ...always enjoy playing different courses when I can...haven't been out much this year (6) but I have a bit more free time on my hands now for the rest of the season so I am looking to get back in shape and getting out more often.. As for my play...pretty terrible but I love it and I know someday I will break through.

Good luck Apoc from a fellow NBer who is nowhere near as good as you lol.

Anything new in the last 6 weeks Ben?

You neglected to mention the little twist....your pick must win by 2 strokes....if both golfers end tied or up/down by 1....it's considered a tie and not a win....that's what makes it really tough. Always fun and I usually throw a toonie on it every now and then.

Old and corny but it gave me a laugh...

Round 3: Had a pretty good day (yesterday) and shot an even 100 (50/50). That is my best score thus far, although I have played at 3 different courses, I am moving in the right direction going from 117, 107, 100. My previous best at this particular course was a 104. I really wish I could have taken off 1 stroke just so I could say, I broke 100. The ironic thing is, I think I could have easily been in the low-mid 90's....Took 2 penalty strokes off the tee, duffed a couple of shots, missed a couple easy putts, you guys know how it is. Also, not to mention, I took an 8 on the very first hole. My putting was better than what it has been but I am still not totally comfortable with it. Finished with 2 pars, 7 bogeys which is probably some sort of record for me. I had a string of 4 consecutive bogeys which was cool. Shot of the day for me were 2 fold. Hole #3, par 3 145 yards to a very elevated green, used a 7i and was able to stick it 6 feet from the hole. Hole #13....had a chip in from the rough about 35 feet into the hole, hit the green and ran straight in the hole...too bad it was to save bogey. Some stats... Score - 100 Putts - 39 Fairways - 4/14 GIR - 2/18 2 Penalty strokes

Round 2 : Nothing to exciting...shot a 53-54 (107) which is avg for me, on a course I haven't played before. 8/14 Fwy - Finally got my groove back in my driver 1/18 GIR - Hey, it's an improvement on my goose egg from my 1st round....Ended up with Par 42 Putts - Again, an improvement on my 44 from Round 1. 23/19....I found I was skimming the hole always on the right side...might need to check alignment more carefully. 2 Penalties 1 par, 3 bogies...