Range 2 Course: Beyond Discouraged

[larrybud]

PS. Thinking "I'm gonna birdie this hole" after a good tee shot is just as detrimental. One shot at a time, and avoid letting the emotions get too high or too low.

 

While I totally agree with 1 shot at a time, my best round occurred when standing on the tee thinking "ok, now let's birdie this one". I find when I'm thinking like that, I'm think of where I want the ball to go on the next shot, rather than where I don't want it to go.

[North Butte]

Nobody ever got any good at playing golf only playing once a week. Do I understand correctly that you only played 15 rounds all of last year?

 

If so, there is no answer to your problem other than go play until you figure it out. Unless you are some sort of prodigy it's going to take you a couple hundred rounds to have any clue what you're doing.

[JonPacNW]

PS. Thinking "I'm gonna birdie this hole" after a good tee shot is just as detrimental. One shot at a time, and avoid letting the emotions get too high or too low.

 

While I totally agree with 1 shot at a time, my best round occurred when standing on the tee thinking "ok, now let's birdie this one". I find when I'm thinking like that, I'm think of where I want the ball to go on the next shot, rather than where I don't want it to go.

 

You may have missed my point. I'm a strong believer in positive thinking and course management. Before you hit a shot, of course you need to think of a specific landing area where you give yourself the best approach and birdie chance. But for newer golfers, letting the emotion of your most recent shot (bad or good) take over makes you play worse golf. I have some experience with this, since, for the first few years, I could only play decent golf when I was missing fairways and greens by a little bit and not too much. In other words, my emotions were kept in the medium range for the whole round. I'm still working on managing my emotions and expectations shot by shot. I truly believe it's the way I'm going to make the next big leap in my game.

[MCL116]

Nobody ever got any good at playing golf only playing once a week. Do I understand correctly that you only played 15 rounds all of last year?

 

If so, there is no answer to your problem other than go play until you figure it out. Unless you are some sort of prodigy it's going to take you a couple hundred rounds to have any clue what you're doing.

 

Unfortunately working full time in NYC does not allow for much more. I played a short par 3 type course a bunch of times also but I don't count those. I played some twilight holes but don't count those either.

 

I think changing the way I practice will really help. I like the idea of putting the bucket of balls a few steps behind me. I'm also going to change target and club every 5 shots even when I'm working on my swing mechanics. I video myself when I work on that portion, so I need to focus on the feel/move rather than the outcome of the shot, and I can then use the video to confirm I have done what I was intending to do before taking another swing.

 

From there, I will move into target practice. Again, changing target and club for each shot. I'll mix this up between hitting targets, and playing holes I have in yardage books. On poor shots, I will do my best to figure out what it was that was different from my good shots. I'll probably video several swings in this portion as well and review before taking my next swing.

 

Then to end things off, I will work on driver and wedges (full, half, quarter) shots.

 

I think taking a little more time between shots, and constantly switching targets and clubs will really help bring some of what I have on the range, to the course.

[marte]

MCL116. In post #30 you say "Maybe going to the short par 3 course I have by me would be good as well just hitting 3-4 balls with wedges on every hole".

 

If it is near where you live during your work week I think this is a great idea. Gives you a chance to play on a golf course of some type during the week...experience a golf course setting...and hit all kinds shots (short iron, pitch, chip, putt) you'd normally hit on any course.

Play and score at least one ball, your first, on each hole. No cheating lol. As full courses usually have only 3-4 par 3's, I would tee the ball up on only 2 of the 9 holes and play the other 7 off the ground kind of replicating hitting into a green from the fairway. On the 7-9 holes you hit off the ground check the tee box for NON level areas, maybe you can find spots where the ball will be a little above or below your feet...a bit downhill or uphill...more replicating the lies you'd be getting when playing full courses.

 

Doing this will certainly increase your golf course reps which can only be helpful to your long term development even if you can only do it once a week. Better than chipping and putting in your apartment. I'd also continue with the range working more on stuff (Driver, 3w off tee, etc) that you can't do on the par 3 course.

 

It'll come. Good luck.

 

EDIT...oops, didn't see in post 34 that you've played the par 3. My advice above still holds. Play it seriously. Play at least one ball for score and keep a written record of your scores for each 9. Track GIR, Putts, 3 Putts, PS, lost balls, etc. on the the ball you are playing for score. If taken seriously these par 3 rounds will give you a clear picture of whether you are improving or not in this very important area of all golfers games. Myself, I've rarely in 50 years of golfing had the opportunity to play par 3 courses but whenever I have they have clearly shown me glaring weaknesses in my own game. Never came close to par.

[North Butte]

I'm not trying to rain on your parade but perhaps managing expectations is the best advice unless/until there is some time in your life you can play more golf. Your instructor may think your SWING will be as good as that of a single-digit handicapper sometime soon but I just don't believe that, say, breaking 80 is a reasonable expectation for a beginner who takes several years to accumulate his first 50 rounds of golf.

 

Naturally you can only play when you have the opportunity. But try to make the most of those occasions and enjoy being out on the course. Don't let high expectations get in the way of having fun.

 

If you go out once or twice a month and sometimes break 90 that is better than 99.9% of golfers who are at a similar beginner phase of the game.

[MCL116]

MCL116. In post #30 you say "Maybe going to the short par 3 course I have by me would be good as well just hitting 3-4 balls with wedges on every hole".

 

If it is near where you live during your work week I think this is a great idea. Gives you a chance to play on a golf course of some type during the week...experience a golf course setting...and hit all kinds shots (short iron, pitch, chip, putt) you'd normally hit on any course.

Play and score at least one ball, your first, on each hole. No cheating lol. As full courses usually have only 3-4 par 3's, I would tee the ball up on only 2 of the 9 holes and play the other 7 off the ground kind of replicating hitting into a green from the fairway. On the 7-9 holes you hit off the ground check the tee box for NON level areas, maybe you can find spots where the ball will be a little above or below your feet...a bit downhill or uphill...more replicating the lies you'd be getting when playing full courses.

 

Doing this will certainly increase your golf course reps which can only be helpful to your long term development even if you can only do it once a week. Better than chipping and putting in your apartment. I'd also continue with the range working more on stuff (Driver, 3w off tee, etc) that you can't do on the par 3 course.

 

It'll come. Good luck.

 

EDIT...oops, didn't see in post 34 that you've played the par 3. My advice above still holds. Play it seriously. Play at least one ball for score and keep a written record of your scores for each 9. Track GIR, Putts, 3 Putts, PS, lost balls, etc. on the the ball you are playing for score. If taken seriously these par 3 rounds will give you a clear picture of whether you are improving or not in this very important area of all golfers games. Myself, I've rarely in 50 years of golfing had the opportunity to play par 3 courses but whenever I have they have clearly shown me glaring weaknesses in my own game. Never came close to par.

 

Sorry, I wasn't clear. Sometimes when I refer to my parents house on Long Island, I call it home, naturally.

 

I live and work in NYC.

 

The range I go to and the short part 3 course I referred to is also on LI. But I am going to make more of an effort to use this. Rather than maybe hitting the range in the morning, then another range session before playing twilight practice holes, I'll play the par 3 in the morning, range session in the afternoon. Or whatever it may be, just more of an effort to hit the par 3 course a little more

[sekrah]

IMO, you won't be able to play 1 or 2 rounds of golf a month and break 90 unless it's a total fluke round. You definitely won't be able to break 80 in your life only playing that much.

[MCL116]

IMO, you won't be able to play 1 or 2 rounds of golf a month and break 90 unless it's a total fluke round. You definitely won't be able to break 80 in your life only playing that much.

 

Well thanks for the encouraging and helpful remarks but I have several friends that play the same amount as I do (although they began playing a few years before me) that consistently shoot in the 80s.

[moadhia]

IMO, you won't be able to play 1 or 2 rounds of golf a month and break 90 unless it's a total fluke round. You definitely won't be able to break 80 in your life only playing that much.

 

Well thanks for the encouraging and helpful remarks but I have several friends that play the same amount as I do (although they began playing a few years before me) that consistently shoot in the 80s.

 

I live in NYC like you and I understand your frustration with how difficult it is to practice and play golf during weekdays. Add a wife and a kid in the mix and it becomes exponentially harder.

 

Saying all that, I have made a conscious effort of improving my swing this season and I am consistently shooting low 80s now playing 2-3 times a month.

 

The most important determinant of your golf score is GIRs. There is tons of research on that. So let's get one thing clear that we need to improve our swing, putting and short game alone won't cut it.

 

Here are my suggestions :

 

- do tons of mirror work on your swing. Whatever your instructor tells you , ingrain the movement and make it subconscious. This you can do in your apartment everyday. Beat the correct movements to death until you can't do it anymore.

 

- forget your golf score. Only track your fairways hit and GIRs. If you have to shoot middle of the green with pins to the side, do it. Once your GIRs are where you want them to be, work on putting /short game. If you want shoot 80s you need your GIRs to be b/w 6 to 8. Again, there is research on that , google is your friend. I am at 7 GIRs and aim to increase it to 9-10.

 

- play as much sim golf as you can on weekdays. It's not ideal but there are tons of places in NYC that offer that. You will shoot lower in sim golf but it will keep your swing sharp.

 

- better use of range time. Won't go into detail as people have already elaborated. Mike malaska suggests you take a minute break between hitting shots on the range. That will tell you whether what you practice is part of your long term memory or shorter term memory. Long term memory is what matters on the course.

[rteach1]

MCL116 you say you practice in your NYC apartment so I'm gonna go out on a limb and assume you live in the city. That being said, is your practice range a multi-tiered job with mats?

 

If so, it might be worth your while to find a place where you can hit off real grass especially your short shots. Even more worth your while would be to find real grass with uneven lies.

 

Silly question... is there an out of the way area at a local park like Central Park where you can dump a few balls and hit some under 25 yard shots?

 

My parents actually live on LI, so in the summers, I head back there pretty much every single weekend and go to the range/course that is 15 mins away. Unfortunately that's not a grass range. But where I take lessons is grass, so after a lesson, I stick around and work more there. Not sure I can do that in CP, but certainly something to look into for 50yd and in shots

 

IM trying something new on the range now i got it from a video on youtube by Van phillips its called practice to win

 

he says that hitting ball after ball on the range isnt anything like golf you dont get a second change on the course. most people on the range hit a ball and drag the next ball and hit it again.

 

hes method involves you put the bucket of balls 3 to 5 yards away from your hitting area so you have to go get a ball after each shot. never play the same shot twice pick a different target each time and you the PAR method which is somthing like

 

Plan the shot think what you want to do and how to do it

Action the shot you just planned for

Review review the shot you just hit and take a positive from it

 

i hope this helps

 

I like this idea. Keeps the seemingly unlimited balls out of sight and forces me to walk off the mat and back onto the mat, spaces out my shots a bit. Definitely something I will look to incorporate. Do you use this when you're doing block practice also or have you only been using it when focusing on your targets?

 

Practicing chipping on a matt is terrible. I learned that the hard way. Also, clearly your game is not as good as you think it is. Look, Steph Curry can hit like 90+ percent of his 3's in practice. In games he's hitting 47% or something like that. That's still mighty good but just says how good you need to be at practice to be decent in real life. Each and every swing counts unlike at the range. Sounds like you have a lot of tension, and it's messing up your game. Been through that. But the real truth to being good is mental. Concentration. The brain can take a mediocre swing and shoot in the 80's vs 100's exact same swing. Also, cutting down on OB's helps of course. But there's a major swing flaw that you need to iron out. Either that or don't hit driver at first. At the range, how many drivers can go within a 40 yard lane? It's not easy. The best players can consistently stripe it down the fairway. Scratch players I think hit it like 55 pct of the time but they won't hit it OB very often maybe once every two rounds. You don't even want to know what the LPGA does. They are ridiculously good.

 

Chipping/pitching off mats definitely is not ideal, but with no other option, I've got to use what I have at my disposal. Driver definitely needs a ton more work, which is why at least half the bucket (maybe I need to up this a bit) will be focused on that and wedges from now on.

 

 

I get that I am very new to a very hard game and maybe my expectations are a bit high.

 

But what is most frustrating is to know I can hit my irons just as well as my friends that shoot in the 80s (if not better) on the range, but I can't seem to do it on the course. It's frustrating to have figured out driver at the end of last year to where it was a weapon for me, to now, having no idea what will happen on the box. So yes if I was still thinning, chunking, slicing, every other shot, and on the range, barely making good contact and all of that, I would understand my expectations should be much lower. But because I can see I have the ability to do it, and I'm not able to do it on the course, that's what is most frustrating.

 

Just have to work harder on making my swing more consistent and work on ways to make my practice more "course-like".

 

I live on Long Island (but grew up in NYC) and understand your frustration. Here are a couple of suggestions:

 

1. If your parents live anywhere Hauppauge, the Hamlet Wind Watch course allows use of the grass practice range on Fridays and Saturdays. I'd call first to make sure that this is still the case this year. They also have an excellent grass short game area that is in a different part of the practice range. I think that the price is pretty stiff, but i believe that you can pick up the balls you've hit and repeat your process as many times as you want. Believe me, I get how frustrating it is to have only mats on most ranges here.

 

2. If your schedule allows, you might go to Sunken Meadow Park at about 5:00 on a Saturday. They have 3 different 9-hole courses (You can combine two if you have time to play 18) in pretty decent shape for a public course. it's not always the case, but you can sometimes find that one of the 3 courses is quite open at that time if you want to just practice by playing. If you do get assigned to play with others, that's fine too, as it's a no-pressure environment. I played yesterday at 5:30, got placed with 2 nice guys, got in some practice, and had a good time. Even the weekend rates are quite cheap.

 

3. I'm curious as to where you take your lessons and from whom?

[MCL116]

My house on LI is a bit far from there, probably 30-45 minutes. Tough to justify the drive when I'm only on LI on weekends and I have a full 18 course with range 5 minutes from my house and the par 3 about 12 minutes from my house... Also the assistant pro at the range has been very very good to me and will work with me for free sometimes when he's not busy and gets me out on the course for free in the late afternoons occasionally.

 

I shouldn't say because I'm so bad it may ruin his rep but I've been taking lessons with Michael Jacobs at Rock Hill CC in Manorville. Awesome guy and has helped turn my swing from a complete beginner slicer swing to something with pretty solid fundamentals. He's been great to me as well and we chat year round. If interested in a lesson with him - I highly suggest it, he probably knows more about the swing than anybody teaching and is great to work with.

 

On my way back to LI right now, going to hit a small bucket with these new practice techniques then play some practice holes!! 18 tomorrow with my buddies and then 9 on the short course Sunday morning!!

[sekrah]

IMO, you won't be able to play 1 or 2 rounds of golf a month and break 90 unless it's a total fluke round. You definitely won't be able to break 80 in your life only playing that much.

 

Well thanks for the encouraging and helpful remarks but I have several friends that play the same amount as I do (although they began playing a few years before me) that consistently shoot in the 80s.

 

At some point in their development, they were playing/practicing much more than you are right now. I can guarantee it.

[rteach1]

My house on LI is a bit far from there, probably 30-45 minutes. Tough to justify the drive when I'm only on LI on weekends and I have a full 18 course with range 5 minutes from my house and the par 3 about 12 minutes from my house... Also the assistant pro at the range has been very very good to me and will work with me for free sometimes when he's not busy and gets me out on the course for free in the late afternoons occasionally.

 

I shouldn't say because I'm so bad it may ruin his rep but I've been taking lessons with Michael Jacobs at Rock Hill CC in Manorville. Awesome guy and has helped turn my swing from a complete beginner slicer swing to something with pretty solid fundamentals. He's been great to me as well and we chat year round. If interested in a lesson with him - I highly suggest it, he probably knows more about the swing than anybody teaching and is great to work with.

 

On my way back to LI right now, going to hit a small bucket with these new practice techniques then play some practice holes!! 18 tomorrow with my buddies and then 9 on the short course Sunday morning!!

 

I know Mike and agree with everything you said about him. My last suggestion, which I usually think of first, would be to purchase The Practice Manual by Adam Young. It deals with your original post to a tee (pun intended, sorry). iI is by far the best golf book that I have ever read. It's about $23 on Amazon. Check out his blog at Adam Young Golf also. Many great articles that are right up your alley. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress. Would be interested to know what eventually does the trick for you.

[sekrah]

My house on LI is a bit far from there, probably 30-45 minutes. Tough to justify the drive when I'm only on LI on weekends and I have a full 18 course with range 5 minutes from my house and the par 3 about 12 minutes from my house... Also the assistant pro at the range has been very very good to me and will work with me for free sometimes when he's not busy and gets me out on the course for free in the late afternoons occasionally.

 

I shouldn't say because I'm so bad it may ruin his rep but I've been taking lessons with Michael Jacobs at Rock Hill CC in Manorville. Awesome guy and has helped turn my swing from a complete beginner slicer swing to something with pretty solid fundamentals. He's been great to me as well and we chat year round. If interested in a lesson with him - I highly suggest it, he probably knows more about the swing than anybody teaching and is great to work with.

 

On my way back to LI right now, going to hit a small bucket with these new practice techniques then play some practice holes!! 18 tomorrow with my buddies and then 9 on the short course Sunday morning!!

 

I know Mike and agree with everything you said about him. My last suggestion, which I usually think of first, would be to purchase The Practice Manual by Adam Young. It deals with your original post to a tee (pun intended, sorry). iI is by far the best golf book that I have ever read. It's about $23 on Amazon. Check out his blog at Adam Young Golf also. Many great articles that are right up your alley. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress. Would be interested to know what eventually does the trick for you.

 

I'm a fan of the Adam Young blog as well. Unfortunately, it seems OP is a one marshmallow kind of guy.

[nlk10010]

I don't know how relevant my comments are to this thread, so I apologize in advance, but I saw the title and just HAD to comment.

 

I picked up the game about 8 years ago and have tried to get better over the Summers. For the first six or seven years I would almost NEVER go to a course. I would go to the range with the attitude that I would perfect my swing there and THEN go to the course and play. In essence I would build my swing off course and then be able to go out and enjoy my course game from the outset.

 

Never worked out. There was little correlation between what I did on the range and how I performed on the course (we're talking low-level 9-holer here). I don't know why, I don't have the time to figure it out, I don't care. I only know that I could feel like I was striking the ball well at the range and everything would fall apart once I got on a course. Of course the fact that I'm hitting off mats at the range plays a large part in this but even beyond that, a course is a whole different environment.

 

The strange thing is that for the last year or two I've avoided the range like the plague (it just doesn't interest me any more), because I know I can hit my irons well there and get nowhere when I go to the course. I now go to the range ONLY to take lessons OR to work on a specific idea or ideas, and I take NOTHING away from how I hit there. I know it's discouraging to think you've "got it" only for that feeling to dissipate once you get to the course, but that happens to EVERYONE. There is no short-cut, in order to get better you HAVE to actually play a lot. And you may be closer than you think, don't let that disappointment mislead you. But you WILL have to endure it for a period of time.

 

I also work in NYC and live on LI but have an advantage since I'm a senior citizen and can go on 9-hole courses for $9/round (frankly most people play more than one round for that money, but that's another topic). Now that I'm off for the Summer I go 3-4 times a week because I know that at least if I hit it well there it "counts".

 

So I guess I'm saying "just keep playing" (funds allowing, of course). I suppose there are guys/gals who prefer the range and want to show well there, but I don't recall many posts along the lines of: "I can play well on the course but my swing falls apart when I go to the range...PLEASE HELP!". :)

 

Why a swing doesn't transfer from the range to the course is one of those great "unknowables" in life. Don't waste your time trying to figure it out. The important thing, as I said above, is to NOT infer from what you do on the course that all your work with your coach and on the range has gone for naught. It's necessary and it will eventually rise to the surface, you've just added another layer to the task of learning to play golf (i.e. playing a course) and it will take time. Good Luck.

[marte]

MCL116. In post #30 you say "Maybe going to the short par 3 course I have by me would be good as well just hitting 3-4 balls with wedges on every hole".

 

If it is near where you live during your work week I think this is a great idea. Gives you a chance to play on a golf course of some type during the week...experience a golf course setting...and hit all kinds shots (short iron, pitch, chip, putt) you'd normally hit on any course.

Play and score at least one ball, your first, on each hole. No cheating lol. As full courses usually have only 3-4 par 3's, I would tee the ball up on only 2 of the 9 holes and play the other 7 off the ground kind of replicating hitting into a green from the fairway. On the 7-9 holes you hit off the ground check the tee box for NON level areas, maybe you can find spots where the ball will be a little above or below your feet...a bit downhill or uphill...more replicating the lies you'd be getting when playing full courses.

 

Doing this will certainly increase your golf course reps which can only be helpful to your long term development even if you can only do it once a week. Better than chipping and putting in your apartment. I'd also continue with the range working more on stuff (Driver, 3w off tee, etc) that you can't do on the par 3 course.

 

It'll come. Good luck.

 

EDIT...oops, didn't see in post 34 that you've played the par 3. My advice above still holds. Play it seriously. Play at least one ball for score and keep a written record of your scores for each 9. Track GIR, Putts, 3 Putts, PS, lost balls, etc. on the the ball you are playing for score. If taken seriously these par 3 rounds will give you a clear picture of whether you are improving or not in this very important area of all golfers games. Myself, I've rarely in 50 years of golfing had the opportunity to play par 3 courses but whenever I have they have clearly shown me glaring weaknesses in my own game. Never came close to par.

 

Sorry, I wasn't clear. Sometimes when I refer to my parents house on Long Island, I call it home, naturally.

 

I live and work in NYC.

 

The range I go to and the short part 3 course I referred to is also on LI. But I am going to make more of an effort to use this. Rather than maybe hitting the range in the morning, then another range session before playing twilight practice holes, I'll play the par 3 in the morning, range session in the afternoon. Or whatever it may be, just more of an effort to hit the par 3 course a little more

 

I thought the Par 3 was in NYC and that you could play it through the week. So much for that thought. Sounds like you are pretty much stuck with being a weekend player ex-holidays.

[MCL116]

My house on LI is a bit far from there, probably 30-45 minutes. Tough to justify the drive when I'm only on LI on weekends and I have a full 18 course with range 5 minutes from my house and the par 3 about 12 minutes from my house... Also the assistant pro at the range has been very very good to me and will work with me for free sometimes when he's not busy and gets me out on the course for free in the late afternoons occasionally.

 

I shouldn't say because I'm so bad it may ruin his rep but I've been taking lessons with Michael Jacobs at Rock Hill CC in Manorville. Awesome guy and has helped turn my swing from a complete beginner slicer swing to something with pretty solid fundamentals. He's been great to me as well and we chat year round. If interested in a lesson with him - I highly suggest it, he probably knows more about the swing than anybody teaching and is great to work with.

 

On my way back to LI right now, going to hit a small bucket with these new practice techniques then play some practice holes!! 18 tomorrow with my buddies and then 9 on the short course Sunday morning!!

 

I know Mike and agree with everything you said about him. My last suggestion, which I usually think of first, would be to purchase The Practice Manual by Adam Young. It deals with your original post to a tee (pun intended, sorry). iI is by far the best golf book that I have ever read. It's about $23 on Amazon. Check out his blog at Adam Young Golf also. Many great articles that are right up your alley. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress. Would be interested to know what eventually does the trick for you.

 

I'm a fan of the Adam Young blog as well. Unfortunately, it seems OP is a one marshmallow kind of guy.

 

Not at all! That's why I'm here asking for help! I'm absolutely going to check out the blog and the book and try to use what I can.

 

Well last night the plan was to hit a small bucket at the range and play as many holes as possible but the range was closed so I went to the putting green and chipped and putted 6 balls for about 30-45 minutes then I went out onto the hole next to me and hit 10 balls from different spots in the fairway and rough from 125 and in for an hour. Really good practice, like great. Most importantly I was hitting balls on a course, had to walk to my balls since I scattered them and had different lies.

 

Played 18 this morning on a short (6400 yards) but very tight course. No driver off the tee, except on 2 holes, shot a 99, and of course as most rounds end, should have been lower. Feeling very good about the way I was hitting my irons. Had 37 putts, a couple 3 putts id like back but considering I've only played a season and a half, I'm focused on being as close to 36 putts as possible. Feeling better about things and now I'm going to take a lesson!

[sbark]

Take the card from your full length course to the range. Basically play the round there. 1st hole driver....figure yardage to 1st hole on your course card, then 7 iron or wedge into the green. If you miss the green (your small target) wedge it onto the green

[JonPacNW]

 

Saying all that, I have made a conscious effort of improving my swing this season and I am consistently shooting low 80s now playing 2-3 times a month.

 

...

 

The most important determinant of your golf score is GIRs. There is tons of research on that. So let's get one thing clear that we need to improve our swing, putting and short game alone won't cut it.

 

...

 

I am at 7 GIRs and aim to increase it to 9-10.

 

 

Ok, so if you can't chip on the 11 greens you miss and if you 3-putt on the 7 greens you hit, how are you going to shoot low 80's consistently?

 

Maybe you have a natural affinity for chipping, putting, and hitting rescue shots without practice. But, for the rest of us mortals, we need to improve all aspects of our game to shoot lower scores. I too shoot my best scores when I'm hitting greens in regulation, but if that's all you care about then you've missed the point and the beauty of a golf course and a player's shotmaking ability.

[PuttingIsNotGolf]

You're using the range incorrectly. The range has no penalties no matter how hard you envision fake water or imaginary trees, and there are no holes... So it's basically a sandbox... use it to test things out, not to groove a motion. You will improve when you actually put your a** on the line. Gamble, compete... the range will morph into whatever tool you need after you learn to think clearly. Or perhaps you can't take your "range game" to the course because of loft.

[sekrah]

You're using the range incorrectly. The range has no penalties no matter how hard you envision fake water or imaginary trees, and there are no holes... So it's basically a sandbox... use it to test things out, not to groove a motion. You will improve when you actually put your a** on the line. Gamble, compete... the range will morph into whatever tool you need after you learn to think clearly. Or perhaps you can't take your "range game" to the course because of loft.

 

 

Disagree with your range part. Agree that he needs to play more on the course. He's choking under pressure. You can solve that by grooving your motion so it's more natural, with MORE range time as well as more real golf on the course to allow you to relax more under pressure.

 

You need to hit more balls, period.

[johnnyscarps007]

Since your only in your second year I would trust the process. I believe me may even work with the same instructor based on your description. Your not going to see the changes over night. I was a 5-8 handicap throughout high school and college on a homemade swing and out of nowhere I couldn't hit the ball anymore. I spent three years of not recording an official score because I had so many holes that I couldn't keep the ball in play. Finally I started taking lessons at the beginning of last year and I've just started to have real scores again. My biggest piece of advice that worked for me was consistently going for the lessons. If you have someone that you trust, don't try to "save" the lessons. Last year I would try to space them out over time because they weren't cheap and I wanted them to last. This year I went for a lesson every two weeks or so and have seen monumental changes. You also have to work hard in between the lessons which doesn't seem like a problem for you

[marte]

MCL---99 yesterday...tied your best round ever? And only 2 Drivers! That's great.

[MCL116]

MCL---99 yesterday...tied your best round ever? And only 2 Drivers! That's great.

 

Thanks! Felt really good about my round. It was a good feeling being in play off the tee. Short game was pretty good. Felt like I was playing golf.

 

My lesson afterwards was an unreal experience for me. With 3 minor changes, I was hitting the ball with every club through the bag like I never have before. Contact felt this heavy, absolute destruction thud of the ball. It was really such an awesome hour to be swinging like that. The three changes were, shoulders back as I was hunching, effectively making me to close to the ball, standing further from the ball (need to feel like I'm totally outstretched), stronger right hand as I had weakened it a bit without realizing. With the longer clubs, especially driver, I need to feel like I'm throwing the club from the very top. As I said with those changes, I've never hit such powerful and consistent shots.

 

Played the short course today just hitting lay up shots with wedges, going for the greens on some, chipping and pitching from different places. Focusing on those 3 fundamental changes I worked on in my lesson and it totally carried over. I was hitting wedges into the greens from 125 and in to 20 feet and in. Contact felt super solid again. Chipping was again feeling good. It really felt like things were starting to make sense.

 

Definitely need to get to a range and make the changes (mostly the throw from the top feel) more natural in my swing, but I'm feeling very good about the direction things are heading!

[rteach1]

Were these changes from a lesson with Mike Jacobs?

[MCL116]

Were these changes from a lesson with Mike Jacobs?

 

Yep! Really excited about getting in a couple of range sessions to work on making these changes a more natural part of my swing.

 

Might not get to play 18 next weekend but I'll definitely try to play some twilight holes or maybe play the short par 3 again. We'll see what winds up happening, but will definitely be practicing!

[MCL116]

Well all my buddies are gone this weekend so I plan on using this time to put in as much work as I can.

 

Will hopefully get in some range time and play some twilight holes Saturday. Maybe use the range to really groove the changes to my setup and the feeling of casting from the top with driver/3 wood. Also work on my swing with my new practice techniques which I am really excited to try out! When I get out for some twilight holes, I think after a few holes, I'm going to do what I did last week and go to this one particular hole and work on approach shots from 125 and an hour.

 

Going to play 9 holes Sunday morning which will be a nice test to see if I'm able to bring any of this onto the course. Especially excited to see if I can bring driver to the course!

[CasualLie]

This should be your range session adjustments:

 

#1. Stop admiring your range shots and putting on a show for your friends. They don't count for s***. Everybody on this forum could get into a groove rapid firing at the range when we were 25+ handicaps like you.

#2. Take 30-45 seconds between each shot at the range. Immediately after impact, you should be thinking about the swing you just took. You should be absorbing it into your mind, and then after you have it locked in what you just did, then you can compare that to the result. After each shot you should be thinking about your grip, your setup, your takeaway, your transition, and your rotation through the ball. Soak it all up before hitting another ball. It should take you at least an hour to go through a small bucket..

 

You will find that your Friday night range swing is much more likely to come over to a Saturday morning round if you do this.

 

If you're anything like me, you're probably getting jacked up when it's time to play a round. 99% of the time, I see people get tense and hurry their swings during a round, usually the takeaway or transition.. I catch myself doing the same thing. You have to SLOW EVERYTHING down. Slow your assessment of each situation. Slow your setup and address. Take a couple of solid practice swings, and absorb the takeaway, transition, and rotation of this practice swing. Think about the tempo of that practice swing. When you are locked into all of that, step up to the ball, repeat. Never be in a hurry.

 

Golf is hard. When you are this stage of your development, it requires intense focus to be good. After a few year it'll become easier and you'll be shredding your handicap along the way, but right now you need to concentrate on everything.

 

Great post.

 

A small item to have. If you are going to practice on mats, then you have to have a way to track if you are impacting at right spot. Get a thin towel on the mat 2 inches behind the ball (maybe closer) so you can make sure you are not hitting fat. Range mats are so deceptive. You could be hitting behind the ball all session and not know it by the ball flight or sound impact, then you go to the course and dig trenches.

[marte]

Well all my buddies are gone this weekend so I plan on using this time to put in as much work as I can.

 

Will hopefully get in some range time and play some twilight holes Saturday. Maybe use the range to really groove the changes to my setup and the feeling of casting from the top with driver/3 wood. Also work on my swing with my new practice techniques which I am really excited to try out! When I get out for some twilight holes, I think after a few holes, I'm going to do what I did last week and go to this one particular hole and work on approach shots from 125 and an hour.

 

Going to play 9 holes Sunday morning which will be a nice test to see if I'm able to bring any of this onto the course. Especially excited to see if I can bring driver to the course!

 

MCL. Good to hear your last lesson was so positive! I'm curious, how high is the ceiling in your apartment...COULD you swing a full PW?