My Road to Improvement - swing video 3/15/24

[BigTerp1524]

14 hours ago, bortass said:

Swinging harder seems to help. Went out for 9 today and every drive was a draw and one pull. Averaged 227 with a long of 258 and a low of 169 which was a pull into the left trees.

 

The round itself was okay. 48 with an 8 and 9 on the par 5s. I got a par on each hole after the blow ups which helped.
 

I have a lesson scheduled Wednesday morning. I’m getting a lesson package and it includes a 9 hole playing lesson. My neighbor likes the results he’s seen with this pro. So I’ll give it a shot. At least now I will have a reason to have some regular lessons with the same person.

Glad to hear your getting your driver sorted out. Such an odd thing!! I find when I swing "easier" it causes other breakdowns in my swing and makes things worse. What I've been doing lately is literally just swinging it. Not thinking about hard or easy or this or that. Just swinging it thinking about swinging through the ball. My driver has become pretty consistent with this mentality.  

 

Good luck with the lessons. Having several lessons with the same pro should really help to dial some things in for you!!  

[bortass]

2 hours ago, BigTerp1524 said:

Glad to hear your getting your driver sorted out. Such an odd thing!! I find when I swing "easier" it causes other breakdowns in my swing and makes things worse. What I've been doing lately is literally just swinging it. Not thinking about hard or easy or this or that. Just swinging it thinking about swinging through the ball. My driver has become pretty consistent with this mentality.  

 

Good luck with the lessons. Having several lessons with the same pro should really help to dial some things in for you!!  

Monte has mentioned most ams swing to slow. The draw with driver is great to see. I think it will apply to my irons too.

[BigTerp1524]

25 minutes ago, bortass said:

Monte has mentioned most ams swing to slow. The draw with driver is great to see. I think it will apply to my irons too.

Makes sense. 

 

Yeah, seeing a little draw to your driver after working hard on your swing is pretty rewarding.

[betarhoalphadelta]

22 minutes ago, bortass said:

Monte has mentioned most ams swing to slow. The draw with driver is great to see. I think it will apply to my irons too.

 

I think that's more tempo than swing effort or swing speed.

 

If you look at the Tour Tempo site it'll tell you how to measure. Basically take your standard phone camera and video your swing at full speed. Standard phone video should be 30 frames per second. Count the number of frames for your backswing, and then the number of frames from starting in transition to impact. 

 

You'll get both a ratio and time out of that. For example, my tempo is about 25/10. Meaning 25 frames (0.83s) backswing and 10 frames (.33s) transition to impact, and a total takeaway to impact time of just under 1.2s. My ratio is then about 2.5:1.

 

Most pros are in the 0.8s to 1.2s range, and a 3:1 ratio is most common. A lot of ams haven't completed their backswing in 1.2s. 

 

I don't fully understand WHY this is an important metric to track or why it's so bad for most ams to have a slower tempo... But at the very least it might be useful to know what your tempo is. 

[bortass]

6 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

I think that's more tempo than swing effort or swing speed.

 

If you look at the Tour Tempo site it'll tell you how to measure. Basically take your standard phone camera and video your swing at full speed. Standard phone video should be 30 frames per second. Count the number of frames for your backswing, and then the number of frames from starting in transition to impact. 

 

You'll get both a ratio and time out of that. For example, my tempo is about 25/10. Meaning 25 frames (0.83s) backswing and 10 frames (.33s) transition to impact, and a total takeaway to impact time of just under 1.2s. My ratio is then about 2.5:1.

 

Most pros are in the 0.8s to 1.2s range, and a 3:1 ratio is most common. A lot of ams haven't completed their backswing in 1.2s. 

 

I don't fully understand WHY this is an important metric to track or why it's so bad for most ams to have a slower tempo... But at the very least it might be useful to know what your tempo is. 

Yeah, I think it’s a tempo thing as well. Kinda makes sense with my miss being a push. Leave the face open and behind is how I feel at times. It may not be like that at all though, lol.

[bortass]

Here is a snippet from a post on 5/11/2011 in my Journey to Break 90 thread. I fixed a few typos I had made back then.

"Second, I found I was getting into a full finish with all my weight on my left leg and I was balanced. I rarely take the classic golf trophy finish. My right foot is normally part way off the ground but now I'm getting my right foot on the toe."

 

What's the relevance of this? Well I still have a lazy finish and don't get all the way through. I'm looking to the right of my target line with my normal finish and my weight isn't all the way left. This came up in today's lesson as a key thing to fix...

 

So lesson time. It was very humid and warm. My shirt was soaked by the time we finished. The lesson itself was an hour. He setup three balls in a line and had me hit them with my 7i to start. He was looking for where my divot was in relation to the ball. Overall that was decent.

 

So the first thing he talked to me about was not manipulating the club with my hands during the takeaway. I don't know the correct term but I'd call it sucking the club inside. This was reinforced at the end of the lesson when he had me hitting driver. Anyhow I break my wrists early in the takeaway and my shaft is pointing right of target line at parallel on the way back to give you an idea. So I need to work on that.

 

Second thing we talked about was my weak finish. He stressed I need to get all the way through and hold my finish aka pose after the shot. This was the biggest item for now because he feels I am already making good contact. I think we were both happy that he didn't feel like we need to go back to basics. It's good to know I have a decent swing to build on. I can't say I'm surprised since I did takes years of lessons long ago and my old pro and I got things into decent shape back then.

 

So the follow through thing. He's pointing to it as the main reason I am hitting pushes and push fades. That seemed to be the case when I was on the range with him. Once I started to get myself into that classic pose at the finish and held it, the ball straightened out. Sure I had mishits but they went straight. He warned me that I'll have mishits as i adjust out there but I'll be advancing the ball in the correct direction when I do, assuming I finish correctly.

 

He also had me narrow my stance to shoulder width to help with getting the correct finish. I tend to have a fairly wide stance with all shots.

 

It was during this he told me about what I think is a key to his teaching. He calls it "Feel it. Hear it. See it." Feel contact with the ball. Then you will hear the contact. Lastly is to see the ball in the air. What it boils down to is don't go looking for the ball right away after contact. You will feel and hear it and know if it was solid or not. Pretty sure all of us have played enough to get an idea about the strike we made by feel and sound. The head will come around after the ball is well gone. He mentioned shoulder to shoulder. Chin is near the left shoulder on backswing and chin is near the right shoulder before it starts to move up and around to the finish. So it's NOT keep your head still. It's about staying down on the ball. I may have butchered that but I know what he was talking about. I tend to top it when I peek early, at least I did at the lesson.

 

Ball position came up. He wants a 7i to be in the middle of my stance and adjust a touch forward or back based on the club. So my Wedges will be  a touch back but my 5i would be a touch forward. I hit some beautiful 5i shots when I got it all correct. 

 

Driver was at the end and the change was to lower the tee height to 50/50 and add some tilt away from target which is what I have heard from Monte's Driving 4 Dough series. I had some struggles at first but again when I stayed down and came to the complete finish and held the pose, it was great.

 

Something he touched on too was using the follow through to shape shots. If I want to fade it a touch because say it's a dogleg right, just end the follow through a bit early like I am already doing.

 

Tempo came up and he stressed just staying smooth. I don't need to try to crush the ball. Stay smooth, add in everything else, and good things will happen. 

 

I mentioned my chipping woes as we wrapped up and he'll look at that and have me working on partial shots in a future lesson.

 

End result? I am quite happy with how it went. I don't have a lot of stuff to deal with. It seems more like tweaks to me. That doesn't mean it will be easy to ingrain, just that it wasn't a bunch of swing changes.

 

The notes he sent me:

Shoulder to shoulder

smooth swing and pose

followthrough with every shot

Keep feet shoulder distance apart.

Long irons give a small amount of loft.

Divots should be in front of the ball not before

Driver - slow smooth swing, follow through and pose.

 

 

[Long_Left]

19 hours ago, bortass said:

Yeah, I think it’s a tempo thing as well. Kinda makes sense with my miss being a push. Leave the face open and behind is how I feel at times. It may not be like that at all though, lol.

I think we may have conversed on this topic previously but I'm basically an unpaid salesperson at this point 🤣 get the Total Game app for your phone and/or watch (I'm an Iphone/apple watch guy but it is available for Android as well). I think it was either $20 or $25... I never even bothered with precisely measuring my starting timing, I just began with the slowest backswing tones (30/10) on 3/4 swings and kept trying a faster set until I settled into a good feel for me. I landed on 21/7 and now use the app once or twice a week at the range for maintenance. They've added "focus" tones recently to encourage getting into "the zone" but I've yet to try them. I find that being hyper focused for long stretches is mentally taxing for me so I try to switch it off until I'm stepping into the ball.

 

I had a VERY hard time understanding what "getting stuck" meant and felt like before I started using it, I'd hit a big block push dead center of the clubface and would blame it on my hands being slow to square the face which leads to manipulation and inconsistent contact. I'd bet your feeling of "open and behind" is a result of either a swing that feels "quick" or a feeling of starting the downswing with more force than usual. The transition is a passing maneuver on the highway, not a dragster launch. You spin the wheels if you dump everything from a dead stop...

[bortass]

I got out for a quick 9 this afternoon. It took 70 minutes to play the back 9. Gotta love vacation golf, lol.  I did my best to do what was covered in my lesson. It wasn't perfect nor pretty. I don't talk about it much in the hole by hole description but I did try to do what was covered on every shot.

 

 

 

10 – par 4, 342 yards, dogleg left, #10 HCP hole. Elevated tee shot to a lower fairway. Green is elevated with a bunker front right. I take a practice swing based on what was covered in my lesson and it felt good. My real swing felt okay and I got to my finish position but I never saw the ball. I hear something hit leaves though, so I assume I'm in the right trees. I don't see a ball and I drop, 196 out. I'm at 5i range to center and try that. It's a thin fade into the bunker that fronts the green. It takes me 2 to get out and the ball is in the back left fringe. The hole is on the left and I chip with my putter to 6 feet and sink the putt for a triple bogey, 7.

 

Not a great start to things.

 

11 – par 4, 329 yards, 90* dogleg left, #12 HCP. Fairway eventually slopes down to a stream short of the green, forced carry. I go with my normal 5i off this tee and I think I did a decent job with my follow through. It's a high shot, either straight or a slight draw, down the right side, 171 yards. The hole is in the back and another 5i should reach the green. I mishit it 127 yards and luckily it stops short of the stream. It's 55ish to the hole and I hit a partial SW. it comes out a bit low and left. It lands on the back of the green and rolls through the fringe and maybe a foot into the rough. I use my putter to chip to 8 feet. I leave the putt a few feet short and have a double bogey, 6.

 

Lol, I'm tearing it up out there...

 

12 – par 4, 315 yards, 90* dogleg left, #14 HCP, green is elevated. Narrow tee shot that opens as you reach the corner. Driver is a high shot down the right side, again not much curve to it, 212 yards, and into the fairway bunker that's the outside corner of this hole. There's no lip and I'm 140ish out which is a 7i. I take my 6i and choke down some and use an armsy swing. I catch it thin and it's a low fade into the front bunker. I have a blind shot since the green is above my head. I make good contact with my SW and I clear the lip in line with the flag. I get up to the green and I'm 9 feet short of the hole. I hit the putt and it drops for a bogey, 5.

 

That's better. It's not great but at least it's a bogey.

 

13 – par 3, 123 yards, #18 HCP, green is elevated with bunkers short right and left and long left. Tiered green as well. The hole is forward and I remember the post I read yesterday about front locations being more difficult for pros. I take my 8i and plan to got for the middle. It's a thin shot, like the prior 6i that is a real low fade. It goes 119 yards and ends up on the front right of the green, hole high and 12 feet to the right. I hit my putt and it drops for birdie, 2.

 

14 – par 4, 543, straight hole, #4 HCP. Elevated teeshot to wide open fairway. Fairway slopes down left to right, water on the right closer to the green and fronting the entire green. I tee off with driver and again never see the ball. I figure it went right on me and I find it in the right rough, 232 yards off the tee. The ball is sitting down in a small depression. I use my 5i and advance it out, 122 yards, and into the fairway. I'm 170ish from the front and I aim a bit left with my 5i and chunk it 101 yards. I followup with a partial AW, when it should have been PW. Contact is good and the ball lands on the green, 81 yards, and 33 feet short of the hole. I hit the par putt and I tell it to slow down right away. The ball catches the high side of the hole and goes 6 feet long, lol. I do make the comebacker for a bogey, 6.

 

15 – par 4, 264 yards, straight, #16 HCP. Elevated tee shot to a fairway that is always soft abd cart path only year round. Fairway bunkers on left side in line with the green. Bunker surround this green except for the left side. I have been driving well on this hole of late. So today I make contact with my driver and top it 82 yards into the thick rough short of the stream. The ball is sitting down with Bermuda that's higher than it. I hack it out, 88 yards, with my 9i and I'm in the right rough on a slight slope next to the cart path. The ball is above my feet and it's about 100 yards to the flag. I decide to hit a partial 9i. It's a low thin fade into the front bunker... My sand shot is adrop kick off clay that sends my ball into the back left bunker... I use my putter and get it to 8 feet. I hit my putt and it catches the high lip and stops a foor directly behind the hole. I make the tap-in for a triple bogey, 7.

 

16 – par 3, 147 yards, #8 HCP. Elevated green with a forced stream carry. Bunkers short right and long left and middle. Tiered green with a strong back left to front right slope. The hole is middle back, pretty much as far as it can be. I decide to go for middle of the green with my 7i. I hit it exactly how the pro wanted me to. I feel my right shoulder get to my chin and contact sounds very crisp. I get to my finish position and watch the ball just drop on the back of the green. I'm 12 feet right of the cup and hole high. I'm putting through sand from the bunker shots that people had earlier today. I hit my putt and it misses a good 4 inches high and stops maybe 18 inches behind the hole. I tap in for par but miss....Yup, I didn't take my time and missed a simple putt well inside gimme range. Bogey, 4.

 

Well that sucked...

 

17 – par 4, 363 yards, dogleg left, #6 HCP. Fairly open fairway with bunkers on the right at the corner. Green has a tier and heavily slopes left to right, can putt off this green... Bunkers short of the green as well. I hit driver and it's a high shot down the right side, again without much curve. It lands in the right rough between the two fairway bunkers, 225 yards. I'm 150ish out and hit my 6i. It's another thin fade that goes 140 yards and missed the green to the right. I'm in line with the middle of the green and the hole is on the left side on the upper tier. I have plenty of room and chip with my SW. It lands near the top of the tier and slowly rolls back to the bottom. I have a 32 foot putt up the tier. The green slopes right to left from wghere I am and I'm going uphill. The tier is right in front of me and I hit my putt. The tier sends my ball to the right and overrides the normal break. I'm hole high though and 3 feet out. I sink the tputt for a bogey, 5.

 

Ugly but a bogey is decent on this hole.

 

18 – par 5, 504 yards, straightish, #2 HCP. There is a stream carry on either the second or third shot. There is also a pond fronting the green... I send the ball into the right trees with my driver. High fade down the right side. No sign of it and I drop in the rough 191 yards off the tee. I lay up with a 9i and my contact was decent. It's a low shot that goes 129 yards into the fairway and short of the stream. The front left edge of the green in 160 – 170 out. That's 5i range. I make contact and it's a high fade into the pond... LOL. I drop 134 feet up and chip/pitch on with my SW. Contact is good and my ball lands front left and rolls a bit up the tier in the green and continues to the front right. I'm 9 feet from the hole, almost pin high and sink the double bogey putt, 7. Not bad with two penalty strokes on this hole...

 

A 48 with a couple triples on the card. Gotta love three 7s... I didn't expect much out there today since I was trying to incorporate my lesson on the course but I feel like I did fairly well. Sure I had mishits but they were mostly straight with no big blocks to the right. I did have the stupid push fade on 18 but it'll happen. Speaking of 18, I can't believe I got a double bogey with the two drops I had to take. The 7i on 16 was a thing of beauty. It's nice to know I can hit it 150, if I make solid contact in the center of the face. maybe someday I'll get good enough to do that more often.

 

I'm playing 18 in the morning with the senior men( I barely qualify, lol). So again, I don't expect anything great but will do my best to incorporate the changes. I also will probably play Friday, so my first range session is probably next Tuesday or Wednesday. If I wasn't on vacation, I would be hitting the range since I'd just be passing up a possible 9 hole round. 

 

birdies: 1

pars: 0

bogeys: 4

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 2

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 187 yards

Longest drive: 232 yards

Fairways: 2/7

GIR: 3/9

Avg Approach: 114 yards

Up & down: 2/7

Putts:15

 

Strokes gained compared to a 12 HCP. 

Overall: - 5.7 strokes

driving: -3.6, too many penalties

Approach: -2.8, better than usual!

Short game: -1.6

Putting: +2.2, sinking the long one putts offset my stupid missed tap in....

 

 

[95124hacker]

12 hours ago, bortass said:

Here is a snippet from a post on 5/11/2011 in my Journey to Break 90 thread. I fixed a few typos I had made back then.

"Second, I found I was getting into a full finish with all my weight on my left leg and I was balanced. I rarely take the classic golf trophy finish. My right foot is normally part way off the ground but now I'm getting my right foot on the toe."

 

What's the relevance of this? Well I still have a lazy finish and don't get all the way through. I'm looking to the right of my target line with my normal finish and my weight isn't all the way left. This came up in today's lesson as a key thing to fix...

 

So lesson time. It was very humid and warm. My shirt was soaked by the time we finished. The lesson itself was an hour. He setup three balls in a line and had me hit them with my 7i to start. He was looking for where my divot was in relation to the ball. Overall that was decent.

 

So the first thing he talked to me about was not manipulating the club with my hands during the takeaway. I don't know the correct term but I'd call it sucking the club inside. This was reinforced at the end of the lesson when he had me hitting driver. Anyhow I break my wrists early in the takeaway and my shaft is pointing right of target line at parallel on the way back to give you an idea. So I need to work on that.

 

Second thing we talked about was my weak finish. He stressed I need to get all the way through and hold my finish aka pose after the shot. This was the biggest item for now because he feels I am already making good contact. I think we were both happy that he didn't feel like we need to go back to basics. It's good to know I have a decent swing to build on. I can't say I'm surprised since I did takes years of lessons long ago and my old pro and I got things into decent shape back then.

 

So the follow through thing. He's pointing to it as the main reason I am hitting pushes and push fades. That seemed to be the case when I was on the range with him. Once I started to get myself into that classic pose at the finish and held it, the ball straightened out. Sure I had mishits but they went straight. He warned me that I'll have mishits as i adjust out there but I'll be advancing the ball in the correct direction when I do, assuming I finish correctly.

 

He also had me narrow my stance to shoulder width to help with getting the correct finish. I tend to have a fairly wide stance with all shots.

 

It was during this he told me about what I think is a key to his teaching. He calls it "Feel it. Hear it. See it." Feel contact with the ball. Then you will hear the contact. Lastly is to see the ball in the air. What it boils down to is don't go looking for the ball right away after contact. You will feel and hear it and know if it was solid or not. Pretty sure all of us have played enough to get an idea about the strike we made by feel and sound. The head will come around after the ball is well gone. He mentioned shoulder to shoulder. Chin is near the left shoulder on backswing and chin is near the right shoulder before it starts to move up and around to the finish. So it's NOT keep your head still. It's about staying down on the ball. I may have butchered that but I know what he was talking about. I tend to top it when I peek early, at least I did at the lesson.

 

Ball position came up. He wants a 7i to be in the middle of my stance and adjust a touch forward or back based on the club. So my Wedges will be  a touch back but my 5i would be a touch forward. I hit some beautiful 5i shots when I got it all correct. 

 

Driver was at the end and the change was to lower the tee height to 50/50 and add some tilt away from target which is what I have heard from Monte's Driving 4 Dough series. I had some struggles at first but again when I stayed down and came to the complete finish and held the pose, it was great.

 

Something he touched on too was using the follow through to shape shots. If I want to fade it a touch because say it's a dogleg right, just end the follow through a bit early like I am already doing.

 

Tempo came up and he stressed just staying smooth. I don't need to try to crush the ball. Stay smooth, add in everything else, and good things will happen. 

 

I mentioned my chipping woes as we wrapped up and he'll look at that and have me working on partial shots in a future lesson.

 

End result? I am quite happy with how it went. I don't have a lot of stuff to deal with. It seems more like tweaks to me. That doesn't mean it will be easy to ingrain, just that it wasn't a bunch of swing changes.

 

The notes he sent me:

Shoulder to shoulder

smooth swing and pose

followthrough with every shot

Keep feet shoulder distance apart.

Long irons give a small amount of loft.

Divots should be in front of the ball not before

Driver - slow smooth swing, follow through and pose.

 

 

That seems like an awful lot for one lesson. I’ve taken my fair share of lessons in my lifetime & one thing I believe is baby steps, less is more, etc. I imagine now you have 5 or more swing thoughts standing over the ball. For me, one small change takes a long time to ingrain, let alone 5 things at once.

[bortass]

@95124hacker I hear ya. I didn't come away feeling like I have a bunch of things to keep track of.  On the range, sure. I need to try to ingrain it all but while playing I just focused on the setup changes and getting a full finish. That's why I'm glad he didn't have a lot of actual swing changes. If I was trying to incorporate a change in my downswing or something, all bets are off, lol. I came away from my lesson feeling like it's tweaks. The core of my swing is good enough. FWIW one of the guys I played with today who has never seen me play told me I have a good looking swing. Anyhow the big changes seem to be setup and then my follow through.

 

I joined the seniors today for 18. It was warm and humid. I warmed up on the range with some pitches and chips. Followed by partial SW and some full 7i shots. The 7i was not pretty and I just ended up hitting half shots with it. I finished with a few short putts on one of the practice green. 

 

1 – par 4, 404 yards, straight, #1 HCP, bunker front right. I hit a high push fade with my driver, 223 yards, and I'm in the rough to the right of the trees between 1 and 9. I have a decent gap between the trees and need to keep it low. No shot at the green but that's fine. I hit a nice bump and run with my 5i that goes 121 yards and back into the fairway. The flag is near the middle and I'm 60ish out. I go with a partial SW and make good contact and I'm on the green 14 feet left of the hole. I hit the par putt and it drops, 4.

 

Well that was unexpected!

 

2 – par 3, 142 yards, #17 HCP, bunkers short left and right, and long left. The hole is right front and I play more for the middle with my 8i. Contact is very good and it's a high shot to the back left, 139 yards.... I'm 45 feet from the hole and the birdie putt breaks early and I'm 2 feet below the hole. I sink the par putt, 3.

 

Hmmm...

 

3 – par 5, 458 yards, dogleg right, #9 HCP, couple of fairway bunkers on the left at the corner. I hit a decent fade with my driver around the corner, 214 yards. I'm in the fairway near the middle with a great line at the green. I don't bother looking how far out I am because I already know what my second shot will be, 5i. I make good contact and it's a lowish shot without much curve that goes 169 yards. The cart path cuts across the fairway about and there's a section of rough around it that becomes fairway again. I'm in the rough and another couple of yards would have been in the middle of the fairway. The flag is front right behind the bunkers. I hit a partial SW and it's a touch thin. My ball lands on the green and eventually stops 12 feet to the left of the hole. I miss the birdie putt low and have 18 inches for par, which I make. 5.

 

Okay, 3 pars in a row. This is unheard of.

 

4 – par 4, 293 yards, straight, #15 HCP, water left and OoB right. Right side has a slope. There's a fairway bunker on the right. Reality sets in and I hit a push fade OoB to the right. My provisional is a nice draw down the left side, 228 yards. I'm in the left rough and there's dew. GPS says 80ish yards to the hole which is my AW. I think about the dew and rough and think flyer. No idea if this is true or not. I go with a partial SW and it doesn't make the green... I'm in the fringe with a lot of fringe to go through since my ball is front left and the hole is back left. I use my putter to chip and the ball ends up bouncing into one of the front bunkers. I don't have my SW with me and just pick up. So an X and I write down an 8 as my most likely score.

 

Lol.

 

5- par 5, 501 yards, dogleg right, #5 HCP, hazard down the left side. There's a slope on the right side which makes the fairway narrow in the landing spot. A stream runs down the right side from the corner to near the green. I hit another push fade with my driver onto the right slope, 207 yards. There's a flat area but I'm just past it. My ball is sitting down in some clover and the ball is also slightlu above my feet. I don't like this lie at all and decide to chip back into the fairway. I use my SW and it's a nice shot that goes 50 yards and gets me back in the middle of the fairway. I'm further from the hole but now I have a shot I can hit. I hit my 5i and it's a decent shot that goes 145 yards and lands in the fairway. The hole is back right on the upper tier, so long is bad. It's 137ish and I hit my 7i. Well that was the plan at least. I chunk it 97 yards and it stops just short of the small stream that fronts part of this green. My pitch with SW is thin and I'm off the back of the green. I use my putter to chip and I miss low and my ball reaches the tier and rolls 18 feet below the hole. I blow the next one long and have a 3 putt for a quad, 9.

 

Talk about talented.... Well no real low score this round from the looks of things.

 

6 – par 4, 367 yards, slight dogleg left, #7 HCP. Medium width landing area with a bunker on the left. Houses are on the right and there's a sharp slope into the left trees if you end up too far into the left rough. I hit a low fade with my driver and the right slope kicks it left and into the fairway on the right side, 202 yards. The front of the green is 170ish, so I'm not reaching unless I hit a wood. I stick with my 5i and chunk it a bit, 114 yards, and down the middle. Not a bad layup, lol. I'm50ish out and hit my SW. It's a nice high shot that goes 48 feet left and past the hole, lol. A 60 yard shot. I hit the par putt and I'm too low. I have the right speed and it's 5 feet below the hole now. I sink the bogey putt, 5.

 

7 – par 4, 351 yards, slight dogleg right, #11 HCP, elevated tee shot to a wide open fairway that slopes down right to left all the way to about the 100 yard marker. Bunkers on the left marking the corner and a slope on the right. I hit driver and it's a high fade down the right side. The ball lands on the right slope and kicks left but not enough to get back in the fairway. My ball is above my feet and in some thick rough because the mower missed a section. Distance is 8i but I go with my 7 because of the rough. I swing and the ball moves a foot away from me... I don't know how but it pop up in the air and went 1 foot to the right, further up the hill but in lower rough. I try again and it's a low shot that come sup short of the green. The hole is right back and I'm on the right side and short. I chip with my putter to 9 feet. The bogey putt misses and I make the 1 foot tap in for a double bogey, 6.

 

8 – par 3, 160 yards, elevated tee shot, #13 HCP, bunker on the right side of the green. Slope to the right of this hole that is weed whacked. So it's long stuff and wild. Balls can get lost here. The hole is left middle and 150ish. The elevation makes it closer to 135 and I hit my 7i. Contact is real nice and it's a high shot that goes 158 yards and lands on the green. I'm 25 feet past the hole and the birdie putt misses and I make a 2 footer for par, 3.

 

9 – par 4, 357 yards, straight hole, #3 HCP, water on the left as you approach the green. The pond fronts this green. I don't know how but I hit a pull hook with my driver 179 yards well left of the fairway. I'm under a tree and there's no way I try to go for the green since it's all pong carry, I'm on bare dirt, and there are low branches. I hit a little chip with my 5i, 72 yards, at an angle to get back into the fairway. The hole is right front and I'm 130ish to center. I hit my 7i and it's a bladed push down the fairway, 130 yards. I'm now in the right rough past the middle of the green. I have to chip the ball down the tier to the forward flag. I can't use my putter because of all the rough. I chip with my SW and make real good contact. The ball pops up and land son the green and trickles down the tier, stopping 4 feet out. I can't chip much better than that! I make the putt for bogey, 5.

 

Making the turn, I feel good. I blew up bad on two holes and while things are not perfect, I'm doing decently well over all.

 

10 – par 4, 342 yards, dogleg left, #10 HCP hole. Elevated tee shot to a lower fairway. Green is elevated with a bunker front right. I hit driver and it's a shot down the left side. It looks like it'll be okay and we find it in the left rough, short of the cart path, 204 yards. The ball is above my feet and a guy with a laser tells me it's 115 to the flag. I decide on my 8i and it's a low fade with no height to it. It goes into the front bunker, 94 yards... I have a blind sand shot and I'm a bit too firm with it. My ball gets out of the bunker and I'm 27 feet past the hole and a bit left. I am coming down a tier as well. I hit my par putt and it misses low and I sink the 2 footer for bogey, 5.

 

I will take bogey all day everyday on this hole because I struggle with it so much.

 

11 – par 4, 329 yards, 90* dogleg left, #12 HCP. Fairway eventually slopes down to a stream short of the green, forced carry. I use the normal 5i and it's a very high shot down the right side, 178 yards, and into the fairway. I made great contact! Of course this makes the hole longer but the hole is middle front and the green is below me. A 6i should reach the middle of the green. I hit the 6i and it's a high shot that misses the green left, 153 yards. I'm in the left rough, maybe a few feet from the fringe. I chip with my poutter to 2 feet and sink the par putt, 4.

 

12 – par 4, 315 yards, 90* dogleg left, #14 HCP, green is elevated. Narrow tee shot that opens as you reach the corner. My drive is a push fade into the right trees.... I think I will change my tee club on this hole going forward. It's marked as a hazard and I drop 172 yards off the tee. I'm 160ish out, so 5i. I chunk it 95 yards but it stays in the fairway. I'm inside 50 yards to the hole and figure a pitch woith my SW. I grab a club and hit the shot. It comes out a bit low but is on. I get to my bag to put away the SW and there's a club in it's spot... I accidentally grabbed my PW... Oops. I'm 6 feet from the hole and wind up two putting for a double bogey, 6.

 

13 – par 3, 123 yards, #18 HCP, green is elevated with bunkers short right and left and long left. Tiered green as well. The hole is middle back and I use my 8i hoping for the middle of the green. Contact is solid and it's a high draw that lands on the left side of the green. It';s elevated and behind a bunker so I can't see where my ball is. I'm on the green and 20 feet left and a bit past the hole. I'm on the correct tier and my birdie putt misses 3 feet long. Crap! I sink the par putt though, 3

 

14 – par 4, 543, straight hole, #4 HCP. Elevated teeshot to wide open fairway. Fairway slopes down left to right, water on the right closer to the green and fronting the entire green. I hit a high draw down the right side, 237 yards. I'm in the fairway with a level lie. I decide to forgoe the 5i and hit my 4w. I aim left and top it 124 yards down the fairway. Crap, I can likely get on with a 5i but there's a pond and bunkers long. Not worth it, so I hit my 7i. It's a good looking fade that goes 144 yards and lands in the fairway short of the green. I have the entire green to work with since the hole is back right. I chip with my SW because there's too much ground to cover. It's a terrible chip and I barely get it on the green. I'm 66 feet short of the hole and have to put across the tier in this green. I hit my par putt and it breaks early and stops pin high, 4 feet below the hole. I sink the bogey putt, 6.

 

15 – par 4, 264 yards, straight, #16 HCP. Elevated tee shot to a fairway that is always soft abd cart path only year round. Fairway bunkers on left side in line with the green. Bunker surround this green except for the left side. I hit a strong fade down the right side, 220 yards, into the right rough. I have about 60ish yards and hit a partial SW. I don't give it enough gas and the ball only goes 45 yards and barely gets on. I'm 46 feet short of the hole and hit my birdie putt 9 feet long. Oops... End result is a three putt bogey, 5.

 

16 – par 3, 147 yards, #8 HCP. Elevated green with a forced stream carry. Bunkers short right and long left and middle. Tiered green with a strong back left to front right slope. The hole is middle front and about 135 according to a laser. I go with my 7i and hit a high push, 128 yards. My ball is on the right side of the green, almost resting against the collar. I'm 66 feet right of the hole. I hit the birdie putt and miss high. I'm 2 feet above the hole and sink the par putt, 3.

 

I think this is the first time I have gotten a par on all four par 3s!

 

17 – par 4, 363 yards, dogleg left, #6 HCP. Fairly open fairway with bunkers on the right at the corner. Green has a tier and heavily slopes left to right, can putt off this green... Bunkers short of the green as well. I hit a high push fade into the right trees. It's marked as a hazard and we find my ball just inside the tree line but there's no way to get a club on it. So I drop 217 yards off the tee. I don't bother to look at my GPS and just hit my 5i. It's a blind shot because a mound that makes up the right rough of the hole. Contact is good and it's a low draw. I can't really see anything but I should be near the green. Sure enough I'm in the fairway between the two green side bunkers. It was a 148 yard shot and I decide to chip with my SW. There's too much fairway to go through for my likes. I hit another great looking chip to 4 feet and make the bogey putt, 5.

 

18 – par 5, 504 yards, straightish, #2 HCP. There is a stream carry on either the second or third shot. There is also a pond fronting the green... This time I hit a true fade down the middle, 216 yards. I have a great lie and decide to hit my 5i over the stream. I make good contact but it's a bit of a push fade. I see it land near the pond and a bunch of geese. Sure enough it bounced into the water. I recover my ball from it's watery grave and drop, 146 yards from the prior spot. The hole is on the back and it should be a partial PW. I hit it and it's a bit low and goes 100 yards into the back rough, short of the back bunker. I chip with my putter and it doesn't reach the green.. I repeat and get it to 2 feet and make the double bogey putt, 7.

 

A 48/44 for a 92. 17 strokes came on 2 holes.... I am extremely happy with my score. A 92 may be the lowest 18 for me on my home course. I really feel like the lesson yesterday is already showing some results. I know it's not perfect but my irons felt better today than I'm used to. I do need to figure out the push fade with my driver though. It's killing me. One guy in the group looked at my driver and thinks I need a stronger shaft, lol. I kinda doubt that I am suddenly swinging it that much harder than I used to. The lesson did make some changes with my driver and I expect it to just take time to sort it all out.

 

Regarding the lesson, I didn't feel a bunch of swing thoughts out there. Some of what we covered is with setup like ball position and width of stance. Besides that, I just tried to keep it smooth and get a full finish. I didn't worry about shoulder to shoulder, just get all the way through.

 

birdies: 0

pars: 7

bogeys: 6

double bogeys: 3

triple+: 2

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 207 yards

Longest drive: 237 yards

Fairways: 7/14

GIR: 6/18

Avg Approach: 117 yards

Up & down: 3/11

Putts: 33

 

Strokes gained compared to a 12 HCP. 

Overall: -7.7 strokes

driving: -5.1, no surprise with the penalties

Approach: -3.6, still better than normal for me.

Short game: +0.4

Putting: +0.7, 2 putting from long range helped this out.

[Chip Duffer]

I think there are many bright spots in this round. Mostly that you stuck to your game plan and didn't deviate from your swing plan.

 

Then there's the fact that you were 6 over on 13 holes!!

 

If holes 4 & 5 are double bogeys, that's an 88. 

 

You played very well with a few "others". That is the part we all work on. I shot an 84 on Sunday that was good, but would have been very good without a triple and 2 doubles. Point being that sometimes golf reminds us that we don't play on tv for money. 

 

I'd have enjoyed playing with you and seeing your excellent recovery after 2 bad holes that in the past may have derailed the rest of the round. 

[bortass]

15 hours ago, Chip Duffer said:

I think there are many bright spots in this round. Mostly that you stuck to your game plan and didn't deviate from your swing plan.

 

Then there's the fact that you were 6 over on 13 holes!!

 

If holes 4 & 5 are double bogeys, that's an 88. 

 

You played very well with a few "others". That is the part we all work on. I shot an 84 on Sunday that was good, but would have been very good without a triple and 2 doubles. Point being that sometimes golf reminds us that we don't play on tv for money. 

 

I'd have enjoyed playing with you and seeing your excellent recovery after 2 bad holes that in the past may have derailed the rest of the round. 

I agree completely. I really didn't expect anything like this so soon after the lesson. I figured things would be off for a while as I get used to it. The start was surprising and I was waiting for the shoe to drop and figured #4 was a likely candidate since my driver is going to the right again. So I wasn't shocked with the OoB tee shot, not happy about it but it makes sense from what I've seen since the lesson. I put myself in position with the provisional to save a double bogey but made a bad decision. I should have hit the AW.

 

The 9 on 5 without a penalty stroke was kind of the same deal. Bad tee shot that forced a chip back into play. I get myself into 7i range to hit the green in 4 and chunk it. Then I have some short game brain farts to compound things.

 

My drive on 18 was probably one of the better ones. It started left of my target line and came back to the middle. Everything else seemed to be more down the right side. So if I can get my driver to repeatedly fade like it did on 18, I'll be in pretty good shape. I think the 5i may be used a bit more off the tee on a couple holes. Possibly #4, though if I hit a solid driver I'm well inside 100 yards. #12 may be the other candidate. I think I can clear the corner with a 5i and keep the right trees out of play. Driver gets me further past the corner but may not be worth it.

 

One thing I didn't comment on in the round description is I felt confident with my irons. #11, I have 150ish to go and a stream that's probably a 130-135 yard carry. I had no qualms with hitting my 6i. No second guessing or 'I hope I make it' thoughts. My irons are probably what has been holding me back the most and Arccos agrees. I don't need them to click and be perfect. I just need them to go the right direction with a reasonable distance and that seems to be happening a bit more. I expect to make bigger strides in this area as I get the swing changes ingrained.

 

My index hit a new low. It dropped 0.6 to 22.5. Hopefully I can keep it trending in that direction.

 

 

[MattC555]

Hole #4 is 293 yards with major trouble on both sides.  Might make sense to take less than driver.  I'd be hitting my 200 yard club and then whatever wedge I'm left with. 

[BigTerp1524]

Nice round and plenty of positives to take away. Things seem to be coming together more and more each round for you. Gotta be encouraging to see your iron play making positive strides.

[bortass]

Didn't get out Friday. Saturday's 18 was in the 80s and humid,. Warmed up on the range and made sure to add cast B from NTC to my swing changes from my lesson and it made a big difference. I started to hit draws with my 7i, no more fades. I did some chipping and short putting as well. I did my best to incorporate my lesson changes on the course and it's really just the full finish part. I'm not thinking about my takeaway or going shoulder to shoulder. My only real thoughts were cast B and the finish.

 

I'll say up front that the lesson is making a big difference IMO. It's like he filled in a missing piece to push my swing over the top. Yeah, it's not perfect and need more work but I'm feeling real good with a club in my hand since that lesson.

 

1 – par 4, 404 yards, straight, #1 HCP, bunker front right. I hit a decent drive down the right side,214 yards, and barely kept it in the fairway. I'm 200ish out and not trying to get on. The hole is on the right behind the one bunker. I aim more leftish and layup with my 5i. I catch it a bit thin but it goes 138 yards and I'm now on the left side of the fairway. I don't recall the ball park yardage but the next shot is a partial SW. Contact is very good and it's a high shot that carries the bunker and lands on the green. I can't see what happens with the ball since the green is slightly elevated and there's the lip of the bunker. My ball travelled 73 yards and it in the back fringe. I am not far from the hole and chip with my putter. It's looking good and drops for an opening par, 4.

 

2 – par 3, 142 yards, #17 HCP, bunkers short left and right, and long left. The hole is middle front and I use my 8i and aim for middle. It's a mishit and a high pull that lands in the front left bunker, 123 yards. I'm a bit short sided and the ball is on the upslope at the back of the bunker. I've been back here a few times lately and have bladed my ball because there's barely any sand and my wedge hits clay and skips. I'm thinking this as I head towards the green. I get to my ball and there seems to be some sand and I use my normal sand shot with a square face. Sure enough it hits clay and I blade the ball 28 yards and off the right side of the green. I use my putter to chip from the rough and it's on an upslope as well. I hit it poorly and leave the ball 21 feet short. The bogey putt is 3 feet long and I proceed to miss the next one. A three putt triple bogey, 6.

 

Well, I knew there's a good chance I'd blade that sand shot and I did. I was frustrated at myself because it was a bad decision by me and I let it snowball into a terrible score on this hole.

 

3 – par 5, 458 yards, dogleg right, #9 HCP, couple of fairway bunkers on the left at the corner. I hit driver and it's a pull, 200 yards, into the first fairway bunker at the outside of the corner. I'm near the right edge and use my 7i to get the ball out. I choke down a bit and use and armsy swing. It's a low fade that goes 88 yards and I'm in the right rough. The fairway seems to have been mown a bit narrower. Any how it's a 5i shot to setup my approach. I swing and the rough grabs the clubhead and I leave it wide open. The ball goes dead right into the right trees... It's marked as a hazard and I pull my ball out of a deep ditch. There's no way I could have played the ball. I drop and mishit my 7i 119 yards into the fairway, short of the hole. The hole is on the right and I'm inside 50 yards. I pitch with my SW and it's a real good shot that stops 6 feet left of the hole. I miss the putt high and it's a triple bogey, 8.

 

Ouch.

 

4 – par 4, 293 yards, straight, #15 HCP, water left and OoB right. Right side has a slope. There's a fairway bunker on the right. I stay with driver and hit a pull into the left hazard... The ball went in hot and on the fly so I drop 144 off the tee. The hole is middle right and I'm 150ish out. I blade my 6i and the ball runs between the two front bunkers and onto the green. I'm 12 feet from the hole and the par putt misses but I have a one foot tap in for bogey, 5.

 

Disaster avoided.

 

5- par 5, 501 yards, dogleg right, #5 HCP, hazard down the left side. There's a slope on the right side which makes the fairway narrow in the landing spot. A stream runs down the right side from the corner to near the green. Driver has been going left except for #1, so I stay with it. I aim a bit right and hit a great looking draw 228 yards into the fairway on the right side. I'm in great position to get around the corner and use what I feel like is my trusty 5i. Yeah, I know it was a mess on #3 but I feel good about this club. Contact is fairly solid and it's a nice draw, 163 yards, into the middle of the fairway. The hole is front right and I don't want to be long because of the tier. I'm 100ish out and decide to hit a partial 9i. Contact is good and it's a high draw that lands on the green and releases left, away from the hole, 114 yard shot. I'm 55 feet left of the hole but on the correct tier. I hit the birdie putt and I miss low and end up 4 feet out below the hole. I hit the par putt firm and miss high... So a bogey, 6.

 

I'm not happy missing the 4 footer but I missed high. I'm still trying to be firm with my shorter putts and it's a work in progress.

 

6 – par 4, 367 yards, slight dogleg left, #7 HCP. Medium width landing area with a bunker on the left. Houses are on the right and there's a sharp slope into the left trees if you end up too far into the left rough. I hit a sloid low draw down the middle and it lands near the top of the crest in the fairway and rolls forward, 235 yards. I'm in the middle of the fairway with a slight down slope. The hole is front left behind the bunker. I go with my 7i and hit a high draw, 137 yards, that lands on the green and releases into the left fringe. I use my putter to chip it to 2 feet and sink the par putt, 4.

 

7 – par 4, 351 yards, slight dogleg right, #11 HCP, elevated tee shot to a wide open fairway that slopes down right to left all the way to about the 100 yard marker. Bunkers on the left marking the corner and a slope on the right. I take my normal aim to the left on this hole and hit a very solid high draw. It heads for the left side, lands in the fairway and kicks forward. A great drive! I'm 256 yards off the tee and in the fairway on the left. The hole is front right and about 90ish yards. I hit a partial SW and it's a high push, 104 yards, into the right rough. I have too much rough to deal with and chip with my SW. I hit a real good chip to 3 feet! The par putt misses high though and I have a tap in bogey, 5.

 

A trend is forming with my short putts... At least the miss is high. I gotta try to stay positive!

 

8 – par 3, 160 yards, elevated tee shot, #13 HCP, bunker on the right side of the green. Slope to the right of this hole that is weed whacked. So it's long stuff and wild. Balls can get lost here. The hole is middle right and it's an 8i thanks to the elevation. I mishit it off the toe but it's still a high draw that lands on the green short of the hole, 138 yards. I'm 17 feet below the cup and hit the birdie putt to a foot. So a tap in par, 3.

 

9 – par 4, 357 yards, straight hole, #3 HCP, water on the left as you approach the green. The pond fronts this green. I hit another, can't believe I'm typing this, solid draw down the fairway on the left with driver, 223 yards. The hole is front left and it's all pond carry. I hit a high shot with my 8i, not sure of the shape, and it lands on the middle of the green to the right of the hole, 131 yards. I'm 21 feet out and hit the birdie putt within 18 inches. Can't recall where the miss was but I make the tap in for par, 4.

 

Before teeing off on 10, one of the guys in the group tells me I have a 45 on the front... Darn, I prefer to not know these things. Keeps my head out of it. But a 45 with two triples isn't that bad since one of them was a snowman.

 

10 – par 4, 342 yards, dogleg left, #10 HCP hole. Elevated tee shot to a lower fairway. Green is elevated with a bunker front right. I hit a decent draw, 226 yards, into the right side of the fairway with driver. The hole is on the back right it's behind the trees with the angle I have. I aim for the middle and hit a pretty solid 7i, 136 yards, and over the green... It's too far to use my putter. I'm on the down slope of a mound just behind the green in the rough. I take a very wide stance to stabilize myself and use my SW to chip with a hacking down motion. It comes out pretty good and lands on the green and rolls towards the hole, 24 yard chip, that's 13 feet short. I hit the par putt to 18 inches and come away with a bogey, 5.

 

This hole normally kills me and I've gotten a couple bogeys on it lately. I'm am very happy with the result.

 

11 – par 4, 329 yards, 90* dogleg left, #12 HCP. Fairway eventually slopes down to a stream short of the green, forced carry. I aim for the left most fairway bunker with my 5i and swing. It's a high draw that's going down my target line. The ball lands in the fairway and rolls a bit to the left, 189 yards. The hole is front left and about 120ish. I go with my 9i and hit a high draw onto the green, 132 yards. My ball is middle left near the fringe and 33 feet past the hole. I hit tmy birdie putt to a foot and tap in for par, 4.

 

12 – par 4, 315 yards, 90* dogleg left, #14 HCP, green is elevated. Narrow tee shot that opens as you reach the corner. I stay with driver since it's not going right on me. I hit a low draw, 218, down the left side. The hole is back left and a partial PW should do the trick. It's a bit of a pull and I miss the green left and the ball rolls onto the cart path and stops on a drainage grate, 82 yards. I would have been on the front of the green if I didn't pull the shot. I take releif and chip with my SW to 5 feet. I miss high and have another tap in from the 1 foot range for bogey, 5.

 

13 – par 3, 123 yards, #18 HCP, green is elevated with bunkers short right and left and long left. Tiered green as well. The hole is back right. I mishit my 8i a bit and it only goes 119 yards and lands on the front of the green. I'm 30 feet below the hole and going up the tier with a left to right break. I hit my putt and send it 6 feet long... Crap, not the leave I wanted if I missed. I hit the par putt and it drops, 3.

 

Phew.

 

14 – par 4, 543, straight hole, #4 HCP. Elevated teeshot to wide open fairway. Fairway slopes down left to right, water on the right closer to the green and fronting the entire green. Don't look now but it's another solid draw that goes down the middle, 239 yards. I have a good lie and decide to hit my 4w. I aim left and hit a low draw, 184 yards, into the face of the slope on the left. The ball doesn't come all the way back to the fairway though. I have a down hill lie in the rough with a decent angle to the hole with is back left. I don't want to get too aggressive since there's the pond on the right. I decide to hit a partial 9i and my aim is off. I send it into the first bunker on the left. My lie is okay and I hit my normal sand shot. The ball is too much to th eleft and stays in the rough between the green and other bunker. I chip with my putter and leave it 12 feet short....A two putt ensues for a double bogey, 7.

 

Crap, I'd been doing well so far.

 

15 – par 4, 264 yards, straight, #16 HCP. Elevated tee shot to a fairway that is always soft abd cart path only year round. Fairway bunkers on left side in line with the green. Bunker surround this green except for the left side. I hit driver and it's a push at the stand on small trees that I sometimes hit my ball near on the right side. I hear it hit something and expect to find my ball under them. No sign of my ball. My and another guy are looking for it for minutes. Eventually another guy in the group who just hit his shot out of the first fairway bunker on the left asks what I'm hitting. I tell him it's a Topflite with a red mark. Oh, I picked it up, it was in the ditch is the reply. So the ditch in question is on the right side of the hole and on the line past the trees I thought I hit. So he went ball hunting while I was searching and never asked what I was looking for. Found my ball, took it, and wandered off.

 

Okay, I am a bit pissed. I do not like people moving my ball regardless of situation. The fourth guy in the group gets my ball and tells me he knows where it was and puts it back. So I'm in a drainage hole, almost OOB. A tree is blocking the left side of my shot but I can aim a bit right for the back of the green. The ball is above my feet on leaves and I'd say i'm 3 feet below the lip. I use my SW and hit the ball right into the tree and it bounces backwards landing OOB... I drop, add two strokes, and hit the partial SW fat and into the bunker I needed to carry. I take my ball, card an X and 8 for GHIN.

 

I'm pretty mad for a few reasons. First, someone just took my ball. Second I messed up the hole and maybe if I wasn't pissed about my ball I make a different decision.

 

16 – par 3, 147 yards, #8 HCP. Elevated green with a forced stream carry. Bunkers short right and long left and middle. Tiered green with a strong back left to front right slope. The hole is on the right and about 150ish. It's a 5i and I chunck shank it into the right trees about 20 yards in front of me.... let's just say I lost my cool and uttered some unpleasant words which I am not proud of.... It's marked as a hazard but I see no point dropping in the rough 20 yards closer so I just retee with a S&D penalty. It's a high pull, over the left side of the green, 136 yards. I'm in the fringe and chip with my putter, down the tier, about 26 yards to 5 feet. I sink the double bogey putt, 5.

 

Good save but I am not happy...

 

17 – par 4, 363 yards, dogleg left, #6 HCP. Fairly open fairway with bunkers on the right at the corner. Green has a tier and heavily slopes left to right, can putt off this green... Bunkers short of the green as well. I hit driver and it's a high push into the first fairway bunker on the right side, 208 yards. Crap... Low lip and I use my 5i. The shot comes out and it's a low slice that I can't see what it does but it msa moving fast with a lot of curve to the right. I can't find my ball and the path means it very likely is in the right trees which are marked as a hazard. So I drop about 140ish from the prior spot in the rough. It's a chip/pitch across the cart path to the green and I think I bladed it through the green... At least the hole is front right and I sent my ball off the back of the green to the right, so I assume it was bladed. Chip with my putter and miss low by 12 feet but it's pin high at least. So a two putt for a triple bogey, 7.

 

This round just went to crap in the span of 4 holes....

 

18 – par 5, 504 yards, straightish, #2 HCP. There is a stream carry on either the second or third shot. There is also a pond fronting the green... I hit driver and it's a great looking draw down the middle, 236 yards. I feel good about carrying the stream with my 5i. I swing and hit a worm burner that somehow clears the stream and runs out on the far side, 155 yards total. The hole is back left and about 80ish yards. I hit a partial AW and it's a high shot that goes 91 yards and lands on the back of the green. I'm 15 feet from the hole and hit the birdie putt 5 feet long... Sigh. I do manage to sink the par putt though, 5.

 

A 45/49, assuming my X was an 8, 94. I found myself getting to my full finish on mot shots and my real good ones had all the feels from my lesson w/o me thinking about it.

 

Okay, I lost my cool on 15 and it cost me quite a bit. I do want to say I never said anything to the guy that picked up my ball and when I started swearing on 15 it was me talking to myself. I don't want anyone thinking that I started yelling/shouting. Enough guys will yell out an F bomb or some other explicitive after a bad shot and our course is in a subdivision. I don't want to be that guy that's swearing loud enough that some kid playing in their yard might hear nor any of the residents. Sure you expect things living on a course but I try to be respectful of the fact there are homes in earshot of almost every hole.

 

Back to golf, I am happy with the round at the end of the day. My iron stats are bad thanks to 15, 16, and 17. That said I was playing with confidence. There was no fear or worry about any shot I hit. Seeing the draw again with my driver was great and most irons were very solid as well. A 94 with 4 triples isn't terrible for a 22 index. I also had pars on the three hardest holes.

 

#18 has been a hole that I would play for bogey. Lay up short of the stream in 2, get over with 3 and hit #4 onto the green. Now I play it like a normal par 5, of course I will modify things based on my tee shot. I feel okay going across the stream with my 5i but not so sure if it were my 5h or a wood since I've not been hitting those much.

 

 

 

birdies: 0

pars: 7

bogeys: 5

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 4

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 218 yards

Longest drive: 256 yards

Fairways: 10/14

GIR: 6/18

Avg Approach: 120 yards

Up & down: 3/14

Putts: 34

 

Strokes gained compared to a 12 HCP. 

Overall: -9.4 strokes

driving: +0.2

Approach: -8.8

Short game: +1.4

Putting: -2.1

 

[bortass]

On 7/9/2021 at 2:19 PM, MattC555 said:

Hole #4 is 293 yards with major trouble on both sides.  Might make sense to take less than driver.  I'd be hitting my 200 yard club and then whatever wedge I'm left with. 

A 200 yard club is driver for me. My 4w is 180 - 190ish assuming I am hitting it well. It's not a club I have been using lately though. What I did Saturday is based my tee shot off my shot shape on earlier holes. I wasn't losing it to the right, so i felt okay with driver, though I didn't expect a pull, lol. If I was hitting pushes/push fade earlier, I was probably gonna use my 5i off the tee. It's kinda hard since a solid drive gets me to partial wedge range. Anything less than driver and it's a full iron in. So I've got to balance the risk reward.

 

3 hours ago, BigTerp1524 said:

Nice round and plenty of positives to take away. Things seem to be coming together more and more each round for you. Gotta be encouraging to see your iron play making positive strides.

 

I am feeling real good about my ball striking since my lesson. I'm scoring better because of it and it's a positive feedback loop. No predictions when I'll crack 90 at the home course but I feel like I'm golfing out there, even with the blowups. It's really a great feeling.

[MattC555]

I'd still prefer to hit 4w over driver and have 120-100 yards left as opposed to driver and 80-90 yards.  Having a second shorter tee club is an asset worth having.  I totally understand not feeling confident in hitting it though. 

 

5i would still definitely be the better club on that hole.  There is just too much trouble.  Happy to hear you're continuing to improve. 

[Myherobobhope]

55 minutes ago, bortass said:

birdies: 0

pars: 7

bogeys: 5

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 4

 

Honestly, that's 12 holes of pretty good golf... Get the big numbers down to doubles and it's an 89. 

 

You've definitely improved since I've started following along... I think it's just a matter of getting the rounds in, finding the weak spots and improving on them... 85 is 13 bogeys and 5 pars, so you are already ahead of your goal par wise! 

 

The DECADE stuff I've been doing has been a great help, and Scott's overall mentality is to take conservative lines aggressively. Aim at places where you CAN miss, and then commit to the swing. If that means a 4 iron off the tee so you don't hit it into a hazard, that's great... but if 4 iron doesn't take hazard out of play, you may as well hit driver and get it as close as possible! Basically, pick smart targets and then commit to hitting them... 

 

Hope all is well otherwise!

[bortass]

33 minutes ago, Myherobobhope said:

 

Honestly, that's 12 holes of pretty good golf... Get the big numbers down to doubles and it's an 89. 

 

You've definitely improved since I've started following along... I think it's just a matter of getting the rounds in, finding the weak spots and improving on them... 85 is 13 bogeys and 5 pars, so you are already ahead of your goal par wise! 

 

The DECADE stuff I've been doing has been a great help, and Scott's overall mentality is to take conservative lines aggressively. Aim at places where you CAN miss, and then commit to the swing. If that means a 4 iron off the tee so you don't hit it into a hazard, that's great... but if 4 iron doesn't take hazard out of play, you may as well hit driver and get it as close as possible! Basically, pick smart targets and then commit to hitting them... 

 

Hope all is well otherwise!

Thanks.  It does feel like things are starting to come together. I'm at the point where I feel like I can par any hole on the home course. #1 isn't an easy one though since the odds are I'm hitting it in GIR+1 but it's doable if I either get lucky and hit it close or manage to sink a mid range putt. Thing is I'm not surprised when I get one or string a few together. I had plenty of chances Saturday to shave a few strokes but I screwed up some shorter putts.

 

Things are good here and I've finally started on weight control. Turns out my employer subsidizes a weight lose program and has very realistic incentives that can make it free or close to it. I never realized it before and just signed up. I expect that will help my game as well as I shrink some, lol.

 

How goes it with you?

Edited July 12, 2021 by bortass

[Myherobobhope]

2 hours ago, bortass said:

Thanks.  It does feel like things are starting to come together. I'm at the point where I feel like I can par any hole on the home course. #1 isn't an easy one though since the odds are I'm hitting it in GIR+1 but it's doable if I either get lucky and hit it close or manage to sink a mid range putt. Thing is I'm not surprised when I get one or string a few together. I had plenty of chances Saturday to shave a few strokes but I screwed up some shorter putts.

 

Things are good here and I've finally started on weight control. Turns out my employer subsidizes a weight lose program and has very realistic incentives that can make it free or close to it. I never realized it before and just signed up. I expect that will help my game as well as I shrink some, lol.

 

How goes it with you?

That’s awesome… life is good. Just got done putting wheels on the golf cart… it was not fun.

 

wife has encouraged me to buy new clubs and a new grill… so I chose well, wife wise…

 

I need to start working out and eating better!!

 

golf game is coming around… just kindof slowly posting slightly lower scores as everything comes back together… my putting hasn’t been BAD, but some dropped putts would really build my confidence… I was -3 strokes gained on putting my last two outings, so it’s not a ton of strokes, but enough to make a difference.

[95124hacker]

Yeah, no one likes it when someone moves your ball, but at least he fessed up & returned it. Too many times it ends up in someone’s pocket.

 

Just an aside… Topflite? Which model?  There are sooo many good value balls these days. Short game is so important to scoring for higher hdcp players. Green side spin & feel should be #1 priority.

[bortass]

8 hours ago, 95124hacker said:

Yeah, no one likes it when someone moves your ball, but at least he fessed up & returned it. Too many times it ends up in someone’s pocket.

 

Just an aside… Topflite? Which model?  There are sooo many good value balls these days. Short game is so important to scoring for higher hdcp players. Green side spin & feel should be #1 priority.

Topflite Gamer, started using them 13 years ago or so. They were the 'poor man's Pro V1' at the time. Those are the only ball I have used except when I used Noodle+ because of pro shop credits.

[betarhoalphadelta]

21 hours ago, bortass said:

Thanks.  It does feel like things are starting to come together. I'm at the point where I feel like I can par any hole on the home course. #1 isn't an easy one though since the odds are I'm hitting it in GIR+1 but it's doable if I either get lucky and hit it close or manage to sink a mid range putt. Thing is I'm not surprised when I get one or string a few together. I had plenty of chances Saturday to shave a few strokes but I screwed up some shorter putts.

 

Things are good here and I've finally started on weight control. Turns out my employer subsidizes a weight lose program and has very realistic incentives that can make it free or close to it. I never realized it before and just signed up. I expect that will help my game as well as I shrink some, lol.

 

How goes it with you?

 

It's a darn good feeling when you stop being excited over pars and while you don't "expect" them, they're no longer a surprise lol... I know I can blow up any hole, but I also know I can string some pars in a row... Which makes me feel like a real golfer every once in a while.

 

Good to hear on the weight too. It's one of those things that brings benefit in SO many ways... I've gotta lose some pounds, but now that the gyms open I'm actually going to start do some weight training and core work too. I know it's one of those things I need to do just to keep my body in decent shape as I age, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that improving my golf game is what's motivating me more lol...

 

18 hours ago, Myherobobhope said:

That’s awesome… life is good. Just got done putting wheels on the golf cart… it was not fun.

 

wife has encouraged me to buy new clubs and a new grill… so I chose well, wife wise…

 

I need to start working out and eating better!!

 

golf game is coming around… just kindof slowly posting slightly lower scores as everything comes back together… my putting hasn’t been BAD, but some dropped putts would really build my confidence… I was -3 strokes gained on putting my last two outings, so it’s not a ton of strokes, but enough to make a difference.

 

Seems like one of those things will work against the other lol 😉

 

3 hours ago, bortass said:

Topflite Gamer, started using them 13 years ago or so. They were the 'poor man's Pro V1' at the time. Those are the only ball I have used except when I used Noodle+ because of pro shop credits.

 

The Kirkland ball (3pc V2) is a good one, and there's a lot of speculation they'll release a new 4pc soon. For $1/ball it will give short game spin nearly impossible to find elsewhere. It spins even more than the ProV1. I've gone to using it exclusively. 

 

I've also seen great things about the Snell MTB-X (I think it was the X rather than the Black) which was pretty much identical to the ProV1 in almost every metric. TXG did a head-to-head test and it was right there in spin and everything else. It's more expensive than the Kirkland, but if you're looking for a ProV1 "clone" at much lower cost, it seems to be the one. 

[Myherobobhope]

Yeah, the grill won’t help with weight loss, except when I eat, I’ll make sure Im enjoying it!  I have plans to grill whole chickens to have some lean protein in the house…

 

ordered new irons today. ZX5 with c taper 130 x. Im very excited.

[hoselpalooza]

8 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

I've also seen great things about the Snell MTB-X (I think it was the X rather than the Black) which was pretty much identical to the ProV1 in almost every metric. TXG did a head-to-head test and it was right there in spin and everything else. It's more expensive than the Kirkland, but if you're looking for a ProV1 "clone" at much lower cost, it seems to be the one. 

Do you know if this for the 2021 or 2020 pro v1? Thanks!

[bortass]

11 hours ago, Myherobobhope said:

Yeah, the grill won’t help with weight loss, except when I eat, I’ll make sure Im enjoying it!  I have plans to grill whole chickens to have some lean protein in the house…

 

ordered new irons today. ZX5 with c taper 130 x. Im very excited.

  You can grill some very tasty tofu! (apologies to those that like tofu)

 

What's the ETA on the irons?

[Myherobobhope]

46 minutes ago, bortass said:

  You can grill some very tasty tofu! (apologies to those that like tofu)

 

What's the ETA on the irons?

No idea… headed to Idaho for two weeks, so I’m hoping they’ll be in when I get back. Rep said 3 weeks, and nothing I wanted was out of stock… 

 

Tofu can be good! It usually isn’t, but it can be… diet success for me is usually cutting out snacking and desserts and going low carb… basically creating a caloric deficit… 

 

Ive moved back to protein shakes for breakfast, as I’m home a lot and if I don’t eat something, I’ll start snacking out of boredom around 10… trying to get back into weightlifting as well, but weight loss for me

is 90% diet, with exercise basically just supporting my desire to “eat clean”…

[bortass]

1 hour ago, Myherobobhope said:

No idea… headed to Idaho for two weeks, so I’m hoping they’ll be in when I get back. Rep said 3 weeks, and nothing I wanted was out of stock… 

 

Tofu can be good! It usually isn’t, but it can be… diet success for me is usually cutting out snacking and desserts and going low carb… basically creating a caloric deficit… 

 

Ive moved back to protein shakes for breakfast, as I’m home a lot and if I don’t eat something, I’ll start snacking out of boredom around 10… trying to get back into weightlifting as well, but weight loss for me

is 90% diet, with exercise basically just supporting my desire to “eat clean”…

 

21 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

 

Good to hear on the weight too. It's one of those things that brings benefit in SO many ways... I've gotta lose some pounds, but now that the gyms open I'm actually going to start do some weight training and core work too. I know it's one of those things I need to do just to keep my body in decent shape as I age, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that improving my golf game is what's motivating me more lol...

 

 

I used to lift but it was never fun for me. I saw results and made gains but it never became part of my life. I used to have volleyball to help keep me in better shape but that's MIA where I'm located. Kinda funny that I'm 30 miles outside a city with 6 times the population of the state I left and I'm in a VB wasteland. The one good thing is my knees don't hurt anymore, lol. The best shape I ever got into was when I did P90X back in 2009. I followed that program to the best of abilities and it was great. Unfortunately, I seem to have misplaced 3 of the DVDs including my 2 favorites which were the yoga one and the stretching one. Even that program was focused on diet. You can't workout from a bad diet. What you eat matters the most.

 

I just joined WW since work will end up paying for it. I have prior experience with them from the 80s and 90s and know it works. It's about finding the motivation and  accountability for me. I know what to do but left to my own devices I won't. Kinda sad I guess. I've been eating more fruit this week than I have in a long time. I like fruit too but never think of it. Veggies are the challenge for me. Not a veggie lover by default but I'll work on it. Luckily, I have plenty of support at home and won't run into any issues there.

[bortass]

21 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

It's a darn good feeling when you stop being excited over pars and while you don't "expect" them, they're no longer a surprise lol... I know I can blow up any hole, but I also know I can string some pars in a row... Which makes me feel like a real golfer every once in a while.

 

This is a great feeling. I find it also helps with frustration. Maybe it's just me, which I doubt since I'm not special, but I have been able to recover from the blowup holes easier.  The one hole at a time thing is easier for me if I feel like I am playing well.

 

The hard one is a fast start. Last week when I had pars on all three opening holes, I started thinking about when the blowup was gonna happen. Not like I was dreading or worried about it but a tickle in the back of my mind. Also I can start to get nervous over shots when I think I'm doing real good. I hope I can grow out of it, lol.

[BigTerp1524]

1 hour ago, Myherobobhope said:

with exercise basically just supporting my desire to “eat clean”…

This is true for me as well. I eat extremely healthy 75% of the time. Pretty much 100% adherence to eating healthy during the week, which is when I workout daily. I take weekends off typically, unless I miss a workout during the week, and it's MUCH easier to not eat as good when you haven't put in the effort that day to workout. Personally, I'm ok with that. I feel like you've gotta find a good balance and be able to enjoy yourself with a few crappy meals or beers or whatever. For me that's the weekends. I've been doing this for 5 years now and have been able to maintain my weight of 245ish (I'm 6'8"). I once got down into the 230's, but it took a pretty strict diet and was rather miserable to get there. I enjoy eating like crap and having some beers every so often too much to try to get down there again. 

 

11 minutes ago, bortass said:

 

 

I used to lift but it was never fun for me. I saw results and made gains but it never became part of my life. I used to have volleyball to help keep me in better shape but that's MIA where I'm located. Kinda funny that I'm 30 miles outside a city with 6 times the population of the state I left and I'm in a VB wasteland. The one good thing is my knees don't hurt anymore, lol. The best shape I ever got into was when I did P90X back in 2009. I followed that program to the best of abilities and it was great. Unfortunately, I seem to have misplaced 3 of the DVDs including my 2 favorites which were the yoga one and the stretching one. Even that program was focused on diet. You can't workout from a bad diet. What you eat matters the most.

 

I just joined WW since work will end up paying for it. I have prior experience with them from the 80s and 90s and know it works. It's about finding the motivation and  accountability for me. I know what to do but left to my own devices I won't. Kinda sad I guess. I've been eating more fruit this week than I have in a long time. I like fruit too but never think of it. Veggies are the challenge for me. Not a veggie lover by default but I'll work on it. Luckily, I have plenty of support at home and won't run into any issues there.

If you enjoyed P90X you should check out P90X3. It's what I've been doing since 2016. P90X was great, but I couldn't fit in the lengthy workouts. P90X3 is only 30 minutes but very intense. It still kicks my butt every morning after 5 years. I took the last week and a half off with being out of town for vacation and just started back up this week. I'm so sore (in a good way) today I can barely scratch the back of my head.

 

If you're interested, I've got the original P90X DVD's somewhere at home. If I can find the Yoga and stretching ones they're yours if you want them.