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

[bortass]

Made it to the range the last two days. I tweaked my left trap somehow Tuesday, so it changed what I worked on Wednesday. 

 

Wed Block 1 (so official sounding...) - 20 minutes short putts. I spent about 10 minutes doing the drill where you putt over an alignment rod but I added in the drill where you look at the hole as you putt. Normally mixing two drills at the same time can be a problem but I feel like these two work fine together. I spent the other 10 minutes just hitting random short putts around the same hole. I did look at the hole while I was putting though. Over all results for this block were good.

 

Wed Block 2 - Only did 15 minutes because of an early meeting. It was bunker time. I just used my SW and range balls in the practice bunker. It was ugly at first but got better. The big change was how my wrists worked. I got them more involved with a feel of trying to thump the sand with my wedge. This is turn caused them to behave in the manner that Padraig H. mentions in his pitching video. I've also seen the same motion in the Rich Shiels w/ Dan Grieves video. Not sure if that's a correct motion in a bunker but I was getting the ball out and not picking it to clean.

 

Thur Block 1 - 20 minutes Cast A. Warmed up hitting pitches with SW. Drill was take a backswing hold, do cast A hold, swing, was the drill. I did 3 sets of 3 drill/ 10 shots after. Hit some nice looking shots.

 

Thur Block 2 - 20 minutes short putts. Same thing as Wednesday Block 1 except I did the drill portion for 5 minutes or so. Spent the other 15 on short putts. Overall it went well but I hit a patch at the end where I kept missing. It was odd. I just went to 1 - 2 footers after to try and make sure I left on a positive note, which I did.

 

I'm feel like the putting practice has been positive and it's boosting my confidence. Not sure how it'll play out on the course but I'll probably keep at it until it seems solid and revisit on an as needed basis. 

 

A thought popped into my head that maybe I should plan a regular set of maintenance practice blocks. For example, I know I can get rusty with pitches if I don't hit them much on the course. Just something else to think about I guess, like I really need more to noodle on.... 

 

 

[bortass]

Happy Monday!

I watched an interesting video last week and I believe it's already helped my putting.

 

I did what he talked about. Looking at the color contrast and the burnt edge of the cup on every hole. Besides the information looking at what Paddy discussed provided, it also gave me more focus on the green. The focus was an added benefit. I felt more in the moment. Was my putting stellar and lights out? Nope, but it was much better. I was getting the ball closer to the hole when I missed. I recommend watching the video.

 

The putting practice last week helped but I still missed too many short putts. I did better IMO but have a bunch of room to improve still. I plan to keep working on it this week.

 

I made it out a couple of times this weekend. I'll write up Sunday's round later.

 

Saturday was hot and humid. I shot a 44/44, 88. This round dropped my index by another 0.2, to 16.6. As always it could have been better. I had 5 putts in the 3 - 4 foot range that I missed. I also had S&D off the tee on a par 5, #14, that led to a double bogey, 7. It was also both my first penalty of the round and my first lost ball. I lost my second on 18 when I hit a solid 6i that was a straight push and it bounced into the pond. It was real good contact but a bad start line. My ball was well right of my target, I wasn't flirting with the pond at all with my planned shot.

 

Blowups were all double bogeys, 5 of them. It did feel good to not card any triples though.

 

#5 par 5, I hit AW a bit long into the middle back fringe. Hole is back right, so I'm going through a lot of fringe to get back on the green near the cup. It takes me two shots with my putter to get on. My ball trickled past the cup and down the tier leaving me a 14 foot bogey putt that I missed.

 

#8 par 3, tee shot is a well struck push with my 8i that ends up in the back right rough behind the bunker. So I'm on a mound above the green and have to pitch over the bunker. I hit a pretty good UTB chip onto the green and 13 feet short of the hole. I proceed to 3 putt....

 

#14 par 5, hit tee shot OOB. Hit a solid provisional and played the hole pretty well. Had a bogey putt from 26 feet and missed, hole high but a foot low. A double bogey after S&D is the best i can hope for, so I wasn't bummed by this result.

 

#17 par 4, pop up my driver barely into the left trees. I have a shot at the green but need to keep it low. My ball is also next to a young bush that's starting to grow, maybe 6 - 8 inches high and spindly. I decide to go for the green with my 7i using a 3 Ls shot. There's a water district manhole to me left about 2 - 3 yards in front of me, it's slightly elevated by a foot or two of concrete because of the slopes in the area. My shot bounces off it and goes 67 yards on an angle back and right. I find it almost in the right trees. Now instead of a 7i it's 7w. I do okay with the rest of shots but it's a double.

 

#18, par 5, Real good drive. Hit the push with 6i mentioned above and have to drop.  Hit SW into the back fringe. I chip with putter to 3 feet and two putt for a double.

 

It felt like a solid round. The pars/bogeys felt routine even though I did have to hit some good shots to mange them. Examples would be sinking a 13 foot putt to save par. Hit a 16 yard chip with putter from behind the green down a tier to a foot. Also had a couple long birdie putts, 32 and 26 feet respectively that I got within a foot of the cup.

 

birdies: 0, the birdie train has left the station and I'm not on it anymore....

pars: 7

bogeys: 6

double bogeys: 5

triple+: 0!

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 212 yards, a couple 4w, a 7w, and 5i in the mix.

Longest drive: 249 yards

Fairways: 10/14

GIR: 6/18

Avg Approach: 135 yards

Up & down: 2/11

Putts: 35 

 

Strokes gained compared to a 15 HCP. 

Overall: -0.4 strokes

driving: -0.4 with 2 penalty strokes

Approach: -1.0

Short game: +2.2

Putting: -1.1, lost 2.6 strokes in the 3-5 foot range....

[bortass]

Sunday's round. It was hot and humid again.

 

 

1 – par 4, 404 yards, straight, #1 HCP, bunker front right. My drive is a slight pull into the left rough, 247 yards. I have a 6i into the green and the hole is front right behind the bunker. I hit a thin push, 148 yards, into the rough to the right of the bunker. I have a clear path and hit va bump and run chip with my SW. I leave it 5 feet short of the hole and two putt, bogey 5.

 

2 – par 3, 142 yards, #17 HCP, bunkers short left and right, and long left. The hole is front left and an 8i should be the club. I nuke it 154 yards to the back of the green and 42 feet above the hole. My birdie putt is decent and I miss 2 feet low. Miss the par putt too, bogey 4.

 

3 – par 5, 458 yards, dogleg right, #9 HCP, couple of fairway bunkers on the left at the corner. I hit a slight push fade with driver that just catches some branches at the inside of the corner on the right. 190 yard shot into the rough. My 4w has been dodgy on this hole lately and it's a bad angle. I got with a full 5i and it's a decent low draw, 180 yards into the left rough. It's a back left hole and a SW should get me on and short of the cup. I don't swing hard enough and it's a high draw onto the front of the green.

 

I have to putt up a tier from 34 feet below the hole. I hit it decent and my ball ends up hole high but 2 feet low. I make the par putt, 5.

 

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'm steep with driver and hit a 192 yard pop up into the right side of the fairway. It's a front hole location and partial SW. I hit a great looking high draw 93 yards and 33 feet past the hole. I miss the birdie putt but have 2 feet for par and make it, 4.

 

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. Tee off with 4w and hit a great high draw 225 yards into the fairway. I go with 4w again and hit a very solid push fade down the right tree line, 195 yards, and it put me within 70 yards of center. I got lucky with that mishit.

 

Partial LW and I blade it 83 yards to the middle left edge of the green. I'm 42 feet past the hole and my birdie putts is 4 feet short... I miss the par putt, bogey, 6.

 

Well that was unfortunate.

 

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. High push fade with driver into the right trees. I hit a provisional but we find my first ball in play, 197 yards off the tee.

 

I have a clear line at the green but need to keep it low, 160ish. 5i range and I try the 3 Ls shot. I catch it thin and the ball goes 120 yards into the left side of the fairway. Pin is front right and a partial LW should get me on and past the hole. I hit a good looking high shot that strikes the cloth flag on the way down and my ball is 6 feet past the hole, 63 yard shot. I 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. My drive is a high fade down the left side, 240 yards. Hole is near the center and around 100ish yards. I go with a partial PW and hit a high pull draw, 105 yards into the back left rough, about 16 yards from the hole.

 

Too much grass to go through to use my putter, so I bump and run my SW. I barely miss the hole and it rolls 6 feet past. I sink the par putt, 4.

 

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. Forward left hole and I think 9i is the club. I mishit a high push into the right rough, 137 yards. I'm almost hole high, so correct club off the tee. I bump and run chip with SW and sent it 11 feet long. It's a two putt bogey, 4.

 

9 – par 4, 357 yards, straight hole, #3 HCP, water on the left as you approach the green. The pond fronts this green. It's into the wind and I hit a solid, but high 4w, 197 yards into the fairway. Wind just killed it but still a real good shot. Back left hole location and I decide 5i will safely get me over the pond and on the green.

 

It's a terrible swing and I don't know why. I leave the face open and hit a pretty solid push fade, 159 yards well right of the green. I'm in pine straw and almost on the cart path. I did have the distance and I'm in line with the back of the green.

 

I try to hit a low pitch with my SW but it only goes 23 yards and I leave it in the middle back rough. I bump and run the SW to 4 feet and two puut for double bogey, 6.

 

Well my first blow up but at least it took 9 holes for a change.

 

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 bit of a pop-up with my 7w, 171 yards and into the middle of the fairway. I'm thinking of laying up as we head to the balls. It's a back left hole and probably 180+ yards. I'm thinking about my shot and decide to go for it. I hit an okay 7w, 159 yards, onto the front of the green. I'm 51 feet below the hole and putting up a tier. I hit the birdie putt to a foot. Par, 4.

 

11 – par 4, 329 yards, 90* dogleg left, #12 HCP. Fairway eventually slopes down to a stream short of the green, forced carry. I tee off with 5i and hit a horrid push fade into the right trees just off the tee box. I say i'm gonna hit a provisional when we see my ball bounce out of the trees, an 82 yard shot. I decide to layup with a little punched 8i that goes 105 yards and sets me up on level ground.

 

Front right hole and it's 130ish to center, so 9i with the elevation advantage. It's a great looking draw, 153 yards, and off the back of the green, lol. I chip with my putter(26 yards), to 5 feet and two putt for double bogey, 6.

 

Blow up #2....

 

12 – par 4, 315 yards, 90* dogleg left, #14 HCP, green is elevated. Narrow tee shot that opens as you reach the corner. I hit a bad pull with my 4w into the left trees. I find the ball, 196 off the tee, and I have a path out but not at the green. I chit a 66 yard chip with my PW to get back in play. I'm just short of the bunker and have to hit a UTB chip/pitch up to the elevated green. I use my SW and hit a nice shot to 6 feet and make the par putt, 4.

 

13 – par 3, 123 yards, #18 HCP, green is elevated with bunkers short right and left and long left. Tiered green as well. Back left hole and it's 132ish based on what the guys with rangefinders say. I stick with 9i and hit a high draw, 137 yards, into the left rough near the back of the green. I'm chipping down a slope to the green and the green slopes away from me. I use my putter and hit it 10 yards, 6 feet past the hole. It's a two putt bogey, 4.

 

14 – par 5, 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 solid high draw down the left side, 253 yards. I'm in the fairway and I hit a very solid 4w, 220 yards, down the left side. Hole is middle right near the pond and it's about 70 yards to center. I hit a partial LW and it's a high draw, 77 yards onto the green. I'm 21 feet past the cup and lag it to two feet. I make the par putt, 5.

 

15 – par 4, 264 yards, straight, #16 HCP. Elevated tee shot to a fairway that is always soft and 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 decide to go for the green and wait for it to clear. I've been real close but never hit it.

 

It's a solid draw, 235 yards, that carries the right most fairway bunker and ends up in the fairway, short and right of the green. The hole is back left and I have plenty of room with nothing to carry. I decide to bump and run a 7i and don't hit it hard enough. It's a 16 yard shot that gets on but it's 42 feet short of the hole. My birdie putt is bad and stops 6 feet short. Two more putts for a 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. Middle front hole and it's a 7i. I blade it low and right, 83 yards, and it stays in the rough, short of the stream. I hit a UTB pitch with my SW, 61 yards, and 12 feet past the hole. A pretty good result. I barely miss the par putt and end up with bogey, 4.

 

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. My drive is a high draw, 226, into the center of the fairway. The hole is middle back and I figure it's a 9i in. It's a terrible mishit that's low and right, 101 yards, and just right of the front right bunker. I hit chip with my SW, 28 yards, to 6 feet past the hole. It's a fairly steep slope and I tap the ball and it rolls in, par 4.

 

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 drive is a high push fade, 220 yards, that ends up in the right rough near the fairway bunker. I decide to hit a full 6i across the stream and it's a nice shot, 174 yards and into the fairway.

 

The hole is just off the left middle edge of the green. It's roughly 85 yards and I go with my AW. I hit a high shot that goes over the back of the green, 96 yards. I hit a chip with my putter, 11 yards, and 6 feet long. It's a two putt, bogey 6.

 

A 43/42, 85. I could have gone lower but missed some real short putts. This round dropped my index by 0.5 to 16.1, so I dropped 0.7 this weekend. The biggest thing is 0 penalties! Putting still has some problems with the short ones but overall it felt better than normal.

 

birdies: 0

pars: 5

bogeys: 8

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 3

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 205 with a couple 4w, a 7w, and a mishit 5i.

Longest drive: 253 yards

Fairways: 8/14

GIR: 7/18

Avg Approach: 119 yards

Up & down: 3/9

Putts: 36

 

Strokes gained compared to a 15 HCP. 

Overall: +2.8 strokes

driving: +0.9

Approach: +0.1

Short game: +2.8

Putting: -1.1

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Buddy, you're gonna have to revise your goal soon because you might be a 15 before you know it!

[bortass]

16 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

Buddy, you're gonna have to revise your goal soon because you might be a 15 before you know it!

  Yeah, I'm already thinking about it. There may be a bit of wobble in my index but I'm not sure. My 8 oldest scores all have a -1 exceptional stroke reduction applied to the differential. Only 3 are in the top 8 to calculate my index, an 18.8 rolls off next round; 16.6 rolls off in 7 rounds; 10.7(my lowest ever 82) rolls off in 8 rounds. Worst case scenario that 18.8 will get replaced by an existing 18.9 that's not being used. That 10.7 will cause a bump up when it goes away in most likely.

 

Did get to the range this morning.

 

Block 1 was a power shift drill with 8i. 3 sets (3/10) and it went well.

Block 2 was short putts. I brought my putting tutor and used it along with putting across an alignment stick. I did 10 balls on easy and 10 balls on medium and never hit the ball bearings. Nexct time I use the tutor, I'll start on the medium setting for 10 and then try hard. After that I just did random short putts and it was ugly. A lot of misses. I actually was getting frustrated with myself, which isn't good. I'll just have to keep at it because it's a weakness that's costing me a few strokes every round it seems.

[bortass]

Made it to the range all 4 days this week. I already covered Tuesday above. All blocks were 20 minutes.

 

Wed block 1:  I did the low point drill with a towel behind the ball w/ 8i. 3 sets(3/10). It went well. I wanted to do face contact drill but forgot that the dew makes it impossible to use foot spray on the clubhead since it just removes all of it.

 

Wed block 2: Short putts, 6- 7 minutes was the alignment stick drill. The rest was random short putts. This didn't go as well as I hoped. I was missing a lot of putts.

 

Thur block1: Face control drill w 7i. Hit a ball with curve right, then curve left, then straight. This went real good IMO. I have a harder time getting the ball to curve left and hit more pulls. The curve right is a bit easier and I was starting to bring it more into the range proper versus the right trees. The straight shots were extremely good though, baby draws and fades, also pretty solid.

 

Thur Block 2: I took my 7i and did something different. I tried to carry the ball to four different targets. The pattern was short left, short middle, short right, slightly longer middle(still less than a flighted 7i), and then a full swing. This was a challenge but fun. The three targets I listed as short would be inside 75 yards, so I was trying to hit real low shots w/o much power. The slightly longer middle target was probably closer to 100 yards. I was messing around with width of stance, where I was gripping the club, and the swing length/force to try and take enough off. The actual results weren't great but I didn't expect them to be since I never have tried this before. It went real good though. I saw improvement with regard to landing the ball closer to all the targets. 

 

Friday block 1: Cast B drill w/7i. 3 sets (3/10) with time at the end just hitting full shots with the 7i. This went pretty good. I was just doing 3/4 swings during the 10 ball section of each drill and the results were pretty good.

 

Friday block 2: Putting. Spent about 12 minutes with the putting tutor and it was a bit of a mess. I think it's because I wasn't focused on just making a good stroke and not hitting the ball bearings. I had it aimed at a hole and was also trying to make the putt and it was ugly, even on the easy setting. Eventually I moved it and just putted into space and it got much better. I think I need to just use this thing w/o a hole for a while.  The rest of the time I spent trying to make random 15+ foot putts to the various holes. This section of the practice went okay.

 

I've been thinking about different facets of my practice routine. The habit of going to the range and spending two 20 minute blocks working on things is going quite well. I like that format and it's pretty easy to do. My thoughts have been around what I want to practice and is there a better way for me to make sure I actually practice the aspects I want.

 

I'll start with the what I want to practice. Monte's clinic gave me full swing items of full backswing and issues with my left wrist(cast A from NTC). I also want to work on contact drills, like low point; the heel, toe, center drill; The left, right, center face contact drill; Etc. Putting and short game. I've been listening to the How to shoot in the 70s podcast by Hack It Out Golf, which was mentioned in RoyalMustang's Shooting in the 70s consistently thread. They compare a 15 versus a 5 in the series, which works great since I'm almost a 15.

 

I've enjoyed it so far and a takeaway for me is around skill. A 5 can hit shots a 15 can't. I don't mean 300 yard drives. It's the shot options available to the 5. An example, a 5 may know how to hit say a high wedge, a middle wedge, and a low wedge. So the 5 has a few options when they have that wedge in. A 15 probably just has a stock shot and that's it, unless they have practiced the various options. The stat that highlighted it was with short game. When their stat guy looked at Arccos data to see of the 15s and 5s that have relatively good short games for that handicap, he found the following. 15s who just used 1-2 clubs for all their short game shots performed better than 15s that's used a variety of clubs. 5s who used a variety of clubs performed better than those who just used 1 - 2 clubs.

 

Don't get me wrong, technique makes a big difference and is where the bigger gains are to be found and I'd point to how the clinic has made a big change in my game, all with technique. I do want to work on skills though.

 

So what I'm trying to work out is setting monthly minimum practice targets of things I want to practice. Best case scenario is I have 8 practice blocks a week. Realistically, I am thinking I should plan on only having 4 - 6 blocks a week because of work, weather, golfing instead of practice etc. My thought is say I go with 4 blocks a week, that's roughly 16 a month, and I dole those 16 blocks out to specific things at the start of the month. 

 

Here's a made up example. In this example  month I know I want to work on these items at least this many times. I'll have it written down and checked off as I complete them.

Cast A 4 blocks - clinic item

Cast B  2 blocks  - because I have issues with an open clubface

Putting 4 blocks - This area needs some focused work

Short Game 2 blocks - could be bunkers or chipping work, don't want to get rusty etc.

Strike drills 2 blocks - I think the skills will be helpful but it's not as big a focus as say Cast A or putting right now.

Driver 1 block - work on face contact since dew shouldn't be an issue 

Woods 1 block - need to sort out hitting them off the deck

 

If I get more practice sessions in, that's fine. I think this way I will know at a glance what I still need to get in for that month. I want to avoid not working on something because I went down a rabbit hole and neglected it. Short game would be a good example since I haven't dedicated much practice to it this month. I don't want to go an entire month and not work on it.

 

Hopefully that makes sense, lol.\

 

Have a great weekend and hit it solid!

 

 

[bortass]

Played both Saturday and Sunday. We had some rain Friday evening and showers before teeing off. It's been pretty dry, so it wasn't cart path only, though there was casual water in a few spots. I can't say the rain really made a difference to the overall course conditions. It was just quite humid and low 80s. Sunday was mid 80s and humid, but not like Saturday. I don't like humidity but I'd say it was decent weather to play in.

 

Speaking of humidity, I broke down and bought a Sparms sun sleeve shawl.... I don't play with a glove normally and when it's hot and humid the sweat from my forearms force me to wear a glove, or both rain gloves if it's real bad. I have 4 rounds wearing it and I don't care what I look like, it works. I haven't needed a glove. I can tell it has a cooling effect whenever I walk indoors with AC but it's not obvious when I'm outside. My guess is I just can't tell that it's keeping me cooler even though it is.  I'm sold on them and will probably get a second set.

 

Back to golf.

 

Saturday was a 42/44* 86.  I picked up on 18 and carded a NDB 8. This replaced an 18.8 differential that was rolling off and dropped my index by 0.4 to 15.7.  The 42 on the front had two doubles, three bogeys, 3 pars, and a birdie. The back was 3 pars, 5 bogeys, and the NBD triple(8) on 18.

 

#18 was a mess and I kind of learned a lesson. Don't look for certain tee shots. I hit a real bad pull into the left trees about 97 yards off the tee. I then hit a real good provisional that probably went 240ish and into the left rough. Well I went looking for my first ball and found it. I had to go through a bunch of saplings that were tightly packed. Lets just say 4 shots later I wasn't even near where my provisional was....

 

#5, par 5 was the first double. I pulled my 4w into the left trees and had to drop 112 off the tee. I didn't like my odds of clearing the corner because the hazard switches to the right side at the corner. That forced a layup, so it was like I took S&D off the tee. A double is all I can hop for in that scenario.

 

#9, the other double was sad. Pushed my 4w into the rough of #1. I had no shot at the green that I dared to take. I would have needed to keep it low because of trees blocking the right side and carried the pond to try and hit the left side, so a pull or even slight overdraw would probably be wet. I pitched back into position and then hit my PW onto the green. 24 feet from the hole and I get to 2 feet and miss...

 

I got lucky on #3, par 5, hit my tee shot OOB and came away with a bogey playing my provisional. Sank a 24 foot putt.

 

The birdie was on #4 after I hit a partial LW approach to a foot.

 

The pars and bogeys were mostly routine I guess. I did have 3 bogeys that were caused by having to chip twice though.

 

Putting was the best part of my game for a change. I had 9 one putts, 7 were after chips.

 

Short game was still solid even with the three double chips.

 

Driving wasn't so hot though with 3 penalty strokes and then that mess on 18.

 

Stats:

 

Avg drive: 197with a couple 4w, a 7w, and a mishit 5i.

Longest drive: 241 yards

Fairways: 8/14

GIR: 5/18

Avg Approach: 112 yards

Up & down: 4/9

Putts: 29(assuming a 2 putt on 18)

 

Strokes gained compared to a 15 HCP. 

Overall: +0.8 strokes

driving: -3.6

Approach: -0.1

Short game: +2.2

Putting: +2.4

 

[bortass]

Sunday's round was a 42/44, 86 with no * this time.  The 42 on the front had a triple bogey 8 in the mix... 5 pars on the front and just one on the back. Another round where I left shots on the table and realistically could have gone a bit lower. 

 

My putting was off. I had a 12 foot birdie putt from above the hole, left it 3 feet short, and 3 putt. 30 foot birdie putt blown 6 feet long, 3 putt. 30 foot birdie putt up a tier and I don't get it up the tier leaving me an 18 foot par putt that I missed. 60 foot birdie putt that I left 13 feet short. I had a great putt on #9 though. 66 foot birdie putt and I got it to a foot for par. Ended up with 38 putts.

 

Driving was good. My only penalty off the tee was a mishit 7w off the toe into the right trees on #10. Had to take a drop and carded a double bogey, 6. I almost drove #15 again, came within 4 - 5 yards of the front of the green and walked away with a birdie.

 

My other penalties were approach shots. Bladed 4w into a stream on my second shot on #5, which led to the triple bogey 8. The other was a 6i second shot on #18 after a great drive. Slight push into a pond that led to a double bogey, 7. My approach game was pretty good, even though the SG don't support it with the penalties, in that I hit 11 greens in regulation...

 

Short game was pretty standard. No double chips today and while I only got up and down once, I gave myself some chances.

 

This round dropped my index to 15.2... Time for a new goal, I guess.

 

birdies: 1

pars: 6

bogeys: 8

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 1

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 217 with a couple 4w, a 7w, and a mishit 5i.

Longest drive: 255 yards

Fairways: 9/14

GIR: 11/18

Avg Approach: 118 yards

Up & down: 0/6

Putts: 38

 

Strokes gained compared to a 15 HCP. 

Overall: +1.6 strokes

driving: +1.0

Approach: -0.3

Short game: +3.0

Putting: -2.2

[betarhoalphadelta]

On 7/21/2023 at 8:01 AM, bortass said:

I've enjoyed it so far and a takeaway for me is around skill. A 5 can hit shots a 15 can't. I don't mean 300 yard drives. It's the shot options available to the 5. An example, a 5 may know how to hit say a high wedge, a middle wedge, and a low wedge. So the 5 has a few options when they have that wedge in. A 15 probably just has a stock shot and that's it, unless they have practiced the various options. The stat that highlighted it was with short game. When their stat guy looked at Arccos data to see of the 15s and 5s that have relatively good short games for that handicap, he found the following. 15s who just used 1-2 clubs for all their short game shots performed better than 15s that's used a variety of clubs. 5s who used a variety of clubs performed better than those who just used 1 - 2 clubs.

 

 

That's a really interesting bit. It definitely makes sense to me though. I know when it comes to short game, I've got one shot. If I've got green to work with, great, I might be able to get something close. If I am short sided, I'm just accepting that I'm rolling out way past the hole. And I do basically everything with my 56*, because I'd rather be comfortable with one wedge than uncomfortable with three. 

 

I'd love to learn to hit that low spinner one-hop-and-check wedge shot. If you ever see me hit that shot on the course, it's unintended and I can't repeat it if I try lol...

[bortass]

49 minutes ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

That's a really interesting bit. It definitely makes sense to me though. I know when it comes to short game, I've got one shot. If I've got green to work with, great, I might be able to get something close. If I am short sided, I'm just accepting that I'm rolling out way past the hole. And I do basically everything with my 56*, because I'd rather be comfortable with one wedge than uncomfortable with three. 

 

I'd love to learn to hit that low spinner one-hop-and-check wedge shot. If you ever see me hit that shot on the course, it's unintended and I can't repeat it if I try lol...

 I thought it was interesting too. It's the walk before you can run kind of thing. Get competent with a shot so it becomes the baseline 'I'm gonna do this in this situation' then start to work on other options to try an expand one's capabilities for that situation. It'll be bumpy at times but should move the needle.

 

I want to start to incorporate some of that type of thing into my practice routines. A UTB chip that's real high and doesn't roll much is one of my better short game shots. I really feel like I need to get better with bump and run since those should be simpler. I'd also like to start working on changing partial wedge trajectories, etc. It'll also make practice more fun for me.

[bortass]

Because @MonteScheinblum is a hacker whisperer, I need a new goal. My index has dropped 7.1, 22.3 to 15.2, in the 11 weeks since his ATL clinic. It didn't take as long as I thought it would to drop to 15. He removed some bigger roadblocks to my game than I thought possible from just a single clinic.

 

My goal now is to get into the single digits. I think I can do it but realize some people never do. I don't expect this to be easy. My index has been dropping like a rock but that will change sooner rather than later. It will stabilize at some point and will drift up once that 82 rolls off in about 6 rounds.

 

I feel confident about this. I am playing well and don't think it's just luck. There aren't any normal shots I need on my course that I don't feel good about. Sure, there are a bunch of shots I won't dare try but they are hero shots for me. I don't need those types of shots routinely. Maybe sometime I will learn the required skill to risk a low punch under trees to my right, blocking all but the left side of the green, with a pond left, lol.

 

There's still plenty of room to improve all aspects of my game and my practice routine will help me move the needle. Hopefully, I don't need until 2027 to pull this off, lol.

 

The Arccos stats for last 50 rounds compared to a 0 handicap. The 5/2 column was right after the clinic. It doesn't look like a big change but 50 rounds is a fair bit. I've played 34 rounds since 5/2 and the improvement in my scoring is mostly in the last 10 rounds or so.

50 rounds V 0	05/02/23	07/24/23
Total Strokes Gained	-25.4	-23.4
Driving Strokes Gained	-7.3	-7
Approach Strokes Gained	-9.5	-9
Short Game Strokes Gained	-2.5	-1.9
Putting Strokes Gained	-6.1	-5.5
Par 3 Average	4	3.9
Par 4 Average	5.4	5.3
Par 5 Average	6.8	6.7
Avg distance off tee par 4/5 (all clubs)	201	202
Fairway	51.00%	48.00%
GIR	25.00%	27.00%
Chip Up/Down 0-25 yards	26.00%	31.00%
Chip Up/Down 25-50 yards	9.00%	8.00%
Sand Up/Down 0-25 yards	11.00%	7.00%
Sand Up/Down 25-50 yards	33.00%	10.00%
Putts	36.1	35.3

[betarhoalphadelta]

2 hours ago, bortass said:

Sure, there are a bunch of shots I won't dare try but they are hero shots for me. I don't need those types of shots routinely. Maybe sometime I will learn the required skill to risk a low punch under trees to my right, blocking all but the left side of the green, with a pond left, lol.

 

 

 

Heck, I spent so much time in my teens playing from out of the woods that I've got ALL sorts of punch shot experience. 😉 

 

The low draw is easier than trying to hold off a fade to avoid a left miss, but I've got both of those in the bag lol...

[bortass]

14 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

Heck, I spent so much time in my teens playing from out of the woods that I've got ALL sorts of punch shot experience. 😉 

 

The low draw is easier than trying to hold off a fade to avoid a left miss, but I've got both of those in the bag lol...

I used to play from the trees a lot as well and had a low shot down. Don't really need it on my course much because the trees are almost always a hazard and not easy to play out of.

 

I took a picture this morning of roughly the shot I was talking about which was in Saturday's round( see below). The flag is front right in the picture and I'm probably 170+ from center.  I'm almost halfway between the painted stripes on the cart path that denote 150 and 200 to center. I'd have taken a whack at punching a ball to the left side if there wasn't a pond there. I have to carry it and I'm probably hitting a strong draw to make sure it stays low. That's out of my wheelhouse right now.  Maybe someday I'll get good enough to try that type of shot.

 

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Ahh yeah. I think instead that's a "take your medicine" type of shot. Get it out to somewhere safe and then try to get up and down. 

[bortass]

18 hours ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

Ahh yeah. I think instead that's a "take your medicine" type of shot. Get it out to somewhere safe and then try to get up and down. 

Exactly, that's a playing for bogey situation and a par is real good. This is also a hole where bogey is fine. I haven't looked at the numbers but I wouldn't be surprised if someone said 'you can take a bogey and skip the hole' it would be better than my average score. It's an interesting hole though because it does force a decision for the second shot. Almost anything short is gonna be wet.

 

I did something new during one of my practice blocks today and spent it on driver. I learned one thing of possible value, club face contact location. I tend to hit it high on the face but it's also closer to middle as far as heel versus toe goes. I also broke a number of tees which tends to tell me I'm coming in steep. I wasn't all over the face which is nice. I'll have to try to figure out ways to drop the contact a bit lower on the face. The long term solution should be 'fix the swing' but that's a long term  effort. Not sure if there's anything in Drive for Dough that would help. 

 

So I wouldn't call the 20 minutes with driver as a wonderful success with a bunch of great shots, but that's a valuable nugget IMO, so worth it.

 

Tee height seems reasonable BTW. I'm not that guy that tees the ball completely above the club.

[bortass]

Made it out with the senior men's group today. Played the home course and kinda spit the bit. I lost 8 balls, 3 on one hole. I posted a 92 with three NDB on the card, one was an X on the hole where I lost three balls. 5 penalties off the tee and none were S&D, and only one was with driver. Two were 4w, one 7w, and a 7i on a par 3 that went in the right trees by the green. It was a rough round but won't hurt me in the long run outside of having to replace so many balls...

 

Of the bad shots, only two were truly terrible, 4w severe push fade OOB and a 6i shank into a hazard . The rest were meh but started too far right and caused issues. They didn't always lead to a penalty but I messed up some opportunities. I did have a couple mental mistakes

 

On the positive side, I had two birdies on the back. Sank a 13 foot putt and chipped in for another. Drive of the day was 268 yards and I had two others in the 250+ range. I hit some great iron shots like a 144 yard 8i uphill and the 166 yard 6i to hit #1 in two for a change. I am finding that I am starting to mess with my yardages when I play because I'm seeing some extra distance with my irons. An example would be if I'm between 8 and 9i, I'll go with the 9i unless there's trouble short. I'm finding that the shorter club is starting to get there. in the past i was probably using the longer of the two. I know Arccos has shifted some of my distances but I'm not completely sold on them yet. 

 

I don't know why but I don't seem to play well when I join the seniors. I can't figure it out since I don't feel any different than I do on the weekends. It is Stableford and skins instead of just skins though. Perhaps that's what throws me off but it just seems odd. No matter, it was still nice to get out there in the heat and humidity, lol.

[bortass]

This weeks practice:

 

Tues block 1: 20 minutes short putts with alignment rod drill. Went well. The practice along with the green reading stuff from the Harrington video I posted seems to be paying off.

Tue block 2: 20 minutes cast B w/ PW. 4 sets (3/10). Went well and I probably need to use it as a swing thought more often.

 

Wed block 1: 20 minutes ???? I forgot what I did and didn't write it down 🙄

Wed block 2: 20 minutes with driver, mentioned a couple of posts ago.

 

Thursday - skipped to play golf kinda poorly...

 

Fri block 1: 20 minutes hitting pitches with AW. I was trying to vary height and play around with distances. I need to get better when I'm in that 50 - 80 yard range. I have a partial 60* LW for between 60 and 70 but I have found it's not reliable enough if I'm dealing with the situation where you cannot be short. I have hit some great shots with it and some real duds. The block went well and I'll have to start tailoring the club and shot more than I normally do. Today it's pretty much  look at yardage, always grab the specific club and hit my stock shot with it.

 

Fri block 2: 15 minutes, because I had an early meeting, of 4w off the deck.  I have been having some issues with my 4w over the last 4 -5 weeks off the deck. I want to sort it out because I need that shot on par 5s. Yesterday I had a great drive into the center of the fairway on #3. It was 190ish to center, so I had a chance to hit a par 5 in two. Instead I hit a terrible blocked push fade dead right OOB and carded an 8... This has been a trend on my second shot on #3 a fair bit. I had been hitting 4w great off the deck for that second shot but it's gone MIA on me.

[bortass]

I know this throws things off but I'm switching to using a 0 HCP for the Arccos strokes gained comparison. I'll never be scratch but I think that baseline makes sense if I want to try and get into the single digits. Maybe I should have stuck with that the entire time but it was kinda depressing seeing those +30 SG numbers....

 

There's been a definite change in the non-swing side of how I play golf. I mentioned confidence in a previous post. I don't worry about any individual shot for the majority of shots during a round. I know I can hit them versus I hope I can hit them. There are exceptions when I put myself in a bad place because I don't have all the shots, didn't want anyone thinking I think I got this 100% of the time. I'm not thinking about my swing itself much. I know it's good enough to par every hole on the course from the tees I play and that takes the pressure off.

 

What I would call very good to great shots don't surprise me much. I don't expect them but I've been hitting them often enough to get past the 'holy crap did I just do that' phase of things. I still take great pleasure in those shots but I'm not getting giddy over them. Now if I hit a driver 300+ or holed out for eagle, that would be different, but if I do smoke a drive out there 260-270, it's not a shock. been there, done that (though I'd like to do it more often)

 

How I handle bad shots is better but I still can't make the sting go away, especially with what I consider dumb ones. Short iron or wedge over a pond and chunk it in. Something I would consider fairly easy. I can brush off a pull or push into a hazard off the tee with driver or 4w much easier than those 'dumb ones'. The frustration levels are much lower across the board and it's makes the round more enjoyable which is a big win.

 

I'm slowly starting to think a bit more about some shots. What I mean is shifting from a basic 'it's 100 yards, hit PW' to 'it's 100 yards, hit PW a bit lower to let the tier in the green feed the ball towards the hole'. Slightly more how I want to play a shot versus just trying to hit. I think part of this is what I've been watching on Youtube. More about course management, how certain lies behave, etc.

 

I was able to get in two rounds over the weekend. Weather for both was hot and humid. I'll do summaries of each separately. 

[bortass]

Saturday's round was solid. A 42/44 86 that dropped my index 0.2 to 15.0. It's becoming more obvious that double+ is the enemy. I'm still fine with carding a bogey on any given hole but I have a feeling I may get to a point where how the bogey comes about will be more of a concern. 

 

I had four blow ups, 1, 8, 17, 18.

 

#1 - par 4, double bogey. Execution error, putting. Pulled driver into the left trees, so I'm playing for bogey, which is still a solid score for this hole even from the middle of the fairway. I have a clear shot out and can advance the ball closer to the green. I bunt a low 6i to get me in wedge range. I hit a partial AW, 90 yard club, 97 yards and onto the green. I'm 20 feet past the hole. Downhill putt and I send it 4 feet long. It's a three putt.

 

#8 - par 3, double bogey. Execution error, 7i tee shot and pitch. Hit a push into the right trees and had to drop. I'm above the green and have to carry a bunker and short sided. Pitch doesn't come out good and I end up through the other side of the green. Chip with putter to 5 feet and make the putt.

 

#17 - par 4, double bogey. Execution error putting. Pulled tee shot clips some trees on the left and drops. I have a 6i in and  hit a low push, short of the green. I don't consider this an execution error because I wasn't in a realistic spot to hit the green. Pitch to 9 feet above the hole. Above the hole is bad but i should be okay. I tap my ball and it misses the hole and trickles 6 feet past.... So another three putt.

 

#18 - par 5, triple bogey, Execution error driver. Mental error, provisional. Pulled driver into left trees, see it hit a tree and bounce to the right. I think it's findable and do not hit a provisional(mental mistake). Can't find ball and drop 175 off the tee and add 2 stroke penalty. lay up short of the stream with 7i to give me a 6i in. Push my 6i into the rough short of #9 green, at least I cleared the pond. Pitch to 11 feet and two putts.

 

Other bad stuff: 2 chips on #12 led to a bogey after a great drive with 4w(234 yards). 2 putts from 4 feet on #15 for bogey. 

 

I want to start calling out the mental errors because those should be the most fixable as long as I start paying attention to any patterns.

 

Good stuff.

#4 - par 4, 243 yard drive into the fairway. I'm about 44 yards from the hole and pitch with my SW to 6 feet past the hole. Drain the putt. Birdie!

#13 - par 3, 131 yard 9i(120 club) that was a push. it left me 43 feet right of and above the hole going down a tier. Somehow drained the putt. Birdie!

#14 - par 5, 233 yard drive into the fairway on the right. Aim left with 4w and hit a push fade that rolls into the pond. Drop where it went in( 210 from prior spot). Hit AW into the left rough about 30 feet short of the hole. I have to chip with SW because there's too much rough and goose poop to use putter and I sink it, par.

 

Had 3 routine two putt pars as well. 

 

 

birdies: 2

pars: 5

bogeys: 7

double bogeys: 3

triple+: 1

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 206 with a couple 4w, a 7w, and a 5i.

Longest drive: 254 yards

Fairways: 10/14

GIR: 5/18

Avg Approach: 127 yards

Up & down: 3/11

Putts: 30

 

Strokes gained compared to a 0 HCP. 

Overall: -13.7  strokes

driving: -5.7( 3 penalties)

Approach: -7.2 ( 2 penalties)

Short game: +0.8

Putting: -1.6

 

 

 

Edited July 31, 2023 by bortass

[betarhoalphadelta]

5 hours ago, bortass said:

 

I'm slowly starting to think a bit more about some shots. What I mean is shifting from a basic 'it's 100 yards, hit PW' to 'it's 100 yards, hit PW a bit lower to let the tier in the green feed the ball towards the hole'. Slightly more how I want to play a shot versus just trying to hit. I think part of this is what I've been watching on Youtube. More about course management, how certain lies behave, etc.

 

 

Must be #15point2capproblems ... Us 20+ index golfers think about all those things and then the golf gods cause us to chunk the $#!+ out of it because we were too far over our skis thinking we could flight a little 100y wedge to land in the perfect spot for the ideal rollout and funnel into the pin. 😉

 

[bortass]

Sunday's round. Very stiff back when I woke up. It felt like something was catching when I'd lean forward to putt. I'm sure it made a difference when i played but i can't point o a specific instance where I hit it bad because of my back. In fact, I had a great day off the tee. Score was better than expected based on my start. 46*/41, 87. I had a quad, 8 on #9 but NDB is 7. This dropped my index by 0.1 to 14.9, so I've officially gotten under 15.

 

I had three blow ups, 1, 5, and 9.

 

#1 - par 4, triple bogey. Execution errors short game. 233 yard drive into left rough. Pushed 5i under a tree to the right of the green. My ball was on hardpan and I hit a bump and run chip thin and bladed it through the green. I then hit a pitch too hard past the pin and into the front fringe. My chip with putter is terrible and is 6 feet long. 2 putts from there to end the misery. 

 

#5 - par 5, double bogey. Mental error, approach shot. Push 4w off the tee into the right rough up on the hill in a flat spot. I'm probably playing to hit the green in 4. Hit a good 7i to get into the fairway and about 170 yards from center. I don't like the thought of going for it initially and plan to lay up with 9i and hit the green in 4. I could try to punch a 5i between two hazards to get it close to the green though. I go with the 5i and hit a low draw into the left hazard... Pitch over the stream to 11 feet and two putt.  The risk/reward of the 5i shot wasn't worth it. Odds were I'd have been chipping if I hit the shot I wanted versus a pitch. Changing my mind and going against my first thought was a mistake.

 

#9 - par 4, quad, NDB triple. Execution error, approaches. A great 4w off the tee, 229 into the fairway. This left me an easy 8i over the pond to a back right flag. Hit it heavy and into the pond. Drop a bit closer and I have a partial PW in. Hit it heavy and into the pond. Drop even closer and hit a partial SW to 21 feet. 2 putt for triple. These shots frustrated me. I was in a great spot off the tee and the hole was less than 140 yards away. I completely dubbed two shots in a row.

 

Other bad stuff.

 

Two chips on #2 lead to a bogey. I had a high chip over a bunker from wet rough. Didn't take into account the moisture was going to kill the spin, so it rolled off the front of the green.

Two chips on #8, bladed a SW bump and run chip through the green, led to bogey.

Two putt from 3 feet on #12 led to bogey.

 

Good stuff.

#3 - par 5, solid drive 236 through the fairway into the left rough. Dubbed 5i about 55 yards. Mishit 7w leaves me a long pitch to the green. Hit a pitch off the back but sink a 9 yard chip with putter to save par.

#11 - par 4, 188 yard push with 5i off the tee. 185 yard 5i that lands on the back of the green and rolls off. I am short side, the green is above me, and slopes away from me. Hit an 18 yard chip with SW to a foot. Par.

#13 - par 3. Hit 8i, 137 yards and off the back left of the green. About 24 yards to the hole, down slope and down a tier. Chip with putter and I get the speed but not the line. Pin high and 6 feet out. Make the par putt.

#14 - par 5, 240 yard drive into the right rough, caught it a bit thin and lost distance. Great 4w, 220 yard into the fairway.  Hole is close to 100 yards and I want to hit AW and land short and let it release to the pin. Aim too far left and I'm pin high in a bunker. Chip out with 7i to 3 feet and sink the par putt. 

 

Three routine GIR/2 putt pars.

 

As mentioned, my par 4/5 tee shots were very good. I was -1.6 SG compared to a 0 HCP and didn't have any penalties off the tee.

 

I also had no three putts and got up and down 5 times.

 

birdies: 0

pars: 8

bogeys: 7

double bogeys: 1

triple+: 2

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 231 with a couple 4w, a 7w, and a 5i.

Longest drive: 264 yards

Fairways: 6/14

GIR: 3/18

Avg Approach: 108 yards

Up & down: 5/13

Putts: 28!

 

Strokes gained compared to a 0 HCP. 

Overall: -15.7 strokes

driving: -1.6

Approach: -12.2

Short game: +0.1

Putting: -2.0

[bortass]

25 minutes ago, betarhoalphadelta said:

 

Must be #15point2capproblems ... Us 20+ index golfers think about all those things and then the golf gods cause us to chunk the $#!+ out of it because we were too far over our skis thinking we could flight a little 100y wedge to land in the perfect spot for the ideal rollout and funnel into the pin. 😉

 

I don't think I really thought about that stuff much. If I did, it was lost in the wash of all the thoughts about my crap swing and mishits, lol. My focus was just please let me hit the ball in the right direction. Granted it's still pretty basic stuff on my end, but there's a change that I noticed over the course of the weekend about how I was thinking about some different things for a change.

[Patnachts]

Good work making it under 15! I will say that there is some pretty clear low hanging fruit in your current game, the approach play. Your scores would drop dramatically if we could get the GIR up a bit, 3/18 when your average approach is from 108 is just not up to par with the rest of your game. Still lots of room to get that handicap lower!

[bortass]

19 hours ago, Patnachts said:

Good work making it under 15! I will say that there is some pretty clear low hanging fruit in your current game, the approach play. Your scores would drop dramatically if we could get the GIR up a bit, 3/18 when your average approach is from 108 is just not up to par with the rest of your game. Still lots of room to get that handicap lower!

Thanks!

 

There is a bunch of room to drop the handicap in all areas of my game. The approach game has always been the worst area for me. The Arccos data has been saying that since I started using the system. It will vary from round to round but the message is pretty much the same. The good news is it's getting better over time. 

 

Let's look at Sunday's approach game in detail. My driving, all non par 3 tee shots was on for a change. Copying the numbers  below just so they are readily available.

 

Avg drive: 231 with a couple 4w, a 7w, and a 5i.

Longest drive: 264 yards

Fairways: 6/14

GIR: 3/18

Avg Approach: 108 yards

 

Strokes gained compared to a 0 HCP. 

Overall: -15.7 strokes

driving: -1.6

Approach: -12.2

 

Breaking down the -12.2 approach game I had:

Par 3 tee shots: -2.0

Fairway: -5.9

Rough: -4.3

 

Average distance to pin:

GIR was 12 feet.

All approaches was 74 feet.

 

As far as distances go:

50-74 yards: -1.1 ( SW pitch to partial LW)

75-99 yards: -1.6 (Partial SW to partial PW)

100-124: -2.4 (Partial PW - flighted 9i)

125-149: -2.5 (Flighted 9i - flighted 6i)

150-174: -1.6 ( Flighted 6i, 5i or 7w)

175-199:  -2.1 ( 7w or 4w)

200+: -1.0 ( Could be anything but won't reach green. A 4w might reach a green that's 200 away but almost never happens)

 

So how did it happen. I was pretty much bad every where. I didn't hit many greens and missed in all possible directions: 6 short, 2 long, 4 left, and 3 right. I did get pretty close to the pin on my GIRs though.

 

200+ yards:

    Bladed/thin 5i 55 yards - second shot par 5 from wet rough. Dumb club selection... (par)

    Decent 7i 153 yards -  second shot par 5  from rough, draw trying to get back in position. Good shot. (double)

    Great 4w 220 yards - second shot on par 5 from rough into fairway near green, draw. (par)

   Offline 5i 154 yards - second shot on par 5 and into a pond, solid push fade that started on a line a good 20 yards right of what I wanted. penalty stroke (bogey)

 

175 - 199 yards:

    Okay 5i 169 yards - second shot par 4 from left rough, push fade and missed green short right (triple, 3 short game shots to get on and a 2 putt, lol)

    Bad 7w 126 yards- third shot par 5 from fairway. Bad push fade that catches some trees but ball drops back in play with clear shot to green. (par)

    Punched 5i - Third shot par 5 from fairway. Tried to get cute and punch a 5i between two streams and at the green.  Decent flight but went a bit left and into a stream.                             More a decision error versus execution. Penalty. (double because of this shot)

    Good 5i 185 yards - Second shot par 4 from rough. Draw, landed on back of green and rolled off, long. (par)

 

150 -174 yards:

     Mishit 7i, 135 yards - par 3 tee shot from elevated tee. Push, pin was back right about 155ish. Missed in left rough.

     Mishit 7i, 155 yards - par 3 tee shot. High push fade lands on green and rolls off right side a couple of inches into the fringe.

 

125-149 yards:

     Nuked 8i 154 yards - par 3 tee shot. High draw over the left side of the green into rough behind a back bunker. (bogey)

     Fat 8i 24 yards - Second shot par 4 from fairway. Draw, fat and short into pond. Penalty. Hole is back right, so I took plenty of club. (Quad, NDB triple)

     Solid 8i 137 yards - par 3 tee shot. High draw that missed long left into the rough.(bogey)

 

100-124 yards:

     Solid PW 110 yards - second shot on par 4.  GIR 17 feet. (par)

     Fat PW 35 yards - 4th stroke on par 4 from rough after a drop. Draw, fat and short into the pond. Penalty. Hole is back right, so I took plenty of club. (Quad, NDB triple)

     AW 87 yards - second shot on par 4 from fairway. Played for front of green and came up short, should of hit PW. (bogey)

 

75-99 yards:

     SW 82 yards - Second shot par 4 from fairway. GIR 8 feet. (par)

     Mishit AW 80 yards - second shot on par 4 from left rough to elevated green. Pin was about 90ish and came up short, should have hit PW. (bogey)

     AW 98 yards - Third shot on par 5 from fairway. Missed left into bunker, pin high. (par)

     AW 93 yards - Second shot on par 4 from fairway. High pull and missed left which is bad for this green. (bogey)

     SW 91 yards - 4th shot on par 5 after drop from rough. Hit green 12 feet. (double)

 

50-74 yards:

     SW 68 yards - 4th shot on par 5, pitch shot that lands on green and rolls off the back. (par)

     SW 74 yards - 6th shot on par 4 from rough after hitting PW into the pond. Hit green 21 feet. (Quad, NDB triple)

     SW 38 yards - second shot on par 4 from rough. Long pitch over green side bunker. Came up a few yards short of the green. (par)

     

Not a super clear pattern to me except for bad decisions. The 5i punch when my original plan was to layup short of the stream with 9i. I under clubbed when I didn't take some conditions into account or went pin hunting instead of a longer shot that would have been on the green past the pin. The slightly fat shots into the pond on #9 are not a normal miss for me. 

 

I have a few thoughts. Working on my full swing drills should help with the shots that are 120+. Wedge practice will help with the 50 - 110ish shots. 200+ approaches will be a challenge because of my distances. I can get both 7w and 4w to go that far but it takes a very solid strike and that's rare when I'm trying to hit a green. I think I'll always suffer in the 200+ yard range until I get my swing to a point where I have clubs that I can hit over 200 more regularly.

Edited August 1, 2023 by bortass

[bortass]

My plan was to post what I practiced this week but I hit a snag. I had mentioned I did something to my lower back last weekend and it hasn't cleared up yet. No idea what I did but it's tight when I get up in the morning and it hurts to lean forward. Slap a heating pad on it for a bit and I feel fine the rest of the day. The good news is each morning it's been better than the previous.

 

I had gone to the range Tuesday morning and quit after just one 20 minute block. I did 20 minutes of chipping range balls with my SW and 7i. I was working on bump and run chips. I think if I can get more consistent contact, I'll be able to leverage the shot more. It's been a bit of a crap shoot when I try it. The session went quite well except for the pain in my lower back. Just leaning forward hurt, so I called it a day and haven't been back this week.

 

I did create a little tracker for my practice session goals for August. The point of it is to help me practice certain things a minimum number of times during the month. I'll use it when I'm thinking of what to work on to see if there's something I need to get in still. I went with just 16 blocks for the month since there's a possible 32 blocks per 4 weeks. Too bad I missed most of this week and will likely miss a few days later this month as well.

 

August's breakdown is: Four blocks each for cast A and putting; Two blocks each for cast B, short game, and strike drills; One block each for driver and woods. 

 

One week in and I have one of the short game blocks checked off, lol.

 

Currently plan to play Saturday and Sunday. I'll get up early and apply some heat and see how things go.

 

Have a great weekend!

[bortass]

My back felt decent this morning and I was able to play. I can't point to any specific shots where it was a problem for me but I spit the bit. I posted an even 100. I had more triples(4) than pars(3). I had some real nice shots but followed them up with trash it seemed. Every aspect of my game was off. I did no one thing well and everything poorly. The shot of the day which sums things up was a 9i. Ball above my feet in deep rough after almost hitting my tee shot OOB. I hit the ball off the toe and it goes about 85* right and OOB roughly 4 yards from where I started.

 

The main positives is I got to play( need to see how my back feels later) and the fact this round won't affect my index. My next round will roll a score that's being used off and if I can't replace it, I'll likely go up into the low 15s again. The big one is in two rounds my lowest ever 82 will roll off. That will bump my index up unless I replace it with a like score or better. So right now I expect to be in the 15s again but that's okay. I have been playing decent and a bad round with my back being so so isn't the end of the world.

[bortass]

Hot and humid Sunday. Back felt pretty good but still not 100%. It was a slower round with a fair bit of waiting, took almost 4.5 hours.

 

 

1 – par 4, 404 yards, straight, #1 HCP, bunker front right. My drive is a pretty straight push down the right side of the fairway/rough. The ball lands and kicks a bit right into the rough more but I get past the stand of trees that are between #1 and #9, 244 yard shot.

 

The flag is back left and I have a good angle at it and the bunker is not on my line. It's 150ish to middle and I opt for 6i out of the rough, which is pretty thin because of the trees. Contact is good and it's a low draw at the green. It lands on and releases into the left fringe, pin high, 163 yard shot.

 

I'm about 15 feet from the hole and chip with my putter. The ball catches the lip, starts to dip a little, and pops out the back, stopping within a foot. Almost got a birdie but it's an easy par, 4.

 

2 – par 3, 142 yards, #17 HCP, bunkers short left and right, and long left. The hole is middle back and the tees are back. It's 140ish to center and I go with a 7i. I make good contact and it's a high draw, 147 yards, that lands on the green about 15 feet above the hole and a bit left.

 

The putt is down slope, left to right breaker, and I barely miss the birdie putt and leave the ball about a foot past the cup, par, 3.

 

3 – par 5, 458 yards, dogleg right, #9 HCP, couple of fairway bunkers on the left at the corner. I pull hook my driver, 208 yards into the rough just past the first fairway bunker that's on the left. My lie is okay but I have been having problems with blocking my woods into the right trees on this hole for many weeks now. I opt to hit a 5i and contact is good, a low draw 165 yards into the right side of the fairway.

 

The hole is front left, so no bunkers in my line. There's also a tier right behind it, not a big one, but it can be used as a little bit of a backstop. The flag is about 106 yards away. My partial PW may come up short and 9i is my 120 club. I decide to hit a partial 9i and aim to the right of the hole. I'm hoping to land the ball and let the tier direct it towards the hole. I swing and it's a low draw that lands on the green, to the right of the hole, and the ball feeds towards it. 106 yards, pin high and 3 feet right of the cup. Almost the perfect shot.

 

I make the birdie putt, 4.

 

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 smash a pull draw with my driver, 249 yards, into the left rough near the green. My ball is almost inline with the front edge of the front left green side bunker.

 

The hole is middle right and between 55 – 60 yards. I pitch with my SW and it's a slight mishit. The ball comes out a bit low and right. I land on the green and end up 15 feet low and right of the cup. It's an uphill putt that breaks right to left. I hit the birdie putt and send it 3 feet long... Thie is not an easy putt now. There's a decent left to right break and I'm downslope now. I miss... Bogey, 5.

 

Well that was lame..

 

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 tee off with 4w and it's a great looking mid height draw, 216 yards, into the fairway on the right side.

 

I was here yesterday and hit a push fade with my 4w that started more right than I wanted and it went into the stream that's on the right side as you clear the corner. I stay with 4w and aim left. Too far left...

 

Contact is decent, a low draw right into the face of the left slope that runs down the entire left side once you clear the corner. Only 150 yard shot because the landing dead into the rough and slope killed it.

 

So rough, ball below my feet, stream down the entire right side and the stream fronting the green except for maybe a 30 yard section on the right side where it goes under the fairway and cart path. A low punch will go left on me and probably ends up in the stream short of the green.

 

I decide it's a layup and hit a nice punched SW about 90 yards into the fairway where it goes over the stream. The hole is back left on the upper tier and it's almost 80 yards. I hit a partial SW and it's an okay pull that goes 74 yards and ends up on the green about 15 feet below the hole, on the bottom tier.

 

I'm on in four which was the game plan once I saw where my second shot ended up. I hit the par putt and it's short. It stops but doesn't make it to the top of the tier and it rolls on back down and past me... I now have a 17 foot bogey putt, up the tier again, and I blow it 4 feet long. A quad putt, triple bogey 8.

 

Now that is talent folks... I'm reeling a bit to be honest. Can't believe I just 4 putted when I was thinking I very likely had a two putt bogey with a chance of getting par with a real good putt. It's almost like a metaphysical kick in the teeth.

 

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 bomb my drive, high draw, that lands on the down slope of the fairway. 267 yards...

 

The hole is middle and shaded towards the back. Long is bad and it's about 100ish yards. I decide to hit a partial PW. There's a slight down slope, so it'll come out lower. It's not enough club to go over unless I blade it or nuke it. Contact is good and it's a low draw that lands on the green, 103 yards, and ends up almost pin high and 15 feet right of the hole.

 

The green slopes towards the front right corner and it's a decent amount of right to left break and my ball will be going across the slope. I hit the birdie putt and I miss and end up inside 2 feet below the cup. Par, 4.

 

Good recovery from the triple!

 

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. It's pretty humid and my driver slips during my swing...

 

I hit a big pull way left. It lands on the cart path and bounces into the trees. I find my ball and can hack it sideways back into the fairway instead of taking a drop. I use 7i and hit it 52 yards and get back to the middle of the fairway. The hole is on the left and a sucker pin IMO because the green is very narrow.

 

I aim for center and go with a partial 9i and hit a real low shot, 123 yards, that goes through the back of the green. Oops. I chip with putter( 13 yards) and 6 feet short of the hole. Not exactly what I wanted but I have a chance at bogey and miss. Double, 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. Hole is back left. Think one of the guys with a laser had it at 152 yards with slope. I went with 7i, which is my normal club when it's a back pin.

 

I nuke a high draw over the left side, 174 yards... the ball land sin the rough and bounces more left and into the area a tiny ditch is, it's only about a foot wide but it almost always has water in it . It's been very dry a though and my ball stopped a bit short of it. It's on mud and I chip with my SW but don't swing hard enough. The club digs a bit into the soft mud and I leave it short of the green.

 

There's too much rough to use my putter so I use SW with a putting stroke. The ball lands in the fringe and rolls out and drops 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 bomb a high draw with my 4w, 236 yards into the left side of the fairway a few yards short of the pond. This is why I stopped hitting driver on this hole but I don't normally hit my 4w that far off the tee. There may be wind involved but I can't remember/didn't notice.

 

The hole is middle front and I have about 120 to center where the slope to the tier is. I figure a 9i to center and see if the tier acts as a backstop and helps me out. I nuke my 9i, high draw, 138 yards (my 120 club) over the back left corner of the green. I'm just in the rough but have almost 75 feet to the hole and I have to go down a bit/steep tier as well.

 

I chip with my putter and the ball reaches the tier and almost stops. I'm worried I hit it too soft and it takes the tier and start rolling down to the hole and stops pin high, 2 feet short. I make the putt, par, 4.

 

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 real high 7w, 206 yards, into the middle. The hole is front right and I aim well left of it with my 8i. I hit a low push draw that is well right, 134 yards. It catches some leaves of the right tree line but makes it through.

 

It was a lucky shot with a great result. I'm pin high and 14 feet to the right of the hole. I hit the birdie putt too firm and miss 2 feet long. I make the par putt though, 4.

 

11 – par 4, 329 yards, 90* dogleg left, #12 HCP. Fairway eventually slopes down to a stream short of the green, forced carry. I need to figure out my tee shot on this hole...

 

I go with a full 5i, not my normal flighted shot, which I have been doing for weeks now because my 7w can reach the bunkers that are through the fairway. I aim at the leftmost one and hit a dead straight push down the right tree line, 189 yards.

 

I don't know what's up. I always hit a straight push down the right treeline with my 5i and it had been happening with 7w as well. Really need to figure it out.

 

I'm in the rough and the hole is middle of the green and 150ish. I go with 7i because the green is below me, across the stream.

 

I don't close the face and it's a high push well right of the green and I hear it hit leaves but I think it's across the stream. A guy said it's safe but I can't find it. He starts heading towards the 12^th tee box and finds it. 193 yard shot thanks to cart path bounces....

 

I'm in rough and about 50 yards from the hole. The green slopes away from me and I have to go over a small tree, lol. I use my SW and hit a high pitch that clears the tree but only goes about 30 yards and I come up short. I hit a bump and run chip onto the green and it feeds down to the hole.

 

I have 3 feet for bogey and miss, 6.

 

Well, it sucks but I was in a real bad spot after my second shot. I wanted a bogey but can live with double but the putt doesn't make me happy.

 

12 – par 4, 315 yards, 90* dogleg left, #14 HCP, green is elevated. Narrow tee shot that opens as you reach the corner. I hit a high draw with 4w, 208 yards, into the right rough by the fairway bunker. It's a back right hole. A partial PW might reach the front of the green but it's elevated with a deep bunker, so I hit a partial 9i instead. Contact is okay but it clears the bunker and stops pin high, 7 feet right of the hole.

 

I leave the birdie putt a foot short and miss the par putt! Yup, I missed a tap in par and have a bogey, 5.

 

Now that really hurts.

 

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 front right and I aim for the middle with my 9i. It's a nice high draw that lands on the slope of the tier and rolls back a couple of feet. 113 yard shot and I'm 24 feet to the left of the hole. I hit the birdie putt and speed is decent but my line is too low and I end up 3 feet below the hole. I miss the par putt, bogey, 4.

 

14 – par 5, 543, straight hole, #4 HCP. Elevated tee shot to wide open fairway. Fairway slopes down left to right, water on the right closer to the green and fronting the entire green. There's atailwind and I nuke a high draw, 282 yards, down the middle. I'm 250 from center and take 4w and aim left.

 

I hit a great draw that hits the slope that's across the cart path which feeds it back towards the green. 221 yard shot and I'm in the left rough. It's a left flag and about 40ish yards away. So I have an eagle pitch.

 

I FUBAR it and decelerate sending the ball 24 yards and well short. I chip with my SW and almost hit the hole but it rolls 24 feet past the cup...

 

My par putt gets to about 3 feet and I make the bogey putt, 6.

 

What a waste. My game is falling apart.

 

15 – par 4, 264 yards, straight, #16 HCP. Elevated tee shot to a fairway that is always soft and cart path only year round. Fairway bunkers on left side in line with the green. Bunker surround this green except for the left side. My drive is a push fade into the right trees. Can't find the ball and it's my first penalty of the day. I drop 195 yards off the tee in the right rough. The hole is about 80 yards away and I hit a partial SW. It's a decent high shot that lands on the green and stops, 76 yards, and I have 12 feet for par. I miss but it's a tap-in that I make, 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. Back left hole and 132ish. Sucker pin, the green is narrow with bunkers right behind the hole.

 

I aim for middle with my 8i and leave the face open.. A very high push fade, 151 yards, into the right rough. I'm 40 yards right of the hole and decide to chip with 7i. I think my speed was decent but my line sucks. The ball goes up the tier and ends up in the back fringe above the hole. I chip with putter to a foot and it's a bogey, 4.

 

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 block a high push fade over the fairway bunkers on the right which is terrible. The ball hits the hard slope and careens into the trees. I drop 224 yards off the tee in the rough for penalty #2 of the day.

 

A 6i can reach middle but I yank it left, 145 yards, onto the left slope. Ball below my feet, rough, over a bunker, to a heavily sloped green. I FUBAR the SW pitch and send it 37 yards and past the green to the left. I chip with SW and the slopes cause the ball to roll 17 feet below the hole. It's a two putt triple, 7.

 

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... Another push fade with driver into the right trees. I drop 209 yards out in the right rough. I hit a decent 5i, 170 yards, across the stream and into the fairway. It's a back right hole and almost 120 yards.

 

I hit partial 9i and pull it, 101 yards but onto the back left of the green, 45 feet short of the hole. I hit my par putt to 2 feet and escape with a bogey, 6.

 

A 41/47 88. It bumped out a better differential, so my index went up 0.1 to 15.0. My lowest ever 82 is next to roll off, so I expect another bump up.

 

It was a frustrating round. I played awesome on the front even with that stupid quad putt for triple. I was doing okay on the back and then missed the tap in. Things slowly fell apart after that. I was in great shape on #14 in two. An eagle pitch from 40ish yards and I mess it up and get a bogey.

 

Oh well, I'm a 15 and this will happen. I'm glad I played as well as I did after that 100 Saturday though.

 

Putting killed me is the big message. I also need to release the club, not doing that is really hurting with the stupid pushes with my irons. Plenty of issues with my game in all areas but I'll keep plugging away and making improvements over time. I have no right to complain since I have already improved much more than expect post clinic.

 

birdies: 1

pars: 6

bogeys: 7

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 2

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 226 yards, couple 4w, a 7w, and 5i in the mix.

Longest drive: 282 yards

Fairways: 8/14

GIR: 7/18

Avg Approach: 124 yards

Up & down: 2/8

Putts: 35

 

Strokes gained compared to a 0 HCP. 

Overall: -15.7 strokes

driving: -4.8, 3 penalties

Approach: -2.7, much improved.

Short game: -0.3, a bit off.

Putting: -7.8, lol, I sucked.

 

[bortass]

Lasts week's practice wasn't what I had hoped for. Thunderstorms rolled through Thursday and Friday morning so I couldn't get out.

 

Tuesday block 1: 20 minutes, Cast A w/7i. 3 sets (3/10) - went well

Tuesday block 2: 15 minutes, chips and pitches with PW - went well

Wednesday Block 1: 20 min Cast A w/7i, 3 sets (3/10) - went well

Wednesday block 2: 20 minutes partial PW, hit a ball high, one medium, and one low. Did 12 sets, so 36 balls. This went so so. had some good ones, but also a few that didn't do what I intended.

 

Practice this week is going to be a mess as well I think. They are punching the greens and the range isn't opening until 9 Tues/Wed. I definitely won't be able to hit balls before work tomorrow(Tuesday). I may Wednesday if there are any balls left on the range from the prior day.

 

Golf was rough this weekend. Cart path only both days and fairways were squishing even if there was no casual water visible. Saturday was also hot and very humid. Sunday was hot but not as humid, which was good. I posted a 94 Saturday and a 95 Sunday, both had NDB capped holes in the mix. My index went up a full point to 16.0. I expected a jump because my best ever 82 rolled off with Saturday's round and an 86 rolled off with Sundays. I had just hoped I could limit the amount it went up.

 

The challenges highlighted a couple things. I'm still a bit of a mental midget. Sunday, I wasn't able to leave the bad shots behind. My frustration levels were lower than they would have been say a year ago, but they were higher than normal. I gotta try and continue to grow in this area. I can shrug off the occasional bad shot but I just strung too many together and didn't have many great/solid holes to make up for it.

 

The second thing is the opportunity to think about how I want to hit a shot goes out the window when I play poorly. I had written about thinking more about the type of shot etc but that's when I was playing well. I revert to my normal what's the distance and club I should hit based on conditions and just swing when I struggle. There's too much garbage in my head and it pushes out the calmer thought process.

 

My definition of struggling is changing. The front 9 Sunday was a +10, 46, with 2 doubles, no penalties. Not so long ago that was an okay result but I don't feel that way any longer. A few of the bogeys weren't from trying to salvage something, they were from being in position and messing up. One example was #4, short par 4. Hit my drive into the left rough and it's a front pin about 80 yards. I decide to hit my 80 yard club from wet rough instead of just hitting a partial AW and getting on the green past the hole. Came up a few yards short and it turns into a bogey. A bad decision. I also lost a couple strokes when I missed a 2 and three footer. Dumb stuff.

 

I know it's a process and there will be ups and down. Just gotta be a bit tougher mentally and learn to focus on each shot in it's own microcosm, just not there yet. 

 

Saturday's round:

birdies: 1

pars: 3

bogeys: 7

double bogeys: 5

triple+: 2

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 197 yards, couple 4w, a 7w, and 5i in the mix.

Longest drive: 246 yards

Fairways: 6/14

GIR: 4/18

Avg Approach: 117 yards

Up & down: 2/10

Putts: 33

 

Strokes gained compared to a 0 HCP. 

Overall: -23.7 strokes

driving: -8.6, 4 penalties

Approach: -9.5, 2 penalties and just bad play

Short game: -2.9, 3 holes with 2 chips....

Putting: -2.6, at least it was decent.

 

Sunday's round:

birdies: 1

pars: 6

bogeys: 7

double bogeys: 2

triple+: 2

 

 

Some stats:

Avg drive: 199 yards, couple 4w, a 7w, and 5i in the mix.

Longest drive: 236 yards

Fairways: 9/14

GIR: 4/18

Avg Approach: 115yards

Up & down: 1/12

Putts: 36

 

Strokes gained compared to a 0 HCP. 

Overall: -24.0 strokes

driving: -4.3, 1 penalty and distance is what hurt me the most.

Approach: -9.9, 2 penalties and a bunch of mishits.

Short game: -4.4, four double chips and only one up and down.

Putting: -5.5, I missed too many short ones.

[bortass]

Made it to the range yesterday and today.

 

Thursday block 1: 20 minutes chipping w/9i. This session went pretty good. I need to get better with the more bump and run chip. My double chips are almost always from this. I'm decent with the higher chip that flies most of the way which I only hit with SW.

 

Thursday block2: 15 minutes hitting partial PW shots. Overall this went well too. Improving my wedges will help the approach game.

 

Friday block 1: 20 minutes cast A w/8i. 3 sets (3/10) and I felt like it went well. There's a difference in ball flight when I manage to pull it off.

Friday block 2: 20 minutes full 7i. This was more of a mixed bag. My approach game needs work, so I thought that hitting full irons was a good idea. What I found is that it seems to go better if I have the intent of cast B to start my downswing. I seem to hit more baby draws with that feel. It's not second nature and I've noticed this dynamic before. maybe i'll remember to use that feel while playing for a change.

 

Practice next week is not looking good. I need to head into the office, so doubt I can go to the range before work.

 

Plan to golf both days this weekend at the sister courses since our greens were punched earlier this week. Saturday is the course w/o all the water and Sunday is on the Lake course. I tend to not do great at the sister club but I enjoy both courses. Normally putting is an issue since the greens are different. It'll be fun and it's on the shorter side which is nice.

 

 

 

Have a good one!

[bortass]

Today was a tale of two 9s.... A 47/39, 86 (85 for GHIN because I broke NDB on one hole). I started out solid, birdie on #1 and par on #2. I fell apart on #3 and stayed that way until #7, going double, triple, double, triple. Only one penalty in the mix.

 

#3, par 4 has a bad tee shot that I get lucky and the ball ends up in the right rough. 7w in and I block it a bit right under some trees near the green. A 7i low runner hits a tree and leaves a long chip on. I try a 7i bump and run and it's through the green. Chip with putter and make a putt for double.

 

#4 is a shortish par 4 but left is dead. I hit a high draw with 4w, 223 yards, real solid shot, but too far right. I have to hit a low shot between mature pines and go with 7i. I mess up the ball setup and hit a runner that strikes a pine cone and kicks sideways and leaves me with a chip to get on. Hit it too hard/thin with SW into a bunker. 2 to get out and through the green. Chip with putter and 2 putt from 8 feet, triple.

 

#5  par 4- Hit a solid baby draw down the right tree line, 237 yards. I'm in the rough near the tee box of the next hole and have to go under mature trees again. I use 7i and fix the setup issue but hit it too hard and it goes almost 80 yards into a greenside bunker. Takes 2 to get out to 13 feet and 2 putts for double.

 

#6 par 5, pull my drive into the left trees and have to drop. Hit a solid 4w, 212, but into the fairway of # 4. Thin a partial SW into a bunker. Hit the sand shot too hard and through the green. Chip to 2 feet and 2 putt, triple.

 

I stabilized from there and got a bogey on #7 even though my tee shot was in a hazard.

 

That string of doubles and triples was +10 of the +11 I shot on the front... I turned into a mental midget again and was getting frustrated. Real immature on my part. I really gotta work on that.

 

The back 9 was +3, with a double in the mix. Luckily I had a birdie to offset it. I just got back into just swinging the club and started to use Cast B as a trigger for my downswing. Things got much better with my ballstriking. I also made solid course management decisions.

 

Two holes stand out on the back.

 

#14, par 5. I rip a high draw, 260 down the left side into a fairway bunker. No lip and I try 6i to get out. I hit a weak shot about 61 yards and to the right but still in the fairway. This left me a blind shot over small trees to the green. I go with 7i and hit a great high shot, 158 yards, over the trees and pin high but in the rough above the hole. Chip with putter to a foot and get my par.

 

#18, par 4 with a carry over the lake for the approach. This is a tough hole because the fairway is level and then slopes down to a flat area short of the lake. I go with 7i because a solid 6i risks rolling down the slope and into the lake if it has too much speed. I mishit it, 121 yards, into the left side of the fairway. I'm short of the slope and it's 200 yards to center. I can layup with a small chip and try to hit in 3 or go for it with 4w.

 

I take 4w for a ride and it's a high draw, 205 onto the green. I'm the only one in my group to make it even though they were hitting irons from the flat area short of the lake. I'm 61 feet from the hole and my birdie putt misses high and stops within a foot of the back of the hole. An 'easy' par on the toughest hole on the course.

 

This isn't a hard course from the tees I played, rating is 67.3 and slope is 120, so my 86*(85) will just drop my index by 0.1 the calculations go as expected tonight. It's not a great score but the 39 on the back is a big morale boost. What I learned is I can forget about bad holes but I need to start to play solid to do it. The bogey, bogey, par to finish the front 9 helped stabilize my mental state. I think I would have spiraled if I had played those poorly. I can't will myself into forgetting bad stuff but at least I can play out of it, even if it may take some luck.

 

Playing tomorrow and we moved it to the home course even though the greens are punched and sandy. it'll be fun and I want to see what happens if i keep Cast B as a swing thought for an entire round.