quest to break 100

[bortass]

I'm getting past the 'OMG, I got on in GIR and parred" phase. Better scores on individual holes is happening enough now that they are no longer something for me to comment on while playing. Previous to this year, GIR, par, or up and down were so rare it was worthy of me commenting.

 

These things are still not routine for me but they are happening enough where it's no longer a surprise. I feel real good when they happen on the course.

 

It is real nice to start to conquer some of the holes that have owned me over the years. #3 at my home course for example. Bogey and par the last two rounds. I don't own that hole but it's not as big of a monkey now.

 

#9 is still one that kills me though. Something about a dogleg right par 5. Someday, someday....

[Ronzo]

Bort, how far out is the corner of the dogleg on your #9? Is it a comfortable distance for you, or is it a stretch to get there for you at this point?

[bortass]

Bort, how far out is the corner of the dogleg on your #9? Is it a comfortable distance for you, or is it a stretch to get there for you at this point?

 

I'll try to explain this. The corner is about 165 - 170 from the tee but.... Everything is level with the teebox until you get near the start of the corner then it turns into an upslope. The other night I hit a pretty good 3w and it went about 170 because it hit into the face of the hill and stopped. Maybe it rolled backwards a little bit. My 7w has rolled a few yards backwards on that hill before. The end of the fairway is about 210 from the tees then it's OB. So even though my driver ranges between 200 and 220 on a good hit, I'm a bit scared to use that. odds are i'd be safe but...

 

So when I clear the corner it's not by much and the ball is normally below my feet. I'd need another 10 - 15 yards to get a level lie on top of the corner.

 

Theres a line of small pine trees on the right from the tee box to the start of the corner. These are a screen of sorts to an adjacent hole. they are maybe 15 feet high and packed together. The corner is made up of 50+ foot pines that are growing on the hill. So the corner makes a wooded area that runs down the right side of the fairway as you approach the hole.

 

So a slice off the tee is deadly. You'll either be in the trees on the corner or on an adjacent hole with no way to play to except through the trees and that's at least 5 yards wide without alot of clear shots.

 

If I make the corner, I'm on the right side of the fairway and anything lost to the right is liable to go into the trees.

 

The left side of the fairway is OB all along this hole.

 

My best bet is to clear the corner and then aim for the left side of the fairway for my second shot. That way if I go right, I'm safe.

 

The approach to the green is better from the middle. There's bunkers on the left and right of the green. So an approach shot from the left brings the bunkers in play a bit more.

 

So what get's me normally is a tee shot lost right, a dubbed tee shot that doesn't reach the corner, and/or I lose the ball in the right trees as I make my second shot.

[Ronzo]

Bort, how far out is the corner of the dogleg on your #9? Is it a comfortable distance for you, or is it a stretch to get there for you at this point?

 

I'll try to explain this. The corner is about 165 - 170 from the tee but.... Everything is level with the teebox until you get near the start of the corner then it turns into an upslope. The other night I hit a pretty good 3w and it went about 170 because it hit into the face of the hill and stopped. Maybe it rolled backwards a little bit. My 7w has rolled a few yards backwards on that hill before. The end of the fairway is about 210 from the tees then it's OB. So even though my driver ranges between 200 and 220 on a good hit, I'm a bit scared to use that. odds are i'd be safe but...

 

So when I clear the corner it's not by much and the ball is normally below my feet. I'd need another 10 - 15 yards to get a level lie on top of the corner.

 

Theres a line of small pine trees on the right from the tee box to the start of the corner. These are a screen of sorts to an adjacent hole. they are maybe 15 feet high and packed together. The corner is made up of 50+ foot pines that are growing on the hill. So the corner makes a wooded area that runs down the right side of the fairway as you approach the hole.

 

So a slice off the tee is deadly. You'll either be in the trees on the corner or on an adjacent hole with no way to play to except through the trees and that's at least 5 yards wide without alot of clear shots.

 

If I make the corner, I'm on the right side of the fairway and anything lost to the right is liable to go into the trees.

 

The left side of the fairway is OB all along this hole.

 

My best bet is to clear the corner and then aim for the left side of the fairway for my second shot. That way if I go right, I'm safe.

 

The approach to the green is better from the middle. There's bunkers on the left and right of the green. So an approach shot from the left brings the bunkers in play a bit more.

 

So what get's me normally is a tee shot lost right, a dubbed tee shot that doesn't reach the corner, and/or I lose the ball in the right trees as I make my second shot.

 

It seems to me from your description that your better possible miss on this hole would be driver off the tee, if you can avoid the banana ball. Your best distance is 220, and the rollout would be uphill, further protecting you. You could tee off from up to two club lengths behind the tee markers, giving you a little bit more margin for error. Teeing the ball on the left side of the tee box would also give you a slightly better angle into the end of the fairway, which might buy you a few yards of extra cushion. How is your confidence in hitting your driver under that condition?

 

BTW, is this still Nonesuch? I checked the Nonesuch website, and this doesn't look like the ninth hole there.

[bortass]

Nope, it's the 9th at Gorham Country Club. They don't have anything on the website that shows hole layouts. Nonesuch is WIDE open on the 9th.

 

I can try driver. Worse case scenario I launch it into trouble. I really need to get the ball onto the flatter ground at the top of the hill. The tees have been back lately which further exacerbates my problem. Worse case I launch it OB and know I need to dail it back. The fact I'm hitting into a hill will probably slow things down like you mentioned.

 

 

I went to the range after work today and hit some balls. Todays changes made a noticeable difference. I'm getting compression off the turf now and my mishits are more playable. i hope I can get the ball position changes down so they are more automatic over the next few weeks.

 

Overall I think today's lesson will have a big improvement on my ballstriking.

[Ronzo]

Bort, if this is the 9th at Gorham, I'd use the left side of the tee box and aim just right of the structure in front of you:

 

 

Don't know how comfortable you feel with that.

[bortass]

Bort, if this is the 9th at Gorham, I'd use the left side of the tee box and aim just right of the structure in front of you:

 

 

Don't know how comfortable you feel with that.

 

Ronzo,

That's the 9th. You are a man of many talents! I never thought of using Google Earth. Go checkout #3 if you get bored.

 

I can give it a shot the next few times I play the course. It definately won't hurt any.

[Señor Rafa]

Hey man, just been reading the last few pages here!

 

My motive here is not trying to come across like a dick or piss on your parade, but I can't get my head around the fact you've been playing golf for six years and you're shooting in the high 50's-low 60's 'round 9 holes and it doesn't seem as if you've progressed much any further since you starting playing; your sig indicates that you don't have a handicap I assume. Do you ever play a full round of 18 holes, not just 9 holes all the time? That might help because if you've had a poor front 9, you can straighten things out and you will have a motive to shoot a better score on the back 9. Just a thought.

 

Last thing, have you had any lessons before? It only takes a few small tweakes here and there to make a big improvment.

 

Good luck with your next round of golf. :drinks:

[bortass]

Hey man, just been reading the last few pages here!

 

My motive here is not trying to come across like a dick or piss on your parade, but I can't get my head around the fact you've been playing golf for six years and you're shooting in the high 50's-low 60's 'round 9 holes and it doesn't seem as if you've progressed much any further since you starting playing; your sig indicates that you don't have a handicap I assume. Do you ever play a full round of 18 holes, not just 9 holes all the time? That might help because if you've had a poor front 9, you can straighten things out and you will have a motive to shoot a better score on the back 9. Just a thought.

 

Last thing, have you had any lessons before? It only takes a few small tweakes here and there to make a big improvment.

 

Good luck with your next round of golf. :drinks:

 

 

No worries. You left off the rounds in the 70s!

 

I made 0 progress until last year. I know it's hard for some people to grok. How can you play 6 years and still suck? Well golf is not something I picked up until I was in my early 30s. If you asked me about golf before that i would have rolled my eyes and said 'boring!'. How little my ignorant self knew back then.

 

My swing was 100% self taught. In other words I had no clue what I was doing. I had some lessons but it didn't help any. I'm not a natural athlete like some people. Coordination is not a synonym for me.

 

Last year I got a bit more serious about it. My local CC had a new pro, so I tried lessons again. Big difference. I'm making measurable progress now. The old pro just never really worked well with me.

 

My sig is correct but I have a GHIN membership now. I've been entering my scores to get an index. That's only so I can measure my improvement. I don't have enough rounds entered yet though.

 

I play 9 because of time constraints. I can sneak that in in the evening or before work. 18 holes would be a 4+ hour commitment that I can't make as easily. It's easier to say I'm going golfing see ya in a few hours then I'm going giolfing see you later today to the wife. Odds are she won't care but who knows.

 

The last time I played 18 was over 3 years ago. I shot a 120 and lost 20 balls. That get's kinda expensive. I do understand what you mean about making it up on the back. I'm hoping to play 18 a couple times this summer.

 

Yup, I've had lessons but I already answered that. My scores are getting better and so is my ballstriking. I still suck but i'm moving in the right direction. I'd get there faster if I could devote more time to it but ya gotta do what ya gotta do.

 

Some of this might be covered in the earlier pages of this thread. I know lessons were suggested to me by someone here very early on. So glad I listened to them!

[bepier]

Bort's not the only one struggling to get under 100! I shot my season best 109 on Saturday (54-55). It's difficult to pin-point "the problem" other than that I have a handful of blow up holes per round, my ball striking is inconsistent, and I've been so preoccupied with getting a simple swing together that I've largely ignored my short game. For example the 54 front nine on Sunday included two 9's when I got in trouble off the tee. I've been playing for about 5 years and in the past two have started taking lessons and been serious about improving. Still always have a great time, play by the rules, and count all my strokes.

 

Good luck Bort, keep it up... I feel your pain!

[bortass]

Bort's not the only one struggling to get under 100! I shot my season best 109 on Saturday (54-55). It's difficult to pin-point "the problem" other than that I have a handful of blow up holes per round, my ball striking is inconsistent, and I've been so preoccupied with getting a simple swing together that I've largely ignored my short game. For example the 54 front nine on Sunday included two 9's when I got in trouble off the tee. I've been playing for about 5 years and in the past two have started taking lessons and been serious about improving. Still always have a great time, play by the rules, and count all my strokes.

 

Good luck Bort, keep it up... I feel your pain!

 

 

Do you track anything from your rounds? That might help you pin point the problem(s). All you really need is was the drive in the fairway, how many putts, and penalty strokes. You can work out a fair amount of things with those three sets of numbers.

 

The biggest thing that created blowup holes was getting off the tee for me. The other area I was leaking strokes was around the green. My chipping is a bit better now, so it's not quite so bad. My putting is a bit questionable ATM but was ok last round. Hopefully it stays that way.

[Ronzo]

Happy to help, mano. That was just Google Maps, and the distance measuring tool. Quick and dirty. Get it there, take a screen shot, use Paint to crop it. No biggie. ;)

 

I started using that tool to look at courses I play often, to see if there's a difference when looking at it from overhead as far as lines to play are concerned versus what I see on the tee box, or even the fairway. I find it especially helpful when looking for layup points. My favorite distances for a full-swing layup are 75, 85, 100, 115, and 125 yards, so seeing how far to hit a shot to give me a shot at hitting the green with the approach while taking a big number out of play. Outside of 125 yards, it's a crapshoot for me (with more crap than shoot, unfortunately, but I'm slowly improving). No GIR, no score.

[bepier]

Do you track anything from your rounds? That might help you pin point the problem(s). All you really need is was the drive in the fairway, how many putts, and penalty strokes. You can work out a fair amount of things with those three sets of numbers.

 

The biggest thing that created blowup holes was getting off the tee for me. The other area I was leaking strokes was around the green. My chipping is a bit better now, so it's not quite so bad. My putting is a bit questionable ATM but was ok last round. Hopefully it stays that way.

 

I'll give it a try... I occassionally count my putts if I'm driving the cart. I'll start using my own scorecard and tracking some of those things you mentioned. I had hoped things would just fall into place by now but at least that way I have concentrated areas to practice.

 

I think improved short game and better distance management will save me some strokes! A bit frustrating that a consistent full swing is so elusive... but I guess that's how it goes :rolleyes:

[JOSEPHLB]

Happy to help, mano. That was just Google Maps, and the distance measuring tool. Quick and dirty. Get it there, take a screen shot, use Paint to crop it. No biggie. ;)

 

I started using that tool to look at courses I play often, to see if there's a difference when looking at it from overhead as far as lines to play are concerned versus what I see on the tee box, or even the fairway. I find it especially helpful when looking for layup points. My favorite distances for a full-swing layup are 75, 85, 100, 115, and 125 yards, so seeing how far to hit a shot to give me a shot at hitting the green with the approach while taking a big number out of play. Outside of 125 yards, it's a crapshoot for me (with more crap than shoot, unfortunately, but I'm slowly improving). No GIR, no score.

 

 

How about a quick tutorial on using the distance measuring tools? :)

Pretty genius.. trying to figure it out myself.. with no luck of course..

 

*edit*

 

Nevermind :) Got it

 

Back to the OP thread topic:

 

Keep it up! You'll get there

Golf is a struggle.. just as you are trying to break 100.. i'm in my own struggles of trying to break 90.

[Ronzo]

Just use "I'm feeling geeky" to set the distance to yards rather than feet.

[q-school]

i have nothing constructive to add but just wanted to say good luck! i too struggle with scoring and don't have time to play 18, and i love your attitude.

[bortass]

I'm having mixed results on the range after this last lesson.

 

I was doing ok the night of the lesson, but it's not been as repeatable the last two nights. The grip change was easy. I have that down. the ball position is harder for me. I have very nice looking shots if I get it right. The quality difference is noticeable between the new ball position good shot and the old position's good shot.

 

Most misses are fat or skulls. I talked to the pro yesterday and this is where that wedge drill comes into play. I have to start hitting down on the ball and taking a divot. I need to hit dirt in front of the ball. I'm supposed to start every range session hitting my wedge and taking a divot. I think I'll give the 7i a break and start focusing on the wedge.

 

So we're now getting to the impact position as he rebuilds my swing. We're definately starting to get there with regard to building a decent swing, or at least a swing that should be able to break 100.

[bortass]

Morale is low. This last swing change has been drastic. I haven't been to the range since my last post. But I have played 18 holes. Mistake.... My swing is erratic as hell now. I have no clue what's gonna happen. Though I'm tending to hook them left. This last set of changes is not as 'simple' for me to process as earlier lessons.

 

Positive stuff: I tried the driver on #9, Ronzo, Saturday night. I got about 210 yards up at the top of the hill. Great place to be so I figured 3W and whiffed. End result I took a 9 on the hole but I think your call on driver is the right one.

 

I played in the rain today for the first time ever. My round sucked but it wasn't rain related until #7. Starting on 7 I couldn't get a good grip on my clubs. I did somehow manage to bogey 7 and 8 though even with the hitting issues. I picked up on 9. My putting was better though, I'll have to check later but I think I had 14 putts for 8 holes. I don't think I had any 3 putts and I did have a couple 1 putts

 

I'm not 100% rain prepared. I had a waterproof windbreaker with hood and the rain hood for my bag. I also had a couple extra small towels. I've been playing gloveless all year and some rain gloves may have helped today.

 

I do need to watch the mental side of things. Both rounds I did poorly on #1 and had it in my head that the round was shot as far as score is concerned. I need to forget that and move on and try to score.

 

I hope everyone else is finding the fairways and having fun.

[q-school]

hang in there. it's tough to make swing changes. especially when playing in the rain. relax and forget about it.

don't be so tough on yourself

[bortass]

Well some good golf news today. I have my index at last. 40.4L! I can wear pink now and play the red tees w/o anyone giving me a hard time. I'll just show them my GHIN card and say 'See that L? That means lady!' No offense to any female golfers, I know most of you are better then me.

 

I was expecting to have the L on my index. I only got it to track my progress, so I have my baseline now.

 

Weather is not co-operating this week, so I'm unsure when I'll be able to get to the range. I really want to work on hitting down on the ball with my wedge. This latest swing change is going to be a nightmare unless I get that worked out I think.

[q-school]

around here everyone has an 'l' on their index for local.

i can't tell if you are joking or not. keep up the good work. don't get discouraged.

[bortass]

around here everyone has an 'l' on their index for local.

i can't tell if you are joking or not. keep up the good work. don't get discouraged.

 

 

Well I honestly have no clue. A guy that played with us weeks ago mentioned how he had an L on his index and it stood for Ladies. Men's indexes cap at 36 something I thought, while women's go into the low 40s. I assume that GHIN doesn't know my sex but maybe that's something the course entered when they registered me.

 

No matter, I'm joking anyways about the tees and pink. I'll wear pink if I want but I haven't played red tees yet, though maybe I should.

 

If the weather holds off I hope to get to the range to work on hitting down on the ball after PT.

 

I'm not really discouraged, at least not long term. I'm bummed my swing has fallen apart and scores have balloned on me a bit.

 

I'm kinda holding off on writing the details of my rounds because they are probably all starting to sound the same.

[q-school]

afaik you are correct about the maximum index. i wonder if someone put the wrong sex in for you when they registered.

are you entering your scores correctly-meaning esc adjusted?

i'm guessing your max would be an 8 or a 9 depending on course.

 

keep up the good work and have fun!

[bortass]

I am using ESC but I think it's a 10. That's what I've been using. I will revisit that the next time I post a score to make sure I'm using the right value.

[bortass]

Got the answer on the L. You are right it means local. So it's higher then the maximum allowed. Funny that mine is equal to the max for a woman. i woonder if the system is capped there or if I could get say a 41 index.

 

 

from the USGA:

Section 3

 

Maximum Handicap Index®

 

Q. What is the maximum Handicap Index for men and women?

 

A. The maximum Handicap Index is 36.4 for men and 40.4 for women (18.2N and 20.2N for a nine-hole Handicap Index, respectively).

 

The Course Handicap™ could convert to a number higher than the maximum Handicap Index. Example: A Handicap Index of 36.4 on a course with a Slope Rating® of 145 would be 47 (e.g. 36.4 x 145 / 113 = 47 Course Handicap).

Anything above the maximum Handicap Index must be designated with an “L” for local club use only (e.g. 45.0L).

Anything set below the maximum Handicap Index for an event is a condition of the competition (e.g. maximum USGA Handicap Index for event is 25.0).

Please visit Section 3-4 of the USGA Handicap System manual for further reference.

[Ronzo]

Glad to hear driver on #9 worked well for you, Bort. Good luck, fairways & greens, and all that.

[Sean2]

bort, you have a tremendous amount of patience. i admire that. i appreciate the lesson. :-)

 

good luck!

[bortass]

bort, you have a tremendous amount of patience. i admire that. i appreciate the lesson. :-)

 

good luck!

 

Is it patience or an inability to see the writing on the wall? I prefer to think it'a patience, I mean I have pulled off some decent runs of 6 holes out of 9. So it's do able.

 

 

I end up having to take personal morale checks alot, luckily instead of breaking I just get pinned. I know that reference will mean nothing to anyone here. It boils down to things sometimes don't go well and instead of quitting, I'll get frustrated or questioning for a period of time but then recover.

[bortass]

The weather still sucks in the Northeast, (How's that US Open?). I was able to talk to the pro last Saturday. I had hit the range Friday and it was dismal. I mean bad. I was completely frustrated. Couldn't execute and had no idea why.

 

What I realized last Friday night is I didn't have a good cause/effect for hitting down on the ball. I'm a picker and telling me to hit down is well and good. the problem is I have no clue how to/why I don't. All previous lessons were related to specific positions/movements or drills with specific results. What I had was the result I wanted but no clue on execution.

 

My talking with the pro landed me some clues. I need to open my hips on the downswing and drop the club in the slot, letting the club bring me up into the finish position. I go the feeling of my left ankle almost rolling when I did it in slow motion. I tend to come up out of my stance too quick.

 

I hit some balls later that night and did a little better but not great. Rain rolled in but I was able to hit the range Tuesday. I grabbed a large bucket of balls and went back to work on hitting down on the ball. I was still having a hard time with it. I'd take practice swings until I did it right, then try to hit the ball. Sometimes it worked, others it was fat or thin. lol.

 

I decided to change my approach part way through instead of hitting down on the ball, I started focusing on my left hip. I began to start my downswing by turning it. My normal downswing starts with my arms, I know all bad. I started to get more consistent results. I still don't take much of a divot if any. I was making better contact adn the clubhead was brushing dirt in front of the ball at times.

 

I think this is the key that I'm going to focus on with my range time. bring the club back and fire the left hip to start my swing.

 

I haven't played since that day in the rain and have no idea when I'll get out again. I do feel better about things compared to last week. I just gotta keep plugging away.

[Rohlio]

It boils down to things sometimes don't go well and instead of quitting, I'll get frustrated or questioning for a period of time but then recover.

 

 

"I thought they broke you Bortass?"

 

"They did, but I ain't no stick."

 

 

Your thread is my favorite thing on these forums. BTW the decision to focus on just taking the club back then turning your left hip is a great decision. It seems like you kind of fly from thing to thing in your swing and you really need to simplify/quiet your thoughts. Learning to swing with your bosy is a much more repeatable motion imo. I would focus on just that one thing for a while, if I were you.

 

For a while I used the swing thought "Lag it and Drag it" By that I meant when the club reached the top of my backswing I felt a sense of lag by delaying my hands. Then I just drag the club by turning my body through to the finish with no consciousness of my hands/arms. It is amazing how easy this move is and the simplicity of it freed my mind up to play much better golf. So I say "Lag it and Drag it" and keep at it brother.