So, I did a break down of my game today..

[FATC1TY]

Went out alone this morning on a whim. Slow day at the course, went out before my time, and decided to play alone, and just record everything about the round.

Got 8 holes in before another monsoon rain completely washed everything out. I sat under a tree for about 35 minutes and chilled out until it died down a bit. Had trouble on the back nine due to NOTHING rolling out, and completely messing with the speed on some of the greens due to the rain. Some bunkers had water standing in them, and unknowing of what to do, I hit out of the sand, AND the water. It was messy, but fun.

Anyways, I guess I know where I need to work on things now. I've been reading Dave Peltz short game stuff, and that guy seriously has a method that works for me. On some holes I flubbed it, but I can't remember that last time I was knocking them so close from the short pitches and chips. From any lie, I was just flying out of them and landing them soft. Hit 2 flag sticks from 30 and 15 yards, and lipped out one from almost 50 yards.. Excited to keep working on it.

Anyways; I limped out with an 88.. While I was satisfied with that score, considering everything, I felt that I wasted TONS of strokes on silly stuff.

72.4/135 course rating, 6620 yards long

I hit 12 of 14 fairways.

Unsure how they keep the stat for par 5's but I made sure that even my second shot was still fairway before I included it.

5 GIR, and 2 on the fringe that would have had me at 7 GIR.

Here is the crappy part, and I never realized it had gotten this bad.

36 total Putts for the round. 17 on the front, 19 on the back.

I had 3, 3-putt holes, and only 3, 1-putt holes, the rest 2. I just couldn't get the speed, and only until the rain came, did I realize that even soaken wet, I still blew them by and burned the edges. It's like I have no distance or feel when I putt. I was stabbing some of them in so hard, I had one hit the back of the cup and pop straight back!!

I got into sand only 3 times, hit the green in all but one.

My ball striking was excellent, although I did notice once the fairways were fully drenched, and squishy and soggy, that for some un-known reason, my shots were around 5 yards or so shorter, on everything. It was odd.

My driving was EXCELLENT. Some were mis-hit and short, but my approach bailed me out.. I play a natural fade, and generally try and keep a square to slightly open face, but something clicked and I was drawing and pulling everything from time to time. I think I might try opening the face of the R9 all the way, and see if I keeps me free enough to turn it over hard. Longest drive of the day was 278, and not much roll due to the soggy fairways. I was very, very happy with the big stick today.

Overall, I'm okay with the round, I just hate the face that if I could have putted better, I could have been low 80's, high 70's EASY today. I also know that if I put the ball much closer than I have with my approaches, I'd score better.

Ironically, I found that on some holes I was better to lay up and bail out, chip it close and 1 putt for par or bogey, was better than going for it and taking my medicine.

I just have to get this putting sorted out.. It's really started to make me hate this game!!

[Wi-Golfer]

That does sound like some horrible putting. Mine has improved since I went back to a blade style putter for some reason. The part of my game that's costing me strokes is the longer irons/approach shots. I can't seem to hit my 5-6 irons with any consistency right now.

[FATC1TY]

Oh, it was horrible... Even if you take away the 3 putt, and makes them 2 putts, I'm still at 85..

I looked like an Irishmen doing a jig around some of the holes.. Putt, throw my hands up, jump to the other side of the hole, throw my hands up, walk to the over side.. throw my hands up.

Ugh...

If I could seriously, even modestly look at 30 putts for 18, I'd be thrilled. With my ball-striking getting better, and my longer clubs started to groove more for me, I feel I could get down to 80.

I'm not playing some un-godly hard courses.. Most of what I play is around 6500-7000 yard tracks.. Most of the courses here have complex bunkers near the greens, and very few fairway bunkers as a general rule.

I'm sure my putting would be easy at some place with 80ft greens, with little undulation, but what fun is that?

[SilverUberXeno]

Your GIRs are killing you, man. You're 2-putting for bogey way too often. You need to give yourself chances to 2-putt for par. Making birdies is not easy. Try to make more pars first. Get on those greens in regulation!

Really- go to the range and hit 7, 9, 8, PW, 7, GW, LW, 7, SW, 8, 7. Do something like that. Don't hit the same club more again after you hit it well, and don't swing the same club more than three times in a row, period. But make sure you're reasonably solid for distance and direction from 150 and in. If you can hit greens, your 2 putts will be fine, and you might accidentally make one from time to time

[FATC1TY]

Oh believe me, I know that. I've hit more GIR, but as an average, I'd say that 5-8 is my normal grouping.

It's just inconsistency. One hole I ripped my drive down the middle. Then hit a 8i perfect within 15 feet. I two putt for par.

Next hole, I ripped my drive down the right side. Hit the green, but I push it, and leave it short.

I guess I really should focus on the scoring irons, 7-60*... I need to give myself a better chance at birdie's.. My birdie putts 70% of the time are generally around 15-20 footers on the par 4's.

Also, I realized I was +3 on the par 5's.. OUCH!!! I can't let those scoring chances get away..

[SilverUberXeno]

15-20 footers are what you're going to have for birdie most of the time. If you're putting it to 15 feet with an 8 iron, that's an EXCELLENT shot, man. You shouldn't look at making par there as losing a stroke, or "failing" to make a birdie. Any time you tap in for par, you're doing a good job. That's how the game is supposed to be played. It's very rare to have a short, short putt for birdie. Just change your perspective. Accept that par is very good. Make 18 of 'em in a row and you'll see what I mean

Really though, if you make 9 pars and 9 bogeys, you're shooting 81. Get a few more down-- 11 pars and 7 bogeys, and you're in the 70's. Now when you happen to hole a couple 15 footers, or you hit good drives on par 4's and hit your wedges close, you might make some birdies, but you'll DEFINITELY secure pars.

Securing par should be your first objective. But if you have a wedge or short iron in your hand after your tee shot on a par 4, birdie is a realistic possibility. Hit it as well as you can and realize that par is a very good score. Tour players do not make many putts over 10 feet. But no one likes to watch guys miss putts on TV. We can all miss 'em. They only show you the guys MAKING them.

Make sure you can clean up your 3 footers all the time, and your 5-6 footers a good amount of the time. Beyond that, you just aren't going to make a whole lot of long putts. Par is a well played hole. Birdie is a well played hole where your first putt happened to fall in

[LeftyHoges]

SUX is pretty much onto it here, and I'd be definitely looking at your up and down ratio. This could get a little long-winded but stay with me here.

12 of 14 fairways is the bomb. You're not going to consistently do any better than that. You may have a day where you hit them all but average 12 of 14 for your life and you're set!!! So its obvious where the scores are coming from...

If you're hitting 7 GIR as you did today, then that means you're missing 11. Thats fine if you have the short game to get away with it. A guy with a great short game will probably get 7 or 8 of these up and down and finish with par, leaving 3 or 4 bogeys. Tie that in with the 7 GIR you've hit, giving you 2 putts for these, and you'll probably have 1 3-putt and 1 1-putt to average out. This means he'll have 27-29 putts for a mid to high 70's providing he hasn't put a stupid snowman or worse on the card.

So there you have it, you can shoot in the 70's with relative ease. Work on your chipping man!! If you get even half of those 11 missed greens up and down while 2 putting everything else you've shot a very easy 78 or 79.

And you know its a hell of a lot easier to hole that putt from 5 foot than 10.

Good luck!!!

[FATC1TY]

Thanks guys.. I guess it rears it ugly head that I need to grab a wedge and putter more on the practice area.

I had some holes where I was tapping in for par, from a chip or short pitch.

Then I face palm'd some of them because I'd chip it, and still leave myself a lengthy par putt.. Add that in with a good 2 or 3 putt and you see where it went down hill.