Short game, long game

[SiberianDVM]

Last month I began practising wedge shots more than my long clubs, in an effort to reduce my score. My wedge game improved some, but my score stayed about the same, because I couldn't hit my fairway woods and long irons at all.

Last week, I practiced mostly full swings with my fairway woods and long irons. Yesterday I was hitting them pretty well, but my wedges kept coming up way short of the green, with the result that my score stayed about the same.

Hogan was right when he said all a golfer needs is more daylight.

[Ravenous Bugblatter Beast]

It always seems like that doesn't it? When the full swing is working, the short game disappears into chunks and skulls. When the short game is on, the full swing unravels into rough, woods and all sorts of nastiness.

[P_102]

Short game and 3/4 shots....Don't know if this is the problem but shots other than FULL should not involve a "slower" swing, think of them as FULL shots, just with a shorter backswing.

P_102

[SiberianDVM]

My problem yesterday was not knowing which wedge and how full a swing. With a so-called PW of 46*, GW of 50*, SW of 56*, and LW of 60*, I think I had too many choices.

Plus it was cold as heck and the wind was blowing; most of my shots were short, but on-line.

The ones that weren't short were long, like the beautiful 3h on a 185yard par 3 that hit above the pin and bounced off the back side.

[ezra76]

I have the same problem. I have 4 choices PW not sure of the loft but I hit it 135-140, 51* wedge, 54* or 60*. I have blown so many 300 yd. perfect drives into bogies it sickens me. Last week I hit a beautiful draw to 60 yds. away and turned it into 6. Next time I'll probably take 3 to get there after an errant drive and be all over the stick with my approach. Hey, if were that easy we would lose intrest in this game very quickly.

[Davebud]

Yesterday in my new best game ever, I hit the first tee shot into the driving range. The hole is 524 par 5, needless to say I way a little off the fairway and on the wrong side of the tree line. I just didn't care, went out into the range and had a ball go 6 or 7 feet over my head as I was setting up to hit my second shot because one of the guys on the range did not see me waving at everyone as I went out there. Should have been cheesed at him or about the fact that I was so far offline, but I just do not let it bother me, hit my second shot to about 40 yards from the green by punching a 3 Iron under the trees and got one of my 4 pars on that hole. I practice those wedge shots all the time, its my drives and putting that I need to practice more.

[Pa Jayhawk]

My long game sucks at this point, so I practice mainly around the greens to make up my strokes. Not sure I will ever perfect my long game, and do not practice a ton, so I spend my time making up strokes the easiest way possible. I always looked at short game as something that does not require alot of sheer ability to get better.

[Youngun5]

the new modern game with the technology driven distance explosions is all about hitting long drives and having a good short iron and wedge game/ greenside game and putting good. hardly anything in between is needed anymore. my time goes to those areas, and dividends have been payed on both ends and my score goes down. just put in more time, it'll come, trust me.

[Loop]

Originally Posted by Youngun5

the new modern game with the technology driven distance explosions is all about hitting long drives and having a good short iron and wedge game/ greenside game and putting good. hardly anything in between is needed anymore. my time goes to those areas, and dividends have been payed on both ends and my score goes down. just put in more time, it'll come, trust me.

Are the courses you play long? Because if you haven't played a 490 yards par 4, you're in for a treat with a second shot wedge....

[Youngun5]

thats what cart paths are for....

[ezra76]

I need to settle down with the driver. This year I vow to start hitting 3w and 5w off the tee a lot more often. I have a 23* hybrid I could use too. I can knock a buzzard off a sh#tpile from 225 with that. On my best day I only have 5 or 6 300 yard drives that stay within 30yds. on line in me. Turning a 320 -330 yd. par 4 into a Triple bogey by trying to drive the green (or whithin chipping distance) is getting old real fast. I've noticed the majority of my pars and birdies come on par 3's. I need to capitalize on my good iron play on those par 4's to lower my scores.

[Ibwrong]

have you possibly looked into hybrids for your long Irons? I know that there is alot of mixed PR on hybrids but I love my 3,4 and 5 Hybrid.