Questions for low and high single digit handicappers

[Wedgie]

Just now, russtopherb said:

So this makes me ask - headed back to the Launchers, or sticking with the OLs to groove them?

Both! I picked up the new Launchers last Friday and the first ball I hit with them was on number 1 on Saturday. Round one was my best round in a month and my second round tied my low score for the year. Tomorrow I will be using the Cobra single lengths in the 8,9,PW and G wedge slots to do more flag hunting. The new Clevelands will round out the rest of the bag. I've been garage golfing all week on SkyTrak and haven't had any issue switching between the two but we will see what happens on the course. The Cleveland gapping is a little wonky for me in the shorter irons and I love the single length "short" irons so this may work.

[FairwayToHeaven]

Less about aha moments and more about goals - once you break 90 you know how and you play that way.  Same with 80.  This is a fresh topic for me as I've been coaching my 14 yr old who just caught the bug.  I made mistake of getting him 2 lessons too early - so I had to strip him back down and start with basics.  He was so tense and tight after those lessons.  Here's some of what I've told him:

• Keep it simple - don't try shots you have no business attempting.  It's a game of strategy and course management.  Par is the opponent.  
• Avoid big numbers and 3-putts.  For the casual golfer, my grandfather would say your goal is a "5" on every hole (that's not a single digit capper per se, but good for beginners like my son).
• Short game!  Spend more time practicing short game and getting it closer to hole.  Best place to shave strokes - 3 FT par putts go in more than 10 FT putts.  You only hit driver 10-14 times a round so don't spend a whole range session hitting it.  Start range session with shortest club.  I'm actually trying to work the 8-Iron around the greens into my game vs. chipping with SW. 
• My biggest mistake is thinking too much over a shot - take one casual practice swing, eye target, step up and smash the back of the ball.
• If in doubt, club up and choke down.  
• Clubs.  Most say get fitted which is fine, but you can do research and find suitable forgiving irons, drivers, etc.  With the balls and drivers the last 10 years, hard to go too wrong. My son was using some of my old blue dots - then I measured him and realized the clubs may have been hurting him.  Found some orange dots and he immediately had better ball striking and flight.  And make sure shafts are right for you - I just demo'd a SIM 3W and I couldn't make contact with the low-mid trajectory shaft - but mid-high was awesome.
• As for lessons - careful not to get too much instruction where you're thinking about too many mechanics and changing your swing a lot.  I grew up with very little, but learned the game with basic understanding of feet/alignment, head down/still, left arm straight, relax hands/wrists, slow takeaway.  Different for all, but when I start having an off day I try to get back to those fundamental things.

Dassit!

Edited October 1, 2021 by FairwayToHeaven

[Firebird]

Lessons and Practise and Rounds. When I was on a low handicap I used to play 72 holes and hit 400+ balls a week. I had a lesson every 6-8 weeks for a year. It took me about 12 moths to go from 14 to 4. In that time my pro completely rebuilt my swing from the ground up. Then injury forced me to stop for 7 years and when you combine that with age and illness, today my swing is not even close to what it used to be.

So the simple answer is hard work.

[PankaGolf]

I learned to just hit middle of the green and happily two putt. 
 

Pars beat a bogey trying to chase a birdie. 

[pulledabill]

For me it was more focused practice instead of just hitting balls and hoping something clicks as well as playing proper length and flex of shafts which tightened my shot dispersion immensely.  

 

Also, I went from a cheap ordinary unbalanced putter to something that I actually liked and my 3 putts dropped in a huge fashion.  

 

Find a way to make par and avoid the big scores. 

[BNewton51]

On 9/21/2021 at 1:07 PM, Syks7 said:

Earlier this year I realized that this game was the only hobby/obsession I actually cared about. I decided, from that realization, that I was tired of being mediocre/ average at the game.  I started really trying to focus on specific aspects of my game, practice with purpose, and play by the rules.  It's been a rough transition but I feel like I'm trending in the right direction.  I have no illusions of getting to scratch but I think cracking into the single digits in the next couple of years and getting to a 5 after that is something that is attainable for me eventually.  I've felt like I'm on the edge of some good golf for a couple months now and I have some questions for those of you that have made the transition from mid to single digits and for those of you that have gotten to the lower half of single digits.

• When you went from mid to single digits was it like an 'aha' moment where everything just clicked and you had a breakthrough or was it a slow and steady improvement over time?
• What's a realistic timeline to go from my current 14.5 to a 9.9 if I'm playing 1-2 times a week and practicing at least once a week as well.  (I'm also finally going to get some lessons in the next couple months)
• I've been hammering away at getting a better short game and learning course management.  Is there anything else I should specifically focus on?
• What were some of the things that specifically helped you improve your game?
• Are there some metrics that I should be aiming for in regards to GIR, FIR, putts?
• Is there anything else you think would be helpful to me?

The biggest change in your game to reach that goal is to take shots from 100 yards in and drastically improve.  Any time you have a wedge in your hand, you have to be hitting that thing right at the hold or within a comfortable range to have a chance at birdie.  However, the key is to improve your course management from that range in.  I find, at least it's been true in my game, that good low handicap to scratch players typically are VERY strong from that distance in and on the green.  You save shots, you don't compound any issues you might have had off the tee and or hitting out of trouble, and overall you gain confidence in your ability to always have a shot at Par.  

For me, the biggest transition from mid handicap to lower handicap was focusing on course management and improving my abilities from that distance.  I still hit a LOT of balls and work on every club in the bag.  BUT, if I have a wedge in my hands from a 100 in or on the green, it's inexcusable to cause myself extra strokes by not doing the right things.  

I would say that if you're serious about improvement invest in one of those various types of shot monitoring devices for your grips / clubs.  There are so many out there, but to understand your misses and focusing on consistency you'll see vast improvements.  If you find you're miss is always to the right of the fairway or green, then you play for that.  Knowing your misses is far more important that knowing you have the ability to hit perfect shots.  

[Micah T]

Eliminating penalty strokes, double chips, and 3 putts will get you to a single digit without a swing change. 
 

if you are going to implement a swing change, be realistic about how long it will take to ingrain and what you can reasonably expect to score while going thru it: last season was a “lost” season where I felt like I didn’t improve as I was going thru a grip and swing change. I played 6 strokes worse for about the 1st month. But it’s all worth it in the end, I think. Good luck!

[Middler]

Old thread, but still instructive IMO. Maybe the best approach is for each of us individually to look and see how our game/stats differs from lower HI players, and focus on that/those areas.

https://mygolfspy.com/study-overall-golfer-performance-by-handicap/

 

[Weekend_Warrior]

I don’t get a ton of practice time, but when I do I spend 80% on short game. Course management and greens in regulation are the two things I excel at on the course. I’ve been playing golf since I was 7 years old so a lot of the mechanics are just ingrained in me, but hitting greens in regulation and having a short game when you don’t are what I find the most important. 

[RickK]

I often play golf with a guy who is 5 handicap strokes lower than me.  We both hit the ball about the same off the tee.  Our iron play is very similar.  The big difference between he and I is that he is at least 50% better getting up and down when we miss the greens.  He is likely one of the best putters I know of and I am mediocre at best.

To me it is all about minimizing the damage when you have to get up and down (assuming you keep the ball in play most of the time).

Keep stats and see where your flaws are.  Then work on them to get better.