Not Chasing Scratch...Just Chasing a Semi Decent Reliable Game...How Do I Get There

[cksurfdude]

46 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Ok, time to play.  How would you play this hole

I'm game  but wow 600 is a loooong Par 5!!! 

So looking at it on Google Earth and using their measure tool, I'm seeing slightly different numbers vs what you'd mentioned; but if I start in the middle of the White/Gold tee box then...

1. the line going from there towards the front edge of the right side bunker and ending at the edge of the fairway is about 215
2. from there it's about 130 .. and consider that all carry .. to reach the start of the fairway across the hazard

..or ~345 total to get across the hazard in two. If you hit less than driver to avoid the first set of bunkers then yeah you have a longer second shot - eg. 190 max off the tee then a 155+ second shot to get across...

..or a second shot of a 70ish yd pitch or bump & run to get to the end of the first fairway. Then from that spot you'd need a solid 170 shot - should be do-able for you? - down the middle/middle-left to keep clear of that next fairway bunker on the right .. which would leave you "only" about 120 to get onto the right side of the green .. ie. the side that's open to the fairway so if you take extra club and mis-hit the ball it still has a chance to run up onto the green.

The trick in either of those scenarios is to get your tee shot into a playable position into, or just off of, the fairway so you can make your own choice of second shot (eg. depending n how you're feeling and how you're hitting the ball that day).

So that's four decent, don't all have to be your best, golf shots to get onto or near to the green. In theory 

[tdroma98]

2 hours ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Ok, time to play.  How would you play this hole--for you that drive the ball 210 or less.   You longer hitters feel free to say as well.    I'm going to post two pictures of it, one from Google Earth that really shows the true lay of the land, and one from GPS that shows a drawing of it with it.  FYI the distance of 312 you see to the hazard is from the Black tees.  From the White when I play league its 280 and from the gold about 265.  White and Gold tees are on that bigger tee box just ahead and to the right of the back box where the GPS is pointing. 

Here's some typical past rounds for me lets just say from the whites, it's not that much difference on the tee shot. 

• Tee shot of say 200 yards, leaves me about even with that bunker on the right, so there is danger of hitting it and I've been in the one on the left as well, and of course I've lost a couple way right lateral hazard into a yard.   
• From there I have about 65 yards to the bottom of the hill,  and to clear the hazard it's about 165 to 170 yards.   Which I can do with a well struck 4 hybrid or 5 wood.  Oh and it's a downhill lie and oh in that hazard area is a tall 60 foot Oak tree, that basically gobbles up anything that comes in breathing range  .  I've gone for it many times and not made it having to use the drop area on the other side which leaves you 200 yards to the green.  I've also bumped a PW or lob wedge down to the bottom, leaving me about 310 yards or so uphill.    
• From there I would take a 4 hybrid and hopefully get up to about 150 out, trying to miss those bunkers on the right, but I'm usually a bit short of those so it's ok.  
• So I'm already hitting 4 into a par 5 from 150 yards...see where this is going.   Let's say I miss it a bit short right, I try like heck to avoid that bunker on the left front as it's a tough up and down anywhere on that green, which has a huge two tier aspect to it the back is a good 8 to 10 feet higher than the front. 
• So chip on in 5 and hope i one putt for a bogey an run off that green with a smile, or two putt and take my medicine and be happy with a "sue par" of 7 as @Golf2Much calls it...love it! 

That's if I play the hole cleanly, there have been a myriad of mishaps that have led t 8's and 10's.   Just complete round wreckers.   So to recap how would you short hitter play.  Remember once you cross that hazard it's all uphill for the final 200 yards, so you're adding at least a club to each shot and maybe 2 on your approach to a back left pin.

 

 

 

Great question @Golfspy_CG2, how would you play the hole.  

• I would hit driver from either the Black Tee or White tee if playing Whites playing at 588 yds. We tend to think we are going to hit 300 yd drives all the time, not.  Maybe even choke down on the driver if playing the White Tees.
• Take the tee shot off the right fairway bunker with a baby draw, leaving ball short of the hazard
• It appears the 2nd shot would be anywhere from 294-320yds. depending how one hits the driver.  My goal would be to leave an approach shot anywhere from 100 to 125yds, left of the two right fairway bunkers, (short of the green).  If the right bunkers are within the 100-110 yd range, depending how I'm playing by Hole #16, I might hit an approach that would leave me short of the bunkers, rather than try and play left.  Instead of hitting a 5 wood for my 2nd shot, I'd hit my 22 degree 4 rescue and play a draw off the bunkers. 
• Since shot is uphill, Anything over 115yds to green, I'd hit a PW. 
  115-100yds hitting a GW
  88 to 99 yds I'd hit the SW.
• However, with that "nice" bunker positioned in front of the green and as you said a pin cut back left, I may be taking the extra club depending how close to green I can get and how much uphill it is to green & especially if I feel like attacking the pin. 

Pretty cool looking hole! 

[rjacobs4]

4 hours ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Ok, time to play.  How would you play this hole--for you that drive the ball 210 or less.   You longer hitters feel free to say as well….

 

Ok, so I’m a medium hitter of the tee averaging about 240-250 with my driver but occasionally catching one pure and getting it out there 265.  I’d probably hit driver or 3 wood (215-220 yds) off the tee hoping to avoid both bunkers.  Would probably shy away from driver because I would be afraid of running downhill through the fairway into the hazard crossing it.  Should leave me 350ish to go.  Depending on the lie and wind, the next club would be anywhere from  3-wood (ideal) or a 3 or 4 hybrid.  That should leave me something between 130 and 170 into the green if all goes well

Hit the green and two putt for a tough and well earned par although for me a 6 would be more than acceptable.  Tough hole!!

Edited July 26, 2023 by rjacobs4
Duplicates

[Kenny B]

4 hours ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Ok, time to play.  How would you play this hole--for you that drive the ball 210 or less.   You longer hitters feel free to say as well.    I'm going to post two pictures of it, one from Google Earth that really shows the true lay of the land, and one from GPS that shows a drawing of it with it.  FYI the distance of 312 you see to the hazard is from the Black tees.  From the White when I play league its 280 and from the gold about 265.  White and Gold tees are on that bigger tee box just ahead and to the right of the back box where the GPS is pointing. 

Here's some typical past rounds for me lets just say from the whites, it's not that much difference on the tee shot. 

• Tee shot of say 200 yards, leaves me about even with that bunker on the right, so there is danger of hitting it and I've been in the one on the left as well, and of course I've lost a couple way right lateral hazard into a yard.   
• From there I have about 65 yards to the bottom of the hill,  and to clear the hazard it's about 165 to 170 yards.   Which I can do with a well struck 4 hybrid or 5 wood.  Oh and it's a downhill lie and oh in that hazard area is a tall 60 foot Oak tree, that basically gobbles up anything that comes in breathing range  .  I've gone for it many times and not made it having to use the drop area on the other side which leaves you 200 yards to the green.  I've also bumped a PW or lob wedge down to the bottom, leaving me about 310 yards or so uphill.    
• From there I would take a 4 hybrid and hopefully get up to about 150 out, trying to miss those bunkers on the right, but I'm usually a bit short of those so it's ok.  
• So I'm already hitting 4 into a par 5 from 150 yards...see where this is going.   Let's say I miss it a bit short right, I try like heck to avoid that bunker on the left front as it's a tough up and down anywhere on that green, which has a huge two tier aspect to it the back is a good 8 to 10 feet higher than the front. 
• So chip on in 5 and hope i one putt for a bogey an run off that green with a smile, or two putt and take my medicine and be happy with a "sue par" of 7 as @Golf2Much calls it...love it! 

That's if I play the hole cleanly, there have been a myriad of mishaps that have led t 8's and 10's.   Just complete round wreckers.   So to recap how would you short hitter play.  Remember once you cross that hazard it's all uphill for the final 200 yards, so you're adding at least a club to each shot and maybe 2 on your approach to a back left pin.

 

 

 

Our par 5 #5 hole plays around 550y but doesn't have the trouble like this hole.  However, it usually plays into the prevailing wind which is 15-25mph.  I can't reach in 3 shots; I have on occasion with 3 very well struck shots, but hard to do with the uneven fairway.  

To play this hole, I would hit driver (200-210y) all the time because I'm not any more accurate with less club.  I wouldn't lay up down the fairway unless I'm in the bunker off the tee.  In the fairway I'm taking a FW 2nd shot over the hazard, leaving a FW 3rd shot short of the green... hopefully a short iron or wedge for my 4th shot on the green and either a par or bogey.   If my 2nd shot doesn't make it (could be a mishit for me... happens more than I'd like), then taking the drop on the other side for my 3rd will still give me a 4th shot short of the green, and I either get up and down for bogey or double.  Tough hole for guys like us.

[cnosil]

4 hours ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Ok, time to play.  How would you play this hole--for you that drive the ball 210 or less.   

Here's some typical past rounds for me lets just say from the whites, it's not that much difference on the tee shot. 

• Tee shot of say 200 yards, leaves me about even with that bunker on the right, so there is danger of hitting it and I've been in the one on the left as well, and of course I've lost a couple way right lateral hazard into a yard.   
• From there I have about 65 yards to the bottom of the hill,  and to clear the hazard it's about 165 to 170 yards.   Which I can do with a well struck 4 hybrid or 5 wood.  Oh and it's a downhill lie and oh in that hazard area is a tall 60 foot Oak tree, that basically gobbles up anything that comes in breathing range  .  I've gone for it many times and not made it having to use the drop area on the other side which leaves you 200 yards to the green.  I've also bumped a PW or lob wedge down to the bottom, leaving me about 310 yards or so uphill.    
• From there I would take a 4 hybrid and hopefully get up to about 150 out, trying to miss those bunkers on the right, but I'm usually a bit short of those so it's ok.  
• So I'm already hitting 4 into a par 5 from 150 yards...see where this is going.   Let's say I miss it a bit short right, I try like heck to avoid that bunker on the left front as it's a tough up and down anywhere on that green, which has a huge two tier aspect to it the back is a good 8 to 10 feet higher than the front. 
• So chip on in 5 and hope i one putt for a bogey an run off that green with a smile, or two putt and take my medicine and be happy with a "sue par" of 7 as @Golf2Much calls it...love it! 

That's if I play the hole cleanly, there have been a myriad of mishaps that have led t 8's and 10's.   Just complete round wreckers.   So to recap how would you short hitter play.  Remember once you cross that hazard it's all uphill for the final 200 yards, so you're adding at least a club to each shot and maybe 2 on your approach to a back left pin.

With at 210 yard tee shot it sounds like you are playing the hole in a pretty ideal fashion.  

[Golfspy_CG2]

5 hours ago, THEZIPR23 said:

Best course of action is probably to play for 6 (a birdie for you) or a 7. I would say off the tee take something that removes the possiblity of hitting into those 2 bunkers. Next shot just short of the hazard. Depending on the distance that leaves you just ensure you are missing the next set of fairway bunkers. Hard to tell but it looks like anything long and/or right is the best spot to chip from. I know everyone preaches about the easiest way to lower scores is to eliminate doubles, however this hole is just a tough SOB, your goal should be to eliminate big numbers. I am going to guess while it occasionally happens without them, the majority of your big scores on this hole stem from hitting it inot fw bunkers or the hazard. 

That was my exact plan last time I palmed it. Went ultra conservative with a 5 iron off the tee, then a perfect r chip 48 to a great lie at the bottom.  
 

Hit 5 iron again over the hazard to the fairway leaving me 135 ish (it was a front pin)  so for so good.   Pulled my 7 iron left onto that front bunker—-ugh.  But still a makeanle up and down but I caught it a bit thin and it didn’t bite rolling into the rough on the far side laying 5.   Now a downhill chip that flirted with the edge rolled 5 feet by and missed the comeback.  Walked off with an &.  But it was due to a bad bunker shot. Or not doing a good enough job to make sure any miss was right not left. As you noted a lot of room to miss right. 
but you pretty nailed the best way for me to play it 

most of my big numbers come from hitting the tree it’s being renamed Robs tree.  But I have made big numbers from being in left bunker.  And whst I didn’t say is and you can tell from the Google shot.  Across the hazard there is more hazard to the right off the path.   If I do try to get across in 2 and miss the tree but push or slice into that area.  That can add iup as well.  
my thought Is play it with no lost balls (penalty shot) and no bad shots (chunks) then a 6 should be attainable and 7 allowing for one less than good shot. 

4 hours ago, tdroma98 said:

Great question @Golfspy_CG2, how would you play the hole.  

• I would hit driver from either the Black Tee or White tee if playing Whites playing at 588 yds. We tend to think we are going to hit 300 yd drives all the time, not.  Maybe even choke down on the driver if playing the White Tees.
• Take the tee shot off the right fairway bunker with a baby draw, leaving ball short of the hazard
• It appears the 2nd shot would be anywhere from 294-320yds. depending how one hits the driver.  My goal would be to leave an approach shot anywhere from 100 to 125yds, left of the two right fairway bunkers, (short of the green).  If the right bunkers are within the 100-110 yd range, depending how I'm playing by Hole #16, I might hit an approach that would leave me short of the bunkers, rather than try and play left.  Instead of hitting a 5 wood for my 2nd shot, I'd hit my 22 degree 4 rescue and play a draw off the bunkers. 
• Since shot is uphill, Anything over 115yds to green, I'd hit a PW. 
  115-100yds hitting a GW
  88 to 99 yds I'd hit the SW.
• However, with that "nice" bunker positioned in front of the green and as you said a pin cut back left, I may be taking the extra club depending how close to green I can get and how much uphill it is to green & especially if I feel like attacking the pin. 

Pretty cool looking hole! 

I play with guys who play it just like that Hybrid from the whites, 3 wood smoked to the 2nd fairway 9 iron in and two putt. 
 

what’s so tough.  Ha 

2 hours ago, Kenny B said:

Our par 5 #5 hole plays around 550y but doesn't have the trouble like this hole.  However, it usually plays into the prevailing wind which is 15-25mph.  I can't reach in 3 shots; I have on occasion with 3 very well struck shots, but hard to do with the uneven fairway.  

To play this hole, I would hit driver (200-210y) all the time because I'm not any more accurate with less club.  I wouldn't lay up down the fairway unless I'm in the bunker off the tee.  In the fairway I'm taking a FW 2nd shot over the hazard, leaving a FW 3rd shot short of the green... hopefully a short iron or wedge for my 4th shot on the green and either a par or bogey.   If my 2nd shot doesn't make it (could be a mishit for me... happens more than I'd like), then taking the drop on the other side for my 3rd will still give me a 4th shot short of the green, and I either get up and down for bogey or double.  Tough hole for guys like us.

Actually I have tried that as well and I go conservative on the 4th shot to avoid that bunker leaving around 130 to 140  but seems when I do that it’s always a back left pin that is hard to get to back there and If you miss on the wrong tier and 3 putt is a gift    

 

 

2 hours ago, cnosil said:

With at 210 yard tee shot it sounds like you are playing the hole in a pretty ideal fashion.  

Yeah. I think so. Just no room for error really.  Next time your up we have to play that side.  You played the other course last time. 

[Golfspy_CG2]

So a bit of an update here after a few decent rounds the past two weeks.  

This weeks rounds were 

• Wed 9 hole League (white tees) 46 and was totally undone by one hole with a 10 on a par 5.  No not the par 5 I illustrated earlier in this thread, I actually had a tap in Bogey 6 on that hole--what I refer to as a "Rob Par" for that hole.   Played it very well for the first time in a long time.   The 10 came on our very first hole, and there was a situation that pissed me off royally just as we got to the first tee.  It was something with another member of the group and my head didn't get on straight  for two holes.  But I somehow managed a few bars and no worst than bogey after that. 
• Thursday 18 Hole League same course as Wed night, but from Gold Tees Senior League-91.
  • Highlights were I Hit 8 GIRs for 44% when my season average is around 17%, also hit 9 Fairways for 64% and had 33 putts.  
  • The Par 5's hurt me again.  The front two, I played in 1 over,  Par and Bogey, the two on the back nine, I doubled and tripled.  The double is the one I took a 10 on above and the triple is the nemesis par 5 16 that I laid out earlier in the thread.     Got to figure those two out somehow. 

I've been really happy with my iron play--the fact the new Titleist T350 have been in the bag the past 3 weeks might have something to do with it    I've hit some really solid iron shots that have given me birdie looks (even converted one on Thursday and narrowly missed another)    But the amount of forgiveness they offer has really helped on some mishits that still either make the green or come close.

Strangely enough my handclap went up to just 20.5 as a couple good scores from last year fell off.   my league handicap which is based just on this years league play on Thursday is 16 and 9 on Wednesday night (the longer tees0

Driver has continued to be very solid as it has most of the year, with the exception of a couple wayward rounds last month.   Putter is consistent, around 32-33 putts, I will have an occasional 14 for 9 or 30 for 18.   which is usually offset by a 19 or 9 or 38 for 18 soon thereafter..ha

One of the biggest things I think I have done--and excuse me if I mentioned this recently, but for anyone that hasn't' read the whole thread it may be new to them-- to have some better play is I worked on the range one night a coupl;e weeks ago with my MLM2 and wanted to find a consistent club and swing for a 30 to 40 yard pitch shot.   In the past I always just grabbed m 54 and went by feel.    But I discovered using my PW's  both my 43 and my Vokey48, I can take a two different swings with each of those to cover those distances.  Back to 7:30 and 9:00 using the clock method with each will generally cover anywhere from 30 to 45 yards.   And give me just enough spin with the ProvV to slowly check up.   With the 54 I was often getting too much spin and stopping very short  and I hadn't worked with it on getting the right distance.  

For shots in the 15 to 25 yards, I've been using my 58 and fly it halfway and get to stop after one or two bounces.  I am good with that 50% of the time, but need some more work on that or to come up with a better shot.  From 15 to 25  (off the green)I need to get up and down 90% of the time I'd say. 

 

 

[Golfspy_CG2]

Just realized I hadn't updated this in a while.   So, bear with me here goes.

I think my game has come along very nicely since the original post.  I can attribute it to three things.  Not necessarily in this order

• More practice, which isn't saying a lot.  Not saying I'm spending 2 hours 3 times a week on the range, but usually at least one session a week on the range, and one on course practice session where I'll hit actual wedges and shots into a green to get a real-life result.
• Taking lesson(s) from an instructor I seem to hit it off with the first time and I experienced some initial improvement right off the bat. Still a few key things to work on, but such great help after only one lesson.
• New Clubs..The new T350 are legit and a couple key TSR woods FW and Hybrid from a Team Titleist fitting have helped the top end of my bag. 

So, the good news is the game is as good as it has ever been right now, and the bad news it happened a bit too late in my league season to make the playoffs.  Top 32 players get in, three weeks ago I was sitting at 51 thinking I had no shot.  Today was the last regular season round, and i ended up tied at 34th.   Just 3 mor points which would have meant shooting 2 shots lower last week and this or 4 shots either week and I'd likely be in. 

More good news is today I shot 89 and was upset.  It's my 4th straight round in the 80's and my handicap has dropped from a high of 20.3 earlier this summer probably when I started this thread, to 18.3 right now.  

I know we always talk about what could have bene, but today's round was really weird.  Only hit 8 fairways, which is low for me, but other than 1 hole they weren't bad misses, all were pretty playable out of light or medium rough.   But I only hit two greens.  That is horrible, and of the two I birdied one and the other just decided to turn left at the lip at the 11th hour, people were already saying nice putt just before it turned.... the kiss of death. 

Other thing about today, 28 putts.  I rolled the ball great, but that was also the result of missing so many greens than I was able to chip close or in one case chipped in.  

So all in all, feeling good about the progress I made since I started this thread.  I appreciate everyone's comments, suggestions and encouragements along the way.   I'm not done yet, more lessons and more practice will happen while we still have a good 4 to 5 weeks of good golf weather.  Then a solid off-season plan to stay in "golf" shape.  

As Eli or Mike would say...Lets Go Let' Go! 

 

[Josh Parker]

@Golfspy_CG2 sounds like great progress!  

[Golfspy_CG2]

9 minutes ago, jdparker said:

@Golfspy_CG2 sounds like great progress!  

Thanks!  I’d say good progress.  Great will come when I’m upset about shooting 85

[Josh Parker]

2 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

Thanks!  I’d say good progress.  Great will come when I’m upset about shooting 85

Haha.... I hear ya on that one.  Always chasing that lower score.  I said that in the thread "fun, serious, fun serious" the other day.  You get to a point in the game where you start hitting your scores consistently and then you have a blow up and it becomes frustrating, but then you go shoot lights out and beat your best and it sucks you right back in!  

I have a goal of getting back to low single digits this year and its focussing on pars and bogeys and no silly mistakes that cause double or worse.  

[cnosil]

1 hour ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

I think my game has come along very nicely since the original post. 

Glad to hear you are making progress.  I definitely feels good to see your efforts paying off. 

[Golfspy_CG2]

So fun time today.  Course was closed to Tee Times after 1:00 due an event that we were having at 5:00. 
 

So with an empty front 9 our DOG asked if I wanted to go play 9.  Why not.  

We get to the back tees Black he gets out and ropes a driving iron aboit 260   He heads back and ask if I’m going to play white or gold    Regular or Senior 

I was feeling good about myself  and sai  il I’ll play here with you if it doesn’t hold you up    He said   We’ve got 4 hours to finish 9  I think we’re good   Ha  

He asked me what my goal or objective would be.  I ran some holes through my head and said to best double bogey so 54 would be great.  But realistically to break 60.   He said good goal! 
 

I won’t do play by play but I shot 58 and that was with two horrible holes a 9 on a par 4 and 8 on a par 3.  Our 2md and 3rd holes before I changed my strategy.

if I had played those the way I played the other 7  I probably shoot 52 or 53  

 I don’t hit the ball well off the tee at all  but made some really good “layup” shots followed by some tight wedges   
 

He shot 39 with a double and bsd bogey on the last hole.

it was fun and I want to try it again under similar circumstances now that o know how to approach some holes  

funny thing my handicap actually dropped from 18.3 to 17.6    Lol

 

i 

 

[BNewton51]

30 minutes ago, Golfspy_CG2 said:

So fun time today.  Course was closed to Tee Times after 1:00 due an event that we were having at 5:00. 
 

So with an empty front 9 our DOG asked if I wanted to go play 9.  Why not.  

We get to the back tees Black he gets out and ropes a driving iron aboit 260   He heads back and ask if I’m going to play white or gold    Regular or Senior 

I was feeling good about myself  and sai  il I’ll play here with you if it doesn’t hold you up    He said   We’ve got 4 hours to finish 9  I think we’re good   Ha  

He asked me what my goal or objective would be.  I ran some holes through my head and said to best double bogey so 54 would be great.  But realistically to break 60.   He said good goal! 
 

I won’t do play by play but I shot 58 and that was with two horrible holes a 9 on a par 4 and 8 on a par 3.  Our 2md and 3rd holes before I changed my strategy.

if I had played those the way I played the other 7  I probably shoot 52 or 53  

 I don’t hit the ball well off the tee at all  but made some really good “layup” shots followed by some tight wedges   
 

He shot 39 with a double and bsd bogey on the last hole.

it was fun and I want to try it again under similar circumstances now that o know how to approach some holes  

funny thing my handicap actually dropped from 18.3 to 17.6    Lol

 

i 

 

That actually is a great way to improve.  It makes you play a game you wouldn't normally be able to do from the tees you typically play from.  This ends up improving your abilities with other clubs.  I definitely did that a lot when I was younger and a terrible golfer, not that I'm much better some days now!

I also like to play the game of two balls worst shot and best shot.  I typically do a 9 with one and the other 9 the opposite.  Definitely makes you focus during your practice rounds on using differ shots, different clubs, etc.  Going out and just getting it around does too, but I don't find that it keeps my attention that much sometimes.  It also makes it a fun challenge for you to make either or type of play relatively simple.  I mean if you hit two shots identical practically to each other during worst ball, you SHOULDN'T be in a bad position.  Though, admittedly, that isn't always the case either cause I can find some raunchy places on the course in either format with BOTH balls! 

That's great though!  Definitely would keep challenging your self like that.  Your Handicap will drop very quickly if you do when you do play those weekend matches out on the course from the normal tees.  

Cheers! 

[Golfspy_CG2]

1 hour ago, BNewton51 said:

That actually is a great way to improve.  It makes you play a game you wouldn't normally be able to do from the tees you typically play from.  This ends up improving your abilities with other clubs.  I definitely did that a lot when I was younger and a terrible golfer, not that I'm much better some days now!

I also like to play the game of two balls worst shot and best shot.  I typically do a 9 with one and the other 9 the opposite.  Definitely makes you focus during your practice rounds on using differ shots, different clubs, etc.  Going out and just getting it around does too, but I don't find that it keeps my attention that much sometimes.  It also makes it a fun challenge for you to make either or type of play relatively simple.  I mean if you hit two shots identical practically to each other during worst ball, you SHOULDN'T be in a bad position.  Though, admittedly, that isn't always the case either cause I can find some raunchy places on the course in either format with BOTH balls! 

That's great though!  Definitely would keep challenging your self like that.  Your Handicap will drop very quickly if you do when you do play those weekend matches out on the course from the normal tees.  

Cheers! 

Yeah  I am see that for sure.  Especially a course white I’m very familar with it and you get to a hole and go on autopilot. Ok I know this par 3 is a 6 iron or this par 4 is driver 9 ir etc. 

so the two par 3 were both playing over 200.  The 1st one 210 yards tbe 2nd 220.   
 

foest one o hit driver and pushed it onto water on the right and still had to drop form 180 and hit hybrid into some deep gorse.  Led to a quad. 
 

2nd one 220, I hit a 7 iron 140 leaving 80 yards. My favored wedge distance. I hit it to 15 feet and the par putt died on the lip.  
 

so yeah shots youd never think of playing from spots you’ve never been. 
 

I’ve heard about the worst ball round and have always meant to try it.  Will have to put that on the to do list. 

[BobBC78]

Great report, thanks for updating us!

[Golfspy_CG2]

12 minutes ago, BobBC78 said:

Great report, thanks for updating us!

1st round of league playoffs are tomorrow, so I'll have a report on that.   And a new weapon in the bag as well!

[PrismFlopper]

My playing partner from when I first started that I didn’t learn to listen to at first always says “play bogie golf” it took a while to figure out what he meant but I was always letting my mental game intrude and ruin my actual game. Once I figured that out I have been playing a lot better. Yes hitting Par gives you that almost feeling of hitting a birdie but since I’m hitting it more often in a round than I was actual birdies, it kept my mental game up throughout the round. Sounds a bit stupid for some of the real sticks out here but hey I’m improving and that’s all I care about.

[Golfspy_CG2]

So in a post a few up on this page I talked about playing 9 holes from the tips.  Well yesterday I took the opportunity to play the other nine form the tips, so I could have it combine with the back 9 for an 18 hole score.

The Tips played 3674, here are the results:

1-595 Par 5 Double Bogey

2-436 Par 4 Double Bogey

3-402 Par 4 Triple Bogey-really high nasty rough off the tee got me in trouble.

4-210 Par 3 Par

5-418 Par 4 Bogey-Par putt lipped out

6-187 par 3 Bogey

7-422 Par 4 Quad    OB Tee shot and more rough trouble, and tucked pin.  Big Boy hole!

8-622 Par 5 Bogey With the Par putt dying on the lip...This may be the best hole I've ever played here!

9-392 Par 4 Double Bogey

So the good -

• Other than hole 7 I avoided getting in any severe trouble off the tee. 
• Only 14 putts, that is mostly due to not reaching the green until my 3rd and sometimes 4th shot, so I wasn't faced with any extremely long putts.  
• No 3 putts and 4 of 9 holes a 1 putt
• Stuck to my strategy of trying to leave my 3rd shot into the green at my favorite wedge distance of 85 yards.

And the Bad-

• NO GIR, but that is to be expected playing from tees that are 700 to 800 yards (for 9 holes) longer than I normally play.   Even on one of he par 3's I took a smarter play of intentionally laying up short instead of hitting driver or 3 wood and going into trouble if I missed the green.   It paid off with getting up and down for a par on No. 4.
• There were actually couple of fairways that I didn't even reach, that required carries of well over 200 yards.   AGain the tips aren't designed for seniors that carry the ball 200 to 210 yards

Other Takeaways:

It was fun--No I'm not going to make a habit of it.   But it was fun to see the course from views and sight lines that I have never seen before.   Hole 1 is a perfect example of that.    That hole normally plays 465 from the gold tees where I play in the senior league from.   If you hit a bit of a draw or even straight ball off the tee there, you can get a generous kick off a mound down into the fairway that will add at least 15 yards and up to 20 or 30 on a dry day to your drive.    But from the blacks, a draw is risky, unless you are confident enough to carry it well over 220 yards to get over some deep gorse to even get to the fairway on that side   Otherwise you are playing a fade down the left side, which as we know a fade will take a few yards off you drive.  

So it was really cool to see all the different shot lines.   But I'll be glad to get back to the comfort of my gold tees in the league playoffs that start tomorrow!

 

[Shrek74]

On 7/7/2023 at 3:43 PM, cnosil said:

When you do practice,  what are you doing to practice?  Just hitting balls?  specific drills?

Do you have any suggestions for practice, whether with drills or sites to research from? This is a new thing for me now that I'm going to be putting in a net and mat in my garage plus I have a bunch of tickets for balls at my local ranges. Irons are my biggest weakness right now and I'm working with a coach on it, but need more stuff to drill on than just the 1 or 2 he gives me.

[cnosil]

12 minutes ago, Shrek74 said:

Do you have any suggestions for practice, whether with drills or sites to research from? This is a new thing for me now that I'm going to be putting in a net and mat in my garage plus I have a bunch of tickets for balls at my local ranges. Irons are my biggest weakness right now and I'm working with a coach on it, but need more stuff to drill on than just the 1 or 2 he gives me.

Question for your coach since we have no idea what is wrong with your swing.   The coach is having you work on specific things and the drills should be targeted to identified issues.   He has you working with a couple of drills to ensure you do the drills correctly.  

[Shrek74]

23 minutes ago, cnosil said:

Question for your coach since we have no idea what is wrong with your swing.   The coach is having you work on specific things and the drills should be targeted to identified issues.   He has you working with a couple of drills to ensure you do the drills correctly.  

So you don't have suggestions for general practice apps/sites/drills? I have the 1-2 from my coach, but I'm also looking for general thoughts to throw in to mix up my practice so it doesn't become stale/boring.

[cnosil]

45 minutes ago, Shrek74 said:

So you don't have suggestions for general practice apps/sites/drills? I have the 1-2 from my coach, but I'm also looking for general thoughts to throw in to mix up my practice so it doesn't become stale/boring.

You asked for drills, which are about fixing swing issues or working on a specific thing such as iron low point, face angle control, or distance control in putting.   Drills aren’t really generic in my mind.  
 

I don’t get bored with practice and primarily focus on hitting a stock shot and  tightening dispersion circles.  Basically hit balls to random distances and dial in your carry distances.   This applies for short game shots as well.   To do this effectively, you need a launch monitor or something that will give you your carry numbers and how far you miss the target distance.    Add in hitting balls above and below your feet and uphill and downhill.  Want to get a bit more advanced, throw in different lies to see how the ball reacts.   

IMO, if you you are doing that you are covering everything you need to do from a swing perspective. 

Edited October 4, 2023 by cnosil

[Shrek74]

On 7/7/2023 at 5:53 PM, Preeway said:

I too found the Pod a couple months ago and am just finishing season 4. I get that they are trying to make something more for entertainment value than for golf but I had hopes after season 1 that weren’t met up to this point. Can’t really take their quest serious when their overall games haven’t improved much in 5-6 years. 
 

Speaking of game improvement. I went from a 1 handicap in my twenties to a 5 handicap now when I’m 50 and was probably closer to an unofficial 10 handicap in my 40s when I only played once or twice a year after we had triplets in 2008. 
 

While their isn’t a shortcut to improving, I do believe there is a fairly simple formula one can follow if they want to break 80, or even 90 for that matter. And Lou Stagner nails it with his Arcos data. 

1. Reduce/Eliminate penalty strokes and big numbers. This means forget about long drives and just keep the ball in play. I’ve played with a lot of seniors who barely drive 200 yards but still manage to make pars half the time because they never take penalty strokes and are able to hit a lot of fairways. 

2. Don’t worry about hitting more greens but do focus on improving your misses around the green. I used this strategy with one of my sons who just started playing golf this year as a freshman and helped him focus more on good misses rather than hitting the green. While somewhat counterintuitive, you are usually better off missing all 18 greens but having an easy chip than hitting 4-6 greens and the other 12 are bad misses with no chance at getting up and down. This is more of a strategy for a 25 handicapper than a 10 handicapper. 

3. Improve lag putting. While making birdies feels great, two putting every green feels even better. Again, focusing on helping a higher handicap player, if you are able to get every putt from 30-50 feet inside 5 feet you’ll definitely see an improvement in your score. 

4. While I don’t disagree with the idea of improving wedge play from inside 100yds, I would wait until you get some other lower hanging fruit addressed. 
 

Just my $.02

I need to resubscribe to his emails. I've seen these before and they're great for sure.

I also read an article where the interviewer asked Tiger what were some of the things he focused on avoiding during a round, or at least things he monitored and kept track of. They might help or they might not, but I figured I'd share.

- How many bogeys on Par 5's.
- How many double bogeys did you have.
- How many 3 putts.
- How many bogeys from inside 150yds.
- How many blown easy saves (ie 2 chips instead of 1)

These can easily be adjusted for any level of golfer. For instance, how many double bogeys on par 5's instead. How many triple bogeys instead of doubles. There are others that can be added to this list, but these are items to monitor and work to improve that will no doubt help the index drop.

[Preeway]

4 hours ago, PrismFlopper said:

My playing partner from when I first started that I didn’t learn to listen to at first always says “play bogie golf” it took a while to figure out what he meant but I was always letting my mental game intrude and ruin my actual game. Once I figured that out I have been playing a lot better. Yes hitting Par gives you that almost feeling of hitting a birdie but since I’m hitting it more often in a round than I was actual birdies, it kept my mental game up throughout the round. Sounds a bit stupid for some of the real sticks out here but hey I’m improving and that’s all I care about.

That’s actually really good advice. When my son started playing last year I taught him the same approach. Told him his goal wasn’t to hit greens in regulation but rather to always miss in a good spot. The odds of making bogey from a good spot off the green are really good and sometimes you’ll even make the par. If you do hit the green it’s a bonus. 

[Shrek74]

On 10/4/2023 at 9:22 AM, Golfspy_CG2 said:

So in a post a few up on this page I talked about playing 9 holes from the tips.  Well yesterday I took the opportunity to play the other nine form the tips, so I could have it combine with the back 9 for an 18 hole score.

The Tips played 3674, here are the results:

1-595 Par 5 Double Bogey

2-436 Par 4 Double Bogey

3-402 Par 4 Triple Bogey-really high nasty rough off the tee got me in trouble.

4-210 Par 3 Par

5-418 Par 4 Bogey-Par putt lipped out

6-187 par 3 Bogey

7-422 Par 4 Quad    OB Tee shot and more rough trouble, and tucked pin.  Big Boy hole!

8-622 Par 5 Bogey With the Par putt dying on the lip...This may be the best hole I've ever played here!

9-392 Par 4 Double Bogey

So the good -

• Other than hole 7 I avoided getting in any severe trouble off the tee. 
• Only 14 putts, that is mostly due to not reaching the green until my 3rd and sometimes 4th shot, so I wasn't faced with any extremely long putts.  
• No 3 putts and 4 of 9 holes a 1 putt
• Stuck to my strategy of trying to leave my 3rd shot into the green at my favorite wedge distance of 85 yards.

And the Bad-

• NO GIR, but that is to be expected playing from tees that are 700 to 800 yards (for 9 holes) longer than I normally play.   Even on one of he par 3's I took a smarter play of intentionally laying up short instead of hitting driver or 3 wood and going into trouble if I missed the green.   It paid off with getting up and down for a par on No. 4.
• There were actually couple of fairways that I didn't even reach, that required carries of well over 200 yards.   AGain the tips aren't designed for seniors that carry the ball 200 to 210 yards

Other Takeaways:

It was fun--No I'm not going to make a habit of it.   But it was fun to see the course from views and sight lines that I have never seen before.   Hole 1 is a perfect example of that.    That hole normally plays 465 from the gold tees where I play in the senior league from.   If you hit a bit of a draw or even straight ball off the tee there, you can get a generous kick off a mound down into the fairway that will add at least 15 yards and up to 20 or 30 on a dry day to your drive.    But from the blacks, a draw is risky, unless you are confident enough to carry it well over 220 yards to get over some deep gorse to even get to the fairway on that side   Otherwise you are playing a fade down the left side, which as we know a fade will take a few yards off you drive.  

So it was really cool to see all the different shot lines.   But I'll be glad to get back to the comfort of my gold tees in the league playoffs that start tomorrow!

 

I'd say doing this a handful of times throughout a full golf season probably isn't a bad thing. It's more about testing your mental game and your course management than it is your distance. Get into a bad spot, can you get our with minimal damage. When you can get around 9 or 18 from the tips and get nothing worse than double, then it sounds like that'll be a strong step forward. To be able to translate that back to your white/red tees would very likely mean rounds likely without even doubles (or at worse just a few). That'll get the handicap down and solidify a playoff spot early.