How'd you play?

[MaxEntropy]

Last night was another night of "oh so close to being good", but it started ugly.

First hole is almost always a hybrid off the tee for me - it's short and doesn't play very well with my normal shot shape due to trees preventing any ability to aim left. Unfortunately, a toe hook with hybrid is no good either as there is OB left. "Fortunately" a pine tree kept it in bounds, but it was all I could do to get a club on it and advance it 30-ish yards. 3rd shot was a theoretically a smooth PW, but I have been struggling with solid contact so have been intentionally clubbing up, so I grabbed a 9i. Of course that's the time I flushed it and flew the green. With a hard bounce and ground sloping away, I ended up about 50 yards past the green. I hit a nice high 58 over some trees but pushed it a bit right of my target, then proceeded to 3-putt for a triple . I was +4 on the remaining 8 holes with 2 birdie putts that missed by this much ->| |<-. Driver was ok, irons were nothing special, but short game was really good, including making 2 putts for par that were in the 10-20 foot range. BTW, after my putting woes the last month or so, on Friday I decided to bench my StrokeLab and busted out my 10-ish year old Ping Scottsdale TR putter. I had 30 putts on Friday (no 3-putts on some tricky, albeit slower than normal, greens), 16 last night, and confidence with it seems high right now so I think it'll stay in the bag for a while. My biggest complaint is the head cover has a velcro closure instead of a magnet. I've gotten used to sticking the head cover to an iron, so I keep trying to do it and it falls on the ground. First world problems, I guess.

[Sluggo42]

Played a practice round yesterday and worked on grip, form, aim, etc… sometimes ya just gotta get back to basics to keep yourself sharp.

[GolfSpy TCB]

16 hours ago, Grand Stranded said:

The Halos win by an early round KO.

Now I have an itch that needs to be scratched!!  haha. 

[GolfSpy TCB]

15 minutes ago, Sluggo42 said:

Played a practice round yesterday and worked on grip, form, aim, etc… sometimes ya just gotta get back to basics to keep yourself sharp.

Exactly where I am with my game as I head into the "fall" season.  Back to basics, ready myself for the '23 season

[tdroma98]

Beautiful fall morning in Central FL - 64 degrees at 7am Tee Time.  Walked 18 holes, hadn't played in a week, itching to play.  Been working on Saguto.golf teaching method, I'm liking it. 3 over for 18 with no birdies, will definitely have to hit the range tomorrow. Surprisingly course was fairly dried out after all the rain from Hurricane Ian, but three days of no rain helped. Nice morning to walk!

[Sluggo42]

Shot like crap at out member guest event, like I always do-

maybe I need to start entering every thing that ever happens so I can get used to it- problem with golf is that a little tightness from self imposed pressure doesn’t let me swing fully relaxed. And one iota of a miss doesn’t translate well- 

it wasn’t horrible, but it’s frustrating when my normal daily rounds with my buddies is so easy, but anytime it becomes important, I freeze up a bit…

grrrr

[tdroma98]

19 minutes ago, Sluggo42 said:

Shot like crap at out member guest event, like I always do-

maybe I need to start entering every thing that ever happens so I can get used to it- problem with golf is that a little tightness from self imposed pressure doesn’t let me swing fully relaxed. And one iota of a miss doesn’t translate well- 

it wasn’t horrible, but it’s frustrating when my normal daily rounds with my buddies is so easy, but anytime it becomes important, I freeze up a bit…

grrrr

Hang in there Sluggo! That competitiveness gets best of us, get to where you're afraid to miss. Shrug it off & go to next hole & smile at your buddies! What a crazy game, but GREAT! 

[Sluggo42]

59 minutes ago, EasyPutter said:

This is one of my two types of golf I have realized I play, this one the social golf type, the other the focused golf type.  Focused golf is in the zone where thoughts are mostly calm and about playing golf so swing is easy and relaxed and scores are lower per hole than otherwise.  Otherwise is social golf that can be an outing with friends, a tournament or other planned event (like the MGS Mid-Atlantic region at Queens Harbor) where thoughts are more involved with those I am with and the goings on that wouldn't if they were not there and scores reflect the less-than-focused golf that happens when being socially involved.

This is normal and comparing results is pointless so higher numbers on a tournament scorecard are expected 

Well that makes me feel better, but it’s still frustrating as I spent decades playing in fairly high level softball, and pressure there didn’t bother me. But maybe because that’s all there was… but anyways, you’re right…

[anotherburntsteak]

Recently broke 90 for my first time a few months ago. Been playing a ton better after reading The Four Foundations of Golf... Last night went out with my buddy after work and was having the best 9 of my life and totally collapsed on 9 lol... I have to share this disaster. Cannot do anything but laugh at it! Topped my tee shot... 7I was great then dunked my PW just to the left of the green in the drink... 

[ejgaudette]

14 minutes ago, anotherburntsteak said:

Recently broke 90 for my first time a few months ago. Been playing a ton better after reading The Four Foundations of Golf... Last night went out with my buddy after work and was having the best 9 of my life and totally collapsed on 9 lol... I have to share this disaster. Cannot do anything but laugh at it! Topped my tee shot... 7I was great then dunked my PW just to the left of the green in the drink... 

We have all been there and yes best to just laugh it off best you can

[tommc23]

Got in a whopping 5 holes today! Back started to feel tight on 3 and pain started on 4/5 and I called it when it stated to hurt while putting I said I’m done. Last round of  2022 in the books and I couldn’t even finish

[MattWillGolf]

Playing 9 for the first since getting over COVID. Drove the the ball really well, for me. No ugly slices leading to lost balls. No 3 putts, on newly aerated greens, which was very pleasing. My chipping on the other hand was an absolute disaster. Lots of very short duffs. I know what practice I will be doing. I was in the sand twice and got out very well both times. It was an absolutely perfect autumn morning.

[GolfSpy_APH]

Best round in 2 years. Didn't quite break 80 (really really should have, but thats golf) and shot an 80. Plus for the first time in goodness knows when I didn't loose my golf ball! Was a tough track and we played from the back tees, but it was still a ton of fun. Played with a buddy of mine who is now using my old i210's and this was his 2nd time on a big boy course (need a official handicap to play on one) and he had a great front 9, but got a little tired on the back. However he got his first ever birdie on 18! Was such a cool moment for him. Hit a solid drive in the middle, went over the tree with a 6 iron and onto the green then sank a downhill 20 foot putt for birdie. 

The course was in great shape and is a really fun challenge. Lots of variety in the holes and good variety in the par 3 lengths. Greens were stupid fast and everytime I hit one slow it would still be right at the hole. Was good fun and hope to get back maybe for one more before the seasons end and finally crack 80 this season!

[Sluggo42]

suddenly can’t hit the driver to save my life, but iron play is sparkling… every drive is either a dead pull, a deadly slice, or a darn near whiff. The last 2 months I’ve been crushing the drives, until this week. It’s like I’ve never swung a driver in my life. 

shot what seemed to be a horrid round, yet scored a 78. Thank goodness for for the irons- putter is not dropping many birdies. But they’re all tap in 2- putts.  
 

so obviously I’m doing a steep out to in with the driver that’s creating the severe slices, so I just need to spend a bucket with the driver only and straighten it out!!!
 

 

[GolfSpy TCB]

37 minutes ago, Sluggo42 said:

suddenly can’t hit the driver to save my life, but iron play is sparkling… every drive is either a dead pull, a deadly slice, or a darn near whiff. The last 2 months I’ve been crushing the drives, until this week. It’s like I’ve never swung a driver in my life. 

shot what seemed to be a horrid round, yet scored a 78. Thank goodness for for the irons- putter is not dropping many birdies. But they’re all tap in 2- putts.  
 

so obviously I’m doing a steep out to in with the driver that’s creating the severe slices, so I just need to spend a bucket with the driver only and straighten it out!!!
 

 

I have a theory... but that is just what I tell myself when I have the same issue and can't sleep at night trying to "swing doctor" my swing while laying in bed.  

[Sluggo42]

10 minutes ago, Golfspy_TCB said:

I have a theory... but that is just what I tell myself when I have the same issue and can't sleep at night trying to "swing doctor" my swing while laying in bed.  

What is the theory?

[MattWillGolf]

1 hour ago, Sluggo42 said:

suddenly can’t hit the driver to save my life, but iron play is sparkling… every drive is either a dead pull, a deadly slice, or a darn near whiff. The last 2 months I’ve been crushing the drives, until this week. It’s like I’ve never swung a driver in my life. 

shot what seemed to be a horrid round, yet scored a 78. Thank goodness for for the irons- putter is not dropping many birdies. But they’re all tap in 2- putts.  
 

so obviously I’m doing a steep out to in with the driver that’s creating the severe slices, so I just need to spend a bucket with the driver only and straighten it out!!!
 

 

I feel ya. This happens to me a few times year. Right now I’m in a good driver cycle. (I probably just jinxed myself. ) Hang in there.

[GolfSpy TCB]

8 minutes ago, Sluggo42 said:

What is the theory?

More of a justification or a reasoning than a theory.. haha.   Anything to help me sleep at night.

Like I said, I have the same issue/miss sometimes, and that Driver affliction almost ALWAYS is accompanied by solid iron shots.  Especially with short irons and wedges - which essentially require that path and face orientation. 

My guess is that when you get to your longer irons... you are also seeing that "left of target / slight fade" flight.. maybe not - but it is what I get.  And even the longer irons are "playable" in my case, because they start left and fall back to the target line, or just right of it... however about a 1/2 to full club shorter than my square swing - depending on the club.  But in a driver... easier to pull it even further on the outside in path, and harder to square the face - and/or ball spin is more accentuated by the driver than in the irons.  So off it goes... dead left or flailing right.  

So the theory is that the same swing is afflicting the whole bag, just not as evident the further down the bag I go.  And usually, when I correct the driver.. my irons consistency starts feeling out of joint. 

I'm in constant search of that One Swing... just not sure it even exists.

[chisag]

20 minutes ago, Golfspy_TCB said:

I'm in constant search of that One Swing... just not sure it even exists.

 

 

... Your answer is 55 seconds in. You are welcome!

 

 

[GolfSpy TCB]

10 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

 

... Your answer is 55 seconds in. You are welcome!

 

 

Sam - the ironic thing is... I watched this video last night and took it to the mat today... When I was younger I modeled my swing thought to be "freddy" and today I felt like my younger self... at least from a swing perspective.. again.  I can't wait to take it to the course.  In my opinion, the most natural looking swing there ever was (is). 

[Sluggo42]

Yea, my problem is I have 2 swings, an iron swing and a driver swing.

when my driver was working it felt like Freddy looks, long and smooth- now it just feels like a train wreck in slow motion…

im probably trying to swing too fast at the top, instead of just letting it fall into the slot, and then powering thru the ball, with smoothness, rather than probably being jerky and rushing the swing

[GolfSpy TCB]

25 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

 

... Your answer is 55 seconds in. You are welcome!

 

 

And this...

 

[RichL85]

16 minutes ago, Golfspy_TCB said:

Sam - the ironic thing is... I watched this video last night and took it to the mat today... When I was younger I modeled my swing thought to be "freddy" and today I felt like my younger self... at least from a swing perspective.. again.  I can't wait to take it to the course.  In my opinion, the most natural looking swing there ever was (is). 

Better than me. In my head I always had more of a Jim Furyk-ish swing. Try thinking your way through that one on the course while playing off-handed. 

[GolfSpy TCB]

31 minutes ago, chisag said:

 

 

... Your answer is 55 seconds in. You are welcome!

 

 

Oh.... 

And.....

Thank you.

 

[tdroma98]

2 hours ago, Golfspy_TCB said:

51 minutes ago, Golfspy_TCB said:

Oh.... 

And.....

Thank you.

 

Watching Couples swing is awesome! Never saw an overhead shot of a pro like in Couples video.  One thing is so clear, Couples head never moves through the swing.  It stays just behind the ball during take away through downswing. Then follows through.  What a freaking swing! The overhead shot gives you an idea of ball position as well.  weight on his left side at address, beautiful takeaway and same swing with all clubs. Thanks for sharing video! 

 

[CarlH]

Our MGA event this week was a modified Chapman.  It was supposed to be pick your partner in preparation for our member-member event next week (which will have a Chapman as one of the formats) but my partner couldn't play this week, so I ended up with someone that I didn't pick.  As soon as I saw who it was, I rolled my eyes.  Anywho.....it was a net game with the team handicap being 60% of the low handicap player's handicap and 40% of the higher handicap player's handicap, giving us 10 strokes.  We shot an 81 for a net 71 and one stroke off the money for our flight (2nd flight of 2 flights).  I hit some of my best drives only to be squandered away by my partner...example:  #9, I hit a really nice drive down the center of the fairway, leaving him 135 yards to the pin.  I had to hit his drive which was 185 yards out.  I hit right at the pin, but it came up about 5 yards short of the green.  His shot from my drive might have gone 100 yards and squirted off to the right, so we pick my shot which he chips 10 feet past the hole, leaving me a downhill snake.  I almost made it, but left it on the lip.  It was like this all day.  On the positive front, my efforts on the driving range of swinging hard paid off as I saw many of my drives being longer than I have been hitting lately.

[chisag]

13 minutes ago, EasyPutter said:

Proof positive there are two different types of golf!
Want lower scores?  Play alone and if that isn't possible then play with someone you can ostensibly ignore. 
Want to enjoy golf with people?  Don't keep score and enjoy the conversation and time shared.

 

... OK Dr Phil slow your roll.   Hopefully you will get there sooner rather than later but it only takes a few seconds to focus on your shot and then execute. It is certainly possible, for some maybe preferable, to enjoy your partners and engage in conversation and then just lock in for the 5-10 seconds before hitting a shot. Once the ball has left the club everything is out of your control. "Preferable" for some that maybe get paralysis from analysis as it can take their mind off the rubrics cube of swing thoughts clicking in their heads. All that said, nothing wrong with skipping the scorecard and enjoying friends as long as you give every shot your full attention. 

[JerryB]

Owen and I played the front nine at River Heights today.  Greens were aerated but I actually putted better because of it.  Less mental stress, I suppose.  Weather was amazing and the course was pretty empty.

I'll get right to it; we both shot (+8) 44!  I had only two poor chunks and otherwise my striking was really good.  Second day in a row I used only one ball.  Owen had the day off and enjoyed the round so much he went back a couple hours later to play 18 and he shot a PB 82.

Again, nothing amazing but I never put myself into trouble that I couldn't get out of.  Hoping for more of the same tomorrow .

 

[GaryF]

6 hours ago, Golfspy_TCB said:

More of a justification or a reasoning than a theory.. haha.   Anything to help me sleep at night.

Like I said, I have the same issue/miss sometimes, and that Driver affliction almost ALWAYS is accompanied by solid iron shots.  Especially with short irons and wedges - which essentially require that path and face orientation. 

My guess is that when you get to your longer irons... you are also seeing that "left of target / slight fade" flight.. maybe not - but it is what I get.  And even the longer irons are "playable" in my case, because they start left and fall back to the target line, or just right of it... however about a 1/2 to full club shorter than my square swing - depending on the club.  But in a driver... easier to pull it even further on the outside in path, and harder to square the face - and/or ball spin is more accentuated by the driver than in the irons.  So off it goes... dead left or flailing right.  

So the theory is that the same swing is afflicting the whole bag, just not as evident the further down the bag I go.  And usually, when I correct the driver.. my irons consistency starts feeling out of joint. 

I'm in constant search of that One Swing... just not sure it even exists.

I totally agree.  When I warm up on the range before playing, I always start with a wedge with 2/3 swing.  I think it’s consistently the closest to a perfect swing that I ever get.  Tension free, relaxed turn, controlled acceleration through the downswing, etc.  Next is full swing with the same wedge and can start to gauge what my swing will be.  The pulls are slight, and any out to in fade is extremely subtle. The real clue is a loss of distance.  Next is my 8i, and the effects not as subtle.  I try to ‘fix’ the path with this club, with various results and days better than others.  

I’m very consistent with hitting fairways with my driver, but I constantly battle with the tendency to lay back which ultimately results in a stronger fade or slice, but don’t have that issue with any other club.  Even driver practice swings have good transition and posting on the lead side, but as soon as swinging with a ball on the tee, something subconsciously disrupts the swing.  IVe gotten a lot better, but it’s always a battle.  

[cnosil]

10 hours ago, EasyPutter said:

 

Proof positive there are two different types of golf!
Want lower scores?  Play alone and if that isn't possible then play with someone you can ostensibly ignore. 
Want to enjoy golf with people?  Don't keep score and enjoy the conversation and time shared.

What do you think about between shots when playing alone?
 

What do you think about during your preshot routine when playing with people?