Inconsistency

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By Carl T

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  • 17 Replies
  1. Carl T

    Carl T
    Little Rock, AR

    I am like the majority of golfers who have a low double digit handicap but would love to drop down to a high single due to one major flaw, inconsistency in their game. Yes on occasion I can shoot in the 70's but for most of my rounds I am going to shoot in the mid 80's. I try to practice on my game 2 days a week and play 3 times a week. I am retired so time is not an issue. Played 9 holes yesterday and here is the inconsistency I experienced. Hit the fairway on all 7 holes but on one, worm burned my second shot into a hazard. Hit the green with a very makeable putt but lipped out for a double. From another fairway, second shot, ball faded to the right with a 20 yard pitch that left a 20 footer for par. Three putted for another double. On a par 3 missed the green and short sided myself from thick grass that ended up in another double. Are you keeping score ? On three holes I have lost six strokes. Ended up finishing the 9 hole round 8 over. The math says I pared 4 and boogied 2. I guess you could say that my inconsistency is how do you get off the double bogey train ?
  2. John M

    John M
    Asheville, North Carolina

    Military

    Have you taken a playing lesson with a pro? That's on my bucket list because the people I've spoken to have said it provided useful information to the pro who could then teach you to correct your faults leading to these inconsistencies. Also, even the pros make the occasional errors up to and including shanks. Maybe the focus should be to make your "bad" shots less costly. Good luck! 

  3. george t

    george t
    Old Lyme, CT

    Consistently inconsistent - that what's make us amateurs!!  But I feel your angst.  Just when I feel I have something figured out, another area of my game falls off.  For 4 straight rounds, I was killing my hybrids but struggling with wedges, but the last two rounds, just the opposite.  And putting, well, that just comes and goes for me, some days good others I wonder if I'm holding the correct end of the club.

    On those days where I'm really in a funk, I just try to play to the strengths of my game on that particular round.  

  4. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    You missed 2 greens that took 4 shots to get up and down. I was thinking my driving was hurting my scores (recently had some issues) but a better short game would have converted those doubles to bogey. Until consistent, I need to aim for the center of the green on approach/par 3 shots to stay on the green. I'm better off spending 20 minutes on the putting green and 10 minutes on the range as I work on eliminating the 3 putt. Then pray I can get out of the inevitable short side situation under 15 feet to the pin to keep up and down average under 3.
  5. Gabe B

    Gabe B
    Pueblo, CO

    Carl,

    I would recommend getting with a local PGA Professional for a playing lesson. Their are many things that good players do on the course to eliminate these mistakes such as short siding yourself. On a shot like that it might be what you are aiming at and instead of hitting the middle of the green your are taking direct aim at the flag. Another aspect could be your mental game which a lot of players simply overlook. I would recommend reading some of the work by Bob Rotella and putting those things into practice. A lot of time golfers start to get higher expectations and that can lead to missed shots are turning a good round into a bad one in a hurry. 

  6. Speedy

    Speedy
    Newmarket, NH

    Carl, i understand your pain tremendously.   Last week I shot 41-44 with 4 doubles and a triple...   Take a few shots away from that and I have a good score..  And it's like this all the time..  Always 2 to 4 bad holes..  And those are the ones that stick out the most at the end of the round..  I always start the round thinking, bogey or better..  Doesn't always work..    

    Would love to see other people responses...

  7. Don O

    Don O
    Madison, WI

    Chris - After trying to teach myself for 3 years, by my second lesson my instructor demanded I read some Rotelle. The only thing I share with PM is we use LH clubs - and perhaps too much daring on course. Not being long enough to reach some greens in regulation is not contributing to doubles, it is not being in position and agile enough to chip within 15 feet of the pin consistently. Smarter setup and more short game practice needs to be my focus. Being from Wisconsin, I'm reminded my short game should be modeled after Steve Stricker and not PM's magic with the 64 degree wedge.
  8. Chris Hatem

    Chris Hatem
    Boston

    I bet that if you dedicated those practice sessions to be full wedges, chips, and putting you'll shave a couple stokes and gain some confidence (which may shave a couple more).
  9. Carl T

    Carl T
    Little Rock, AR

    Thanks guys. I just needed to vent. Got a monthly MGA game in a couple of days and plan to work on the short game this afternoon.
  10. Will E

    Will E
    Cuyahoga Falls, OH

    Carl,

    I find that I have the same problem, a few blow-up holes that ruin the card.

    I read the other day in Golf Digest that from 30 yds it takes the average pro 2.5 shots to get in the hole. From the same distance, it takes the average amateur 3.5. If you can focus your practice to try and trim your number down to about 3...you will turn those dreaded doubles (and worse) into pars and bogeys.

    Fairways and greens,

    Will

  11. Lou G

    Lou G
    San Diego, CA

    I have those rounds where I will get off to a rough start.   I have a sort of a memorial story on a round I played on May 12. Ball striking was OK but short game started out the pits.   I wasn't unhappy with 44, considering I had a triple bogey (all around the green) and double to start.  I was only 3 over par the remaining 7 and that included a 2 putt birdie on the last hole and almost hitting a par 5 in 2.  I was using my dad's clubs. Any rate.... my stepmom says to my dad, "Lou...... Louie was bombing them today" and with that, his eyes lit up and said "there you go."  He passed away May 17.

  12. I feel your pain. We've all had rounds where those shots just kill a round.

    You mentioned you practice a couple of times a week. Just a thought, but try go back over the round where you had the missed shots. Recreate those situations on the range. Choose the distance, grab the club, visualize making the shot, execute.

    Just getting out on a range and pounding balls can work, but intentional practice sessions can take you leaps and bounds forward to carrying what you do on the range to the course.

    Enjoy! Your passion comes through and you'll see your play improve over time. Golf does reward us from time to time. 

    Paul

  13. PAZTOR

    PAZTOR
    Tillsonburg, ON

    I think the inconsistency is what keeps us coming back. For me I'll have a great round of putting but not be able to hit a fairway but then the next round the opposite. My game is a mystery that may never be solved, but the fun part is trying. I'm just waiting for the day where everything falls into place and I hit every fairway and green and avoid the dreaded 3 putt. It may never happen but it sure is fun trying.
  14. Carl T

    Carl T
    Little Rock, AR

    I have thought about this issue that plagues most recreational golfers and for me I think it boils down to confidence. You have to practice the shots that give you fits when you play and be able to execute them I would say 8 out 10 times but the real deal is to bring that situation to the real game and set up with confidence that you can pull it off. I think a lot of us are thinking that if we screw up this shot there goes our score. At least I do. The other day I played in a scramble tournament and we were facing a bogey if we could not get up and down over a green side bunker, about a 15 yard pitch shot. I had practiced this situation a hundred times on the practice chipping/pitching area and said I wanted to go first. Mentally I felt I could pull this off and just went back to the practice routine for this situation in my mind. Narrow stance, weight forward, wedge face slightly opened to let bounce work and immediate hinge as my first move up and back with a relaxed slow rhythmic swing and the ball landed and stopped within gimme range for a par. I felt like I had nothing to loose as I had three other partners to try this same shot and learned that I can bring this situation to the real game. Looking forward to the next round where I can try to repeat this again. If you have practiced a situation and can execute it 8 out of 10 times you should be able to do it on the course. If you fail you have to forget score and try it again. This is the only way you can gain confidence.
  15. Carl T

    Carl T
    Little Rock, AR

    Watching the final day of the US Open I saw that several golfers who seemed to be out of the running really moved up the leader board by playing aggressive. In my situation I know I am only going to hit about 7 GIR so I need to get up and down. In most cases I get up but am looking at a 10 to 20 foot putt to get down which in most cases I will not. I am going to try to get inside that magical 3 foot circle my next round and see what happens.
  16. pulplvr

    pulplvr
    Spring, TX

    Military

    I see two issues for you to address--the same ones I have been working on for the past year:  chipping, especially from the short side, to ensure you are within one putt range at the finish; and approach shots, so that your misses are better.  I worked very hard on the latter, and the best way I found to him in on the pin was to use more club and hit punch type shots.  My go-to shot is a waist-high swing that usually results in a hop and stop not he green.  i found this on a hole that gave me difficulty repeatedly and just worked and worked to find a way to overcome my problems.  For me, that's 75-85 with a gap wedge, then increments of 10 yards up or down the bag, all the way to the 5 iron (my flattest iron).  Still working on getting my old chipping confidence back.  That and the four foot putt are my current nemeses.

  17. Luke W

    Luke W
    liberty township, OH

    Short game and putting. I've learned recently that's one of the biggest if not the biggest part. That's what I've been trying to focus on. Think about it. Let's say you shoot 80-85 consistently. Roughly 30 putts and what maybe a dozen chips? That's half your strokes right there. Sure you need to be able to put in fairway off tee and stick it close then. But let's be real that isn't going to happen even for pros. Bad drive you chip up to green if you are blocked in or if you are in fairway and you miss iron shot. Either way you need a serious short game and putting game. If you have an exceptional short game and same for putting and you will start to see numbers fall off quickly. Hope that helps

  18. Blake B

    Blake B
    Harbor Springs, MI

    The best way I can suggest to keep away from multiple bogeys is to keep yourself from playing shots that you are not capable of. For example, I am a fairly long ball hitter for my size, drives between 275-300, etc etc and I tend to lay up on almost every single par 5 out there. Now, one can argue that I can certainly score lower if I execute, but I don't find it to be worth it mentally if I hit a poor shot if I were to stretch my capabilities. 

    When I golf with my brother or friends who are not incredibly successful with the game yet the best advice I give is to minimize the damage on the scorecard. It's frustrating making bogeys, very frustrating doubles, and even more frustrating making triples. Keep your head, play the smart shot, stay in the game. 

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