I found myself in the same boat today. After 3 rounds in the mid/high 70s I went out today and posted a 87.

Are you really asking, or are you just venting? If you’re asking for help, there are literally thousands of things you can do to improve your game and become more consistent. If you’re venting then go no further.

With consistency comes confidence and then you’ll start to see better shots. But first you have to determine which shots you’re making and which ones your missing.

Instead of just marking down your score per hole, break each hole down by shots.

Tee shots - Fairway in regulation- yes/no.
Tee shot distance
fairway hit or miss. If you missed, was it left side, right side, long, short, OB/penalty.

Green in regulation? Yes/No
If no, how many chip shots? Did you get up/down to save the hole? Y/N. Which was distance to green? What club did you use?

Putts- Total number of putts and distance to hole for first putt? I walk it off from my ball to the hole (or estimate it by using the height of the pole as a measuring stick which is about 8-9 ft in length)

Any other penalties per hole? How many?

Sand shots? Did you make it on to the green? Y/N How far to the pin? Putt made? Y/N

My scorecard looks more like a stat sheet, but I take all the data and download all that data into an app, (there are many out there). I used the one on golf.com for years, that also calculated my rolling handicap. If I’m playing with others, I keep my own card, and allow them to keep my score, while I fill in my own score card with all the data.

What you’ll see are trends. Where are you losing strokes? Tee shots, approach shots, chips, putts, bunkers, up/and down, scrambling - will all become very clear. So, you’re no longer just moaning about your score, you’re identifying what you need to work on. Once you see the trends you focus your practice sessions - and yes, if you’re serious enough to want better scores, you’ll have to really put in the time to work out the many, many shots that each club in your bag is capable of making. But those shots don’t just happen, you have to get out there and work it out - and I don’t mean off a plastic mat with 200 balls. That’s not likely going to help you much, unless you have a swing coach standing over you and critiquing. You have to find a place where you can hit off turf, and work all of the various shots.

Learn to know each club in your bag as if your life depended on it, befriend each one of them so that you know exactly which shots they are capable of making (and I don’t mean just the distance per club with the same old stock shot - though that’s a good start), and what type of swing you’ll need in order to make it happen.

Watch Tiger take each club in his bag through their paces. High cut, straight and draw. Mid cut, straight and draw. Low cut, straight and draw. Each club has a stock distance, but you can add or reduce the distance by the shape of the shot by anywhere from 5-10 yards.

Any club that you can’t work during your game, should be removed from your bag until you have absolute confidence in it off the course. Work on that club off the course until you feel solid about it. Even then, you’ll have to learn how to trust it once it goes back in your bag and your actually “gaming“ it.

I play with people who are superb golfers and we sometimes only take half the clubs, even 3 clubs, and we can still shoot in the 70s. That’s because we learned that each club has multiple shots available, and frequently it comes down to the last one or two holes if we play a match.

Anyway, start keeping track of your shots now and begin focused practicing based on your trends. Life is long, and you can play this game for the rest of your life. I started out like you over 30 years ago, and now I’m in my 60s and shoot to a + handicap. People who play with me are astounded at how consistent my game is, and they all want to know how I magically got my game to where it is, bc they want lower scores, but there’s no easy, simple way to get there. It takes a lot of discipline and consistent practice and focused play to get there. If you made it all the way down to this point, you likely are going to have a chance. If not, welcome to the typical golfer, who can sometimes break 100, might have a chance to break 90, will rarely break 80, but will never see par or lower.

But if you do want to see par or lower, what are you doing reading this stupid post, get out there and get to work.

A bad day on the course still beats a great day at work haha

Drink more!

I feel like this always happens to me when I have a bunch of stuff coming up in life and I can't play for a couple weeks and I get to dwell on my crappy score for the duration. A little bit of murphy's law.

I've found that playing GOLF and not GOLF SWING lessens that wide range of scores. From someone who plays everyday, to the students I teach that play once a month. The mind " seeing" shots creates success more than a mechanical cluster of thoughts. Also, enjoy the bad days. You get to hit more shots!

Joe, if the game was easy it wouldn't hold the same interest. Each day we play the World changes. Climate, grass, wind, dew, rain, that is why it never gets dull. When we can conquer it one day the next holds another surprise.
We all have gone through the doldrums and swear off the game but come back. Don't give up - just persevere.

PS I have been playing many years - I am 80 and it makes me happy one day and sad another. But I love it.

The struggle is what makes the game so great! Learning and re-learning new swing patterns, breaking mental barriers, 'off day'-'on day'....frustrating at times but also very rewarding at times. Your attitude is probably the thing that matters most (when things are off or on).

I try to stay away from trouble by playing defense. If my game is not on, I try not to be aggressive. Then I slowly try to tune in my game and take additional risks from where I feel extremely comfortable. Well, this sounds beautiful in theory, however, in practice it does not always happen.

I try to stay away from trouble by playing defense. If my game is not on, I try not to be aggressive. Then I slowly try to tune in my game and take additional risks from where I feel extremely comfortable. Well, this sounds beautiful in theory, however, in practice it does not always happen.

I love golf! It's the only sport where you are in total control. Your only competition is the course itself and the elements of the moment. The wind gusts that suddenly occur while the ball is in flight; the gnat that flies into your ear (or eye) in the backswing; the siren in the distance that makes you wonder who was injured and you hope it's not life threatening. We cannot change the past and we cannot control the future. Once we accept those truths we can let go of that previous bogey and concentrate on the moment. While playing golf, we are not in tomorrow's meeting; we are not planning the next barbeque; we are not concerned about what our golfing partners will think if we hit a fat shot. These types of thoughts are distracting. Our thoughts are in our mind and our mind can truly only focus on one thing at a time. That six inches between our temples more often than not causes our game to suffer. What a game it is! I do love golf!