Snowman's Journal, quest for 80s...

snowman · #1 (**permalink**) 05-25-2007, 09:14 PM

I have been reading the other journals and enjoying them so I thought I'd create my own to document my struggle of only being able to play around 10-15 rounds a year and trying to break 90.

Bio: I am a 33 year old Scotsman living in the province of Quebec in Canada. I have a wife and young daughter (<2years) and am allowed to play golf roughly 10-15 times per year. I try and get in some time at the range and with my limited golfing time my quest is to break 90. I have been close with 91s and 92s but never the magic 80-something. I have been playing since 2003. My index is currently 25.1.

***watch this space***

bulldog2k · #2 (**permalink**) 05-25-2007, 10:02 PM

10-15 times a year? Good grief! It's like, tantra, man! Total control over abstinence! Bottle it and sell it, is my advice!

Seriously, good luck with your aim, and let us know how you get on

All the best for the coming season

snowman · #3 (**permalink**) 05-25-2007, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bulldog2k

10-15 times a year? Good grief! It's like, tantra, man! Total control over abstinence! Bottle it and sell it, is my advice!

Seriously, good luck with your aim, and let us know how you get on

All the best for the coming season

Yeah, I know mate it sucks big time to only get to play that few times a year. 5 months of the year here the golf courses are buried in 4 feet of snow and with being a father of a young child the opportunities are few and far between, I just dream of a better time when I can play a couple of times a week. Until then, progress is rather slow I'm afraid, I know I could easily shoot in the 80s but just don't play enough to gather any consistency.

Cheers.

Snowman - hopefully not too many snowmen on my scorecards this year though eh?

snowman · #4 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 12:15 AM

Round 1: April 2007.

Conditions - light rain.

Well the snow has all gone, the tee boxes and greens look pretty decent for this time of year but this one was a wet one, some of the fairways were saturated, some greens had winter kill, some are lush, some are dry. This was to be interesting day for sure.

Step up to the 1st tee of the year and due to my other commitments, this ball is going to be the first golf ball I have stuck since November of last year. I was to hit first, I took a deep breath to rid myself of all the nightmare scenarios.

#1 Par 5: 500 yards - stay smooth man, just get it in play, 5 wood...THWACK! a beauty, right down the centre of the fairway, 200 yards, WOW! Is this the season my game catches fire? Another good 5 wood shot leaves me with 120 yards but my iron shot is way off, a misdirected pitch shot and duffed chip and a tricky couple of putts and I escape with a 7.

#2 Par 4 367 yards - Lying 3 just off the back of the green I hit a lovely chip that nearly dropped for a par, knock in the bogie and it's off to #3.

#3 Par 4 376 yards - Hit a huge pull with my second shot, in real trouble but hit a beautiful lob wedge over a greenside tree and onto the green, 2 putts for a bogie 5, "this is going pretty well" I tell myself as I headed to the 4th tee.

#4 Par 3 166 yards - Now par 3s are my weakness, I don't hit my irons very far, e.g. I hit my 7i about 140. I don't tend to hit the long irons that well so I decide on a gentle 7w. I make a very nice swing and naturally it airmails the green, "oh well" I thought, "I've avoided the pond so a chip and a putt for par". Now I already mentioned the varying green conditions? Like a fool I walk around the green to get to my ball and since everyone else missed the green I have no idea that it isn't bone dry like the last one, it's actually very soft, the result? my bump and run comes up about 18 feet short. 18 feet, downhill left to right slope, "get it close man, just don't shoot it straight off the front of the green". I gave it a knock, and it ran right down my intended line and into the cup for a par! SWEET!

#5 Par 5 501 yards - As I walked to the 5th tee box I could almost hear the adoring gallery still cheering wildly after that par save, however my daydream was suddenly snapped as I duff my tee shot to a spot all of 50 yards away. A couple of good fairway wood shots and another lovely pitch with the lob wedge and another 1 putt and I am able to escape with a 6.

#6 Par 4 320 yards - A dogleg left. Another poor tee shot followed by a very nice recovery sets me up nicely but bonehead here screws up an easy pitch shot and come away with a disappointing double bogie on a very straight forward hole.

#7 Par 3 165 yards - Damn, why are there never any 130 yard par 3s around when I need them? Decide on the 4 hybrid and hit a huge push, luckily for me there is bailout area to the right. Grab my trusty lob wedge and hit another beauty over a bunker to a tucked pin to 2 feet. Tap in par. The golf Gods must have something for me later after that one, boy I hope they don't punish me too severely.

#8 Par 4 346 - nice tee shot but get greedy an put myself in a heap of trouble, a duffed pitch and chip leave me with 1 good 12 feet for bogie. Step up, see the line, hit it and into the cup....what is wrong with me, that was too easy.

#9 Par 4 371 yards - decide to take the driver out of the bag for the first time this year. Massive push-slice, put the driver back, will need to reconvene a meeting with the driver at a driving range in the near future. Again, I manage to get myself out of danger with a safe 7i and 2 putt for a bogie.

FRONT 9 - 45!!!! Wow, maybe the quest for 80-something will be ended today?????

#10 Par 4 351 yards – tee shot sails into a fairway bunker, “no matter just grab the PW and get her back in play”, I tell myself. Well that attitude is fine but one has to look ahead at the landing area instead of just focusing on the ball in the bunker. I hit it absolutely flush and the look on in horror as upon landing it takes two hops and into a creak. An 8i would have put me over the creak and in prime position. Limp away with a 7 on this hole, kicking myself for being so short sighted.

#11 Par 4 – 378 yards - good tee shot, decide not to be aggressive with the 200 yards left to the green, easy lay up to 100 yards and hit a very nice shot onto the green. Again, though I waste what was a really well struck shot by again being rather short sighted, I now face a very tricky downhill putt where if I have been more savvy I could have hit 1 club less and had a go at par. 3 putt ensues and I start to think that the golf Gods really were just toying with me on the front 9.

#12 par 3 158 yards – Hmm decisions decisions, its too short for the 7w and I pushed the 4h way right on the last par 3, haven’t hit my 4 or 5 iron at all yet, big pond in front and around the right side of the green. Decide on the 4h and try and do all in my power to avoid a big push. Result, a big push, SPLASH. Trusty lob wedge puts me close though and very unlucky with the putt for bogie, plod to the next tee after carding a 5.

#13 par 4 352 yards – “got to get it back, played well but not spectacular on the front 9, I can get that form back, surely I can”, I say to myself at the 13th tee. The pep talk doesn’t work, however as I smother my tee shot into some rough 50 yards away. Now if you are still awake you will recall that I like to play out of trouble with a safe short iron and get it back in play as soon as possible. Last time I tried this I didn’t take into account just exactly where I was laying up to, won’t make that mistake again will I…..WRONG, hit another beauty out of the tall grass but too far and into a bunker. Won’t do that a 3rd time now will I…..WRONG, hit another well struck shot but instead of onto the apron of the green I put it right into a greenside bunker. In each case I was unaware of just how far my iron shot would go. Finally get the hole finished and after totting up the strokes I card a snowman 8.

#14 par 4 353 yards - tee shot lost in the woods, but a couple of nice iron shots and I escape with a double bogie (could have been a lot worse). It dawns on me as I head to the 15th tee that I am now going to struggle to break 100 rather than the 90.

#15 par 3 201 yards – duffed 5 wood and then a 7w over the green, tricky lie in the woods but a miraculous chip ensues I escape with a 5. This round is going down the toilet.

#16 par 5 480 yards – a decent drive and a series of good 7i’s and I’m on the green in 4, 2 putts and a bogie on the card is a welcome after what had preceded it.

#17 par 3 174 yards – this distance should be prime for my 7w but my excitement gets the better of me and another duff leaves me in a spot of trouble. A well struck iron shot gets me back in it but I make right mess of the putts and card a double bogie 5.

#18 par 5 511 yards – Yay, the tee shot is back, and good patient play with the irons and a wedge puts me on the dance floor in 4. Cozy the first putt up to the hole and hole out for a bogie 6.

BACK 9 – 54 for a total of 99 (which becomes an 98 as we use equitable stroke control here in Canada, at this course my course handicap will not let me card more than a triple bogie). Not bad for 1st game of the season, but after a good front 9 that I feel could have been even better the back 9 was very disappointing. Still, I enjoyed myself and took away a few lessons.

+ves
Short game was excellent especially the lob wedge.
Tee shots on the front 9 put me in great position.
Managed a 45 for 9 without playing really well

-ves
Iron play was pretty streaky
Need to survey all possibilities when laying up out of trouble
Back 9 collapse
Handicap went up from 24.3 to 25.1 as a 91 dropped out of the last 20 rounds played.

I WILL BREAK 90, it’s just a matter of time…..STAY TUNED

Started2k3 · #5 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 03:09 AM

My story is eerily much like yours:
I am 33yrs old
Born in Birmingham England living in Kanta Canada
Currently a 23.8 hcp.
My handicap includes rounds in 2004

so as you can tell I can't get out much either.
I have 2 boys under 2.5yrs - hence why I can't get out much.
Personal best - 89 three times - want a new PB this year!

I am not sure where you work in Gatineau or if you can do this, but for the last 2 weeks I have been hitting the range instead of eating lunch. I have been trucking over the the Chateau Cartier from downtown Ottawa and hitting a small bucket then heading back to work (total time taken - 40 to 50 mins). It has seriously helped me with my consistency - especially the irons. And I find that it forces me to pay attention to each shot because my time there is so limited. The main downside is that they are "limited distance" balls, so don't try to guage your distances at the range, but only look at the ball flight in relation to your target.

If you decide to swing by and I am there (tall, bald, fat guy with the SMT head cover on my driver) say "hi". (FYI - I am at a tournament at Loch March on Monday, but I will be there the rest of the week for about 20mins between 12 and 1pm.)

Good luck on your quest for the 80's.

Later,
Charles

PS Don't tell too many people, because it is nice and quiet there right now.

bulldog2k · #6 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 05:14 AM

Many on here are big believers in not counting the score as you go, but letting whatever will be, be. Sometimes, scorecard pressure can ruin a perfectly good round - wonder if that's what happened here?

Sorry it didn't go your way, and hope you get to have another crack at it soon.

snowman · #7 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 12:17 PM

Started 2k3:

Ah I thought I recognized your name from Ottawagolf.com. I'm "hank hill" on there. I notice that you are trying to break 89! Funnily enough, Manderley is the course that I played round 1. Did well on the North but South killed me. I was my first time playing South, whereas all the other times I have been there I have played C/N. I think familiarity with a course really helps me score well.

I am a stay at home dad at the moment and actually live pretty near Chateau Cartier, but getting out is hard, if I do manage to wangle it, I'll look out for you.

Started2k3 · #8 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 06:51 PM

Manderley south is very different from the other 2 nines. It is more of a placement set of holes - thinking about your tee shot is important especially on south 4,5,6 (or 13,14,15 in your earlier post).

Later,
Charles

snowman · #9 (**permalink**) 05-26-2007, 10:24 PM

Round 2 May 2007.

I'll keep this one shorter than the last, it was a rather poor round to be honest. Playing what seemed to be quite an easy course I was slicing/pushing everything. Short game was very good again but I managed 0 GIRs and didn't hit a fairway until hole 13. My iron play was simply horrendous, even with a poor drive I was able to put myself into a position where I could hit it 150 ish to the green and missed in more ways than I can describe. As the round wore on though my iron play did pick up but I was robbed of quite a few shots by assuming that I should drop down a club only to pure it right over the flagstick and over the green.

Scored a 104, so even though I enjoyed the process of playing the round I was rather disappointed with my game.

I know what I have to do:

Work on hitting the irons 5i, 6i, 7i 8i to a target.

Fix that damn push-slice that had crept into my 5w, 7w shots.

Keep up the good shortgame work, it's paying off so when the other two are fixed i'll be in a great position to get to the magic numbers.

UPDATE: took a PW to a local soccer field and worked on hitting balls to an imaginary green (the goalmouth). Was pushing all the shots so took a break and figured that a push is actually very close to a good shot, i.e the club must be coming from the inside but I am probably fanning the face open on the takeaway and not closing it enough on the swingthrough. I strengthened my grip ever so slighly and started to hit the most beautiful draws slap bang on my target area. i jumped up and punched the air in delight, then I quickly looked around....phew noone saw me.

I think my grip may have become ever so slightly weak and that would account for the iron pushes and wood pushslices. Can't wait until I can hit the range tomorrow to see if this simple strengthening will benefit all the clubs.

snowman · #10 (**permalink**) 05-27-2007, 04:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snowman

I think my grip may have become ever so slightly weak and that would account for the iron pushes and wood pushslices. Can't wait until I can hit the range tomorrow to see if this simple strengthening will benefit all the clubs.

Just back from the range and it was a very productive session despite the rain. I strengthened up that grip a bit and was hitting my irons beautifully to the targets I picked out. For the most part balls were flying straight at the target or with a little draw, any misses were slight hooks.

Woods straightened up too, but were mostly fades or straight. I was even able to land my 80% of balls hit with my driver on an imaginary fairway between 2 flags on the range.

Can't wait to hit the course now. I am usually terrible at the range as I lose focus and get bored easily but despite the rain I managed to keep myself interested by playing an imaginary round, i.e hit a driver at a target then an iron or a fairway wood and so on.

dunk · #11 (**permalink**) 05-29-2007, 11:50 AM

Ah, Snowman...glad to see I'm not the only one who hears the gallery's cheers!

Was gonna tell ya not to get too down after your first round since November, but your range session seems to have picked up your spirits nicely! Amazing what a well-thought out change can bring! Figuring out what your club face was doing, then fixing it...I'm green with envy at your ability to do that!

Avoid the add-up-the-scorecard demon at all costs! The slimy beast ALWAYS screws up your round, without fail!

and, yes, I was not only still awake on #13, I was riveted by the chase for 89! Keep going, you'll get it! small prediction...when you break 90, you'll shoot an 86, not just squeak by!

snowman · #12 (**permalink**) 06-03-2007, 07:34 PM

Round # 3, June 2007.

I played a lot better today. Was shotgun started on #2 so this report will start with #2 and finish with #1.

#2 Par 3: Good range work with my irons paid off as I hit an absolute beauty to 8 ft. Stroked the birdie putt along my intended line but it turned ever so slightly and sat an inch from the hole, tap in par.

#3 Par 5: Reasonably good drive, a couple of irons and a wedge and i'm on in 4, again just miss the putt but tap in for an easy bogie.

#4 Par 4, a tough one for me as OB is all along the right side and if I miss a 5w tee shot it will slice. Manage to limit the slice so that it lands in the rough and then hit a beautiful 5 iron to just in front of the raised green. As the green was raised I took a quick peek up there to see how much green was infront of the pin. What I failed to do was take a few more steps and see that the pin was right at the back of the green, laziness cost me here as I overhit my chip and it went off the back of the green, lesson learned (#1) check how much green you have to work with in both infront and behind he hole, chip back up and 2 putt for a disappointing double bogie.

#4 Par 4 dogleg left. Hit a lovely straight teeshot with the 5w, but when I get to the ball I notice that a tall tree is blocking my view of the green. My buddies all sliced and are in the rough with a long shot at the green. "Great tee-shot there, you'll be mad if you miss the green from there", said one. "I am behind a tree, I might try and pitch it out to safety so I can chip on" I say, "Nah, you'll clear that tree", they reply in unison. Lesson learned (#2), don't trust your fellow competitors. I decide to go for it and hit my 9i really well, it looks good but hits the very top of the tree and richocets off somewhere. Thankfully I find the ball in the woods and hit a miraculous chip out and onto the green, 2 putt for bogie. Lucky escape there.

#6 Par 4 dogleg left. Sliced tee shot leaves me with too far to hit the green, try an easy lay up but flub it, no matter I can hit the green with my SW from here, wrong I pull it and have to chip on. 2putts and its a very disappointing double bogie. Lesson learned (#3), always commit to a lay up shot, I was nothing short of laxidasical and cost myself precious strokes.

#7 long par 3. Slice my 5w but stay in bounds, flub my chip halfway to the hole 2 putt for a bogie.

#8 par 4. Dammit, hit tee shot fat, goes about 30 yards, keep the 5w in hand and then absolutely blast the ball right down the centre of the fairway. Why couldn't I do that on the tee? Iron shot was struck well but comes up a little short, chip is poor and 2 putts gives me a double bogie. I think i'll be definately going for chipping practice in the very near future.

#9 par 3. Just miss green with another well struck iron, chip on and just miss out on par, tap in for a bogie.

#10 par 4, way up hill. Nice tee shot, even better second shot puts me on the green with a look at birdie, read the putt beautifully but it just runs out of legs and leaves me with (another) tap in par.

#11 par 5. Good tee shot, 2nd shot with 5w right up the middle. 3rd shot was shot of the day, faced with about 150 to a raised green with a massive deep bunker right infront I hit a lovely 6i to about 10 feet. This time I was rather aggressive with birdie putt number 3 and just missed, but paid the price as it sped 5 feet past the hole and my come backer stopped just short. After a great start I card a very disappointing bogie.

#12 Par 3. Another good iron shot and i'm on the fringe, great chip and a 1 putt for a par! Yay!

#13 Long Par 5. Get the driver out for the first time, SLICE, driver goes back into the bag. By a stroke of luck I stay in bounds but have a tough shot from a severly sloping lie infront of the ladies tees. Top the ball back onto the fairway and then hit a great 5 wood right down the centre to abput 145. Out comes the 6i and I hit another beauty to about 16 feet. 2 putt for a pleasing bogie.

#14 On a bit of a roll now and playing rather well I hit another lovely tee shot. Learning lessons from past rounds I take a good look at the green and see that if I go past the pin I will have a very difficult putt so I decide to hot the club that if hit perfectly will be on the front of the green, if hit slightly off centre will leave me with an easy chip. 9i was that club and I land on th front fringe, a nice chip and a tap in gives me a well thought out par (maybe i'm starting to understand how to think myself around the course).

#15 Par 5, good tee shot and second shot leave me 175 to the green, grab the 7w and aim a little left just incase I slice it (as I have been lately), hit it right down my target line and the ball comes to rest in some tall grass and rocks next to teh green. Whack it out on the first go but then go and flub an easy chip, 2 putt for a disappointing double bogie.

#16 Par 4. Slice back now (typical re: 15th hole) but keep it in bounds, nearly hit the green with a great 2nd shot (5w from the rough), chip onto the green and just miss out on par, tap in for bogie.

#17 Par 3. Wow this one is a perfect distance for my red hot 6i. D'oh, hooked it right into a water hazard, but then hit a great chip from the drop area and 1 putt for a good bogie.

#18 Par 4. Great tee shot and then just short with a 5w off the fairway. Then disaster strikes. The pin is at the back of the ver large green so a long chip shot is needed. I line up, get into my practice swings and preshot routine, just as I am swinging back to the ball a couple of morons in a cart appear from another hole and insted of respecting the fact I was hitting a shot kept driving dwon the path. That momentary distraction causes me to totally flub the chip, it goes 3 yards at the most. Faced with a very long putt now I 3 putt and card a very disappointing double bogie. Now normally disturbances like that don't effect me but it just seemed to happened at a crucial point in my downswing.

Last hole #1 par 4.
Finish up on 1 after the shotgun start on 2. I regret this but whilst on the tee box we had to wait for a group to clear and like a fool I looked at the scorecard, I didn't add up anything but noticed how many pars bogies and double bogies I had and realised that a decent score on this hole would get me either below 90 or very close to it. Lesson learned, never ever do this, stay in the present (#4). SLICED tee shot, ball lost. Second ball finds fairway. "This is not too bad" I tell myself "i'm lying 4 with a shot at the green". I then procede to hit my worst shot of the day, what should have been a routine 8i turned out to be a horrible toed shot into a drainage ditch. I then hack it out of the ditch and hit the green with a SW. "Okay, okay, this is not great, but i'm on the green in 6, maybe I can 1 putt for a triple, nope I manage to 3 putt from 16 feet for a nasty 9. What a meltdown.

Final card 49-45 for a 94, that becomes an adjusted score of 92 for handicap purposes.

All in all I played very well but a few bad decisions and some poor chipping cost me the chance of getting my first sub 90 round. What is nice though, is that I played quite a tricky course (slope 123) so in the end I was rather pleased with the round even though the last 2 holes (18 and 1) left a very sour taste in my mouth.

snowman · #13 (**permalink**) 06-04-2007, 05:45 PM

+ve's and -ve's from round 3:

+ve's
scored a net 67 (-4)
4 pars
iron shots much much better
opening tee shot was 8 ft from pin
on the whole tee shots were good
quite a few good chip shots
some good decision making
fairway woods off the deck were good

-ve's
last 2 holes
some chip shots were very poor
missed 3 birdie putts
missed a lot of putts in the 4-6 foot range
some poor decision making
missed out on a chance to break 90 for first time

snowman · #14 (**permalink**) 06-09-2007, 08:06 PM

Just back from Round 4 and it was an up and down round. Played a course called Nation that I had never played before. Lots of elevation changes at this course and tough greens. My 5w tee shots were (for the most part) excellent today, iron play was improved but my normally strong chipping/pitching and putting were rather average, bordering on poor. Carded an 98, a net 2 over, so although I am disappointed by some of the shots I missed, I scored pretty well for a course I have never seen before.

Here is the breakdown:

#1 Dog leg par 4, two well struck 7 irons and I am on the dance-floor looking at a birdie putt. Misjudge the slope of the green horribly, leave the 1st putt well short and a disappointing 3 putt gives me a bogie.

#2 Long par 4. Tee shot went OB right, but recover well with 2 well struck 5ws and a decent wedge shot, 1 putt for a double bogie 6.

#3 Downhill par 4. Absolutely cream my 5w off the tee and with the aid of the downhill fairway I manage 240 yards. Hit a delightful 9i to about 15 feet, just miss the birdie, but take a tap in par.

#4 Long par 3, miss green to the right, chip on and 2 putt for bogie.

#5 Dogleg Par 5, another nice tee shot puts me in great shape, another 5w and I am in wedge range, overcook the wedge, sending it 20ft over the flag, but 2 putt safely for the par.

#6 long par 4. Another cranked 5w, boy I am hitting well today, just miss the green with 2nd shot, chip on was terrible, way over hit, but maintain my composure and 2 putt for bogie.

#7 Double dogleg par 5. We came round the corner to the 7th and see that there is a long hold up. During the wait I somehow slip out of the zone that I was in and proceed to top a tee shot all of 40 yards. Recover my composure nicely and sit 3 with a view of the green. This is one of those annoying things I am sure you have all experienced, I hit my approach shot way better then I anticipated with the lie that I had and my shot sails over the green, chip on and proceed to 3 putt the green for a very disappointing 8. After recovering splendidly from the bad tee shot I end up with a triple due to hitting it too well and then terrible putting.

#8 Medium length par 3. I am now officially out of the zone. A topped 7w followed by a fat 8i and I am on the green in 3. As I struggle to shake my disappointment I again misjudge the speed on the tricky green and 3 putt for a horrific 6.

#9 Par 4. Gather myself for what is rapidly turning into a crisis and hit a great 5w right down the center and then just miss with another 5w off the deck, misjudge the chip and send it way past the flag. With the back to back 3 putts still fresh in my mind I manage to stay calm and 2 putt for a bogie.

48 on the front nine. Very pleased with a lot of my play in that 9 but holes 7 and 8 really spoiled what was beginning to be a very good score for me.

#10 Par 4. I had no idea what I was getting myself into. From the scorecard it looked like a simple dogleg left, so I hit a nice straight 7i right down the center. Unfortunately, this is not a simple hole, as I get around the corner I realize the green is 20 feet above the fairway, a very small landing area and severely sloped. Toyed with the idea of hitting a 7w up there, but shook it off and decided to lay up with a SW. Still distracted, thinking of how good my 3rd will have to be and if I have made the right choice I preceded to muff the SW shot into a creek. Take a drop and hit my 8i about halfway up the hill, chip on and then 1 putt for a very annoying 7.

#11 Par 4 (ravine at 210). Hit another beauty with the 5w. Have about 65 to the hole so out comes the sand wedge......DISASTER, hit it thin right over the green and into the trees. Luckily I find the ball and hit a great recovery shot out and onto the green and then 1 putt for a bogie. Leave the hole disappointed at the missed GIR, but relieved that on +1 went on my score.

#12 par 5. 5w deserts me, OB right, recover well though and end up on th green in 5, 1 putt for bogie.

#13 dogleg par 4. Hit a lovely 7w into a great position on the fairway and go for the green with a 6i, just miss hit it and it ends up in a bunker. Thin my bunker shot over the green. Instead of taking a minute to compose myself and breathe, I procede to the ball straight away and chilli dip my chip. Again I should have taken a step back but no I procede to send my next chip way past the flag and then 2 putt for a hugely annoying and disappointing 7.

#14 Slightly over hit tee shot, but on the green none the less, 2 putts for a good par.

#15 Par 5. Another pair of excellent 5w shots put me just ahead of the 150 to the green marker. Another huge hold up and again, I am out of the zone again and not only hit my 7i fat but hit my subsequent shot fat as well. I disappointedly chip on and 2 putt for a double bogie 7 that I feel should have been par at worst from where I was sitting on the fairway.

#16 Par 3. Another long wait and an atrociously struck iron shot puts me OB, I put the next ball on and 2 putt for double bogie.

#17 Par 4 up hill. Hit another 2 great 5w shots and then proceed to thin my chip shot over to the far side of the green. You guessed it a 3 putt and I am left shaking my head again.

#18 Short par 3. Hit my 8i onto the fringe, make a mess of my chip and then 2 putt for a bogie.

Back 9 50, total for 18 - 98.

Well, I did say to myself that a sub 100 round on a new course that looked to have tricky greens would be what I'd aim for, but after playing so well for almost all the round, I am a little disappointed to be honest. I only really had 3 blow ups hole where I did nothing right (8, 10, and 16), the other mistakes came in holes that I was playing rather well (7, 11, 13, 15, 17).

+ve's
- tee shots were excellent 10/13 fairways.
- 4 GIRS ( a new personal best) and and a bunch of just missed GIRs
- vastly improved iron play, just a few fatties/flubs
- sub 100 on a tricky new course, with a more knowledge of where and where not to land I would do a lot better next time.

-ve's
- Putting was very poor, had a number of par and birdie putts that I missed, putting alone could have had me close to the 90 threshold. Embracingly enough I actually practiced my putting this week as I recognize how weak it its and came away from the putting green with a lot more confidence in my stroke.

- Chipping was poor as well, a whole host of different misses. I shall be at the chipping green this week that is for sure.

- I let the long waits between shots and bad shots effect me. I need to be able to shake off stuff like that a lot better. Had I shook off some of the adversity and putted a bit better I could have broken 90 today.

THE QUEST CONTINUES.

snowman · #15 (**permalink**) 06-10-2007, 03:12 PM

After chewing over that last round for a wee while I have come to the conclusion that not only do I need to work on putting and chipping but I also need a mental adjustment to adversity. When I was doing well I just got up to the ball, assessed the situation, distance, landing area, lie etc, pulled the club, got into my zone and pulled the trigger. However, (almost) every time I faced a bit of adversity I would be so busy worrying about it that I would get away from my routine and make shoddy quick decisions as if I was sulking about the shot.

Hole #7, hit a bad approach, instead of stepping back and assessing the situation, cooling off a bit I couldn't get to my ball quick enough and ended up hitting a poorly thought out chip shot, then instead of stepping back I 3 putt while I was all distracted by the bad chip.

Hole #8 was a disater as I was still mad about hole #7. Even with a bad tee shot I could have composed myself and come out of it with a bogie, but I let my shoulders drop and sulked to a triple.

Other examples are holes #10, 13, 15, 16 and 17.

I need to turn those triples into doubles or singles and the doubles into singles or par saves. I have done it in the past, but just lately I seem to get affected by bad shots. I think this is because I have been playing well. I will take a look at a couple of Bob Rotella books to see if there is anything in there. I will also re-read Zen golf by Joseph Parent.

I have to get out of the "oh well, I'm having a bad hole, I just want to get to the next one" attitude and replace it with, "okay, I'm playing well, that shot didn't turn out as expected but I am still in the hole and with the correct preparation I will hit a better shot".

Thoughts?

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