Stats shamelessy nicked from Golf Digest

The answers to my question about putts per round made me wonder what high handicappers who are already putting more or less OK have to do improve their scores, so i dug up some stats (from Golf Digest 2001) - broken down by handicap (I can post them if you want).

Perhaps not surprisingly its just as we are told - short game, short game short game. The stats though are a welcome reminder about where our practice time (and lessons) should be spent.

An 18+ handicapper standard putter (34 ppr) will be no more than 5 putts worse off than a scratch player. However he / she will miss GIR 12 or more times; and will get up and down 2 - or 3 times at best.

10 opportunities around the green to save a stroke or more.

I intend to be a reformed character from now on and practice my chipping and putting more.

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hi
like dave plez has been saying for years, and thats why he has talked pros into adding more wedgesto there bag, before plez no one had 4 wedges in there bag and now all pros have 3 sometimes 4, there the scoring clubs like you said bdbl, to save shots around the green and from 120 yards in thats were it matters, most high handicapers go to range and use the driver and practice with that club most, and the wedges the lest and putting very rare, change it round so it wedges then putting and watch the shots fall off your game.
bill

bdbl, it seems to even the most casual observer (ok, me), that the ability to get up and down can really, really save your scores.

The proof is in the scores of the seniors who head out to golf courses en masse every morning, and turn in scores in the 70's. Obviously they're not tearing up the course in long hitting. Thus, they're not necessarily hitting all the greens. But I've noticed (when playing with seniors) that they do two things, and do them well:

They don't miss fairways. It's easier to pick a club when you're off a good lie.

When they miss greens, they don't two putt. If they miss, they get up and down like madmen.

Just a shining example of how shortgame can save your bacon, time and again. I'm at my most confident when I'm sticking balls within 6' of the pin, after missing greens. A good short game takes pressure off your full swing shots. And we all know once you take the pressure off in golf, you're in position to shoot good scores.

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A new highlight: Golfing the home course on Christmas Day.

I say it too often: If it's golf club shaped, you can play with it.

For the record, I'm a club doctor, not a swing doctor.

You are right.

The trouble is that for the casual golfer - and this time not just me , we definitely know it instinctively and from observation and we might know it statistically but what we don't really do is put the knowledge into practice.

My dad was speaking to a man called fred who worked with seve ballesteros on his golf when he was younger, and he said this day and age near enough ANYBODY can drive 260 yards with this technoligy, so the only thing that is seperating tour pros to single digit handicappers is the short game and 150 yards and in!

The bottom line is you have to do both, drive the ball well and have a good short game to at least shoot in the low 80's If you are not keeping your drives in play, you can take yourself out of a lot of holes right off the bat. As low post said, if you driving it in the fariway, between 180-220, you still have a chance at par on most holes. If your driving it 260, oob or in the woods, or in the bushes, your usually looking at double bogey or worse. You cannot consistently make up for this even with an excellent short game. If you drive short and straight, and can get up and down 80 percent of the time, you can probably shoot in the upper 70's on a good day to low 80's. But to really get low, meaning low 70's or below, for most of us, you have to drive it long and accurate, be able to get it up and down around th green 70-80 percent of the time and be able to sink some short or long putts for birdie. My point is, you really need to practive both long and short game.

hi
i remember lee trevino and seve ballestros playing St andews in a one club challenge, both player had a 5 iron, lee shot 70 and seve shot 69, it was a windy day and both hit drives with the club closed and shut like a 3 iron, even had to play sand shots with the 5 irin and putted too.
i wounder how many player could post a score like that today, my point is you dont have to be long to score, you only have to be able to keep in in the fairway and be able to scramble, like both the above players, there ability to shape shots and use what is in there hand still amazes me, but did show me how a short game matters as both player did not drive far, think longest was 240 back then, and lee only hit 270 with a driver.
i take msklar point that you have to practice both but most handicap players spend most time on the driver and the odd day chipping. high handicapers miss greens more and need a good short game, the same with the long driver that hits it in the rough a lot he need a good short game to be back on the fairway.
bill

I know and greatly respect a senior player in my club who holds a single figure handicap and plays to it. He carries 7 clubs in his bag, his drives are never more than 220 yds but always in the fairway, his 5 wood will take him a further 180 yds down the middle, his approach shots from 120 yds in are always on the green, he plays 180 yd par 3s with his driver and again makes the green, he uses a brass headed putter from the 1960's that he flicks the ball into the hole with great ease.

There is certainly a lesson for us there somewhere?

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Best Regards
Brian

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Funny o'l game!

Sure. With slower swing speeds, you don't need 14 clubs!

Yes, and you dont need to be a fast swinger to be a great player.