Conference 7.286::golf

    from my experiences...
    
    
    	concentration...concentration....fairways and greens...
    
    	If when I go out to play I really want to scores well I 
    concentrate on two main points, put the tee shot in the center
    of the fairway(length is not a concideration) and put the
    second shot in the center of the green.....
    
    	Being a hacker I've found that the players that score well
    "consistantly" are the ones who play for par and let the birdies
    come but all the time realizing that there going to make some
    boggies along the way.
    
    	On every shot, after getting your alignment, the one main
    thought is to make the best "relaxed" swing you can...
    
    

    
    re .0
    
    There are a couple of lines in your note that may indicate what you
    are talking about, playing well, but not scoring. You say you usually
    2 putt, this is only good if you hit the green in regulation.  You 
    also say you get out of a bunker within 2 putt range, the goal
    here is to be in 1-putt range.
    
    One thing that has helped me is to set a  goal for each round, not 
    a specific score, but more along the lines of "try and par every hole"
    (or bogey, or birdie, whatever makes you comfortable), then try
    and get this score on each hole. Note that if you are trying to par
    every hole, this does not mean you are trying to shoot even par. If you
    bogey one, you do not change your goal, you still want to par
    every other hole. You'd be surprised how many birdie tries you get.
    
    Also, don't be afraid to change teh goal for a hole. If you shoot a 
    horrible shot, accept it and play for bogey from then on on that hole
    
    
    --Bob
    

    
    Peter,
    
    	There are some very good questions here, let me take a shot at a
    few of them.  There is clearly a difference between playing well and
    scoring well.  I've 'hit it pure' for 80 and 'scrapped it around' for
    75 enough times to at least have seen the difference.  So when things
    start to go bad on the course, I play to score.  (more on that later)
    
    I don't keep detailed stats anymore.  While it was useful several years
    ago, today I pretty much know what's happening.  Of course the kind of
    "mental stats" that I keep are different also.  I'm not looking for
    fairways, greens, putts........ I already know what the
    strengths/weakness of my game are, I'm looking more for the shape of
    the shot, pain in the lower back, finish position of the swing and all
    the other 100 symptoms that indicate what mistake I'm making today. 
    But when it's going bad, I try to play to the strength of my game.  For
    instance, if I'm hitting the tee ball poorly, I just try to get the
    ball into play somewhere were I can't get into too much trouble.  If my
    iron game is off (most of the time this is where I have trouble), I try
    to position the tee shot so that I have the maximum amount of error on
    the ensuing iron shot and can bail out to the easiest position for the
    chip shot.  Then it's just a chipping an putting contest.  That's what
    I mean about playing to score, get the ball near the green for an easy
    chip to make par.
    
    As for mastering the "toughest six inches on the golfcourse", I gave up
    along time ago.  When I'm playing I can't think about the practice
    techniques like slow take away, weight transition, stiff upper
    lip......, I just think about where I want the next shot to go and how
    I want it to get there and sometimes why I want it there.  Then after
    I've hit the shot, I go find it to hit it again!

    
    Peter, 
     I hear what you are saying because I was in the exact situation
    as yourself. Oh you have a great looking swing. Oh nice a pass at that
    one and all that horse****. One needs to become a player. By that I
    mean you need to learn how to score under all conditions. You have to
    be able to except that there are several ways to make par. We like to see
    a nice high draw come into the middle of the fairway. A great seven
    iron bitting into the green but that ain't the way it always works. You
    need to take what is givin out there. One day you may drive the ball
    great but the next.....gone. You need to be a player and learn how to
    score with bad drives. It's nice to have a great swing but it's
    learning to become a player that puts the numbers on the board.
    
    One thing I have noticed over the years. The best scores are the best 
    chippers and putters. But I guess thats old news.
    
    Pete
    

    Re: 1
    
    We (most anyway) feel we have been there.  Good solid contact, hit most
    shots where you were planning, no reward for the effort.  Consider the
    following:
    
    You may be at a "plateau" ready to take more risk and move your game
    forward.  Try going for the shot, or hitting the shot with the greatest
    reward.  Your scores will suffer, but at least you have a reason. 
    Soon, you will have a new game and more shots to score with.
    
    You may be playing on a course or courses that benefit your wilder
    opponents.  Try to get them on a course that favors your game. I have a
    friend that always plays well (hi 80's) with a bad swing.  I love to
    get him on a course where his swing gets cramped.
    
    Your opponents may be "hustling" you.  Many a player has fallen victim
    to the guy or gal that can have near miraculous changes in their golf
    game when money is on the line. 
    
    Plan your game before you tee off...Par the Par 3's or Par the par 5's. 
    Which club do have the most confidence in.  Hit your tee shots so that
    you can use your favorite club to hit your approach close...for a legit
    birdie attempt.
    
    If all else fails, start giving your friends some swing tips during the
    round.  Adjust their grip, change their take away.  Once they start
    thinking about their swing and tinkering, you have the upper
    hand. Instead of worrying about your "six inches" between the ears, work
    on theirs.  The mind is a terrible thing.
    
    SCD

Thanks, fellas!

A cartload of good advice! Who could ask for more?

From some of the things you said, it is obvious that you instantly recognised
the symptoms - probably because you have been there yourselves. You gave me a 
lot to work with, ranging from the obvious (of course I need to get down in two
from the trap, but I needed reminding) through the fundamental (is this game a
ballet performance or a scoring contest?) down to the downright Macchiavellian
(my favourite is to ask if they breath in or out on their backswing, it's 
usually good for the next three holes) and up to the dizzy heights of the
promise of a new plateau as the payoff for courageous play.

There is also some interesting absence of information, like none of you 
mentioned anything about "catching up", i.e. about extra effort after a bad shot
or a bad hole. That's another lesson.

Well, there must be something here that will work for me. All I need to do is to
try them :-)

Thanks again,

Peter

    There has been some excellent advice.  When I read your base note, your
    mental attitude jumped out at me.  Then your question in .6 about how
    to catch up, reaffirms my guess.  You need to learn to play golf to
    score well.  The key here is that "play" is the present tense.  You
    must play golf only in the present tense.  The last shot has no bearing
    on this shot and this shot has no bearing on the next shot.  Never get
    in the trap of thinking that I smothered the tee shot, now if I can hit
    a great fairway wood and stick a wedge close enough for a one put I can
    still par the hole. WRONG! WRONG! WRONG! You are playing only one shot!
    I want to hit this three wood to a "specific target" on the fairway.
    End of thought process, until that shot is hit.  Then as you walk
    toward your ball start to analyze the shot that you are going to hit,
    what is the target for this shot, etc.  If you do this and practice the
    putting and chipping you'll score better and a companion cannot get you
    thinking about things that hurt your chance to score.

    
    Funny,  I played last night and really felt I played poorly.  But in
    adding up the score I shot 43.  that's respectable for me since I only
    play once a week. I didn't drive well at all with a number of holes
    topping the ball off of the tee.  I didn't hit that many good second
    shots either.  I did scramble well and didn't let my poor striking
    get the best of me.  I played three holes well with Birdie putts and
    all three but ended up with pars.  The one hole I really did badly on
    was a par four that I ended up shooting 7 on.  What did I do on tht
    hole that I didn't do on the others?  Manage.  On all of the other
    holes I plyed what was given me by my previous shot.  I played the 
    percentage shots knowing I wasn't striking the ball well.  On the one
    hole I failed to manage I pressed and wound up paying for it.
    
    I guess my advice would be to learn to  "MANAGE" yourself around the
    golf course.  I think that's what helps a lot of good players stay in
    matches when their game is off a bit.
    
    
    
    Tom

    Re.7  Some good advice but I disagree with only thinking one shot
    at a time.  I find that if I do hit a bad tee shot, that by thinking
    "OK,  I can still poke this out into the fairway, stick a wedge
    close and one putt for par"  helps a lot.  You need to set a goal
    for a specific hole before playing it.  I will hit a tee shot to
    a specific spot to set up my second or approach shot.  If you just
    step up to the tee and blast away you may be leaving yourself with
    a difficult half or 3/4 wedge whan a full 9 or 8 iron is a better
    shot.  So by thinking ahead a shot or 2 you can better manage the
    course.            
    Also yo uneed to learn to scramble.  When I started playing I hit
    a long ball but seldom straight.  This put me in more "interesting"
    spots than I care to remember.  however, learning to hit these
    different shots now helps tremendously when I do get in trouble.
     You don't have to strike the ball well all the time to score well.
     Just stay focused and remember that its only a game and sooner
    or later the ball will start bouncing your way.

    Re:6,7,8,9
    
    I find this concept of scrambling, managing and recovering the best
    part of golf.  I am often most proud of my recovery shots than I am of
    my straight shots.  I keep the proper perspective however.  If in a
    close match (match play) I will risk on holes I am out of.  This gets
    the shots or urge out of my system and instills the knowledge that I
    can either make that shot when required...or don't screw with it
    because it burns you every time.  
    
    I have two phrases I use to describe the approach I take.  Sometimes I
    get "GREEDY" and try to hit the miraculous shot.  If I get burned, I am
    resigned to the outcome because I knew I was betting it all before I
    hit it.  Other times I find myself in a situation that is "beyond or
    out of my skill range" or "NOT IN MY REPORTOIRE".  When I have these
    shots...like flop shots over bunkers ...I view it as the "reward" for a
    lousy shot just previous.  With Greed and Reportoire in my vocabulary I
    can approach each shot and accept the outcome.  Kind of philosophic,
    but golf does that to you.
    
    SoCalDandy

    
    Hi,
    
    	The previous replys are all very helpfull... I agree with .9
    	that you should think ahead, if the pin is tucked back right,
    	try to hit your drive down the left side, it'll give you
    	more green to aim at. Things like that will make it easier
    	if you miss ... But when it comes to making the shot,
    	think only of excecuting a good swing.
    
    	If you are striking the ball well... and avoiding trouble,
    	like OB , water  etc. but can't seem to score. I'd work
    	real hard on my short irons and short game. Chances are you'll
    	be either on in regulation or worst case 50 yards or so from
    	the green. If you can save par once in a while, or at least
    	never do worse than bogie... you'll be scoring great.
    
    	Learn to avoid the doubles + triples  by playing safe...
    	play the high percentage shots, always take plenty of
    	club to help prevent any out of balance,overswinging shots.
    
    	Day to day your swing tempo is different... learn to go with
    	what feels right. If you normally hit an 8 iron 145, but this
    	particular time it feels like you'll need to swing hard to
    	get it there.. drop to a 7 and stay smooth. 
    
    	I like the example of watching players play darts, they are
    	in total balance and smooth. Because they are concerned with 
    	accuracy not distance. Develop your scoring swing with 
    	accuracy in mind. 
    
    	
    	good luck... scoring is something we all need help with!
    
    	excellent topic by the way;
    
    	Walta
    	

    re: last several
    You did not quite get my suggestion about playing one shot at a time. 
    I said that you had a "specific target" for this shot.  That target
    takes into account the management of the course and your game - where
    the most likely trouble is, how your game is going, etc. - but you are
    not considering the last shot or any future shot - only the one you are
    going to hit.  Planning is indeed an important part of scoring, and
    planning is a dynamic that is adjusted for the present tense, but the
    only shot I am hitting is the one I am hitting.  If I think about the
    need to hit this one to get close for a wedge, I may find that the
    pressure on the wedge shot has become unbearable, or I may influence
    the fairway wood by the fact that I am worrying about getting the
    wedge, close, etc.
    
    I have taught professional baseball players to always have a realistic
    goal for each game.  This is usually in seeing the pitch, hitting it
    hard and getting a hit in each game.  If they get a hit the first time
    up, the goal for the rest of the game stays the same and when they wind
    up with three hits, they are still concentrating only on the present
    time at bat.  It works very well in baseball and tremendously well in
    golf.
    
    Big Mac

    Just a few that work for me:
    
    As an average golfer, DON'T measure your game against par. Rather use
    bogie. Then pars become birdies, birdies become eagles. Shooting par
    golf consistantly IS difficult. Many pros hit hundreds of balls a day
    as well as play rounds for several hours a day and they can't play par
    golf consistantly(witness the + players on the next TV tourney). So
    what makes me think I can go out once a week and do the same?? The same
    philosophy goes for recovery shots. How many times have you seen missed
    recovery shots by the pros for every successful one. Take the safe
    shot, the one you have the best chance of making. Sometimes this is
    away from the green, but remember it counts the same as a missed putt
    and it will most likely set you up for a much better shot.
    
    In match play review the holes BEFORE you start, especially if you are
    familiar with the course. Determine the holes you feel you have a
    better chance of winning and concentrate more on them. Its difficult,
    if not impossible, to retain full concentration throughout a full
    round. Again, notice how the pros will seem to break their
    concentration and blow a few holes right in the middle of a good round.
    
    In short don't be too difficult on yourself. Concentrate, plan your
    strategy, and don't set impossible goals for yourself.
    
    Hope this helps,
    
    Bob

	In 1987 Dr. Lucius Riccio, of the U.S. Golf Association
Handicap Research Team, published a report that took six years to
complete on this subject.

	The conclusion of the report was that the statistic with the
strongest correlation to "average score" is greens in regulation...

	The correlation is so strong that if you tell him your average
score for four rounds of golf he can predict within two greens either
way the number of greens you hit per round.

	He also has correlated the data and found that "on average"
every green missed adds one stroke to your overall score.

	Ya, there will always be the exceptional round, 28 putts
but if you want consistant scoring, work on two main parts of your
game:

		1) the short game

		2) hitting greens in regulation

    
    re pros blowing a few holes in the middle of the round due to lost
    concentration.
    
    I read a story about concentration along time ago (couple years)
    about the pros concentrating.  Basically pros can be classified into
    2 groups.
    
    1) Those that concentrate from practice green to after the 18th hole
    2) Those who concentrate at each shot, but relax in between
    
    An example of the first case (always concentrate) is Jack Nicklaus, he
    has said that he can't turn concentration on/off during a round so he
    concentrates all the time. An example of this, as he stated, is that 
    he is a fairly heavy smoker, but during a round he has no desire to
    smoke since he forgets about it.
    
    The second group are those that joke with the crowd alot, like Lee
    Trevino and Fuzzy Zoeller. Both have admitted that they can't hold
    the necessary concentration level. So they joke around between shots
    to relax, when times comes to hit the shot, it's all business.  The
    time that you turn on the concentration varies from player to player.
    I have seen Lee joke while addressing the ball, then shut up for a 
    second, hit it and start joking again.  Others joke while walking, but
    when they get near the ball they start concentrating.
    
    This turn on turn off method is very hard, but personally I can't hold
    the concentration level for an entire round, so I let my mind wander
    while walking up the fairway, or I talk to the others about whatever
    comes up. For me it makes it more enjoyable.
    
    You have to find what is best for you and go with it.
    
    --Bob
    
    PS I agree with .14, to imrove score work on GIR and short game
    
    

    For me just how intense I am reflects my score.  Alot of times I will
    go out and tell a friend that "this is a practice round".  Thats the
    wrong attitude to have, you must make every shot count.  Turn up the
    volume, so to speak and you will find yourself scoring 2 to 3 strokes
    below you average score.
    
    Greg

    I agree with .14
    I like hitting the classic shots. In other words , a driver flight
    path should look like you hit a driver , not a 6 iron.
    
    A 7 iron looks like a 7 iron in flight.
    
    If  I scull a 5 iron that ends up 2 feet from the pin I'm not
    happy.
    
    And the most classic event in golf is:
         greens in regulation.
    
    For holes that I CAN'T manage to reach in regulation, I think classic
        shots to get their.     
        Make sense ??
        Practise classic shots.
    Ang
    
    

    
      Here's a guy who is a player and can score.  Bob Mook who
     plays in my league (BXC) up at Green Meadows, last week
     shot a 33 (3 under) on the back side of the South course
     which for those that know GM, is not an easy nine.  I was
     going to put this in a league result note, but all of those
     were allocated for the Maynard league.
    
       Bob was my match play opponent that week.  8^(
    
    -rick

    Glad I found this note as it reflects exactly what happened to me last
    Sunday. Playing at Brightenloo near Zurich (the day after Bernard
    Gallacher played in a pro-am there), I was hitting the ball well, but
    my scoring was abysmal. I was going to enter a note here asking for
    advice, so having found this and read the replies, I will try to profit
    from the advice the next time I play. One thing I would like to add is
    'don't be careless'. Example, Sunday 1st hole, 550yds par 5. Reasonable
    drive into light rough on the right, good 3 wood into the centre of the
    fairway. I judged I was 7 iron distance (been hitting them well
    recently) so no problem, out comes the club and bang a lovely straight
    7 iron, straight into the bunker on the right of the green. Surprised I
    check my alignment, and find right enough, that's exactly where I was
    aiming. Result an 8 (I am the worst bunker player in the world...any
    advice would be appreciated). So instead of a possible birdie 4, I end
    up 3 over ...talk about wasted strokes...I could have screamed I was so
    frustrated ...sheer carelessness...moral 'always check your alignment'.  
    
    
    Norman

    Norman,
    
    Always finish high with your hands next to your left ear (if a righty)
    when you are having trouble getting out of a bunker. One more thing
    - keep your head absolutely still while making the stroke.
    Practice, practice, practice.

    re:19
    
    I had an alignment problem, had the tires rotated, balanced and bought
     a new spare...works great.
    
    SCD