Format: Stableford and Bogey competition
Venue: [Home course]
Score: 33pts and 76
Handicap mark: 3.5
Themes in reply: Finding your “Seve”; three-footers; chipping
Hi Colin,
It was a pleasant surprise to meet up with you yesterday. I hope your flu/cold has decided to leave you and you are feeling a bit better.
Here’s the promised overview of my Xmas rounds so far.
Saturday 24th – quite windy and a few nasty showers of rain. The wind was into and off the left of the 1st – South Westerly I believe. The course was quite wet and the ball was not running. However, it’s a measure of the quality of our course that we played at all as a lot of local courses were shut.
1st – Hit Driver to the RHS of the fairway and then 5 iron to the RH edge of the green. A very good approach putt to the hole and a 4 for a par and 2 points
2nd – Hit a really good long drive to the middle of the fairway. 6 Iron just to the right of the green – the wind pushed it right. It’s a tough shot to the 2nd green and I’m always worried about starting the ball too far left over the beach because it may not come back! Decided to chip up the hill with a 9 iron but didn’t give it enough and the ball rolled back off the green. I’m closer now so decided to putt it. The putt went further right than intended and caught a sunken sprinkler head which stopped it and it rolled back off the green. Missed the next putt for a point. You have to be within one club’s length of the sprinkler head to have relief (a free drop) and I wasn’t. Bad result from being pin high after two and a waste of a very good drive.
3rd – Good drive again. The wind stalled the second shot so I’m just short and right again with a slope to negotiate. Decided to putt and hit a good one to about 3’ past and holed a tricky one coming back with the wind – 2 pts
4th – (4,5,6 and downwind ) Hit a lovely 5 iron which pitched and rolled across the flag and back down the hill. If it had been dry it would have run on and fairly close to the flag. Hit a good approach putt from the bottom of the hill and holed another tricky 3’ one for a par and 2 points
5th – This hole is considerably shortened as its one of the greens that is being reconstructed. The temp green is at the bottom of the hill so it’s about 50yds shorter. Not a great drive into the LH semi but hit a really good 6 wood about 20yds over the green. Putted down the hill to about 4 foot but just missed the birdie putt – 2pts – not too worried about the missed putt as it’s a temp green.
6th – 3 wood off the tee to be short of the fairway bunkers and a very good wedge to about 12’ – missed the birdie putt but its SI 2 so I had a shot there making a 4 nett 3 for 3 points
7th – Wind across from the RHS – 7th is the little par 3. Just over cooked a 9 iron into the LH bunker but hit a good bunker shot to about 4’ and holed for a 3 and 2 points.
8th – Hit a great drive long and straight but no chance of carrying the fairway bunkers with the 2nd shot as its straight into the strong wind. Knocked a 4 iron short of them and the a very good 9 iron right at the pin but about 15 – 20’ passed. However, putting down a slope with the wind behind I holed a great putt for a birdie 4 and 3 points.
9th – Again a shortened hole with a temp green. Hit a lovely 3 wood and gap wedge just over the green. Putted up to about 4’ and holed a good put for a 4 so 18 points going out.
10th – Hit a poor drive into the RHS rough and had a poor lie. Got an 8 iron out but short and right of the green. Used my 52 degree wedge into the wind and pitched about 8’ passed. Tricky putt downhill with a lot of wind from the left and it just missed so 1 point.
11th – Hit lovely 8 iron to about 6’ – just missed the curly putt – 2 points.
12th – Par 5, SI 3, so a shot here. Hit a great drive out right allowing the wing to bring it back to the middle of the fairway. Good 3 wood second some 60 yds short of the green. Disappointing pitch from the wet turf just short of the green and 2 putted for a 5 nett 4 and 3 points.
13th – Back into the wind. Ok drive but I was looking for something better. 3 wood was a bit right and as a result lost length in the wind. My pitch was too far passed the flag but 2 putted for a 5 and 1 point.
14th – Hit a lovely 8 iron to about 12’ and just missed the birdie putt.
15th – Stroke Index 1. Hit a really great drive with the wind into and across – really nailed it! So a good 3 wood would get me too the green. Very poor shot – probably the worst of the day. Started at the flag but with a bit of cut and the wind it went miles right – I was looking for a draw!! Managed to find the ball plugged in the deep rough and hacked it out into the front bunker. Hit an ok bunker shot to about 4’ leaving a putt coming in from the right with the wind also blowing from the right. Pushed the putt right of the hole probably because I was trying to keep the ball up above the hole – I know I shouldn’t interfere with myself! 6 nett 5 for 1 point.
16th – Great drive followed by a lovely 6 iron to the front of the green. Poor approach putt to about 3’ and missed the f****r to the left – it wasn’t firm enough – 1 point
17th – Par 5 – good drive and 3 wood about 15yds short of the green. Chipped with a 9 iron but it was a bit strong and missed the birdie putt back so 2 points.
18th – Not a good drive into the RH rough. The ball was actually in its own pitch mark but not too bad. I could either lay up with a wedge or hit my 6 wood. Went down the shaft on the 6 wood and hit down at the back of the ball. I allowed for the slice that would be generated and hit a good shot just short of the green – 2 putts for 2 points
So 18 points going out and 15 coming back. Conditions weren’t easy but I should have done better. The 3 wood at 15 cost me. I could have got within about 30yds if I had hit a low 3 iron and then would have had a chance of getting up a and down but I fancied the 3 wood. If it had been straight it would have been great!
Boxing Day round
This as a bogey competition which you play against the course. Even though I had 33 points on Saturday some joker off a high handicap came in with 40 so my 33 wasn’t in the buffer zone and as a result I have gone up to 3.5 (4) handicap. Similar conditions to Saturday but the wind was a bit lighter and no rain.
I played really well again hitting some lovely drives and iron shots covering the pins but my putting was poor. I missed a 3’ putt up the hill on 2 for a par and missed a 4’ putt on 14 for a par. ‘If’ I had holed those 2 I would have played to 2 handicap. I had 35 putts in total.
Summary
I am hitting my driver really well – consistently straight and long and its good to be hitting a lot of 2nd shots from the fairway. My chipping has to improve, I must get the ball closer to the hole to give a better chance of holing the putt.
I have pushed a couple of short putts and I did it twice on boxing day as well. This really frustrates me – I can’t afford to miss 3 footers off my handicap. On both competitions I have not hit any shots or putts before venturing out onto the course. I am going to have 5 minutes putting before the next round just to get me into a rhythm of holing out from 4’
Will probably play again this Saturday and New Years day and I’ll let you know what happens. I think the New Years Day comp is a 5 club comp for a bit of fun!
Happy New Year!!
John
Dear John,
Many thanks for this extensive description. It is like having a late Christmas present.
1st – It is rewarding to hear that you have dumped your notion of yourself as a slow starter. Your description of how you played this hole really brings home how difficult a game golf is: the first three shots of your round are pretty much perfect, yet all they do is bring you close to the hole so that you can tap-in for a 4 and two points.
2nd – The chip with the 9-iron was obviously a poor shot and would have been difficult to get over psychologically given your good start and the fact that you had a chance to score well on a difficult hole. From your description you would have been chipping into the wind, and for some reason you have been a bit tentative and it has come up short. If there is a weakness in your game it is that you don’t trust yourself to be “good”. Facing a chip into the wind gave you the chance to “show-off” and hit something a little extravagant knowing that the wind would hold it up. It sounds to me like you played safe and paid the penalty. You need to take the shackles off your imagination and find your “Seve” occasionally. Your swing is definitely good enough; you just need a bit of belief (see below).
3rd – As I have said many times before, your ability to overcome disappointment is highly commendable and the way you played the hole shows that your rhythm is at your beck and call. Having “timing” at your fingertips should provide you with the confidence to indulge your imagination and play some “get in the hole!” shots. Have a think about that 9-iron chip on the 2nd and see if you can imagine a different type of chip that would have had more chance of getting close. Then imagine yourself playing it: it will occur to you that any successful shot is just “timing”. “Time” the shot and the ball will go where your imagination wanted it to go.
The rest – It sounds to me like you had a very enjoyable round with only a couple of short putts going astray and one poor 3-wood on the 15th. The missed putts are a distraction because the lost opportunities were on the 2nd and 15th – two hard holes. You could easily have scored 4 more points on those two holes and brought the round up to 37 points.
Boxing Day
It is really very pleasing how you are holding your form. Playing to 2 is very encouraging despite the 35 putts. If you remember, I wrote that putting was a two-shot gig: single putts were flukes and 3-putts were abominations (I heard recently that Luke Donald at some point this year had played over 400 holes without 3-putting!). In that context, 35 putts is average and does not match your verdict of: “… but my putting was poor.” Playing to 2 when you have hit 35 putts means that you must be a 2-handicapper and therefore quite capable of going lower with a good putting round.
Three-footers
When you miss from 3’ it is easy to be disappointed and the disappointment will tempt you to start to look for all sorts of reasons why you are missing short putts. But 3’ putts are not easy, they just look easy. Consider that the pressure on them is greater than other shots because they are the shot that finishes the hole and determines the outcome. They have to be hit with perfect “timing” even though the swing used to hit them is tiny because the force required is small. If the “timing” is less than perfect then there will be an element of mis-cueing and often as a result the ball can roll agonisingly past the hole. Also, the putt is 3’ away because of the previous putt. If the 3’ is a result of a poorly “timed” approach putt, then the pressure on the stroke increases as your confidence in being able to locate your “timing” ebbs a little.
My advice would be to never categorise putts in your mind as “long”, “short”, “curly” etc. They are all the same: they just need a specific force applying. You cannot practise your “long putting”; you can only practise hitting putts that are a fair distance from the hole. For all putts (as for all shots) the process is the same: make sure your imagination sees the shot and then allow your body to find the “timing” that will produce the precise force required.
I have written to you extensively already about how to practise putting. The main point is to practise with the aim of locating your “timing” before you go out on to the course. To this end, you should start the exercise with putts that are very close to the hole. This is because the ball falling into the hole acts as a wonderful audio/visual stimulant to your imagination (the ball satisfyingly disappears from view and then produces that hollow “plop” as it hits the bottom of the cup) and will help to put you “in the zone”. Make sure you go through the routine even on the barely missable short putts, and right from the first putt. Lengthen the putts steadily: don’t jump about. Don’t move further away from the hole following a poorly “timed” putt. Put a decent time gap between putts to mimic what it is like when you are playing. Practise switching into and out of the zone. Don’t chat and putt; if you’re interrupted, walk away from the ball and wait for an opportune moment to re-start the session.
Chipping
As I have said, in my opinion the only thing wrong with your chipping is your confidence as a chipper. The defining issue of chipping is that you can “see” the length. On the one hand this is a huge advantage when it comes to producing an accurate shot (as compared to a 150-yard 7-iron, for instance), on the other hand, being able to “see” the precise distance of the shot is a strong invitation to your conscious to take over the process and the result can be a slightly mechanical swing.
For you, I think that the “mid-range” of imaginative shots presents you with difficulty. You are fine with standard “lob it on and roll it up” shots; you are fine with nearly impossible bunker shots, which you take on with a child-like glee. It is those shots that are in the middle of the range that seem to throw you back into the arms of your conscious. You are tempted by the obviousness of the shot to “make” it happen rather than to “allow” it to happen. I saw Ian Woosnam make a bad choice on your 18th in the Welsh Seniors. He could have floated a chip to the back of the green and let the fierce wind bring it back to the hole. But instead he putted and it landed miles away.
Knowing exactly how far away the hole is means that you know exactly how much force is required. Knowing exactly how much force is required means that it is tempting to exert that force with your own muscles rather than allowing your pendulumic swing to find it via “timing”. Once you are aware of this danger then its threat diminishes.
So, same old routine on every chip; but let the knowledge of the precise force excite you and allow yourself to believe that your “timing” will deliver the exact force required. Put even more effort into “seeing” the shot: its flight, landing spot and movement thereafter. Be imaginative and let yourself play the shot.
The ideal way to practise chipping is to practise near a green. Go through the routine for putting practise described above and when you have found your “timing” move off the green and practise a chip. Use the result as your next practise putt. If you hit a poorly “timed” chip then go back on to the green until your “timing” is back.
Regards,
Colin
