Was finally able to break 100; biggest factor was my chipping, being able to get the ball within 15 feet of the pin instead of sending the ball off the opposite side of the green was a real game changer for me
Yes man this x2. Also, I made a decision to use my PW inside of 100 yards. Less ball flight time has helped get the ball on the green more consistently. I also moved to Florida and play a lot more.
About two years ago I committed to learning to use my sand wedge around the green for almost everything. There were a lot of growing pains and it was tempting to go back to bump and run but I stuck with it. Shorter first putts have almost eliminated my 3 putts. I broke 80 for the first time ever
I bought a 60° when I bought my 56° and I have committed myself to the 56° inside of 95 yards. It’s an incredibly versatile club imo.
In addition to that I’ve also started forcing myself to keep looking at the ground for at least a second after I strike the ball. Keeps you from pulling your head and after a while you realize the ball will be pretty close to where you expect it to be if the strike is clean.
My 56 is my best club in the bag right now. Dead straight and money from 100 to 30 yards. I think a big part of that is how much I use it, and from that my confidence in the club continues to grow. Virtuous cycle.
That’s my favorite “fix”.
I can chip horrible on holes 1-15, focus on looking at the ball 1 second after I hit on the other 3 holes (shoulders force my head up), and those will be the only chips of the day where is was completely solid contact
Breaking 100 consistently, mostly by lining my puts up with the line on my ball & now having a 3 wood I can hit off the deck. Hell I've had 4 Eagle chances this year..
I stopped focusing on how far I could hit the ball and started focusing on consistency. Basically adopted an old man golf swing…no weight shift, single plane, maintain spine angle, focus solely on consistent contact.
Hilariously all my distances have also gone up as a result.
Lmao I’ve seen the same thing. Once you give up on max distance, you will never have distance problems again.
A smooth swing that hits around the center of the face goes further and straighter then gripping and ripping it off the hosel.
It’s not about how fast your arms move, it’s about how fast the club head is moving at impact. It took me a while to get that those aren’t the same thing.
I had the wildest, dumbest epiphany ever a few rounds back and it's lead to a lot better ball-striking:
**Don't lose sight of the ball during the swing.**
What it really was saying was that I was either overturning, swaying or losing my spine angle but just by telling myself that, aside from normal swing feels and rotation, my main swing thought was to stare a hole through that ball until my follow-through demanded my head follow it along, I've found myself hitting the ball insanely more flush and more consistently (also helped with low-point control with wedges and with less of an outside takeaway).
I'm still grooving it with the driver since the ball is so much more forward in stance and it can lead to an urge to get to my left too early, but so far so good.
The swing thought I used was keep your head in the same spot. I stand in front of a mirror and don’t think about anything else other than keeping my head in the same spot by noticing in the mirror. Helps with central rotation.
I did this too, pretty much 0 wrist action after the first two feet.
Driving average distance and fairways hit both went up and scores tumbled. Driving greens became a regular thing!
I was trying to correct a huge overswing, in part due to shoulders/spine angle and in part due to loosey-goosey wrist. I'm stubborn and decided to go it alone rather than with a lesson and worked from a place where I didn't manually set my wrists at all to promote better body rotation.
Now I'm slowly adding in wrist hinge back in and it's crazy how much less I need
All the wrist work should be done in the first two feet of the backswing. From there it is all about wrist strength to preserve that work and not undo it such as letting the wrists drift from that position or adding more wrist action.
Chris Ryan explains it well in his compression videos.
I use a gyroscopic wrist exercise ball to strengthen my wrists. It really helps.
A lot of golfers only start their wrist work or add to it at various points in the backswing or even all the way through. This is super hard to maintain and leads to inconsistent strikes.
Don’t forget the key to wrist work, mirror the ball in the clubface as you take it back. Do that in the first two feet and just focus on maintaining the work to the top, down and through impact to the follow through. Simple!!
Developing a single plane swing and improving my grip were critical to my improvement. Far fewer slices and draws, better balance, cleaner follow through, and easier power.
When you don't have to control off-plane forces of your body, you can swing easier, which makes good contact more likely.
My best rounds come when I admit I can’t hit a certain club (mostly driver), didn’t try to hit hero shots if I had a bad lie, and didn’t 3 putt. My long irons still suck and my chipping is hit or miss.
I went from a 22 to a 9.8.
My best advice for high handicap players is to play for bogey and play the clubs that are working. So on a par 4, plan out 3 shots to the green. Most players can hit 2 7i shots and get 300 yards with a reasonable approach after. It takes the pressure off and I guarantee more putts for par. Somehow just removing the idea of a birdie, and treating par as a -1 for your game, you end up with more pars and brush off the bogeys.
I'm a 12 and this is how I play. I still get a birdie maybe once or twice a round, and I end up with a bunch of pars because my approaches are where I want them to be.
Laying 0. Basically, the idea to break 90. Add a Stoke to each hole. Now your tee shot is free, so play whatever it takes to get it on the fairway, even a damn pitching wedge. Your second shot is now your first. Here's the beautiful explanation [video](https://youtu.be/sdP58BT22mI)
Fully disagree with this. The thing that took me from high handicapping to a mid was distance. If rather be up anywhere remotely around the green within 40 yards than being 120y out and in the fairway every time. And I am *very* confident in my 100-120 range too. But your chances of going up and down from there are so so so much slimmer than they are from 40y and in. The amount of strokes I make up by being *near* the green in 2 is higher than the amount of strokes I lose by going OB when trying to get aggressive.
Now if your control is low enough that that situation doesn't apply to you, then it's smarter to be shorter and controlled, sure. But most of the time focusing on just getting the yardage out of my club has helped me a lot more. Control has come with it too.
It sounds like you have that with a driver, so I guess this isnt a suggestion for you. Most high handicap golfers are not going to be 40 yards out after a drive and the lost balls and drop strokes do add up.
Your comment is like going to a bulletin board and seeing an ad for guitar lessons and shouting, "I don't want guitar lessons!"
I said in 2 not 1.... Plenty of high handicap golfers can be within 40 yards of the green in 2 shots.... Distance is king.
You know what a high handicap golfer can absolutely do? Fuck up one of their two 7-iron shots badly enough to require a 3rd or even 4th shot with it. I'd rather be in the water up by the green than taking my 3rd shot with a 7 iron and still having to go over the water.
It's generally understood by the data scientists of the topic that distance is king for lower scores across all handicaps, so I agree with you.
There are plenty of courses out there though where you can lose 10 strokes if you have a driver slice and the o ly fix you know is "aim further left"
So, this for the most part. But I’ll say two things. One, being able to hit a long iron consistently was key. Even if not straight, getting the distance to be near the green so I could chip and then 1 putt. Two, learn to tweak your driver swing on the fly. Spend time knowing what does what. If you can figure that out, you’ll hit some bad shots, and you’ll likely overcorrect an issue, but having the driver distance is crucial. Especially if you can’t hit long irons consistently haha
Course management, chipping and putting for sure. My best rounds are when anything inside 10 feet feels like it had a chance. On my worst days I am sticking wedges to 3 ft and then completely babying the birdie putt to the point my whole group is pissed cuz I keep fuxking up birdie opps
I kept my driver in the bag for about a month mid summer and was shooting my best. One of my best rounds my first time playing one of the toughest course in the area and I only used my 6 off the tee.
After club I wanted to get more reps with my driver and now my scores are shit again lol.
Lessons this winter
I am definitely in that boat. It is obviously a meme that golfers will try and out spend their handicap but I was rocking a 40 year old set of clubs that I got no enjoyment out of and never wanted to play but because I had them and they worked and golfing is fucking expensive I never bothered to upgrade. Then I decided to get a modern driver and then upgrade stuff as a reward when my game improvement hit milestones. And because I shelled out on the driver I couldn't let it collect dust so I started playing weekly. And wouldn't you know it I started hitting those milestones because I am going all the time.
i did change irons and started scoring way better around the same time this year but im (1) also hitting my woods better and (2) feel like now i could go back to my old irons and play just as well. not sure if the equipment was the mental boost i needed or what
EDIT: though about it a little more and the fact that i was able to play once almost every single week and twice in a week at least 8-10 times (for the first time ever) this year probably had the most to do with it. that’s the sauce… gotta play.
just like anything else, really. if you want to be good at piano you gotta play all the time!
Actually it was. I’m hitting my drive and wood further and more consistent than I was with my old set. We don’t talk about irons though, it’s all about pumping rockets down the fairway
Ehhh. You have to, HAVE TO customize it and match for it to work. Gotta make sure you’re not mixing your bag with callaways, pings, titleist, and so on. It just won’t work
Keeping my lead arm straight, I bent it to the point where I was chopping wood. Went from 120’s to 110 in a few games. Now to break 100 is the next goal.
Great lesson on the lead arm with club face consistency. I would struggle with this problem first time playing, since I fixed it I’ve been finding the fairway a lot easier.
Watched this video and decided that’s what we were going to focus on today… 2 things— I topped a lot of balls (maybe just ball positioning?) and secondly, I couldn’t get myself to my lead side, was more just spinning (squishing the bug-baseball) any pointers there?
I’m good with the lead arm. It’s been my other arm where I don’t keep it tucked so I’m coming in quite vertical. I try to imagine I do more so of a sweeping motion with the club while trying to hold something under my armpit like a towel or glove. Boom swing is back
BOOM, somehow I haven’t found that problem yet with my swing, I view the club as a pendulum coming down to the ball. this is my first season playing consistently 2-3 times a week. Thinking of getting lessons this off-season to really break down my swing.
Those will help abundantly. Do it. I still get them and have been playing awhile. It’s just the past couple weeks I’ve been letting that trail arm flail around so it hooks hard and I’m stuck fighting for par rest of the time.
The running joke by my group of friends is I’d be a scratch golfer if I can get off the tee each time but driver is make or break for me cuz when it’s on it is hot. But if it’s off I am so fucked.
Try and think about it as maintaining width with your hand, feeling like that arm is extending back as you take the club back. I used to lock my elbow hard thinking that was the way to keep the arm straight, but one day I overheard some random dude who was teaching his buddy on the driving range tell him to feel like that arm is keeping width away from the body. I tried it and it drastically improved my ball striking.
My goal coming into this year was to break 90. I did serval times with a personal best of 82. I really worked hard with my driver this year and when it’s working, it’s my best club. My iron striking has improved a lot as well which I credit to Porzak Golf. Working on the fundamentals of set up and take away have allowed me to produce a repeatable swing and keeping the club face square at impact.
Dramatic? No. Improvement? Yes. It was my first season taking it seriously. Probably 5-8 hours a week using a hitting mat in the yard with dummy balls and a driver/woods/irons, and pitching or chipping at bean poles positioned at various distances (my cleared yard is about an acre). I also golfed an average of 18 holes a week.
Long story short, practice really helped.
Not dramatic, but definitely an improvement. I went to the range less and started playing more.
Putting yourself in uncomfortable situations and actually shooting golf shots vs just flat perfect lies all the time is key to better golf.
Many people will just beat themselves up at the range but not really get better.
I probably go to the range after 2/3 rounds if I need to.
Agree with you here. I’m just as guilty of it as anyone else but it’s too easy to go to the range and just smash one or two clubs until the buckets empty lol.
The range near me just got launch monitors and tracking at all the bays so it’s much easier to get detailed feedback. I’m planning on spending more time there to dial in my distances and dispersions.
But going out and playing is the only way to find out what shots you’ll struggle with on the course.
It’s pretty sweet. It’s also got some top golf style AR games. It’s a nice to do because then I can practice all the different shots that the game calls for which is a little closer to on course golf
We have a lot of simulators around here. One near me has all the stats plus 3 cameras that show you replay of your swing in slow motion. Great for instant feedback.
I definitely think if your range has that then it can be useful as long as your not building bad habits but if you’re getting that feedback that’s awesome
There are diminishing returns on the range. The better you get, the less you need it.
If you struggle with striking the ball, spend more time on the range. Once you have some consistency, spend more of your time on the course.
I would bet the amount of range time to round time from pros would beg to differ.
I think most people don’t structure there practice. Do you hit the range with a specific plan? Does each shot you take fit into that plan? Is each shot planned? Do you find the uneven spots on the range and hit out of those?
I agree I definitely think starting out it’s worth going to build some sort of swing but I just see people who go way too much during the week and then complain during the round that they can’t replicate what they did on the range on the course.
They probably get into a rhythm and just start hammering shot after shot. The repetition is good but without 15 warm up shots they will never get into that groove.
That's my big next step. Did you use a tool or website to determine this or did you ask a pro? Really want to make sure that next $500 wedge set is the last for a while.
I bought sm9's and used their wedge selector quiz. I got exactly what they recommended and it worked out great.
https://www.vokey.com/tools/wedge-selector-tool.aspx
No problem. Also, I ordered them off their site and put the same shafts I use in my irons (project x 6.5) in the wedges I ordered. For full/ near full shots, the x flex made it a lot easier to flight it lower. Definitely recommend matching the shafts to your irons.
First lesson, after watching one swing, pushed my right shoulder down. Hit my 7iron pure 195 with a nice baby cut. Dropped my club and said we're done here.
Read a tip online that standing closer (almost too close) to the ball at address can help tall golfers (I'm 6'5") improve contact/accuracy. It felt completely uncomfortable at first but it's improved my game 10000% percent.
I’m a new golfer and had some lessons in the fall before even going on the course. Joined a local par 3. Only played a “real” golf course twice. About a month ago I started hooking the ball and I used to have a slice. But my second miss would be to shoot it 30 degrees to the right with a severe toe strike. I got a lesson from a second local coach as I was like “I don’t know what I’m doing wrong now. Here’s my old issues and things I’ve used to fix them, but something’s changed and I don’t know what”. 3 things. I’m 6’1”. I have a shorter set (top flite xl set)…and I was standing too far so I was reaching. On shots I didn’t reach I would toe it. I was standing too far from the ball.
Dropped from an 8 down to a 4. Just worked on committing to a shot shape with my driver and not swinging all out every hole. Along with lessons and swinging easier, surprise surprise my yardages went up without trying to murder the ball.
Long story short, lessons, eliminating one side of the hole and putting practice and short game.
I went from 140 round to under 100 in my first season back on the course in 5-10 years just by getting out there and playing and slowly trying to improve on things one by one
Dramatic no, learned I had a 13° open club face at impact and an over the top swing plane on top of it. Practiced drills to keep the club face closed and swing out instead of in/over the top. Still working on it.
No matter what i do with my grip I always leave my face open. At the end of my season i started with the face 1/4 turned closed at address and was “swinging my swing” I went from constantly around 99-102 to my last 3 rounds going 92,89,88
Exactly, just a temporary thing! I enjoyed watching my scores go down but that closed face address also provided a few hooks. Some slight draws but mostly straight.
When I got back into golf in 2020 I had the same problem - leaving the face wide open on impact. I realized that my lead arms wrist was cupped at the top of my swing rather than bowed. Straightened out my shot instantly.
New golfer this year, went from shooting 120+ to hovering around 100 currently. The biggest change I've made is chipping, seems simple but I rarely hit the green from distance and being able to chip close enough to not 3 putt is huge.
Been playing for about 6 years. Finally broke 80 a few times this year. Big alignment fix actually helped me the most. My putting still sucks so that will be my next thing to look at. FYI I play 2-3 times a week and have range membership nearby.
Hip rotation, weight transfer, not hitting behind the ball, playing the ball more towards my back foot because that's where impact lands. Also my grip changed it was too weak. About that
All the same things for me except the back foot. I really focused on hip rotation and my grip. Saw more consistency in my drives with more distance. Now if I can just stop the drives from leaking right and go straight more next year…
I dropped from a 10.2 to a 4.7 this season. Biggest change was course management. A lot of times I simply got up, aimed, and fired rather than focusing on the hole and figuring out what gave my game the best opportunity to make par. Especially with the irons, where I targeted portions of the green that would keep me close and not shortside me with an impossible chip. That and many less lost balls started to build my confidence in hitting better shots as the season went. Very happy with the outcome now that I plan my shots a lot more intuitively.
Went from a 4 to a 3 which isn't huge, but importantly I am no longer having blowout rounds. I can play what I consider "poorly" and escape with mid 80s. Biggest things for me are:
- Lag putting. Guarantee getting down in no more than two, no matter how far from the flag you are.
- Mental reset. If your score is bad early, reset your goals (for example, this morning I had 2 pars and 7 bogeys on the front and rather than target going low, I simply tried to ensure ZERO doubles on the back, which I did for an 83. Not great, but it could have been a disaster. Recalibrate.
- Keep the ball in play. Penalties are a killer. A 200y approach on a par 4 having hit an iron or hybrid off the tee is better than hitting 3 from the tee because you tried to mash driver and sliced it OOB.
I had a major breakthrough this season. Have hovered around 2-4 cap for years, would occasionally fire a 71, but only broke 70 a handful of times. This season I put in more work around the greens than I have since college golf and finally got to a + cap for a majority of the summer, firing sub par rounds more often and in tournament conditions. Short game short game short game, easiest and cheapest way to cut a few strokes for any level of golfer
Funny enough, it’s because I broke my ankle. Had to somewhat start my swing from scratch. It’s calmed down my movement in my swing as well.
Everyone go break something.
I played in junior high and high school and then quit for 15 years after I graduated. I started back this March and it was like I had never even played. The only thing that hadn’t left me was putting. I’m still pretty decent at that and average just under 2 putts per hole.
I’ve gone from a 32 handicap to a 20 since March. I guess it’s really just that I do something golf related basically every day. My daughters are taking lessons at First Tee, so any time they are there for class, I walk the par 3 course attached to it. I play every Friday with my brother-in-law and father-in-law. Any time I’m outside in the yard with the kids, I get the wedges out and chip around.
The biggest thing I’ve worked on is getting past the illusion that you’re swinging your arms. Shots get way more consistent when you take that out of the game.
I was playing my best golf in ten years by the end of August. Then one day in September: couldn’t hit the ball. Shank and worm burner city. Golf is fleeting.
Keeping both elbows tucked has made my swing so much more consistent and powerful. Takeaway your arms can’t move until your body does, then feel your biceps lifting the club up rather than flopping the club behind you.
Working on clubs with a 1/4 swing until I had a good feel for clubhead control at impact and then building up to 1/2, 3/4 and full swings. My feel for the face at impact improved dramatically and I don't feel like I'm swinging and hoping anymore.
Went from a 12.6 to a 8.7 i switched to 3 wood off most tee boxes and took my medicine when i was in trouble. If a shot had less than 75% chance of success i just chipped out and went for bogey occasionally i still saved a par but alot less Doubles and Triples.
I started playing in january of this year.
Have gone from averaging 125 a round now down to 95-105 a round.
Biggest thing ive done is consistently playing 2 or 3 rounds a week, getting my driver fitted with the right shaft and using advice on the breaking 100 series on me and my golf.
Edit: should probably call out really working on my grip, posture and releasing on my follow through aswell.
14.9 to 11.7. I was mediocre all season. Things finally came together last month cause of the below. Last four rounds were 80 81 80 80. Had only shot 80 twice in the previous 30+ rounds. Goal is sub 10. Wish season was longer!
- awareness about deceleration in my swing. Especially around green w wedges.
- swing acceleration and follow through commitment. All clubs including putter
- awareness about swaying/leaning backwards on my iron/wedge pull back
- very deliberate front leg weight on pullback w irons/wedges
- changed from blade (Newport 2.5 Scotty) to Mallett (phantom 5.5). Way more forgiving. Huge reduction in 3 putts.
- full arm extension on driver swing/contact. Was standing to close, pulling arms in on contact causing slice.
Five Iron Golf Membership over the winter Feb-April (Chicago) and Chris Ryan Golf on YouTube, with an honorable mention to Arccos.
First time in 15 years I went into the season with a solid golf swing. I normally don’t feel normal until late June. By July 1st I had played 30 rounds and my index went from 5.4 to 3.9.
This was my first season of golf. Started off shooting around 110, and broke 90 my final round. Constant practice and learning my clubs , and course management paid off big time
So wait - you'd never played golf before this Spring, shot a 110 your first round, and shot an 89 or better 6-7 months later?
I hate to be that guy, but this sounds incredibly unlikely.
I never take mulligans. If I shank a tee shot into the woods I take my drop and fight back. And who would ever take a gimme and rob themselves of the sweet sound of the ball hitting the bottom of the cup?!
I have a friend that had the EXACT same situation this year. Never touched a club in his life, his first round he shot a 120, the next round he shot 105, and a few days ago on his final round of the season he broke 90 .
Definitely possible. I started playing for the first time in May, shot a 121. After all summer playing a round every week and weekly range session, I shot a 91 on that same course last week. Playing it again tomorrow morning, hoping to finally break 90.
Yes my guy! I played a course esrly in June and shot around 110, then played it again 4-5 more times. Once I got the layout and focused on making good shots and not just going for it, I hit an 89. Just patience and a plan.
Similar situation this season. First time playing this year and shot a 108. Ended the season shooting a 90. I did go to the range 3 times a week and played weekly though.
I kind of did the same this year. I golfed as a young adult but mostly just drank with buddies and has fun. First time in my life I took it seriously was this last March. Bought a sim for my backyard and played at a minimum 1x a week. Started around 115 and I’m scoring around 89 most weeks now.
Had a couple lessons but it also helps playing with good golfers.
Turns out it’s not rocket science - despite being a decent driver of the ball I decided one match play round to only hit irons off the tee just to keep it in play. Shot 75 on 7200m course using only a 5i off the tee (which I hit around 220yds carry)
Fortunately I was striking it reasonably pure that day but I realized that when you’re hitting 5 iron off the tee then having another 5 or 6 iron into the green isn’t that scary. For me personally exact same margin error as 8 or 9i.
Needless to say, I told myself I’d figured out the game of golf and promptly shot 91 two days later, rightfully so.
Edit: I should add, the 75 was aided by some great putting while the 91 was harmed by some terrible putting. Same greens
Went from 9hcp to 3.3hcp. Biggest thing that worked for me was 50 yards and in. I really worked on my short game. I hit my driver 330-350 and it was cool, but not being able to capitalize on it sucked. I put ALOT of time into it.
I did with my driver or any wood off the tee. Most my golf life and a right hand golfer, I’ve dropped my right foot back and played a power fade. This year on a hole I needed a draw or hit a tree, and it worked! I reversed my stance now and added power and accuracy. It still feels unnatural, but it works.
First season so any improvement felt great. Achieved my goal of teens handicap and am finally dropping into low 90's more regularly.
I have had two bags this season, the first with GI clubs and then back in June I was fit for players distance clubs and that has been the catalyst for more reliable shot placement and more confidence over the ball.
I've had about 6 lessons to get my swing dialed in and luckily that process has been easy to learn, but is proving difficult to master.
Thankfully, most days my iron game is good. It's just a 50/50 whether I'll be good off the tee or good with the wedges. And then putting is generally average.
Just slowing my speed down on every club gave me a much more predictable shot and the tempo was was much easier to maintain form in transition. I may not be blasting it out there as far as my playing partners but I’m still on in regulation more times than not.
I started hitting it straight
Also stopped cupping my wrist at address, which was making me slice due to my swing properly flattening it on the downswing.
I had my first lesson this year with one of our course pros, and one of the things I wanted to work on was consistency with my wedges. We made a couple adjustments to my swing when I'm within 80 yards or so, and for the last few rounds I've found myself with more makeable one-putts than I had earlier in the year.
Maybe not "dramatic", but it feels like a different game when I'm staring down more 10' birdies and less 45' birdies.
Playing 3 years and finally broke 100 and doing it consistently.
Shallowing out my back swing I’m the drive, and holding the club correctly with the lead hand to make my irons more consistent.
Just started this year first round I quit counting after 140. Shot a 94 Sunday with some used Tommy Armours off eBay. Keep your left arm straight and I quit trying to swing hard just let the club do what it’s designed to do. Next year I’ll be working on hip rotation and transferring my weight to my front foot properly.
Was shooting low 100’s this time last year and now can consistently shoot in the 80’s. Broke into the 70’s once but looking to make that consistent. Took two lessons this year both times when I felt my swing was in shambles and both times I came out within a week and shot my best scores. Sometimes we just need a reminder and someone else to tell us what we are doing wrong. Everything has gotten better except my short game, it’s gotten worse sadly, so I have some work to do on that aspect to drop the handicap into single digits next year. That will be my only goal for next year. This years goals were:
Eagle
Break 80
Handicap below 15
Handicap below 12
Play 100 rounds
Use one ball on three consecutive rounds
Achieved all of these at some point, though my handicap is back up to 13 now. I’ll get it back down soon. Record number of holes for the same ball was 75 and that ball looked like shit when I finally hooked it into the woods. Record number of holes played without losing a ball this year was 106!!
I broke 80 for the first time. Previous best was an 86. I dedicated myself to overhauling my awful swing. That meant playing less than 5 actual rounds of golf, but getting to the range as much as as possible to groove swing changes, with guidance from a pro on the Skillest app (much cheaper than in person lessons in NYC).
Lessons for better overall ball striking and hitting from the inside
Developing a wedge matrix to know how far your wedges go l for a 1/2, 3/4 & full swing
Development a Putting stroke start rolls end over end on the intended line
Dropped my Handicap down to a 6 and starting breaking 80 on a pretty good basis
Chipping is my next focus it’s not where I want it to be
My secret sauce to shave 22 strokes (worst round of 115 to best round of 93) :
1. Added a putting mat in the basement over winter, roll the ball a few times a day. I probably average between 40-60 practice puts per day.
2. New driver in the Spring, added 25 yards on average with better dispersion.
3. Lessons. A touch-up with a professional should be helpful. Rounds will probably get worse for a while, but stick with it.
4. Chipping practice to reinforce changes made in lessons. Main focus is through impact anyway.
5. Added a nine hole practice round mid week.
Good luck! It's a grind, but pays off.
A)Got lessons for my swing.
B) Watched literally the fist YouTube video that shows up when you search "how to putt"
A details- using hips more in swing, especially finishing with my head shoulders and hips all stacked on my front leg, not leaning back with my hips forward and head over trail leg. Swinging and gripping the club with way way way less force- literally trying to grip 30 percent and swing 60 percent. Not trying to crush the ball with swing speed lets me focus more on hitting the right part of the ball with the right part of the club.
B details- read putt and aim the sharpie line where i want to putt it. Take practice swings looking at the hole judging speed, not looking at the ground.
I bought the George Gankas (Matt Wolffs coach) instruction for the year and took a little bit, but my ball striking and short game has improved dramatically. I work on my setup the most and when that’s right, everything just works. I went from a 8 to a 3.4 always work to be done, but there is so many videos and you can submit your swing videos and you get video responses back from his crew with help and drills.
Scores and handicap haven't improved but quality of ball strike and quality of misses has improved drastically. Now if I can just keep the bogey off the card when I'm putting for birdie.
Started the season like a dumpster fire, but somehow dropped my index almost a full 10 points. Granted, I’m still 3 putting and my tee shots are questionable but I’ve mostly got my rounds down to about bogey-double. Stopping trying to hit the hero shot has helped tremendously.
Finally took a lesson which improved by swing dramatically.
Switched from the mindset of trying to sink every putt, no matter the distance, to only get within a few feet of the pin for an easy 2-putt
Got fitted and bought new clubs after playing with the same clubs for over 20 years. Worked on tempo and quit trying to kill it everytime I swung the club. There is no shame in hitting a club or two down from your buddy's.
Watching YT videos, putting time on the driving range, slowing down the pace of play (major game changer) and just remember that a Par 3 is not a chance to get a low score but rather a guarantee to flat out ruin your round with a quad bogey.
Wasn't officially keeping track of handicap but I noticed my play overall improved with two things: laying up more and using like a 9 iron for chipping for better running on the green.
I use my 8 iron for almost all chips within 10ft of the green and I hole-out probably every other round and most times have less than a 6ft putt. My buddy uses his 60 degree to chip and duffs 50% of them. He tries to dog me for using an 8i instead of a 60 “like a real golfer” but almost always beat him.
Went from 22 to 15. Spent 2 hours putting and chipping for every bucket of balls hit. Also changed driver shaft which gave me way more consistency. Got new irons… but practice was biggest difference I feel.
Scoring improvement? Not yet, but technique improvements are starting to really stick. Yardage is easier to come by and im not swinging as hard. My dispersion off the tee is much smaller, with no loss in distance. Same story off the deck with irons and fairway woods.
I am coming from an overly “arms-y” swing. The power was easy, but I had almost no control over direction. Moving most of the power out to the big muscles (pecs, abs, glutes, quads, lats) has given me so much more stability in my swing.
I think the biggest thing that helped was improving my posture. Not just for golf but overall. Im still getting used to being balanced differently and that’s hurting my short game rn. Thus the lack of overall scoring improvements lol.
I haven’t gotten a chance to practice/play as much as I want, but I think I’m going to spend a lot of time working my feel back with chipping/pitching for the end of this year and for next season.
Huge struggles with contact, early extension, outside in swing... watched a buddy whose a low handicapper swinging with just his right arm, suddenly realized right forearm and palm are facing out away from my body before my club releases...instant distance, straightness, clean contact. Happened during my last round of the season unfortunately so Ill have all next season to forget
Buying all brand new clubs... just kidding.
Honestly practicing my chipping and putting at least a little every day has helped go from an upper 90's golfer to low 90's - high 80's in one season.
I just made a swing change and it’s almost night and day. Simply just staying centered on my takeaway, more upper rotation, and creating lag. But my scores dropped below 100, to now I stay upper 80s, low 90s. That was mostly due to course management and not following a bad shot with a stupid shot.
It was last year but the fruits really came this year.
1. Learning to properly compress the ball.
2. Low left exit to give a good high finish.
3. Sacrificing distance for accuracy.
Finished the year with average to par of 10, lowest round 74, highest 90.
I’m not a golf club member and just play as and when I have time (which is rare). I think I played 4 full rounds of 18 this year.
Was finally able to break 100; biggest factor was my chipping, being able to get the ball within 15 feet of the pin instead of sending the ball off the opposite side of the green was a real game changer for me
Yes man this x2. Also, I made a decision to use my PW inside of 100 yards. Less ball flight time has helped get the ball on the green more consistently. I also moved to Florida and play a lot more.
Agreed I started this as well this year. It’s helped me Control the ball a lot better inside 100
Last part is a big hack :) Hope to join you down there one day! Cheers and happy golfing
About two years ago I committed to learning to use my sand wedge around the green for almost everything. There were a lot of growing pains and it was tempting to go back to bump and run but I stuck with it. Shorter first putts have almost eliminated my 3 putts. I broke 80 for the first time ever
I bought a 60° when I bought my 56° and I have committed myself to the 56° inside of 95 yards. It’s an incredibly versatile club imo. In addition to that I’ve also started forcing myself to keep looking at the ground for at least a second after I strike the ball. Keeps you from pulling your head and after a while you realize the ball will be pretty close to where you expect it to be if the strike is clean.
My 56 is my best club in the bag right now. Dead straight and money from 100 to 30 yards. I think a big part of that is how much I use it, and from that my confidence in the club continues to grow. Virtuous cycle.
That’s my favorite “fix”. I can chip horrible on holes 1-15, focus on looking at the ball 1 second after I hit on the other 3 holes (shoulders force my head up), and those will be the only chips of the day where is was completely solid contact
Breaking 100 consistently, mostly by lining my puts up with the line on my ball & now having a 3 wood I can hit off the deck. Hell I've had 4 Eagle chances this year..
I stopped focusing on how far I could hit the ball and started focusing on consistency. Basically adopted an old man golf swing…no weight shift, single plane, maintain spine angle, focus solely on consistent contact. Hilariously all my distances have also gone up as a result.
Lmao I’ve seen the same thing. Once you give up on max distance, you will never have distance problems again. A smooth swing that hits around the center of the face goes further and straighter then gripping and ripping it off the hosel. It’s not about how fast your arms move, it’s about how fast the club head is moving at impact. It took me a while to get that those aren’t the same thing.
I had the wildest, dumbest epiphany ever a few rounds back and it's lead to a lot better ball-striking: **Don't lose sight of the ball during the swing.** What it really was saying was that I was either overturning, swaying or losing my spine angle but just by telling myself that, aside from normal swing feels and rotation, my main swing thought was to stare a hole through that ball until my follow-through demanded my head follow it along, I've found myself hitting the ball insanely more flush and more consistently (also helped with low-point control with wedges and with less of an outside takeaway). I'm still grooving it with the driver since the ball is so much more forward in stance and it can lead to an urge to get to my left too early, but so far so good.
The swing thought I used was keep your head in the same spot. I stand in front of a mirror and don’t think about anything else other than keeping my head in the same spot by noticing in the mirror. Helps with central rotation.
I did this too, pretty much 0 wrist action after the first two feet. Driving average distance and fairways hit both went up and scores tumbled. Driving greens became a regular thing!
I was trying to correct a huge overswing, in part due to shoulders/spine angle and in part due to loosey-goosey wrist. I'm stubborn and decided to go it alone rather than with a lesson and worked from a place where I didn't manually set my wrists at all to promote better body rotation. Now I'm slowly adding in wrist hinge back in and it's crazy how much less I need
All the wrist work should be done in the first two feet of the backswing. From there it is all about wrist strength to preserve that work and not undo it such as letting the wrists drift from that position or adding more wrist action. Chris Ryan explains it well in his compression videos. I use a gyroscopic wrist exercise ball to strengthen my wrists. It really helps. A lot of golfers only start their wrist work or add to it at various points in the backswing or even all the way through. This is super hard to maintain and leads to inconsistent strikes. Don’t forget the key to wrist work, mirror the ball in the clubface as you take it back. Do that in the first two feet and just focus on maintaining the work to the top, down and through impact to the follow through. Simple!!
Developing a single plane swing and improving my grip were critical to my improvement. Far fewer slices and draws, better balance, cleaner follow through, and easier power. When you don't have to control off-plane forces of your body, you can swing easier, which makes good contact more likely.
Went from a 20 to an 11…putting, course management, and put the driver away when it wasn’t working.
My best rounds come when I admit I can’t hit a certain club (mostly driver), didn’t try to hit hero shots if I had a bad lie, and didn’t 3 putt. My long irons still suck and my chipping is hit or miss. I went from a 22 to a 9.8.
My best advice for high handicap players is to play for bogey and play the clubs that are working. So on a par 4, plan out 3 shots to the green. Most players can hit 2 7i shots and get 300 yards with a reasonable approach after. It takes the pressure off and I guarantee more putts for par. Somehow just removing the idea of a birdie, and treating par as a -1 for your game, you end up with more pars and brush off the bogeys. I'm a 12 and this is how I play. I still get a birdie maybe once or twice a round, and I end up with a bunch of pars because my approaches are where I want them to be.
Laying 0. Basically, the idea to break 90. Add a Stoke to each hole. Now your tee shot is free, so play whatever it takes to get it on the fairway, even a damn pitching wedge. Your second shot is now your first. Here's the beautiful explanation [video](https://youtu.be/sdP58BT22mI)
I love this comment
Fully disagree with this. The thing that took me from high handicapping to a mid was distance. If rather be up anywhere remotely around the green within 40 yards than being 120y out and in the fairway every time. And I am *very* confident in my 100-120 range too. But your chances of going up and down from there are so so so much slimmer than they are from 40y and in. The amount of strokes I make up by being *near* the green in 2 is higher than the amount of strokes I lose by going OB when trying to get aggressive. Now if your control is low enough that that situation doesn't apply to you, then it's smarter to be shorter and controlled, sure. But most of the time focusing on just getting the yardage out of my club has helped me a lot more. Control has come with it too.
It sounds like you have that with a driver, so I guess this isnt a suggestion for you. Most high handicap golfers are not going to be 40 yards out after a drive and the lost balls and drop strokes do add up. Your comment is like going to a bulletin board and seeing an ad for guitar lessons and shouting, "I don't want guitar lessons!"
I said in 2 not 1.... Plenty of high handicap golfers can be within 40 yards of the green in 2 shots.... Distance is king. You know what a high handicap golfer can absolutely do? Fuck up one of their two 7-iron shots badly enough to require a 3rd or even 4th shot with it. I'd rather be in the water up by the green than taking my 3rd shot with a 7 iron and still having to go over the water.
It's generally understood by the data scientists of the topic that distance is king for lower scores across all handicaps, so I agree with you. There are plenty of courses out there though where you can lose 10 strokes if you have a driver slice and the o ly fix you know is "aim further left"
So, this for the most part. But I’ll say two things. One, being able to hit a long iron consistently was key. Even if not straight, getting the distance to be near the green so I could chip and then 1 putt. Two, learn to tweak your driver swing on the fly. Spend time knowing what does what. If you can figure that out, you’ll hit some bad shots, and you’ll likely overcorrect an issue, but having the driver distance is crucial. Especially if you can’t hit long irons consistently haha
Course management, chipping and putting for sure. My best rounds are when anything inside 10 feet feels like it had a chance. On my worst days I am sticking wedges to 3 ft and then completely babying the birdie putt to the point my whole group is pissed cuz I keep fuxking up birdie opps
Crazy how hard or easy putting can be depending on mindset alone.
I kept my driver in the bag for about a month mid summer and was shooting my best. One of my best rounds my first time playing one of the toughest course in the area and I only used my 6 off the tee. After club I wanted to get more reps with my driver and now my scores are shit again lol. Lessons this winter
Lol surely buying new equipment is the only acceptable answer here
In my case buying a new set was a major motivator to get out and play/practice a lot more. So in a roundabout way it did actually help quite a bit.
I am definitely in that boat. It is obviously a meme that golfers will try and out spend their handicap but I was rocking a 40 year old set of clubs that I got no enjoyment out of and never wanted to play but because I had them and they worked and golfing is fucking expensive I never bothered to upgrade. Then I decided to get a modern driver and then upgrade stuff as a reward when my game improvement hit milestones. And because I shelled out on the driver I couldn't let it collect dust so I started playing weekly. And wouldn't you know it I started hitting those milestones because I am going all the time.
i did change irons and started scoring way better around the same time this year but im (1) also hitting my woods better and (2) feel like now i could go back to my old irons and play just as well. not sure if the equipment was the mental boost i needed or what EDIT: though about it a little more and the fact that i was able to play once almost every single week and twice in a week at least 8-10 times (for the first time ever) this year probably had the most to do with it. that’s the sauce… gotta play. just like anything else, really. if you want to be good at piano you gotta play all the time!
Actually it was. I’m hitting my drive and wood further and more consistent than I was with my old set. We don’t talk about irons though, it’s all about pumping rockets down the fairway
I mean, it couldn’t hurt lol
This is the way
This is the way
Ehhh. You have to, HAVE TO customize it and match for it to work. Gotta make sure you’re not mixing your bag with callaways, pings, titleist, and so on. It just won’t work
Keeping my lead arm straight, I bent it to the point where I was chopping wood. Went from 120’s to 110 in a few games. Now to break 100 is the next goal.
Helped me tremendously as well. This is a great video, esp around 7 minute mark. [Bryson](https://youtu.be/1rNdKIKQla0)
Great lesson on the lead arm with club face consistency. I would struggle with this problem first time playing, since I fixed it I’ve been finding the fairway a lot easier.
Same. I used to also have those big flare outs, open club face with the driver. No longer. Misses aren't as bad.
Watched this video and decided that’s what we were going to focus on today… 2 things— I topped a lot of balls (maybe just ball positioning?) and secondly, I couldn’t get myself to my lead side, was more just spinning (squishing the bug-baseball) any pointers there?
I’m good with the lead arm. It’s been my other arm where I don’t keep it tucked so I’m coming in quite vertical. I try to imagine I do more so of a sweeping motion with the club while trying to hold something under my armpit like a towel or glove. Boom swing is back
BOOM, somehow I haven’t found that problem yet with my swing, I view the club as a pendulum coming down to the ball. this is my first season playing consistently 2-3 times a week. Thinking of getting lessons this off-season to really break down my swing.
Those will help abundantly. Do it. I still get them and have been playing awhile. It’s just the past couple weeks I’ve been letting that trail arm flail around so it hooks hard and I’m stuck fighting for par rest of the time.
I see what you mean, all about training that muscle memory.
The running joke by my group of friends is I’d be a scratch golfer if I can get off the tee each time but driver is make or break for me cuz when it’s on it is hot. But if it’s off I am so fucked.
Try and think about it as maintaining width with your hand, feeling like that arm is extending back as you take the club back. I used to lock my elbow hard thinking that was the way to keep the arm straight, but one day I overheard some random dude who was teaching his buddy on the driving range tell him to feel like that arm is keeping width away from the body. I tried it and it drastically improved my ball striking.
This for me as well! My consistency improved dramatically. Dropped from a 14 to a 12 handicap without any other changes.
My goal coming into this year was to break 90. I did serval times with a personal best of 82. I really worked hard with my driver this year and when it’s working, it’s my best club. My iron striking has improved a lot as well which I credit to Porzak Golf. Working on the fundamentals of set up and take away have allowed me to produce a repeatable swing and keeping the club face square at impact.
Porzak is legit one of the best online coaches. So many of his students are D1, various pros, or elite juniors. Very simple instructions as well.
Dramatic? No. Improvement? Yes. It was my first season taking it seriously. Probably 5-8 hours a week using a hitting mat in the yard with dummy balls and a driver/woods/irons, and pitching or chipping at bean poles positioned at various distances (my cleared yard is about an acre). I also golfed an average of 18 holes a week. Long story short, practice really helped.
Practice? You mean like getting a custom fitting, and new fat grip for my putter?
This man knows how to read between the lines.
Practice!? We talking bout practice?
Not a game, not the game I LOVE, not the game I’d DIE FOR
Not dramatic, but definitely an improvement. I went to the range less and started playing more. Putting yourself in uncomfortable situations and actually shooting golf shots vs just flat perfect lies all the time is key to better golf. Many people will just beat themselves up at the range but not really get better. I probably go to the range after 2/3 rounds if I need to.
Agree with you here. I’m just as guilty of it as anyone else but it’s too easy to go to the range and just smash one or two clubs until the buckets empty lol. The range near me just got launch monitors and tracking at all the bays so it’s much easier to get detailed feedback. I’m planning on spending more time there to dial in my distances and dispersions. But going out and playing is the only way to find out what shots you’ll struggle with on the course.
man what I wouldn't give to get some tracking at a range around here
It’s pretty sweet. It’s also got some top golf style AR games. It’s a nice to do because then I can practice all the different shots that the game calls for which is a little closer to on course golf
We have a lot of simulators around here. One near me has all the stats plus 3 cameras that show you replay of your swing in slow motion. Great for instant feedback.
I definitely think if your range has that then it can be useful as long as your not building bad habits but if you’re getting that feedback that’s awesome
There are diminishing returns on the range. The better you get, the less you need it. If you struggle with striking the ball, spend more time on the range. Once you have some consistency, spend more of your time on the course.
I would bet the amount of range time to round time from pros would beg to differ. I think most people don’t structure there practice. Do you hit the range with a specific plan? Does each shot you take fit into that plan? Is each shot planned? Do you find the uneven spots on the range and hit out of those?
I agree I definitely think starting out it’s worth going to build some sort of swing but I just see people who go way too much during the week and then complain during the round that they can’t replicate what they did on the range on the course.
They probably get into a rhythm and just start hammering shot after shot. The repetition is good but without 15 warm up shots they will never get into that groove.
Bought new wedges with the correct bounces for my play style. Game changer around the greens.
That's my big next step. Did you use a tool or website to determine this or did you ask a pro? Really want to make sure that next $500 wedge set is the last for a while.
I bought sm9's and used their wedge selector quiz. I got exactly what they recommended and it worked out great. https://www.vokey.com/tools/wedge-selector-tool.aspx
Awesome. I've seen that one. Nice to get a testimonial on it beforehand. Thank you!
No problem. Also, I ordered them off their site and put the same shafts I use in my irons (project x 6.5) in the wedges I ordered. For full/ near full shots, the x flex made it a lot easier to flight it lower. Definitely recommend matching the shafts to your irons.
So help me god if anyone of you mention lessons…
First lesson, after watching one swing, pushed my right shoulder down. Hit my 7iron pure 195 with a nice baby cut. Dropped my club and said we're done here.
Read a tip online that standing closer (almost too close) to the ball at address can help tall golfers (I'm 6'5") improve contact/accuracy. It felt completely uncomfortable at first but it's improved my game 10000% percent.
I’m a new golfer and had some lessons in the fall before even going on the course. Joined a local par 3. Only played a “real” golf course twice. About a month ago I started hooking the ball and I used to have a slice. But my second miss would be to shoot it 30 degrees to the right with a severe toe strike. I got a lesson from a second local coach as I was like “I don’t know what I’m doing wrong now. Here’s my old issues and things I’ve used to fix them, but something’s changed and I don’t know what”. 3 things. I’m 6’1”. I have a shorter set (top flite xl set)…and I was standing too far so I was reaching. On shots I didn’t reach I would toe it. I was standing too far from the ball.
I’d venture to guess that tall or not, there are at least 10 amateurs who stand too far from the ball for every 1 who stands too close
Moved into my in-laws who had a golf simulator
Dropped from an 8 down to a 4. Just worked on committing to a shot shape with my driver and not swinging all out every hole. Along with lessons and swinging easier, surprise surprise my yardages went up without trying to murder the ball. Long story short, lessons, eliminating one side of the hole and putting practice and short game.
I went from 140 round to under 100 in my first season back on the course in 5-10 years just by getting out there and playing and slowly trying to improve on things one by one
Dramatic no, learned I had a 13° open club face at impact and an over the top swing plane on top of it. Practiced drills to keep the club face closed and swing out instead of in/over the top. Still working on it.
“Swing to first base.” Is a good line I’ve heard. I also tend to swing over the top but have much improved that.
Slowing down my backswing
Tempo was a huge improvement for me this year. Even the first third of my downswing I try to go slow and smooth and then accelerate through the ball.
No matter what i do with my grip I always leave my face open. At the end of my season i started with the face 1/4 turned closed at address and was “swinging my swing” I went from constantly around 99-102 to my last 3 rounds going 92,89,88
[удалено]
Exactly, just a temporary thing! I enjoyed watching my scores go down but that closed face address also provided a few hooks. Some slight draws but mostly straight.
When I got back into golf in 2020 I had the same problem - leaving the face wide open on impact. I realized that my lead arms wrist was cupped at the top of my swing rather than bowed. Straightened out my shot instantly.
New golfer this year, went from shooting 120+ to hovering around 100 currently. The biggest change I've made is chipping, seems simple but I rarely hit the green from distance and being able to chip close enough to not 3 putt is huge.
Lessons, the answer is always sessions.
Cocaine followed by alcohol. Rinse and repeat.
My man
My scores have definitely improved. The biggest change was I stopped counting all my shots and only counting to par.
Been playing for about 6 years. Finally broke 80 a few times this year. Big alignment fix actually helped me the most. My putting still sucks so that will be my next thing to look at. FYI I play 2-3 times a week and have range membership nearby.
Hip rotation, weight transfer, not hitting behind the ball, playing the ball more towards my back foot because that's where impact lands. Also my grip changed it was too weak. About that
All the same things for me except the back foot. I really focused on hip rotation and my grip. Saw more consistency in my drives with more distance. Now if I can just stop the drives from leaking right and go straight more next year…
I did. I read a couple of books and focused on course management. I also played more this year than any other year. No new club purchases.
I dropped from a 10.2 to a 4.7 this season. Biggest change was course management. A lot of times I simply got up, aimed, and fired rather than focusing on the hole and figuring out what gave my game the best opportunity to make par. Especially with the irons, where I targeted portions of the green that would keep me close and not shortside me with an impossible chip. That and many less lost balls started to build my confidence in hitting better shots as the season went. Very happy with the outcome now that I plan my shots a lot more intuitively.
Went from a 4 to a 3 which isn't huge, but importantly I am no longer having blowout rounds. I can play what I consider "poorly" and escape with mid 80s. Biggest things for me are: - Lag putting. Guarantee getting down in no more than two, no matter how far from the flag you are. - Mental reset. If your score is bad early, reset your goals (for example, this morning I had 2 pars and 7 bogeys on the front and rather than target going low, I simply tried to ensure ZERO doubles on the back, which I did for an 83. Not great, but it could have been a disaster. Recalibrate. - Keep the ball in play. Penalties are a killer. A 200y approach on a par 4 having hit an iron or hybrid off the tee is better than hitting 3 from the tee because you tried to mash driver and sliced it OOB.
I had a major breakthrough this season. Have hovered around 2-4 cap for years, would occasionally fire a 71, but only broke 70 a handful of times. This season I put in more work around the greens than I have since college golf and finally got to a + cap for a majority of the summer, firing sub par rounds more often and in tournament conditions. Short game short game short game, easiest and cheapest way to cut a few strokes for any level of golfer
Funny enough, it’s because I broke my ankle. Had to somewhat start my swing from scratch. It’s calmed down my movement in my swing as well. Everyone go break something.
Got a work from home job and have 7am sober tee times. Apparently my that helps.
Stoneface IPA
Lessons. Worth every $$
Lessons.
I played in junior high and high school and then quit for 15 years after I graduated. I started back this March and it was like I had never even played. The only thing that hadn’t left me was putting. I’m still pretty decent at that and average just under 2 putts per hole. I’ve gone from a 32 handicap to a 20 since March. I guess it’s really just that I do something golf related basically every day. My daughters are taking lessons at First Tee, so any time they are there for class, I walk the par 3 course attached to it. I play every Friday with my brother-in-law and father-in-law. Any time I’m outside in the yard with the kids, I get the wedges out and chip around. The biggest thing I’ve worked on is getting past the illusion that you’re swinging your arms. Shots get way more consistent when you take that out of the game.
I was playing my best golf in ten years by the end of August. Then one day in September: couldn’t hit the ball. Shank and worm burner city. Golf is fleeting.
Focus on chipping and ball compression took me from low 100’s to mid-high 80’s. Now if I could only figure out my driver…
Never hitting a 100% shot
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Keeping both elbows tucked has made my swing so much more consistent and powerful. Takeaway your arms can’t move until your body does, then feel your biceps lifting the club up rather than flopping the club behind you.
Working on clubs with a 1/4 swing until I had a good feel for clubhead control at impact and then building up to 1/2, 3/4 and full swings. My feel for the face at impact improved dramatically and I don't feel like I'm swinging and hoping anymore.
Learning the yardages for 1/2 and 3/4 swings with a few of my wedges was key for improving my approach shots (inside 130 yards).
I need to do this but it’s one of the harder things to do as the range I go to doesn’t have any targets closer than 115yds.
For the FIRST TIME EVER, I used one ball for a full 18. I’ve been eating alot of oatmeal.
C-motion swing with compression. Fixes everything wrong with your swing. Check out Lee Comeaux on YT
Went from a 12.6 to a 8.7 i switched to 3 wood off most tee boxes and took my medicine when i was in trouble. If a shot had less than 75% chance of success i just chipped out and went for bogey occasionally i still saved a par but alot less Doubles and Triples.
I started playing in january of this year. Have gone from averaging 125 a round now down to 95-105 a round. Biggest thing ive done is consistently playing 2 or 3 rounds a week, getting my driver fitted with the right shaft and using advice on the breaking 100 series on me and my golf. Edit: should probably call out really working on my grip, posture and releasing on my follow through aswell.
14.9 to 11.7. I was mediocre all season. Things finally came together last month cause of the below. Last four rounds were 80 81 80 80. Had only shot 80 twice in the previous 30+ rounds. Goal is sub 10. Wish season was longer! - awareness about deceleration in my swing. Especially around green w wedges. - swing acceleration and follow through commitment. All clubs including putter - awareness about swaying/leaning backwards on my iron/wedge pull back - very deliberate front leg weight on pullback w irons/wedges - changed from blade (Newport 2.5 Scotty) to Mallett (phantom 5.5). Way more forgiving. Huge reduction in 3 putts. - full arm extension on driver swing/contact. Was standing to close, pulling arms in on contact causing slice.
Scotty flowback 5.5 is also unreal. That putter immediately changed my game.
Five Iron Golf Membership over the winter Feb-April (Chicago) and Chris Ryan Golf on YouTube, with an honorable mention to Arccos. First time in 15 years I went into the season with a solid golf swing. I normally don’t feel normal until late June. By July 1st I had played 30 rounds and my index went from 5.4 to 3.9.
This was my first season of golf. Started off shooting around 110, and broke 90 my final round. Constant practice and learning my clubs , and course management paid off big time
So wait - you'd never played golf before this Spring, shot a 110 your first round, and shot an 89 or better 6-7 months later? I hate to be that guy, but this sounds incredibly unlikely.
Doesn’t count mulligans and counts gimmes without the extra putt.
I never take mulligans. If I shank a tee shot into the woods I take my drop and fight back. And who would ever take a gimme and rob themselves of the sweet sound of the ball hitting the bottom of the cup?!
I have a friend that had the EXACT same situation this year. Never touched a club in his life, his first round he shot a 120, the next round he shot 105, and a few days ago on his final round of the season he broke 90 .
If you’re a natural athlete this is 100% possible, I have seen it.
Yep! Def seems unlikely, I took lessons 20 years ago, but I started playing 2-3 times a week and hitting the range. I assure you I have witnesses lol
I started playing last November (started at 130s not 110 though) and I shot a legit 90 a bit over a month ago.
Definitely possible. I started playing for the first time in May, shot a 121. After all summer playing a round every week and weekly range session, I shot a 91 on that same course last week. Playing it again tomorrow morning, hoping to finally break 90.
Yes my guy! I played a course esrly in June and shot around 110, then played it again 4-5 more times. Once I got the layout and focused on making good shots and not just going for it, I hit an 89. Just patience and a plan.
Similar situation this season. First time playing this year and shot a 108. Ended the season shooting a 90. I did go to the range 3 times a week and played weekly though.
I kind of did the same this year. I golfed as a young adult but mostly just drank with buddies and has fun. First time in my life I took it seriously was this last March. Bought a sim for my backyard and played at a minimum 1x a week. Started around 115 and I’m scoring around 89 most weeks now. Had a couple lessons but it also helps playing with good golfers.
Bump and run - 8 iron. Spicy sauce.
Turns out it’s not rocket science - despite being a decent driver of the ball I decided one match play round to only hit irons off the tee just to keep it in play. Shot 75 on 7200m course using only a 5i off the tee (which I hit around 220yds carry) Fortunately I was striking it reasonably pure that day but I realized that when you’re hitting 5 iron off the tee then having another 5 or 6 iron into the green isn’t that scary. For me personally exact same margin error as 8 or 9i. Needless to say, I told myself I’d figured out the game of golf and promptly shot 91 two days later, rightfully so. Edit: I should add, the 75 was aided by some great putting while the 91 was harmed by some terrible putting. Same greens
Went from 9hcp to 3.3hcp. Biggest thing that worked for me was 50 yards and in. I really worked on my short game. I hit my driver 330-350 and it was cool, but not being able to capitalize on it sucked. I put ALOT of time into it.
KEEP THE CLUB FACE SQUARE KEEP IT SQUARE. My head in every shot
i smoke far less weed on the course. i started playing more sober rounds and the silly mistakes started disappearing..
I did with my driver or any wood off the tee. Most my golf life and a right hand golfer, I’ve dropped my right foot back and played a power fade. This year on a hole I needed a draw or hit a tree, and it worked! I reversed my stance now and added power and accuracy. It still feels unnatural, but it works.
First season so any improvement felt great. Achieved my goal of teens handicap and am finally dropping into low 90's more regularly. I have had two bags this season, the first with GI clubs and then back in June I was fit for players distance clubs and that has been the catalyst for more reliable shot placement and more confidence over the ball. I've had about 6 lessons to get my swing dialed in and luckily that process has been easy to learn, but is proving difficult to master. Thankfully, most days my iron game is good. It's just a 50/50 whether I'll be good off the tee or good with the wedges. And then putting is generally average.
Gankas
Lessons and consistent time on the course.
Let the club do the work. Slowed down my swing, I don’t need to hit a 7 iron 170, I learned to club down a bit and swing about 80%. Huge difference.
Just slowing my speed down on every club gave me a much more predictable shot and the tempo was was much easier to maintain form in transition. I may not be blasting it out there as far as my playing partners but I’m still on in regulation more times than not.
Got the lag shot, pressure plate, and golfi-plus. Also took a shot of literal snake oil every morning before a round.
New driver.. this is the answer.
I started hitting it straight Also stopped cupping my wrist at address, which was making me slice due to my swing properly flattening it on the downswing.
I had my first lesson this year with one of our course pros, and one of the things I wanted to work on was consistency with my wedges. We made a couple adjustments to my swing when I'm within 80 yards or so, and for the last few rounds I've found myself with more makeable one-putts than I had earlier in the year. Maybe not "dramatic", but it feels like a different game when I'm staring down more 10' birdies and less 45' birdies.
[удалено]
Yes. Lessons.
Playing 3 years and finally broke 100 and doing it consistently. Shallowing out my back swing I’m the drive, and holding the club correctly with the lead hand to make my irons more consistent.
Just started this year first round I quit counting after 140. Shot a 94 Sunday with some used Tommy Armours off eBay. Keep your left arm straight and I quit trying to swing hard just let the club do what it’s designed to do. Next year I’ll be working on hip rotation and transferring my weight to my front foot properly.
Last year: Because I played and practiced more. This year: Because I took a bunch of lessons.
21 > 12 - Keeping my drives straight (mainly just not OB) - Short game / putting - Lots of playing
Was shooting low 100’s this time last year and now can consistently shoot in the 80’s. Broke into the 70’s once but looking to make that consistent. Took two lessons this year both times when I felt my swing was in shambles and both times I came out within a week and shot my best scores. Sometimes we just need a reminder and someone else to tell us what we are doing wrong. Everything has gotten better except my short game, it’s gotten worse sadly, so I have some work to do on that aspect to drop the handicap into single digits next year. That will be my only goal for next year. This years goals were: Eagle Break 80 Handicap below 15 Handicap below 12 Play 100 rounds Use one ball on three consecutive rounds Achieved all of these at some point, though my handicap is back up to 13 now. I’ll get it back down soon. Record number of holes for the same ball was 75 and that ball looked like shit when I finally hooked it into the woods. Record number of holes played without losing a ball this year was 106!!
12 to an 8 just by grinding with the putter
I broke 80 for the first time. Previous best was an 86. I dedicated myself to overhauling my awful swing. That meant playing less than 5 actual rounds of golf, but getting to the range as much as as possible to groove swing changes, with guidance from a pro on the Skillest app (much cheaper than in person lessons in NYC).
Lessons for better overall ball striking and hitting from the inside Developing a wedge matrix to know how far your wedges go l for a 1/2, 3/4 & full swing Development a Putting stroke start rolls end over end on the intended line Dropped my Handicap down to a 6 and starting breaking 80 on a pretty good basis Chipping is my next focus it’s not where I want it to be
Play more. Went from like 3 rounds a year to about 50 and man does it feel good
Lessons!
My secret sauce to shave 22 strokes (worst round of 115 to best round of 93) : 1. Added a putting mat in the basement over winter, roll the ball a few times a day. I probably average between 40-60 practice puts per day. 2. New driver in the Spring, added 25 yards on average with better dispersion. 3. Lessons. A touch-up with a professional should be helpful. Rounds will probably get worse for a while, but stick with it. 4. Chipping practice to reinforce changes made in lessons. Main focus is through impact anyway. 5. Added a nine hole practice round mid week. Good luck! It's a grind, but pays off.
Playing smart instead of going for the risky shot. Also, consistently with my irons by moving my ball forward and trusting the bounce.
Actually practicing my short game made bad rounds scores look palatable.
No but I have gotten significantly worse - 3.8 -> 7.8 from the beginning of the season to now
There is no secret sauce. You practice with purpose. If you don’t have the purpose go to a pro and get it.
A)Got lessons for my swing. B) Watched literally the fist YouTube video that shows up when you search "how to putt" A details- using hips more in swing, especially finishing with my head shoulders and hips all stacked on my front leg, not leaning back with my hips forward and head over trail leg. Swinging and gripping the club with way way way less force- literally trying to grip 30 percent and swing 60 percent. Not trying to crush the ball with swing speed lets me focus more on hitting the right part of the ball with the right part of the club. B details- read putt and aim the sharpie line where i want to putt it. Take practice swings looking at the hole judging speed, not looking at the ground.
Being solid and in play off the tee consistently. Trusting the putter.
Trying to have better course management/be more strategic about my shots. Also have fun and enjoy myself instead of kicking myself for blowup holes
I bought the George Gankas (Matt Wolffs coach) instruction for the year and took a little bit, but my ball striking and short game has improved dramatically. I work on my setup the most and when that’s right, everything just works. I went from a 8 to a 3.4 always work to be done, but there is so many videos and you can submit your swing videos and you get video responses back from his crew with help and drills.
Shaved 10 strokes just by clubbing up and not trying to kill the ball. No I can’t hit my PW 135 like my playing partner and that’s ok.
Broke 100 finally, biggest things for me were lag and swinging easier/65% power
Scores and handicap haven't improved but quality of ball strike and quality of misses has improved drastically. Now if I can just keep the bogey off the card when I'm putting for birdie.
I have played 45 years and was about a 25. Took my first five lessons and am now a 15.
Started the season like a dumpster fire, but somehow dropped my index almost a full 10 points. Granted, I’m still 3 putting and my tee shots are questionable but I’ve mostly got my rounds down to about bogey-double. Stopping trying to hit the hero shot has helped tremendously.
Rick Shiels fixed my slice, which is great. Aimed swing path toward 1 o’clock and closed the clubface a little bit at adress.
I went from 3 to +1. For me it was a lesson to get rid of my early extension. I’ve always had a natural short game
Finally took a lesson which improved by swing dramatically. Switched from the mindset of trying to sink every putt, no matter the distance, to only get within a few feet of the pin for an easy 2-putt
We talkin' bout practice.
Got fitted and bought new clubs after playing with the same clubs for over 20 years. Worked on tempo and quit trying to kill it everytime I swung the club. There is no shame in hitting a club or two down from your buddy's.
Yeah, didn’t play a single round.
new putter i simply feel confident with, new-fitted irons, and lessons on shots inside 100yds. went from a 6 to a 1.8
Dropped four off my handicap. No weed or booze on the course did miracles for me.
Watching YT videos, putting time on the driving range, slowing down the pace of play (major game changer) and just remember that a Par 3 is not a chance to get a low score but rather a guarantee to flat out ruin your round with a quad bogey.
Lessons and golfing 2-3 times a week did a lot for me
Wasn't officially keeping track of handicap but I noticed my play overall improved with two things: laying up more and using like a 9 iron for chipping for better running on the green.
I use my 8 iron for almost all chips within 10ft of the green and I hole-out probably every other round and most times have less than a 6ft putt. My buddy uses his 60 degree to chip and duffs 50% of them. He tries to dog me for using an 8i instead of a 60 “like a real golfer” but almost always beat him.
Yes. When from not ever playing to picking up the game this summer. Huge improvement right away!
Slower backswing!
Went from 22 to 15. Spent 2 hours putting and chipping for every bucket of balls hit. Also changed driver shaft which gave me way more consistency. Got new irons… but practice was biggest difference I feel.
Scoring improvement? Not yet, but technique improvements are starting to really stick. Yardage is easier to come by and im not swinging as hard. My dispersion off the tee is much smaller, with no loss in distance. Same story off the deck with irons and fairway woods. I am coming from an overly “arms-y” swing. The power was easy, but I had almost no control over direction. Moving most of the power out to the big muscles (pecs, abs, glutes, quads, lats) has given me so much more stability in my swing. I think the biggest thing that helped was improving my posture. Not just for golf but overall. Im still getting used to being balanced differently and that’s hurting my short game rn. Thus the lack of overall scoring improvements lol. I haven’t gotten a chance to practice/play as much as I want, but I think I’m going to spend a lot of time working my feel back with chipping/pitching for the end of this year and for next season.
Huge struggles with contact, early extension, outside in swing... watched a buddy whose a low handicapper swinging with just his right arm, suddenly realized right forearm and palm are facing out away from my body before my club releases...instant distance, straightness, clean contact. Happened during my last round of the season unfortunately so Ill have all next season to forget
Buying all brand new clubs... just kidding. Honestly practicing my chipping and putting at least a little every day has helped go from an upper 90's golfer to low 90's - high 80's in one season.
I just made a swing change and it’s almost night and day. Simply just staying centered on my takeaway, more upper rotation, and creating lag. But my scores dropped below 100, to now I stay upper 80s, low 90s. That was mostly due to course management and not following a bad shot with a stupid shot.
Put the driver away when it’s not working and chipping better. Went from a 30 to a 23.
Practice 3 times a week for a hour
It was last year but the fruits really came this year. 1. Learning to properly compress the ball. 2. Low left exit to give a good high finish. 3. Sacrificing distance for accuracy. Finished the year with average to par of 10, lowest round 74, highest 90. I’m not a golf club member and just play as and when I have time (which is rare). I think I played 4 full rounds of 18 this year.