Love Golf?

[passedpawn]

Loomis Trail, near Blaine, WA (NW of Bellingham) has a similar par 5. The shorter, straighter path is about 405 yrds, and the longer, dogleg is listed as 470 yrds. The narrow chute formed by the trees off the tee were just too intimidating for me, so I took the dogleg, hit driver, 5 wood, 7 iron to be on the green in regulation, and sank the 10 - 15 ft downhill putt for birdie. My putt was a bit too fast, and if I missed, I would have been off the green. The water on the right of the fairway is mostly out of sight, due to a fairly steep embankment. If I had a clear view of the water, I probably would have been in it - twice. This was the only bird in our twosome that day.

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Brew on

Yep, I can see why you played it safe.

When I play alone, I often play two balls. One of them is yellow and it's the aggressive one. That one goes for it. The white one plays it safe.

 

[doug293cz]

Yep, I can see why you played it safe.

When I play alone, I often play two balls. One of them is yellow and it's the aggressive one. That one goes for it. The white one plays it safe.

Looks like I got my color scheme reversed.

Brew on

 

[Kee]

In a random video from 2005, Tom Watson explains that he found the secret of the golf swing in 1992.

 

[passedpawn]

In a random video from 2005, Tom Watson explains that he found the secret of the golf swing in 1992.

In my next round Imma gonna concentrate on exactly what Watson was saying there.

Just got off the course. Played a record fast round for me - 2:05 for 18 holes, walking par 69 course, but I probably hit about 100. Pretty great evening out there, regardless of my score.

 

[orionol73]

For those talking about the multiple greens on the same hole, I work for a golf company that has a hole with two full sets of tees for the same green.
Additionally, check out a newer course near us that has a reversible 18 hole course so it plays as two 18 hole rotations using all the same tees and greens, just different directions. Forest Dunes Golf Club - Forest Dunes Golf Club - Top Public Golf Course in the US

 

[Kee]

In my next round Imma gonna concentrate on exactly what Watson was saying there.

Just got off the course. Played a record fast round for me - 2:05 for 18 holes, walking par 69 course, but I probably hit about 100. Pretty great evening out there, regardless of my score.

Watson perfectly explained a concept that I've only recently paid attention to, much less realized just how much it's an essential element in the swing. The trick for me is that the rest of my swing is not exactly on auto-glide.

 

[passedpawn]

For those talking about the multiple greens on the same hole, I work for a golf company that has a hole with two full sets of tees for the same green.
Additionally, check out a newer course near us that has a reversible 18 hole course so it plays as two 18 hole rotations using all the same tees and greens, just different directions. Forest Dunes Golf Club - Forest Dunes Golf Club - Top Public Golf Course in the US

The Loop. Just checked it out. That's just nuts. I find it mildly interesting that the slope is different depending on which way you play it.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Hit the range today to get some work in... Think I'm finding some things.

 

[Kee]

Hit the range today to get some work in... Think I'm finding some things.

Those are good swings.

 

[Broothru]

Those are good swings.

Def on-plane in the backswing! Maybe a little outside-in approaching contact. Was the ball flight a soft fade? Overall, looked like a nice, powerful golf swing.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Def on-plane in the backswing! Maybe a little outside-in approaching contact. Was the ball flight a soft fade? Overall, looked like a nice, powerful golf swing.

Gambling is illegal at Bushwood, sir, and I never slice.

Part of what I've been working on is a tendency to get to the left side late and slide towards the target instead of rotate. With that can often come a tendency to dump my hands inside and hit monster sweeping hooks. My typical ball path since my teenage years has been the draw, with my miss being a hook.

Better rotation neutralizes the path very well. Slight draw with 7i, and mostly straight ball with a slight tendency to fade due to forward ball position with the driver. That particular swing with the driver was dead straight.

 

[passedpawn]

Mated pair of sandhill cranes watched me play the 12th green here this evening.

 

[TheDudeLebowski]

Got to play Caledonia and True Blue in South Carolina last week. Both were great, but Caledonia really blew me away.

View attachment 767156View attachment 767157

There is one hole at True Blue that forms into 2 different greens. Sometimes it’s a dogleg left, sometimes a dogleg right.

Caledonia is one of my favorite courses down in SC. I try to play it the same week as the Masters. Beautiful Magnolias in bloom. Love the Pawley Plantation area.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Got out to play yesterday and had one of my better rounds of late. Ever since my last round (where I sprayed the ball EVERYWHERE for 7 holes and then just focused on not trying to kill it), I've been working on smoother tempo and it's paying off. I did a couple range sessions between rounds to work on it, and it definitely paid off in my ballstriking yesterday.

It's a par 60 course, so the number I'm going to throw out SOUNDS a lot more impressive than it is, but I shot a 78. So that's +18, i.e. bogey golf. I was a 22.2 index coming into the round, so bogey golf is very good for me. Granted, on this course a +18 is a 22.6 differential, so I was still technically 0.4 strokes over my handicap, but it aged out a round in the index calculation of 26.0 differential, so I'm now a 21.8 index.

Nothing worse than a double bogey all day, so no blow up holes. No lost balls. No penalty areas. No bunkers (my nemesis lol).

What really made me happy is that I tend to track a stat called "wasted shots", meaning shots that are so bad that they don't meaningfully advance the ball to where I've made it <1 stroke easier to get into the hole. For those who know Strokes Gained methodology, these are strokes with a SG value of -0.8 or worse. For example, you have a 50 yard partial wedge, that you just lay the sod over it and it goes 4 yards. Dropping from a 50 yard partial wedge shot to a 46 yard partial wedge shot means you still have basically identical "strokes expected into the hole", but you've wasted a stroke to gain those 4 yards. I.e. SG for that shot is probably about -0.98.

Playing bogey golf, I ended up with 9 wasted shots, which a typical round for me is maybe 11-12. So despite the fact that certain areas of my game were trash (in this case, short game), I still managed to avoid blow up holes and basically shoot my handicap.

Putting wasn't great, so I need to keep working that one...

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

What do you guys do to practice putting? I've got two "games" for it, that I'm just starting to do.

I find putting practice horribly boring, so I need something to make it interesting.

Game 1: 30 for 30

This is more of an individual practice game.

On the practice green, aiming at a different hole each time, hit a 30' or so putt (average distance for ams on first putt on a GIR).

• Give yourself a point if you leave the first putt short of the hole, but two putt successfully
• Give yourself two points if you get the first putt past the hole AND two putt
• Give yourself three points if you make the first putt
• You lose three points if you three putt
• The goal is to get 30 points before you hit 30 first putts.

Great drill for getting the speed of the greens each day, for getting the ball to the hole, and for working on short second putts with at least a little bit of pressure. Obviously, if you are using this as a warmup before a round, you can cut it to 20 For 20 or whatever fits.

Game 2: Get it to the hole

This can be an individual game, or can be done competitively.

Line up balls at 3, 6, 9, 15, and 25 feet (two balls each if done competitively). 2 feet behind the hole, put a long club (driver, fairway wood, etc).

Strike each putt, starting with the shortest and moving progressively back.

If you don't reach the hole, you get zero points. If you get past the hole but hit the long club, you get zero points. If your putt ends up missing the hole left/right by more than the length of the long club, you get zero points.

If you make it to the hole but miss the putt, and leave the ball between the hole and the long club, you get 1 point for the 3/6/9 foot putts, 2 points for the 15-footer, and 3 points for the 25-footer.

If you make the putt, you get double the above points.

Repeat for nine "holes" on the putting green and tally up your score. Compete against yourself for high score, or against a friend with something on the line.

 

[Kee]

Great discussion of the golf swing .

 

[passedpawn]

Played last week (Wed?) and in one of the waste areas between the tee and the fairway there was this unusual orange lily growing out of the middle. Matched my golf cart. Funny what you run into out there.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Played last week (Wed?) and in one of the waste areas between the tee and the fairway there was this unusual orange lily growing out of the middle. Matched my golf cart. Funny what you run into out there.

I got out as a single Friday and all I ran into was playing partners I was paired jamming classic rock in their carts and sparkin' doobs...

Fun round lol...

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Great discussion of the golf swing .

Good stuff @Kee

Athletic Motion Golf is amazing for people of a more technical mind like myself. I find that it helps me truly understand the golf swing better. Also made me have to bite my tongue with the aforementioned playing partners on Friday when the one guy told the other "nah man, you can't swing with your torso... it's gotta be all arms!" AMG's videos have helped me tremendously.

I also can't recommend Monte Scheinblum's stuff enough. Check him out at rebelliongolf.com -- he has some reasonably priced video series. He's active on YouTube and IG as well. Luckily for me, he's local so I've been to a lesson with him once, and need to get back to him for a tune-up. I spent months trying to figure some things out when I got back into the game, and one lesson with him diagnosed what I needed and gave me the learning I needed to work on fixing it. Much more consistent now.

 

[Kee]

I got out as a single Friday and all I ran into was playing partners I was paired jamming classic rock in their carts and sparkin' doobs...

Fun round lol...

I also can't recommend Monte Scheinblum's stuff enough.

Monte has also been on Hal's Sutton's channel/podcast. I'd love to have a lesson from him. Like the Athletic Motion guys, he's not an idealogue, just interested in what works. I need to take a few lessons, but it can be so hit or miss finding the right instructor.

I walked 18 holes last week (where nobody walks, especially on a scorching hot afternoon) and enjoyed it, despite the heat and humidity. A twosome in front of me let me play through (they were having trouble advancing the ball) and one of the young men spoke up "excuse me, if you don't mind, can you tell me why are you walking?"

Maybe I'll take a cart next time. Or not. I like to keep my options open.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Monte has also been on Hal's Sutton's channel/podcast. I'd love to have a lesson from him. Like the Athletic Motion guys, he's not an idealogue, just interested in what works. I need to take a few lessons, but it can be so hit or miss finding the right instructor.

I walked 18 holes last week (where nobody walks, especially on a scorching hot afternoon) and enjoyed it, despite the heat and humidity. A twosome in front of me let me play through (they were having trouble advancing the ball) and one of the young men spoke up "excuse me, if you don't mind, can you tell me why are you walking?"

Maybe I'll take a cart next time. Or not. I like to keep my options open.

LOL. I prefer to walk as well. Had no trouble keeping up with the three in the carts.

I have an umbrella for my push cart for shade on hot/sunny days. Here in SoCal it rarely rains, so it's certainly not to keep me dry lol.

Thankfully we usually don't have humidity. Although last Friday the humidity was brutal. It was on and off mist / spattering light rain during most of the round, and during the dry bits it was very annoyingly humid, even though it was barely over 60 degrees.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

They just installed this at the local range...

https://www.trackman.com/golf/range

 

[gromitdj]

I just heard about it. Sounds like a good time.

 

[Kee]

If you ever wanted the most detailed, technically oriented answer on how to correct low point control, and you have 4 minutes, start the tape at 25:15 and watch until 29:15. I may just put this on a continuous loop.

 

[Bill"sDamnBrewing]

Played yesterday after work at PineCrest in Lansdale Pa. Nice course. I’m a 13 handicap. Shot 44 on the front. All the planets aligned and shot par on every hole on the back except 18, double bogey. We flew through the front 9 1 hr 10 mins. Caught up with a foursome of 80+ old timers playing from the ladies tees. Took us 3 hours to play the back. It was brutal. But it made me think about my shot and where I wanted to put it. So maybe I should have thanked them for slowing me down. Although on the par 3 15th, one guy hit 3 in the water, 2 of them hit 2 in the water, and the last guy made it over but found the sand trap. So 11 tee shots on 1 hole while we were sitting there watching. The guy in the trap then proceeded to hit his shot over the green and, you guessed it, right in the water.

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

They didn't let you play through? At that pace there's no way they were keeping up so there must have been clear holes ahead of them...

 

[Bill"sDamnBrewing]

They didn't let you play through? At that pace there's no way they were keeping up so there must have been clear holes ahead of them...

Believe it or not, there was a group in front of them playing just as slow. That’s why we never said anything to them. No marshal to be seen on the course either!

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

Believe it or not, there was a group in front of them playing just as slow. That’s why we never said anything to them. No marshal to be seen on the course either!

Yikes! Guessing it might have been another foursome of their 80+ buddies?

I played Sunday and we found ourselves (4 players all walking) coming up on tee boxes while the elderly gentlemen (in carts) were still teeing off. They even said twice "you guys walk too fast!"

Likewise there was nowhere to go playing through, so no point in even suggesting it.

Then we got off 18 and I hadn't looked at the time, and realized we made it around in 3:30. It's a short course (3670 yds, par 60) but 3:30 is really fast for a Sunday morning round. So I guess they were doing ok on pace lol.

I managed my second-best outing at that course, shooting 72--which is REALLY good for me as I'm a 21 index. 8 pars, 8 bogeys, and only 2 doubles.

 

[TheDudeLebowski]

Stopped by the Mass State Amateur final match. It's being played just a couple of towns over. A sophomore in high school is going against a sophomore from Georgetown. Nice battle of birdies going on between in the first match.

Beautiful day for golf

 

[betarhoalphadelta]

I broke 90! Crushed it, in fact!

Previously I've had rounds where I've scored better than +18 relative to par, but they've always been on my par-60, 3670 yard exec course. I've never done it on a full-length course of any difficulty. In fact, the only time I've scored 90 even was at this same course (pictured below) on a day when they were redoing their tees and the course was playing maybe 500 yards shorter than typical.

But yesterday I was just on fire!