Got My Handicap... Confused and Happy

[RGDave]

Everything being equal, an 11 H/Cap player would normally be expecting to take around 30 - 32 putts a round on average.

Where did you find this steamy pile of dung?

 

[RGDave]

They will have taken your lowest card (83=+12) turned your triple into a double, and thats how you got 11


Simples

83 (SSS 70) = 13 over SSS. One triple becomes a double = 12 over!

 

[Leftie]

Everything being equal, an 11 H/Cap player would normally be expecting to take around 30 - 32 putts a round on average.

Where did you find this steamy pile of dung?

11.7 h/cap and you think that 30 - 32 putts a round on average doesn't apply to you? Maybe steamy pile of dung applies to your short game and putting

You are obviously not a user of Scoresaver2

 

[Herbie]

Everything being equal, an 11 H/Cap player would normally be expecting to take around 30 - 32 putts a round on average.

Where did you find this steamy pile of dung?

11.7 h/cap and you think that 30 - 32 putts a round on average doesn't apply to you? Maybe steamy pile of dung applies to your short game and putting

You are obviously not a user of Scoresaver2

I have a hard time grasping this one too Leftie..30 to 32 AVERAGE is very good putting indeed especially if it is calculated from rounds at different courses.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Off 11 SS2 tells me my average number of putts should be 32. Some days its 29 and others its 34. My putting has improved since the start for the season (34.33 avearage for the first 2 months so plenty of 35 and 36 putt rounds) and thanks to a series of short game lessons and a putting one my overall short game is much better. Its no coincidence that as you get lower this is where shots are really saved and anyone looking to seriously imrpve over the winter months would do a lot worse than look at their game from 100 yards and in

 

[Region3]

Agree to a degree, but pure stats can mask other things. Maths was my favourite subject at school, I love stats, but you have to take them for what they are.

For example, ss2 says my target for GIR is 27%, or 4.8 per round.
With my limited number of rounds so far (9), I'm averaging 41% GIR, or 7.4 per round.

If I were hitting less greens I daresay my putting average would be better. I'm not saying it doesn't need a lot of work, it does.

It also says my birdie conversion rate is that of a 28+ handicapper

 

[HomerJSimpson]

That tells me you are hitting the greens and not making the putts!!!!!!!!

 

[Region3]

Yep... I argued against myself a bit there

What I meant was I might be no worse a putter than someone who hits 5 greens in a round and takes 33 putts.

I had 32 putts on my worst GIR round (28%).

 

[Leftie]

I have a hard time grasping this one too Leftie..30 to 32 AVERAGE is very good putting indeed especially if it is calculated from rounds at different courses.

You are more than kind sir .

I have just looked at the last 8 games I've played (over 6 different courses) and have averaged approx 4.9 single putts per round. Total number of putts 255 = 32 per round ave.

My GIR though is well below what it should be which indicates that it is not necessarily good putting only but that from off the green my short game is giving me many makable 1 putts or no worse than 2 putts. Once my approach shots improve, I know that I will have to work on my longer range putting

 

[RGDave]

I think your putting and GIR is just amazing.
Keep up those stats, tidy up a few odds and ends and you'll cruise down to 8.
My lowest putting stat this season in 29.
My highest is 37
My average is 33 at a guess.

If I "creep on the edges" of more greens than normal, I'll take close to 36 if I play to my h'cap or better.

The other day I missed 17/18 greens and still played to 12.

Silly game.

 

[Region3]

I think my GIR is maybe artificially high because there are quite a few 340-350 holes where I play, which means I'm only hitting wedges or 3/4 shots to the green if I don't fluff the tee shot.

Hopefully if I can stop my hips sliding (in another thread) my irons will be more consistent and I'll start getting them a little closer. That and improving my putting, especially the longer ones, are my main goals at the moment.

 

[RGDave]

Everything being equal, an 11 H/Cap player would normally be expecting to take around 30 - 32 putts a round on average.

Where did you find this steamy pile of dung?

11.7 h/cap and you think that 30 - 32 putts a round on average doesn't apply to you? Maybe steamy pile of dung applies to your short game and putting

You are obviously not a user of Scoresaver2

Cheers mate.....I appreciate the thought.

I don't follow the "stats" suggested by SS2.

I reckon I hit more greens than SS2 likes to quote and therefore have more putts.

I play with a few 10-12 players and they only seem to get down under 32 putts on a hot short game round.

Returning to the O.P. my feeling is that anyone witnessing these cards (with 11 GIR x 2! ) would probably say even 10 is quite a high h'cap.

 

[Imurg]

Can someone (SS2?) enlighten me as to how these "average" figures for GIR, Fairways hit, putts etc etc etc were calculated?
Not dismissing them - I'm just interested to know how they got the figures....

 

[RGDave]

Can someone (SS2?) enlighten me as to how these "average" figures for GIR, Fairways hit, putts etc etc etc were calculated?
Not dismissing them - I'm just interested to know how they got the figures....

I don't know. Either way, they don't reflect the golf I play. They might reflect the golf the majority play, I guess.

Perhaps SS and the others ought to have a part of the program where the golfer inputs a few basics about their general game. Then, rather than making suggestions based on Mr. Average, then it could cleverly come up with some more meaningful stats.

Some of you will remember Alchemy (off h'cap - not many) who used to be on here. Alchemy had a very good short game. I never saw him 3 putt or duff a chip...NEVER. What he was so brilliant at was hitting greens. He seemed able to find the green from anywhere on the course.

I witnessed him score a +2 gross. I reckon he hit 14 greens and up'n'downed twice. Assuming there were no double bogeys in the round (there may have been 1 or two cancelled out with birdies) I reckon he had 34 putts.

I didn't see him miss anything under 8 foot.
Now, if he'd only hit 10 greens, he'd need to have made only 30 putts to score +2. (still with me....zzz..... )

Point is, if he did indeed have 34 putts, then one of these software packages would categorise him as a worse putter than me....(for h'cap standard).

If the software established he hits lots of greens (which it could do) then it could also adjust the "expected" standard.

He argued the very same thing.

I'm not for or against (I'm probably more for them t.b.h.) but anyone getting down on their game (and a certain aspect) might do well to take it with a pinch of salt.

 

[Region3]

Returning to the O.P. my feeling is that anyone witnessing these cards (with 11 GIR x 2! ) would probably say even 10 is quite a high h'cap.

It was the same witness for all 3 cards, as I don't know anyone there yet and this guy was someone I got paired up with on a busy day and we've played a few times since.

To make it interesting we played matchplay with me off my old 10 and he beat me both times we did it (him off 16).

The saying goes "there's more than one way to skin a cat" (not that I can believe many have tried it ), and there's obviously more than one way to play to a specific handicap. My way happens to be good with irons and shocking with a putter!!

I don't use the handicap comparisons in ss2 for anything more than curiosity, but I will admit that I love being able to track my progress on different stats, and compare from round to round.

I've just entered the round I played this afternoon. 9 greens and 34 putts, with only 2x 3-putts.

Most pleasing thing was my driving. I've said on another thread how I'm trying to get rid of a big push/slice caused by sliding hips, and I didn't have one today.
I only hit 4 out of 15 fairways, but most were only just off the fairway and only 3 times did I not have a reasonable shot at the green in regulation.

All in all, very happy with how I played.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

You do have the option on SS2 to override the computer defaults for your handicap and put in targets you feel would be more accurate

 

[Leftie]

The 83 and 84 had 38 & 40 putts respectively.

Returning to the O.P. my feeling is that anyone witnessing these cards (with 11 GIR x 2! ) would probably say even 10 is quite a high h'cap.

Which I believe confirms my comment that if the short game/putting could improve then a mid single figure h/cap is not far away.

I can't believe this Dave. We actually seem to be in agreement