I now know why I play to 21 now.

[la_lucha]

Par 3 Avg: 4.1
Par 4 Avg: 5.9
Par 5 Avg: 6.9
(Putt Avg: 1.9
G.I.R: 3.7%)

I can't hit a green to save my life. Those stats are from the last 90 holes. I can put myself dead centre of the fairway off the tee and I putt well, but missing greens left and right is costing me dearly. Putting not bad, I hit alot of Fairways as I use a 4 Iron generally or a 6 Iron if I'm looking for a position and my forum yardages are genuinely seeing me hit my 4 iron similar distances to many pp drive.

I can be 100 yards out, Sand wedge in hand and miss left. I can be 140 out, 9 Iron in hand and miss right. But put me on a 195 Yard (elevated) par 3 with a 5 Iron and I'll hit the green more often than not.

I played in a 9 hole comp last night off 10.5 and I came in 4 over, but we counted 8 missed greens that cost me dearly. I am so close to being a reasonable golfer but it just won't click for me. (I also put one out of bounds from the tee on the 3rd so that's another 2 shots)

WHY THE HELL CAN'T I DIRECT A BALL FROM 150 YARDS AND IN??????

 

[brendy]

Just think too, when you start hitting more greens, your putting average will get worse too

 

[la_lucha]

Just think too, when you start hitting more greens, your putting average will get worse too

I dunno, I don't leave many chips within 10 foot so not sure it'll make much difference.

 

[CMAC]

Par 3 Avg: 4.1
Par 4 Avg: 5.9
Par 5 Avg: 6.9
(Putt Avg: 1.9
G.I.R: 3.7%)

I can't hit a green to save my life. Those stats are from the last 90 holes. I can put myself dead centre of the fairway off the tee and I putt well, but missing greens left and right is costing me dearly. Putting not bad, I hit alot of Fairways as I use a 4 Iron generally or a 6 Iron if I'm looking for a position and my forum yardages are genuinely seeing me hit my 4 iron similar distances to many pp drive.

I can be 100 yards out, Sand wedge in hand and miss left. I can be 140 out, 9 Iron in hand and miss right. But put me on a 195 Yard (elevated) par 3 with a 5 Iron and I'll hit the green more often than not.

I played in a 9 hole comp last night off 10.5 and I came in 4 over, but we counted 8 missed greens that cost me dearly. I am so close to being a reasonable golfer but it just won't click for me. (I also put one out of bounds from the tee on the 3rd so that's another 2 shots)

WHY THE HELL CAN'T I DIRECT A BALL FROM 150 YARDS AND IN??????

just a thought but do you go at these shots 100% like with a driver?

key is accuracy so take a club that you know will get you to the back of the green and swing at 85%. Contact and accuracy should improve............unless theres some hideous swing fault not mentioned:mmm:

 

[guest100718]

Just think too, when you start hitting more greens, your putting average will get worse too

As i am finding out...

 

[la_lucha]

just a thought but do you go at these shots 100% like with a driver?

key is accuracy so take a club that you know will get you to the back of the green and swing at 85%. Contact and accuracy should improve............unless theres some hideous swing fault not mentioned:mmm:

I give it a full swing, but I'm not ripping it as such, just trying to play a controlled shot. At the moment I have started playing with the hand position i.e. thumb straight down gives a pulled draw, thumb too far to the left will give a push slice. I'm struggling to find the median with the shorter Irons.

 

[Duckster]

just a thought but do you go at these shots 100% like with a driver?

key is accuracy so take a club that you know will get you to the back of the green and swing at 85%. Contact and accuracy should improve............unless theres some hideous swing fault not mentioned:mmm:

Seconded! Where you'd be hitting a full 9, try hitting an easier, smooth 8.

 

[ArnoldArmChewer]

Given those hole averages I doubt that you are playing to your 21 h/c, assuming a course with 4 par 3 and 3 par 5's you must be shooting around the 100 mark.

As said before if your GIR goes up so will your PPG.

As I cant hit a cows botty with a banjo right now I can't help on your GIR problem, but 3.7% is really low.

 

[la_lucha]

Seconded! Where you'd be hitting a full 9, try hitting an easier, smooth 8.

I'll give it a go at the range, the only worry i have when trying to play less than a full swing is that I'll lose some control over the swing path that comes with my usual rhythm.

 

[cookelad]

Seconded! Where you'd be hitting a full 9, try hitting an easier, smooth 8.

Thirded! From 140 depending on the wind and/or change in height I'd probably be hitting 7 or 8!

 

[Khamelion]

Last year at H4H, I was playing with Bill Elliot, as we approach, one of the greens, 18th? 16th? doesn't matter, I measured the distance to be 120yds from ball to pin. Bill asked what club I was going to take, told him a full PW, he said try the 8, I told him I would be over the green, so we compromised on a 9 iron.

Hit a 3/4 9 stiff.

The point being more club, less power, more accuracy and a better result.

 

[la_lucha]

Given those hole averages I doubt that you are playing to your 21 h/c, assuming a course with 4 par 3 and 3 par 5's you must be shooting around the 100 mark.

As said before if your GIR goes up so will your PPG.

As I cant hit a cows botty with a banjo right now I can't help on your GIR problem, but 3.7% is really low.

You got that spot on Arnie, between 104-98 has been where I've been lately and it's mainly through missing greens. Ok we all put the odd one oob but to play your third from the tee straight down the middle and then go on to miss the green really affects the scores.

Miss all but 1 green and you're sticking 17 shots on every round, lets say putting average goes up and you can conservatively say your adding 10 shots per round.

 

[gripitripit]

Seconded! Where you'd be hitting a full 9, try hitting an easier, smooth 8.

Not that I profess to being a golf guru but this is what I do also...Club down and hit a shorter and controlled shot......then 3/4 putt..!

 

[la_lucha]

When clubbing up do you choke down or take the normal grip?

 

[Khamelion]

When clubbing up do you choke down or take the normal grip?

Personally I take a normal grip and make the same swing, I just don't take it all the way back or put as much power into the shot. I spent a little bit of time, need to spend more, on working out how far a full shot on each of my wedges down to 8 would go, then did the same with a 3/4 and 1/2 swing and found that roughly a full swing of my 9 is roughly a 3/4 swing of my 8 and so on down the bag.

 

[cookelad]

I grip the same, just be sure to commit to the shot and hit through it otherwise (I find) you'll lose it to the right (assuming right handed)!

 

[ArnoldArmChewer]

You got that spot on Arnie, between 104-98 has been where I've been lately and it's mainly through missing greens. Ok we all put the odd one oob but to play your third from the tee straight down the middle and then go on to miss the green really affects the scores.

Miss all but 1 green and you're sticking 17 shots on every round, lets say putting average goes up and you can conservatively say your adding 10 shots per round.

I feel your pain, my GIR stats have never been good but I can scramble well, however I have recently contracted about my 4th career dose of the J Arthurs, this time mainly with a wedge in hand, really not expecting much in Sundays medal.

I would go along with others comments, whilst I probably could lash a 9 iron 135 yards, I never try, usually 0ne/two clubs more although sunday I might be putting with a hybrid from 100 yards in.

Keep practising, I hope your approachs improve.

 

[la_lucha]

Cheers guys, I think you've all answered my query. I'll get up the range and hit 60 odd at 75% and see how I get on over the weekend. Medals on Sunday and Monday so I'll report back afterwards if anyone is interested in how I get on?

Oh just cause I was expecting some of the normal forum type of answers, can someone give me a sarcastic response just so thread doesn't feel so......weird and helpful.

 

[woody69]

I disagree. It's not really because you are missing greens and I think you are focusing on the wrong weakness in your game.

GIR is about birdie opportunities. For someone off 21 I can guarantee you'll be hitting on to the green with your 3rd shot most of the time (par 3's excluded). It is that shot you need to work on the most. If you are able to get that close enough that it's a easy tap in, a direct chip in or at most you end up with a 2 putt, your handicap will start to come down. Chipping on to the green and 2 putting put's you at a bogey player and off 18. Improving that shot to the point you start getting a few 1 putts and you're getting lower.

By all means focus on improving from 150 in and trying to hit the green, but from that distance you have a 90% margin of error on where you are aiming. Much better to be thinking about the 3rd shot that get's you on the green.

 

[fundy]

Cheers guys, I think you've all answered my query. I'll get up the range and hit 60 odd at 75% and see how I get on over the weekend. Medals on Sunday and Monday so I'll report back afterwards if anyone is interested in how I get on?

Oh just cause I was expecting some of the normal forum type of answers, can someone give me a sarcastic response just so thread doesn't feel so......weird and helpful.

Go on then, Ill be slightly contrarian (just for a change lol)

It actually sounds to me that when you hit the full shots (longer irons off the tee) that you are committed and fine. But then with shorter irons you are less committed and taking more club and swinging slower may actually make it worse. You'd be far better off getting a few vids of you hitting approach shots for people to assess better rather than guess what may or may not be going wrong and hence work for you. Maybe youre actually easing off on these shots anyway and need to take less club and hit them harder to stay committed (for me if i take too much club and swing at 80% invariably i dont make a full rotation, become disconnected and hit it with hands and/or arms and get a far worse result)