Light at the end of the tunnel

[stevek1969]

Played tonight in the Wednesday sweep and a possibility of another 0.1. Last year at this time i was 9.2 now 17 comps later i'm 10.9 which ain't good. After thoughts of giving up and 3 lessons and rank rotten golf tonight i finished 2 shots under the standard scratch, which in its self is decent as it was windy but even more as i lost a ball on the first.3 putted the 2nd, 4 putted the 3 and 3 putted the 4th a nice eagle 3 at the par 5 9th helped to be out in 42.

The back was a more steady with 3 bogeys and 6 pars with the bogeys coming from missed 4-5 footers which is annoying. I know the possibility of a 0.4 cut may not seem a lot but i'm one happy camper.

 

[Oddsocks]

Seems your putting is killing you, is it the greens at your track or possible technique problems. My pro completely changed my putting around 3 months ago,

New grip, new stance, new ball position & its all just starting to click. My putting was far to inconsistant but its come along way after changing it. I think its easy to assume putting is the easier bit that doesnt require pro help, but im convinced a check now and then in this area wont hurt.

 

[Split_Fairway]

i completely agree with oddsocks in this. a few months ago i was struggling to play to my meager handicap of 17 which was largely due to an abysmal short game. i got a lesson with the club pro on my putting, he smoothed out my putting stroke and showed me a pre-shot routine that really helps, and i instantly found results, within a few weeks i was regularly shooting scores in single figures and although some part of my game has levelled off recently, my putting is still a surefire feature of my game that i can rely on

 

[Oddsocks]

the thing is because you dont hit puts 100 yards etc, its hard to see where you issues are. If you boom a 6 iron 170 yards you can see how the ball is reacting, its harder to see with a putt, but its amazing how quick my pro commented

"Yuk, no wonder your cards are up and down. right we need to throw everything away and start again"

i know it must have been bad as he is one who would rather tweek your technique than a complete change, but the change has been for the better.

My only problem was that i brough a rossa mallet putter because i thought my problem was line up, and now its getting regular with quick greens for me to put strong. Now my technique is there i may consider going back to a more conventional style putter with less weight behind it, and keep the rossa for the winter wooly greens

 

[stevek1969]

A possibility guys but my mates nailed it for me (both 3 handicappers ,one of them teaches golf to kids so a bit knowledgeable.) My stroke for the for the first 4 holes was shocking it was like Zoro slashing all over the place.
Also played Portstewart in Ireland on Saturday and the greens were like lightning where as ours were a lot slower for some reason so a bit of adjustment there after that back to normal , i think a bit of practise needed on my putting .