Lowering you handicap.

[Tashyboy]

I know the question has been asked a million times. But in a nutshell,

at the beginning of 2013/14, I got my first handicap of 27, at the end of the season I was down to 24.
Obviously at the start of this season I was on 24 and have got it down to 21.
as much as I am ecstatic, being realistic, how can I get it down to below 20 regular and hopefully 18 by the end of next season.
now I have got my drive going and going well it is helping me enormously, but well any advice will be gratefully received.

one thing I have thought about doing is having a round with the club pro to get any advice of him.

Cheers everyone.

 

[patricks148]

I know the question has been asked a million times. But in a nutshell,

at the beginning of 2013/14, I got my first handicap of 27, at the end of the season I was down to 24.
Obviously at the start of this season I was on 24 and have got it down to 21.
as much as I am ecstatic, being realistic, how can I get it down to below 20 regular and hopefully 18 by the end of next season.
now I have got my drive going and going well it is helping me enormously, but well any advice will be gratefully received.

one thing I have thought about doing is having a round with the club pro to get any advice of him.

Cheers everyone.

how often do you get to play?

 

[Pin-seeker]

Short game,get a good short game & your handicap will soon come down.

PS.. My short game is terrible :angry:

 

[Lump]

Nothing substitutes for just hitting balls. Hundreds and hundreds of balls and lots and lots of hours.

 

[Imurg]

Keep the ball in play
Don't always reach for a long club on a par 5 if there's trouble around
3 x 6 irons will get you on or near most par 5's leaving uoh a chip and a putt or 2 for a reasonable number.
At my last club one of the par 5's had OB all the way up the right and the wind always blew left to right. Many many people hit their drivers, sliced it and played 3 off the tee. I hot most of them playing a 5 or 6 iron and just getting on the short stuff. Another 2 of them and you're there.

 

[HomerJSimpson]

Short game,get a good short game & your handicap will soon come down.

PS.. My short game is terrible :angry:

I agree but I also think a playing lesson is a great idea as well. It gives a pro a chance to see what you do out on a course

 

[fundy]

9 hole playing lesson with your pro with a remit that you want to develop a plan to practice throughout the next few months/year with the main aim of reducing your handicap. then let him use his expertise to guide you based on what he sees (ps play normally dont try and do what you thinks hes expecting you to do!)

 

[Tashyboy]

how often do you get to play?

At least once a week, but mostly twice.

practice wise, Lord knows, the local driving range is five mins away but the balls are like ball bearings. Our course driving range is 25 mins away, so too far for an hours practice.

 

[garyinderry]

Half an hours chipping abs pitching on any patch of grass will do a world of good.

People write it all the time but it really it all about how you get up and down when you miss the green.

 

[Duckster]

At least once a week, but mostly twice.

practice wise, Lord knows, the local driving range is five mins away but the balls are like ball bearings. Our course driving range is 25 mins away, so too far for an hours practice.

The more and more you play, the better you'll get. Fullest confidence you'll be down to around 18 after this season!

 

[Tashyboy]

The more and more you play, the better you'll get. Fullest confidence you'll be down to around 18 after this season!

And that is probably what I wanted to hear as well seeing as I'm hoping to retire later this year.

 

[Deleted Member 1156]

Nothing substitutes for just hitting balls. Hundreds and hundreds of balls and lots and lots of hours.

Only worthwhile if you are graining in the right things and not just practicing your faults.


The playing lesson would be worth doing, learn a lot about course management which will save you a bucketload of shots :thup:

 

[patricks148]

At least once a week, but mostly twice.

practice wise, Lord knows, the local driving range is five mins away but the balls are like ball bearings. Our course driving range is 25 mins away, so too far for an hours practice.

i would try and play as often as you can, even if its just a few hole at a time or just using chipping balls on a bit of grass.

and play as many comps as you can.

 

[Lump]

Only worthwhile if you are graining in the right things and not just practicing your faults.


The playing lesson would be worth doing, learn a lot about course management which will save you a bucketload of shots :thup:

Utter nonsense.
I've only had 3 lessons….ever, and all we went through was grip.
I've hit thousands and thousands of balls. After so long you begin to understand what you need to do in a swing to get results.
A repeatable bad swing is far better than an unrepeatable good swing.

 

[Tommo21]

Nothing substitutes for just hitting balls. Hundreds and hundreds of balls and lots and lots of hours.

Yeah and for every ball you hit, hit double the amount of putts. HC will tumble.

 

[mikeb4]

Nothing substitutes for just hitting balls. Hundreds and hundreds of balls and lots and lots of hours.

Not meaning to sound smart but no point in hitting hundreds of balls if not hit correctly, however it is good to practice and work on your weak areas, I personally enjoy practicing I have dropped 12.1 shots in three years due to hard work.

 

[Lump]

Not meaning to sound smart but no point in hitting hundreds of balls if not hit correctly, however it is good to practice and work on your weak areas, I personally enjoy practicing I have dropped 12.1 shots in three years due to hard work.

What is correct? There is no wrong or right way to swing a club.
Hitting hundreds of balls will build consistency, simple as that. I play with single low digit players with dodgy swings, they are single digit because they do the same thing, over & over.

 

[virtuocity]

Get the ball moving forward with every shot without going out of bounds.

It's all about strike at 18+ handicap level IMO (unless you 4 putt every hole).

You need to understand impact and make sure that you're not duffing drives OOB or second shots 25 yards in front of you.

Don't worry about direction. Keep it in play and get the second shot moving forward.

 

[Simbo]

At least once a week, but mostly twice.

practice wise, Lord knows, the local driving range is five mins away but the balls are like ball bearings. Our course driving range is 25 mins away, so too far for an hours practice.

A 25 minute drive is to far to go and practice???
Becoming better at something requires sacrifice, dedication and hardwork. Not much beats hardwork IMO.

 

[Sion]

It's all about the short game. 70% practice on short game and you'll soon come down.