Making More Birdies

[Region3]

Sounds like a daft question, but how do you make more birdies?

The obvious answers are hole more putts and hit more greens/get closer to the flag, but I'm wondering if there's something else.

I'm usually quite steady. If I play around handicap a typical round might be 1 birdie, 10 pars, and 7 bogeys. Maybe an extra birdie or a double sometimes, but it's usually pretty similar. I probably average between 1 and 2 birdies per round, but closer to 1.

I've played with higher handicaps than me who make way more birdies than I do but have more bad holes. Are they better iron players or putters, or is there a secret ingredient to their games?

I also played a game once with 2 very low guys. They both shot 71 (-1). One did it with 15 pars, 2 birdies and a bogey. The other did it with 8 pars, 6 birdies, 3 bogeys and a double!
The first one was almost boring (in a good way) - fairway, green, 2 putts. You never thought anything exciting was going to happen but at the same time you expected par on every hole. The second one was much less predictable. Shots could go anywhere (within reason) and standing on the tee no score would be a shock.

Pro's will very often have 3 or 4 bogeys a round, but they just make so many birdies that even then their scores are under par.

So for those of you who make lots of birdies, what is your mindset when playing or what do you do differently to the 'steady Eddies'?
Or maybe it's just in our make-up what type of player we are.

 

[HawkeyeMS]

I'm pretty similar to you R3, my rounds are made up of a lot of pars, a few bogies and the odd birdie but the birdie average is probably just under 1. Personally I don't think I give myself enough realistic birdie chances as I don't hit nearly enough greens. My putting is good enough that if I gave myself 8 or 9 realistic birdie attempts, I'd make 2 or 3 so for me, making more birdies is about hitting more greens and giving my putter the chance to do it's stuff.

 

[fundy]

I make a fair chunk of mine by knocking it on or close to the par 5s in 2, I tends to feel I dont make enough on the par 4s where often I may play the hole a safer route (less club off tee and middle green approach rather than ripping a driver then going at the flag with a wedge).

For me the way to make more will be to be a bit more positive off the tee and improve my wedge play

 

[Imurg]

Steady Eddie here too.
Not unusal to have 12-14 pars and the rest bogeys or maybe slip a birdie in there somewhere.
Over a year I make around 2 per round but I can go several rounds without one and then knock in 3 every game for a month.
For me it's the putts. I give myself enough chances from 10 feet but just don't convert enough - certainly at the moment. Our greens don't help as they're not very true and I'm not getting much luck on them - the ususal lip-outs and those that defy gravity...
Made a couple last Friday with excellent approaches to within 5 feet but a couple of weeks ago I hit 11 greens and didn't make one.
Accuracy of approach helps but even at my standard, from 150 yards, getting to within 15 feet is a decent effort and we're going to miss more from that distance than we make.

 

[pendodave]

I'm not sure if this helps, but...

In the 2013 pga stats, here are the top six birdie average (most birds per round) players :

1. snedeker (top putter)
2. Brian Gay (top putter)
3. Russel Henley (currently 2013 first place stokes gained putting)
4. Bob Estes (currently 2013 17th place stokes gained putting)
5. Robert Garrigus (no 7 driving distance and no 1 'going for the green')
6. Chris Kirk (currently 2013 3rd place stokes gained putting)

So you've either got to put better or hit the ball a country mile ! Slightly better odds for the putting...

Not sure if the same rules apply to ams, but most of the feedback will be anecdotal, whereas these are cold hard facts !

 

[NWJocko]

I'm more of the mixed bag type player with birdies and bogeys rather than steady pars. If I'm not mkaing birdies my handicap often seems like a distant dream!

On my own course I "target" certain holes that I know are birdie chances and play the holes to give me the best chance. On the par 5's if I can't reach in 2 then there are good spots to chip from to leave you a chance so I play to there. On 2 of the par 5's I tend to play safe (3w/hybrid/iron) off the tee if I can't reach in 2 due to weather so the worst I'm going to get is a par (on in 3, 2 putts).

On the par 4's that are birdie-able (not sure if that's a word), I've worked out the best way to play them to give me a birdie chance.

The others I play less aggressively and if I get a birdie it's a bonus.

When I rarely have a boring round of mainly pars I tend to miss a load of greens but short game is working well that day.

 

[MashieNiblick]

Watching the Tour guys when they get into a run of birdies it does seem to be a matter of holing putts, from every where and anywhere, rather than knocking the pins out with their approaches.

 

[Val]

Holing the putts, thats the bottom line. If you become a more aggressive putter it will happen, If you are a timid putter then it wont matter how good your iron play is, you wont hole the amount your iron play deserves.

 

[Imurg]

Holing the putts, thats the bottom line. If you become a more aggressive putter it will happen, If you are a timid putter then it wont matter how good your iron play is, you wont hole the amount your iron play deserves.

I think I'd use the term "Positive" rather than aggressive though I know exactly what you mean.
To me, an aggressive putter rams the ball in and runs the risk of leaving a 4-5 footer or more coming back if they miss or increasing the chance of lip-outs..
A positive putter gets the ball to the hole at the right pace so it drops or goes no further than a foot and a half if it misses

 

[Joff]

Very interesting. I'm a very boring golfer. Par often, birdie rarely. Often thought about it though. My record is 4 birdies in a round. I almost never birdie par 4s either. What does it mean?

 

[Val]

I think I'd use the term "Positive" rather than aggressive though I know exactly what you mean.
To me, an aggressive putter rams the ball in and runs the risk of leaving a 4-5 footer or more coming back if they miss or increasing the chance of lip-outs..
A positive putter gets the ball to the hole at the right pace so it drops or goes no further than a foot and a half if it misses

Ok, maybe more positive. I think the bulk of people on here will be more short the long, long has a chance short will never go in.

I talk a good game as I am with those more often short.

 

[FairwayDodger]

I'm also usually good for 1 or 2 birdies per round, max. I'm disappointed to not make any birdies but don't think I've ever made more than 3 in a round.

At first I thought there was no set pattern to my birdies.... I've had tap ins after a good approach, I've holed some putts that are a bit more than a gimme and I've canned some monster putts. However, I realise that at my own course I make most of my birdies on the two par 5s. Both of these holes are reachable in 2 so I'm usually either looking at 2 putts or a greenside up and down for birdie.

Other frequent birdie holes are those of a length where I have a short iron approach and can put it to a range from which I make a decent percentage of putts. Holes with long iron approaches, I don't make many birdies at all.

 

[Hobbit]

I'm not that hot tee to green but, generally, have a decent short game. If I have a good round tee to green, GIR, the putts are longer than chipping and one putting but I can go on a birdie-fest. My best round last year had 7 birdies in it but was still only 1 under. There was a couple of 5 birdie rounds, followed by a whole host 4 and 3 birdie rounds but out of all them, only 3 finished under par.

So how come so many birdies? Once on the green I go for everything... 2 things, I've never seen a short putt drop, and I believe I'll get the one coming back if I miss. Whether the putt is for a par or a birdie, its still just a putt over the same bit of green - why should there be any pressure over a birdie putt. And finally, we don't do it for a living so why get all fussed and hot under the collar if it isn't your day... enjoy the walk, anything else is a bonus.

 

[cookelad]

Regularly get called boring (on and off the course before anyone else says it) or hear "I'd already marked you a 4!" My 35 on the front at Carden Park's Nicklaus course was 8 straight pars then a birdie on the par 5 9th!

More often than not I'll have 1 or 2 birdies per round! Think my most was 5 in a single round!

 

[duncan mackie]

if you don't hole the putts you won't make birdies

as I've said before, if you are confident in making putts you will hit more greens anyway because, as we all know, aiming at the middle of the green will give you the best chance of putting; and you just know that you will sink the putt so your focus and attention are on making the green......guess what, some of them will end up close to the flag too

the difference between my best (6 birdies in the first 11 holes - 7000 yd course) and worst (frequent 0) wasn't, and isn't ever, related to any difference in approach from the tee or aggressive approach shots - it's a focus on holing the ball.

 

[JustOne]

For me it's finding the green... I make less when I miss it. Anywhere on the green will suffice. aiming at pins doesn't necessarily work as I'm not that accurate and puts too much pressure on the (longer) shots.... take enough club, middle of every green and that's 18 birdie putts.

Did chip in 3 times once in a round... that was in 1994 and I still remember each one of the shots as it's never happened since!!

When I was hitting the ball well I would expect 3 birdies in most rounds..... now 3 pars would be nice!! :angry:

 

[Akie]

if you don't hole the putts you won't make birdies

I'm not someone who holes a huge amount of birdies with any sort of consistency but its down to putting. I play with my Dad and he tends to beat me by 3-4 shots a round and its hugely because he makes some tough putts.

 

[TheClaw]

Sometimes I am too content with a par when I've got a birdie putt. I reckon I hole more par saves than birdies from similar distances...needs to change.

 

[MadAdey]

I think my view will cross reference to the thread that GIBBO started about hitting greens. I play on the law of averages. The more greens I hit the more chance I have. Just got back from playing and had a nice round again like yesterday and I made 2 birdies. I hit 10 GIR and even with my putting ability, the law of averages says I will make something at some point.

I think what I am saying is hit the green and give yourself a chance of a putt, because even with my bad putting I still mike birdies. Trying to force an iron to get too close and you run the risk of missing the green, then you are looking to get up and down. Think about your greens Gary, how far would you be away most of the time if landed your ball around the middle of the green. I think you would give yourself 5 good birdie chances.

 

[Mattyboy]

I have looked at some tour stats (2012) that might be relevent, looking at the person in 100th position for each stat:
Bridies or better per round 19.44%
Birdies or better par 3's 12.88%
Birdies or better par 4's 15.63%
Birdies or better par 5's 48.48%

So the par 5's is where it is at. Get it there or thereabouts on the par 5's and have a decent short game.