Making More Birdies

[Junior]

Good post.

I agree with whats been said, but I also think that to make more birdies its important to target specific holes on your course.

Sounds simple, but the change in mindset (for me at least) from just wanting to make par, to expecting to have a 5-10 footer for birdie improved my scoring on a few holes on my course. Where I play there are 2 par 5's where I can get to within a decent pitch (with a fair wind) and also 2 par 4's that I can hit to inside 80 yards on. Instead of just going for the middle of the green, I was taking aim at a few more flags and it paid off more than it let me down.

 

[Region3]

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.

I've only got a laser now, I wouldn't know how far the middle of the green is! :ears:

To be fair, we have coloured flags, so I could take a good guess although I don't go pin hunting all the time anyway. I'm always aiming to be pin high, but with a back flag I'll err on the short side and vice versa for flags at the front.
One thing I don't do is go for the flag if it's dangerous or I have more than a 7 iron in my hand, then I'll be aiming middle(ish) of the green.

 

[duncan mackie]

I've only got a laser now, I wouldn't know how far the middle of the green is! :ears:

To be fair, we have coloured flags, so I could take a good guess although I don't go pin hunting all the time anyway. I'm always aiming to be pin high, but with a back flag I'll err on the short side and vice versa for flags at the front.
One thing I don't do is go for the flag if it's dangerous or I have more than a 7 iron in my hand, then I'll be aiming middle(ish) of the green.

this raises an interesting perspective.

generally, I will aim to hit 'pin high' length unless there are good reasons to go somewhere else, but am even more influenced by danger to the left or right in selecting my line

I suppose this is because my dispersion is L-R rather than B-F, if I make a reasonable contact, but I hadn't really thought about it at all until I read your post.

 

[Region3]

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.

The trouble with the par 5 theory is that we only have 3, and...
One is 539 and usually into the wind. I've been on in 2 twice in almost 4 years.
One is 540 and although with the wind, is a slight dogleg and has a small stream to cross guarded on either side by 30' oak trees 80yds short of the green.
The third is more reachable at about 490 but again has water and hooge trees that you have to go between about 60yds from the green.

I sometimes feel jealous of courses that have 4 reachable 5's where you can just try to get as close as you want, but then I snap out of it because I love risk/reward holes and we have 2 par 5's that are just that.

As an example, here's the green of the easiest of our par 5's and the path you take to get there. Not a gap you go for lightly from 200+

 

[pokerjoke]

Most have said putting aready so i will try to be different.
I went through a stage in the summer of getting lots of birdies,purely on the basis
of i knew how far each club went,especially my short irons.
So knowing your yardages will help you get it the right distance,hence shorter putts.
Aiming to go 6-10 inches past will also give you more chances,never up never in.

 

[MadAdey]

The trouble with the par 5 theory is that we only have 3, and...
One is 539 and usually into the wind. I've been on in 2 twice in almost 4 years.
One is 540 and although with the wind, is a slight dogleg and has a small stream to cross guarded on either side by 30' oak trees 80yds short of the green.
The third is more reachable at about 490 but again has water and hooge trees that you have to go between about 60yds from the green.

I sometimes feel jealous of courses that have 4 reachable 5's where you can just try to get as close as you want, but then I snap out of it because I love risk/reward holes and we have 2 par 5's that are just that.

As an example, here's the green of the easiest of our par 5's and the path you take to get there. Not a gap you go for lightly from 200+

View attachment 4557

I think you need to man up Gary I know the hole. Why not take a 3 wood and rip it up over the top of the trees...........

 

[Region3]

I think you need to man up Gary I know the hole. Why not take a 3 wood and rip it up over the top of the trees...........

I guess the whistley means you're baiting me, but I'll bite anyway

If you (I) don't hit a perfect drive, you might be left with 240 and the trees in your way. You have at least 180 to carry the water, and the ball needs to be 50' high when it goes over the trees 60yds short of the green.

Plus I don't have a 3 wood

Why don't you come and show me how to do it? :whoo:

 

[User 105]

I used to make a lot more birdies when I used to try and smack my driver as far as I could. Great when I connected, but when I didn't it was a disaster.

Now I've ramped down the driver, I don't make as many birdies, but vary rarely have worse than a double on the card.

My m8 is a birdy machine, again hits his driver miles so is always coming in with a short club, and is a decent putter to go with it. So can take advantage of the close approaches.

 

[MadAdey]

I guess the whistley means you're baiting me, but I'll bite anyway

If you (I) don't hit a perfect drive, you might be left with 240 and the trees in your way. You have at least 180 to carry the water, and the ball needs to be 50' high when it goes over the trees 60yds short of the green.

Plus I don't have a 3 wood

Why don't you come and show me how to do it? :whoo:

LOL..

I have played it a few times but hat was probably 10 years ago now. I will come over one day and bring Pete with me for a return match. I know what you mean regarding par 5's. My place only has 3 and one of those is more or less impossible to get on in 2 due to tightness of the gap at the green, another one has a very difficult drive to make if you want to get on in 2 and the other is a real good eagle chance. So the par 5s at my place are not exactly easy due to it being to either get on in 2 or very close.

 

[JustOne]

I guess the whistley means you're baiting me, but I'll bite anyway

If you (I) don't hit a perfect drive, you might be left with 240 and the trees in your way. You have at least 180 to carry the water, and the ball needs to be 50' high when it goes over the trees 60yds short of the green.

I'd be taking it on IF I had got a decent drive away. Looks like a heap of space around the green not like Copthorne (for example) where the whole greens are surrounded by brambles. Either of those bunkers would suffice! On in two and it's eagle time! Looks like an easy birdie hole

 

[Lump]

Are we settling on putting being the answer to more birdies?

I hit a decent amount of GIR but my miss with a putter is always short, I just don't like running putts at the hole. I like the ball to just drop into the hole. This is something I'm going to work on this year.

 

[Crow]

Just looked back over my last 20 rounds and I made one birdie evry two rounds, pretty poor stats!

I too suffer from difficult par 5s;
1st = 582/552 white/yellow tees, I've never got near in two shots.
7th = 547/525, you need a 300 yard drive to get past the corner and see the green, which slopes away from you.
14th = 515/419, the easiest but the drive lands on an upslope and there's a ditch 40 yards short of the green so you need to carry that to get on in two or rely on a fortunate bounce.
18th = 549/541 with a pond 70 yards short of the green and the green is enclosed by trees on three sides.

Most of my birdies come on the short par fours.

 

[Wayman]

for me i think reason i dont make loads is im not good at 10ft and under putts

ive nocked shots to 5 ft for birdie and missed them

 

[Imurg]

1st = 582/552 white/yellow tees, I've never got near in two shots.
7th = 547/525, you need a 300 yard drive to get past the corner and see the green, which slopes away from you.
14th = 515/419, the easiest but the drive lands on an upslope and there's a ditch 40 yards short of the green so you need to carry that to get on in two or rely on a fortunate bounce.
18th = 549/541 with a pond 70 yards short of the green and the green is enclosed by trees on three sides.

Most of my birdies come on the short par fours.

Don't forget on the majority of your par 5's a 230 yard drive leaves you a 320 yard par 4

 

[jimbo123]

I find the more you concentrate on getting the ball on the green in regulation, this will always give you a chance of birdie, don't be frightened to run at the hole and if it ones pass the hole make sure you watch the line, it's not always about getting it close all the On my way! Just I've yourself a chance, and bet of all if your going well try not think about the previous hole however great it was but move onto the next one, easier said than done but a good routine o get in o
James

 

[HomerJSimpson]

For the pros it is clearly hitting the par 5's in two and setting up tap in birdies that account for a lot. For mere mortals like me it is about trying to hit the green and make a decent length putt. I can't hit the par 5's at my course with perhaps the exception of the 15th in the summer and even then chances are low.

What do I need to work on? Hitting more green or holing out from further away? I'm not going to make any birdies if I don't get it in play off the tee. I then need to find the green with a mid-ish iron. In the good old days I could drive at least 5 of the greens at Wimbleson Common in the summer and so like the pros hitting the pat 5's my birdie ratio went up. We don't have a single drivable par 4 at my current course. At the end of the day I'll take boring and making par or using my shots sensibly and enjoying the birdies when they come

 

[Fader]

I'm a par machine usually. I hit a high percentage of greens as I'm pretty accurate but I'm at best what you'd call an average putter.

My PB is 73 which I shot at my old club which is 2 over par, in that round I had 14 pars, 3 bogies & 1 birdie on the last hole and that was a day where I hit 15 of 18 GIR. So for me it's certainly holing putts that will give Me more birdies.

 

[SimonC]

I've just had a look on howdidido and my average is 2 birdies per round in competitions. If I'm playing well I'd hope for 3 or 4, the only problem is my course only has 1 par 5. It's easily reachable in summer 496 yards slightly uphill right to left but the green is just plain nasty, it falls off steeply from the front, left & right hand sides and is quite a small target when you're going in with a long iron.

I'm not sure what the most I've had in round is, I've had 5 on the front 9 at my place a couple of times both of these were where I had 4 in a row.

For me making more birdies it's when my putting is on as I'm usually pretty good at hitting greens in regulation. It can get frustraing however when you're hitting them and not making anything. I had one round a couple of years ago that I'll never forget as I hit every green in regulation but had 40 putts still haunts me now.

 

[Region3]

Are we settling on putting being the answer to more birdies?

Hmm, not sure.

At first I thought so, but then think about this...

If I average 8 GIR per round, and 1.5 birdies per round, that means that I make birdie when I hit GIR about 19% of the time. Saying it like that doesn't sound so bad to me. Every 5 times I hit a green I'll make birdie? Not bad imo.

If I'm talking about averaging 3 birdies per round but still only hitting 8 greens, that means I need to sink the birdie putt almost 40% of the time. That sounds tough if you ask me, so the answer must be hit more greens.

I feel a poll coming on...........

As an afterthought, I played 29 holes at the weekend and hit 17 greens (more than usual).

I left myself putts (guesstimated) of inside 10' x 2, 11'-15' x 8, 16'-20' x 4 and 21'-30' x 3. I made 2 of them (10' and 18').

Would you expect to hole more than that? The greens aren't massively tricky, but there are hardly any flat putts.

 

[MadAdey]

Hmm, not sure.

At first I thought so, but then think about this...

If I average 8 GIR per round, and 1.5 birdies per round, that means that I make birdie when I hit GIR about 19% of the time. Saying it like that doesn't sound so bad to me. Every 5 times I hit a green I'll make birdie? Not bad imo.

If I'm talking about averaging 3 birdies per round but still only hitting 8 greens, that means I need to sink the birdie putt almost 40% of the time. That sounds tough if you ask me, so the answer must be hit more greens.

I feel a poll coming on...........

As an afterthought, I played 29 holes at the weekend and hit 17 greens (more than usual).

I left myself putts (guesstimated) of inside 10' x 2, 11'-15' x 8, 16'-20' x 4 and 21'-30' x 3. I made 2 of them (10' and 18').

Would you expect to hole more than that? The greens aren't massively tricky, but there are hardly any flat putts.

IMO it is hitting greens. A pro will probably hit 11 or 12 GIR and make 5 or 6 birdies on a normal day, so even someone at that level is only making around 50% of his birdie putts. So to me if a handicap golfer is making is making around 1 in 4 then he is not doing bad.

Last couple of days I have played 31 holes. I hit 17 GIR and made 3 birdies, so just 17% of chances made. So to me you need to hit greens and you will have chances to make more birdies. At the end of the day you can't hope to hit 4 GIR and make 4 birdies, but if you can hit 9 then you have a chance.