Your progression , how bad were you ?

[timd77]

As for my improvement, my grandad gave me a 7 iron and a few balls when i was a kid and so i used to go down the local football pitch and hit a few shots. As i got a bit older my folks bought me a set and I had a couple of lessons when I was 15. Over the next 3-4 years I got half decent, I would go round in 85-90 playing a couple of times a month.

Then marriage, divorce, marriage children, job etc mean that i didn't really play for over 15 years. Once a year if I was lucky. In that time I'd always say my hobbies included golf and I've always wanted to get back into it. This year, I agreed to go on a golf weekend and so felt that I needed to get a few rounds in, the bug took hold and now I play pretty regularly again. Not as often as i'd like, perhaps twice a month with the odd trip down the driving range, but nonetheless, I've got the bug back. So much so that i'm joining a club soon, taking lessons, looking at new clubs, always on here etc.

I've played maybe 10 rounds since April and I've only managed to break 100 once, so I've not managed to pick up where I left off. But I know from the shots I sometimes play that it's still in me, I just need to play more often and get consistent. According to golfshake i'm playing off 24.

 

[palindromicbob]

I really wish I could explain further. Unfortunatley I just look on the board and see what it is. There is no indication of how or why?

I havn't really grasped the CSS/Category Handicap system. And it would seem neither has the handicap guy at the club.

It is a one man band to be fair. Maybe I just need to join a different club to get a proper HC.

What is the SSS. Should be printed on the score card.

 

[dotty001]

i was rubbish , left , right , duffs , i gradually hit the ballbetter but joining a pub society really improved me ,

i watched and learned from the better players and then joining a club took me to the next level , although it took about 12 medals until felt comfortable in other than my friends company ...

 

[Jack_bfc]

What is the SSS. Should be printed on the score card.

72...

I have been tracing my own progress (basic spreadsheet) on various courses and bounce games using the sss every time and I,m down to 17.6...

Is that a drop in CAT and do I go down less per stroke below 18.

 

[kid2]

I had only played about 3 rounds of golf before this......First ever competitive round after getting a handicap of 21 and i had 32 points......That was in August 2009....
Fast forward to now and im down to a 10 handicap and still getting better..... 4 years on.....

Best round iv had to date was 3 weeks ago in an intermediate scratch cup....I shot a gross 75...My first time ever braking 80.....

I got to 14 without lessons....But i knew that to get where i want which is low single figures i didnt have a swing good enough.... So i took a course of lessons last October.... 8 in total over 6 months.... Im down to 10 now and even though before the season started i said id be happy with that for this year im getting a little greedy....
In the last 7 weeks iv played 10 competitions.... Iv had cuts in 3 of them, Iv had 5 buffers and i had two 0.1's back.....

Im playing well so if i can keep the momentum going and maybe get to 9 then the hard work will start again this winter and im going to try get down another shot or 2 next season...... Hopefully.

 

[BRISTOL86]

6 weeks ago I'd pretty much never played golf - went to the driving range and hit about 5 balls out of 80 which went both up in the air and in a vaguely forwards direction! Now it's about 40-50 out of 80 so that's progress, right!

I'm having my first ever "competitive" game against a colleague on Sunday on a par 3 course!

 

[mcbroon]

I've been playing golf since I was old enough to hit the ball but I was only interested in football growing up, so played golf maybe half a dozen times a year max.

I started playing competitive golf in 2011 and got a h/c of 14. I could hit the ball pretty well but I had to learn how to score in order to get my h/c down. I've worked on my short game and that's the reason for the h/c cuts. It's the quickest way to progress.

 

[Papas1982]

I started about a year ago, only get on the course 2 times a month if I'm lucky, maybe range twice too. Would constantly be hitting between 105 and 115 depending on how many balls I lost off the tee 11 was the record!! Had one lesson last month on driving and have hit 96, 94 since. Defo recommend seeing a pro for pointers!!

 

[Imurg]

1989ish Hacked around with Fragger and a couple of mates at a 9 holer but not seriously.
First full round was 137....!!!!
Played a bit more and got the scores on a full round down to 105.
Had to pack up Cricket in 92 due to a knackered knee and decided to play this game seriously-ish.
Spent a whole Winter on the range. I foolishly thought I had to be of a decent standard to join a club. Most weekends I'd be bashing balls, worming out how to do things.
Eventually decided I was "good enough" to join and played in 3 comps to get my handicap.
Turns out I was more than good enough and began on 15.
That was 1993.
20 years later and the best round I've had was 4 under par and my best handicap 4.8
Probably took me 5 years to get to single figures, stayed there until I left golf for a few years due to Parenthood and injury (2001-2004). Managed to start up again in 05 - The Secretary asked me what I was playing to as I 'd been out a few times on my own. We decided 13 was good and it probably took another 2-3 years and I was back in single numbers again. Now off 6 so my handicap has only fluctuated by 10 shots in 20 years...

 

[HomerJSimpson]

First round as a kid with my dad at Coulsdon Court was 130. Fortunately things got better quickly

 

[louise_a]

Difficult to say to be honest, I can remember going round in 144 many many years ago. Since taking it up again my first handicap last March was 34, now playing off 15.

 

[elliottlale]

I started playing about 3 years ago, first shot about 110, 3 years later doing better, PB 83! Progression!!!

 

[joma1108]

I played 20 + years ago as a kid (not affiliated to a club) and played off around 16 - 18 stopped playing until i was 9 and started again

My first counting score was 138 (69 in and out)
my starting handicap was 26

I struggeld in the first 6 months not knowing what i was doing let alone what i was doing wrong, i got some lessons and dropped to 21 by the end of the season

Next season got fitted for my driver and woods and played a bit better had a few more lessons and dropped to 18

Last season i got Ping G20 fitted and worked hard on my course management and keeping it in play and dropped to 15

This season, i have been working on my Short game and putting due to missing so many greens so much so that i am confident of getting up and down for par on around 60 - 70 % of the time, my course management is much better and i dont try to take on the seve shots as much and take my medicine (a 5 or 6 is much better then an 8) now down to 11.5 and hoping to get down a bit more.

Im strugging to get medals in just now as other things on a saturday.

My aim is to get to single figures next year however realistically it will be tough, but i like a challenge

I found that when i understood my swing and played the percentages that my handicap went down, when i thought i was better than i was it went up.

 

[Beezerk]

Played a bit on the local fields as a kid then the odd 18 hole game in my 20's but barely anything after that.
Took it up properly in April, lots of range practice, had one lesson and I joined a local course a couple of weeks ago.
Still hitting in the 110 region but mainly because there's always two or three nightmare holes which ruin my card however that last couple of games I've felt more confident with clubs in hand.
Played last night with Snell from this forum, for instance both of us took 5 on a par 3 after we'd hit to the edge of the green from the tee.
If I can reduce the amount of wayward tee shots and get more confident from 100 yards out I'm sure I could get my scores much lower quite quickly, at the minute however I'm just enjoying playing and learning from my mistakes :thup:

 

[Spear-Chucker]

Started as a kid and couldn't break 150. Didn't care much and just kept plugging away practicing on footie pitches and the course whenever possible. 25 years later and I've made some nice progress and not stopped yet...

 

[Gazboy]

First picked up a club nearly 4 years ago, and scored 120 odd on a tricky par 3 course, then 6 months later had a go on a proper course and shot 156! Within a few months that was down to 115 but since then progress has been very slow, a PB of 104 and consistently shooting 105-110. I have worked really hard to be better but my long game is awful despite lots of lessons and practice and I play socially 6 times a month. Reading this thread has been quite disheartening really.

 

[joma1108]

First picked up a club nearly 4 years ago, and scored 120 odd on a tricky par 3 course, then 6 months later had a go on a proper course and shot 156! Within a few months that was down to 115 but since then progress has been very slow, a PB of 104 and consistently shooting 105-110. I have worked really hard to be better but my long game is awful despite lots of lessons and practice and I play socially 6 times a month. Reading this thread has been quite disheartening really.

Try not to get too disheartened, i was struggling a bit like you and worked hard on three areas of my game

Course Management, find a distance you are compfortable attacking the green from (mine was 115 yards) and then try to play each shot to that point, you will then gain confidence in that shot and due to the repetitive nature will become adept at it quite quickly

The next area for me was chipping and pitching around the green, take different clubs from the same position and lie and see what happens as each one hits the green and then when you go to the course you will have a much better idea of what the ball will do and hopefully leave you in a good position for single putts

Lastly was putting, i cant stress enough how much my game improved i was three putting every green almost and then after working hard on the practice green for hours on end playing games on the practice green, pick six different putting positions to the same hole distances from 6 feet to as far as you can and try to get down in no more than two putts on every position, this will help your lag putting and invariably your knee tremblers as through time these will become second nature.

If you can work on these three points and not become disheartened before you know it you will be shaving shots off your round

Good luck

 

[Gazboy]

Try not to get too disheartened, i was struggling a bit like you and worked hard on three areas of my game

Course Management, find a distance you are compfortable attacking the green from (mine was 115 yards) and then try to play each shot to that point, you will then gain confidence in that shot and due to the repetitive nature will become adept at it quite quickly

The next area for me was chipping and pitching around the green, take different clubs from the same position and lie and see what happens as each one hits the green and then when you go to the course you will have a much better idea of what the ball will do and hopefully leave you in a good position for single putts

Lastly was putting, i cant stress enough how much my game improved i was three putting every green almost and then after working hard on the practice green for hours on end playing games on the practice green, pick six different putting positions to the same hole distances from 6 feet to as far as you can and try to get down in no more than two putts on every position, this will help your lag putting and invariably your knee tremblers as through time these will become second nature.

If you can work on these three points and not become disheartened before you know it you will be shaving shots off your round

Good luck

Thank you

My putting is pretty much there, I usually 2 putt every green and if I have a good chip onto the green I'll fancy my chances with a single putt. On Sunday I made 37 putts. My chipping is ok but not brilliant since changing from my Wilson Deep Red's to a set of Big Berthas but I'm sure I'll get used to them and make more up and downs again. I practice my putting constantly.

Pitching needs work, longer grass I'm fine but off the short stuff from 40-60 yards from the fringe I am just as likely to thin the ball in half as I am to strike it well (this is what I practiced today) and if I don't thin it, it'll leave the face at 45 degrees to the right...

Tee off- Oh dear Lord I'm hopeless. I don't understand what changes from the neck up when the ball is on the tee box (even without a peg!) Even an 8 iron off a peg is little better than 50/50 and this is what most of my lessons have concentrated on.

Thanks for your help & guidance

 

[G1BB0]

played my 1st round ever in Feb 2011 @ Panshanger and stopped scoring, was around 130-140.

I have been down to 21 and pb is 83 on a par 69. Lack of practice and lessons means at present I am deteriorating as opposed to improving. I know theres a semi decent golfer in me I just struggle to find him for a full 18 holes

 

[ScienceBoy]

I had always had a set of clubs but was a 1-2 times a year player after playing for a couple of summer holidays as a young-un.

I eventualy gave up rugby and decided to take up golf properly. I got all new clubs and had regular lessons, got my 1st handicap of 17 3 months later then promptly won 2 of my 1st 3 comps. Was off 12 by the end of the next summer.

I then had to stop playing due to work but did come out of "retirement" for a couple of months in the summer and won a scratch cup (mostly due to weather on the competition day).