Psychology

[golfdoc]

This is a question that I ask many golfers.

Do you want to be a better golfer or do you want to shoot lower scores?

Is there a difference?

Please feel free to share opinions.

I do a lot of work looking at the mental aspect of golf. I teach some lessons but prefer to focus on golf "thinking" as a way to improve.

Thanks for your feedback.

[GrantTotten]

Hey Golfdoc,

Interesting distinction. I would have to say "be a better golfer" rather than "shoot lower". I think that since I will never be a Tour player I want to:

1. Enjoy the game
2. Do it "well enough" that my partners won't be embarassed to play with me
3. Do it well enough that I will be able to play for many years (no back injuries)

And besides, if you're a better golfer, you're likely going to shoot lower scores. So my answer is more "all of the above" to a degree.

Grant

[Kilroy]

Better golfers shoot lower scores. If there is a distinction, I don't see it

Show me the light!

[golfdoc]

Grant,

I definitely agree that the focus should be to have fun and stay healthy.

If you and three friends play together and you have the lowest score that day, does that mean that you were the better golfer that day?

[golfdoc]

Dan,

You are correct. Better golfers have lower scores. Plain and simple. People don't realize that becoming a better golfer (lower scores) is attainable without considering your ball striking ability.

If people really want to shoot lower, they could do so, by leaving 3 or 4 clubs in the car, playing smart boring golf.

Problem is, EGO gets in the way.

[Chris]

Mind if I jump in,

"If you and three friends play together and you have the lowest score that day, does that mean that you were the better golfer that day? "

I think the better golfer plays well and is more rounded, physically, mentally and spiritually (if you beleive in golf gods). Perhaps when you shoot the lowest score you are the better golfer "that day", but you may not necessarily have that distinction every day.

You may have scrambled all day and posted the lowest score, while your playing partners where more consistant tee to green. However if you consistantly post the lowest scores with the same three players and continue to scramble each round, I would say that you are better at scrambling than playing good golf. After the round though you're probably more frustrated than happy with your game.

[GrantTotten]

Sometimes I find my greatest satisfaction comes from a good hard scramble, where I get (relatively) good results. To wit:

One day I was playing in our Monday night league, and I was having a "not very great" round. You know those games, when some times you've got it together, and sometimes you just don't.

Well, on the 9th hole (a par 3), my swing was feeling good and as I stood over the ball on the tee, I felt like "this is going to be good". I take my swing, and -whap-.

I COMPLETELY shanked it. Argh! The ball went almost 90degrees to the right, landing on a cart path behind a tall stand of cedars.

"Hmm, I don't think I got good contact on that one." I said.

I took my drop from the cart path onto some loamy, spongy stuff, shot through with roots. Pulled my "get out of trouble" sand wedge and stood over the ball.

"Okay, I can do this. Trust the loft of the club to get it over the trees. Don't try to scoop it." I lined up to where I figured the green was on the other side of the trees and made a smooth, clean swing. Whap! The ball sailed perfectly over the trees (it looked like there was about 3 feet of height to spare) and I heard the guys say "good out!" from the other side of the trees.

Feeling pretty good about that shot, I walked around the trees and found that I had aimed a bit too much to the right, and was now in a bunker!

Standing over the ball with my lob wedge in hand, I repeated the litany of "I can do this." and made a nice clean bunker shot to about 3 inches from the pin. I happily took my tap-in bogey.

For me, that was a great ending to a so-so round.

Grant

[em69]

If you and three friends play together and you have the lowest score that day, does that mean that you were the better golfer that day? [/B][/QUOTE]


Well of course it does. You scored the lowest so you were better than on your partners on that day. Professional players have won tournaments playing poor golf, but...they were still playing better than the others. You don't have to play good golf to be the better golfer in a group.

[Carlos]

Let me say that I am more upset with a "poorly struck ball with good results" than a "good struck ball with poor results". The reason is simple..... there is nothing like the feel of having made a goood stroke and knowing that you are getting closer to being a more "consistant ball striker" then you know that you are becoming a better golfer. This applies to all shots....pitches..putting.. driving... and irons.

[golfdoc]

The truth is, you can get lower scores without improving your ball striking ability. It comes down to smart golf.

It's all about hitting the right shots and not trying the miracle shots. It means hitting a dependable club on short holes instead of a driver.

If you can hit one club 150 yards consistently, there is no reason at all to shoot over 100. Simply hit that club off the tee, in the fairway then onto the green and take your two putts. = 5

[GrantTotten]

I was thinking of trying that sometime. Play an entire round with my 7 iron and a putter. Would be interesting to see how I do.

But you have to admit, it's fun to grip it 'n rip it sometimes.

Grant

[golfdoc]

So here's an idea...

Take every par 4 and par 5 and divide the yardage of each hole by 3. Use whatever club you would hit that distance, and hit it three times. Odds are you should be at the green. Take your putts and away you go.

450 yard par 4 (which would be a long hole)
divide by 3 = 150 yards
7 iron 3 times

If you really want to score better, there is an easier way than trying to pound the ball down the fairway with your driver.

How many times do you think you would lose balls hitting 7 irons all day.

I would imagine a lot of people shooting in the high 90's or low 100's have a number of penalty strokes in a round. Eliminate those right off the bat and you are a better golfer.

[Rupert]

I play to a similar rule of thumb.

I am a 26 handicapper and my target is to get to 18 (bogey on every hole)

My reasoning is that I can hit my 3 iron 180-200 yards straight and consistently, so even on a 580 yrd par five I can take 3 shots and I should be there or thereabouts for my chip and 2 putts and the bogey.

Not much risk and a little dull but I know I can't hit a driver with any accuracy(not for want of practising) ,so why loose balls and take drop shots when I don,t have to.

[golfdoc]

Rupert, congrats.

You understand what it takes. Play within your ability. Developing consistency is the key. As you work on that, you will most likely learn to hit your woods more consistently as well.

As you say, it might be dull (it actually isn't) but there's no need to pile on strokes due to penalties.

If you want to score 100, at least take 100 shots. Who wants to shoot 100 and only take 94 shots and have six penalty strokes!!!

[em69]

Originally posted by golfdoc
If you can hit one club 150 yards consistently, there is no reason at all to shoot over 100. Simply hit that club off the tee, in the fairway then onto the green and take your two putts. = 5 [/B]

Of course that is assuming you will hit that club consistently and perfectly everytime. I consider myself a decent golfer and I've missed the green from less than 100 yards out many many many times. And if I could garrantee a 2 putt on every hole that would be great but even that is wishful thinking.

But I do agree, making golf simpler is done by breaking it down by shot instead of by hole. That has helped me tremendously.

[GrantTotten]

So I played at Greensmere on Sunday. Just for the heck of it, I played the front nine in my "usual" way and the back nine with my 7-iron or smaller. Now, I was starting to get a bit woozy from the sun, and this was only one round, so this isn't statistically significant, but...

I shot a 51 on the front nine, which is "pretty OK" for me, and a 54 on the back nine with the 7-iron. I had 2 triples on the front nine, which I consider to be the "blow-up" holes. On the back nine, I had two QUADS. Ugh. Maybe I'll call them "even more blown up" holes.

As another poster mentioned, doing the math of dividing up a hole's distance and using a smaller club doesn't guarantee better results, because it's still possible to mis-hit the "easy" club. I consider the 7-iron to be my most-consistent club, but I still mis-hit every once in a while.

Interestingly, my fairways hit statistic went way up (5 on the back 9 up from 0 on the front), but that didn't necessarily translate into a lower score. I lost most of my strokes on the approach less than 100 yards, so I can safely say that if you read Dave Pelz's Short Game Bible but don't put in enough practice time, your short game doesn't get better.

I think I'll try this little experiment again, but this time use the 7-iron on the front and the "usual" play on the back.

BTW, this is difficult for me: publishing for all to see how bad a golfer I am.

Cheers,
Grant

[steve]

Rupert and GolfDoc,

I was watching golf on TV just the other day and was listening to a Annika Sorenstam. The question was: "What advice do you have for amateur golfers to improve their game?" She simply stated: "Stay within your limits.....even if people don't agree with you or think your ways are odd". I had to comment on this guys because I'm a firm believer of what she said. And, it's obvious Rupert that you support her statement as well. Look at Sergio, sure it's a pain in the behind to watch him play, but that ridiculous waggle of the club has brought him millions. So, I say Rupert, stick to your 3 iron and shoot your bogey golf. When you reach this goal, set a new one.

[nice_lag]

Rupert/Steve,

I will tend to agree with what you're saying. Fix yourself some objectives (ie playing bogey golf) and stick to the shots that you know you're able to do. The course is not where you should experiment. That's why we have ranges and schools. Why compound a mistake and create a snowman or a moose out of a bogey situation?

And talking about psychology, try to set yourself a routine. For example, before every shot, I always practice 2-3 times until I get the kind of shot I want in my head. If it doesn't feel right, I take another practice swing. And no, it doesn't slow the pace of play. I do that while my partner is getting ready for his shot and as soon as his ball has landed and we know where it is, I'm ready to hit mine.

And yes I'm starting to get the Sergio syndrom with my driver. If you ask Colby, he'll tell you that I "re-grip" 5-6 times before swinging my "butterfly net". It just makes me feel confident that I have the proper set-up.

That was my 2 cents (and it's free...)