How to break 80

[Eldred]

.. However when you get to the driver something in the back of our minds tells us that it needs to be ripped...

Agree! I had a rare 7:30 am round yesterday and had no time to warm up. First hole at Stonebridge has body of water along most of the right side of the fairway. Being the first swing of the day, I was thinking 75% effort and just trust my mechanic..(either that or I was still hung over from the night before ). With that thoughts, I was actually at ease.. Piped it straight down the fairway and had the feeling it was going to be a good day. I continue to have one of my best round with driver.. and it rub off to my other clubs.. The bad shots did happened with the couple times I tried to rip the drive or started to press the issues with irons..I did have trouble with putter and three putted many times. (Then again this is Stonebridge greens). But once I kept reminding of "smooth and easy" swing thoughts, and right the ship and finined strong..

[karupt411]

Open to hear from some advice and tips... I had a few closed calls so far this year (shooting between 82-85)... I get in trouble in 1-2 holes with some triples which takes away the game.

My goal for the summer is to break 80 consistently. What should I do or focus on?

2010:

i'm in the same boat. shot an 86 with a quad (i.e. bad hole syndrome). i'm ~70% FIRs but only 30% GIRs. things i need to improve on:

* to improve GIRs, go for safe or centre of green and 2 putt and not flag hunt. Gonna try using spin draw/cut to pin seek this year.

* take a 5W off the tee on very tight par 5s (eliminate that one bad hole on the hard par 5s)

2010 edit: shot a 79 with a quad on 17!

2011:

*Tee up on my trouble or side of trouble
*Take 5W off the tee on very tight par 5s (eliminate that one bad hole on the hard par 5s)
***to improve GIRs, go for "safety or centre of green".
NB: Going to try using back spin or draw/cut to pin seek and funnel this year. After 3-5 rounds, decide whether to keep or abandon this new strategy
based on results.

[Sakuraba]

I tried to implement a bunch of these conservative strategies in my game on Saturday, and I wound up with my worst round of the year so far. By the time I got to the 14th tee I was +18. I reverted to my old ways, and was -1 for the last 5 holes. Go figure.

[DenisO]

I tied for my best round today and I didn't even play that great. Shot an 85 at Canadian and concentrated really hard on not using my drivers on those tight holes where I usually would. In the end I only used my driver on 3 of the holes, 2 of them being par 5s. But in general I'd use my 3-wood on the holes where I'd normally use my driver. No penalties really helps the score go down considerably, and I'd because of that my round was full of pars and bogies. I think for me to break 80, I will need to gain a little more confidence in my putter (I actually 4-putt a par 3 today), so...anyone have a Scotty Cameron for sale?

[mpare]

These cautious strategies, in and of themselves, shouldn't result in higher scores. If you put up high numbers following this approach, my guess is that there was something else was the proximate cause of your exploding scores. What was it?

I tried to implement a bunch of these conservative strategies in my game on Saturday, and I wound up with my worst round of the year so far. By the time I got to the 14th tee I was +18. I reverted to my old ways, and was -1 for the last 5 holes. Go figure.

[Sakuraba]

you're probably right, Mike, I didn't take any penalty strokes, but I would say mentally I didn't believe in what I was trying to do. I had already shot a good round (79) being aggressive the week prior, & I think I didn't really give the conservative strategy an honest try.

[nokids]

I broke 80 today at Greensmere from black on Premier course. (77). Only hit one bad shot all day which was a water shot on a par 3. The driver was consistently on the fairway (250 yards), I hit 10 GIR, layed up on par 5's and birdied 2/4 of them. Never 3-putted.

That's how you do it!

[mpare]

Excellent. So how many strokes will you be giving Dan the next time you play him?

I broke 80 today at Greensmere from black on Premier course. (77). Only hit one bad shot all day which was a water shot on a par 3. The driver was consistently on the fairway (250 yards), I hit 10 GIR, layed up on par 5's and birdied 2/4 of them. Never 3-putted.

That's how you do it!

[nokids]

Excellent. So how many strokes will you be giving Dan the next time you play him?

Enough to keep the game competitive. Nobody likes a blowout.

[sandbagger]

confidence when you are over the ball... absolutely no second guessing or hesitation and you will hit more GIR

[jeffc]

how do i break 80? I only play the front nine.

[Arrt]

I tried to implement a bunch of these conservative strategies in my game on Saturday, and I wound up with my worst round of the year so far. By the time I got to the 14th tee I was +18. I reverted to my old ways, and was -1 for the last 5 holes. Go figure.

That's an epic way to keep the round under 90.

[314314]

Last two games, 84... close but far at the same time.

[Husband]

Last two games, 84... close but far at the same time.

I also shot an 84 today (my best round). It was the first time I was tracking putts/FW/GIR and penalties. Perhaps simply remaining conscious of these stats helped me 'keep it real'.

I can't imagine I'll break 80 anytime soon. I need to get my driver under control first.

[habsfan]

dont 3 putt 5 times a round and miss 6 birdie putts inside 15ft., frigging pathetic.

[nokids]

I tried to implement a bunch of these conservative strategies in my game on Saturday, and I wound up with my worst round of the year so far. By the time I got to the 14th tee I was +18. I reverted to my old ways, and was -1 for the last 5 holes. Go figure.

as Bob Rotella says in his book, "conservative strategy, cocky swing".

this has worked very well for me. first i analyze what part of the course i am looking to hit, i figure out where i can miss and where i cannot afford to miss the shot, then i figure out which is the best club to get me there, and when i finally go for my shot i go for it with a cocky attitude that i'm going to make that shot. course management/club management, know thyself.

[Thom Panikorn]

If you are shooting in the low to mid 80, it shows you have a good swing. To cut down 3-5 strokes per round what you need is good short game and good course management. Next time try this, write down the club you want to hit on every hole before you leave th house. I used to do it back in the years i was trying to break 80. These days I spend lots of time on my short game. Last Saturday in out last round of the Intersectional qualify i needed a good round and i wasn't playing well coming in. I decided to go back to my old tricks, writing down every club i would use on every hole before i left the house. I also write down my targets on the tee shots and the approach shots. Since I knew where the pins would be (at HP they move the pins orderly, meaning if today it's white on 18th, it will be white on 1st and whatever colour on 1st will be on 2nd etc.). These tricks work i think because it take away your "doubt". I had the paper in my back pocket and took it out before every shot.
Of course you have to make adjustment on the course because it never works out as you plan it but at least you have a game plan. And your mind have something to go by. For example, on the 6th hole i hit a tee shot as i planned it and i had 90 yrads to the hole, i hit the club i wrote on the paper but I SHANKED it. I made double bogey! (i was one over to there). On the next hole i pulled out the paper (a par 3) and hit the club i wrote on paper and made my par. Looking back i maybe hit 80% of the clubs i wrote down. I shot 74 and made the team. Having that paper in my pocket was like having a caddy with me, telling me what to do. Who says golf is not hard work!

Thom

[leftylucas]

I agree Thom, I had the chance to break 80 twice in the last 3 games and came up short by making incorrect shot decisions on short shots in one game by going away from my go to wedge. DUH!!! In the other game I missed 7/7 putts from 5-7 ft. Had I made even one of those I would have broken 80 again. Course management keeps you focused and attention to shots insprires confidence.

[speeler_kda]

If you can consistently shoot in low 80's, you have the ability to break 80... no need to overhaul your swing, although it can't hurt to practice, especially short game...

My advice is related to the mental game.

Avoid thoughts that focus on results; ie.
- I have to par the next two holes to break 80.
- There's no way I can miss this green with an 8-iron

These kind of thoughts create tension, and that has a negative effect.

I know it's a cliche, but focus on one shot at a time, and try not to keep track of you score until the round is over.

Develop a pre-shot routine where you pick a very specific target, an intermediate target for alignment, and take dead aim. That's about all you can really control. Then pull the trigger, accept the result, and go play your next shot... The key here is to accept the result.

Also, realize that as a 10-12 hdcp, you're going to probably going to average approx. 8-9 bogeys, 5-6 pars, maybe a birdie, 1-2 doubles or worse. If you have a bad hole early, don't panic, just think of it as getting your bad hole out of the way. Over 18 holes, you'll get your pars and bogeys...

Took me long time and a lot of reading to figure this stuff out, hope it helps,

Kevin

[mberube]

I agree Thom, I had the chance to break 80 twice in the last 3 games and came up short by making incorrect shot decisions on short shots in one game by going away from my go to wedge. DUH!!! In the other game I missed 7/7 putts from 5-7 ft. Had I made even one of those I would have broken 80 again. Course management keeps you focused and attention to shots insprires confidence.

It also helps when you hit it straight like Thom does.

[314314]

I had another 84 on Sunday... I need to focus on the shot at play and not to worry about the previous ones... I was doing just that and I guess I added extra pressure.

[Thom Panikorn]

It also helps when you hit it straight like Thom does.

You still beated me last time we played Mike.

[314314]

I got 80 today at East/South (Emerald Links) using some of the advice posted before, no superman and focus mainly on the shot in hand.

Here are some numbers:
FIR: 8/14
GIR:12/18
Triple: 1
Bogeys: 5
Pars: 12

Putts:36
2 - (one putt)
14 - (two putts)
2 - (three putts)

[Arrt]

damn triple

[mberube]

I got 80 today at East/South (Emerald Links) using some of the advice posted before, no superman and focus mainly on the shot in hand.

Here are some numbers:
FIR: 8/14
GIR:12/18
Triple: 1
Bogeys: 5
Pars: 12

Putts:36
2 - (one putt)
14 - (two putts)
2 - (three putts)

With these stats, your week point is your putting and or short game. 12 out of 18 green is great but 36 putts just killed your chances to play 76-77. Practice your putting 20 feet in. 32 putts of less is what you should aim for.

[Thom Panikorn]

I got 80 today at East/South (Emerald Links) using some of the advice posted before, no superman and focus mainly on the shot in hand.

Here are some numbers:
FIR: 8/14
GIR:12/18
Triple: 1
Bogeys: 5
Pars: 12

Putts:36
2 - (one putt)
14 - (two putts)
2 - (three putts)

Your ball strinking is excellent! Tiger once said if you hit 12 greens you should be shooting even par,if not it's the short game problem.

I don't know how close you were on those 12 greens but it seems like you didn't make any putts.
Spend more time on chip and putt and you should drop below 80 in no time. One thing you should try for putting is "any thing outside 10 feets just try to two putt it".
Here is the comparison: my last 18 hole:

FIR:8/12
GIR:8/18
Double:1
Bogey:2
Par:14
Birdie:1
Up & down:7/10
Putt:29 (one 3 putts)

Score:73 (par 70)

Please keep us posted on your next outing. You should break 80 soon.

Thom

[habsfan]

Your ball strinking is excellent! Tiger once said if you hit 12 greens you should be shooting even par,if not it's the short game problem.

I don't know how close you were on those 12 greens but it seems like you didn't make any putts.
Spend more time on chip and putt and you should drop below 80 in no time. One thing you should try for putting is "any thing outside 10 feets just try to two putt it".
Here is the comparison: my last 18 hole:

FIR:8/12
GIR:8/18
Double:1
Bogey:2
Par:14
Birdie:1
Up & down:7/10
Putt:29 (one 3 putts)

Score:73 (par 70)

Please keep us posted on your next outing. You should break 80 soon.

Thom

yea but that doesnt count when you play thunderbird twice, although ill give it to you Thom it was under the lights.

[Thom Panikorn]

Next time just don't think you are beating me until you did beat me! The golf god is "listening".

Good putting today though.

[nokids]

I got 80 today at East/South (Emerald Links) using some of the advice posted before, no superman and focus mainly on the shot in hand.

Here are some numbers:
FIR: 8/14
GIR:12/18
Triple: 1
Bogeys: 5
Pars: 12

Putts:36
2 - (one putt)
14 - (two putts)
2 - (three putts)

if your handicap is under 18, that triple should be a double, which means your 80 score should be a 79. congrads on breaking 80!

[mberube]

I disagree. Although he must enter a 79 for his hdcp factor he still played 80. hdcp index is to help you compete against other players stronger or weaker then you. It’s purpose is not to lower your final score. You can play 84 and still have a 79 on your index card. Breaking 80 cleanly is what it’s all about.