The OS Golfer's Thread!

[wrigleyville33]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Shot a 91 yesterday on a tough course. I lost four balls but still managed to shoot what I did. I had eight pars. I swear I would nail a drive right down the middle only to hit a slop and the freaking ball would roll all of the way into the spinach patch. I hate this game.


...but not really.

[wrigleyville33]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Played last weekend with my brother-in-law and 2 of his friends at a little course where my wife is from. It was only 5,600 yds but a par 72. I laughed the entire round at my brother-in-laws 2 friends. They were bad. I offered help but it didn't work. They shot a 107 & 110 respectively. My brother-in-law faired a little better shooting a 86. I shot a 73. Most par 4's were around 300yds, I was driving the ball between 250yd to 280yds, it was driver and wedge for me. The greens made it near imposable to putt. I had 6 or 7 birds on line and going in to only kick right or left at the end. I can deal with fairways that need work but there is no reason for a course to have greens in that shape. I did have a chance at an eagle on a 485yd par 5 that I ended up with birdie on. I'm running basketball camps the next 2 weeks so I'm not sure when I will get out again. Reading all the other guys here talk about leagues they play in makes me wish I could get into one. The only one I know of is at the course the school I teach and coach at uses for a home course. It is all retired men and women. Oh well I will keep playing a round here and there until school starts back.

What's your handicap?

[Matt10]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Was on my way for a solid par round, before the dreaded ....

SHANKS

showed up

i couldn't figure it out, came on the 9th hole, then proceed to hit at least one shank on every hole on the back 9.

Only shanked with my wedge (53) and sw (56). All other clubs and full shots were hit beautifully.

Hitting the range tomorrow to figure this ish out

[speels]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Can't believe I'm just finding this thread now!!

I was a good golfer as a kid, my buddy and I were around 2 handicaps at about 14, but then girls and drinking got in the way of golf for me. He went on to be the Head pro at Banff Springs in Canada, but I kind of quit for a long time. Anyway about 4 years ago I got a membership at a course and played over 40 rounds that year and got my handicap back to a respecable 9. The last three years I have mostly played competitive scrambles, but get out now and then. My Dad and brother are both teachers so they get to golf everyday over the summer so I try to get out with them as much as possible. My buddy that was in Banff quit and moved back into town and has just started golfing regularly again after a bunch of years off.

I played my old course on Sunday with my brother and parents and had a good round. I was 1 over on the front, but ended the back with a double and a triple for a 44. Hit the ball badly off the tee, but my approach shots were mostly on line. I started getting real wild and hit 2 OB and 1 in the water on the last 3 holes. Par is 71 and the course is 6500 yds. I am a 9 handicap, but if I could putt I could easily be lower. Anyway, I beat my brother which is great as he always beats me.

Last weekend we played in a scramble and went 62-63 for second place. The worst part was, the team that beat us went 55-58!!! Let's just say not many people were very happy. No mulligans as this was a competitive tournament.

Now I can't wait to get back on the course and try to get better.

[1Rose]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Was on my way for a solid par round, before the dreaded ....

SHANKS

showed up

i couldn't figure it out, came on the 9th hole, then proceed to hit at least one shank on every hole on the back 9.

Only shanked with my wedge (53) and sw (56). All other clubs and full shots were hit beautifully.

Hitting the range tomorrow to figure this ish out

Oh no...EL DIABLO lol

I'll say a prayer for you.

[ty5oke]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Oh man, I hope my shanks don't return from reading this. It's always the SW for me. Good luck Matt.

Been playing about 2 or 3 times a month and slowly getting the swing back to where it was last summer. My short game as been outstanding this year while my driving game has me constantly punching out for my 2nd. Been scoring in the high 80's, but can tell I'm not to far off from getting back to high 70's - low 80's.

[Koolie G]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Alright, I played at Valhalla in Louisville yesterday. Awesome course, very fun to play. I ended up shooting an 86. I hit two balls in the water and I really think if I played there a couple of times and knew the course a little better, I could shoot in the 70's. Course was fantastic, but the greens weren't fast.

It was just fun to play on the course and remember where people were hitting shots at the Ryder Cup and the PGA Championship. I wanted to recreate the putt on #16 at the 2000 PGA Championship 3 hole playoff with Bob May where Tiger starts walking after it and points it in and then went on to win his 3rd out of 4 straight majors. It was just a very fun round of golf. I've been to several PGA Tour events, but have never really played on one of those courses. Great time.

[jbrew2411]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

What's your handicap?

From the white tee's I'm a scratch golfer but from the blue I'm a 3 handicap. I coach high school golf and live on a golf course so I get to play a lot. When I'm playing by myself I play from the blue tee's. I seem to play with people who only play from the white and that is what high school golfers play from so I play white more then I should. I hit every day. I play the hole behind my house all day long when I'm not playing a round.

[BunnyHardaway]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I just...ugh...I hate this game. So much. Shot a 60 on 9 holes last Wednesday. I still can't figure out what's going on with my driver. I either pop it up and hit it 100 yards or I slice it like there's no tomorrow. Still hitting my iron shots fat too.

I'm an extremely impatient person and I hate being bad at things, so golf has been incredibly taxing. I'm just afraid I'll never get to be at least decent.

[jbrew2411]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I just...ugh...I hate this game. So much. Shot a 60 on 9 holes last Wednesday. I still can't figure out what's going on with my driver. I either pop it up and hit it 100 yards or I slice it like there's no tomorrow. Still hitting my iron shots fat too.

I'm an extremely impatient person and I hate being bad at things, so golf has been incredibly taxing. I'm just afraid I'll never get to be at least decent.

I think I can help you. Without watching you swing it may be hard but I can offer some advice. To fix the slice you should do these 3 things.
1) Stager your feet. Mover front foot (left foot) a little forward and your back foot (right foot) further back. stance would look like this.

R
L
2) Don't grip the club so tight. It can cause you to slice the ball.
3) Slow down your swing. One common error is to swing harder to make the ball fly further. Thank Tiger for that. If you over swing it will cause miss-hits and the ball to have poor ball flight. This leads to the pop-ups.

If you are having trouble with you irons as well then I would say you have a ball striking issue. You are not hitting the ball clean. One of the common things I see as a high school golf coach is issues with the arms. I suggest looking into the product in the link.
http://www.golfsmith.com/products/23..._Swing_Trainer
It is cheap and will get your arms in the right position. Over time you will build muscle memory.

Don't give up on golf. It's a hard sport. You have to work almost daily to improve. When I was in high school and college I would hit every day, year round. If I could not hit outside I would go to a golf store that had a indoor demo range. I would hit the demo clubs then purchase a bag of tee's or something. I felt like I should walk out with something for the time. Go to the range and work on the swing. Feel free to PM me for more advice.

[1Rose]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I just...ugh...I hate this game. So much. Shot a 60 on 9 holes last Wednesday. I still can't figure out what's going on with my driver. I either pop it up and hit it 100 yards or I slice it like there's no tomorrow. Still hitting my iron shots fat too.

I'm an extremely impatient person and I hate being bad at things, so golf has been incredibly taxing. I'm just afraid I'll never get to be at least decent.

It could be a number of things. Without seeing your swing and the way you address the ball, it's tough to diagnose.

Could be your grip, too much upper body movement, shoulder alignment etc...

Obviously all players have different swings, but one thing that is consistent with all great players is TEMPO. Slow things down. It's a common misconception that you have to swing hard to hit the ball far. It's just flat out not true. In fact swinging harder causes your muscles to tense up, decreasing flexibility and overall power in your swing.

On your backswing, make a concerted effort to slowly drag the club back across the grass at a nice easy pace and on your down try and keep that same pace.

Also do your best to try and look at the ball as long as possible, even after you hit it, keep your head down. Let your arms and torso pull your head around to a natural release. Amateurs have a tendency to want to watch the ball before they hit it, causing them to pull out of their swing resulting in the inconsistencies that you have listed as your problems.

Also, I would love to see your grip. One of the keys to a good ball flight is the grip. If you're slicing the ball, that leads me to believe that your hands are not releasing through impact. This part is easily fixable. When you grip the club, ensure the face of the club is square, then start with your left hand, making sure the club is resting in the bottom thirds of your fingers, then put your palm over top, with your left thumb, pointed straight down the shaft. Then with your right hand, overlap your pinky in the gap between your index, and middle finger, with the club resting again on the bottom thirds of your fingers. If your right hand is too strong, meaning, more than half of the back of your right hand is showing, this can cause your hands to get "stuck" and not release. Try to make sure that your right hand is a mirror image of your left hand, going down the club. In your case, seeing slicing is your problem, try to place right thumb on the right half of the grip. Doing this will force the club face to turn over at impact, and ensuring a greater chance of being square when striking the ball.

Obviously we can't give you a proper diagnosis without seeing your swing, but these are all basics that you can work on to get more consistent.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

Heading out to play in my league for the first time in almost a month, during which time I have not even swung a club. We'll see how this goes.

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

On your backswing, make a concerted effort to slowly drag the club back across the grass at a nice easy pace and on your down try and keep that same pace.

One thing I'd point out here is that you're making it sound like you want him to make an effort to slow the downswing. Decelerating on the way down is death. I like to think slow back and a smooth accelerating swing focusing on exploding through the ball. Nothing should feel hurried nor slow - if that makes sense.

JJ, if you're hitting your irons fat, focus on making sure you hit down on the ball, taking a divot after you make contact. You should feel like you're "pinching" the ball against the turf.

As for feeling like you're not good enough, set realistic goals. Maybe "par" for you is a bogey on every hole. Once you get to the point of shooting that, set another realistic goal to reach. Golf is not for the impatient, but once you get the hang of it, it is very rewarding.

[Jr.]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

I've been exploring OS more lately and thought I would join in on this one. I've been playing off and on since I was 14 (I'm 25 now), but have never had enough money or time to play consistently enough to get good.

Background of my talents (or lack thereof). I'm solid off the tees, can hit my driver 280-300 consistently. I've always hit my irons the best, but my short game is abysmal. I have absolutely no feel and if I'm terrible from 100 yards and in

As for recently, I shot an 84 at Broken Tee Golf Course in Englewood, CO a couple of weeks ago, and since then I've lost my swing. Shot 100 at JFK Golf Course last week and quit after 8 holes this morning playing City Park Golf Course in downtown Denver. I mi**** balls every way that you can. I sliced, pulled, snap hooked, skulled and chunked shots all day and just can't figure out what is wrong. They guys I was playing with are better than me (usually shoot low to mid 80s) and couldn't figure out what I was doing. I know a couple of pros in the area so I'm going to try to get one of them to check me out at the range sometime soon and hopefully fix my woes. I love the game, but it can be sooooo frustrating.

I look forward to sharing stories with everyone here, and I'll try to help where I think I can

[ImTellinTim]

Re: The OS Golfer's Thread!

LOL, I shot a 50 tonight for the first time in I don't know how long, possibly years.

My only analysis is that everything that could have gone wrong did. Oh well, it was a perfect night for golf and I didn't let it ruin the good walk.