What's the key to shoot in the 80s?

good reading / sharing, derek, thanks. will use it to review my games.

this thread is still going?

We shld keep this thread as a sticky.

Maybe can include the following;
How to play 100s for beginner
How to get under 100s
How to get under 95
How to get under 90s..... 85s..... 80s......


Great sharing by all the shifus.

I feel that golf course management and short/putting game are important factor as mentioned. Couldn't drive for the last half year...ditched the driver for 3 wood and i started enjoying the game again.

Of course. ...once u feel more confident and have the time to go range to sort out the problem areas, then it'll help. If u feel u have a much more consistent swing, do try out different clubs at demo days to search for technology enhancement to your game.

Avoid Troubles, Sharpen your short game and putting skills

I find that playing safe (in a way) gets me lower sores. For example, on a par 5, instead of trying to get on green in two and run a higher risk of scuffing a fairway wood/long hybrid shot, I lay up with my irons, which I am much more certain will not make a bad shot, and then two putt to make par...

I may also apply the same for par 3s - if it is tough to get on green with my tee shot, I lay up and chip to get really close to the pin, giving me a higher chance to get a par.

Most of my bogeys come from par 4s... Where, at least for me, is not here not there that kind of hole.

I also feel that ego gets in my way to better scores sometimes. For example, some holes are quite driveable and my flightnate (mostly low hdcappers) manages a nice drive to the green (par 4 for example) and I try to do the same due to ego rather than play my usual confident shots (Hybrid off the tee and then short iron to get on green). This of course is just an example...

If I watch the above, will usually get decent rounds in the 80s or even below 80 (sometimes)...

yes play safe will bring scores down. it depends who do you play with. but how to play safe when your flightmates are all 'adding oil to fire'. ball landed on rough. 160m upfront is small longkang, usually i lay up. fella behind me shouting 'just whack la' 

how how how? hahaha

Ignore lor...

Or I tell them, "Keep quiet and beer is on me later..."

good info

CHIP AND PUTT....

Declare that u are playing your last hole after u hit 80.

Sitting in the airport with time to kill before my flight, so here goes an attempt to try and get us talking more about golf (like this forum used to) and slightly less about golf equipment.

Several suggestions (to promote discussion) first ...
1. Please share your personal opinions and views (even if you are new)
2. Please do not criticize other people's views, even if you think they are dead wrong, instead can I suggest that you phrase your view as an alternative way of thinking
3. Please do not be afraid if you have a personal insight that goes against "conventional" ways of thinking/coaching, just share it
4. OT is just fine ... but if you do not mind, try and bring it back to the subject after a few posts
5. If you want to post about in 90s 100s or 70s in this thread, it is also just fine, let's talk golf
6. Anything else you guys think off that is courteous and promotes passion about this game ...

Quick intro for those who do not know me ...

Picked up golf in 2008. Like many others, scored my best scores (to date) within 3 years of picking up the game. Like a few, it has been all downhill after that. Spent a while (2011-12) working in the Golf Industry (mgmt, definitely not anything to do with coaching - not even remotely qualified) then moved back to the commercial world in late 2012.

Since 2013, golf was much more an occasional social event, or simple stress relief at the range. Practice opportunities were rare. Also, it was a lot more gratifying just smashing balls and seeing the occasional shot go long and far, than to try and work on anything that needed focus and direction.

A while ago, a lot of projects I was working on moved on the next stage, and I was able to take stock of my game. We had a company away day and the new big boss enjoys golf, so the afternoon program was our inaugual business unit golf and bowling (for those who did not golf) tournament. Got to play at a premier golf course in KL and the best part, technically, I was at WORK!!! hehehehe

I recorded a score of 104, with some pars. There were many drives that went into the water (damn course layout has a lot of holes with water on the left and trees on the right), many 3 putts and a couple of 4 putts (fast and multi-tiered greens and a long layoff is not good for putting stats). Also, could not remember how to chip and pitch, so shanked just a few of the initial shots I had. All in all, I was playing so badly, I could not stop laughing at myself. I had about 10-12 balls in the bag and when the caddy told me I had only ONE left on hole 16, it was quite amusing. Played the last 3 holes making sure I hit the ball where I could see it (even if it meant teeing off with a 6-iron). All in all, crap golf, but a great day.

Have another post where I analysed what happen, but in short, my problems were:
a) Don't know where to aim cos my driver can miss left or right
b) If I get good contact with my irons, it is either a push, big draw or a hook
c) hybrids and woods either push or hook
d) short game either chunky or shank

Now, how my game ended up in this state is something I have not (and might never) found the answer. Perhaps trying to hit further, perhaps trying to emulate a professional swing, perhaps making motions that I physically was not suited to, perhaps lack of practice ... perhaps taking golf too seriously ... in any case, I decided to test a theory. Not too sure, but I believe it was Einstein who said that to expect a different result without changing any of the underlying conditions is insane (paraphrased ...). So I decided to change everything.

*end of Part 1*

What a frank and honest assessment of one's game 

I'm sure many of us been thru similar dark times in our own golfing journeys

I think the earlier posts about playing the percentage shot makes a lot of sense (eg aim centre of the green, away from hazard, take your medicine when drive is out of position, etc)

Concentration is also key. Eg for me, if no wager, my concentration will go for a toss 
Huge bets stressed me out, so a simple $5-5-10 or ice kachang will do just fine

Don't execute shots that you never practiced before. Manage your own game.

Avoid constant equipment changes (I'm guilty too) and don't be ashamed to play forgiving clubs

finally, it's down to chipping and putting to score, there's no secret to it. One of our kakis (you know who you are if you are reading this) constantly outscore us despite being shorter off the tee. He manages his game very well and play within himself. His short game is his forte. We really salute his game!

*part 2*

Change 1 - Trying to find my "own" swing
Think the PGA ran a couple of ads some time back about "Swing your swing" anchored by Arnold Palmer. And for those who enjoy golf movies, who can forget Will Smith's scene where he talks about all of us having a swing within ourselves ...
So I went to the range and tried to figure out what that means ...

One of the reasons I think a lot of us are hooked to this game is because the feeling of sweet contact is addictive. Especially on shots off the deck. There are few things more satisfying than the feel of finding the sweet spot on a forged iron. So I told myself to set that at my yardstick, and not care about direction (easier said than done). Also, it had to be a motion I felt comfortable doing, and confident I could repeat.

I explored a quite a few things, setup, grip, how I rotated, how I transfered weight, feel of the backswing, etc etc. Now, I have had the benefit of a series of 1-1 lessons when I first started and also tips or analysis from quite a few other professionals and skilled players (from when I was in the golf industry) so I did have a good sense where I had perpetual bad habits. Another key thing I did was to STOP consciously thinking about D-plane related stuff like path and angle of attack. It is not that I do not believe, if fact the opposite is true, you cannot argue with physics. It is just that I felt it was futile to try and "feel" my "numbers" without having any access to a launch monitor, and even more futile to try and decipher what motions were affecting which numbers without a competent and experienced golf professional.

So I just tried to figure out the most comfortable way my body needed to move to bottom out the club slightly after the ball. A lot of the initial practice was with the wedges and shorter irons. Also, playing half or 3/4 shots trying to hit it higher or lower intentionally. I just wanted to remember the confidence I used to have, and it was a lot easier to find nice contact when I was more in balance, which is what having a smaller or shorter swing allowed me to do. After a couple of sessions, I was able to retain the balance on a full swing. However, I do note that the full swing in balance is definitely shorter in "feeling" that what I had been playing with in 2013-14.

Now, while it sounds like problem solved, nothing could be further from the truth. This nice, repeatable "feeling" I had, while it allowed me to strike a ball quite nicely, only worked (contact wise) up to about an 8 iron, and as far as direction wise, only worked reliably on the pitch shots. I was struggling with a fade that increased as the loft on my irons went down. Also, the doubt in my mind was affecting me badly. When I hit several pitching wedges in a row, I had no issues hitting the target most of the time. However, when I simulated a course environment (i.e. stop, have a break of 3-4 minutes, imagine a green, then give myself some pressure to make the shot), I simply could not make the shot I needed under pressure.

I really did not know what was wrong. And it was quite demoralising. After all, there should be nothing wrong with my equipment, I have been custom fit, and for a social golfer, have a relatively good sense of what sort of equipment suits the game I have.

At this point, I had to recall the fitting session around the shafts I had in the irons I was using. Eric fit me up a i95R tipped stiffer, but I insisted on an i95S soft stepped as my intention then was to exercise and train my body to be able to swing faster. That obviously did not happen as I went back to the commercial world and had to focus on establishing myself again. So, my body was definitely weaker than it was when I was fitted, and my technique has never been that sound, so perhaps the changes I had to make were going to be wider than I expected.

*going to board the plane soon - part 3 will cover the equipment changes*

Super write up. Enjoyed reading. Part 3 please.

Play from white ....

Totally agree with Pocketace .. i think that the key to play in the 80s is to improve your short game, chip/pitch/putt

Golf is more for enjoy...I "discovered" that recently. I played for low score in the past, which give me a lot of pressure myself...when good form I score low 80 and broke 80 for 3 times last year. But I think enjoy is the key which make you relax and we should try different fun shot which on course for social game. 

I do track my score with stat, so I realised one thing when I have high green in regulation then I always score in mid 80s. Putter hot then low 80s or even break 80. So I train hard on my iron for 2nd shot...I almost give my Ego away for the driving distance, as long as it's straight and on fairway will do

Of course I also go gym and train my physical body, hopeful this will help my driver off the tee for long run...

wow interesting

Hey Judith, u have something to sell in the market place huh? You are one of those who used the same obvious modus operandi to clock 50 posts by flooding so many threads with a meaningless one liner!  

Mod, over to you for your necessary action ...