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High Handicap Problems. Does anyone else have this problem

mcrobertsjmac32

mcrobertsjmac32

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Listen I know I'm a 30-32 Handicap but seriously my only consistency is inconsistency, I was wondering if anyone else has the problem that I have.

My typical round I warm up with a half or full bucket then 10-20 mins on the practice green. I always start off the first-7 or 8th hole well be4 something happens. Idk what it is but just when my confidence is high and I'm hopeful for a PB something happens. I will go thru at least 6 of the next 7 holes not being able to get an iron or hybrid shot off the ground. I'll either top it or hit it really fat. Recently I've thrown in some crazy toe shots that go parallel to me that's how bad they are. Sometimes I recover from this and finish the last 2-3 holes decent but today I quit on 16 and picked up the ball after 3 great drives followed by 3 or 4 consecutive fat or topped shots. Idk what is happening.

Does anyone else have this issue? This has been consistent for the past year and not like it's been I know many ppl can have a blowup hole or 2 but how can I go from having 2-3 birdie opportunities on the front to not being able to hit the ball in the air on the back?
 
Fatigue?

Slow down on the back take your time, having a consistent tempo is a big key to consistently hitting the ball well. Oh and quit thinking of score just hit a shot at a time.

What's you average for the front 9 vs back 9
 
How many balls are in your full and half buckets? It's supposed to be a warmup, not a range session.

Also, you say you start thinking about a PB. I know that you know you are doing well, but are you keeping track of your score or just writing it down. If you are keeping track of where you are, it could be a choke issue. Just go out and play and not worry about your score, other than writing down what you got. And if you are playing with someone else, let them be in charge of the scorecard.
 
I was doing this often. The biggest thing that helped my tops and fat ground shots was lessons. Two huge things I took out if them was 1- I was swaying backwards. Stopping this immediately helped. 2- leaving my club face wide open at impact.

O and I feel your pain- yesterday I shot a PB 44 front and 55 back. Fatigue and being out of shape led to a lot of the back 9 problems. Plus thinking WAY to much about my score.

Post a video of your swing for Panda to take a look at in his section
 
golfinFF said:
Fatigue?

Slow down on the back take your time, having a consistent tempo is a big key to consistently hitting the ball well. Oh and quit thinking of score just hit a shot at a time.

What's you average for the front 9 vs back 9
Click to expand...

I don't feel fatigued. I actually feel warmed up and like I said sometime I finish the last 2 or 3 holes strong.

My front is usually 48-52 back is 58-64
 
Smallville said:
How many balls are in your full and half buckets? It's supposed to be a warmup, not a range session.

Also, you say you start thinking about a PB. I know that you know you are doing well, but are you keeping track of your score or just writing it down. If you are keeping track of where you are, it could be a choke issue. Just go out and play and not worry about your score, other than writing down what you got. And if you are playing with someone else, let them be in charge of the scorecard.
Click to expand...

The bucket is 25 balls I think. I usually split one with my buddy. And I wtire my score down but I don't calculate "ok I need to shoot 3 over for the next 5 holes time hit my PB". And by the time my round is trashed I stop caring and just swing but still can't come back most times. Today I wasn't in charge of the card and had no idea what my front nine was, and still lost it.
 
10 strokes is a pretty big swing.

I am guessing its mid round lulls aka lack of concentration. Make sure you stay focused when you hit the back 9.
 
mcrobertsjmac32 said:
by the time my round is trashed I stop caring and just swing but still can't come back most times.

Today I wasn't in charge of the card and had no idea what my front nine was, and still lost it.
Click to expand...

The first part is part 1 you stop caring and swing away- instead when that first bad shot is hit tell yourself to buckle down. Think of what you need to do to make a solid swing the next swing and then do it for every swing .

Wether you see it or not subconsciously you know roughly where you stand, it's honestly hard not to because it's the recent past.

Start playing target golf not just hit the ball X yds golf- what I mean is find a target to land the ball on or something you want the ball to be in line with when it comes to rest. Then make that shot.
 
Ag2979 said:
I was doing this often. The biggest thing that helped my tops and fat ground shots was lessons. Two huge things I took out if them was 1- I was swaying backwards. Stopping this immediately helped. 2- leaving my club face wide open at impact.

O and I feel your pain- yesterday I shot a PB 44 front and 55 back. Fatigue and being out of shape led to a lot of the back 9 problems. Plus thinking WAY to much about my score.

Post a video of your swing for Panda to take a look at in his section
Click to expand...

Ohh man it sucks doesnt it. If I could figure out how to post pics and videos on here I would.
 
golfinFF said:
The first part is part 1 you stop caring and swing away- instead when that first bad shot is hit tell yourself to buckle down. Think of what you need to do to make a solid swing the next swing and then do it for every swing .

Wether you see it or not subconsciously you know roughly where you stand, it's honestly hard not to because it's the recent past.

Start playing target golf not just hit the ball X yds golf- what I mean is find a target to land the ball on or something you want the ball to be in line with when it comes to rest. Then make that shot.
Click to expand...

I didn't stop concentrating today until I shot 6, 8, 7, 8, 10, 8. That's when I said it was over and let go of my frustration and just tried to make good swings but had no success. I tried my hardest through 15 holes. Then had no patience left.
 
golfinFF said:
Fatigue?

Slow down on the back take your time, having a consistent tempo is a big key to consistently hitting the ball well. Oh and quit thinking of score just hit a shot at a time.

What's you average for the front 9 vs back 9
Click to expand...

This is spot on. For me it's always tempo, trying to swing a little harder, poor concentration. It's as much a mental discipline thing for me as anything else.
 
When it happens to me I tend to chalk it up to not having a swing that is reliably repeatable enough. It is a mystery why that suddenly creeps into our game, though I suspect it may be related to concentration and pre-shot routine.

You mentioned going from good to chunks and tops. A professional would be able to diagnose what you are doing to make that happen (losing spine angle???). Whatever it is, if you know why you produce those shots then you at least have a chance to self correct and minimize the damage.
 
I have no real help to topping or the fat shots, as I still hit multiple fat shots per round. But as far as getting into your head and thinking your going to get a PB I can lend a hand towards that.

One question, are you keeping track of your score in your head, scorecard, or on a electronic device like phone or whatever? My GPS app on my phone comes with a scorecard for the course, and I've found that since I've started keeping track using that, my mind is clearer because I can't see my overall score until the round is complete. My last round I didn't think I was playing that well after about a month off, and I ended up shooting a 93, which is on the good side of average for me. I chalk up at least a little bit of it to not knowing my actual score until it was over. I used to let it get into my head from looking at the scorecard. Saying "If I can play the last 3 holes in par I can get a new best" and then going out and getting 3 doubles.
 
tequila4kapp said:
When it happens to me I tend to chalk it up to not having a swing that is reliably repeatable enough. It is a mystery why that suddenly creeps into our game, though I suspect it may be related to concentration and pre-shot routine.

You mentioned going from good to chunks and tops. A professional would be able to diagnose what you are doing to make that happen (losing spine angle???). Whatever it is, if you know why you produce those shots then you at least have a chance to self correct and minimize the damage.
Click to expand...

I have been getting lessons and he says I'm taking the club back too straight and coming in at the ball too steep and has me using a clock system of taking the club back a 7 and trying to finish between 1-2. I recognize this on the course and try to use the clock logic and I feel that I'm performing the take away correctly and finishing at the right time but idk... Might have to pay for him to play 18 with me.
 
Ndfan301 said:
I have no real help to topping or the fat shots, as I still hit multiple fat shots per round. But as far as getting into your head and thinking your going to get a PB I can lend a hand towards that.

One question, are you keeping track of your score in your head, scorecard, or on a electronic device like phone or whatever? My GPS app on my phone comes with a scorecard for the course, and I've found that since I've started keeping track using that, my mind is clearer because I can't see my overall score until the round is complete. My last round I didn't think I was playing that well after about a month off, and I ended up shooting a 93, which is on the good side of average for me. I chalk up at least a little bit of it to not knowing my actual score until it was over. I used to let it get into my head from looking at the scorecard. Saying "If I can play the last 3 holes in par I can get a new best" and then going out and getting 3 doubles.
Click to expand...

I keep it on the score card but I learned awhile ago to not count until it's over. I won't even count the front 9 until it's over anymore. Because I have thought on the last 2 holes if I need a certain score I struggle
 
mcrobertsjmac32 said:
I have been getting lessons and he says I'm taking the club back too straight and coming in at the ball too steep and has me using a clock system of taking the club back a 7 and trying to finish between 1-2. I recognize this on the course and try to use the clock logic and I feel that I'm performing the take away correctly and finishing at the right time but idk... Might have to pay for him to play 18 with me.
Click to expand...

I have had that talk a million times with my guy :)

Do you incorporate that drill into a pre-shot routine?
 
tequila4kapp said:
I have had that talk a million times with my guy :)

Do you incorporate that drill into a pre-shot routine?
Click to expand...

Uve had the clock talk??? Or the talk about 18. He tells me I can do whatever I want for pre shot. He says he doesn't want me to worry about it and said I can pick what ever I want but I need to do it every time. I usually set up behind the ball, waggle 2 times practice my take away till the clubs at my waist (kind of like Mark Crossfield) then have the head hack behind the ball wait a second and swing. I used to take practice swings but always got superstitious if they didn't feel right I ended up taking like 5 of them so I just cut them out. The practice swing really is bad for my mental game
 
Paying to have him play with me ... up until very recently I was wildly inconsistent unless he was around.
 
Same for me man. When I'm with him I stripe the ball, when I'm not my swing feels like an unfolded lawn chair. Funny how that works. But yes I want him to play but for a realistic price. Maybe just have him pick up with me on 10 lol seeing as that's
My main issue.
 
I rarely warm up on the range, but I've had a history of starting great for a few holes and then run into trouble which can take you out the rest of the round until you just let what has already happened go and force yourself to get back to only positive thoughts. If you tell yourself you can't pull it off, you will fail.

All thoughts on the course must be positive. As I've said many times, a great football coach will never tell a running back "not to fumble the ball". He will tell the running back to "hang on to the ball"..............
 
mcrobertsjmac32 said:
Listen I know I'm a 30-32 Handicap but seriously my only consistency is inconsistency, I was wondering if anyone else has the problem that I have.

My typical round I warm up with a half or full bucket then 10-20 mins on the practice green. I always start off the first-7 or 8th hole well be4 something happens. Idk what it is but just when my confidence is high and I'm hopeful for a PB something happens. I will go thru at least 6 of the next 7 holes not being able to get an iron or hybrid shot off the ground. I'll either top it or hit it really fat. Recently I've thrown in some crazy toe shots that go parallel to me that's how bad they are. Sometimes I recover from this and finish the last 2-3 holes decent but today I quit on 16 and picked up the ball after 3 great drives followed by 3 or 4 consecutive fat or topped shots. Idk what is happening.

Does anyone else have this issue? This has been consistent for the past year and not like it's been I know many ppl can have a blowup hole or 2 but how can I go from having 2-3 birdie opportunities on the front to not being able to hit the ball in the air on the back?
Click to expand...
I've learned that after 8 or 9 holes of good play my confidence has a tendency to change my swing tempo, I begin to get excited about hitting my next shot and I rush my pre-shot routine, or my swing tempo gets much faster, or I start popping up out of my swing eager to see where my shot goes... If I find I am playing well.. I try to play my ball slower than usual, tAke deep breaths and control the positive adrenaline that I have..
 
Good shots or scores leads to confidence and eventually start thinking I can swing faster/harder and hit a better drive than last one or a better iron. I have to stay in good tempo throughout and not get over confident. For me it's all about tempo and not trying something I don't have whether it's a shot type or distance
 
Sounds like a mental game issue more than anything. There are loads of books out there for that, but ill suggest a quick fix.

Use a scorecard to keep score. It sounds like your brain is focusing on whole round performance. Start by trying to focus just on one hole, sort of like a match play with yourself. You have a good hole? Great! Had a hole that wasnt good? Thats fine, put it out of your mind and move onto the next hole. Every tee box is a fresh start.

You can then take it a step further. Did you just hit a chunk? Whatever, walk up to the ball expecting to hit a good shot.

The main point is to not think about your total performance mid round, just focus on one thing at a time.

A few years ago, when id play a course i didnt know, i struggled to break 100. After a few bad holes, i would tell myself "i need to play well if im going to break 100." One day, i decided id just enjoy each hole. I would get too hard on myself during a round. Since then, i shoot in the low 90s high 80s on courses im less familiar with. I look at the scorecard, and there will be some horrendous holes, but i was never focused on my whole round, and my score just worked itself out.

~Rock
 
mcrobertsjmac32 said:
Listen I know I'm a 30-32 Handicap but seriously my only consistency is inconsistency, I was wondering if anyone else has the problem that I have.

My typical round I warm up with a half or full bucket then 10-20 mins on the practice green. I always start off the first-7 or 8th hole well be4 something happens. Idk what it is but just when my confidence is high and I'm hopeful for a PB something happens. I will go thru at least 6 of the next 7 holes not being able to get an iron or hybrid shot off the ground. I'll either top it or hit it really fat. Recently I've thrown in some crazy toe shots that go parallel to me that's how bad they are. Sometimes I recover from this and finish the last 2-3 holes decent but today I quit on 16 and picked up the ball after 3 great drives followed by 3 or 4 consecutive fat or topped shots. Idk what is happening.

Does anyone else have this issue? This has been consistent for the past year and not like it's been I know many ppl can have a blowup hole or 2 but how can I go from having 2-3 birdie opportunities on the front to not being able to hit the ball in the air on the back?
Click to expand...

I have a similar problem, but the 6-7 hole stretch of terrible ball striking can happen to me early in the round as well. I cannot figure out what triggers the collapse, nor can I figure out what triggers the recovery. It seems entirely random, except for the fact that is always a multiple stretch of holes, and the quality of ball striking is not just my usual lousy ball contact (where the ball at least gets fully airborne) but absolutely horrible, barely-even-hit-the-ball type of contact.

Of course, even my "good" stretches usually have the odd horrible ball-striking episode. But there are also very good stretches of holes where the ball striking is consistently decent. I have, on a few occasions, managed to follow up a run of holes where I'm scoring quad or worse with a run of holes where I'm putting for par or birdie each time. The really vexing thing is, as far as I can tell, I'm not doing anything differently on the good holes versus the bad holes. I'm following my routine, approaching each shot the same way, trying to just swing and let the ball get in the way.

Maybe that approach is inherently flawed, and I can only pull it off for a few holes at a time, or maybe I'm just physically limited and and can't maintain my focus or sense of rhythm for more than a few holes at a time. Whatever the reason, it is definitely frustrating.
 
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