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If you truly think about it, is the short game really...

My best rounds are when I am chipping well. Although when I am driving the ball well that helps too. Nothing worse than hitting three off the tee or using your second shot to punch it back to the fairway.

But when you chunk or blade chips or pitches, the scores just go up and up.
 
Just my opinion............I consider the "short game" to be inside 50 yards to right around the green. Putting is putting and iron shots are just that. I don't know if it's the most important part of the game, but improving my own short game is what got me to a single digit handicap. I think if you're a bit higher handicap, you'll never get to single digits without a sharp short game. And nothing hacks me off more than this situation. Your tee ball on a par 5 is a good one. You hit a very nice second shot up to the collar of the green. You then proceed to take 3 more shots to get it in from probably only 30 feet away from the hole and end up with a par. AAAAARRRRGGGG!!
 
I have had good scoring days when the woods and/or long irons are not quite there but I have never had a good scoring day when the short game was lacking. Maybe that is just me but I feel that I observe the same pattern in most folks I tee it up with.
 
I read somewhere once (I think it was Golf Digest) that your skill in the long game tells you how low you can score and your skill in the short game limits how high you will score.
Lee Trevino said that the driver was the most important club because you can't play from OB and water followed next by the putter.

I also think some here are lumping course management into the short game category, when to me it is a whole other part of the game. Some have said you can't hide your short game, which is true but you also have to hit between 26 and 40 full shots per round. All shots are important.

I have noticed for me that when I hit the ball better my short game seems to appear weak, when I don't hit the ball well my short game appears strong. This also happens when I play a course too long for me the short game appears stronger than it should be for someone playing the way I am.

Just some personal observations
 
If my short game wasn't so damn ugly I would've shot mid to low 70's yesterday. Every hole I was on or within 25 yards of the green in 2 shots on all the par 4's and 5's, and on or near in 1 on the par 3's...and I shot an 84.

A great long/mid game can be all for naught if paired with a lousy short-game.
A terrible long/mid game can be saved with a great short game. I think that says it all.
 
ArmyGolf said:
If my short game wasn't so damn ugly I would've shot mid to low 70's yesterday. Every hole I was on or within 25 yards of the green in 2 shots on all the par 4's and 5's, and on or near in 1 on the par 3's...and I shot an 84.

A great long/mid game can be all for naught if paired with a lousy short-game.
A terrible long/mid game can be saved with a great short game. I think that says it all.
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Or you can manage your game to suit your strengths better. I play with guys all the time that leave themselves 30 to 60 yard shots on short par 4's and then complain about it because they don't hit the green. If you don't have that shot don't hit it to that distance. At least not on purpose.
 
I am pretty surprised to see 6 pages of debate. Might have thought this one would be covered in the 1 word answer thread.
 
I shot a 79 the other day with 35 putts (three 3 putts) and 10 GIRs. If my short game was better, I could have gone much lower but what got me that far was fairways and GIRs. So to me it's all important but I'll only be a great golfer when my short game is great.
 
Yes business traveler, yes it is!
 
tequila4kapp said:
I am pretty surprised to see 6 pages of debate. Might have thought this one would be covered in the 1 word answer thread.
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why would that be? I don't think its any huge debates but its also not just that plain and simple. Most seem to want to explain their view and thoughts on it and there seems to be quite a few different views.
 
In one of his books Dr Rotella talks about playing with guys who are convinced they would score better from closer to the green. He lets them move the ball up 40 - 50 yards on every drive. Their score - does not improve. You have a good day with the driver and score from 100 yards in.
Short game is where it is. I spens as much or more time on the short game as on the full swing when practicing. Then an equal amount of time or more with a putter in my hand.

A single 2' putt counts the same on the scorecard as a 300 yard drive.
 
majBC said:
I read somewhere once (I think it was Golf Digest) that your skill in the long game tells you how low you can score and your skill in the short game limits how high you will score.
Lee Trevino said that the driver was the most important club because you can't play from OB and water followed next by the putter.

I also think some here are lumping course management into the short game category, when to me it is a whole other part of the game. Some have said you can't hide your short game, which is true but you also have to hit between 26 and 40 full shots per round. All shots are important.

I have noticed for me that when I hit the ball better my short game seems to appear weak, when I don't hit the ball well my short game appears strong. This also happens when I play a course too long for me the short game appears stronger than it should be for someone playing the way I am.

Just some personal observations
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It seems may be possible your short game could be fairly steady (for better or worse I don't know) but steady none the less. I assume by saying "hitting the ball well" you are referring to the mid and long shots? Being better or worse in those areas on a given day could just be creating a false sense towards your short game performance and quite possibly its really just sort of staying still.
 
majBC said:
Or you can manage your game to suit your strengths better. I play with guys all the time that leave themselves 30 to 60 yard shots on short par 4's and then complain about it because they don't hit the green. If you don't have that shot don't hit it to that distance. At least not on purpose.
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Guilty as charged. I'm notorious for putting myself at 50 yards and not converting it. I'm much better from 90 or say 20, but I'll have that 50 to 60 yard dialed in soon.
 
yes. if it wasn't for my short game, i wouldn't be near as good as i am. i don't hit more than 6 or 7 greens per round, and i still shoot right around 80. if i didn't have a good short game, it would easily be in the 90's..
 
Tedfroop said:
In one of his books Dr Rotella talks about playing with guys who are convinced they would score better from closer to the green. He lets them move the ball up 40 - 50 yards on every drive. Their score - does not improve. You have a good day with the driver and score from 100 yards in.
Short game is where it is. I spens as much or more time on the short game as on the full swing when practicing. Then an equal amount of time or more with a putter in my hand.

A single 2' putt counts the same on the scorecard as a 300 yard drive.
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I don't know if I can really buy into that most people score wouldn't be even a little lower if 40 to 50 yrds closer on every hole. That's a lot of club/s for a big difference with approach shots. You can be talking PW vs 6iron or 8i vs 4iron. There is no way most anyone wouldn't be on the green more times and closer to the pin when they do get on it and also be at least much closer to the green if they missed it vs the longer shots.

As far as 2' putt counts the same as 300 yrd drive. This can be the exact point where one may feel its all just as important from everywhere.
 
thedue said:
Guilty as charged. I'm notorious for putting myself at 50 yards and not converting it. I'm much better from 90 or say 20, but I'll have that 50 to 60 yard dialed in soon.
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That's a lot of time spent practicing a shot that with better course management you should only have maybe once per round and that because of a miss hit shot. Everyone has to hit full shots and putt, but no one has to hit many of the no mans land shots (20 to 80 yards). I actually don't mind those shots from 20 to 80 yards but I prefer full shots if possible. It does help to at least get the ball on the green from 20 yards and in and everyone should have a go to shot from there and be proficient from the sand.

I would tend to agree with you rollin on the 40 yard closer idea as I tend to struggle with distance off the tee. My only two double bogeys my last round were caused by errant drives, that's not always the case though as my short game can cause issues as well. I tend to track where I loose strokes using 5 categories 1)tee ball 2) approach shot 3) short game 4)putting and 5) mental error which can include course management, pulling the wrong club for the shot, choosing the wrong shot for the situation, and other types of pre-shot blunders. The mental errors are by far the ones we can control the easiest.
 
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rollin said:
why would that be? I don't think its any huge debates but its also not just that plain and simple. Most seem to want to explain their view and thoughts on it and there seems to be quite a few different views.
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Because the universal answer to the OP's question - is the short game really more important than all else - is a resounding yes.
 
tequila4kapp said:
Because the universal answer to the OP's question - is the short game really more important than all else - is a resounding yes.
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I personally think all shots are equally important. I think poor to average ball strikers tend to think long shots are more important and better ball strikers tend to think short game is more important and both are correct, at least for their skill level. You mention Pelz and his analysis (very good and very thorough and a lot of great ideas) but he is comparing golfers of similar abilities and usually decent ball strikers to begin with and when you do that the only way to improve scores is the short game. Just my opinion.
 
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majBC said:
I personally think all shots are equally important. I think poor to average ball strikers tend to think long shots are more important and better ball strikers tend to think short game is more important and both are correct, at least for their skill level. You mention Pelz and his analysis (very good and very thorough and a lot of great ideas) but he is comparing golfers of comparable abilities and usually decent ball strikers to begjn with and when you do that the only way to improve scores is the short game. Just my opinion.
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Maybe I'm the anomaly, the average ball striker that thinks short game.

Poor ball strikers - unless we hit a tee shot or iron shot into a hazard and take a penalty - always have a chance to save the hole (he says from experience). Conversely, unless we are a premier ball striker and have awesome GIR numbers we cannot score with a comparably mediocre short game.
 
tequila4kapp said:
Maybe I'm the anomaly, the average ball striker that thinks short game.

Poor ball strikers - unless we hit a tee shot or iron shot into a hazard and take a penalty - always have a chance to save the hole (he says from experience). Conversely, unless we are a premier ball striker and have awesome GIR numbers we cannot score with a comparably mediocre short game.
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Would you say the same holds true for a 36 handicap?
 
Very interesting conversation. I have to agree with some here that the whole game is important to improve on. I personally feel that the short game is an area where you can gain or make up strokes lost in other areas of the game. An example given, "I shot an 85 with 30 putts". It seems to me that par putts for 18 holes is 36 . That part was bettered by 6 strokes. If the rest of the game was shot at par, then the score would have been 66 assuming a par 72 course. So what part(s) of the game suffered those extra 19 shots? To me, those are the areas that need the work.

Because you have a higher percentage of shots in the short game, you have a greater opportunity to reduce those numbers. But that just seems the easiest place to make them up not necessarily the place that needs the most improvement.

Thoughts welcome.
 
Kobey said:
Would you say the same holds true for a 36 handicap?
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Good question. I suppose if we're the rare 36 that especially struggles with one element of the game (only), then no. But I suspect for the average 36 index, short game may even be more important.
 
It all does have to work but the short game is what seperates good players from great players.
 
rollin said:
Its pretty unanimous the short game plays a big part and I've never slighted its importance but this has been interesting to hear everyones take on it.

. But some are looking at it as though its driver or tee shot vs everything else as being the short game. Perhaps I should have mentioned it as short game vs mid and/or long. Imo I would say the short game doesn't have a specific yardage. Basic set of irons (if that really exists anymore) goes through SW and I look at it as basically anything inside that yardage requires either additional wedges and/or less than full swings with any number of clubs. That yardage is different for every one but its basically where the finesse (if you will) or more touchy shots starts to kick in. That to me is the short game give or take some yardage for each individual and of course anything closer from that point inward.

Many of you sort of say some of this debate depends on just what your weaknesses are and I think there is truth to that and is also related to how good or poor one is at golf. Different scenario and meanings can kick in for a high capper vs a low capper. Obviously if one struggle badly from the tee or from the iron approach shot then right now those things could be more important to that player until he becomes a bit more consistent at those things.

One has to first actually get to the short game position in a respectable stroke count with some sort of consistency and believe it or not for many high cappers and weekend hackers who shoot 90's and 100's that is not always a given. So for them, if they can hit consistent in the long and mid games there scores can drop nicely "for now". Of course the short game will help a ton to and also in the furture. But sometimes for many they struggle with long and mid more than short in their world of golf relatively speaking to their scores.

Once a bit more consistent and once the handicap or average score starts to drop they will have to without a doubt start playing better short game and for those who are already mid and low cappers this is where there is a difference in just what may mean more to one golfer vs another. To exaggerate the point, a pro or scratch golfer is basically at a given that the long and mid game is very consistent therefore the short game now becomes the utmost importance.

It sometimes depends where one sits as to what their view may be.
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I'm in total agreement with this.
 
I hit the green more often with my second shot when I swing a pitching wedge than a 4-iron.

I'll say this: a good short game keeps away the snowmen. So you can hit your driver to the edge of playing territory, and put your second off the green by 80 yards. But from there, if you only hit three more shots courtesy of your game from <100 yards, you're golden. On the other hand, if your short game stinks, a bad tee shot and a bad second shot has you in Chernobyl mode. Meltdown and fighting for double bogey.

So I'd say for a guy like me, a 20-handicapper, getting a better short game will save me strokes and from the round-ruining 7's and 8's. But eventually to break 80, you need to hit the ball far off the tee and put yourself in a position to attack a pin with the second shot.
 
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