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Falling apart at the turn

Popeye

Popeye

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Scranton Pa
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The last three round I have made the turn at -2, even and -1. I get to the 10th and the wheels fall off so to speak. When I say fall off its a couple of ugly bogey holes or barely make par. All three rounds I have recovered well and worse round was 2 over. Today I recovered and shot -1, 70.

The front is a solid complete 9 holes. Everything working and of course every once in a while a bogey sneaks in.

But make the turn and I feel uncomfortable and I struggle for a good 3 or 4 holes. A drive goes wild, a fat approach shot, chucked chip. Or a combination of all three.... Just can't figure it out.

Any one else find awkward moments in a round and how do you get over it?
 
I can candidly say that I do not know what it feels like to be under par at the turn, or even par as that's not where my game is at. However I can say that I've made myself focus on the shot at hand, and not relive the chunked iron, sliced drive or skulled wedge. Simply by telling myself that shot is in the past and asking what I need to do on this one, taking a deep breath and moving on.
 
I'm the complete opposite, I'm typically pretty bad during the front nine and turn it around on the back.
 
Last year I had two round finish at -5 so I'm ok with going low. This seems to be something new. Maybe it's an anomaly but three times in a row it has my attention.
 
Not quite a single digit handicap, but a lot of times I have the stuff there and it only comes out for one set of 9 or the other. It must be some subconscious mental trend, where when you start good on your first 9 and start to coast, and then you coast a little too much into the back and the wheels fall off. Or, you start miserably, and then you mentally tough it out and play how you know you can on the back... just my thoughts, trying to get out of that habit.
 
KEV said:
I'm the complete opposite, I'm typically pretty bad during the front nine and turn it around on the back.
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This is me!!
 
I feel like we should all be taking advice from you instead Popeye....especially if youre regularly breaking par.
 
At what point do you think about your score. My guess is that you tally up the score and see -2 or -1. Then the wheels start turning about what could be. I write the scores down and tally at the end.
 
Tadashi70 said:
At what point do you think about your score. My guess is that you tally up the score and see -2 or -1. Then the wheels start turning about what could be. I write the scores down and tally at the end.
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Well I'm using Golf shot so I'm seeing what I do at the turn. When im playing my best I don't even know what my score is. So with golf Shot I always see my score. In all three times I screw up the 3 or 4 holes, get pissed off and play exceptional golf on the way in, making a few birdies as I do. I know I drift mentally and it may be because I see the score.
 
Popeye said:
Well I'm using Golf shot so I'm seeing what I do at the turn. When im playing my best I don't even know what my score is. So with golf Shot I always see my score. In all three times I screw up the 3 or 4 holes, get pissed off and play exceptional golf on the way in, making a few birdies as I do. I know I drift mentally and it may be because I see the score.
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sounds like you just answered your own question. and as my reward, i request you to answer a question for me: how do i go about shooting -5 and can you please teach me how to do that ok thanks
 
Tadashi70 said:
At what point do you think about your score. My guess is that you tally up the score and see -2 or -1. Then the wheels start turning about what could be. I write the scores down and tally at the end.
Click to expand...
This is good advice, I have definitely played better through the middle of the round and later on the back 9 since I quit marking down scores and stats for every hole. Once that hole is done, it's history so no need to relive it or think about how you're scoring while in the round.

Another thing I do that helps me is to divide the round into 5 sets of 3 holes. I set a personal par for the 3, play the holes and then see how I did. Once those 3 are done I'm on to the next set. Each set of 3 is it's own entity and I'm not adding scores together. It also helps you work on finishing, but in a smaller subset of holes. The mind is a wonderful thing!
 
Wakit300 said:
This is good advice, I have definitely played better through the middle of the round and later on the back 9 since I quit marking down scores and stats for every hole. Once that hole is done, it's history so no need to relive it or think about how you're scoring while in the round.

Another thing I do that helps me is to divide the round into 5 sets of 3 holes. I set a personal par for the 3, play the holes and then see how I did. Once those 3 are done I'm on to the next set. Each set of 3 is it's own entity and I'm not adding scores together. It also helps you work on finishing, but in a smaller subset of holes. The mind is a wonderful thing!
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That's an interesting approach. I'll have to try that.
 
c.a.eleric said:
sounds like you just answered your own question. and as my reward, i request you to answer a question for me: how do i go about shooting -5 and can you please teach me how to do that ok thanks
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Ok, this is how I really started scoring well.
I do what ever I need to on a given hole, to stay in the fairway. Distance with me is not an issue so a lot of holes I have a shorter iron into a hole. On longer holes that are tight, not giving up strokes due to wild driver shots makes a big difference.

Get precise with your 150 and in yardage and live and die by the numbers. I take a club more and a 3/4 but still an aggressive swing. It gives me a ball that hits the green and stops dead. Being hole high is a huge advantage.

Missing the green I use an 8 iron or so and a putting stroke. This let's me read the green like I'm putting and I usually sink at least one of those a round.

Birdies for me are as contagious as a string of bogeys so I will get in a zone and just cruise. I string 3 in 4 holes a lot then make a few pars and then pop a couple of birdies somewhere else.

I take medicine when I have to and don't try to make a heroic swing after a bad shot that has me in trouble. Doing that allows me to save par a surprising amount of times.

So that is how I have learned to go low. Maybe my recent troubles has me thinking too far ahead as Tadashi had mentioned.
 
I try to survive until the turn more rounds than not. My home course the back is probably a stroke or two easier than the front, at least for me. When we're playing a match, I feel like I'm just trying to keep it close then something happens on the 600 yard par 5.
 
Tadashi70 said:
At what point do you think about your score. My guess is that you tally up the score and see -2 or -1. Then the wheels start turning about what could be. I write the scores down and tally at the end.
Click to expand...
This is the approach I like to take. Sometimes I think I have had a good score but it turns out not as good as I thought in my head. Other times I have thought I didn't have a good round. And have been surprised at the score.
If I have a bad hole or two. I try to focus on each individual shot at hand. And not dwell on what just happened.

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Each shot should be focused on. You can't change the past or the future. You can only control the now. Stay in the present and give each shot the respect it deserves
 
I think for my next round I'll stay aggressive on every shot and stay in the moment. I really rely on the yardage from the app so I guess I'll just record and not even look at the score card.
 
Most of the time I don't add it up until I am done with 18. You usually have a pretty good idea of where you're sitting, especially if it's a good round. I notice that most of the time when I add it up after nine it is a round to forget anyway.
 
KEV said:
I'm the complete opposite, I'm typically pretty bad during the front nine and turn it around on the back.
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I'm right there with you. My last round was five strokes better on the back nine than the front.
 
perhaps simply try not to divide the round into two halves. Someone mentioned dividing into segments. But how about just treating all 18 as 1 unit. The nature of the game sort of by default makes us feel as though we almost have 2 starts or perhaps a finish and a second beginning. Its sort of ingrained in our heads that way simply due to years of saying or referring to the round as "9out and 9in" or saying things like "at the turn" or "front9/back9" or whatever else have you. Its falsely lead us to feel like its two different things. But honestly its really just one whole thing. Hole 9 is not somehow some sort of finish and hole10 is not somehow a new beginning. IDK and it may not be easy to do because we are creatures of habit but perhaps that's worth a try.
 
rollin said:
perhaps simply try not to divide the round into two halves. Someone mentioned dividing into segments. But how about just treating all 18 as 1 unit. The nature of the game sort of by default makes us feel as though we almost have 2 starts or perhaps a finish and a second beginning. Its sort of ingrained in our heads that way simply due to years of saying or referring to the round as "9out and 9in" or saying things like "at the turn" or "front9/back9" or whatever else have you. Its falsely lead us to feel like its two different things. But honestly its really just one whole thing. Hole 9 is not somehow some sort of finish and hole10 is not somehow a new beginning. IDK and it may not be easy to do because we are creatures of habit but perhaps that's worth a try.
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That is good advice. I think a core problem may be my years of playing just nine holes and somehow that mentality is creeping back in. Add to that the weather isn't the best and there is a thought at the turn of getting in the truck or finishing the round.
 
I used to belong to a course locally in Dallas that I just couldn't get the back 9 under control. The first 3 holes were a bit of an Amen Corner that just didn't set up for my game. The front 9 was a walk in the park, it was more the norm then the exception that I was sub 40 on the front then struggled to keep it under 43 to 45 on the back. One day there I was 33 going out and 44 coming in - beautiful. Some times it's not so much falling apart as the course just not setting up to your eye/game.
 
It could be nothing more than fatigue. If you are swinging aggressively all the time, you can get tired at the turn and start to make little mistakes. Start the day swinging smooth relaxed and easy and keep it that way, and you'll last a lot longer. Smooth and relaxed shouldn't affect your distance or accuracy negatively but should be better all around.


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BluesManDan said:
It could be nothing more than fatigue. If you are swinging aggressively all the time, you can get tired at the turn and start to make little mistakes. Start the day swinging smooth relaxed and easy and keep it that way, and you'll last a lot longer. Smooth and relaxed shouldn't affect your distance or accuracy negatively but should be better all around.


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Well later in the round this is definitely the case as I walk 18. I am 52 now and hitting the cardio pretty hard as I know that can be a late round issue. The course that is open is fit for a mountain goat.

There is definitely some kind of energy let down at the turn. Now that I am quite conscious of it I will see what happens Monday.
 
Popeye said:
Well later in the round this is definitely the case as I walk 18. I am 52 now and hitting the cardio pretty hard as I know that can be a late round issue. The course that is open is fit for a mountain goat.

There is definitely some kind of energy let down at the turn. Now that I am quite conscious of it I will see what happens Monday.
Click to expand...

Yep, i walk too, and it gets me. I love to swing aggressively! It's so hard to remember to swing easy!


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