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Breaking 70
BUCKNUT
Legend
 
115 Views    16 Replies    2 Likes   I like it!
I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!

Funny I went out last Sunday and shot an 83, and that was WITH 10 BOGEYS IN A ROW. Those 10 bogeys were all a result of burning the edge of the cup for par's. After the round I got to thinking and drinking and said to myself "Damn if 1/2 of those putt's would of dropped I would of had an easy 78". Told myself "tomorrow, I am going straight to the putting green. I just need to do the same thing but drop a few of them putt's" Labor Day rolled around and I went straight to the putting green for a good 45 minutes before my round. I wound up shooting a 73 and that was with 1 double bogey and 3 bogey's. Of course 4 birds helped.

This weekend I am going on 69 watch. I will do away with the double bogey and wipe out those bogey's and BINGO!

I think I can! I think I can! I think I can!
HOGAN418
Professional Champion
 
# 1    9/5/2013 9:40:26 AM   
Man, I'm not quite there yet.. I can't fathom that... it's like shopping for a Rolex in Wal-Mart.. difficult to imagine.


JayPet
Legend
 
# 2    9/5/2013 12:18:16 PM   
Anything inside 15 feet is GOOD in my book Buck! Just take it away and mark down the Par. I like the positive thinking.

You are priceless dude! Don't ever change.


Tim Conroy
Professional Champion
 
# 3    9/5/2013 12:31:51 PM   
Sounds easy enough, sounds like you are right about there. Good luck, remember it's the journey not the destination.


BUCKNUT
Legend
 
# 4    9/5/2013 12:54:34 PM   

Anything inside 15 feet is GOOD in my book Buck!




Anything outside 15 inches is an adventure for me.


Glennehurst
Professional Champion
 
# 5    9/5/2013 3:09:29 PM   
You can do it! Just go play your game and do not get bummed by one bad shot or hole. I shot my best round of the year two weeks ago and broke 70. The difference was I was not thinking about my score. I was thinking about hitting shots and playing. I will say one of my "buddies" in my foursome reminded me on hole 18 if I parred the hole I would shoot 69. Up until that point I did not realize where I stood in relation to par. Needless to say I hit a perfect tee shot, hit the green and two putted for par to shoot 69.
Just find your happy place and roll with it.


Glennehurst
Professional Champion
 
# 6    9/5/2013 3:13:20 PM   
Remember: Dr. Bob Rotella said "golf is not a game of perfect"
The late great Ben Hogan put it this way "Is is not how good your good shots are but how good your bad shots are."
In every round you will have those bad shots, expect it and realize that what you do after the bad shot will determine the difference between a great round and an OK one.


cogolfer1
LowIndex
 
# 7    9/5/2013 4:47:40 PM   
Like Goynes had driven into my head for years, it's best to go out with high expectations like that than low ones, especially when you know you can get it done, which both you and I think you can. Hope you're able to get it done! Maybe Romo can give you a putting lesson when he's booking tee times in January.


Mark Simmons
Legend
 
# 8    9/5/2013 7:42:43 PM   
Remember: Dr. Bob Rotella said "golf is not a game of perfect"
The late great Ben Hogan put it this way "Is is not how good your good shots are but how good your bad shots are."
In every round you will have those bad shots, expect it and realize that what you do after the bad shot will determine the difference between a great round and an OK one.

These two quotes are so true! It's amazing how many mistakes you can make if your bad shots aren't so bad that they cost you a stroke most of the time.

One of my favorite quotes for golf is: "Contact is king." If you make solid contact (solid, not perfect) it will really help your game.


RandallTex
Professional Champion
 
# 9    9/7/2013 7:33:28 PM   

Remember: Dr. Bob Rotella said "golf is not a game of perfect"
The late great Ben Hogan put it this way "Is is not how good your good shots are but how good your bad shots are."
In every round you will have those bad shots, expect it and realize that what you do after the bad shot will determine the difference between a great round and an OK one.


This is off topic from breaking 70, but...

I really like that Hogan quote above. As I near breaking 80 for the first time, I'm struck with how little room there is for error in shooting a solid round that I see so many of you shoot. To break 80, you can only afford to be 3 or 4 over par at most for each nine holes, so that's 5 or 6 pars (less if you are a birdie machine)- and no blowups. For those of us shooting mid80s, it can seem a bit daunting to string together so many good holes per nine.

My last round, I think I finally learned the meaning of that quote. I hit a goofy 4-iron off the tee on a 355 yard par-4, but it somehow scooted out 190 yards with a little help from the cart path. My playing partners all outdrove me and hit the fairway. From there, I had a 6-iron to the green, which I sculled- low trajectory and ugly, but it rolled enough to catch the front left of the green. Two terrible shots, but neither was lost, and I was sitting on the green, just the same as if I'd hit very nice irons. The other guys hit the green too, but were further from the pin (oddly, the flagstick was in the bunker, so none of knew where to aim, so we all tried for the middle). One guy even three-putted after hitting a nicer drive and approach than I did!

As the quote said, the bad shots ended up pretty good, and that was exactly the key to scoring an 80 that day, even flirting with 79, rather than mid-80s. I am used to the bad shots costing me strokes, not resulting in pars. It was a short course, so each shot I just needed to hit well enough to advance it somewhere ahead where it was playable and still gave me a shot to make par. It didn't need to be perfect. It was my best score ever, but I don't look back and think "damn, i struck the ball better than I ever have." I think, "man, I was scrappy and made do with some ugly shots."

What a humbling game, but these lessons are kinda cool to learn as you hit various milestones. As I play tougher courses and move to the back tees, I won't be able to get away with as many poor shots, but that'll come (I hope).


Vincedaddy
Legend
 
# 10    9/7/2013 8:19:21 PM   
I know nothing of breaking 70 or 80. However I have found that limiting each hole to one bad (not terrible) shot par is almost always possible. Just keep the ball in play!
par the hard way.jpg


RandallTex
Professional Champion
 
# 11    9/7/2013 8:43:50 PM   

I know nothing of breaking 70 or 80. However I have found that limiting each hole to one bad (not terrible) shot par is almost always possible. Just keep the ball in play!


They should design a hole like that. Tee shot over the tree line to a blind landing area. Second shot must dogleg right, over a treeline to another landing area that is barely visible through trees. Then third shot doglegs left to the green. A killer, but you proved it can be done no problem.


Vincedaddy
Legend
 
# 12    9/7/2013 8:51:45 PM   


I know nothing of breaking 70 or 80. However I have found that limiting each hole to one bad (not terrible) shot par is almost always possible. Just keep the ball in play!


They should design a hole like that. Tee shot over the tree line to a blind landing area. Second shot must dogleg right, over a treeline to another landing area that is barely visible through trees. Then third shot doglegs left to the green. A killer, but you proved it can be done no problem.


I found 4 other balls in the rough under the trees on the tee shot (I did not think it made it through). Oddly enough that is not the 1st time I have had that second shot from in front of the other green. Today was one of the few times I have shot par on this hole :)


mtags
LowIndex
 
# 13    9/7/2013 9:44:01 PM   
In all the years that I have played this game, I have always been taught to go into your round with a positive attitude. Being a little cockey is a good thing. I always go to the course feeling positive, The only problem is I'm positive I suck at golf.


Vincedaddy
Legend
 
# 14    9/7/2013 9:56:20 PM   

In all the years that I have played this game, I have always been taught to go into your round with a positive attitude. Being a little cockey is a good thing. I always go to the course feeling positive, The only problem is I'm positive I suck at golf.


DITTO!


Joe Don!
Professional Champion
 
# 15    9/8/2013 7:22:47 AM   


Remember: Dr. Bob Rotella said "golf is not a game of perfect"
The late great Ben Hogan put it this way "Is is not how good your good shots are but how good your bad shots are."
In every round you will have those bad shots, expect it and realize that what you do after the bad shot will determine the difference between a great round and an OK one.


This is off topic from breaking 70, but...

I really like that Hogan quote above. As I near breaking 80 for the first time, I'm struck with how little room there is for error in shooting a solid round that I see so many of you shoot. To break 80, you can only afford to be 3 or 4 over par at most for each nine holes, so that's 5 or 6 pars (less if you are a birdie machine)- and no blowups. For those of us shooting mid80s, it can seem a bit daunting to string together so many good holes per nine.

My last round, I think I finally learned the meaning of that quote. I hit a goofy 4-iron off the tee on a 355 yard par-4, but it somehow scooted out 190 yards with a little help from the cart path. My playing partners all outdrove me and hit the fairway. From there, I had a 6-iron to the green, which I sculled- low trajectory and ugly, but it rolled enough to catch the front left of the green. Two terrible shots, but neither was lost, and I was sitting on the green, just the same as if I'd hit very nice irons. The other guys hit the green too, but were further from the pin (oddly, the flagstick was in the bunker, so none of knew where to aim, so we all tried for the middle). One guy even three-putted after hitting a nicer drive and approach than I did!

As the quote said, the bad shots ended up pretty good, and that was exactly the key to scoring an 80 that day, even flirting with 79, rather than mid-80s. I am used to the bad shots costing me strokes, not resulting in pars. It was a short course, so each shot I just needed to hit well enough to advance it somewhere ahead where it was playable and still gave me a shot to make par. It didn't need to be perfect. It was my best score ever, but I don't look back and think "damn, i struck the ball better than I ever have." I think, "man, I was scrappy and made do with some ugly shots."

What a humbling game, but these lessons are kinda cool to learn as you hit various milestones. As I play tougher courses and move to the back tees, I won't be able to get away with as many poor shots, but that'll come (I hope).



Ah yes, the "quality miss". Does not matter how you get there, or how smooth the ride was...just get there. LOVE this game!!!


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