Putting… putting … putting!

My handicap is continuing to drop as we come to the end of July and I am now sitting at a solid 5.

My ball striking is as good or better than it has ever been and I am plenty long throughout the bag.

At this point I believe the only thing coming between me and my goal of a 2 handicap for the season is putting!

I recently shot 79 with 6 three putts followed by 73 that still included a couple of three putts and at least a half a dozen birdie putts missed from inside of 15 feet (half of those inside six feet). The only birdie putt I made on my one-under back nine was a kick in 1 footer after I stiffed a wedge on a long par 4.

So… I intend to find a significant amount of time over the next couple of weeks to work exclusively on my putting. I have worked on it throughout the season somewhat randomly but not with a specific goal, game plan or practice routine in place.  

I have done some research on putting statistics related to handicap level and the consensus seems to be that as a five handicap my putts should be no more than 32-34 putts per round. I have tracked my putts on a casual basis and believe my putting average at the moment would be 36-38. In addition to a rigorous practice routine for putting I will now track my putting statistics more closely in order to monitor my improvement and the subsequent impact on my handicap.

I am considering using a software program to begin tracking not only my putting statistics but also other key statistics such as fairways, greens, up and downs, and bunker play percentage. I will provide an update on stats programs and my personal results over the next couple of weeks.

Today’s tee time is 3:45 and showers are in the forecast… maybe I’ll putt better on wet greens?!

Be well, play well.

GE

Halfway

Well we are halfway through the golf season and I am playing off a six handicap. This is four strokes short of my goal of 2 by seasons end.

I suspect I will be able to get under five for the year but 2 is looking somewhat unlikely. I may be able to get close if I can clean up my putting which has been very inconsistent, ranging from okay to poor.

My putt count is often in the high 30’s and sometime goes to 40+ this is obviously unacceptable and needs to be an area I focus on until my putt counts start coming in consistently in the low 30’s.

On the positive side I have been able to play alot of golf this season and my ball striking is fairly consistent. I feel more at home on the golf course than I have for a very long time.

I’ll keep you posted on my putting progress and fill you in on the results of our club championship which is taking place this weekend.

It is a beautiful Sunday morning. Get out…play well.

GE.