OK, I don't mean for this to turn into my personal BLOG on this forum, but it may help some of those who are new, as am I, to TGM. I played a course today that is not overly long, but is rated at 72.3 with a slope of 134 from the tees of choice (blue). Lots of elevation changes, but a course that I know well.
The stats are interesting
I hit 3 greens in regulation
6 fairways
Saved par from 4 bunkers
Bogied a par three by first hitting my tee shot into the water
(175 yard hole over a lake), and then hitting my third on the green and draining a 45 foot putt to save a 4.
I shot 42/39 with a triple bogey (drive OB) on one par 4 on the front.
I saved par by chipping or hitting a sand shot and one putting 8 times
I had one birdie (GREAT second shot)
24 putts.
I was the guest of the Head Pro at this course, and showed up early to warm up. However, they needed to fill a group when I got there, and it would have been rude of me to refuse, so I played without warm up. Undoubtedly this contributed to the erratic nature of my play, as I was doing things that I just discovered would work for me yesterday. Had I a chance to hit a large bucket prior to going out, I am sure my scoring would have been better.
What I discovered, for those of you who are following this is that paying attention to my hands is a great way to hit quality shots. However, I need to remember that paying attention to my hands does not relieve me of the responsibility to HIT THE BALL. I found that I was not aggressive on a lot of swings, and as a consequence left several shots short and right. I also was having trouble with my driver being too aggressive on the start of the downswing and pulling the ball badly. I was smacking it, but pulling it.
There is a very fine line, I discovered, between controlling the club with your hands and trying to steer the shots, between controlling the club with your hands and being either too aggressive or too passive with the hit. When I was able to "listen to my hands" and start slowly down but still be aggressive through the ball I achieved amazing results.
What I am VERY pleased about is that the hands forward, chip and punch shot drill in the Ben Doyle vids returned me to my old chipping form. The greens are very undulating, and running about 10.5 on the Stimpmeter, so I was very pleased with my chipping, which represents a major breakthrough. I have been having trouble before I returned to the chipping style shown in the vids.
Anyway, Happy New Year everyone, and I will keep all the other newbies on here posted as things progress.
Obi WunPutt