After shooting a tough 108 the day prior, I was eager to get back on a familiar course to redeem myself. Despite not having a chance to warm up, I had a much better start today, getting three consecutive bogeys which could have easily been pars if my chipping was a bit better. Unfortunately I fell off the rails on the fourth, again struggling with my 5 iron off the tee, hitting two balls off the toe of the club, one going out of bounds, which culminated in a +4 eight on the hole. Overall, I was happy with how I hit my short irons and wedges, but again had a difficult time with my 5 & 6 , avoiding the penalty strokes from the day prior, but still having several toed, bladed, or shanked shots which resulted in blowup holes. This will be a major focus over the next four days on the range as I gear up for my first ever golf trip next weekend.
Putting: my putting was again a strength, only having two three putts on the round. That said, I only had a few one putts, most of which were chipped within a few feet. I left at least four putts less than two inches short, so once I work the shanks out of my irons, I’ll begin placing more emphasis on putting, as my lag putting has been solid, but I have an opportunity to shave multiple strokes by sinking a few 8+ foot putts per round.
Chipping: the one area where I took a step back from yesterday was my chipping. My flop shots were well struck and had good trajectory, but were consistently long. My bump and runs were also hit well, but consistently left short of the mark. I will focus on both flop shots with my PW and bump and runs with my PW this upcoming week with at least 25 of each during practice sessions.
Short irons (8 to SW): my short irons were passable on the day. Unlike my previous round where I took multiple penalty strokes due to toed or bladed short irons, I was much more consistent in making good contact with my approach shots, though I was often chipping from left or right of the green. Improved accuracy could have saved me several strokes on the day, but I was happy with the contact and trajectory I was getting on my short irons.
Long irons (5 to 7): my long irons were once again the biggest challenge in my game. I took eight penalty strokes with my 5 and 6 iron with the vast majority coming off the tee. For some reason I have a tendency to hit my long irons off the toe of the club, especially off the tee deck. I will focus closely on my long irons at the range this week, paying attention to how I’m setting up, as when I was hitting the ball well, I was regularly pulling it to the left of the target with all three clubs, something I’ll look to improve moving forward.
Overall, with rounds logged at 110 and 102 over the long weekend, I’m disappointed I wasn’t able to break 100, but once again feel I have a good idea where my game stands and what I need to practice. This upcoming weekend is a guys golf trip which means I will be getting in three rounds of golf over three days from Friday to Sunday in a competitive, tournament format. I am coming in with the second highest handicap in the twenty-person trip (+27), with the ideal outcome being my holding my own throughout the weekend. In preparation, I will aim to get to the range over each of the next three days to dial in my long irons and chips.
Breaking Ninety 