Scoring, scoring, scoring…….

I often play with golfers that are very good at golf and pretty poor at scoring.  They are focused on their swing, long drives and don’t normally consider risk reward.  It seems they assume they will hit each shot great every time they line up to the ball.  I know I rarely hit a shot great and normally plan on where my miss will end up.  It is important that your mental process is sound and you have a good scientist.  Here is a small piece of my book about having a good scientist;

Albert has never been much of an athlete. He does happen to be a genius at figuring out distances, wind directions and ball flights needed for the best results. When Albert steps up on a par 180 yard par 3, he will scientifically calculate the wind, direction, optimum trajectory and all other factors that could effect the shot. He will then crunch the numbers to determine the best percentage play based on the size of the green, club needed and the risk reward factor. Your scientist must also be able to calculate how good the athlete is performing on each day. On days when your coordination is good and ball striking is pure he will choose shots of a higher degree of difficulty. On those awful days he will make decisions base on poor ball striking or putting thus playing a very conservative round. Most of the time we play at about a 4 with 1 being horrible and 10 being best. If Albert does his job correctly you should be able to hit the ball fairly poorly and still score pretty well. Most mid or high handicap players expect to hit the ball well all the time while most low handicap or professional players rarely expect to hit the ball any where near perfect. It is fine to have a poor ball striking day but not O.K. to continue to make stupid decisions when your not physically feeling your best. It is Albert’s job to figure this into his decision making and essential to good scoring…….

If you have a good scientist you are off to a good start.  Next you should understand the math behind scoring.  I suggest purchasing the book every shot counts by Mark Broadie.  This is the best break down of shot values I have ever seen.   You will understand the value of a long tee shot, how many putts you should have and what your “error ” rate should be from every yardage.  I use the stats from this book a lot with my better players.

It is well worth your time.  Best of luck

Jim Hartnett, PGA