In the past there have been a couple occasions where I planned out a specific change and then after working at it for a period of time (which I thought was substantial enough) I arrived at a place where I needed to play competitive golf and ended up reverting to older habits or getting stuck in the limbo that is half old half new, which typically results in golfing death, because I had not fully ingrained the new habit/change.

I recently found something in my swing, a new feel, that produces the shots that I have been gunning for.  Nice high slight draws and baby fades that start close in line with and finish at the target.  I’ve played a slinging draw for the past 6 or 7 months without really knowing why, but I finally realized that through a different feel in my wrists during the takeaway I can get the club more on plane.  Long story short, it’s good and I like it.

So now comes the implementation period.  I worked it on the range for about a week while slowly starting to venture out on the course and the results were increasingly encouraging.  Then I began to play 9 and eventually 18 holes with just the new feel in mind and the results kept coming in positively.  I still don’t have a great feel with my tee shot so I am missing a lot of fairways, but with the irons it is pretty comfortable.  A lot of the problem with my tee shot, too, is that I am used to aiming down the left side and slinging it back to the right, but now that I am playing a pretty straight shot I am ending up in a lot of trees out at Riverside.  I just need to learn to aim down the fairway and trust that it will go where it is supposed to.

I stuck with the new feel for a couple of rocky rounds and then progress showed itself in a nice little 73 yesterday that looked like this:

It was a funny round as I missed almost every fairway, but when I had a look at the green I was hitting it really well and close to the pin.  I missed three putts from about 5 feet and had an unplayable shot on the 18th which ended up as a bogey.  outside of that it was a solid round where the new swing was really starting to pay off.  I was pretty excited as it felt like effortless power and the ball flight was sweet.  My playing partner, who I had never played with before, commented about how good a round could have been had I been able to hit some decent tee shots.  It’s always great to have obvious flaws as you know exactly what you need to work on.  I have faith that with the new swing once I get a better understanding of impact positions with the longer clubs things are going to step up to the next level.

The next day, though, I struggled to “find” my new feel and it wasn’t until about the 9th hole where I started to realize exactly what I was wanting and needed to do.  The entire round I could have very easily reverted to my old swing and gotten around the course much better, but you have to give these things time and you have to be able to play through the crappy rounds in order to really find what you are looking for.

Today’s round was a much darker shade of good:

I technically hit more fairways than the day before, but my misses were much farther from the fairway and often in a spot where I could not get a good punch out.  And, the irons were not treating me like they had the day before as I could not quite find the new spots in the swing.  I hit a couple good shots, like the birdie on 17 from a 170 yard 7-iron that landed 2 feet from the hole and a few good saves for bogeys, but all in all the round was about sticking with the new regardless of the outcome as that will come with due diligence and time.

Both bad and good shots are part of learning and in a lot of ways we can improve more from sticking to our guns and working out the kinks during rounds like today’s.  There are a lot of bumps along the way; figuring out what you want to do and then sticking to it regardless of the immediate outcomes is the secret formula for improving.

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This first one is my handicap according to hours of practice.  I first got a handicap after about 2,000 hours of training and at the time I still had just 7 clubs.  The most recent handicap of 2.8 that was given last week is not included, this data is up to about 5,000 hours of training:

This next one is my handicap related to date.  Not exactly linear, but to me it’s obvious when I made big changes in my swing and what came from them after the step backwards:

This one is similar, but it’s how the handicap relates to the number of practice hours:

Then he charted out my rate of practice and how that has changed over time. What this demonstrates is that once I started playing full rounds my daily/weekly/monthly average practice hours actually decreased from when I was solely working on the putting green and range.  Originally I was scheduled to finish October 2017, but at the new rate the final date should be closer to November 2019:

This final one looks at my training rate from day one to the present day and shows a bit clearer how the average number of hours logged a day has slightly slowed since July 2013.

In other news I got the email yesterday saying I could officially play in the Oregon Am qualifier June 3rd.  This is the first year where my handicap was low enough to get into the event and I am excited to give it a go.  Last year 76 was the qualifying score to get into the actual Oregon Am.  I have that number in the bag and if I play decent I should be able to progress.  The actual Am is 36 hole stroke play and then the top 64 players get to move on to a 4 days of match play.  One step at a time and my goal is to play well in the qualifier coming up soon.

I have been under par deep into rounds (3 under for 14 holes, 2 under after 15, etc) but had yet to manage to bring it all the way home; until today, that is.  I felt the wheels come off a bit when I three-putted on the 16th hole for a bogey, but got it back in gear and finished strong shooting a 70 on a par 72 course.

The course was Heron Lakes’ Greenback track which was fitting as it was the first course I stepped a foot on during this journey and Heron is where I began my golfing practice 4 years ago. I also got to play with some of my golf friends who I have known from the beginning and then celebrate afterwords with a bunch of regulars who were sticking around to watch the basketball playoffs.  And, my first swing coach, Christopher, happened to be on the putting green when I finished so I got to share the round with him and catch up on everything he has been doing in the past 1.5 years since we last crossed paths.

Here is what the scorecard looked like:

It was a day where ball striking was pretty good, chipping was on when needed and I was putting well.  All of these aspects added up to the difference between shooting today’s 70 and a much more commonplace (for my current game) 76.  That said, there are always shots that didn’t quite go in and I had a handful of near misses to go with what did go well.

Here is how it breaks down:

1. Driver in the fairway and laid up short of some fairway bunkers with a hybrid.  I had 110 remaining and hit a gripped up 50 degree wedge to about 15 feet.  The putt was tracking the hole the entire way, but veered off an inch before the cup to be tapped in for a par.

2. Pushed the driver but it ended up in the middle of the fairway, albeit it pretty short.  I had 168 to the pin and hit a 6-iron into a slight breeze but caught it fat and the ball came up just short of the green.  Chipped it up with a wedge and made a 4 footer for par.

3. Hit an 8-iron to this par 3 which was playing to a short pin about 155 yards from the tee box.  It landed pin high but about 20 feet to the right of the pin.  Made a good putt that was tracking just like on the first hole and veered off at the end again.  I realized I need to start putting a bit more pace on putts and not rely on them dying in the hole as if the cup isn’t perfect it sometimes loses track at the end.  Tapped in for par.

4. Hit the driver and was trying to draw it from the left back to the fairway over, but the shot went pretty much dead straight and smacked into a tree hard.  It kicked back out to the fairway and was 143 yards to the pin but behind a medium sized tree.  I hit a 9-iron to get it up and over the tree but caught it fat like on the second hole (didn’t warm up on the range so was finding my swing on the course) and it came down 50 yards short.  Pitched up with a 58 degree and it landed but bounced through the green as it was coming in from the rough.  Chipped back on and made an 8 footer to save bogey.

5. Hit a good drive on this 500 yard par 5 then hit my 3-hybrid from 225 yards out and the ball landed pin high.  I had a long eagle putt, perhaps 40 feet, and missed it by a foot then knocked in the birdie putt.

6. Crazy hole.  Tried to hit a high draw drive over the fairway bunkers but closed the face and hooked it hard. The ball hit a tree solidly and shot back almost all the way to the red tees.  I had 230 yards to the middle of the green but it was slightly with the wind so hit the 3 hybrid which came down just short of the green but plugged into the face of a green side bunker.  Got my sand wedge on it well and popped the ball out to about 6 feet from the hole and made the par putt.

7. Hit a 5-iron pin high on this 197 yard par 3.  Two putts for par.

8. Drove it through some trees and back out to the fairway and had 115 yards to the pin.  Hit a 50 degree wedge a bit short and two-putted for par.

9.  A 3-wood down the middle and then stuck my 8-iron to about 3 feet from 151 yards.  Made the birdie putt to turn one under par.

At the turn we switched things up. On the front it was Eric, Brian and I playing in a 3-man skins game and then the assistant pro Nick joined up with us on the 7th hole so at the turn we needed to play a different game.  We decided to play a team game on the back and it took about a full hole to figure out what pops each person got.  We ranged from a plus 1 handicap to a 7.  It didn’t really matter though as we were all trying to just play good golf.

10. Pulled the drive low and down the right side fairly short.  Hit a 7-iron to try and get back out to the fairway and in scoring range and pulled that a bit too.  Had 124 remaining so hit a full 50 degree wedge pin high but a bit left.  Made a 15 footer for birdie.

11. Hit a good drive down the middle.  Had 118 left so hit a 50 degree a bit easy and was hoping it would land and release towards the hole but it checked up short.  Made a great putt that I thought was going to drop but it veered off at the last second again.  Tapped in for par.

12. Pushed the drive slight right into the rough and then had to hit a hard fade 7-iron around some trees to the green.  Got a hold of it well and it went long over the green.  Chipped back on and then made a 7 footer for par.

13. Pulled the drive low and short into the rough.  Laid up before some water with a hybrid as it was 300 to the stick and I didn’t have a club that could carry that far.  Had 100 remaining and  hit a half 50 degree that landed and spun back some.  Another good putt right at the hole turned at the last second and I then tapped in for par.

14. This hole can be a round changer for the worse if you are not too careful.  It was playing about 190 today and the green is protected by bunkers with water down the left side.  I hit a 6-iron as it was down wind and I would rather be a little short than long and the ball landed a few feet to the right of the green in the rough.  Chipped up to about 3 feet and made the par.

15. Shorter par 4 with water down the entire left side.  Hit a hybrid to 110 yards and then hit a 50 degree close to the pin, but it spun back about 10 feet.  Another near miss then tap in par putting scenario.

16. Water carry par 3 that was playing 162 yards today.  The pin was at the very front of the green just 4 yards from the water so you couldn’t be under the hole without serious threats to a water bound ball. I hit a 6-iron into the wind to be safe and landed about 25 feet past the hole.  The green sloped away from me all the way to the hole and then to the water and I let that get into my head leaving the ball about 5 feet short.  I took the next putt a little too lightly and just missed it leading to a 3-putt bogey.

After that putt I had a flashback to past rounds where I was under par so deep just to let it slip through my fingers.  Instead of playing “defensive” golf and trying to par out I decided to keep playing my game, which tends to be more aggressive, and stay focussed on aiming for birdies.

17. Hit a drive that was a nice draw but a bit low and it actually landed in a fairway bunker but then got a lucky hop and bounced through landing in the rough with a wide open shot at the green.  I had a downhill lie about 96 yards to the pin and knew it would come out pretty hot so hit a punch 54 degree. The result was nice with the ball ending up about 6 feet above the hole.  Made a good putt knocking in the birdie.

I was really happy about that and despite how much I had been trying to not focus on score through the round I knew that I was under par going into 18.  The best I had previously been was one over par at that point, but today I knew that I was two under and all I needed to do was double bogey or better to shoot par for the first time.  That didn’t mean it was any easier to hit a relaxed driver or approach shot, though, and even after sticking the green in 2 I was pretty nervous standing over a long putt.

18.  Just wanted to make good contact and finish strong, but got a little quick and pulled the drive some.  I had a clear shot to the pin but it was tucked behind a bunker some 150 yards from where I stood.  I pulled an 8 and was aiming to get close to the stick, but it came out of the rough hot and landed on the back of the green about 40 feet from the hole.  I wanted a birdie for a 69, but also at this point wanted to make sure I at most 2 putted.  Hit it and came up about 4 feet short, then took my time and made a good par putt.

That’s it, shot a 70!  Looking back I made a couple good saves and putted well, but also had plenty of opportunities to go lower.  I could have shot a 65 today and I could have just as easily shot a 75.  That’s the way this sport is and today I landed solidly under par with what did actually happen.  Who knows what the future holds, but just two years ago I barely broke 80 for the first time ever.  Hard to say where this path will be taking me over the next two years or the two that will follow that.  Whatever happens it’s going to be pretty darn exciting.

ps.  Thank you Schuyler and Richard for the donations based on this occasion.  Truly appreciated!

But, I was coerced by the texts to join my normal Sunday group out at Heron Lakes.  Showing up about 30 minutes early I hit enough balls to loosen up my back and then headed for the first tee.  I hit a decent drive there to the middle of the fairway leaving me a wedge to the hole.  Knocked it tight and dropped the 3-footer for bird.  You can’t birdie them all if you don’t birdie the first.

On the second hole my drive pulled hard right, but it was a par 5 so I laid up with a hybrid to 90 yards and then stuck my approach to about 9 inches.  I thought this one had a chance of going in.  The third hole was similar in that I hit my tee shot to exactly 90 yards and then landed the approach a few feet from the pin.  I made a little downhill slider putt for the third bird in a row.

Three birdies in a row is the most that I have ever made.  Walking up to the fourth hole I was aware of this fact, but tried to disregard it and just think about the shot at hand.  It was a par 3 with total water carry and I decided to club up and hit a knock-down shot instead of going for a full swing.  I executed it well and watched as the ball landed about a foot past the hole.  Tapped it in for the fourth birdie of the round and to start four under par.

This felt great.  No matter what the rest of the day held I had set a new personal record and now know that better golf is definitely possible.

The rest of the round was pretty solid through the 14th hole.  On the 15th I have a mental block on this 150 yard par 3 water carry for some reason and for the second time in a row hit a bad tee shot leaving the ball in the water.  I also hit a poor chip on 17 ending in a bogey and then pulled my tee shot on 18 into the water for a final bogey.  Not going to think much about the finishing holes outside of the fact that I need to drink more water, eat more food and stay focussed for a full 18.

After this we all played an additional 9 holes and I shot one over for those total.  That’s 4 over for 27 holes which is also a new personal record.  Very good things were happening and outside of a few holes of sliding backwards this is the type of golf that I want and should be playing right now.

Here is the scorecard:

For the next couple of days I am heading out of town.  Today I will be playing a golf course in Salem, OR and then am going to go to Bend for Tuesday and Wednesday morning.

If anyone is in Bend and wants to tee it let me know.  Also, I have never played in central Oregon so if there are any recommendations of courses to play please tell me.  There are so many incredible golf facilities there, but if you could just play one what would it be?

It has been a pretty consistent and decently solid spell that all began when I had that 76 in the tourney about 6 weeks ago.  I’m still not hitting enough fairways and greens, but my misses are getting a little tighter and instead of having to punch out on half of the holes I am only punching out 3-4 times a round.  When you are not playing from the trees is makes scoring a ton easier.  Also, my Greens in Regulation are low, but my misses are around the fringe either left or right and every time I have one of these short chips I feel like I’m going to make it.  Only one chip in these three rounds actually dropped for a bird, but I’m leaving them at tap-in range which makes scrambling much less stressful.

I’m not really sure what changed and I know that I have a ton of work to do with tee shots to transform from hitting about 30% to greater than 50% where I would like to be, but I’m shooting much better scores and these rounds are pretty much without any long putt bombs or by any means am I capitalizing on the majority of chances I have throughout the 18.  The rounds have just been more consistent all around.

It has me super excited. Morale wise, this entire summer was pretty hard as I couldn’t seem to do what I thought I should be able to both on the range and course.  Now, I am working on different types of punch shots and have a deeper comprehension immediately after a good and bad shot as to why the ball did what it did.  That said, I still am mystified by at least one drive per round, but I think the majority of my misses with that club are missing the sweet spot, as well as face angle at impact.  And, if we’re going to get into the nitty gritty, my swing plane needs to be more on plane through the ball.  This is what I’m working on, though, and tiny improvements over time will pay off as they have over the past 4,600+ hours.

I still have not figured out a winter plan for this year, but it is definitely a priority as the rains have set in up here in the PacNW and with the sun setting at 5pm now it makes it hard to practice optimally when I have the occasional meeting or errand to run in the morning.  My eye is on Palm Springs..  I don’t know much about that part of the country, but will be excited to explore it when the time comes.  In the meantime, it’s about time to head back to Trails End driving range and take advantage of the covered, lit and heated bays.  That’s a good place to bring TrackMan out to and start working on those combines again.  It’s been too long..  Perhaps that’s the first chapter of Dan Plan Oregon winter training.  Although right now it is amazingly beautiful out:

Finally, for those handicap counter out there, mine has finally dropped a bit to a personal best.  This last refresh it landed at 5.2.  Not sure where it will go on November 15, but my money is on sub-5 for the first time ever.

You may have heard executives bemoaning that their projects would have gone better if they hadn’t been unlucky; “…And then the contracts took much longer to finalize, and then we had to raise additional capital, and then we lost the chief strategist, I mean, who could have foreseen that!” But being truthful, these are completely typical of corporate project. The executive that deludes himself otherwise is not taking responsibility. (Unfortunately I see a lot of them…)

There may be many reasons why a golfer scored poorly; a lost or water ball, he caught the ball a bit fat, grass was wet, lost concentration, wasn’t committed to the shot. All are common but shouldn’t be used as excuses unless the reason would not normally be experienced on a golf course. When your playing partner goes psycho, throws you into the lake, steals your clubs, forcing you to complete the round with the only clubs available, those of a 12 year old girl, then that’s an acceptable excuse! A sudden breeze, a bobbling ball on a green, or a ball that hits the last branch of the tree – All part of golf, and your score.

Dan is not the first golfer I have teamed with and the lesson learned from those earlier golfers is, “The score is what it is”. There can be no reasoning that the score is not a true representation, and but for a few lucky breaks, a “truer” score would have been posted.

Dan has averaged 81 over the tournament. The target for 4000 hours was 77. 82 was the target for the average score at 3000 hours. We can hope that Dan is a bit better than the score reflects but we can’t plan for that. So far the program has been mostly working on the ethos, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” There has been constant improvement and refinement but it wasn’t necessary to transform anything. So now we have to come up with a way to approach practice that will yield better results. Trying to squeeze greater performance from a fairly sophisticated program will not be easy. Dan is now working with the team to develop the ideas on how accelerate improvement. The most obvious issue is the one highlighted by Dan during his most recent tournament, that he hasn’t a driver and three wood that he is happy with, and the remedy hopefully lies at the Titleist facility in California. At the same time, his practice off the tee sorely needs attention, something he will work extensively over the next two weeks. In addition, his GIR has been poor even on his better days with the driver, so both long and mid ball both need attention.

I was tempted to say that we have to plan the transformation from 81 to a catch-up number of 76 by 4400 hours.  However, one maxim from running such programs is to not set yourself for failure before you start. To find 5 strokes in 400 hours -that is a tall order, and there is no evidence that it is possible, so the first thing is to see what is possible. We need to see how much Dan can improve in 200 hours when he has had to pivot to the weakest parts of his game, measure and then work out what needs to be the strategy based on those results. Whatever we need to do, we need to do it quickly. There are very few scenarios where Dan can make it to the PGA Tour if he can’t hit the metrics.

Even if Dan was to go into his next tournament in mid-April and shoot an average 77, would that mean all was fine and to stop planning and fixing, or average his 81 with the new 77 and come up with 79, still 2 strokes short of the 77 target. I think the latter. His last three rounds have been a bit better, averaging 79.3, but taken over the last 10 rounds (which is what we should be measuring) it is 81.7.

We welcome the ideas, both current and historical, from the community. All comments are read, and all advice is considered. For instance, the “Kickstarter” idea mentioned is of course how we should have approached the funding for the golf clinic. I myself think that the answer isn’t with the Golf 54 ladies – I read about other golfers going there and having a great time and becoming more energized and confident, but it hasn’t transformed their game. What does work is continuing work grooving the swing, while focusing on your weakest areas. The whole ethos of the 10,000 hours approach is that there are no short cuts, just the discipline of hard work. There is nothing that gives you more confidence than being able to strike the ball beautifully.