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Simply Putting

• 11BC2 555 Posts

  Fri, Sep 25 2015 8:35 AM

  Solarflares:

  As early as 1897 with the advent of new varnishes for putter-shafts -  , bearing in mind the Scottish ban on golf in 1467 had made everyone wary of any drastic-advancement in the sport.  It became evident that..........................................................

  LoL!!   :D

  IRL I don't play golf nor do I even follow it so I certainly have no clue about the History of equipment or people.  Every once in a while when I'm watching Sports Center it will sneak in but what ya gonna do?

  Whatever method/s you end up trying I'd suggest sticking with a few at first and after some 1000s of putts determine if its your style and if so tweak it and make it yours.  I pretty much use the 2 main methods I mentioned in my previous post although I've tweaked them from the original and made it much better for my own style.

  Notes help too ;).  Cheers.  Sean.

• Safdar1 454 Posts

  Fri, Sep 25 2015 3:13 PM

  Hey Solarflares...

  I read your putting (first) post and it has a lot of similarities with what I am seeing on putts -  i read all the threads on putting and none really grabbed me (there are experts out there kindly sharing tips but I didnt get a eureka moment, not yet) so I went to work, exploring putting and making my own conclusions, and now going back to the experts tips, some are starting to make more sense to me now...bit by bit

  I got to legend a couple weeks ago (L79) and faced/am facing a few of the same things you are just now. I am still coming to terms to what I want to learn, and how -  but its starting to take some shape now.

  I got there in around 3-4 months of play (i joined a year ago but stopped playing for a while), and though I play some alt and matchplay, not much, because I want to improve, that is where I get my fun. I find it hard to play a round, or play a shot, and feel that I have not practiced it enough to play my best.

  I decided while at TM that the number one thing that I need to improve is putting, that is still a work in progress but I have made some strides in this challenge, I worked on 10ft putts first, and I feel I have some decent approach on that now, but the recent change to tournie greens means a little tweaking. I think to play at the level I want to, I really need to sink 90% of 10 foot putts, and 50% of 20 ft putts, so that is kind of my target, and its a long way off.

  I have only played off the tips since legend I see no point of any other tees except to reduce average and feel good, not what I am after. And I agree with what you wrote and was advised, take one step at a time. Pick one course and get as good as you think you should be on it. I am looking at BP (and a bit of SA) and slowly grinding it in practice rounds to work out all its little secrets. When I can hit a regular sub 29 then I will feel I have a handle on it. If i dont get there then I am not working hard enough.

  And clubs, a few weeks ago i was on a mission to get to L85 quickly to get the nikes, but I have the L75 speeds and they are ok, not that forgiving, but hey ho. I think I will stick to the speeds and not get the nikes even when I get to L85. There is no secret in wgt. Better clubs may improve my scores a bit but will not make me the player I want to be. If I cant reach my milestones with the speeds then getting better clubs is just an acceptance of failure.

  So I am committing to the speeds, to work out all their little secrets too. 

• PaulTon 10,731 Posts

  Fri, Sep 25 2015 4:23 PM

  Safdar1:

  . Pick one course and get as good as you think you should be on it. I am looking at BP (and a bit of SA) and slowly grinding it in practice rounds to work out all its little secrets. When I can hit a regular sub 29 then I will feel I have a handle on it.

  If you believe that you can hone your skill set on one course then roll it out across the whole game you're going to be in for a massive dissappointment.

  By not playing EVERY course regularly you are drastically reducing opportunities to gain experience and knowledge of the game.

• Safdar1 454 Posts

  Fri, Sep 25 2015 4:42 PM

  PaulTon:

  Safdar1:

  . Pick one course and get as good as you think you should be on it. I am looking at BP (and a bit of SA) and slowly grinding it in practice rounds to work out all its little secrets. When I can hit a regular sub 29 then I will feel I have a handle on it.

  If you believe that you can hone your skill set on one course then roll it out across the whole game you're going to be in for a massive dissappointment.

  By not playing EVERY course regularly you are drastically reducing opportunities to gain experience and knowledge of the game.

  I do not believe that, and I agree with you. What I mean is I want to learn enough to be able to apply it on course X, and then when I do, I can move on to course Y, applying what I have learnt and also learning the new stuff to be able to learn to play course Y well. That means you keep on adding to your skill set as you introduce yourself to each new course. And I reckon there is no rush to master any course, time is on our side isnt it?

  For me I feel it allows me to measure improvement in more graduated stages, because one of my issues is I hardly know any hole on any course, up to legend I just played whatever course was on at the CC or took my fancy. That is of course enjoyable, but it also meant I was at legend level and could not recognise hardly any hole at the tee and could not remember anything really about that hole, how to approach it, how it plays, how wind impacts course management for that hole, etc How the green plays out - for sure I had NO idea of different pin placements, as I didnt memorise or learn a single one so when it changed I just wasnt aware it was different.

   

  Playing a little of each course for ME results in very little memory build up, I just forget it all. So this is my approach adjusted for my own weaknesses. 

  Of course I still play whatever course sometimes comes up for a change and fun etc, but it detracts from the measurable improvement I am looking for, its a diversion and a distraction, until I can focus hard on a course and learn it properly. THEN move onto a new course.

  This is just, right now, what I think will work for me and keep me motivated and interested.

• 11BC2 555 Posts

  Fri, Sep 25 2015 4:46 PM

  PaulTon:

  If you believe that you can hone your skill set on one course then roll it out across the whole game you're going to be in for a massive dissappointment.

  By not playing EVERY course regularly you are drastically reducing opportunities to gain experience and knowledge of the game.

  Huge disagreement here.  Imo the absolute best way to improve is in fact by playing one course over and over and over again.  This lets you get perfect approach and green mappings per course.  I actually use 3x3 Canvas Paper (painting) for each hole and plot putts with foot notes at the bottom. I.E., hole #1 on BPB to date has around 95 different putt locations mapped with the correct flow %, vertex, etc.

  I Do the same thing for approaches, wind direction, and shot % w/ whatever b/s I am using for each hole too.  However, I use regular paper for that.  And of course, as you're playing you end up in weird places with strange lies/rough.  Take the appropriate note for every shot noting how much yards you +/- etc etc.

  While this is a robotic approach it does two things.  In the future it almost gives you automatic shots and 2nd, when you come across a different hole but similar situation you can respond much better.  For my first 2-3 months on this site 85% of my games were on BPB and Congressional. 

  Next came Pinehurst and St. Andrews.  I'm finally getting around to playing all the other courses but it will take me at least 8-9 months to get good mappings for all the courses.  There's such an overwhelming amount of shots on each course that comes up so it takes time.  Albeit, my mappings and experience on some of the other courses does transfer over but it's not the same.......

  So Imo play very few courses at once and take notes on every single shot you ever take.  Kinda like when you're playing a RTS game.  The best thing to do is learn 1 single build order at a time.  You do that by practicing that build literally 80 or 90 times (at least) until everything is reactionary.

  Good luck OP.  Cheers!  Sean.

   

   

• PaulTon 10,731 Posts

  Sat, Sep 26 2015 3:27 AM

  Solarflares:

  Paulton has been there a while now - and he knows his own face so well , that he doesn't actually need a mirror.

  LOL That is indeed true. However, even with all that knowledge and experience I still cut myself regularly when my hand slips. My shortcomings in the game come almost exclusively from bad reflexes/timing on the ding click and unfortunately no method (other than performance enhancing drugs) can help me with that.

  11BC's method obviously works for him (and well done) but I'm here to have fun playing a golf sim. I would have left the game after a week if that was the only way to play and while obviously successful it would bore me to death.