On the Golf Channel, Justin Rose was chosen as the “pick” to win the US Open for a couple years now. They chose him based on a variety of statistically categories when put together over a 4-day tournament would give him the decided advantage. Well, they were right! People that thought Justin Rose winning was a surprise weren’t looking at the numbers too closely.
Do any of you keep statistics on your golf game? You don’t need to go in depth like they do on the professional tours but keeping some simple stats can help clarify your weaknesses so you know what to practice. Most players that want to shoot lower always tend to lean toward the “I need to work on my golf swing” ideology instead of realizing there may be greater struggles that influence their final score.
Next time you are out on the course keep a few simple stats to help guide you along the way.
1. Mark your scorecard if you hit the fairway or missed it. You can do this by using a “1” for hit and “0” for missed. – All Holes except Par 3’s
2. Do the same for Greens Hit in Regulation (GIR) – All holes
3. For a missed GIR you will want to mark a “1” if you got the ball Up & Down in Par or less or a “0” if you didn’t.
4. Finally, write in how many putts you had per hole.
You can go even more in depth if you want by marking the side of the fairway you hit/missed, The side of the green you missed, length of putt you started with, club selection, etc. There are a variety of other stats you could keep but may not be necessary at this point.
You might be surprised by the outcome over a few rounds of golf. You can start to narrow down the areas you are giving away strokes to and improve on them. These stats are a great “call-out” to your trouble areas so you can acknowledge them sooner rather than later.
Keep working hard on the game and enjoying every minute of it!