Analysing Your Game

To get the best out of their game on the golf course, one of the biggest assets a golfer can have is to know their strengths and to be aware of their weaknesses. With this knowledge a golfer can play to their strengths and guard against their weaknesses as they tackle the golf course. It can also help to structure their practice to make sure they do not ignore the parts of the game that are preventing them from shooting lower scores.
In this article we will be looking at ways in which you can find out what is preventing you from scoring as well as you could do on the golf course. Sometimes identifying the weaknesses is not as easy as it sounds. Most players on the PGA and European Tours use statistics to help them identify the area of the game that is halting their progress and I believe all golfers would benefit from similar analysis. We are going to look at 3 steps that you can use to help you and your golf.

Step 1 - Record Your Scores

The first thing to do is to keep a track of your scores over a certain period. This can help us to find an average score for a round of golf and individual holes.
In the table below, Player X, has logged his scores from his last 6 rounds of golf over a six week period. His lowest score in this period was a 91, and his highest was 99. By logging his scores for each hole, he can not only work out his average 18 hole score, but also his average for each individual hole.

Step 2 - Determine Your Par

By using the results in Step 1, Player X can set himself an achievable goal. His average score (his par) is 95, and he can also set his par for each hole ( by rounding up or rounding down to the nearest whole number).
When he next plays, Player X will have a better idea of his par for each hole. This can help him to make decisions as to the right way to play the hole and help him to locate the areas of his game that could be improved if he wants to lower his average score

In the table below, Player X has broken down each hole into shots to the green and putts on each green (allowing the customary 2 putts per green). He then records his next score along with his shots to green and putts per hole. From his records we can see that on many holes Player X reached the green in under his allotted target. I believe by doing this it stops many players from attempting unrealistic shots. If you know you have 4 shots to reach a long par 5, the need for a 260 yd + drive maybe isn’t necessary.

Step 3 - Keeping Your Statistics

Finally, you can look to log the sort of data the tour players use.

• Fairways Hit - Record whether you hit the fairway off the tee on Par 4’s and Par 5’s
• Greens in Regulation - Finding the green with your tee shot at Par 3’s, with your 2nd shot at par 4’s & 3rd shot at Par 5’s.
• Putts per Green - The number of putts you take on each green

In the final table below, Player X has noted how many times he drove the ball in the fairway, how many greens he hit in regulation and the number of putts he took.
From this data he can assess his strengths and locate his weaknesses.

From the above, Player X should be drawn to the fact that when he found the fairway from the tee he scored well on the hole. His success on the Par 3’s when he found the green with his tee shot 3 times out of 4 attempts should only confirm that he needs to start finding the fairway more often on Par 4’s and Par 5’s, because his approach play is obviously one of his strengths.
The biggest weakness player X has is his putting. When you consider that Tour players average under 30 putts per round and he has taken 40 putts this should be Player X’s biggest priority when it comes down to practice.

Obviously there are numerous statistics that can be kept. For low to medium handicap golfers (0-15) I would add Sand Saves (up and down from a bunker in 2 shots), Scrambling (getting down in 2 shots from within 50 yards of the green) as well as noting which side of the fairway you missed on, with your tee shots.

Hopefully some of the above has been of help and I would encourage any golfer of any standard to use some of the above if not all of it to help their game progress. If you have any questions regarding this article please feel free to contact us. We will only be too pleased to help.