Let's Talk Averages

When someone asks you, “What’s the lowest score you’ve ever shot?,” it’s probably well below what you normally shoot, right?  On the flip side, when you think back on the worst round of your life (we won’t make you dwell on it for too long), it’s most likely WAY higher than your typical score. These giant fluctuations in golf are not only common, but expected. Golf is a wildly hard game, and some days you just don’t have it.

The Handicap index is obviously a great metric to know, but understand that even a 5 Handicap won’t be able to break 85 on the scorecard 15.5% of the time! Take a look at the chart below and realize that highs and lows are just that, good days and bad days. But more often than not, your scores will generally fluctuate within +/- three to five strokes of your Handicap. So don’t lose hope if you have a horrible day, and don’t get too high on your own supply if you shoot the round of your life.

If you know that your scores won’t always fall squarely in the middle of a bell curve, then you dang sure better understand that the quality of each individual shot can vary wildly, as well. Even if you have your best round ever going, at any moment, you could be saying to yourself, “What in the WORLD was that?!” The shots you see on TV are typically a highlight reel of incredible displays of skill, but what the cameras don’t show you are the bad, and often downright ugly shots. The Pros are insanely skilled, yes, but they are also just as prone to mistakes as any amateur.

The biggest thing to remember in these situations is to be honest about your abilities. When you hit a great shot, enjoy it for what it is (and make sure you brag about it to your buddies), but don’t expect it to happen every single time. They say that happiness is the difference between expectations and reality, so by keeping your expectations low, you’ll maximize your chances of enjoying the full round.

On the other hand, when you do hit a bad shot (and they sometimes come in bunches), just remember that nothing lasts forever. In case you don’t believe us, here’s a video of the best golfers in the world hitting some of the worst shots imaginable. Accepting your bad shots and moving on like these guys do is the best way to play decent golf!

This one isn’t talked about as much, but carries just as much weight (if not more) than scoring and shot quality averages. Staying mentally consistent throughout a round of golf is one of the hardest things to do, and it starts with self-awareness.  Knowing your tendencies (especially under pressure situations) can help you stay mentally sharp, which in turn results in great rounds. Just think about Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy right now. They are both on a different planet when it comes to skill level, but if you asked a bunch of Tour Pros, they’d likely say that Rory is just as skilled as Scottie, if not moreso. But who is more mentally sharp? Just listening to post-round interviews will give you that definitive answer- Scottie takes the cake in all things mental right now.

Keeping tabs on your “mental baseline” and noting how mentally engaged you are through each shot in a round can help you identify when things get out of control, allowing you to catch yourself before things get unraveled. The best players often do this, making simple tally marks or smileys on the scorecard when they stay mentally present vs. not. The main key here is not to compound your mistakes. One of the biggest differences between the best players and average amateurs is that the best players (almost) never follow up a mistake with an even bigger one.

And be sure to give yourself some mental breaks throughout your round, as well. It’s impossible to be entirely focused on the next shot when you often have 5-6 minutes between actions. Listen to Webb Simpson talk about how he stays mentally engaged, using what he refers to as “on time/off time.” Giving himself breaks from the mental pressure allows Webb to stay relaxed and mentally stable on the course.

Scoring: Sure, it’s important to track your scores, but you can also go a level deeper. Look at your scoring averages across par 3s/4s/5s. Keep track of basic stats (like greens in regulation, fairways hit, putts per round, up & downs, etc.) to identify key areas of focus. Shore up the weakest parts of your game and make your strengths elite, and you’ll certainly see your overall scores drop!

Shot Quality: Staying honest with yourself and identifying your bad tendencies - whether they are chunky contact, 3-putts, blocks to the right, etc. - is the only way you’ll ever get better. The stats we outlined in the first paragraph are a great starting point, but if you don’t face the data, you’ll never break through that next handicap tier.

Mental Engagement: Keep track of your “mental lapses” on the
course - perhaps you let an expletive slip out, or maybe you slammed your club down on a tee marker in disgust (looking at your Rory 👀). Tally up your meltdowns and you’ll find that your best rounds almost certainly had the best mental engagement.

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