Gaming the G15 and Breaking 80

I did it!  Just shy of the 2-year mark!  I shot a 78 at Old Brickyard in Ferris, TX (From the men's tees no less!).  Granted, par at OB is 70, but I'll take it!  Out of all my accomplishments, breaking 80 is definitely one of the ones I am most proud of.  It took a lot of hard work and practice, but it really feels great to have that round under my belt. 

I've been working on quite a few things with my game, but probably the biggest change is that I started playing with my G15 again about a month ago.  Lately I've been feeling like the shaft on the Burner 2.0 is super wobbly during my downswing.  It's a stiff shaft but from my experiences trying out Taylormade clubs, their shafts are just a bit more flexy than other brands.  I originally switched away from the G15 because I was going through some major changes in my swing and lost some club-head speed in the process (not to mention the driver was super cheap!) but I'm finally comfortable with the new swing and despite this started getting a ton of sidespin with the Burner.  So I'm gaming the G15 again and it's feeling great so far.  I lost about 20 yards to my drives but I'm much more confident about where the ball is going regardless of how much juice I put into it.  I reshafted the G15 with an Arthur Engineering Xcalibur Shaft with tour stiff flex a while back and I feel much more comfortable with it now than I did when I originally purchased it. 

I've been averaging in the mid 80s for a few months now and I felt like with just a few tweaks to my short game and a good bit of luck that I could at least break 80 once before the year's end.  What a gift to have done it by July!  I've been fortunate to receive some really great advice from friends that helped my game tremendously.  Here are some tips that I make sure to keep in mind before I tee off on the first tee:

• It's all about getting up-and-down.  The key to breaking 80 was reducing my total number of putts and that meant I had to make par despite missing a few greens with my approaches
• Course management is crucial.  Closer to the green isn't always better.  Hitting a full shot at 120 yards is sometimes easier than an awkward 60 yard pitch.
• Don't take unnecessary risks.  This kinda goes hand in hand with course management.  It's important to keep my ego in check.  I spent a good amount of time working on my weaknesses on the range and I make sure to be realistic about my expectations on the course.  E.g. I've been struggling with my 5 iron recently.  Instead of forcing a shot that I know I'm not 100% with yet on the range, I set my ego aside and either club up or lay up.  
• Keep it playful.  This is absolutely the most important piece of advice.  If you take yourself and your round too seriously, it's very easy for it to quickly get away from you.  I know that sometimes double or triple bogeys WILL happen.  I'm not good enough to avoid them completely.  What I also know is that if I waste time beating myself up over bad holes all the way to the next tee box, then I'll probably continue playing poorly for the rest of the day.  Shooting a high score on one hole hurts, but if you want to keep that score low you gotta learn to laugh it off and play your game. 

It's good to emulate your favorite professional golfer, but remember that a bad hole for them should be A LOT more painful than a bad hole for you.  Don't feel obligated to hurt as much as they do when a drive slices into the trees or a putt refuses to break.  Pros are playing for potentially thousands of dollars per stroke.  Keep it playful, and keep everything in perspective.  You're in the beautiful outdoors, enjoying some fresh air in the company of your friends.