From the Range to the Course: Making the Good Swings Repeat

After a frustrating round, it’s tempting to head straight into fixing everything.

My last two rounds have given me plenty to work on. But they’ve also provided enough good shots to make the next practice session more focused. The question is how to make those shots show up more often—and under different circumstances.

Saddleback: finding something to build on

On October 15, I shot 92 at Saddleback in cold, rain, and wind. The numbers reflected the struggle: 17% greens in regulation, 50% fairways, and 34 putts. Finishing without a three-putt was a positive, but my ball striking left me disappointed.

Too many shots felt lifted rather than compressed. The distance wasn’t there, either.

One exception stood out: a three-quarter 8-iron that traveled around 165 yards with a penetrating flight and started on line. I repeated it with another good strike.

That afternoon, I went back to familiar drills during a 110-ball practice session. Feet together, the TRS Slider, rolling the egg back, pauses, transition work, and a towel behind the ball all gave the session structure.

The clearest takeaway was that I felt less rushed. A slower backswing and a more patient transition became the focus, including the final full 7-irons without a training aid.

The next round would give me a chance to see what carried over.

Ute Creek: encouraging shots, familiar misses

The October 16 round at Ute Creek provided a more complicated answer. I finished with an 86, with 32 putts, 39% greens in regulation, and 31% fairways in regulation, according to my round summary.

Compared with Saddleback, the score was six strokes lower, I took two fewer putts, and the GIR percentage was higher. Fairways went the other direction. Those numbers describe the two rounds; different conditions and courses mean they aren’t a verdict on what one practice session fixed.

There were excellent drives, useful controlled shots, and good recoveries. There were also heavy strikes and approaches that missed in both directions. The good contact was available; it wasn’t dependable enough throughout the round.

The drives on 15 and 18 were encouraging examples. On 18, I focused on keeping my chest over the ball and making a slow backswing, and made excellent contact.

That hole also showed how a good swing and a good decision are separate parts of scoring.

With around 150 yards remaining, I struck a 9-iron well, but a gust left it short. From there, I chose to putt across bumpy fringe. The ball bobbled and finished short, leaving a roughly 15-foot par attempt that I missed.

Looking back, I should have chipped. The bogey included good ball striking and a decision I would change.

On 10, a well-struck 7-iron from the rough turned left into a penalty area. I found the ball and hit a good recovery chip to about 10 feet, then two-putted for bogey. The recovery helped, but the approach was another reminder that solid contact alone doesn’t guarantee a useful result.

What the rounds are telling me

The most useful distinction is between the controlled swings I trust and the fuller swings that become less predictable.

Heavy contact deserves attention. So does starting direction. And the practice needs to account for changing clubs, targets, and lies rather than settling into the rhythm of hitting the same shot repeatedly.

I also want to preserve what worked: patient swings, committed targets, and recovery shots that kept holes manageable.

The next session will test those pieces without loading every swing with a new instruction.

The next practice session: 80 balls with a purpose

First, 20 balls for contact.
Ten pitching wedges and ten 8-irons using the towel drill. The goal is at least 16 clean strikes while leaving the towel untouched.

Then, 20 balls for transition.
Ten step-through shots—five with an 8-iron and five with a 7-iron—followed by ten normal swings. I want to see whether the less rushed movement survives when the drill goes away.

Next, 15 balls for starting direction.
Five each with gap wedge, 9-iron, and 7-iron, using a clearly defined starting window. The target is ten of fifteen starting where intended.

Then, 20 balls that resemble the course.
Change clubs and targets after every shot. Revisit situations from Ute Creek: a wedge approach, an iron into the wind, a controlled punch, and an approach where the left miss caused trouble.

The distances are references from the round. The task is to choose a shot, commit to it, and evaluate the result before moving on.

Finish with five pressure shots.
One each with 7-iron, 9-iron, pitching wedge, gap wedge, and 8-iron. No immediate second attempt to erase a poor one. This is the final check on whether the session transfers beyond a drill.

What I want to take into the next round

I want a simple swing cue:

A slower backswing and an unhurried transition.

Around the green, I want to give the decision the same attention as the execution. On a shot like the one at 18, that means looking carefully at the surface the ball must cross before automatically reaching for the putter.

These rounds gave me reasons to be frustrated, but also specific shots worth remembering. The practice now has a clear job: make clean contact more repeatable, tighten the starting line, and test both while changing the shot.

That is what I’ll be looking for the next time I play.