May Statistics

Back in the game. Happy days, eureka, back of the net, by Jove I think he's got it, hallelujah and any other relevant superlatives you can think of. Elation to despair and back again in just eight weeks, with a rather enjoyable holiday thrown into the mix for good measure. I'll dissect the why's and wherefore's tomorrow. Today I am just pleased that, despite the savagery of the distinctly poor scores I returned at the start of the month, things are looking pretty rosy.

Practice
Following last month's epic effort my practice has been quite significantly limited. The holiday burnt up a huge amount of potential time to hone my skills and in between I crammed in as many holes as I could. The main reason for this conscious choice was to bed in a new on course approach. This would hopefully enable me to replicate my range ball striking. The rounds stats seem to indicate that this is working. That said a visit to the range could well be on the cards to help eradicate a swing flaw that is more prevalent (and damaging) in the longer clubs. The way our fairways are at the moment just flirting with the edges can have catastrophic consequences. So a premium being placed on ball control, ably supported by a lot of putting drills.

Distance	Time (minutes)	% of practice time
Driver	0	0%
Other Woods	0	0%
200 - 250 yards	0	0%
150 – 200 yards	0	0%
100 – 150 yards	90	32%
Short Approach	135	47%
Bunker Play	20	7%
Putting	40	14%
Total	285	100%

Rounds
The month didn't begin very well. A measly 26 point haul was swiftly followed by 110 in the medal. I was aghast and despondent. How had I fallen so far so quickly. A brief pep talk and some kindly advice and I was back in the game. In the rounds that have followed (three nine holes and two full rounds) I have amassed 17, 19, 18, 40 and 39 points respectively. To make things better I don't feel that on any of those occasions I have played anywhere near my potential. Lapses of concentration and scrappy chipping/putting/bunker play have cost me shots they shouldn't have. The fact is I've been scoring well despite that, salvaging single pointers when I play a bad hole and making up for it with threes and even the odd four point salvo. The stats are therefore a blend of two awful performances and a steady improvement. As a result they do not show a huge leap on from April, but I have a feeling that June's report will be a little bit special!

Statistic	Performance	SS2 Handicap level
Fairways in Regulation	33% (28%)	20 (22)
Greens in Regulation	15% (17%)	16 (15)
Putts per Round	35.79 (35.31)	19 (19)
Birdie Conversion	8% (0%)	25 (28+)
Par Scrambles	8% (7%)	27 (28+)
Sand Saves	0% (0%)	28+ (28+)
Penalties per Round	3.93 (1.38)	28+ (14)

The SS2 handicap level is a calculation made indicating your performance on different facets of your game.

I have let my short game work go off the boil and I need to dedicate some more time to that. But my priority is ironing out the destructive fade that at times can become a weak slice. Do that and my scores will really start to tumble...