[Hennybogan]

Good stuff . . . do you keep a log on all this stuff? Or is it just analysis and move on?

Bucket,

At the pro level, I'm keeping data on every shot. It's mostly numbers, club, carry, pitch, and roll. I use a simple shorthand in the yardage book. As you keep track of these things, they seem to sink in. Just like the guy at the auto parts store knows all the parts by number. In fact, my first couple of years, I could tell you the numbers of any shot my man hit (although you might have to describe the hole because I don't remember hole numbers). It's all a blur now.

For every shot, I have an expectation about where it will go if the player makes a good swing. If it comes out different, I'm going to try to figure out why. The purpose of this exercise is to avoid mistakes on subsequent shots. The shot in question might not have turned out badly. Say we hit 9 iron to keep it short of the flag, but the shot ends up hole high. I have to wonder if he hit it especially well, if the wind is shifting, is the ball going far, etc. It's all an effort to adjust to the conditions.

Another benefit is noticing what you need to work on. Distance control with wedges. Overdrawing mid irons, etc

Here's a senario. Player comes up short to a front flag on a par three, with a slight mis-hit. If he does not realize or admit that he mis-hit the shot, he may think the hole plays long. The next day, with a back flag, he insists on more club and sends it over the green. Bogey at best. You have to be honest and objective to collect good data.

During a practice round, I asked a sports phsychologist (caddying for a young client for the week) this question: "There seem to be two schools of thought about what to do with a bad shot. One says blame any miss on someone or something else. The other school says look at it, accept it, but don't attach emotion to it. Which is right?" He says, "It depends on what you want. Do you want to feel good right now, or do you want to get better?" Exactly (of course, caddies don't like getting blamed for something that's not their fault).

Sometimes you leave out a factor like downslope or mis-read a lie. Whatever causes the shot to fail, I want to know. More than once, my player and I have not been able to account for a shot and finally had the loft checked and found it off.

Sometimes, a shot comes out wrong. Say you are first to hit on a par three. You play it over and over in your mind. Talk to your player. Even after you see it sail long, neither of you can see anyway you could have pulled one less club based on the information you had when you pulled it. That's golf.

The whole point is to learn the factors, adjust to the conditions of the day, and pull perfect clubs all day. The other day, my player told me about a club I told him to hit on the last hole in San Diego on Sunday years ago. It was like 210 to front left pin, 4 over the front edge, about 204 to carry the water, and there's a little backstop behind the pin. He's thinking 4 iron all the way. I say no, it's 5. And give him some data from the day to back it up. He says OK and hits the 5 a little past the hole. He couldn't believe it. Funny thing is, I have no memory of this shot at all.

In the end, a big factor in being successful at golf will be making quality decisions.

HB