Help! Stuck in a rut, getting deeper

[Notverygood]

This may end up sounding more like a rant, but...

I've been playing for way too long to only be an 840 rated player (according to DGCR scratch score calculator) And even recently, i've been seeing more and more rounds under my rating.

In the past two months, i've really stepped up my playing amount. From 2-3 times a week, to 4-5-6 times a week. Combine that with close to 6 years of semi consistent playing, and I feel like i'm way behind the curve...

Maybe some helpful (be gentle) hints on how you experienced a same rut and broke through? Or constructive practice ideas?

I currently only have a true field day, no baskets, just throwing the bag in the field, attempting to work on each area of my throw/form, maybe once a month. All other times are games. I figure actual playing has to be good practice too right?

And putting practice. I almost always warm up putting before playing a round, and will often stay after a round to continue putting...but again, I haven't seen much improvement in my % made.


:doh: It's getting frustrating watching everyone I play with get better and better, where I'm still stuck in the 840's

 

[thirtydirtybirds]

What is the part of your game you struggle most with? Putting, upshot accuracy, drive accuracy?

Being a guy with a shorter max distance currently, I have found upshot accuracy and putting practice to have improved my game greatly. I'd suggest practicing putting. You don't necessarily need a legit basket, but any sort of target will work. Before I got a basket, I used an old dartboard bolted to a microphone stand at the right height.

Upshot practice is important as well. The shorter the putt you have the better I say. For field work, a hula hoop layed out in the field works really well for a target. I like to try and land flat, skip in, hyzer/anny around to it. It has really helped get me shorter putts and a higher putt percentage.

 

[IllustratorVir]

Being a guy with a shorter max distance currently, I have found upshot accuracy and putting practice to have improved my game greatly. I'd suggest practicing putting. You don't necessarily need a legit basket, but any sort of target will work. Before I got a basket, I used an old dartboard bolted to a microphone stand at the right height.

Upshot practice is important as well. The shorter the putt you have the better I say. For field work, a hula hoop layed out in the field works really well for a target. I like to try and land flat, skip in, hyzer/anny around to it. It has really helped get me shorter putts and a higher putt percentage.

This is great advice. I just got done with an event and while I have made great strides on my drive distance, I lost more strokes on flubbed upshots than anything else combined. I am going to putting a lot more time in the field to work on this concept for greater accuracy and consistency.

I currently only have a true field day, no baskets, just throwing the bag in the field, attempting to work on each area of my throw/form, maybe once a month. All other times are games. I figure actual playing has to be good practice too right?

Sure! It is about what you enjoy. If your goal is to improve in the fastest way, I think 15-20 mins of field work before and/or after your rounds would be a great way to introduce field work into your routine. Then, you can slowly make those field slots a bit longer. I hope this helps.

 

[Notverygood]

It's hard to pin point one section that needs the most work as it all goes in waves. One week, driving is on point and the rest of my game struggles, then the next my putting will be on point but I can't hit the broad side of a barn with a drive or up shot.

The more consistent my putting gets, the better my score for sure, but then it seems other areas start to slack.

Now when I put all three pieces together, It almost looks like I know what I'm doing. But rarely do all the pieces come together


Edit:

I do like the idea of field work before or after a round. As much as I like going out an playing a round, just 15-20 minutes before or after is a great idea...

What about structured practice?
What I struggle with in field practice is, lets say I'm working on up shots. I have a stack of mid range discs, but not 2 are the same mold. Is this still constructive since I'm not throwing the same exact disc?
Putting is the only time when I have several of the same disc to throw.

Driving practice is the same, I only have a few of the same disc mold

 

[Stardoggy]

Sounds like you need to focus more on form and consistency than anything else. I'd recommend finding a local open player that might be willing to help you out.

 

[VictorB]

I currently only have a true field day, no baskets, just throwing the bag in the field, attempting to work on each area of my throw/form, maybe once a month. All other times are games. I figure actual playing has to be good practice too right?

And putting practice. I almost always warm up putting before playing a round, and will often stay after a round to continue putting...but again, I haven't seen much improvement in my % made.

Playing actual rounds isn't really good practice at all. You don't see sports teams work on full games that often, there's tons of technique and drills to work on plays etc, and they save 'scrimmages' (casual rounds to us) for situational work.

More field days/practice days. Especially putting. You have to throw thousands of putts to really lock in your timing and technique. But you have to make sure you get good practice too, not just going through the motions. Drilling your technique to where you don't have to consciously think about it will lead to better consistency in the long run.

Breaks from how you normally play rounds works too. Bring just 1-2 discs out with you, and focus on making shots and playing a game of golf instead of throwing what you know and just playing the holes. After a couple of weeks doing that you should see and feel a change in how you play.

 

[thirtydirtybirds]

Well if you can't say one thing needs more work than others, hit the putting hard first. Absolutely the most important thing for lowering scores IMO. I am by no means an expert (or even that great really) but for sure, putting is paramount. Work it more than other aspects, start consistently hitting those circles edge and beyond putts, then dial in the next thing.

 

[Aim For The Chains]

Sounds like you need to focus more on form and consistency than anything else. I'd recommend finding a local open player that might be willing to help you out.

Yep. Mastering shots and playing smart is pretty key to hitting 950+ regularly rated rounds.

You need to find where strokes are adding up on the course and how to minimize those simple mistakes.

Practice only works if you practice the right stuff. Upshots IMO are probably the culprit as well as longer putts. Dont need big huge drives to score well in disc golf.

 

[IllustratorVir]

Practice only works if you practice the right stuff. Upshots IMO are probably the culprit as well as longer putts. Dont need big huge drives to score well in disc golf.

This is something that has hit home for me, too. Bomb drives can quickly go bad in wind/wooded fairways.

 

[VictorB]

Practice only works if you practice the right stuff. Upshots IMO are probably the culprit as well as longer putts. Dont need big huge drives to score well in disc golf.

This is important.

Being able to reach 'greens in regulation' (ie have a putt for a birdie on the green) and converting those tries at a high rate are really what makes a successful golfer.

I've always bought the fact that drive and approach accuracy, along with good consistent inside the circle putting, are the most valuable aspects of golf. And I can't throw 450'+ so I'm totally not biased.

 

[thirtydirtybirds]

You could keep notes as well. I do this sometimes when playing a round. If I take a bogey or higher I make a note like "hole 7: missed 35' putt" or "hole 7: 40' left on approach". It helps me to know what I need to work on. After a couple rounds it's pretty clear where the weak spots are.

 

[Keller]

What about structured practice?
What I struggle with in field practice is, lets say I'm working on up shots. I have a stack of mid range discs, but not 2 are the same mold. Is this still constructive since I'm not throwing the same exact disc?
Putting is the only time when I have several of the same disc to throw.

Driving practice is the same, I only have a few of the same disc mold

Could be a problem, all depends on how well you know "all" those molds. There is a difference between hucking discs and practice with a purpose. Try picking one or two mids you really like and play/practice with those alone. Learn to know if a bad shot was you or an unpredictable disc. When it's a bad shot. don't immediately jump to another mold expecting better results.

Play 4-5 disc casual rounds, they can be very informative and enlightening. And if you do start doing better, don't immediately start adding more discs, just stick with it untill it becomes second nature.

 

[IllustratorVir]

This is important.

Being able to reach 'greens in regulation' (ie have a putt for a birdie on the green) and converting those tries at a high rate are really what makes a successful golfer.

I've always bought the fact that drive and approach accuracy, along with good consistent inside the circle putting, are the most valuable aspects of golf. And I can't throw 450'+ so I'm totally not biased.

To add to this, it is also about making an honest assessment of your abilities. If its a tight, 350 foot fairway, I have no problem laying up for a drop in three because I know that if I threw this shot a 100 times for the pin, I would only make the gap 20% of the time.

 

[thirtydirtybirds]

To add to this, it is also about making an honest assessment of your abilities. If its a tight, 350 foot fairway, I have no problem laying up for a drop in three because I know that if I threw this shot a 100 times for the pin, I would only make the gap 20% of the time.

Yep. It can be a tough pill to swallow, but knowing your limits and playing within them is about the best thing you can do. Broaden your limits in practice, play to them for score.

 

[Notverygood]

Start from putting and work my way out?


Based on just how I played last week, drive consistency could really help. I've been getting some great up shot practice, do to my lack of consistency in drives. One side of the fairway to the other, so my up shot game has been getting a lot of work. Struggling to make par's, just do to a terrible drive making the up shot difficult.

 

[NathanNoodleArm]

Lately I have been taking my portable basket to the local athletic field and set it up on the 20 yard line. I'll drive from the end zone near the basket to the other end zone. Ten or so discs. Then I'll practice 80 yard upshots to the basket and then putt them all out. Work on a few more putts and then repeat. It's nice to break it up so I'm not just hucking my arm off and losing focus on what I'm trying to accomplish.

 

[Questatement]

Three upshot approaches I'd recommend mastering.

The hyzer spike, from putter to high speed driver. Head wind proof and/or clear route over, even if your coming down through trees. You'd be amazed how few mids get stuck in a tree on a hyzer spike. Fairways and drivers almost never.

Semi-lofty flex shot, solid stable disc at the speed thrown. Even if you're not going around an obstical (L-R), this shot will get you more consistency than straight at or turn-over approaching.

Mega over stable disc, skip shot. There is nothing easier to range than a disc that, when powered up, only goes that far. I carry speeds 3 & 5 for this type of approach, both range shorter than a solid stable putter.

 

[Shamis]

practice putting.

If you rarely miss inside the circle, can throw 300' and aren't retarded on upshots you will get to 890-900 no problem. Once you get there then you can work on some distance or something.

 

[mavsfan0434]

Yep. Mastering shots and playing smart is pretty key to hitting 950+ regularly rated rounds.

You need to find where strokes are adding up on the course and how to minimize those simple mistakes.

Practice only works if you practice the right stuff. Upshots IMO are probably the culprit as well as longer putts. Dont need big huge drives to score well in disc golf.

I've been battling problems with your last line there. I don't throw super far on drives, but have gotten very accurate with upshots and putting has improved. That being said, I feel like on most Par 3 holes I rarely have any real look at birdie due to my shorter drives. So I guess I have to decide if I am ok shooting par, or if I need to look into what is holding my distance back.

 

[DiscFifty]

In the past two months, i've really stepped up my playing amount. From 2-3 times a week, to 4-5-6 times a week. Combine that with close to 6 years of semi consistent playing, and I feel like i'm way behind the curve...

1) Find a pro and get lessons on form. That will help immensely. Even if it's just 1-2 lessons, it could be enough.

2) Walk some rounds and watch the local pros play. You'll be surprised what you learn.

3) 5-6 times a weeks is too much IF you're playing those full rounds. When I started playing full rounds only 3 times a week my overall playing improved dramatically.

4) Don't play "rounds" so often. Play "shots" instead. Go to the course and work on up shots from 250ft in. Shoot through, around trees, etc, etc. Your ratings can sky rocket if you can get your short game down.

5) I can't stress enough how important it is to just throw a putter round once in awhile. And don't make it the same putter you "putt" with. Get a different disc for putter rounds and just throw the hell out of it. Drives, upshots, etc. Just be one of the with putter. Do this a few times and you'll be shocked how well those other discs work for you now. And if you're not throwing that putter at least 200ft, level, straight, etc, then for sure follow step #1.