I played golf this morning with a guy that was probably a 15 handicap...he went ballistic every time he missed a green with his approach shots...even when some of them were decent shots and left him on the right side of the hole, or were what I would consider good misses leaving the best angles to the pin. He shot a 45 and hit 3 of 9 greens this morning by my count...based on his swing and ability I saw today, I would guess that was a pretty typical day for him...yet he looked miserable. I shot a 38, and only did him 2 better, I hit 5 of 9 greens.

This got me thinking...I have played with a bunch of different golfers over the thousands of rounds of golf...it never ceases to amaze me the complete lack of self awareness from some golfers...especially when average or even decent golfers get so frustrated thinking they should be hitting amazing shots all the time...when in reality, most good golfers miss a ton of greens, and miss a lot of fairways (My averages are around 50%, so why should a 15-20 handicap expect that?). So, this is breakdown of my game is really for the high handicap golfers, or those looking to improve to see the stats of an above average player and realize that you do not need to be perfect, or even close to it to play well. Also, hopefully it helps you take a deep breath and enjoy the game a little more, no point in having unrealistic expectations.

A stated...I post this to show even good golfers make a ton of mistakes. Also, I recommend that everyone has a true GHIN and keeps their own stats on the USGA's GHIN app, having an awareness of your game through statistics helps set realistic expectations and makes the game more fun IMO.

So, my current handicap is 5.5...my low handicap over the last 12 months is 3.9 and my high is 5.9. Most of the last 10 years my handicap has been in the 4 range...my lifetime low handicap is 2.4...I haven't shot in the 90's in over 30 years...although I have come really close a bunch of times! So that hopefully gives you an idea of my game.

Here are my stats for the past 12 months...

Over the last 12 months I have played 52 rounds of golf. My scoring average is 79.1.

16 - 9 hole rounds...high 9 hole round 43, low 9 hole round 32. 7 rounds in the 40's. 9 rounds in the 30's.

36 - 18 hole rounds...high round 89, low round 71. 25 rounds in the 70's. 11 rounds in the 80's.

During the last 12 months I made par or better on holes 59% of the time. (Meaning I don't 41% of the time!) My breakdown is as follows 52% pars, 33% bogeys, 7% birdies, 7% double bogeys, 1% triple bogeys or worse. My average score on Par 3's is 3.48, Par 4's 4.46, and Par 5's 5.23.

Average Putts for me is 31.9 per round...with 2.9 up & downs per round. I 2 putt or better 91% of the time, with 67% of my holes 2 putts, 24% 1 putts. 9% 3 putts or worse.

I hit 50% of greens in regulation. I miss the most short (Like almost all golfers) 22%, I miss 9% left, 10% right and 7% long. (Note...I have improved to 54% from 47% since getting fit for new irons...2023 was a rough GIR year for me since my irons were about 7 years old and just didn't fit me anymore, my shafts were too heavy for my advanced age...and as a result my spin numbers were way too low). So this number is trending back upward for me since getting my new set).

I hit 54% of fairways, 20% of the time I miss left, 20% of the time I miss right, 6% either short or long.

The above may mean nothing to you, or it may help. If you think these type of stats would help your game...I encourage you to get the USGA GHIN app and ditch the scorecards, keep your scores and stats on your phone.