Bad rounds of golf are potentially caused by many different reasons. Here is a list of potential causes:
- Poor swing mechanics
- Poor mental game
- Nervous or anxious about the round of golf
- Golf course strategy
- New golf course
From my experience of playing the game over the past 32 years, I have found these reasons to be the top 5 reasons I play poor golf based on my level of expectations.
Why Do I have Bad Rounds of Golf?
The definition of a bad round will vary from golfer to golfer. My worst round this year was an 83 at maybe the most difficult golf course I have ever played on. This course happened to be Firestone North in Akron, Ohio.
It was a combination of a new golf course and the anxiety of hitting a bad shot, leading to poor swing mechanics or a hesitant golf swing at times.
These problems listed above can seep from one area to the next and impact your round of golf.
The good news is that I rebounded within a week and played my best round of the year, scoring a 67 at my home course.
So, let’s dive into the reasons above and provide a solution you can use during the round if you identify one of these causes as the root of your issues during your round.
Cause #1: Poor Swing Mechanics
The golf swing is a complicated move. For many golfers, they are swinging a 46 inch driver at over 100 miles per hour, trying to hit 14 quality drives in a round of golf. Naturally, there are going to be rounds where your mechanics are somewhat off and that is fine. Learning to make adjustments and not expecting to play perfect golf are a great way to adjust to a day where your swing is slightly off.
Here are some quick tips that might help:
- Adjust to your ball flight for that day. If you are hitting a fade, play the fade until you straighten it out a bit.
- Develop a “bunt” like swing with the driver for those days when your swing is a bit off and you are not quite catching it how you normally do. You might give up 10-15 yards off your normal drive, but can keep the ball in play.
- Stay patient! Golf takes 4 hours and during that time, you can hit a quality shot and ride that feel for a while.
- Manage your expectations! At times, we can all have unrealistic expectations. Don’t let the bad shot ruin your round. Be grateful that you get to play and enjoy the round and the time outside!
Cause #2: Poor mental game
There are days when we get to a golf course that are just simply a struggle. Our mind might be elsewhere such as at work or at home even when we are on the golf course.
I have found the following tips to be helpful when playing:
- Be grateful for the opportunity
- Don’t let me level of golf define me
- Embrace the challenge of maybe not having your “best game” that day.
I have read plenty of golf mental resources and try to take this learning to course. It is easy to have a strong mental game when things are going well, but the real challenge is when we hit a bad shot or two earlier in the round!
Cause #3: Nervous or anxious about the round of golf
Whether it is a big tournament, an outing, a club championship or simply playing with someone that you want to impress, we have all been there where we play poorly because the round means a lot and it causes nervous or anxious feelings on the golf course. I have found that remaining patient and embracing the challenge of playing your best can help during these situations. Taking it one shot at a time and not allowing the round to define you as a person is important.
Cause #4: Golf course strategy
Some bad rounds are simply from bad decisions on a golf course. Just the other day I was playing with a friend that had the following situations:
- 1st scenario: 195 yards left into a par 5 for his 2nd shot – Hit a 3 Iron.
- 2nd scenario: 210 yards left into a par 5 for his 2nd shot – Hit a 3 wood.
- 3rd scenario: 140 yards left into a par 4 for his 2nd shot – Aimed too far left
In each of these situations, a poor club selection or a poor aim line left him with a bogey or worse in situations where he should have had a legitimate birdie putt at worse. I believe he played these 3 holes in 5 over.
What to do after a bad round of golf?
Here is what he could have done:
- 1st scenario: The wind was to his back and he should have hit a 4 iron. The 3 iron flew too far and left him with an impossible chip back to the green. He knows he can’t miss long, but was too aggressive.
- 2nd scenario: The wind was once again to our back. He made the same mistake that he made just two holes earlier. He failed to adjust to the wind and made another poor club selection.
- 3rd scenario: His golf ball was just in the left rough. There was a tree about 40 yards ahead of him. The pin was tucked left. He tried to go for the pin and go over the tree instead of playing 20 feet to the right, hitting the green and taking a two putt par. Instead he hit the tree, leading to a double bogey.
All three of these holes were poor decisions.
Cause #5: New golf course
This one usually impacts me the most. The fear of the unknown can lead to hesitation in the golf swing. This leads to lower quality ball striking and me trying to control everything.
Here is my new strategy when I head to a new course:
- Study the course ahead of time with different online features.
- Use my rangefinder to measure distance as best as possible.
- Remind myself to make a confident swing and live with the results.
There were two times this past season, where once I settled in on the new course, I played much better on the back 9. I need to start with the right mindset and focus on #3 above right from the beginning!
Next Steps: Identify and Correct
The best golfers are able to turn a round around during the middle of a round. The average golfer only has 1-2 bad rounds and then can turn it around. The weakest golfers have 1-4 weeks of bad golf before they find their solution.
Golfers should continue to build skill with drills like the Stock Shot Drill and the 9 Shot Challenge!
Build the skills, manage your emotions and make quality decisions. And and by the way, don’t forget to check out the 3 mental game resources linked above!
Have fun, embrace the journey and have a grateful heart!
My Secret To Golf Improvement
Let’s face it, in order to get really good at golf, we must practice frequently. About five years ago, I made the leap and invested in a golf simulator build for my garage. I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor and the TGC software and can now play over 100,000 courses including Augusta, Pebble Beach, Bethpage Black, Whistling Straits. St. Andrews and many other of the top 100 courses in the world.
This golf simulator setup, which is more affordable that you might imagine, has been a game changer. I can now play golf everyday of the year regardless of rain, snow, cold weather or time of day. I can practice or play rounds of golf. I can stand in the 11th fairway at Augusta and with the auto-rewind feature I am able to practice my approach shots from various differences.
It is worth checking out through Rain or Shine Golf as they offer some incredible packages along with financing offers that are difficult to beat.
Some direct links to Rain or Shine Golf for pricing and financing: