For many golfers, the task of breaking 80 for the first time can seem impossibly out of reach. But perhaps if you knew what was required, it wouldn't be such a daunting and seemingly unachievable goal? In this video, Dan Parker goes through some crucial shot data courtesy of Arccos which explains the areas that are most important when it comes to shooting something in the 70s, so you can adjust your strategy and expectations and learn how to break 80 in golf.
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00:00Breaking 80 is a goal for a lot of you golfers out there,
00:03but it can feel like a long way away.
00:06Well, I've got all the data and all the stats
00:09to tell you how it's done.
00:14So if you shoot below 80,
00:15you're probably somewhere between seven and 10 over par,
00:18depending on the part of the course.
00:19So in this video,
00:20we're gonna take a look at an eight index handicapper.
00:23I'm gonna see how they compile their round
00:25and try and learn some lessons from what they do
00:27according to the data.
00:30So before we head out onto our virtual golf course
00:32with our eight index golfer
00:34to learn a few lessons about breaking 80,
00:36let's take a look at what they need to score
00:38in order to break that target.
00:39So on average, an eight index golfer
00:42makes just 0.9 birdies per round,
00:447.7 pars, 7.2 bogeys, and 2.3 double bogeys or worse.
00:51So what is this showing us then?
00:52Well, first and foremost,
00:54it's not a birdie fest by any means to go and break 80.
00:56And this eight indexer on average
00:59isn't birdying even once a round.
01:01It's just a little bit below that.
01:03But what it is showing us
01:04is that we probably need to keep those doubles,
01:05triples, and worse off the card as much as possible.
01:09I think this is a scoring area
01:11where a lot of people fall down
01:12in that goal of trying to break 80.
01:14So if you break that down a step further,
01:16we can see that an eight index golfer
01:18averages 3.6 on par three holes,
01:214.5 on par fours,
01:24and 5.4 on par fives,
01:27which to me suggests that playing
01:30the slightly longer holes better
01:32is the key to breaking 80.
01:34So sneaking the odd birdie on a par five
01:37or playing well on a shortish par four
01:40are the keys to breaking 80.
01:41That par three scoring isn't great,
01:42but maybe go and attack those par fives a bit more.
01:48Right then, let's get out onto our virtual course then
01:50with our eight index golfer.
01:51No better place to start than the tee box
01:53with some driving statistics.
01:55Now, our course stats show us that on average,
01:57this eight index handicapper
01:59is averaging 237 yards off the tee,
02:02finding 47% of fairways.
02:04Now, that 237 might feel like a long way away off the tee.
02:07It might not seem like that much,
02:09and I average about 245 off the tee,
02:11so I'm in that area to go and break 80
02:15more often than not according to the data here.
02:17So don't worry about it too much,
02:19but to me, more than anything,
02:21these numbers on driving statistics
02:23suggest that accuracy and driving
02:24are probably actually the least important factor
02:28to breaking 80 on the golf course.
02:30These two stats suggest there's more emphasis
02:32on good course management,
02:34better quality iron shots, a solid short game.
02:38These are the real keys to breaking 80,
02:41whereas driving doesn't need to be
02:42the strongest part of your game to beat that score.
02:45So I just mentioned quality iron striking there,
02:51and I think this is an area
02:52that we really need to look at to actually break 80.
02:55So let's look at approach game and iron shots.
02:57So the average eight-index golfer
02:59is hitting a green in regulation 40% of the time.
03:03So that equates to 7.2 greens per round.
03:06And when we're looking at how far
03:07they are away from the green,
03:09a green in regulation will find them
03:11about 30 foot away from the hole,
03:13whereas a missed green will find them
03:14about 60 foot away from the hole.
03:16So we can see quite a big difference there,
03:18but also that the greens in regulation
03:20are still quite a way away.
03:22They're not stiffing it every time, right?
03:23They're still 30 foot away when they hit that green.
03:25So something to bear in mind.
03:27But if we break this green in regulation thing
03:29down to nine holes, that's 3.6 greens per nine, right?
03:35So all you've got to do to beat the eight-indexer,
03:37statistically, is hit four greens per nine, right?
03:42If you do that, you're on track
03:44to shoot somewhere in the 70s,
03:46which I think is actually, when you break it down,
03:48quite an achievable score, right?
03:50So if your current green in regulation percentage
03:52is around that 40% mark, you're already in a great area.
03:56If it's a little bit below it, what's stopping you here?
04:00Is it your driving putting you in bad positions?
04:02Let's work on that.
04:03Is it your iron shots, missing greens more often than not?
04:06Let's work on the iron shots.
04:08Whichever one it is, you know which one to work on.
04:10But I think focusing on that 40%
04:12green in regulation percentage,
04:15and what being that close to the pin every time
04:18is something to work on in order to break 80.
04:24Let's move our way up the hole now.
04:26We've hit our drive, we've hit our approach shot,
04:29and let's say we've missed that green in regulation
04:31by 60 foot, as the eight-indexer might do, you know,
04:35every other time, pretty much, a little bit more, in fact.
04:38Chipping, and you're short game.
04:40This is the area to strengthen
04:41if you want to break 80 right now,
04:43and you can go and work on that, and it's pretty easy.
04:45But let's look at what an eight-index golfer
04:46is doing right now, and how you compare to them, right?
04:50So an eight-index golfer gets up and down 40% of the time
04:54when they're within 25 yards of the pin.
04:56So sort of, you know, aprons, or you know,
04:59pin high right, pin high left, whatever it is.
05:02And this is actually quite a good conversion rate.
05:04I think where eight-index golfers
05:06become eight-index golfers, right?
05:08This is how they maintain their index and shoot low rounds.
05:11Because it isn't that far for scratch golfer.
05:12So a scratch golfer gets up and down
05:14from zero to 25 yards 57% of the time.
05:17There's a decent comparison there, I think,
05:18for the eight-indexes, and something to think about.
05:21Let's pop our eight-index golfer in a bunker
05:24near the green, just a little greenside bunker
05:26from inside 25 yards.
05:29Now, here, their up and down ratio drops a little bit.
05:31So only 24% of the time,
05:34which I think shows how tough bunkers are, I guess.
05:37We can all agree on that.
05:39But also that, you know, even eight-indexes
05:41don't get up and down that often.
05:42The most important stat from bunkers that I found
05:45is that they find the green from this greenside bunker
05:4881% of the time.
05:50And this is showing us, then,
05:52that they very rarely leave it in the bunker.
05:54You know, duff it in there, thin it into the face,
05:55whatever it is, and waste valuable shots around the green.
05:59So, you know, compare yourself to those stats there.
06:02How often are you leaving yourself in a bunker?
06:04You know, how often are you getting up and down
06:05from 25 yards and in?
06:08And if you can improve on that,
06:09you'll be well, well on your way
06:10to shooting something in the 70s.
06:13Now, we're on the green, and here is where a round can turn
06:19from a career best, something in the mid to high 70s,
06:22even the low 70s, to a run of the mill,
06:24something in the 80s.
06:25It's the putting green.
06:26Now, let's have a look at what our eight-index
06:29handicapper friend is doing over here.
06:31They're on the green, and how are they putting?
06:33So, we break it down.
06:34They are one putting, 3.9 times per round,
06:38two putting, 11.7 times per round,
06:41and three putting, just 2.4 times per round on average.
06:45And I say just, because that to me does feel pretty low.
06:49You could consider it high.
06:50I don't know.
06:50It depends how you look at this thing.
06:51Depends how you put at the minute.
06:52But when I put the three put stats next to a scratch golfer,
06:57so a scratch golfer's three putting 1.7 times a round,
06:59they're not that far off again.
07:01It's like that up and down percentage.
07:03I don't think these things are far off,
07:05and it's just proving to me that a tight, short game
07:08is what you need to break 80.
07:10I'm not going to say you're playing off scratch here,
07:11but just a tight or short game brings you to that level
07:14of these really, really good golfers
07:16breaking that number a lot of the time.
07:18So, if you put that all together,
07:20it's 1.8 putts per hole and 33.4 putts per round,
07:24which might feel like an achievable number.
07:27I hope it does, because it's something you need to do
07:28to break 80, but it's there or thereabouts.
07:31You don't have to be too far off two putts per hole
07:34to break 80.
07:35An up and down here, or a really stiff approach shot there
07:39is a one putt, and it brings that average down a little bit.
07:42It's all you're having to do here.
07:43You don't have to rake in 100 foot putts all the time.
07:47And I think it should be treated
07:49like the double bogey situation.
07:50They're going to happen three putts,
07:52but don't worry about them.
07:54Keep them to as minimal as possible,
07:55and it really chips down on your average
07:57and your scoring then.
07:59And I think putting, as I said with short game,
08:01is the way to break 80.
08:02Really focus on this, and the stats are showing us.
08:05So, there you have it, the stats and the data
08:07that should help you break 80
08:10next time you're on the golf course.
08:11Now, I can't help your swing or your ability.
08:14That's not my job.
08:15My job is to give you the data,
08:16give you some thoughts to go away with,
08:18whether it's course management,
08:19or more importantly,
08:20where to focus your next practice session.
08:23So, all of the data we're referencing in this video
08:25comes courtesy of Arcos Golf.
08:27Now, they've got a vast bank of over 750 million golf shots
08:32from real golfers on real golf courses all across the world.
08:35So, this is a really fascinating bit of information
08:38that we can use to go and learn for ourselves
08:40and play better golf ourselves.
08:42Now, if you want to try these smart sensors out for yourself,
08:45I've put some handy links down in the description
08:47where you can find the best price in your location.
08:49And I think from this data,
08:51we can see the driving isn't particularly important.
08:53Greens of regulation are,
08:54but maybe the approach game can be worked on,
08:56but it's all about that short game.
08:58Eight index golfers have a really tight short game,
09:01and I think they're achievable stats.